Skylanders Academy: New Horizon
by andresponceb2002
Chapter 9) All that Glitters
Snapshot was walking down the lower wing of Cloudcracker prison. He was doing a spot check for the recently recaptured Doom Raiders. The senior Skylander had quite the debt with team Spyro and the new Academy headmistress for bringing such slippery delinquents back into custody and Snapshot was determined to keep them in custody this time.
"Alright everyone, the sun is up, as you should be!" Snapshot shouted across the lower wing, making the Doom Raiders behind their respective cells give out annoyed groans and complains.
"It's six in the morning!" Snapshot heard Chompy Mage complain.
"We need our beauty sleep you know!" Chompy Puppet's shrill voice followed up.
"It's not like we're going anywhere." Dream Catcher groaned.
"Alright you rascals." Snapshot began. "I'll keep this quick and efficient, so that I can go do literally anything else than keep you all company."
"Gee, thanks Snapshot." Wolfgang growled from behind his cell's bars.
Then, Snapshot began to walk slowly down the lower wing's wide corridor, looking to his sides at each Doom Raider. As he passed, he looked to his right to Dream Catcher's cell, in which the large floating head hovered in circles. Then, Snapshot looked to his left, at Chef Pepper Jack's cell. He noticed the Doom raider was stirring something in the toilet near the back of the cell.
"What's for dinner Pepper Jack?" Snapshot asked as he kept his eyes on the Doom Raider.
"Nothing." Pepper Jack responded, a down tone in his voice. "Just cleaning the toilet." He said, raising his arms to reveal a large wooden brush.
Satisfied, Snapshot kept moving toward the other Doom Raiders. He walked past Broccoli Guy, who was banging his head against one the walls of his cell. Snapshot dismissed this as the awkward Doom Raider being his own strange self.
So, he walked further down, to the final stretch of the hallway. He turned to his left to Wolfgang's cell. The Doom Raider was gripping the bars of his cell tightly and had his teeth bared from growling. The werewolf had been striped away from his bone harp, which made him quite grumpy, but as long as he was behind bars, that meant very little to Snapshot.
And so, Snapshot turned his back and faced the final cell. It gave out a faint golden glow, and was covered in a sparkling golden coat. Characteristic decoration for the villian it held behind it's bars.
"Golden Queen." Snapshot called. "Not feeling well today your highness?" The Skylander asked with fake concern after noticing the infamous Doom Raider was sitting on the edge of her small prison bed, a down look on her face.
"Good." Snapshot continued after the Doom Raider's silence. "This is the least you all deserve for the harm you've all done to the people of the Skylands." He said, turning away from Golden Queen's cell and beginning to walk to the lower wing's exit.
"Now, I do have to ask something of you all." Snapshot stated, making the Doom Raiders focus on him. "Try to stay put this time. It's starting to get embarrassing having to put you all back here this many times." He said with a little chuckle as he walked out of the lower wing and the massive metal gate that separated it from the rest of the prison fell behind him, sealing the Doom Raiders in.
Golden Queen had stayed still in her place. Her eyes were open and looking at the cell wall in front of her, but weren't focused on anything.
She used to be the most feared villian in the Skylands, the leader of the most infamous gang of villains to ever exist. She remembered the good days, the golden days, when she felt like a true villian. Unstoppable and terrifying. But now, after being humiliated by Kaos and after her last battle with the Skylanders, she had been stopped, she no longer struck fear into her enemies. She was no longer the great villian she used to be.
"Queen, you alright?" Wolfgang asked from the other side of the hallway. He looked a little concerned.
"Yeah Queenie." Pepper Jack's voice came from farther away. "You've been a little down under the weather lately."
"I don't need you to remind me." Golden Queen responded, an irritated edge in her voice, which made the Doom Raiders silence. Golden Queen took a long breath. She then spoke, still not looking over to her fellow criminals. "We used to be the greatest." She began. "We used to be feared even by the strongest Skylanders, we owned the whole Skylands!" She said, emotional with remembrance. "Now, we are nothing but at most an inconvenience to those pesky heros." She hissed, frowning at the thought of the Skylanders.
"Well!" A strange, disembodied voice suddenly sounded. "What would you say to a chance to have your golden days back?" The voice asked. It sounded metallic and unpleasant, creaking sharpy and making the Doom Raiders wince and cover their ears.
"Who are you?" Golden Queen demanded, finally standing up from her bedside.
"One minute sweetheart." The voice said. "I didn't time this right, I can't hear you from here." The voice stated apologetically.
Then, Golden Queen took a step back as she saw a strange purple circle appear suddenly on the floor between her cell and Wolfgang's. The circle was wide enough for Golder Queen herself to fit into and had several strange runes etched across it's edge, some which Golden Queen recognized as dark magic sigils. The rest however, she was unfamiliar with.
Then, Golden Queen saw as the dark green stone the circle surrounded turned pitch black. Looking at it, the purple runes seemed to be surrounding an unnatural and really deep hole that suddenly appeared on the floor.
"What's going on?" Dream Catcher asked from her cell. "Who was that?"
"That!" The voice sounded loudly once again, making the Doom Raiders wince again. "Was me!" The voice said cheerfully.
Golden Queen the saw as a bizarre humanoid figure emerged from the perfect darkness of the dark circle the purple runes surrounded.
The strange shape seemed to be made of things you could find in a garage sale. Green, orange and purple rags hung from below a thick cyan belt, connected to the waist of a yellow wooden mannequin chest with shoulders. Red string, which floated strangely in the air, connected dark wooden hands to the main body and a cruelly designed cylindrical cage which erupted dark smoke, was connected to the mannequin chest by a disgusting purple ooze, making it seem like a head.
Then, from the dark smoke, two completely purple eyes shone sinisterly, glowing through the cage's metallic bars. However they seemed to express joy, for they were curled up and wide.
The figure then turned its body suddenly to Golden Queen, who flinched in surprise at this. "You haven't answered." She said at the newcomer. "Who are you?"
"My name is Omen!" The strange figure introduced itself. It's voice still sounded disembodied, as it the strange shape wasn't the one speaking. "The mastermind behind the Knights of Solitude!" It continued, doing an exaggerated bow at Golden Queen. "And I am here with a job offer!"
"A job offer?" Chompy Mage asked from across the hall. "Who do you take us for?" He demanded.
"Yeah!" Wolfgang agreed. "We aren't some sort of service a freakshow like you can-"
The werewolf was cut off by a wooden hand suddenly crashing into and surrounding his neck, choking him cruelly and lifting him off the ground. A similar choking sound then came from Chompy Mage's cell.
Golden Queen noticed that the red string connected to Omen's wooden shoulders had stretched across the hallway, allowing him to effectively strangle both Doom Raiders while the rest of its body stayed as it was, facing Golden Queen.
"I wasn't talking to you." The disembodied voice sounded cruelly while the purple eyes remained joyfull, focused on Golden Queen, which made her feel uncomfortable, all the while the sounds of Wolfgang and Chompy Mage choking sounded weaker and weaker through the room.
"That'll be enough." Golden Queen told Omen, a steady tone in her voice. She had no use for dead teammates.
"As you wish." Omen said simply. Then, with a reeling sound, the red string on Omen's arms retracted to the point where its wooden hands floated strangely on its sides.
With two thuds, followed by harsh coughing fits and breathless gasps, Golden Queen concluded Omen had released her fellow Doom Raiders. The rest of the gang had remained completely silent, most likely out of fear of Omen choking them as well.
So, after a deep breath she looked at Omen and spoke. "What do you seek to gain here?" She asked, cutting to the chase.
