Chapter 18: Aurora-Borealis
November 14, 4:32 PM
The wind softly blew, rustling the tall grass that the duo slowly walked through. The overcast day had brought a bluish gray hue that drowned out any other color. Even the yellowing grass around them slowly faded into a blue gray, creating a very depressing scene. A soft, light drizzle had also started to fall onto the field of grass that they were walking in, further adding to the bleak winter day.
Spyro shivered a bit, wishing that summer would hurry up and return to the world. It wasn't to be, they were stuck with this bleak and dreary weather for the time being.
They had once again found themselves in this large field some time ago, which looked about the same as every other field they had passed through. As with the others, trees lined their flanks which formed a path that continued onwards into the far distance. Rolling hills broke up the straight sight lines, breaking the almost continuous straight path through the forest. The only interesting thing worth talking about was an old sign they had passed up about an hour ago. The sign talked about how they were getting closer to the walls of US Northeast, how they should have proper ID on them… all that sort of information. The sign was so rusted, worn down and broken that Spyro paid it little mind. He had seen many of those already, so yet another one hardly sparked his interest. It did inform them that they were still following the old road, which was at least comforting. They were heading in the right direction, which was all he needed to know.
He had asked Jericho how close they were now, since they had been walking for another day or so after leaving Robert's care at the old depot. Jericho just sighed and responded with "close," just like he always did. They had passed another old town now, though the ruins were the same as all the others. Spyro was starting to doubt whether or not they'd find anything of interest or value anymore. He was just hoping there'd at least be a roof somewhere in New York to sleep under. With the way winter was approaching, it was almost going to be a necessity that they find something.
At last, they found a stretch of the old road again. It had decayed beyond recognition in the areas they had passed through, but just up ahead there was a large stretch of it that still had its old gray concrete sticking up from the dirt and grass. Trees and vegetation had of course encroached onto the road, and some parts of it were barely visible through the grass that had started to poke through the cracked concrete. Above the street there was a torn and decaying sign, barely hanging from the archway that suspended it above the road. The letters were worn, just like the previous sign, but the words "New York" were still visible. Good, they were at least heading there…
Jericho stopped at the edge of the road, placing one of his boots on it as he pulled out his map to look at it for a second. Spyro stopped beside him too, taking in a soft breath. Spyro looked down the road, observing how it moved through the narrow gap in the trees before continuing on to a hill in the distance, almost coming into a large open area. Man, he did hope they'd come onto something soon. He was just about tired of trees and grass.
"Think we could stop for some quick lunch Jericho?" Spyro asked, turning to his human compatriot. Jericho sighed while holding the map.
"Well… I'd be glad to if we find something to eat. We don't have anything left and I haven't seen any game for a while."
Spyro sighed again.
"Man, we should have come up on a town by now… It's just barren road here." Jericho said in frustration, moving over so he could lean on the old road sign.
"Maybe we missed something?" Spyro asked, looking around at the forest around them. To be honest it would have been hard to. They had been following the road as closely as possible, and had even found it again. They WERE on the right path. It was hard to get lost if you were exactly where you needed to be.
"Well what do you think Sparx?" Spyro asked, turning to his dragonfly companion who had buzzed by his head. The dragonfly just gave a low buzz, asserting what everyone else was thinking. He flew up to the sign, giving it another look over and leaving the dragon to his own thoughts as he stood by the human. He looked out in the tree line, hoping he might be able to spot some food or some creature they could hunt to eat. It had been a while since they ate the last of the food they took from Robert's. Jericho was right, there had been little to nothing in the woods passed his depot. It was unsettling.
Jericho continued to stare at his map, mumbling to himself as young Spyro continued to stare out into the vacant space behind the trees. There was just… nothing out there. Emptiness, that's all he could see. Wait, no… there was something there… He could see a glint, somewhere in the trees. Spyro raised an eyebrow, walking over to get a closer look. There was… something moving back there, that much was for sure. What was it? Was it a deer? Perhaps a rabbit? Man, Spyro's heart was racing at the thought of some lunch!
Left… right… he tracked its movements as it slowly made its way through the tree before stopping some distance in front of him. It was still covered by the blackness of the forest, giving Spyro little details to work with. All he could see was just that glint… forming some form of outline.
He had hardly noticed that there were more glints that had appeared next to it. Spyro got a little panicked as he saw this, backing up a bit. Two, three, now there were four!
Bushes rustled behind them, making Spyro's head snap to attention in time to see a soldier adorned in full combat gear emerge from the darkness. Camouflage and foliage had been layered on top of his uniform and layers of armor, and a mask obscured his face. It was all Spyro could see before he saw the soldier raise the butt of his weapon, and strike him across the head with it.
Spyro's vision went blurred, and he couldn't hear anything after that. He fell to the ground, and could only see glimpses of the soldiers moving in to subdue Jericho. Jericho tried his best, but the soldiers outnumbered him, and soon they had him on the ground. Spyro whispered something, possibly Jericho's name. He kept whispering it until he blacked out.
/Transitioning…/
[Done.]
"Spyro…"
Wait, what? Who was that?
"Spyro! Hey Spyro!"
Who… who was that? Was there somebody there?
"Spyro, wake up! Wake up!"
Wait… Flame?
Spyro's eyes shot open at once, and his perception of the world came just as instantaneously. He took in sharp gasps, his entire body feeling like it was having a heart attack.
He was in a cold, dark room. The walls were made of brick, and their dark color only added to the overwhelming feeling of isolation and loneliness that the room conveyed. A singular light source came from a vent in the top of the room, to the outside world. A soft blue light came from up there, as well as the soft shadow of a small fan spinning slowly in the vent. Water dripped down from up there, possibly from a recent rain shower. It dripped down, right onto Spyro's head.
He grimaced as the water hit, and quickly whipped his face off. Wait, he suddenly realized, where was Sparx? Where was Jericho? He was… alone in this room. There was only one way out, a doorway up against the edge of the room that seemed to be locked shut.
"H-hello?" Spyro faintly asked, walking around the room. Where was he? Had they been captured again? If so, where had they taken Jericho? What became of Sparx? Man, the anxiousness was tearing at Spyro… They had already been separated and destroyed by the events in Baltimore… and now they were so close! He couldn't accept them not being able to fulfill their goals… or even worse get torn apart right here at the end.
He looked around, seeing little to no way out of this room. The walls and ceiling formed a cone, all going towards that singular vent at the top of the room. The walls were made in a way that made them almost impossible to climb. This was truly a prison cell… and it only added to the misery he was feeling.
Spyro sat back down, taking in deep breaths as he tried to calm himself down. Think Spyro, think! He gripped his head, wishing he could think of a good way to get out of this situation. Whatever it was, he'd have to come up with a way to somehow escape, and then locate and help free Jericho. Wherever he was, Spyro was certain that they were in danger. He had no idea who those soldiers were, or who they worked for! They could be in a Sentinel prison for all he knew!
Spyro groaned and scratched at the stone floor in frustration. He… heard something above him. He looked up, at the vent above him. There was… something there. Something… yellow?
"Sparx!" Spyro could see his dragonfly friend sitting just above the vent, looking down at him. Sparx was jubilant, and buzzed around the top of the vent as he had found his friend. Spyro opened his wings and soared up to him, using his talons to cling onto the metal bars.
"Sparx, there you are! You found me buddy! Where are we, do you know?"
Sparx just buzzed, giving Spyro a resounding no. Spyro groaned as he tried to tug on the metal bars, but they didn't give an inch. Sparx buzzed more, seemingly telling Spyro that the place was well guarded, and that he had no clue where Jericho was.
"Right… I just need to get out of here. Maybe I can…" Spyro pulled more at the bars, but they were in tight. Maybe… an elemental attack?
"Back up Sparx! I'm going to light them up!" Spyro opened his muzzle, and unleashed a jet of hot fire onto the bars as soon as Sparx got clear of them. The bars began to glow a bright red as they heated up. Finally Spyro stopped his attack, and slashed at the bars again. This time, the bars gave way, and the smoldering hot pieces of metal clanged onto the floor below. He did the same for the fan blade inside, and the metal bars resting on top of that. He punched his balled up paw upwards, and broke the remaining bars in his way.
