Chapter 11

The Descendent of Evil

Following the incident with Cosmo and Everest, the snowy forest became docile and quiet. Whatever that ball of darkness actually was, it never showed itself again. As the day passed, Cosmo put his mind into figuring out what he saw emerge from beneath the pond's ice. However he couldn't come up with any convinced conclusions. From what Archie told him, the organization he used to work for was responsible. While he had no real evidence to support that theory, Cosmo took it into consideration. After all, they apparently had no respect for the dragon realm. He could only speculate that what he saw was connected to this stone fragment he was told about. If that were the case, perhaps the best course of action was to find the stones before the UCA did.

The next morning was quiet around the cabin. Not a lot of snow fell throughout the night, making the forest easy to walk through. While the day was calm, Cosmo and Isis decided it was best to start making use of their wings again. While it felt a bit embarrassing to have Everest watch with a cracked smile, the two of them did what they could to fly. Even Orion decided to spend his morning watching two dragons attempting to fly, finding the situation amusing enough to devote his day away.

While that was going on, Archie was doing what he could do provide food for the upcoming night. Equipped with a bow and an arrow quiver wrapped around him, the human slowly made his way westward, hoping to find some deer. Normally Everest would provide for him, but he couldn't rely on her all the time. While it was a bit chilly, the thick coat he wore kept him toasty.

Archie's mind wandered as he walked. With the UCA doing who knows what by now, he couldn't help but wonder what was going to happen next. Taking the relic fragments was a given, but there would be consequences for doing so. Not just to them, but to everyone who called this realm home. Maybe it was time for him to finally commit to the bigger steps he promised himself to take.

Finally Archie spotted movement out of the corner of his eye. Assuming it was a deer, he quickly reached into the quiver on his back and pulled an arrow out. Readying his bow, he aimed towards his right to spot what he had been looking for. A large buck eating berries off a low bush, failing to take notice of the human approaching him from behind.

But it would be for naught. As soon as Archie pulled his arrow back, something spooked the deer, causing it to run off as quickly as possible. Before he could question anything, the reason showed itself. In the distance Archie could make out what was clearly a dragon duo approaching him. Putting his arrow back in the quiver, he quickly took cover behind the nearest tree.

"Don't you hide!" the dragon called out. "I saw you! Come out!"

Archie cursed his luck. While he didn't want to, he did so anyways. A dragon could easily catch up to him if they actually wanted to so running was out of the question. Sighing in defeat, he placed his simple bow around the quiver on his back and came around the tree with his hands in the open, showing he meant no harm.

As the two dragons approached, Archie began to recognize them. It seemed as if his luck wasn't too bad after all. None other than Spyro and Cynder quickly made their way before him. They instantly recognized him in return from a previous encounter.

"Archie?" Spyro began in question

Archie put his hands back down, assuming they knew he wasn't going to hurt them in any way. "Relieving to see it's only you two."

"What are you doing here?" Cynder asked.

"Hunting," the human answered immediately. "Have to eat you know. You?"

"Looking for a relic fragment," Spyro replied. Seeing as it was Archie, who already knew what was going on, the purple dragon figured it wouldn't be any trouble to tell the human what he and Cynder were doing.

Archie almost seemed a bit surprised. "A fragment? What for?"

"So we can guard it. There's a human who is taking them and we have to stop him before he causes permanent damage."

"Do you mean the UCA?"

Spyro shook his head. "I don't think so. This human didn't use any weapon you showed to us in the Elder Hall. He wore an enchanted cloak and wielded a sword."

"Are you kidding me?" Archie began, suddenly aghast at what he was told. "Is he native to your world?"

"He must be," Cynder replied, sure of herself. "We've seen humans like that in the past, but this one said he could use the relic fragments power for himself."

"It gave him an edge when we fought him," Spyro added.

Archie shook his head disapprovingly. "So not only do we have a power hungry organization of humans from my realm, there's another human from this realm who is also taking these fragments? Are we dealing with maniacs or is there something going on we don't know?"

"That's one reason we want to find this other human," Spyro answered.

Cynder nodded in approval. "We want to ask him a few questions about his motives. What his ultimate goal is. Is he really after the relic's power or is it something else?"

