Hours after they left the fire dragon temple, the party arrived at Dante's Freezer. They came to a stop near the ruins of an ancient fortress and descended onto the ice. Spyro immediately took charge as leader, claiming he had been here before. He made his way towards the only remaining entrance of the ruins as though what he had said were true. Helix inquired Cynder about this, and she nodded in her head in reply.
"When I was the Queen of Darkness, I used to stay here quite often," she explained. "Spyro came here to free Volteer, who I had captured and hidden inside of these ruins."
"A resistance is forming within this fortress," Spyro said, gathering us all together just before the entrance. "They should be hiding in this very fortress, but only the ancestors know where."
Spyro led the group skillfully, weaving throughout the ruins with the greatest ease. Behind him was Venus with her oddly-matched life mate, Shigi, on her back as usual. Helix walked just beside her, and the two had their sides pressed together as they walked to keep warm, as they were unused to this great cold. Cynder, at first bringing up the end of the group, dashed forward to Spyro's side and licked his neck, rubbing against him with a seductive smile. He licked her back.
Some minutes later, they arrived at a small tunnel carved into a broken wall. It was on the side of the ruins facing the mountains, and most likely led into the earth.
"I recognize this tunnel," Spyro said, pressing a paw against the cold earth. "It leads to the Ice King's lair—but he's dead now, so we don't have to worry about him."
Cynder nodded. "Well, if I were the leader of a resistance, that's exactly where I would hide myself as well as my troops." She tossed her head backward and pointed towards the hole. "Spyro and I will go along ahead and make sure it's safe. Shigi, you come with us, we'll need you for cover if there's some troops from Enola's kingdom in there."
Shigi, who was sitting side-straddle around Venus, moved his legs to one side and slid down her. He came to face her and hugged her as best as he could, rubbing her shoulder. "I'll be back soon, baby," he said.
He turned on his heels and began to walk toward Spyro and Cynder, but he was stopped by a pulling at his cloak. He turned around and saw the familiar black fabric in the mouth of Venus. She dropped the cloak from her mouth. "Don't go in there, Shigi. Anything could be in there. I'm afraid something could happen to you like it did to Jeenie's husband." A tear slid down her cheek as her eyes watered.
Shigi shook his head and rubbed her nose comfortingly with an outstretched hand. "It's alright, Venus. The soldiers back in the army couldn't knock me down, and these guys won't be able to either." He smiled weakly. "I promise you, my love. Spyro and Cynder need me—all the poor trolls need me too, and I can't let them down, my darling." He kissed her tenderly on the snout and turned towards Spyro and Cynder, who had been waiting patiently for him to finish up. Spyro was the first to enter the tunnel, followed by Cynder and finally Shigi disappeared into the hole.
Venus, Helix, Terrador, and Cyril all dropped to the floor, exhausted from their hours of non-stop flight. Venus's concern for her two-legged love was gnawing at her insides, tearing her to pieces. Helix noticed his sister's anxiety and nuzzled her comfortingly.
"Helix," Venus chocked, wiping a tear from her eye. "I'm afraid Shigi won't—"
Helix cut her off. "He'll be fine, sis. He has Spyro and Cynder with him, and the three of them won't fall to anything," he reassured her. He wrapped a wing around her and pulled her in close to him. "You don't need to worry about a thing, alright? I'm here for you."
She nodded her head, and chuckled just slightly.
"What's funny?"
"You haven't hugged me like this since I was a child," she explained, a smile on her face. "It makes me realize how much I've missed being around you. Really around you, I mean."
Helix smiled in return. "Yeah, I know what you mean."
Shigi and the loyal heroes were crawling through the tunnel Spyro had found, the dragons' wings pressed uncomfortably against their sides. In order to keep her balance, Cynder positioned her tail flat against the top of the tunnel. Shigi, who was crawling behind her, caught sight of her tight, blue sex. 'My gods,' he thought, blinking. 'Cynder's in heat! I need to get in on that—no, no! I have a dragoness and she loves me too much and I love her. But, Cynder does have a nice cunt.'
