The Legend Of Spyro: Love And War Book 2

by Spyro and Cynder lover

Continuation Of Book One! With Malefor returned to normal, Spyro and Cynder in love, and everyone now back to their normal lives, another threat; Flint, the new Dark Master, will put everyone and friendships to the test, mixing lies and threats against one another. Death is around every corner, lives at risk, and sometimes, not even being dead means you're forgotten.

56. Chapter 56: Hours Before

Chapter 56: Hours Before

Hours Before

The sky now blacked; a nightmare turned to reality, Spyro's body was consumed in a beam of darkness that seemingly reached through the sky itself. Tearing through their own reality, the darkness was absorbed into the purple dragon's body that Cynder held; her lover absorbing the beam in its entirety. Dragons of all colors, genders, and ages flew with purpose; survival. Unfortunately, few made it through the barrier that slowly encased Warfang in what was know as a death sphere. Many slammed against this barrier, using their abilities, bodies; anything they could in desperation to escape, but it was too powerful. Many were taken aback; their attacks being met with force by this sphere that covered Warfang. Black lightning shot outwards, electrifying hundreds like a bug zapper. Chaos ensued to these fallen bodies, many passing out from the sheer force of the power that kicked them away while others whom were lucky enough to still be conscience let roar a cry of pain and suffering. Cynder still tried her best to hold him close even as wind erupted outwards from the point of impact this darkness had within him. His body morphed to this black liquid of darkness. It changed him, corrupted him, and took hold of his every being. She tried her best to reach out to him, crying for her lover to fight back against this darkness, "SPYRO! " Her voice was severely muffled from the cries, screams, and air that roared through the area, "Come on! FIGHT THIS! What ever this is, I know you can do it! "

Corvus, still within control over Malefor's body, blocked the rush of wind from his face with his wings and arm. He knew what was to happen next, more than almost any other. Ignitus too knew of what was to happen, and though he took a step forward into helping his son, Corvus stopped him, "Ignitus, DON'T!" The father looked at the Dark Dragon; ready to dispute him, but was interrupted before that could happen, "Ignitus, don't do this! Not now! You know more than anything that I want my revenge on this world! I gain NOTHING by dying here today! Go help the others! Formulate a plan with Volteer! We need damage control as soon as possible!"

Ignitus gritted his teeth, afraid of whether or not he should trust his own instincts or an enemies', "And... what of Spyro?! What of my son?!"

"He's gone, Ignitus! You've seen what happened before through your memories! You know the truth!" Ignitus shed a tear to this reality: it was them or Spyro whose life was on the line, "We either kill him or he'll kill us, but we have to trust in ourselves and not pull our punches! We start doing that and he'll pull our souls from our bodies!" The wind was dying down and Corvus knew what was next, "GO! I'll try my best to keep him occupied! You get the others together and find us a way to deal with him! Ersa might have a way to kill him... she may well be our only way of making it out of this alive."

Ignitus had no choice but to agree, only, he did so in half of a way. He turned and ran back to the others whom still huddled around in a circle from Prosperity's guards, thinking to himself on how best to handle this bloodshed to soon ensue, No... No, I know Ersa. She's seen who Spyro truly is, what he wants, and the affects he has on people. His positive attitude surely would've led her down a path of paralysis to him, or a soft sedation! Please, Ersa... you and Volteer may be the only two who can truly save my son from this.

Corvus raised his wing in control over Malefor's body, trying to get closer in efforts that Cynder would listen to him, "Cynder...!" He stepped a little closer, "Cynder, you have to run! Get away from him!"

She was reluctant, still holding on to hope that her lover would hear her, "No! I won't lose him! There has to be something we can do!" Using her Darkness to connect to his, she tried her best to reach his heart, soul, or mind, "Spyro please...! Please hear my voice! It's me! It's Cynder!" The Darkness she attempted to connect with him couldn't push through, like a barrier was keeping everything out, and who Spyro was in, "Spyro...! SPYRO!"

The same type of lightning shot out and connected to Cynder's red colored chest. She coughed from the sudden force and was thrown backwards from him. Corvus gasped to see this. Not only had she lost her connection to the purple dragon, but with nothing to hold him down and back, Spyro's body rose to stand. One paw after the other, black lightning bolted through the ground and could be felt all throughout the air. It was hard to breathe at certain points in time, and whether from anxiety or an actual force many couldn't decipher. Spyro's rise was one of an end. Corvus knew their deaths were immanent, and how best he could to survive was something he quickly had to think about. The newly blackened and liquid state of Spyro's new body gave everyone something to fear. His eyes oozed black liquid; he wasn't a man anymore, he was the purest form of a monster. Even with the turn of his body to look down upon Cynder's figure, he showed no care, no remorse, and was ready to go again. Cynder's tears weren't seen by him, nor were her cries heard, but that did little in persuading her to surrender, "For what all we've been through, you're really going to let it end here?! You still have lives to protect! Families that need mothers, fathers, friends, and siblings to come home to! No one will have any of that if you turn on us now!" Spyro looked to her without a word, taking a few more steps towards her, "Spyro..."

"CYNDER!" Corvus himself was too scared to move, "RUN! GET AWAY FROM HIM!"

She couldn't move even herself. The man Spyro had become now, the chaos that rung in her ear drums, and the thoughts of what life would be; what it would return to if Spyro became a monster she once was, she couldn't live with herself, "You still have a life to make... ...with whomever you chose, you need to be there for them... ...for her... ...for your hatchling..." Spyro's paw raised over her head; her words unable to reach him by any means, "You're different..."

Cynder didn't move when Spyro's paw went to slash at her face. There wasn't any way she could react, and even if she wanted to, the idea of who Spyro was made her believe he'd love her enough to fight it. Though she knew nothing of what was really going on. Spyro was a shell in control of something far beyond what could be comprehended. Her body didn't move, but for Corvus, Cynder's words echoed in his mind. He remember those words. Words spoken to him before by someone else, someone he last held close to him. With his past resurfaced, his memories took over.

---

"And what makes you think I won't just kill you where you stand?!" Corvus growled to a female.

The female he spoke to was unfazed however, and rather fear, she smiled, "Because... you're different."

---

The echo within continued for a few more seconds before action was taken. Flinging himself forward and out of Malefor's body, Corvus exposed himself; heading directly into the fire. He used all the strength and speed he had to make it in time, and just in time he did. The attack still connect, however Spyro's claws didn't dig into Cynder's scales, but instead Corvus's. He grabbed hold over Cynder, using his back to protect her, and taking Spyro's claws directly. The Dark Master yelled a powerful cry, but was able to scoop away the black female's body and hover for a few seconds before dropping her off and down a good number of feet away from the purple dragon. Malefor nearly collapsed to suddenly have control again, in a daze to the sudden jolt of control over his body, "I-uh-fluff-dern... ugh..." He got his footing and shuck his head to clear himself from the daze, "Little..." He tried not to throw up, "Warning... next time..."

Cynder now had more than one reason to be shocked. Her lover had turned, but now to be saved by none other than the Dark Master himself. Her eyes were wide looking up on his standing figure, never having thought the light of day would show in which he'd protect her. Corvus looked away for more than a second, yelling down upon her and scolding her thoughts and actions, "I SAVED YOU BECAUSE YOU'RE A PAWN IN KEEPING ME ALIVE! YOU ARE A TOOL TO MY SURVIVAL, NOTHING MORE!" He backed off and away from her, still continuing to scold her, "I'm not trying to put salt in a wound when it's just opened, but Spyro's gone! Accept that! She took control over a previous purple dragon once before, and if you don't wake up to this reality that the devil has dealt you, we'll be no different than those other failed timelines!"

Hearing what was to come helped her rise to the occasion. Spyro never gave up on her when she was turned, and surely like every other situation they were in, there was a way out. Cynder tried her best to stay positive, rolling up to her fours and trying her best to smile on a brighter future, "You know! After this is all over, I'm telling Spyro you protected me! He's gonna give you one massive hug!"

"YOU TELL HIM THAT AND I WILL GIVE HIM ONE MASSIVE HOLE IN HIS CHEST!"

Corvus ducked down at the last second to see black flames being thrown towards him. Spyro's attention was still on the two, though this was both a good thing, and a bad one. Corvus devised a plan in the meantime, trying his best to bide their time, "Do NOT hold back against him! The power he's being supplied with is by the female within that possesses him! That power is linked directly to my home world! She links to convexity, corrupting Spyro's Aether Fury and turning it dark!"

"Who's she?!" Cynder asked, "And if Spyro saved me from myself with the power of Aether before, can't I do the same?!"

"Your powers were gained from a fraction to that of convexity and our home world! Alina is directly connected to the Dragon Home World through Spyro, convexity itself, and is harnessing an endless supply of it from my home world!" Corvus explained a little bit more further, getting defensive upon the few steps the darkened purple dragon made towards them, "Alina is similar to that of the Destroyer! She was made, molded, and broken to be nothing more than a weapon to be used for an endless stream of destruction!"

"You said Spyro was to kill me, though! How is this... Alina, person, supposed to make Spyro feel as though my death was his own doing?!"

"She's a shapeshifter!"

"A what?!"

The two both dodged not only flames, but a few spears and lightening bolts that rained down from the sky.

"She uses the DNA of those collected and can match almost everything about them. Your DNA was spread throughout convexity when you were corrupted, meaning she can shapeshift into a copy of you to fool Spyro into thinking you're really her!" Smacking a flying spear thrown to his face away and off in another direction, Corvus knew the closer Spyro got, the less time they had, "I would say using your Aether would be a good idea, but with the powers she possesses, it would only slow Spyro down, not save him. You're more powerful with your powers of the Dark Aether, and though destructive, it might be absorbed."

"And the only time I feel in tuned with my Light Aether is when me and Spyro combine our likeness together," Cynder dipped below a shard of ice shot her way by Spyro, "So then what would happen if I tried to connect with him using our Aether together?! Would I be able to link with him?!"

"You'd most likely be drained of your power," Corvus side stepped an attack, "Your markings, and the disfigured nature of Malefor's body at the time was because of the Dark Aether. It's been too long since you all have practiced, or even trained to use it after your battles with me, and though you connected when fighting the Destroyer a second time, your knowledge over the Dark Aether is childish compared to someone who's lived hundreds of years inside of it."

They were losing ground, and fast. Spyro seemed to be toying with them; that, or it could be because he was waiting for them to drop their guard. The purple dragon had all the time in the world, but those that were in this dome were on a time limit. Suddenly and to their far left's, Ersa rushed somewhat ahead and asked a question, "CORVUS!" The Dark Dragon glanced over to her, "The shapeshifter! Alina! Does she have a heart?! Was she born the same way any other young of your kind was?!"

"She was born through birth, yes!" He answered her, doing little in way of questioning in hopes she was on to something, "Her mother wanted nothing to do with the experiment, but her father wanted to make something that he could truly be proud of!"

"So he corrupted his own daughter to do what he couldn't," Cynder growled, trying her best not to spit; but since they were out in the open anyway, she gave up her nice attitude and spit to the floor below, "You said she was made, molded... broken... ...what the hell do you mean by that?!" She turned against Corvus, seeing this father being no different than the Dark Master, "You made me a monster, molded me through fire, blood, and hell, and broke what little sanity, peace, and a quiet life I could've had with my mother and father! YOU'RE NO DIFFERENT THAN HIM!"

"I've made my mistakes, I'll admit that!" Their backs were to a building wall now; no more room left to run, "Don't go turning on me now!"

"AFTER WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO ME AND SPYRO, YOU WANT TO PLAY THE VICTIM NOW?!" Cynder lost sight of her lover, forgetting he was the threat, but it was hard not to see Corvus as one either.

"YOU THINK I WANTED THIS?! TO BE HERE, NOW, IN THIS... ...HELL HOLE?!" The Dark Master couldn't hold back what he wanted to say too; what happened early brought back emotions he would've best locked away, but now that they had resurfaced, he was left with nothing more to do than to face them, "I had friends, I had a family, I had a lover - I HAD IT ALL! But because I trusted the wrong person, BECAUSE I THOUGHT PURPLE DRAGONS COULD BE DIFFERENT SO MUCH SO THAT I FRIENDED ONE, I...!" He clenched his teeth, and for once, had a tear to shed, "I... ...never wanted to be... ...this... ...Luna saw something in me that I never did - but now that she's gone... ...what the hell else do I have to live for..."

"Corvus..." Cynder was surprised at his vulnerability, and though she wished to say something, someone else had something to say.

"BEING A PUNCHING BAG, YA DUMB BITCH!" Malefor jumped from behind the purple dragon that approached them, using a shard of ice to stab Spyro in his neck to get some heat off the other two.

The two gasped to see him jump over top of Spyro, and though in a daze and full of emotion, they were able to react to his attack. Spyro too reacted, growling out loud, wide, and powerful, swinging his body around to try and grasp the dragon over top of him, "Whooooa! Easy there, big guy!" Jumping off his back, Malefor lined his elbow up with Spyro's head and bashed himself downwards; the chin of the corrupted purple dragon planting into the floor, "And boom goes the dynamite!"

"Malefor!" Corvus yelled.

"No, wait, I can do one better. Live long prosper! Peace and long life!"

"Malefor!" Cynder cried as well.

"Too cringe? I already made the high ground joke all that time ago when we went to the beach. Maybe I-UGH!"

A sudden attack came directly to his gut. How, he couldn't see. Spyro was pinned to the ground with his arms and legs immobilized: wings too. He hadn't realized that the black ooze manifested a fist outwards, connected directly to his gut and sending him into the air. The corrupted purple dragon now turned away from the two and sped off directly towards Malefor's flying figure. Now with a chance to escape, Corvus wasted no time in making it back over to the group. However, Cynder reached her wing out to stop him in which infuriated him, "WHAT?! WHAT DO YOU WANT?!"

Cynder knew her emotions were high, but this was the best time for her hopes and dreams to align with his, or, at the very least, give him a warm enough feeling to work together towards a specific goal, "Me and Spyro... ...I... ...I..." Though at his worst in terms of nearly everything, he still heard her out, "We... ...wouldn't hurt your hatchling... ...if you and Luna had one... ...you know that, right...?"