"In any case," the purple dragon continued. "We're going to find him, but if it gets down to it we may have to pay a visit to the Chronicler Ignitus. He'll most likely have a record or something about the stones everyone seems to be after."

It was a bit to take in but Archie understood the information he was given. It seemed like the most logical thing to do for the moment. "I've heard the name Chronicler once but I don't exactly know who he is."

"He's a very wise dragon with a large library of history and knowledge," Spyro explained. "He's had answers to our questions in the past. I don't doubt he could help us if we asked. Especially considering what's at stake."

"Then I will join you."

Spyro looked at Archie unexpectedly. "Are you sure? This man was pretty dangerous."

Archie nodded without hesitation. While he didn't want the relic fragments to fall into UCA hands, he had no idea who this other man was. He had a few questions for this man himself, but the biggest one he had for the moment was simple. Who was the lesser of these two evils?

Silently, Spyro continued his trek on the same path he was on. Cynder and Archie followed. The purple dragon wasn't sure about bringing Archie along though. The mysterious man he faced seemed to be some sort of magician swordsman. He didn't want to jump to conclusions, but Archie was an ordinary human. Unless he was hiding a big sword underneath that coat of his, Spyro didn't know if Archie would last long against the relic thief. But maybe he would surprise him.

"You ran my dinner off by the way," Archie said suddenly. "Thanks for doing the thing you did."

"I'm so sorry," Spyro retaliated with sarcasm.

Cynder couldn't help but grin. She forgotten about that personality of his. "Tell you what . . . whenever we find what we're looking for I'll buy you dinner myself."

"What about Everest? I have two other guests staying at my place as well. They might feel left out."

"What guests?"

"You probably wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try us," Spyro replied.

Archie was quiet for a moment. While he wasn't told by Cosmo and Isis to keep their existence a secret, he knew better than to open his mouth about it. He already said too much without thinking.

"It's not my place to say. Maybe after our quest is done I'll consider it." Archie plainly answered.

The two dragons had nothing to say in response. While they were obviously curious of these guests both of them silently knew Archie wasn't going to talk. Spyro just hoped they were friendly, unlike the UCA he had been hearing about. Turning back toward the path he and Cynder were on before, he continued his search. Cynder and Archie quietly followed.

Besides the occasional sound of wildlife it was mostly quiet. A little bit too quiet for Spyro's liking. While he had been in Warfang, he had grown used to the hustle and bustle in the short time he called the city home. The purple dragon forgotten how peaceful the bliss of nature could be, despite the chill in the air and the snow beneath his feet. He looked over at Cynder for a moment in thought. She took notice and showed a loving smile. Spyro seemed too distracted to notice. The black dragoness didn't take any offense.

Spyro turned toward Archie in wonder about the human. He wanted to learn more about him as they continued down the path before him.

"So this UCA group," Spyro began. "How do you know so much about them?"

Archie didn't act surprised to hear the question. It seemed like he was expecting it. "I used to work for them."

"You worked for them?"

"I did. They didn't always used to be so . . . ."

"Territorial?" Cynder guessed.

"Yeah I guess you can say that. When we found a portal to this world a few of us went inside out of sheer curiosity. We found this world, stuff happened, and heard rumors along the way. One rumor about your magical relic fragments. Apparently since most of my people are stupid, one thing led to another. I rebelled against them and saved Everest from their clutches along the way."

"Why did they have Everest?" Spyro asked.

Archie sighed depressingly. "It was my fault. You see . . . there was one thing I left out on purpose when I visited your city and spoke with your boss."

While Spyro didn't really consider Relic as his boss, he said nothing and let him continue.

"The relics aren't as strong as they used to be. Apparently the only way to power the stones back to their original form is with the souls of dragons."

"So what then?" Cynder began. "You can't exactly catch the soul of a dragon. No one can."

"I'm afraid you're wrong Cynder. I don't exactly know how, but they've built a machine used to siphon dragon souls. The agency has already taken many souls already. Several villages have been raided and destroyed, but it's not enough. If it comes down to it, the UCA will send trained soldiers through the portals and invade the more populated areas."

"You can't be serious?" Spyro questioned, very much stunned to what he had heard.

"As serious as stubbing your toe I'm afraid. While the thought of finding the stones first did cross my mind I didn't think I would be doing it so soon."

