Chapter 2: For Old Times
Irritated.
It was the primary feeling that was on Flare's mind as he walked down a particularly busy street of Warfang, his jaw clenched as he was jostled left and right from the numerous dragons, moles and gryphons that had somehow managed to fit in the street. Volteer was a few metres in front of him, separated by a few dragons as they travelled along the busy laneway.
The place was crowded, to put it lightly. Dozens upon dozens of creatures scrambled and shoved each other as they attempted to get through the three-metre-wide street and to their various destinations. There were stalls that had already set up for the day, selling assorted goods from antiques to jewellery to various market food. To make matters worse, the food vendors were taking up even more room on the narrow street and filled the air with the oh-so-alluring smell of hot bodies and sweat being mixed in with the greasy stench of various cooked stall meats, finally topped off with the refined aroma of spiced meats that together created an overpowering cascade of smells.
Needless to say, the red dragon was not having a great time.
After they had left the hall, Volteer had showed them to their rooms where Flare had dropped off his satchel before returning back to the outside world. The tour was uneventful for the most part, being escorted by Volteer around the city which held even more streets with similar situations to the one he was in. It had already been going on for a few hours now and they had thankfully gotten through most of the monuments in the city. Judging from what the electricity guardian had said, this should be their final stop.
He let out a small irritated sigh as he was shoved by a large yellow dragon that looked like he had already eaten too much for the day, earning himself a glare from the adult which the young dragon promptly ignored with a roll of his eyes.
He was already too tired of this. The tour had already been less than exciting, the electricity guardian already making him walk too much as he was told of historic figures that he would not remember and shown through ornate "wonders of the world", which happened to include the new Dragon Temple he had entered beforehand and the more ornate streets of Warfang which the red dragon couldn't care less about.
The only reason Flare was even remotely interested in this tour was so could know the city's layout and where the various markets were normally held. Of course, the population didn't help in that regard either as he kept getting lost in the sea of people.
Volteer, in contrast, was clearly overjoyed at the opportunity to guide someone through the city he had probably lived in for most of his life. Regardless of the issue in population, the electricity guardian's big smile only seemed to grow when his bright yellow eyes gazed at how busy the city was, seeming to not mind getting shoved and jostled as they walked through the streets
That smile was the only reason that Flare continued with the tour – it was obvious that Volteer loved the idea of being a tour guide and the red dragon didn't have it in him to even blemish the yellow guardian's experience on such a monumental day. And so, he trudged along without complaint to their next destination: The Arena.
The red dragon walked wordlessly for a few more seconds before sighing, his eyes turning to the various stalls around him and his gaze clouding in thought as he allowed his body to lead. Dear ancestors, he couldn't wait until it was mid-day and this tour was done. After he was rid of the yellow guardian's tour, he could travel to a more secluded space and enjoy the peace and quietness that it offered. He never liked even slightly crowded areas, and this tour has turned the figurative crowdedness scale to eleven. Maybe he could just go back to his designated room and decorate it a bit – he should have enough money on him for that at the very least. Either that, or he could go find his brother.
His brother.
A grimace came to the red dragon's muzzle as he recalled how the blue dragon had immediately bailed on him as soon as they had been shown their rooms in the temple, effectively leaving him to deal with Volteer, and the entirety of his tour, by himself. Fortunately, the blue dragon abandoning him wasn't the worst – last thing he needed was to keep track of yet another dragon in the tsunami of dragon, moles, gryphons and other creatures. Though it still irritated him that his brother managed to get away with no strings attached while he had to follow the electricity guardian.
His brother's excuse was not even good; "Oh hey, I work better alone so I'm not going to even give you more than a minute of my attention even though you are setting aside hours for my ungrateful tail. What was that? You were looking forward to being our tour guide? Oh, sorry I don't care. Okay, thanks, bye." The red dragon could not help but give a small smile in mild humour at the thought of his brother saying the sentence in such a straight-forward way. He may as well had said it judging from how fast he left.