He wasted no time now in grabbing the edges of the vent, and pushing himself up and out of it.
Sunlight and an overcast sky met Spyro's gaze, giving him some respite and relief. He had done it! He had escaped the confines of the cell. Sparx buzzed next to him, excited that he was free.
"Thanks buddy… now… where are we?" Spyro asked. He peered around, seeing that he was on a rooftop, in the middle of a heavily urban area. Buildings surrounded him, all around one or two stories tall. Tall watch towers came forth from the labyrinth of closely nestled buildings, all manned by guards who stood watch from catwalks lining their edge. He was far too far away to even make out who they were, but he guessed they were amongst the same people who brought him there.
An aircraft of some kind flew overhead, catching Spyro's attention. It looked like Jericho's Osprey in a way, though it only had one rotor blade rather than the two mounted on each wing like the Osprey was. They reminded him of the aircraft he had seen in that vivid flashback. They were the ones destroyed by that strange winged creature. Who might even own one of those anymore? The aircraft buzzed overhead before flying off out of Spyro's view. Just who were these people? How advanced were they? What did they want with them?
Spyro spotted a flagpole in the distance, on one of the guard towers. A single flag flapped softly on it, though of course Spyro was too far to see just what pattern it was. The colors struck him as familiar, as if he'd seen them before. Either way, he had to find Jericho, and find a way out of this place. Spyro looked around, trying to see how he could navigate this place without being caught. He was on a roof, in the middle of what seemed like a maze of rooftops and buildings. Narrow alleyways snaked their way in between the buildings, but Spyro saw no streets or clearings of any sort. It was all heavily scrunched together; it almost made sneaking around too easy…
Sparx made some uncomfortable buzz sounds, seeming to tell Spyro that he was nervous, about the guards and the situation. Spyro wanted to calm his friend.
"Don't worry Sparx… We'll just have to sneak our way through, and find Jericho. Whoever these guys are… well, I'd hate to find out what they want to do with us."
He pulled himself completely free of the vent, and slowly made his way to one of the edges. Flying was out of the question… he'd get spotted too quickly. He'd have to make his way around, and find out where they were keeping Jericho. With any luck, he was actually nearby, since he had been in a jail cell, it only made sense Jericho would be kept nearby… right?
He caught a glimpse of two figures walking in an alleyway beneath him. He peered over, seeing them from behind. He could only make out plain clothing and yellow hard hats. They… didn't look like guards… Would they be hostile to him? He couldn't even tell just who they were from here!
He tried to maneuver his way across the roof, hoping that if he kept near them, he might eavesdrop on info, or just find out other details along the way. As he snaked his way near the edge, he was so busy watching them that he didn't notice that part of the concrete was loose where he was walking. It sure came as a big surprise when it all gave out under his feet!
Spyro gave out a sharp yell as he felt the concrete fall out from under him, destroying any grip he might have had and sending him tumbling down the side of the building. He struck a pile of boxes on the way down, shattering them and their contents, sending sharp jolts of pain through his back. He finally came to a rest just beside the smashed crates, deposited right in front of the two people he had been eavesdropping on.
"Great… just… great…" He mumbled to himself as he tried to pick himself up. Sparx buzzed down to him, and kept giving very urgent squeals to Spyro.
"What? What is it buddy?" Spyro asked, watching his friend flail around him. He then saw what it was.
As he peered up, he realized he had caused enough of a commotion to draw the attention of the two people he had been following. There they both were, staring him down. Spyro's eyes went wide as he looked one of the figures over, seeing that it had a face with peach colored skin, and a head of hair denoting him as one species and one species only.
Human! He was a human just like Jericho and Robert!
"Forger!" Spyro yelled out, but suddenly regretted it. The humans had no weapons or even any armor on. They only wore plain clothing and a yellow hard hat. The humans began to panic, one of them grabbing a radio on his chest and began screaming into it.
"The dragon has escaped! The dragon escaped!" They began running down the alleyway away from Spyro, quickly darting out of view.
"Wait! Wait… shit…" Spyro chased after them, in vein as the two human vanished from view. There was more shouting and voices coming from all around him, and Spyro knew that he had really screwed up.
Two armed guards came up from behind Spyro, and yelled something, making him spin to face them.
"There he is! Subdue the dragon!" They yelled, raising two rifles up at him.
"Run Sparx! Run!" Spyro yelled, quickly dashing away from them. His dragonfly friend scrambled with him and darted in and out to avoid the guards that raced in behind them. Spyro raced forward, blaring past crates and boxes in the alleyway, even knocking a few over to keep his pursuers away. He brought his wings to bare and quickly ascended up and out of the tight alleyway, hoping to escape that way.
"There he is! In the sky!" One guard yelled as he stood on a nearby roof.
"Aim for the wings! Take him down!" Another yelled. Gunfire erupted as soldiers began climbing onto nearby rooftops, all itching to hit the dragon. Spyro immediately descended, returning to the tight alleyways. Great! Now he couldn't even fly out of here!
He took in sharp breaths, looking down each direction to try and find a way out this mess! Voices and yells started coming from all around, and he could hear more human guards racing towards his position.
He decided to just pick a direction and he stuck with it. He raced forward, going left… right… any direction that came to his head. He'd sometimes bump into an armed guard, and immediately change direction, hoping to elude them. It proved useless as he just kept bumping into more and more of them! Man, how many of them were there?! Was this some sort of Forger base?! Where in the hell was he and where was Jericho?!
More guards poured into the tight passageways, their weapons and gear clanking in the tight confines. Gunshots erupted each time they came into view of Spyro, nearly striking him! Dumpsters and trashcans went flying as bullets struck them, and Spyro was forced to climb onto a nearby roof to escape the noose the soldiers were tightening around his neck.
He leapt, escaping his roof and going to another. He continued doing this, hoping to throw them off his tail. Bullets pinged the walls around him, forcing Spyro back down into the alleyways. He raced forward, trying to find a way out of the labyrinth, or at least somewhere where he could elude the guards.
At once he broke free of the alleys and found himself on a street, seeing familiar looking buildings and storefronts with human civilians walking along the sidewalk. When they saw Spyro they immediately were whipped into a fury, dashing off of the sidewalk and were quickly replaced by armed guards who raced from every direction down the street.
Spyro grunted and made his away across the street, seeking a second set of alleyways on the other side. Again, he disappeared into the labyrinth, but found it was as confounding and endless as the first one. He rounded corner after corner until he found himself face to face with a large barricade.
Soldiers had cordoned off this alleyway with stone and wooden fences, and had their rifles trained on the dragon as he found himself dead in their sights.
"Freeze! Don't move, or we'll shoot!" Yelled one of the guards. Spyro froze, unsure what to do! He heard footsteps behind him and knew they would be on him at any moment!
He snapped his head from left to right, spotting a possible escape through an open doorway to his left. He flung himself as hard as he could, dumping all the momentum he could summon into a desperate leap towards the door.
It was not meant to be.
Soldiers that had been tailing him tackled him to the ground, slamming the dragon against the brick wall. The dragon cried out in pain and Sparx gave a worried cry as two heavily armed guards pinned him to the ground. More soldiers poured over the barricade and into the alleyway, effectively surrounding the lone dragon. He grit his teeth and pressed his head into the moist mud that lay under his head, waiting for a killing blow, or whatever it was they were going to do to him.
Spyro was taken by surprise, however, as he felt one of the guards pinning him suddenly release him. He looked up just in time to see another human grab the guard and throw him off of Spyro. The last remaining guard on top of him turned, just in time to catch a fist to his face. The attacker kicked him off of Spyro and retrieved his side arm, quickly pointing it at the other humans. Spyro finally saw that the attacker was none other than Jericho.
"Don't you DARE harm a scale on that dragon, you hear me?!" Jericho yelled, pointing his weapon at the guard, who was still rubbing his chin from the punch.
"Jericho!" Spyro yelled, so elated to see his friend alright. His gear was gone, all he wore was his pants and plain shirt, his coat and pack were nowhere to be seen. Had he escaped too?