While it was information Spyro and Cynder didn't want to hear, it was information nevertheless. Hearing that the agency was taking souls of dragons wasn't good news though.

Cynder couldn't help but ask, "What happens to the dragons who have their souls taken?"

"They become lifeless husks," Archie answered almost regretfully. "From what I know, their souls are stored in special containers. The body of a dragon though . . . I don't know. Whether they're just thrown out or also stored somewhere is a mystery to me."

"Do you happen to have any leads to where a relic might be located?" Spyro began, a chilly breeze brushing by as they walked.

"Me and Everest did think about it and discussed in the past when we figured out the UCA was after them. They already found one fragment close by on the outskirts of Velxtra Forest. We came up with a theory that there would be other relics surrounding the forest as well."

"Then good news, we're on the outside of it," Spyro informed. "We should keep an eye out for anything suspicious. Just try not to go left or you might get lost."

Archie took his suggestion with caution. While he heard the story of the enchanted forest with no entrance or exits, he never was one to believe something unless he seen real evidence of it. But he knew better than to question Spyro, Cynder, and Everest about the matter. Keeping an eye out, Archie made sure to do his part in the search as they made their way around the rather large forest.

As they walked, Spyro and Cynder kept quiet about the whole situation. Some time passed, but the scenery stayed the same. Trees and the occasional deer. Spyro wasn't surprised. Even animals knew to stay away from the forest.

But then something caught Spyro's eye. Turning toward movement off in the distance, the purple dragon spotted a familiar creature hovering above the snow.

"What's that?" Spyro asked, pointing toward the animal.

"Not sure," Cynder began. "Let's get a closer look."

Archie made sure to keep his bow ready as he followed Spyro and Cynder. Approaching the creature, he took note that whatever it was, it was some kind of giant fly. It had dark yellow fur sticking out of its back, dark blue skin, red eyes, and two clear see through wings flapping to keep airborne.

"Wait a second. That's a grublin!" Spyro said in surprise.

The grublin turned toward the noise, the saw it had company. Turning back around, it began to flee from danger. Running after it, Spyro, Cynder, and a confused Archie stuck close behind. He figured he would get some answers later of what this thing actually was.

It didn't take long to catch up to the grublin however. Spyro leaped for it, collided against it in mid-air knocking it down to the cold ground below. The fly like creature flapped its wings in terror as the purple dragon approached it with caution.

"Stop!"

The sudden voice made the purple dragon freeze in his tracks. Looking off to his side, Spyro saw another creature, who he thought he would never see again.

Wearing a tattered circular hat was a mole with a brown stick in his hand. Light gray bushy eyebrows along with a light gray mustache, the gray mole pointed his stick toward the two dragons and human, almost as if he were scolding them. He also wore thick brown pants to protect him from the freezing temperature.

Spyro looked at the mole unexpectedly. "Is that a Manweersmall?"

"I think it is," Cynder added.

The mole put his makeshift cane back down to use as support as he made his way over toward them. He looked toward the grublin, who was now sitting in wait, unafraid of the dragon that was in front of him.

"What do you think you're doing?" the mole began, scolding the purple dragon.

"That grublin is a follower of Malefor," Spyro answered. "I was just—"

"Not anymore!" the mole exclaimed. "Malefor controlled the grublins. When he was defeated they fled the land to live their own life. The one's that stayed behind are under my care." He stopped for a moment then looked the purple dragon over. Spyro knew moles were blind and relied on their other senses. It didn't make them defenseless though. "Your voice is familiar. Say more words!"

"Uh . . . hello there?"

"I knew it! It's you Spyro! I thought I recognized that smell! It's me Mole-Yair."

Spyro knew he saw this mole from somewhere before. "I remember now. I haven't seen you since I rescued you and your people from a pirate ship."

"That is correct. After the incident we finished building Warfang. When our work was completed we moved on to our own home."

Cynder was unfamiliar with Mole-Yair but could tell by his voice he was old. Archie was leaned back up against a tree, watching the conversation take place.

"But tell me," Mole-Yair continued. "Why are you and your companions here?"

"Me, Cynder, and Archie are looking for a relic fragment," Spyro answered, getting straight to the point. "There is an enemy who is attempting to steal them. We're hoping we can stop him."

