Chapter 07: Ghosts
October 28, 10:12 AM
Sharp winds and sun, that's what Spyro liked to see.
Spyro flew above the tree line, flapping his wings and was happy to finally be above it all, and give his wings a much needed work out. Sparx and Flame flew right beside him, the bright sun slapping against their scales. Flame laughed a bit as he soared above Spyro, inviting him to climb higher. Spyro accepted this challenge, flying higher and higher. Sparx let out an anguished groan, unable to keep pace with the crazy dragons as they raced one another in the skies above the forests.
Below on the ground, Jericho sat in Hunter's jeep. The anthro cheetah had agreed to take them the leg of the journey to get them close to Cynder's friend. Hunter had stayed true to his word and was sitting in the driver's seat of the vehicle as it raced across the landscape. The vehicle was an old military Humvee from before the war, but had been through several modifications. Its old plating had long ago been stripped away, leaving only the frame. A new series of panels had been bolted on, and painted to match Hunter's group. In the back seat sat a silent Cynder, her head hung low and looking down at the floor boards. Spyro and Flame had opted to fly above them while they drove, but Cynder chose to remain in the truck. The others didn't know why she would pass up this chance to fly, but Jericho knew.
He sat in the front seat, recalling the events of last night to himself in quiet. He hadn't said much on the trip either, just holding his rifle close to his chest. Even though he had seen it, and recounted what had happened in his head, he still wasn't sure of what to make of it.
He had… saved her. Why? Why did he save her? Why in the HELL did he just SAVE a Sentinel?! She was the enemy! He saw her down there, in grave danger from the Soul Devil plant. The plant feasted on dragons only, and had chosen Cynder as its prey. It ate only once every few years, which is why they can lay in hiding for so long, then spring up on an unsuspecting creature without warning. They claim their prey, then slip back into the depths to hide for several more years. They didn't so much feast on the meat of the dragons as much as their life force. To be devoured by a Soul Devil was more than just a death sentence. It was damnation. Your soul would be trapped and then absorbed within the plant, not even given the chance to exist in the afterlife. Or… whatever the hell the dragons got for an afterlife.
Seeing Cynder chosen like that… he didn't know what to make of it. There were many creatures and predators or even phenomena that drew their strength from dragons. They hunted dragons specifically and drew upon their life for energy. It was an odd occurrence, considering how high on the food chain dragons actually were. He just… couldn't think of a worse fate for her. Even… well, for her. He wouldn't wish that fate onto anyone, and he didn't think she deserved that.
Oh, and the fact that Spyro needed her to get that stupid collar off. As much as he hated to admit it, Spyro was very helpful to him getting to New York. Hunter was right in that regard, but Jericho still didn't see why it was HIS duty to watch over the tyke. He could take care of himself… well as soon as he got that collar off. He needed Cynder to do that for him, and he seemed to have taken a trust in Cynder. For what reasons he did that, Jericho would never know. It probably had to do with what got that collar on him in the first place.
Turning back he could see her staring at the floor softly. Who knew what was going through her mind, it didn't look like hatred or anger. It looked like… fear. Heh, a Sentinel being afraid, who'd have thought?
He turned back towards the front of the vehicle, sighing as he watched the trees pass by them. He could see rain in the distance, a coming storm. He hoped they'd get to their destination soon, he'd hate to get caught in that.
"Here we are, the border of our lands." Hunter said softly, pulling to the edge of a large field.
"This is as far as you can take us?" Jericho asked.
"As far as I can safely take you. I don't want to risk losing this out in the wilderness out there. You should have a clear path towards the locksmith's home. Hopefully she will lead the way."
Jericho stepped out of the jeep, retrieving his gear and rifle.
"We'll see about that." He said. She didn't even look at him, she just stepped off the vehicle and stepped down into the grass with him.
"You may want to seek some shelter from the storm. I hear there may be some underground caves in the area you can use." Hunter said. Spyro and Flame landed nearby as they saw the vehicle come to a stop, Sparx joining them shortly after.
"Right, we'll want to take it before that storm rolls on in."
"By the way, Spyro, be careful on your journey." Hunter remarked, turning to the young dragon.
"I know how to take care of myself." He said, smirking.
"Yes, well I think we're all in for some surprises." Hunter said, smirking as well.
"Right, let's head out then. Lead the way dragon." Jericho said, motioning to Cynder.
She just frowned, walking towards the field. Jericho frowned as well, sensing her condition after last night. Spyro saw it as well, frowning as she had been silent this entire trip save for the occasional swats at Jericho. Today, there had been none. What had happened last night after he fell asleep? They had heard the gunshots from Jericho's weapon, and had seen Hunter scrambling to the freeway, helping a limp Cynder back into the outpost. None of them had said a word to them. Perhaps they'd never know.
"Farewell, and be well." Hunter said before starting the vehicle up and turning around.
"Same to you!" Jericho said, waving back before starting into the field.
The field was massive, and was bordered by large mountains on either side. A few trees here and there dotted the large field, its tall grass yellowing from the coming autumn. Small grey rocks dotted the landscape as well, all in varying heights and sizes. Spyro could see for almost a mile or more he ventured to guess, the field was just massive.
The clouds above them were beginning to settle in, and a light mist was beginning to form around them. Spyro could feel the water against his face, the small droplets feeling refreshing as the winds had begun to pick up. The grass swayed softly in response to the wind, and they could barely make out the sun as it was being obscured by the cloud cover now.
"Wonder where those caves were that Hunter mentioned." Flame said, walking beside Spyro.
"Let's hope we can find an entrance. I also hope they don't flood out when it starts to rain." Jericho said, walking behind them. Cynder was in the lead, looking around for possibly the same thing they were. Sparx buzzed around them, stopping and looking in certain spots for a bit before moving on. Sparx finally smiled and flew to one spot in particular, buzzing happily as he had found something.
"What is it Sparx?" Spyro asked, walking over. Sparx was buzzing over a hole in the ground, a hole that lead straight into some sort of compartment or cave below.
"Bingo…" Jericho said, walking over to the hole and peering down into it. The hole was large enough for them to fit through, but was barely obscured by the grass. They would have been lucky not to fall right in.
"Stay here, I'll check it out." Jericho said. The others stood back as Jericho fished a rope from his sack, a claw attached to one end. He sank the claw deep into the ground, giving it a tug for reassurance. Satisfied with it, he tossed the rope down into the hole and he climbed onto it. He disappeared beneath the top of the ground, sinking into the black that was the room below. They heard the sound of his boots hitting rock, and the sounds of rocks scattering to his presence. They could see him just below, not that far down actually.
"It's all clear, come on down!" Jericho yelled from below.
"Alright, I call dibs!" Flame yelled, leaping down inside. Spyro smirked at him as Sparx buzzed in after the red dragon. He moved to enter the hole but looked to Cynder who was looking out over the horizon before turning to enter the hole.
"After you." She said. Spyro smirked before leaping down into the hole. Cynder followed right after him, joining the rest of them inside the room.
