CHAPTER 12

The crystal doors melted away and he beheld the monster Malefor had twisted his baby sister into. It was at this moment that the fear Jerrath had kept at bay with his confidence in his abilities rushed to the forefront of his mind. The terror was all encompassing as he sensed the young dragons presence.

A low growl eminated from the large dragoness in the back of the room. She curved her elegant neck to see him, sensing his crippling fear.

"So...you made through the temple alive? Very Impressive for a young dragon like yourself."

He couldn't speak. Not even a whisper escaped his maw. He could feel his lower jaw begin tremble.

"What is the matter Jerrath? Afraid of your little sister?" Malefor hissed turning all the way around. When she did, the black tendrils he had fought earlier showed themselves once more. The appeared to originate from her belly, and who he assumed were the guardians had been wrapped in them, having their elements drained as they spoke.

Still he said nothing, only looking fearfully at the monstrosity that used to be his sibling.

'Jerrath you have to fight! Do something or she will kill you!' Spyro's voice once again snapped into his head and momentarily broke his stare, but not his fear's vice like grip on his motor skills.

xXx

In The Spirit Realm...

Spyro, Cynder and Ignitus looked on as Jerrath was still not able to move himself.

"Spyro, I hate to admit this, but I don't think Jerrath can beat Malefor alone." She said to him.

He looked at her raising an eye ridge, but sighed.

"I think you're right Cynder...It looks like Malefor will finally realize his evil dream..." He lamented as he pondered their situation

"No! He cannot be allowed to revive himself! There has to be something we can do!" He said stamping a forefoot in frustration. Sadness graced the faces of all as Malefor began his attack on the helpless young drake they were watching.

xXx

"You certainly are a tough young fighter, but alas, your time is at an end!" Malefor roared releasing a stream of fire barreling down on Jerrath. His training completely left his head as he tried to shield himself with his wings, taking the attack head on, and failing miserably. He was carried on the column of fire and slammed into the wall behind him, cracking it and causing debris to pelt him as he lay there in a broken heap.

"I'm...I'm so-sorry Ria..." He whispered as tears of pain, both emotional and physical ran down his cut up and bruised face. Movement attracted his attention as he saw Malefor moving in to finish the job.

xXx

They cringed as they observed Jerrath absorb the massive attack Malefor had unleashed from the spirit realm, a small tear forming in Cynders eye. It was then that she knew what she had to do. She shook off her tears and looked to Spyro.

"I know how we can help. I'll go into Ria's body and try to fight Malefor off long enough for her to regain control of herself. Spyro, you should help Jerrath as much as you can."

Spyro was taken aback by his mates idea.

"Cynder I want to help them too, but if you get killed in the realm of the living, you disappear forever!" Spyro pleaded to her.

"There is no other way Spyro. I wont let him corrupt another innocent hatchling. Not as long as I can do something about it." She said solemnly.

Even though Spyro knew the extreme risks, he knew there would be no reasoning with her. He nodded and turned to Ignitus.

"If we dont come back, you've always been like a father to us Ignitus..." Spyro said smiling up at him.

"I have faith in you two. I'll do what I can for you from up here, now god speed young dragons! Jerrath cant hold out much longer!"

And with that, the entered the fray for the first time in hundreds of years.

xXx

As Malefor approached the wounded dragon, Cynder appeared in front of him, in spirit form. He was stunned to say the least, but quickly recovered his expression of calculating malice.

"Ahh Cynder my pet, it has been quite a long time since we last met." He said smirking.

"I'm not here for words Malefor!" She said lunging at him. He held his ground and spoke as she rocketed toward her former master.

"You cant injure this body! You're merely a spirit." He scoffed.

"I don't plan on hurting Ria!"

His eyes widened in shock as she dove into his chest and transported herself into Rias mind.

xXx

Inside Ria's mind...

Cynder looked around, taking in the seemingly circular all white room she had been taken to. There was a portal at one end of the room, and little Ria in a cage of dark energy at the other. She took a step toward Ria, but lightning struck right in front of her advancing paw. She withdrew it and glared at the portal from whence it came. A large black dragon stepped out of it. His eyes like burning coals and smoke rising from his very being.

"Finally, I get the chance to dispose of the general who failed me so miserably!" He gloated. He was at least twice Cynder's size, and presumeably was considerably more powerful.

"I'm not letting you use another innocent girl to do your bidding you scum!" She hissed back as they began to circle each other.

"Who are you?" A sobbing whimper came from Ria locked in her small cage.

"Its ok, I'm not here to hurt you Ria." Cynder whispered to her in a comforting tone, not taking her eyes off her enemy.

"And what exactly do you plan on doing to me here? No one but myself can access the portal to control her body, thanks to that pendant I gave her." He said smugly.

"Then I'll kill you here. Only one of us is leaving here alive." Cynder growled.

Ria looked down at the formerly gold star with a red gem in the center. It was now black as night and the red gem was glowing as if it was alive. She tried to rip it off, but as soon as she touched it, a pulse of dark energy shocked her paw harshly.

