Hey folks! Sorry this took so long to make, I kinda had a Sprained Ankle, you know, the usual. I'm just lucky none of my bones were broken, I am currently recovering and am now able to actually sit normally, which gives me the opportunity to write again, now, let's get on with this Chapter.
Chapter 32: Old Wounds
One Month Later...
Malefor stepped outside, the warm sun gleamed down on his scales. The sky in Warfang was clear as he grabbed some empty bags and made his way to the market. He could feel the stares coming from the citizens, but he thought nothing of it as he entered the market, already everyone was set off by his presence, but he paid no mind and grabbed the items he needed: food, drinks, the essentials. As Malefor walked through the market, he caught sight of a Champagne and gasped when he realized it was the same type of Champagne he had gotten for Synthia on their one week anniversary. "Aren't you a rare find?" He muttered and placed a bottle into his grocery crate. Once he made it to the checkout, he placed the items on the counter and gave the Mole the required amount of gems.
"Keep the change." He said plainly and had the Mole pack the groceries into the bags he had brought with him.
"Well, uh...have a nice day." The Mole replied nervously and watched as Malefor grabbed the bags and nodded in thanks, he walked out of the market, and the Moles became less nervous as he departed. He stared into the clouds and reminisced about his past life with Synthia and walked calmly, embracing the calmness of the world that surrounded him, he found particular pleasure in watching the birds fly throughout Warfang.
"Hey!" Malefor turned to see a Pale, Flesh-colored Dragon.
"May I help you?" He asked as the Dragon walked up to him.
"No, you cannot, you disgusting wretch. I shan't associate myself with those that are beneath me."
"Do I know you?"
"Now you do, Moonwalker's the name, and remember it. I know who you are, Malefor, who doesn't? Regardless, Cyril speaks greatly of you." Moonwalker informed the Purple Drake. "Not in the complimentary way, of course, he despises you. I just came to see if you're as wretched as he claims." He spoke in a posh tone, much to Malefor's annoyance.
"Look, I've had my fair share of insults, and none of them will hurt me more than they already have. So if you don't mind-" Malefor tried to walk by, but Moonwalker grabbed his wing membrane, stopping him, he leaned in close.
"I will run you out of this city, mark my words. You poor excuse for a Dragon, then I'll make sure you never were born. I know what you did, and what really happened to Synthia." Once Moonwalker said the name, Malefor grabbed him and flipped him over his head and onto the ground with a neutral expression, then he knelt close to Moonwalker.
"If you ever mention that name to me again, I will do much worse than what I just did. Understand?" He bared his fangs at Moonwalker, who slightly cowered.
"What's going on here?" Malefor heard the familiar voice of Spyro and saw the Young Dragon walking up to him.
"It's nothing, son. Someone might've pushed a few buttons they should've left alone." Malefor said through gritted teeth as Moonwalker sat up.
"If it isn't Spyro, tell me, how's the freak club treating you?" Spyro turned to see Terrain, one month of festering anger seemed to have cracked the Earth Dragon's kind demeanor and turned him into a jerk.
"Terrain, don't make this difficult." Spyro requested, but Terrain didn't flinch.
"Oh, I'm going to make it difficult. Being the son of the Dark Master is quite the experience, is it not?" Terrain snapped.
"Leave him be." Malefor stepped in front of Spyro. "If you have a quarrel with my son, you can take it up with me. I may not prone to violence, but I will defend my family!" He growled as his tail lashed from side-to-side in an aggressive manner.
"That's enough!" Both groups turned to see an elderly Mole walk up to them, he bonked Terrain's head with his cane, and turned to the Dragons and Moles watching.
"If any of you had some common sense, you'd realize this isn't worth your time, now scram! Before I inform the Authorities!" His statement seemed to scare them away. Then he turned to Spyro and Malefor.
"Thanks." Spyro shook the Mole's hand.
"My pleasure, I know what it's like to be an outcast, I am Mole-Yair." The Mole bowed.
"It's good to know there aren't only enemies within these walls." Malefor sighed in relief as Mole-Yair nodded.
"If you need me, go to the northeast side of Warfang, you can find me there." He bid them farewell and Spyro picked up some of the groceries that Malefor was carrying.
"You don't need to help me, Spyro." Malefor tried to convince him to not aid him.
"I insist, Dad. I'm gonna help, besides, Ignitus doesn't need me for another hour." Spyro responded and the two of them walked to Malefor's house, meanwhile, Moonwalker had stood upright and growled at their silhouettes.
