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)

14. Chapter 14

Chihiro groaned and rubbed her eyes as the light around her began to fade. Her body still ached from the blows Kalamity slammed her with, all shaking and trembling and barely able to stand—but, as familiar warm scales ran down her back and the sensation of rushing, flowing magic poured in and eased her aching body, she popped open an eye and glimpsed around.

The room around was little more than a purple and pink blur, but sharpened by the moment, until a bunch of round objects slowly came into view. Wait, round objects? Were those, maybe, portals? Chihiro shook her head, then frowned as she shakily pushed herself up—her intuition was right, she was back in Kalamity's portal room, though it seemed to have gotten a few extra portals. She herself sat on an inactive one alongside Spyro, Trigger Happy, Gill Grunt and Stealth Elf, all groaning as they sat back up. That's strange, they touched that orb, didn't they? So why on Earth were they still here?

"We're still here?" Spyro asked with a hint of disappointment as he crawled off the portal. "But, where did Kaos and Kalamity go?"

Now that Spyro had mentioned it, Kaos and Kalamity had completely vanished from the room. It was just Chihiro, the Skylanders and the faint sounds of shouting that echoed out of the door, which had been slid open just a crack. Voices, huh? Guess Chihiro knew where the two of them had went. And it seems like the others had noticed as well, because Spyro had jumped off the portal and scrambled up to the door, creaking it open a tad bit more as he peered around the corner. Now that Chihiro got a better sense of acoustics from it, those voices sounded angered, almost as if they were arguing?

"I'm telling you, I'm getting better by the second!" shouted a voice much akin to the Kaos Chihiro knew.

"And I'm telling you, your 'training' has gone absolutely nowhere!" cried what Chihiro could only presume was Kalamity's voice.

Spyro turned around and waved a paw, an urge to carry on, then creaked the door open wider before slipping out of its doorway and down the halls. The others followed one by one, Chihiro holding up the back of the group as they slipped back into the halls of Kalamity's castle and trailed down… Though, while the others hardly paid any attention to their surroundings, Chihiro took in the scenery.

The halls themselves had grown messier since Chihiro last stepped foot in them, their walls covered in stains and a few of their floors dented and with broken floorboards. Kalamity's many statues of herself had become cracked in places, beheaded for some, anda few were gone completely, replaced with crude statues of Kaos himself grinning as he donned king's robes and crowns. Flags depicting more crude drawings of Kaos hung from the walls, all with mottoes about him conquering Skylands, and the faint smell of smoke seemingly remnant from failed magic spells lingered in the air. (Not that she'd have any experience with that, no matter how many times Master Eon or Spyro would say otherwise)

Chihiro frowned as she passed by the fifth seemingly-identical stain on the wall or flag of Kaos's, but as she did, a duo of thin shadows joined her while they thrust back and forth in each other's faces—looks like she found her target.

Chihiro went to step forward, but a purple burst of magic got to her first, sweeping her off her feet and teleporting her behind the free space of two tall bookshelves that had been broken and repaired more times than they should've, going by the tape that now held them together!

Chihiro now sat behind Spyro and Gill Grunt, and with a wave of her hand, a few potted plants had jumped from their spots and sat in front of them—giving them the perfect disguise as they peered through the leaves and watched the world outside.

"Training you up was a waste of my time! I've been teaching you every spell I know, every scheme I've ever tried, all the tricks and trades…" Kalamity cried, the wrinkles that had formed on her face growing even deeper. "And all for what? Six years now?" Scowling deeper, Kalamity clutched her hand into a fist. "And in all those years, you haven't done a single thing worthy of a supervillain!"

"That's not true!" Kaos cried back, waving a finger back at Kalamity. The princely clothes and his thick ginger afro from his teenage years had disappeared, and he looked almost identical to the Kaos Chihiro knew, if not maybe a few inches shorter. "Sure, I may have bungled a few schemes, tripped on a few rocks… But those were all just flukes! Once I unleash my true power, then you'll see!"

"See what?" Kalamity crossed her arms. "Ever single blunder I've had to rescue you from? Your little schemes have amounted to nothing!"

"My schemes were awesome, how dare you insult them!"

"I'd hardly call putting statues of yourself everyone, utterly and miserably failing to replace every election ballot's name with your own and erasing the town mayor's name and writing yours on it 'Awesome.'" Kalamity rolled her eyes once more. "Within my first years of training as a portal master, I had already conquered several villages and amassed an army! You, meanwhile, have bungled every spell I taught you, every contraption you've made had blown itself to bits, and your charisma is nonexistent! How do you expect to become a tyrannical ruler of Skylands at this rate?"

Both Kalamity and Kaos seethed, teeth gritted and eyes locked on each other—and in that moment, Chihiro could see just a teensy, tiny bit of family resemblance. They were so fixated on each other as the world around them started to heat up and magic crackled around them, Kaos especially. Their robes floated and fluttered while warm red and pink light brushed against the walls…

"Excuse me, Lady Kalamity, Lord Kaos," Glumshanks said as he stumbled out of the back door with a tray holding a teapot and teacups in hand, "I hate to interrupt, but your tea—"

"SILENCE, FOOLISH WITCH!" Kaos bellowed at the top of his lungs!

Kalamity teleported away as a burst of red magic ripped through the room, shattering pottery and knocking over bookshelves, even knocking Glumshanks and Chihiro back! The hot, piping tea splattered over Glumshanks' face as the blast tossed him back into the halls…

And Chihiro herself crashed against the wall with a nasty crack and grunted before scrambling behind one of the bookshelves and peeking over it.

Kaos lurched over, red lightning still crackling from his clothing as Kalamity reappeared before him, but he didn't even lift his head to acknowledge her. No, he just snarled and yowled as he yanked his head up, red smoke flaring from his eyes as he turned around and stormed for the door.

"I'LL PROVE YOU WRONG! I'LL PROVE EVERYONE WRONG!" Kaos cried as he yanked the door open. "I'LL CONQUER ALL SKYLANDS AND BECOMING ITS ULTIMATE EMPEROR OF TYRANNICAL DOOM, AND THEN YOU'LL SEE!"

"And don't come back until you do!" Kalamity shouted back. Kalamity scoffed, then crossed her arms and shook her head. "Not that he'd be able to—that brat couldn't even conquer a sand castle…"

"FINE THEN, I WON'T!" Kaos shouted back, his voice straining still. "AND I HEARD THAT!"

The doors slammed shut, and Kalamity sighed once more as Glumshanks stumbled in front of her while wiping off his burnt face with a towel.

"Glumshanks!" Kalamity called.

Glumshanks immediately froze in place, towel dropping from his hands, then he knelt before Kalamity.

"Y-yes Lady Kalamity!" he cried.

"Go find Kaos and keep an eye on him—I don't feel like having to bail him out again."

Glumshanks jumped back to his feet and scurried for the doors. "Ye-yes ma'am!"

Chihiro frowned, eyes still on Glumshanks as he frantically yanked at the doors.

"I'm not sure what Kaos is up to, but it can't be anything good," she whispered, gripping the surface of the bookshelf a bit tighter. "Come on, let's go tail them."

Spyro nodded, and the feeling of smooth scales hit Chihiro's hand while beside her, wings started flapping. A sensation of magic came over her, one that raised goosebumps down her back, then she peered down at her hands while the magic faded. But, they were no longer there! Looks like he beat her to casting that invisibility spell.

After taking a glance behind to confirm that nobody behind her was visible, Chihiro leaped over the bookshelf and through the doors, bolting through right as Glumshanks finally got them open and ran out. The soft paw and footsteps behind her showed that the others had joined…

And even if she didn't hear them, the spell wore off and they grew visible once more right as the doors drew to a close behind them. The air itself had grown cold, perhaps chilled by the cooler seasons or maybe the tension of the prior fight, and the earth below the castle was soft, enough that footprints had been made within it. One trail that looked like a pair of shoes, another than was wider and more like footsteps. Yep, that had to be Kaos and Glumshanks! And judging by the tracks, it seemed like they already had a head start.

"In here," Stealth Elf whispered as she dove for a few bushes and waved the others over.

Diving behind Stealth Elf, Chihiro parted a few stray bushes and peered out with a hum. Rain had started to sprinkle over the hills, but nothing looked out of the ordinary otherwise—so, she closed up the bushes and teleported to the next set to find nothing but a faint presence of a town in the distance. As she hopped from bush to bush, the town's image grew clearer and clearer, until she could spy it at the foot of the hill! Though, as she got a closer look it seemed a lot smaller, more like a village than a town…

"Y'know, that place looks kind of familiar," Spyro remarked as he flew beside Chihiro.

Chihiro jolted up for a minute, then caught her breath. Phew, just Spyro, not her getting caught by Kaos.

"Hmmm… I think it does too!" Trigger Happy remarked as he hopped on Spyro's back and rubbed his chin. "Can't remember where I saw it, though. It wasn't where we met, or that town I saved from bandits that one time…"

"I feel like I should know something about this, but it's on the tip of my tongue," Gill Grunt ruminated.

"What's so special about it? It's just a village, we've been to hundreds of them at this point!" Stealth Elf said before shaking her head. With a wave of her hand, Stealth Elf beckoned for the others as she trailed after the footprints. "C'mon, the footprints lead this way."

But, Chihiro didn't want to leave just yet—not till she found out what was bugging Spyro. She stayed glued to the spot, only her eyes moving as they drifted towards Spyro while he flew in midair and contemplated.

Spyro's eyes went wide for just a moment as he gazed over the village, then he hung his head and groaned, "oh, Ancients, I remember what this is…"

"What is it?" Chihiro asked as she turned to Spyro and tilted her head.

Spyro winced, then flew off with eyes set on Kaos's footprint trail.

"Just follow me."

Chihiro winced and nodded as Trigger Happy and Gill Grunt chased after Spyro with similarly leery looks on their faces, then followed at the back of the group. The rain had started to pour a little harder, so she summoned a magic umbrella and hid underneath it as she set her eyes on the ground, firmly on the trail of footprints. It'd be a pain if she lost Kaos from all that rain…

"I'm telling you, this is the deal of a lifetime!"

Wait, that voice and its obnoxious tone, that had to be Kaos's! So, Chihiro ran a bit harder, only the slightest bit of care taken so as to not slip on any newly-formed mud puddles, and when she caught sight of Spyro's purple scales, she skidded to a stop and knelt beside him behind the sanctuary of some bushes and wooden poles.

They had all gathered at the gate of a crude fort made of wood—if it could even be called that. There wasn't even a roof or anything, just a wooden fence with all sorts of stuff spray-painted on it. Inside laid the remains of a campfire extinguished by the rain, the smell of its smoke mingling with that of fresh rainwater while rusted cans and broken boxes of food laid scattered about alongside damp papers and posters. But of course, that didn't matter as much as the contents inside—there within the heart of the group were a couple of tired trolls and elves dressed in punk-looking stuff that were all drooping eyelids and yawning mouths and sleepy clicks of their tongues as Kaos rambled to them.

"Alright, buddy, we get it! You've been ramblin' about this stuff for forever now!" shouted one troll as he lazily finished off an open can of beans.

"And once again, I have to ask," said a drow dressed in more decorated clothing, who was probably the leader of the bunch by the looks of it. "What's in it for us?"

"Well, if you join me and help me conquer Skylands, you'll get to be the loyal servants of my evil empire, spared from my awesome wrath of doom!" Kaos proclaimed as he held out his hands. "Isn't that enough?"

