Chapter Three: Other Amends
"I know our ways father and I know what I must do to earn my name," Hunter's son said, grasping ahold of his bow which was strung across his chest and retrieving an arrow from his back sling and notching it into the bow string. "What trial do you wish for me to complete?"
"Well my son, from what I can see of your weapons and attire, it would be a fool of me to send you on a scavenging trial," Hunter joked, chuckling with his son for a few seconds before motioning everyone in the village to come to his side and gather around his son and him. "I suppose a few archery tests and a one on one match with a prisoner can be arranged. What do you think Prowlus?"
"I think it is a good start to say the least," Prowlus said, looking at Hunter's son carefully and observing the two wrist braces which were locked around his wrists and arrow tips. "I believe we have one prisoner who is on the death penalty for killing off half of our sheep heard and coming close to killing a baby Cheetah. We shall begin tonight; I want to see what he can really do." Prowlus took notice of the throwing knives which were neatly holstered and strapped around both of his ankles. He couldn't take his eyes off of his wrist braces though, something was odd about them and he just couldn't see nor figure out what.
"If that is what is what you all wish of me then so be it, I won't let you down father." Hunter's son stated, looking among the large crowd of Cheetahs who all looked back at him with curious eyes, wondering what the new Cheetah had in store for them.
"Hey Spyro, how have you been lately?" Volteer asked as Spyro entered the Dragon Study.
"I've had a wonderful day so far," Spyro said, making himself comfortable in one of the sofas in the center of the room. "My son's birthday is today, he graduated, and Flame and Ember have invited me to dinner so Skyro's friends can throw him a surprise birthday party."
"It sounds like your evening is all planned out." Volteer stated, noticing that Spyro had gotten up and made his way over to the decorative bar which held most, if not all of the most luxurious liquor available to the open public.
"That it is it seems… care for a drink my friend?" Spyro asked, opening up the glass cupboard and reaching for two glasses for both him and Volteer.
"I guess a glass wouldn't hurt, how about a Scartigan with a dash of fire." Volteer said, watching Spyro rummage through all of the glass bottles of expensive liquor until he had found both bottles needed to make the Scartigan part of the equation, a heavy wine-like alternative called Hephenhine and the sour drink known for its throat burning flavor called Zeverpen. Mixing both drinks together in one glass, Spyro then reached for a red pepper to squeeze into the drink but realized that there was only one green pepper and two yellow peppers left.
"There are only two yellows and a green left, anything else besides fire?" Spyro quickly asked, making sure to stir the drink every few seconds to keep the two drinks mixed before they would separate and ruin the taste of the mixture before he could add a final ingredient which would allow both drinks to stay mixed together.
"How about a hit of lightning and a slice of earth if you can do that Spyro, please?" Volteer said, not even looking up from his paperwork while Spyro squeezed just enough juice from the yellow pepper to cover the surface of the drinks, followed by him taking a sharp knife lying next to the peppers and slicing off e perfect slice of green pepper to place among the rim of the glass.
"Alright, here you are my friend," Spyro said, walking over in a hurried fashion to make sure he didn't keep Volteer waiting before returning to the bar to make his own drink. "What are the plans for this new city I keep hearing about among you three?"
"It will be finer than Warfang was when it was first built and will remain that way far beyond Warfang will ever amount to," Volteer stated, watching Spyro retrieve a large glass instead of a small glass like what he had given Volteer and filled it completely up to the top of what appeared to be Volsken, a very intoxicating liquor which only dragons and very few other species could tolerate in their bodies. "Are you going to add anything to that young one?"
"Nah, wouldn't want to ruin it's ride now would we?" Spyro said, corking up all three bottles and placing them back into their respective slots before turning to his drink.
"You might want to take it easy on that stuff Spyro; it is still a bit strong to us dragons and can really make you feel like a sick child tomorrow." Volteer warned, taking small sips from his drink while Spyro tipped up his glass without hesitation and took in about two to three gulps worth before stopping, noticing how swiftly it was to finish off half of what was inside of his glass.
"Eh I needed a break anyway, whoa this is some rich stuff you got here," Spyro exhaled, taking another drink from his glass again, noticing that his head as already starting to spin. "So have you three Guardians made up a name for this icon yet?" Spyro could feel the liquor begin to go after his stomach, realizing that he had not ate at all that day, meaning that his buzz and hangover would be worse than what he first anticipated.
"No, we haven't really thought about a name yet, we were-" Volteer began to explain until Spyro rudely cut him off.
"Sitting around, making sure all of the paperwork and currency which you don't have his in order, yeah that sounds about right," Spyro said, laughing as he rubbed his forehead. "Yeah, you Guardians were always good at barking out orders, but I hardly seen you three join in on the fight. I mean, Cynder and I both killed the Golem of the Deep. Hey, I don't remember seeing you or Terrador, or Cyril by our side when we killed Malefor the first time, let alone the second time."