Soon enough, their pain came to end as they reached the end of the tunnel. It was exactly as Spyro remembered it—covered in ice, save for several anomalies, which were the tents. There were dozens of tents crammed into the room, so close it looked difficult for one to make their way around them. Spyro turned his head to the left and spotted the flickering lights of fires in the distance.
"Do you think these are resistance troops?" Spyro whispered to Shigi.
"Definitely, the tents of the Kingdom have the insignia on them—which is a kite shield with daggers. These can barely be called tents," Shigi said, pointing to one. "They're just furs attached to poles. I can't imagine they're very comfortable."
He searched the horizon for a troll, but, finding none, mumbled to the dragons. "We shouldn't be sneaking up on them, or they'll think we're from the kingdom. We'll call for help and say we got lost." Spyro and Cynder looked at each other, exchanged a few silent words, and nodded. Shigi turned to the tents, cupped his hands over his mouth and shouted, "Please help! Is there anybody in here?"
The sound echoed throughout the cave, lasting for several seconds before it died out. A flap over a nearby tent moved and out emerged three troll freedom fighters to investigate. Of the three, only one had armor, discounting the fact that it was rusted and covered very little of his vital areas. Every inch of their skin save for their hands and faces was covered with furs and simple fabrics to keep them warm despite the harsh weather. The armored one carried a simple pistol in his hand, while the other two only daggers. On the hilt of the gun Shigi could make out the insignia of the troll kingdom, except it had a large "X" over it.
They caught sight of Shigi and the two dragons and aimed their weapons at the three of them. "Freeze!" the armored one shouted. "Are you a peasant, or one of those bastards from the kingdom?"
Shigi raised his hands over his head. "I'm a peasant, and these two are dragons from Avalar."
He dropped his gun. "By the gods!" he gasped. "Dragons of Avalar? Here? Have you come to liberate us?"
Shigi lowered his hands. "Yes, we have, and there are many more dragons waiting outside."
"We've come to liberate the fishing colony," Cynder interjected.
The troll narrowed his eyes at Shigi. "Wait," he paused before gasping. "You're Shigi Hasethsmalvena, the Cloaked Widow-Maker."
Shigi took a breath. "I no longer march with the Kingdom: I fly with the dragons. I sleep in their temple. I am one of them now."
"This is amazing!" One of the other trolls said. "A miracle. You must meet our leader, he will be pleased to know you have come."
They restored their weapons to their places around their waists and escorted the three to the Ice King's throne room. There, armed men and women could be founded huddled with their children around fires. On the former throne of the Ice King sat an eight-foot figure with a black coat and hood covering his face, as well as two swords about his belt. The trolls guided Spyro, Cynder, and Shigi through the huddled trolls and towards the hooded figure. As they passed, the rebels raised their heads to see them and whispered to one another about the presence of the three warriors.
"Comrade," the armored troll said as he brought his companions as well as the rescuers to a halt just before the throne, "leader, we bring dragons and the former Cloaked Widow-Maker, Shigi."
The figure rose from the throne and advanced toward the three. He lifted his head and caught eyes with Cynder. "My gods, you are the love of Spyro, the savior," he gasped. He met eyes with the other two and bowed his head slightly. "We are so glad you have come."
"They are many more of us waiting outside, sir," Cynder informed him.
The troll lifted his head and shouted, "Comrades, the dragons have come to liberate us!"
Around him, the trolls stood from the ice and cheered, clapping their frost-bitten hands and hollering at the top of their lungs.
Venus had calmed down enough, although she was still worried about Shigi. Helix was rubbing her back and keeping her warm with his wing, whispering to her softly.
"Helix," Venus began, her voice soft, "you've always kept me warm since I was born."
He shrugged in reply. "I've always got your back, sis."
She smiled. "I'll always have yours, big brother." She leaned her head forward and licked him on the neck.
"Heh, yeah, you've been doing this since you were born," he said.
Images of his childhood raced through his mind like speeding eagles, tearing through his thoughts. He remembered the third day after Venus was born, when he and Jeenie were relaxing on a fur rug as they enjoyed a sick joke book.