While Mole-Yair was familiar with Cynder's past, he knew she wasn't evil anymore. Archie on the other hand was a mystery to him, but didn't seem interested enough to ask who he was. "And who is this enemy?"

"We don't have any names but he is a human. There are also other humans who are also looking for the fragments. We are hoping to find the stones first."

"I see," Mole-Yair began, stroking his mustache in thought. "I'm not familiar with humans. After Warfang was complete me and my people built our own home deep underground. As we dug, we found something that might be interesting to you. An underground lake with one of these stones you seek."

"A relic fragment is underground?"

Mole-Yair nodded. "Of course! Perhaps you would like me to show you?"

"Please do," Spyro answered.

Meanwhile

The familiarity of flying was all coming back to him. Cosmo flapped his wings as he hovered above the treetops, staying stationary as he did so. It was all so simple now. Isis was also getting the hang of it, but was flying around the area at a slow pace. Everest and Orion watched from below, making sure everything was going smooth. The white scaled baron was happy to see her newest two friends having progress in their goal. Orion on the other hand seemed a bit unimpressed. The small fox yawned, becoming bored of what he was watching. Everest ignored him however. He was cute, but she didn't know enough about the fox to really get close to him.

Some time passed as it only grew easier and easier to stay airborne. Taking after Isis's example Cosmo began to fly around. The black fur dragon was all too happy to perform a quick barrel roll here and there. Showing off as usual. He looked downwards to see Everest and Orion sitting down in the snow near the cabin. The dragoness waved in return toward him, the fox however seemed to be looking into the snowy woods behind the cabin.

Deciding to take a break, he landed in front of Everest. She simply showed a smile.

"Tired?"

"A little bit," Cosmo answered. He looked toward Orion, who was still spaced out with his eyes looking toward the trees behind the cabin. "You okay Orion?"

The fox snapped out of his thoughts and looked back toward Cosmo. He nodded, forcing a grin. "Yep!"

"You sure?"

"Of course!" the fox assured. "Well . . . just thinking I guess."

Cosmo was a bit intrigued at this point. "About?"

Orion's ears flopped back a bit. ". . . It's nothing. Nothing important anyways."

This was a side of Orion that Cosmo never seen before. He always seemed the carefree type. The state he was in now just seemed unnatural. "Are you sure? You're welcome to talk about it."

"I guess it's about the relic fragments that keeps getting mentioned," Orion began. "If the UCA that Archie kept mentioning finds all of them what do you think will happen to us?"

"That won't happen," Cosmo assured. "The reason we're here is to prevent that from happening. You won't have to imagine what would happen because it won't. We just have to take it one step at a time. Me and Isis will start trying to use elements soon enough. I can already use electricity thanks to a guard."

"I suppose not," Orion replied.

Cosmo looked down upon the fox, but could only see a slight smirk on his face. "Was that all that was on your mind?" The yellow dragon wasn't good at pep talks, but supposed it would have to do for now.

The canid made a simple nod, but said nothing in return. Cosmo looked up towards Everest to see her familiar reassuring smile she always seemed to wear.

"So you're going to re-learn the elements hmm?" Everest began.

"It will be useful later I'm sure," Cosmo quickly answered. "If we run into any more humans we'll be ready. Speaking of elements . . . what do you know about them?"

"A little bit of this, little bit of that," the dragoness answered, performing hand, or paw, motions to go along with it. "Sixteen elements. Grade school stuff from my village."

"Any way you can tutor me and Isis?"

Everest was a bit taken aback by the sudden request. "Me? But you already know the elements yourselves. It's just a matter of reconnecting your mind and soul with your inner fire. Besides, I'm just an ordinary dragon."

"Someone like you ordinary? You're anything but that Everest. You know who taught me about the elements my first time?" A quiet moment passed before he continued. "A cat."

"Isis?" Everest guessed. "I've heard the story of her from the locals in Warfang."

"She wasn't even able to use any element, but helped me all the same. I have no doubt you can help me and Isis."

Everest couldn't help but feel her face flush for a moment. While she was sure she wouldn't be of much help, Cosmo insisted. Perhaps she could at least give it a try.

"Alright," Everest simply said.

