Chapter 2 - Springing the Trap
After spending an entire evening traversing the new land of Glimmer, Spyro, Sparx and Esther eventually found themselves in Summer Forest near of a large stone structure. And standing in the courtyard of the building was the same faun from earlier, and she appeared really worried.
"Hello there!" Esther called as they approached the faun.
"Oh, hi! We didn't get a chance to introduce ourselves before. My name is Elora," she greeted with a respectful bow.
"I'm Spyro, and these are my friends, Esther and Sparx," Spyro began while tilting his head in wonder, "What are you? Some kind of goat?"
Elora chuckled while tilting her head with Spyro, "I'm a faun, you dork!"
"Oh, sorry!"
"Did you meet the gem cutters in Glimmer?"
"Yeah, they're pretty cute for a bunch of mice. They gave us a talisman for all our hard work, too," Esther informed.
The said faun gasped in amazement, "They gave you a talisman?!"
Spyro quirked a brow, "Is it special?"
"Well, there are fourteen talismans in Avalar, and they're all magical. If you can collect enough of them, they can be used to defeat Ripto."
An idea instantly sparked in Esther's mind, but the cheetah that was with Elora earlier suddenly burst forth from the portal completely winded.
"Hunter, where have you been?" Elora asked the cheetah out of disappointment.
"Oh, I, uh…g-got a little lost," Hunter replied with a stammer.
"Spyro and Esther and gonna help us collect the talismans," Elora stated out of the blue.
"We are?" the two dragons asked in sync.
"They are?" Hunter questioned soon after.
"Look, Guys, there's no way you can get to Dragon Shores right now. Ripto and his monsters have taken over the castle here in the Summer Forest. You're going to have to go to Avalar's worlds, and convince the inhabitants to give you their talisman. Once you've gathered them all, you can use their power to get rid of Ripto for good."
"But what if we don't have time to gather them all? You saw what Ripto was capable of before. Who's to say he won't strike again at any given moment?" Esther spoke up firmly.
"Then what do you suggest we do?" Hunter inquired expectantly.
"Ripto said he'd listen if we had a good reason to talk to him. Maybe I can lure him into a trap, and then you guys can-."
"Hold on there, Esther! He grounded you last time, and I'd hate ta think what he'd do to you again if he gets another chance," Spyro cut her off, "But you are onto something, I'll give you that."
"Yeah—one of us could be bait while the rest of us use what talismans we have now to capture Ripto," Elora slowly explained in agreement, "But who's gonna be the bait?"
"I'm telling you, it has to be me. No one else has a reason for requesting an audience with him, so it's the least conspicuous," Esther pointed out.
"But what if something goes wrong? What if-?"
"Spyro." Esther was quick to cut him off. "You saved my life once. Now, it's my turn to at least try and pay you back. It's only fair, and you know it."
Spyro was truly speechless. His once timid and paranoid friend was now showing strength and determination like never before, and all just to protect him and some people she had just met. Her motivations may be justified, but Spyro felt it wouldn't be enough.
"Ok, so, anybody got a real plan?" Hunter cut in.
It was a blur, a fuzzy memory that he insists on forgetting, but it always manages to vividly plague his mind against his will. He was standing at first, keeping his back straight while awaiting his next command.
And then, there was a voice, soft yet powerful, "You have done well for a novice. Perhaps you can amount to more than I had expected."
He spoke next, "I wouldn't have it any other way, Orusula."
"Of course, I'll only be truly impressed when you bring me a real, live dragon."
The voices disappeared, and the world was suddenly transformed into that of a vast sky full of thunderous, dark clouds. The rain was cold and sharp, and the lightning was his only source of light as he dove head-on towards his unsuspecting target.
There was one last flash of lightning before the other creature in the sky plummeted after he collided with them, sending them plummeting to their doom below.
The same voice from before chuckled darkly, "Well done, Ripto. Your dedication to helping me will be greatly rewarded. Now—come help me with these heavy wings."