A room was definitely the best way Spyro would describe where they had landed. It was obvious this was no cave, but a room indeed. The walls were all made from what Spyro would guess to be concrete or stone, and had been carved perfectly. They were obvious forger designs. The room was long, and there were many rotting wooden fixtures that lay scattered about. In the back of the room, there lay what Spyro could recognize as a desk, or maybe even a counter. It had been made out of glass at one point, with a metal frame holding it together. Only the metal frame remained, and it was heavily rusted at that. Rotting cloths lined the floor, along with various other debris hanging more metal racks that had fallen over. The floor was just an absolute mess from broken concrete and tattered papers. On the far wall, opposite from them was an opening, leading into a much more massive chamber. The chamber had been sealed off by some metal gate, inhibiting all access to it.
Looking back up Spyro saw the hole they had entered through. The hole went right through the room's ceiling, and he could see the sky above. There was only about a foot of soil sitting on top of the concrete ceiling, which meant this whole time they had been above this room.
"Where are we?" Flame asked.
"Not sure… looks like an old store." Jericho said, pulling out his flashlight. He shined it around the room, though the light from the hole proved to be more effective. The entire room had a depressing grey hue to it, whatever color had been in here had been long ago sucked out.
"Doesn't look like a store to me." Spyro said, looking at the fallen metal racks with cloths hanging from them.
Cynder was looking around as well, looking at some of the tattered fabric hanging from an old display case. She seemed to look at it for a long time before moving on.
Jericho moved towards the metal gate, prompting Spyro to follow him. Jericho placed his hands on the metal grate that separated them from the chamber outside, and Jericho looked around outside for a few moments.
"Hey Spyro, give me a hand with this will you?" Jericho asked, kneeling down to grab at the base of the gate.
"Like this?" Spyro asked, moving down to slip his claws under as well.
"Yeah just tug up for me." Jericho said, pulling up at the gate. Spyro did as well, even in his awkward position. Together they lifted the gate up from its position, Jericho now able to fully lift it up and above their heads.
Jericho peered now into the open chamber, and gave a low whistle. Spyro walked outside with him, looking out as well.
The chamber was massive, that was for sure. It was a long hallway that ran perpendicular to the room they were in, and Spyro could see many more rooms like this one lining the walls. There were two floors from what Spyro could see, and they were on the top one. Below there were even more rooms, of varying size and design. Along the edge of the hallway there was a catwalk that connected all the rooms to each other. There were even more large hallways that intersected theirs, and went off in all directions.
Along the roof to the hallway there were more holes that went right up to the surface. These holes actually looked like they had been built on purpose, rather than being punched in. Dirt and grass obscured some of these holes, but light was filtering in nonetheless, casting a bright white hue across the empty hallway. Grass and various plants were growing on the floor of the hallway, directly underneath the holes. This was probably because dirt had fallen from above and water from passing rain would cause it all to grow. It was an interesting sight indeed. The question still stood, what the hell kind of place was this?
"That's what I thought. We're in an old mall." Jericho said, leaning over one of the rails that lined the catwalks.
"A mall? What's that?"
"It's a… it's a collection of stores and markets. They'd all set up in these rooms here and people would come from all over to shop at each of them." Jericho said, walking down the catwalk towards a staircase.
"Like a marketplace?" Spyro asked, thinking back to the various marketplaces in his hometown.
"Yeah, like a marketplace." Jericho said, almost in a joking manner. He walked down the staircase but kept his weapon at the ready. Cynder and Flame joined them at the stairs, and Sparx had… well gone to be Sparx somewhere in this place. Spyro was sure Sparx would find something to entertain himself in this massive place.
"Wow, look at this place!" Flame exclaimed, gliding down from the top level. Cynder just looked on in silence, taking it all in for herself.
"Did your people always build these places underground?" Spyro asked, looking around at the damaged and abandoned structure.
"Well, no… None that my father talked about. I doubt this place was built underground on purpose, probably got buried at some point." Jericho said, lowering his weapon as there were no obvious threats.
"Think this place is cooler buried." Flame joked, looking around. There were many, many more of these shops and stores Jericho had mentioned, possibly a hundred in this hallway alone! Spyro could see into each of them, seeing the shelves and stands that were probably once packed with items, probably food or armor or even weapons. Though, all Spyro could see were more of those fabrics and cloths from the other store.
"What do we have here…?" Jericho asked, stopping suddenly.
"What do you see?" Spyro asked, stopping as well.
"Stay close." Jericho said, sprinting lightly ahead. Spyro followed closely, along with Flame and Cynder. Up ahead was a hallway, like there's but even bigger. The room itself was almost twice as wide as theirs and looked like some sort of hub area with more hallways branching out in other directions. A central desk sat in the middle, with an old sign laying nearby that read "INFORMATION". All around the desk there were metal fences, scattered both on the floor and against the wall. Broken tables, desks and crates were scattered around the room too.
A much larger skylight sat above this room, illuminating the whole place. A large metal frame sat within the skylight, where Spyro assumed glass or some other covering might have been. He had seen those before, and he could even see the shards of glass still stubbornly clinging to the metal above. He could see the swirling grey clouds above, and even a large tree that was growing nearby. Its roots had even dug into the concrete and dirt, winding along the top of the ceiling and clinging to the old concrete.
That wasn't exactly what Jericho was looking at. No, what he was looking at was what was on the ground, all around. Spyro couldn't believe he had missed it.
Bones, bones were everywhere. Just like at the overpass near Hunter's outpost there were bones, human bones at that. They were absolutely everywhere, there must've been dozens, no hundreds of them. What had happened…?
"I think we just scored the jackpot…" Jericho said, walking over to the bodies.
"That's gross man, what do you want with bones?" Flame asked.
"Not the bones dumbass." Jericho clarified, moving the bodies aside. Underneath the rotting bones where were black objects. They were weapons.
The weapons looked almost identical to the weapon Jericho carried, which meant they were all Forger in design and origin. Those were rare, rare sights indeed!
Jericho passed the weapons up, pulling out the black banana shaped clips from the weapons and inspecting their contents.
"Bingo… still good." Jericho said, confirming there was still ammunition in the clips.
"Check those bodies over there." Jericho said, pointing to another cluster of bodies.
"Uh, right." Flame said, walking over to them. He pulled at the bones, but wasn't finding much of anything.
"Not them, check the ones with equipment and gear. They were the soldiers, they would have carried ammo." Jericho said.
"Oh! Right…" Flame said, looking around. It was hard to differentiate the bodies, since the blackened clothing all looked the same on top of the bones. Occasionally a body would have a vest on it, with different pouches and equipment. Nearby were the black weapons Jericho was seeking, still intact.
"Gotcha…" Flame said, tugging at the weapons with his talons. They were awkward to grip, but he only had to free them from their previous owner's grasp.
"I can't believe a place like this hasn't been ransacked yet, it's a goldmine." Jericho said, pulling the weapons into a pile and removing their clips. He also searched all the pouches on the soldiers, removing them of any bullet he could find.
