Chihiro Hatsuki's Skylanders: Here Come the Giants!

by Tilde-Heart

The past and present collide when an ancient evil from the bowels of Skylands' history is awakened by Kaos as he attempts to restore his empire of evil! Now, Chihiro and the Skylanders must team up with the heroes of Skylands' distant past in order to bring a stop to the revival of the Arkeyan Empire! (Canon-divergent retelling of Skylanders Giants)

13. Chapter 13

Arkilles chuckled, drumming his fingers against one another as he rested in his throne. His whole body shuddered from the prospects before him, so excited that it wanted to jump up and dance, sing praises to the almighty Ancient, do anything in celebration of his plan's success! But, he knew better than to count his robots before they were built, so he just sat in his specially-made red and gold throne, comforted by its soft, almost plush velvet as that troll man chiseled away on the tablet.

"Excuse me, Gladshanks?" Arkilles asked, turning from his throne.

That troll winced, his ears flicking for a moment. "Actually, sir, it's Glumshanks—"

Bah, who cares! Arkilles never bothered to remember any of his servants' names, it was too much of a hassle! They could be replaced just as easily as their predecessors! Rolling his eyes at the utter insolence, Arkilles hopped from his throne, and for a moment the sight of how tall the throne was in comparison to him spun his head for a bit—even after several days of inhabiting this body, he hadn't quite gotten used to how… Short, it was, but he supposed he could fix that when he revived his armies and reclaimed his empire.

"Sir, are you sure you're feeling alright?" Grumblespanks asked. "You've been quite out of sorts lately—"

"And I've told you every single time, I am perfectly fine! Keep badgering me about that, and I'll toss you into the piranha pits!"

"We don't have a piranha pit, Lord Kaos, I've told you five times, now."

Gritting his teeth for a moment, Arkilles was almost tempted to blast away that obnoxious troll with this body's fancy portal master powers, but as his hands only faintly glowed then immediately faded, he just sighed. Even after several days, mastering this magic had proved futile—it was as if the body itself was resisting his attempts to channel its innate power! What a pain. So, he turned back to Glitterspoff and huffed.

"Forget about that, how are our preparations for the Vault trip coming along?"

Ah, yes, the thing he really wanted to get to! Arkilles beamed from ear to ear as Grufflesnuffle eyed him for a moment, then frowned a little. Was it just him, or did that side eye Gramblerank give him seem just a little too suspicious? Arkilles glared him down right back, and Gremblesnemble cringed as he turned his eyes right towards that stone tablet and chisel he held as tight as he could.

"Well, let me see," Glimmerspanks said, glazing over the tablet while he squeezed his chisel tighter, "our preparations are going smoothly as ever, Lord Kaos. Though our drilling robot went missing, the armies it unearthed for us have bolstered our forces more than enough. They have been preparing the ships we stole from that town, and as long as everything continues going smoothly, we should have a fleet ready in—"

A sharp snapping sound burst through the air, and both Arkilles and Gradspatula looked up right as the lights flickered out for a moment before flickering back on. A brief power outage, perhaps… But something about it felt a bit too ominous for Arkilles' liking.

"All security systems downnnnnn," droned a mechanical, dying voice from the Ancient knew where!

Arkilles gasped, then jerked his head to the side.

"Gramblespark, check the defense right now!" Arkilles cried as he pointed a finger.

"Yes, Lord Kaos!" Grumblebumble cried back!

He immediately raced out of the room, yanking the door shut behind him, and Arkilles only sighed as he climbed back atop the throne and leaned against its soft, plush velvet once more. The truth is, he didn't entirely trust that this bumbling troll would actually get anything of substance done. But, he was tired of that utter buffoon tailing him everywhere he went, eyeing him with those odd looks and strange frowns as if he has suspected something of Arkilles. Or perhaps, no, mayhaps he had already caught on to Arkilles's ploy? Oh Ancient, looking at it now, he absolutely must have—why else would he be acting so suspicious? Had he already keyed the armies in? That was it, Arkilles needed to dispose of that no-good, blundering, absolute buffoon of a troll before—

"Hey, I'm the only one who's allowed to insult Glumshanks around here!"

And within the realm of the mind, Arkilles groaned and turned around. That pint-sized gremlin who this body apparently belonged to still laid in the prison Arkilles had made for him, rattling and zapping the bars as if that would break him free. His scowl grew deeper as he glared down Arkilles, even though nothing he could do could plausibly bring Arkilles any harm. Well, that was false—just looking at his face was enough to give Arkilles a splitting headache! The runt pounded on the bars one more time, and Arkilles snarled.

"Silence!" Arkilles cried, shooting a lightning bolt at the bars.

The lightning bolt split as it hit them, coursing through the bars and shocking the runt as they sparked. The runt cried out, stumbling back and falling to the floor while nursing his shocked hands as static popped from them. Well, seemed that would shut him up for the time being.

A door creaked open in the outer world, and Arkilles shook his head as he went up to take control.

"I checked the security systems, Lord Kaos, but nothing seemed to be amiss," Grumslanks said as he walked into Arkilles's view. Though oddly enough, his eyes darted from side to side, as if he were nervous or hiding something.

"Are you certain about that?" Arkilles asked, steepling his hands and raising a brow.

Grumplesparks gulped and quickly shook his head. "I, I'm certain, everything looked perfectly fine when I checked the security systems!"

Arkilles frowned, then pulled his hands apart and dismissed Gruppleguts with a wave. "Go check our preparations, then. I want to make sure everything's perfect before we leave for the vault!"

"Yes, Lord Kaos."

Grumblemumble excused himself immediately, Arkilles watching him the whole time as he left the room and carefully, gingerly closed the door behind him… Not that it somehow eased Arkilles' suspicions. Turning back to his throne, Arkilles frowned.

"Somehow, I doubt that this troll means what he says," Arkilles grumbled to himself.

"Of course he doesn't, you buffoon! Glumshanks might be an incompetent klutz, but he's not an idiot!" the runt cried from the back, having somehow recovered even though that blast would have incapacitated any ordinary person.

"Surely, he's already figured out what you're up to, and then he's going to exorcise you and get my body back!"

"Didn't I tell you to be quiet?!" Arkilles hissed, jolting right around as thunder crashed before him.

And yet, despite the intimidating front he put up, the runt still scoffed.

"A little thunder won't scare me! You may be possessing my body…" the runt snarled and wagged a finger. "But mark my evil words, once I'm free, I'll send you straight to the pits! No, I'll incinerate your soul and evaporate the ashes! And I don't care if ashes can't evaporate, I'll find a way to make them! I'll make sure no trace of your remains will—"

"LORD KAOS, LORD KAOS!"

This time it was one of those minions who cried for Arkilles, and Arkilles immediately jumped to take control—judging by that tone of voice, whatever news they had couldn't have been good!

"Yes, what is it?" Arkilles demanded as he leaped from the throne and met the minion, a frantic-looking greeble, midway through.

"We've got bad news!" the greeble shouted back. Its teeth chattered as it spoke, and its eyes bounded from every side of the room. "The, the, Skylanders! They've arrived, and they've already cleaned out our front lines of defense! At the rate things are going, they'll reach us before we can take off!"

Arkilles gritted his teeth. He had no idea who these "Skylanders" were, but judging from the worry in the greeble's face, it didn't seem like they were particularly fond of the runt Arkilles possessed. But more importantly… What were they doing here? That troll had told him that the security systems were fine!

"Don't we have any other forces we can spare?" Arkilles asked.

"Fraid not—everyone else's been re-routed to the vault project, just like you said!"

"But I didn't say that!" Arkilles stomped his foot, and the greeble flinched as he balled his hands into fists. "I said to re-route our strongest forces to the vault, and leave the rest here as security!"

"That, that's not what the troll said, though!"

"Hah, good old Glumshanks!" the runt cried from the back. "Keeping you distracted!"

Arkilles gritted his teeth, his eyes narrowing by the second.

"Scrounge up what you can and keep them occupied!" he hissed as he stormed out of the throne room. "I'll see if I can't do something with the security systems!"

Arkilles slammed the throne room's door right open, and scanned the halls for only moments before rushing down.

A few twists and turns brought him to the security room's door. Yet, even though the door had been creaked open, not even a smidgen of light came from it! Wouldn't it have at least something glowing from the security cameras? Pushing the door open further, Arkilles crept into the room and was met with blanketing darkness, so dark he nearly tripped several times on his way to the security console.

He turned up to the screens, and all of them were completely blank! Something must have turned them off—but, that troll said they were just fine! Arkilles snarled and pressed a button, turning the screens back on, and peered over at one showing the front yard, where… Wait, no, it couldn't be…

But there, right on the screen, were, were the Elder Elementals! Four of them, that rockhead, the one with fire for brains, that robotic traitor and the overgrown weed that lead them all, plowing through his defenses like it was little more than child's play! But, how were they even still alive, even after all these years?! How were they even here!? Arkilles snarled, and a frown snaked its way across his face—for he already knew the answer to the second question.

"I never trusted that good-for-nothing butler," Arkilles snarled as he drew away from the screens, "I should've guessed he was up to something!"

"Silence, fool! I already told you, I'm the only one who gets to mock Glumshanks!"

His fist twitched, and Arkilles clasped it just as quickly as his attention turned away from the screens and right to where that runt continued to bang on the bars and shout at him.

"Be quiet!" Arkilles hissed, storming over to where the runt laid in his cage and pointing to him. "If you want this plan to succeed, then you'll tell me about this castle's defenses right this instant!"

"Why should I? You told me to be silent!" the runt stuck his tongue out and turned around. "Besides, even if I help you, I'll just end up sitting here while you get to rule! That hardly seems fair to me!" Another scoff came from the runt as he crossed his arms. "I'm the ultimate evil overlord of Skylands, I should be the one ruling!"

"I wasn't asking for your permission. You do realize that, right?"

The runt turned back around with the most stupid gaping mouth and wide eyes, right as Arkilles zapped him with a spell!

The bright crimson magic that burst from Arkilles' hand froze the runt in place, lifting him from the ground as magic burst from his eyes, mouth, ears… Even the symbol on his head, which pulsed as the magic clouded and stuffed itself together, forming a scene that slowly flickered into definition. With one last spark and flick, a memory formed of the screen, of a runt even smaller than the one before him now and dressed in regal-looking clothing arguing with some svelte-looking boys with long, flowing golden locks and similar attire. Oh, so he had possessed a prince? Arkilles wouldn't have guessed it by how he looked.

"Older brothers, what a pain," Arkilles scoffed as he flipped the screen away, "I know mine was."

Another memory came up of the slightly older runt making wooden puppets and cheering as they came to life and danced before his eyes, then of him running away with Gramplesmacks, then of him meeting a tall, very lovely looking lady clad in a sleek black gown and battling with her, studying magic with her as his teacher, arguing with her… All amusing he supposed, but not quite what Arkilles was looking for, so he flipped a few back and focused on the tiny runt trailing behind a tall, regal-looking man as he walked through the castle halls.

"As you can see, Kaos," the man said as he held up a hand, his voice deep and gruff like the voice of Arkilles' own father, "these halls are endowed with holographic traps. Anyone who activates them is trapped in a virtual world of the maker's choosing, forced to find an exit while their bodies stay suspended in reality. It's one of our castle mages' finer inventions—these realms are so elaborate by the time the crook escapes, our guards have them cornered in an instant!"

Hearing this, Arkilles raised a brow. Holographic traps, huh? He chuckled small, under-the-breath chuckles as he flipped back through the runt's memories, and then he licked his lips. Oh, he had an idea, alright—an absolutely delicious, juicy idea, the perfect way of tricking those insolent Elder Elementals and their puny little allies! In fact, his whole body shuddered with delight just thinking about it!

Arkilles snapped his fingers, and the spell over the runt released, allowing him to collapse back to the floor! The runt yowled as he hit the floor head-first, then grumbled as he pushed himself up and rubbed his head.

"What do you think you're doing, scrounging around my memories like that?!" the runt shouted. "There's no way you're privy to the mind of an evil overlord as great as myself!"

Arkilles just scoffed as the runt continued to ramble, taking control of the body once more and turning back to the security panels instead.

His eyes fell on one labeled "Holographic Traps" in the chicken scrawl that was Modern Common, and with a wave of his hand and a bolt of two of magic, they sprung to life! Whirring, clunking sounds banged from the console as the screens on its side popped to life one by one and showed off different rooms in the castle, each with pulsing blue orbs sitting inside of them. Another wave of Arkilles' hand, and the orbs on the screen were dyed a deep, bloody crimson instead!

"Ah, the perfect trap," Arkilles chuckled, drumming his fingers against the console. "They won't even know what they stumbled into!"

§

Deep within the heart of the East-Western Skylands, in a small kingdom that had been largely abandoned by the sands of time, there resided a castle. The castle itself was a bit worn in some places, a stray large cobweb or two covering its towers while dust and bits of rocks crumbled from a few of the weaker structures, but otherwise it still withstood the test of time, its blue-tinted bricks no weaker than they were the day it was built, its roofs just as strong, their decor just as shiny… It was an eerie sight in an otherwise overgrown, abandoned place, but, it wouldn't be abandoned for too long.

"Alright, baldie's castle is in view!" Flynn cried as he spun the wheel of the bird's eye, swaying it closer within the breeze with that single turn. "So this is the place where he grew up, huh?"

Chihiro hummed as she sat in the center of the bird's eye and kicked her legs against its side.

"Seems like something some creepy royal family would have," Chihiro remarked as she caught a glance of the castle. "Just look at all those spiderwebs and weird rings! The whole place practically screams 'We're evil dictators and this is our secret lair!'"

Beside her, Spyro chuckled and took a seat, wrapping his wing around Chihiro. "No kidding," he remarked as he scooted a little closer to Chihiro. "Not surprised this is where big-head grew up."

The two of them chuckled together, then gasped and ducked down as a powerful gust slapped their faces, while underneath them the bird's eye curved around the castle. A turn behind them showed Flynn whistling at the wheel while Gill Grunt, Trigger Happy, Stealth Elf and Cali all clung to whatever they could for dear life, then loosening their grips and sitting up as the breeze subsided, its chills warming as the bird's eye lowered itself towards a nearby cliff on a small island.

"Alright, the big ancient guys should have wiped out most of the forces there and got baldie's attention—so here's where you all come in!" Flynn shouted as he parked the bird's eye. "You're going to get his attention while we find the others and snoop around this castle place to keep him from goin' to that secret vault thingie! You ready?"

"You bet we are!" Spyro cried back, jumping to all fours as he splayed his wings.

Chihiro nodded and raised a fist, something Flynn only chuckled at.

"In that case, I'll leave the cronies to you guys!" Flynn spun the wheel of the bird's eye and beamed. "Just leave the rest to your awesome pilot!"

Everyone hopped off right as the bird's eye unhooked from the island and flew off, then scaled the cliff and frowned as they sat up.

Before them laid the castle's front yard, which, true to Flynn's word, was completely void of any traces of evil minions or the ilk save for some flattened and severed robot parts. Its stone paths were charred and streaked with tire marks in some places, the grass singed away to leave nothing but burnt earth, and the cool blues of the stone had warmed a little… And yet, despite the clear signs of a battle around it, the tall, wooden front door that laid before them and the crimson flags bearing some strange, crown-like symbol remained unscathed. Faint burning smells lingered in the air, traveling along the wind with the singed bits of metal that crumbled in the wind like withered leaves and leaving only the tension of what laid up ahead.

"I wouldn't worry about Kaos too much," Chihiro said as she clenched her fist. "Remember, he doesn't even know we're coming, and Tree Rex's group already tore through a ton of his forces. Besides, we've always got backup at the Dread-Yacht!"

And even though she said that to reassure the others, Chihiro couldn't help but wonder if it was to reassure herself more than anyone. Here was the culmination of her biggest mistake, of Kaos's return—and more importantly, the opportunity to fix it. Gulping down her fear, she leaped down from the cliff and stormed up to the doors, the sound of footsteps behind her the sole indication of companionship. As she drew closer to the doors, she lifted her hand, preparing to blast or push them down.

But just before she could, blasts of golden light burst from her sides and completely blew down the doors! Chihiro stumbled back and gasped as Trigger Happy rushed ahead, guns blazing and shooting coins everywhere as he cackled!

"Alright, this is a raid!" Trigger Happy cried as he pointed his guns to the front. "Gimme all your gold!"

"And while you're at it…" Chihiro cried as she ran up to Trigger Happy's side and held up glowing hands.

"Surrender right now! The Skylanders have you cornered!" Spyro finished.

Inside the manor's polished floors and balcony-laden walls, several organic and robotic guards alike gasped, clutching their weapons tight as they could! Compared to the masses of mutated guards and armed forces from Kaos's prior fortress, Chihiro had to admit, these guys were a downgrade. The soldiers that were obviously Arkeyan in origin seemed polished and powerful enough, but the rest of them were sparse. No more than a few stray greebles, spell punks, goblins and maybe the odd cyclops, all dressed in simple, kind of rusted armor and holding some worn broadswords and polearms. It was almost disappointing to look at—not that Chihiro was complaining.