"Enjoy it while you can, Malefor. I meant what I said...I will make you feel pain, I will escape this humiliating world and gain vengeance on every version of Spyro for my exile..." Moonwalker muttered and walked away. Once Spyro and Malefor entered the house, they placed the groceries on the counter top.
"Thank you for helping, Spyro." Malefor smiled as Spyro nodded.
"Sure, anything for you. I just want to help you in any way I can, but I should still head to the Dragon Temple. Ignitus may not need me in another hour, but Cynder will want to spend some time with me." He replied, causing Malefor to chuckle.
"Then you'll want to get going, Spyro. It's not polite to keep a lady waiting, I should know." Malefor sent him on his way and started unpacking his groceries, and started to reminisce again.
Many Years Ago...
"Malefor, come on! We're gonna be late for the Ball!" Ignitus knocked on his door.
"I'm coming! I'm coming!" Malefor scrambled to finish polishing his scales and spray slight perfume on his body. Tonight was the annual Ball, an event that Malefor never went to prior to getting together with Synthia. But this would be his first time with her, Ignitus always went with Terrador as a friend just to have fun and dance, Malefor usually spent the time studying his Magic. He grabbed the same bow-tie he had worn to his one week anniversary with Synthia, and opened the door to see Ignitus smirking.
"You took your time."
"Shut up and walk."
The two Dragons walked through the Courtyard when Malefor caught sight of a Dragon selling some Flowers, he walked over and pulled out some gems to pay for some Lilacs. As he walked back, he started conversing with Ignitus. "Where's Incendia?" He asked.
"She's gonna meet me at the Ball, which is why I wanted to get moving 10 minutes ago. Timing is key, now: do I look nice?" Ignitus's question made Malefor chuckle.
"You look great, I just wish you looked like this more often, you're a mess normally." His comment made Ignitus raise an eyebrow.
"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked, but Malefor didn't answer and kept walking. They eventually made it to the main Temple and saw Synthia and Incendia standing at the stairs, waiting for them.
"You're late." Synthia walked up to Malefor, who held the back of his head.
"Apologies, I got a little caught up in studying. I got you these." He present the Lilacs to Synthia, who smiled lovingly and took the flowers.
"Okay, you're forgiven." She kissed his cheek.
"Aw, and you didn't get me any flowers?" Incendia asked Ignitus, feigning disappointment, but the Fire Dragon coiled his tail around hers.
"I brought myself, is that good enough?" He remarked.
"Always." Incendia nuzzled Ignitus and the two couples walked up the stairs and into the Temple to start their long night.
"Cyn!" Spyro called out and walked up to the Dragoness, who was delighted to see him.
"Hey Spyro, ready for our "Quick Date"?" Cynder had penned a name for the short times they had together.
"That, is a terrible name." Spyro replied as Cynder rolled her eyes.
"Well, I think it's nice." She mumbled as they walked throughout Warfang together, particularly through the green house while they admired the plants.
"My father was very interested in the natural world, kinda makes it hard to believe that he was the Dark Master." Spyro pointed out as they continued browsing.
"This place is crowded." Ignitus said to Malefor as they entered with their respective dates.
"Well, I for one am excited to show Malefor all the Ball has to offer. I usually go with friends for fun. So I can show you all this cool stuff." Synthia explained and tugged at the Purple Drake's arm, beckoning for him to come with her. In response to this, He bid Ignitus adieu and followed Synthia, who first lead him to the food table.
"So, uh...What's this?" Malefor asked the enthusiastic Dragoness.
"It's food, dummy, and that's Punch." Synthia responded as Malefor blushed in embarrassment.
"Oh, sorry." He smiled weakly while Synthia grabbed a small plate, and placed various treats and snacks on it.
"I want to give you a full experience, so I'm going to insist you try all this stuff, it's very good." She lead Malefor to a table and had him sit down. "Go on, try it." Synthia beckoned Malefor, who picked up a small chocolate cube with vanilla stripes, he took a bite and was overwhelmed by the sweetness of the treat.
"It's good, really good." He licked his chops and looked down at the plate, wondering what to try next, Synthia sat down beside him and coiled her tail around his.
"Here, try this." She gave him a small green fruit.
"What's that?" Malefor asked.
"You've never had a Grape ever?" Synthia was confused.
