Hey everyone! I know, I know, you are really annoyed at my lack of updates. Well...maybe I can quell that with this little chapter, which I am VERY proud of if i do say so myself. I would hope this would turn out to fill your need for epicness on all fronts. Enjoy!
I do not own the Spyro games or characters. They belong to their respective owners. I do however, own the characters Matt and Selema. Saffron and Alta belong to Riverstyxx. Dax belongs to Alec the Dark Angel.
Matt cursed loudly at his predicament. He was surrounded on all sides by complete darkness, unable to see anything in front of him. It was a cold, cold feeling to say the least.
Suddenly, Matt felt a rush of air from his side. Turning quickly, he put up his Keyblade to try and defend himself, only to be swept off his feet by an unknown object. Matt landed with a thud on his back, but quickly managed to get back to his feet before taking his stance. However, only a second later was the Keyblader hit from behind, a cry of pain issuing from his mouth as he was thrown forward and onto his stomach. Matt grunted as he struggled to his feet again.
In the distance, he heard the familiar evil cackle of Malefor raining down from all sides. "Don't you see now, you worthless boy! It's useless to fight me. I'm in my element!"
Matt didn't reply, only growling in frustration as he twisted on his feet, desperate to locate his opponent. "C'mon!" He yelled. "Let's go!"
Suddenly, Matt sensed a powerful heat coming from his right. Instinctively, he put up his blade and managed to block it before he was burned to a crisp. Matt grit his teeth as the force of the blackened fire attack pushed him backwards several feet before he was once again thrown to the ground.
"Damn…," Matt muttered. "That sucked…"
"Really now?!" Malefor taunted. "And here I thought that Keyblade wielders were supposed to be all-powerful! It seems that I was mistaken."
Matt was shaking with pent up frustration. He'd known that fighting Malefor was going to be hard enough, but to do it in complete darkness was just plain impossible.
Calm down… said a voice inside his head. You have to focus or you'll never be able to save Selema…yet alone yourself.
Matt nodded. "Right…" Taking a deep breath, Matt then closed his eyes and waited, the Keyblade within a relaxed grip. Suddenly, he was able to pick up on that same darkness coming from his left side. Tapping into his ability to slow the scene around him with his mind, Matt then turned on a dime and managed to perfectly execute a timed block, avoiding the sharp claws of a certain fire dragon. "Gotcha!" Matt yelled as he then broke free of the contact and slash hard into whatever had attacked him, causing it to grunt lightly and retreat once more into the black.
"You'll have to do better than that if you want to take me down," Matt exclaimed. He heard Malefor growl loudly before he felt the heat of another powerful fire blast coming his way. Moving quickly, Matt managed to dive to his right out of harm's way. When he was back on one knee, Matt then aimed his Keyblade towards the fire's source before launching an attack of his own. "Firaga!" he cried, his own fire attack bursting from his blade. The magic attack was able to light up the area momentarily, allowing Matt to take a quick glance at a dodging Malefor.
"Where do you think you're going?" Matt yelled before he reared back and launched his Keyblade, his boomerang like attack hurdling into the darkness. Matt heard his blade make contact, but not before a charging Malefor came running towards him from the shadows.
Matt cursed and was able to quickly summon his blade back to his hands in order to block the oncoming claw towards his neck. Malefor then attacked with several more slashes at a speed that Matt hadn't anticipated. The warrior grunted each time as he was forced backwards with each block and duck. Eventually, Matt managed to focus enough to flip himself backwards out of yet another swipe in order to get some distance between him and Malefor. The evil tyrant didn't hesitate to charge again, this time having his former servant's body surrounded in Flame for a powerful Comet Dash attack. Unfortunately, Matt was unable to dodge it in time, taking the hit of the powerful attack full force. Malefor looked up and grinned at his success, only to find the warrior's body disappear with a cloud of smoke. Thinking quickly, Malefor quickly whirled around in the opposite direction, quickly firing a powerful Convexity attack towards the location he figured the Keyblade would be. To his luck, the real Matt was forced to cancel out his building Kingdom Blast attack in order to get out of harm's way.