The red dragon perked up as the large draconic bodies in front of him dispersed to the left and right, revealing a wide plaza. As he padded forward, a relieved smile came to his muzzle as he took in how the spacious it was, easily reaching one hundred metres in diameter. The plaza was clearly designed to be a sort of resting point judging from the sheer size of it and the numerous people sitting and having picnics or chats in the innermost area. The outer edges of the plaza were occupied by even larger crowds who were busy trying to get to the other areas of the city, with even more paths converging from the plaza.
As Flare's gaze swept over the area once more, his eyes focused on a certain electricity guardian further in the plaza who, judging from how he was rapidly waving at him, was trying to get his attention. Supressing an amused smile, the red dragon began his trek toward the somewhat flustered guardian, dodging everyone in between and losing sight of the yellow guardian as he did so.
It was only when he was only a few metres away from where the guardian was that the red dragon noticed Volteer again and that he wasn't alone. Now standing beside the electricity guardian was a pale blue adult dragon who appeared to be talking with the guardian. It was not difficult to decipher that the blue dragon was some kind of Warfang noble, judging from his open show of wealth in the form of the jewellery he was wearing.
Flare did not give the jewellery itself any thought, only giving the gemstones a brief glance akin to that of someone who had seen it a thousand times. Instead, he focused on the pale dragon himself. While it was obvious that the two dragons were having a riveting conversation judging from their smiles and body language, the red dragon couldn't hear a word of it due to the general din of the busy plaza despite his best efforts.
As the red dragon got within a couple of metres, Volteer seemed to notice him as he waved a wing in greeting. The pale dragon's attention followed the yellow guardian's to the young dragon, his sky-blue eyes meeting Flare's fiery red. His gaze was as cold as a frozen wasteland in winter.
"Young Flare! My sincerest apologies for leaving you. I am pleased that you were able to catch," Volteer briefly greeted before turning to the noble again, giving a directing wing toward Flare. "Lord Magnifical, it would be a pleasure to introduce Flare, an acquaintance of mine from a time long ago."
The noble raised a brow toward the guardian. "Acquaintance you say?" His gaze shifted to the young dragon, his eyes inquisitive. "The story of how such a young dragon met and befriended one of the Guardians of Warfang must be a fascinating one."
Flare was silent as the noble's gaze drifted over him, his eyes wandering over the red dragon's cloak. His brows jumped in intrigue when his sky-blue eyes took in the golden choker and golden gemmed bands around Flare's horns. The elder dragon's gaze, though somewhat unnerving, was not enough to make Flare feel too uncomfortable – after all, he had already experienced similar stares back at home for the last year. Though the same could not be said about Volteer.
A quick glance revealed a very different side of the electricity guardian that the young dragon had not seen before. The yellow guardian was obviously apprehensive about the way the noble's gaze never darted too far away from young red dragon. It was unsettling and set Flare on edge. If there was something about the noble that made Volteer hesitate, it meant he had to tread carefully.
Volteer stammered. "Y-You would be correct; however, wouldn't such a narrative be more appropriate at another occasion? After all, we are currently at the dawn of one of the most tremendous festivities in the last year and it would be unwise to encompass so much of your time on such a trivial matter."
Magnifical lifted a paw to his chin, pondering for a moment before turning away from Flare to face the electricity guardian once more. "Yes, you would be right," the pale dragon rumbled. "I do have a busy day today, and a story may take more time than I have."
He suddenly turned to Flare once more. "You. Hatchling."
The young dragon perked up instantly. "Yes, sir?"
"How did you manage to acquire such a unique apparel and jewellery? Do you hail from noble heritage?"
Flare shook his head, not hesitating. "Unfortunately not, sir. I was very lucky to make a…" He paused thoughtfully. "…friend who happened to be from a wealthy family. The family was awfully generous and gifted me the cloak and the jewellery."
The elder dragon raised a brow, a fair amount of suspicion in his blue eyes. "Is that so?"
"Yes, sir."
"And the armour?"
"Also a gift, sir."
Magnifical continued to glare at the younger dragon for a moment longer before he finally relented with a puff of frosty air through his nostrils. "Very well." He turned back to Volteer, a pleasant smile appearing on his maw. "It was a pleasure briefly talking with you, Volteer. I will see you later today."