Chihiro cried out as she charged in, fists raised, and several of the spells punk swerved out of her way instead! They chattered as they cast blasts of leaves and ice in her direction, and in that instant Chihiro flicked out both her hands, crafting a ring of shields that swerved around and reflected the blows right at the spell punks! Their own attacks knocked them into the ground and cracked the tile, while the shields themselves disappeared and left Chihiro to catch her breath.

A chill ran down her spine as cackling echoed around her at a faint volume, and Chihiro teleported away right as a burst of fire seared the place where she once stood! The flames died as a spell punk clad in warm-colored robes teleported where she once stood and cackled, and she just rolled her eyes as she cast out a burst of magic and blasted it right into the wall. The wall cracked while the spell punk rolled off and groaned, its body splayed across the floor while it rested seemingly unconscious… That is, until Spyro stomped on it and it let out a pained squeal!

Spyro himself just swerved away as a string of crackling lightning bursts zipped just over his wings and slammed into a robot behind him, then turned around and snarled. His eyes locked on a quartet of floating blue and gold robots that listlessly swayed from side to side, their undersides crackling with lightning as hot and blue as the blasts they fired, and he charged right into one robot…

But as he made contact, it burst into a puff of periwinkle smoke while the others around it did the same! Spyro skidded to a stop and coughed, hanging his head as he fanned away the smoke with his wings. A ring of crackling, popping noises burst around him as the smoke finally cleared, and once more four robots surrounded him! Spyro grunted and jumped into the air as one of the robots tried to slug him, then flapped his wings and backflipped away from another. His paws hit the floor, and he slipped from side to side as a pair of robots jabbed at him in succession, then jumped back before they could punch him right in the snout. Skidding backwards once more, his eyes drifted towards a robot that bounced and jostled a bit faster than the others, and a ring of red formed in his eyes as he spat out a fireball that hit the jumpier robot square in the chest! The other floating robots burst into smoke as the flaming robot slammed into the ground and exploded, bursting into flames for only a moment before a wave of water washed over it and quenched its fires.

As the water fell over and slicked the floors, Gill Grunt stepped back and grimaced, his hands held tight onto his water cannon as he hosed down a round of oncoming greebles. The greebles squealed as they flew through the air, pushed forward by the oncoming torrent, and as they crashed into the wall, Gill Grunt sighed and released his grip on the trigger. Water dripped from the barrel of the cannon as he rested it by his hip, but as the ground below him rumbled and shadows fell over the battlefield, he snarled and heaved it back up!

Gill Grunt whipped around and got ready to pull the trigger, but right as he did, a giant robot leaped from the balcony and onto the floor! Parts of the ceiling fell down around Gill Grunt, forcing him to roll out of their range before he spun forward and fired away! His blasts of water washed over the robot's chest and dripped down in puddles at its feet, so he snarled and switched to harpoons with a click of the trigger. Another pull of the trigger and a trio of harpoons shot forward, aiming towards a glass window that concealed the cockpit. But the robot just swatted them away on sight!

Gill Grunt leaned away as the harpoons shot back for him, winced as they ricocheted off the wall, then turned back and held the trigger tighter. Light formed at the cannon's barrel, swirling in a blue vortex as the faint shape of a harpoon began to form. Right before it could solidify, however, the robot shot off a laser and knocked him aside!

As Gill Grunt rolled aside and slammed into the wall, the front of the robot yanked open while a tiny goblin leaped from it and cheered!

Stealth Elf popped behind a pillar where Trigger Happy hid and narrowed her eyes. A soft, low growl of irritation came from her as the goblin's cheers rang in her ears, and she dug her fingers into the pillar a bit tighter as Trigger Happy glanced up at her and grinned.

Grabbing Trigger Happy by the hand, Stealth Elf zipped from side to side, swerving around the floor with such speed that she was little more than a blur there, a blink here… And finally, as the goblin's cheers started to quell, Stealth Elf neared the robot's side and vaulted Trigger Happy across the room! With one swing, Trigger Happy knocked the goblin right out of the cockpit, and Trigger Happy himself into it!

"Alright!" Trigger Happy cheered as he grabbed control of the steering wheel. "This is more my speed!"

Trigger Happy's cackles turned to squeals of unadulterated glee as he squeezed the handles tight as he could. His tongue, meanwhile slapped against everyone button on the control panel and then some before zipping back into his mouth! The robot spun around while Trigger Happy's laughter grew even louder, and missiles flew from every angle of the robot's spin before they crashed into the world around!

The guards screamed and ran off as missiles tore holes in the floors, knocked balconies off the walls… Even parts of the ceiling caved in and crashed, taking a few robotic guards with them!

The robot slowed as a droning groaning noise came from it, then finally it clunked as it stopped and tipped over, knocking Trigger Happy from the cockpit. He squeaked like a dog's chew toy as he fell out and bounced across the floor, rolling right up to Chihiro's feet and groaning as she picked him up… But as she held him in her arms, they both chuckled.

"Man, he must've been really desperate if that's all the help he could get," Chihiro remarked as she cracked her knuckles, then scoffed. "And that means our job's gonna be easy-peasy!"

Chihiro chuckled, and dashed off with a bit more spring in her step.

"Now, if we wanna keep Kaos's attention, the best way to do it is to get to the man himself! So, we'll need to figure out where he is…"

A few hums came as everyone scanned the halls, peering across the ruined remains of the room. There were still a few balconies and passages that remained intact despite the wreckage left by Trigger Happy, but none of them looked particularly suspicious or befitting of Kaos's aesthetics—it was all humble, kind of run-down wooden doors as far as the eye could see. So where to start was the next question… Maybe they should split up?

"Hello, friend!" said a voice beside Chihiro!

Chihiro lifted her head and turned to her side, then bit back a scream.

Standing beside her was a wilikin man, kind of like the ones she had seen in the Wilikin Village, but painted to wear a butler's attire instead and with more of an eerie feeling to him! His wood seemed scarred and patchy in places, and a chilling air wafted around him, cooling the area by a few degrees. Heck, she was even sure that frost was forming underneath his feet, and yet he seemed perfectly oblivious as he stumbled up to her and held out a hand. For that matter, when did he even show up?

"You must be here to see royal family, aren't you?" the wilikin asked.

Chihiro nodded and hesitantly reached to grab the wilikin's hand… Only for her own to phase right through his!

Behind her, Spyro and Trigger Happy's eyes grew wide as they walked up, and Spyro seemed to narrow his eyes as he wrapped a wing around Chihiro—just in case, she supposed.

"Royal family is very, very, busy right now." The wilikin nodded his head in a sort of solemn tone, oblivious to the nasty looks Spyro shot him or the worried looks held by everyone else. "Heard they are playing in ballroom!" The wilikin turned and gestured up to a large door in the center of the halls up ahead. "Will have to unlock switches to enter ballroom, though!"

Wait, so Kaos was in the ballroom? Well, that solved one thing, she supposed—though they seemed a little odd, wilikin weren't exactly inclined to lie. Looks like this was easier than she thought!

"Hey, thanks!" Chihiro replied as she smiled and nodded. "So, where are these switches?"

"Oh, I have to go! The King says I need to go to sewing room!" The wilikin cried as he skipped ahead, his body fading from view and growing a bit redder in tint as he did? Either way, he just faded off the moment he hit the stairs.

"Yippee, I bet king wants me to make him a new cape!"

The wilikin disappeared in tiny puffs of red sparks, and Chihiro frowned as she crossed her arms.

"Well, guess we're going switch-hunting," Chihiro said. She took a step forward, then stopped midway of another as something gripped her shoulder.

"Are you sure this a good idea?" Stealth Elf retorted as she gently pulled Chihiro back. "That puppet thing seemed kind of suspicious to me."

"It's our best lead, isn't it?" Chihiro shrugged and wiggled herself free of Stealth Elf's grip. "'Sides, we'd be searching the place anyways, so might as well."

Stealth Elf frowned, raising a brow as she drew back from Chihiro—and in her place, Trigger Happy hopped up and leaped on Chihiro's back! Chihiro grunted, stumbling forward from the sudden weight before catching herself and standing back up, while Trigger Happy climbed up her shoulders and jabbed out an arm.

"Look, look, over there!" Trigger Happy cried as he pointed ahead. "That place seems kinds suspicious to me!"

Chihiro frowned as she followed Trigger Happy's gaze to a particularly worn door attached to a half-broken balcony, then raised a brow as a faint red light pulsed from underneath its broken end.

"Well, that's as good a place to start as any," Chihiro remarked. Trigger Happy shimmied his way off her back, and Chihiro stretched out before wandering over to the balcony. "Better get searching!"

Chihiro hupped as she grabbed onto a particularly sturdy stone that stuck out from the balcony's broken edge, then heaved herself up and grunted as her hands and knees planted on cool marble. She pushed herself up and trudged towards the door, pushing it open with only the slightest touch and frowning as the light from around poured inside.

The room within was filled with all sorts of trash, from scattered, yellowing papers and tattered notebooks to waterlogged barrels leaking out some kind of glowing green liquid—the exact contents of which she wasn't keen on finding. Something akin to musty water wafted in the air, drenching the room in its damp stench, and as she walked in the scent grew so bad that Chihiro plugged her nose. Crafting a sphere of light with a snap of her hand, Chihiro's attention first fell on one tattered notebook that rested by her foot, and it came to her front and flipped open with another snap of her fingers. Chihiro claimed it from the air, and frowned as its cold, wet cover nestled itself in her palm. Maybe this would give her a clue or two about those switches...

Dear journal, it read in faded, bleeding ink, Harmonia's funeral was today, a day of mourning nationwide. I tried my hardest to keep face as the country needed, as my boys needed, but it was hard not to cry—the light of my life, my radiant sun, my flower as bright as the seven stars of Skylands was finally gone. I hadn't seen her up until now, as per funeral rites… But now, it truly had sunk in that her illness has taken her. She fought so hard, and the court doctors and mages did everything they could, but nothing we, what I could've done was enough! Lady-in-waiting Kaossandra assured me that I couldn't have made her a happier woman—

Wait, Kaossandra? That name sounded awfully familiar… Wasn't she that lady who owned the security system to this place? Chihiro frowned, then flipped a few more pages ahead with a snap of her fingers.

Dear journal, it has been a few days since Harmonia's funeral, and business has returned to the kingdom as usual. It's been tedious, trying to rule between mourning, but having Kaossandra by my side has eased my pains. She's always been there with the kindest of words to keep me warm, and just the right things to sooth my worries. I daresay she almost comes close to Harmonia in how quickly she earned my heart, but it would be scandalous to remarry so soon. Maybe in a few moons' time…

Nope, nothing there.

Dear journal, today Kaossandra has given birth to a healthy… If not incredibly ugly, baby boy. We've decided to name him Kaos, and though he might not be the most charming in terms of looks… Or smells… I do believe he'll grow into his position. In fact, I think his birth is the best thing that could have happened to the kingdom, a symbol of a new era.

"Wait, so this belonged to Kaos's dad?!" Chihiro whispered, gripping the old book tighter. Raising a brow, Chihiro flipped a few more pages and buried her nose deep in the book—this was starting to get a bit interesting!

Dear journal, oh how it pains me to write this—just thinking of these words makes me stomach churn as hard as the seas on the Stormiest Night, but my Kaossandra was but a fraud! The courthands caught her scheming to poison us at mealtime, and everything came to light—she had poisoned my sweet Harmonia with malevolent magic, watched her slowly die… And bewitched my heart, all to bear an heir to take the throne in her lieu! She was swiftly exiled, but what am I to do? The peasants are still ruminating over Harmonia's death, and the whispers are starting to make their way out of the royal courts. Who knows what they'd think if they knew the truth? Just covering up that is enough, and I'm still unsure of what to do about Kaos. He may have been her pawn, but he's only an infant, and he shouldn't be held at fault for the actions of a mother he couldn't control, and yet every time I look at him, all I can feel is a seething rage at the actions that lead to his birth! What am I to do?

Some juicy stuff, but nothing about a switch—and yet, Chihiro was entranced all the time. Her flipping and skimming continued, painting a story on its worn pages with every word.

Dear journal, Kaos grows older with every passing minute, and with those minutes I find it harder to keep his existence secret from the kingdom.

Dear journal, today Kaos has done the most utterly insolent thing he could and showed himself to the kingdom! If that brat hadn't run away, I'd have eviscerated him, but he has, and I am left to deal with the mess he made. The peasants are demanding answers, whispers of adultery and worse are spreading…

Dear journal, with every day my heart aches to write in your pages. The peasants' trust in me has been severed, and with that I find it harder to keep going. The first love of my life is dead, the second betrayed my trust, my sons bicker with every passing day over their status and whether or not they'll inherit the throne, if the throne will even exist still… I find it harder to press on…

And after that, nothing. Even with several more page flips the pages remaining blank, until she reached near the back and paused.

I suppose this journal is the one that Father would spend so much time penning away in while we were oblivious, and I guess it is my secret now. I, Prince Augustus, almighty son of King Konkord and Queen Harmonia and the rightful heir to the throne, mind you, have been driven into hiding by my brother's petty squabbles. Francis has already fled the country with his wife and child, Dominic's been murdered in his own sleep by Benedict, and I fear I will be next. Benedict always knew that I, as the eldest, would get the throne as I so deserved, but believe you not, he thinks he's entitled to the throne! He claims that it was what Father has said, but who would listen to a man that was dying of heartbreak, of all things? Either way, he's gone on a murderous spree. I've locked myself away in the storage chambers, at least until the guards dispose of him, but my resources are running low. I've had to resort to these awful attempts at making soft drinks for nourishment, and I haven't eaten in days! Maybe that awful half-brother of mine has the right idea, running away from his regal responsibilities… Surely being king can't be worth all this…

"Hey, I think I found something!"

Spyro's voice rang in Chihiro's ears as she pulled herself away from the journal and dropped it to the floor. Warm, red light like blood sprayed against Chihiro's face, and she drew closer to its source—a mostly-barren spot at the back of the room, where an orb of blood-red light pulsed and shuddered like a heart. Spyro, Trigger Happy, Stealth Elf and Gill Grunt gathered around it as it shuddered, humming a tune… Or maybe, no, it sounded more like a shuddering, vibrating sort of noise? Whatever it was, something about it entranced Chihiro, whose feet moved towards it without even thinking!

"I think this might be the switch we're looking for!" Spyro shouted, turning towards Chihiro with a smile. "Care to do the honors, Chi?"

Chihiro just slowly, slightly nodded, reaching out her hand towards the orb as it pulsed, wavered, shuddered with some kind of strange heartbeat. Her fingers brushed against its tip, and in moments it burst out, its blood-red light splattered around the room while the blood in Chihiro's body all rushed to her head, even though she was standing upright. The blood spread into her ears, muffling the shouts and cries of those around as the world around her blurred. The floors turned to jelly, and her feet stared to stumble and sink within its gooey grip before she finally collapsed to the floor, forced to shut her eyes as her head pounded so hard that it nearly exploded…

And then, it stopped. The dizzying sensation faded from her mind as she opened her eyes to the gentle touch of sunlight and the birds singing in the breeze, just enough that she pressed herself to open her eyes. The worn floors of before had become a soft dirt path, while all around her rested simple buildings, tall trees and lush, green grass as if she were in a village! But, how could she have gotten here? She was in that room not seconds ago…

"Where are we?" Spyro groaned as he sat up.

"I don't know," moaned Stealth Elf as she rubbed her head, "I can still hear the blood rushing through my ears."

Trigger Happy moaned and twitched his legs, while beside Trigger Happy, Gill Grunt stumbled back to his fins and rubbed his eyes.

"Wherever we are, it seems like there's a town ahead," Gill Grunt remarked as he pointed up to the buildings ahead. "Let's ask around, maybe we'll find some answers."

Chihiro nodded, taking a moment to help Spyro back to his paws while Trigger Happy and Stealth Elf staggered back to their own full grip, and with everyone back to their senses, they trailed across the path.

The grass and trees made way for huts, small stone buildings and food stalls, the birdsong for the hustle and bustle of town life. It was a bit enchanting, watching the residents of this strange, small town chat about their day. An elf manning a food stall offered fruit to a human dressed in ragged clothing with a few small children clinging to their robes, two mabu in worker's garb leaned against a building as they split a drink, a few children of varying species chased a ball down the way…

Chihiro chuckled for a moment, then frowned as the sounds of jeering and shouting hit her ears. A cold, familiar chill ran down her spine, and her legs started to lock up almost on instinct—something about that voice's tone felt familiar to her, and not in a good way. Despite the shaking feeling in her legs, Chihiro sprung ahead, feet pounding against the dirt while the jeers and laughter grew louder and more coherent.

In the distance, she could spot some gangly-looking kids with wavy blond hair dressed in stuff way fancier than half these people were wearing laughed as they shrouded someone else from view with mocking, teasing laughter. Just the sight left Chihiro's blood boiling, and before she knew it she had stormed in!

