It was wonderful to finally feel solid earth again.

Reaching the part of the shallows where the ocean was shallow enough for his paws to touch the seafloor, Spyro shifted from swimming like a crocodile to walking along the bottom, wading through the water until he finally stepped out onto the beach, the last few inches of the waves lapping at the back of his paws as he completely exited the water.

The pleasant sensation of warm sand grinding between his toes, the solidity of the unmovable earth beneath his feet, and the cool early-spring breeze blowing from the west all brought a sense of satisfaction to the Safi'jiiva's chest, prompting a deep reptilian purr to come from his throat.

And once he stepped far enough away from the water, he promptly shook himself dry like a dog while flapping his wings, sending a light spray of sea-water in all directions.

"ACK!"

The pained exclamation alerted him to his fairy's presence, and he turned his head to see Zoe hovering only a few feet away from him, recoiling from the drizzle he unwittingly sprayed her with; her skin gave a hiss of steam where the salt water touched, forming light red spots of irritation across her arms, shins, and face, akin in appearance to the irritated burns caused by poison ivy.

This was a natural reaction fairies had to anything with salt in it, given their kind had a strong natural aversion to the mineral.

"A little warning would've been nice!" She snapped as she dried herself off with the sleeves and skirts of her dress.

Spyro merely snorted animalistically at the sight, more bemused than concerned, absentmindedly whipping his tail back to shake the last of the water off. Zoe gave a pouty 'hmph!' in response, but otherwise said nothing more regarding the matter as she continued drying herself; the red spots faded from the Dragon Fairy's skin as her magic healed the burns, making them disappear as quickly as they arrived.

There was a reason most of the Veil Piercer's crew had been made up of rodentkin, despite it being a fairy ship. And the fact she and the other members of the crew that had been Fae risked going out to sea in the first place truly spoke to how strongly they viewed the importance of the entire journey...and how much trouble they were in when said ship was (unintentionally) sunk in the shallows, leaving the fairies to either fight with the rats for a spot in the lifeboats, or end up taking a dip in what was akin to acid to them.

The fact that the original mission they embarked on was a failure only added insult to injury.

The sound of shifting sand turned both of their gazes to a distant spot on the beach. Several yards away, a large mound rose up as a large creature emerged from below the surface of the nearby dune, the sand sliding off its back like waterfalls of tiny stone: a massive hermit crab, as large as a full grown bull, pulled itself and its chariot-sized shell out of its hiding place, having been disturbed by the sound of other creatures. Enormous legs as thick as the arms of a gorilla clawed at the sand with a lazy determination, their owner set to move but more than confident in its protective shell as to not be in a hurry to escape the potential danger.

It's pitch-black eyes on twitched on their stalks toward the dragon and fairy, eyeing them quietly for a moment, before the massive crustacean turned away and began dragging itself towards the ocean, leaving a deep trail behind it.

Spyro turned his head to follow the giant crab, the sight of it only helping to confirm that he was indeed back on Nimh.

It made him recall when they had first arrived in the Dragon Realms, and he had seen their version of hermit crabs on the beach near the harbor; he had been deeply disappointed by their laughably tiny size, no bigger than a pebble. He had no idea why any dragon that lived there would even bother trying to catch them; the delicacy of their meat was not worth the energy it would take to catch enough to fill their stomachs.

As he later would learn, they didn't eat the crabs. But the firsts of a long, long list of disappointments that the next decade of his life would end up being for him.

The so-called 'glorious' Dragon Realms, and the fairies of Feywild had described it: The 'homeland' of his kind.

Laughable.

Eventually the crab crawled far enough away and began to descend into the shallows, submerging itself out of the reach of the potential predator that had awakened it. Spyro watched it go for just a little longer before he turned his sights back to what awaited him just beyond the sand: the wide expanse of a grassy meadow, half-way between the transition from winter to spring. He could tell by the mixture of brown and green in the grass that the snow had just melted away, allowing the sun to finally start bringing the world back to life. The slight chill lingering in the air was further proof of this; a sign that the frost of winter had only just left the ground.

But as beautiful as it was, it was another sight of the meadow that drew his attention. One that, just like the crab, cemented the fact that he was finally home.