"Stand down! Stand down!" Another voice yelled out from nearby. Another human came darting from where Jericho had appeared, though he was unlike the soldiers. He wore some sort of military uniform, but wore no armor or had any weapon. He ran over to Jericho and placed his hand on him.
"Jericho, it's alright. Stand down everyone, that's an order." The human said, waving his hand to the others. The other soldiers lowered their weapons, and took a step back. Jericho still pointed his weapon down at the soldier below him for a few more moments before throwing the weapon down to him.
"Jericho, you're alive! What's… what's going on around here?" Spyro asked, panting from the ordeal.
"Spyro… this place, these people, they're human. They're all human like me Spyro." Jericho said, a little bit of disbelief in his voice as he looked around.
"I got that much! But… where'd they come from? I thought there were none of you guys left… that this entire area was abandoned."
"Then it appears our years of sabotage and misinformation has been… somewhat successful. Come, I'm sure you two have many questions, as I have many questions for you." The new human looked to Spyro and smiled. Spyro felt uneasy, but Jericho seemed to trust this new human.
"It's alright Spyro, this is… Colonel Mathew Donnelly, he's a friend."
"Yes and I do apologize for the… soldiers. This is still an evolving situation and I had hoped that you wouldn't trip any alarms until we got everything settled in. They're still… you know… trigger happy around dragons. Come, come, let's get back to my office." The human, the Colonel, turned and started walking back towards the entrance of the alleyway. Jericho turned to Spyro and gave a low sigh.
"Man, Spyro this guy is with military intelligence. You are going to love him."
"I hope so…"
/Transitioning…/
[Done]
2 Hours Ago…
"You are lying. Where did you get this? Who do you work for?" A man slammed his hand onto a table, making Jericho grit his teeth.
He was sitting in a dark room, with only one table and one other person inside the room with him. Well, it was special since that only other person just so happened to be a human like him. They had been captured once again, and had been taken to this walled facility somewhere in the forests where they had been. They had found his flash drive, and it immediately made everyone there very… unfriendly to Jericho to say the least. They immediately arrested him and brought him in for questioning, and he hadn't seen Spyro since they had been captured. He had been loaded into one of their trucks, and it had turned away somewhere else. He hoped that he was alright… he would just be happy if he wasn't dead. He was still unsure who these humans were, how many they were and why they were here.
"I told you, it was given to me by my father. I have no idea what's on it and no I don't work for any… group or whatever."
"Son, I find that hard to believe. You just show up, next to one of our secure border facilities with a dragon and a flash drive? How do I know you're not trying to sabotage our defenses here? How do I know you're not trying to plant a virus and let your serpent friend infiltrate our base? Do you even KNOW what kind of trouble you're in?"
"No, because I don't even know who the hell you guys are! I didn't even know there was a 'border facility' here. I was told: bring this flash drive in this direction. I don't have any idea what's on it!"
"No idea what's on it…? You're feeding me a bunch of bullshit and you know it. You were trying to use that device as a weapon, admit it!"
Jericho just gave out a groan in frustration, planting his hand on his face. No matter what he said, this guy just kept accusing him of trying to be a terrorist! How in the hell could he even do that, he didn't even know who they were! It was so frustrating!
"What? No answer? I knew it, you're guilty. Once we crack the little encryption your friends put on this flash drive we'll find out what you're hiding and it's going to be a long miserable life for you. Your dragon friend will get the easy end of the bargain. Quick and easy…"
Jericho grit his teeth at that and slammed his fist onto the table.
"Don't you DARE touch him… He has nothing to do with that flash drive…"
"A dragon is a dragon, no matter how guilty or innocent they may be. They're all guilty. We run a secure facility here, we have no time for babysitting. You're lucky we might just let you live after this." The man smiled, crossing his arms in somewhat of a victory lap. Jericho's eye twitched, and he felt anger taking over his entire form. They had been captured time and time again, yet they had always been able to weasel their way out of it. How in the hell was he going to get out of it this time? There were armed guards, everywhere! They had taken all his equipment and stored it away, he wasn't even sure how he was going to get a weapon. Still, there was no way in HELL he was going to accept them killing Spyro. He had to find a way out of this…
The door opened to the room, and another man walked in. He walked over and whispered something into the interrogator's ear, and his expression changed from victory to anger and shock.
"What? What the hell does he want with this? I have this situation under control!" He said to the new man. He simply just frowned and shook his head. The interrogator turned to Jericho, with a look that spoke of hatred and spite.
"Count your blessings while they last. This isn't over." He got up immediately and walked out of the room, leaving Jericho alone. Jericho looked puzzled, unable to figure out what just happened.
The door opened again, and someone else walked inside. Unlike the interrogator who had worn a simple white button up shirt and black khaki pants, this man wore military fatigues. There was an insignia on his collar, one Jericho was familiar with. The man was a lieutenant Colonel. He walked over with a folder full of papers and sat down in front of Jericho. He looked to be either in his late thirties, or early forties. While he had some vestiges of youth, Jericho could see age slowly starting to creep in, especially around his eyes. He wore a military cap on his head, with an insignia of an eagle. He had a… strange smile, as if he was in great anticipation for something. Whatever it was, he looked a lot more friendly then the last guy….
"Hello there Jericho. I do… apologize for your previous host. He's… a little overzealous sometimes. We've had… a few incidents in the past week with smugglers along the wall. You… well you seem to have been placed into the same basket as them."
"So I've noticed."
The Colonel looked at Jericho for a moment before giving a low laugh and sitting back a bit. He could tell the hesitance and standoff attitude Jericho was giving in that one statement. He seemed to want to break the ice.
"I do feel a great amount of… tension in this room. Why don't we change that? Jericho, I am Lieutenant Colonel Mathew Donnelly. I am with military intelligence, specializing in the retrieval and research involving… pre-war military programs."
"You hear to interrogate or lock me away?"
"No, no. None of that. No, I do believe you and me can become very close friends."
"What about my dragon friend? I'm not saying anything until I know he'll be alright."
"Yes, of course. Your dragon friend is actually far more important then you know. He is a valuable asset, so I would not dare harm a single scale on his body."
"Then why was your pal so eager to shoot him?"
"Jericho, let's just say that there is information that is only… privy to certain people. As a lowly interrogator, I would not expect for him to even be aware of the significance of your friend, or even this…" Donnelly reached into his pocket and retrieved Jericho's flash drive. Jericho's eyes widened at it as the Colonel placed it on the table in front of him.
"Tell me Jericho, how did you come across this? Do you even know what it is?"
"I… don't know what it is. It was given to me by my father, and him by his father. I was never told what was on the device, only that it was important that it reached New York City. It was a task originally given to my grandfather."
"Who was your grandfather?"
"Liam Garrison."
"Well then, so it is true." Donnelly sat back in his chair and rubbed his chin in thought for a moment. Jericho thought of prodding more into the matter, but he quickly sat forward to clarify.
"Jericho, this device was originally supposed to arrive in New York fifty-six years ago. It was tasked to a Staff Sergeant Liam Garrison to deliver it. Your grandfather… When it failed to turn up we thought it was all but lost. I guess not, it was only delayed." Donnelly chuckled a bit at that comment, seeing the strange humor in it. Jericho didn't laugh, instead he was just trying to take this information in.
"What's on it then, what's so important about it? Sentinels have hunted me across the eastern seaboard for that thing, and I still don't know why it's so special."
"I can't tell you, not here. It's very classified information. Needless to say it does contain very important and sensitive information that was to be delivered to New York. The Sentinels desire the information on this device, and I imagine the Dark Master would order them to give their lives as this device is worth more than a hundred thousand Sentinels put together."
"All that, for a stupid flash drive…"
"No Jericho, not stupid. It's also very curious that you have brought your dragon friend here. It's almost… so strange and ironic that you have brought both a purple dragon here, and this device. Yet, you have no clue how they are so closely connected."
"I know he's special somehow… Back in Baltimore a Sentinel claimed he was going to change the world, that he was a very special breed of dragon."