"I have a." Omen paused, his purple eyes glancing to the side and putting his hands together to fidget with his wooden thumbs, as if looking for the right words. "Pet. Project." The strange figure said awkwardly. "And I've been running into some trouble recently. So, to fix this trouble, I've been aggressively hiring new helping hands to get the situation under control." Omen explained.
Golden Queen crossed her arms and looked at Omen with narrowed eyes. "You want to hire me?" She asked, almost convinced this freak was joking.
"That's right!" Omen responded confidently. "You are the strongest member of the most dangerous gang of villains in the Skylands! But, more importantly, your particular magical power, your ability to turn things into gold, is a rare and useful tool I need for my Pet project." Omen stated. "You're just the kind of person I'm looking for!" Omen said cheerfully, raising his arms above his cage-like head.
Golden Queen almost couldn't believe what she had heard. This guy wanted to have her as an underling? Her? She silently concluded he was sick in the head, but she kept it to herself. Instead she spoke tentatively. "Why should I work for you? What do I have to gain?"
Omen then looked at her, his glowing eyes fixated, unmoving on Golden Queen, which made her feel uncomfortable once again. No one had gotten under Golden Queen's skin like this, it made her even more nervous to be around this strange being.
But then, Omen spoke, it's metallic, voice filled with a strange sort of mirth. "I'm sorry." It began. "I think there was a little bit of miscommunication here." It said simply.
Then, Golden Queen felt something suddenly clasp around her throat. Afterwards, as air failed to reach her lungs, she felt herself be lifted off the ground. She looked down to see Omen's wooden hand choke her, the red string connecting it to Omen's shoulder was tensed up, effectively getting her off the ground. She then tried to claw at Omen's hand, attempting to release it from her throat. However the wooden limb was clamped shut around her throat and unyielding.
"I said I had a job offer for you." Omen said. "Not that you had any choice about taking it." Omen said sinisterly, its purple eyes mirroring it's evil intent.
Golden Queen then noticed as the red string connecting Omen's shoulder to its hand, began to change color from bright red to a pure black. This change in color happened gradually, spreading form the connection on Omen's shoulder and spreading slowly to reach the villain's hand.
When the whole string turned black, Golden Queen felt like she was drained of the little strength she had left. She slowly closed her eyes, drifting into a dark sleep.
Master Eon hovered on the Academy common room's balcony. He was facing one of the tables covered in papers and notes. However, the table Eon was looming over had a very particular book on top of it.
"Could we have overlooked something?" He asked himself, as he looked at the dark tome intently.
Master Eon had found the book in the darker corners of the Relics Room, stashed away, where he hoped it never had to see the light of day again. It was a thick tome, encased with a black cover, which had crimson red markings all over it, barely making any sense, and seeming more like crazed doodles than inscriptions. Except for a solid red mark in its middle. Surrounded by a thick red circle, a decagram, a ten point star was centered on the book's cover.
It pained Eon to need to have such a malevolent item out in the light of day, but he needed it regardless.
"Whatcha got there?" Kaossandra's voice came suddenly from behind Eon, which made the ghostly portal master jump in surprise.
"Oh, K-Kaossandra!" Eon stuttered. "I'm just doing a little bit of light reading." He lied cheaply, scratching the back of his head, trying to cover the black book with his ghostly body and looking away from Kaossandra.
"You're doing light reading?" Kaossandra began. "With one of Strykore's illegal spell books?" She said seeing through Eon, literally and metaphorically.
Eon then gave a defeated sigh. "Alright, you win. I'm trying to see of there was anything we missed about the spell Omen is using on the Knights of Solitude, to see if there is any chance of us helping them."
Kaossandra didn't look happy, when she spoke she expresed it. "Eon, you know we both looked at this thing almost a hundred times since we managed to get it from Strykore. What do you expect to find now?" She asked crossing her arms.
Eon let out a long sigh. He wasn't sure himself what he was looking for. "I just wanted to see if I could help Spyro." He got out, making Kaossandra soften up slightly. "You know how he's conflicted about the innocence of the dragons behind shell of the Knights of Solitude. I thought that perhaps, hidden in the pages of the book that bore the dark magic to create those fiends, I could find something to ease his conscience."
"Eon." Kaossandra began in a softer voice. "I know that you worry about Spyro, but if he is going to figure this out, he needs to do it by himself."
Suddenly Eon heard a familiar ringtone sound nearby. He recognized it to be from Kaossandra's phone. She drew the ringing device from her right pocket and answered the incoming call.
"Yes? Who is it?" Kaossandra demanded through the little hologram that was projected out of her phone.
The blue circular projection showed who Eon recognized to be Snapshot. The blue reptilian Skylander seemed to be very distressed. When he spoke, he showed it. "Headmistress Kaossandra, there has been a breach in Cloudcracker Prison!" Snapshot announced.
"What!?" Kaossandra and Eon shouted at the same time.
"What is the situation?" Kaossandra asked urgently.
"One of the Doom Raiders has disappeared!" Snapshot began. "Golden Queen is missing from her cell and we have no idea how it even happened!"
"Only Golden Queen disappeared?" Kaossandra asked confused. "Did you speak to the other Doom Raiders, then?"
"We tried." Snapshot stated. "But they have all refused to talk. They did however-" Snapshot paused, making Kaossandra and Eon listen in eagerly. "Ask for Team Spyro to come to Cloudcracker prison. They refused to say why, but if I had to guess, its because they are the only ones they'll talk to."
Eon darked, furrowing his brow in thought. "What is going on with this? Are the Knights of Solitude involved?" He wandered.
"Well, I doubt we have a choice." Kaossandra sighed. "We will get Team Spyro ready and over to Cloudcracker prison as soon as possible." She said as she hung up.
"With Sprocket's Relay Badges, This shouldn't take too long." Eon began. "I believe this matter should be resolved as quickly as possible to avoid any further complications." Eon said, turning around to the malevolent spellbook on the desk in front of him.
"On that, we agree." Kaossandra said. "I'll get the Skylanders ready, meanwhile, you put that horrible thing back to where it was." She ordered as she pointed at the book and began to walk away to Eon's desk.
Eon stood in his place, still looking at the red and black cover of the evil tome. "Am I really doing everything I can to help him?" He wandered. He then let out a short sigh. "Even if not, I should already know better than to try this." He concluded, using what little magic he had in his ethereal form to transfer the dark book back to the depths of the Relic Room.
Spyro was on his way to the Portal Gates to meet his fellow Skylanders. He flew through the Academy grounds and soon landed on the clearing in front of the Portal Gates, where Eruptor, Pop Fizz, Jet-Vac, Cynder, Stealth Elf and Sprocket where waiting for him.
Spyro felt a sting of concern shoot through his mind when he looked at Stealth Elf. He remembered what had happened not such a long time ago. He remembered how Stealth Elf had been hurt, not just physically, but emotionally by Cyrus, during their battle on Winter Keep. He remembered how Cyrus had insulted Ninjini's dream for Stealth Elf, something she took very seriously. He also remembered how Cyrus burned Stealth Elf's hand. Flashes of the pain he had felt when the evil purple dragon had hit him with his infernal green flames, and couldn't help but feel concern.
"Elfy? How are you doing?" Spyro asked his friend caringly.
Stealth Elf looked over to Spyro and gave him a steady smile. "I'm alright Spyro, no need for you to worry."
"You better listen to her." Eruptor started. "After she drinked some of that Healing Elixir we had stashed away-" Eruptor continued, making Spyro recall the blue potion his friends had gotten from the Underworld a long time ago, which had been powerful enough to heal the wound Cyrus had inflicted on him. "She insisted on going on another mission as soon as possible." The magma Skylander explained.
