Warfang Chronicles Chp. 4
The Threat from Below
"Where is she!?" Bolt growled at the dragon who had been found trying to sneak out of Warfang only hours after the discovery and to the horror of the green and white dragon that Soul had gone missing over night. The dragon that Bolt found trying to sneak out of the city was Subzero. Bolt was not in the mood for this liar. However he meant to put this over entitled trash in his place before today was over.
"I don't know what you're talking about!" Subzero growled back as the two circled each other. Of all the times to deal with another incredibly angry dragon.
"You're lying you piece of worthless trash!" Bolt yelled back with primal rage seeping into his voice as his yellow eyes watched with barely concealed rage and hate towards this dragon. Bolt knew how much Subzero disliked Soul and now finding the ice dragon trying to sneak out of Warfang had cemented the idea that somehow this dragon was involved in Soul's sudden disappearance.
"Who are you talking about you delusional earth dragon!" Subzero sneered unaware of what Bolt was capable of now. Before he could even react the air around Bolt shimmered and rushed head long slamming Subzero across the courtyard catching the attention of the guards. However they could not come any closer because every time they tried Bolt would blast them back even further. Subzero had not thought it was possible to feel isolated in the middle of a massive gathering crowd that had come to see what was happening.
"You know who! My best friend SOUL!" Bolt roared at the top of his lungs causing Subzero to take a step back in fear as Subzero swore he could almost taste the rage and hate in the eyes of the Earth guardians apprentice. However the most unnerving thing was that this earth dragon could also control the winds which meant Subzero couldn't take flight to get away from this incredibly angry dragon.
"What about her!" Subzero yelled back hoping to get Bolt to stop and think even a little and at that moment Subzero would be able to put some distance between himself and this amazingly angry dragon.
"I know how you felt when she beat you back in your match against her! It was much the same as I feel right now! You are going to tell me what happened to her or ELSE!" Bolt growled as he took a step towards Subzero. Bolt swore that parts of his vision were turning red from the anger he felt but right now all he could think of was Subzero and how it seemed that he had picked the wrong time to try sneaking out of Warfang.
"Bolt think about what you are doing! You are the apprentice of the Earth guardian. I don't think he would be happy to learn how you are acting!" Subzero yelled back hoping that this bluff would deflect the rage of the other dragon.
"Your bluffing! That means you do know where she was taken. Either you tell where or I WILL KILL YOU!" Bolt growled with a level of rage that caused even the crowd to start stepping back. It was just then the guardians arrived. Already they knew what was going on and decided to not interfer.
"Fine 4 hours south is where she is being held!" Subzero yelled in fright shrinking away from the furious gaze.
"Leave now and I don't want to ever see you again!" Bolt replied turning around. Subzero then fled through the gate. "I'm going after her!" Bolt told the guardians as he powered into the air just to be greeted by Spyro and Cynder.
"We are coming too!" Spyro said, "And before you say no there is nothing you can say to change either of our minds."
"Thanks for coming." Bolt replied as the three caught a large updraft and soared above the city.
"Well we can see how much she means to you Bolt. It was written all over you when you confronted Subzero." Cynder commented hoping to cheer up Bolt.
"Thanks Cynder. The one thing that has me worried is what are we going up against? I'm not worried that I won't be able to rescue Soul but what is between me and her is a different story." Bolt said slightly worried, "But whatever or whoever it is in the way will not remain between me and her!"
After almost 4 hours of straight flight the three sighted a large structure that seemed to have erupted from the very ground. The ground around the structure was littered with massive boulders. The three dragons landed behind one of these massive stones before they were sighted by the remnants of Malfor's army that were sitting outside of the only entrance.
"Damn of all the things that could be here there is a few golems in front of the entrance. This going to severely complicate things." Cynder said as looked out around the large rock, "This going to make things far more difficult. It also appears that we need a key from all three of them."
"Great just great. A key! If this could be any worse." Bolt mumbled when an idea hit him, "That's it!"
"What is it?" Spyro asked confused. He watched as a smile appeared on Bolt's face.
"Can you distract the one off on its own over to the right?" Bolt asked startling both of the dragons.
"Of course but why would you take on the two over there to the left alone?" Cynder asked curious.
"I have an idea." Bolt told them before they noticed a slight green glow around each of Bolt's feet, "I am going to put that training to use! Not to mention I still have one trick that only one other dragon knows I can use extreme power."
"Okay but are you sure that you can take two of them at the same time?" Spyro asked concerned.
"Yes just make sure to keep the other one out of the way. I cannot handle all three!" Bolt whispered as he bolted into the air and landed in front of the two golems catching them offline. During the long while the only dragon to understand just how powerful Bolt's connection was his closest friend Soul. Once he had shown her just how powerful he truly could be. The first golem attacked by jumping into the air and almost landing directly on Bolt. But just before it stuck him Bolt destroyed it with a blast of wind so powerful and violent that it tore the golem apart in a split second. The other golem saw what happened to its buddy and decided to not make the same mistake.
"Soon you will be too late to save her." the golem said in a voice that sounded like a landslide.
"What?" Bolt asked as he got ready for a distinctly nasty answer.
"Soon the crystals shall drain the remainder of her life force and once again you will be alone." it responded with what Bolt swore was a smirk if these things could smirk.
"WHAT?" Bolt said shocked by what the creature had just claimed. Now he had to end this golem fast and he did not want to waste time with his wind so he reached deep down inside of himself searching for the power he had only loosened once to protect himself and Soul from what had seemed like a great threat at the time. Almost immediately he found what he was looking for. A power over earth that beat like a heart rate. Immediately a glowing tendril of earth energy shot out from Bolt's back left foot and began racing through the structure only to confirm what he had feared. That golem was telling the truth which meant despite the massive power and drawbacks of what Bolt was wielding at the moment he couldn't afford to hold back despite the fact that using this power caused harm to Bolt. "The Heart Beat of the Earth" was what Soul called it when he used it. Instead of going for the last key Bolt unleashed an assault on the door causing it to explode from the inside out and blasting a hole through the floors so that he could get to Soul quicker. The thing about The Heart Beat of the Earth was that if he lost control he could potentially be completely destroyed by rampaging energy surging through his body and it still caused him great pain to use this power but anything was worth saving her.