"I think you've had enough young one…" Volteer flatly said, knowing that Spyro meant no harm in what h was saying, he just needed to vent his emotions.
"Yeah I've had enough alright, I've had enough of all of the killing involved," Spyro said abruptly while shooting a look of sadness and anger which made Volteer's blood run cold. "That's all my life has been consisted of. Kill this, kill that, and don't forget to kill that over there as well. Blood, blood, and more blood, it gets really tiresome to see that stuff. Tell me something Volteer; I've seen black blood, red, green and even blood that took on a very dark blue, what color haven't seen yet? Or better yet, tell me if normal civilians know any of the fighting techniques that I've come to master."
"The ones who fight for the greater good are often the ones who pay the most," Volteer calmly said, removing his reading glasses and looking Spyro in the eyes. "But the loss of a few for good is better than losing many in the name of evil."
"Yeah, all of those lives I've saved over the years mean nothing since Cynder is gone," Spyro said, stumbling over to the drinks again to look for something which could help sober himself up a bit. "But hey, I should stop talking so much, I wouldn't want to steal your thunder my friend."
"I know you mean no harm in your words Spyro, but if you're looking for someone to blame for Cynder's death, it was the one dragon that was responsible, Nemphis." Volteer said, watching Spyro finish off a sample bottle of Zextine, a drink which helped sober up someone who had induced a large amount of liquor.
"Nah I can trace it all the way back to when you, Cyril, and Terrador decided to skip out on the death penalty for the psycho of a father than child had," Spyro said, knowing that things would have been a lot different if they had decided to kill Draikor sooner than to have let things get out of control. "I mean think about it, with him dead, do you honestly think that child at the age he was then would pose enough knowhow to take control of Zpharah? No, we would have found a way to destroy that demon long before that little scab would have a chance to do so. Cynder would eventually have come clean about her demon and we would have disposed of Namulis as well."
"We all know that it was a foolish mistake not to kill Draikor Spyro, but just remember to focus on what is happening now; Skyro is your main priority now, see to it that you make sure that he doesn't travel down the wrong path like your father once done." Volteer said, knowing that the amount of Zextine Spyro had taken in would start to take effect in about an hour or so.
"… You do know she loved you and that she would have given her life for you at any given time Spyro, just remember that her last sight, her last words were all directed to you," Volteer stated, trying to move the topic away from Draikor, knowing that Spyro was not pleased by how the way he died. "All of the ones what could have been talking to up to the minute she died was all directed to you. She chose you over her own son… YOU! Her final breath was used to tell you how much she loved you!"
"That's the part that hurts Volteer," Spyro roared, realizing that his head was starting to spin less. "He never got to say goodbye to his mother! He was safely hidden from seeing what that dreaded little wretch mortally wound her with that vile demon… that parasite that swam around my gut all of these years because of Gaul. If he didn't force us to the lower level of Well of Souls I would never have been exposed to that thing."
"Even if you weren't exposed to Zpharah, he would have been set free into this world due to the Convexital Beam ripping a hole in the fabric of reality, free to poses whoever he chose," Volteer stated, looking at Spyro who realized that Volteer was right. "He could have still chosen to poses you still, or Gaul, or Sparx, or even Cynder who was already possessed. So tell me if you would have changed anything about how everything has played out."
"I would change how I lived; I want all of the killing and violence to end!" Spyro yelled, slamming the Dragon Study door behind him as he left Volteer alone to his thoughts.
"Spyro, I know your pain and you have every right to be this way, but please don't be a fool and display your frustration to Skyro," Volteer whispered to himself, closing his eyes and taking one final drink from his glass before looking back into his books once again. "I know you've had a hard life, which gives you more than enough reason to make sure that Skyro is given the chance to live the life which you were forced to forget." Volteer looked among the Dragon Study walls, staring aimlessly off into the distance in search for answers to all of what had happened over the years.
"Ignitus, what would you have done differently… what would you have said… what would you tell me now?" Volteer thought as he looked out to the balcony, realizing that it was starting to show signs that evening was within the next few hours.
"Hey Skyro, was you going to go to the party tonight here in the city?" Scarlet asked Skyro who had broken off from Smoke and Flare whom went to inspect a new shop which opened a few days ago.
"Yeah I'm planning on it, I hear you, Smoke, and Flare have something planned for me tonight." Skyro said with a smile, nudging Scarlet as she smiled back to him.
"Yes we do, you're going to love it Skyro," Scarlet said, looking back and noticing Flare and Smoke heading towards their direction. "Hey, how are you two doing?"
"Oh you know, we're getting by, how about you Scarlet?" Smoke asked, smiling to her beauty as Scarlet returned the look to him.
"Very good we're graduates now," Scarlet said happily, smiling to her close friends Smoke and Flare as she looked to Skyro for a second and noticing that he was smiling as well. "Hey is it alright if we split up for a while and meet up back at the school in an hour or so?"