"Damn it!" Matt exclaimed as he rolled back to his feet, stunned that his Clone combination had been unsuccessful. He looked around and found that Malefor had retreated once more.
"You fool!" Malefor taunted. "Did you forget already? My servant was there when you fought that earth dragon in Warfang. I know all of your little 'tricks'. You don't stand a chance against me!"
Matt looked around in the shadows once more, desperate to find his opponent. "Where are you then? Come out and fight me, Malefor!"
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a near unbearable pain ripped through Matt's head. The Keyblader screamed and fell to his knees, his hands clutching his throbbing cranium. His Keyblade rested on his knee.
"You fool," came Malefor's voice in his mind. "You should have learned by now that I am the most powerful dragon on this earth! I am more powerful than anything you've ever experienced."
"I've beaten much worse than you, Malefor!" Matt yelled. "Worse than you could possibly imagine."
Malefor chuckled again. "I must admit, your power is quite impressive. The Keyblade is a fabulous weapon indeed." Matt heard him pause momentarily. "Here's a suggestion then. Join me…and together…we can rule this world. Our power would be unmatched!"
Matt couldn't help but chuckle himself now. "You may as well save your breath, you freaking monster! I'll never join someone like you!"
"Why continue to fight then?" Matt heard a pause. "Ah…you're fighting for her aren't you?"
Matt's heart skipped a beat, knowing full well just who Malefor was referring to. "I won't let you hurt Selema, you freak! She's already been through enough pain and suffering because of what you've done!"
"Ah…yes. I do remember seeing into her memories about her unfortunate childhood." But Malefor just continued to laugh manically. "Hmm…interesting..." Matt could feel the evil dragon weave through his deepest thoughts, but he was powerless to stop it. "Tell me, human, you don't honestly feel that way about dear Selema, do you?"
Matt flinched in his spot. "I don't know what you're talking about!"
"You want her, don't you? My…my…this may be the may be the most pathetic thing I've ever bared witness to…"
Matt's eyes shot open, narrowing in anger. He then began to shake all around in frustration. "SHUT UP!" His body then began to glow momentarily before he sprung back into action. He pointed his blade above him. "I doubt you saw this before! THUNDAGA MAXIMA!" A shard of lighting burst from his blade, illuminating the area around him briefly before forming into a small thundercloud. With a loud cry, Matt forced his blade downwards, causing nearly a dozen bolts of lightning to rain from above. The dragon in hiding had no chance to avoid it, as Malefor was suddenly electrocuted by the powerful magic attack. He roared out in pain, his body shivering from the impact.
Seeing the tyrant was stunned, Matt took his chance. He quickly exchanged for his Dragon's Fury blade before rising and speeding towards the stunned Malefor. The yellow eyed dragon could only watch as Matt's blade began to glow.
"This one's for Selema!" Matt cried loudly. He then sped and slashed hard into Malefor's side before turning on a dime and slashing him again. Matt continued the powerful aerial combination, inducing heavy damage to the dragon formally known as Flame, his speed having increased tenfold. Malefor could only roar out in agony as he was pummeled by the Keyblader, having no way to fight back. Suddenly, Matt hurled himself up and let himself fall back down, his right leg fully extended. "Take this!" With a loud crunch, Matt's heel ground itself into Malefor's skull, crippling the tyrant and sending him to his knees. Matt then finished with another back flip before landing on his feet.
To Matt's surprise, the blackened dimension suddenly began to fade from all around him. With each passing second, the warmth of the cave filled the space around them. Matt briefly sighed in relief before he and Malefor had completely returned to reality. His eyes first caught sight of the still chained dragoness for whom he fought for.
Selema's eyes widened. "Matt!? You're ok!"
Matt grinned. "Hold on, Selema! I'll be right there!" He then began to trot towards the tablet, looking to finally free Selema from her bonds.
