While Spyro, Cynder, and Sparx had been reuniting, Red had looked on with a strange feeling of triumph that he had been unable to understand.
What stake do I have in all this? he had wondered, knowing that he should have been happy for the young dragons and finding that he was not. Why do I feel as though I've been awaiting this day for a very different reason from that of the rest of the world's dragons?
Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he had noticed something on the ground nearby glint in the strange light that bathed the island. He had turned to look, and had found what had appeared to be a piece of the crystal in which Cynder had been frozen.
This can't be right, he had thought. That crystal was made of Spyro's spirit and life force - what's this one piece doing here unabsorbed?
Curious, and somehow drawn by it, he had bent down to pick it up…
~o~
Spyro, Sparx, and Cynder turned to look at Red and saw that he was holding something. They couldn't tell what it was, though, because, like Spyro and Sparx had been, Red was being enveloped in a whorl of bright light. Unlike Spyro and Sparx, though, Red was clearly fighting it with everything he had. He held the object in his hand away from himself, and his expression was contorted in effort.
"Who is that?" asked Cynder. "He doesn't look like any dragon I've seen before."
"You and the rest of the world," Sparx commented. "He is weird-looking by all standards."
Spyro said nothing; the ominous feeling of dread that had been growing within him told him that whatever was happening to Red, it was what Spyro feared most, though Spyro didn't know exactly what that was.
Suddenly, Red managed to grind out a few words, his voice straining, as though he were working to move a heavy load…or hold some tremendous force at bay.
"S…Spy…ro…" he managed, "S…Sparx…Cyn…der…r…ru…n…run! AAAARGH!"
As Red cried out again, the whirlwind of light forced itself around him, engulfing him; his outline was barely visible.
Spyro and Cynder looked on, unable to understand what was happening. Sparx, however, even though he was also unable to understand what he was seeing, was, on the other hand, able to understand what he had heard.
"He said run. He said run! Let's get out of here!" he urged his friends.
"Where to?" asked Cynder. "I just woke up! I don't think I can fly!"
"Let's get inside!" Spyro responded. The three of them turned away from Red and ran to the doors of the island's great citadel, home to the Chronicler, but the doors didn't open. Instead, a strange, echoing voice spoke…a voice Spyro had heard before.
Sacred Threshold,
Hallowed Ground.
Pathways unfold;
Lost is found.
Prove your worth
With quick desire;
Ice and Earth,
Electric…Fire…
"You've got to be kidding me," Spyro mumbled; he had heard the same riddle when he had first come to the White Isle, and it involved using his powers against strange, living crystal orbs. Before he finished his sentence, however, the voice added a new stanza to the riddle, one Spyro had not heard:
And if you hold
Each other dear,
Add Shadow, Poison,
Wind, and Fear.
"What?" Spyro wondered out loud. It was clearly a new addition, as it wasn't as eloquent as the original; but somehow, that made it a bit more confusing.
"It's talking about me," Cynder said. "Those are my elements. But, Spyro-"
She was cut short by the sudden appearance of four strange crystal orbs with metal legs that leapt out from behind the wall, just as they had the first time Spyro had come. Spyro didn't hesitate.
"Cynder, I need your help," he said quickly. "I'm going to fight these things. Once they're defeated, each of them will turn into simple crystal orbs. I need you to push those orbs into those slots along the wall before they disintegrate."
"Okay, but-" She didn't get a chance to finish her sentence before Spyro charged at the strange things. He defeated them one at a time in short order, and Cynder quickly moved the crystals into place. Then, Spyro quickly charged the crystals with his different elemental powers in the same order as he had done long ago.
Nothing happened.
The maelstrom of energy that was engulfing Red had begun to roar audibly as the force swept through Red's unwilling body.
"Why won't the doors open?!" Sparx exclaimed, afraid.
"I don't know!" Spyro called over the ever-increasing noise.
"Well, figure it out!" Sparx called back. "I don't think we have a lot of time!" As though to accentuate his remark, there was a rumbling thud! as Red fell on all fours, his strenuous groaning just audible through the roar of magic. None of the company of three knew why, but there was something very ominous about what was happening to him.
"Spyro!" Cynder called. "Look! The crystals don't look fully charged!"
Spyro looked at the crystals and saw that she was right: the crystals hadn't turned a solid color according to the different elements they were charged with. Instead, each of them had a lacy pattern in their corresponding colors covering the surface, with white voids patterned evenly all over each of them.
"Do they need more power?!" Sparx asked.
"No," Spyro realized, turning to face the black form beside him, "they need your power, Cynder!"
"What?!" she asked.
"That voice said to add your elements!" he answered. "Use them in the same order as mine - use Shadow on the Ice crystal, Poison on the Earth crystal, Wind on the Electric crystal, and Fear on the Fire crystal!"
"But-!" she began, only to be cut off by another one of Red's cries.
"Do it! Hurry!" Spyro urged her.
"What are you waiting for?! Get going!" Sparx yelled.
"But I-!" She was cut off again, this time by a rumble from were Red was struggling with some great force, like a clap of thunder.
"Okay!" she cried out, fearful, and she quickly charged the crystals with her powers in the corresponding order. The voids were filled with colors corresponding to Cynder's different elements, and as the light grew brighter and brighter behind them, the doors slowly rumbled open. The three quickly piled themselves inside as the light engulfing Red became blindingly bright. Then the doors thundered shut behind them, and suddenly, there was silence.