Cynder huffed at the sight, her eyes saying she found what Jericho was doing was insulting.
"Maybe nobody could find this place?" Spyro asked, looking around a bit more.
"Maybe, though there are people who hunt for places like these. These weapons are right where they were dropped. I haven't seen that in a long time." Jericho explained, grabbing a sack from one of the fallen bodies to put more ammo and gear into.
"Maybe…" Spyro said, looking around the massive room again. He felt a chill against his scales, and gave a soft shiver.
"What's the matter Spyro?" Flame asked, seeing this.
"Oh, it's nothing. Just a draft in here." Spyro said, rubbing his arm. Cynder looked at him with an odd look.
"I didn't feel any draft." She said softly.
"It's probably nothing then." Spyro said, shaking it off.
"If there's weapons and ammo here there must be other supplies. This looks like it might have been an evacuation center at one point, see if you can't find any food rations somewhere in here." Jericho said, standing up.
"Come on Spyro, let's go find us some grub!" Flame said happily. Spyro smiled, nodding.
"Right, I could use something right now myself."
"Come on, dragon with the most food wins!" Flame said, running out.
"Hey, wait up!" Spyro yelled after him, not wanting to get left behind. Jericho just watched with a smirk but frowned afterwards, continuing with his task of ammo collection. Cynder just sat on the other side of the room, looking at the bodies. Her gaze sat somewhere between uninterested to that of deep thought. Jericho ignored her for the moment, continuing with his task.
He continued removing the clips from the soldiers, before he heard a set of footsteps behind him. He placed his hand on his rifle's grip by instinct, ready to swing it around if need be. The footsteps stopped, a few feet behind him. He lifted his head, looking back.
Cynder stood behind him, with her gaze pointed down at the floor.
Jericho relaxed a bit, letting his hand drift from his weapon. She stood there silent for a few moments, Jericho wondering what she wanted.
"Why did you do it?" She finally asked.
"Why did I do what?" Jericho responded, turning back to the body before him.
"Don't play stupid. I'm a Sentinel, you're a Human. You saved me from the Soul Devil. Why did you do it?" She asked again, her gaze lifting up to him now. Jericho stopped searching the body, setting a hand softly on the fabric of the vest the fallen human had once worn.
"Spyro needs you to get that collar off, and Spyro's been a great help to me this whole time. You being dead doesn't help anyone." Jericho said, almost in a cold manner.
"Is that it then?" She just asked.
Jericho sighed, crossing his arms as he stared at the skull of the human in front of him. He leaned forward, pressing his hand on the skull, feeling it.
"Nobody deserves to die by a Soul Devil. People like these, they get to live on as spirits, ghosts. You don't even get to do that when you're eaten by one of those. I wouldn't wish it on anyone." Jericho said, closing his eyes. He wasn't a particularly religious man, but the thought of having your soul condemned to that fate, of just ceasing to exist on any plane… it scared him. Cynder didn't say anything behind him for a bit, looking down at the floor again. Jericho looked back at her, seeing a tear drop from her face.
"Thank you." She simply said, turning and walking away. Jericho sat up again, watching her. Was that a tear? Thank you? All his life, he hadn't known Sentinels to show much emotion, or much less thank a human for saving them. He sighed softly. He… honestly didn't blame her. Between the energy storm and the Soul Devil, he'd be pretty afraid too. Just the Soul Devil alone would make him think twice about things. Being targeted by one of those… being close to just being damned like that… it couldn't do good for one's mental health. It was probably enough to bring a mighty Sentinel like her to her knees. He almost pitied her. Almost…
With a sigh, Jericho turned back to the body, seeing that there was a dog tag still attached to the human's neck. He pulled it off, reading the name from the old tag. It hadn't really hit him until now, that this person used to be… well, a person. This person had emotions like him, felt fear like he did, and met an end Jericho hoped to not meet anytime soon. It was easy to forget that while in the grit of just trying to survive. Though… it helped to remember things like this. It helped to remember, so things like this weren't forgotten, like so many things in this world were. He rubbed the tag softly before placing it in his pocket. He then moved to the next body, checking it for ammo and another tag as well.
/Transitioning…/
[Done]
Spyro ran through the empty mall with Flame, trying to keep up with the fire dragon. The mall was massive, bigger than the mighty market places in the Inner City back home. Here, it went on forever, stores and shops that were probably once filled with various items. The scenes though now, were all the same.
Bodies were strewn across the floor, numbering in maybe even above a thousand. It was a frightening sight for them as they slowed down at the sight of more bodies. There were more signs around here that the building had been buried, with many sections of the building having given way, dirt and rock now obscuring passageways and shops, or just letting in more light from the outside world. It was raining now outside, with a light rain filtering in through the openings in the ceiling and debris, forming small puddles on the grey concrete floors.
"Man, wonder what all these guys sold and bought here." Flame asked, stopping near one of the many intersecting hallways.
"Not sure, though if they were anything like the markets back home, that'd be food, lots of it." Spyro said with a smirk. Flame laughed, shaking his head.
"Well we're having a tough time finding it, aren't we?" Flame said. Spyro just shook his head, looking around. Jericho said that there might have been some supplies lying around… but where would they have to look? There were crates scattered around the floor, with faded letters plastered on them. "US ARMY" one read.
Flame walked up to one, trying to find out how to open it. After fiddling with the top, the metallic crate easily opened, with much of its contents missing.
"Damn… empty." Flame simply said, sitting back. Spyro walked over to some crates near him, checking inside them himself. In every case it was the same story, nothing. Every case had been opened and emptied already, but by who? Had someone already come through here and taken all the food? If so, why did they leave all the weapons behind, forger weapons were COVETED in this world. You could have been one rich individual with all those rifles back there. You could field a small army, and dominate your opponents.
Spyro sighed, shoving one of the empty containers aside. Was there anything left?
Just as Spyro thought that, he felt another cold chill run down his spine. Man, it must be getting colder out there. It was accompanied by a sharp pain in his head, though it only lasted a few seconds.
"Hey Spyro, what's up?" Flame asked, seeing his friend flinch and grasp his head.
"Ah… nothing, just a headache." Spyro said, backing up a bit. The pain came back, a little stronger this time. Man, not a headache, Spyro hated those.
"Maybe you should sit down." Flame suggested, tilting his head.
"No… no I'll be fine." Spyro said, feeling another jolt come. This one was accompanied by a scream though, a very loud ear shattering scream.
"What? Who was that?" Spyro asked, looking around at the scream.
"What're you talking about?"
"Didn't you just hear a scream?"
"No? There isn't anyone here but us." Flame said, beginning to get worried.
"I… I could have sworn I heard something…" Spyro said, looking around again.
"Maybe you're hearing things." Flame said. Spyro sighed, nodding softly. Maybe he should go lay down. He turned away from Flame, looking back towards the way they came. It looked more inviting with each passing second…
"Yeah I guess so. I guess I'll… Flame?" Spyro said, turning around. Flame was gone. He was alone in the room. Flame was JUST there, with Spyro. Spyro turned and… he was gone.