"Why is it hard to count up to seventy?" a younger Helix asked his sister. "Because sixty-nine is a mouthful."
Jeenie laughed, curling her tail around his as she flipped a page of the book. "You could make people laugh, little bro. One day...," her voice trailed off.
She cast an eye to her mother, who was lying in a corner, sleeping heavily with Venus against her underbelly—completely unaware of the mature humor her son and daughter were reading. Venus was wide awake, her large eyes taking in everything around them. Her eyes met Jeenie's, and she smiled and rose to her feet. She waddled over toward Helix and Jeenie and began to lick Helix on the nose.
Jeenie smiled. "How sweet. Venus loves you so much, Helix."
He smiled weakly as Venus climbed onto his nose awkwardly. Sluggishly, she made her way between his eyes and slid down his neck. Laughing, she grabbed hold of his neck and licked his scales. Jeenie broke into uncontrollable laughter at the sight of Helix's obvious discomfort.
"Laugh it up, big sis, laugh it up." He replied, staring her down angrily. He turned his head backwards to face Venus and smiled. "You love me, don't you, Venus?" he asked, his voice higher than it normally would be.
Venus, still quite silent, responded only by hugging his scales tighter.
Helix's smile widened. ""Thought so, little sister."
Among the hundreds of resistances members, Shigi spotted a familiar figure dressed in gray fur standing beside a large cauldron over a fire. The cauldron was brimming with watery bear stew leaking over the sides.
"Mom…?" Shigi whispered. His eyes widened as he shouted. "Mom, Mom!" He tore through the crowd of trolls and towards his mother, Katani.
She rose her head from the stew, and, catching sight of her son, dropped the spoon from her hands. "S-Shigi?"
He sprinted towards her and wrapped his arms tightly around her. It was quite an awkward hug, being that she was two feet shorter than he as well as because she was still frozen with shock.
"S-higi," she whispered, her eyes watering and joyful tears running down her cheeks. She rose an arm and wrapped it loosely around his back. "My gods…You're alive."
"Of course I am," he replied. "I'm so glad you're okay."
She pulled away from him, shaking her head. "But your sisters…"
"What?" he asked, growing concerned. "Where's Lizabeta and Kimara?"
His mother chocked. "Den Vax is holding them in the village. Or maybe they're…they're—"
Shigi cut her off. "There's no sense in killing them, Den Vax knows that. He's probably using them to find me. Is the Kingdom hunting me?"
Katani nodded. "Yes, before I made my way here from the village, I was interrogated by them to find your location." She took hold of one of her sleeves and lifted it past her elbow, revealing ghastly scars. "They let me go, and that's when I decided to leave. They found us escaping, and probably thought we were going to meet up with you, so they captured your sisters, but couldn't catch me." Tears slid freely down her cheeks. "I'm so glad you're okay."
A smile grew on his lips in an attempt to cheer her up. "Mom, I have a life mate now."
Her eyes widened. "Really, my son? Who is she? This is the best news I've heard in a long time," she said, her voice lined with joy. "I must meet her."
Then, the leader of the trolls advanced towards the two, Spyro and Cynder at his heels. "Shigi, Your dragon friends tell me that your leader is outside. I must meet him so we can discuss our plan of action," he demanded.
Shigi bowed his head. "Yes, straight away, sir." He turned back to his mother. "Mom, come with us. She's waiting just outside for me."
The three heroes led the resistance leader, Shigi's mother, and several armed troops through the narrow tunnel. Shigi's mother had some difficulty navigating in the enclosed space, and Shigi noticed more scars across her body and a small limp in her left leg. When they reached the exit, they dropped out of the tunnel and into the room filled with dragons. Shigi was the last to exit, and he immediately caught sight of Venus.
The dragoness jumped out of her brother's arms to her life mate, knocking him onto his back.
"I'm so glad you're back," she said, excited, her tongue traveling down his body and towards his waist, dangerously close to his member.
Shigi, shocked, waved his hands near her tongue, making her close her mouth and retract her tongue. "Venus!" he exclaimed, his breathing heavy. "My mother's right here."