The three turned to face the closed doors. Finally, Sparx broke the silence (as usual).
"What was all that about?" he asked, voicing the question that weighed on all of their minds.
"I don't know," Spyro said, "but I know that whatever it was, it was bad." They were silent for another moment.
"Come on," Spyro finally said, turning around, "we need to see the-"
He stopped short, realizing what was in front of him.
The main doors directly opposite the entrance were shut tight. Instead, four other sets of doors, two on each side of the room, stood open, though there appeared to be only darkness within each. Each of the open doorways was flanked by two tablets with glowing runes of different colors. One door was flanked by a tablet with deep-blue runes and a tablet with black runes (that were somehow glowing), another was flanked by a tablet with yellow runes and a tablet with blue-white runes, yet another by a tablet with rich green runes and a tablet with noxious-green runes, like the color of poison, and the fourth by a tablet with bright-red runes and a tablet with maroon runes.
"You've got to be kidding me," Spyro said again. He recognized the entrances: They were doors to Elemental Trials that would test the dragons' abilities at wielding their different elements. This time, however, the elements of Spyro and Cynder were clearly paired up, the same way as the crystals outside had been: Ice with Shadow, Electricity with Wind, Earth with Poison, and Fire with Fear.
"We're going to have to do all of this again?" Sparx exclaimed, far from happy.
"Yeah," Spyro said, not bothering to point out that Sparx didn't have to do anything, "but this time, Cynder has to contribute." He gestured toward her with his head. She turned to face him.
"Spyro, I-" she began, but Spyro acted as if she hadn't begun to speak.
"It looks like our elements have been paired up the same way they were outside." He turned to face Cynder. "Come on," he said.
"But Spyro-" Heedless of her voice, Spyro immediately walked toward the Fire/Fear Trial.
"Spyro, wait!" she cried, not moving.
At this, Spyro stopped and turned back towards her. "What?" he asked impatiently.
"I'm a Wind Dragon!" she burst out, tears welling in her eyes.
For a moment, Spyro was still. Then, he walked back over to her, staring at her, not understanding her distress.
"What?" he finally asked.
"Spyro, while you've been gone, I've had a lot of time to think," Cynder said, stifling her tears, "and I realized-"
"Wait a minute," Spyro interrupted. "You mean you've been conscious for the past five million years?"
"Has it only been five million?" Cynder asked seriously. "It felt like so much longer…"
"Oh, Cynder…" Spyro didn't know what to say to her.
"It's okay," she said, "you're here now. But, while you've been gone, I've thought about every moment of my life over and over again; I've had nothing else to do. After a while - I don't know how long - I realized the full implications of what the Chronicler told me about my powers. He'd said that most dragons can only master one element, but Malefor's influence gave me the power to master four. I realized that one of the elements I could control had to be the one that I was born with, and the other three had to have come entirely from the Dark Master."
She paused, letting this sink in, hoping that Spyro would get it. He didn't.
"Don't you see?" she pressed, desperate to get the point across. "Shadow, Poison, and Fear - my ability to control those elements had to have come from Malefor! I must have been meant to be a Wind Dragon! That's the only element that doesn't fit with Malefor's nature!"
"So?" Spyro asked, still not understanding her protest.
"So, I don't want the powers Malefor gave me!" she cried, tears rising again in her eyes. "I just want to have my one element, the one I'm supposed to have, and never use Malefor's 'gifts' again! I want to be normal!"
Spyro was silent for a minute while Cynder struggled to get ahold of herself, choosing his words carefully before speaking.
He sighed. "Cynder…" he began slowly, "right before I left home, my dad said to me that-"
"Your dragonfly dad?" Cynder asked with the barest hint of a smile.
"Yeah," Spyro said, smiling back, "my dragonfly dad. Anyhow…" He moved closer to her, trying to comfort her. "He told me that all gifts come with a price. He was warning me to be careful with my flame breath, but he was more right than he knew. And Cynder," he said, moving closer still as she raised her head to look him in the eye, "you've already paid your price for your gifts. What's important now is that you have these gifts, and that they're yours, regardless of where they came from. They belong to you, and you can use them however you want to. You don't have to use them if you really don't want to, but you shouldn't try to pretend that they don't exist just because they came from the Dark Master. They're yours," he repeated, trying to get her to understand. "They're not his. You're not using his power when you command Shadow, Poison, or Fear; you're using your own power. These gifts you have are nothing to be ashamed or afraid of."
Cynder lowered her head and closed her eyes again. "I didn't ask for this," she sobbed, fighting back a fresh wave of tears.
"I know you didn't, Cynder," Spyro said gently. "No one said you did. But you have it now, and it's yours to use. I mean, I didn't ask for my powers, either-"
"Do not compare your powers to mine!" Cynder exploded suddenly, raising her head to glare at him. "Your powers are natural! Your powers didn't come from having been evil at one time!" She said the word 'evil' with such emphasis and emotion that it was clear that that was the core of the reason why she was objecting.
"Cynder, my powers come from me being a purple dragon," Spyro said, taking a step back in surprise at her sudden outburst. "A purple dragon, just like Malefor. Malefor had all the same powers that I have. What makes me different from him is how I choose to use my powers."
"Look," Sparx interrupted insensitively, "this is interesting and all, and I'm sure you guys could argue about this all day, but shouldn't we get moving?"