"Flame? Flame are you there?" Spyro asked, starting to get worried. He could feel his headache getting worse, pounding against his head. What the hell was going on? There was that scream again! God, where was it coming from?!
"Flame, Flame where are you? This isn't funny!" Spyro said, walking around the empty room.
Nearby there was a small hallway in-between one of the shops. Had Flame gone in there?
"Flame? Flame are you there? Where are you?" Spyro asked, walking down the dark hallway. The walls were cracked, debris littering the floor like everywhere else in this place. He could hear the screams… louder now. They were almost like screeches, accompanied by the hushed whispers of voices.
Spyro could feel a warmth light up his neck, and he looked down only to see his bracelet beginning to give a softly glow. What was happening with it? What was going on?
"Who… who's there?! Hello?!" Spyro asked, beginning to get scared. The whispers were getting louder, almost overpowering. The warmth on his neck was only intensifying, it… it was all too much! Spyro clenched his eyes, wishing it would all just stop!
Silence… silence is what followed next. Spyro panted, his head beginning to feel better, now that the screams had stopped. The warmth in his neck had dissipated, turning into a soft, almost pleasant sensation. His breath returned to normal, and he opened his eyes.
He was met with a scene he was not ready for.
Before him lay the same hallway he had just been in… except things were… different.
The walls, they weren't a pale grey with cracks running along them, they were now a pearl white, and in perfect condition. The dim, dark hallway that he stood in was no longer dark, but perfectly illuminated by white squares in the ceiling. What… were those lights?
Spyro squinted a bit, the light seeming so bright. There was no debris on the floor, only clean shiny tiles looked back up at him. Looking around in a confused state, he began to hear voices again… lots of voices, all behind him. Spyro turned softly, afraid of what he was going to see.
What he did see, was even stranger then he thought it'd be.
There were… people, lots of people! Not only people, humans! There were humans everywhere!
The same massive hallway lined with shops that was once dark, depressing and empty was now brightly lit, and filled to the brim with humans! They were… all just walking around! The damaged walls were now pristine, and of various colors! Plants sat in small displays along the wall, and Spyro could smell various scents ranging from delicious foods to various strange but sweet fragrant.
What the hell was going on?!
Spyro darted forward, looking out at the scene. Humans of all kinds were walking in the passage, ranging from the young to the old, men and women of different sizes and sorts. They all walked around without a care in the world, all of them carrying bags on their arms. There were so many bags, why were there so many bags? Did they sell bags here?
No, Spyro could see various things packed within the bags ranging from fabrics and clothes to boxes of some sorts. Kids ran around in the open space, some playing tag while some were being held close to their parents as families passed through.
Directly across from Spyro was a spacious glass pavilion overlooking the outside, letting a brilliant sun filter into the room, creating a beautiful yellow-orange tint against everything. Outside Spyro could see more people, walking around, entering and exiting the massive glass pavilion.
Walking out into the hall he noticed something else, none of the humans had noticed him. They had all gone on their merry way, all ignoring the lone dragon standing in the hallway. Turning, Spyro saw a man standing right next to him, dressed in a white and black outfit that looked very formal, very up kept. He wore a white cap with a yellow shield on his head, with various little gadgets on his chest. He just stood along the wall, watching the crowd. A woman walked by him and he smiled and said hello. She smiled and returned the greeting, walking along her way.
"Excuse me… sir?" Spyro asked, trying to get his attention.
Nothing… no response.
"Hello? Can you tell me where I am? Hello?"
Nothing. The human just ignored Spyro. What in the hell….? The man stood there for a few more seconds before turning and walking away from Spyro, leaving the dragon as clueless as he had started.
Grunting, Spyro darted out into the middle of the hallway, amongst the humans. They filtered in from everywhere, packing the entire place. There must have been thousands of them!
"Hello? Hello?! Can anyone hear me?!" Spyro said, almost in a panic. Nobody responded to him, only walking on their way. It was then that someone walked right into Spyro. Expecting to feel the human collapse over him, Spyro was amazed when the human just walked right through him, as if Spyro didn't exist. He… didn't exist. Or rather, did they exist? What… what was going on?
More people walked through him, never paying him a thought. Was… was this the past? Was this the past of this mall that Spyro was seeing? It must be… the entire building was pristine, and there were humans everywhere. Was this before the mall met its fate? Was this before all the humans perished?
There could be no other explanation.
He was here though… and they were there. Was he seeing a memory? A shadow of the past? He felt his scales, his body, he was most definitely there. He could feel… that warmth. Looking down, Spyro saw that the bracelet he had been wearing was still glowing softly. The gemstone embedded in the heart of the bracelet was giving a softly white glow. What was happening to it?
Spyro walked through the hall, walking through the humans that he came across. He saw as all the shops that were once empty were now fully stocked. Shops sold clothing of any type you could imagine, foot ware, exercise equipment and even a store dedicated to these large black boxes with pictures dancing across them. What kind of magic was that?
People walked into these shops freely, and Spyro could see them buying all sorts of goods. Young teenage humans were the most frequent, traveling in small packs as they roamed the building. Young teenage girls probably Spyro's age laughed amongst friends, wearing ridiculously complex outfits, and would often giggle as they watched an opposing group of boys pass by.
With a sigh Spyro walked over to one of the stores, watching the black boxes with the dancing pictures on it. One was in the corner, with several people watching. What were they watching on it?
Looking closer, Spyro saw that there was a talking person on the screen, talking to the people below. Where was this man? How was he in that box, and how was he talking through it?
"Following the attacks last week that left the world in shock, Russia and China have finally agreed to the cease fire put forth by the UN. The US and NATO also agreed to sign, though only after China agrees to help find out the source of Monday's devastating attack. The body count from the bombings isn't clear yet, but we fear it may be in the tens of thousands."
The screen cut out, the owner of the store shaking his head. The people in the store began to murmur, the group beginning to disperse in the store.
"Can't stand that shit, it's so depressing." The man said who turned off the device. The other man next to him just shook his head, looking out.
"So much for the end of the world huh? Least they didn't bomb here." He said. The other man just shook his head, walking to another room behind the main counter.
What were they talking about? Bombings? Were these the bombings and terrible war Cynder spoke of? She recognized China, and US from her speech in the forest. They were the two nations at war. Though… the man said they signed a peace treaty. Was what she was saying true, or not? Also, if Cynder claimed the bombings whipped out all the humans, why were they still here? Were those the same bombings?
Spyro sighed, wishing he knew more. He walked down the hall, wishing he could ask somebody something! It almost drove him crazy that all the mysteries he wanted solved were right in front of him and he couldn't even ask someone a single question!
"Hey so what have you heard, it's been a week already and I can't get a word from Robert."
Spyro turned, hearing a new voice. He saw a man dressed like the one from before, in the nice buttoned up white shirt and black pants, the yellow shield on his chest and hat. Another man dressed like him was standing nearby and invited him to a nearby table to talk. Spyro followed, curious.
