Chapter 5 – Stage Siege

The Totem Kommo-o beckoned Scizor and Hakamo-o to attack the transformed dragons, but their bolstered strength made them quick enough to evade their blows. Cynder knew that she would have to organise each of her teammates to handle each of their opponents accordingly in order to win the battle.

"Jakkin and Percival, you take care of the Hakamo-o," she said. "Lily and Torden, you'll battle the Scizor, and Draco, you and I will have the Totem Kommo-o."

"Alright, Cynder," said the dragons, and they all followed as she had instructed.

Jakkin and Percival went straight for the Hakamo-o, and it unleashed a flurry of attacks that they were able to deflect or dodge. They fought back and struck it directly with their own attacks, incapacitating it. Then, Jakkin used his Flamethrower attack to deliver the finishing blow, which finally knocked out the Hakamo-o. Lily and Torden were still battling it out with the Scizor as it was a bit tougher to take out, but soon they managed to wear it down until it was no longer able to battle. All that remains now was Cynder and Draco's battle with the Totem Kommo-o. The two dragons tried their hardest, even if their strength was evenly matched with the powerful Totem Beast. Fortunately, they got the upper hand, when after avoiding some of the Totem Kommo-o's deadly attacks, Cynder managed to stop it in its tracks with her fully-charged Plasma Burst. She then knocked the Kommo-o over to Draco, who proceeded to deliver the final blow with his Seismic Toss attack. He flew up into the air as he grabbed and held tightly on the Kommo-o, and then made several round loops before flying straight down rapidly, releasing the Totem Beast before touching the ground. This caused a devastating impact which blew dust everywhere, leaving everyone wondering if the Totem Kommo-o was finally defeated. When the dust settled, they could Draco standing, and on the crater lay the Totem Kommo-o, dazed and defeated from the Seismic Toss attack. The battle was over.

"Alright, you did it, Draco!" cheered the dragons. "Way to go!"

"Congratulations, Draco!" smiled Charonus. "I always knew that you had it in you!"

Cynder smiled and gave Draco a short kiss on the cheek, to which he responded with a deep blush.

"Man, that sure was one heck of a battle," he commented. "But we managed to overcome against all odds."

Reverting back to their regular selves, the dragons looked at the aftermath of the fight, and they could only agree that they did very well.

"Now then," began Cynder. "We better make our way up to the top of the canyon and meet up with Captain Kala."

Back at the top of Waimea Canyon, Captain Kala was waiting for the dragons to return. She had seen their battle from afar, and she was very impressed with their efforts. Not too long after some time of waiting, the dragons finally appeared.

"Well, then," she said. "I'm pleased to announce that you have successfully completed your island trial! Congratulations!"

"That is absolutely good news to hear, captain," said Cynder. "It sure was a very tough battle, but I'm glad that we have triumphed."

Captain Kala nodded in agreement. "Therefore, as a reward for all your efforts, I hereby present you this Z-Crystal, which I'm sure a good number of you will be able to make use of."

"Let me guess," said Charonus. "It's most likely going to be the Dragonium Z."

"What makes you so sure about that, Charonus?" asked Torden.

"My instincts just tell me," replied Charonus. "I think it's pretty obvious given that you guys have fought the Totem Kommo-o, and it's a dual element of dragon and fighting."

"You have guessed it correctly," said Captain Kala as she relinquished the Z-Crystal. "It is the Dragonium Z, and you better use it wisely like with the other Z-Crystals you have received in your other trials."

The dragons took a look at the Dragonium Z, and they were most impressed. It was blue much like the Waterium Z, except that it had a darker shade. Charonus was very fascinated by it, and he took a look at his own Dragonium Z. Both of them were identical in appeared. As Cynder grabbed the Dragonium Z and stored it in the Z-Ring, she bowed respectfully to Captain Kala. "We promise to be very responsible with the Z-Crystals, captain," she said.

"I'm very happy to hear that," she said. "And may you have learned a thing or two after completing the Island Challenge."

Just when the dragons were about to say something, a panicking voice called out for them.

"Cynder, Draco, Jakkin, Lily, Torden, Percival, Darky, Bowser, and Charonus, you better come quickly and help me!"

This grabbed their attention, and when they turned around, they saw Axl running towards them, and he was in such a state. "I knew I find you guys, here," he panted. "Please, I need your help right now!"