Walking back toward the cabin, the two dragons began discussing of what to do first. Orion however had his gazed fixed back toward the trees behind the cabin.

His goals were in sight.

Meanwhile

Following Mole-Yair seemed to be paying off in the end. After following the mole, who wanted to bring along the grublin from earlier, Spyro, Cynder, and Archie found themselves in a dark cavern that jutted out from the ground a little ways away from the edge of Velxtra Forest. While it was dark, Mole-Yair simply informed Spyro that some of the rock were natural light absorbers. Letting loose a stream of fire, the rocks soaked up the light it gave and let out a bright greenish glow illuminating the cavern. While Spyro had heard of this kind of rock in the past, he never actually seen it before. It was interesting to see how it worked.

The cavern descended into the depths as it twisted and turned. There were very few forks in the path, but Mole-Yair seemed to know where he was going. Continuing on as Spyro illuminated the path with his flames, the group eventually reached a rather large room. Letting loose more fire, the cavern soaked up the light and did its job of giving light. While it was dim, everyone inside was able to make out what was going on.

"Here we are," Mole-Yair began, his old voice echoing throughout the cavern chamber. "I'm sure this is it."

"It doesn't look like anything is here," Archie replied as he walked around the area.

Spyro agreed. He looked around with Cynder but didn't see anything that resembled a relic fragment, or even a lake like Mole-Yair claimed there was. It seemed to be just a big empty cavern room.

Mole-Yair chuckled to himself as he and his accompanied grublin began making their way toward the left side of the cavern. "Such children," he said to himself. Approaching the wall, he stopped for one moment, then stepped forward.

Spyro, Cynder, and Archie turned around after exploring the cavern thoroughly, but found nothing in the process. What the purple dragon did see was a missing mole.

"Mole-Yair?" Spyro called out. He looked around the room, but only saw the grublin that the mole was apparent friends with. The grublin looked towards them, but said nothing. It only turned towards the rock wall behind it and walked.

The purple dragon was then astonished to see the grublin phase right through the wall, almost like it didn't exist. Turned toward Cynder and Archie, he saw the surprised looks on their faces.

Mole-Yair's voice suddenly echoed through the cavern. "What are you waiting for? I'm not getting any younger!"

Deciding not to waste any more time, the trio made their way to the wall the grublin simply walked through and did so themselves with caution. Spyro felt nothing as he stepped through the wall. It was too odd to him. Cynder and Archie followed closely behind.

Reaching the other side, Spyro was greeted with a bright illuminated cavern. The light source was unknown for there weren't any glowing rocks, but what stood in front of him was astonishing. Mole-Yair's tale of the underground lake turned out to be true. A large lake sat in front of them with several stalagmites jutted upwards out of the waters. At the direct center was a small island with some sort of shrine built on top of it. If Spyro didn't know any better, that looked like a place a relic fragment would be.

"A fake wall?" Cynder began, almost breathless to the scenery before her.

"The illusion of a wall," Mole-Yair corrected. "Illusion is the trickery of the eye. As the Manweersmalls expanded this cavern we found this."

"Someone who is blind and relies on other senses would have had no trouble finding this," Archie said. "Anyone else though would have trusted their eyes."

Walking towards the lakes edge, Spyro looked out towards the island in the middle. The light source seemed to be emanating from there the strongest. This cavern was amazing. He would have never though such a thing would have existed underground.

"My my my," a voice suddenly spoke out from behind. Quickly turning around, Spyro bared his teeth as he noticed another human was present. "I would have never found this place myself. I must thank you for the assistance."

"You!" Spyro exclaimed, instantly recognizing him. Regardless of the heavy clothing the human had wrapped around his body, both dragons instantly knew who this was.

Pulling out his bow, Archie looked towards the new company, having a good idea of who this human was.

"What's going on here?!" Mole-Yair exclaimed in anger. "I don't know who you are but you are not welcome here! Leave immediately!"

"I'm afraid I can't do that," the human replied. "Not without the temporal stone."

"You're going to have to go through me!" Spyro threatened. "You're not getting the stone. The world must stay in balance!"

"Oh how clueless you actually are purple beast," the human sneered. "The world is already out of balance. Taking the stones will do nothing now."

"What are you talking about?"

