Wow, I haven't updated in a while have I?

I'll say, it's been about two weeks!

That was a rhetorical question Cain. Anyways, I'm gonna let you guys get on with chapter 12. Enjoy!

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Chapter 12: Return of Old Foes

When Blane and Talea arrived on the wall, they saw Spyro and Cynder already landing and both of them looked exhausted. When they saw Blane and Talea, they quickly hurried over to them.

"We have a huge problem," Spyro said seriously.

"What do you mean?" Blane asked, raising his eyebrows in alarm.

"Another army is headed this way," Cynder said, before adding hesitantly, "Gaul the Ape King and I are leading it."

"Come again?" Talea asked, confused.

"What Cynder means is," Spyro said, "that the form she had when she was under Malefor's control, Terror of the Skies Cynder, and Gaul are leading the army."

"That makes…a little more sense," Blane said, still slightly confused, "but we need to warn the citizens and get the women, children, and old to safety."

"Already working on it," said a voice behind Blane that made him turn around in surprise. It was Nguyen, a cocky smile on his face.

"I thought you'd left!" Blane said, happiness evident in his voice.

"I saw the army coming and decided that you might need an extra hand." He said, "And I didn't want the city to fall again."

"Alright," Blane said, his expression turning serious, "we need to split up so we can warn everyone."

"Cynder and I will take the west half of the city," Spyro said before he and Cynder took off into the air.

"I'll take the east half," Nguyen said before he did the same.

"And we'll stay here," Blane said, turning so he could look out over the wall and beyond. Talea stood next to him and they waited for the others to return.

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Spyro and Cynder flew over the city, shouting that the city was about to be attacked and that all that were able to fight were needed, while those who could not needed to get to shelter.

Nguyen, on the other side of the city, did the same. It wasn't long before the moles launched the alarm and the entire city knew of the approaching threat.

Spyro, Cynder, and Nguyen all helped get those who couldn't, or wouldn't, fight to the underground ruins of Old Warfang while more and more dragons, moles, cheetahs, and elves gathered at the gate and on the wall.

"It seems like only yesterday that I woke up to hear Spyro and Cynder arguing over what to do with me after I fell out of the sky," Blane said, his voice only loud enough that Talea could hear him, "now I'm about to protect a city from an army led by two foes that Spyro and Cynder fought in the past."

"But only two weeks ago you protected an Elven village and defeated Ragnarok," she pointed out, her voice barely above a whisper as well.

"Only because I had Cain's help," he reminded her, "and even then I couldn't bring myself to kill him."

"And that's what sets you apart from him," she told him, "You have restraint. You know when to kill someone and to let them go."

She's right, Cain's voice echoed in his head for the first time in weeks, I was, and still am, the darkness in you, but because of you I know honor and the difference between right and wrong. Before, in the other realm, when I got control of you, I would kill for the pleasure of it, now I offer my help to protect others from people who do that exact same thing.

"Cain agrees with you," Blane said, a humorous grin stretching across his face, "and he's becoming quite sentimental."

"Am not!" Cain's voice rang out, startling some of the others around them and causing them to look around in confusion.

"Maybe we should be a bit quieter," Talea giggled. Blane was about to say something in response when a dark, but familiar, presence entered his mind.

"Your city will fall again," the presence said, "and this time, it will not rise again."

"Get out of my head Ragnarok," Blane said aloud, through clenched teeth.

"None shall be spared," Ragnarok continued, "but I offer you one last chance to join me and rule this world."

"I told you before," Blane said, "I don't join those who control others."

"Then you shall face foes unlike any you have ever seen," Ragnarok said, "and these foes have some grudges to take out against the young purple dragon and his girlfriend."

Ragnarok's presence in Blane's mind faded before disappearing and he opened his tightly shut eyes to see Talea looking at him with concern.

"What did he say?" she asked him, worried.

"He told me that he's sending some old foes of Spyro and Cynder," he told her before adding, "and I don't think he's talking about the two we already know about."

As if in response to his theory, a large and menacing purple dragon flew over the wall and a dark shape jumped off his back. When the purple dragon, that Blane remembered was Malefor, and the smaller black dragon landed, several people tried attacking them. All of them were knocked away as the two dragons made their way to Blane and Talea. As the two dragons got closer, Blane saw that the black dragon looked almost exactly like Spyro. Just then, a wave of fire and shadow blasted Malefor, but the smaller dragon continued to move forward.

"I'll take Malefor!" Spyro shouted as he flew toward the massive bulk that was the Dark Master.

"I've got…" Cynder began to say before she stopped cold at the sight of the black dragon, "you."

"Who is this?" Blane said, blocking the dragon's path and dodging the attacks he made.