"Yeah that should work out ok," Flare said, looking towards Smoke who nodded his head in agreement. "We'll see you two in an hour or so then."
"Alright then buddy, I'll catch up with you later then." Skyro said to Smoke, shaking his hand in a brotherly fashion before turning and leaving.
"Stay out of trouble this time!" Smoke shouted back to Skyro, smiling as he and Flare walked off, leaving Skyro smiling and Scarlet confused.
"Did I miss something?" Scarlet said, noticing that Skyro had a small bruise on his stomach, not knowing what happened to him.
Spyro chucked a little bit before saying, "Yeah you did, I got in a little bit of a scuffle with Slair. He started talking bad about my mother and I couldn't hold it in any longer."
"You actually beat him up," Scarlet recoiled, smiling to Skyro's courage as she laughed a little bit. "That jerk had it coming anyway, what about Fearador and Tomias?"
"Smoke had them both in a choke hold until I was finished with Slair." Skyro said as he looked into Scarlet's eyes once more.
"So uh… are you going to be ok, I know how you get when someone talks bad about your mother and I saw that you were upset on the stairs outside." Scarlet asked, continuing their walk together as she looked back into Skyro's beautiful green eyes.
"Yeah I'll be fine, thank you Scarlet, I love how you care about how I feel," Skyro smiled, turning his head back for a second to make sure he wouldn't accidently run into anything. "You should know I would do anything for you if you ever needed anything."
"I know you would Skyro and I adore you for it," Skyro said, taking a side step closer to Skyro, hoping he wouldn't notice as she continued to smile as they walked. "And you should know I would do the same for you." The two then found what appeared to be a flower shop which caught Scarlet's attention.
"So do you have a crush on someone?" Skyro asked, hesitant at first due to the fact that Scarlet was very beautiful.
"Are you hitting on me?" Scarlet said with a smile, blushing a little bit because she did have a thing for Skyro. Both she and Skyro moved deeper into the flower shop, noticing that the vined plants were larger up close compared to when they first walked in.
"It was just a question; I mean I'm sure there's a dragon around who has interest in you," Skyro said, nudging her again as she laughed and nudged him back. "I mean come on, you're beautiful."
"Well thank you Skyro and yeah I do have a crush on someone," Scarlet said, smiling to Skyro as she looked back and sniffed a beautiful yellow rose. "I mean I like you, I really like you Skyro. But I don't know if you feel the same as I do."
"Well I like you to Scarlet, but I'm not sure if we can be together," Skyro said, taking her hand while still trying to hold a half decent smile. "I mean… there's someone else who I love more than anything in the world."
"It's Flare isn't it?" Scarlet said with a smile, holding Skyro's hand while feeling very close to Skyro at the moment.
"It would be you if it wasn't her… I mean her and I have so much history together," Skyro said, smiling as he started to open up to Scarlet. "Her smile, her laugh, how she holds me when she hugs me, I love everything about her. Her voice, eyes, jokes… She means everything to me." Scarlet then leaved up towards Skyro's left cheek and gave him a loving kiss.
"You're an amazing soul Skyro… you love and care about us seemingly more than yourself sometimes and Flare would be lucky to have you." Scarlet said as the two walked farther into the flower shop.
"Do you love someone?" Skyro asked, causing Scarlet to stop where she stood and turn towards Skyro.
"I won't tell if you won't tell." Scarlet said, looking up to Skyro, knowing he would keep her promise.
"Cross my heart." Skyro said, looking deep into Scarlet's eyes once more, watcher her as she stuttered before she spoke.
"He's always helped me with my homework and problems, and he knows more about me than everybody else I know… no offense Skyro," Scarlet said, looking down to the ground, not wanting to show her blushing cheeks to Skyro. "I should tell him how I feel but I want him to tell me first… I want it to mean something."
"I completely understand and that is how I should approach Flare… but I always get choked up when I go to tell her how I feel about her," Skyro said, kissing Scarlet on the forehead before speaking, trying to get her to look back up to him. "Any ideas on how I should approach her?"
"Well you approached me just fine, just be yourself and do the same to her," Scarlet smiled, making her way towards the entrance while Skyro tagged along. "But make sure you two are alone when you do it… it makes it much more special when you. I'll spend a night with Smoke while you and her go off on your own tonight after your surprise."
"Thank you Scarlet, I really appreciate it," Skyro said with a smile, looking outside and noticing it was getting closer to evening. "Has she spoken about me at all?"
"More than you could ever imagine." Scarlet said, smiling back to Skyro who soon strolled up to her side, wanting to know what all Flare had said.
"I'm guessing you're not going to tell me." Skyro said, watching Scarlet shake her head.
"I would Skyro, but I believe it would be better if you hear it come from her." Scarlet said as the two left the flower shop and continued down to the next shop.