Spyro didn't bother scolding his friend. Instead, he turned his body back toward the Fire/Fear Trial, his head still facing Cynder. "Come on," he said to her, "let's just get through these Trials. Once we're done, you won't have to use any element other than Wind again."
"Why do we even have to see the stupid Chronicler anyway?" she sobbed, her emotions far past the overflow point.
"Well, we can't really go back the way we came," Spyro pointed out. "Besides, we need to know what we're supposed to do next."
"Aren't you two supposed to have, like, a million kids or something?" Sparx asked bluntly.
"Sparx!" Spyro scolded, frowning at the glowing dragonfly.
"What?" Sparx shot back. "I'm just saying, if you two are supposed to be the mother and father of the dragon race…"
"What?" Cynder exclaimed, shock driving everything else from her mind. She looked at Sparx, then turned to look at Spyro somewhat accusingly.
"Er - long story," Spyro said quickly. "Come on, let's just get through here. I'll explain everything afterward, I promise."
"Define 'everything'," Cynder replied suspiciously, not moving.
"Cynder, a lot's changed while you've been frozen in that crystal," Spyro said matter-of-factly.
"Yeah, like the whole world and everything in it," Sparx muttered loudly.
"Let's just get through here," Spyro repeated. "The Chronicler will help."
Cynder narrowed her eyes suspiciously at him, but finally started to move toward the Fire/Fear Trial. "Okay," she said, "but I'm not using any element other than Wind."
Spyro didn't bother to mention that she would probably have to. Instead, he said, "Alright. Let's do it!"
Together, they walked through the gates to the Fire/Fear Trial. Sparx, after crossing his arms with a "Humph!", followed them.
~o~
The Trial was different from how Spyro remembered it. It had been changed to test Cynder's mastery of Fear, as well as his own mastery of Fire.
When they were attacked by more weird crystal orb creatures, Cynder hung back, letting Spyro do the fighting, and pushed the crystal orbs into their slots. When Spyro charged them with Fire, nothing happened; the crystals were covered in the same lacy red pattern as before.
"Cynder, you need to-"
"I know, I know," she interrupted unhappily. She called upon a little of the element of Fear - as little as she could - and charged the crystals with her power. The magical blockade fell, and they continued on to the next section, which was different from before, where they were met by great red-and-maroon creatures that appeared to be made out of glowing crystals held together by lightning-bolts of magic.
"This is your area," Cynder said to Spyro.
"You got it," Spyro replied, and charged at the nearest of the creatures.
Cynder hung back with Sparx again, knowing that the creatures could probably only be affected by her use of the element of Fear. One of the monsters noticed her, however, and while Spyro was battling another creature, it approached her sluggishly. She didn't run, at first; it was moving slowly, dragging one of its arms, and she felt like Spyro would get to it before it got to her. She was wrong, however; Spyro hadn't noticed that one of the creatures had gotten past him, and he was currently busy engulfing another one of the creatures in flames.
The monster crept closer. Sparx, naturally, quickly buzzed away to a place far from all of the creatures, but Cynder was cornered. In desperation, she sent a blast of magic at it from her mouth, meaning to blow it back with Wind, and was surprised when a powerful Siren Scream issued forth from her mouth instead, stopping and wounding the approaching creature.
Confused, she tried to focus her attention on the element of Wind, calling upon it with deliberation, and tried again to unleash it. Somehow, it wasn't a Cyclone, but another Siren Scream, that burst forth from her mouth.
Oh, no, she thought as it dawned on her, am I only able to use Fear in here?
Desperate, she tried hitting the creature as it continued toward her, but it blocked her with its arm, sending her tumbling backward. It slowly approached her, raising one of its arms to smash her like a club. She didn't know what to do; she didn't want to use Fear again, and her melee attacks seemed useless.
Fortunately, Spyro had heard her Siren Screams and attacked the monster from behind, launching it into the air with his horns, then hitting it in the air as it spun with the force of his blows, helpless. When both monster and dragon had landed again, Spyro issued forth a continuous stream of fire from his mouth. The creature shook and twitched, rendered helpless once again by the sheer force of Spyro's fire, until finally, it collapsed and disintegrated into a pile of gems.
Spyro took a moment to revel in the feeling of absorbing gem energy, which he had regained the ability to do, before approaching Cynder, who was frozen in a cowering position.
"Are you all right?" he asked her.
"Yeah," she said, panting, "but it would have been nice if you'd told me that I can only use Fear in the Fear Trial!"
"I'm sorry," Spyro said sincerely. "I guess I didn't think of it."
"Why did we have to do the Fire and Fear Trial first, anyway?" she demanded, still trying to catch her breath. "Fear is the element I'm least comfortable using!"
"Well, then, I guess it's a good thing we're getting it out of the way first," Spyro said in a look-on-the-bright-side tone of voice. "I chose it because Fire is the element I'm most comfortable using; it's been the one element I've had constant control over during the past few years."
"How come?" Cynder asked, curious despite herself.
"Well, Fire is the only element anyone can use these days. It's part of that long story I mentioned," he added, seeing Cynder open her mouth to question him further.
"Okay…" she said slowly, "but…why Fire?"
"That's a good question," Spyro answered. "To be honest, I have no idea, but I've always been good with Fire, so I guess it's just as well."
"Okay…" Cynder repeated, uncertain.
"Can we get going now?" Sparx asked. "I don't like this place any more now than I did five million years ago."
"Yeah," Spyro said. "Come on, let's go."