Volteer stammered. "Y-Yes, it was an honour to make your acquaintance, Master Magnifical and I also cannot await our encounter later in the day!"
Seemingly pleased, the noble dragon gave a small nod before walking off and almost immediately getting lost in the buzz and bustle of the immense mass of creatures on the outer rings of the plaza.
Volteer eyed the noble as he walked away, his expression only easing as soon as the pale dragon had disappeared into the crowd. Flare waited, his gaze on the electricity guardian as the red dragon waited for some sort of an explanation or warning.
When none came, he spoke up, brow arching in intrigue. "So, Master Magnifical?"
Volteer started as if he was jolted out of a trance, bright yellow eyes turning to the red dragon. "Oh, ah, yes. My apologies young Flare, I had not expected such a visit on our tour and it appears that it has left me a bit…flustered." The yellow dragon paused, a bright smile suddenly coming to his face. "I do owe you my most monumental gratitude for identifying the situation and acting accordingly. You are quite a brilliant backslapper, a dazzling flunky, a superb bootlicker!"
Flare frowned, not sure if it was an insult or not. "Uh, thanks?"
"No thanks required – such a skill is in high demand when dealing with the master!" He said with the same bright smile before his expression took on a serious frown.
"However, you were correct to treat that dragon with respect – Master Magnifical is the most influential noble that exists in Warfang. While it is never mentioned, it is common knowledge among the citizens of this city that Magnifical has access to all facilities within Warfang and has influence that stretches into the city's major facilities including Warfang's tribunal."
Flare's brows jumped. "Tribunal? So you are saying that there isn't even an honest justice system in the city?"
A hurt frown appeared on Volteer's face. "No, not at all! Warfang's justice system is right and fair. However…" He trailed off, the frown dropping further in guilt. "There has been a recent case where the accused dragon was not liked by the master and their trial happened to be…discriminatory."
Suddenly Volteer's reaction to the noble made sense – Magnifical held influence over the city's tribunal and had actually acted on it in the past. That meant that anyone he did not like could be sentenced to whatever the noble would desire. He only hoped that the sentence was within reason for the crime. But if that was true…
Flare's eyes narrowed as a sudden burst of anger flooded through him. This is starting to sound familiar.
Trying his hardest not to allow his thoughts to show, the red dragon tilted his head, his brow arching in curiosity. "So not even the guardians of Warfang have power against Magnifical's influences?"
"Th-that is not what I had said, young Flare," Volteer stated, his eyes avoiding the red dragon's. "Regardless, it would not be in your best interest to interact with him. Should you displease the master, your life in Warfang would become astronomically more difficult."
Flare nodded silently.
The yellow guardian glared at Flare for a moment, seeming to judge if the red dragon was being sincere. "Very well." With a small sigh, Volteer quickly glanced at his surroundings, appearing to collect himself once more.
He turned back to Flare. "Would it be alright if we take a bit of a pause to the tour and talk for a short period of time?" the guardian said with a small sheepish smile as he sat down. "It bothers me to admit this, but I am not as youthful as I used to be."
It was a lie. Both Flare and Cavice had known from the start of the tour that there was an alternate reason behind it and it was somewhat of common knowledge among the two that the Guardians of Warfang were nowhere near old enough to be physically hindered by their age. Volteer was doing a good job hiding the true meaning of his actions, but with the red dragon on high alert, there was no way that it could go unnoticed.
Information.
It was a clever disguise to hide it behind a tour – it allowed them to split Spyro up from the two young dragons and let the guardians interrogate them to their heart's content, essentially performing two tasks in one. A good plan in theory but nothing truly impressive if said dragons didn't catch onto the plan. Regardless, Flare didn't mind; both brothers had expected as much when they had decided to suddenly appear in front of the guardians after four years. He planned on playing his part in this show, so he could avoid any unwanted caution from the guardians. Though it was unlikely that the elder dragons would catch on to his act since he was an oh-so-innocent young dragon, the last thing he needed was to alert them of his true intentions. At least not yet.