"You know what I heard? I heard there was some foul play involved, but neither the US or Chinese governments want to admit it."
"Who fired first then?"
"Nobody knows, because of that strange EMP that went off before the attacks."
"Right, though I heard Robert say it was a solar flare."
"It might have been, but Robert also told me that we fired our missiles in response to China, who said we used HADES against them, which we didn't."
"We wouldn't, it's against the treaty to use HADES."
"That's what I thought. The flare screwed with the missiles though, that's why the nuclear attacks fizzled out only hours after they started. Missiles falling from the sky, you know."
"Yeah, I know. Still didn't stop the missiles that hit."
"Yeah, yeah I know but none of this makes sense."
"Chinese quickly signed that peace treaty though, pulled out of San Francisco."
"It's been a week though and the US Government won't let anyone near that place though, they've locked down almost all of California and the Rockies. I even heard they're redeploying 40,000 soldiers over there."
"What for? The war's over! Why would they need 40,000 soldiers?"
"Keep your voice down! I'm trying to get Robert to spill the beans since he's NSA but he won't budge. I think he's hiding something from us. There's something boiling in the Rockies, that's what I think."
"Let's hope it's nothing. Power's still out on north side. Damn phone won't work either."
"They said it'll all clear up soon, that it's all just solar interference. Guess it must've been a powerful solar flare."
"Who knows, maybe it was the flare that spooked the Chinese into that attack."
"Well whatever happened I'll keep trying to get Robert to talk. I'll catch you later, my shift is almost over."
"Alright, keep safe."
The two men stood up, walking out of the shop and down the hall.
Nuclear war? So this was the war Cynder spoke about. Though… they said the attacks fizzled out, and here they all were, very much alive. If so, what was happening in San Francisco and the "Rockies?" Spyro had heard of that place before, it was far to the west, against the other ocean. Was Jericho right then? Did his species attack humanity, and wipe them out? If so, where were the dragons? As far as Spyro had seen, there were only humans here, with no other creatures in sight. Did… dragons even exist? Spyro thought they had always existed, in some form. Perhaps not… but that didn't answer his question as to who was right or wrong. Not a single soul could remember, other than humans or Sentinels, who retain all the knowledge of the events of that time, so they say. Even though they have the recorded history of humanity, nobody knew for sure what transpired around this time. Even now… the answers didn't seem so clear.
Spyro sighed, walking back into the hallway. His head was throbbing again, and he could hear whispers against his ears. It was getting louder, much louder. Spyro clenched his eyes, wishing the pain would go away.
Suddenly, just like that it did. Opening his eyes, Spyro was greeting with the black, dank and depressing mall he had been in before. Debris was once again scattered on the floor and only a bit of light now trickled in from above into the vacant spaces. The smells and sounds of humans enjoying life were replaced with silence…
Spyro wished he were back in that time again, just to escape the dark existence that this was… He wished he knew what that truly felt like, life that was so carefree that these humans experienced. Well… might have experienced at some point. It dawned on Spyro that it was likely that every single human he had witnessed had perished a horrible death, and some might have even been killed in this very place. Their experiences in the height of their peace and prosperity would have ended abruptly… and Spyro wouldn't have wanted to experience that. Still, what was truly better? This hell… or that hell.
"Spyro! Spyro there you are!" Spyro turned, hearing a familiar voice. He saw Flame running down the hall.
"Flame! Oh, sorry I got… lost." Spyro said, rubbing his arm.
"Shit dude, don't ever do that! You scared the shit out of me! We were all searching for you!" Flame said, panting a bit.
"Sorry, I just… got lost!"
"Yeah you said that already, come on, Jericho found some food!" Flame said, pulling Spyro along. Spyro sighed, bring brought back into their reality, remembering their predicament all over again. He walked back with Flame, looking at the various places he had visited in that… strange state. He could see the people walking down the halls now… only to be replaced with darkness and bones. Spyro wished it had lasted longer, and he could have really seen how the world might have existed in that time… perhaps Spyro would never know.
[POSSIBLE INTERMISSION]
Spyro followed behind Flame, walking back the way they came. They circled back by the hub information desk area, rain drizzling down from above into the room. Small puddles were forming on the floor from the rain, and it was getting colder as the afternoon was approaching as well.
They climbed back up to the shop where they had entered.
"Spyro! There you are!" Jericho said, opening the gate for them. Spyro and Flame crawled through the opening, Jericho letting the door fall to close them back in. Jericho had set up a small campfire near the corner of the room, away from the hole where the water was dripping through from the storm above. Jericho had moved some of the tables to block them from the rain water as it was forming a puddle near the other end of the store.
"Here, we found some food." Jericho said, handing Spyro a bowl. Spyro fiddled with the bowl, it not being made for his claws so it was awkward to hold. He still managed to get it to fit, and was soon drinking the warm soup inside.
"Like it? It's my specialty, random mixed cans together." Jericho said with a laugh, referring to the many different random cans that were empty nearby that he had mixed into the pot.
Spyro just smirked, not caring what it tasted like, as long as it was food as he gulped it down.
"Random or not it's really good!" Flame said, drinking his own bowl. Jericho just laughed, stirring the pot again.
"Well, I at least tried to use some cans that'd go together…"
Cynder sat nearby, just looking at her bowl before taking a sip. It seemed as though she liked it, since she quickly took another sip before moving the bowl to gulp it down. Jericho poured himself a bowl before giving Sparx something to nibble on. He began to eat from his bowl, happy to put something in his stomach. Wet rain water continued to fall nearby from the opening into the world, wetting the stone concrete.
Spyro finished his bowl with a sigh, looking out softly as his belly felt warm with the food inside. He gave a soft burp, making Flame laugh.
"Can't believe a place like this can still be standing…" Flame remarked after having wandered around the mall for a few hours like they had.
"Well, believe it or not, this place was never intended to be buried. At least, that's what I've been told." Jericho said while taking another sip from his soup.
"I wonder what buried it." Spyro said, looking around the room silently.
"We may never know. It's like the rest of the world, so much changed so instantly. I wouldn't doubt the people here were buried with it, or were killed long before this place was sent to its doom." Jericho said. He finished his bowl, getting up.
"I better go collect some of those weapons, I'll never know what parts I could use from those old rifles." Jericho explained, standing up and walking out to the gate.
"Hey let me help!" Flame said, getting up quickly and running out of the gate with Jericho. Only Spyro and Cynder remained, along with Sparx who was already buzzing around the room curiously again.
Spyro looked down at his empty bowl, setting it down.
"Why do you follow him?" Cynder asked, setting her bowl down too.
"What?" Spyro asked.
"Why do you follow the Forger Spyro?"
"I… I don't know." Spyro said, looking down at the floor. "I've just always been so curious about them." He continued.
"Curious? You're curious, is that it?" Cynder asked, chuckling softly. Spyro looked at her with an odd glance, seeing her stand up and walk towards the hole in the roof where water was dripping down.