"He isn't wrong. Your friend there, he… is a very unique type of dragon. Let's just say he can indeed change the world, and we here are hoping that it isn't a change that involves our destruction. You can imagine why we're very interested in him."
"I do, I just don't know what it has to do with that flash drive."
"Oh, it has everything to do with this flash drive. I would like to question you more, but we need to do it in a more secure facility. This place… it's for interrogating stragglers and spies. This isn't the place for this. I'll arrange for you to be brought with me to my office. I'm certain that it'll be far more comfortable for you there." Donnelly stood up, and walked back out of the door. A few moments later, a guard opened the door, and invited Jericho to come out too. Soon, Jericho was out of that damned dark room, and was escorted down the hall and out of the building. They left the building and were loaded into a nearby car that took Jericho off to another part of the base.
The base looked massive, at least the size of a small town. Jericho imagined that the town he had expected to run into was this one actually. The entire facility was walled off, and heavy forest and vegetation obscured some parts of the wall while others overlooked vast and open fields. Many of the guards, and even the interrogator described this place as a "border facility." Did that mean there was more? If so… just how much more?
As they drove to Donnelly's office, Jericho couldn't help but inquire about this.
"So… this entire time I was never told who you guys are, or what this place is. Are you the remnants from the pre-war government, the United States?"
"You would be correct, this is a US military installation. Well, it's a border facility to the US North safe zone.
"So you guys managed to hold out? The entire safe zone? I thought they were all wiped out during the war… along with everyone else…"
"That's a fantasy the Dark Master and his Sentinels came up with as propaganda, and we have been guilty of exploiting that. It benefited us greatly to have the entire 'new' world believe humanity was long gone. It meant we could exist in a place isolated and free from them. It allowed us to rebuild."
"So who else is left then? How many humans are still alive?"
"There's a fair amount, though I'd wager less than a billion. There's two safe zones that belong to the USNA, US North and South. There're also the Caribbean territories, as well as the European Commonwealth that exists on the island of Great Britain and Scandinavia. There's also the Asia-Oceanic alliance in Australia and New Zealand, and there are several other hold out colonies that we try to maintain contact with."
"All this time, we didn't believe anyone was left. We lived in our villages in Ohio thinking it would be impossible for any larger communities of humans to form."
"You wouldn't be wrong, you know. It would… normally be impossible to do it, but we made it happen. That's why we invested in… perpetuating the myth. Black out towers… radio jammers… we're using all of those."
"That would explain the lack of signals from… well, anything."
"Yeah… it's unfortunate, that we've left a lot of communities out in the dark about our existence. I'm sure they'd give anything to be behind the walls…"
"You got that right…" Jericho said, frowning as he thought about his village. Well… the village that used to be. He then thought of the flash drive.
"So, you going to tell me about that USB yet?"
"In a moment, we're here actually." Donnelly peered out of the window, seeing them pulling up to a small two story brick office building. It looked dull and drab, same as the rest of the buildings on this street. Most of the buildings here looked to be converted for some military use. It was obvious that nobody really lived here. Well, any… regular people. This entire town had been converted into a base.
"Right up in here, this is my office." Donnelly said as he opened the door and stepped inside. Jericho peered at one of the signs near the door, seeing it read out "US Military Intelligence, Raven FOB Branch." Jericho stepped inside, seeing a dimly lit entryway. It looked to have been an old office building way back when, now used by the military. There was a greeting desk with tables, chairs and even an old pot with no plant in it sitting near the door. None of it was in use though, it just sat around like decoration. Maybe it kept this dull place from feeling too… dull.
Jericho followed him up a flight of stairs, arriving at a second floor. Donnelly lead him down a hallway or two before they both arrived at his office. It was… quaint. It reminded him of the entryway downstairs. There were bookshelves to his left, and what looked like a large computer server up against the wall. Well.. at least that's what he thought it was. There was a metal door leading to another room next to that, and Donnelly's desk sat right in the center of the room. His desk stood out the most, as it was so… ornate and furnished. It looked to be made from fine oak, and chips and dings along the desk spoke of a long and troubled history.
Donnelly walked over and sat down at his desk, placing his folder full of papers and the flash drive in front of him. He promptly scooted his chair forward and clasped his hands together, ready to start. Jericho found a chair in front of the desk and sat down himself.
"So… where shall we begin?" Donnelly asked, sitting forward with some measure of excitement.
"Well… we can start with you telling me what this is. What's… on this thing? Why is it so important?" Jericho reached over and picked up the USB, looking it over. Donnelly watched him for a moment before extending a hand, silently asking for Jericho to give him the device. Jericho looked at it for a moment before handing it over. Donnelly spun it around a few times in his fingers, giving his own examinations to it.
"If this is the device I'm certain it is… then this is quite possibly the most important moment humanity has had in the past… fifty-eight years since the war. Who was your grandfather, again? He was the original one who carried the drive, yes?"
"He… was Liam Garrison."
"I see… So, you must be referring to… Staff Sergeant Liam Garrison." Donnelly reached into his folder and fetched out an old color photograph of a man before setting it in front of Jericho. The man was a soldier, in the military, but Jericho had never seen him before. Jericho gave quick shrug.
"I… never saw a picture of him, but… my father did say he was in the military. That's where… I got my jacket from."
"Well, I did find it interesting that it did have a Staff Sergeant's rank on it… So I would say yes, this would be him then." Donnelly smiled, pushing the photograph over to him to look at.
"Your grandfather… he was sent on a special mission to neutralize a hostile enemy facility, and extract vital intelligence, for transport on that USB device. They were sent to a place called the Infinity Research Campus, in the Rocky Mountains. There, a device called Aurora-Borealis had been seized by hostile forces, and was being used to create an army of creatures to destroy humanity. Your grandfather successfully destroyed Aurora, and secured its blueprints and research data onto a set of flash drives, for transport back to New York. Out of the two, only one returned, with ancillary research and information. His flash drive, containing vital blueprints, schematics and thorough research was thought lost. This, is that flash drive." Donnelly held up the flash drive for emphasis, and Jericho sat back in his seat.
"It's… it's all on there? Aurora-Borealis?"
"Correct. All the information, all the data, it's what we've been missing for all these years."
"I… I still don't get it. What's so special about this Aurora-Borealis… thing? How was it used to create the army of monsters that destroyed us?"
"Well, it's pretty funny actually. This is uh… this is where your friend comes into play here."
"How?"
Donnelly remained silent for a second before looking back up at Jericho. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but the door suddenly burst open, with another man in military fatigues stepping inside.
"Colonel! The dragon's escaped his cell! The guards are chasing him down right now, and they've been given a shoot to kill order!"
"What?! How long ago did this happen?!" Donnelly stood up in anger, almost knocking his chair down.
"Less than a minute ago sir, the shoot to kill order just came in over the radio!"
"Do you know where he is?!"
"He's working his way along the alleyways east of the prison cells! The guards are right on his tail!"
Donnelly turned to Jericho, looking furious.
"Jericho, we need to intercept those soldiers, and find that dragon. If they kill him, all will be lost!"
"You don't need to tell me twice… I won't let any of them hurt Spyro." Jericho gritted his teeth, gladly willing to help. They raced out of the office, and quickly piled into the car to join the hot pursuit on the dragon. Jericho just didn't hope he was too late…
It felt like only a matter of seconds had passed as both Jericho, Donnelly, and his assistant dashed outside and into his car. The engine fired up and Donnelly slammed the gas, sending the vehicle forwards and onto the street again. He turned left, then right, zigzagging through the streets and nearly hitting a few passerbys as he had no time to stop for anything.
Jericho could hear the soft thuds of gunfire, and there was activity beginning to brew around them on the streets. Soldiers dashed from buildings, adorned in full body armor and weapons fully loaded and ready for combat. They were racing in the same direction as they were, which meant they were on the right track at least.
They turned another corner, and were suddenly met with a roadblock. Donnelly slammed on the brakes, nearly hitting one of the soldiers who ran up to block their vehicle from striking the simple wooden barricades they had just set up. The soldier raised his hand, and Donnelly quickly opened the door to get out.