Scattered across the field, like trees scattered across the savannas, were massive flowers that were as large as small trees, some nearly as tall as he was, with stems as thick as small tree trunks and petals extending several yards in diameter. On one of these flowers, he spotted the giant butterfly from before, drinking deeply from the rich pools of nectar within its stamen.

Beyond the field he could see the distant south-west edge of Feywild Forest, the forest that he had lived in for most of his life before his trip to the Dragon Realms; the trees were absolutely gigantic, standing as large and tall as skyscrapers, stretching hundreds of feet into the sky and with canopies wide and thick enough to completely eclipse the sun.

He was finally back.

Nimh, the Land of the Rodentkin.

The Rodentkin were the rodent version of Beastkin: animals that could speak words and walk on their hind legs like humans could. There were several different kind of rodentkin; the most common were the Rats, who were about the same size as Zoe on average, but others included the smaller Mice and Shrews, along with Hedgehogs, Moles, Badgers, and other such 'woodland critters' (minus the rabbits, he made note to himself; they were of a different race class than the rodents, as he had been taught with notable exception. El-ahrians, if he recalled correctly).

It was believed that the giant rodents were the reason Nimh was such a different place to the rest of the world outside it: it was as if, in response to their size, everything here had been magically scaled up to match them; from the flowers and trees to the insects and animals, all now much larger than they were in other lands. To outsiders, it would seem as if they themselves had shrunken down to the size of a mouse; a no-doubt frightening experience for those unprepared for it.

But to Spyro, who had been born in this land, feeling as small of a mouse was to feel right at home.

It had been the size of everything on the so-called mainland that had unnerved him: everything was so tiny and weak by comparison, as if he had been forcibly enlarged into a giant, making it a very hard and cumbersome process for him to adjust to the illusion of size-change for the first year or so. Not to mention the size-change brought with it a forced change of diet that he did not appreciate; while the flesh of the mammals of the mainland had been delicious (he had gained a particularly strong taste for sheep), he had found himself longing for the pleasant crunchiness and sweet juice of Nimh's giant insects.

...All that being said, while everything was indeed back to a satisfying size, he couldn't help but still feel that it still wasn't as big as he remembered it to be. He didn't recall being able to see the top of the tall flowers back in the day. so why-?

Realization hit him rather suddenly, and he looked down at his hand, pulling it back to reveal the footprint in the sand underneath; a footprint that was as nearly as large as Zoe was now, while he could remember a time he was once the same size as she was. He remembered the two of them being at near eye-level with each other when they first boarded the Veil Piercer all those years ago...

...How much had he grown since he last saw the fields of giant flowers? How long had it truly been since he had roamed the forests of sky-reaching trees?

Too long...far, far too long.

"I'd almost forgotten just how big everything was." Zoe said quietly as she hovered next to his head, observing the sight of the meadow with an unreadable expression on her face. She almost looked lost, her memories of home just as ancient and alien to her and his was to him.

"Still feels too small." Spyro growled, using his claws to scratch the footprint out of the sand in disgust.

The fairy allowed a light-hearted smirk at his comment. "Don't go blaming the world for being unable to keep up with your stomach." She stated cheekily as she poked the side of his head with a finger. Spyro gave an irritated snarl and snapped his jaws at the offending finger, which Zoe yanked away from the blade-sized teeth just in time to avoid losing it. Her smirk became a more sincere smile. "Growing this big is natural for your kind; it would've been the same had you stayed."

The dragon gave a deep, gurgling sigh that sounded like an alligator's growl as he turned back to stare out over the fields of green.

A moment of silence passed between them, before Zoe spoke again, her smile turning into a displeased frown. "They'll be expecting us back in Feywild sooner or later." She told him flatly. "With plenty to complain about, I'm sure...Should we-"

"No."

The single word outright thundered across the beach with a crackling growl akin to the roar of open flame, interrupting her mid-speech with the unwavering suddenness of a lightning strike; Spyro's voice outright transformed into the voice of a true Elder Dragon: deep, thunderous, and fiery, like a force of nature given speech. His anger was emphasized by his eyes, which were now literally burning with lavender fire, the flames licking the sharp spikes of his eye ridges as he glared toward the edge of Feywild Forest, which sat to the northwest of his current location.