And in response, those punks broke out into rousing laughter, as if that was the funniest thing they heard! A few fell off their seats and slapped their knees, and the head of the group cackled hardest as he got up from where he sat!

"You must be joking! A little runt like you? Take over Skylands?" the drow cackled as he punched Kaos in the shoulder. "Get real!"

Kaos grunted, clutching his shoulder as she slid back. "Of course I can take over Skylands!" he cried. "I'm a portal master!"

And upon hearing this, the drow just laughed even harder, clutching his gut as tears of joy burst from his eyes! He wiped the tears from his eyes as he stood upright, then shoved Kaos down into the dirt and scoffed.

"Your head must be even bigger than it looks! There's no portal masters anymore!"

Kaos growled as he staggered back up, wiping the mud from his clothes as a red glow started to surround him. "I'm telling you, it's the truth! And if you won't believe me, I'll show you!"

Chihiro had to admit, she almost felt a little sorry for him, getting laughed at like that—almost. Just barely. She poked her head over the fence, just to get a better look at what was going on, but the sound of panting behind her forced her back into the bushes! She dove down right as Glumshanks ran past her, then jumped back up and peered over the fence once more.

"Lord Kaos, there you are!" Glumshanks cried as he pulled Kaos away.

The red glow around Kaos faded, and he only gasped. "Glumshanks?!" Kaos cried as he tugged away from Glumshanks' grip. "What are you doing here?!"

"Well, I came to get you, of course! Your mother said—"

"Oh, so he's a mama's boy, too?!" jeered the troll.

A couple more laughs and jeers came from the punks as Kaos seethed, red steam billowing from his body while Glumshanks winced and continued to tug him away. His feet stayed stuck to the ground the best they could, but with the ground slowly turning to mud from the rain, it was pretty darn hard for him to keep his grip!

"Come on, Lord Kaos, let's go home, I'm sure if you apologize—"

"Absolutely not, Glumshanks!" Kaos cried, finally wriggling himself out of Glumshanks' grip!

He turned around, and Chihiro got a glimpse of his red-hot face for only a moment before he bent down and grabbed a damp, mud-strained poster from the floor. He examined it for a moment and hummed while the punks' laughter stopped around him.

Just what was so important about that, anyways? Chihiro hummed, then summoned a pair of binoculars and peered closer. The poster had something she couldn't make out written on it, and a picture of a guy dressed in really fancy-looking clothes… But more importantly, he'd been scribbled on in red marker, his eyes crossed out and illegible scribbles covering his neck.

"You don't exactly like this person, do you?" Kaos asked, holding out the poster.

The drow scowled and snatched the poster from Kaos. "Course not!" he cried. "Dude kicked us from the village cause he said we were causin' too much trouble!"

"Yeah, he sucks!" shouted the bean-eating troll as they tossed their can aside. "Sure we tipped over a few cows, broke a few stores, poisoned the water system and burned down all the crops that one time—but so what?" cried another punk.

"He sent me away because I broke his statue!"

"So what if I enchanted the fruit and made everyone who ate it fall asleep for a whole week? That was hilarious!"

The drow scowled further as he tore the poster in half, letting the halves fall to the ground before smashing them underfoot. "What I wouldn't give to punch his smug face in once or twice…" the drow mumbled.

"What if I told you there was a way?"

Kaos's question got all eyes on him, and Chihiro just barely heard a low cackle come from Kaos as he lifted his hands. Red magic flared from his hands, and he cackled as he clapped them together and zapped all the punks at once!

Lightning crashed, but not from the skies—no, it came from around Kaos as the punks fell to their knees and cried out.

The punks' bodies warped and twisted from underneath the heat of Kaos's spell as they grew taller, wider… Buffer? As the light faded, the punks stood before Kaos with at least a few more feet and a whole lot of muscle gained, their clothes just barely fitting them now as they flexed and glazed each other down.

"That power-up spell should do the trick!" Kaos chirped as he clapped his hands, then turned around and flew off. "Now come on, go get your deliciously evil revenge on that mayor!"

The punks hooted and hollered as they stormed out of their little hideout, some smashing the wooden fence like twigs just to test their newly-given power! And of course, Kaos himself just eagerly followed after them, shouting out about evil doom or something just to egg them on! Even though the rain poured down over them and chilled the air, they didn't stop or lose traction even once. This newfound power had given them a second wind, one they were happy to chase!

"Lord Kaos!" Glumshanks cried as he stumbled after Kaos. He slipped over the muddy grounds and planted face-first, but quickly collected himself and shook off the muddy water. "Wait for me!"

And as Glumshanks tailed after Kaos, Chihiro gulped and turned to the others, about ready to tell them they needed to go—but Spyro had seemingly beaten her to the punch, judging by how his eyes flared with sparkling purple light! Though, they didn't seem as bright as they usually did, instead flickering in and out as Spyro himself cringed.

"We'd better get there fast!" Spyro proclaimed as he clapped his front paws together. "I know what's gonna happen next, and it isn't pretty!"

That clap rang out against the rain, and it was followed by a ring of bright purple light pulsing out and enveloping them all! Chihiro's body shuddered for a moment as the light shot into her and closed her eyes on instinct, then when she opened them, she found herself in the heart of the village!

Admittedly, it looked a lot more run-down compared to when she had seen it on the hills—the houses' windows were boarded off and fresh tomato stains ran down their sides, while trampled and withered plants laid along the muddy paths, and broken wooden boards or half-beaten carts laid scattered beside them. The air rang of a musty scent that reeked of magic, and the sounds of shouting and terrified screams showed that ahead laid the very people Chihiro expected to find!

Kaos stood at the village's entrance with those punks flanking him at all sides, and mabu dressed in dingy armor wielding swords and spears thrusting their weapons towards his front. The punks' muscles twitched as they cracked their knuckles and flexed their biceps, imposing their muscular status over those warriors with even just their stance, and at the sight Kaos grinned.

"Tell us, you strange little man!" demanded a warrior at the front. "What exactly is your purpose here?"

"Oh, my purpose?" Kaos crowed as he folded his hands together. "I don't have any business here—it's my little friends you should be worried about!" Kaos chuckled and drummed his fingers against his hands. "I've heard they have a bit of a score to settle with you, so I thought I'd help them out a little!"

"Wait, a score to settle?…" the mabu warrior backed away a little, and their glance changed from Kaos to the drow that stood to Kaos's left. "You don't mean…"

"You bet it's us!" The drow roared!

In one swift motion, the drow yanked the mabu warrior from the ground and sneered in their face, while the warrior just screamed! The warrior's sword slipped from their paws and clattered by the drow's feet, and the drow smashed it in half with a single stomp! The sickening crack of the sword's splintered handle rang in the mabu warrior's ears, and they winced for a moment as they glanced down at the broken blade before the drow flung them into the distance!

"Come on, boys! Let's crush this dumb town!"

The other mabu warriors all screamed out as they charged for the punks, then flew back as the punks charged forward and knocked them aside! More of those warriors spilled in as the punks charged forward and brandished their weapons, except they too, did basically nothing! Even though they were much more massive in ranks, the punks still punched through their groups and tossed them aside like they were little more than flies!

And as a pair of mabu flew past her, Chihiro winced and teleported into an alleyway between two houses, then poked her head out. Those guys looked tough, but they were just pumped up on magic—and she had plenty of that! If she could just find the right opening and catch them off guard, then maybe… Chihiro narrowed her eyes and hummed as she contemplated, but the sound of a door slamming open pulled her from her thoughts.

"What's all this racket about?!" exclaimed a mabu in a pompous-looking suit as they stumbled out of the leftmost building and adjusted their jacket. Was that the mayor? Sure seemed like it, especially with how they gasped as their eyes fell on those punks.

"You lot again?! I thought I exiled you from this place!" The mayor cried. They growled for a bit, then stormed forward and shook a finger. "Nevermind, make yourselves scarce this instant!"

The drow's ear flicked, and he turned around from pummeling another mabu warrior. His smile faded into a snarl as he dropped the mabu warrior and raised a fist—but right before he could swing, Kaos zipped in front of him and he drew back!

"Oh, they might consider it," Kaos said as he leaned towards the mayor and sneered. "If, you hand over complete and total control of your village and everything within it to the great and powerful Lord Kaos, that is!"

The mayor sputtered and drew back. "Who do you think you are, demanding that of me?!" The mayor pointed a finger aside. "No matter! If you're affiliated with them, then I have no reason to do business with you! Leave my village this instant!"

Kaos, however, just shrugged with that sneer still planted tight to his face. "Suit yourself!" He turned and winked back to the drow, then Kaos slowly floated away and cackled. "I suppose my friend here will make a much more compelling argument!"

The drow cackled and banged his fists together as he loomed over the mayor, who in turn backed away. It seemed as though the mayor had finally realized just how outmatched they and their forces were against these guys, what with the mayor's head craning between the drow before them and the other punks as they tore through the village's defenses as if they were no more than mere weeds! The mayor seemed to have gulped as they glanced aside once more, and the drow immediately yanked them off the ground!

"Eyes on me, you little rat!" the drow shouted as he shook the mayor! The mayor cried out as gold and jewels poured from their pockets, and the drow smirked and licked his lips. "Oh, it'll be so satisfying, punching your face in…"

Chihiro gasped, then lowered herself down and flicked her hands.

"I've gotta get in there!" she shouted as cyan light gathered in her palms, leaving them tingling with energy as she took a step forward..

And then stopped as a signature of energy zapped into her and a warbling sound hit the air! That presence, that one that felt like space and time ripping itself open—that had to be a portal opening! But, there was no way she could've done that, she wasn't anywhere near a portal! She poked her head back out, and sure enough all eyes turned back to the village front as cyan light glistened from the beginning of the village path…

Then, none other than Spyro charged out and slammed right into the drow's chest! The added speed blew the drow backwards while the mayor slipped from his hand and landed right in the mud. But, Spyro didn't notice, he just flew backwards and huffed out thin trails of smoke from his nostrils. Gill Grunt and Trigger Happy both rushed up behind him, and yet he still fixed his eyes on the drow as the smoke coming from his snout thickened.

"Spyro!" Chihiro called as she reached forward for him.

"Chihiro, there you are!"

Just before Chihiro left, something yanked her back into the alleyways! She almost hit the muddy ground, but something propped her up and instead she hit something solid and hard. Flapping wings sounded behind her, and as she thrust herself out, she turned around to find Spyro standing behind her with Gill Grunt, Trigger Happy and Stealth Elf all lined up close behind! Chihiro's eyes fluttered as she glanced at the Spyro staring at her with his warm, kind golden eyes, then back to where the other Spyro traded blows with the drow…

"Huh?" was all she could utter.

Spyro, in turn, just sighed and held his head.

"This place was where we fought Kaos for the first time, back when I first became a Skylander," Spyro explained, his tone hesitant and strained with all the embarrassment of someone recalling something they really didn't want to. He glanced back as the drow punched his past self out of the air, and he grabbed his cheek as if he could feel the pain himself. "Yeah, it really wasn't one of my proudest moments."

The past Spyro leaped up and shot a bunch of fireballs right towards the drow—but the rainstorm completely extinguished them! Both past and present Spyro winced as the drow charged forward and kicked the past Spyro back into the mud.

"You idiot, it's raining buckets! Why would you use fire?!" Present Spyro shouted, before turning around and groaning as he covered his eyes. "God, I don't think I can watch this anymore. I was so stupid back then!"