Meanwhile, Malefor growled in frustration. His servant's lack of power along with the Keyblader's last attack had forced him to cancel his dark dimension. He cursed his luck, having underestimated just how strong the boy really was. It seems I have will have to resort to another tactic if I want to eliminate him… Malefor then grinned widely. And I have just the solution…
Suddenly, with a puff of smoke, Malefor appeared at Selema's side to both her and Matt's surprise. "Not so fast, human! You won't be taking my prize that easily!"
Matt growled and took his stance. "Don't you dare touch her!"
However, Malefor didn't listen and instead forced one of his claws onto Selema's chest before muttering some sort of jibberish that neither Matt nor Selema could understand. Suddenly, the pink dragoness began to glow a bright white, causing both of them to gasp. Matt and Selema looked into each others eyes, both knowing what was about to happen.
"Matt…," Selema exclaimed.
"No! Stop!" Matt cried. He sprinted forward to Selema's aid, but it was much too late. The pink dragoness screamed in agony as her body suddenly shone too bright for him to see, forcing the warrior to shield his eyes. "Selemaaa!" He cried as he was overtaken by the powerful light before he knew no more…
The next thing Selema knew, she found herself groaning loudly. She reached out and rubbed her aching cranium with her right paw, trying to rid herself of throb inside her head. It then occurred to Selema…
"Wait a minute," the dragoness exclaimed. Her eyes then shot open to find she was lying on the ground…on solid earth? Selema slowly worked her way to her feet. "What the…?"
From the sights, sounds, and even smells of it, Selema was somewhere in the middle of a dense forest. From the position of the sun, it looked around mid-afternoon. "What in the world is going on?" Selema then asked herself. "Where am I?" Another thought occurred to her. "When am I?" If Malefor had done what she thought he'd done, then he'd somehow tapped into her powers and sent her somewhere else in time.
Selema then remembered something else. What if Matt had been sent to this place as well? He could be hurt or even worse. I've got to find him… Selema thought.
However, just as she was about to call for her companion, Selema screamed as something crashed to the ground about ten feet to her right. After examining it, Selema was surprised to find it was none other than an armored ape…with a large icicle shard impaled through his chest…
"Ice…?" Selema asked. Suddenly, a far too familiar feeling swept through her. "No…" Selema looked up and found her worst fears were confirmed.
The pink dragoness watched in horror as a large patrol of apes were riding a pack of Dreadwings, all chasing a blue figure in the distance. Suddenly, Selema watched as the figure whirled around, firing several blue objects from her mouth and towards the apes in pursuit of her, hitting their marks and sending several apes to their dooms. It was only when Selema found the blue dragoness clutching a small pink figure tight to her body did she know exactly who they were…
A small tear formed in Selema's eye. "Mother…," she exclaimed. Without hesitating, Selema then sprinted forward before shooting into the sky in pursuit of the attacking party.
What Selema didn't know was right behind, a shade of a certain fire dragon with yellow eyes looked on. A wide, evil grin emerged across his maw. "Excellent…," he sneered. He then disappeared into the shadows once more…
Meanwhile, Matt suddenly found himself laying against a tree, his head also throbbing uncomfortably. The Keyblader grunted as he found his way to his feet quickly, examining his surroundings.
"Selema?!" He called, not getting an answer. "Selema!" Matt cursed to himself as he wondered where the pink dragoness could possibly be. The more and more Matt noticed his surroundings, the more and more he realized just how familiar this scene actually was.
"Wait…," Matt exclaimed, quickly calling his Dragon blade to his hand. With it, he kicked off the ground and hurled into the air. When he arrived, it was just as he'd feared.
This was the day that Aurona had sacrificed herself in order to save Selema's life…and Malefor had forced both himself and Selema to that same day.
"Malefor…," Matt whispered. "What have you done?" The Keyblader was confused to why Malefor would bring them here, but he knew one thing was for certain. If Selema was here, then he knew exactly where she would be…as well as where Malefor himself would be.
"Oh no…" Matt then hurdled himself forward…praying that he wouldn't be too late.