"I'm done playing with their pointless games." He growled in his 'dragon voice', sending heavy vibrations through Zoe's very bones and scaring the distant seagulls from their roosts, their cries barely audible over his thunderous words. He gave a defiant huff as he turned away from the forest, opting to start heading towards the south-western fields instead, ready to feel grass beneath his feet again. "If they seek for further audience with me, they will do so on my terms."

Zoe cocked an eyebrow at this statement, though she couldn't stop the feeling of sisterly pride from blooming in her breast. "Defying the wishes of the kingdom, eh?" She asked, tilting her head to the side with a lopsided grin. She tapped her chin with a finger, as if in thought. "Now where in the world could you've gotten that from, I wonder?"

The dragon snorted in annoyance to her question, though his upper lip curled up in a saurian's version of his own grin, the flames of his eyes cooling back down to a soft glow.

She shrugged, pulling her arms behind her head and leaning back to pop the kinks out of her arms and spine. "So, if not Feywild, where shall we head off to first, then?"

Spyro paused to give it thought, a deep rumble of thought thrumming from his throat as he stared at the ground for a moment...before his eyes lit up as the answer crossed his mind: "I've missed my favorite sunning spot for a decade." He stated simply, swinging his tail in a swishing flick. "It's about time I returned to it."

Not even a few hours since the dragon had returned, and King Avalon was already being reminded of what it meant to be the overseer of the Jendovahzoor.

He had almost forgotten how aneurysm-including it could be.

When the watchmen of the kingdom's western outpost announced the sight of the Veil Piercer on the distant horizon, it had sent the entire kingdom into a flurry of talk and excitement. Even in the lifespan of the fairies, ten years was a long time to go without seeing someone, let alone their ward of the purple dragon of legends.

Just about every fairy in the forest had gathered at Avalon's Riverside Docks to see the mighty ship sail up the river, golden sails glimmering in the sunlight, all leading up to that one glorious anticipated moment when the great Jendovahzoor would finally step foot on Nimh soil for the first time in a decade. Given the Veil Piercer's famous speed, they would see the ship arrive within the hour, just in time to be greeted with a celebration feast for breakfast. There were booths selling sweet treats, party games with prizes for the children, musicians piping enchanted music so wonderful that it made one dance involuntarily, and everything else that once would expect for what many would see as the greatest event of the entire decade.

It wouldn't be until several hours later when three lifeboats cramped with the soggy crew slowly paddled their way to dock, the mere sight of it all being enough to halt the music and celebration in an instant.

And that's how King Avalon found himself here: seated on his throne in meeting with the Grand Calendula Council to address the matter of the Veil Piercer's impromptu destruction, and the absence of their legendary beast of prophecy, instead of celebrating his long-awaited return.

The former crew of the Veil Piercer, or at least the Fair Folk members of it, were still dripping with sea-water as they stood before the council, said water pooling on the smooth amber floor beneath them, while their bodies were red with the burns of the ocean's salt, appearing sunburned from head to toe (which was impressive for the plant-based crew members, as they were normally not capable of sun-burning).

Massaging his temples did little to relieve himself of the intense headache he was currently experiencing, and the shouting between the other members of the council wasn't helping it either. The Veil Piercer...the pride and joy of his entire personal fleet...a ship that had cost more time and gold to construct than it had to build than your average medium-sized village...built for the chosen purpose of ferrying the Jendovahzoor to the land of his fellow dragons as swiftly yet comfortably as possible...split in half and sunk to the bottom of the northern shallows by said Safi'jiiva, taking with it a king's ransom's worth of materials and treasure with it.

Only the top of the last intact mast stood unclaimed by the depths and visible from shore, pathetically poking out from just above the ocean's surface like the reaching hand of a drowning sailor, the flag of Feywild hanging limp and heavy with sea-water.

It was going to takes months to salvage the recoverable pieces from the ocean bed, such as the rigging, treasure, and supplies (made no less difficult by it being under salt water). And even if they could somehow pull the ship itself from its watery grave, there was no saving it; the keel had been split in half by the dragon's raw strength, and without its literal spine, the Veil Piercer was never to sail again. They would have to rebuild a new ship straight from the ground up.

And that, frankly, was only if they were ever going to send Spyro away from the mainland again and, judging by the dragon's eagerness to get to shore, that was probably never going to happen.