"What's going on, Axl?" asked Cynder.

"It's terrible!" exclaimed Axl. "A group of thugs have captured my band and they've been taken hostage! I was the only one who escaped, but I couldn't be able to take them on by myself! Surely you can be of assistance, can't you?"

"Do not worry, Axl, we'll try to help," said Torden, feeling outraged at the news. "Whoever these bastards are that have captured the Nightriders, they'll be sorry when I come to clean their clocks!"

"Thank you so much for offering to help!" said Axl, almost teary-eyed. "I don't know what I could be able to do without you!"

"Tell me something, Axl," said Cynder. "Who are those thugs who have captured your band members?"

"They are a trio of dragons," said Axl. "One is a girl, while two are guys. One of them is tall along with the girl, while another is a short one, and they claim to come from some sort of group called the Obsidian Devourers or something."

"Wait, the Obsidian Devourers?" exclaimed Draco, and he suddenly became furious when he realised who the assailants were. "Those three, it's the Pyre Squad!"

"I knew it would be those three causing trouble again!" hissed Torden. "I'm going to settle their hash if it's the last thing I do! Those three think they can mess with the Nightriders, well not on my watch!"

"We're going to save them," said Cynder. She turned to Captain Kala. "Sorry for the sudden departure, but we've got some business to take care of!"

"I can see that," said Captain Kala. "Good luck, everyone, and whoever those three troublemakers are, I hope you'll give them a good beating!"

Cynder nodded to the tigress, assuring them that they will.

"Follow me!" called Axl, and together, the group raced back to Hofgaard Park.

Meanwhile, the Pyre Squad pondered over the whereabouts of Axl as he was the only one who avoided falling for their trap they set up to capture the Nightriders. They couldn't imagine that even after using some inconspicuous disguises and luring the band under the pretence that they will get them ready for the concert quicker, things did not go according to plan. Nevertheless, they were sure Axl would come back, and that would be the perfect opportunity for them to ambush him. They turned to the captive members, who glared disdainfully at them as they were bounded by the ropes.

"I don't know who you creeps are," growled Rolf. "But you're not going to get away with this!"

"Please, just let us go already!" whimpered Lonnie. "I sure hope you're not planning to hurt us, what with tying us up and all that heinous stuff."

"We will once we have you and Axl do something for us," said Ciara. "You're just what we needed to bring us to stardom and glory!"

"What are you talking about?" asked Lucinda, doubtfully. "What do you need us for?"

"Oh, you shall see," said Scorcher, and he beckoned Cronk to come forward. The short dragon arrived carrying a piece of paper.

"My dear friends," he began. "We have here a wonderful inspirational anthem of our organisation, the Obsidian Devourers, and we want you to make it into a song!"

Cronk imposed the paper on the Nightriders, and they read the lyrics out loud.

The Obsidian Devourers,

The might to admire,

The world shall cower,

To the rise of our empire!

The Pyre Squad applauded, believing that their song's opening lyrics were indeed a work of art. The Nightriders, on the other hand, were disgusted, and they agreed with each other that the song was terrible as it promoted tyranny and oppression.

"What are you waiting for?" urged Ciara, impatiently. "We demand that you finish writing the lyrics to the song and make a melody to it at once!"

"We'll do nothing of the sort!" growled Brutus. "Your song is horrible and not good for the public audience!"

Ciara was enraged. "You will do the song, or there will be consequences!" she threatened.

But no matter how much the Pyre Squad argued, the Nightriders refused to give in. They did not notice however was that Axl returned with Cynder and her friends, and they were eavesdropping on the argument.

"So those goons wanted to use my band to make a song that promotes their evil organisation," he said, silently. "I'm not going to allow that to happen, no sir, my band is all about freedom, peace, and love!"

"How are we going to rescue your bandmates?" asked Lily. "We better find a way to do so without wrecking the stage."

Cynder thought deeply on the situation, and when she noticed some costumes laying on the backstage, she had an idea. "Axl," she said as she turned to him and her friends. "Since we're altogether in a group, we'll make a diversion while you free the rest of the Nightriders."

"Sounds like you have a plan, Cynder," said Axl, content that there is a chance to save the Nightriders. "Okay, let's get this over with!"