"Listen to me well Spyro. I will have that stone, sooner or later. It's only a matter of time. I already possess one stone. I have become more powerful than what I once was."

Spyro flared his wings in response. Cynder and Archie stood right beside him, ready to fend off this intruder if need be. Mole-Yair and his grublin took refuge behind the trio, knowing that whatever was going on he would only get in the way.

"You already bragged about that garbage to me one time before," Spyro retorted. "If you're as powerful as you say you are then why run away?"

The human smirked. Reaching into his dark gray cloak, he pulled out his sword. "Then allow me to properly introduce myself. My name is Verus Nexis."

Spyro went wide-eyed. Verus begun muttering words under his breath, setting his sword ablaze with its enchantment. Pointing his sword toward the two dragons and human, he showed a slight smirk. Then Verus pulled his hood down, completely revealing his face. It was slightly surprising to see gray hair on his head.

But before he could question anything, Spyro was charged by Verus very quickly. His first instinct was to summon an earth shield from the rock below him. The enemy's fiery sword stabbed through easily, but stopped halfway. Letting the shield drop, Spyro quickly let his fire free, forcing Verus to shield himself with his enchanted cloak.

As he was occupied, Cynder took the opportunity to quickly strike with poisonous claws. Verus simply jumped to the side, avoiding her attack, and Spyro's flames. An arrow flew by his head, making him look behind the two dragons to see Archie readying another arrow.

Spyro growled then let loose a bolt of lightening toward Verus. He merely blocked it with his sword however. Before the purple dragon could retaliate, Verus stretched his arm out, then let loose electricity of his own. His attack was quick, but luckily missed. Taking it as an opportunity, Spyro fired an earth missile straight toward Verus. But in a blur, the human dodged to the side, avoiding it entirely as it sailed on, hitting the wall in the back of the cave. Spyro was sure that was the relic fragment's power at work. The purple dragon wasn't familiar with the movements of this enemy yet, but if he had whatever power was left in the relic fragment he held, who knew what he could actually do.

"Not bad," Verus begun, almost sounding pleased. "So far."

Verus charged forward rather quickly, giving Spyro little time to react. Cynder however was ahead of the game. Summoning the element of wind, she forced Verus to a mere walking pace. Bringing an old lesson into play, Spyro mustered the element of ice and combined the two elements together, creating a mighty ice cold blizzard. Verus slowed to a halt as frost began forming on his cloak. Spyro thought they had him. But he was wrong.

Lifting his hand, Verus charged a green elemental attack as he braced himself to prevent from being knocked down by the winds. Spyro barely made out what he was doing, but knew it wasn't good. As Verus pointed toward the dragon, Spyro ceased his attack immediately and threw himself on the ground. Suddenly a green beam of energy flew over his head, barely missing his horns. It only lasted for a second, but it was enough to give Verus enough time to charge forward toward him with an outstretched sword. But before he could reach him, Verus was forced to swing at an arrow, cutting it in half in mid-air. It was a minor distraction, but it was enough for him not to notice Cynder's poisonous claws rake through his cloak.

Backing off, Verus was forced to throw his cloak away, seeing that the poison seemed to spread. "I should have noticed you were close, even if you cloaked yourself with shadow."

"You're outnumbered Verus," Spyro spat. "Give it up."

"Perhaps, but I do have one trick up my sleeve to even the odds."

Then almost in an instant, Verus did one thing that nobody was expecting. The human split into four copies himself on the spot. The process was quick, and before Spyro could do anything, he was looking at four doppelgangers of Verus. Same clothes, same sword. It was impossible to tell them apart.

"What trickery is this?" Spyro began, angered by this dilemma.

There was no answer from any of the Verus's that stood before him. Instead one of them charged forward toward Spyro with his sword pointed toward him. Spyro jumped to the side, avoiding the attack entirely then quickly countered with an earth missile through his back. The attack only went clean through however. The doppelganger of Verus rippled, then vanished without a trace.

Turning back around, another double jumped Cynder, who also avoided the attack. She attempted a counter with her claws, but the double evaded and swung his sword, which seemed to still be ablaze with fire. The black dragoness shrouded herself in shadow, rendering herself completely invisible. Before the double could react, dark claws raked across his back. The doppelganger dropped his sword before rippling much like the other, then vanished from existence. Cynder reappeared then stared down the last two Verus's in front of them. One of them was real. But which one was it?