He sighed heavily, that particular thought weighing heavily on his mind.

So much time, money, and resources...wasted.

"And he was heading away from the forest, last you saw of him?" The eladrin asked, making sure to hide his emotions behind a voice of commanding calm.

The former first mate, a soaked and grumpy Spriggan whose trademark fiery-red hair and beard hung wet and dripping over his face, nodded with a huff. "Didn't so much as spare us'a glance, not even once." He spoke in a gruff voice, pausing to shake the water from his beard, spluttering as he did so. "Last we saw a 'im, he was headin' south, t'ward the grasslands."

"That puts him straight on the path to the southern border!" The Grig Representative exclaimed, stomping the ground in front of his chair with his grasshopper-like foot.

"The Rodentkin will discover him for sure!" The Shimmerling Representative shouted in turn.

The Spriggan Representative slammed his mud-colored fist on the council chamber's grand table, the harden amber ringing under the blow. "We must take action before that happens!"

"All of you, calm yourselves!" Avalon barked, his voice louder than all the others; the council quieted down, staring at their king with expectant expression.

Taking a moment to collect himself, the King of the Fair Folk first turned to the crew and dismissed them with a wave of his hand. "You've all done your kingdom and dragon well. Treatment for your salt-burns awaits you all at the infirmary."

The first mate nodded in gratitude before he and the others left the council chambers, leaving a trail of water on the floor behind them.

Only once the great oak doors closed with a loud clap did Avalon allow himself to sink back into his chair with a heavy sigh, resting his head against the knuckles of his left hand. "Well, that was a waste of an entire decade..."

"Perhaps we gambled a little too heavily on the idea of the Tamrizerothian races accepting any kind of Elder Dragon pup, let alone a Safi'jiiva one." The Seasonal Fairy Representative said in agreement. "We would not welcome the equivalent of a primal monster into our homes. Why would they?"

"His heritage could also be a factor of their rejection." The Nixie Representative spoke, taking a moment to brush her long, wet hair out of her sliver-green face. "Sacred Beast of Legend or not, the scars of his predecessor still haven't had enough time to fully heal. Even most of us feared to accept the reality of another Jendovah being born we he was first brought to us."

"None of that matters now!" Spriggan snapped angrily. "Regardless of how or why, Jendovahzoor has been rejected by the Realm Dragons and is back in Nimh, now of size and strength for the entire continent to see!"

"We all know the Rodentkin and El-ahrians will learn of his presence sooner or later. It's only a matter of time, regardless of the outcome of the expedition." Avalon stated in a much calmer tone than before, though he remained slouched in his seat, quite lacking the will to bother looking presentable. "Feywild Forest cannot hold Jendovahzoor forever; with every passing day the dragon grows, and as he does, so does the urge to leave the nest."

"Agreed: he's no longer the pup he was when he was first sent to the realms." Nixie said. "The forest alone is no longer a suitable home for him; dragons need the open sky to spread their wings, not a cage of trees."

"And when Jendovahzoor does learn how to fly, his territory boundaries will skyrocket." The Banshrae Representative added sullenly, his telepathic voice as gloomy as his demeanor. "It's only a matter of time before all of Nimh becomes his domain to explore."

"Which is why we need to act now, before it's too late!" Shimmerling interrupted, her crystalline wings shivering with emotion. "We've kept Jendovahzoor's existence a secret from the Rodentkin because their cowardice is as strong as their feral brethren; the moment they learn of the presence of an actual Safi'jiiva living on Nimh, let alone an Aetherian one, the outcries of fear will be as loud as a stone giant's roar!"

"And with said fear comes violent retaliation." The Redcap Representative said, adjusting his signature cap atop his head as he spoke. "It'll only be a matter of time before a bounty will be placed on his head, and every would-be dragonslayer seeking to make a name for themselves will be after him."

Another round of whispering and muttering passed around the council, this time in a much angrier and hate-filled in tone: Dragonslayer. That was a word that the Fair Folk truly despised with every fiber of their being.

Blasphemy given Title.

"Not the mention that with revelation of his existence, they'll also learn that we had been willingly keeping here, within reach of their lands, for over a hundred years." Grig said with concern, scratching the exoskeleton plating on his head. "What little peace that exists between the Fair Folk and the Rodentkin will be completely shattered when they learn this."