So, Chihiro just stood there and watched as past Spyro leaped up and charged for the drow once more, just to get knocked down again before getting back up and fighting in a never-ending cycle. Beside him, past Trigger Happy winced as he shot off round after round of golden coins only for them to bounce off the troll punk's chest and into the mud. And to his right, past Gill Grunt stumbled backwards and shot streams of water into the ground, turning the muddy ground to a proper stream as some of the punks raced forward… But instead of slipping, they just slid across the stream and double-kicked Gill Grunt right in the gut!

Past Gill Grunt groaned as he collapsed on his side in the mud, and past Trigger Happy and Spyro both joined him as the punks tossed them in one muddy pile. They both moaned and lifted their heads only to collapse, their faces twisted into frowns as both the punks and Kaos's laughter rang in the air with the sounds of falling rain. Shadows cast over their battered bodies as the drow punk loomed over them.

"That's it, I can't watch this anymore!" Chihiro cried as she ran ahead!

"Chihiro, wait!" Present Spyro had called, but it was no use!

With a single leap, Chihiro slid across the mud and leaped into the heart of the fray, her boots slamming against the ground first and forming a shield right around her and Spyro, Gill Grunt and Trigger Happy's past selves! The punks all gasped and talked among each other for a moment, though Chihiro couldn't discern their conversation as the dome itself was soundproofed… But judging by how they pounded against the dome, it seemed as though they weren't too pleased with it! The dome refuse to relent as they pounded and kicked, and Chihiro only scoffed for a moment before kneeling down to the past Spyro.

Past Spyro coughed for a moment, then raised his head and frowned. "Who're you?" he asked as he raised a brow.

Chihiro gasped for a moment as she racked her brain for some quick way of not blowing her cover, then shook her head. "You could say I'm your…" Chihiro started, before shaking her head again and holding out her hand. "Your mentor's friend! Yeah, that's right, I'm one of Master Eon's buddies!"

Phew, close one, Chihiro thought.

Past Spyro snarled and yanked his head away. "Did he send you after me? I told him I could handle this myself!" Past Spyro insisted. He shot a glare back at where Gill Grunt and Trigger Happy's past selves laid in the mud, and his tail flicked in a short manner. "It's bad enough that he insisted I needed extra help! If they weren't slowing me down, I'd have finished these guys in minutes!"

"Sure didn't look like that to me." Chihiro chuckled as her hand glowed and rained down sparkles onto past Spyro's body. "If anything, it looked like that guy was wiping the floor with you!"

Past Spyro snarled, bearing his fangs as he lifted his head to retort… And then, he stopped in wide-eyed wonder as the sparkles seeped into his body and whisked away his wounds in an instant! As he looked himself over, Chihiro smiled and gently flicked his forehead, bringing his attention back to her.

"A word of advice—I know you're used to fighting the bad guys and saving the day yourself, but, you're a Skylander now, and that makes you part of a team."

With a snap of Chihiro's fingers, twin streams of cyan light fed from her palms and swirled around past Gill Grunt and Trigger Happy. As the light fed into them and healed their injuries, Chihiro smiled and turned her attention down to past Spyro. His golden eyes no longer rang with anger, but a sort of pensiveness as he glanced back at her, then at past Gill Grunt and Trigger Happy as they rose.

"So, don't think you have to tackle everything by yourself. Your teammates are always gonna be there to back you up, so don't be afraid to get their help when you need it, alright?"

Past Spyro rapidly blinked, then turned back to Gill Grunt and Trigger Happy's past selves for a moment before glancing back at Chihiro. "Alright," he said at last, "I guess I'll take your word for it."

"Finally done being stubborn now?" Past Gill Grunt teased from behind them.

Past Spyro turned back to past Gill Grunt and Trigger Happy as they rose and bore their weapons with a nod and a weary smile, then all three of them huddled together and whispered. Though they were packed tight, the slight glimpses of their faces showed they were intent in planning. In fact, they seemed much more in-sync, just like the Spyro, Gill Grunt and Trigger Happy Chihiro knew! The three of them broke apart with smiles, and though they didn't see her, Chihiro nodded as well.

"Looks like my job here is done," Chihiro whispered.

With a snap of her fingers, the dome lowered and Chihiro teleported away, taking sanctuary behind a half-broken cart. She poked her head up as past Spyro, Gill Grunt and Trigger Happy stood off the punks, then frowned and gripped the cart's side. Had he really taken her advice?

Past Spyro took a step forward, and it seemed like he was getting read to charge, and Chihiro cringed a bit—but instead of running into the fray, he ran off, flying back over to the village's beginning!

The punks cried out and chased after him, but right as they did, a torrent of water slammed into the mud below their feet and turned it to slick muddy water so fast that they all splintered and slipped off!

They groaned as they slid into buildings and wreckage, and as they staggered up and recovered, a flurry of golden coins pelted them from all directions! They all screamed as they ran right for the beginning of the village once more, while behind them past Trigger Happy cackled as he charged after them with guns blazing! The punks rushed further and further as Trigger Happy's coins nipped and burst at their heels…

But as they rushed ahead, past Spyro flew out from the village's entrance! He snorted as a sky blue light shone around him, glowing bright against the dull sights of the rainy day, and with a flap of his wings, that light burst out in a massive gust! That simple light twisted around itself as it charged for the punks, forming into a tornado that swept them up in its grip and raged across the village pathways!

Mud gathered in its grip and tinged it in murky shades as the tornado shot right for Kaos, who only stood with wide eyes as the tornado slammed right into him! The tornado's winds dispersed in all directions at that minute, leaving the punks and Kaos piled together in the heart of the village as the rain started to lighten up.

The clouds parted and light shone down once more, unveiling that the spell on the punks relented and once again they were their scrawny true selves, and they all groaned as they laid sprawled along the floor. Their torn clothes were coated in mud, their arms scratched up and bruised, and they were completely surrounded as the mabu warriors gathered around and poked their weapons right at them!

"Got anything to say for yourself?" Past Spyro asked as he, past Gill Grunt and past Trigger Happy approached Kaos.

Kaos snarled and stumbled back to his feet, ready to fire off an insult surely… But, he stopped as a voice cried over the horizon.

"Lord Kaos, there you are!" Glumshanks cried as he pushed past Spyro and Trigger Happy. Glumshanks gripped Kaos's hand, and with a grunt he pulled Kaos away. "By the Ancients, you look awful! Come on, let's get home and I'll get a bath going—"

Kaos growled and yanked his hand from Glumshanks'. "There's no way I'm going back there, Glumshanks!" Kaos hissed. "Not until I conquer Skylands so I can rub it in mother's stupid face!"

Kaos gritted his teeth, then glared over towards Spyro and pointed a finger in Spyro's face.

"You, dragonfly! What's your name?!"

"It's Spyro," the past Spyro hissed back as he flicked his wings. "And you can shout all you want, but as long as us Skylanders are in town, you're not getting your way!"

"Then mark my words, Skylanders! When I conquer Skylands, you'll be the first to taste your evil DOOM!"

And with that vow spoken, Kaos stomped his foot and red smoke enveloped him, the punks, and Glumshanks!

Everyone else coughed and hacked away as the smoke churned… Then it cleared, and no trace of Kaos or his allies could be found! All that remained was the fading wisps of red smoke and the sound of Kaos's laughter in the air.

And from the alleyways, Chihiro smiled and snapped her fingers.

"Looks like Kaos made his grand escape," Chihiro remarked as as orb of light formed in her palms. "Luckily, I have a handy-dandy tracking spell right here!"

Chihiro bounced the orb in her palms, and in turn it zipped away, past the alleys and out into the grassy grounds before rounding a corner and disappearing!

So, she smiled and turned to the others before they all followed the trail of sparkles the orb left behind. The muddy paths of before turned to soft, dewy grass as they trailed after the light trails, and one by one the run-down houses passed them by until there were none, and all that surrounded them was seemingly endless stretches of grass. Though, they could just barely hear the villagers behind them cheering for the Skylanders, a sound that left a humble smile on Spyro's face.

"You know, that went a lot smoother than how it actually happened," Spyro chuckled as he flicked his wings.

"It was?" Chihiro asked, tilting her head as she walked alongside Spyro. "How it'd really go?"

"Well, Kaos's buddies there had beaten us within an inch of our lives when we tried to stop them!" Spyro chuckled and flicked his wing. "We'd have been goners if I hadn't come up with that strategy as a last resort!"

Chihiro only chuckled. "Talk about a life-saver, huh?"

"No kidding."

A chilling breeze whipped through the air, and Chihiro only winced as she crossed the path below, the grass underfoot changing to hard stone as she did.

Something about the world around felt a little eerier—maybe it was all the cold, hard ground and dead trees with weird, shiny red veins pulsing through them, maybe it was the thick clouds that had left the red skies in a dull, overcast state, or maybe it was the smell of dead, burnt stuff that lingered in the air, but something just wasn't right about this place. And yet, a glance behind showed that she had only passed the village a little while ago. Heck, she could even mark the area where the grass started to die and the clouds started to form, a natural divide between the area around! How could this place have changed states so quickly?

Chihiro winced and clenched her fist on instinct, then turned around to the path ahead, where Kaos grunted and kicked a rock. She jumped behind a lopsided boulder, then poked her head over and frowned.

"I, I, that was a fluke, I swear! An utter accident!" Kaos cried as he turned to the punks and shook his fist. "If those wannabe heroes hadn't showed up, I'd have won that village! What did they call themselves, anyways? Skylanders?" Kaos clenched his fist. "Yes, that was it… Well, those Skylanders better prepare themselves for an utterly doomy doom! I swear, I'll get the next village, and then—"

Laughter burst from the punks, then the punk drow stepped out and patted Kaos on the shoulder.

"Chill out, little man—that was fun!" the drow said. "I wanna do more of that stuff!"

Kaos's eyes flickered, then he turned around and frowned. "Fun? So, are you saying you want to serve me?"

The punks all turned to each other, then they all fell to their knees. "All hail Lord Kaos!" they all cried.

Kaos blinked, eyes flickering and him stepping back as if he couldn't believe them… But he quickly shook his head and cackled, hands pressed to his hips!

"Of course you do! After all, I am the future evil overlord of all Skylands!" Kaos grinned, then turned back to a tall, run down castle in the distance. "From now on, these wastelands will become full of evil life, and this castle will be our ultimate hideout of EVIL DOOM!"

Whipping back around, Kaos pointed towards the punks. "Minions, scout it out for me, right this instant!"

"Yes, Lord Kaos!" The punks all cried maybe a bit too eagerly as they rushed towards the castle.

Kaos himself chuckled and slowly trailed behind… And behind them, Chihiro chuckled and laid a hand on her hip.

"So that's how Kaos became a big-time supervillain," Chihiro remarked.

She chuckled a bit more, then a small twinkle of red caught her eye and she turned to a nearby rock, one that was oblong but with a large chip showing off a red light behind it! She skipped over to the rock and peered over, then beamed as she found exactly what she had hoped—another orb of red light!

"And here's the teleporter, everyone!" Chihiro called as she waved back to the others. "Come on, let's get going!"

Chihiro smiled and reached her hand out to the teleporter, then as Spyro, Gill Grunt, Trigger Happy and Stealth Elf all joined her, they planted their hands on the orb and the world was dyed red once more...

§

"Alright," Vaayu croaked, favoring his left side still as he leaned against Vatra's shoulder. His eyes glazed over the halls, then he lifted a hand and pointed to one particular door that had been left open a crack, just enough that light poured from it. "That should be the throne room."