"What's so special about this human that he's managed to convince you to follow him around in a world of ruin, a world of his fallen forefathers. I would have thought all dragons would have understood their threats, taken the same oaths we have all taken in the west. I don't believe you."
"I… I don't know. I told you… I'm curious about them, and have been since I was a little one."
"Is that it? You're just curious about them? Here you have left your home, out in the world out here and you're doing it out of curiosity?" She turned, walking towards him as he stood only feet away, obscured slightly from the shadows. He looked down at the floor, pondering her question. What was he out here for? Was he here for knowledge? Was he here for adventure? What was he here for?
"I guess… yeah. I was just curious…"
"You don't even know what you want out of the human. You're just following him, hoping for something to come up." Cynder looked at Spyro, who looked up with a bit of shock on his face. He was slightly shocked from her declaration, making him slowly look at the floor.
"You don't know why you follow him, yet you do. I've never heard anything like it… to follow a human…"
"Why are you here then?" Spyro asked, turning it back to her. Cynder stopped, turning to him slightly.
"Why am I here? I've told you already, to fulfill my mission."
"No. Why are you here, with me, with Jericho. If you hate humanity so much why have you remained?"
"I don't have to tell you why it's better to travel in numbers. Besides… "
"Besides what?"
Cynder smirked at him before turning. She was silent for a while, looking at the floor. Why was she so hesitant? She finally turned to face him again, chuckling as she did.
"I know what you're trying but it won't work. I don't follow you and Jericho because he's an "alright person" in your eyes. I'm fulfilling my promise to rid that collar from your neck. Outside of that, I have no other reasons."
Spyro could sense some… hesitance in her voice? She spoke calmly and slowly, as if to spell it out word by word. She didn't give Spyro a chance to look into her eyes, judge them. She turned before he had the chance to, she looking back at the rain.
"So it's just a promise then."
"Yes, because you helped me escape that city, so I will help you with that collar. Nothing more, nothing less. The only reason why I haven't… killed that human is because you for some reason trust him so much. I'll never understand why you trust him…"
"Because he's a normal person, like you and me."
"You really believe that?"
"Yeah… I do."
"Is that why you follow the human, are you defending him?"
"I don't know…" Spyro said, shaking his head.
"You have to Spyro. If you do not follow a goal, you shall relent. In this world, if you relent you die. Following him you're only going to find ruin…"
"No Cynder, there's more to this world then that."
"I've seen enough of this world to know how it works."
"Have you?" Spyro asked, almost sarcastically and defiantly.
"Yes, I have." Cynder declared, almost coldly. They could hear footsteps now, and familiar voices coming up the stairs. Jericho and Flame were returning. Both of them turned towards the entrance at the sound, Cynder turning back to Spyro for a moment.
"When we arrive at the locksmith's, you're going to have to make a choice Spyro. Who do you want to follow, a fellow dragon, or a wandering forger? You'll have to decide Spyro…" Cynder walked away, resting against one of the nearby walls. Spyro watched her for a second before letting out a low sigh, turning to see Jericho and Flame enter the room.
Jericho didn't say a word as he and Flame entered, only placing the collection of weapons he had mustered in a small pile off to the side. He began taking the weapons apart, cleaning their individual parts and setting aside pristine ones. It was obvious he was going to use them as replacement parts for his own weapon since they were almost completely identical.
Spyro just sat in silence, along with Cynder. Flame watched Spyro for a bit before moving off to the side to lay down. It had been a long day, and he probably wanted some rest. Jericho continued with his work on his rifle, and Cynder sat nearby, watching the water fall into the room while shooting Jericho some occasional glances. These glances, however, were not the same hate filled ones that Spyro had seen her deliver before. They weren't the same glances that spoke of her foreboding hatred of humans… These were more… pondering in nature.
Spyro turned, looking now at the gate leading out of the store. He sighed, getting up.
"Where you going?" Asked Jericho, he looking up from his weapon.
"I need to go on a walk." Spyro simply said, lifting up the gate and walking outside. Jericho watched him for a bit before returning to his weapon.
"Try not to get lost! It's like a labyrinth out there." He said to Spyro as the small dragon disappeared down the hallway to the stairs. He wanted to get away from the others for a while, get away from the tension, the conflict. It was all too much for him.
It was late afternoon outside, which meant the light coming from above had a slight orange tint. It was slight, because of the thick cloud cover above them. Rain continued to drip down from the open skylights, coating Spyro's scales with a light film of water each time he passed by one of the several holes to the world above. The sound of the water softly dripping down and splashing below was soft and soothing for Spyro, it helped wash away the problems of the world around him. The open hallways only helped, amplifying the sound into an almost rhythmic hymn.
There was so much to this place, this buried capsule to the past. Just from that… blast to the past Spyro had seen only earlier Spyro could see this place alive and well with people. He could see them now, the many humans walking down the brilliantly lit hallways, the stone walls decorated and pristinely built… Now, there was only silence and abandon. It was enough to make the purple dragon frown.
What had their world lost, in all of this? Spyro sighed, trying not to think about that too much now. If he let that question snare him, he'd never be able to do anything else but think about it. He continued walking down the ruined halls, taking in the different sights of the place, at least what was left standing.
Added to all the sounds of water falling from the sky, Spyro began to notice something else. He heard… laughing? Looking around, Spyro could have sworn he had heard laughing. He even heard a soft cough, and whispering.
Spyro stopped, looking around again. He had reached a small chasm in the floor where it had given way, the hallway split in two. Water ran from the roof onto the floor, then formed in a small pool that emptied into this almost bottomless chasm that split the structure right down the hallway. He could hear the laughing more now, as well as voices. Conversations were happening all around him… just like before.
Grunting, Spyro saw a figure, off in the distance.
"H-hello?" Spyro asked, seeing the figure on the other side of the chasm. The figure just watched him before a giggle originated from it and the figure ran off behind a pile of debris from the ceiling.
"Hey, wait!" Spyro yelled, flapping his wings to get above the chasm to the other side. He dashed passed the piles of debris, only to find another large empty hall.
Another giggle passed by him, making him turn again. He saw the same figure, though this time it looked like a small boy. The boy laughed and giggled, looking like he was playing with something farther down the hall.
"Hello? Hello!" Spyro yelled, walking to the boy. The boy didn't answer, only laughing before running down another hall. Spyro ran after him again, rounding another corner. The ground was very uneven here, and entire sections of the ceiling had given way onto the floor below. The boy rounded another corner before a sharp scream pierced Spyro's ears. He clutched his skull, wanting it to stop. He opened his eyes and looked around.
He was still in the ruined hall, though when he rounded the corner he had seen the boy disappear behind, he was in for a sight.
More bodies, just like before. However, these bones were… shredded, torn to pieces. Skeletons and remains were scattered everywhere, broken and crushed into dust. Other creatures were joining the grave here, not just humans. Different creatures, creatures Spyro didn't even recognize lay with the humans, all tossed together into this giant pot of bones. The remains of soldiers lay nearby as well, their weapons visible for Spyro to even recognize the status of the bodies since their clothing had rotted to simple black cloths.