Within minutes, Selema arrived at her destination. Unfortunately, she'd been too late to stop her mother's crash landing. The pink dragoness had no idea just how badly her mother had been injured before she'd seen it from a completely different perspective. Selema watched from behind the brush as her younger self inch her way out of her mother's claws, expecting her mother to do the same. However, there was no chance as Aurona's wings were far too damaged to do much further. It was only a matter of time.
Selema sniffed hard, the tears streaming down her face. "Oh, Mom…," she whimpered. "I-I should've done more."
Little did Selema know that Malefor, in a ghostly form, had creeped up behind her. He leaned in and began whispering in her ear. "That's right. You should've done more. Still, you were just a youngling at the time…yet deep within your power was still inside you."
Selema watched as her younger self pleaded for her mother to get up, begging the ice dragoness to stand, but it was no use. She then heard Aurona say her last words to her daughter, reminding the hatchling of how much she loved her. "Such a tragedy…having to lose both your mother and father within a short amount of time. It must have been hard to move on knowing both of them were gone."
Selema shut her eyes tight, her tears falling to the earth below. "It's not fair…"
"Of course it isn't fair. It isn't fair that Saffron still has both her parents, or even that little Dax still has a father to be there for her. Deep down, you've always felt jealous of both of them. Even Spyro still has parents and father figures…but what about you? You have no one…"
Selema started to tremble at the harsh comments, not caring about who or what said them. By now, her younger self had found her hiding place in an old stump. Selema watched in horror as Aurona used the last of her power to freeze her daughter in a block of ice so that she wouldn't have to witness the events to come.
Malefor didn't feel any pity as he continued. "That's right…deep down your greatest desire is for you to have your family back. Well…this is your chance, Selema. You have the power to save her…"
Selema's eyes widened. "I-I have the power…" She put a claw to her chest, knowing her ability to move through time and even freeze time momentarily could be enough.
"That's right, Selema. You can use your power, and repay your mother for her sacrifice…but returning the favor. That way…you can be together again."
"Together…," Selema muttered to herself. The pink dragoness was then unaware of how her body started to glow in a small shadow, her pupils nearly disappearing as her eyes turned completely blue. She then watched as the apes began to surround Aurona, flashing their deadly weapons at the downed ice dragoness.
"Go on, Selema…save her. Save her…"
"Mother…I'll save you…," Selema droned, taking a step forward…
"Selema!" came a sudden voice to her left. Out of the brush, Matt came flying towards the pink dragoness, his clothes now dirtied beyond belief. "Selema…thank God I found you… are you…?"
Matt stopped in mid sentence when he saw the pink dragoness cloaked in shadow, his heart nearly stopping at the sight. "Selema…what's going on?"
"I'm going to save her, Matt," Selema replied near emotionlessly. "I'm going to save my mother."
"W-what?!" Matt asked, turning to find the scene unfolding before him. By now, the leader of the ape patrol was interrogating Aurona to try and locate the younger Selema, who he knew was safe from harm. Unfortunately, he had a bigger problem on hand. "What are you talking about? You know you can't do that, Selema."
Selema tilted her head to the side, her jaw dropping slightly in confusion. "Why not…? She did the same for me…now I can repay the favor." Her tone was slightly raised as she spoke.
"Why not? I'll tell you why. You have no idea what will happen if you change this moment in history. Of all people, you and I know just how dangerous changing the past can be."
"But…she's my mother, Matt…"
"I know that, Selema, and I am forever sorry for what happened to her, but you have to understand that this was her destiny. She died so that you could live on…and I know she would do it again in a heartbeat."
Selema then stared at Matt for the first time with cold eyes, with Malefor's voice ringing in her ears. "He's wrong, you know." "No…you don't…," she said coldly. It was then she barred her teeth and growled at Matt, advancing on him slowly. "How dare you…how dare you tell me that I can't help her?! It's my choice to make! Wouldn't you save your mother if you had the chance?!"
"Listen, Selema…"
"No, you listen Matt!" Selema yelled, her pent up anger and frustration finally rising to the surface. "I had to grow up without anyone but myself! I was forced into living by those mongrels, treated like filth day after day after day. Have you ever been stomped or beaten just because of what you are?"