With a nod, 'Enehana pulled out their console, then twisted a few knobs, pressed a button or two, and with a pull of a lever on the console, a tiny satellite burst from the machine and sent a pulse from its tip! The pulse covered the entire group in waves of orange light, their bodies disappearing from view with each pulse until they had completely vanished! Now completely invisible, they tip-toed across the hall and surrounded the door.

Tree Rex reached out to push the door open, but he didn't need to—a few tiny pink, sort of monkey-like things pushed it open for him as they stumbled into some kind of bedazzled throne room with plates of food held carefully in hand. They blabbed something in some kind of gibberish language as they laid the trays next to a throne, which swiveled around to reveal…

Kaos! Yes, that very same Kaos from the day he came back to Skylands! Though now, he had swapped out the black robes he had worn then for finer, red and gold silk ones and a fancy crown—the aesthetics of it all reminded Tree Rex of someone, actually… Someone he'd rather forget about.

"Notice anything suspicious about those robes?" Vaayu whispered, his voice coming from down below the other side of the doorframe.

"Mm, well, the change in wardrobe is a bit new. Lord Kaos always preferred black," Glumshanks whispered.

"Not just the color—the stitching, the patterns, they're all distinctly Arkeyan." Vaayu hummed just a bit. "In fact, those crown patterns were worn by those in the Arkeyan royal family. And that crown's near-identical to the ones their kings wore."

Now that Tree Rex got a better look, that did indeed seem to be the case—he vaguely remembered that Arkilles wore a similar ceremonial robe the day they crashed his coronation. Tree Rex winced, forcing himself to keep from crushing the doorframe underneath his grip as before him, Kaos shimmied off of his throne and jumped off.

"I trust that this is the dinner I ordered?" he asked.

Tree Rex winced and shook his head. He had only seen Kaos once before so he wasn't sure, but that voice sounded much deeper than he recalled Kaos's voice being! In fact, that baritone brought to mind Arkilles again—but, even if he didn't succumb to his wounds back then, Arkilles should've been dead! Then again, he had learned not to question the states of those from his time on this journey. But still, it couldn't have been…

Clenching his teeth next, Tree Rex glanced over as Kaos picked up a chicken drumstick and sniffed it, then Kaos yowled as he flipped the whole table! The monkey things screamed as the food fell on them, coating them in stains and mush, and then screamed again as Kaos stormed into their faces!

"I told you, I wanted turkey, not chicken!" Kaos roared, fires of rage burning in his eyes. "How dare you insult me with this utterly inferior array? Go make a new platter right this instant!"

More chattering came from the monkey things as they frantically nodded and rushed off, not even bothering to clean the mush from their faces as they bolted out the door and down the halls! Tree Rex planted his back against the wall still, just in case… But then breathed a sigh of relief as the monkey things disappeared down the halls without even a hint of notice paid to them. With them gone, Tree Rex turned back around and peered into the throne room once more.

"Honestly, what incompetents," Kaos muttered as he hopped back onto his throne. "They should consider themselves lucky! If not for my upcoming trip to Arkus, I'd be in a much worse mood!"

"If that's his good mood, I'd hate to see what he'd look like in a bad mood," Tree Rex whispered.

Though, apparently he didn't whisper low enough, because the throne swiveled around!

"Did somebody say something?" Kaos hissed.

He peered from side to side, and Tree Rex grunted as he pressed himself against the wall once more. He stilled his breathing the best he could as tiny footsteps pattered in, holding his breath and keeping himself frozen to the wall as Kaos stepped out and glanced around the halls! For a moment, Kaos's glance fell on Tree Rex and pierced him with a familiar cold. But, Kaos merely shrugged and retreated back to the throne room.

"Must have just been the wind," Kaos mumbled as his footsteps drew further away.

Tree Rex glanced back into the throne room, and his heavy chest started to relieve itself as Kaos hopped back into his throne and turned around, his icy gaze now far, far away from where Tree Rex was. Good, just the sight of that glance left him tight and frozen! Not a pleasant feeling to have.

"Anyways, Vaayu," Vatra whispered from down below. "You were hinting at something about our tiny wannabe tyrant here—what was it?"

"Ah, yes, that," Vaayu whispered back, his soft tone turning a bit more desolate. "You see, this Kaos person… He isn't actually who he claims to be!"

"Wait, not who he claims to be?!" Glumshanks cried. A couple of the others shushed him, and he immediately held his breath. But when they all saw that Kaos hadn't moved an inch from his throne, Glumshanks sighed. "You mean, he's an imposter?!"

"Somewhat. You see—"

"Anyways, I'd got no time to dawdle around here," Kaos remarked as he turned his throne around—and turned all eyes on himself in the process. "If I recall correctly, preparations for my trip to the vault should be almost complete!" Kaos jumped off his throne and cackled as he twirled around. "Once I get that map and head back to Arkus, I'll have my old empire back at last! Oh, how I missed Arkus… Finally, I'll be able to visit its beautiful halls and have its armies at my fingertips again!"

"Wait, his empire?" 'Enehana asked. "What's that about?"

Vatra hummed for a minute. "Yes, that's right!" Vatra whispered. "Chihiro said that he had conquered Skylands once in the past, and that elf girl said he was planning to head to Arkus and rebuild his empire with their stock!"

"But, why's he talking about Arkus like he's already been there? There's no way he could have gone there before!"

"Yeah, that's what I'd like to know myself," Glumshanks whispered back. "It's like he thinks he's already king or something!"

"That doesn't matter!" Vatra hissed, the soft shriek of his palms heating up entering the air. "He's right before us, we need to dispose of him before it's too late!"

"Wait, dispose?" Glumshanks backed away, or at least, Tree Rex thought he backed away based on the soft sound of plodding footsteps. "Did I hear that right?"

"I wouldn't recommend that, Vatra. Killing him won't do us any good," Vaayu butted in. "If he's the person I think he is, then—"

"What are you talking about, Vaayu? It doesn't matter who he thinks he is!" Vatra whispered at just a volume Tree Rex and the others could hear. "We have him right in the palm of our hands! All we'd have to do is burn him away, and our mission is done!"

"And if you do, he'll just be free to run amuck! If what I theorized is right, he's already possessed one person, and if we just kill this body he'll find somebody else to possess! He's not going to stop until he makes his way back to Arkus and gets his empire there back!"

Tree Rex let out a soft, confused grunt as he traced down the sound of their conflicting voices, and a couple of grunts and tiny gasps showed the others were just as baffled. But wait, as he thought about it, that voice and those clothes… They reminded him far too much of Arkilles…

"What are you talking about? Lord Kaos isn't that old, and he's never been to Arkus before!" Glumshanks whispered. "We don't even know where Arkus is anymore!"

"Don't you get it?!" Vaayu cried as he raised his voice some. "That's because right now—"

"—we have to take care of this runt tarnishing the name of free magicians!" Vatra hissed as he pulled back Vaayu. "Fine, we won't kill him, but we should at least capture him while we have the chance!"

"Kill him?!" Glumshanks cried. "Capture him?"

The sound of soft walking turned to fast running, and footsteps found their way on the carpets—footsteps that looked an awful lot like Glumshanks'!

"I should've known better than to trust the Skylanders!"

Vatra gasped, and another pair of footsteps that singed the carpet followed Glumshanks. "Stop him!"

Tree Rex grunted and moved away from the door, eyes laying on the footsteps. Man, having an invisibility spell started to seem like a bad idea...

"Wait a second—what was that?" Kaos asked!

And once again everyone planted themselves to the walls, and as they did Tree Rex shot a weary glance back at Kaos's throne room.

There within, Kaos himself had shuffled his way out of his throne room, his eyes glancing around from side to side as he tried to sniff out their very appearance… Then he groaned and clutched his head once more. The symbol on his forehead pulsed in shades of red and cyan before it finally stabilized in a cyan color as he lifted his head. His lips pursed and his brows tensed as he prodded forward, then he froze in place.

"That's strange, I can feel a particularly strong magic presence here," Kaos said, adding with a chuckle "beside mine, of course…" Kaos's brows tensed even further, almost hiding his eyes. "But, there's nobody here but me!"

The sap in Tree Rex's veins almost froze as Kaos poked his head out of the doorway, and as those red eyes locked on him, Tree Rex gulped and took the slightest, most gingerly of steps away. The floor creaked a little underneath Tree Rex, leaving Tree Rex cringing as he turned back to Kaos. And Kaos, in turn, hummed and raised his brows as if he had noticed! Kaos opened his mouth, and in that moment a powerful, chilling gust burst down and coated Kaos in cold wind!

"Wh-wh-what w-w-w-w-was that?!" Kaos shouted, though even at his highest volume he could only barely be heard over the roaring winds. "Who chilled the winds!?"

Parts of the winds swirled around Tree Rex, and Tree Rex in turn shuddered as he took a step forward from the sheer Air Element energy that emanated from them… But when he did, his footsteps were light as air, so light that they couldn't even be heard! Casting a glance back at where the cold winds swarmed Kaos for one moment more, Tree Rex charged down the halls right as the invisibility spell started to lift and he himself became visible once more, as did the rest of the group as they appeared in front of them.

At the head of the charge Vaayu ran, his hands glowing a brighter sky blue as winds swirled around their fingertips, then his run turned to a hunched-over stumbled as he rounded the corner. Then, he took one step forward and clutched his arm before collapsing entirely, falling to his knees as he leaned against the wall! 'Enehana immediately rushed to his side and propped him up further, then 'Enehana opened their mouth…

"I, I'm fine," Vaayu panted, though the way he clutched his chest showed that he was blatantly lying. "I, just, had a lot taken out of me…"

'Enehana closed their mouth into a frown, then turned back to the rest of the group. "Tree Rex, over here!" 'Enehana whispered. "Get him more magic."

Tree Rex hastily nodded, then he knelt down down beside Vaayu. He lifted his palm, and flashes of green glowed from his palm lines before feeding out in strings of green magic that turned sky blue as they fed into Vaayu's pendant! The pendant glowed brighter, and Tree Rex in turn relented his healing spell while Vaayu pushed himself off the wall.

"Much better," Vaayu panted as he adjusted his shirt. His eyes fell to the path, and he raised a brow. "Now, where did they go?"

"Judging by the footsteps," 'Enehana said. "It seems like they went straight ahead..."

A platter clattered behind them, and Vaayu and 'Enehana turned away to find a wide-eyed monkey-thing standing in the hallways, a platter full of spilled food laying by its feet as it sputtered. Wait, the invisibility spell, it had worn off! Tree Rex had completely forgotten, and judging by the worried looks he caught on everyone's faces, he wasn't the only one!

"Now, now, this isn't what it looks like," Vaayu started as he stumbled off towards the monkey-thing with hands raised. "I promise!"

But, the monkey-thing had none of it! It just screamed out some kind of nonsense and raced down the halls, and though whatever it said was complete gibberish to Tree Rex, the frantic look on its face showed it wasn't good! The monkey-thing banged on the walls as it continued screeching, then Tree Rex hit it on the head with a ball of spores and knocked it over! Its eyes drooped as it face-planted on the floor, and soft snoring rumbled from under its face.

"Phew, the sleep spores actually worked!" Tree Rex panted as he wiped his face free of sweat.

"'Enehana, get that invisibility spell going again!" Vatra shouted. "We have to get out of here before they find us!"