Venus took a step back, allowing Shigi enough room to come to his feet. "What?"
Shigi extended a hand to his mother, urging her forward. Katani only stared, absolutely shocked at what she had just witnessed. Her eyes were focused on Venus.
"Venus, this is my mother, Katani," Shigi introduced them. "Mom, this is Venus, my life mate."
Venus nodded and took a step towards the female troll, who took a step back in response. "No," she replied. "She is not."
Shigi blinked. "W-what are you talking about?"
"How can your life mate be a dragon?" she asked, her voice fiery.
"Venus and I love each other," he said, his voice weak.
"How could you do this to me?" she screeched to her son. "First you join the Kingdom's forces, and now you're married to a dragon?"
"M-Mom!" he exclaimed, taken aback.
"Don't say a word," she hissed at him. She directed her attention to Venus. "What the hell did you do to my son? What the hell did you to him?"
Venus shook her head. "I-I did nothing!"
"Listen up, you damn bitch," Katani replied. "Stay away from him, you hear me? Do you understand me?"
Shigi interrupted her. "Mom, leave her alone. She's my life mate, I want her near me. You have no right to say anything like that to her."
Katani's rage filled eyes turned to her son's. "What do you mean, damn it? I can say anything I want, I'm your mother, and I'm telling you to stay away from this dragon. I don't want you near them. I want you here, with me."
"No!" he screamed. "You can't tell me what to do."
"Then you're not my son," she replied, her voice tainted with poison. "You are not my son anymore. Shigi's dead, he died in the war." She turned away from him and re-entered the tunnel, disappearing into the earth.
Venus burst into tears, chocking. She aimed her eyes at the floor and cried freely, moaning. Shigi rose a hand to comfort her, but she turned away and ran out the room. Shigi made to follow her, but Helix cut him off. "I'll take care of her," he whispered. "You go to your mother." Shigi nodded, and Helix dashed off after his sister.
Shigi turned to Spyro and Cynder, who nodded at him and angled their noses to the tunnel. He blinked his eyes and slowly entered the tunnel, crawling through the cold earth.
"I'm sorry about that," Spyro apologized to the leader of the trolls.
He shrugged. "It's perfectly understandable. May we just continue on as if nothing had happened?"
"Yes," replied Spyro. He then introduced each member of the task force one by one, also explaining who Helix and Venus were. "I'm the leader of this task force, and this is my lady, Cynder," he replied, pointing a claw at the dark dragoness beside him.
"Tell me your plan to liberate the colony," the troll demanded.
"We plan on killing General Vax by infiltrating the village, sir," Cynder informed him.
The troll shook his head. "Call me Comrade Leader, 'Sir' is too stuffy."
She nodded. "Right. Well, we originally planned to send in Shigi disguised as an imperial guard. He would destroy the guard towers himself, although we're not sure if he'll be discovered before he can finish. There is only one of him, and it will take him a while to take out all the towers by himself without being discovered."
The commander's eyes became wide. "He'll destroy the towers, and then my troops will enter from one side and yours the other."
"Right," Spyro said. "That's the plan."
"Brilliant," the commander said, chuckling. "You dragons are truly remarkable, it's no wonder your race is the oldest of any other."
"Thank you, Comrade Leader," Cynder said, blushing.
Helix located his sister outside of the ruins. Snow whipped across him, carried by violent winds, blinding his sight. His voice was carried away by the winds, as well as the sound of his feet crunching the snow beneath him, preventing Venus from hearing his approach. She was curled into a tight ball, sobbing into the snow.
Helix pressed a hand between her wings, causing her to start. When her eyes met his, she only cried harder.
"Come on, sis," he yelled to her in order for his voice to be heard over the impending blizzard. "We have to go back inside."
"No!" she yowled. "I don't want to be in there. I want to be left alone. I don't want to be near Shigi."
"He loves you," Helix replied.
"I don't care if he loves me. His mother disowned him. I don't want to get in the way of them. He's better off without me."
Helix shook his head as best as he could. "That's not true."
"How do you know?" she moaned. "He loves his mother, Helix. He doesn't need me to complicate things."