"He doesn't care about you…he never did…"
"You don't care about me…," Selema exclaimed coldly. "You never did…"
Matt felt as though Selema had just ripped his heart out of his chest and stomped on it. "W-what…what do you mean by that? Of course I care!"
"He just wants your power all to himself…why else would he save you…?"
Selema narrowed her eyes even further. "You just want my power, don't you? Why else would you save me from that hell hole?"
Matt shook his head furiously. "You're wrong, Selema! What's gotten into you? This isn't like you at all!"
"There's nothing wrong with me!" Selema roared, stomping her claws in the dirt to try and intimidate him. "You never cared about me…you just played me like a fool just so you could get close to me and take my power for yourself."
"STOP!" Matt yelled back, his teeth grit in frustration. To his surprise, Selema just stared back at him. "W-what's happened to you, Selema? Don't you get it? Malefor's just toying with you…he wants you to change this. Why else would he bring us here?"
"Well...it doesn't matter anymore. I'm going to help my mother, no matter what happens." Selema crouched further into her stance. "Now get out of my way, Matt, before I make you…"
"Yes…that's it…"
Matt stared at the pink dragoness, whose eyes fully gave away her intentions. She would attack him if he didn't move. If Matt wanted to do what he knew was right, then he would be forced to stop Selema from changing the past. He slowly raised his Keyblade up, ready to do what was necessary…
Yet when he looked at Selema again, he didn't see the darkened version of his friend. Instead, he saw the bright, colorful Selema. The one whose smile made him feel as though all was right in the world…whose laugh could cheer him up almost instantly…whose touch was able to soothe him when he felt down.
Matt curled his left fist into a ball, hanging his head. To Selema's surprise, he then dropped his Keyblade to the ground, the blade disappearing in a flash of light. "I can't…," Matt exclaimed. "I can't do it…I can't hurt you, Selema."
Selema's jaw dropped for a few seconds before she shook her head to refocus. "Good…now move aside."
"Not before you listen to what I have to say…," Matt replied firmly. "Then you can do as you wish." The pink dragoness scoffed, but remained still in her place. "You're right, Selema. I don't have the right to say you can't help someone you love, no matter what the potential consequences might be." He paused briefly. "Before you do this…I just want you to keep this in mind, Selema. If you change this moment...then you'll never be captured…and I can never save you."
Selema gasped, her lower lips slightly trembling as she realized that the human before her was correct.
Matt continued, his eyes still pointing towards the ground and voice beginning to tremble. "If I never save you…then I can never meet you. Everything we've been through…it will mean nothing because it never happens. And though I may never know who you are…I'll always wonder why I feel as though a piece of me is missing, and I can never get that back." Matt then looked up, his eyes full of tears. "You say I don't care about you…but that couldn't be farther from the truth. What we have…what we have is something I've always cherished from the moment that we met. I've met a lot of people in my time…but there's no one like you, Selema. I'll never find someone else like you again, no matter how hard I try." Matt wiped away some of his tears, some reaching the ground. "If you really don't care about what we have, then I won't stop you from changing history. But, Selema…please…please don't force me to forget about you."
Selema could only look at him and take in his every word. The idea of not ever knowing Matt and how great he was…it was an idea that Selema herself couldn't bare. Selema's eyes began to water again, now that she was faced with an almost impossible choice…
Selema turned and found that the head ape was raising his sword high above his head, about to bring the final blow down and end her mother's life.
"Why do you hesitate? Save her…"
Selema closed her eyes and started to sob uncontrollably, the shadow slowly beginning to fade from her body and return her to normal shade of bright pink. She then looked on one last time. "I'm sorry, Mom…," she whispered. "I'm so sorry…"
"What? No!"
Matt and Selema then both closed their eyes as they heard the sword connect with it's target, the apes crying out in victory at their conquest. Selema then turned to Matt and walked towards him.