"Well...I never was one for fruit." He explained, causing the Dragoness to roll her eyes.
"Now you are, go on, try it." She gave him the Grape and watched as he started chewing on it.
"It's very tart. I like it." Malefor replied and started to eat some more of the foods Synthia presented.
"I had fun today, Spyro." Cynder smiled as the two entered the Dragon Temple.
"You're acting like we're not gonna see each other for the rest of the day, Ignitus said he wanted to speak with me about something, and then we can get back to being together." He reassured his lover and made his way to the Library where Ignitus was sitting.
"Ah, Young Dragon, welcome."
"Hey Ignitus, you wanted to see me."
"Indeed Young Dragon, come now, I wish to speak with you." Ignitus stood upright and lead Spyro through the Library, after a little bit of walking. They stopped.
"Young Dragon, I wanted to speak to you in regards to the new ability you discovered when Malefor was to be executed. You could use Shadow. Most rare, Malefor explained it could be the result of you lineage and relation to Synthia. But, I expect you to master this ability to help defend the Dragon Realms from other threats more vast than the Dark Master. For this, I've decided that Cynder will instruct you to master the skill and harness it." The Fire Guardian explained to Spyro.
"Where have I heard this scenario before..." He trailed off and remembered when Ignitus had Spyro train Cynder with her multiple elements.
"I realize it's a similar situation, but I feel it's only natural. That is all, bring Cynder in for me so I can give her the news." Ignitus responded and let Spyro go, upon leaving, he saw that Cynder had waited for him.
"What did he say?" She asked, and Spyro merely gestured for her to enter the Library.
"Ignitus wants to talk with you." He added on as the Dragoness entered the Library, and Spyro sat down, waiting for her to take the news.
"Well, that was filling." Malefor laid back in the chair he was in while Synthia giggled at his posture.
"Hey Malefor...do you know how to dance?" She asked, causing the Purple Drake to look at her with a raised eyebrow.
"I can learn." Before he could say anything else, Synthia dragged him onto the dance floor and started to dance enthusiastically (Okay, don't freak out about an interjection, but I'm giving some context, there are forms of music in this world. So in a way, they have their own version of things like rock n'roll or disco, granted they aren't called that, right now they're listening to a form of Hip Hop. But it's not called that, and no, they don't have radios or any advanced technology, but they do have some music boards and other basic equipment, just a note to add some context, I know this is weird but the point is they know what Music is, now, continue.).
"Come on, Malefor, let loose and unwind from all that stress!" She said through the loud noise, Malefor was a little hesitant at first, but eventually he started to dance as well. Before long, the music changed to a more slow-dance type of song, upon seeing this change, Synthia was surprised as Malefor flawlessly stood on his hind legs and grasped Synthia's front paws, allowing for them to slow dance. "I didn't know you could dance so well." She was fairly surprised, but Malefor brushed it off.
"I take a few notes from observations." He replied as they danced together, eventually Synthia rested her head against his chest.
"This has been an incredible night so far, Malefor." Synthia smiled as they danced together.
"And I think you're the one responsible for that, my Sapphire. I love you." Malefor replied, they stared into each other's eyes, and kissed. The moment was magical, they had kissed hundreds of times at this point, but it felt special in this situation. Eventually, the two Dragons pulled back and kept dancing...well, at least till Synthia yawned and showed signs of exhaustion. "Seems like someone's tired, I think we should call it a night." He kissed her forehead and walked towards Ignitus and Incendia, who were also dancing.
"Hey Malefor." Ignitus greeted him.
"Me and Synthia are gonna depart for the night, see ya." Malefor explained and they left the Temple.
"Hey Malefor, do you think you could carry me to your quarters?" Synthia asked through another yawn, causing the Purple Dragon to chuckle.
"Sure, up you go." He knelt down and had Synthia lay on his back, he strained himself to stand up at first from the extra weight, but once Malefor started walking, he could manage. It didn't take long for him to return to his quarters, since it was fairly close, and once he entered, he placed the now asleep Synthia on the mattress. He too was about to pass out, but he noticed a blue flash of light in the distance.
"What in the...?" Malefor muttered and walked outside to investigate, he saw that the light was emanating from...Froststorm's quarters. "Oh no." His mild walk turned into a sprint as he rushed towards Froststorm's quarters, as soon as he arrived, he knocked on the door repeatedly.