Flare played an innocent smile on his face. "No, I don't mind."
"Brilliant!" Volteer smiled, as the younger dragon sat down beside him. The electricity guardian waited a few moments, seemingly to gather his thoughts as the smile fell from his face into a frown once more. After another moment, he turned to the red dragon. "Flare, I am experiencing difficulty wording the question so I would like to apologise with my forthrightness in advance, however…" he trailed off, looking directly at the young dragon, "where have you and your brother been for the last few years? How did you obtain this attire?" he gestured to the red dragon's cloak with a paw. "It goes without question that both of you are not the same hatchlings we met four years ago."
Flare let out a small sigh. "Well, I could tell you what I told your noble friend, but I feel that you want to know more, right?"
When the guardian nodded, Flare looked away thoughtfully, his gaze not really focusing on anything as he pretended to consider what he was about to say. The words were already in his head, the story already expertly crafted over years of consideration. All he had to do was play his part once more.
He took in a deep breath. "Before I begin, I'm assuming you know of Utopias?"
Volteer nodded. "All creatures in the world have a high probability of knowing of The Great City." He sat up straighter, a broad, confident smile on his face. "Utopias is the most immense and influential city in the world and with due cause, as it is the proud residence of The King that governs all major cities on the planet." The words were spoken as if it was recalled specifically word-by-word rather than in the guardian's wording. "His highness' reign even extends to us here in Warfang – even though we exist at the furthest reach of the world." The yellow dragon tilted his head. "But why would a dragon of your age be so interested in the Great City?"
"Because it's where I met my friend." Flare paused, putting a claw to his chin thoughtfully. "Well, technically it was on the outskirts of Utopias when I was travelling to the city but that's beside the point.
"My friend hails from noble heritage due to the fact that his father is one of the highest-ranking nobles in the city. Because of this, I was met with hostility from his two bodyguards when I had first approached him on my way to The Great City – blind of his rank and occupation." Fiery red eyes glazed over as he stared into space once more. "We were both a part of a touring group that were busy seeing the sights around the outskirts of the city. As a dragon who did not know how to get to the city after I had arrived at the land, I found this as an opportune moment to get to my destination while my friend was using it as a sort of disguise to hide himself from unwanted attention – hiding in plain sight sort of thing. The tour went off without issues for the most part, that was until we were ambushed by a large group of grublins." The young dragon paused, his wings flaring out for dramatic effect.
"Without thinking, the noble had sent both of his guards to protect the touring group, leaving him vulnerable and without protection. This naturally had surprised me as I had only considered nobles to be the cautious type, that was until I saw the two guards in combat. The two guards somehow managed to keep at least a dozen grublins at bay for the better part of a minute and had shown unnatural mastery in combat."
Volteer nodded. "That is quite expected as Utopias' military is known to be the strongest in the world due to the requirement to guard the king."
Flare gave the guardian an appreciative nod before continuing. "Anyways, long story short is that I helped them when one of the grublins managed to get past both of the guards and went for the noble – I stepped in and saved his life. After a lot of legal things, the noble promoted me to be the third bodyguard of his little circle and from there, I've been living a fancy life for the last year – being pampered like some kind of royal and given armaments and clothing of the current generation in Utopias."
He gave a small apologetic smile. "Of course, we had wanted to visit Warfang earlier, but it was difficult to get vacation time to travel here."
Volteer laughed. "It is only expected! Travel between Warfang and Utopias is commonplace to take three or four weeks depending on transportation." His eyes brightened in curiosity. "May I ask why you were going to The Great City in the first place? The city is not known for being a tourist destination for those that do not have a lot of coin on them and it did not seem that you had much when we had first met."
"Very well," the young dragon said with a small sigh. "I had been split up from Cavice shortly before I had begun my journey and Utopias had been our meeting up place should either of us get lost. It is naturally the most logical idea as, like what you had mentioned before, it's the city that everyone knows of, so directions to the city would have been easier and more consistent than to other cities."
"Would it be safe to assume that both yourself and young Cavice met without issues?" the guardian asked with a raised brow.