This only infuriated him more, "What does this have to do with anything?! Why bother bringing up something so asinine?! Because if you're trying to piss me off, IT'S WORKING!"

"Corvus..." She was still calm and gentle with him, wanting at all possible to reach that dark heart of his, "I've feared you coming after the hatchling me and Spyro would make. You turning me against it... stealing it away and turning it against us... ...You say you're different... that you have a heart towards certain issues and ideals... ..." It was hard for her to find exactly the right words to turn his heart pure again, but any effort was better than none, "If Luna's alive... ...please... please, Corvus..."

"If Luna's alive you'll never see me again," Corvus ended the conversation right than and there, turning away from her to join the others.

"NO!" She stopped him again.

"WHAT IS THE ISSUE?! You won't ever see me again and these little annoyances; your intrusive thoughts and nightmares can all be put to rest! Why are you females so complicated for no reason other than to be annoying?!"

"I want for all of us to change in this future!" Cynder laid out her idea, her plan, and her way of what life would be like in this future, "I want us... me, you, Spyro, and Luna... to display the life that was made to each other without fear. The hatchling I made with Spyro, and the one you made with Luna; I don't want us to see each other as weapons, or to fear that our hatchlings will one day be used against the other out of hate, revenge... regret," Corvus snarled to her idea, knowing all too well dreams were just that, and he wasn't to chance any more in his life time, "I know I'm still years off before making such a decision with Spyro, but you..."

"Will never get that chance because she's dead," The Dark Master was done wasting time, "Keep your filth of a future to yourself. I fight to survive. You fight for a fleeting dream. My goals are real, yours are fabrications. Grow up and learn to let go, cause here soon, you'll have to make that decision with, Spyro."

Though he walked away, Cynder didn't stop him this time, but rather smiled as she followed behind and teased him, "My goal too was to survive, but than I found love. I have grown and learned to let go; the fears, trauma, my chains..." She rushed ahead and ran in front of him, smiling with tears in her eyes, "I'll continue that growth with Spyro! And I'll continue to erase those fears with him too! Sooner or later, you'll grow up too, and I wonder what you'll be like!"

"I'm hundreds of years older than you," He grumbled to her cheery nature.

"And hundreds of years grumper too!" She teased, "Hold on, Spyro. We'll save you one way or another."

---

"I have bountiful ideas in mind from best to worst case scenario, however, our chances of survival may very well rest on Spyro himself," Cynder and Corvus arrived in time to hear Ersa spell out her plan, "If Corvus is to be trusted - shut your mouth," She raised a claw to hush to malicious dragon, and though his mouth opened to dispute her claims, he simply growled is displeasure, "Than we need to try our best to survive rather than to kill. Focus efforts on defense and give Spyro time to talk to this female."

"If that's all we need to do than, shouldn't we let Ignitus use his power of time to force him into sleep?" Claire pointed out.

"Unfortunately, we have to put our lives on the line to save, Spyro. He needs to hear the cries of Warfang's people; our cries and pleas, to help guide him in the right direction and give him a reason to keep going. If our voices aren't loud enough, or aren't genuine, than he has no reason to fear, no reason to rush, no reason to feel as though something is wrong. The reality he is placed in he'll believe it to be true unless we give it our all."

"So we have to intentionally suffer?" Celina spat to this, "Y'all are on your own. I don't have time nor the need to risk my life over someone so self centered that his choices led him to this very outcome. What happened to him was no one else's fault but his own."

"You say self centered yet you're choosing to focus on your own safety over someone else's," Surprisingly, Amara was the one who nipped at her.

"Excuse me?!" The black female dragoness displayed her teeth in discomfort.

"YOU AND AXEL CAN BOTH GO TO HELL!" Amara immediately snapped back, so much and so aggressively-so that many were caught off guard, including Celina herself, "I thought we were friends, but you used me for status! FOR PROTECTION! From those who wished to hurt you, for those after you for what you've done! I thought you cared, but all you did was use me for a good night's rest!" She had much more to say, "So go ahead, LEAVE! No one cares for you here and neither does anyone else out there! The least you could do is stand here and die with some goddamn dignity than to lose your life out there WITHOUT ANY PURPOSE NOR CARE FROM ANYONE IN YOUR LIFE CAUSE YOU'RE A GODDAMN LONER WHO WILL DIE NO DIFFERENT THAN JUST THAT! A LITTLE BITCH LONER!"

Celina threw her blade around in defense, biting back at the queen of Prosperity, "YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT ME!"

"I DON'T NEED TO! I SEE ENOUGH OF ME IN YOU, WHICH IS EXACTLY WHY I KNOW WHAT PATH YOU'RE GOING DOWN!"

Amara hated to admit it, but her and Celina weren't so different, especially now that her relationship with Axel was over. Celina was stunned to hear her admit this; in tears nonetheless, displaying emotion over what she believed to be a new life worth building. Knowing now that it was all a lie, Amara took the necessary steps towards a new goal, one that she felt right in taking now that she had others to rely on. Looking to one of the Guards', she gave the command, "Release Syrus of his chains. Allow him to move freely. We'll need all the help we can get."

"No..." A voice, deep in a growl, head to toe in sorrow, and with nothing left to lose, declined what she had to say.

Everyone looked to the voice. Syrus once stood to his fours once again but was unfortunately put back on the ground. Above him stood Axel. His rage, hate, and pain was on full display as he held his blade over the weeping wind dragon. He was still out for revenge; still wanted to take the life of those that took his life away, and now that his time with Amara was at its end, he had no reason to hold back. Amara couldn't admit it, but seeing someone she spent years with turn in a psychological maniac right before her very eyes, and in such a short amount of time too; for her life to seemingly end so soon, she was at a loss for words. She wanted nothing more to help him, but for what he's done; for what he's said, she didn't understand why a second thought would even come to mind. All she could now was utter his name, painfully, "Axel..."

"If I have to go to jail for my crimes... ...the same jail I put so many in... ...I'll surely be killed... singled out for my actions that THEY view as transgressions..." He put the knife to the wind dragon's head, the blade shining white even in the darkness of the dome placed around Warfang, "I will not die with regret... I will not die without revenge... I WILL NOT DIE WITHOUT JUSTICE!"

"Axel! NO!" Serena cried, rushing ahead to stop him.

"DAD!" Ava too rushed in to help her father.

"STOP!" At the same time Amara's voice erupted, a building behind her crumbled to pieces: Malefor's back suffering damage after having been thrown from Spyro.

Serena, Ava, and Axel didn't much move after her cry. She had already exhausted her words from before, unable to reach him previously. She had no idea how to steer him back into the light, but she'd die trying if that's what it would take. She approached him, slowly, and in tears, wanting what once was back to it's original nature; for him to return to who he used to be, and she'd give her life for that to happen, "Axel... ...I... "

"STAY BACK!" He raised his blade to her now; his focus now uncontrollable and unfocused, taking out his negativity on those other than his targets.

Everyone noticed this, including Axel himself. For a moment, he saw the light and what he had truly become. To see Amara look to him in his eyes; glistening from her tears, her soft scales, her neatly knitted scarf. She wasn't a woman of war but elegance. She wouldn't harm him, she couldn't harm it. It was the last thing that came to her mind. Everything else she closed out, emotionally reaching out to him the best she could; one last effort to chance him for the better, and one last chance to save a life, a friend, a lover, "Axel... "

Every time she murmured his voice, her words broke, her heart ached, and her body froze. This wasn't what she wanted for them to be, and all he had to do was see that; to see what he was doing was wrong. Luckily enough, it had gotten to him finally, and he told her the truth, "I... can't... ...go to jail," His voice struggled too; through gritted teeth or a chest pain twisted and tightened like a knot, he fought it to speak with her, "I don't want to die... ...I don't... ...want this to end so soon. But... ...I made a promise... ...I made a promise to my dying brother that I'd get my revenge! That I'd avenge them! That I'd shed the enemy's blood the same way they shed ours!"

"You also made a promise to me that you'd protect me..." She used the love she had shown her in the past in hopes he'd hear her out, "That you'd be there for me, that you'd support me from my highest points... or my lowest ones..." She rubbed her eye of tears, clearing her vision to better see him, "Where's my hug now, you... goddamn hunk," She giggled whereas he blushed, and after a comment like that, she took a breather to control herself and hit home her final message, "Life in itself is torture. You'll never get back those you lost, but you'll lose everything to revenge if you continue down this path. You avenge your brothers and then what? You're a murder. A mother lives without a husband, and a hatchling without a father. Don't you see where this is wrong?"

"But after all this time... ...years leading up to my finale... to do what I've wanted to for years now... ...I can't let this opportunity pass me by or else I may never get this chance again..."

"Let the dead sleep... and let those living rest," She stepped forward, sitting down a little off to the side of Syrus and holding both paws over Axel's right paw: the one that held the knife, "Rest with me... sleep with me... cuddle... with me. You think I want us to fight, to separate, to... break up after everything we've been through? I... want you... Axel. I... ...need... you..." Her blush made Axel's face red just the same, her giving it away as to what she was truly pushing for, "I know no one should ever rely on one person so heavily but... you're not like the rest of them. You'd make a great father, and would have plentiful stories to tell! Meeting the Guardians, your adventures with purple dragons, saving lives and doing what's right because it's noble: that's the Axel I know!" She could feel his grip easing on the knife: for once he was listening, "Don't live a life where you're forced to hide away your past. You think telling the little ones you're a murderer and revenge seeker is what should be the foundation for our future generations?"

Axel sighed heavily. He didn't know what to do or what to feel at this point. For his life to lead up to this moment only to be stopped by everything and everyone: it felt bittersweet. He failed to accomplish his goal that he set out for himself; the promise he made to his brothers, was it something they would've agreed with he couldn't answer. But Amara was right, and he thought about every single word she spoke to him. What makes me any different than them if they are innocent? I'd be taking away family the same way they did to me. I'd... be no different. And at the end of the day... I'd have nothing... ...I'd have no one. I'd... be all alone... ...all over again. His thoughts brought about tears to his eyes, ones that rolled down from his lids and to his chin. He was ready to give up and give in to her words, but not yet. He was afraid; still hesitant on the situation. He held his knife close to his chest, causing every scale on Amara's body to stand on end. Thankfully though, his demands were as gentle as the scales on her, "Please don't leave me..." His body shivered the entire time he spoke, afraid of what she might say, "I was scared... upset... enraged... ...I did what I did... and said what I had to because I believed it to be right - but please don't use this as a point in my life where I lose you..." He buried his head into her chest, his tears now rolling down her beautifully soft and white scales, "Don't leave me... ...please don't leave me..."

Amara smiled down on the weeping dragon, gently moving a paw down the back of his head like a mother would to their hatchling. The hard part was over, and now that she knew everything was wrapped in her favor, all she needed to do was tie the bow. Her voice went low, soft, seducing, and thankfully, with everything going on around them, no one could hear what she was to say, "Axel..." He looked up to her in tears; at first confused by her smug look and red cheeks, but later understood once she ducked her head to whisper her wishes, "Just... so you don't feel or think like that anymore, I... want you to know something~..."

Those that were around couldn't hear what was being said, but what ever it was, the affect it had on Axel was not only viewable, but painfully expressive. His head turned bright red, so much so that some were surprised steam didn't shoot out his ear holes. His toes curled, his body seemed tickled, and his tail waged at speeds that he'd definitely be feeling later on once this high of his died down. The males chuckled whereas the females shuck their heads, both knowing full well how the other gender most likely operated. Syrus, though still mentally and physically bruised but not damaged thanks to Spyro, had his own something to say, "Okay... ...I didn't have to... ...hear all that... I... I might... I might want death now..."

Amara jumped, as too did Axel, forgetting entirely that he was even down there. The wind female was sure he wouldn't have been able to hear, but since he had, her response helped her little, "OH... HUSH, YOU! As if some of what I said isn't something you wouldn't think about doing with your mate!"

"The only thing... I want... more than... anything in the world... ...is to hug my child... and my mate... once again..." His voice was raspy, but through the broken and ripped-up sound within his lungs, he gave what was more so a plea than anything: a one last desperate attempt to end this war between the two sides once and for all.

The choice now came down to Axel; the future of Prosperity and the Rebels rested on his decision, and a difficult one it was to make. His life felt as though it had led up to this moment. His training, his revenge, his promise to do what was right by those who were the only family he ever had. His parents abandoned him, and for him to do the same to his brothers felt hypocritical. But he knew what it meant to grow, smile, and face his mistakes, own them, and learn from them. He looked into both sides of his future; one where he killed the wind dragon, and one in which he didn't. His chest raised and fell rapidly. The decision he was to make angered him. He couldn't hold on to this guilt any longer, and though he made what many saw as the right decision, he wasn't easy about it. Jerking his head away from Amara, Axel looked Syrus in his eyes, grabbing hold of his horn and forcefully putting the father's white neck scales to his blade.

"AXEL!" Amara, Serena, Ava, and many others cried out his name; unlike last time however, he listened.

"LET'S SAY YOU DIDN'T KILL MY BROTHERS!" He gave the wind dragon a chance, "You touch anyone that I love! Hurt them, berate them, harass them, DARE TO TAKE THEIR LIVES AWAY FROM THEM!" He switched his blade around; the tip just barely missed the eyeball of Syrus, its metal and carved designed hovered over the dragon's squishy eye and the tip hovered over his iris, "I will carve you, gut you, MUTILATE YOU! What ever it takes, I won't allow you to die so easily," Moving the knife over, he threw it into the ground to stand directly over the father; Axel's teeth on full display, as too his strength, "Do. I. Make. Myself. Clear?"

Syrus needed waste no time in nodding to his proposition. It had been so long since he had last seen his mate that such a deal like this, one to arise in which both parties thrive, he took it in a heartbeat. Axel sighed a heavy one, as too did all the others. His beef with the wind dragon was finally over, and now all that was left was the order, "Unlock his shackles," Axel looked to the dragon whom was by the wind dragon's side all that time before, "Take it all off," As he backed away; ripping the blade from the floor and grabbing hold of it to tuck it back into his pouch that it came in, the dragon was given room to do as he was told, "Give me a reason to regret my decision. We have scientists who know how to switch organs, break bones, pull teeth; what ever will get you to break, I will make sure your every waking day, and every resting night, you are broken by any means."