Suddenly both Verus's charged forward. Spyro quickly launched an ice spike toward the head of the left one, who didn't even bother to dodge. Instead, it took the attack, making the spike fly straight through. The doppelganger rippled for a moment, then vanished. The other had to be the real one.

Verus swung his sword with fury toward Cynder, but Spyro formed an earth shield in front of her. The human turned toward the purple dragon in anger, then attacked. Swinging his sword vertically, Spyro jumped to the side. Cynder was by his side within the second then flung poison toward the human, who simply evaded it all together. Verus sprinted forward toward Cynder with his sword ready to cut through her neck, but an arrow whizzed by her head, planting itself directly into Verus's chest. Or so they would have thought. The arrow only fell straight through, revealing that this was just another doppelganger of Verus, which rippled away a moment later.

"What's going on? Where's Verus?" Spyro began, frantically searching around the area.

"Fled?" Archie guessed.

"Not likely," Spyro replied. But as he looked around, he began to grow worried. Verus was nowhere in sight. He turned back toward the lake's water then set his eyes on the distant island. Then he realized it.

"This was a distraction!" Spyro exclaimed. Before he could explain, the caverns main light source began to flicker. He looked out in the water with intense eyes. "We have to stop Verus! He's taking the relic fragment!"

Everyone including Mole-Yair and his grublin began running the path beside the lake toward the island. The lights began to flicker once more and dimmed, making the cavern become darker than before. As the group nearly reached a rock path connecting to the island, the cavern lights suddenly cut, leaving everyone in near darkness. It seemed that there was a few light absorbing rocks, but it didn't give enough light to let them see clearly.

"Blast it! He's getting away! We won't be able to see him!"

"Then let me take the lead boy," Mole-Yair replied.

Running ahead, the mole began crossing the bridge with everyone closely behind. Quickly arriving at the relic's shrine, Mole-Yair opened his senses further. Footsteps and breathing behind him, and distant steps toward his left.

"That way!" Mole-Yair pointed.

It was tough to see, but Spyro leaped into action as his eyes were slowly adjusting to the darkness around him. Sprinting along the small rock island's edge, the purple dragon saw a shadow moving ahead of him.

"So you wish to stop me Spyro?" Verus's voice echoed.

"I don't have to wish," the purple dragon threatened.

Getting closer to the shadowy figure, Spyro readied himself and leaped forward with his sharp claws extended. But it was for nothing. The purple dragon fell through the figure and hit the ground below. Spyro growled as he stood to his feet, only to see the figure he spotted ripple into nothingness.

Then a familiar voice echoed from across the cavern. "I'm afraid you're chasing nothing but illusions."

Spyro pounded the rock below with his paws in anger, unable to believe what had happened. He failed again.

"It's alright Spyro," Cynder reassured, patting his back when she approached his side.

"It's not Cynder. Do you know who that was? Who that man really was?" When he didn't hear any answers he continued. "Verus Nexis? He's a descendent of Ismeral Nexis."

"I thought as much," Cynder simply replied.

Archie sighed in annoyance as he stowed his bow on his back once again. Looking over toward the relic's original shrine, he couldn't help but walk over to take a closer look.

Spyro stood to his feet, taking a deep breath to calm himself. "I don't doubt it for a second that he wants to use the relics somehow to bring Ismeral back from the void. If that is the case, we can't let that happen."

"I'm sorry Spyro," Mole-Yair began as his grublin sat beside him. "I should have known it was only an illusion. He must have thrown my senses off."

"It's not your fault Mole-Yair. You did what you could."

"We all did," Cynder added. "We have more information about this man than we did before, plus a possible reason to why he has been stealing relic fragments. Maybe we can—."

"Hey guys," Archie began in an uncomfortable voice. "Perhaps you should check this out. There's something written on the panels here."

Whatever it was, Archie didn't sound too enthusiastic about it. Approaching the shrine, Spyro was able to get a closer look at what the relic fragments resting place was. A smooth black granite type flooring was raised a few steps high off the rocky ground. No dirt decorated the floor of the shrine, which would have been odd if Spyro's mind wasn't preoccupied. On the northern edge of the granite, a pedestal sat with an unlit golden candelabra resting on the back. Figuring he would make use of it, the purple scaled reptile set the candles ablaze with a control stream of fire, giving a weak but good enough light around them. It was then that Spyro noticed was Archie was referring to. Something was drawn into the flooring of the shrine itself.