Flare nodded.
"That is wonderful to hear," Volteer stated with a small smile before an almost sad look came to his eyes. "But, if I may ask, what of before that?"
Flare froze as dozens upon dozens of unwanted memories flooded through him once more, memories so clear and vivid to the point that they were lifelike. They froze his limbs and the flawless façade he had kept up suddenly shattered as a horrified glint came into his eye for merely a second before he smothered it with practiced ease. Why was this a surprise to him now? He had known of the inevitable question, yet he had been taken off guard and forced to relive memories he would prefer to hide for a quieter time. Disgrace. He was a disgrace to those who had taught him over the last year. He was a disgrace to all the planning he had done for this exact moment. How pathetic.
"Young Flare?" Volteer perked up, his expression now clouded in worry. "Do you feel well?"
Flare blinked out of his thoughts. "Yes. I'm fine." A sullen frown came to his face as he looked at the yellow guardian. "Are you sure you want to talk about this on such a festive day and here, Master Volteer?" He raised a directing wing toward the crowd around them.
The electricity guardian had a conflicted scowl on his face as he looked at the crowd and then back to the red dragon. He let out a defeated sigh and gazed right into the younger dragon's eyes. "Young dragon, as much as I would prefer to leave this conversation for a more suitable time, myself and the other guardians cannot ignore that you and your three siblings were captured and taken away by Malefor's forces while you were under our safety. So, if you could tell us of anything that could be useful, we would be ve-."
"It wasn't a fun time, Volteer," Flare interrupted with an irritated scowl. "I would rather not talk about it now."
The guardian nodded yieldingly. "Very well. My apologies for prying so deeply." He tilted his head slightly as a small smile came to the elder dragon's muzzle. "And what of Saber and Valie? It simply enthuses me to see your siblings after so long and to see how much they have grown! How are they? Did Valie achieve her goal of being a renowned herbalist? What of her element training?"
Flare turned away from the guardian, closing his eyes slightly as he dipped his head. A part of him was pained to hear their names again. One would think that he would become used to it after all the nightmares he'd had about them. How he couldn't save them. And the excitement in the guardian's voice to see his student again…
Worried yellow eyes filled his vision again. "Young Flare?"
The red dragon sighed before he opened his eyes and turned to the elder dragon again. "They're gone, Volteer."
All sense of mirth and joy within the conversation seemed to die as the words escaped his mouth, leaving all but a deadening silence to engulf the two of them. The guardian stammered, mouth opening and closing as words escaped him for the first time all day. It lasted merely a few seconds, but it felt much longer before he seemed to have steadied himself.
"M-My apologies, young dragon – if I had known, I would not have-."
"It's fine, Volteer."
"V-very well. Apologises if it may be difficult, but would it be acceptable if you could describe how your siblings had mana-."
"Volteer." The red dragon interrupted, irritation creeping into his voice once again. "They have been gone for years now but I still miss them. So, if it is fine with you, can we please stop talking about them on a day meant for celebration?"
The guardian nodded yieldingly yet again. "As you wish, young dragon. I-I am deeply sorry for your loss."
The silence settled upon the two dragons once again. Flare turned to scan if anyone was possibly prying into the conversation. A quick glance revealed nothing out of the ordinary and a secondary scan with his element didn't reveal anything he couldn't already see. Thankfully, it appeared that he got lucky when he got carried away with the conversation and revealed a bit too much information - as forced out as it was. He knew that it was unwise of him to talk about such a private subject in broad daylight – both figuratively and literally as the young dragon's eyes turned to the sun, gauging the time.
Seeming to follow the younger dragon's train of thought, Volteer's gaze also turned to the sun as his eyes squinted against the light. "It appears that it is almost time for me to take my leave, thus we should head to the city's Arena quickly if we still want to finish this expedition," the electricity guardian stated as he turned to the young dragon, an inquisitive brow raised.
Relieved at the change of atmosphere and conversation, Flare gave a shrug as a small, snide toothy grin came to his muzzle. "We've gotten this far already. I don't see why I should not go to the big finale without my expert tour guide by my side." He paused, the grin falling from his face. "If you have time for it of course?"