"You've done enough!" Serena was tired of hearing Axel's words, and though she knew he needed to let his anger out, it was over, and he needed to accept that, "After this, the Rebels are done! We have no reason to continue this quarrel with you! All we wanted was peace, better living conditions, and a better system of laws to keep those innocent from wrongfully being executed!"

"YOU WANTED MORE THAN THAT!" Axel bit back.

"ENOUGH!" Amara stood in front of Axel to block his view of Serena, "I will handle this issue, not you!" Axel started to feel the need to defend himself, but thankfully, she saw it in time before he did anything rash, "It's over... ...it's okay... ...What we are and what we have will never be taken away from us again, you know that... you know Spyro. Once we get him back, I know your fears will be erased... as will mine... as will all of ours," She held his paw, "Please..."

She helped quite a lot by saying and doing what it was she had done. Axel needed time to think, and breathe, and to remember the time he spent with Spyro. The purple dragon was hope for so many, and so many relied on him for a better future. Without Spyro, the future seemed confusing, dim, and on a crash course to war. They needed him back, and that was something they could all agree on: something they could look past their differences on to save not only themselves, but all living beings on this planet. There were many key holes to be unlocked, so, for the time being, Ersa wanted to work with the Dark Master to figure out a way to get every one out alive, "So, you big grumpy bastard," Everyone knew who she was speaking to: it didn't take her gaze for Corvus to know she was talking about him, "Any ideas? I'm assuming for even someone such as myself, getting Spyro out alive will prove to be rather... challenging. But with your help, it may be very viable."

Corvus scoffed to the female's words, "I expected more from you. All those fumes have clearly gotten to your head and must've made you brain dead in the process. Maybe spend less time in a lab-like setting and more time out here facing reality that some people can't be saved!"

"I wouldn't say fumes make me think unclear, more so the musk of my mate that drives me wild," Since he was being snarky with her, she decided to play around with him too, and give Volteer props, "If you honestly believe that I don't have a way to kill Spyro here and now, you're dead wrong. As a matter of fact, although I have three different possibilities, I'd say only one is surefire. The others he may absorb."

"Oh?" The Dark Master was interested, "You're telling me with the vast majority of his immunity coming from Cynder's disgusting use of poison, and the Darkness's capabilities to find and neutralise certain bacteria, you've found a way to fly under his radar to kill him? Surely you must understand how powerful he is now, and just how heightened his awareness, and in many cases, his security over his existence has become."

"I'm very flexible. My Yellow mate here knows that very well," She rubbed a paw under her mate's neck, his leg instinctively kicking the ground a little: his tail shifting from side to side, "I've made plans to kill each and every one of you," Everyone gasped to hear this, but some were able to sigh relief for her follow up, though not many, "Well... the men in particular. I thought about Flair due to the threat she posed to everyone, but decided against it since she was after Cyril's life over anyone else's, and I knew once or if she killed him, she'd leave."

"And you were gonna let it happen?!" Cyril whimpered.

"Hehe, yeah," The female was quick to admit, "But after the first night, I saw no reason. Flair needed love and care, and I knew, had you'd been killed, it would've been your fault one hundred percent. Your attitude, and who you were back than, would've been the death of you. But since you quit being... well, you... it worked out all well in the end."

"And now I'm stuck here with him and in this situation," Flair grumbled, Cyril kinda rubbing his arm uncomfortably to her saying, "Yay me..."

"Should've taken my offer," Celina shrugged her shoulders, "Could've been out there and away from here killing some prick dicks who deserve death anyway."

There was a bright side Flair saw though, and in some ways, she ignored Celina, "Although, I guess it's not all bad. Surely I'll get to rip some of Spyro's scales from his head and make an attempt at his life again. The only problem is I know you're gonna be riding my ass about going out there and getting hurt, aren't you," Flair knew Cyril well at this point, or rather, what kind of man he was shaping up to be, so calling him out on his heroics made him wonder whether or not she would be upset to his protection, "Stay out of my way. If I want my claws dirty, I'll get them real goddamn dirty."

Cyril wanted to agree, knowing it'd be the best course of action when she got this way, but he simply couldn't. His cheeks started to bulge a little from the air he tried to hold in; a flood of words wishing to spill out, and many words did, "I'm sorry Flair, but that's not something I can do! That's not something I can allow you to do, especially if I have the chance to stop you in hopes of protecting you!" She was quick to growl at him, but he pointed at the battle that no one was paying attention to, "Look! Just think for a minute and look at what kind of battle you'd be up against!"

She didn't like being commanded to do anything, but for once, she turned her head and looked with everyone else. The surrounding area had been leveled quite thoroughly. Buildings were toppled, dirt, dust, and ash covered the battle field, and the two culprits were a purple light and a darkened purple one. Their attacks were massive, powerful, and some times causing quakes in the ground below. Thankfully however, the area was vacated to give space for the two to duke it out: the dragoness controlling Spyro seemingly focused on the purple dragon alone. Malefor was making good progress as their fight continued in the air. Grabbing hold of Spyro's horns, he spun his friend around, and around, and around; using his wind to spin like a topper. Letting go at the right time, Spyro's body plummeted into the ground with a very loud and massive crash, another hole forming around the area of impact. Malefor of course had something to say, "Knock knock! Who's there?! Nobody! It's just the sound of your body getting knock knocked in to the mother trucking ground, bitch!"

The dragoness that took over didn't like his comment very much. A shockwave following a blur led straight up to Malefor, but surprisingly enough, he blocked it, causing another shockwave to erupt within the air. Carith grumbled lowly, having things to say to herself from Malefor's comment, "I wish he would knock knock me up..."

"CARITH!" Claire heard that clear as day.

"Focus, Claire!" Carith didn't expect someone to hear, so she unfortunately had to bite back.

"What?! What did she say?" Trish was very much interested, though the reason was very depressing.

The female's body was in pure panic. Her scales, legs, arms; every part of her trembled. She ducked low underneath Terrador's wing, trying her best to keep at all best calm and collected. She needed something else to talk about, something to keep her from panicking like the rest of those around here. Trish was lucky to have the family she was around, and tried her best to get her friends to help the best she could. They all saw this, and though Terrador was trying his best, it was hard to mute the end of the world. Eyes weren't on her for long however. Syrus, now out from his chains, limped over and stood with the rest of his group, "Ersa, was it...?" Everyone looked to him, "Where... do you need me...?"

Serena and Ava, though in a state of locked emotions of fear and despair, the hope they had for seeing their loved one again did little in aiding their more positive emotions. Syrus, for lack of a better term, was near barebones. His ribs showed, his scales were dry, his eyes were bloodshot, and his body and muscles seemed too weak to even display at its full capacity. Syrus himself seemed like a very well oiled machine though. His primary of white and secondary of a very soft canary color helped not only his scales pop, but so too the ridges traveling from his lower neck down to the lower part of his tail before blending into his primary colors. His wing flaps sported an icy coloring to them, his tail blade was that of a soft avian feather; two that stretched out to different sides, each sharing similarities. His fins connected and rolled all the way down to the tip of his tail; the two sides of his head accompanied by smoothed, curved, and elegantly designed horns. To his chin and to his cheek bones, he too sported his fins, though his chin fin was a little different in formation to the one on his back. His eyes gave out the color of his icy-white combination, although with the lack of light he's been given, it was hard to make this out. He seemed to be powerful, looked to be something so much more, but for what they had done to him; the chains marking his scales red from how tight they were, what he was truly capable of was a guess to most, and only an understanding to Serena and Ava. They knew who he was, and for him to look this way. It took them a minute. Serena covered her mouth and broke into tears, unable to believe what she was seeing. How long it would take for him to heal or recover was all she could think about. His scales were scarred, his body sucked of life, and though a confrontation wasn't needed, the female couldn't hold her emotions back. Her teeth gripped closed, and out of rage, she in many ways now looked for war, "Monsters..." Everyone around looked to her, "To hell with you," She looked to Axel, "To hell with Prosperity, to hell with your military, AND TO HELL WITH EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING INVOLVED IN MY MATE'S FORM!" She was ready to attack; her wings flinging open very suddenly, poison dripping out from her mouth and to the floor below, sounds of hissing being heard upon its connection to the concrete, "YOU'LL PAY! ALL OF YOU! EVERY SINGLE LAST ONE OF YOU WILL BURN IN HELL FOR YOUR DISGUSTING TORMENT OF MY LOVER!"

The soldiers of Prosperity turned towards her with weapons drawn from her declaration of war. Seeing how quickly this could turn ugly, Syrus used what little voice power he had to soothe her, "Serena... ...It's okay... ...I'm okay now..."

She gasped through her tears to hear him say this, "YOU CAN'T LET THEM GET AWAY WITH THIS! You...! You..." Serena shuck off her tears, clearing her vision to look at her mate's starved body, "Syrus... you're broken... ...Your scales, your arms, your legs, your... ...everything... ...you can't possibly be okay with this! WHAT THEY DID, YOU...!"

"I probably only survived because of some whom felt bad for me... and that especially includes Amara..." Everyone gasped to hear this, Axel especially, knowing nothing about this until the truth was finally revealed.

Axel looked to her, stunned, dazed, and confused; feeling rather betrayed in some ways, "You... ...you... helped... him...?"

Amara sighed to this, knowing it was to get out at some point, "I know I can act like a heartless bitch sometimes..."

"Sometimes?" Terrador raised a brow.

"Anyways," She growled to him, "I know a terrible father when I see one... trust me... I know. When you all had first captured Syrus, I wanted the same as you, Axel. I wanted to make you proud. What ever it took, however the mentioned of torture I could think of, what ever our scientists could dream of for the worst possible pain imaginable, I tried my best. But... ...I didn't have to try at all..." She rubbed her arm, admitting with all honesty what she knew, "He... told me everything... truthfully... and in very deep detail. Obviously not locations or hideouts but... who he was... what he wanted... and why he wanted it. I of course didn't believe him. But... one reason I was so lenient to Serena and Ava was because of what Syrus told me from my visits. It's why I didn't want you to be so harsh with them... it's why... when I looked at it all... and realized in an environment I wasn't familiar with; Warfang, I... ...I knew something was wrong..."

An explosion, following along with the screams of many more dragons rang out, interrupting the many that were around in different discussions. They caught a small glimpse of the bright colors that were thrown through a building. One after another, Malefor's back went through, finally popping out another side and landing in the rubble of another fallen structure. Carith stepped ahead and cried out his name, "MALEFOR!"

She couldn't step much further as Spyro landed directly in front of the group now. All fears pointed to Malefor already being down and out for the count, and yet still, they did not have a plan. No one was coordinated, each side fought another, many were unable to focus or tried their best to focus in others ways, but at the end of it all, there was no one clear course of action. Ersa knew it all too well, same for Volteer, having the same thoughts as her lover, Cynder can't fight, Flair IS fighting but the wrong person, Ignitus is in shambles from what ever the hell it is he saw from the past, The Rebels and Prosperity are still at each others' throats, and Corvus is being his usual annoying self. Malefor can't be out of commission, not yet... NOT SO SOON! With Spyro's approach causing everyone to back up and clump up, many didn't know what to say or do, knowing words were useless and actions would case devastating reactions.

"Spyro..."Cynder murmured very lowly, but she had nothing more to say to him, unable to get past her waking nightmare.

"PROTECT THE QUEEN!"

A rally cry was heard all throughout Warfang and past the chaos that ensued. From the buildings and outreach of the perimeter, more soldiers arrived in defense of their majesty. The numbers had increased doubled, more than triple the original amount. With those piled together with everyone else, and the many more that joined, more than a hundred soldiers rallied in defense of the queen. The evil entity was caught off guard to this, slowing to a stop to assess the situation. With Spyro distracted, Ersa whispered to everyone and ducked low, "Pssst!" Everyone noticed her low stance except for the distracted purple dragon, "We need to move... now! The guards will stay here and cover our escape."

"We will not leave the queen to some-mmppphhh-!"

"Shhhhh," Amara covered the Guard's mouth, "I'll be fine. Trust me."

With her paw released from his maw, everyone followed Ersa: the yellow female taking lead to drive everyone else to safety. Their escape was encapsulated by the surrounding soldiers that approached in a circle formation; fully kitted out with armor, weapons, communications, and a plan unlike the others. They were ready to make a full frontal and brutal assault against the purple dragon. With strength in numbers, a display of force even the Dark Master didn't go against: their spirits were high, as too their heads. They were ready to take their weapons into battle, and end this before it could go any further. Now some distance away from the battlefield, everyone collected themselves, but emotions were still at an all time low, and many had to face their hardships, tears, and nightmares. Serena was the first to take aim at Axel, but Ersa anticipated this. The poison female could only lift her arm slightly before a firm, tight grip was given to it by the yellow female. A gasp escaped from Serena's mouth, right before teeth were shown and aggressive words were given, "LET GO OF-!"

"I. Can. Fix. Him," Ersa was surprisingly strong, but also very empathetic, "I know... trust me... The only reason I had and have all these different variations to kill the males; The Guardians, Malefor, Spyro, is because of situations like these. I knew who Cyril was... what he did and said to Volteer. I wanted nothing more than to watch his head pop, and for his limbs to rip themselves apart, but I kept my head on straight and listened, watched, and understood."

"You think I just watch?! SIT HERE?! UNDERSTAND WHAT HE'S DONE?! I'M LIVING IN IT RIGHT NOW!"

"I have a booster I can give him that will repair the damage done to his body. Nutrition, sunlight, necessities that our body feeds on and collects from the world around us. He'll look good as new, I swear to you."

"And how will that help me forget what they've done... for what I see now in front of me?!"

"Use this as an example to overthrow the corrupt in Prosperity. If what Amara says is true, and she did help Syrus, then you need to look past blind rage and use it to your advantage," Ersa dropped her grip of Serena's arm; the poison female jerking away, somewhat hissing through her teeth, "I can help too. There are ways to make people talk that don't involve torture. If we make it out of this alive, it'll all be over, but if you let this rage, regret, and fuel for revenge continue... ...look at what it did to Axel. Don't let your emotions separate you from who you are... ...from who you love."