"Come on, just admit it—there's no way you'll ever really be one of us!" crooned one of the kids, the tallest one of the group.

"Yeah!" chimed in a second as they crossed their arms. "You're too ugly and smelly to be a prince! Father might say otherwise, but—"

"Hey, what d'you think you're doing?!" Chihiro cried, teleporting into the scene!

The sounds of sniffling and crying came from behind her, and she only snarled as she balled her hand into a fist. "What business do you have, going around picking on someone like that?!"

And then, she was met with their faces, all long, wavy, golden blond hair and blue eyes and button noses—reminded her of her bullies at school. Chihiro's stomach churned with anger at the sight, even moreso as they scoffed and held up their noses.

"And what business does a commoner have, speaking to us like that?" the tallest kid, probably the head of the group, scoffed. "Don't you know who we are?"

"'Sides, why're you sticking your neck out for some ugly little goblin like that?" jeered a shorter kid standing next to another kid identical in appearance same for slightly longer hair.

"Yeah, don't you have anything better to do?"

The sobbing behind her grew louder, and Chihiro gritted her teeth, just barely keeping herself from punching their faces in.

"What does appearance have to do with it? You don't have any right to go around picking on people! Can't you see how upset they are?" Chihiro spat, thrusting herself right in the head of the group's face, until her eyes locked with his.

Though she herself shuddered at the sight of eyes on her, that guy at the head shuddered right back and backed away, as if he wasn't used to someone speaking back to him!

"You can talk about how ugly they are all you want, but the only ugliness I see is your attitude! You may think you're hot stuff, but anyone who picks on someone who can't even fight back is more hideous than that!" Chihiro thrust a finger in the kid's chest, and for a moment magic seemed to spark at her fingertip before she quelled it. "Don't you have anything to say for yourself?!"

The boy gulped for a moment, however, he quickly scoffed and turned tail. "Whatever, this just got boring. Come on, I'm sure there's better things to mess around with than him."

The other three scoffed in turn and walked off, while Chihiro crossed her arms. Bullies never seemed to change no matter the place. Shaking her head, her attention turned to the subject behind her, a kid even smaller than herself dressed in garb similar to the bullies—was he, perhaps, a relative of theirs or something? Would explain what they were saying. Their face was completely shielded from view, only their bald head visible as they sniffled and wiped their face…

"Hey, are you alright?" Chihiro asked as she knelt down and offered the kid a hand. "Here, let me help you up."

"… Thank, thank you," the kid croaked, their voice harsh from crying but still with a high, shrill tone to it. "Nobody ever sticks up for me like that."

"Hey, think nothing of it! It's not right for them to be picking on someone…"

The kid turned around, and Chihiro's voice faltered at the sight of his face… Those jutting teeth, the red eyes with those black marks around them, that round nose… Wait a second, this kid, he couldn't be…

"I'm Kaos!" the kid chirped, grabbing Chihiro's hand maybe a little too eagerly and shaking it just as fast. "What's your name?"

Chihiro's eyes fluttered and she stepped back. "Er, well, that's not really important!" Chihiro exclaimed scratching the back of her head. "I'm just someone passing through here—"

"Chi, there you are!" Spyro cried from the back.

Chihiro jolted up and turned around right as Spyro flew into view, Stealth Elf, Trigger Happy and Gill Grunt all following behind him, then turned back to Kaos.

"I was wondering where you—"

Spyro opened his eyes, and in that moment he stopped right in the air and stumbled backwards. "Wait a second, is that—"

Before Spyro could even finish, Chihiro yanked him away and turned him around, covering his muzzle just before he could finish. He spat out as Chihiro lifted her hand, and in response she only cringed.

"Yeah, that kid's Kaos… Just, younger," Chihiro explained, raising a brow as she turned to Kaos.

He waved at her in tandem, and she just smiled and waved back before turning to Spyro. The other three joined them in tandem, and Gill Grunt shoved his way in before Spyro could speak.

"What's going on here?!" Gill Grunt hissed, his brow clenching as he glanced over at Kaos. "And what's he doing?!"

"This is just an educated guess on my end," Chihiro whispered back, rubbing her chin. "But, remember that weird orb we all touched in that closet?"

Gill Grunt nodded.

"I think, somehow, it must have sent us back into the past, when Kaos was a kid!" Chihiro frowned. "I don't know how, exactly, but…"

"Ooh, so we're time traveling, like in the stories and stuff?" Trigger Happy giggled as he bounced up and down. "I wanna go see the mineosaurs and stuff next! No, I wanna go back to when gold was invented so I can—"

"We're doing nothing of the sort, Trigger Happy," Stealth Elf scolded as she pulled him back. "We've still got a mission to attend to!"

"And we can't get it done until we find a way back to the present," Chihiro said, rubbing her chin. "Now, if I had to guess, if there's any way out, it might be in that storage closet, but, how are we going to get back in the…"

"Hey, what'cha talking about?" Kaos chirped as he pushed his way in!

Spyro, Gill Grunt, Stealth Elf and Trigger Happy all shouted and jumped back, but Chihiro only smiled and leaned down.

"Actually, we were talking about how we've never been around this part of Skylands before, and we wanted to see all the sights!" Chihiro said. She had to admit, even if this was Kaos, she still felt a little bad lying to a little kid like this—but, if she wanted to get out of the past, she'd have to. "We haven't really decided where to go yet, either…"

Kaos hummed and rubbed his chin, then finally beamed.

"I know!" he cried, grabbing Chihiro's hand and pulling her away. "I'll show you my house! It's the biggest place in all the island! In fact, I bet it's the biggest place in all Skylands!"

Chihiro chuckled and rolled her eyes as she followed Kaos down the beaten path, Spyro, Gill Grunt, Trigger Happy and Stealth Elf carefully trailing behind her. Occasionally they shot confused glances at Kaos, as if they weren't entirely sure what to expect of him. But, that quickly stopped as the sights of the village made way for that of a tall, looming castle with robotic guards flanking the front!

It had all the aesthetics of the castle Chihiro entered, but unlike that one… This one was brand new! Its stone shined with a bright polish, the long flags that hung from its towers fluttered in the air with not a sign of damage to be found, and the grass was green and bright! It was a far cry from the castle of the present—in fact, it looked almost kind of cool!

The guards parted ways and bowed as Kaos strode in, then he ushered for them to follow. So, they did, quietly trailing behind as they stepped onto the stark stone pathways and walked up to the front doors. Kaos pushed them open, and as they slowly creaked away, the first sight they found was of… Glumshanks?

Well, the troll butler that currently stood before then looked like Glumshanks, anyways—same face, same green skin, same lanky build. But, the lack of wrinkles on his face suggested he was at least a decade or two younger, and the tattered rags he usually wore had been traded out for a cream and orange butler suit with puffy shorts and oversized boots over tights, white gloves and a pristine white dress shirt. He raised his brows for a moment as the doors spread to their zenith, then as his eyes fell on Kaos, he chuckled and laid the tray he was holding aside.

"There you are, Prince Kaos! How was your day out?" Glumshanks asked, kneeling down and reaching out his hands the way a father would reach out for their child.

Kaos giggled, then rushed past them and leaped right into Glumshanks' arms! He giggled even more as Glumshanks spun him around and dropped him on the floor, but the smiles on their faces didn't relent any.

"It was great, Glumshanks!" Kaos chirped as he gestured to Chihiro and the Skylanders. "I made a bunch of new friends today!"

"I'm glad to hear that, Prince Kaos. Now remember, before you show your new friends around—"

"Oh, we're not going in the forbidden chambers or anything! I'm gonna show them all around the castle, then we're gonna play all day and…"

"Oh, yeah, speaking of that," Spyro said as he flew forward, wincing a little as he tapped Kaos's shoulder, "we're kind of busy, so why don't we hurry up and start this tour?"

"And then we'll hide all over the castle, and I'll show them Father's statue collection…"

"Er, uh, Kaos?" Spyro winced again and gently nudged Kaos's shoulder. "We don't have much time, so—"

"And then, then, well, I'm not sure what we're gonna do, but it'll be fun! Hey, can they stay over for dinner, too? I wanna show them the chefs' cooking routine!"

Glumshanks chuckled and knelt down as he fixed Kaos's collar. "Now, Prince Kaos, that's for His Majesty to decide, not me."

Spyro sighed as he drifted away, flying back to Chihiro's side. "No use, I can't get a word in edgewise!" Spyro whispered.

Chihiro frowned, then her vision passed them and back towards the endless stretches of halls behind Kaos and Glumshanks… And then, the very same balcony, with the very same door that lead to the room that brought them here! That was the easy part, but now there was the matter of getting in.

"Keep Kaos occupied," Chihiro whispered as magic began to spark around her, "I'll see if I can get that door open!"

Cyan light flared around Chihiro as she teleported to the balcony then dispersed as she dropped down on its surface . She walked over and jiggled the door's knob, but it was completely locked! With a frown, she turned it again just to be sure, and when she was met with only a dull noise, she rubbed her hands and charged them with magic. An unlocking spell ought to do the trick…

"Hey, what are you doing there?"

Chihiro gasped and jumped away, finding that Kaos now stood beside her with wide, curious eyes! But, wasn't Spyro keeping him busy? A look behind showed Spyro, Gill Grunt, Trigger Happy and Stealth Elf rushing up to the balcony with a kind of frantic look, but the feeling of Kaos tugging on her sleeve brought her attention back to him.

"That's father's forbidden chamber, silly!" Kaos giggled. "You need his special key to get in there!"

As the Skylanders rushed onto the balcony, Chihiro grinned. A secret key, huh? In that case, she knew just how to get it!

"Hey, Kaos," Chihiro chuckled, hands behind her back as she drew closer to him. "You wanna play a game?"

Kaos's eyes lit up, and he giggled as he clapped his hands. "Sure, sure, what're we playing?"

Chihiro's eyes drifted back to the storage room, and a smile crossed her lips. "How about we play hide and seek? We'll go hide in that locked room over there, and you'll have to find us!"

Kaos's eyes followed Chihiro, and he frowned as he twiddled his fingers. "Well, I'm not really supposed to go in there—father says that's his super secret storage room that only he can go in…"

"But I bet a room like that would have lots of cool places to hide, wouldn't it? It would be the ultimate game!"

Kaos hummed, looking aside as he rubbed his chin, and a small smile fell on his face.

"Okay! We just have to get the key from father, and then we can go in!"

Chihiro chuckled as Kaos skipped away—somehow, she knew that would work. Chihiro crept behind Kaos as he strode down the halls, passing identical rows of doors and flags and other regal decor, then finally stopped at one door that had been opened just a crack. Chihiro gently pushed the door open just enough to peer inside, and was greeted with the sight of a dressing room where a large man dressed in regal garb fixed his crown in a mirror.

"Now, Konkord, there's no pressure to any of this," he mumbled at just a loud enough volume that it was barely heard. "All you have to do is convince the kingdom that the royal family is fine, there's been no traitors or poisonings of any sort, that we're not hiding any secrets and everything isn't falling apart at the seams! There's nothing hard about that!"

Konkord muttered something else under his breath as he fixed his hair, shifting his cape just a little as he lifted his arms—and showing that there on his belt laid a sparkling, purple key!

Chihiro's eyes lit up in an instant, watching as the cape draped back down over the back of Konkord with intrigue.

"That's gotta be the key we need!" Chihiro whispered before humming. "Now, how to get it?…"

"Just leave that part to me," Stealth Elf whispered as she swept out from behind Chihiro.

Chihiro jolted as she found Stealth Elf behind her back and the other three behind her in turn... But only for a moment.

Stealth Elf turned invisible in an instant, much to Kaos's amazement as he oohed and aahed, then all eyes turned back to dressing room as Konkord fussed with his hair still. His cape swept aside just a little as he pushed a few strands here, a few strands there. Then, while Konkord fussed with his hair, the key slipped off of his belt and floated out the door.

"Easy as cake," Stealth Elf remarked as she turned visible once more and held up the key.

Chihiro and Kaos both beamed first at Stealth Elf as she dropped the key in Chihiro's outstretched hands, then at each other.

"Wow, I wish I could do fancy magic tricks like that!" Kaos whispered as he turned back to the door. "Anyways, now we just have to unlock the door and—"

Kaos's eyes widened, then he frantically yanked his head around.

"Wait, father's coming, hide!"

Chihiro gasped, and with a wave of her hand, she, Spyro, Gill Grunt, Trigger Happy and Stealth Elf all disappeared from view! Kaos gasped in wonder as they vanished, but his cheerful look soured as Konkord closed the door and loomed over Kaos.

"Now Kaos, you know what you're supposed to do during my speeches, correct?" Konkord asked, wagging a finger as he spoke.

Kaos sighed and hung his head. "Don't leave the castle and don't cause any trouble."

"Exactly. Now stay put—this will only take a few hours."

Konkord scoffed as he trailed away, not paying any mind to Kaos who hung his head as he strode towards the ends of the halls. But, as Konkord grew further and further from view, Kaos just snickered and lifted his head. A mischievous smile, the one the eerily resembled the smiles the grown-up Kaos held as he reveled in his schemes, crossed his face as he waved at them, and Chihiro smiled back as she took out the key.

"Good job! He didn't even suspect a thing!" Chihiro chuckled.

"I'm used to hiding things from Father," Kaos chuckled as tugged on Chihiro's sleeve. "Now come on, I wanna play, I wanna play!"

Chihiro herself giggled, then trailed over to the door and slipped the key into its hole, Kaos still tugging on her clothes the whole way. With one click, a soft clunk came from the room, and the key slipped out of the lock as the door slowly creaked open.

"Oh, wow…" Kaos whispered as he trailed in. "I've never been in here before!"

And Chihiro couldn't help but smile, a bit entranced by the wonder Kaos held. It was strange, admittedly, seeing her arch-enemy and the guy who plunged Skylands into despair when he was so young and innocent. Weirdly, she almost saw a bit of herself in him for a moment. She faintly recalled when she had rescued him from his brotherly bullies not moments earlier, and for a moment she almost considered just snatching him up and running off with him.

That is, until Spyro flew up and nudged her with his wing.

"Alright, that teleporter should be in the back of the room, if it's anywhere where it was before. I'd—"

"Prince Kaos?" Glumshanks called from the back of the room. "Prince Kaos, where'd you go?"

"Oh crap, he's gonna find us!" Chihiro cried as she leaped into the room. "Everyone hide!"

Spyro, Gill Grunt, Stealth Elf and Trigger Happy all followed in tandem, jumping into the storage room right as Chihiro slammed the door shut and blanketed the room in darkness once more. Diving behind a few stray barrels, Chihiro gulped as she poked her head out, eyes fixed on the faint light that poured in from underneath the door.

"Prince Kaos, what are you doing here? You know you're not supposed to go in the storage room—"

"But, Glumshanks, my friends and I were just, playing a game! Yeah, we were playing hide and seek, and I wanted the perfect hiding spot!"

Glumshanks sighed, his feet shuffling and blocking parts of the light. "This is a big castle, Prince Kaos, I'm sure you can find plenty of other hiding spots…"

Chihiro frowned, fingers drumming against the barrel's rim, then flicked her wrist and cast a soft, cyan light out over the room, unveiling its contents at last.

The room itself was near-identical to the storage room she had entered this strange time from, the barrels and papers scattered like before. But compared to the rotten, leaking barrels and worn, yellowing papers of before, almost everything here seemed crisp and new! It was organized into careful groups and stacks, arranged in an order Chihiro didn't quite understand. She could spy a few limbs or parts from the rest of her team poking out from the pile, and hissed as she waved them over, and they in turn slunk across to where she sat.

"Wait, where's that light coming from?" Glumshanks asked from the other side of the door. "And did I hear footsteps just now?"

"Quick, we don't have much time!" Chihiro hissed as everyone gathered together. "Find that thing that brought us here, right now!"

A few nods came as everyone dashed across the room, pushing aside barrels and sifting through stacks of paper and journals.

Chihiro herself dove into a collection of journals and pushed them aside, only to sigh as she found nothing but more strays papers. She moved over to a few crates and pushed them aside, then winced as something thunked against the door.

"Do, don't worry about it, Glumshanks! I bet it's just those mice father keeps talking about!"

"Mice?! Oh, I'd better get in there—I'm sure His Majesty would—"

"Hey, I thought you said nobody was allowed in there!"

Chihiro winced and hastily levitated a few more crates aside, then a few barrels, a couple more stacks of journals. But there was nothing! Not a single sign of the orb that brought them here laid around this room! She gritted her teeth and crawled forward, pushing away scraps and objects as she did, then as she pushed away one barrel a blood-red light fell on her face!

"I found it!" Trigger Happy cried from up ahead. "Come on!"

Chihiro lifted her head right as Trigger Happy planted his hand on the orb and disappeared, while Spyro, Stealth Elf and Gill Grunt followed in succession. As the red light flashed with every disappearance, Chihiro jumped to her feet and rushed to the orb… But just before she could touch the orb, the door thunked once more and she froze!