When the soldier noticed who he was, the soldier immediately stood at attention.
"Colonel, sir!" He said. Donnelly nodded at him but didn't seem overly excited to engage in protocol.
"Private I'm going to need access to this sector."
"I'm sorry Colonel but the General has ordered the base to go on lockdown until the escaped prisoner is apprehended." The soldier still stood at attention even as he spoke to the Colonel. Donnelly got visibly frustrated.
"Private, it is IMPERITIVE that I-" Donnelly was cut off as an explosion behind the barricades sent two trashcans flying from a nearby alleyway. A purple dragon emerged from the alley, flapping his wings furiously as bullets pinged off the walls near him. In desperation, the dragon flew low over the street, passing over two civilian workers and nearly knocking them over. He passed into another alleyway on the other side of the street, disappearing from view. Four soldiers immediately dashed out from the passageway that he had emerged from, and fired their weapons in quick succession.
"There he is!" Jericho yelled from the backseat. Donnelly grit his teeth, dashing back into the driver's seat and slamming his foot onto the accelerator. The car's engine roared a warning before it sailed forward, ramming the barricade. The soldiers manning it dashed for cover as he barreled forwards in the direction of the advancing soldiers.
He swerved hard, narrowly avoiding the soldiers, but his car halted them as they tried to cross the street. Donnelly quickly threw the car into park and leapt out. Jericho and the assistant wasted no time, getting out as well.
"Quickly Jericho, we need to catch up!" Donnelly yelled, drawing his side arm and running down the alley after Spyro.
"Right behind you!" Jericho yelled, passing over two soldiers who were still getting back up. They barely arrived into the alley just in time to see Spyro's form disappear behind another set of buildings. They dashed in after him, hoping to catch up to him before things got out of hand.
Soldiers cut them off and bolted down the same stretch of alley they were headed, and the two of them had to shove their way through the armor clad humans to even hope to reach Spyro first.
Jericho pushed ahead of Donnelly, and in the chaos they were separated. Jericho pushed away several guards, until they finally reached where Spyro was. Several soldiers had already subdued the dragon, and were pinning him down. Jericho, thinking quickly immediately grabbed one of the soldiers and tossed him off of Spyro. Before any of the others could react he quickly punched the other on top of him and retrieved the soldier's side arm from his waist. He pointed it at the soldier just as the others pointed their rifles at him.
"Don't you DARE harm a scale on that dragon, you hear me?!" Jericho yelled down to the soldier.
"Jericho!" Spyro yelled, seeing him for the first time. Jericho didn't respond, only concentrating on keeping the pistol pointed at the soldier below him. The others began to circle around him, regarding him as much of a threat as Spyro was.
"Stand down! Stand down!" Donnelly finally made his way through the crowded alleyway and came up beside Jericho, putting his hand on him.
"Jericho, it's alright. Stand down everyone, that's an order." Donnelly said, waving his hand to the others. The other soldiers lowered their weapons, and took a step back. Jericho kept the weapon pointed at the guard beneath him but eventually relented to Donnelly's order and tossed the weapon back down to him.
"Jericho, you're alive! What's… what's going on around here?" Spyro asked, panting from the ordeal.
"Spyro… this place, these people, they're human. They're all human like me Spyro." Jericho said, a little bit of disbelief in his voice as he looked around.
"I got that much! But… where'd they come from? I thought there were none of you guys left… that this entire area was abandoned."
"Then it appears our years of sabotage and misinformation has been… somewhat successful. Come, I'm sure you two have many questions, as I have many questions for you." Donnelly looked to Spyro and smiled. The dragon seemed unsure about him, but Jericho smiled at Spyro, giving him his assurance.
"It's alright Spyro, this is… Colonel Mathew Donnelly, he's a friend."
"Yes and I do apologize for the… soldiers. This is still an evolving situation and I had hoped that you wouldn't trip any alarms until we got everything settled in. They're still… you know… trigger happy around dragons. Come, come, let's get back to my office." Donnelly turned and made his way back out of the alleyways. Jericho turned to Spyro.
"Man, Spyro this guy is with military intelligence. You are going to love him."
"I hope so…"
/Transitioning…/
[Done]
"See Spyro, I told you that you'd like him!" Jericho said with a chuckle as he leaned back in his chair. Spyro smirked at the human, who sat to his left. He turned back, looking over at Donnelly who sat in his desk chair, hands clasped together as if waiting for something. The dragon was large enough for his head to crane up and over the desk, almost at eye level with the human.
"So… you were talking about this 'Aurora-Borealis' thing, what is it?" Spyro asked, finally asking the question that had been hanging in the room for a while now. Jericho leaned in.
"Yeah, you said that's where Spyro came in, what made this… whole thing so special. Why?"
Donnelly sat back in his chair and appeared to ponder for a moment before responding.
"Well, it would be hard to explain to you… just what Aurora was without putting you to sleep. Perhaps, it'd be better, to show you two." Donnelly stood up from his desk, and walked over to a nearby shelf. He rummaged through a few things before finally producing a small black box with wires hanging out of it.
"I had hoped I had one of these laying around… USB isn't exactly in… common use anymore. It's very outdated, but was a standard before the war. Luckily I still have a reader here." He set the box down on his desk and began to hook it up to ports on his desk. Finally, he grabbed the flashdrive, and placed it into a small silver port on its side. It slid in, the device being accepted.
Donnelly pushed a button, and a small screen off to the side flickered to life. It was MUCH different from other screens Spyro had seen. It was… almost clear at first, like a regular plane of glass. Now, a full image took up the screen, bright and opaque. The human turned it to them, and looked over a few things as the black box holding the flash drive was humming to life.
"Yes… yes it's here. It's all here. It's amazing this little flash drive has survived with all the memory intact, I would have thought some of it would have become corrupted over the years." Donnelly remarked, his eyes scanning the screen rapidly.
"I would hope so… we took good care of that thing…" Jericho said, crossing his arms.
"It seems those efforts have paid off. Let's see here…These old military encryptions are still strong…" Donnelly imputed a few commands on a nearby keyboard, and the nearby screen responded in kind with new windows, pop ups and text walls. Eventually he hit a return, and the screen began to fill with information.
"Well…?" Jericho asked, leaning forward.
"I've done it, I can see what's on here! It's… limited, and my computer here does not have the processing power needed to read this… I can barely get this old reader to work at all. We would need to take this to our lab up north in New York to analyze it fully. From what I can see though, everything's here. All the data, all the research and schematics… it's all here!"
"That's… all well and good but what in the hell is it? You still haven't answered our question. What's Aurora? Is that what's on there?"
"Well, with that, you would be correct Jericho. I can't show you exactly what's on here… but I can show you a few different things…" Donnelly turned towards the wall where the windows were behind him, and with another button push a large glass plane lowered from the ceiling. Like the screen on his desk, it filled with image and color, mirroring what was on his desktop screen.
Donnelly grabbed his keyboard and tapped on it a few times, and a few images can on screen. They images were of a room, a large circular room with large gray concrete struts that held the roof up, as well as formed some sort of pattern around a large circular platform in the center of the room. Suddenly it dawned on Spyro.
It… was the room from his vision, the room he had seen before! It was where the human and dragon had fought, it was… where that… portal, that bridge was.
"This, is Aurora, it was… is, rather, an energy projection device."
"Looks like a regular room to me." Jericho remarked, looking at the image on the screen.
"Well, you'd be wrong there. The room itself is an entire machine, capable of harnessing a specific power source before channeling and magnifying its effects one hundred fold. Borealis would then convert it into raw energy and beam it to a projection device, so the energy could be deployed anywhere on the planet at a button push." Donnelly tapped the keyboard again, changing the image to a small satellite that appeared to be in orbit around Earth, another familiar image to Spyro.
"Together, Aurora and Borealis can be used to do... well, a great many things."
Spyro looked at the image intently, staring at the satellite before he switched it back to the photo of the room. That room…
"So… it's like a weapon then? A super weapon you guys made?" Jericho asked, still looking up at the image.