"Well, If she really thinks she's ready." Sprocket interjected from behind the Skylanders. "I think she should prove it." She challenged her friend, with friendly intent.
"Just give us the badges and I will." Stealth Elf replied energetically.
"Alright, here you go." Sprocket said as she drew a bronze chest, which once opened, revealed the Relay Badges the Skylanders had used effectively once before, when tracing down, the Knights of Solitude's lair.
As the Skylanders proceeded to place the badges on their chests, they got ready for Sprocket to send them away to Cloudcracker prison.
"Alright team." Spyro began. "Let's get this mess sorted out."
Spyro felt himself touch down suddenly onto rough stone flooring. He opened his eyes slowly, still a little dazzled from the bright light from the Portal Gates taking him to his destination. He soon composed himself though, looked around, confirming that all his friends were with him and confirming that they had indeed arrived on Cloudcracker Prison's courtyard.
"Skylanders!" Spyro turned his head to see Snapshot calling him and his friends. The senior Skylander walked toward them quickly. "You really got here quickly."
"You say we needed to." Spyro started. "So here we are, pal. You said the Doom Raiders wanted to talk to us?" He questioned.
"Yes." Snapshot confirmed. "They've been very insistent on it. So if you could just get down there so we can figure out what happened, that'd be very much appreciated."
"Of course Snapshot." Jet-Vac began behind Spyro. "We'll have those crooks talking in no time."
"I sure hope so." Snapshot said after a short sigh. "This is all is getting a little too intricate for my taste." He said.
"That makes two of us pal." Pop Fizz agreed simply.
"Well then." Spyro picked up. "Let's get to it."
"Can you tell me what you saw when Golden Queen disappeared?" Jet-Vac asked Wolfgang.
"I can." Wolfgang answered. "As soon as everyone not in you little crew of losers beats it." He added disdainfully.
"We are all going to listen to this Wolfgang." Snapshot interjected. The reptilian Skylander was standing beside Jet-Vac, looking expectantly at the Doom Raider. "Whether you like it or not, this is a matter that concerns any Skylander capable of tending to it, so that includes me."
"Well, in that case." Wolfgang began, walking away from his cell bars and turning his back on the Skylanders. "I guess nobody is gonna know what happened to the Queen."
"Yeah!" The rest of the Doom Raiders in the lower wing agreed in unison.
"We ain't gonna spill any beans unless it's theirs!" Pepper Jack stated boldly, pointing at Team Spyro.
"Yeah! You have faced off with this, Knights of Solitude freak show-" Chompy Mage began, gripping his cell bars. "So, you are the only ones who can handle this little mess for us."
Jet-Vac ran the situation through his head, thinking of how best to handle this. He figured if it would move things along, then they had to listen to the Doom Raiders.
"Snapshot." Jet-Vac called, making his fellow Skylander look over to him. "I think it's best if you leave us alone with them."
"What?" Snapshot exclaimed. "You can't be seriously giving into what they wa-"
"If a little delay in communication is what it takes to get any sort of clue on this matter-" Jet-Vac interrupted. "Then so be it. We need as much information as we can get Snapshot and as quickly as we can get it."
Snapshot looked like he wanted to argue something, but after staying still and frowning, he conceded. "Alright, just get it over with quickly." He said, as he began to walk away to the lower wing exit.
Once Snapshot left the lower wing hallway, dropping the large metallic gate behind him an leaving the Skylanders and Doom Raiders alone, Jet-Vac insisted once again.
"Alright Wolfgang." Jet-Vac started. "It just us now-" He said, gesturing to his fellow Skylanders. "So, talk."
Wolfgang then gave a smug grin. "I can't actually tell you anything, I was knocked out for most of it." Wolfgang stated shamelessly, making the Skylanders get a little annoyed.
"Well then who can?" Jet-Vac asked, an exasperated tone in his voice.
"I can!" A squeaky, annoying voice shouted from a different cell in the lower wing.
Jet-Vac gave out a short, annoyed groan, almost as an involuntary reflex to the bothersome being who had just announced himself.
"Broccoli Guy?" Cynder asked dumbfounded from behind Jet-Vac. "You know what happened here?"
"I do!" Broccoli Guy stated proudly before giving a nasal giggle. "In fact, I'd be willing to say I know more about this kind of stuff than you guys!" He taunted, before giggling again.
"Well then." Jet-Vac picked up, walking over to Broccoli Guy's cell, where the tiny Doom Raider floated idly near the bars, a smirk on his green face. "Are you going to tell us what you know?" Jet-Vac asked.
"Hmmm." Broccoli Guy hummed out loud, tapping his chin with one of his hands in thought. "I don't know. Why should I?"
"Because they can find Golden Queen greens-for-brains." Dream Catcher stated in an annoyed tone from her cell nearby.
"Oh right!" Broccoli Guy said, before giggling in loudly yet again, beginning to make his way to Jet-Vac's nerves.
"Well?" Jet-Vac inquired. "What can you tell us?"
"Every letter in the alphabet!" Broccoli Guy said proudly.
"About what happened here!" Jet-Vac yelled, tired of the Doom Raider's antics.
"Ohhh, okay, I get what you want!" Broccoli Guy said in understanding, making Jet-Vac, the Skylanders and even the Doom Raiders, all give out a long, relieved sigh.
"Well, so here's what happened." Broccoli Guy began, making the Skylanders focus on him. "We were all wallowing in our cells, enjoying prison life, when suddenly, Queenie gave a weird speech about how we all aren't what we used to be and how we suck nowadays."
"I can see that happening." Spyro joked behind Jet-Vac.
"Then, out of nowhere-" Broccoli guy continued, doing a theatrical motion with his hands and speaking in a weird voice. "This really scary voice sounded through the air." Broccoli Guy said, making the Skylanders listen in. "It sounded something like metal parts scraping against each other, it was really nasty to listen to."
Then, a flash of a dark memory crossed through Jet-Vac's mind. He remembered his encounter with a very peculiar villian, one he had been knocked out by and had been responsible for the death of the Great Ninjini.
"Did you see who is was that was speaking?" Spyro asked from behind Jet-Vac.
"Well I'm not sure." Broccoli guy stated. "There was this really funky looking creep who showed up from a hole in the ground." He added, making the Skylanders react. "I think he said his name was Ulman, or something."
"Omen?" Jet-Vac began. "You saw Omen, come here to nab the Golden Queen?" The senior Skylanders asked, dumbfounded by the strange villain's sudden movement.
"Yeaaaah, that's right, Omen he said his name was." Broccoli Guy confirmed. "He took the Queen through that weird hole he made on the ground-" He added, pointing over to the floor between Wolfgang and Golden Queen's cells. "And then he vanished!"
"Can you tell us anything else about this whole thing?" Jet-Vac inquired, trying to get as much information as possible.
"Weeeeell" Broccoli Guy hummed, spinning in his place and smiling goofily. "I may have noticed something." He coaxed.
At that, Jet-Vac could feel himself frown. "You want something in exchange?" He asked, already knowing the answer. "How do we even know you actually know anything else about this?"
"How am I supposed to know that?" Broccoli Guy asked back.
Jet-Vac couldn't tell if that really had been an honest doubt or a sly bait, but he continued, after a long sigh. "What do you want?" He asked the Doom Raider.
"Yeah, Broccoli Guy!" Wolfgang shouted from his cell. "Tell em what we want!" He said, before giving out a malevolent laugh as the rest of the Doom Raiders joined in.