She turned her head around, right as it flung right open and Kaos and Glumshanks both fell inside!

Kaos recovered first, jumping to his feet and gasping as he wandered around the room, then lifted a brow as something crumpled underfoot. Turning his head down, he lifted a stray paper from the ground and raised a brow.

"'Dear journal,'" Kaos read from the paper, "'things have grown much more tense in the country since Kaossandra was named queen, but I am grateful for her company nonetheless. In fact, I'm delighted to inform you that she is with child! The royal doctors confirmed that she should be giving birth to a healthy child…'" Kaos raised a brow, then turned around to Glumshanks. "Who's Kaossandra?"

"Prince Kaos!" Glumshanks spat, stumbling to his feet. "You're not supposed to—"

Kaos stumbled away, then turned around and grinned.

"Hey, there you are!" he shouted as his eyes laid on Chihiro. His grin widened, and he shuffled forward. "I was wondering where you—"

Chihiro gasped, then slapped the orb right in that instant! A searing, aching feeling like all the blood in her head rushing down came over her as the blood red light caught her in its grasp! But, as the faint presence of the world around lingered, Chihiro's eyes laid on the younger Kaos, the paper still held in his grasp as he watched her disappear in wide-eyed awe…

§

Around the back of the castle, Tree Rex frowned and cast out a bright green light as a guide around the dark parts of the backyard. Surely, all the ruckus he caused would've been enough to keep the guards occupied—all he had to worry about was finding a way in. And yet, he wasn't entirely sure if that'd be the easiest thing.

"I have to ask," Crusher whispered as he planted himself against the back of the castle, his eyes darting from side to side. "Why exactly did they make us do the stealth part? We're not exactly stealthy…"

"You might not be," 'Enehana remarked as they floated up on a shiny jetpack, their eyes glued to a console, "but once we get in here and I start up my cloaking device, we'll be completely invisible to the naked eye. They won't even know we're coming!"

"Does that thing even work still?" Vatra asked from where he sat on Crusher's shoulder. "It has been a while since you've last used your little devices—"

"And they still work like they're new, tested them myself last night." 'Enehana toyed around with a knob and hummed, then finally stashed the device away in their backpack. "I don't make junk, and these devices are no exception to that rule."

"That's right!" Jorden affirmed as he sat on Crusher's other shoulder.

Jorden nodded as furiously as he could, and Tree Rex only chuckled before turning his attention back to the walls. Brushing his fingertips against their rough, stone texture, he frowned as he traced the walls for some kind of gap or crack reminiscent of an opening or something similar… Though, with all the cracks in this worn-down stone, it was kind of hard to tell exactly what was what. Most of the ones that seemed big enough were just fissures left by the wear and tear of time, nothing that indicated a secret passage of any sort. So, he turned to the other side of the wall and felt his way around, but found no cracks, switches, nothing.

"Any luck, babe?" Bouncer asked, his warm metal pressing against Tree Rex's skin as he leaned on Tree Rex, giving off a pleasantly warm feeling.

Tree Rex chucked, but quickly shook his head. "Nothing here," he said, tilting his head towards the corner indicating the wall's end, "I suppose we'll have to try the other end."

Tree Rex took a step forward, and beside him the castle started to rumble—but no, not from his own footsteps, even with its damages the castle was far too sturdy for something of that sort. Instead, the wall beside him shuddered, slowly sinking in while sand and crumbled bits of rock cascaded down! The others all circled around Tree Rex as the wall sank further and further in, unveiling a totally dark passageway where the wall once stood. A sort of musty smell wafted out from the tunnel, as if it hadn't been attended to in ages, while the walls were filled with cracks and cobwebs. It shouldn't have been surprising, given the worn-down state of the castle, but something about it pricked at the alarm bells in Tree Rex's mind.

"Well, guess we found our passageway," Hot Head remarked, shrugging as he pushed past Tree Rex. With a flick of his hands, red light poured out and acted as a makeshift lantern, illuminating the pathway ahead in crimson. "Let's go find this Kaos guy and—"

SHING!

Hot Head screamed and ducked as a giant buzzsaw burst from the ceiling and swung ahead before sinking back into the ceiling, then turned on his back while his lit hands thrust towards the ceiling. The sounds of buzzing and churning squealed from high above as even more saws slipped down from the ceiling, their metal tinted a bloody red by Hot Head's light, and Hot Head flipped back just before they could saw him in half! He transformed into a motorbike and skidded away as they swung, then turned back to normal as he cowered behind Tree Rex.

"Should've guessed that was a little suspicious," Tree Rex sighed.

The saws continued to churn as they lowered from the ceiling, and Tree Rex held up his solar cannon. Surely, one nice, powerful laser beam of raw solar light would be enough to melt these! His solar cannon screeched as it began charging with light, its tip turning a fluorescent green as it did, while beside him Bouncer wheeled up as his eyes glowed a bright orange. Crusher's own eyes turned a bright chartreuse as he squeezed his hammer's handle, and Hot Head jumped out from behind Tree Rex while his palms glowed with heat. A saw swung right down for them, and all four of them readied to attack…

But as it came just an inch from Tree Rex's face, it stopped completely and leaped back into the ceiling! Tree Rex turned the light of his solar cannon onto the ceiling as it vanished, right in time to catch the other saws as they disappeared, then he frowned and lowered the cannon.

"Just what stopped those things?" 'Enehana asked as they lowered hands glowing with orange light. "I hadn't even used my technomancy yet!"

"I did, actually."

A soft, but kind of high-strung and whiny sounding voice echoed from the darker parts of the hall followed by footsteps and a faint gold light, then out from the shadows came a lanky, green-skinned troll dressed in rags who held a worn lantern in hand. His long ears drooped down in tandem with the bags underneath his bloodshot eyes, and the only trace of hair was a few worn, oily strands at the top of their head. They looked to be in quite awful shape—did they live in this castle?

"I forgot those ceiling saws were still there," the troll asked as they scratched their head, then bowed down and sighed. "Sorry about that."

The troll chuckled, then hummed and scratched his head as he trailed around where Tree Rex and the others stood, giving them odd looks and mumbling things under his breath as he did. After trailing a full circle around them, the troll only sighed and trudged back to Tree Rex's front. Actually, now that Tree Rex thought about it, this troll's voice sounded a little familiar…

"You must be the Elder Elementals, correct?" the troll asked, before casting a glance up at where Vatra, 'Enehana and Jorden rested on Crusher's shoulders. "I don't quite recognize you ghosts, though—I guess the Skylanders must have gotten some new recruits since I was last on Skylands."

"Wait, you know who we are?" Hot Head gasped.

Tree Rex blinked, then took a step back. "Just who exactly are you?" he asked.

The troll chuckled, then ran a hand across his head. "Oh, pardon me, I must have forgotten to introduce myself," the troll said before bowing. "I'm Glumshanks, Lord Kaos's butler and right-hand troll—"

And at the sound of those, words, everyone pointed their weapons forward! Glumshanks gasped, then immediately held up his hands.

"Wait, wait, hold your fire! I don't mean you any harm!"

"Then, pray tell, what are you doing here?" Vatra asked as he floated down. As his feet hit the ground, he stormed up to Glumshanks and crossed his arms. "I presume that you were the one who lead us into these halls, right? What kind of intentions would you have in leading up to a dark, isolated place full of death traps?"

"Well, the death traps were unintentional." Glumshanks gulped and twiddled his fingers. "But, I did want to meet with you—you see, I have a deal for you."

"A… Deal?"

A few whispers came as the others turned to each other and huddled close, but Tree Rex just knelt behind Vatra and Glumshanks. The two of them turned their heads to him, but Tree Rex just nodded and moved his hand forward.

Vatra nodded back to Tree Rex in turn, then he turned to Glumshanks as warmth dusted the tips of his fiery red hair. "Go on."

"Normally I wouldn't really do this, but desperate times call for desperate measures." Glumshanks sighed, then scratched the back of his ears.

"Well, you see, Lord Kaos has been acting… Odd. Ever since he came out of that Conquertron a few days ago, his voice has gotten all deep, and he's been weirdly obsessed with Arkeyan things and he always seems sort of out of sorts, I suppose. He insists there's nothing wrong, but I've known him since he was a baby—I can tell when he's lying like I can blink. But, I can't get him to tell me what's going on with him at all."

"So I presume you want us to spy on him and figure out why he's acting so strangely?"

Glumshanks nodded. "I can help you get into the castle without getting any attention from Lord Kaos's armies—in fact, I've already diverted them away."

Vatra frowned deeper, drumming his fingers against his forearms, but Tree Rex just knelt further down and tapped Vatra's shoulder as gently as he could.

"You know, this could work out for us," Tree Rex whispered. "We can get into the castle without any fuss and get some extra information, and once we get it, we can take care of their plans to go to Arkus! We'd be killing two termites with one stone!"

"Isn't the saying two birds?" Vatra whispered back as he raised a brow.

"Yes, but I wouldn't want to hurt a bird."

Vatra chuckled and rolled his eyes, a hint of amusement in his normally-solemn stature that quickly faded as he turned to Glumshanks.

"Alright, we'll help you find out what's wrong with this Kaos fellow."

"Great!" Glumshanks clapped his hands, then turned around and walked deeper into the depths. "Right this way, please. And, er, please watch your step—I thought I deactivated all the traps, but I'm not sure."

Tree Rex winced, but nonetheless cast a light down on the floor, not moving it from where Glumshanks walked as they passed through the halls. The light at the back faded by the minute, and the faint sounds of rustling wind outside made way for dripping water and faint drafts while that musty stench strengthened and faded at random intervals. A faint gold light passed over them, one not strong enough to illuminate the path, but bright enough that it gave some semblance of visibility to the paths underneath, all dirt and broken stones that looked as if they hadn't been traversed in years.

"This was a secret passageway Lord Kaos's wilikin used to sneak in," Glumshanks explained as he held up the lantern. "His Majesty never wanted them rummaging around the castle, so he kicked them all out… But they'd always use this path to get around that. Nobody knew,"—Glumshanks chuckled for a moment—"well, beside me of course. Being the head butler, I knew this whole castle inside and out!"

Glumshanks took a few steps forward, then paused and hummed as he rubbed a hand against his chin. "Now, if I recall correctly, there was another trap of some kind here, but I can't remember what it was…"

Glumshanks took a few more steps forward as he hummed, when a saw buzzed right past him! He screamed and jumped back as it came inches from sawing him in half, then gulped and stumbled backwards, backing into Crusher's leg as he did. His whole head was coated in sweat, and in such short time, too!

But, considering the whole path ahead quickly filled with buzzsaws that swung around in spiral formations, practically churning the whole ground around them as they worked, he had reason to be scared!

"Oh right, the saws," Glumshanks sputtered. He shook his head, tossing sweat beads everywhere, then wiped himself off and stumbled forward. "Now, if I recall correctly, the switch to turn them off should be at the end of the path—"

Another saw rushed past Glumshanks, and he shuddered before hopping across. "Well, better make this quick."

Holding the lantern as high as he could, Glumshanks jumped again, shuddered for a moment as another saw zipped behind him, then gingerly tiptoed forward before jumping back as another saw passed in front of him! He clenched his teeth, and sweat dripped down again as he held the lantern as high as he could, then finally he jumped forward once more, narrowly passing another saw before it could slice him. Just as he went to jump once more, however, one saw zipped past his front, then his back and sides… The saws had completely caught him in their grip, and he could only stand and clench his lantern as he turned from side to side!

"Looks like he could use some help," 'Enehana remarked as they stretched their hands and grinned, "and I could use something to practice my technomancy with!"

'Enehana hummed as they stretched out their hands, then closed their eyes as an orange glow consolidated around their hands! A similar orange glow shone in the saws' metal as their rapid-fire runs slowed to a crawl before they finally stopped in place. In their center, Glumshanks' eyes flickered as he lifted himself up, then waved at 'Enehana before he hopped aside and pulled a lever on the side of the wall.

The saws all sank into the ground while the gaps they raced around sealed themselves up with shiny metal, and everyone tip-toed over them just a bit gingerly… Just in case. As they rejoined Glumshanks, they crept into an open door at the end of the path, where yellow light tinted the world around and unveiled stone in shades of brown and gray and filled with cracks.

As they passed through the door, the world around illuminated, and Tree Rex smiled and lowered his own light source. The lights were bright enough that they showed a room filled to the brim with solid stone blocks about half his height, its sides lined with ledges to other rooms with sealed-off doors. In the center, the ground below was cracked, just like the rest of the room was, but the cracks seemed a bit bigger and thicker compared to the rest. The musty smells and chilling sounds of before had vanished, leaving the room in an odd state of tranquility.

"One of these doors should lead us to the next room, but I can't remember which one," Glumshanks remarked as he scratched his palm. "And all of them being sealed off doesn't help, either."

"Allow me to take care of that, then," Tree Rex said, his eyes glazing over one of the push blocks.

Surely, all it'd take to unseal those doors was throwing a block like that in there—a little brutish a method, but it would get the job done. Tree Rex walked over to one block and grabbed it by the bottom grunting as he strained to lift it up. But even with all his might, it didn't budge! After a few more tugs he unwrapped it and sighed, then moved to a second block that would hopefully be a bit easier to move. Just like the one before, though, he could only strain and groan as it refused to move an inch.

"Oh, right! I think those blocks have a special enchantment on them—they won't move without a switch," Glumshanks said, drifting off to the side of one wall.

Flipping a part of the wall open to reveal a panel filled with switches, Glumshanks glazed them over and frowned. "I believe the one to release them was…" Glumshanks flicked one switch and grinned. "This one!"

A click sounded through the room, and Tree Rex grunted as the block he had moved to grab started to shudder. He grabbed onto it and went to pull—but instead of grabbing it, it grabbed him!

He screamed as the block zipped off with him in tow, moving with such intense speed despite the added weight of Tree Rex himself before stopping at a moment's notice and flinging Tree Rex into one of the walls! He smashed into the wall's side before he knew it, and his whole body crunched as rocks flew out around him and sand flew into his eyes and left them burning and stinging as he rolled into a small chamber. Tree Rex placed his hand over his face and healed away the pain in an instant, then pushed himself up to find himself in a small, dome like room with no sort of decoration. Something told him this wasn't what they were looking for.

Tree Rex stumbled back out of the room, then jumped back as another pushblock zipped past him with Hot Head screaming as he clung to it and Bouncer hot on its heels. Crusher ran away from another, and Jorden screamed with glee as he rode atop one pushblock before it stopped and tossed him in front of Vatra and 'Enehana, with the two helping him up before running off as another rushed forward and threatened to smash into them!

"Wait, that was the one to move them!" Glumshanks proclaimed. The others shot him glares, and in turn he gulped then scrambled back for the panel and glazed over. "The release switch has to be somewhere in here…"

"Or, we can just move them the old fashioned way!" Jorden cried as he flung out his hand. "Earth magic!"

Crusher nodded as he slid back from the running blocks, then spun his hammer around and smashed it into the ground! Fissures of brown light formed in the ground's cracks, and with a swing of Jorden's hands, the light glowed even brighter as it spread along the ground, feeding into the pushblocks and stopping them in an instant.

The pushblocks froze for a moment, then hovered out of the ground for another before smashing into the rest of the tunnels' walls, shattering both themselves and whatever remained! The tunnel trembled from the ensuring shockwave that burst from the impact, one so powerful that the ground below shattered and dropped them all down into the dark below!

They all grunted as they crashed down into a room completely enveloped in darkness, hitting cold, hard floor of… Some kind. With everything being so dark, it was hard to tell. The only light came from Vatra, Jorden and 'Enehana's ghastly bodies, which glowed like weak lamps.

"Let me shed some light on things," Vatra grunted as he stumbled out and cast out a hand.

Warm, red light spread out from his hand and across the room, illuminating it in crimson tones as torches formed along the walls! The firelight of the torches brightened the room, completely illuminating it to unveil a glass, checkerboard floor that sparkled underneath the light! Its walls were painted with murals of people done in all sorts of fancy styles, all of whom danced and drank and made merry, and light cascaded down in sparkly shades of pink and purple… Whatever it was, the whole look was far too fancy for something like this! It looked like it belonged in a noble's manor, not an underground passage!

"Ah, I remember this place! This was the king and queen's secret dance room," Glumshanks said, chuckling as he stepped up. "Whenever they needed some time away from their duties, they'd sneak down here and dance the night away."

Jorden and 'Enehana both chuckled, then turned to each other other.

"Would you care for a dance then, dear?" Jorden asked, blushing and adjusting the helmet on his hat.

'Enehana chuckled, then took Jorden's bigger, much bulkier hand in their own slender one. "Gladly," 'Enehana replied, taking Jorden's other hand in their own.

'Enehana pressed themself close to Jorden's chest as the two of them twirled around the ballroom, stepping from side to side as they swayed and twirled and spun. With one step of 'Enehana's, the normally-pink lights tinged themselves in warm shades of orange and brown, reminiscent of a warm evening as they danced, and soft music filled the room. A few sparkles cascaded down from the ceiling, illuminating Jorden and 'Enehana as they danced like there was nobody in Skylands but the two of them. Just the sight made Tree Rex smile—in both senses of the phrases, he hadn't seem them dance like this in quite some time.