"And he loves you, Venus," he responded, pulling her chin up to force her eyes to lock onto his. "He will not give you up for his mother, nor the other way around. He loves both of you, and he doesn't want to lose either of you, alright?" Venus remained silent. "Do you understand?"
She nodded her head just slightly, tears spilling from her eyes at a more rapid rate.
"Now come on, let's get inside."
Helix led his sister into the temple and half-dragged her into a small, empty room. She collapsed into the corner, sobbing into her paws as Helix located an unused bear fur. He smacked the fur with his tail to remove the dust from it before he laid it over his sister and settled himself down beside her. He said nothing until she could cry no longer, and waited until she spoke.
"I-I don't think I can deal with this," she whispered to him.
"Of course you can," Helix replied. "You're strong Venus, and you should know that Shigi would give anything for you."
"But what if he dies?" she asked. "This is raid is dangerous, don't lie. Anything could happen to him. He means the world to me, brother, I don't think I can live without him."
Helix placed his paw on hers. "Sis, listen to me, alright? Shigi loves you. He will not let his mother, nor this raid keep him from loving you. He's been through hell, he's survived countless battles and this one is no different. You don't need to worry about anything."
"Mom? Mom?"
Shigi was searching through a large crowd of trolls for his mother. However, he could not find her.
"Excuse me," he said as he approached a troll just a few inches shorter than he. "Do you know where a female troll named Katani is?"
The troll nodded. "Yes, right now is her break, so you won't find her by the cauldron, but in her tent." He rose an arm and pointed towards a tent quite near the former throne of the Ice King.
Shigi bowed deeply. "Thank you." With that, he took off at a trot to his mother's supposed tent. Just before the flap, he took a deep breath, collecting himself. He curled his fingers into a fist and knocked on one of the poles. "Mom? It's me, Shigi."
Silence replied.
"Mom, I know you're in the there," Shigi told her. "I need to talk to you."
The shuffling of feet on a fur rug emerged from the tent, and the flap opened slowly inward, revealing Katani. She stepped to the side and mumbled. "Come in and sit down, I'll make us some coffee."
Shigi obliged his mother, seating himself cross-legged on the rug at the center of the tent. It was very small and could only fit five or six trolls if you packed them together shoulder to shoulder. He watched as Katani stumbled over to a low table with a pot atop it. She located two mugs on the floor, placed them on the table, and emptied the contents of the pot into the mugs. Taking both in her hands, she handed one to Shigi and sat herself down opposite him. Staring into the cup of cold, watery coffee, which smelled considerably like feet, Shigi took a small sip.
"Ugh," he whispered, pursing his lips together.
His mother had not noticed this action. "I'm sorry it's cold, but we've been instructed not to have fires within our tents, the risk of starting a fire is too great." She took a sip of the coffee. "I've gotten used to the taste by now. Coffee's quite a rarity here: this kind was brought to me by a troll that returned to the colony to bring his wife and children here. The wife fell on the ice while they were traveling here and hurt her leg, and I healed her to the best of my ability. He gave me this coffee in return."
Shigi rested his mug on the floor. "Mom, we have to talk."
She nodded her head. "Yes, let me speak first."
Shigi blinked. "Alright, go ahead."
Katani took another sip. "I'm sorry about what I did. I had no right to react to your relationship with that dragon the way I did."
"Her name is Venus."
She nodded. "Yes, Venus." She turned her eyes to Shigi, as she had been staring into her mug before. "I'm sorry about what I did. There's no reason for why I should have reacted that way. Nothing at all. Please, forgive me, my son."
Shigi smiled. "I forgive you, Mom."
"Just don't get yourself hurt, okay? Don't think you're a dragon now and try to jump off a building, and know you're not impervious to fire now, and when you have sex with her please wear a—"
"Mom, you don't have to worry," he said, chuckling. "it's all, okay?"
Katani nodded her head. "Yeah, okay."
Shigi rose from the fur and approached his mother, wrapping her in a warm hug. "Thanks so much, Mom. You don't know how much this means to Venus and me."
PAGE BREAK
"Venus?"