A loud bang on the door to Ripto's chambers awoke the wizard with a fright, but his frantic panting and rapid glances were the result of his terrible nightmare—even though it was more like a traumatic flashback.
The doors soon opened to reveal Crush, who was rapidly pointing down the hall.
"What is it, you numbskull?!" Ripto roared in annoyance. Crush then grunted something along the lines of an intruder outside the castle, to which Ripto was even more infuriated with; he wasn't about to let some idiot interrupt his sleep schedule without a rightful form of punishment.
So, Ripto slipped on his cape and headed out onto the balcony, only to be surprised when he saw that the intruder Crush was referring to was the same dragoness he cursed.
"What is she doing here?" Ripto hissed, and Crush merely shrugged in response, "Well, don't just stand there! Go get Gulp and prepare to attack when I give the signal!"
Crush then sprinted off in a hurry, all while Ripto continued to glare daggers down at Esther, "I'll deal with the pest first."
Meanwhile, Esther wandered around the castle courtyard while calling Ripto's name in hopes of getting his attention, but she couldn't find him anywhere. Eventually, she gave up on shouting and took a break to look up at the clear night sky; if she wasn't trying to trick her enemy at the moment, she would be able to fully enjoy to starry show above her.
"So, have you come to apologize for trying to hurt me?" a familiar, gruff voice asked.
"No, I came to apologize for trying to take your stick," Esther joked with a conniving grin while turning to face Ripto, who clutched his scepter closer with a disapproving glare.
"No more games. Why are you here?"
"I want you to remove this curse. A dragon is only half a dragon without their wings."
"Sorry, but I only give people one chance at a first impression, and you ruined yours."
"What if I offered my services to you?"
Ripto's eyes widened at that, "Services?"
"Yes. Someone with as much power as you shouldn't have to waste their time cleaning their own castle."
"Of course not, but why should I trust you? Just earlier today, you tried to kill me."
"You tried to kill me first!"
"I'm the bad guy! It's what I do!"
The two hadn't even realized how close their faces had gotten, as they huffed through clenched teeth and glared at each other.
"Be that as it may, I'm willing to make a deal if it means getting my wings back and protecting my friends. What lengths are you willing to go to?" Esther growled.
Ripto was truly astonished by this dragoness' sudden change from acting before thinking to making a compromise all for the sake of her wings and her friends—he could certainly relate to at least one of those things more than anyone.
"I can't make any promises about the latter, but I may be convinced to lift the curse if you promise your eternal servitude to me," Ripto grumbled in thought.
All while Ripto and Esther were conversing, Spyro and Sparx were hiding behind a bush while Elora and Hunter hid behind a tree, acting as a weight to the other end of the rope tied amongst its branches. They made sure to hide in the correct places so that they could still see each other and Esther, in order to wait for her signal. Once she gave it, Spyro would signal Hunter and Elora to let go of the rope.
"What's taking her so long?" Hunter whispered anxiously, to which Elora immediately shushed him.
Unbeknownst to them or Esther, Ripto swore he heard something and quickly grew suspicious, looking around until he caught a short glimpse of something out of place up in one of the trees.
"So, Dragon," Ripto began while stating Esther's race like it was poison, "You really have come just to negotiate?"
"O-Of course," Esther replied as firmly as she could, but Ripto still noticed the subtle stutter in her voice, especially when he started circling her slowly.
"I don't think you're being completely honest with me, my Dear," Ripto warned her while once again forcing her to look into his eyes by placing his scepter under her chin, "I always know when the trees have ears."
Mere seconds later, Ripto whipped around while firing a powerful beam up at the large net weighed down with heavy rocks, effortlessly destroying it and some of the tree's limbs. Hunter had fallen back due to putting all of his weight in holding the trap up in the first place, but Elora was quick to let go and regain her balance.
"Did you really think it would be that easy to fool me?!" Ripto cackled, all while making sure to keep his scepter ready to fire again.
