Chapter 2: The Apprentice's Journey
(In the morning, when it was still dawn ...)
Each of the apprentices woke up and each took a handmade deerskin backpack, in which they carried their things survival in their respective destinations. With everything packed, they went with a little silence to the exit of the temple.
"I'm nervous..." Ray commented, displaying that attitude, "Despite what I said last night, I've never gone off into uncharted terrain alone, not even with my parents"
"Yeah, me too," Thorr said, "I want to be a Guardian, but this test… is different from what I've imagined: now we'll be on our own, what do you think? Edel? Johnny?"
Both dragons looked at each other.
"I would also like this to be different" answered Jhonny, "But, I think that... deep inside, I need to find myself. It's like I want to know if I'm really worth it"
"It seems like a very important test to me too, oh!" Edel exclaimed, "Look, I made these!"
She held different colored wrist charms in her claws.
"It's for luck" she told them, handing them all over, "So we know that no matter how far we are, we will be sure that we will meet again and we will be ready to be guardians"
"Thank you Edel, you're fantastic" Jhonny told her, putting on his. This made the young dragoness blush.
They realized that it was getting late, so they hurried to the outsite platform. Apparently, Terrador, Cyril and Volteer have been waiting for them for only a few minutes. Spyro, Cynder and Sparxs were there too, but still a bit sleepy.
"Good morning apprentices" Volteer greeted them, "I hope you are ready for such an adventure full of challenges, surprises, dangers..."
"Turn around, calm down or you'll make them sleepy again" Cyril interrupted. Then, he turned to her daughter, "Good luck Edel, I'll be waiting for you"
"Thanks dad" she replied.
Meanwhile, Spyro, Cynder and Sparxs were saying goodbye to the others.
"Hey newbie" the dragonfly told him, "Make sure you don't faint, I don't want to have to go through the flames to wake you up"
"Hahaha" Jhonny laughed, "Never mind, Sparxs. Alright guys, we'll see you soon"
"I guess I'll see you on the White Island" Spyro told Jhonny, "We'll try to go there to visit Ignitus as soon as possible"
"I'll be in Cave's City " Cynder said, "But I'll be wishing you both luck."
"Thank you, friends" he answered them.
The farewells completed, Terrador told them to get ready: at a certain point, a kilometer from there, they would fly once more together. After that point, they would separate to the designated places. Before leaving, Terrador gave them his support:
"May the ancestors protect you, apprentices" he told them, "And may you return victorious"
Finished the sentence, the young apprentice dragons took flight and flew in a straight direction from the temple and, almost past the agreed distance, they said goodbye:
"Good luck" Ray said.
"Be strong" Thorr said.
"We will always be together" Edel said, showing the amulets.
"Yes, I will count the days until we meet again" finished Jhonny.
At that point, each one separated… Jhonny, taking his mission seriously, could only see his companions and Edel from behind until they were out of sight. After that, he took a deep breath as he opened the scroll with the assigned map.
"Past the point of separation, I must go to the West, where the land looks magma red and yellow" he said to himself as he read, "It's like a day at the beach, only without sun, with rocks instead of sand and magma instead of water"
This last sentence was obviously sarcasm, as he wanted to see a glimpse of happiness. Anyway, was there a perfect place for the others? A peak where thunder falls continuously, a mountain where landslides occur every two by three and the coldest mountain in the dragons' realms...
"Stop worrying" he said to himself, as he was flying, "I'm sure they'll be fine: they're real dragons. Me, on the other hand… Uh… I want to know if I can really be..."
The trip was as silent as there was no one else to talk to, so he could only think about his past failures... Ignitus had told him that his true self had finally come to light. But what was his true self? the dragon or the human? could he really take charge of what a hero like Spyro's teacher and father had protected? It was too much weight on his shoulders. First on his list, he had to find his true self...something that even many humans struggle with, can he do it now as a dragon?
The air was starting to feel stifling... that was an indication of a change in the atmosphere. Looking down, he realized the environment was extreme: a black and scorched earth, where anyone can see stones that looked like red hot, while in other parts you could see something white from the embers, which give off vapors of molten rock. Sparks of fire protruded from the ground, especially in the vicinity of the lava rivers... if a human saw it, they would think they were in hell (something that crossed the young dragon's mind for a moment).
Jhonny lowered himself to the ground with extreme care, fearing that his front paws would burn from just touching the hot ground. Great was his impression when touching them he felt just a slight heat: like that of the sand on a hot day at the beach. Assuming it was because he was a fire dragon, he walked for a while through that inhospitable land. It didn't seem like anyone could live there (except for a dragon), but he had to find a place where he could spend some days he had been allotted. First of all, the young apprentice knew that this mission was like camping: he had to find a place to take refuge at night.
As he walked in silence, the gurgling of some lava pools could be heard. One thing was certain: he wanted to find a refuge a little away from them, to avoid unexpected dangers. It was strange to walk on the ashes and listen to the crunch of these under their feet.
"I must pass this test" was repeated once in a while in the mind. Then, looking ahead, he said to himself, "Hey, that looks like a good place"
In front of him was the rise of a rocky wall almost like a small hill of coal-black rocks. In it, there was a hole big enough for an adult dragon. However, upon entering, he was surprised that it must indeed be for an adult dragon: there was a large straw bed, several stone and clay pots, some plants that seemed medicinal, edible mushrooms, and torches on the walls.
"Who lives here?" Johnny wondered, looking around, "Didn't the guardians tell me there was someone living here…or did they mention it? Either way, the owner of this place might be back soon, so I'd better find another shelter"
The apprentice left that place, but he had barely gone a couple of meters when a giant creature appeared in front of him: it was an enormous and bestial dog with three heads (the one in the center moved, while the others only seemed shoulders) with large claws and fangs. The creature's body seemed to be protected by a living armor-shell.
One thing was certain: it was not friendly at all, for as soon as it had seen the young dragon, it launched such a claw that cut a piece of the earth. Fortunately, Jhonny dodged that attack. Preparing to counterattack, he hurled a blast of fire at his enemy, but he released another flame of fire, swamp green back. The power of that creature was incredible and Jhonny was overwhelmed the next second.
The dragon was struck by the flames, which hurt (despite being a fire element dragon). However, he got up quickly as the dog lunged at him. Then, he flew around the field, trying to attack him from behind: attacking him from the front seemed impossible. Unfortunately for him, when he had closed in on what looked like a blind spot, one of the heads turned slightly and sent another greenish flame in the direction of his enemy. Again, Jhonny was able to dodge it, but when he turned to focus on the creature, all six of its eyes (the main one plus those of the other heads) glowed and everything around turned black.
The young apprentice could not see anything in such a dark environment; no matter how hard he tried to focus his eyes, he couldn't see the enemy at all. Immediately, he felt a claw strike and then another and another: the enemy was attacking from the shadows and he could do nothing to defend himself. His forces were running out...
Suddenly, something shone through the darkness with the intensity of a powerful flame... it was the sensation. With that power, the darkness dissolved and he was able to see around. However, he was exhausted: the damage seemed to have been heavy. As he fell, he could see the silhouette of an adult fire dragon shouting (not a voice he knew):
"Stay away, Cerberus!"
Then, he fell unconscious.