"No, no, it was not a weapon. It was… never intended to ever be used aggressively. It was, at its heart, a missile defense system, as well as… well, a shield that could potentially guard humanity from any threat we might face."
"Doesn't sound like it worked all too well then." Jericho said with a grimace. Donnelly chuckled softly, seeming to not like that comment.
"Well, that's one way to put it…"
"You said it was a specific form of energy that powered Aurora. What energy was it?" Spyro asked, finally speaking. Donnelly turned to Spyro, seemingly happy that Spyro had brought it up.
"Well, you see, Aurora was entirely based on this… new form of energy the science team had uncovered at the infinity Labs. It was something they called… an Inner Light. They wanted to harness this new energy, and create something that could be used as an ultimate defense system."
"Where'd the energy come from? How'd they discover it?" Spyro pressed on, sensing something was amiss.
"That, well that isn't something we were able to recover from that time period-"
"It was a dragon, wasn't it? A dragon, just like me." Spyro interrupted him, looking straight at the human. Donnelly stopped, almost taken aback at first. It took a moment, but finally his confident smile returned, and he gave a low chuckle.
"Well, it seems that you're very perceptive dragon…" Donnelly turned, reaching over and flicked another switch on a panel below his desk. The lights in the room shut down, as well as the computer screens. The lights remained off, but the computer rebooted itself and came back to life, providing the only light in the room aside from the soft blue light coming from outside.
"What in the hell did you just do…?" Jericho asked, alarmed. He began to sit up in his seat, but Donnelly used his hand to tell him to remain where he was.
"Nothing, nothing. I just isolated any outside connections to this room. I would prefer that this conversation would now go off the record."
"Off the record? What're you trying to pull…?" Jericho asked, still not buying it. Donnelly seemed to ignore Jericho for the moment.
"You would be correct young dragon. The source of the powers is indeed from another dragon, a purple dragon just like you." Donnelly sat back in his chair, clasping his hands together.
"A purple dragon? What? There's another one?" Jericho asked.
"Yes, there is. Only one actually, you two might be familiar with him." Donnelly said with a grimace. Spyro found his tone to be rather… enlightening. He pondered for a moment before coming to a quick realization. It wasn't one he would have thought of at any other moment, but at this precise moment, it made all the sense…
"You're talking about the Dark Master." Spyro said, certain of his analysis.
"Well, well. I was right, once again… you are quite the perceptive dragon… Yes, he is the Dark Master. The one and only…"
"Wait, wait! The Dark Master, what the hell are you two going on about?" Jericho seemed to not even be able to grasp the situation, but Spyro stared right ahead at the human, unwavering from his line of questions.
"Then it's true…" Spyro said lowly, looking down at the desk.
"Might I ask young dragon, how did you figure it out? From the… limited intel we have we know that the Dark Master has taken steps to hide his identity. Though its little secret he's a form of dragon, I doubt many in this world even know what kind of dragon he is."
"I've… I've seen images, flashes mostly. That place, I've seen it before." Spyro looked up at the computer screen, the image of the Aurora chamber still illuminated for them to see.
"Have you now? When did you go there?" Donnelly asked, turning to the screen.
"It… it was just a vision. Aurora, this… projection device, can it be used to create a portal?"
Donnelly turned back to the dragon, somewhat… alarmed by his question.
"A…. portal?"
"Yes, can Aurora be used to make a portal… a bridge?"
"I… I imagine it's well within possibility."
"Where do you think it'd go, if one could be made?"
"That… I would have no idea. From the limited data and understanding we have of your kind and the Inner Light, your guess would be as good as mine as to where… a portal might even go. I have a question for you, young one."
"What is it?"
"You mentioned a vision… well I can only imagine that in this vision you might have seen something. What did you see, in those Aurora chambers, might I ask? Did you see a portal?"
"I… " Spyro seemed hesitant, unwilling to divulge the entirety of what he had seen in the vision.
"I can tell you saw quite a lot in that vision young one. To be quite honest, you probably know more than any of us in this room about what occurred. I am honestly… curious as to what insight you might have if you've seen a vision."
Jericho turned to Spyro, as interested as Donnelly was as to what his answer might be. Spyro looked at the desk before looking back up at the human.
"I… I've seen that place, the Infinity Campus. I've even seen the inside of that room, as well. There was… a portal in there, birthing these… creatures. These strange creatures that I had never seen before, or since."
"Would you be referring to… these?" Donnelly turned to the computer screen and tapped at his keyboard. The images changed from the inside of the aurora chamber to some pictures of husks and what appeared to be old discarded armor. Jericho had no clue what they might be, but Spyro knew exactly what they were. Grainy images of figures adorning this armor appeared on the right, only confirming Spyro's thoughts. They were indeed the creatures Spyro had seen crawling from the portal, the… demons and abominations that Robert had pointed out.
"Yeah… what are they? The… Knights, I could see them coming out of the portal."
"We call them Aurora Born. We don't know much about them, only that the Dark Master was able to create them within the chambers of Aurora itself. We're not entirely certain how he did it, but he managed to create these creatures, as if on demand. You mentioned a portal, which… would make sense."
"But, I just… the portal, it felt so odd to me, so different. It didn't feel so much as a portal, like a door to another place it felt so… familiar at the same time. Like there was aspects of our world in it too. I just can't explain it…"
"Interesting. We think that what you may have seen, was the Dark Master firing Aurora's laser down into the chamber, creating a… field of sorts. It's possible that this singularity of energy could have produced something akin to a portal, or something different entirely. There are many things about this world, and even our old world, that cold science couldn't particularly explain. We do know that the creatures that came out of the facility after the Dark Master began firing Aurora at itself were unlike anything of this natural world. We can only imagine they were directly created by the Dark Master, and I think it's safe to say that his Sentinels are his… current attempt to recreate the Aurora Born."
"The Sentinels? What do you know about them?"
"A little, we have… some intel reports but as you may imagine… it's hard to get hard data. We think that the Sentinels have obviously undergone some physiological change as they become soldiers for him, which would probably involve being exposed to corrupted Inner Light, or… 'Dark Energy' as some people might say. It's a far cry from what he did to create the Aurora Born, or even mutate existing animals to create anthro warriors. We know he's been clawing at the chance to use something on the scale of Aurora again, to create those creatures and use Aurora's field to dominate the world again. It's why he so desperately wants this flash drive." Donnelly pressed his hand against the device carefully as it still sat within its enclosure.
Spyro sat silent for a bit before looking back at the screen. He thought back to what Horren had told him, about… the Dark Master's kiss. How it… changed the Sentinels forever. It made sense, that it was the Dark Master corrupting them… changing them. Jericho leaned forward, clearing his throat as if he wanted to speak again.
"So… that's how the Dark Master did all this? That's how he conquered our world and changed it, using this Aurora? It really is like a super weapon then."
"Well, it was never intended to be like that. None of this, was supposed to happen. Once the Dark Master seized control of it… he changed everything."
"What about all the other lasers that came down? HADES? Did the Dark Master take control of that too?" Jericho asked, rubbing his chin a little.
"As if Aurora wasn't enough… Yes, HADES factors into all this as well. Even if… there was already a long list of things the Dark Master did."
"How, I thought they were separate from Aurora, made by the military?" Jericho asked.
"You'd be correct. Though would you believe me if I told you HADES was developed by Infinity Labs under contract for the Air Force? Would you also believe me if… I told you that the satellite system that Aurora used was actually a HADES laser satellite on loan? So…" Donnelly waved his hands, as if inviting them to put two and two together.
"So you're meaning to tell me the Dark Master could beam the same energy from Aurora-Borealis to all the HADES satellites as well…?"
"Exactly. All you need is the command and control equipment which the Dark Master was able to procure during the chaos of the US Army retreating across the heartland. Once he connected them to Aurora, he suddenly had multiple ways to inject Aurora's energy into the crust of our planet. He terraformed Earth using those satellites, and likely changed the ecology and biology of many of our resident species. The anthros are no different."