"If you punks think we're gonna let you lose over this." Eruptor began angrily. "You've got another thing coming!" He shouted across the lower wing.
"Yeah!" Stealth Elf shouted. "Besides I doubt you want us to lock you all up here, again!"
Jet-Vac however, hung his head. They needed to know what this whole mess was leading to. If Omen had come to handle this matter himself, then it meat it was a big deal. So, in order to get things over with, Jet-Vac was ready to let the Doom Raiders lose once again. He was about to give into the Doom Raiders' demand for freedom, but Broccoli Guy spoke suddenly.
"I want to go to your Academy." He said simply, shocking the Skylanders and making the Doom Raiders suddenly stop laughing.
"Come again?" Jet-Vac asked, completely taken back by the green Doom Raider's statement.
"I wanna go to your Academy!" Broccoli repeated.
"Broccoli Guy!" Dream Catcher yelled from her cell. "That's not what we agreed to demand!"
"Yeah, what are you doing you playin' at!?" Pepper Jack demanded.
"What do you want to do at the Academy?" Jet-Vac asked.
"There is something there I need to keep helping you." Broccoli Guy stated. "Or at least I think it's there." He added, scratching his head and looking to the ceiling, as if trying to remember a distant memory.
"Broccoli Guy!" Wolfgang roared from his cell. "If I ever get out of this cell, I'm gonna make a meal out of you!" He bellowed, shaking the thick bars in rage.
"Yeah right!" Broccoli Guy yelled. "Like you of all people would know how to cook broccoli!" He shouted at his fellow Doom Raider.
"Well I suppose you're rather harmless on your own." Jet-Vac said considering the situation. "And if you're going to keep helping us, I suppose it couldn't hurt to let you visit."
"Woah, JV." Spyro interjected suddenly. "Are we really bringing a Doom Raider to the Academy?"
"We have to." Jet-Vac began, looking behind his head to see Spyro. "If he truly is capable of helping us any further, then we have to compromise with him." He said, turning his head back to Broccoli Guy.
When he did, he caught Broccoli Guy absentmindedly picking his nose, disgusting Jet-Vac and making him regret his decision even more than before, but after a long sigh, he concreted his resolve. If this was the cost to beating Omen to whatever his plan's punchline was, he was willing to give it a try.
Spyro was standing on the Academy balcony. In front of him Master Eon's ethereal from and Kaossandra were looking down on a handcuffed Broccoli Guy. His fellow Skylanders were all standing behind him as they waited for the elder portal masters and Broccoli Guy to get to their business.
After they had returned to the Academy using the recall function on Sprocket's Relay Badges, they had brought Broccoli Guy over to Eon and Kaossandra because he apparently had to ask them for something before he could help.
The whole thing smelled quite rotten to Spyro, but it's not like had a choice. He and his friends needed any help they could get in order to beat Omen and the Knights of Solitude after all.
"What is it you need exactly?" Kaossandra demanded, crossing her eyes and cutting to the chase.
"I need a special book!" Broccoli Guy stated. "I hear I could find it here!"
"There are many books across many places in the Skylands." Eon asked, also crossing his arms. "Which book are you referring to?"
"It's a really special book." Broccoli said. "It has a ton of really nasty magic. I also think I remember something else about it." He paused. "Yeah, the cover had this weird symbol, like creepy star, with ten points."
Spyro imagined it was a spellbook of some sort, nothing truly special. But then, he lifted his head to look at Eon and Kaossandra and that mindset left quickly. Both portal masters had tensed up and looked utterly shocked. Their eyes were round and they looked at Broccoli Guy as if he had done something horrible.
"How do you know about that book?" Eon asked slowly, quietly.
"Well it's a long story." Broccoli Guy started. "But let's just say, a little bird told me about it a long time ago." he said maliciously. "Either way, I need it, and you guys have it in here somewhere."
"Master Eon." Spyro began. "What kind of book is he talking about?"
Master Eon draken up and slumped his shoulders, lowering his head as well. "Kaossandra?" He called the sorceress.
She seemed to hesitate, shifting her gaze between Eon and Broccoli Guy. But after a few moments, she gave out a sigh, and closed her eyes. With a snap of her fingers, which flashed with pink magic, a strange book appeared out of thin air with a loud popping noise and a pink burst of mist.
It fell slowly and landed softly on the wooden table beside the Relic Room vault door. It was thick with many pages. It's covers were a really dark black, and incomprehensible symbols were scattered all over the top cover. However, Spyro managed to identify a particular symbol, one Broccoli Guy had described. A ten point star, surrounded by a circle, a decagram.
"Ahhh! You do have it!" Broccoli Guy exclaimed, floating over to the erie book.
"Hold on." Kaossandra said suddenly. "What are you going to do with it?" She asked.
"This book is called The Black Savant's Hand!" Broccoli guy exclaimed. "It's got a whole bunch of super, duper cool dark magic!" Broccoli Guy stated excitedly, running his hands over the book's cover. "I heard Strykore got his hands on it somehow! I was super jealous when I heard!"
"Well you shouldn't be." Kaossandra said, cuttingly. "Half of that book is just red scribbles and insane doodling. And the spells that are in there are not something someone like you could cast." She stated.
"Ohhh no." Broccoli Guy began, as he started to open The Black Savant's Hand and scroll through it's pages. "All of this-" He gestured at the book's pages, which were covered in strange symbols, like the ones on the cover, Spyro could not identify. "Are some of the most powerful dark magic workings I've ever seen! Whoever made this is a genius!" He said, fawning over the book and swiping slowly across it's pages.
"You… Can understand all of that?" Eon asked, a surprised tone in his voice.
"Yup! It's a really old and super obscure cypher." Broccoli Guy stated, still looking through the books pages. "It was used only by the absolute worst of the worst. Strykore must have had a lot of connections with the higher-ups of the dark magic system if he managed to get his hands on something like this!"
"I believe that's quite likely." Eon stated. "This tainted item held many of the dark magic spells Strykore used to become as powerful as he did, including his Light Syphoning." The portal master said.
"Yeah! And that's just the beginning!" Broccoli Guy exclaimed energetically. "For all of Strykore's fame as The Light Eater, he had to have been a little over glorified. I mean, look at all this cool stuff he couldn't use just because it was encrypted with this cypher!" He said, almost reaching halfway through the book. "Soul draining, Hellblaze casting, Dark matter control, Immortality…" The Doom Raider listed down. "Torture brands- Oh, those sound nasty!" He exclaimed.
Something nagged at the back of Spyro's head when he heard that last one, making him flinch slightly, but he remained silent, for he wasn't entirely sure what it was.
"And would you look at that!" Broccoli Guy said suddenly, stopping at a particular page in the book. "Unrestricted portal-casting, the spell that creepy dude used to take Golden Queen away!"
"Well, how is this going to help us find Golden Queen and Omen?" Kaossandra demanded.
"This spell uses coordinates and runes." Broccoli Guy stated. "When you cast it, you need to put in the coordinates of where you want to go using the book's cypher. I noticed that the same cypher was laying around the portal the creepy dude used to get in and out of Cloudcracker Prison. I guess those were the coordinated to get inside, because once he grabbed Golden Queen and was ready to leave, he changed the coordinates and then hopped inside, probably going off to their hidey hole." Broccoli Guy finished, saying the last few words in a singsong voice, as if teasing the Skylanders.
"Well, where did they go?" Eon asked.
"Ohhh no." Broccoli Guy began. "If I just tell you, you'll lock me up again! I'm going to tell you, the coordinates near, the place we need to go and I'll lead you on from there." He stated.
"Urgh, fine!" Kaossandra said exasperated.