Syrus came into Serena's view. Though she frowned to see his figure, Syrus had nothing but a smile to share. He even went as far as to laugh through the pain in a welcoming atmosphere to bring back to his family, "See...? I told you I'd make it back home... ...I promised... that I'd make it back to you... ...that I'd make it back to your arms," He looked to his hatchling, and though grown up, she'd always be his young one, "That I'd make it back to my family... the ones that I love... ...the ones... that I cherished."

His wings didn't much have to open before he was passionately hugged from both sides by his family. Ava cried in his right shoulder, when Serena cried in his left. The two had many tears to share, many memories to relieve, look back on, and look forward to. His wings, though in a state of pain, moved gently over them, covering the two to display his protection when weak, and his love for those that waited so long for him. Everyone gave them space to allow this reunion, one that the three looked forward to for what felt like a lifetime. And although they wanted this hug to last forever, a battle of life and death still raged on, and what was next proved the idea of death. The many, many men circled the purple dragon, slowly approaching closer and closer; weapons drawn, senses heightened, and all at the ready for one singular call. That call was made by the Commanding Office, a dragon that had stood closely to the Guardians and everyone else, "READY!" The sound of armor clanked together; every last soldier shifting themselves to offensive and rushing position, "TAKE AIM!" Tight grips were given to their trident designed weaponry; each and everyone dragon knowing their purpose, and what to do, "NOW!"

With the order given, and the Officer throwing his paw forward, the men all rushed in like a stamped of rhinos. A slight rumble filled the area from the weight of their armor, and the stomping of their fours as they all rushed headfirst into battle. Many flew too, aiding the air in case the purple dragon attempted to take flight. Their distance grew shorter and shorter, the first attack seconds away. Cynder, though having seen what Spyro's head alone did to such weaponry, she couldn't help but cry out, "SPYRO!"

Although, for someone like Corvus, he already knew of the outcome, "And so the killing begins."

The purple dragon seemed to take a breath in, sitting even in a cocky nature. Many jumped to close the gap between them and the threat ahead. Reaching out his arms in a stretching fashion, the purple dragon's arms reached outwards before swiftly and hastely clapping inwards. The explosion of air from which followed was unavoidable to all. Those in the air were throw from the shockwave, and those to the ground were tossed to the ground and thrown like ragdolls, or forcefully ejected from the battlefield; taking many buildings down in the process due to their bulk and armor. Those whom had time to react hilted their blade to the ground, holding on tight in attempts to fight back against the roaring eruption. Many were unsuccessful, the shockwave proving to be too powerful for the grip of the blades to stay in one piece. Those in the back and all around dug their claws to hold on, blocking with wings, covering those they were with, or holding out strong like Ignitus and Corvus; watching on in horror. The shockwave was merely a distraction. With the dust cloud pushing outwards, the armor and blades of Prosperity's men were seemingly shattering. One was hit to the chest; a force powerful enough to shred his armor piece by piece, sending those remnants to the air. Many more were to follow. Those who stood and those who did not were all faced with this one inch punch. An attack from what could only be described as a ghost would hit the front chest-plate of the soldier's armor, and what would follow were cracks all throughout before it would shatter their defenses. Thousands of these shards of armor pieces rose to the sky, many cries of pain and sudden jolted punches caused loss of breaths within the soldiers. With the dust quickly dissipating and the once many turned to bodies, all that was left was the purple dragon, and a surrounding area of floating metal bits. They circled into the air until a small sound was heard. *Ding*. Nothing but breaths could be heard over that noise. *Ding*. Once again, the sound echoed throughout the wasteland. *Ding*. The noise became louder and louder, the sound becoming more frequent and consistent. *Ding-Ding-Ding-Ding-Ding-Ding-Ding Ding... Ding*. Finally, the noise came to an end. What horrors awaited no one could've imagined. Many whom really looked noticed it straight away. The pieces of shattered remains that once circled the sky now stood still, pointed, and directed to things all over the ground. A few nearly stopped in the beat of their hearts. They knew what was coming, and unfortunately, they couldn't help everyone.

"TERRADOR - TRISH!" The two jumped to hear Ersa, Volteer, and Corvus all yell to them at the same time, "WALL! NOOOOWWWW!"

The shards hit the ground like bolts of lightning: a hail storm of bullets erupted down upon and around everyone within the area. The shards had missed in a few more ways, connecting with buildings, floors, or surrounding small bridges that connected one building to the next. However, many were still caught in the scatter. The shards, due to their strength and speed, dug through and out the flesh and scales of nearly every solider. The sounds of slicing, agonizing screams, and blood curdling cries filled the area. The pieces of armor went through each of their scales like a knife to butter, going through wing, tail, arms, legs, hips, and stomachs. Many blocked their faces to avoid a quick death, and though the shards made way rather easy past their scales, those whom protected themselves now had shards of armor within their flesh. Terrador and Trish were just in time in erecting a wall to prevent these things from happening to themselves. Terrador made a thick, strong, and massive curved wall around the group, whereas Trish did all she could to follow suit, making a secondary wall behind his for added protection. They heard many of the shards stab and lodge within the earth, both dragons trying their best to keep the wall intact, and heal where ever it was that was hit. They were vulnerable to whatever attack may come their way; their arms latched to the ground to continue their transfer of energy to the walls in front of them. Unfortunately, one of the shards had broken through, and went directly to the head of Trish. It was quick, sudden. All most heard was a crack, a gasp, and a gush as the shard cut through scales. It was successful in making connect with one in the group, though who it was, no one knew at first. Trish's legs gave way; her body collapsing to the side, all now in panic to know who was hit, "TRISH!"

Terrador went all out, slamming his paws to the ground to layer the walls double, even triple to give them time and space. Everyone rushed over or looked to see what had happened, and with tears starting to form, Terrador acted quickly in examining her body, "No-no-no-no-no-no-no, Ancestors-PLEASE! TRISH!"

Rolling her over, she seemed dazed, shaken, but okay. No one could see any blood or damage done to her body. The only thing truly noticeable and alarming was her heart rate. She was close to a panic attack, and without a way to breathe, she may very well pass out, or even worse. Ersa saw this and took action, using her abilities to send signals throughout her body to calm her. She knelt down by her side, and with a paw, she massaged her head, "Terrador, stay with her, keep speaking to her. I'm going to try my best to ease her with my powers," The female was quick to speak; though Trish herself, she couldn't, and simply lied there with widened eyes and heavy breaths, "Cynder! Cynder, I need you over here! Now!" She too seemed in shock, and what ever it was, Ersa needed her to snap out of it, "CYNDER! Spyro will make it through, we all will! But Trish needs your help!"

No one paid much attention to what it was that Cynder was looking at. To them, her face was of horror and shock for what Spyro had done. But in all reality, it was a different emotion for a different reason. Yes, she was in shock, but her face wasn't from horror. Since everyone was focused to Trish's frightening form, they hadn't even the slightest concern in looking to who's scales the shard had connected to. No one, only Cynder, knew the truth. She was at a lost for words. Emotions were already high, but Corvus once again seemed to step up. The shard, originally in a position to end Trish's life, was blocked by Corvus's paw. It lodged from one side and out the other, blood dripping down and out from the wound. Cynder looked to him in disbelieve to think someone such as him would've made that move, would've made that call to save someone's life. He wasn't too happy about it either. Yanking the shard from his paw with a small grunt, he threw it to the ground and pointed at her afterwards, "Not. One. Word."

The wound was slow to heal, but as he turned away from her, Cynder took a few more seconds to take in what she had seen before shaking it off and rushing over to Trish's aid.

---

Trish held on to Terrador's paw tightly, struggling to breathe; convulsing with each breath that she took, her eyes wondering everywhere in shock and horror. She knew what had happened to all those soldiers. The wounds they suffered, they blood they spilled, the violent nature of how their flesh, skin, and bones were torn to shreds. The realistic nature of it all; life seemingly ending right before her very eyes. She couldn't handle the thought, nor could she stand it. Her back was to the ground with her support being Terrador's full weight: his wing cuffed under and around her back, and his paw, tears, and tail with her. Ersa kept at it the best she could to soothe the frightened female, but it didn't seem to be enough. Thankfully though, upon Cynder's approach, Ersa was quick off a plan, "Cynder - use your fear to eat away at everything she has going around her! I can't calm her because the signals within her nerves are too shot - acting too quickly for my abilities to react or plug the hole of where all it's going."

Cynder nodded and aided the female below, kneeling down and replacing Ersa's paws with her own. Now that she was free to act, Ersa had more of an idea of what to do, "We need to stall best we can. Me and Volteer can rush to find what we need and gather to heal all the wounded. That means everyone else here just needs to try their best to either delay or prevent any further destruction or casualties."

"Why not just grab that, concoction, that you have and kill this piece of shit," Celina knew well what they needed to do, and would rather end it now than to suffer.

"Because Corvus said something, something that should give us all hope."

"And what's that?"

Ersa giggled, not too much from joy, but from the outlook to hide her fears and bring out the light, "If I know anything about Spyro... from the stories Volteer has told me, from what he's done for all of you... all of us... ...if Alina does have a heart... then I know Spyro can change her for the better. I know he can get to her, and show her the light the same he did for all of us," It was a massive amount of trust she was placing onto Spyro, but she still understood that a backup plan was needed, "I... will bring it... ...for a last resort. But I know he can-"

Ersa, and the rest of the group, were stunned by a sudden explosion. The wall that once protected them was destroyed in a ball of dust, smoke, and rubble. Pieces flew everywhere, and all protected those that they loved, especially Terrador. Many of the pieces hit rather hard, and burned the same too. For the Earth Guardian to be so close, his skin hissed whereas he yelped. His full coverage over Trish's body protected her, and even Cynder; her being close enough to embrace the defense and protection he gave. Many felt the same though not to his extent. With the wall now gone and a black figure appearing within the smoke, all looked on in horror to what was upon them. Spyro stepped over the rubble: a face of death and a mission to be completed right before their very eyes. He was seconds away from killing each and every individual, and he took aim to all of them. His paw reached up, everyone braced for the worst, but where Spyro caused the first explosion, another one rang out throughout the battlefield. What ever it was, it took the purple dragon down for a second. His body collapsed to the floor in a puff of smoke.

"LITTLE BITCH!"

Everyone looked over to their left, and for that of what Carith saw, her mouth watered beyond what even the ocean could contain. Malefor, stood to his legs, surrounded by rubble, death, and all around destruction, held up and rested his sniper over his shoulder; gun barrel smoking, sweat dripping down his face with flexed muscles. A face of seriousness and determination was all too much for the blue female to stare at. Although still, he held a massive smile on his face; blood dripping down his forehead and adrenaline pumping all throughout, "COME INTO MY HOME! HURT MY PEOPLE! AND CALL ME EVIL?!" He then pointed to Corvus with his claw, "Take notes on self defense, you prick! Or are purple dragons EVIL for defending their homeland?!"

"Shuuuut up," Corvus tried not to spit.

"HAHA! Yeah! Up yours, mother fu-UGH!"

While in his moment of triumph, the speed to which the corrupted dragon possessed was unmatched. Most all saw was a black blur, but there wasn't a sound to indicate the attack. The speed was enough for even the wind itself to delay; dust, rubble, and a plentiful amount of debris suddenly flung itself forward and over towards the two superpowers. Now, stood to the same high, stature, and ability, Spyro gripped Malefor's neck rather tightly with one singular paw. The other paw of the purple dragon Malefor was quick to get a grip on: ridding his paw of his sniper rifle. Both flexed their muscles to max; sweat dripping from every follicle in their scales, teeth showing white and wide. Everyone gasped in worry to see Malefor grabbed hold of, sure that his neck was to be broken in a matter of seconds. But once again, he was prepared, and rather surprised everyone, including the Dark Dragoness whom took control over the purple dragon. Malefor snickered, pushing the barrel of his golden gun directly underneath the darkened dragon's maw. The skin and scales shifted as he twisted the gun, flesh meeting metal; the gun of gold displaying heat and flames. The revolver was loaded with enough firepower to blow off the head of the corrupted purple dragon, and Malefor made that know, "The harder you squeeze on my neck, the harder I squeeze on the trigger," Carith nearly fainted to hear and lay eyes upon her lover in such a dominate fashion; his voice covered in death, growls, and an alpha-like nature, "Every sniper has a backup gun. Most carry a shotgun. But I don't need to overcompensate. I know just the size to make you squeal, and baby, for what I'm packing, you're about to beg for mercy."

Even for someone as powerful and destructive as the corrupted purple dragon, Alina couldn't make her move. She knew of the power he possessed; she knew just about everything Spyro knew, and from the time they took down the destroyer, she knew he had only gotten stronger. She didn't fear death, what was next, or what the outcome of her head getting blown off would be. If fast enough and smart enough, the hope would be to cause Malefor to trigger his gun at the same time she killed him, ending the lives of both purple dragons in an instant. The female was sure of her decision, even smirked along side the sweaty scales of the other purple dragon. She was ready. Her heart pounded, her muscles and veins displayed themselves in both arms, and where she tightened her grip around his neck, so too did he to the trigger of his golden gun. Just as the two were about to end it all, the blackness; the darkness that covered her eyes and once spilled down her lids, cleared. Malefor stopped dead in a gasp to hear her do the same. Like a newborn opening its eyes for the first time; the light of the sun gave way for color, color within her eyes, color within her iris. She could see. Without the darkness holding her back, she had colors of her own to display. The liquid and destructive look of the darkness that encapsulated the purple dragon softened itself. Her heart beats weren't from adrenaline now, but something else. Her grip eased from his neck and his arm, and though Malefor could've taken full advantage of that, he helped ease her down. She seemed to have fallen ill; her ability to fight diminished, and her body slowly came down to her fours. The golden gun once to his paw disappeared, the purple dragon now using all he could to aid her descent, to which she relied on. Her wing held over his back, her paw gripped hold of one to which he reached out to her, and her chest slid down his own. Finally, she reached the floor, looking down upon it and breathing much differently than before. Once so calm and collected now seemed irrational. Those weren't Spyro's eyes, nor his voice that breathed. What was before Malefor was the very same thing that took the purple dragon from them. Malefor couldn't let his guard down, but the look in her eyes; what he saw, he had seen this before in someone else he once knew. He couldn't make the same mistake again; he wouldn't, and he told himself that over and over again in his head. He took what chance he had and knelt down to her, "A... Alina...? Is that... you?"