The rumble of creaking mechanical joints reverberated from down the halls, shaking the portraits and flags a little, and Vatra grimaced as he glanced at 'Enehana beside him. 'Enehana didn't return his glance, instead fixing their eyes on their cloaking device as it flashed red, then faded altogether.

"I think it's a little too late for that!" 'Enehana shouted.

Ahead of them the walls shuddered, paintings rattling against the walls and flags fluttering as an army's footsteps and the glint of their glowing red and yellow eyes slipped out from the dark of the halls. The smaller robots came out first, all knights armed with guns and swords and polearms, while the back held larger defenders armed with tough, thick swords and solid shields, the light in their eyes dancing as they walked. They stood upright for moments as their eyes fell on Tree Rex's group, and then they all turned red as they charged forward!

"Deactivate!" 'Enehana commanded, screaming at the top of their lungs as they shot out a hand!

Right then the smaller robots all froze and stumbled back, pillars of sparks bursting from the back of their heads as they collapsed on their backs. But, while their weapons slipped from their hands and their eyes dimmed, the larger robots charged across the floor and crushed their fallen comrades' bodies underneath their feet! The twisted, sickening sound of crushing and screeching metal rang through the halls, mixing with the crumbling of the ceiling as the robots pressed their heads up for moments before kneeling down and surrounding Tree Rex's group. Even when knelt down, these robots still stood a whole head—no, a whole body above even Tree Rex himself!

Tree Rex hopped back as one of the hands snapped out for him, and another shout came as Crusher smacked away a hand that reached for him. Tree Rex clenched his teeth as he backed away, then slammed his hand against the ground, cracking it open in that instant. A whole forest of thick vines leaped from the group and wove themselves around the group, forming a veritable shield but only for a moment. An obsidian blade ripped through the vines and slashed them clean in half, their parts withering as they tumbled over and hit the ground! The defender wielding the blade aimed for Tree Rex next, stabbing its sword dangerously close to his chest while he hopped away.

"'Enehana!" Tree Rex called between dodges of the blade. "Do you have any idea what these things are supposed to be?"

'Enehana took only one glance from where they charged the cloaking device, then dropped their head back down. "Arkeyan Defenders mark 2.5—their armor's solid, but they hadn't fixed that weakness to electricity from the original blueprints! One good charge, and it'll be out for weeks!"

Electricity, huh? Tree Rex glanced over at Bouncer, who was already charging a static blast from his hands as he wheeled away from another defender's blast. Right before he shot, however, the crack of thunder roared and lightning struck the defender down right before Bouncer's eyes! The defender's sword dropped from its hand, and its body jerked in sharp, but robotic movements as the lightning leaped from it to the next defender, and the one after that! Bouncer himself wheeled back into Tree Rex's back as the world around turned yellow, then sky blue.

The Arkeyan Defenders lifted themselves up and backed away in a bit of surprise… And formed a gap in the dome they had formed around Tree Rex's group!

Tree Rex immediately knelt down, scooped up 'Enehana, Vaayu and Jorden from the ground and ran the fastest he could! As he approached the gap, he dropped down and slid through, his hands carefully folded over those in his grip the whole time, then as he escaped he sprung to his feet and unfolded them.

"Everyone alright?" he asked, before his face fell as his eyes caught wind of Vaayu, all labored breaths and cold sweat as he leaned against Tree Rex's finger. "Vaayu?"

"I, I…" Vaayu panted, before he silenced himself as Tree Rex applied a small spark of green magic to his arm.

Like a solvent it dissolved into his ghostly body, its light shifting from purple to a clear sky's blue before it disappeared, and in turn Vaayu sighed and closed his eyes. His breath steadied a bit, becoming softer and more even as he rested, and Tree Rex took this as a sign to kneel down and cast spells further. Applying his finger to Vaayu's shoulder, Tree Rex let out small, steady breaths of his own as he applied flash after flash of green Life magic, each flash shifting in color as Vaayu's body adopted it.

The sound of pounding footsteps and whirring wheels came closer as Hot Head, Crusher and Bouncer raced up to Tree Rex's side, but they weren't the only ones! Those pounding footsteps shook the halls again as the defenders charged after them, the halves of their shields still raised but quickly lowering, almost like…

"They're gonna fire!" 'Enehana cried. "Duck!"

Tree Rex hit the floor immediately, and the others quickly followed as the defender slammed the two halves of their shields together and shot off white-hot lasers! They only barely grazed across Tree Rex's back and left a vaguely numbing, tingling feeling of warmth behind as the lasers' screech disappeared, replaced by the pound of footsteps as the defenders charged at top speed. Tree Rex gritted his teeth in turn and slammed a palm against the floor, summoning a giant shield of bark that splintered and caved as the defenders charged through and towered over them. They split their shields once more, and the one at the head of the charge slashed for Tree Rex, who in turn hopped back a few paces, just barely grazed by every swipe.

Beside him, Bouncer futilely shot off a few rockets, slamming them in the face of another defender as it swung for him, but the most they left were harmless bursts of fire as they exploded against the defender's carapace. He gawked at the failed attack, and in that moment the defender slashed against his chest and knocked him on his back! His chest sparked for moment as its open gash laid bare, but with a slap from his hand, the metal on his chest folded in and sealed itself, leaving only a thin white scratch behind.

"Don't aim for the face, aim for the chest!" 'Enehana shouted from Tree Rex's palms. They grimaced as Bouncer wheeled back into the fray, then dug into their backpack before yanking out a megaphone and holding it to their lips. "I SAID, DON'T AIM FOR THE FACE, AIM FOR THE CHEST!"

The sudden volume shook the room and left everyone else involved shaking. Everyone but 'Enehana, who hovered out of Tree Rex's palms and nudged on Jorden to do the same! The two of them left Tree Rex's hand and glared over at where the defenders shook just slightly and raised their shields, and in turn their own ghostly bodies glowed a bit brighter in response. 'Enehana turned to Jorden first, hovering up just a bit slightly and whispering into his ear, and Jorden in turn nodded and punched his fists together!

The ground rumbled and completely split as pillars of stone burst from the floor! They smashed through the wood and tearing the carpet to bits before piercing right through the defenders' chests next! Their eyes flickered as their bodies laid propped up by the pillars, each arranged so that they left the heart of their bodies completely open.

While the defenders laid vulnerable, a rain of flaming arrows shot from the other side of the hall, forming into a trio of larger ones as they pierced the defenders' hearts, melting away their armored carapaces! The liquid metal bubbled and dripped down, the red tint from the heat brushing against the complex inner mechanisms that supported the glowing core in its exposed chest!

'Enehana and Jorden both turned around as red light glimmered against their faces, and in a pop and flash Vatra appeared! He slunked down and panted, ghostly beads of sweat creeping down his forehead, but with a pat from Jorden he keeled over and collapsed!

"Whoops," Jorden remarked as Vatra collapsed by his feet. He chuckled, then propped Vatra back up. "Sorry about that."

"That Ancients-forsaken troll got away," Vatra hissed, smoke burning from his palms. "I almost had him, but then he found some secret passage in the walls and disappeared! I'm sure he's on his way to tell that Kaos person we're here!"

And with that, Jorden dropped Vatra back on the ground with a wide-eyed urgency. "Then we need to get these things scrapped and get goin'!"

"And this is where I come in," 'Enehana whispered, holding out their arms.

Their prosthetic hands glowed a brighter shade of orange, then pulled themselves apart and shifted, becoming functional cannons in a matter of moments! Their glow slunk into the cannons' hearts as they set into place with a firm click, and lasers burst from the cannons, sniping out the cores!

The glass shattered and raised down as the pillars disappeared, and the defenders quickly followed as they collapsed on their fronts. The dull sounds of them powering down in a warped, twisted manner intersected with that of their pipes bursting and mechanisms crunching as they collapsed, a low rumble that swept across the room in time with their slow death. For a moment, one defender's finger twitched, sending everyone back as it showed one last sign of dying life… But no, the defenders were done for.

But a whole other army of robots rested behind them, all eager to fight! The robots all raised their weapons and ran, only to skid to a short stop as a deep voice boomed in rage!

"Just what is going on here?!" Kaos howled from across the halls. "All this racket is ruining my gloating!"

A few sharp gasps came from the group, and Tree Rex himself prepared to bolt—but stopped as a thick mist coated the halls, obscuring everything head from view! He glanced down to his palms to find Vaayu awake and bright, his hand held out and seeping mist by the second, then glanced back up at where the mist raised. Just to be safe, Tree Rex flicked out his hands and a wall of vines stretching from the floor to the ceiling blocked off the way ahead, its thick, thorny exterior choking out any sights.

And with this done, Tree Rex turned tail and raced back down the halls, the others close behind him.

§

The light faded once more, and Chihiro gulped as she found herself in a musty-smelling, darkness-covered room. A faint light came from underneath the door, unveiling a few stray papers scattered across the floor and the sides of what seemed to barrels—had they arrived back in the present? Well, only one way to find out. Chihiro gulped as she tip-toed along the floor, trying her hardest not to trip over anything, then slowly creaked open the door…

And breathed a sigh of relief as she found herself on the broken balcony!

"Finally, back in the present day at last," Spyro sighed, stumbling forward and leaning against the balcony's banister.

"I've never appreciated today more than I have now," Gill Grunt groaned, stumbling to the other side of the balcony and leaning against the banister as his legs steadied themselves.

Trigger Happy and Stealth Elf both trudged out of the closet soon after, but as they did, smoke and faint yelling poured out from the halls as robots with glaring red eyes spilled out and waved their weapons at something—something Stealth Elf immediately noticed. Flicking her ears, she flipped onto the banister and rested on its edge as she crouched down and peered ahead, then turned down to Chihiro.

"Something tells me we're not getting a break yet, though!" Stealth Elf shouted as she flipped out. "Come on, that has to be the other team!"

"And how do you know?" Trigger Happy flicked. "That just looks like some angry robots to me!"

A mighty cry rang out as beams of green light burst from the halls, sniping portraits off the walls and burning away parts of the floor as they landed! One slammed into the walls just above Trigger Happy's head as he gasped and ducked, then he turned around and giggled as its green light pulsed in the dent it left behind.

"Actually, yeah, that has Tree Rex written all over it!" Trigger Happy giggled. Whipping out his pistols, Trigger Happy spun them around as he hopped away. "I'm not gonna leave all the shooting to him!"

While the others rushed past her, Chihiro summoned a sword and leaped off the balcony! She rushed off the moment she hit the floor, weaving magic into her steps and teleporting from place to place as she ran!

With only a few steps, she found herself just inches away from an Arkeyan soldier and slashed it in half right as it turned around, its halves exploding and knocking her back into the ground while the static seared her face. Crying out as she hit the floor, Chihiro rubbed the pain away with another spell and pushed herself back up, sword still in hand as she stretched to full height. Another trio of Arkeyan soldiers surrounded her, and she only grunted as she rushed forward and slashed away! The first went down in a blink, then she kicked its halves into the second and third soldiers before going to slice—but stopping herself as she met face to face with Vatra instead!

"Vatra, there you are!" Chihiro cried as she lowered her swords. "Did you manage to get Kaos?"

A burst of fire soared above their heads and crashed into the wall aside with such force that the resulting shockwave forced them both to duck! Vatra fell first, then grabbed Chihiro and tucked her underneath him as the place shuddered in turn with the blast, and for a moment Vatra relented. But as the ceiling started to crumble, he pulled Chihiro further away and winced.