There, against a cracked wall lay the bones of several small children. He could still hear laughing and giggling coming from them, the sound making Spyro grimace. He couldn't look anymore, he had to turn away. He walked away from the sight, wanting to just go back the way he came. He clutched his head, still able to hear the laughing and talking. It was growing louder and louder, a sharp pain once again piercing his brain. What was happening?!
Again, he opened his eyes. However, this time, his eyes met a very different world. Like before, he was once again standing in a pristine hallway. The walls weren't the same depressing grey, but the light outside cast them in a lighter tone then the last time Spyro saw them like this. There were no happy people walking down the mall's hallway, instead replaced with masses of people speaking in hushed tones, crying children and rows and rows of people just sitting around, as if waiting for something. They were all dressed heavily, in winter clothing. A nearby doorway to the outside world only confirmed this, white puffy snow resting against the massive glass windows.
Spyro looked out of the windows for a few moments before leaning down, looking at his collar. He could feel a soft warmth coming from it, and he could see the dim gemstone glowing softly, just like before. It was all just like before… though there were still some stark differences…
Unlike last time, the people were huddled together, and were speaking lowly, while many rested against the walls. Boxes of items sat next to them, along with sacks of belongings. It was as if each of these people packed away all their worldly possessions and sat them here with them. What was happening?
Walking through the crowd Spyro began to backtrack his way to where he had started, passing by hundreds of people in this situation. Where were they going? Why were they just waiting here?
Looking outside, Spyro saw a scene almost identical to the one inside. Snow fell outside, and vehicles lined the open concrete lot outside, with people moving to the mall in droves. Vehicles with red and blue flashing lights sat nearby, with men in black uniforms with golden badges directing people to the mall. Men in green and black uniforms, loaded down with heavy gear and holding rifles also directed people. Some of these men stood atop massive trucks, holding onto weapons Spyro had only seen Sentinels carry in their hands. A vehicle came into view, a flying vehicle. It was similar to Jericho's Osprey, only it had one spinning blade above it, not two on either side of it. A spotlight from the nose of the craft was shining on the people walking towards the mall. Off to the side Spyro could see the men with the dangerous rifles and heavy gear on talking to a man who had been pulled aside. He was yelling at them, and acting violent. One of the soldiers held his hand out to the man, as if to tell him to stop. The man only got more violent, grabbing onto his head and screaming out something Spyro couldn't hear. He charged out, trying to get passed the soldiers. They restrained him, and one soldier grabbed a pair of metal silver rings that he clasped to the man's hands as they both held him onto the snowy ground. The man was crying, and yelling out.
What on earth was going on?
Spyro continued down the hall, seeing more scenes like those he had already seen. In one hall, Spyro saw hordes of people lining up in almost single file, walking to a small desk that had been set up with people standing behind them. The people were talking to the others in line, and were filling out some paperwork on the table itself. Armed guards stood watch only feet away, directing traffic further down towards the front of the structure. Were they being processed? People who had passed these lines looked a little more happy, up beat. It looked as if some worry had been lifted from their chests as they seemed to rush with their family down another hallway to another section of the mall. This section was fenced off from the other side, with guards not letting anyone in without first asking for some paper. Once the people showed the guard a paper, he let them through.
Spyro looked at the guard, smirking as he just walked passed him without a second thought. The guard continued waiting until the next human came through, and he asked him for his paper. Up ahead more crowds had gathered, and it looked like they were up against the room where Spyro and Jericho had first found the bodies, at the "Information" desk. Indeed, he saw that desk. The desk was surrounded by hundreds, if not thousands of humans. They were all standing and waiting as soldiers stood in the center of the room, watching the crowd around them. A loudspeaker came on, with a clear female voice speaking out to the crowd.
"Bus applicants 5,430-5,510 please step to the receiving gate. Please board in a quick manner, only one bag permitted per person." Some of the humans were delighted to this announcement, quickly rushing to the front of the large glass pavilion where soldiers looked at their papers, then permitted them through. Spyro tried to get a better look at what was outside, what they were all moving towards. There, outside sat another large concrete lot, but large long vehicles sat outside. The vehicle was like 3 regular cars put together, and was lined with windows. Spyro had seen their empty husks before, but not in their pristine condition. People shuffled to the vehicles quickly, and boarded just as so. When one vehicle was full, it rolled away and another pulled up to repeat the process. Many soldiers stood watch over this process.
Many people were speaking in this large room, and it was hard to focus in on one conversation alone. Spyro sat two of the soldiers standing near the desk, talking to one another. Oh… perfect candidates. Spyro walked next to them, hoping to hear what they were talking about.
"Man, look at all these people Ralph, just packed, like rats!" One said.
"Least it's moving seamlessly here. I was up in Michigan when North was closed. It was hell up there. Least we've got time here." The second one said, dusting off his helmet.
"Any word where they're at now?" The first one asked.
"Uh… Captain says they're holding them off in Colorado. The 5th got hammered hard, and were pulled back. I hear we're holding them though."
"Jesus, I saw some of the pictures from over in Colorado… what the hell's going on over there man?"
"You got me. I'm just glad we've been assigned to evacuation. No way in hell I want to go west. I'm just happy to be as far east as they can get me."
"Yeah, really." The other one said. They stopped talking, returning to their guard work as they watched humans walk passed. Colorado, Spyro had heard that before. Cynder had said it, and he had heard of it many times in the passed. It was territory within the Dark Master's realm. It was considered the heartland of his empire, with his lands stretching all the way to the winding Mississippi river. Though, with recent events Spyro wasn't so sure his borders even ended there anymore.
"Man, I wish they'd hurry up and call our numbers, I don't want to sit here waiting forever!" Spyro heard another voice nearby, a regular human man with his family. They were sitting on top of a foot locker while the female human with him held onto a smaller human boy. Spyro walked over to them, curious.
"Relax, I hear the Army is holding them in Colorado. We have all the time in the world to get out of here."
"The sooner we're in Charlotte, the better."
"Yeah but first they have to call our tickets. They'll call us soon, don't you worry."
"Oh I hope so…" The woman said, rubbing the small boy's head. The boy was staring… staring at something… He was staring at… Spyro? Spyro turned around, looking behind him. There was only wall, Spyro being the only thing there. Was the boy staring at the wall? Surely, he couldn't even see him, this was all a memory sequence, after all.
The boy just… stared though… Why was he staring?
Spyro walked a bit to the right, the boy's eyes following. What the hell…? Spyro stared at him as well, the boy just blinking at him as his mother moved him, walking away with the boy as their name had been called.
Could he see Spyro…? Why was it that nobody else could see Spyro? Everyone else in the room carried on about their business, never even noticing the dragon. He watched the boy, still watching him as they left outside the large set of doors, walking out into the snow itself. Spyro could feel the cold, sweeping over him, making him shiver. He could feel the ice and snow drift in from outside, covering each of his scales. Why was it he could feel this way…?