Corvus gasped as he realised what had happened, though he didn't act just quite yet. Everyone else watched in fear and confusion, wondering if this was some sort of trick into getting Malefor to lower his guard. His guard did lower, and though she could've attacked, hearing her name be called, and seeing the purple dragon before him, she panicked. Rather attack, she jumped back and away from him, running scared like a newborn hatchling. Once a force of unstoppable power and freight now turned into a young, defenseless, and weak little child. Though she tried to stay focus, and even show teeth to Malefor, her face itched for some reason. A cold feeling ran down her face, and though she tried to ignore it, she ran her elbow over it and growled. At first she thought it was blood, making her more violent towards the purple dragon in belief he had done something to her. But upon further inspection, it was a soft, whitish-blue liquid. It shimmered on her arm. The itchiness and cold feeling was still running down her face, blurring her vision even. She tried to wipe it off, rub it, or shake what she could to clear her vision but nothing seemed to be working. Her frustration grew, and finally, she spoke out of emotion, "What did you do to me?!" They were all shocked to hear her cry; though some didn't much care from what she had done, such as Celina, "Why... What... What the hell is this?!"

"They're your tears, Alina..." Malefor spoke softly to her, making a gentle approach to her, "Do you... know... what tears are?"

"What is that?! Some sort of weapon?! Biological?!" She gripped her chest the same, fighting everything within herself it would seem, "AAAHHHH!" Her teeth grinded tight, her body twisted and arched: the female seemed unable to figure out just what it was she needed to do to get rid of all these nuisances, "Make it stop - Make it stop - MAKE IT STOP!"

"What's going on with her," Claire questioned, everyone wondering the same.

"The only theory I can come up with is that something triggered an emotional response within her. I don't know if it's something that came naturally, or from what Malefor did," Ersa thought about what could've happened for such a reaction to be caused, and just as she thought about it, both her and Volteer connected eyes and spoke in unison, "Unless it was something that Spyro did."

"But what could Spyro have done to cause this emotional reaction?" Volteer questioned, brain storming ideas to what could've set her off.

"Maybe he used his lightning to ignite her hidden emotions the same way we can use our abilities to turn off certain functions," She too brainstormed along with him, "What ever he's doing, it's working."

To see of what looked to be unknown progress; but the source coming from something Spyro had done, Cynder couldn't help but to want to rise and run to her companion. But still she stayed focus on Trish, trying desperately to aid her and her fears. However, a paw gripped her arm tightly: not too firm but not too soft. Looking to whose it belonged to, her eyes went down from the green scales and to the face of the dragon. Through shivered breathes and unstable eyes, Trish tried her best to smile and assure her it was alright, "G-g-g-go t-t-to... him... S-s-save us... p-p-p-please..." She was still unsure of what to do even after her words, but with her arm transitioning from a grip on Cynder's to Terrador's, Trish gave more of a reason, "H-h-he'll protect... m-m-me... I... I know he... w-w-will."

The black female nodded, smiling even to see such a connection and in many ways desperation to the man Terrador was. He was sure to deliver, and Terrador himself nodded too. With the go ahead given and the space provided, she made her way to the middle of the battlefield. Cynder was slow on her approach as well, the same as Malefor. To hear her lover was still alive, somewhere deep down inside this form before her, she needed to know, needed some type closure to aid her broken heart. Though the more she approached, the more likely her death was to come, and mighty swiftly from the way Alina was acting. Corvus didn't want to intervene, but she was a pivotal part in his survival, "Cynder! He's not human anymore! You have to get away from him!"

Snapping his fingers upon realisation, Volteer spoke to the rest of the group around him, "Amara! Ava! Serena! Axel! Everyone else get as far away as you can! I have a plan!"

Cynder ignored the voice that yelled to her, on full approach to her lover's lost light. Though she knew it would take much more to save him than what she could offer now, her voice she still hoped would be used as a catalyst to save him, "Spyro! I know you're in there! I know you can hear me! Please! Wake up, Spyro! WAKE UP!"

The approach of three different dragons from three different sides did little in calming the infuriated and confused dragoness. She had much to feel in terms of emotions, whether they be good or bad, but to be feeling anything at all seemed too much for her. Those of destructive and painful emotions were dialed up to their worst, and those of positive ones were confusing at best, and at their worst, a pain similar to that of a ringing in the ear that just won't go away but instead became louder and louder by the second. Ersa was quick to jump up and take realisation to something, and just as any other time, she was quick to act, "Volteer!" He looked to her, "Let me deal with, Alina!"

"What?!" Volteer was in complete disagreement, "No... no no no no no no no, absolute not."

"Your plan revolves around my safety, not for the purpose of everyone! I know you. I know your plan doesn't include me because you're trying to protect me."

"And it will work perfectly if we all follow the plan. Your safety is top priority because: One, you're my mate. Two: I'd do something very, very rash if you were hurt, even I know that. And Three: I'm pretty sure no one else here has to worry about their significant other holding A LIFE INSIDE THEIR BODY!" Volteer had much to disagree with and even more to back up his fears, but Ersa had much more in mind for a complete success altogether.

"Volteer, you have to trust me on this. I know what..."

"No!" Seeing the two disagree now was something no one thought they'd see, and many feared what the outcome might be, "I can not, WILL NOT, lose you to the darkness once again!"

She sighed, knowing this wouldn't be easy, especially since she knew basically everything about him. She knew what he loved, liked, disliked, hoped for, dreamed for: everything that could or wouldn't be in his mind she knew, and the same went for Volteer knowing equally as much about her. Ersa loved his protection of her, his guidance and care; the direction he's taken her life, but she needed to spread her wings for once and take over where she knew she could, "Being lost in the darkness made me understand it to the level of Corvus, or any other dark dragon that fears the purple dragons," He grumbled to know she was trying to wind him down, but he listened to understand her point of view, and because he loved her too much to not allow her the input she deserved, "If I can convince her that Spyro isn't like the rest, I could reach her, maybe even calm her. I don't know if I could get Spyro back, but for her to listen to reason is all I need... from her... and from you."

If Volteer wasn't so stunned he'd be biting every one of his talons by now. He was stuck on what to do, but to see something as powerful as Spyro break the way he was, and under the influence of such power, he couldn't bring himself to agree, "No... no, Ersa, I can't, I... please, please don't make this decision... please don't make me 'make' the decision."

"Volteer..." Resting a paw to the side of his face, Ersa attempted to comfort him; the male clenched his eyes to rid himself of the coming storm to his eyes, "You know I wouldn't go in there without a plan, a backup plan, and a backup plan to backup the backup plan. I'm no stranger to backups. I have you all as backup. I have gems and concoctions for backup. I also have you that I, 'backup', on ," Her giggle and words brought about pain to his chuckle, afraid this would be their last interaction together, "I'll be fine. Trust me. And what ever you want out of this, I will gladly give. Anything at all."

He wasn't in the mood to make a joke of fun or love, so instead, he made one from his heart. Holding her paw with his own, he made sure she promised him, "What I want out of this is for you to make it out alive... do you understand me? Malefor's corruption took the lives of my parents, and if Spyro's corruption takes the life of my mate... the only future I have left to look forward to... ...I..."

"Will make for a great father..." She smiled to him, "And I... hopefully a great mother. Those books we've read will hopefully help, but as we know will never beat experience. One... to which we'll both have the pleasure of experiencing..." He couldn't believe that she persuaded him enough to actually agree with what was about to happen, but thankfully, there was more closure to be had, "Trust me. Grab A-Twelve, Six-R, A-OneThirteen, and L-Forty-Two. I know what to do."

"WHA...! Ersa... you're not... actually going to kill Spyro... ...are you?"

"Trust in me, my love," Ersa knew time still was needed for his broken heart to mend after all that time apart; she knew this, because the same was felt within her, "I'll take lead. I have an idea for all, and need to find The Friends to help aid us in our goals. For now, everyone else listen up. Here's what I need each of you to do."

Malefor sped himself a little more, needing and feeling a pit within him that yearned to help her. He saw something, someone within the frightened and weakened hatchling. But she wasn't a hatchling. She was so much more, so much older, with knowledge that out ranked hundreds of years of experience. Though her age was unknown and who, what, or where she came from, the purple dragon pinpointed an idea. This idea was built upon previous experiences. He knew who this was, or rather, who he thought it could be. Another Cynder: another chance to make things right. Someone corrupted, confused, and void of positive emotions; knowing only death, and the blood trail that lined itself behind her. The dread within him was almost too much to bare, and what ever the cost, he wanted to make things right even if they weren't his own doing, "Alina! It's okay! You're safe! No one here wishes to hurt you!"

His voice, and the knowledge of who he was and his kind, Alina couldn't feel bothered at the moment to understand him or what he was trying to do. She needed space, time to recollect and understand. He made good distance, only a few or so feet away from being in arm's length. But with sudden spikes of darkness erupting from the ground; all pointed to his neck and from all around, he was stopped dead in his tracks. The spikes pushed against his scales. Any further and they'd pierce. Carith cried to see this, and Cynder herself ran a few steps ahead to prevent his soon to be death, "MALEFOR!"

"STAY AWAY! ALL OF YOU!"

Their only saving grace was her inability, or lake of care to kill the purple dragon right away. Cynder and Corvus were both stopped in their tracks as to what they should do, but thankfully for the Dark Master who still crept in the shadows, the female lover of Spyro caught attention, "Alina, please! We're on your side in a sense! We aren't here to harm you, or to hurt those you know and love!" The Dark Dragoness turned to Cynder; teeth on full display, and her darkness acting sporadically, "You're a Dark Dragon too, aren't you?! Than you can read his memories, feel his emotions, live through them all the same way Kettu and Xvar have! You can build trust for him, you can understand him, I know you can."

Alina released her gaze from Corvus, dropping her guard to focus on Cynder, "He can't be saved! No purple dragon has ever been able to escape their purpose! What they were born and destined to accomplish!" Corvus used his colors to blend in to the shadows, gently approaching off beside her rather than behind as he knew she'd most expect that, "Whether that be the destruction of their kind or our own, they are weapons, as are we prey to their food chain! I'm doing what's necessary! What's right! For the survival of your kind and my own!"

"If you know so much, than please!" Cynder stepped forward, and surprisingly, her advance caused Alina to step back, "Please tell us what we can do to fix things! What had happened in the past that is a constant, something you know we can change for the better instead of this cycle continuing!" She was desperate to know all she could, and was willing to do almost anything to achieve her peace with her purple dragon, "I've been told so many times and by so many people... Corvus... Ersa... Flair... everyone has feared Spyro once in their life before, but he's proven time and time again he can be different!"

"They all are in the beginning! But their power leads them to new methods: to us! To the darkness. Sooner or later, all stray from the light, and find meaning in destruction and death! Spyro will follow suit, and to ensure the safety of both races, I will not allow you, his friends, or family to stand in the way of what must be achieved," Corvus had finally closed the gap between him and Alina: his blade raising high to go in for the kill, "The hardest sacrifices requires the strongest wills."

Cynder and Malefor hadn't noticed Corvus's ability to sneak so well. That, and they were both so heavily focused on the female ahead of them that they had barely taken notice. Although he had plenty of time to prepare, and his attack in full swing, his position was compromised upon the cries of the two that had seen him: that being Malefor and Cynder, "CORVUS, DON'T!"

Upon their cries, Alina's eyes widened. She had enough time to turn around and react to the situation, but couldn't muster up the force or power to do anything about. With time at her finger tips, and speed to match, exceed, and overcome that of sound and light, she faulted. Her vision still blurred from tears, she was surrounded by all new sights, smells, and sounds. Malefor wasn't malicious, Cynder wasn't vicious, and the only one who showed either of those sides were her own kind: One of the Lockdown Three. She knew of the name and who he was, how feared and powerful one such man could be. Still, being this close was new to her, and her muscles ceased, knowing no amount of power in the world could stop such man. She feel down and backwards, whereas Corvus fell forwards. The two felt stuck in slow motion; the female raising her paws to block the attack in tears, and Corvus swinging down blade first in a monstrous display and show of dominance. She cried what little she could before her back hit the ground, readying herself for what pain was to follow, "PLEASE, NO!"

Time resumed for the two once having fallen back entirely. A gun shot followed, stunning the female and everyone else to their core. Though the sound wasn't close, her ear drums still rang in a slightly higher pitch. Her eyes were tight, as too her body: she was braced for the worst and prepared for the indescribable. For what stories she knew of Corvus, for how he carved, killed, and mutilated people: for her to be next was too much to bare. But she couldn't understand why she felt this way. Her whole life led her to this moment. Death was something she knew would arrive swiftly, and most likely painfully. Alina wanted answers to her questions: so many that she had, too. She composed herself, a least enough to open her eyes. Blocking her view still, she cried as her paws waved to the air, "CORVUS - PLEASE - WAIT - I'M ON YOUR SIDE!"

"YOU IDIOT!"

Corvus spoke, but not to her, rather, someone else. She was hesitant at first to lower her guard, but curiosity got the best of her. Her heart hit her chest to see the truth. Where Corvus was quick to attack her, Malefor was quick to defend the female. Her gasp followed more tears, more questions, more emotions: so much to feel and focus on that she didn't know what to do or how to tackle it. The way Malefor stood in front of her; black spears prodded within his body displayed blood and an obvious show that he didn't have a plan to make it out of her prison she placed around him, he just acted. He stood there with sweat, fear, and determination, holding his golden gun with both paws. On the other side of the barrel was Corvus, holding his right shoulder to which now bled red liquid. Outside of his comfort zone and without much options, Corvus acted erratically, "YOU... YOU... BRAIN DEAD, HALFWIT, CLOD!" He feared more for his life than anything, "YOU'LL KILL US ALL!"