"What do you think?" Vatra asked, his glance turning over to where the battle raged.

"Point taken," Chihiro replied, squirming her way out of Vatra's grip as she spoke.

Vatra stomped his feet, then blasted a few more robots as flames burst from his soles before he flew off. "This Kaos person is almost ready to go to Arkus—we need to stop these robots and go after him!"

Wait, already?! Chihiro shook her head, then turned back to where the battle with the robots raged. There were a lot of them, and it seemed like they weren't planning to stop anytime soon, but maybe if she gave them a good enough jolt of magic… Chihiro raised her hand, and the cyan magic charged like it normally did.

She lifted her hands further, until they were just above her head, but lowered them as 'Enehana stepped forward and held their own glowing orange hands above her! Bursts of orange lightning jolted from the robots around, striking them one by one with bursts of magic, and they all tumbled down in an instant! The stench of smoke and oil wafted through the room as they clunked on the floor and fell to shambles, and in front of them 'Enehana just smirked and wiped their hands.

"That's the power of technomancy for you," 'Enehana said as they turned around and fixed their gloves. They scoffed one more time, then turned around to the rest of the group as they stumbled over. "Anyways, those robots said something about a launch room. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that?"

"Launch room?" Spyro repeated. He hummed, then tapped his chin while his wings flicked up and down. "Launch room, launch room…" a light shone in Spyro's eyes, and his head perked up. "Well, the only thing I can think of was that ballroom that weird ghost was talking about... Kind of a weird lead, but the only one we've got."

"Then that's where we're going!" Chihiro cried as she turned tail and dashed off. "Come on! We can't let him escape!"

Chihiro rushed up to the doors she was sure was the ballroom's, and went to open them—but it was no use, they were locked shut! But why… Oh right, she was supposed to find the thing to unlock them before she got trapped in that time travel thing! How could she have forgotten!?

"Just leave these doors to me," Crusher cried as he cracked his knuckles. "Though, you might want to stand back."

Chihiro nodded and rushed back as Crusher heaved his hammer up, and with one fell swing of it, the ballrooms doors splintered open! Their wood dented, forming a cave of sorts around the head of Crusher's hammer before he swung it off in the next instant. The wood splintered further the moment it hit the back of the room, splitting open the next as it fell to the floor and revealing the rot it had accumulated inside.

But, the doors were gone, and that meant they had to proceed. Everyone swarmed together into a tightly-packed crowd and proceeded. Though, as the crowds passed on, Chihiro lowered her head and brushed her hand against her chin. Something about that strange time-traveling bugged her, and not just the strange time-traveling bit.

"Just what was all that about, anyways? Why didn't Kaos remember us? Why didn't it seem like anything changed?" Chihiro mumbled to herself as she passed through what were once the doors to the ballroom. "Was it really traveling through time?"

Chihiro stopped for a moment, humming as she racked her brain for some sort of explanation… But, every thought of it hurt her head. Alternate timelines, other dimensions, all that kind of stuff was way too complicated for her—but then again, she supposed time travel was a pretty complicated thing too, and yet she understood that perfectly fine! But, on the other hand, didn't time traveling usually change things in the future too? And yet, it seemed like nothing had changed when she met Kaos as a teenager, or even as a young adult! And Spyro didn't seem like his memories had been affected either. Maybe she created different timelines? Chihiro's head throbbed, and she groaned as she buried it in her hands.

"All this time stuff is confusing," Chihiro groaned.

The footsteps grew distant, and Chihiro lifted her head to find that everyone else had passed her by! Chihiro stomped her foot and teleported back into the group's ranks, her feet clacking as they hit cool, smooth marble first. The breeze rustled her hair, and she quickly patted it back down before lifting her head back up.

The pathway stretched past the castle itself and well into the outside world, its marble checkerboard bridge passing over the clear skies below and towards another castle in the distance. The wind blew, its chilling breaths scattering leaves across the skies, and to the front the sounds of whispers rose as everyone huddled together, likely to discuss their plans. But, more than that, something rumbled underneath them, like something was quaking or shuddering!

Chihiro winced and turned back down to the bridge, where it almost seemed like it was shaking just slightly before it settled. Her gaze tensed as she tapped the bridge's tile, but when it shook no more, she shrugged and rejoined the group. This place was pretty old, after all—the bridge probably just caught a draft or something.

"Now, Kaos might be full of himself, but you can't take him lightly," Spyro advised from within the circle, though his face was blocked off by everyone else who crowded around. "He's powerful—"

"Of course he is, he's a free magician!" Vatra chimed in from the group.

"—and stubborn, too. He won't stop until he wins, no matter how underhanded he has to go." A soft snort came from Spyro, followed by the sound of flapping wings. "Adding to that, if his robots found you, there's a good chance he knows we're here, so he'll probably try to stall us."

Another rumble came from the floor, this one a bit louder and stronger than the last, and Chihiro grimaced down. The tiles seemed to rattle a bit firmer than before, but it seemed as though it was still standing. And yet, her glance couldn't quite pull away from it as the others discussed their strategies in hushed whispers. She tapped the tiles, and in turn they quaked a bit more, this time rousing up enough that a few people ceased their talking and glanced over—she didn't even need to turn around and look, she could feel them crawling along her back!

"Hey, did anyone else feel that too?" 'Enehana asked, raising their voice up a little more.

A few mumbled agreements came from the rest of the group, ones drowned out by the bridge rumbling and quaking even further! It was at that point that looks grew uneasy, fingers clenched in tension, and Chihiro's entire group finally moved off the bridge. They started in a bit of a tumble, one that hastened to a quick run as the quaking of the bridge grew its loudest, its tremors so heavy and strong that parts of the bridge rattled and tossed people off balance…

And finally, the beginning part of the bridge collapsed, dropping down into the skies below! The other parts followed in succession, and in turn everyone else moved faster, scrambling for the end of the bridge! The others made it off quick enough, but right as they ran past one particularly shaky part of the bridge, the floor caved under and Vatra and Jorden both slipped! 'Enehana stopped and flicked out their hands as Vatra and Jorden fell, and the hands in turn extended into long mechanical arms that stretched down and yanked the two of them up before they all ran off!

Chihiro grimaced, teleporting from section to section in quick bursts and zips as each part she passed collapsed in quick succession. The end of the bridge quickly came into view, and Chihiro hopped along the bridge's sections in a slightly faster speed. She was almost there—and now that she was, she could've sworn that cheering came from the building ahead, like that of a crowd's. She landed on the marble and reached out for the building's open doorway, but right as she did, the rumblings grew distant and the floor underneath her disappeared, only solid air remaining where she once stood!

One minute she leaped for the doorway, the next she collapsed, the wind screeching around her as she plummeted into the depths! Screams and shouts came as the others dropped around her, Spyro and Gill Grunt falling first as the wind's pressure pushed them down, then Tree Rex and Crusher collapsed at a rapid speed! She pushed out her hand, trying to thrust out a spell or anything that could help, and yet the pressure and weight of the wind as it pushed her down was so mighty she couldn't! She could barely even reach out her arm as she fell further—and into something soft and puffy? Chihiro flinched a bit as her back hit something that vaguely felt like a pillow or a pile of feathers, then opened her eyes to find that she had landed right into a fluffy, firm cloud as white as snow. She patted the cloud's springy surface, then pushed herself up right as even more clouds rose from the depths with the rest of her team rested right on them!

Her own cloud shuddered a little as it rose back to where the bridge once stood, then nudged closer to the one remaining part of the bridge rested near the building. Chihiro hopped off and was met with the figure of a slightly muscular person's ghost hunched over and heaving labored breaths, their hand clutching the fabric of their floral-print blue shirt like a security blanket. She knelt down and brushed away their spiky black bangs to find sweat dotting their brown skin, and a sparkle of sky blue brought her eyes down to where a sparkling azure wheel pendant dangled from this person's neck.

"Another one of the ancient portal masters?…" Chihiro whispered. The person heaved beside her, and she gasped before propping them up. "Actually, nevermind, we need to get you healed first!"

Chihiro gripped the person's shoulders as magic tinged her hands, and a tingling feeling came over her as the magic flowed from her to them. Their breath slowed and steadied as the magic flooded in, and their body glistened just a little bit more as they groaned and sat upright once more. They wiped their sweat away as Chihiro leaned back and released her hands, and they opened their eyes to reveal kind, brown eyes. Their plump lips drew back into a chuckled as they patted Chihiro's head, though their hand was barely there.

"And who might you be, child?" they asked.

Chihiro chuckled. "Name's Chihiro! I'm a free magician from today's time."

The magician chuckled and nodded their head. "And I am Vaayu."

A few thuds came and shook the bridge, and for a moment Chihiro gasped and prepared a spell. But, when the bridge didn't cave in, she turned around and sighed with relief. No collapsing bridge parts this time, it was just the others as they landed back on the front gate.

"Should've guessed that was your work, Vaayu," Vatra said, his cloak fluttering in the wind as he marched for the doors. "That was close, though—try not to over-exhaust yourself."

"I'll be fine, Vatra," Vaayu insisted, pushing himself back to his feet as he followed Vatra to the doors.

"Not after you got stuck as a living battery for that machine!" Vatra grunted as he pushed against the tall, obsidian doors before him, though they barely budged an inch. "It's a miracle your soul didn't fade back then! We don't know what this Kaos person has in store, so leave him to us."

Tree Rex moved forward and pushed the doors open with a single push of his fingers, and with the doors wide-open, everyone tensed. Kaos was surely waiting for them on the inside, and everyone seemed to recognize it judging by how they pulled out their weapons and clenched their fists.

Even Chihiro herself tensed a little, her heart pounding a bit faster against her chest as she peered within. But, whatever happened, she couldn't wait! This was her mistake to fix, and by god, she was going to fix it—so she stormed inside, and the sound of pounding footsteps showed the others had followed suit!

The sound of cheering and stomping feet shook the world as they stormed into the ballroom, greeted first by the chessboard-like marble floors that shone bright as if they had just been polished… And then by the armies of Arkeyan robots that flooded the stands, their armor shining in the sunlight as they cheered like eager spectators! Some of them ever pushed their weapons towards the sky and waved them around like flags or foam fingers! But, the most chilling sight wasn't that, no—it was what laid in the center.

There laid Kaos, seated in a red and gold throne with an ever-smug look on his face while a kind of leery-looking Glumshanks stood by his throne and shied away from view. Though, curiously, he didn't don his signature black robes, no. Instead, they had been traded out for a silken gold robe with golden crown patterns woven in a somewhat ancient-seeming fashion while a gold crown adorned with jewels topped his head, a look more reminiscent of a king from an ancient history book than the Kaos Chihiro knew. In fact, he carried himself with a stronger aura, one of cool confidence rather than the foolhardy brazenness of the Kaos Chihiro knew. She didn't know why, but something about Kaos didn't seem right, like he was an entirely different person!

"Well well, it seems we have a few unwanted guests here at my little victory party! And here I thought those holographs and extra robots would be enough to stop you, but I suppose I was wrong," Kaos crooned. Even his voice was different, a smooth baritone that highly contrasted the shrill, screechy voice of the actual Kaos. "I suppose you've come here to apprehend me?"

Chihiro clenched her teeth and her fist a bit tighter, resisting the urge to back away. She didn't know why, but something was different about Kaos—VERY different. Should she attack? Should she wait for him to speak? Chihiro groaned, but then shook her head. Who cared about that!? She came here to stop him, and that's what she was gonna do, no questions about it!