"You know," Vatra chuckled in a sort of weary tone, "this romantic atmosphere really reminds me of someone. He was always quite the lovebird…"

"Ah, yeah, him," Crusher whispered, his voice faltering. "I… No, that's a stupid thing to ask, there's no way he's still alive anymore."

"Is something wrong, Crusher?"

Vatra turned to Crusher with an almost expectant gaze, but Crusher just frowned and shook his head.

And yet, Tree Rex just sat beside him and frowned—he knew exactly who Crusher was talking about, after all. The man with the wind at his heels, the heart of both a lover and a fighter and their shared passion entwined in his fists. He was one of their most passionate allies, after all, not a face that could be easily forgotten. In fact, just looking at this dancefloor, Tree Rex could almost see him with his dark as night hair streaked with blues as bright as the sky, rambling about his dreams of bringing his future partner here to dance while Vatra groaned and told him to hurry it up…

"Hey, babe, something up?" Bouncer asked as he gently nudged Tree Rex's shoulder. "You looked like you were spacing out there!"

Tree Rex blinked, then shook his head as he pressed his legs to his knees. "Just thinking of an old friend, that's all."

Bouncer frowned for a moment, but even that frown of his faded as he wrapped his arm around Tree Rex's.

"If that's all you're doing, then come on! We might as well take a shot while we're here!"

Tree Rex grunted as Bouncer pulled him onto the dancefloor, his own wood pressed against Bouncer's hot metal. His legs must have fallen asleep while he was reminiscing, because they shuddered and numbed so much that he could barely stand, only kept up by how Bouncer held him tight. The light shimmered in Bouncer's eyes and warmed his metal as he laughed and spun Tree Rex around—neither of them fancied themselves dancers, he knew this much. But after everything that had happened these past couple days, something as silly as this was a welcome escape. So, he just laughed along, clinging to Bouncer the best he could as they twirled along the dancefloor, before they both stopped on one corner and shared a quick kiss—though it felt so much longer. He had forgotten what it felt like to be intimate with a partner… All those years sealed away had made him forget what it felt like to do a lot of things.

"Why don't I take the lead this time?" Tree Rex asked, taking Bouncer's hands in his own as his legs started to steady.

He took a step backwards, and a soft click came from underfoot, just barely loud enough to be heard.

Across from them, 'Enehana and Jorden both withdrew as they turned to the back of the room, where a part of the back wall had retreated upwards and unveiled a dark passageway—seemed as though that was where they had to go next.

So, they gathered together and crowded around the entrance, then ducked inside as Vatra and Hot Head headed the front of the group. Vatra frowned and cast out flames for a lamp with a wave of his hands, and Hot Head did the same as he held out his hand.

The dark of the halls caved in, making way for the light to unveil masses upon masses of stone tunnels with dirt floors, their walls adorned with torches that extinguished and rotted long ago while the stale water that dripped down evaporated from the flames. An eerie sight, but nothing that dissuaded them as they trekked down, the largest members of the ground ducking down as they tried to squeeze their way through the tunnel.

Tree Rex himself had to duck a little further from the length of his horns, then resorted to crawling down as the tunnels tightened a bit further. A cool breeze brushed against his face as he did, like the refreshingly chilling breezes of spring… But, that couldn't be right! They were inside a solid rock tunnel, there was no way that there could've been a breeze flowing through here? And besides, it was autumn, not spring! But, he supposed that autumn breezes were pleasant as well. He recalled his days as a mighty, firm tree, where autumn would paint his leaves in such a splendid variety of colors like jewels in a dragon's treasure hoard. Another breeze slapped Tree Rex in the face, and he shook his head the best he could, his horns stinging as their bark scraped against the sides of the tunnel. No, he couldn't get distracted, he had to find this Kaos person!

So, he crawled through the tunnels, their sides widening by the second as he crawled further—and more disconcertingly, the breezes grew stronger by the second as well.

"Hey, is it just me," Hot Head asked, his teeth chattering and sending embers across the floor, "or is it cold in here?"

"Must be a draft," Glumshanks remarked as he rubbed his own shoulders in some attempt to warm up. "This castle's been abandoned for so long, and we hadn't had time to patch up all the odds and ends. Don't worry about it." Glumshanks' own teeth started to chatter and he shook his head. "Anyways, I think there should be a door at the end of this tunnel…"

"Found it!" Bouncer cried from the front of the group.

The tunnel had grown spacious enough that it allowed Tree Rex to stand at full height. So, Tree Rex stood and glanced over the group. In front of him, Bouncer pressed his hand against a wall at the end of the tunnel with a few sparse cracks just big enough that light poured in from them, then moved to push against the wall. The wall's cracks spreading across the surface and thickening with each push… But with every push, the winds that burst and whipped around Tree Rex grew stronger, more furious even! Their cold, harsh breath pushed against Tree Rex, leaving him to shudder as the wall continued to crumble. Another push, and the winds howled even louder—wait a second!

"Bouncer, wait—" Tree Rex called.

But it was too late, for Bouncer had already shattered the wall! Light poured in, but it wasn't the only thing that did! The winds behind Tree Rex howled and burst through, coating the walls around in frost as they sprung up and pushed everyone ahead! The light came in fast as they crashed in a pile onto a hard cobblestone pathway while the wall behind them sealed itself back up, then grunted and stumbled back up.

Tree Rex was first, crawling out from the top of the pile before he pushed himself up and scratched his horns. "Just what was that?" Tree Rex asked. "And… Where are we?"

While the others got up behind him, Tree Rex frowned and crept across the stones. His eyes locked on a large, curious device that looked like a quarter of large, sharp blades bolted to a round center—some kind of fan, he presumed? Whatever it was, it was the only thing besides them here. Everywhere else was completely walled off by thick, stone walls!

"I don't like the looks of this place," Crusher trembled, clinging to his hammer as he stumbled forward. "We'd better find a way out, quick."

A soft click resounded, and all heads turned up right as a loud, whipping sound like a roaring mega-lion shook the world! The giant fan began to spin right before their eyes, starting at a slow pace before going fast, faster, fastest, until it was little more than a round, giant blur! And with that blur came winds so powerful, it lifted them off their feet and thrust them back into the wall, pinning them all to the spot as they screamed!

§

Back in the hallways, a muffled whoosh came from within a closet door as light poured in from underneath its gap. Soft, tired panting muffled by the door came next, then a slow creak as someone pushed it open from the other side, and out stumbled Trigger Happy and Spyro, their eyes spinning in their head as they struggled to stand on their own feet and paws. Stealth Elf and Gill Grunt came next, tumbling in and knocking them all down onto the floor, and as they all grunted, Chihiro wandered out with arms crossed. Her head was hung low, and she almost didn't even notice the pile of Skylanders before her if not for her accidentally stepping on Gill Grunt's fin! He yowled, and she jolted away and gasped!

"Sorry, sorry!" Chihiro cried as she helped Gill Grunt up. "I didn't really see you there!"

Gill Grunt moaned, shaking his head as he thrust himself out of Chihiro's grip. "You're good, Chi," he moaned.

Beside him, Spyro shook his head and stood to all four paws, his wings folded onto his back.

"Just where are we, anyways?" he asked as his tail from side to side. "Whatever this place is, it definitely isn't Kaos's castle."

"You've got that right," Stealth Elf scoffed as she flicked her ears. "Certainly looks like a place he'd make, though."

Well, Stealth Elf was right on that front. The halls they stood in now were thinner compared to the ones in the prior castle and painted in shades of purple and black and red that pulsed with malevolent energy. Strange statues lined the halls, all different portraits of a gangly but proud looking woman dressed in a top with a ridiculously huge collar whose hair had been styled into two horns, while red velvet carpets lined with gold stretched across the seemingly infinite halls. The faint scents of smoke and something bitter to the sniff came in the air, and the whole area pulsed with some kind of evil feeling that left everyone shuddering. It certainly shared a few of Kaos's aesthetics… And yet, it was just off enough that it couldn't have been his. Even aside of the oddities, none of his minions roamed the halls, nor did it have any massive scrolls rambling about the doom of Skylands or crude portraits of him to be found. But that begot the question—if this didn't belong to Kaos, then who did it belong to?

Chihiro frowned and rubbed her chin as she stepped forward, her nail scratching against her skin like it was digging through dirt. She couldn't think of anyone else prominent enough in Kaos's life that would have a castle like this, but then again, she didn't really know a whole lot about Kaos. So, she turned to Gill Grunt as he stumbled outside of the closet and joined her.

"Hey Gill, where are we?" Chihiro asked.

"Your guess is as good as mine," Gill Grunt remarked. He shrugged a bit, then another chill ran down his spine as he lowered his arms. "Whatever this place is, though, it gives me the creeps!"

"This feels like some big-time supervillain's lair or something!" Trigger Happy cried, his eyes bouncing from side to side as he whipped out his pistols. "I bet they're gonna jump out from the shadows and laugh in our faces right now!" A faint clunk sounded in the distance, and Trigger Happy gasped as he turned around. "Take this, you dastardly do-badder!"

Trigger Happy cackled his loudest as he shot off a round of gold coins with such fury that it blasted him back, knocking him into Chihiro's backside and sending them both tumbling… But as Chihiro turned around and claimed him from the floor, she found that all he succeeded in doing was shooting up the walls and knocking several of the statues off their stands. Trigger Happy just chuckled and scratched his head, and Chihiro only smiled and rolled her eyes as she clutched him tight.

As she stood back up, her gaze drifted first to Stealth Elf, who stared at the halls ahead with a steely, sort of contemplative gaze. Her whole body was frozen, not even a twitch of the finger or ear. Whatever it was that she was focusing on, it seemed like it was really important.

"Anyways—" Trigger Happy started before Stealth Elf immediately shushed him.

He pursed his lips tight as Stealth Elf held out an arm, and she in turn drew it back.

"Do you hear that?" Stealth Elf whispered as she turned to the others.

Chihiro frowned, tilting her head. She could just barely hear something that sounded like shouting or maybe arguing in the distance, but couldn't really glean just where it was coming from, nor the exact tone of voice.

However, whatever it was, it seemed to have caught Stealth Elf's attention, as she crept down the halls with her head not even turning to acknowledge them.

So, Chihiro clutched Trigger Happy tighter as she tip-toed after Stealth Elf, only occasionally glancing at the halls while the voices grew louder. And, now that Chihiro thought about it, they did start to sound somewhat familiar, with a high-pitchy and kind of scratchy one arguing with a much older, tired sounding one about… Staying or going somewhere, she supposed? Chihiro glanced aside to the walls where two tall, thin shadows stretched, then gulped and stepped out of their mouth at last.

Light poured into the circular room she had entered, one with a tall balcony lined with velvet carpets all colored in the same eerie shades of purple, pink and red that colored the halls before. Unlike the halls, however, shelves filled with all sorts of books took the place of the portraits and statues that lined the halls prior, and a glowing pink portal sat at the bottom—wait, a portal? Was this place owned by a portal master?

Chihiro let go of Trigger Happy and slunk behind a few bookshelves, ones that gave her just enough room to peek out.

There on the lower half of the room, light poured in from a pair of open doors as two people stood in their center. But more than that, they were two people she recognized! At the left was Glumshanks, who seemed much wearier than the last time she saw him—he was all wrinkly and clad in rags, much like the Glumshanks she knew in the present, and below him was a short, skinny, probably teenaged Kaos, who now donned clothes closer in colored to his black robes of the present than the regal garb of his childhood and a bright, puffy ginger afro. A pout sat on his face as Glumshanks waved his arms, and Chihiro crooked her head to the side as she shifted closer.

"I'm telling you, Prince Kaos, this is an extremely bad idea," Glumshanks insisted, drumming his fingers against each other. "Kaossa—I mean, Kalamity's rage is utterly furious, and her temper is far from ideal, we'll be much safer—"

"Nonsense, Glumshanks! I want answers, and as her son, I'm sure to get them!" Kaos shouted, his voice perfectly confident despite Glumshanks' fearful tone as he strode forward. "Besides, once she sees my awesome magical prowess, she'll absolutely have to acknowledge me! I've brought puppets to life, mastered every advanced spell in the book,"—Kaos chuckled, then turned around and pointed to his head—"I've even grown an impressive head of hair!"

"Your hair is very impressive, Prince Kaos." Glumshanks smiled and nodded, a small chuckle making its way across his face, but then, he shook his head and frowned again. "But that's not the point! We have to get out of here before—"

"WHO GOES THERE?!"

A massive voice roared through the room, shaking the bookshelves and even knocking a few over!

Chihiro herself fell to her knees from the vibrations, shuddering for a moment before teleporting away as the bookshelf she hid behind fell over! In a puff of magic, she found herself behind a few fallen tables and shelves, her back pressed against something warm and scaly—wait, warm and scaly? Popping an eye open, Chihiro smiled as the first thing that met her was Spyro's warm golden eyes, then the sight of the others as they huddled behind the tables, their eyes fixed on the scene just as intently as Chihiro's were.

"Did you hear that?" Chihiro whispered as she pulled Spyro aside.

"Hard not too," Spyro scoffed.

"Not that weird booming voice—what Kaos and Glumshanks were talking about! Apparently this is his mom's place." Chihiro pulled away from Spyro, then shuffled closer to the tables. "And I guess the next place we need to get out of."

Thick, churning pink smoke billowed from the portal, growing thicker and darker as a pair of eyes opened within its center, and it towered over Kaos and Glumshanks while it grew by the second! Glumshanks gasped and cowered behind Kaos as it loomed, and yet Kaos didn't even move an inch. No, he just beamed and outstretched his arms, that confident smirk still glued to his face!

"What business do you have here in the great Kalamity's castle?!" The smoky cloud demanded, its voice still booming but not enough to blow the room to bits.

"Why, to have an audience with her of course!" Kaos proclaimed, reaching out a hand. "I wish to discuss with her—"

"Denied." the smoke cloud scoffed and turned away. "Kalamity has better things to do than mingle with snot-nosed brats."

"Snot-nosed brat? SNOT-NOSED BRAT?!" Kaos gritted his teeth and shuffled forward, nearly tripping on the cloth of his own gown before he pointed a finger at the cloud. "I'M NO ORDINARY HUMAN, MIND YOU! I'M A POWERFUL MAGICIAN, FAR BEYOND ANYTHING YOU CAN EVEN THINK OF!"

The cloud scoffed as it started to fade. "That was what the last few claimed—"

"AND, I'M HER SON! SHE HAS NO RIGHT TO TURN AWAY HER OWN SON!"

And with that sentence spoken, the cloud turned around, eyes raised just a bit as it glanced down at Kaos. It hummed a little, not bothering to speak, though its eyes raised and sank as if it was deep in thought. It hummed a bit more as it swirled around Kaos, then Glumshanks as he stumbled out and squeaked… Before sinking back to the portal and humming some more! The cloud thinned, then disappeared entirely as it slunk back into the portal without a word.

Kaos scoffed and crossed his arms, but Glumshanks only grabbed him by the shoulder! Kaos sputtered and shouted as he tried to thrust himself out of Glumshanks' grip, but Glumshanks didn't even budge. In fact, it was hard to tell from the distance, but Chihiro was almost certain that Glumshanks had dug his death grip even deeper into Kaos's shoulder by the second, even though his hands were shaking so furiously!

"Alright, we got our answer, now let's get going, Prince Kaos," Glumshanks sputtered, making a beeline for the open doors as he spoke. "I'm sure there's better mentorship prospects out here than—"

Glumshanks screamed as the doors slammed shut before them, and the whole room turned dark. The only light seemed to come from faint flickers on the walls—some kind of light spell or embedded lamp, perhaps? Whatever it was, this darkness was the perfect cover!

"Alright, they should be distracted!" Chihiro cried. With a flick of her hand, a sphere of light burst out, hovering beside her as she stumbled away from the tables. "Now, that light orb thingie that should get us out of this place should be somewhere in here, if it's anything like before. Let's split up and—"

The lights shot back on as another pair of doors slammed open, and Chihiro squealed as she fell on her back. Her light sphere exploded and vanished beside her, and she shuddered as she tried to push herself up. But, it was hard—something malevolent, something that brimmed with such powerful evil energy that it kept her as glued to the spot as it could had entered the room, and just being in its presence was like having the strength sucked out of her! Finally she pushed herself to stand up, and Chihiro poked her head just enough over the tables to catch a glimpse.

At the top of the balcony, the doors had indeed opened… But, all that came from them was smoke—thick pink smoke like the kind that made up that strange presence Kaos was talking with! The sound of footsteps clacking against the floor rumbled from the halls within, and with every step, shudders ran down Chihiro's spine. A part of her was screaming at her to run, to get out of here, but something else demanded she stay. Only her eyes could move, glancing between where Glumshanks panicked and Kaos stood in awe and where a thin, silhouetted figure manifested from beyond the hallways shows. A sleek black boot stepped in first, and another shudder came down Chihiro's spine, then spindly black fingers which sent the shudder from Chihiro's spine to her arms and legs…

And then, a person.