"So then that's why you're so interested in me, why the Dark Master is so interested in me… because as another purple dragon I can harness this Inner Light…" Spyro looked back down, pondering. Jericho frowned as he looked over to his friend. Sparx buzzed over and landed on Spyro's shoulder, which caught the dragon's attention. He looked up at his dragonfly friend and smiled.
"It is… He likely wants you to align with him because of your power. To have… a purple dragon be against him would likely be something the Dark Master fears the most. Especially considering the old… 'fantastical' rumors about what would bring a dragon like yourself into existence."
"Fantastical? Like what?" Jericho asked.
"Well we're not exactly certain why Spyro here is different from regular dragons, or why regular dragons lack any ability to harness this… Inner Light. It's similar to what normal dragons can use but on such a different level. It's like your kind is a pure dragon, of… pure blood, yet there is no… hereditary evidence to support this. I… assume you had no recollection of your family, is that correct?"
"I… I don't. I was an orphan at birth. I never knew my family."
"I see. It only adds to the mystery of what makes you… you. Why is it that you're purple, and yet no other dragons are purple. Why is it that your kind can seemingly use this… Inner Light is beyond us."
"You're just assuming he can use it, what if Spyro can't even do it? Well, I mean, he's… really special and powerful but I mean-"
"From everything we've seen and studied we're certain that only purple dragons are capable of this. The flash drive we did receive told us about this… and it gave us some other… interesting information. It was… almost like a prophecy or something."
"Prophecy?" Spyro asked now, looking up.
"It's… well. It's…"
"Out with it Mr. military intelligence! What're you talking about, a 'prophecy?'" Jericho asked, annoyed. Donnelly sighed and sat back in his chair as he thought.
"The coming of a purple dragon, a… creature such as yourself is to be in itself the changing of the world. Whether the dragon is in response to that, or a direct cause of that… is uncertain." Donnelly looked uncomfortable saying this, as if he wasn't supposed to. Spyro and Jericho looked to one another before turning back to him.
"Vivex mentioned that… and you've even said it yourself but is that… really true? How would you even know that, there's only been… myself and the Dark Master."
"That's… just it. We don't know where that information comes from. It was… said multiple times throughout Dr. Hall's notes, the lead researcher of Aurora. We even found it on an old tattered cloth near the ruins of Baltimore. It's come up many places before… and I'm certain it's what the Dark Master himself believes. He may see you as a threat to his power, or even a way to consolidate it."
"Well I wouldn't want to help the Dark Master, that's for sure. I don't even know exactly how I can help… just that I have these… abilities."
"Indeed. It is also why we would want your help young Spyro."
"My help?"
"Yes, your help. As you may know already you're very special and… well, the only real true source of inner Light we've been able to come across. Even with these notes and this information on this drive, we've never seen pure Inner Light before. We've never been able to study it."
"You want me to help you then, to study the energy I have, right?"
"Now look Donnelly, I hope this doesn't involve any… dissections or any crap like that…" Jericho turned to the Colonel, a little annoyed as he began thinking of all the terrible possibilities for Spyro.
"No, no, no… nothing like that. All we want is a sample, for… Spyro to display some of his power to us. It could help us understand so much of what has happened to our world, and help us adapt to it. The only true source of Inner Light is the Dark Master and well… we can't necessarily take any actual readings from him."
"Would it… be here?" Spyro asked, looking around.
"No, no. We have a research station up north in New York itself. There they've been trying for the past six decades to recreate Aurora based on the very limited data we received from the first flash drive, as well as whatever information we could scrape together from the world. With your Inner Light, and even our simple prototype, you could help us immensely. You could guarantee our right as a species to live in this world, free of fear from the Dark Master."
Spyro looked at Donnelly for a moment before turning to Jericho who seemed unsure but gave a low sigh and shrugged at Spyro.
"It's your call Spyro…"
Spyro turned back to Donnelly, seemingly uncertain but eventually he smiled again.
"I'll do it."
"Fantastic! I'll have to arrange for a convoy to take us to New York, and for the science team there to be ready to accept you… This is fantastic news…"
"Wait, wait Donnelly I have to ask. Before we go anywhere, what happens after? You take your readings, you take your… whatever and then what? He can go, right? He's not going to be one of your lab rats, is he?" Jericho stood up now, standing next to Spyro at the table.
"I can't say what the science team will do Jericho, I am not involved with them. I can say that I will fight for his ability to leave once we are done with him. Well, once they are done with him. I can't promise anything though, there are a lot of different forces at work within the Safe Zone."
"Well then why the hell should Spyro have to go? Why should he trust any of you then? I don't want him to go into New York within your WORD that you will help him leave. I won't have him be a prisoner in a place that might be hostile to him…"
Donnelly sighed and tapped at his desk a bit before looking back up at him.
"Fine, I will have to make arrangements but I will help him leave New York. I can't promise your safe exit however…"
"I wasn't talking about myself…"
"Jericho?" Spyro turned over to him, surprised.
"Look… Spyro. I don't know what'll happen over there… or… what will happen after if we'll both be able to leave. I honestly don't know. I just… I don't want for you to be stuck here. I doubt they'd just let you walk right out the door. Things are… probably complicated here."
"He's not wrong. I can't promise the two of you will be able to leave together and I wouldn't even know where you'd go Jericho. You could have a home here, if you wanted Jericho. I'm certain it'd be far better than scavenging for food… you'd be amongst humans. Real humans and a real civilization again. Think about it Jericho."
"I am… I just want him to be able to leave, that's all." Jericho pushed himself away from the desk and looked down at it again.
"Jericho I… " Spyro looked at him, unsure of what to say.
"Well… thank me later Spyro. We're still not out of this whole situation."
"R-right. When will we… go?" Spyro turned back to Donnelly.
"As soon as I can get a convoy arranged. I'd hate for this opportunity to get squandered. There are… a lot of people who don't like dragons that much…"
"I… I would imagine…" Spyro said with a frown.
/Transitioning…/
[Done]
"So you guys have an ENTIRE civilization hidden from the rest of the world?" Spyro leaned forward in his seat, looking over to the human sitting in the driver's seat of the car. Donnelly looked into the rear view mirror and smiled at the dragon from the driver's seat.
"Well you could say that. You could also say that you guys have built a whole civilization on your own, and we maintained what we had."
"I still can't believe it. All this time… we thought there was none of you." Spyro said, shaking his head.
"Same here…" Jericho said, looking out with a solemn look.
"Well, you sound like we're a thriving civilization, when we're not. There's less than half a billion humans. That's… not a lot compared to the almost eight billion we had before the war. Wrap your head around that number."
"They all died in the war, right?" Spyro asked, tilting his head.
"Would you believe me if I said no? A lot were killed in both the world war, and the great war that ended our civilization. The droughts, destruction of farmable land and famine that gripped what we had left… killed almost as many as we had saved. We weren't ready for this world, and I'd say we still might not be. It's why we need this data, why we need your help. We want to be able to adapt to this world."
"I'm happy to help… then." Spyro looked up at Donnelly, who smiled at him.
"You really are something else. So… happy and willing to help. It's like your innocence is untouched." Donnelly said while chuckling a bit.
"I… well I just want to help people." Spyro said simply.
"And… again. You're just proving my point."
Spyro smirked and shook his head. He turned to Jericho, who was looking out the window, watching the trees go by. He seemed to be in deep thought.
"Jericho… I uh…" Spyro started to ask a question, but faltered a little towards the end. Jericho heard, and turned around to look at him.
"Yeah Spyro, what is it?"
"Well it's… it's just that… What, where did you want to go, after… New York? Where were you going to go? Were you… going to stay here?"
"I… I don't know to be honest. I didn't expect for anything to be out here. I was… kind of hoping there might not be anything out here. I would have just wandered around then. Now, I don't know." He turned back to the window, back to watching the trees go by.
"If you don't stay here Jericho there's no guarantee you'll be able to return. While we make attempts to integrate lost stragglers into our society, you can imagine it is still difficult. It's a harsh world, whether you want to admit it or not." Donnelly continued to drive, staring forward. Jericho sighed and rubbed his head a bit. Spyro could tell he was troubled with the thought.