"And one more thing." Broccoli Guy added suddenly. "I will also need the book." He said, pointing at the dark tome on the table.
"Absolutely not." Eon started with a grave voice. "If this is the book really is The Black Savant's Hand, then we cannot afford it to leave the Academy. If anything we should get to destroying it right now."
"Aww, but I like this book!" Broccoli Guy complained, resting his head on it's opened pages.
"It doesn't matter what you like." Kaossandra snapped. "You're job now it to tell us, where Omen took your little Queen."
"Alright, alright." Broccoli Guy conceded, getting up and turning around to face the Skylanders. "When do you guys wanna leave?"
Spyro was standing on the Portal Gates, surrounded by his friends and with Broccoli Guy. They were ready to go to the coordinates Broccoli Guy had given them.
"This better not be a trap." Eruptor growled at Broccoli Guy.
"Heyyy." Broccoli Guy responded. "I'm no liar! I'll take you to this Omen fella so you can help the Queen!"
"Well, the Portal Gates are ready." Sprocket announced as she input Broccoli Guy's coordinates on a small panel near the main portal. "You all have your Relay Badges?" She asked.
Spyro looked down to see the small copper insignia. Its rim glowing with a dim blue light. "Well I do." He said out loud.
"I think we all do to be honest." Pop Fizz said. "Even if not, we can still bring two people with us right?"
"If you're close enough." Sprocket said. "Just remember; You should only activate three badges at the same time, else, really bad thing could happen with where you end up." She reminded the Skylanders.
"Noted." Jet-Vac stated. "We'll be quite careful. This isn't going to go like last time." He promised.
"Right!" The Skylanders shouted in unison.
"Well Sprocket, I think we're ready." Spyro stated. "Let's do this."
"You got it!" Sprocket exclaimed. She then passed a couple more buttons on her panel and with a burst of light, the Skylanders were enveloped in a white beam and sent to their mission.
Cynder walked behind Broccoli Guy as he led them through a strange swamp. The sky was cloudy and grey. Dim light pierced the clouds as the Skylanders flowed Broccoli Guy. However the tiny Doom Raider had been making them walk through the damp environment of the swamp for a couple of minutes now and they were getting a little cranky.
"Do you think he's really leading us to Golden Queen?" Cynder asked silently, swaying her head closer to Spyro, who walked beside her.
"I don't know." He responded quietly. "He's kind of a weirdo, you can't really tell what he is thinking."
"I can hear you!" Broccoli Guy stated loudly as he continued to float ahead of the Skylanders. "You aren't very nice!"
Cynder and Spyro then straightened out, a little unserved at the Doom Raider's keen hearing.
"We are almost there!" Broccoli Guy announced as he led the Skylanders further into the swamp. The drabby trees and damp environment began to disperse as they kept moving.
"How do you even know where we're going?" Jet-Vac, who was walking beside Broccoli Guy asked.
"I have a very good sense of direction." Broccoli Guy stated simply. "Trust me, we almost reach the coordinates where the creepy dude took Golden Queen."
A short wait afterwards, the Skylanders suddenly stepped into a wide clearing in the swamp. The clearing was quite a few meters wide and was covered in dark green grass. However, at the middle of the clearing, was a huge hole, into which the ground nearby seemed to sink inside of. The hole itself was dark, unnaturally dark, almost like it swallowed the dim light as well as the ground around it.
"Please don't tell me that's it." Eruptor begged, peeking at the dark sinkhole before him and his friends.
"Ohh that's it alright." Broccoli Guy stated. "He took Queenie down there." The Doom Raider pointed with both of his shackled hands. "I guess that means this is his lair or something."
"Well, I think we can all appreciate-" Pop Fizz began as he walked closer to the sinkhole. "How Omen always gets the entrances to his lairs to look this creepy."
Cynder looked at the gaping sinkhole. The unnatural darkness, and the erie aura of the place made her feel really uneasy.
"Well, I'm afraid that this is it Broccoli Guy." Jet-Vac said, turning to face Broccoli Guy. "You've gotten us to the lair, so since we no longer need your help, we'll be sending you back to the Academy, and from there back to Cloudcracker Prison."
However, Broccoli Guy simply floated in his place, looking intently at the sinkhole, not paying any mind ot Jet-Vac.
"Hey, did you hear me?" Jet-Vac asked the Doom Raider loudly.
Suddenly, Broccoli Guy moved with surprising speed, shooting across the clearing toward the sinkhole, giggling loudly and obnoxiously as he approached the sinkhole's mouth, leaving the Skylanders behind him.
"Hey wait!" Stealth Elf shouted from behind Cynder. "Don't go in there!"
Broccoli Guy paid her no mind. He was hovering over the dark sinkhole's mouth. He turned around, smiling widely and sinisterly at the Skylanders. "So long Skylosers!" He shouted, before swan diving into the sinkhole, giggling loudly. His laughter echoed weaker as he disappeared into the darkness.
"Oh brother." Jet-Vac let out, slumping his shoulders. "Now we have that to worry about."
"Well, at least he brought us here." Spyro said, trying to be optimistic. "So, umm… who wants to go in first?" He asked shakily.
Cynder suddenly remembered what had happened the last time she and her friends had gotten into a fight with Omen in his own turf. The surreal villian had, in all honesty, moped his floor with them. He had even managed to take on and even defeat one of the legendary Giants. Needless to say, she wasn't very eager to face off with him again and by the looks on her friends faces, the feeling was collective.
"Nobody? Alright then." Spyro picked up suddenly, making everyone focus on him. Then, the purple dragon swallowed hard before taking a couple of steps forward toward the sinkhole's mouth.
"Spyro wait!" Cynder called suddenly, making her friend stop in his tracks. "We don't know what's down there, except that it's something we've faced before and that… we failed to defeat." She said, darkening slightly. "So-" She picked up. "We can't afford to do the same mistakes we made that time."
"She's right." Stealth Elf, began suddenly, walking up to Spyro. "We failed last time because we didn't know what we were up against and because we let him get the drop on us, but this time, it's going to be different." She said. Stealth Elf then looked down at her ninja daggers, one of which was covered with dark burn marks, from that time Cyrus had burned her hand. "I swear this time, if we work together, we can get this done."
"That's the way to talk!" Eruptor shouted. "So, we all jump in at the same time or what?" He asked, walking up to the sinkhole's mouth.
"I mean, it's a really big hole." Pop Fizz said, as he walked up to his friends. "We could probably all fit in."
"Then it's settled." Cynder spoke up. "We all go in together."
The Skylanders then all positioned themselves around the sinkhole, making a widespread circle, all ready to jump into the abyss, ready to face Omen once again. So after a short pause, they all yelled. "Skylanders, Unite!" before jumping into the sinkhole.
Kaossandra slumped to her knees, utterly drained of her strength. She breathed hard as she stared at the ground inside the Relics Room. She remembered only feeling this taxed after she had been drained of her magic by Kaos.
"Kaossandra, please stop." Eon spoke softly from behind her. "This is clearly no use." The portal master said in a down tone.
"You're telling me." Kaossandra panted as she lifted her head to look at the rising stream of smoke in front of her.
As the dark vapours dispersed, The Black Savant's Hand, lay intact at the center of a small scorched circle, product of Kaossandra using almost all of her magic in an attempt to destroy the foul book.
"The darkness that binds this book together is far beyond either of our capabilities to destroy." Eon stated. "The best we can do is keep it where no one could ever find or use it."
"I suppose." Kaossandra agreed reluctantly. "In any case, that isn't even the most pressing matter right now."