The boy and his family boarded the massive vehicle, and it soon pulled away from the mall, driving down beyond Spyro's sight. He watched it vanish, sighing softly. It was then he noticed, movement, a lot of it in fact. Soldiers moved to block off the next vehicle from coming, and they moved to block the doors. Something was happening…
One soldier walked over from a crowd of them at the center desk, stepping on top of a platform near the center, holding a cone device that seemed to broadcast sound.
"May I have your attention please? Due to the evolving situation the checkpoints leading into Charlotte have been shut down. The checkpoints are no longer accepting any civilians at this time!"
As the soldier made the announcement, a fervor whipped up throughout the room, everyone getting angry and beginning to yell.
"Where the hell are we supposed to go?!" Yelled one person.
"Why shut it down, there's plenty of room!" Yelled another.
"We will be directing you to another entrance into US East, only the Charlotte checkpoints have been closed!" The soldier yelled, trying to calm down the crowd of angry people.
"Yeah right, that's what you did at US North! First it was one checkpoint then you shut the whole damn zone down!" Yelled one man as he threw a bottle at the soldier.
"We will be directing you to another checkpoint with the busses here, do not panic. This evac center will continue to run on schedule. Please keep your tickets with you at all times, and you will have a seat on the next bus!"
The situation wasn't improving, just getting worse. Just what were these people so afraid of? Was it them…? Was it… dragons like Spyro?
The crowd was getting more violent, more angry by each passing moment. The soldier continued to say words of encouragement, words to try to calm them down but it was not working. Spyro could feel his head aching again, that sharp pain just burying itself into his skull… why did it hurt so much..?
SNAP! Suddenly, all the lights in the room shut off. The crowd let out a scream as many bulbs shattered, the room falling into complete blackness. A soft quiet followed afterward as everyone recovered from the loud snap that came through the room. The soldier gripped his head, lowering the cone as he looked around. Soft murmurs passed through the crowd.
"Shit… not again. Give me a status report!" The soldier said, leaping down to join the cluster of soldiers against the wall.
"I can't get any comms out, everything's dead!" One soldier yelled, hitting his dead piece of equipment.
"Could it be Aurora…?" Asked the soldier softly.
Suddenly, a bright orange light began to form from outside, along with a soft humming sound. Everyone turned, looking towards the windows. Spyro looked too, walking slowly towards the window. The soldiers outside turned too, peering off into the distance. The light was coming from the far horizon, but was growing brighter with each passing second.
The hum got louder before it just cut out. Spyro could only count one moment of just pure silence, pure quiet before… before he saw the light explode outwards towards them.
The light grew to an impossibly bright white, obscuring everything, a loud ear splitting noise slammed into the building, shattering the glass and blowing everyone off their feet. Spyro could only remember seeing a large cloud of dirt and debris flood into the room, throwing him off the ground and into the wall nearby. His back exploded in pain, the dirt and debris hitting him, tearing across his scales.
It only lasted for a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity… Once it was all over, all Spyro could hear was silence.
He got up slowly, coughing as was surprised to find no debris on him. It had just… passed through him onto the ground. Why did he feel it though…?
He coughed still, trying to get up weakly. He definitely felt the explosion, and rush of energy…
The room was an absolute mess… dirt and debris covered the ground, and the entrance was now completely blocked out by large chunks of earth and concrete. Where there was once a large crowd of people standing by the room now there only lay debris. Spyro could make out… some forms of what resembled humans under the debris, horribly misshapen. It was obvious what had happened to them…
The soldier who once stood on the platform speaking to the room now lay several feet back, struggling to get to his feet, other people trying to do the same. The room was black with clouds of dust and soot, the building rumbling softly.
"S-sta… status…" The soldier said, crawling to the desk where his soldiers once were. Only a few remained, some laying lifeless nearby, along with some of the other people who had been standing in the desk.
"We got hit by something… something hard Captain…" Another soldier said softly.
"Did we get nuked…? What the hell happened…? He asked, standing himself up with his weapon. People and survivors moved slowly, the dust hanging over the room and creating almost a pitch black field. There was pain and suffering everywhere… and even Spyro could feel the intense heat from outside, burning at his scales. It was hard to breathe… and he had to admit he was actually sore.
"Everyone stay calm… the area in here is safe. We'll just have to wait for someone to find us, or find a way out ourselves!" The soldier said, standing against the desk while clutching his side. The people who had survived slowly formed together, waiting on the soldier to guide them.
The pain began to swell in Spyro's head again, causing him to grit his teeth and clench his eyes. The pain suddenly stopped, and suddenly Spyro felt a cold wash over him again. He opened his eyes, greeted with the dark and grey of the "regular" world. He was back in the central hub room again. He was standing in front of the information desk, the very same information desk he had just seen in the scene of absolute destruction. He could see where the stones and rock had fallen during the cave in, collapsing on the once beautiful pavilion. He could see where the people once stood, now replaced with skeletons or debris. The spot where the soldiers once were was instead occupied by more bodies, more skeletons with some of the soldiers amongst the pile.
Nobody ever came for them… nobody ever saved them… They all just… died here, buried.
"Spyro?"
Spyro turned, seeing Flame standing there.
"Oh… hey there Flame." Spyro said, turning back to the skeletons.
"I came for a walk, and didn't even notice you were here. Have you been here the whole time?" She looked at him curiously, and the thought crossed his mind about where he was during this whole "memory" sequence.
"I uh… I've been around." He simply said. He raised an eyebrow.
"What's up with your collar? It's glowing." Flame said, motioning towards his bracelet.
"Oh, this?" He grabbed at it. It was glowing again… was it connected to what he was seeing?
"Man dude, this place gives me the creeps sometimes… you've been acting pretty strange too since we got here." Flame said, looking around.
"Well, this place is a little creepy." Spyro said, agreeing.
"You got that right… Hey dude, it's late so we should head back. We're finally going to get that collar of you!" Flame said with excitement. Spyro smiled, nodding. Flame turned, walking back to the stairs.
"Hey, Flame, wait a second will you?" Spyro asked, stopping his friend. Flame turned, curious.
"Yeah, what's up?"
"Listen… this… all of this… It's been pretty crazy since we started this whole thing and I never got the chance to ask, if you were even ok with any of this. I mean, things are probably going to get crazier before they get better and I didn't want you to get hurt on any of this. You can leave, at any time… I'll hold nothing against you."
"No way man! Me and you, we're like brothers, and I'll follow you like one! Whether you're following Jericho, or that crazy Sentinel, I'll be with you." Flame said with a smile.
"Thanks… Flame. I just didn't want to drag you on something you could get hurt on."
"No, no, dude it's going to be exciting… This is the perfect time to just go out and explore the world, I've been so curious about it, just as you have. Wherever you go, I'll go."
"Well, then let's go." Spyro said with a warm smile. Flame patted his shoulder softly before the two headed back up the stairs to rejoin the others in the shop above.
End of Chapter 07