Cynder followed him silently. They continued through the tests (which lasted much longer than before), Cynder lending a claw when she could and a magical charge when she had to, but otherwise doing nothing, until they came to the last stage before the final test. Spyro remembered having to light candles to activate a staircase of platforms that he could climb up, and had been anticipating it. This time, however, the pit was much wider, so wide that he couldn't see the other side. What he did see was a single platform, barely large enough for two small dragons, with a rod standing erect on the left edge of it and a cluster of three candles standing on the right edge.
Cynder stood back as Spyro walked forward and lit the candles. The platform didn't move, but the strange rod released prongs that couldn't be mistaken: it was a tuning fork.
"Cynder," Spyro said, "you have to-"
"M-Maybe we can just fly across," Cynder said quickly, and jumped into the air before Spyro could reply. She flapped her wings, fell to let the air catch her, and landed hard on the ground, thankfully just before the edge of the cliff.
"I don't think we can fly here," Spyro said.
"Oh, ya think?" Sparx commented.
"Shut up, Sparx!" Cynder snapped.
Spyro sighed. "Cynder," he said gently, "you need to power this tuning fork with your Siren Scream. It's the only way to get across."
"There has to be another way!" Cynder insisted.
"Well, if there is, I'm not seeing it," Sparx remarked.
"Spyro, I don't want to!" Cynder cried.
"I know you don't, Cynder, but you have to," Spyro insisted. "This place was meant to test your ability to control Fear, as well as my ability to control Fire."
She knew he had a point, but she stood where she was, unmoving.
"Come on," Spyro urged, "we're almost at the end! Once we're out of here, you won't have to use Fear again."
"Promise?" Cynder finally asked weakly.
"Promise," Spyro avowed.
"Fear of using Fear," Sparx said, bemused. "Huh. That's a new one."
Both dragons turned to glare at him.
"What?" Sparx said defensively. "I'm just saying…"
A faint metallic noise from behind them drew their attention back to the platform. The candles had gone out, and the prongs of the fork had withdrawn back into the rod.
"It's just like before: you have to do it quickly," Spyro said, more to himself than either of his companions. "Come on," he said, turning to address Cynder, "let's just get it over with."
"Great idea," Sparx said. "I'll go wait on the other side. You know, just stand guard, spot you guys if you fall, just, you know, whatever." And with that, Sparx buzzed across to the other side…which turned out to be so far away that Spyro and Cynder couldn't see his glow anymore.
"Lucky," Cynder muttered jealously.
Spyro re-lit the candles, and the prongs of the fork came out again. The two of them got onto the platform, situating themselves so Cynder could aim at the fork. Cynder hesitated another moment, then took a deep breath and released a Siren Scream at it. The platform finally started to move away from the edge of the abyss, but stopped and went back when Cynder stopped Screaming.
"I think you have to do it continuously," Spyro said.
"Great," she muttered, then took another breath and began again, this time releasing Scream after Scream consecutively, and the platform started to move again.
They were just able to make out Sparx's glow in the murky darkness when the candles went out. The tuning fork immediately stopped spinning, and the prongs retracted into the rod.
"Spyro, light the candles! Hurry!"
Spyro tried to do as Cynder said, but for some reason, the candles refused to re-ignite until they were all the way back where they started.
"I guess you have to get all the way while the candles are still lit," Spyro said apologetically.
Cynder sighed angrily, then resumed her string of Siren Screams. They hadn't gotten far when Cynder ran out of magic.
"Cynder?" Spyro asked.
"I need to recharge," Cynder said, frustrated.
To their surprise, the platform continued to move toward the other side for a few seconds before heading back. Neither of them bothered to question it, however, and Cynder went back up the path until she found a cluster of green crystals. She smashed them into gems, taking her frustration out on them, and when she had fully recharged her magic reserves, she went back to the chasm to try again.
They waited for the candles to go out, so they could get the maximum time out of them. Then they got back on the platform, Spyro re-lit the candles, and Cynder resumed her Siren Screams. This time, they got all the way to the point where Sparx could see them, and then Cynder ran out of magic again. She was about to scream again, this time in frustration, when the platform didn't immediately reverse its course. Somehow, the momentum of Cynder's magic was enough to carry them the rest of the way.
Spyro and Cynder gratefully jumped off the platform to the other side of the chasm.
"Well, it's about time," Sparx said by way of greeting. "What took you so long? Did'jya have trouble controlling your fear?" He chuckled at his own bad joke.
"Sparx, knock it off," Spyro told his friend, annoyed.
"Ohhh," Cynder groaned, "what now?"
Spyro turned to look in the direction she was looking and saw a glowing red platform.
"It's okay, it means we're almost out," Spyro said, trying to reassure her, and also surprised that the final test came so soon after the pit.
"Yeah," said Sparx, "all you gotta do now is fight some big freakish magical Element King, and you'll probably have to use that creepy Scream of yours to kill it."
"WHAT?" Cynder exclaimed, all of her frustration at having to use her least favorite element bursting forth with the word.
"The Elemental Kings are mostly immune to melee attacks," Spyro explained, trying to be gentle. "That way, they test elemental mastery, see?"
Cynder was silent for a moment, seething.
"Look, this is the last thing we have to do in here," Spyro said. "I'll try to do as much of the fighting I can."