"You bet we are, Kaos!" Chihiro cried, sliding forward and pointing a finger right at his flashy throne. "There's no way we're letting you take over Skylands again!"

"You have a lot of nerve, showing your face here again!" Spyro shouted, smoke funneling from his nostrils as he flew beside Chihiro. "We're nipping this plan of yours in the bud! If you come quietly, we might—"

"It's bold of you to assume you can stop me, hmm?"

The single question of Kaos's shut both Spyro and Chihiro up right in that instant, their mouths clenching tight. A sudden chill ran down Chihiro's spine, and on instinct her clenched fist released. Her brown eyes trailed back up to where Kaos sat on the throne, and some kind of intense aura came over him, one that left Chihiro shaking in his wake—nothing like the feeling the regular Kaos gave off! No, this was more akin to that of a king, regal and demanding. And judging from an aside glance she took, it seemed Spyro must have recognized it as well, for he too shuddered a bit in Kaos's wake.

"You know it too, don't you?" Kaos sneered, before breaking into a haughty laugh. "I knew it! You worms are clearly smart enough to recognize that you don't even hold a candle to my awe-inspiring power!" Adjusting his position, Kaos pushed himself to sit upright and cackled as he drummed his fingers against the arms of his throne. "You couldn't possibly impair my ultimate plan!"

Another low chuckled came from Kaos, and Spyro and Chihiro both backed away.

"After all, it's almost complete! I'll take my Conquertron to the secret vault, retrieve the map to Arkus, and once I get there…"

Oh great, here comes the rambling about Skylands' ultimate doom, Chihiro thought as she rolled her eyes.

"I will bring about a new age in Arkeyan history!"

And Chihiro's eyes shot wide! Arkeyans? That's what he was so concerned about?

"It'll be a glorious day for all my subjects, indeed! The Arkeyan empire will finally see the light of day once more, and the almighty Ancient's lights will shine upon Arkus once more! The Arkeyans will march across Skylands once more, and it will expand all across Skylands as it once did during its golden era, and all will bow before the mighty will of the Arkeyan empire! The streets will be painted in red and gold, Arkeyan monuments will tower over every island, and I…"

Chihiro clenched her brows, then raised one as Kaos continued to ramble. All that talk, and not one mention of doom or his empire or anything of the sort—no, it was almost like he was only concerned with reviving the Arkeyans! That… Seemed a little small-scale for Kaos, didn't it? And unless he had a change in aesthetics since Chihiro had last seen him, the whole fancy ancient empire thing wasn't really his style, either. So why on Earth was he so concerned with that? A wing nudged Chihiro's arm, and she turned aside to find Spyro's leery golden eyes locked on hers.

"Is it just me, or is Kaos acting kind of strange?"

"You're right," Chihiro replied as she shot a glance at Kaos while he went on another tangent about the beauties of Arkeyans or whatever. She winced, then raised her voice just a bit. "This isn't like him at all!"

"That's because it isn't him!"

A familiar voice rang out, and Spyro and Chihiro both turned around to find Vaayu hobbling in, the rest of the group at his heels! His brown eyes were hot with fury now, but his gaze wasn't directed towards Chihiro or Spyro. No, it had turned to Kaos instead!

Kaos popped an eye open and gasped, his latest spiel brought to a harsh stop.

"YOU?!" he exclaimed. "I THOUGHT I BANISHED YOU TO THAT MACHINE?!"

Vaayu just chuckled, standing back to full height as he pulled himself forward. "It takes more than a little machine to get rid of me, I'm afraid," Vaayu remarked. He cracked his knuckles, and venom seeped into his glance once more as he glared down Kaos. "I had my suspicions before, but this confirms it! You know, I knew you were stubborn, but possessing another person is a low even for you!"

"Lord Kaos, what's he talking about?" Glumshanks asked as he turned to Kaos.

Kaos, for his part, didn't respond. He just squirmed in his seat, his eyes bouncing around and teeth gritting as he sputtered. That confident air he once held was completely gone, and now he just looked like he was about ready to scramble at any minute!

"Don't, don't say a word!" Kaos demanded. "If you take one more step forward—no, if you so much as breathe, I'll, I'll—"

"What's there to do? It's not like you've mastered that body's powers yet!" Vaayu sneered, but not out of confidence—no, it was a snide sneer, as if he was purposefully driving Kaos into a corner.

"I suppose possessing a free magician was a bit more than you bargained for, wasn't it… Arkilles?"

"ARKILLES?" cried out everyone else in the room.

A string of gasps ran around the ballroom, and the robots in the stands ceased their cheering and lowered. Behind her the others whispered and glanced at Kaos in shock, and Chihiro herself just changed views from Kaos, to Vaayu, to a similarly-baffled Spyro in sequence. Kaos was possessed by Arkilles? THAT Arkilles? That ages-old king of the Arkeyans who was long-dead?

Chihiro winced as she glanced to Kaos once more, who just sat in shock, or maybe anger, as he glared back down at Vaayu in turn. He now stood atop his throne's seat, his back pressed against the throne's own while his head shifted like he was seeking out a way to escape!

"Lord Kaos, is that true?" Glumshanks asked. "What exactly is going on here?"

And then, Kaos froze. He stayed stuck to the throne for a moment, but finally a low laugh came from him and he sat down. That same strange aura of confidence came back to him, and his laughter bellowed even louder!

"Well, I suppose there's no use hiding it anymore! Besides, there's no way you'll possibly stop me at this rate!" Kaos bellowed. "Seems we meet again after all, Lesser Elementals and their little party magicians!"

Kaos or maybe not Kaos's laughter rang out more, and this time it was Tree Rex who stormed forward! His feet scuffed the floor as he slid forward, and bark shavings peeled from his teeth as he glared down Kaos.

"It really is you, Arkilles!" Tree Rex cried. "But how are you still here?! Shouldn't you have died?!"

"I could ask you the same thing, couldn't I?" Arkilles chuckled, holding out a hand. "After all, you fossils should've been dead and buried millennia ago! You're just as out of place in this era as I am!"—Arkilles chuckled as Tree Rex faltered a bit—"so, I suppose I wouldn't mind sharing a secret between us ancient folks."

The tone in Arkilles' voice was sickeningly sweet, as if he was talking to an old friend, but Chihiro could see right through it. That glare on Tree Rex's face, that snide posture of Arkilles' as he sat in his throne… Those words of his were anything but friendly.

"You see, even though you never got the deal the final blow on me, those wounds you gave me were very, very grave indeed! I tried my hardest, struggled with all my might, but in the end my mortal body gave out on me!" Arkilles pouted a moment, making some vaguely simpering moaning noises before he cackled and continued. "My ghost had risen, and of course the reapers had come to take me to the Underworld—but, I couldn't possibly leave! Not when I had so much to do! So, I took control of a Conquertron still standing in the reserves and fled as far as I could, did whatever I could to shake their grip! And if that meant sleeping for an eternity, then so be it!"

"Wait," Glumshanks said, his tone turning cold as he turned to Arkilles. "So you're saying…"

"But then, something delightfully unexpected came—this body!" Arkilles cackled, now beside him with glee as he leaned out of his throne and spun his tale. "The loud-mouthed pipsqueak woke me up, and at first I considered crushing him like an insect for it, if we're being honest… But the power he held, the splendid magic power, it made him the perfect vessel!" Arkilles chuckled and stretched to the skies, the sun pouring down on his crown and robes to give them a golden sheen. "Quite frankly, I'll put this body and its powers to better use than he ever did! With the powers of a free magician, and the entire army at my helm, I'll revive the Arkeyan empire and ensure it never falls again!"

A few gasps came from beside, most notably from Tree Rex as he froze up—but not from Chihiro! No, she just rushed up and tossed out hands flaring with magic!

"Alright, buddy, I don't know anything about fancy empires and I could care less about Kaos," Chihiro cried as she clenched her fists. "But there's no way I'll let you revive your empire and take over Skylands!"

"Chihiro's right!" Vatra cried as he burst forward, flames trailing behind him. "A free magician's power is a gift to be used for the sake of protecting Skylands, not to bring about its downfall!"

'Enehana, Jorden and Vaayu all nodded as they backed up behind Vatra and Chihiro, and the rest of their group fell in as well.
And hearing this and seeing them, Arkilles hissed. He squeezed his fist for a moment, then floated in front of the sun. A bright red glow radiated from his body, blocking out the sunlight with magic as he stretched his arms wide.

"Ah, prattle all you want, it does you no good!" Arkilles bellowed, the world around shuddering as he spoke. "How about you put your gold where your mouth is and try to stop me, then!"

§

Arkilles gritted his teeth, then clenched a fist as veins popped from its surface.

"You know," Arkilles mused, stretching out his fingers as red light veins formed along his head, "I've been dying to test out the powers that this body has held even since I grabbed it…"

Arkilles cracked his knuckles, then smiled as he flung out hands charged with bright red, crackling magic! His eyes glowed even brighter, and he licked his lips as the red light completely enveloped his hands.

"And now, I have the perfect opportunity!"

Everyone stepped back as the light around Arkilles glowed brighter and brighter, hands clenched and eyes tracing the battlegrounds. The red light spread to the walls, creeping along the floors as sparks of lightning burst from it, and the cheers of the Arkeyan crowds only grew more intense as the light glowed its brightest!

"Look out! It's gonna blow!" Chihiro cried!

Their group split two ways as the light finally burst, shooting towards them in streams of furious red lightning that tore right through the floor! The blasts hit the back of the arena instead, blowing it wide-open while chunks of rock and stone burst from it and rained down on the crowds! A few Arkeyan soldiers cheered as more of them were knocked unconscious by the oncoming blasts, and below Skylander and portal master alike cringed as they shielded themselves from the blows!

"Amazing!" Arkilles cried. He glanced down at hands still rife with magic, and a soft gasp escaped from him as he wiggled his fingers. "I knew that a free magician's power was immense, but feeling it first-hand… It's like I'm a completely different mage!"

As Spyro skidded alongside the battlefield and panted, Arkilles chuckled and turned around.

"I simply must try it out more! Until this body collapses, even!" Arkilles cried. His cackling continued as he lifted his still-glowing hands, and his eyes trained on Spyro. "And I have the perfect test subject in mind!"

Arkilles cackled as he floated along the battlefield, pumping his arms and shooting burst after burst of magic fire towards Spyro—but Spyro just grunted and slid away, his eyes flashing red as he did! Arkilles skidded in mid-air, stopping to turn around as his bursts of fire soared along the battlefield then stopped completely just before they hit the ground.

"Huh?" Arkilles uttered, stumbling back before he snarled and pointed at the fireballs. "I didn't order you measly embers to stop! Go after that dragon, right now!"

"Change of plans, buddy!" Spyro cried as he flapped his wings. Spyro flapped his wings once again, and the fireballs screeched as they zipped right back towards Arkilles. "Fireballs, return to sender!"

Arkilles screamed as the hot firelight came closer into his vision, then turned tail and scrambled away as the flames crashed into the battlefield! One by one they burst into pillars of burning fire, painting the area in hot red and oranges that glistened against the cheering standees' metal bodies as they ignited. But below, their flames licked against Arkilles' back, heating the back of his robes as he panicked and sputtered out! A few embers brushed dangerously close to the back of his head, and he screamed and rolled away—but right as he did, a fireball burst forth and slammed into his side, pushing him across the battlefield! Flames burst from his robes, singing them and burning holes in their cloth as he rolled along the battlefield, then grunted and pushed himself up. His eyes laid on Spyro, and his teeth gritted as Spyro smirked over him.