"What is this?" Spyro wondered.

Archie took the candelabra and hovered it over the etching for a better look. Whatever it was, its features were a bit vague. Firstly it showed a dark cloud surrounded by lines going inwards. What the lines signified was anyone's guess though. Next it showed six dragons with a circular stone in between them. Afterward it presented an etching that resembled a forest with the same dark cloud from before.

"What is this ball of darkness here?" Cynder asked, referring to the first etching.

"Don't know," Archie responded, stroking his chin in thought. "Perhaps it refers to some sort of evil back when this tablet was first created. Maybe these three drawing can tell us a story if we can decipher it."

"But it's so obscure," Spyro replied. "There are six dragons here. The relic fragments were said to have been created by the original six guardians themselves. Maybe this is them?"

"And the stone in the middle was the relic before it was broken into six pieces?" Cynder implied. It seemed to make sense to her.

"Quite possible," Mole-Yair added in. "What else does the tablet show?"

Spyro looked back down toward the final etching in wonder. "A forest with the same ball of darkness from earlier above it."

"Velxtra Forest?" Cynder guessed.

"It's only logical," Archie answered with a slight grin on his face. "Perhaps this is confirming a theory I had before. The relic fragments were used to seal the forest. Not to keep us out, but something in."

"But what? This unexplained darkness," Spyro pointed out. "If the relic fragments are taken from their places then whatever ward was placed on the forest will diminish and that thing will be set loose in our world."

"But Spyro, Verus said earlier that taking the relics will do nothing now."

"Probably lying," Spyro retorted. "But I guess we should take it into consideration. What if he's right. Then that implies that the relics aren't doing their jobs." Then the purple dragon realized. "Then whatever was being kept in that forest has already escaped."

"Seems plausible," Archie said.

"If that is the case then what should we do?" Cynder questioned. "Should we keep looking for relic fragments or find and stop whatever this thing is."

"I don't think we should stop looking for fragments based on theory," Archie replied surprisingly. "But I think we should take it into consideration for the future. Who knows. Maybe these fragments are the only way to stop this thing. Not only that we have two people after them. Verus and the UCA. We have to beat them to the fragments as well. The UCA already has one fragment."

"And Verus has two," Spyro completed. "Then that means there are only three left."

Putting the candelabra back down on the shrine, Archie turned toward the rock bridge they used earlier. "Perhaps we need more help with this task."

"And I suppose you know someone?"

Archie grinned. "I still have a few surprises left in me Spyro. Everest isn't the only dragon at my cabin."

Spyro cocked an eye. "What are you talking about?"

"I believe it's time you visit my home for a change," Archie answered. "Then you'll see we're not as helpless as it may seem."

Meanwhile

The move was simple. Being re-stationed to Warfang for active duty was exciting. Finally she would put her talents to some use. Now she had to wait for a fire to break out somewhere. While she didn't actually want a fire to start consuming everything in sight, she would never be able to perform her well-earned practice otherwise.

Yin sighed with delight as she settled into her new room. Warfang's fire station was very similar to Garipton's which made it all the easier to grow used to the move. Everyone in the new station seemed to be friendly enough for her tastes. But there was one thing that was nagging her. Something about the city of Warfang just clawed at the back of her mind, begging to escape. The white dragoness didn't know what it was, but something about the city was familiar to her.

"I've never been to Warfang before, why do some of the sights seem familiar?"

Yin looked out her window in wonder. There wasn't much to see other than the side of another building, but she was too deep in thought to even notice. Then suddenly a memory flashed through her mind. Her singing. A stage or concert while many dragons were cheering for her from below. Then the memory vanished.

"What was that?" Yin thought out loud.

The white dragoness attempted to remember more, but couldn't come up with anything. Nothing visual anyways. The only other thing she could remember was a name. Turning her head back toward her room, she forced herself to lay down on her small bed, convincing herself she was just tired. But yet, that name still stuck around in her thoughts.

"Star."