Now atop the balcony, there stood a tall, stick-thin woman with a face near-identical to the woman in those statues Chihiro saw in front of those open doors. Her arms were practically just bones, and her fingers so long and thin they were akin to wisps of smoke. A face sharpened by tall cheekbones and a pronounced chin rested on her head, her red eyes brimming with malevolence in a way highlighted by her magenta eyeshadow, her nose was longer but still had the same round shape as Kaos's, and blood red lipstick painted her thin lips. Her dark hair was styled into the same twin horn shape as the hair of the statue person and was adorned with shiny, purple gems that radiated with malevolent power, and her body was draped in the cloth of a black and red gown that practically clung to her skin, with a gold chevron-shaped belt around the skirt, a symbol like the one on Kaos's forehead but made of pink crystal embedded into its chest, and a black collar with gold accents that stretched well past her head poking from the neck, all accentuated by long, black strips of cloth that stuck out in long and wispy strands. Black opera gloves covered her arms where the dress's sleeves ended, and on one finger she bore a golden ring adorned with a pink crystal, paired well with the golden choker that bore a pink diamond-shaped gem she wore around her neck. Her finger twitched, and the whole room shudder underneath it, as if her presence alone would warp and twist it!

Chihiro had never seen anything like it before—even Eon, or the Elder Elementals with all their power, never controlled the room in such a domineering manner! Chihiro wanted to run just from the sight of this lady, and yet she couldn't even move an inch!

The woman's lip twitched, and she scowled as she ran her hand along the balcony's rim.

"Now tell me again," she hissed, her voice young but confident. "What business do you have here with me, the great Kalamity, exactly?"

Even Kaos himself seemed to be in awe of her presence, twitching and shuddering as he stepped back, but quickly he collected himself. With a clearing of his throat, Kaos shuffled forward and pointed to Kalamity.

"Don't try to act all confident, now! I know who you really are!" Kaos cried. "Your real name is Kaossandra, the disgraced second queen of the East-Western Skylands… And my mother! And as Kaos, your almighty, awe-inspiring son, I've come to claim my birthright!"

Kalamity snarled, fingers curling around the balcony while they crackled with pink lightning. And yet in spite of all this, Kaos didn't relent, his eyes still fixed on her and his finger still pointing forward. Instead it was Glumshanks who broke the ice, pushing Kaos aside and falling to his knees.

"What Prince Kaos means to say, oh mighty Kalamity, is that he's shown quite the magical prowess for his age," Glumshanks sputtered, continuing to bow up and down as he spoke. "He's surpassed the materials for a boy of his status, and he's read that you're an incredibly powerful and amazing magician and wishes for something as simple as—"

"SILENCE!" Kalamity boomed, waving out a hand.

Glumshanks pushed himself up, and Kalamity only scoffed as she strode down her balcony, fingers still running across the railing.

"I am no ordinary mage—I am one of the most powerful kinds of magicians to ever grace Skylands."

Hitting the final step, Kalamity released her grip and strode forward.

"I've leveled entire cities, raised the most powerful of monsters, awakened mighty evils and conquered islands in an eye's blink! Those petty little mages and their party tricks can only hope to compare to me." Kalamity crossed her arms and scowled. "Even if you are my son, I am not inclined to take an apprentice on so easily."

This time it was Kaos who pushed Glumshanks back, shock in his eyes as he pushed himself in Kalamity's face.

"But I'm no ordinary mage!" Kaos cried, holding out his hands. "I've cast spells that my family could only dream of casting, I've brought wooden puppets to life like I was blinking, I've surpassed our finest court mages, even my own father and brothers! Isn't that enough for you?"

Kaos held out a hand forward, but all that greeted him was was a bright pink magic blast headed straight for him and Glumshanks! The two of them screamed as they rolled away, the blast singing the carpet where they once stood instead. As they staggered up, Kaos glared at Kalamity—who returned his scowl with another in turn.

Kalamity's hand charged up with bright, pink fire that burned like the sun, and with a single snap it leaped and consolidated into a whole ring of pink magic bursts!

"If you're as special as you claim to be," Kalamity hissed, "then prove it to me and beat me in battle!"

With a single wave of her hand, the bursts all flew off from Kalamity in an instant, their target locked straight on Kaos! Kaos jumped back and cast out a shield of magic just before they hit, yet the shield still shattered immediately and blew Kaos into the wall.

"Prince Kaos!" Glumshanks cried as he pushed himself up and reached for Kaos. "Let's just stop this and go home, I'm sure that old canopy's still—"

Another blast fell by Glumshanks' feet, and he ran off as it exploded before diving behind a bookshelf that had fallen on its side in the midst of all the combat. He poked his head up for just a moment as flashes of red and blue, purple and pink shone all across the room. As several bursts of cyan magic came dangerously close towards the shelf, however, Glumshanks gasped and jumped back behind it!

The blasts' cyan light painted the walls for only a moment as they exploded and faded just as quick, with Kaos only glancing at them for a moment before a burst of pink magic exploded by his feet! He cried as the burst tossed him in the air, grunted as he rolled across the floor, then as he slowed to a stop, he pushed himself up. With another wave of his hands, Kaos cast a whole blast of hot blue fireballs—but, with a wave of Kalamity's hand, they all exploded in midair with not a trace remaining.

"Alright, seems like this calls for a change of tactics!" Kaos cried, waving his still-glowing hands. "I've been perfecting this spell all week, and now I have the chance to finally try it out!"

Kaos's eyes flashed a bright cyan, and he grinned as he leaped forward, then planted them on the floor! The ground below rattled as veins of blue spread through the wood's lines, and Kaos only cackled as he lifted his hands! The blue veins glowed even brighter, and geysers of magical water spurted and burst while the water formed an entire lake around Kaos's feet!

"MEET MY ULTIMATE, AMAZING, DOOMSHARK!"

The whole floor rumbled, then completely burst as a bright blue shark leaped from the bottom of the floor, splitting a hole in it as it roared and flailed in the air! It set itself upright and bore its sharp, pearly fangs—but before it even moved, a larger, pink orca made of magic rushed forward and swallowed the shark whole! The orca cried out as it bolted right for Kaos, who screamed and teleported away as the orca charged forward and smashed a hole through the wall instead! The orca dissipated into bursts of pink smoke as Kaos rolled away and panted, his breath still heavy as he turned around.

His whole body, from his head to his eyes to his feet, was enveloped in both blue and red magic as it flashed and swirled around him, almost as if he was going to teleport. But, with a wave of Kalamity's hand, the lights shot out just as it completely enveloped him, leaving him to sputter and spin around instead! Pink light shone against his face as he finally shook off the dizziness, and he raced off just before that pink light consolidated into a blast that smashed against the walls, leaving a hole that burst with pink embers behind! Even more of the blasts trailed after him as he ran, shaking the whole manor and knocking more of the furniture over with loud crashes that rumbled the area almost as much as the blasts themselves! Flares of cyan and pink, red and purple flashed against the walls as the embers spat out…

In fact, a few got dangerously close to Chihiro, who yipped and ducked behind the tables as the heat flared against her face!

"Alright, they seem distracted enough," Chihiro said, casting an aside glance for a moment before she turned to the others. "Come on, let's get out of here before they find us!"

Another explosion came, this time so dangerously close that it blew the tables away, and Chihiro, Spyro, Gill Grunt, Trigger Happy and Stealth Elf with them! They all grunted as they hit the walls, sharp cracking noises hitting the air with them like every bone in their body had been shattered—but no, as Chihiro opened her eyes, she found that the noise was only the tables, which had been blown to splinters and bits! Wait, the tables were gone, they were wide open!

Chihiro panted, eyes darting from side to side as she sought another form of sanctuary, then finally those eyes of hers fell on a stray stack of boxes.

"Over there!" Chihiro cried as she pointed to the boxes.

Spyro's eyes flashed purple, and with a flap of his wings, purple magic completely tinted Chihiro's view!

When the magic faded, Chihiro found herself cuddled beside Spyro as they all curled behind the boxes, but not for long as they crept away. Another stray blast came for them, screeching like a firework as it landed and exploded! They flew behind a nearby toppled-over bookcase instead, and with her legs shaking like jelly, Chihiro forced herself up and prepared to run. Before she could, however, she collapsed and ducked back behind the bookcase as a few more blasts crashed through the walls behind her. Another blast exploded, knocking her back into the walls, and before she even had time to recover, Spyro swept her onto her back as he ran off. Chihiro grunted, her arms and legs slowly regaining their weight as she leaned forward.

"Just hiding's getting us nowhere," Chihiro whispered, clutching Spyro tight as the magic swam through her veins. "Guess I'll just have to take it a little further, then!"

Chihiro squeezed Spyro tighter, her head pressed against his back as a wave of magic burst from around her, and slowly everyone around disappeared from view! Their footsteps were the only things that identified them in front of her, allowing her to trace their footsteps to the top of the balcony. As Spyro finally joined Gill Grunt, Stealth Elf and Trigger Happy at the top, Chihiro pushed herself off his back and peered down at the world below—just to make sure Kalamity and Kaos didn't notice.

Below them, Kalamity shuddered and turned around.

"I felt a disturbance!" Kalamity cried. "What was it? Who's there?!"

"Hah! You left yourself wide open!"

Kalamity grunted as a burst of cyan fire smacked her in the face, but she quickly shook it off and turned back to Kaos, still snarling as he waved.

"You little—you'll pay for that, dearly!"

"Well maybe you should've paid more attention to your opponent! I wouldn't call that worthy of a powerful sorceress!"

Chihiro frowned, then dashed back into the hallways, the sounds of Kaos and Kalamity's bickering growing more distant the further she ran. They seemed distracted enough—now was the perfect time to find a way out! A few doors came into view as she ran further, and she immediately yanked one open and peered inside, but all that sat within the room were a bunch of empty shelves.

"Nothing here!" Gill Grunt cried from down the hall. "Just a bunch of treasure!"

"Ooh, treasure? Is there gold in there, too?" Trigger Happy shouted.

"There's no time to get distracted!" Stealth Elf hissed. "We have to find that teleporter!" A door slammed in the distance, and Stealth Elf cleared her throat. "Anyways, there's nothing here but a bunch of statues of that Kalamity lady!"

Chihiro winced and closed the door, then rushed back down the halls right as Spyro burst out from a door in front of her! She had to dig her heels into the ground before she slammed right into it, then crept around as Spyro flew out from the door and shuddered.

"Nothing there!" Spyro sputtered before shuddering. "Kinda understand where Kaos gets his sense of aesthetics from now…"

Raising a brow, Chihiro turned around, then shuddered and immediately slammed the door closed. Yeah, that was going to haunt her nightmares for a little while. Rubbing her eyes in some hope of erasing the image from her brain, Chihiro skimmed over the halls, looking for another door to open or any sort of hint as to where that teleporter orb was.

"Hey, I found something!" Trigger Happy called from down the hall. "Come here!"

Raising a brow, Chihiro followed Stealth Elf, Gill Grunt and Spyro down to a particularly dark corner of the hall, lit only by a rectangle of purple-pink light from an open door. Trigger Happy turned around and waved at them from the front, then disappeared into the room while Spyro, Stealth Elf and Gill Grunt all followed behind. Only Chihiro stopped for a moment to close the door before a strange, powerful yet familiar magic presence rushed into her bones! Chihiro shuddered for a moment, then turned around and gasped!

The whole room was lit in purple and pink light by a collection of glowing, sparkling portals! They were sleeker than the ones in Ancient's Peak's portal room, their stone borders barely crossing over their center and their bodies made of shiny black stone as opposed to the aged, graying ones of home… But there was no doubt about it, they were portals! If Chihiro hadn't been convinced that Kalamity was a portal master before, this definitely sealed the deal. But, more than that, the largest of the portals which sat in the very back of the room—it had that same, red orb from before floating above it and pulsing!

"There it is!" Chihiro cried as she rushed past the others. "Come on, let's get it before—"

"I had a feeling there was something amiss here!" Kalamity cried as the door slammed open!

Chihiro gasped, her arms and legs shaking without her even thinking about it as she turned around.

Kalamity's glare pierced into her as Kalamity slunk up to her, the fires that burned in her blood red eyes growing even brighter and giving them a hellishly bright look. A lump formed in Chihiro's throat as she backed away with all she could. On instinct she threw out her hand, trying to cast a spell, and yet nothing came. Not a spark, not a feeling, nada! It was all she could do to stand her tallest in Kalamity's presence while the air sparked and thickened around her.

"That little brat must have sneaked you in when he started rambling about all this challenge nonsense!" Kalamity hissed, yanking Chihiro up by the throat! Chihiro hacked and choked as Kalamity pulled her closer, until Kalamity's eyes locked on hers and practically burned a hole in Chihiro's face. "Tell me right now, what is it that he wants?! Treasure?! Ancient spellbooks?!"

"Why would we ever work for that guy?!" Trigger Happy spat, jumping to his feet. "Do we look like wannabe evil overlords to you?"

However, Kalamity didn't even listen—she just snarled, squeezing Chihiro's throat tighter while Chihiro's head spun! Chihiro flailed as hard as she could, kicking at Kalamity's chest even though she barely made the mark. She flicked out her arms, trying to cast a spell or anything, really, but her head grew dizzier by the moment, the world around her blurring and spinning as Kalamity choked her tighter.

"TELL ME RIGHT NOW!" Kalamity roared. "OR I'LL WIPE YOU OFF THE FACE OF SKYLANDS!"

"Let Chihiro go!" Spyro yowled as he charged right for Kalamity!

Kalamity snarled, finally dropping Chihiro to the floor as she spread out her arms—and from them, a massive pink shockwave burst across the room and slammed everyone back! The portals all flared and burned with columns of light as they crashed, blurring Chihiro's vision even further as the wave smacked into her and knocked her back like she was little more than a ragdoll. Chihiro grunted as she slammed into the back wall, her whole body locking up as she fell out of the wall and collapsed on the ground. The pain surged through the body the same way the stray static from the blast did, pinning her to the ground and barely allotting her to keep her eyes open.

Around her, Spyro, Gill Grunt, Trigger Happy and Stealth Elf all laid splayed on the ground in similar ways, pink static crackling and bursting off of their fur, scales, skin as they groaned and just barely pushed themselves up before collapsing once more… And in the center of it all, Kalamity slunk further, a scowl on her face while her hands sparked with magic so powerful it shook Chihiro to the bone. Chihiro couldn't even get up—all she could do was watch as Kalamity inched closer and closer, the light from her hands growing brighter by the second.

"It's time I showed you worms what I do to intruders," Kalamity hissed, flinging her hand in front of Chihiro.

Chihiro couldn't even more, shout, retort—just the sight of Kalamity froze her to the spot, her whole body locked down and shaking while she watched the light grow brighter. The screeching of magic rang in her ears with her own blood, while the magic itself made the air thick, so thick that it choked Chihiro out until she could barely breathe! And judging by the coughing she barely hear come from the others, she wasn't the only one affected!

"CHIHIRO!" Spyro coughed out, trying to push himself from the ground only to fall back over.

"I'll deal with you next," Kalamity hissed as her hands reached their brightest. "For now—"

The sound of a door slamming right open echoed around the room, and Kalamity scowled as she turned around. Her hands' light faded, and the atmosphere in the room seemingly lightened—had something saved them? A glance past her showed that someone else had entered the room, but not a savior by any means, no.

"There you are!" Kaos cried as he flew forward. "Though you could get away from our epic battle of world-ending proportions, eh?!" Kaos snickered as he pointed a finger right in Kalamity's face. "Well, you were absolutely, utterly, WRONG!"

Kalamity, however, just scowled.

"I don't have time for your nonsense, brat!" she hissed back. With a wave of her hand, Kaos jolted into the air and rammed into the back wall, leaving Kalamity to scoff and turn around. "I'm merely dealing with the intruders YOU let in underneath my nose!"

"What are you talking about?!" Kaos staggered up and gestured to Chihiro. "I haven't seen them in my life!"

Chihiro frowned and raised a brow. He didn't remember her? But, what about the time prior, when she ran into his kid self at the castle and everything? If they were time-traveling, then surely he'd have some recollection of that, right? Chihiro wanted to step forward and argue, but at the same time, given the circumstances… It may have been for the better that he didn't recall who she was, so she just shut her mouth.

"You're lying!" Kalamity cried, her voice echoing so loudly that the portals' light flickered from the force. "There's no way my castle's defenses could have let any of these worms in! Clearly, you must have sneaked them in to steal my treasures!"

"And I'm telling you, I don't recognize them at all!" Kaos snarled as he pointed at Chihiro. "Now can we get back to our ultimate duel of epic proportions?!"