"But you'll probably have to contribute," Sparx added to Cynder bluntly. Ignoring the glares of the two dragons, he continued insensitively, "I don't get what your problem is. I mean, when you use Fear, you use a Siren Scream, right? That just, I don't know, it…it seems kind of fitting. I mean, you're pretty and strong and alluring to certain gullible purple dragons, when in reality you're a-"
"Sparx!" Spyro tried to cut him off.
"-creepy, evil she-demon," Sparx finished firmly.
"Sparx, would you quit it?!" Spyro exclaimed, walking over to yell in his companion's face, glaring. "You know perfectly well that Cynder isn't evil in the least! Why can't you just let it…"
He trailed off as he turned around and saw Cynder walk deliberately, eyes closed, head held high, onto the platform, where she vanished in a small flash of red light.
"…go," Spyro finished, stunned.
"Works every time," Sparx said, folding his arms smugly.
Spyro turned to look at Sparx, not understanding. "What?" he questioned, confused.
"It's called 'reverse psychology' or something," Sparx said. "You know, when you tell someone that they can't do something so that they'll just try harder to prove that they can?"
"You were trying to help her," Spyro realized, amazed.
"Don't look so surprised, I'm not an idiot," Sparx said, crossing his arms, mildly insulted. "Come on, let's go help her so we can get outta here."
Spyro agreed, and they teleported after Cynder, somehow arriving in the last room at the same time as her. Sure enough, an enormous creature of magic and armor approached them, a spiked club in one hand, a spiked shield in the other.
Without hesitating, Spyro ran forward and blew fire at the monster…which immediately lowered its shield and blocked the attack. To Spyro's amazement, it seemed to be completely untouched by the flames. Spyro stopped breathing fire at it, trying to understand what he was doing wrong, and noticed that the monster's shield was maroon.
"Cynder!" Spyro exclaimed, running back to her. "You have to knock that shield away with your Siren Scream!"
"What?" she asked.
"It's like those Elite Enemies from back when we were fighting Malefor together," Spyro explained. "Unless you used the right element on one and knocked its helmet away, it's immune to all other attacks, remember?"
"Oh, yeah!" She ran up to the Fire-and-Fear King, which lowered its shield at her. She took a deep breath, and released…
…nothing.
"I'm out of magic!" she cried as she remembered.
"There's a green crystal over there," Spyro said, gesturing toward the far end of the room. "I'll hold him off!" With that, he went back up to the monster and resumed breathing flames at it. It wasn't hurt, but it was distracted.
Cynder ran around the creature and found the cluster of green crystals, which she quickly smashed into gems. Then, she ran back and blasted a Siren Scream at the monster's lowered shield.
With a metallic clang!, the shield vanished, and the billowing flames issuing from Spyro's mouth got through. The effect was immediate and visible - pieces of the monster were blown off as it took damage. It wasn't long, however, before Spyro ran out of magic.
In short order, the two traded off, Cynder destroying the creature's shield whenever it came back during a lull, and Spyro breathing fire at the exposed enemy. Finally, the Fire-and-Fear King fell and disappeared, and a platform lowered for them to jump onto. Two symbols that radiated from the center of the circular floor were illuminated, the outer one in bright red, the inner one in maroon. They were smaller than last time, but Spyro supposed that was to make it so there was enough room for two symbols instead of one.
Spyro, Cynder, and Sparx got on the platform and were returned to the main entryway, where the two tablets flanking the gate to the Fire/Fear Trial shattered and the doors closed. The Trial was done.
"Phew," Cynder breathed.
"Don't relax yet," Spyro told her. "We're going to have to do that three more times with the other elements."
"Well, at least I never have to use Fear again," Cynder replied.
"That's the spirit!" Sparx said. "Come on, let's do the next one!"
"Which one is next?" Cynder asked Spyro.
"Well, I'm also pretty familiar with Ice from recent times," Spyro said. "Let's do Ice and Shadow next."
He started toward the gate when Cynder spoke suddenly.
"Oh, Spyro!" she said. "I've been wanting to ask you something."
"Yes?" he asked, turning back towards her.
She gestured at his Shadowstone. "What's that around your neck?" she asked.
"Oh! It's the Shadowstone," Spyro said by way of explanation. "It lets me travel to the Shadow Realm."
"The Shadow Realm?" Cynder asked, not understanding.
Spyro was about to explain further when Sparx said to her, "It's part of that long story we've been talking about." He turned to address Spyro. "And I still don't think it's a good idea for you to always be wearing that thing," he added.
"I didn't know you felt that way, Sparx," Spyro answered, surprised.
"Oh," Sparx said. "Yeah. I guess I forgot to mention it to you."
"You forgot to mention something?" Cynder asked incredulously.
"Yeah, I haven't been talking as much these past couple decades," Sparx said. "Mostly because I couldn't talk until just a few years ago, and it's been even fewer years since I was able to talk clearly enough for people to understand. Even then, I've had to go 'buzz! buzz!' all the time."
"Why?" Cynder asked.
"It's a long story," Spyro said.
"The same long story?" asked Cynder.
"Yeah," Spyro answered. "Now come on, let's get through these Trials."
The Ice/Shadow Trial was simple enough. Spyro had to use his Ice powers to freeze platforms across wide stretches of toxic liquid, and Cynder had to use her Shadow Strike to get through certain gates so she could open them from the other side. Spyro did most of the fighting, there were some crystals to charge, and the Ice-and-Shadow King was pretty much the same as the Fire-and-Fear King. They returned to the entryway, the Ice and Shadow tablets shattered, and the gate closed.
"Alright!" said Spyro. "We're half done!"