Volteer laughed as he got to his feet, a great smile on his maw. "Of course, young dragon! I still have some time before I have the meet the nobles of the many cities visiting alongside my colleagues and I would vastly prefer spending it to escort you along the streets of our fair city."
The elder dragon walked until he was on the outskirts of the plaza with Flare following closely behind. The two dragons did not talk as they shoved and ducked past the numerous creatures that were walking to their various activities until they found themselves on one of the many streets that took them away from the plaza. The street itself was relatively busy but thankfully was made for it, with the cobblestone path stretching much wider than the other Warfang streets and allowing them to slow down to a more casual pace at the side of the path while the middle was being used for those in a hurry.
Flare let out a massive sigh as they got to the side of the street. "I'm really not going to get used to having to push my way through people to get to where I want," Flare remarked as his eyes wandered over the new section of the city.
"Did you not have any similar occurrences while you stayed in Utopias?" Volteer asked with an arched brow. "I was of the assumption that the city was an incredibly busy metropolis."
"Well, not for me personally," the young dragon answered casually, not taking his eyes off the scenery. "Whenever the city would get so busy, it would normally be a time where I would be guarding my noble friend from any dangers that they may bring. This often meant that civilians had to give our group a wide berth; anything else would be highly suspicious and could actually be punishable at times should they take suspiciously long."
"How stimulating! This escort must have been quite the adventure for yourself by now!"
It was not a question, but Flare nodded regardless as they continued their walk silently.
Volteer lead him along the street for another minute or so, telling the younger dragon some more miscellaneous facts about the city and the various other structures they passed that he couldn't care less about until a massive oval coliseum loomed in front of them. The building itself was nothing too spectacular from what the red dragon had seen in his time in Utopias, but it also was not by any means an ugly building. The immense walls of the construction were made from a dark stone that curved into an oval, supported by several dark marble columns that held up the roof. Judging from how dragons and griffins alike were flying above, it also appeared that the stadium had an open roof to allow flying creatures easy access into the building.
The electricity guardian guided him in the massive entrance and the red dragon's brows jumped. The place was enormous! Rows upon rows of concentric rings of pale stone stairs encircling a long earthy stage, a labyrinth of earth on top where two groups of dragons with red and blue sashes clashed over an odd-looking ball. The rings appeared to be the seating arrangement for whatever show was on the stage as fiery red eyes scanned over the countless creatures that sat on them, hooting and cheering as the dragons in the middle fought over the bizarre ball object. He estimated that it could easily hold thousands of creatures comfortably.
Flare's gaze turned toward the activity in the middle, his brows again jumping in confusion as he noticed the ball change colour when one of the dragons hit it with his elements. Seeming to follow his gaze, Volteer perked up. "Ah yes, would it be a suitable assumption to state that you have not heard of Thunderball yet?"
The red dragon turned to the guardian, brow still raised in curiosity. "Thunderball?"
"Yes," the guardian affirmed with a small nod. "Thunderball originated here in Warfang during the many peaceful years prior to The Dark Master's disturbance and was a sport that was widely renowned for its competitiveness over the years. The objective is for each player to navigate the maze situated inside the playing area without flying and to hit or throw the ball into the specified goals once imbued with the dragon's element," he explained, lifting a directing wing toward a large circular ring made from magic that lay flat on the ground at one side of the court. Flare spotted another on the other side, currently where both teams were as the red sashed team were successfully batting the ball away from it.
"The playing ball is able to absorb a bit of the dragon's element when hit with them, allowing it to take on some aspects of the element such as the power felt in the earth element, the heat of fire or the charge of electricity. Should a dragon touch the ball when they have not applied their element to it, a concussive, non-lethal blast would radiate from the ball, knocking the player a few paces back but nothing truly dangerous."
As if to emphasise his point, a low boom sounded from the other side of the field and Flare turned to see a red dragon get blown away a metre or two to the side. Seeing the opening, a yellow dragon with a blue sash shot a bolt of electricity to charge the ball before batting it with a paw into the now open goal. A fresh wave of cheers and jeers erupted from the stadium as the red dragon winced and lifted a paw to cover his ear.