Venus rose her head in the direction of the sound and her eyes met Shigi's. "Shigi?" she gasped, her voice soft.
Helilx, who was lying beside her, rose to his feet. "Well, I'll leave you two alone," he said as he walked out of the room.
Shigi approached Venus slowly. He kneeled before her and wrapped his arms around her neck in a tight hug. He closed his eyes and lost himself inside of her. He was wrenched back into reality by her sobs.
"Venus?" he asked, pulling himself from her and staring into her eyes. "What's wrong?"
"Y-your mother...," she said, her voice trailing off.
The troll shook his head. "You don't need to worry about her, alright? I spoke to her, and she apologized. She brought me back, and she accepts you, Venus. You don't have to cry, my big hot draggy."
Venus chuckled. "Thank you, Shigi."
He pulled her back into a hug and they remained as such for several minutes. It was Venus who broke the silence. "Promise me you'll come back," she whispered to him. "Promise me you won't try to be hero. If you're discovered, please run! Hide! But don't fight, for the gods' sake!"
"Venus, I'll be fine," he murmured softly. "Your little troll isn't going to be killed by those royalist bastards."
She nodded her head. "I guess you are the former Cloaked Widow-Maker."
"Yes, Venus, baby. I know all their moves."
"It's settled," said the resistance leader. "I will have my partisans standing by the zeppelin ruins two-hundred meters north of the village. You and your task force," he said, eying Spyro, "will swim to the rear of the village. When Shigi detonates the charges, you will attack first. As soon as you have their attention I will charge with my partisans and together, comrades, we will reclaim our once peaceful island from those royalist pretenders. We won't have to worry about the villagers, however, even if they have but one brain cell for all to share, they'll take shelter in the underground storage facilities when they hear gunfire."
"We attack at midnight," Cynder said.
Comrade leader nodded his head. "Yes, when the trolls are half-blind."
"Sir—I mean, comrade leader, you still haven't told us your real name," stated Spyro.
The troll turned to face him. "My name is Van Vulture," he said with a bow. "Spyro, Cynder, you two may return to your dragons while I do the same for my people and prepare my partisans." He rose from the ice and headed back into the tunnel. On the other side of the tunnel, he ran across Katani. "Come, madam, I need you to prepare the food for my troops," he said, patting her back.
"I'll need more meat then if you expect your troops to perform to the best of their ability," she said, walking with him.
"Use as much as you need."
Inside of the throne room, the partisans and Van Vulture ate what could very well be their last meal—watery broth contrasted with massive chunks of rabbit meat. The trolls were gathered around their fires, laughing amongst themselves. Yes, they accepted death as long as it meant ripping apart the inhumane dogs of the kingdom and reclaiming freedom for their families.
The dragons were relaxing in a large atrium of the ruins. Spyro was seated before a wall watching the group with careful eyes. Meanwhile, Cynder was attempting to raise the morale among the task force. Shigi and Venus were kissing tenderly in a corner, her neck craned down so their lips could meet.
Cynder approached them. "Hey, Venus, Shigi."
They separated and turned to face her. "Yes, Cynder?" asked Venus.
"Is everything alright here?" she asked, noticing Venus's sad eyes.
"Yes," Shigi answered. "Well, not really. Venus thinks something's gonna happen to me tonight."
"You shouldn't have to go," she said, shaking her head. "There are other freedom fighters we could send."
He turned to face him. "Sweetie, you know I have to go. It's not fair for me to stay here while everyone else is sacrificing their lives. I'm the only one who knows how to set timed charges, and I have a good idea as to how they've organized the colony. I've been to countless cities like this, over taken by Queen Enola's troops." He rubbed her snout. "Don't worry about me, babe, I'll be here to celebrate with all the dragons and the partisans. Trust me, honey, I'm not going to die, I promise you."
She kissed him tenderly on the cheek. "Don't make a girl a promise you know you can't keep," she whispered.
Cynder, realizing the awkwardness of her standing there, shimmied away and approached Terrador. He was lying on the earth on his belly, his front legs crossed and his head down. "Hey, you big hunk of rock," she greeted him with a smile. "How's it going? How do you feel about taking out Den Vax."
