Chapter 3 Spyro's Tussle

Spyro and Ember made it back out the forest from which they came. Spyro led Ember right along whatever trees were left of the forest and into the open. It was strange through. All this open and hardly no forest. However it made seeing another little forest up ahead a little ways and Ember figured that was where they were heading for the moment.

"My new friends names are Sparx and Flame. Flame is this red dragon I met in this village I came across while on my travels. He's about my age. As for Sparx, he's this dragonfly."

"Dragonfly?", Ember giggled, "Could it do any tricks?"

"He can talk",Spyro smirked.

"Talk? Like . . . real words?"

Spyro laughed, "Yea like me talking to you right now."

"Wow, he must be smart."

Spyro was about to burst, "Smart? Don't get me started."

Ember changed to a confused dragon, "So he's . . . I don't know, stupid?"

"No no",Spyro laughed. "He's, well, annoying at some points. But that's Flame's problem."

"So how did Sparx help you out?",Ember asked running ahead with the story.

"Well the only thing I'll say for right now is that he was pretty much like a flying light bulb. You know, helped us through some dark danky places and such."

"Ah so how did Flame help out?",Ember asked as she walked around a small patch of sand to stay in the grass. A few trees were here and there but it was still a pretty open and deserted plain. A few daisies were here and there along with it's bumblebee or butterfly fluttering above them.

"Well for now I'll just go back to my decision making. You already know I decided to go find the mushroom of course. After about two days of continuous training my dad taught me about the lands around the village and some places I might find some help at. After all I was four years old."

"It must has been frightening to be all by yourself",Ember said.

Spyro nodded, "It was. It was real nerve racking but without my dad I don't know what I have done at the time. My dad didn't want anyone to know of the disease for just having the disease would mean execution."

"Oh my, execution?"

"Yea, since there was no cure found at the time and the disease being so deadly, the only thing any dragon could do to protect himself is to kill the one with the disease so he himself wouldn't catch it. If anyone found out it would be devastating. But this disease is unique in its own way."

"How so?",asked Ember.

"It takes about 5 to 6 years for it to completely kill someone. It's one of the most slowiest working ever discovered. It slowly shuts down your immune system leaving you vunerable to other viruses and such."

"I see now. So from what I recall no one knew you was missing until a few hours after you left."

"My dad helped me get out the village for no one would ever approve of a child leaving. So me and my dad had to pull a few strings to get by the villagers without arrousing suspicion. It worked but they found out I was missing sooner than expected I believe."

xXxXxXxXxXx

Spyro's escape

Spyro and his father were walking down the village roads being carefully watched by some other mindful dragons. The twosome ignored them as they walked toward the outskirts of the village where the forest trail began. Spyro looked around to see that all the dragons were no longer visible and that only he and his dad was left. Spyro's father stopped near the beginning of the forest and sighed.

"Okay Spyro",his father coughed. "Your on our own now. You know what you must do. You remember the way?"

Spyro nodded, "Yes I do. I must head to the village on the other side of this forest where I will ask around if anyone has seen the mushroom that we need."

"You got it. Just remember your training and you will be fine. Always remember that no matter what happens, I will always love you."

"Okay dad. I'll make you better you'll see. I'll come back with the medicine and your gonna fell all better."

His father smiled, "If you ever feel like your not up to the challenge your always welcome to come back home at any time you like." Spyro went and hugged his father one last time before the little dragon set off on his first ever adventure. A tear came down his fathers eye. "It's hard to let you go Spyro, but I know that your going to be back here one day. If your journey gets too dangerous then don't do anything reckless."

"Okay dad, just wait and I'll bring that mushroom back and everything is going to be alright."

Spyro let go of his father and looked into the forest. His father spoke, "Now you must quickly leave before anyone sees us. If they see you running off then they are going to find out about my sickness."

Spyro nodded and took off straight into the forest leaving his own father behind in wait. Five years was plenty of time but the more time passed the more the villagers will get suspicious so he must make this journey a quick one of he was going to succeed.

Spyro's father made his way back toward his home for the time being. As he made his way back he heard some commotion in one of the houses he was passing by. Shrugging it off he slowly and casually made his way back toward home.

Meanwhile inside that house the conversation was stirring.

"You see him? Spyro isn't with him now",Draconis pointed through the window as Spyro's father walked by. Draconis is a greenish red dragon with a yellow underbelly. His golden yellow wings expanded a little wider than the average dragon and his green eyes could see miles away easily. His rugged horns were curved just a bit back and his tail ended with a triangular yellow diamond shape.

Selvinus just stared at Draconis, "Right, and I suppose that you think Spyro is off in the forest or some forgotten land somewhere now eh? Well I'm not buying it. He's the purple dragon but come on, he's four. He's not going anywhere for a pretty long time."

Draconis walked toward the door for a better look, "Believe what you want Selvinus but I knew something was up with him and his father. Have you actually watched his father lately? He seems a little weird to me also."

Selvinus cocked an eye, "How so?"

"Well",Draconis began as he put a paw on the doorknob, "He's been a bit less lively lately. Like his energy has been sucked out of him."

Selvinus laughed, "He's old you idiot, old dragons do that."

"No this time it's different. I don't know how to explain it. Also Spyro hasn't been going to school lately from what the news tells me."

"And where do you get your news Draconis?"

Draconis shook his head, "Like I said, believe what you want but I'm going to go check on where Spyro went off to."