Seemingly unaffected by the noise, the electricity guardian continued, now shouting to be heard over the crowd. "Though slightly dated, Thunderball has endured the hardships of time throughout the war and is beginning to make a return alongside another recreational activity that is being held later today!"
"Another sport!?" Flare shouted, a paw still on his ear though the crowd was beginning to quiet somewhat.
Volteer nodded. "Yes! The activity is closer to a sub-genre of Thunderball than one that is completely new, however it has become very popular over the last few years and I can only imagine that its popularity will be greater by the end of the day." The guardian paused, turning toward the sashed dragons playing before lifting a claw to point at the ball. "The sport is known as Evadeball and uses the same ball used in Thunderball! It is played in this same stadium, however the maze is cleared from the platform and another, smaller platform is made from earth and elevated over the existing one." The yellow guardian beamed proudly as he explained it. "It truly is very fascinating."
"Sounds exciting. I cannot wait to watch the games," the red dragon commented with a small, thrilled smile.
The electricity guardian turned back to the younger dragon, the great smile still on his muzzle. "Very much so, though, if you truly feel enthusiastic about the game, you may be able to participate." When the red dragon only responded with a raised brow, the guardian continued, his eyes widening slightly in surprise. "Were you not aware of the audience event later today? I had assumed that you knew of the event but not of the sport - we have passed several posters of the event on our tour today."
Flare's brows narrowed as he recalled ever seeing the posters. Truth be told, the red dragon had been zoning out on several of the so called "tourist destinations" and had primarily focused on navigating the busy city and not trying to split up from his guide. He vaguely remembered seeing posters on the wall but after the first several that he saw that were about the various larger vendors in the festivities, he began tuning those out too. It was no surprise that he missed out on the ones about the tournament.
"There is no reason to ponder deeply on it. After all, you now know and that is all that matters," Volteer stated, snapping the red dragon back to reality. The elder yellow dragon's smile reappeared. "I suppose that you wish to participate in the event?"
Flare snorted. "Pfft, likely not. I don't even know the rules to the game, so my chances of winning would be low." He paused, tilting his head in curiosity as a new question came to his mind. "What is the prize for winning the tournament anyways?"
"Excellent question, young Flare," the guardian comment with a twinkle of amusement in his eyes. "The winner of the tournament gains a private invitation with their family to the feast held within The Dragon Temple later tonight."
The younger dragon's eye's widened. "The room that Cavice and I had entered this morning? Would this feast be with everyone we saw inside that room then?"
Volteer nodded. "You are correct. That particular room has seen very little use over the past year and has been the location where important conversations have been discussed over meals. Not many creatures have seen the inside of the room as it has been more commonly locked away from outside eyes."
Ah, so it is the temple's Grand Hall, then, Flare pondered, his eyes narrowing in thought as he turned back to the Thunderball game that was still in progress, though his mind was on anything but it. While the tournament was not too interesting to the young dragon, the prize was the actual thing that caught his attention: a ticket that allowed him to interact with Spyro at his own leisure without the guardians' stares drilling into him throughout the entire event.
At least he hoped so. His brief meeting with the purple dragon earlier in the day revealed that the hero was being heavily protected by the guardians and that he did not know who he and Cavice were. It was to be expected though, seeing as they had only met each other that morning. However, it surprised him when the guardians also didn't perk up to tell the purple dragon of their relation to him.
It mattered little. He was not in any rush to reveal his identity – after all, it was getting fun to see Spyro's unbiased personality and to see him react like he did in the morning. Uncomfortable, nervous…honestly, the purple dragon was a mess and he was lucky that Cavice decided to spare him of the blue dragon's more intense piecing glares. It showed that, while Spyro was at least trained a bit in diplomatic affairs, the guardians had not done a good job and were going to protect him from anything that may showcase how poorly trained the purple dragon was. Though why they felt that they should be protecting the purple dragon from him was a question for another time.