"I don't have the time for an elongated battle die now." Bolt said with absolute calm. Even a moments lapse with this move could be disastrous. The ground around the golem erupted with violence giving it no time to react when sharp spines of stone skewered the golem before it was dragged into the ground to its death within a few seconds. Normally now he would release the move but this time was different. He had to get to her in a massive hurry and the hoards of enemies that now poured out the entrance. The ground beneath them erupted with stone spikes killing swaths of enemies. Bolt jumped over the flow of enemies and dove down the holes he had blasted out of the floor now using his powers to guide him instead of his sight. It was an amazing feeling being guided by the earth under his feet and unlike his eyes this sense couldn't be fooled. Any foe who was foolish to try to slow him down was struck down swiftly by Bolt's Earth Sense. Finally after what seemed like an eternity of running as hard as he could he rounded the corner where the cell that they had placed Soul was directly in front of him. Wasting no time Bolt blew a hole into the cell to see Soul near death as the pale purple crystals were leaching off her life force. Bolt immediately caused the ground around these crystals to expand out completely covering them and simultaneously crushing them causing each crystal to stop working.
"Bolt." Soul whimpered weakly as she struggled to her feet recognizing the power he was using, "I thought I wasn't going to be able to see you again."
Releasing his hold on the Heart Beat of the Earth Bolt ran to Soul and pulled her into a tight hug while asking, "Are you okay?"
"I feel very weak I don't think I can even walk." Soul told Bolt willing herself to not fall over when Bolt released the hug her voice just barely louder than a whisper.
"I'm just so glad I made it in time. It is all thanks to the help that Spyro and Cynder gave me. I can't describe how scared and panicked I was when you weren't there." Bolt told her as he helped her onto his back, "I'll carry you."
"Thank you Bolt I don't know if I could have walked out on my own even if I escaped I feel so weak. Thank you for saving me." Soul whispered feeling very tired. Just then a massive explosion ripped apart the ceiling above them shredding the rock into tiny fragments. The heat and deafening sound were a shock to both of the dragons as Bolt looked up to see most of the structure was gone or enveloped in searing flames. The large destruction surprised both Bolt and Soul.
"Thought you two would appreciate it if we removed a large obstacle from your paths and killed most of the enemies." Spyro and Cynder called out.
"That is right thank you two but a little warning next time okay you two. My ears are still ringing from that blast. How did you do that anyway?" Bolt yelled back glad that they had come.
"Not important just get up here." Cynder called down to the two, "Is she okay?"
"Not exactly!" Bolt yelled back as he began to negotiate the flaming rubble. Finally Bolt managed to join up with Spyro and Cynder.
"Soul are you okay?" Cynder asked a little worried because of her slightly dulled colors.
"I'll be fine eventually." Soul whispered as loudly as she could, "I'm just glad to see you two."
"You would not believe how angry Bolt was with Subzero. I have never seen that rage before and hopefully I never have to again." Spyro commented, "Poor Subzero looked like he was about to wet himself."
"Really?!" Soul said while laughing weakly.
"Come on let's get moving. We might be able to make it back to Warfang before nightfall. This place gives me the creeps!" Bolt remarked catching the attention of Spyro and Cynder who agreed withg him. The journey to Warfang was quiet as Soul fell asleep half way through. The guardians had the crowd gathering at the gate to greet the dragons head home when Spyro flew ahead of the group to tell the guardians that Soul was getting peaceful sleep and that Bolt himself was not up for a celebration.
"Alright everyone nothing to see here head home!" Terrador boomed across the courtyard. A few minutes later Bolt and Cynder strode into town. Soul was still asleep on Bolt's back.
"She is fine just in case one of you are going to ask." Bolt told the guardians while sounding worn out himself, "I am going to go get some sleep with Soul. We are both exhausted."
"See you two later." Spyro and Cynder told Bolt as they reached the temple.
"You're not coming?" Bolt asked curious and concerned.
"Not right now. Me and Spyro have a few things we need to get done." Cynder told him.
"Alright you two be careful." Soul said weakly startling the other three.
"How long have you been awake?" Bolt asked as walked into the temple.
"Not very long. I just woke up." Soul whispered as Bolt finally reached her room. What surprised her when even after helping her onto her bed he didn't leave and really surprising her even more was when he got into bed right beside her.
"This time I'm not leaving your side. Besides I am going to be helping you recover." Bolt said as he put a wing over her, "Besides I have something that I have been meaning to say for a while."
"What is.." was all Soul could say before Bolt pulled her into a kiss. Shock was the first emotion that Soul felt before finally pulling away a little taken back.
"I have been thinking about this for a long time. I was going to tell you after we had spared but then this happened. My emotions ran wild. I was worried about you. I had been trying to tell you for a long time but I just couldn't ever find the words to tell you how I felt." Bolt told her his face slightly red but the shock on Soul's face slowly became a smile as her own face also turned a slight shade of red.
"I don't know what to say." Soul said locking eyes with Bolt still in shock.
"You don't have to. Just get some rest. I'm going to as well and I will be right here by your side." Bolt whispered as he lowered his head and closed his eyes, "Good night Soul."
"Good night Bolt." Soul replied as she lowered her head next to Bolt's and drifted off to sleep.
What the dragons were unaware of what was waking up below the earth.