"Indeed." Eon agreed soberly "The Skylanders are about to face Omen once again, an the consequences of their defeat last time still resonate to this day." He said, remembering the unfortunate event that occurred during the last battle with the surreal villian.
"Well thankfully." Kaossandra began. "Their mission this time, isn't to fight him. Its to retrieve Golden Queen."
"What would that villian want with her anyway?" Eon asked.
"I don't know." Kaossandra stated. "I'm certain he has his reasons. I'm also certain none of them are good."
"I just hope the Skylanders are able to return all in one piece this time." Eon said worriedly as he began to pace, or rather float through the Relics Room.
"Fate moves strangely around that monster." Kaossandra began, recalling how Omen had somehow managed to defeat one of the Giants, something a great deal of both evil-doers and heroes thought was impossible task. "Whatever happens, I'm sure we'll remember it."
Spyro walked slowly through a dark tunnel underground. The air smelled damp and the darkness around him was exceptionally deep. He couldn't have seen his own snout if it weren't for Eruptor lighting the way. Thanks to his friend, Spyro could see the walls of the tunnel. From the looks of it, this was once a mining figured from the wooden support beams and the worn down minecart railing on the earthy floor.
"We should try to stay undetected." Jet-Vac suggested as the senior skylander walked beside Spyro. "I think it's needless to say we can't beat Omen and his goons in head to head combat. Besides, our mission is to retrieve Golden Queen, not to challenge him."
"Let's not forget our little green friend." Eruptor added. "We should probably take Broccoli Guy with us too."
"Alright then, how do we stay hidden from them?" Cynder asked as the Skylanders kept moving through the damp tunnel.
"We need to be careful." Jet-Vac began. "This is enemy territory and we don't know what to expect. So we need to find some sort of way, to see further ahead than them."
"How do we do that?" Pop Fizz asked confused.
"We will first need to find both Doom Raiders." Jet-Vac stated. "And by the looks of this place, that could take a while."
"Guys!" Eruptor called from the front of the group, making them all stop suddenly. "We have a situation."
Cynder walked ahead to see what the problem was. Once she made her way to where Eruptor was, she saw what he meant by "situation." A large wooden elevator lay in front of them. It looked rustic and worn, made of thick wooden logs and planks. A small lever on the elevator, purposed for lifting and lowering the contraption. It was held in the air by metal chains and a worn-looking winch on the right side of the tunnel.
"I guess, we need to go down?" Cynder guessed, looking at the sturdy wooden contraption.
"I would guess so?" Stealth Elf said. "I guess it's the only way forward."
"Well then." Spyro began, walking onto the wooden platform on the elevator. "Let's get going. Those Doom Raiders aren't going to catch themselves."
"Alright! let's go!" Cynder exclaimed, filled up with determination.
"Yeah!" The rest of the Skylanders said in unison as they all climbed onto the elevator.
Afterwards, Spyro hit the wooden lever with his tail, swinging it to its left, and suddenly causing the elevator to slowly descend lower, into the belly of the beast.
Spyro waited patiently as the elevator carrying him and his friends down the dark descent. He was leaning on one of the corners of the medium sized wooden box as it descended while his friends were sitting, standing or pacing around. Several things were crossing through his mind. First and more predominantly, was a sense of unease. Omen had proven himself to be a very dangerous enemy to face and the last time they had fought him, it had not gone well. Spyro couldn't help but get a bad feeling about facing him again.
Then, Spyro was concerned about the whole Doom Raider mess. He didn't know how it was going to pan out, and in a situation like the one they were in, that kind wild card was really stressful.
Finally, Spyro had something resonating in the back of his mind. It was nagging at his conscience, keeping him restless. He had been having this dim feeling, like the kind you get when you feel like you've forgotten something important but can't remember what it was. This feeling had been getting stronger and stronger the more he met one particular person. Every time he met Cyrus, something clicked in the darkest parts of Spyro's mind, like pieces of something important coming together.
Suddenly, Spyro was knocked out of his deep thoughts by a sudden shaking on the elevator. The wooden box had hit the floor, leaving the Skylanders faced with a large cavernous opening, the main cavern of the would-be mine, they all guessed.
The cavern was huge, riddled with several wooden counstructs like platforms, pulleys, cranes, minecarts, and ladders. The woodwork was exceptional, for although it was covered in years worth of dust, it had al held together, even the platforms that rose and stuck to the stone walls of the humongous cavern. The whole place lit dimly by strange braziers, alit with unnatural blue flames, which gave the Skylanders an uncomfortable sense of deja-vu. Those were the same flames on Omen's previous lair, giving them a little bit of a warning that the malevolent garbage man might indeed be around. The braziers were spread across several locations on the cavern, including on the elevated platforms.
"Man, how does Omen find these places?" Spyro wandered out loud.
"I think we should all keep it down from now on." Stealth Elf suggested as she pulled up her bandana. "They could hear us, and remember, this is a rescue." She quoted the last word as if acknowledging the technicality of the term in this scenario.
"You got it." Eruptor said in a hoarse whisper as he lowered his head.
"Alright." Spyro started quietly, also lowering his head, cueing the rest of his friends to do the same. "Where should we start looking?" He asked, looking around the massive cavern.
"What do you meeeean, that's not a good idea!?" A shrill, metallic voice sounded suddenly through the cavern, making the Skylanders cover their ears and wince in discomfort.
The horrible and dreadfully familiar voice seemed to come from a strange pathway, the which was covered with minecart tracks. On the sides of this pathway, stood a couple of wooden elevations, both of which had thick wooden ladders on their sides, to allow people to climb onto them.
"I think we should start there, right?" Cynder suggested. "Maybe get on those wooden things to have the high ground? I heard that's kind of important."
"Might as well." Spyro agreed, beginning to walk slowly over to the source of the metallic voice. "If that's who I think it is, chances are, that who we are looking for is nearby."
At that, the Skylanders proceeded to walk and climb onto the two wooden elevations, dividing into two groups. On the left side were Cynder, Stealth Elf and Jet-Vac and on the right side, were Spyro, Eruptor and Pop Fizz. All the Skylanders walked slowly, trying to avoid making the wood under their feet creak and reveal their position. They walked through the platforms' leight toward where they they had heard the strange voice. They noticed the elevations were littered with crates, barrels and braziers lit with blue flames.
"I don't understand the plan exactly." A new voice said. This one was easier to track down, more grounded. It also sounded gravely and rough. "This all a lot to take in, with my, promotion and all." The voice continued.
"Promotion? What is going on?" Spyro wandered, walking slightly faster, wanting to see what this strange conversation was about.
"Look, I know you're excited about this whole Promotion thing." The first voice said. "But you really have to get your head in the game, man!"
Spyro noticed that they were getting close to a sort of edge on the platforms they stood on. The voices had gotten a lot louder since they walked along the platforms. Now, across the edge, the Skylanders noticed there were multiple stacks of crates and barrels, similar to the ones they had seen before.
Spyro gently placed his back against the stack of crates. He looked to his sides to see his fellow Skylanders, beside him and on the other platform do the same with what cover they had available. After a short breath, Spyro turned around and lifted his head to see what was going on.
In front and below him, was a large, circular space, riddled with minecart tracks that crossed and intertwined with each other and that later separated into single tracks, which led off into several different locations on the mine, through wide pathways like the ones tha Skylanders had come from. In the center of this clearing, standing in sort of circle, as if in a macabre meeting, stood four figures.