Regardless, he had made his choice already about the tournament. While participating in such a colossal stadium would attract far too many unwanted eyes onto him and furthermore make him reveal more about himself, he had very little choice unless the guardians also sent himself and Cavice a private invitation for the meal tonight, which seemed more and more unlikely the more that the red dragon heard about it. Unfortunately, they didn't have time to wait, so this was their figurative and literal ticket to solve one of their bigger problems.
With a small sigh, the red dragon turned until his fiery red eyes met the guardian, his gaze steeled with new determination. "Volteer, I've changed my mind."
Volteer turned a curious eye toward him.
"Where do I sign up?"
Stormy clouds loomed overhead, occasionally lighting the darkened mountain lands below as flashes of unnatural lightning sparked above. The land was sparse, all life and vegetation seeming to avoid the terrain, leaving all but a desolate land where no life could sustain itself.
The land was drenched in shadowy darkness aside from a lone touch that emanated soft light onto three figures as they wandered up the mountainside. There was no conversation in the small group as they continued their venture up the rocky terrain until they emerged at a cave that led into the mountain.
The figures continued their silent trek without a word for a minute or two, their pace showing that it was a path well practiced until they emerged to an open cavern. The subterranean room was a dome in shape, stretching many metres in all directions and a few less in height. The room showed signs of use, having collapsed a few years ago, though the room itself was empty aside from the figures.
One of the figures looked around the cavern, a singular bright yellow eye scanning along the entire room. "This is the first time that I have seen this cavern empty from all the rubble," it said through the grunts and groans of its language as it turned to the larger of its compatriots. "Remarkable that you and your group managed to clear it out within the year that The Master was gone."
The larger figure of the group grimaced, easily twice the height of the previous, before grunting. "This is all assuming that Pvaark is correct in his assumptions," it gestured with a thick arm to the final member of the group, the dark scowl still on its face. "Which I greatly doubt."
The third, small creature paid the others no mind as it used its insect-like wings to flutter ahead of the group, only stopping when it had reached the centre of the immense cavern. It then dug into a small satchel it was holding, searching around for a moment or two until it pulled out a small pink coloured gem. The surrounding dark cavern sparked to life with a pale pink light as the gem in the creature's hands illuminated the cavern.
The small creature smiled to itself. "Yes. This is the correct location."
"What was that, Pvaark?!"
The smaller creature, Pvaark, turned around to face the approaching larger beings. He dropped his smile, instead putting on a stone-cold expression. "I said, Thuuk, that by my calculations this should be the location where there is the least interference between our worlds, therefor allowing The Master to navigate between his prison and this dimension with the least amount of effort."
When Thuuk only responded with a blank look, the one-eyed creature stepped in. "Or to put it simply, The Master is more likely to be appearing in this cavern than anywhere else in the world," it said with a snarky chuckle.
"I see. Pvaark, do you know when we should be expecting The Master to be appearing?"
When the smaller creature shook its head, Thuuk sighed. "How convenient," he rumbled, before turning to his one-eyed compatriot. "Regardless, seeing as He has not returned yet, we will be returning to the grublin base for now. However, I expect both of you, Seeyuri and Pvaark, to be joining me when I return here every day from now on. Understood?"
When he heard no objections, he turned his back to the cavern and began wandering back without a word. Seeyuri followed behind the large grublin a moment later, leaving Pvaark alone in the cavern. The small grublin waited there for several long moments, staring absently at the glowing pink gem in his hands
How long will it take for The Master to return? he thought, before jolting back to reality in time to see the last bits of light from Thuuk's torch fade from view. No, he needed to get going otherwise it would only get him into more trouble. He hurriedly put the glowing gem into his satchel without a word before chasing after the last glimpses of torchlight.
Author's Note:
I hope all of you enjoyed this chapter - it's another long-ish one but the next few should be a bit shorter and easier to read.
Big thanks to Dragonmaster000 for allowing me to use his game, Thunderball in my story and for his amazing proof-reading on the chapter.
All constructive criticism is greatly appreciated as I'm always trying to better myself as an author so I can make this story as good as it can be. :) Thank you for reading!
Until next time!