"Well I… I just wanted to tell you Jericho that well… You're really one of the only friends I have left. I just wanted to tell you that. I don't know what I'll do when I leave… there's probably a lot more to this world I need to see, and more battles and fights coming up…"
Jericho didn't take his gaze away from the trees passing by the jeep, and Spyro gave a low huff as he looked at the human. Sparx nestled himself onto Spyro's shoulder again and it made Spyro look at him and smile that at least Sparx was still there, after all that had happened. After… Flame… after Cynder… Would Jericho stay here? Would he follow Spyro back out? Spyro wasn't even sure how the hell he was going to be able to get… anywhere from here. There was more or less wasteland out there, and Spyro wasn't even certain if he could go home…
"When it comes to it Spyro, I'll let you know. I just…" Jericho seemed like he was struggling to find his words, and Spyro could tell what the human meant.
"I know Jericho… This might be your one and only chance to finally be with your people again. You've… worked for this your entire life. I wouldn't want for you to deny it because of me."
Jericho turned, looking at the young dragon in the backseat. He smiled a bit, a very genuine smile that made Spyro return it in kind.
"Thanks Spyro."
Donnelly chuckled a bit from the driver's seat.
"You know, the bond that the two of you have is something… well, something I wasn't expecting. I didn't even think one could exist!"
"Yeah, we get that a lot…." Jericho said with a chuckle. They sat in silence as the vehicle continued on, towards the walls of the safety zone itself.
"Here we are, welcome to US North." Donnelly finally said, smiling as he looked out. Spyro sat forward from his rear-seat position, seeing a massive wall coming into view. It looked just like the old wall they had seen outside of the ruins of US East, except this wall was standing tall, and triumphantly. Lights shined from its top, and Spyro could see tall buildings behind it.
Two large metal gates slowly came to life, flanked by two large red lights. Slowly but surely the two gates slide open, revealing a massive tunnel that lead right through the massive concrete wall. Steel beams and columns lined the entire length of the passageway, and Spyro could even see rooms embedded into the side of the tunnel overlooking the passageway. Soldiers stood on alert on platforms inside the tunnel as well, and Spyro could even see machine guns and large weapons prepared and ready to fire upon any intruders who had breached the first set of gates.
As the doors finally finished opening, the convoy was allowed to pass inside. Half the convoy entered before more red alarms started sounding before turning yellow. A second set of massive metal gates sprung to life at the end of the hallway, opening to reveal the safe zone itself to them.
It was a sprawling metropolis, at least from what Spyro could see. Buildings went as far as he could see, and they were lit up, just like the ones from Baltimore! Spyro could see several soldiers guarding the perimeter, each adorned in heavy combat gear, and backed up with tanks. They stood on guard at the edge of the road as it passed from the edge of the wall to a series of buildings sitting a couple hundred feet away from the wall itself. The tanks and soldiers lined the immediate road, and they could see more soldiers and weaponry sitting off to the side, waiting but vigilant. They passed through this heavily defended and militarized buffer zone before reaching a second wall and set of gates. Once they passed those, they were now in what Spyro could only imagine as the actual city.
"Wow… is this New York?"
"No, not yet. This is Philadelphia, another city inside the walls. New York is still further north, but we'll get there soon. Don't worry, I'm sure this'll go far faster than walking will."
"Yeah… no kidding…"
Spyro looked out in amazement as they drove along the roads, meeting up with other cars and onto crowded streets. Other cars! There were other cars with them, with other humans inside! Not just… soldiers and guards but actual civilian humans! They wore outfits ranging from simple plaid shirts and pants to more intricate coats and jackets, a sign of winter's arrival. Buildings that Spyro was used to seeing destroyed rose triumphantly and were ablaze with electric light. It was like Baltimore, but far better. Nothing was jury rigged or barely restored. It was quite the sight to behold.
They didn't stay in Philadelphia long, however. They stayed on a large highway that ran through the city, and were soon on their way out. The entire time Spyro's head craned back and forth, watching as the sprawling city passed by in the window. Jericho watched too, his own eyes darting back and forth, taking in the details of a human world his father had told him about but one that he had never seen for himself. For the both of them, this was quite the experience.
They left the city behind, and were soon on the open road again. This time though, it was different. Instead of the road being hidden, and dense vegetation flanking them, the road was clear, and occupied with other traffic. Clear, rolling fields went off in the distance, with activity clearly visible from homes or buildings resting peacefully in-between. There was no fear or secrecy here, everyone was operating out in the open. There was no fear of being discovered or attacked, a foreign concept to Spyro.
"Uh oh…" Spyro heard Donnelly mutter something, and it made him look up from his seat. The traffic outside had come to a standstill, and it was hard to see what was going on outside as large vehicles blocked the young dragon's view.
"What is it Donnelly? What's happening?" Jericho sat forward in his seat, peering out over the dashboard.
"Look, there. It's a blockade." The Colonel pointed out, seeing a barricade that restricted traffic. Soldiers manned the barricade, and they were each individually stopping and searching vehicles on the road. It had brought everything to a standstill, and it didn't look like they were going to be able to go around.
"This is unusual, they usually don't set up barricades like this…" Donnelly muttered to himself, looking uneasy. Jericho sat up more, and was observing the situation unfolding with caution himself. The soldiers kept searching the vehicles, slowly working their way down before one of the soldiers spotted their vehicle. He pointed to them, and shouted something. Two more saw this and sprinted over to their vehicle. It was obvious they were looking for a military vehicle, and they had found it. The three soldiers approached the car, and pounded on the hood, demanding an audience with Donnelly. Donnelly opened the door, and stepped out of the vehicle.
"What is the meaning of this?" Donnelly asked, crossing his arms at the soldiers.
"Sir, by order of General Hayden, we have been asked to stop and detain you Lieutenant Colonel."
"What? Detain me? Why?"
"You have brought a hostile creature into the walls, and he demands you to meet with him personally. You are to get in your vehicle and follow us under guard to the General. If you resist you will be apprehended."
Donnelly grimaced and visibly grit his teeth before waving his hand off.
"Fine, fine. Let's just get this over with…" He got back in the car and sat down, letting out an angered sigh.
"General Hayden?"
"He's the commanding General of all US forces in US North, as well as being a personal advisor to the President… I was trying to AVOID his involvement in all of this."
"Why is that?"
"Well, I don't have to tell you that everyone around here wouldn't necessarily be a fan of a dragon. Hayden is among those who would rather have all dragons shot. He isn't that reasonable."
"Then… what're we going to do? Are you just going to let him kill Spyro?"
"No, I won't."
"What're you going to do then?"
"I'm going to reason with him." Donnelly shifted the vehicle back into drive, and sat on the side of the road until traffic cleared. Once everything had stabilized, two military jeeps came and positioned themselves in front of, and behind their vehicle. Altogether, they pulled off the side of the road and began driving forwards.
"Don't worry, we're still going to New York, we'll just have to take a slight detour. The General is a hothead, and isn't known for his patience. But… I'm going to argue the benefits of all this to him. With… any luck, he might just listen. Whatever happens though, keep your heads down."
"Colonel, I don't know if you know, but both Spyro and I have found ourselves in this situation… more times than we can count. I think we know the drill…"
Donnelly smirked at Jericho, who simply placed his elbow along the car door, then rested his face against his wrist. Spyro just sighed softly in the backseat. Once again, their fate was in jeopardy, and he wasn't certain how much of an ally they could find in General Hayden.
He looked outside of the jeep's window again, taking in the scenery. How could all of this have remained hidden for all these years? How was it that these people had managed to live these lives while everyone else in this world lived in conditions that might have been a fraction of this? The world had thought the Forgers long dead and gone, and yet here they were, living in a supposed thriving civilization.
End of Chapter 18
New year, new chapter. Sorry for the time, but I've been wanting to make sure that as we draw closer to the end, that these chapters have the UPMOST polish on them, and I refuse to release chapters I'm not happy with. Now that we are firmly in the final act, things will start to pick up. I've finished several chapters after this, but they're still in draft form and need some tweaking to be perfect. There's more to come, and boy does it get good... I hope at least, lol.