"And I only have to use one more evil element!" Cynder added.
"Speaking of which, we've got two choices left. Which one will it be, chief?" Sparx asked Spyro.
Spyro had been debating this in his mind for a while, and he vocalized his resulting train of thought.
"Well, I've also been pretty familiar with Electric Breath these past few years…" he said slowly.
"Let's do that one!" Cynder suggested eagerly. "I want to be able to help you more!"
"It's not that you haven't been able to help more, it's just that you've been choosing not to," Sparx mumbled, speaking quietly enough that the others could pretend that they didn't hear him.
"On the other hand, I think it might be better to get all of Cynder's 'evil elements' out of the way first," Spyro continued. "Besides, I don't like using Electricity too much; it's not easy to control."
"I'm not looking forward to using Poison," Cynder said. "I feel like I have better control of Poison than I do Wind, like it's more a part of me than Wind is, and I don't like it."
"Well, maybe you're a Poison Dragon," Sparx suggested seriously. "Let's ask the Chronicler when we see him. In the meantime, these Trials aren't going to complete themselves."
"Sparx is right. About the Trials, I mean," Spyro added quickly, seeing Cynder's expression. "Let's do Earth and Poison now, and get that over with."
"Okay," Cynder said reluctantly.
The Earth/Poison Trial was filled mostly with blockades: walls for Spyro to crash through as a wrecking boulder, rubble for him to clear away with his Earth Flail, and so on. There were also crystals that needed to be charged, but oddly, none of them seemed to need Cynder's contribution. At one point, however, Spyro cleared away rubble that was blocking the path, only to find an enormous tree in their way.
"How are we supposed to get past this?" he wondered aloud. "I don't think any of my Earth powers can move it - it's too big."
"Maybe Cynder should try poisoning it," Sparx suggested.
"Or maybe we could try to get around it somehow?" Cynder suggested hopefully.
"Now, Cynder," Sparx said sternly, crossing his arms, "remember the tuning fork."
"And the shadow gates," Spyro added, walking over to her. "You didn't have much of a problem with those. I thought you were getting better about this."
"I'm scared," she said faintly. "I…I don't want to be a Poison Dragon. I want to be a Wind Dragon."
Spyro took a moment to glare at Sparx, who shrugged in reply.
"Cynder, just because you feel like Poison is more personal to you doesn't make you a Poison Dragon," Spyro said consolingly, turning to address her. "I feel most connected with Fire, and I'm not a Fire Dragon."
"You're a purple dragon," Cynder sniffed. "You're not meant to have just one element."
"Oh, brother," Sparx muttered, "here we go again." He flew a few feet away, turning his back on them, having no desire to watch the waterworks.
"Cynder, remember what I said about your powers earlier," Spyro said, trying to reason with her. When she didn't answer, he went back to his other point. "You're right. I am a purple dragon, and I'm not meant for just one element, but that doesn't change the fact that I do feel like I have a stronger bond with Fire than with any other element, and I'm still not a Fire Dragon. Look," he said, moving closer to her, "maybe you are a Wind Dragon, but it just so happens that you have a closer bond with Poison. It doesn't have to be all or none."
Cynder still remained silent, her eyes closed.
"Come on," Spyro urged gently, "just one Venom Shot. It doesn't even have to be very big."
Cynder took a deep breath. "…Okay," she said at last, and, calling up her elemental power - she didn't have to focus on one to get Poison in that area - she released a small burst of magic from her mouth.
A smallish-sized glob of venom was what came out. The glob landed just where the trunk of the tree met the roots, bubbling and giving off noxious puffs of green smoke. Suddenly, the spot of bubbling poison spread, down the roots, up and around the entire trunk, and all the way through the leaves, until it looked as though the tree itself was a towering hulk of boiling green acid. Then, the tree melted away, and the poison with it, until all that was left were a few small green bubbles where the tree had been.
Cynder stared at the open space in shock.
"…The poor tree," she finally managed.
"Don't worry, it probably wasn't a real tree," Spyro said reassuringly. "It was probably just a magical construction meant to test your ability to use Poison. Come on, we're almost out."
He pressed on, an amused Sparx and a very shell-shocked Cynder following in his wake.
When they got to the Earth-and-Poison King, they found a surprising contrast to the previous Elemental Kings. This one's shield had to be hit with Spyro's power, but for some reason, none of Spyro's Earth spells managed to harm it at all.
Finally, Spyro said, "Cynder, you need to-"
"I don't want to!" she cried before he could finish.
"I know, but you have to, otherwise this thing will kill us!" Spyro replied urgently.
"Quit being a scaredy-cat, you big black baby!" Sparx snapped at her.
"Cynder, I promise, once we're done here, you'll never have to use Poison again, just like with Fear a little while ago! I promise!" Spyro repeated.
"But-" They both looked up to see the Earth-and-Poison King standing over them, about to hit both of them with its club.
"Aah!" cried Cynder, jumping away to the monster's right side.
"Whoa!" exclaimed Spyro at the same time, jumping to the monster's left.
The club came down heavily where the two of them had been standing.
"Cynder, remember, once we're out of here, we're going to do the Electricity and Wind Trial!" Spyro called across the room. "You'll be able to use your Wind element! I'll even let you lead! You can do most of that Trial! Just help me kill this thing!"
"Okay!" she cried, giving in to her fear of the monster they were facing. She took a breath…and lost herself in her element.