"It's…Dark Spyro…" Cynder said, her voice almost a whisper as Blane continued to fight the black dragon.

"Well, if you can't fight him, go help Spyro!" Blane shouted before blasting a wave of white fire from his maw. Cynder nodded and took off after Spyro.

When the white fire hit Dark Spyro, it seemed to just brush off the black aura emanating from his body. Talea blasted him with ice as Blane shot more white fire at him, but it still didn't even scratch him.

"This is insane!" Blane shouted, "We can't even scratch him!"

"There has to be a way!" Talea said as she and Blane dodged a purple blast that Dark Spyro blasted from his maw.

"Well we better come up with an idea soon," Blane said, blocking a swipe from Dark Spyro, "because we can't keep dodging and blocking forever!"

Dark Spyro slipped past Blane and hit Talea and sent her flying into the catapult, knocking over the catapult and sending her into unconsciousness. Blane felt an overwhelming rage overcome him and turned to look at Dark Spyro, dark runes beginning to cover his body and dark smoke beginning to curl off his body. He began walking towards Dark Spyro slowly, and with every step he took his body took on a more evil and menacing shape. When he stood in front of Dark Spyro, who was frozen to the spot in pure terror, his body was almost completely black, the only trace of his silver scales were in the form of strange runes, and his horns had turned a very dark black. His eyes, though, were the most terrifying: they continuously changed color, going from brown to red and then to black before the cycle restarted.

"You have attacked my city," Blane said, his voice seeming dark and evil, "and then injured the one I care most about, for that you must pay."

Blane grabbed Dark Spyro by his neck and flew high into the air and throwing him down so fast he couldn't open his wings. Dark Spyro hit the ground so hard that every bone in his body shattered. He let out one last breath before he died.

Blane looked at Dark Spyro's mangled corpse before he looked up and saw the army approaching; a large ape with a crystal for an eye, twin swords on his back, and a staff in his left paw and next to him was a huge black dragon with a blood-red underbelly leading it.

Blane took off at a blinding speed towards the army, his form only a blur to those looking at him. He stopped when he was a few feet in front of the army and hovered there, looking over the army.

"Drop your weapons and turn back unless you wish to die in agony," Blane said, letting his gaze pass over the entire army before settling on the two leading it. He waited for any movement that would tell him they were heeding his words, but no one in the army moved; they just watched him.

The ape, that Blane realized must be the Ape King Gaul, lifted his staff and a green beam shot out of it. Blane saw coming at him as if it were in slow motion and dodged it with ease. Then the dragon, that Blane realized must be Terror of the Skies Cynder, took flight and flew at him. She blasted a dark fireball at him, but when it was inches away from him he deflected it towards the Ape King. Gaul punched it with his fist and the fireball shattered underneath his blow.

Cynder blasted a wave of dark fire at Blane, but he stood there and let it hit him. When Cynder stopped, Blane still hovered there, not a scratch or burn on him. Cynder roared in frustration and flew at him, swiping madly. The claws raked across his chest several times, but it only left small cuts that bled little. Blane grabbed Cynder by one of her horns and threw her at Gaul. She hit Gaul and crushed him beneath her bulk, a sickening crunching sound proving that the Ape King was dead.

Cynder got up and shook her head before turning to the army and shouting, "Attack you fools!"

The army began to move forward, some launching arrows and magic attacks as they did. Blane dodged them, sending whitish-black fire as he did. When the fire hit some of the army, it spread among them and soon the entire army was alight with white-black fire.

Cynder roared in frustration and flew at him at blinding speed, but to Blane she was moving as slow as if she were moving through water.

When she was inches away, Blane's paw was alight with white-black fire and he punched her in her chest with enough force to shatter two of her ribs and break another. Cynder let out a cry of pain but she was silenced when Blane grabbed her by her horn and threw her into the remains of the army. She crushed several under her bulk, but she didn't get up and was deathly still.

Blane hovered there for a long while, watching with no emotion as the rest of the army died under the pain of his earlier attack. When none were moving, Blane turned around and flew back to the city. As he was flying back, he saw Malefor, who was covered in gashes and burns, flying the opposite way but he paid him no mind. Blane stopped and hovered, watching Malefor fly into a surrounding mountain range before he continued back to the city.

When he landed on the wall, the black faded from his scales and his eyes settled on brown. His horns returned to their normal ivory color and he felt a huge wave of exhaustion hit him. He collapsed to the ground and everything went black.

The last thought in his mind before he slipped into unconsciousness was, What have I done?

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Okay, I'll try not to take so long on the next update but no promises! Tell me what you think, I like reviews so don't be afraid to!