"SHUT UP! YOU SHUT YOUR GODDAMN MOUTH!" Malefor pointed the gun to Corvus's head; paws shivering like no other, and heart pounding near double what his resting heart rate would be, "You keep your filth, your corruption, your insufferable life AWAY FROM HER!" Cynder ran much closer, as too Carith as she was one that was left behind from Ersa's plan, "You... You... you..." This wasn't easy for Malefor, to have to put the Dark Master at the end of his barrel, but it was the only way, "I've wanted you dead from the start," He hissed through his teeth: his voice breaking here and there, "For all the SHIT you put my family through! For what you did to Cynder! TO ME! To..." He gripped his gun tightly, but jerked it forward, ready to pull the trigger, "To Carith..." He shuck off his tears, grabbed hold of the grip of his gun with both paws and gave Corvus his one and only warning, "You stand down and stay the hell away from her! You'd dare attack someone who doesn't even know what tears are?! What it means to be weak?! TO BE ALIVE?! But why would you give a shit when you took Cynder's life away. A hatchling, an adult: a mother or a father, you couldn't give two shits who you threw under. But unlike back than, you best believe I'll put a bullet RIGHT THROUGH your fricken skull if it means you can't hurt anyone ever again!"

Corvus didn't have time to play around, and they didn't have time to waste on this, "You think that's why I want to kill her?! HUH?! Because she's weak?! Because she's some defenseless little hatchling?!" The Dark Master growled to the pressure he had to put on his wound, frustrated by the fact that it was even there in the first place, "She's a weapon! I know her father, I know what she's been through and I know if we don't kill her RIGHT HERE AND NOW, WE'RE ALL DEAD! There's nothing Spyro can do! Not him! Not us! SO IT'S EITHER HIM, OR US!"

"GIVE HER A MINUTE TO SPEAK!" The purple dragon had his demands, "Something clearly happened, and if that's anything to go by, than maybe she can be saved," He somewhat turned to her, seeing within her eyes fear, hate, anguish, regret: so much for one to experience all at once, "Where there's tears, there's emotion. Emotion driven by thought, emotion felt within the heart," He faced the Dark Master once again, "You said it yourself she has a heart. So than... she's no different from you. She's... no different from Cynder."

Corvus finally understood what all this was about now, "ARE YOU...?! YOU THINK HELPING HER WILL MAKE UP FOR WHAT HAPPENED TO CYNDER?!" The Dark Master clenched his teeth, and if not for the hole in his shoulder, he'd be laughing right about now, "Cynder was born on your planet, not mine! She was corrupted by the darkness, not born from it! Her parents still live to this day unlike hers! They are no-"

"MALEFOR - STOP!"

The four looked over to see Ersa running in, and even past Cynder. The yellow female wasted no time in getting to the meat and bones of both sides. None had realised until after Ersa had said something, but Malefor was near centimeters away from pulling the trigger. Had Corvus continued to push, and dig deep into the purple dragon's mental state, it would've worked. Malefor knew himself how close he was to pulling the trigger, and had Ersa not stepped in, there would've been no coming back from what he would've done. Reaching up and resting a paw to his shoulder, Ersa needed to be the voice of reason. Meanwhile, Cynder made her way over to Corvus in hopes both sides would agree to a ceasefire. Ersa was up; gentle with her approach, and understanding, "If you want things to change, you can't let him get to you. Do you really think pulling the trigger and killing Corvus right in front of Alina would paint a good picture for purple dragons?"

"HIS HEART IS STILL IN MY CHEST!" He nipped at her, "What the hell should it matter if I did or didn't?!"

"And how would Alina know that?" Ersa didn't raise her voice, nor get snippy with him, "All she would've seen was you putting a bullet to another Dark Dragons' head, and everything you wanted to prove and disprove would've all been for nothing," She edged her paw from his shoulder to up his arms, reaching for his paws so he'd lower the gun, "Don't be like him. Don't disregard and take someone else's future away. You're better than that: you always have been. Why do you think Carith stayed with you after all that had happened? Remember what she said, the day after you came back and you thought you had seen the Chronicler again," Her words had gotten to him; her smooth tone, gentle breaths, and calming attitude brought him down, "'Not again... please... never again..."

It had been quite a while since that time, and even for Malefor himself, he was shocked to hear her say those words. He remembered that day rather vividly, but also remembered she wasn't with them at that time, "You... ...how did you...?"

"Hehe. It was, Volteer, you goof ball," Her laugh finally made him lay down his arms, as to her own as they were no longer needed to keep him from doing the wrong thing, "I know a lot more than I let on. I... in a way, wish to understand that much more, too. I know, and understand why the purple dragons are view in such a bad spotlight. Corvus was right about one thing. The Ancestors don't appreciate their purple creations to be displayed in such dark light," She turned away from Cynder and Corvus to focus on the Dark Darkness whom slowly rose to her fours, "The remains of history, books, carvings, cave writings... all those years I learned so much. And it's why I've developed my own spin on how to kill the purple dragons, Alina," The dragoness looked to her, afraid, dazed, and confused, but she paid attention, "Would you... care for a conversation? A friendly one, of course. Hehehe."

---

Corvus; holding a paw over his wounded and exposed arm, growled in hate, rage, anger, frustration, any kind of negative or disapproving emotion effected him. To look on and watch as a conversation was being made with one of the Dark Dragons' own weapons, meant to kill, annihilate, and swiftly eliminate all within its path, it disgusted him. Pathetic... worthless... unreliable...! GARBAGE! What has happened to you... to me?! What even are we now?! He couldn't think for too long, noticing at the corner of his eye a black dragoness, one he too felt such hate and negativity toward. Before she could even approach him fully, he swung his arm at her, the one that kept himself from bleeding, "GET AWAY!" Blood splashed from his paw and to the ground in front of her; his paw having been used as a bandage to keep his fluids from dripping out his exposed wound, "I don't want to hear ANYTHING from you!"

Cynder could, but at the same time couldn't, understand what Corvus was at this point: a friend, ally, enemy, or foe. She could understand his frustration, but his fear, that was something she couldn't wrap her head around. Still, she made sure and tried her best to calm the enraged dragon before he did anything too rash, "Corvus, I..."

"I should've killed you! I SHOULD'VE KILLED EVERYTHING!" Corvus gripped his teeth, displeased with the position he was in and what he had become, "To destroy your world, to return home to mine as a hero, to live out the rest of my days as something more, something complete, SOMETHING OF VALUE!" He gripped the floor with his right arm, "Look at me, look at THIS! WHAT IS THIS?! WHAT THE HELL EVEN AM I ANYMORE?! This wound, this reality, this... pathetic excuse of a weapon! Meant to destroy the purple dragon, now conversates with it!" He tried not to cry, though his eyes watered to a degree, "Useless... worthless... pathetic... a shell of anything other than failure... for all I am and all I know now, is failure."

She had never seen him so down on himself before, but in a way, that gave her all the more reason to pick back up from where he was. There would never be anyway to come back from what he had done, but at the very least, maybe there'd be an understanding, the same kind she had brought up before when it came to Luna. Luna was the perfect source for her. Ever since his repressed memories had resurfaced, the Dark Dragoness seemed at the forefront of his mind. Though she knew the rage it would bring to remember, those memories she knew Corvus had to look on in some sort of light or comfort, "When you usually get this down on yourself, or you feel like nothing you do matters and that all your life choices lead to failure... what do you think Luna would say to you?" He growled but didn't say anything, only looking away to not engage, "You won't believe me or trust me because I'm your enemy... or so you think. So rather listen to someone you don't trust, rather listen to yourself since... even you seem to not trust yourself any more... listen to your memories. Listen to those who you used to know and be with. You can try to change who they are within your head, but you know the truth. Who they are. Who... they wanted you to be. Because you were there... you were with them... and you loved them," Cynder took a few steps to approach, "So what do you think Luna would want you to do?"

Corvus didn't know what to feel at this point. He couldn't grasp the idea of what was next or if even what he's went through mattered at all. But for Luna to once again be brought up, now knowing she herself was a weapon, a way of manipulation towards him, that fueled a more deeper, darker hate within him towards others, "So... this is my punishment now...?" His words confused her, "For all the times I've lied, manipulated, and turned one another against the other through those they love and the connections they have... now you do the same to me? To force me to remember?! To manipulate ME with what you know now?! YOU REALLY...!"

"CORVUS!" With how he was acting and what he was feeling, there was no doubt in her mind he would've attacked her; from his stance to his teeth and his veins, she put a stop to his destructive thinking real quick, "Remembering someone you love or lost shouldn't always hurt. They are your past experiences and should always be remembered to make you a better person. Had I not been with Spyro, and he be with someone else, someone manipulative and destructive... you could only imagine what life would've been like," She didn't want to waste too much time, that and the idea of speaking to her lover again called to her, "All I ask is you remember and trust those who were once with you for guidance. I'll leave you to your thoughts, but just... remember what I said. You can have your hate to the purple dragons, but all I, and many of us ever wanted, was friends and family. That's it. I don't want you died or leave, or suffer, I... just want a family," She stepped away and turned herself towards the others in the middle, ready to meet back up with her friends, "If you ever loved someone, you'd understand what I want too. And maybe, that's where we can slowly start to understand each other just a little bit more."

Cynder had noticed that after she had ran away, a small glimpse was given to see he was deep in thought. Once she had finally turned herself to face forward, a few others seemed to have followed along with her. All the girls expect for Trish were present in the group. Where ever the Guardians had gone, Axel, or Syrus was a mystery. But the Guardian's lovers, Carith, Serena, Amara, Celina, and Ava were all present and half-circled the newly found Dark Dragoness, Alina.

---

Cynder's words had gotten to the Dark Dragon to his dismay. After his memories flooded in for what Spyro had done and made him remember, it was all he could really think about. To remember who Luna was, and what she no longer could do, achieve, or live in without her life, to remember who she once was and not who she is now twisted his stomach. But still, the idea of remembering, reliving, and being with Luna again made him want to sleep. To feel, enjoy, and speak to her once again. Thankfully with his darkness, it was easy for him to close his eyes, relive, and remember what she had said to him; the specific moment, and the detail of it all.

---

"But... that's honestly why I feel the way that I do." Hearing a very faint voice within his head, Corvus grumbled slightly to his surrounding. A small ringing within his ear holes disturbed him greatly, the ringing within growing louder and louder, disturbing and upsetting him. With his body taking time to wake from its slumber, the voice became more known to him. "Or, maybe I just wanted to goof off and try something new, you know?" The mumble within the voice grew more clear, much easier for him to understand than before, although now, the ringing was almost too much for him to bear "Corvus? You still with me?" Gasping now, his eyes shot wide open. The ringing seized, as to the soft muffles from his surroundings. Throwing himself up, he went from a laid position on his left to a quick roll over onto his stomach. Breathing heavily in and out, he looked all around to his surroundings, unsure to where he even was. Although from his abilities to survey rather quickly, he noticed the dead, grey, and lifeless colored tone of his world. He was back home, and in a daze, unable to remember how he got here or even where he last was. The voice no longer seemed to bother him. The only thing that stood against him now was a throbbing pain to the front of his head. Grumbling and groaning as he gripped his forehead, he sighed, trying to understand what was going on. His body felt weird, different, and trying to sense an emotion felt impossible. Still, he spoke to himself, "Ugh, my... head."

"Hehe. Why are you surprised?" The voice had returned, directly behind him too.

Knowing of his home world and those that would be out to kill him, he was stunned for no more than a second. He took everything he knew, combat, defense, offensive, and knowledge of his home world to arch himself, kick off the grass and the ground below, to spin himself around and lower his front down with his back arched in the air to pounce. His blade turned, arched, then stiffed to a hard sharped angle. His teeth snapped shut, and his eyes were wide to his surroundings. However, all that left him in an instant. He again gasped and dropped his guard entirely to what was before him. The voice had sounded feminine, but still, he kept his guard up, unknowing of what was truly before him. But upon seeing her now, it was very easy to confirm her feminine nature. He couldn't help but inspect her from top to bottom, focusing her tail first and making his way up to her face. Her colors resembled that of any other Dark Dragon. To the top of her tail was a soft, easy to see black, and a more vibrant, appealing looking grey that covered her secondary colors and mixed in well with her primary. Her tail was thin to the tip, but gradually grew more on the way to her rear. Her blade was nowhere close to a blade at all, resembling soft, fluffy, and what looked to be feathery wings that arched themselves from both ends out, down, and around, almost as though they tucked themselves similarly to normal wings. Working his way up her scaly exterior, he took notice to her connected row of fins that gradually grew bigger the closer they were to her head, but not too much as some males had. They started small from the bottom base of her tail and worked themselves all the way to the top of her head. Her wings were very soft and seemingly fragile. Though they were meaty on the outside, the lines within and her flaps seemed so easy to break. To her shoulders and the back of her elbows, the same small and feathery design from her tail resided there too. Making his way up to her chest now, he took notice to the way her scales from her neck came down and covered her front like a piece of armor, though from the softness of these scales, it wasn't all too visible. The sides of her cheeks rested more of her feathery parts: frills that protected both sides. Her horns, four of them, were each placed symmetrically. Two large ones to each side of her head, curved slightly up, a little down, then out. Another two that hid behind her frills, looking the same as the ones on her head only smaller. Finally, to her eyes, she had a different color than most. Though they were black within her pupil, the iris of her eye was softly colored in a gem of green, making her distinguishable from other dragons who more so had eye colors of black, grey, or yellow. Seeing all he had seen now, it stunned him upon realizing who it was. It was ever more surprising to see her smile at him where many would frown or fear, "Also so jumpy? I'm gonna start calling you my little bunny if you keep hopping around like that."

Tears came to his eyes to hear her voice and see her again. Rather step away, he stepped forward and broke when he said her name, "L... luna...?" She smiled warmly to him.

---

Ersa, trying her best to raise her paws in a show of ease and vulnerability, kept her tone nice, easy, and somber. Although Alina did somewhat appreciate Ersa's company, Malefor's was a different story. For her to be surrounded by what she could only consider threats, determinants, and bumps in the road for her and her mission, more seemed to follow in. Her heart spiked to see all that joined in on the group, though the only thing that didn't keep her from acting was the lack thereof to muscle, or rather male figures. She backed away some from their approach, but Ersa was quick to lay out her plan to Alina right away, "I knew you'd be afraid if I let the men approach you," Alina snapped her head over to Ersa, looking her dead in the eyes with intent to kill someone, "It was a pain in the ass to convince the others that I needed the help of their females and that they couldn't be around, but they trusted me and my plan to make things right."