The most outstanding one, was who Spyro recognised as Omen. The surreal-looking villian had a way of standing out quite easily. He was facing forward and staring down on the other three figures. He looked a little angry, his purple eyes were curled down and narrow. The next person Spyro recognised was Cyrus. The purple dragon was facing back form Spyro, so the Skylander couldn't see his face. However, Spyro noticed that he was shaking albeit lightly. The third figure Spyro recognised was the massive cyclop Enumat. The hulking monster was also facing toward Omen and had his arms crossed, standing to Cyru's right. Spyro noticed his helmet looked different. It was now decorated with a single stripe of purple rock, like that of a spartan helmet.
Finally, Spyro looked at the third figure which stood to Cyrus' left. This one was new, However Spyro could notice some disturbing details about it. It seemed humanoid and quite tall, but it's body was covered in a very familiar darkness. The same darkness that covered the Knights of Solitude, perfect and detailess.
"I've got a bad feeling about this." Spyro thought to himself while he watched silently as the villians spoke.
"I only got hired like, yesterday!" Enumat suddenly spoke. "Me and my guys aren't caught up with what we're doing here."
"Urgh!" Omen grunted in annoyance, taking his dark wooden hands and doing something that would have reminicend to him pulling his hair out if he had any. "I already told you, we're looking for two dragons, one of the Undead element and one of the Magic element. I need them for something important."
"What do you need them for?" Enumat asked curiously.
"That part is a little bit of a secret." Omen dodged the question. "What you need to know is this: You and your cyclops are going to be working as my little army. I'm too unmotivated to try and bargain with the trolls to recruit them, and since Cyrus-" Omen turned to face his other minion, who lowered his head meekly. "Wandered into you, I decided to roll with the punches."
"Okaaay." Enumat started slowly. "So, my job is to crush whoever get in your way?" He asked tentatively.
"Pretty much, yeah!" Omen said in a happy tone.
"Well alright! I like my new job!" Enumat cheered.
"Hah, that's the spirit!" Omen cheered as well. "Why can't you be like him, boy?" He then asked Cyrus, who didn't answer. Instead he kept shaking, lowering his head even more.
"I do have one question though." Enumar began, making Omen focus on him. "What's she here for?"
"She?" Spyro wondered if he had heard that right.
"Oh, Goldie here-" Ome began, floating over to the dark humanoid figure beside Cyrus. "Is a key ingredient for my little project. You see, I need a sizeable amount of gold, alongside my little dragons in order to get my little ritual working. I had the gold ready in my old lair until someone-" Omen suddenly bent down almost to eye level with Cyrus, who gave a small whimper. "Got my lair found and destroyed.
"I s-said I was sorry." Cyrus said, almost in a whisper.
"And I said." Omen began in a dangerous voice, suddenly picking Cyrus off the ground by the back of his neck with one of his hands, making the dragon hang limply in the air. "That sorry didn't cut it."
"Umm, should I be here for this?" Enumat asked in an uncomfortable tone.
"Oh no, my friend." Omen said suddenly, his disembodied voice now calm and appealing, if it weren't for the metallic resonance behind it. "In fact, you should get going! You boys must be waiting for you."
At that, Omen stretched out his free hand and drew a wide circle through the air a few feet away from him. His wooden hand left behind a glowing purple trace, that once it made a full circle, created a pitch black hole in the air large enough for Enumat to cross. After a few seconds, strange runes, some of which Spyro remembered from the black book back at the Academy, appeared around the edge of the dark circle.
"That's going to take me to your base, right?" Enumat asked, pointing at the portal. "That's where all of my guys are at?"
"Indeed!" Omen exclaimed, still in a cheerful voice, still gripping a shaking Cyrus by the neck. "And, could you do me a favor? Take Goldie with you, she needs to get working as soon as possible."
"Aye, aye, new boss!" Enumat said, saluting Omen before walking over to who Spyro was now getting a feeling was actually Golden Queen and taking her hand, then dragging her dark figure with him to the portal.
"Have a nice day!" Omen said in a warm voice as he waved Enumat away.
"Thanks boss!" Enumat said, waving back. Afterwards Spyro could swear he heard the cyclop say something under his breath. "Man, what a nice boss." Then, Enumat took the darkened Golden Queen through the portal, which disappeared after the two villains crossed it.
"Now youuuu." Omen then picked up, his dangerous edge returning to his voice suddenly as he faced Cyrus again. "I'm still mad at you, boy. You still haven't gotten me my dragons."
"B-But…" Cyrus began shakily.
"But what!?" Omen roared suddenly, making Cyrus shrink. "Speak up, boy!"
"But I got you all the others." Cyrus began, trying to steady his voice. "I got the other six. Haven't I done enough?" He asked, almost beggingly.
"Enough!?" Omen spat, letting go off Cyrus and floating back a couple of inches. "What do you mean by, enough!?"
"I took all those dragons." Cyrus began, covering his face and the red mark on his forehead with his paws. "I brought them to you, you said you were proud of me…"
"Proud!? Hahaha!" Omen laughed cruelly. "Let me tell you a secret boy. The only reason you are the captain-" Omen quoted the last word mockingly. "Of the Knights of Solitude is because your defining element isn't one of the ones I need for the ritual and because of you fancy little flames." He said. "I never said I was proud of you, I said you were a good henchman!"
As Spyro watched the whole exchange, he began to feel really sorry for Cyrus. Spyro had felt nothing but disdain for the sarcastic purple dragon ever since their first fight. He had hurt his friends, he had hurt the innocent dragons behind the Knights of Solitude and he had hurt him too. Spyro was always so angry at Cyrus, partly because his very existence was a disappointment to Spyro. "All your dragon kind were heroes." Master Eon's words always came to his mind when he saw Cyrus, and every time he was filled with rage, because thanks to him, they weren't true anymore. But he had never stopped to think about why. Why was Cyrus this way? Why had he done all those things? Spyro believed he had found the dark answer to that question.
"I can't do this anymore." Cyrus said weakly. "I can't sleep at night, my body is always itching with pain thats not there. I… I just want." He paused, making Spyro listen eagerly. "I just want to b-"
Cyrus was suddenly cut off. Omen's hand had suddenly crashed against his throat and was not lifting him off the ground, gasping for breath.
"Listen here you little brat." Omen said slowly, quietly. "I couldn't care less what you want. You can have your little peace and quiet when you get me my dragons."
At that, something snapped in Spyro's mind. That feeling in the back of his head suddenly crashed open, overtaking him. "Well then come and get them!" Spyro shouted suddenly, his hatred of Omen magnifying his voice as he jumped out and flew over of his cover. He turned around and looked at Omen. The surreal-looking villian seemed shocked, like he didn't know Spyro was there. Then, Spyro released as powerful a fireball as he could muster. The flaming projectile fired out of his mouth and crashed violently against Omen's cage-like head, making him drop Cyrus.
"Owie! That was mildly inconvenient to my health!" Omen complained as he composed himself.
"Spyro, what are you doing!?" Stealth Elf exclaimed, jumping out of cover as well, followed by the rest of the Skylanders.
"You are all here!?" Omen asked surprised. "When did you get here, how did I not sense you coming!? Argh, forget it!" Omen shouted, composing himself. "I'll just get rid of you and get my dragons at the same time!" He shouted.
Afterwards, Omen's left floating string suddenly began to glow with an intense cyan color, and a static hum began emanating from it. Then, Omen's wooden chest separated by a few inches from his colorful hip, which stayed floating beneath it. Then, Omen's chest began spinning, and his glowing arm began to stretch further and further. By the time Omen was about to do a full spin, his glowing arm had stretched far enough for his hand to reach beyond the Skylanders on the platforms. As the glowing string moved to reach the Skylanders, they all ducked, dodged or teleported out of the way. As the glowing string reached the crates and barrels, it sliced through them like butter, leaving a scorched burn line where it passed through as it retracted and returned to Omen. Then, where the glowing sting had passed, the sliced halves of crates and barrels affected, slid off slowly, falling to the ground.