Kalamity growled underneath her breath, her teeth gritting together for moments as she turned her piercing gaze on Chihiro's group instead—though with the way she glared, it was as if she was piercing directly into Chihiro's heart instead! Her whole body locked up, not able to even move a muscle as the sweat crawled down her back. Was this one of Kalamaity's fancy evil powers too, or just the nerves of being in such a powerful presence?

"Then prove it to me and eliminate them right this second!"

"Gladly!" Kaos cried, cackling as blue fire burst from his palms!

His eyes set on Chihiro first as he cackled and shot blasts of magic her way, and on instinct Chihiro's body loosened, alloting her to wave her hand and craft a shield that blocked off the blasts before they could even get halfway towards her.

Chihiro growled, clenching her fists as she prepared to take Kaos on further, but instead he leaped away and charged for Spyro!

Kaos cried out, hands still burning as he went to strike—but it was Spyro who struck first, for he charged forward and tackled right into Kaos's chest! Kaos grunted as the charge blew him backwards, right into Trigger Happy who only cackled as he whipped out his guns and blew Kaos back with a burst of golden light! Another couple grunts from Kaos echoed through the room as Kaos rolled across the floor, and Trigger Happy grinned…

Then completely froze up as Kalamity slunk behind Trigger Happy out of seemingly nowhere and yanked him from the floor! Kalamity snarled as she squeezed Trigger Happy's wrist, and shook him around for a bit of emphasis while he squealed.

"You can't even knock out an obnoxious gremlin!" Kalamity hissed as she continued to shake Trigger Happy. "What makes you think you can be my apprentice?!"

Kalamity snarled as her hand started to glow, but right then Stealth Elf leaped out of thin air and kicked Kalamity right in the back! Kalamity grunted, clutching her stomach as she keeled forward while her grip on Trigger Happy started slipping, and Stealth Elf in turn yanked Trigger Happy by the hand and dashed away.

"And you couldn't even notice a stupid little elf!" Kaos sneered back as he crossed his arms. "What makes you think you can get on my case, anyways?!"

Kalamity snarled. "I was merely caught a bit off-guard, that's all! Having to deal with an insolent pest like you—" Kalamity snarled and shot off a blast of pink magic, "—is much harder than an amateur like you would think!"

Kalamity gritted her teeth as Stealth Elf and Trigger Happy dodged the blast just as it came into their range, so her eyes turned on where Gill Grunt had lifted his cannon with aim fixed on Kaos and fired on him instead! Gill Grunt gasped and rushed away as the blast came in for him, and it smashed right through the wall instead. Though, its newborn hole was quickly covered by Kaos as he walked in and scoffed.

"If you were trying to shoot me, then your aim's ridiculously off! How can you call yourself a powerful magician when you can't even do something as simple as that, foolish witch?!" Kaos sneered.

Kalamity scowled as she failed to zap Gill Grunt once more, then pushed Kaos aside.

"Step aside, brat!" Kalamity hissed, shooting another blast as she moved. "If you want to do anything productive, focus on getting rid of those intruders!"

"I don't need you to tell me that! In fact, I'll show you how a true master of magic does it!"

Kaos chuckled as he rubbed his hands, and with a wave a blast of hot blue fire burst out and charged... Right for the teleporter! Wait, if it blew that up, they'd be stuck here forever! Chihiro jumped to her feet without even thinking and teleported in front of the orb, casting out her hands as she prepared a shield—yet, the flaming blast came in first, slamming into Chihiro's chest! Her chest flared up as she hit the floor and rolled across, burning like it had been hit by the sun itself as she clutched it. The pain spread to her arms and legs, numbing them until she was only able to curl up and clutch her chest, clawing at it in some faint hope that it would stop the pain!

"Chihiro!" Spyro cried!

In a flash he teleported to her side and pushed her to her feet, but it was no use. Her legs were still so numb yhat she could only stand for a few seconds before falling to her knees and hacking. Heck, her stomach churned so badly that it took all her willpower to not cough up her guts! Instead she covered her mouth and hacked away, something wet hitting her palms as she did—she couldn't tell if it was spit or blood. Her head was throbbing so badly and she could barely smell. Looks like that blast from Kaos took a lot more out of her than she thought… But, she, she had to defend the teleporter! Chihiro tried to push herself up again, but no use—once more she fell down, this time just barely pushed up by her hands, and something red spat out of her mouth in tiny, metallic-scented drops. Well, guess it was blood.

"Everyone, to the teleporter, quick!" Spyro cried!

Cold, hard teeth brushed against Chihiro's sleeve as Spyro bit into it and dragged her to the teleporter. He placed a paw on it as Gill Grunt, Trigger Happy and Stealth Elf sprung forward and joined Spyro, and the whirling, numbing feeling encapsulated Chihiro as the world around her started to blur…

"Wait, no, get back here!" Kaos cried, rushing forward and holding out a hand. "I wasn't done with you interlopers yet! I'm never going to forgive you for—WOAH!"

Having snagged his foot on his own robe, Kaos cried out as he went rolling on the floor and slammed right into the portal… And in that moment, a bright flash of cyan and purple light burst from it, intermingling with the red light of the world around! The shock lifted the haze on Chihiro's senses, just enough that she could lift her head to spy the wide-eyed, jaw-dropped look on Kalamity's face as Kalamity herself stepped back.

"I can't believe it," Kalamity gasped right as the light completely enveloped Chihiro. "You're a portal master!"

§

Tree Rex gritted his teeth, closing his eyes the best he could as the wind lashed against his bark. His whole body crumpled underneath the weight of the winds, or at least, it felt like it—it was hard to tell with his eyes stinging so badly that just opening them was a trial in and of itself. He could only faintly hear everyone's shouting over the howls of the wind, while the awful stench of something or other numbed his face. He tried his hardest to push forward, moving his body inch by inch, but as he pulled himself from the wall, the wind slammed into him and knocked him back—though at least, the pain was shocking enough that his eyes shot wide open, showing the others were in no better shape than he was!

All around him they laid pinned to the stone walls, shouting and crying out as they tried to push against the wind just to get blown back and pinned to where they started!

Crusher got the furthest, being able to at least take a few steps forward, but the wind just blew harder and smashed into into the walls, leaving thin cracks in his skin! Crusher screamed out as he laid within the crater his impact had left in the wall, and Tree Rex himself cringed, the sound ringing in his eardrums as he turned around.

Another howling sound came over the wind, but it didn't sound like the prior cries of the winds that blew—no, it sounded a bit heavier, as if something was coming! He grunted and lifted his head, then gasped as a group of large, brown, blurry things with faint points rode the wind, coming closer into view by the second. Wait, those things, they were barrels—and spiked ones at that!

Tree Rex gasped and banged his head, then his hands and feet against the wall. His eyes and the solar core embedded into his hand glowed green as the power of life itself bubbled in his sap, and a shrieking noise overpowered the wind as the floor below glowed green. A barrier of tall wooden trees flew in front of them right as the barrels came their closest, and the barrels smashed into the trees. The trees' trunks snapped with the barrels, the splintered remains of the barrels intertwining with the tree's halved trunks as they smashed against the wall and left behind large splinters that pinned Tree Rex and his group right to their spots! A few of the splinters scratched against Tree Rex's own skin, so sharp that they were even able to break bark!

Tree Rex wiggled his fingers, attempting to get some grasp of the splinters so he could yank them out, but the oppressive wind continued to blow over him, pressing him tight to the wall with only the most limited of movement available. Another faint soaring, flying noise rang over the air, and Tree Rex popped an eye open only to wince. Even more debris, this time in all sorts of large bodies, came hurtling towards him, and this time there was definitely no escape!

Grunting and shouting came from beside him as everyone else struggled to pull themselves from both the wind and the splinters' tight grip, and yet their struggles proved as futile as before! Tree Rex himself tried to push further with no luck, so he only glanced aside while the others struggled against the grip, the debris growing closer and closer with every push, thrust, every futile attempt to break free! The others continued to struggle… But, among them, Crusher had managed to lean further than the rest! Was he breaking free? Tree Rex glanced down to find a pile of smashed splinters underneath—no, he was free to begin with! With him being made of stone, those splinters couldn't pin him in the first place!

Crusher seemed just as shocked as Tree Rex himself was, glancing down at his body with wide eyes for a moment before he grunted and pushed himself off the walls. His body slid against the floor for a moment, but it seemed as though the weight of his stone body was enough to keep him on the ground! He stood dumbstruck as he glanced over his body, then a barrel slammed into his chest and splintered! Crusher grunted for a moment as he skidded back, but quickly regained his footing and yanked his hammer back from the wall.

"Time to crush this!" Crusher cried as he slammed his hammer into the ground!

A booming echo resounded through the hall, dulling the flow of wind for a moment while cracks formed in the ground. They splintered further, growing deeper as loud rumbles burst from within, then a whole row of pillars burst out from them! The debris crashed into the pillars, rending it little more than harmless specks of garbage as it fell to the floor… But most importantly, the wind's flow had been disrupted! No longer did it beat down with its fierce, oppressive winds, but the disruption from the pillars had left it little more than a gentle breeze.

The wall behind Tree Rex heated up, and he grunted as his back burned like he had been set on fire. The splinters around him turned red and burned to ashes in seconds, and he lept off and caught his breath while the heat faded.

Beside him, the others freed themselves from the wall and gathered behind the pillars. Vatra came first, bearing a stern look as warm light faded from his skin—that heat wave was probably his doing, then—but he was quickly dragged behind the nearest pillar by 'Enehana. The two of them huddled behind the pillar, then yelped as part of it broke off and nearly crashed onto them if not for Tree Rex sliding in and catching the broken slab just in time!

Tree Rex poked around the pillar to where Crusher knelt to the ground, straining as hard as he could while his normally-green crystals turned brown from the glow of Earth Element magic. It seemed as though he was doing all in his power to keep those pillars up, and yet it was barely enough. Whatever was powering these winds must have had some strong Air Element magic behind it—there was no other explanation for how it could blow away such powerful Earth magic so quickly!

"Looks like Crushy boy could use some extra juice!" Jorden cried as he rushed out from underneath Tree Rex. "And I've got just the thing!"

Jorden chuckled as he tossed a pickax in the air and zapped it with a bolt of brown magic, and in tandem it turned large and crystalline before crashing back into the ground, just inches ahead of Jorden himself! The light burst in shades of brown and gold, and in that moment even more pillars jumped up, while the ones Crusher made were enveloped in a shiny, bronze glow. Their stone surface turned as shiny as the light with their cracks sealing up, but that glow faded just as quickly as it came. But the strength they were given remained as they stood tall, the wind lowering around them.

Crusher lifted him head as the wind stopped blowing, and with his job relieved, he turned around and crowded behind the pillars, joining Tree Rex's side as he knelt to meet the smaller members of the group.

"Seems as though there's no going ahead until we turn off that fan," Glumshanks mused.

Vatra beside him only scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Quite obviously," he hissed through gritted teeth.

"So, how do we turn this darn thing off, then?" Jorden cried, turning to Glumshanks. "You, troll fellow! You work for this guy, do you know?"

"I, I'm afraid not," Glumshanks replied, shaking his head before he turned to the fan. "This fan must have bee a pretty recent installation—even I wasn't told about it!" Glumshanks frowned and rubbed his chin. "Then again, Lord Kaos apparently decided that he didn't need me to handle the business aspects of things anymore, he's been doing all that himself lately. I only seem to stumble upon these things after they're put in…"

"Well, that's our first option out." Vatra scoffed. "What do we do now?"

"If you ask me, we'll just have to get closer and shut that windy thingie down!" Jorden cried, stumbling out from behind the pillar he hid behind. "That seems like the obvious choice to me!"

Tree Rex shuffled out from behind Jorden, and both of them screamed as the fan's winds smacked into them and knocked them back into the wall once more! The wind scratched against their faces, leaving Tree Rex dizzy and numb and Jorden certainly feeling the same as they both shuffled behind the pillars' safety once more. The harsh whipping of wind relented, and they both fell down and scattered into the group's ranks once again.

"Something tells me we're not walking," Tree Rex panted, leaning against Bouncer's side as he groan and slunk down to his knees.

Beside him, Jorden hummed, his eyes not leaving Crusher while the wind just faintly rustled his hair. That's right, Crusher hadn't even been affected at all—even with the power of the fan's winds, Crusher's body was too rock-solid and heavy to be moved! If only they had something to keep them weighted to the floor like Crusher did… Crusher hummed as he glanced down at Jorden, and smiles crossed both their faces, as though they knew exactly what the other was thinking!

They both turned around and beckoned for the others, and Tree Rex could've swore that just a hint of warm bronze shined in their eyes as they did.

"C'mere, everyone!" Jorden cried as the others crowded around him and Crusher. "We've got a plan!"

With everyone crowded tightly around him and Crusher, Jorden just smiled and nodded. That bronze glint in his dark eyes glowed brighter as he waved his hands, and in that moment bronze glows shone off of everyone's bodies, their light sparkling and glinting off of the gems on Crusher and Jorden's body!

Tree Rex turned down at himself as a bright, bronze light came from him to find that it had completely enveloped his body, slinking around and sliding this way and that as it formed something more solid and heavy. Could light even be heavy? Tree Rex hadn't known what to think of that question, but it seemed as though it could, because it weighed down even him as it formed some kind of chestplate over his body, paired with arm and leg guards… The armor glimmered as it grew a bit heavier, and with one last flash an entire set of knight's armor made of heavy, solid rock had formed on his body! The weight was a sudden gain, so sudden that Tree Rex stumbled forward and had to catch himself with his hand, and judging from the looks around as everyone else shouted and stumbled about—save for Glumshanks who just fell on his back—they seemed to be just as taken aback.

Jorden chuckled as he showed off his own armor, which had grown significantly more bulky, then ushered everyone away as he crept away from the pillar. He stepped out from its safety, and on instinct Tree Rex was almost going to cry out. But aside from a tiny bit of dragging, Jorden wasn't blown away at all! So, Jorden raced off for the next pillar as the breeze whipped around him.

Tree Rex raised a brow, then shuffled out from behind the pillars. The winds howled and lashed against him as harshly as they did before, but against the armor they barely even laid a scratch! So, he trudged along the floor, his eyes latched onto the next pillar ahead. The added weight of the armor was cumbersome, and his movements were slow as sap still… But, it was an improvement compared to being pinned to the wall by the raging winds. So, Tree Rex trudged along, stepping in big strides for extra distance. With every labored step the pillar inched that much closer in, and with one more step Tree Rex reached for its safety—but stopped mid-step as the sounds of incoming garbage came in! He turned around and smashed his fist against a barrel that came in, then glanced down as its splintered wood and thick, peach-colored liquid blew in the wind.

"Incoming!" Hot Head cried over the roaring winds.

A full fleet of barrels flew in next, their direction low and aimed towards where Vatra, Jorden, Glumshanks and 'Enehana all trudged behind them!

Vatra jumped out first and pumped his fists as flames burst from his knuckles—but the flames petered out with another howl of the winds! He quickly drew back, just barely escaping the wrath of a barrel as it flew past. The winds roared once more and caught his attention, turning his gaze to where even more barrels flew in!

"Lemme handle this!" Jorden cried!

Jorden stomped on the floor, and the ground rumbled underneath his foot! Fissures and cracks formed within the marble and glittered like diamonds, then entire spiky rows of sparkling gems shot up from the cracks, smashing through the barrels before they could even come in! Their contents splattered across the floor before the wind swept them away with the shattered remains of their barrels, and the crystals in turn slunk back into the ground while it sealed its fissures away.

Vatra drew back his arms as the crystals drew back, but as he did some more of that thick peach-colored liquid splattered, slipping into his gaping mouth! He blinked as the taste settled in, but quickly found himself hacking and gagging. Whatever flavor that was, it must not have been very tasty.

"Ugh, disgusting!" Vatra cried as he wiped his mouth. "What kind of drink is this anyways?!"

A broken piece of a barrel splattered with more of that peach liquid flew towards Vatra, and he snatched it out of the air before glazing it over with a raised brow.

"Sand flavored? Exactly what's delectable about sand, of all things?"

"I don't know, but I don't think that green stuff's any better!" 'Enehana cried as they raced in front of Vatra with what seemed like some kind of mechanical contraption in hand. "Get behind me!"

Vatra dropped the shard, then turned around and ducked behind 'Enehana as a stream of glowing green liquid soared in on the winds. Jorden and Glumshanks both quickly joined him, and with all three behind them, 'Enehana grunted and flicked down the contraption, popping it open in a single motion. Its top unveiled itself as an umbrella made of cobbled-together metal and machine parts, and though it seemed haphazard, it didn't even melt a bit as the glowing liquid splattered against its front! While the rest flew backwards, 'Enehana trudged over to the pillar's safety in slow, large steps, their umbrella still held tight in front of them.

Tree Rex had to admit, he forgot just how long it took those much smaller than him to cross large terrains like this—by the time they arrived, not only had he taken shelter behind the pillar, but Crusher, Hot Head and Bouncer were all huddled together by him. They watched with intent eyes as 'Enehana's group trudged closer behind the pillar, and when their group finally arrived, they all collapsed into panting fits.