With the girls, and Malefor, now all out in front of her, Alina took notice to the final member, Cynder, joining the rest of the group as well. She wasn't surrounded from behind, and had more than enough space from the front of her to escape from every angle if possible. And though fight or flight was at the forefront of her mind, something kicked within. She wanted answers, questions to spark more answers, and conversation to be had with someone, anyone at all. She had been alone for so long, now that her emotions were reignited, Alina wanted it all. Socialization, communication, connection, something, anything at all that involved heart to heart contact. But she knew of her mission and what she was here to do. So rather listen to what she knew would get her killed, she threatened and was stern on what she was to do, "None of this matters! No matter what you say or do, I will not, can not, and shall not give you your friend back! I can hold him captive for the rest of his life, and promise not to kill him if that makes you feel any better. But he cannot and will never see the light of day again, and if he's to try something from within, his death will be swift and painless."

"But he's still alive?" Cynder stepped forward first, glad to hear at least some good news.

"Of course you'd like to know," She seemed rather snippy and for good reason, "Give it up, Cynder. There's nothing you can do to save him. All you're doing is sealing his fate to become what all have tried to avoid. The last purple dragon to be born and go down his path, his destiny, led with a harsh and destructive manner. He knew what he was and what he needed to do, and rather wait so many years to do so, he was always acting out of malicious and personal intent behind the scenes."

"I didn't do that," Malefor defended himself, "I was just trying to get laid."

"NOT YOU, IDIOT!" She nipped at him, her body enraged and at any moment could act in a life ending manner, "Artemis. It was because of him that our world was frozen in time. Why we aged, why our species died from mass suicide from thoughts alone, and why our planet was destroyed. It was all because of him."

"But I thought Artemis was Corvus's friend?"

"He might've been for a few days. But once Artemis left and came back from his trip between our world and his, he changed. Or rather, he never did. He always acted like he cared, always did things to prove his heart was made of gold. No one knew when, where, or how he learned of his true nature, but when he did, it burned deep to his soul and his goal was clear," Alina explained to those around her, "Corvus was born because of Artemis. He didn't used to always be like that. Corvus was soft, gentle, and charismatic. But Artemis made sure to break his will, his resolve, and his future. As too did he to our entire population."

"Then why don't you just kill Malefor and Spyro right here and now?" Celina shrugged her shoulders and acted without a care in the world, "If you know they're pieces of shit, why not just say F-it and get it over with?"

Alina gave Malefor a very, very deadly stare. It crossed her mind so many times to waste no more breath or willpower to let either of the purple dragons live for any longer. But she couldn't. Something within her couldn't allow her to act just yet. Even though everyone knew what she was, what she was made for and born to do, they didn't act, especially not Malefor. The purple dragon, rather getting defensive or nipping back on his own, raised his paws as he sat, signaling he wanted nothing to do with any kind of war. He dropped sweat and was fearful to say anything, but he wished no ill will to her at all, "I literally give no shit about that purple dragon stuff. I just want to clap some cheeks and go about my day."

"Disgusting pig," Celina nearly threw up in her mouth.

"You'll die the same way. You've already failed to stop your true nature. Slaughtering your own kind, decimating landscapes, tearing the lives of those young and old away from one another," Alina took back over, testing the purple dragon and even downing him for what he's already done.

"I wasn't even in control! That was, Corvus! Not me!" He defended himself.

"You let your lovers' death get to you the same way others have, and it caused you to lose sight and act in a manner that caused all of this in the first place," The Dark Dragoness had much to back up her claim, digging Malefor into a rather deep hole, "You've even said it yourself plenty of times how you wished you were stronger, how you wish you could've stopped yourself within that moment. But did you? Cyril's parents? Volteer's parents? The lives of families who grew up without mothers or fathers - did you ever think about them willingly? Did you ever even really care?"

"I..."

"No. You didn't. And even before Spyro and Cynder were to kill you, you accepted your death because of what you knew you did. You never stopped yourself, never stopped him, from his revenge. His rampage to deal the same damage, to force everyone in your world to go through the same thing he went through; what Artemis put him through. You only ever gave a damn when Carith returned," Alina approached him at chest level, growling deep and low to his lowered head; Malefor unable to say anything to her, knowing she was right, "Suddenly you cared. Suddenly you had the will to fight back. And suddenly... you acted as though everything was okay because what you had was all that mattered. If you truly cared about all those that you killed, FOR WHAT YOU DID TO EVERYONE AND EVERY LIVING BEING ON THE PLANET - YOU WOULD'VE SLIT YOUR OWN THROAT THAT DAY - AND DIED YOU PATHETIC PIECE OF SHIT!" He ducked low and to the ground; her yells, explosion of darkness, and destructive nature gave him much to fear, "But why would it matter, huh?! The job's already done! Carith already forgave you for killing her parents too! So if everyone you knew is forgiving you, you deserve a second chance, right?!" She reeled her fist back and yelled with all her might, "WRONG!"

Her fist was delivered with force and purpose. Malefor, even if he wanted to, couldn't defend or avoid her attack. Upon its connection to his head, the ground below him cracked. The force busted his jaw to the floor, his back all following along. Had it been a normal dragon, he would've surely been killed, maybe even had his skull split open. But the most it did was stun him, even knock him unconscious for a few seconds. Her attack gave him whiplash, and it took a good little bit for him to recover. All he could do was shed tears rather then say anything. Carith couldn't stand for this and cried out in rage to the abuse her lover once again had to take on, "ENOUGH WITH THE ABUSE!"

It shocked nearly everyone to hear Carith snap like that, and though for good reason, it was a surprise for her to say that towards someone who could so easily kill her. Alina already knew of what the response would've been from the one that loved the purple dragon, but even still, she didn't appreciate the tone nor that teeth that were being shown to her, "He'll be killed by my hands one day anyway. What's the point in even saying anything at all?"

"Shut up, you hypocritical BITCH!" Carith stepped forward, putting her paw down against Malefor's aggressor; mocking the Dark Dragoness and all those before her who've made the same assumption, "Purple dragons are built to destroy, they're meant to bring about the end of our world and your own, yada-yada-yada! Then what the hell are you?!" She had much to say, "YOU'RE NOTHING! You're a weapon yourself to destroy the purple dragons! You give no shit about our planet's people! And you take, decimate, and control based on your power BECAUSE YOU HAVE NO ONE!"

"I HAVE MY REASONS!" Alina's darkness flared to hear this comparison, ready now to do what she should've done hours ago.

"Ah! So when it's your reasons, your ideals, and YOUR revenge towards the purple dragons, THEN it's fine, it's somehow justified! But when they retaliate, EVEN WHEN THEY AREN'T DOING ANYTHING, you're surprised at the position you put yourself in?!" Carith spit to the floor, directly to the fours of the dragoness in front of her, tears rolling down the blue dragoness's eyes, "You're just like Corvus! You never give him the chance, never give him a break, and never work with him enough for him to care! He hates the Dark Dragons because of what Corvus did to him! So rather act the same as every other prick in this world, why not be different and work together?!"

"BECAUSE IT'S BEEN DONE BEFORE!" She snapped back, "IF ONLY YOU COULD SEE OUR WORLD NOW! OUR PEOPLE! WHAT TRUST DOES TO THOSE AROUND US!"

Alina stepped forward as well, wanting to end this back and forth knowing how pointless it was for her in the wider scheme of her life. Ersa was ready to step in, knowing that this situation was helping little in de-escalating the situation. However and thankfully to many people's racing hearts, Carith backed down, but for a different reason, "I know... ...I know what you mean," Alina still didn't care, showing teeth to her in an offensive and defensive way, "Malefor put so much trust into The Chronicler only for him to be backstabbed, lied to, and have the truth held from him. The Chronicler knew what would happen to me, but rather do something, anything at all to help or give a warning... he kept him there as long as he could to allow my... regrettable... and avoidable, 'death', from happening," The Dark Dragoness somewhat backed down to hear within Carith's voice that she too was doing the same, "I... can't say I blame you for not trusting anyone... ...It's hard for even Malefor to do the same. He didn't trust Spyro or Cynder really cause... he knew what he had done... and he knew they, unlike the Guardians, wouldn't welcome him home warmly cause they didn't know him. But... he put on a fake smile... he lied to himself... and for awhile, kept the facade going to keep me safe."

"And how the hell was he keeping you safe?" She asked, somewhat curious, somewhat not so.

"Because as badly as he wanted to be alone with me... to go somewhere else with, or without the Guardians... he knew Spyro and Cynder were the only ones powerful enough to stop him had he turned again," Carith frowned from memory, in a way thankful they no longer lived in that time, "Alina... he... this... cycle... I..." Everything she thought about was interrupted by her own thoughts fighting one another, thinking of Corvus and the way he never listened, "Give him a chance to be different. Corvus already tried to kill Spyro when he was still in his egg, and that... ...we can't truly be so far gone to reject the fact that hatchlings... little... bundles of love and joy, need to be killed simply because of a few rotten apples on a tree."

"When they're all rotten, there tends to be a pattern. Why sit on something that we already know?"

"So you mean to tell me that you're so heartless... so cold... so... disconnected from your own heart, that you'd stop the beat of one that's so young?" If this was the kind of person she was talking to, and if all felt the same, then there really was no hope for peace between both sides, "If the hatchling smiled to you, saw the sun for the first time and was in awe, taking its first breath and imagining so much that it could accomplish, so much love and life it can give to the world and the parents that helped make the little one in the first place... you disregard that? You'd take its life without a second thought?" For someone such as Carith who planned to be a mother, and with that chance of having a purple hatchling herself, it hurt to speak on it, let alone think of the possibility, "And you call 'us' heartless? "

Alina really had nothing to say to this. She wanted to, and thought about it, but something within her kept her from feeling really any emotion at all. Her tears slowly faded, as too did the light in her eyes. Whether or not it was a fault of her own or somebody else's, she couldn't bring herself to care about life, only her mission, "I said the hardest sacrifices requires the strongest wills. If no one else can do what needs to be done, that is why I'm here. That's what I was made for."

"And if you fail? What's next," The blue dragoness already knew what she'd say, "You gonna slaughter hatchlings within the bellies of female's before a purple dragon can even be born? Are you going to enslave our world, have an eye over everyone to prevent the life of another purple dragon?" All ducked their heads to the idea, seemingly more of a possibility than just that; a simple idea, "Give us a chance. Just this one chance. I don't like the idea of you holding Spyro hostage but... maybe... maybe by you seeing what kind of man my love is, my purple dragon... you'll warm up to Spyro. You'll... see... what it is we want and fear. You'll see just how human we really are."

Alina was still on the fence about it all. Her objective, her life, led up to this moment. To have a few words bring her down, and to have someone like a purple dragon protect her life even when her own kind went against her, something burned within her chest. Her head throbbed: pounding, pulsing, and aggravating her more so. She wanted to say something, wanted to do something; but she couldn't. Something held her back, something that was engraved within her, but she didn't know what or by whom. Her heart was stubborn, so still, there wasn't much love to be had, "My mission is to kill or take over a purple dragon. I'll simply do that as I must, and leave the rest of you be."

Unfortunately for all, they knew they couldn't do much else. If their words couldn't reach her, they knew fists wouldn't either. All they'd do is end up getting themselves killed, and with no one else to back them up, they were at a lost. But still, there was more helped that arrived. Ersa was ready to say something, but Kettu and Xvar made way out of Cynder's body and stood rather tall behind her. Many gasped to see they were still alive, and though they couldn't question, their sight bright smiles to many. Alina was shocked too, however, not as much as some others, "So... Spyro was telling the truth when he said he transferred you two to Cynder."

"Reconsider, Alina," Kettu defended Spyro.

"The more we try to mess with things, the more likely they are to happen," Xvar defended the purple dragon as well.

"So you suggest we roll over and let everything happen all over again?!" Alina was disgusted to hear her own kind defend the purple dragon, "But of course you would. You didn't go through The Frozen Centennials. Your mind isn't as broken as those born with you and after."

"Frozen Centennials?" Many questioned.

"If what we've been taught is anything to go off of, I'd say that it's best if we don't become grudge holders, as that's all you Centennials are," Xvar now defended himself and his actions.

"You go off of a broken mind with a twisted agenda and a skewed sense of judgement. Maybe that's why we get along with Spyro so well, because rather than having someone else tell us how we should feel or what we should be careful of, we give Spyro the chance that all deserve, and though we miss our parents, we couldn't be happier being by Spyro's side and apart of his family," Kettu had much logic, emotion, and knowledge to back his side up, believing and trusting in what Spyro had created.

"And yet you two still fear him," Alina snickered, knowing of their lies and what they were telling themselves.

"Because of the stories and what they've done to us. They made us afraid of a shadow, and because of that, although we are here and with the purple dragons now, we fear because of the tactics used to make us afraid," The Dark Dragons had much to say to go against her, and Kettu brought up his point.

"But to be honest, that purple dragon is one tough, loving, and caring son of a bitch, and is one I'd feel comfortable with sparring against. Though I may be weak, and though many can take advantage of that, Spyro I know would laugh, pat me on the back, and help me to my fours because THAT, is who he is," Crossing his arms as he sat, it was easy for someone like Xvar to defend the purple dragon for what all he's done and allowed them to do.

There was so much support towards the purple dragon being thrown her way, and by the two of her own kind. Many smiled along, nodding in agreement, all with their own stories, hopes, and dreams about the purple dragon. Alina knew of almost all of them, having read through Spyro's mind and knowing how much he meant to so many people. If that wasn't enough to convince her to stand down, Ersa had much to say too, and her information was especially interesting, "I think I know of a way to prevent the purple dragons from ever causing chaos ever again, too," All looked to her in wonder as to how, "As I said, the Ancestors and those before do try to bury their history rather well, but for someone like me, cloaked in darkness and unable to be seen by those above, I did some digging, and found some interesting information."