"Spyro, have you lost your mind!?" Jet-Vac shouted at Spyro as the senior Skylander began to fire blasts of air at Omen.
As Spyro flew through the air above Omen, shooting his fireballs at the villian, he wandered that himself. He didn't know why he had reacted like that to the way Omen treated Cyrus, but now was not the time to dwell on that, he was too busy getting out of the way of the dark wooden hand shooting up to grab him. Spyro barril rolled out of the way, avoiding Omen's grip.
"Oh, come on! Stay still!" Omen yelled as his red string retracted.
"I could ask the same thing to you!" Eruptor said suddenly. "Pop Fizz! Let's do it!"
"Right!" Pop Fizz agreed as he started to quickly mix potions, creating a bright orange concoction. "Bombs away!" He yelled.
Then, Pop Fizz launched his orange potion at Omen. The attack was followed up by Eruptor who released a single firebolt at Omen as well. Spyro recognised this attack combination and smirked. Omen was in for a very big blast.
But then, Omen stretched out both of his arms in front of him, the wooden hands glowing with a sinister purple aura. Then, Omen's hands grabbed both projectiles launched at him, surprising the Skylanders. In one hand, Omen held Pop Fizz, orange bottle, and in the other, the villian held Eruptor's firebolt. The elemental blast continued to smolder in Omen's hand, like fire being held in place.
"I believe." Omen began. "This is yours." He sai malevolently.
At that, Omen's arms retracted and with projectiles still in hand, Omen launched both attacks back at their casters, at speeds much greater that the first time they were fired. This closed the gap for the Skylanders to react. Spyro watched in horror as Pop Fizz's potion crashed against Eruptor's face and the magma Skylanders projectile hit Pop Fizz as well.
"Guys, no!" Stealth Elf cried as she saw her friends get knocked to the ground by their own attacks.
"Guys, yessss!" Omen corrected with a small, cruel giggle. "Two down, four to go!" He said cheerfully as he dove his wooden hands into the ground, just like the last time the Skylanders had fought him.
"Guys, I think we should retreat!" Cynder yelled as she shadow dassed out of the way as one of Omen's hands erupted from the ground beside her. The dragoness then took flight, trying to avoid any further attacks.
"That sounds like a plan!" Spyro yelled back, as he maneuvered out of the way of Omen's second hand trying to grab him. The purple dragon rose and dove through the carven's space as Omen's red string continued to stretch after him.
"We'll use the badges!" Stealth Elf suggested. "They can take Eruptor and Pop With us!" She said as she teleported over to her fallen friends, walking over to Eruptor.
"Oh no you don't!" Omen shouted. "Cyrus! Do something you lazy schmuck!" He commanded his henchman.
Cyrus had remained in his place throughout the whole fight. With his head down and standing still. Spyro hadn't been able to get a good look at him, but now, Cyrus turned his head around and Spyro was able to see his face. He looked awful. The dark clines under his eyes were thicker and his eyes looked glassy, diminishing the effect of the poisonous green and snake-like pupils. He looked at Spyro dead in the eyes. When he did, Spyro could feel something different to what he had felt before every time he looked at Cyrus' eyes. Before he felt afarind, he could feel rage and agony seeping out of those inhuman green things. But now, he felt something different, he felt something else in Cyrus' eyes, a pleading sensation.
"Well?" Omen said suddenly. "Do something!"
After a short pause of hesitation, Cyrus closed his eyes, looking away from Spyro, before flapping his wings and taking flight, moving at great speeds after Spyro.
"Spyro, look out!" Spyro could hear Cynder warn.
Spyro knew what to look out for. It was charging at him through the air, with its paws glowing a bloody red, ready to swipe at him. Spyro instead dove down, lowering his head. Small flames erupted from his horns as he dove down to ram Cyrus.
"Spyro, Cynder, we need to leave!" Jet-Vac shouted. "Use your Relay Badges, now!"
"Right!" Cynder called back.
Out of the corner of his eye, Spyro saw as Cynder readied to use her Relay Badge to get called back to the Academy. But, before Spyro could feel relieved, he saw in horror as Omen's hand suddenly reached out from under Cynde and grabbed her tail, pulling her down to the ground as she gave out a surprised yelp.
"You aren't going anywhere! Not when I'm this close!" Omen roared.
"Cynder!" Spyro called in distress, turning his head toward his friend, who was flapping her wings as hard as she could, trying to break free from Omen's hand, to no avail.
The next thing Spyro felt was an ice-cold set of claws slash across his face, numbing his senses. He then felt an equally ice-cold fist ram against his face and after a few seconds, he felt his back slam against the ground. Spyro saw Cyrus standing over him, looking at him with his green eyes.
"Finally…" Cyrus whispered. "It's over. I got him what he wanted" He said, with a weak smile.
Spyro then looked over to his friends. He saw Stealth Elf and Jet-Vac looking after Pop Fizz and Eruptor. He saw as Stealth Elf was ninja kicking one of Omen's hands away as it tried to reach for the fallen Skylanders. Spyro then looked over to Cynder, who was still trying her hardest to stay away from Omen, but the red string connecting the hand holding her tail and leading to the surreal villian was tensed up and retracting slowly.
"Guys! We need to leave!" Spyro shouted, trying to wrestle Cyrus off him. "Use your badges!"
"But…" Jet-Vac began. "What about what Sprock-"
"That doesn't matter!"Spyro showed. "It's now or never!" He said, grunting as he began to get leverage on Cyrus.
"Cyrus! Don't you let him go, boy!" Omen bellowed, his metallic voice shrill with rage.
At that, Spyro felt like a cruel cold began to spread through his body. He looked down at Cyrus' paws. They were glowing red, draining Spyro of his strength.
"Please…" Spyro heard Cyrus whisper, making Spyro lift his head to look at his face. "Let's just end this…" He said, not meeting Spyro's eyes.
Spyro used the dwindling bits of strength, rekindled by a burst of determination, to speak. "I'm sorry." He said. "But this can't end yet. Not here, not like this…" And with the last bits of strengths he had left, Spyro wrenched one of his arms free of Cyrus' grip, and tapped his Relay Badge twice. And then, Spyro's world was covered in a bright, blinding light as the Relay Badge took him across the Skylands.
Omen looked around, trying to comprehend what had just happened. One of its hands was missing, the one it had used to grab the Undead girl. Omen, retracted its arms as it looked for the Skylanders. All of them, every last one, was gone.
"Frick… Frack…" Omen pronounced slowly, as it also noticed that Cyrus was missing. "Patty… Whack..:" It said, slightly faster that the last two words, as Omen clenched it's remaining wooden fist. "Snick, snack…" It said, louder and faster. "Crack-pack, slack-mack!" Omen said, almost shouting the last word. "Quarterback, crackerjack, feedback, backtrack, thumbtack, sidetrack, tic-tac!" Omen bellowed in rage, spouting each nonsensical word louder and faster than the last until it just sounded like Omen was speaking gibberish, it's abstract body shaking and rattling loudly as well.
After as few moments, Omen composed itself. "This is bad." Omen stated to the dark cavern's echo. "Really bad…" It said, looking emptily at the cavern ceiling.
"I might have to kill Cyrus."
Author's notes
We are geting close to the end now... Be on the look out for the final chapters, only a few left now...
- I still don't own Skylanders Academy
- Broccoli Guy? Where did he go?
- Merry Chistmas? Still a little early isn't it?