"This isn't over yet!" Esther protested with a shout, even getting into a fighting stance. But she was soon lifted off of the ground when the red ring around her torso tightened and fizzled, and she struggled to escape but to no avail.
"This was over before it started," Ripto snarled right into Esther's face, even going as far as to press his snout against hers. But despite his attempts, she held her scowl.
"Let her go, Shorty!" Spyro roared and took to the sky for a large pounce, only to be stopped in mid-air by another one of Ripto's beams. He landed with a thud and luckily got away with just a bruise, but Esther panicked inside.
"I wasn't lying before!" she snapped.
"About what?" Ripto mused.
She sighed in defeat, "A-About…becoming your servant if you spared my friends."
"What?!" The others couldn't believe what they were hearing.
"Esther, don't do this! I can fight him, I'll be fine!" Spyro shouted frantically while trying to stand, only to fall back down due to his dizzy vision.
"No wonder she wants to sacrifice herself for you pathetic whelps. There is literally no other way for you to get out of this alive," Ripto chuckled in great amusement, and then turned his attention to Esther, "So, how about it, Precious? How does an eternity of polishing all my treasure sound?"
"Don't you dare hurt a scale on her head!" Elora demanded.
"I wouldn't dream of it, just as long as you lot don't try to steal her back. I might even stop terrorizing Avalar—for a little while," Ripto taunted, "That sounds fair, right? You keep to your property, and I'll keep to mine. Deal?"
"But Esther's not your property!" Hunter growled.
"She is now. And if you ever wanna see her again alive, I suggest you respect that new rule. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got a chore list I need to make for my new servant! Arrivederci!"
With that, Ripto laughed towards the heavens, grabbed hold of Esther, and pounded his scepter onto the ground, creating a bright flash and smoke to fill the air. And in the blink of an eye, they were gone.
"Esther! No, no! Give her back, you monster!" Spyro shouted uncontrollably, once again trying to take flight but was unable to get far with his injuries.
"Spyro, stop! You won't be saving anyone with that concussion!" Elora protested and helped Spyro back onto his feet.
"You're right…there's only one way ta save her and all of Avalar now…I've gotta gather the rest of the talismans, and then send Ripto back into whatever dark hole he crawled out of," Spyro hissed as Ripto's name rolled off of his tongue like poison.
Esther's head spun when she realized Ripto had teleported them, and she failed to stand on her own when he suddenly let go of her; she even failed to notice that they were now in a dark and damp dungeon.
"I can't believe that just happened! You guys actually tried to fight me again, and you still failed! I wish I'd brought some popcorn!" Ripto laughed uncontrollably.
"Laugh while you can…i-it won't be as funny when we hit you with all the power of the talismans combined," Esther retaliated with a huff.
"Oh, please! If I couldn't find the talismans, what makes you think your idiotic friends can?" Ripto snorted in disbelief, "And any other way, you're stuck here with me whether you like it or not."
"I knew I wasn't going to like this in the first place, but I didn't have a choice. I'd do anything to save my friends, especially since one of them saved me."
"Oh, so you're trying to repay a debt? Well, good luck fulfilling that now. As long as I'm breathing, you're not going anywhere—and speaking of not going anywhere!"
With another wave of his scepter, Ripto opened a cell door and threw Esther in before locking it back.
"W-Wait, you said I was going to be your maid, not your prisoner!" Esther shouted out of terror.
"I did. This is where the maid's rest when they're off duty. Enjoy your new room, Princess!" Ripto mocked her through the bars before ascending out of the dungeon, not even looking back as Esther cried at him to let her out.
It wasn't until he reached the top of the stairs that he realized that what he had just done was not helping his ultimate goal in the slightest; he just got so caught up in the moment, he couldn't help it.
Good Lord, now she'll never want to help me, Ripto pondered with great regret, Why do I always have to be so arrogant?
Well, Esther is now in Ripto's clutches, and we have yet to find out what his true intentions with her are.
Until the next chapter, I'm TRikiD, bye-bye!