The Keyblader couldn't be more relieved, yet saddened. He then trotted toward his friend, ready to comfort her as best he could.
He never made it…
It happened faster than Matt could've ever imagined. A large stabbing pain enveloped him from his midsection, stopping him in his tracks. He then heard a cold whisper in his ear.
"I win…"
Suddenly, Matt felt himself be whirled around and around before he was back in the cave once more. He looked on as Selema was once again chained down on her back on the stone tablet, her face filled with horror at the scene before her.
Matt looked down and found the large claw impaled through his middle section, coated with his blood. The Keyblader gagged, coughing up large amounts of blood and splattering it across the floor.
Selema let loose a bloodcurdling scream from her maw. "NOOOOOOOOOOO! MAATTT!"
"Se..le…ma…," Matt staggered before he felt the paw rush out of him. He put both his hands to his stomach as he felt the blood drain from his body, struggling with every breath. He tried extending his arm for his Keyblade, but not before Malefor emerged in front of him and grasped a paw firmly around his throat, lifting the human into the air.
"You were a fool to challenge me…," he said coldly before he reared back and hurled the Keyblader as hard as he could towards the opposite wall, causing the stone to crack on impact. It was enough to force several rocks from the ceiling to come crashing down upon the Keyblader, covering him from head to toe.
"NOOOO! NOOO! MATT! NO!" Selema screamed. She fought with all her strength to try and break her bonds to no avail. This wasn't happening…it couldn't be happening…Matt wasn't…he couldn't be…
Malefor roared loudly in triumph before trotting over towards Selema once more. "Now then my dear…where were we?"
Selema bared her teeth. "YOU MONSTER! I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL KILL YOU!"
Malefor just laughed as the pink dragoness struggled to get herself free in vain. "There, there, Selema. Look on the bright side of things. You will be at my side for all eternity…and you and I will bring about a new age together. You can even return here if you wish...and stare upon his final resting place…"
"SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" Selema yelled out before she let the realization come upon her. Matt was gone. The pink dragoness felt as though the world had ended, her entire body going numb before her. First her father…then her mother…and now…Matt.
It was then Selema let it all go, letting out a loud roar in agony before she let her tears spill from her eyes. She was nothing now that she had nothing left. Nothing mattered anymore…
Malefor, sensing her spirit completely falter, began to climb atop the pink dragoness once more. "That's it…my dear…let it go…let it all go. You are mine now…"
Selema didn't even notice the dragon getting on top of her, too lost in grief to even care. Her world had now completely shattered…
Matt hadn't felt much after the initial hit on the wall, only pain…and then nothing. He found himself suspended in a blank space filled with nothing. He felt like nothing…he was nothing.
All he could think about…all he'd ever think about from this point on…was that he failed. He was a failure and nothing more.
Matt…
"Who's…there…?" Matt asked blankly.
Matt…you must get up…
"I…can't…"
You must…
"I have…nothing left…nothing…"
You're wrong, Matt. You have all that you need already…you just have to see it for yourself.
Matt creeped his eyes open. To his surprise, he found a shade of red in his view. "Who…are you?"
Don't you know?
Matt then felt a name pop into his head. "Ar…agon…"
You must get up, Matt. She needs you…
"But how...I can't…get up…"
You can, Matt. Just ask yourself this…why do you fight for her?
Suddenly, the red in front of him was gone, leaving him to his own thoughts once more.
"Wait…come back…" Matt was alone. "What…did he mean…by that?"
Matt then heard another voice in his head, though this one far different. "When you find yourself in greatest need, the answer you seek lies deep within you…farther than you 'd ever dare to dwelve."
"Alta…" Matt remembered. "Within…myself…" Matt closed his eyes. "Ok…"
The Keyblader then began looking…looking for whatever he needed…yet a part didn't know what that was.
Why do you fight for her?
"Why?" Matt asked himself as he searched. Selema then appeared in front of him in his space, her eyes bright as always. She smiled at him and nodded, lifting her right forepaw to show the wristband around it. Matt looked down, seeing he still had his on as well. Both jewels in the middle were glowing as bright as possible. He looked at her again, suddenly feeling warmer and warmer in a certain part of his body.