'I hope Spyro can remove that thing somehow...' Cynder thought as Malefor broke her internal monologue.

"Well I have a realm to rule, so lets get started!" He said releasing a multitude of black energy tentacles out of his arms. Cynder tried to dodge them, but they were just too fast. They wrapped themselves firmly around her limbs and tail and began to pummel her with dark energy. She screamed out in agony as the energy consumed her life force. It was only by sheer force of will that she broke free of her bonds via her shadow element.

She fell to her knees gasping for breath, a slight whimper escaping every now and again. She slowly raised her head just in time to see his tail whip across her face, cutting her cheek below her left eye and sending her hurtling across the room.

"Cynder, Cynder, Cynder...I've been looking forward to this fight for a long time, and now you give up after a few scrapes? I trained you better than that!" He snarled, hitting her wounded body with another bolt of black lightning, eliciting a yelp of pain and more gasps of breath.

'Please get that necklace off of her soon Spyro!' She thought as she slowly rose to all fours.

Malefor smirked and Ria continued to cry.

"That's more like it!"

xXx

Spyro appeared next to Jerrath and looked him over. He was pretty banged up, but nothing looked broken.

"Jerrath! Jerrath look at me!" he said urgently as the young drakes eyes fluttered open.

"Spyro...I...I cant beat him..."

"Yes you can Jerrath, and I'm going to help you." He said, his amethyst eyes locking with Jerrath's battered grey ones.

"How?" He asked weakly.

"Just hold out your paw." He said as Jerrath managed to find the strength.

Spyro put a forepaw to Jerraths and in a flash, he was gone. He felt as thought he was not in control over his own body. He felt instantly healed and quickly stood up from the rubble before Malefor gathered himself from Cynders attack.

"Spyro? Where did you go?" He asked worriedly.

'I'm in your head. I'm going to tell you what to do and when to do it, and it is crucial that you listen to me, understand?' Spyro asked.

"Okay...what do I do?"

'Wait for him to make the first move, then we counter.'

xXx

Cynder dodged the latest blast of dark energy as she tried to make her way to Ria.

Malefor shot another lightning bolt at her, only this time, she was quick enough to deflect it back at him, knocking him backward a few paces.

"Spyro is outside with Jerrath right now, and they'll find a way to exercise you from Ria! You cant be in two places at once!"

"Oh contraire, right now, Ria's external being is on, well lets just say 'auto pilot'. She will behave just as ruthlessly as if it were me controlling her. Something I believe you were quite familiar with!" he snarled.

She fired her own shadow beam at him, but he merely batted it away like nothing more than an aggravating mosquito.

'He's just toying with me...' She realized as he drew nearer.

'I have to buy Spyro all the time I can!' She thought taking another beam of dark energy to the chest.

xXx

A mighty tailswipe came at them and Jerrath followed Spyro's orders down to the letter.

'Jump! Now lunge and kick!'

He did just that and Malefor fell over onto his back. It was at that point that Jerrath caught sight of the star shaped pennant on his sisters chest.

'I dont remember seeing her wear that before...' He thought as Spyro interjected.

'I'm feeling a lot of dark energy coming from that thing, that must be how he is possessing her! Jerrath you have to get it off at all costs!'

He ran over to grab it when Malefor sprang back to life and used both back legs to send him flying across the room with a drop kick into a group of dark crystals, causing his scales to burn as they pierced them. Not even Spyro was quick enough to tell him to move out of the way of that strike. Jerrath writhed in pain as he struggled to remove the burning crystals embedded in his wings and back.

After freeing the last one, he was subject to yet another strike from the dark master, sending him into the cieling, then crashing back to the hard stone floor, the guardians all the while still being drained of their elements.

'Ok Jerrath, on the next attack, just go straight for the pennant.'

Malefor began gliding over to him, maw ready to rip him to shreds.

'Ready...and NOW!'

He lunged at his sister and broke the thin silver chain which bound it to his sisters body. The blood red light from the central gem faded into nothing, but Jerrath's successful claw was met by Malefor's much bigger one, grabbing his forearm and raising him to eye level by his trapped appendage.

The pennant slid off the broken chain and shattered on the ground, but Ria still appeared to be under the dark masters control.

"You have done nothing, boy. I cannot be stopped."

xXx

Cynder lay bleeding on the ground, wheezing heavily from the multiple wounds she received from her former master, when suddenly, he stopped walking toward her and put a paw to his head, as if he had a headache, a low angry growl escaping his maw.

The dark energy bonds holding Ria disappeared as Cynder wearily stood up on her tired legs.

"Ria...come here little one." She called to her as she ran without hesitation to the beaten and bleeding dragoness.

"Damn that purple dragon! He must have removed the pennant. No matter. There is only one way to claim this body, and it is through that portal. You will have to go through me if you want to save the girl." He said as his plan began to run into unexpected obstacles.

Cynder was in no condition to fight anymore, especially someone as powerful as Malefor. That left only little Ria...

Remember when malefor gave ria that pennant a few chaps back? yeah, it all makes sense now! anyway, only two chaps left! bye!