Selvinus stood up off his chair, "Fine, I better go with you so you won't get lost again."

"That wasn't my fault the map that sales lady sold me was outdated!"

"Which would explain why it was so cheap I suppose?"

"Gah, lets just get going."

Draconis and Selvinus left the small home and Draconis locked the door. The two looked to the right where Spyro's father was headed and they began walking left down the dirt road. Dirt in the middle and grass on the sides. Selvinus wondered why the roads couldn't just be all grass so his paws wouldn't get so dirty for he ran a lot of errands as a job. A few minutes later the twosome arrived at the path to the forest. Draconis was staring toward the ground as if it were made of gold and he could see his own reflection. He was following two sets of prints, one big, one small.

"I see four sets of prints here, looks like Spyro had three buddies."

Selvinus shook his head, "You my friend, are an idiot. Dragons have FOUR legs not two."

Draconis smiled in stupidity, "Oh right. Well from the looks of thing one set heads into the forest and the other heads back."

Selvinus took a close look, "And it seems Spyro's head into the forest, and he's unaccompanied."

"See, I told you",Draconis said. "I was right!"

"Yea, yea thats five to twenty-six now."

"No twenty-five, the one about my sister falling down the stairs doesn't count."

Selvinus rolled his eyes, "Right, sure. Well lets see where Spyro is headed off to shall we?"

"You go do that and I'll follow old rusty bones",Draconis muttered.

"His name is",Selvinus began but stopped when he realized Draconis was already on the move and was ignoring him.

Selvinus shrugged his shoulder, "What's the use if he just ignores you?"

Selvinus turned and began following the tracks straight into the forest.

Meanwhile

Spyro walked down the path of the forest. He heard something rustling in the distance to his right making him look.

"Just some deer",Spyro said to himself. "Nothing to be scared of."

Spyro continued his walk through the forest. A few minutes later he heard a hiss coming from somewhere nearby. Spyro frantically scanned the area and spotted a small green snake blocking the road. Spyro smiled and walked up leaving at least twelve inches between him and the snake.

"Hello there",Spyro greeted. The snake just hissed back.

Spyro lowered his head, "What are you doing out here?"

The snake sat then quickly turned around and began making its way back into the forest leaving a small trail in the dirt. Spyro looked at the small trail then look back down the dirt path. He noticed the tracks he was leaving in the dirt. Then Spyro began thinking.

"I should get rid of my tracks or I could get caught."

Spyro looked down and placed his paw on the dirt. He lifted his paw and examined the print he left. "Someone could follow me and they would find out about my dad. But how?"

Spyro looked around then heard some more rustling nearby. Spyro looked around for a quick second thinking it was more deer or wildlife. So he continued to think on his plan. His thinking was interrupted again by the rustling. It was coming from a nearby bush Spyro spotted, whatever it was. Spyro looked at the bush suspiciously and slowly made his way toward it. It was a pretty big bush which could swallow Spyro easily. In fact it was big enough to hide something. He made his close to the bush and carefully used his nose to take a sniff.

"Hm",Spyro thought. "Berries don't smell like that."

At that time a red paw came out the bushes and grabbed Spyro's horn and quickly pulled him into the bushes so fast that Spyro didn't have time to even blink. Spyro was inside the bush along with whatever pulled him. Spyro quickly swung his small claws everywhere whilst still hanging in the air.

"I'll get you!",Spyro threatened. "I'll torch you if you don't let me go!"

"Stop!",the dragon ordered. But Spyro still continued to swing his claws.

"Put me down!",Spyro exclaimed.

"Calm down!",the dragon snapped as he looked out the bushes to see another dragon coming down the path around thirty yards away.

"If you don't put me down! You'll be sorry you ever messed with Spyro the dragon!"

The dragon cocked an eye, "So you're Spyro? Firedrake told me all about you."

Spyro immediately stopped squirming, "You mean?"

The dragon interrupted with a whisper, "Say nothing. Someone is coming."

The dragon put Spyro down and Spyro immediately rubbed his left horn. "You could have hurt me you know",Spyro whispered back.

Selvinus followed the tracks with wonder and thoughts running through his mind. Then Selvinus heard a rustle. He looked up and around. He noticed a green snake slithering through the leaves off the edge of the trail. Selvinus ignored the snake and continued to follow the prints. Then he stopped.

"That's odd",Selvinus said to himself. "Spyro's footprints are . . . gone?"

Selvinus quickly looked around, "Spyro!",Selvinus called out.

Spyro's muzzle was covered by the dragons paw in the bush that was big enough to make a hideout out of. Now Selvinus was confused. He studied the last of the prints and decided to turn back. There was no use in going on ahead for there was no telling where Spyro has gone off to. So he turned back to report the news to his superior. The elder of the village.

xXxXxXxXxXx

Back To Spyro and Ember

"How soon was it until someone found out you were gone?",Ember asked while she looked ahead at the little forest up ahead. It would be only a few minutes until they reached it.

Spyro looked up and the blue skies, "It was actually a few minutes. However I was assisted in evading the dragon that was following my tracks."

"Hmm",Ember frowned. "What did he look like?"

Spyro thought back then answered, "It's hard to say for I really didn't get a good look. But I was able to get a glimpse of yellow and scales and his belly was blue I believe."

"Sounds like Selvinus",Ember replied. "He sort of worked for my father a while back." Ember walked a few more steps beside her friend then asked, "Who was that dragon who helped you out?"

Spyro smiled, "His name was Ignitus."