She felt Poison flow through her body, taking over her, filling her until it had to be released. With a roar, she struck the Earth-and-Poison King with a Scorpion Strike, immediately following up with an enormous glob of pure venom spewing from her mouth. As the terrible power grew stronger within her, she viciously, mercilessly attacked the monster, blasting pieces of it off itself, until it collapsed at her feet; she hadn't even once run out of magic.
The creature disintegrated, but neither Spyro nor Cynder moved to jump onto the lowered platform. Cynder stood where she was, poison actually flowing off of her body, squeezing her eyes closed, struggling to regain her senses, while Spyro and Sparx stared at her, amazed by the ferocity of her attacks.
"Wow," Sparx finally managed after several minutes. "That was…um…scary."
It was the worst thing he possibly could have said.
Cynder actually wailed, then collapsed into fits of sobbing, long-restrained tears finally flowing from her eyes.
"Cynder, don't cry!" Spyro exclaimed, running over to her.
"Spyro, wait!" Sparx called, not moving from his spot far away from Cynder. "She might still be crazy!"
Spyro ignored his friend and ran right up to Cynder's huddled form; she was actually on the floor, weeping uncontrollably.
Spyro nudged her gently. "Cynder, it's okay," he said consolingly.
"I'm a Poison Dragon," she sobbed miserably. "I knew it. I knew it!" She sniffed. "The one not-evil element I have power over came from Malefor. I can never be good! Never!" She wailed again and resumed crying.
Standing over her, Spyro's heart felt as though it were being repeatedly smashed by a giant Gnorc's club.
"Cynder…you don't know that," he began.
"I am! I AM!" she cried out, her voice filled with pain.
"Cynder…" He chose his words carefully, knowing that they could make or break her at that moment. "Cynder, even if you are, that doesn't mean you can't be good-"
"Get away from me!" she sobbed forcefully. "Just go! Leave me here!"
"No," Spyro said sternly. "I'm not leaving you here. I'm not leaving you anywhere. I'm never going to leave you again, not even if my life depends on it."
She opened her eyes and lifted her head slightly, looking up at him, pain, uncertainty, and wonder in her eyes. "Why not?" she hiccuped.
"Because…" He hesitated a minute, then sighed and answered, "Because…I love you, Cynder."
Sparx rolled his eyes and looked away, irritated. Did they have to do this now?
"I love you," Spyro repeated, watching Cynder's eyes fill with hope, "and I couldn't care less what your natural element is. You could be a Shadow Dragon or a Fear Dragon for all I care. What matters to me, and what should be the only thing that matters to you or anyone else, is who you are, and how you feel about what's right and wrong. You have a good heart, and that's all I care about."
Cynder got to her feet, looking at him in wonder, unable to speak.
"Come on," Spyro said, gesturing to the platform that had been lowered in the middle of the room. "Let's do that last Trial. You can use Wind there."
"But…I'm not supposed to…" she said softly, only half believing her own words.
"It doesn't matter if you are or not," Spyro told her firmly. "Besides, who's to say what you are and aren't supposed to do?"
"Okay," she breathed. They jumped onto the platform together, and Sparx followed.
~o~
Sparx was still grumpy when they finally got to the Electricity/Wind Trial. In fact, before the three of them entered the Trial, he had commented,
"Why don't you two lovebirds go shoot magic out of your faces and blow stuff up, and I'll wait here so you can take your time?" He had said 'lovebirds' like he would say 'Gnorcs' or 'slugs'.
"Okay, Sparx, if you really want to wait in here all alone…" Spyro had replied, unfazed. Sparx, of course, had had to follow them.
Spyro hung back this time.
"Cynder, this one's yours," he said.
"Don't mind if I do," Cynder replied happily, charging into battle.
Using Wind made Cynder feel happy. It didn't consume her the way Poison did, but it made her feel good…it made her feel free. There was something liberating about turning into a Twister, whirling around and whipping foes in the air, and something empowering about trapping foes in a pocket of wind and hurling them around like a mace.
Spyro, watching her battle with the full force of her element, was amazed; he'd never had time to just sit back and watch her use her powers, and the force she commanded when she used her Wind power was…awesome. There was no other word for it.
After clearing a section of the path of crystal enemies with ease, Cynder took a moment to just stand there, reveling in her own power.
"Okay," Sparx admitted, "that was really cool!"
"Thanks," Cynder answered, turning to her audience with a smile.
"Cynder, that was amazing!" Spyro exclaimed, running up to her. "Wow! Could you teach me how to do that?"
"Could I do what?" she answered, raising a metaphorical eyebrow.
"Well, I mean…" Spyro stammered, suddenly self-conscious, "you know…since, well, since I'm a purple dragon, I just figured…I mean, I should be able to…you know…use Wind, too, and…well…that was just so cool, I…I mean, I'd like to-"
Cynder mercifully cut him off. "Tell you what," she said teasingly, "I'll teach you how to use Wind, if you'll teach me how to use Fire."
"But that's not fair!" Spyro protested. "You're not a purple dragon or a Fire Dragon!"
"Then find yourself another teacher, 'cuz this one's mine!" she replied triumphantly, and with that, she eagerly ran ahead.
Sparx floated up next to Spyro. "Wow," he commented, "she really is in her element."
"Yeah, yeah," Spyro muttered.
The rest of the Electricity/Wind Trial was rather more complex than the previous Trials, there being all sorts of puzzles that could employ Electricity and Wind. The Electricity-and-Wind King's shield and body were vulnerable to both elements, so the two dragons took care of it with ease.