He rose his head to meet her eyes. "Well, to be honest, Cynder, this is completely unexpected, and I'm scared shitless."
She blinked. "Why?"
"This Shigi," he began, shaking his head. "I know he has fought for us these past few days, but how do we know we can trust him?"
"He saved my life," she explained. "He even saved Jeenie's, and you know how much she wanted him dead."
"So you trust him?"
"With my life," she said firmly.
He shrugged. "Yes, I supposed all the evidence points to his loyalty—he's even the life mate of one of our kind."
Cynder smiled and turned to walk away, but froze in her tracks from Terrdor's voice. "Wait! Might I suggest something when for when we attack tonight?"
She twisted her head to face him. "Sure."
"We're swimming, right?" Cynder nodded. "Well, let's swim down under the ice, close to the village. We can jump through the ice and be almost immediately on top of them."
"Alright," Cynder replied. "I'll tell Spy."
At the pinnacle of a nearby mountain, Helix was seated on look-out duty. "Shit, it's freezing," he whispered to himself. He then caught sight of six armed trolls walking directly to the ruins. All seemed weak, and two of the six were limping. "Shit, Den Vax's scouts."
Pointing his nose to the sky, she shot a glittering spark into the sky to alert the others of the six intruders. One of the trolls positioned just outside the ruins caught sight of this and alerted all inside of the ruins of the oncoming trolls. Venus, Shigi, and Spyro sprinted out of the ruins and turned their eyes to Helix, who roared loudly.
Spyro took off from the ground and clung to the top of an abandoned watchtower. He too caught sight of Den Vax's troops. "Venus, Shigi!" he called. "There's intruders, come with me."
"Right," shouted Venus. Shigi jumped onto Venus's back and she took off at a run. Spyro took off into the sky, Venus and Shigi just behind. As they approached the troops, the intruders ceased they marching.
"They saw us," Spyro yelled.
"Why don't they just shoot at us already?" asked Venus.
"Spyro, I think they may be Van Vulture's troops," Shigi said.
"Well, they haven't fired at us yet, so let's fly lower and see if they are Van's troops." Spyro took a nose-dive towards the ice, Venus just behind. He straightened himself a yard or two above the trolls, who were waving their arms madly and jumping up and down.
"By the gods, brothers!" One shouted. "It's the dragons. Queen Enola is going to piss herself when she finds out they're here. Help, please!"
Spyro nodded his head, circling around them. "You're right Shigi, they're Van Vulture's troops. Venus, head down and speak with them, I'll head back to get help."
"Got it Spyro," yowled Venus as Spyro flew off in the direction of the ruins. Venus brought herself to a safe landing near the trolls, who limped over to her, excited.
"Thank you—thank the gods you have come, dragons, the head of the allied races," another soldier said. "Den Vax won't stand a chance." All of them cheered loudly.
"Yes. I am Venus O' Van Sea and more are coming to help you," Venus explained. 'With your cooperation, Dante's Freezer will once again be free."
"We have information about the defenses of the fishing village," he said. He opened his mouth to say something, but froze when he noticed Shigi on her neck. "Wait, dragoness, what is that on your neck?"
"This is my husband, Shigi O' Van Sea," she explained, angling herself so the trolls could get a good view at him.
"Your husband?" he asked, astonished. "But you are ten times his size."
"Well, lads, love seems to conquer all," Shigi explained, tickling her neck.
The troll blinked. "Wait, are you Shigi Hasethsmalvenam, the former warrior of Queen Enola's kingdom, known to the allied races as the Cloaked Widow-Maker?"
"Formerly known!" cried Venus. "He is now my husband and an agent of the guardians—"
She was about to say more, but was cut off by Spyro landing beside her along with Terrador, Helix, and Cynder. Van Vulture was on Helix's back, clutching desperately to his neck. "Oh, Spyro, these troops need medical attention," she explained. "They also say they have intelligence regarding the defenses of the fishing village.