His heart…
"There…," Matt said. He looked inside his heart, his friends and family surrounding him. Yet, it still wasn't enough…he had to look deeper…
It was harder than he thought…but when he found it…the truth had finally dawned on him.
Matt opened his eyes, his jaw agape. Tears of joy and relief flowed down his face, his entire body trembled in both excitement and realization. Slowly, he lifted his hand and put it to his chest…
Back in reality, beneath the rock pile, Matt managed to whisper out what he wanted to say.
"Selema…"
Malefor continued to lick Selema's face as he groped her, tasting the salt from her flow of tears. Finally…finally after all this time a dragoness of time was his…and he wouldn't waste another moment.
However, just as he was about to have his way with her, Malefor began to sense something. He stopped licking and looked towards the pile of rubble that covered the human boy. Suddenly, specks of light began to shine through the cracks of the rubble, growing with each passing second.
"No…," Malefor growled in his throat. "Impossible!"
Selema looked up in confusion before craning her head towards the light as well, her breath catching in her throat. A small spark of hope flickered within her, rising with every shade of light that penetrated the rubble.
Suddenly, a loud bang shot through the caves as the rock pile exploded outwards, sending several rocks flying around the cave. Malefor put up his wings to shield both himself and Selema, roaring in disbelief and shock. When they both turned back again, they both gasped at what they saw.
There was Matt, leaning on one knee and held up by his Keyblade in his right hand. His near fatal wound was glowing green as his healing magic fixed him up almost instantaneously, now looking as though he simply tore a hole in his white sleeveless shirt. As he lifted himself to his feet, Selema couldn't help but recognize the ominous glow that surrounded his entire body. However, when he opened his eyes, she saw that they were his regular dark brown and not a hot white liked she'd seen before.
Selema gasped. "M-matt?" To her surprise, not only was Matt alive and well, the look on his face was calm and relaxed.
Matt looked at Selema and smiled. "It's going to be alright, Selema."
Selema began to tear again, only now it was tears of joy. Matt was ok! Not only that, but his words seemed to make her feel more calm as well. She couldn't explain it, but Selema felt that he was right.
Malefor roared once more in frustration. "How can this be? You should be dead!"
Matt then turned his gaze towards the possessed red dragon. "Malefor…for what you've done and what you stand for…I cannot allow you to continue your reign of terror in this world. As a warrior of the Keyblade, it is my duty to protect those who dwell in the light from the forces of darkness that would threaten the balance. Now then…I'll ask one last time…get away from Selema."
Malefor grit his teeth. "Never! SHE IS MINE!" The tyrant then leaped off the stone tablet and charged a powerful Convexity attack before firing it from his maw. "DIE!"
Matt remained calm and began walking forward towards the oncoming attack. He closed his eyes and effortlessly caught the Convexity blast before hurling it harmlessly aside as though it were nothing, creating a huge hole in one of the cave walls. Malefor roared again and fired several more Convexity blasts, but the result remained the same with each blast being redirected and smashing against the cave walls.
All the while, Selema continued to look on from her place on the tablet, watching with wide eyes as Matt seemed invincible at the moment. She knew he was powerful, but even she'd never seen anything like this. Somehow…it was as though Matt was tapping deep within his power but had complete control over it. How is he doing all this? She thought.
For the first time, Malefor finally began to back away in fear. He tried several other elements at his disposal, but nothing seemed to faze the human as he kept his approach. "H-how?" The tyrant asked. "How can something so weak gain so much power?"
Matt shook his head. "I'd try explaining it, but a monster like you could never understand." He then tossed his blade into the air and placed his hands together. With a puff of smoke, two more Matts appeared out of thin air, both summoning out different Keyblades as the original caught his own. "Now…this ends."