Finally, the three companions stood in the main entryway of the island citadel, all the Trials completed.
"Whew," Spyro said. "Now, at last, we can talk to the-" He stopped short when he saw the platform in the middle of the room glowing brightly.
"Oh, no," Sparx said, as exasperated as the rest of them, "not this again!"
As if in answer to his exclamation, the voice from outside spoke again. This time, the riddle was a variation on the one Spyro had heard the last time:
Expose your hearts
To summon Ghost,
Then face, as one,
What you fear most.
"What the - That's not the same as last time!" Sparx spluttered.
"What does that mean?" Cynder asked. "Are we going to have to work together to fight our separate fears or something?"
"Or maybe," Spyro said, a feeling of foreboding growing in him, "we all have the same greatest fear."
"What?" Cynder asked.
"I don't like this," Spyro said, turning to his friends. "Back outside, when Red was…changing, or whatever was happening to him, I got this feeling, like whatever it was, it was my greatest fear coming true."
"What's that?" asked Cynder.
"I don't know, and I don't want to," Spyro answered, "but if I step on that platform…"
"You will find out," Cynder finished.
"Yeah," Spyro said. He paused for a minute, then started walking back toward the entrance. "Come on, maybe we should go-"
"Ohh, no you don't!" Cynder interrupted, running ahead of him and cutting him off. "I have gone through all of these stupid Trials, doing exactly what I'd promised myself I wouldn't do when I woke up, all because you wanted to see the stupid Chronicler, and you think we're going to just walk away now because you want to? Guess again!" As she spoke, she advanced toward Spyro, menacing in her anger, forcing him to walk backward toward the center of the room.
"Cynder, I…I'm scared," Spyro replied weakly.
"So was I!" Cynder pointed out. "But no, me being afraid isn't nearly as big of a deal as you being afraid, is that it?!"
"Cynder, I'm not saying-"
"No, we are going to do this thing, whether you like it or not, because you have been making me do what I haven't wanted to do for the past couple of hours!" she shouted in his face, furious.
"But, Cynder, this isn't just my greatest fear," protested Spyro, "it's yours, too!"
"I've already faced my greatest fears in this stupid place!" she responded angrily. "Now it's your turn, and you are going to do it, seeing as how you made me do the same thing! And that means you too, Sparx!" she turned to shout behind her at the glowing bug that was fighting with all his strength not to laugh. While she had been talking this time, Spyro had been taking steps back, trying to get a safe distance away from her rage, and Cynder had been walking in pursuit of him, so that Spyro was on the very edge of the platform.
Sparx shrugged at Cynder's last statement, then buzzed over to hover over the middle of the platform, ready to go (for once).
"Cynder-" Spyro began pleadingly, but she cut him off.
"Oh, is the big special dragon scared?" she asked mockingly. "Is the mighty, all-powerful purple dragon afraid of the scary old island?"
"Hey, hey, did I ever mock you for being scared?" Spyro demanded as her taunts touched a nerve.
"No, you professed your undying love to her, which was beautiful, by the way." Sparx answered Spyro's question with a hint of sarcasm.
"No," Cynder answered Spyro, ignoring Sparx, "Sparx did that for you."
"Alright, alright, break it up," Sparx said, flying between them, having had his fill of entertainment from Cynder's admonishments. "We have to do this thing, and we all know it. Let's just go. Seriously."
Both dragons stared at him for a moment. Then, Spyro sighed, turned around, and jumped onto the platform. Cynder jumped up beside him, and Sparx moved into position between them. With a low flash, they were transported to a celestial arena.
Sure enough, a giant creature began to form out of their elements in front of them. At first, it seemed like last time; the monster was clearly a dragon. But, as its formation progressed, it became clear that it was not the form of Cynder when she was evil. It was more sinister, more masculine, more…
…familiar.
"Malefor?!" exclaimed Cynder in surprise.
"Aah!" Sparx cried in terror.
"Oh, no," Spyro said softly.
The creature that resembled Malefor looked at the three of them with glowing, vicious eyes. It was covered with the same lacy pattern, blue at that moment, as the elemental crystals in the riddle and Trials had been, with the voids filled in with black: Ice and Shadow.
"Cynder, that thing will only be affected by the elements it's colored like," Spyro told her.
"But…you promised!" Cynder cried out.
"I'll take care of it when I can use Earth, Ice, or Fire, and you can take a shot when you can use Wind," Spyro said.
Cynder didn't have time to answer before the creature charged at them, though she was going to say "Okay."
Working together, they fought the creature, and eventually, it fell. The celestial arena dissipated, and the three of them were back in the main entryway, where the doors to the Chronicler's room opened.
"Well, that wasn't so bad," Sparx said.
"Says the dragonfly that did nothing," Cynder shot at him.
"Hey, that thing was attacking you guys, not me," Sparx answered with a shrug.
"Guys, I don't like this," Spyro said to them. "If Malefor's return is our greatest fear, then…" He turned to look at the entrance, through the doors of which was Red. "What was happening to Red outside?"
"His name's Red?" asked Cynder, noticing this for the first time.
"Yeah," Sparx answered her shortly. Then, turning to Spyro, he said, "Come on, let's go ask the Chronicler."
"I am looking forward to meeting this guy, after all we've gone through to get to him," Cynder commented.
"Right," said Spyro, nodding.
Together, they walked through the doors.