"Then what do you suggest we do? Imprison our own savior within the confines of the forest?" Banshrae asked incredulously. "Lock him away like a wild beast within a cage? Never let him see the sunlight again?" He would've spat in disgust if he had a mouth to do so with. "Blasphemous nonsense, as well as impossible!"

"Agreed. He's now far too strong for any of us to force him against his will." Nixie said in agreement. "It is inevitable: as King Avalon said, Jendovahzoor and our involvement with him will soon be known throughout all of Nimh, whether we like it or not."

"Scattered, inexperienced hunters are of little concern." Avalon spoke up himself, putting his own two cents in the conversation. "If Jendovahzoor can crush an entire Nocturnal Patrol squad as an infant, then a few rats looking for easy coin will be child's play by comparison for a pre-teen dragon. One with far more experience in battle against armies than most his age has..."

His brow furrowed in troubled thought. "No...it's the idea of him encountering the other Titan Beasts of Nimh that concerns me the most."

That got the council's attention, this time the in-talking whispers being fearful and dreaded. After all, Jendovahzoor was only one of several great beasts that roamed the lands of Nimh, and he was but the youngest and smallest of all of them.

One was the great Monster Cat of Nimh, Dragon (a creature of ironic name, honestly) a huge, bloodthirsty beast that terrorized all of Nimh as it pleased, feasting on entire villages to satiate its never-ending appetite. It feared neither sword nor magic in the name of satisfying its hunger, and while Spyro may have been of similar size now, the giant cat currently had him beat in sheer muscle and savage ferocity, more than capable of ripping a pre-teen dragon to shreds.

And then there was the Great Owl, a truly ancient and feared monster of the sky; a giant, ancient owl that had hunted Nimh's inhabitants for as long as any of them remembered. It was so powerful and long-lived that the Rats worshiped it as a godly beast, wise and knowledgeable to where even Avalon himself had once sought an audience with it in times of need. The encounter with the great bird of legend, massive in size and mighty in strength despite its incredible age, was one he would remember clearly for the rest of the days. The Owl was intelligent and cool-tempered enough to be reasoned with, but if he and Spyro ever crossed paths, it would no doubt result in a vicious fight for territory.

Jendovahzoor may have been the legendary Aetherian Safi'jiiva, but he was young, soft, and comparatively-inexperienced. At his current age and strength, even with the ability to breathe fire on his side, he wouldn't stand a chance against either of them.

Then there was...the third one.

Avalon sighed wearily once more, his frustration with the dragon's antics giving way to genuine concern, the smallest glimmer of worry and exhaustion escaping from his normally unbreakable expression. He squeezed his eyes shut with self-anger; if only their venture to the Realms had not been in vain...

"Well...what do we do then?" The question was spoken so softly and hesitantly, no one else could tell who had spoken it.

The king gave himself a moment to compose himself, opening his eyes and looking out over all the expecting faces staring at him. His kingdom, and its future, all looking to him for the answer to a question that could potentially spell their doom.

The crown on his head suddenly felt ten times heavier, threatening to break his back from the sheer weight of the entire forest riding on its decisions.

Times like this he truly missed the support of his old friend.

"For now, I will contact Jendovahzoor's Dragon Fairy and get a fully-detailed report of what happened in the Realms and the Gnorc War." He finally decided, straightening himself up. "Perhaps she can shed light of what went wrong...as for Jendovahzoor himself, send word to the border patrol to monitor their posts and sound the alert if he's seen approaching the borders. As long as he stays within our domain, he won't be encountering any rodents anytime soon."

The beams of golden light from the mid-morning sun shone through the bedroom window, shining upon the face of a sleeping field mouse.

Her sky-blue eyes opened tiredly to the sight of a new day, a soft yawn escaping her lips as she rose herself from slumber, slipping out from under her blankets. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes with one paw while using the other to fetch the tattered red cloak that hung from the foot of the bed-frame, wrapping it around her shoulders as she stepped out of her bedroom; there was a lot for her and her family to do today, and she needed to get her children up and ready for the tasks ahead.

Little did she know how much her life and the lives of her children would change that day, or how much of an impact she herself would have on the lives of those about to become a part of it.

Perhaps even more so than they would impact hers.