"Froststorm! Are you in there?" He asked, no response. "Froststorm! I know you're in there, open the door." Malefor started banging on the door to open it, the blue light merely got brighter as shown through the cracks of the door, eventually. Malefor stepped back and closed his eyes, he lifted his hand and the purple magic aura formed around it, and he used it to unlock and open the door.
"Froststorm, what in the Ancestors are you-!?" Malefor was in utter shock as the Ice Dragon was staring at a massive Aqua Blue vortex.
"This, this is what I've searching for! The Guardian is real, Malefor!" Froststorm raised his arms, while he said this, Malefor saw some familiar books on his bedside table.
"Hey...those are my Magic Studies books! Froststorm, what did you do?" Malefor demanded an answer as the Ice Dragon turned to face him.
"I have been searching for the hidden sign to find the Guardian for weeks now, none of you would believe me! Now, I finally have access to the Guardian's realm!" Froststorm explained as Malefor saw Hazan in the doorway.
"What is going on here!?" He exclaimed as Malefor pointed at the vortex.
"Now: my destiny awaits." Froststorm started walking into the vortex.
"No, Froststorm! I can't let you!" Malefor grabbed his arm as the Ice Dragon tried to break free.
"Let me go!" He yelled, but in doing so, pulled them both through the vortex.
"Oh Ancestors!" Malefor was terrified as they fell through a bright blue tunnel, but Froststorm remained calm. They eventually fell through the portal and landed on a hard surface. "Ow..." Malefor rubbed his head and looked around, they seemed to be in a room filled with several more vortexes, there were shelves with Jars on them containing small glowing orbs floating in the middle of them. Malefor inspected the names on the jars, one of them said in italics: "Flashwing."
"What the hell?" He backed away and saw a large podium with a scroll on it.
"Welcome." Malefor turned around to see a large Black and Blue Dragon walking up to them.
"Who are you?" The Purple Drake asked.
"I am Guardian #42, and you should not be here." The large Dragon introduced himself.
"I knew it! I knew you were real!" Froststorm said triumphantly.
"Indeed, and you followed the signs I left for you. I did this to call you to my home: the Time Nexus, I have selected you to be: the Protector." The Guardian explained to Froststorm.
"The Protector? What's that?" Malefor asked.
"The Protector is the enforcer of us Guardians, I am not the only Guardian out there. But we each watch over a designated cluster of universes. Some of us have Protectors, a mortal Dragon hand picked from one of the universes and given immense cosmic power to watch over each universe, with the ability to jump from different realities. I have chosen Froststorm as my Protector." The Guardian tapped Froststorm's forehead and immediately his body lit up vibrantly, glowing a bright crystal white which Malefor had to shield himself from to keep his eyesight. Once the light dimmed down, he looked and saw the Froststorm's body still sparkled very prominently.
"Woah..." Malefor muttered as Froststorm looked at himself.
"Now this is cool, wait...my mental state feels...vastly improved." Froststorm pointed out to the Guardian, who nodded.
"Yes, I noticed you're psyche was damaged during your attempts to contact me, so I fixed it up. As for you, Malefor, you must return to your world." The Guardian stated and opened another blue vortex.
"So Froststorm is going to stay here?" Malefor asked, and the Guardian nodded.
"It's not goodbye, there's a good chance Froststorm will return to your universe on more than one occasion. This portal will take you to moments before you fell into the portal with Froststorm." He informed the Purple Drake as he slowly walked towards the portal.
"Just for the record: this is insane, and I'm not sure if it's good or bad yet." Malefor pointed out and waved farewell to Froststorm before walking through the portal, and was immediately falling again. "Oh come on!" He yelled and fell through the portal, but it didn't take as long for him to return and he landed on the hard pavement, he looked up and saw himself and Froststorm falling through the portal.
"Great...now I get to explain everything to Hazan and the others." He groaned and stood up as he began to walk to the elderly Dragon to explain the events that caused him to return.
Well, isn't that neat? Anyways, Next Chapter will probably focus on more present events as Malefor struggles to live through the extremely punishing social life he currently has, but in terms of redeeming himself in the eyes of the public, I'm gonna need a few Chapters for that, but his first act of redemption will happen next Chapter, and it will involve the newly introduced Moonwalker. As for Froststorm, let me quell any false theories, he is in fact the same Froststorm who appears in the Ultimate Crossover, so he is special, which means even this world is connected to the events of other stories. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna eat some food, peace!