Malefor stumbled on his hind legs as he thought of a plan of action, but it was far too late. With tremendous speed, he was surrounded by all three Matts within a second. "You cannot defeat me! I am et…"
"That's really getting old!" All three Matts yelled as they charged simultaneously towards the stunned dragon. Each of their blades then began to glow with a golden hue. "KINGDOM SLASH TRINITY ATTACK!" The Matts then all struck simultaneously at lightning-like speed, slashing the tryant among several parts of his body. Malefor roared in complete agony as the attack crippled him completely before two of the Matts swung upwards, sending Malefor flying towards the ceiling. The original Matt then flew in out of nowhere. "It's over!" he cried as twisted and slashed as hard as he possibly could, hurdling Malefor into the wall and through the mountain itself. Matt heard the roar go on for what felt like miles before Malefor's cries come to a halt.
Matt then landed nimbly on his feet, his two clones disappearing with a puff of smoke. The glow around his body slowly ceased, leaving nothing but a weary Keyblader. Matt turned around, panting heavily as he then jogged towards the still pinned dragoness. With four more powerful swipes, he broke all four chains binding Selema down, freeing the pink dragoness completely.
Selema flung herself around her savior as soon as she was free, gripping him tightly from head to toe and nuzzling him affectionately.
"A-are you alright, Selema?" Matt asked as he accepted her embrace.
"Y-yeah. I am thanks to you," she replied softly. "Oh, Matt…I thought…I thought I'd lost you." She then pulled back and gave him a stern look. "Don't EVER scare me like that again? Do you understand me?"
Matt then chuckled weakly and nodded. "You got it…"
Before either could speak again, the mountain began to tremor around them. Several pieces of debris came falling down from the ceiling. The battle had finally taken it's toll on the area…
Matt cursed and got back to his feet. "We'd better get out of here and fast!" He took a step forward, but fell to his knee again.
"Matt!" Selema cried.
"I'll be alright…," he mumbled. "Just go!"
Selema growled before getting under him and lifting him onto her back. "Hold on tight!" she yelled before she sprinted through the hole he created earlier. The pink dragoness dodged several rocks as she scooted her way out with Matt in tow, desperate to get them both to safety.
As soon as she saw the entrance, Selema gasped in horror as it began to crumble away. Cursing to herself, Selema then remembered about how she was free from the restraints and able to use her magic. Gritting her teeth, she concentrated as hard as she could, making the scene around herself and Matt slow around her. The pink dragoness then dived for the entrance, escaping through it just as it completely closed before landing with a thud on the earth.
Selema and Matt panted heavily as he slid off the pink dragoness and layed next to her. Both were covered in dust and grime, yet they couldn't really care less at the moment.
"You…did it…," Matt wheezed out.
"T-thanks," Selema replied as she rose to her feet. "Are you alright?"
Matt groaned as he got into a sitting position. "Yeah…I'm really, really tired though." He then turned and looked her in the eye. "I'm just glad you're safe."
Selema teared up in happiness as they looked each other in the eye, a warm feeling filling her entire body. There was so much she wanted to say to Matt about just how wonderful he was. Suddenly, Malefor's voice caught in her head.
The evil dragon laughed. "What is this? Thinking about someone special I see?" Selema growled in anger, unable to hide her thoughts. "That's right, I have the ability to see into the thoughts of another dragon…and their desires as well." He closed his eyes and was silent for a few moments. His face suddenly cringed. "You're thinking about…a human?" The dragon shook his head in disappointment. "I must say, my dear, this may be the most pathetic thing I've ever seen."
Selema then gasped in horror as she stared at Matt. She then started backing away from him to his great surprise.
"Selema…?" Matt asked. "W-what's wrong?!"
The pink dragoness shook her head. "I-I'm sorry, Matt. I just…I just…have to go." Before he could stop her, Matt then watched as Selema sprinted away before jumping into the sky and soaring off into the distance, the sun slowly beginning to rise on the eastern horizon.
"Selema!" Matt called, but it was to avail. The Keyblader then sat there, completely stunned at what had just happened. "Selema…" He then simply stared as she disappeared from view. "What did I do?"
:o
Oh my...well...I don't know what else to say.
Peace out,
Biz