Van Vulture slid down from Helix's side. "Well well, you six continue to surprise me," he said, smiling at his men. He turned around to face the dragons. "These are some of my finest fighters. They were due back this morning from the village, and when they didn't return I thought you have been discovered. You're damn strong freaks," he laughed, smiling at them. "Spyro, could you please carry these men back to the cave entrance. They need soup and dressings."
Spyro nodded his head. "Sure, Van." He leaned down onto the ice and the trolls spread themselves out among the dragons, who flew them back to the ruins. When they arrived, Van Vulture led the six inside for soup. "Thank you Spyro, Cynder," he said, nodding to them respectively. "Dragons truly are the only loving race on this god-forsaken rock." He bowed to the two and followed his comrades into the ruins.
All of the trolls and dragons had gathered in the throne room, mingling amongst themselves. Van Vulture was particularly interested in Shigi and Venus, who were cuddling in a corner. She was on her stomach, her tail curled around Shigi to keep him warm. Van approached them, curious. "It's astounding, Shigi, the way you have communicated and allied with these dragons—to the point that you have taken one of them as your wife! Has your mother come to terms with this relationship?"
Shigi nodded his head. "More than that, thankfully sir. She was quite shocked at first, as you saw, but she's calmed down."
Van smiled and turned to Venus. "Your flight is incredible! Even with Shigi on your back, you fly like an angel."
Venus blushed. "Oh, Shigi's a skinny little man. I could carry three of him and still fly alright."
Van nodded his head. "So, do you think any of the other dragons would be willing to carry troll marksmen on their backs? We have many marksmen who can shoot who are also willing."
She nodded her head. "I see what you're getting to, Van. And I don't see why the others wouldn't be willing to carry grenadiers and riflemen on our backs."
Spyro, who overheard the conversation from his perch above, glided over to the three. "Hey, I heard you guys talking, and I'd be glad to carry a grenadier on my back and Cynder is too. However, we do have little problem. We won't be able to fly because the town hall has anti-aircraft machine-guns on its roof."
Van nodded his head. "I have an idea about that. We drop an oil bomb on the roof and then launch an air strike to cover the ground troops."
"You mean we won't have to send Shigi in?" Venus asked, excited.
Van nodded. "At least not alone, but we do need him in our attack force, first wave. I'll lead the second wave of fighters."
Venus smiled, reassured. She licked Shigi's cheek. "Oh, don't let anything happen to you, little man," she said, nuzzling his chin.
Cynder, who was perched on the fortress wall, screeched with excitement. "Cyril has returned with reinforcements, Spyro. Let's meet the warriors."
All of the dragons as well as Shigi and Van Vulture rose from the ground and headed over to the gates to greet Cyril and the fire dragon warriors. Cyril led a group of six fire dragons to the ground. All of the fire dragons were covered from horns to tail in black chain mail.
Cynder gasped. "Cyril, you've brought our best warriors."
"I could have gotten more," Cyril explained, "but the risk of attack on the temple is too great."
Van nodded his head. "It will have to do, Cyril. We have a large fishing village to take back, and a bastard general to filet."
"Yes, Cyril," Spyro began. "We have a great plan, even more impressive than the last."
Night has settled upon Dante's Freezer as the resistance trolls and the dragons prepared for the raid. Helix has been ordered to lead the six fire dragons to bombard the town hall, as well as carpet bomb the rows of watch towers so the resistance will be able to enter the colony with little difficulty. Shigi was chosen to lead the first wave of fighting men, while Van Vulture was in charge of the second wave. The goal was to clear the town of royalist filth. Almost all would be in the towers of the city hall, but they would have to defeat hundreds of them.
Helix: Well, I'm a little nervous about having grenade throwers on our backs. I'm being outfitted with explosives hidden inside of my claws, which a troll can removed and light in a moment's notice. We'll burn those bastards tonight. For Avalar and for all who have died because of those trolls—even for my sister's husband.
Author: Please review with your honest opinion to help me improve my writing skills. Oh, and I'm looking for someone who's good at drawing cartoons. Please check my profile page for details. Chapter 12 will be a while, but I promise you it will be an epic battle.