Tree Rex smiled and swept them into his palm as a sort of rest stop, then peered out towards the path ahead. The next pillar stood a good deal away from where they rest now, completely unaffected by the onslaught of harsh wind and flying junk… But, they certainly would be affected if they tried to trudge there, so he scanned to the lefthand side for some more. And he did find one, true, but it was even further than the last!

"Everything else is a good deal away from here, it seems," Tree Rex said as his fingers curled around Vatra, 'Enehana, Jorden and Glumshanks in his palm. "You stay in here, we'll carry you the rest—"

Tree Rex gasped, and in that moment his throat choked itself in and his head hung low. Something smashed right into his back, something hard like stone but sleek like metal, and next thing he knew, he flew backwards! The weight of his stone armor ensured that he didn't go for a very far trip, only sliding across the floor and just barely grazing a pillar behind him… But, the others! He opened his palm, and thankfully they themselves were intact, though they now laid sprawled against the grooves of Tree Rex's palm with dizzy expressions. Tree Rex breathed a sigh of relief, then pushed his head up as a shout came from ahead!

Ahead of him a large, shiny black steel ball rolled down the pathway before smashing into Crusher and knocking him right beside Tree Rex! Crusher's teeth cringed together as he slammed into the pillar, then he shuddered and pushed himself onto his knees. A few cracks had formed in his stone body, but with a glimmer of brown light they sealed themselves away and Crusher regained the strength to sit up and glance at Tree Rex.

"Take them for me," Tree Rex said as he dropped Vatra, 'Enehana, Jorden and Glumshanks into Crusher's palms. "I'm gonna try something!"

Tree Rex grunted and pushed himself up, leaving him eye-level with an oncoming steel ball! The winds whipped at him, and his steps were slow and labored as ever, but nonetheless he trudged forward, arms held out as the ball came in faster and faster by the second. Then, it smashed into him, his bark creaking and aching like it was going to break—but, it, and he himself, stayed perfectly intact as the force of the ball's landing pushed Tree Rex back. A furious wind lashed at Tree Rex's back while he held the ball the best he could, then he spun once, twice… And on his third spin, Tree Rex grunted and swung the ball right back into the air!

"Come get some!"

Tree Rex's cry was barely heard over the roars of the wind, but its message was sent nonetheless as the ball flew across the field and slammed right into another oncoming one! That second ball in turn flew backwards towards that gigantic fan while the first fell down and rolled away, and the wind added onto the second ball's flight, pushing it further and further until it slammed right into the fan! A monstrous creaking noise shook the hallways as the fan dented in on itself and its blades turned crooked, the wind was still as strong as ever! Though, now, it carried with it something that sounded like a pained, labored groan… But that didn't matter.

Tree Rex grunted and narrowed his eyes, focusing on the next steel ball to come in. One or two more, and that should leave the machine little more than scrap metal. But, as he focused, a warm light brushed against his cheek and turned his attention to his shoulder, where a person's silhouette had begun to form.

"Tree Rex, stop!" Vatra cried right as he teleported onto Tree Rex's shoulder. He grunted and gripped the grooves in Tree Rex's bark the best he could, then turned back to him. "Don't destroy that machine!"

Tree Rex gasped, then ducked down right as the steel ball came in for him.

Wincing as it grazed over his back, Tree Rex's gaze turned back to Vatra. "What are you talking about?" Tree Rex asked. "We won't be able to move an inch until that machine's done for!"

Vatra grunted as he climbed back onto Tree Rex's shoulder. "Well, find another way, then!" Vatra grunted as he flipped back atop Tree Rex's shoulder. He panted for a moment, but regained his grip quickly. "When that machine dented, I heard something crying out in pain,"—Vatra lifted his head, his fiery eyes not breaking from where the dented fan rumbled—"between that and that strong magic, I think they're using someone to power it!"

Using a living being to power a machine like this? Tree Rex clenched his teeth and turned back to the machine, where a strong magic presence, one Tree Rex hadn't really noticed before, began to waft from its metal. That trace, it undeniably had to be that of a living being's magic essence! And if they destroyed the machine…

"I understand," Tree Rex said with a solemn nod. He raised to full height the best he could, then cleared his throat.

"Everyone, don't hurt that machine! There's someone trapped inside it…"

Tree Rex trudged forward as his solar cannon glowed, then he shot it out and cast a beam of hot, solar energy that melted right through the oncoming trash and steel balls. As the goop rained down around him, however, Tree Rex scoffed and charged forward.

"And we're getting them out!"

Behind him, pounding footsteps thudded against the wind as Hot Head and Crusher ran up beside him, while a mechanical whir came as Bouncer wheeled up to Tree Rex's left and winked.

With a nod their ranks parted, and Tree Rex lifted up his solar cannon. But, curiously, even though it had just discharged, a residual warmth tinged its top in a slightly reddish hue, nothing like the warm greens and yellows it usually had. He turned to his shoulder, and Tree Rex was met with Vatra, who only glanced at him and nodded while his ghastly body glowed with warm light. So, Tree Rex nodded in turn as he changed his focus to where the path ahead laid. A mound of trash came in for Tree Rex, and he prepared to fire…

But right before he could, a giant stone pillar leaped up in front of him and shouldered the blow! Even more pillars cropped up like weeds, scattered in short gaps and intervals along the path while the marble turned brown from the warm light they cast! And behind one to the left, Crusher laid with hands planted to the floor and crystals glowing brown, while a smaller, duller brown light shone behind him.

Tree Rex smiled, then hopped from that pillar to the next before poking out and holding out his solar cannon towards an oncoming steel ball. The solar energy within charged at a rapid pace, burning bright orange in a matter of seconds before it fired off and pierced the heart of the ball! Its heat melted right through and left little more than a hollow rim in its wake before shooting across the path, melting away the oncoming trash and metal in Tree Rex's path! With that cleared, he poked out from the pillar and hopped over the mostly-melted steel ball, then crept towards another pillar. A screech came from behind, and he ducked as another steel ball flew right between his horns and slammed into an oncoming steel ball!

The two balls both dented as they flew forward, then melted into warm goop as a plume of flames ate them up! Their metallic liquid poured onto the floor and diverted into thin streams that streaked around Tree Rex's feet. And as they faded altogether, Tree Rex gingerly tiptoed over them and turned behind one of the pillars.

Bouncer and Hot Head both beamed at him, a smile he returned for moments before a large thud alerted them all to Crusher's presence. With the group gathered together, they crept out from behind the pillar and glanced ahead at the machine, which now laid only inches from them. It rattled and shuddered from the damages it sustained while the howls of its winds grew more twisted. But more than that, something that sounded akin to panting or labored breathing rumbled from within its depths, in a voice that sounded almost alive!

They all traded glances of confirmed suspicion, but another, much closer and louder rumble turned their attention to the place ahead. There, some large, square tube poked just barely out of the ceiling and shuddered as it vomited out another mass of garbage, one much larger than the last! A few winces came as the garbage mass formed into a rolling ball that sped right past them. And judging by the rattling sounds that came from the tube once more, it seemed like that wasn't the end of it!

"If we're gonna get any further, we'll need that tube sealed up!" Glumshanks shouted.

"I'll handle this!" 'Enehana cried in turn, leaping forward and slamming their hands on the floor!

They shouted out as they lumbered back up, their hands turning a bronze in color from the orange light that burst from around them, then they punched out their hands and shot the light right as the tube spat out an oncoming garbage storm! The light beams pierced through the garbage, but not once did it break or bend—no, it stuck together, solidifying the trash into a thick wall that completely blocked the fan from view. Only faint breezes spilled out from the tiny gaps in the trash wall, barely able to reach across the halls before petering out. It seemed as though it was the perfect blockade… But then, something spat out of the ceiling, something so tiny it could barely be seen—yet, just its force was enough to completely unclog the trash wall and send it pouring all over the halls!

Jorden grunted and punched into the pillar beside them all, and in turn the pillar stretched and bent before forming a stone dome around the whole group! The pungent scent of trash floated in the air as the sounds of rushing garbage and roaring wind poured in over the dam… And then, the noise stopped.

The trash spilled over the dam in a mighty current, leaving behind a stream so deep and large that it would've swept Jorden, Vatra, 'Enehana and Glumshanks away if Tree Rex hadn't swept them away in his hand as the current hit! Tree Rex smiled for a moment as he placed the four of them on shoulder before he turned to the current.

With a grunt, he took one large step up the stream only for his foot to sink into the garbage like quicksand, so he grunted and held out his hands. Vines shot out from his palm and lashed against the garbage and dam alike before they wrapped together tight and formed a proper bridge over its stream. Tree Rex tapped the bridge with his foot for a moment before smiling as it proved itself stable enough, then he hiked up across the bridge. The ones on his shoulder shouting as they swayed and tumbled back and forth across Tree Rex's shoulder, while behind him, the vines buckled and swayed as Crusher, Hot Head, and Bouncer followed behind Tree Rex.

Tree Rex blasted a path through the garbage, one shallow enough to allot them all walking space, and once again they all trailed behind before hopping on the platform next to the fan. The garbage stream had completely jammed its front, while an odd panel stuck out amid the fan's side. And from that panel, a strange sky blue glow beamed out from the gaps in the panel's rim, one with a strong, fresh feeling like that of a welcome breeze.

As Tree Rex knelt down, Vatra, Glumshanks, Jorden and 'Enehana all slid down his side, but while Glumshanks and Vatra rested against Tree Rex's arm and gathered their bearings, Jorden and 'Enehana rushed right for the panel!

'Enehana and Jorden hummed as 'Enehana pulled open the panel and examined in, Jorden leaning over them—then Jorden gasped and yanked out a shiny, sky blue crystalline wheel from the heart of the panel! And with the wheel claimed, 'Enehana turned to a lever and hummed, before they pulled down the lever with all their might! They cringed as the machine clunked and whirred once again, then they turned back to Jorden.

"Jorden, Crusher, get a barrier up!" 'Enehana cried.

"On it!" Jorden and Crusher both shouted in turn!

Crusher slammed his hammer into the ground while Jorden summoned and slammed down a pickax in turn, and in that moment a shield of solid rock formed around them, blocking off the light of the world around as it encased everyone in its dome! They all huddled close as the sound of something sucking in air with all its might came outside, followed by awful, grinding and clunking noises that would make anyone's ears bleed, and finally… An explosion so loud that it dented into the barrier, cracking its stone!

Splattering sounds echoed as the stone itself shifted materials, changing from hard, solid granite (or whatever it was, Tree Rex was never the best at identifying stone) to a shiny, clear material that cast a glance to the outside world, where the fan was rendered a smoking hunk of junk with twisted and bent blades, and the trash mush and broken parts that rained over the halls!

While the trash rained down and slid off their barrier, everyone huddled close, all centered around Jorden as he plucked out the wheel and held it in his palms. Its light flashed and flickered, brightening and dimming by the second while something faintly akin to someone panting echoed from its crystal surface.

"A voice?" Vatra gasped, immediately claiming the wheel from Jorden's hands. "It has to be…"

Vatra cringed, teeth gritted tight as the wheel's light faltered for just a second more than normal before he yanked it up. "Does anybody here know any magic? Anything that can get some magic energy into this wheel?"

"I, I know some basic spells!" Glumshanks sputtered as he rushed in and scooped the wheel out of Vatra's hands. "Allow me to try something!"

The wheel continued to pant, its breathing a bit more labored and its light duller than normal, enough that it was completely masked by Glumshanks folding his hands over it. Glumshanks hummed, and a cyan glow shone from his hands for a moment… Then its colors turned deeper, becoming a richer shade of blue that brought to mind clear skies as Glumshanks lifted his hands!

The wheel floated out of Glumshanks' palms and hovered in the center of the group as a lean, thin silhouette shaped itself from the light—that silhouette, its tall body lean with just a hint of muscle, that had to be him! The light continued to form while a thin, sparkly string formed in the center of the wheel, resting along the figure's neck as clouds and sky blue light burst out, unveiling the ghost within at last!

"Vaayu!" Tree Rex and Vatra both gasped in turn, their eyes wide and sparkling.

And before them, Vaayu smiled as he fell to his knees and panted, only his arms keeping him upright. His skin was still that rich, dark brown shade even after all those years, and his normally-fluffy black hair was thinned and drenched with sweat, though its lightning bolt-shaped, sky blue streak still stuck within even though his body was somewhat transparent and brimmed with sparkly sky blue light thanks to his ghostly state.

His ponytail was loose, barely held in place by a gold, round barrette that slipped out for only moments before he fixed it while sweat dripped down the bridge of his long, round nose and over his cheekbones, curling around his large lips for moments before dripping onto the floor. He still donned his favorite top, the one far too big for him with its silky sky blue fabric printed with flowers and hemmed with the finest of gold fabric over the collar and the sleeves' ends and blue fabric the color of the ocean at the top's bottom—and thankfully, the large stitch keeping its left side attached to the right hadn't burst. Vaayu was more attached to that top than life itself. Blue belts in all sorts of shades clung tight around his waist, making his dark blue trousers seem a bit puffier. Though, they weren't puffy enough that they burst over the white and sky blue boots he wore. No, they tucked perfectly inside, the same way a key fit inside a lock.

"Oh, dear Ancients," Vaayu groaned, his voice husky but barely with any weight to it as he crawled over and leaned against Vatra's side. "I, I thought that thing was going to suck all the life out of me…"

"Thank the Ancients we found you in time," Vatra said, smiling as he hoisted Vaayu up and leaned Vaayu against his shoulder, "I can't imagine what would've happened if we hadn't!"

"Are you feeling any better, Vaayu?" Tree Rex asked, gently rubbing his finger against Vaayu's back. "Any aches or pains?"

"I'll manage," Vaayu panted. His legs had stopped shuddering, and he grunted as he stood to full height.

"Uh, I hate to interrupt your reunion," Glumshanks said, stumbling forward as he scratched his head. "But who is this? And, what's going on here?"

"This is Vaayu—he's one of us," Vatra explained, "and he's been gone for quite a while."

"Wait, so the Skylanders had moles hiding in here all along?!" Glumshanks stumbled backwards, his few hairs standing on end. "Lord Kaos won't be happy when he hears that!"

"What's a Skylander?" Vaayu asked, tilting his head.

Glumshanks blinked, then glanced at Vaayu. "Wait, so you don't know who the Skylanders are? Aren't you one of them?"

Vaayu frowned, his foot tapping for moments before he shook his head.

"I don't know exactly know what Skylanders are, and I know even less about how I got here." Vaayu stepped forward and held out his hand. "I just awoke within these halls one day, and I've been wandering around ever since. That strange little man caught my eye, so I'd been tailing him—"

"Wait, you mean Kaos?" Glumshanks thrust himself closer to Vaayu, and a frown started to form on his face.

"Yes, I supposed that might've been his name, though he didn't seem to go by it." Vaayu gently scratched his chin, his head craned down like he was deep in thought. "Something about the way he acted felt off to me, even more than usual. In fact, it reminded me of someone I was all too familiar with. But, just as I came close to discovering his secret,"—Vaayu turned back and gestured to the firmly-broken fan—"he found me and trapped me in this Ancients-forsaken thing as its living battery!"

A disappointed sigh came from Glumshanks as he hung his head, but not for long—Jorden pushed him aside just as quickly, then grabbed Vaayu by the hand.

"Wait, you were wanderin' 'round this place, right?" Jorden asked. "Vaayu, could you take us to that Kaos guy?"

"We've actually been tracking him down—we'll fill you in on the way," Vatra added.

Vaayu nodded, then knelt to the ground and planted his hands down.

"If I recall correctly, this passageway is directly underneath the way to his room," Vaayu said, his hands glowing a brighter sky blue as he pressed them down further. "Just need to make a strong enough wind current, and…"

A cold, whipping wind burst throughout the room, and before Tree Rex even knew it, he'd been lifted off the floor! Beside him, Bouncer and Hot Head shouted out as they twirled around, the ground below them getting further and further and the winds raged harder! Jorden and 'Enehana flew up beside him, then Glumshanks as he screamed and clung to Vatra's leg. And as another powerful gust blew below him, Tree Rex himself was lifted far past them and right towards a large hole in the ceiling!

"And to the next level we go!" Vaayu cried as he passed by Tree Rex.

Tree Rex blinked for a moment, then nodded and made himself as tall and slight as he could while the wind pushed him further up, right into the large tube that once funneled the garbage in the room…

---

- Kaos's backstory here is meant to be a mixture of his original backstory from the earlier games and his current backstory from the later games - though it references more from the former than the latter, I did transplant his mom in there as well!
- Similarly, while I kept Kaossandra as Kaos's Mom's real name, her alias, Kalamity, is taken from the achievement you get for beating her boss fight in certain versions of Swap Force! Mostly because before Academy gave her a name, I and quite a few other people initially used that as her name
- Kalamity's portals are modeled after the Swap Force portal
- Glumshanks' butler outfit is based on a concept for a Superchargers redesign that never came to be