"What kind?" The Dark Dragoness asked.

"Though I don't know if this affected all purple dragons, I know of how one of the purple dragons turned. When out searching for his purpose, he came across some ruins. These ruins 'spoke' to him, lured him, and brought him to where they wanted him to be. A voice spoke to him, calmed him, and hummed a melody to him. This melody could only be described as a curse put upon the purple dragon, and the one to hum the tune I believe... is the mother of the first purple dragon."

"WHAT?!" All were in shock to hear this.

"Something must've happened to her, or someone she loved, for this curse to take hold and be rather specific. Once the curse is placed upon the purple dragon's heart, they are bound to kill anything and everything that caused their lover's death. It's not that purple dragons don't care about anything or anyone else once their lover is killed, it's that the curse controls the heart into believe they have nothing left to live for, and therefore should kill all who caused their lover's death in the first place."

"Is Malefor or Spyro affected by the curse?!" Cynder cried.

"If they were, they'd be dead... or, at least in a lot of pain," She saw the raised brows and worried looks from many, so she laughed before explaining, "Hehehe, sorry sorry, I'll explain. You remember when I was testing those little concoctions of mine against, Spyro?" Some nodded, and those who weren't there looked confused, "Well, those were actually all tests, many to which were ways in which I could kill the purple dragon, not aid him. After all, I was still new to being around you all again and seeing some new faces, so I was at the ready to do what was necessary."

"You would've killed, Spyro?" The lover of the purple dragon ducked her head a little, somewhat feeling betrayed by the female.

"You're... the reason I didn't... and why I didn't use some of my... other methods," It had taken her awhile to warm up to the purple dragon, but now that she had, she regretted what she had done, "I tested Malefor in his sleep, using what I used against Spyro to test if their hearts were cursed. Spyro's was not, but Malefor's... he... well..."

"He's staring at your ass, Alina," Celina pointed out, just wanting to start a fight.

"WHAT?!" A few, such as Carith and Alina cried.

"Or is it Spyro's ass technically?"

Malefor had finally recovered from the attack he had taken and seemed rather dazed still. His eyes looked down, and from what Celina had said, she was right about that. When Alina's head finally did turn around, he still didn't seem to care or mind her any attention. Blushing somewhat, her fist swung around, gripping his neck forcefully and causing him to gag. She held him up high, standing up on her feet to choke the life out of him. Once again, Carith stepped in and defended him, "ALINA - PLEASE - STOP!"

"WHY WERE YOU LOOKING AT MY ASS, YOU PERVERT!" Alina's grip was rather tight on him, not really giving him much way to defend himself.

"I... ...w... ...was... n't..." Malefor struggled to even get a few words out.

"ALINA, PLEASE!"

"Just read his memory!" Cynder suggested, knowing of what the Dark Dragons can do.

Alina did exactly that, wanting to know just what he was really thinking about. It only took her a few seconds to read his most recent thoughts, but for someone like Carith, it felt like minutes. Finally, she gasped, letting go of him entirely and backing away. He fell to the floor, paw around his neck and mouth wide open as he gasped for breath. Carith couldn't stand by and away from her lover any longer. While he took deep inhales and exhales to control his breathing, and bring life to his lungs again, Carith rushed over: wing to his back, paw to his side, and tail curled to his own. What ever he was thinking about stunned the Dark Dragoness, and now all were interested into what was really going on inside his mind. He didn't have much time to recover as Alina started to act without thought, "No... ...no, you... ...that... ...that can't be right..." Her darkness suddenly kicked up, an attack immediate, "In a time like this and for what I've done, you would never be thinking of such things! You're hiding your thoughts! You're... YOU'RE LYING!"

"ALINA!" Carith cried for her, blocking Malefor with his wing, begging in a soft cry for her not to continue, "Don't... ...please..."

Alina for some reason listened. Still she couldn't quite feel what human emotions really were or what they meant to her; what it was like to have someone who cared. But for what it was worth, and for what Carith said to her, she backed down. Now all were interested, and giving it a few more seconds, the blue female asked in a soft whisper, "Malefor... ...what were you thinking about?"

Coughing once more, his voice was a little raspy, but he got his vocals back, "I was... ...I just... I..." Shaking himself off and being helped to his fours by his love, he explained himself, "I just had an idea for what I would do, what I could do, if I could have anything in the world. If I had an army at my disposal to do anything I command."

"And what's that?" Celina already knew of what a man would want, "You want to rule the world? Have sex with any and every female? Have a castle to sit and laugh as every one else suffers."

"No..." Alina was the one to say this, making many raise their brows in curiosity; she herself in disbelief to what Malefor truly wanted.

"So then... what was it?" Carith asked him, holding a paw to her lover's chest.

Malefor chuckled somewhat, "Well... first, I'd want to build a massive aquarium!" Everyone was already at a loss, "Then, I would want a great white shark to live in that aquarium, as my pet of course. And all pets deserve a name, and I just thought of the greatest name to give a great white shark. Can any of you guess?" Everyone shuck their heads as, when it came to how Malefor thought, not even someone such as the likes of Ersa could get into his head, "Hehe... Ahem. I would call him," Raising a paw to the sky and smiling wide, he gave the sharks name, "Great Scott!" Everyone nearly sighed, shrugged, or groaned: many shaking their heads, even face palming to the name, "Aw, come on! That's a great reference 'AND' a great name!"

"BUT WHY?!" Alina cried, scaring everyone around, "Why the hell would you care to think that?! After what I did, WHAT I SAID! Why aren't you thinking about killing me?! Harming me?! Taking my life for what I've done and the destruction I've caused?!"

"Am I... supposed to?" Malefor's words stunned Alina every step of the way, and once again, tears started to roll out of her eyes, "Kettu and Xvar beat me up all the time. Sometimes when someone's feeling emotional, or afraid or, sad about something, they just need to HIT something! Hehe, so why would I be upset for you attacking me? You didn't hurt Carith, and for what some of these Prosperity guys did to our people, I'd say it was rather well deserved," Rather show teeth, malicious, viciousness; any or all kinds of negative and destructive emotions towards her for what she's done, he instead gave her a warm, truthful, and thankful smile, "You really kicked my ass out there. The same way Kettu and Xvar want to spar with Spyro, I would 'def' like to spar with you sometime. We have a training room up in our home, to which I'm sure we'd all like to welcome you into."

Alina didn't know what to say, especially since she knew to what Malefor was saying was true. He didn't hold hate for her, not even for what she's said or what happened. It baffled her mind to know Ersa knew more than she let on, or that a purple dragon of all things would appreciate, love, and protect her. Even all, aside from Celina, would smile and nod on all good things said about Spyro. They were all surprisingly happy, laughing, and in a way cheering to success. She was already too stunned to move, so much so that Ersa's slight approach to her wasn't something she could back away from, but she heard her words, "I was actually meaning to ask you; what caused you to understand us?" She was a little confused at first to the yellow female's question, "I mean, before you wanted nothing but death and destruction without a single word, but then... you eased up, listened. Why?"

She wasn't so sure herself, but there was a moment, a flash of color that suddenly came her way, "I... ...I don't know..." Alina was a little stunned even herself, "I remember feeling numb... I... I remember... not... remembering, if that makes any sense. But then... I remember warmth... love... and then... everything just... came back to me... after Spyro had kissed me."

Everyone stopped dead cold for a second, looking at her in disbelief; all aside from Cynder crying out, "WHAT?!"

Everyone then looked to Cynder in absolute terror, and terror most definitely showed herself. Cynder's eye twitched a little, her face rather cold and dead, her mind unable to wrap itself around what she just heard. Suddenly, she started to laugh as her darkness grew outwards. Her laugh became more hysterical, maniacal, borderline broken to hear such news. Growing to her Terror Form, her tail slammed the ground behind her, causing all to jump back and away. She had truly lost it, and her voice wasn't her own, "I'm gonna kill him..." She snickered rather lowly at first, "I'M GONNA BEAT HIS PURPLE ASS!"

"NO!"

For everyone to cry out that could've done so, the last thing anyone could've ever expected it to be was Alina. She barely knew the group, and though all were afraid of what to do or how to help, the Dark Dragoness seemed the most afraid. Cynder didn't know what to do but to look at the absolute fear within her eyes and shaking body. No one had to ask for Alina to explain, "You can't do this, Cynder! You'll repeat history if you do!" She raised a brow, as too many others, "You'll never understand how much he loves you because you'll never believe it!" The dragoness blushed a little to hear those words, "He kissed me because he thought I was you, cause I shapeshifted in to you, in a time where you all had died by his paws and he was forced to live in the aftermath!" The female backed down now, slowly losing her Terror Form, "His love, his passion, his desire, his pain... he put it all into that kiss and I felt every bit of it. He knew, even with how messed up his mind was for what I put upon him, he felt something off within the kiss. He knew my lips were not your own, but felt as though so much time had passed that maybe you had changed."

"How much time?" She questioned.

"Years," The female was honest, "I tried to make the story more believe by letting Terrador, Trish, and a few others live. But most of you... almost all of you, I explained in detail to your deaths. Which is why... at this very moment... he's... ...dying..."

"WHAT?!" Everyone cried once again.

"With what I laid out upon him, and the way to which I assaulted him, he... said he wanted to see Prosperity's destruction for himself. But... he didn't make it far before collapsing. His heart couldn't handle it, so... it... wore itself down."

"IS HE DEAD?!" Cynder cried, "Don't... ...don't - I... ...DON'T TELL ME HE'S DEAD!"

"He isn't. I..." Alina sighed to admit this, "After what he said and did, I... ...I'm allowing his darkness to heal himself. In any other circumstance, I would've considered this a mission accomplished since my objective is either to kill the purple dragon or have him kill me to kill your own kind, but..." The female of darkened colors looked to her paws, or rather, to Spyro's paws, and questioned her reality, "After that moment... after everything was said and done, I... ...I... ..." She sighed to her situation, "I couldn't... do it... ...I don't know why or what came over me but I just... ..." She shuck her head, "He was so... so scared... afraid... heartbroken... ...he's never done anything wrong and yet... I hurt him... abused him... ..." She looked to the others for answers, "I know what my mission is and have plenty to back myself up on. But if that's true then... why am I questioning myself? Why do I feel as though what I'm doing now will cause the purple dragon to go down the wrong path? What if... what I'm doing... is what causes our extinction once again? Since now... he has hate to use... a fuel to the flame..."

All looked to her, saddened by her situation and understanding her completely. It was the same feeling many had towards Spyro; no more than a man looking to do good for others, and to attack something so pure for no reason, especially when all he wanted to do in life was good never seemed right, nor did it feel the same. Though some smiles were given, and one such of those smiles was Ersa. She placed a paw to the one's shoulder to which she jumped for, but Alina didn't back away, "One chance. That's all we ask. We can regroup at the Chambers as I'm sure you've seen through Spyro's memories. That's our safe place; our sanctuary. You'll be accepted, loved, and in time, one of us. A part of our ever growing family, to which we'll welcome you in with open arms."

Alina looked to Ersa's eyes in the hopes of finding lies. Though at the same time, she felt something within the begged, yearned, and prayed no such lies would be had. Something stopped her still from feeling such strong emotions; one's that blinded her from her mission. Yet still, her chest burned, hoping to rid herself of such toxic or otherwise unwanted feelings. She wanted to smile, and to feel things she's never felt before, or rather, didn't remember. She wanted to reach out, agree, smile, and cry tears of joy to Ersa. But unfortunately for her, she had a mission, and someone else had to remind her of that. "Pathetic." Alina's head tensed up tightly before being hit with what felt like a hammer. Her heart slammed to her chest, the pain causing her to reel back and grip both sides of her head tightly. She cried out in agony, and all backed away but still cried her name in worry, "ALINA!"

"Remember your place. Remember your mission. Do not fail me again." Alina cried tears as she yelled up to the sky, her darkness taking a form a black goop one again. She was losing control, her powers sparking out of control, and a huge gust of wind kicking up dust and debris. Kettu and Xvar quickly returned to Cynder's body, everyone readying themselves for a fight. The ground all around them cracked, broke, and was even lifted to the air. Alina's paws extended out in front of her as she continued her roar, standing up tall and displaying a monstrous amount of power. Ersa knew now that they all needed to run, and quickly gave the order, "EVERYONE, MOVE, N-"

Her voice stopped dead and cold. Her turn around left her vulnerable, and with a sound of ripping flesh, her pupils shrunk. She watched in near slow motion to see everyone turning, but then switching back around to her and yelling something. Her mouth felt a little warm, and with a small motion of her paw to her mouth, she pulled back and looked to see red liquid. Her ear drums rang louder as her paw moved away from her face. It took her a minute to focus due to blurred vision, but once cleared, she noticed the damage. Her guard was down, and because of this, it allowed for an easy attack. A small black spear ran through her back, through her insides, and out her chest. However, unlike most attacks, the spear ran through one thing that immobilized her; her heart. She was stuck, frozen in place, and without anyone around aside from Spyro to heal her; who was lost to the very dragoness that was to kill her, she looked on in horror to the others.

"ERSA!"

She could barely hear their voice.

"SPYRO!"

Another name was cried in vain.

"CORVUS!"

The Dark Dragon had been in his head for so long that his figure now collapsed. Without a patch to his wounds or any kind of care, he laid to the floor with lost blood. Although Malefor ran the best he could to aid, the floor beneath and around him cracked, broke, and blew up from underneath, sending buildings crashing down below and all around. Corvus's body was out of sight and seemingly buried beneath the rubble and debris, crushed before the weight of it all.

---

Walking up directly to the front of the Dark Dragon, Luna smiled to him even in his condition of sweat and tears. Her voice calmed him, soothed him, and she asked a simple question, "What is it, my love? What's wrong?" He stared at her, stunned as to what to say. She too stared back. Although unlike him: face full of tears, confusion, and misery, her face with filled with nothing but joy, love, and satisfaction. "Are you ready to move on? Do you no longer wish to fight? Is this where... where you wish for things to end?" Her voiced echoed to him, his heart beating faster and faster before finally clenching his eyes closed shut; tightly, and without a second thought.