"Infernal lizard!" Arkilles hissed as he struggled to push himself up. "How dare you burn these robes! Have you no respect for Arkeyan fashion?!"

"Nope!" Spyro chirped back, though the flames that formed around his muzzle muffled his voice.

He shot off another string of fireballs, their flames burning and growing brighter as they all circled around and closed in on Arkilles—and in that moment, Arkilles teleported away! The flames crashed into each other instead, their fires erupting in a burning, smoking pillar right as Arkilles manifested behind them and chuckled. With a clap of his hands the flames grew brighter and taller, and Arkilles gasped before extinguishing them with a few more claps. Arkilles turned back to Spyro as the flames died, stumbling around their ashy pillars as he did, and he flicked his hands while a red glow burst from his palms' veins. He levitated up, prepared to fight, and in that moment a burst of water splashed him in the back and knocked him forward!

"Who dares splash me?!" Arkilles squealed as he swung back and forth, his fists shaking the whole time. "These robes aren't waterproof, you know!"

And above him, Gill Grunt swirled around Arkilles, propelled into the skies by the streams of water bursting from his jetpack as he spun circles! He lifted a fin and gave a thumbs up to the world behind, then smirked and hovered in front of Arkilles, cannon held up and prepped to shoot…

But instead of shooting Arkilles, he zipped away at the last minute and a flurry of gold coins shot into Arkilles instead! They pelted him like bullets, sniping his skin and popping off to reveal burning red marks while he shouted out and barked in pain! Once again Arkilles stumbled in mid-air, collapsing and hovering up in sharp, jerky movements with every gold coin that smashed into him!

Down on the ground Trigger Happy cackled as he fired off in rapid speed, then raised a brow and turned aside as Chihiro swayed beside him. She held out a hand, and Trigger Happy grinned as he released the triggers and lowered his guns! She teleported off in a flash, and he yanked out a golden box of popcorn and munched away as she reappeared before Arkilles!

Arkilles gasped, but only for a moment as he swung forward and shot a glowing magic blast at Chihiro—one she quickly swept aside off before she kicked him right in the back! The kick knocked Arkilles back to the ground at last, and she dropped down as he planted into the ground face-first. Arkilles grunted, his bones cracking as he pushed himself from the ground, and he himself groaned as he trudged up and crawled across the floor. Or at least, he would've if Chihiro hadn't stepped on the trailing cloth of his robe and chuckled.

"Okay, I don't know if you're Arkilles or Kaos or whatever," Chihiro cried as she crossed her arms. "But whoever you are, you're coming with us!"

Beside him, a green puff of smoke manifested, then cleared away as Stealth Elf jumped out and drew her blades.

"Just come in quietly," Stealth Elf warned, gingerly stepping forward while her blades drew closer to Arkilles' throat. "And maybe we'll let you off with only an exorcism and imprisonment."

Arkilles scoffed, a confident look finding its way on his face despite his situation. He winced a little as he staggered up a bit, and yet he still chuckled and smirked despite it all. His arms shuddered as he lifted them up and flicked Stealth Elf's blade away from his throat, and with that he collapsed back to the ground and chuckled.

"A compelling offer," Arkilles remarked, "but I'm afraid I can't accept!"

And in a flash of red light, Arkilles disappeared right from between them! His chuckled turned to cackles as he stood to full height and held out glowing red arms, their red light turning hot like the sun and raw with malevolent, bone-chilling energy as they stood, and with a single slap of his hands, the magic leaped from them! The two blasts twisted together, forming the shape of a dragon with a large, toothy maw as they leaped for Chihiro and Stealth Elf…

And as it leaped for the kill, a large, metallic orange wall leaped in front of the blasts and completely dispersed it! Its flickering embers scattered across the battlefield like rain, dripping onto the marble of the battlefield and vanishing as Arkilles gasped and stumbled backwards.

"Seems you forget you're not the only magician here," 'Enehana remarked as they lowered their glowing orange hands.

Arkilles hissed, gritting his teeth together as he turned to 'Enehana. His eyes narrowed as Vatra and Jorden joined them, flames almost burning before he shook his head and forced that same confident smirk before. But as he stumbled forward, hands glowing and all, a simple twitch showed that he knew he was outclassed. There before him stood three of his greatest foes, all portal masters far more experienced than he was, and though he had stolen the body of a portal master, he had no experience whatsoever in using the powers it held. It was clear who would win…

And yet, he still shouted out as he rushed out and shot every magic blast he could!

"How dare you look so smug in my presence!" Arkilles growled as he dashed forward. "Disappear already, you worms!"

The blasts of red magic screeched as they came in, but with a clap of 'Enehana's hands, more of those mechanical walls leaped from the floors and blocked them off in moments! They exploded in a string, one that coated the area in thick, eye-stinging smoke and blocked off everyone from view, but while the smoke choked out the arena, the walls rang and thudded just a bit! A few of them just barely shuddered and tilted forward as Jorden and Vatra leaped from them and slapped their glowing hands on the floor, their own magic presence growing brighter and more powerful!

The ground rumbled as reddish-brown light shone from the tiles, and Arkilles stuttered and stumbled backwards, hands raised at the sights before him! He took one more step back, and the ground below him rumbled and splintered as a giant volcano burst out and trapped him within its grip! The volcano rumbled for moments, then collapsed down and leaped up as it spat Arkilles right out, tossing him right into the air!

"You accursed mages!" Arkilles cursed as he patted stray embers off of his tattered robes. "You will rue the day you rose from your graves and challenged me! I—"

A pair of wooden fingers yanked Arkilles from the ground with such suddenness that it cut off his last words, leaving him choking and gasping as the fingers brought him closer to a pair of blue, cold eyes. Arkilles found himself staring into the icy cold glance of Tree Rex next, and he himself gasped and scrambled away. But, Tree Rex in turn just squeezed him tighter, leaving Arkilles gasping and choking for air even more.

"Stop it, you're choking Lord Kaos!" Glumshanks pleaded.

And yet, Tree Rex didn't relent. His eyes fixed on Kaos—or rather, Arkilles as he struggled and squirmed within the confines of Kaos's body! The others backed away, and even the Arkeyans in the stands ceased their cheers as Tree Rex held Arkilles to his eye level. Arkilles turned to Tree Rex for only a moment, and Tree Rex himself scowled, bearing his wooden teeth in a threatening display.

"You know, Arkilles," Tree Rex sneered as he squeezed Arkilles a bit tighter. "That was always your fatal flaw. You were too full of hot air to see your own faults!"

Arkilles gasped and choked out something barely made out—a plea for release? A last speech of defiance? A barely held back insult? Well, whatever it was, Tree Rex just turned around and scoffed as he walked away, Arkilles still dangling from his pinched-together fingers by the very thinnest scruff of his neck!

"Our mission is done here," Tree Rex proclaimed, his voice cold as ice still. "Chihiro, tell Flynn and Cali—"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

A loud, demonic screech hit the air, one so loud that it blew the clouds out of the sky! The screech rattled in the Arkeyan spectators' ears, sending sparks blowing from them while the organic people in the group immediately rushed to cover their ears—and that included Tree Rex! On instinct he cringed and shielded his ears with his hands, then glanced aside and gasped as Arkilles fell limp like a ragdoll to the ground! Tree Rex reached down to grab him, and in that instinct a burst of crimson magic shot off from Arkilles' body and singed Tree Rex's fingers, forcing him to draw his hand back!

Arkilles' body stopped in midair just inches before it hit the floor, instead floating on its back as it laid still like a stone statue. A faint rim of red energy like a shield surrounded it as it floated, reflecting the faces of all those around as they backed away or prepared to attack in their confusion. The shield lowered to the group while Arkilles rose upright within… And as his feet hit the floor, the shield disappeared and Arkilles fell to his knees! His hands propped him up as he slouched over next, all while he groaned and rubbed his head. But, the voice that came from him wasn't that of Arkilles' baritone, but a familiar screechy voice, its high tone strung with pain as Arkilles rubbed his head.

"Oh, my evil head," groaned Arkilles, or whoever it was that controlled the body now. He gritted his teeth and hissed as his hand clenched into a fist, and a low growl came next as he stumbled back to his full, albeit unimpressive, height. "When I get that wannabe king for possessing my glorious evil body, I'll…"

Chihiro blinked, taking a step backwards as the body's eyes turned on her.

"Wait a second," she sputtered out, eyes flickering open and shut in alarm. "KAOS?!"

The body turned around, then gasped. "THE POSER MASTER? AND THE SKYLOSERS TOO!" wailed the body, in a shrill, screechy voice that was undeniably Kaos's!

His own eyes fluttered at the sight of Chihiro, and his jaw slipped open as he jabbed a finger at her.

"Don't tell me he just INVITED you here into my temporary evil fortress of ultimate doom!" A low, frustrated grow rumbled in Kaos's throat. "That utter buffoon! That blundering bag of ectoplasm! Don't tell me him rifling through my memories to power the security systems was for NOTHING! Once I get him out of my head, I'll make sure to send him to his ultimate evil doom! There won't be enough itty bits of him left for the afterlife when I—"

Kaos flung his arms in the air, and his eyes grew wide at the sight of his tattered red and gold sleeves. He drew them back to his side, glancing over the rest of his torn, worn robes, and his head lurched over next, knocking the crown from its top. It rolled around his feet, and he lifted it up with trembling hands. His mouth gaped open wide, but scowled once more as he tossed the crown to the ground.

"AND WHAT DID HE DO WITH MY BODY!? THESE ROBES AREN'T BEFITTING OF SKYLANDS' ULTIMATE EVIL OVERLORD OF ULTIMATE DOOM AT ALL! THEY'RE FAR TOO GAUDY! NOBODY WEARS BRIGHT RED AND GOLD TO A CONQUEST UNLESS YOU WANT TO LOOK LIKE YOU CAME OUT OF A HISTORY BOOK!"

And as Kaos rambled on, Chihiro just winced. Yeah, there was no denying it at this point—this was definitely the real Kaos standing before here. Only he could rant that much about Skylands' doom. He continued his rambles, and Chihiro snarled as she bent her knees. He was so wrapped up in his rant that he didn't seem to care about anything else, and that body was undoubtedly still weak from the earlier spats. He was practically a lamb in the lion's wake!

So, Chihiro sprung forward and readied a spell, her gaze focused on the back of Kaos's bald head. Just one sleep spell, that would be enough to knock him unconscious, and then she could take him in before he could conquer Skylands again, before he could undo everything they did, before her failure could amount to anything! His head came in closer, and she reached out her fingers, just barely brushing against his scalp right as he turned around and glared at her with eyes flaring red! A massive soundwave came next, a blare so strong it blew her back and shook the area!

Chihiro rolled against the floor, landing right by Spyro's paws and groaning as she held a ringing ear with one hand and pushed herself off the ground with her free arm. Her body trembled, her arms and legs aching so badly that just laying down left her pounding and throbbing, and she could barely even see Kaos before her. In her blurry haze, she saw that Kaos himself just coughed and fell to his knees, clutching his sides with hands glowing red, and she growled and forced herself to her knees. A sharp noise shot through her head as she did, and next thing she knew she was on the floor, coughing and shaking while the heat of the marble floors burned against her skin, and her vision grew so bleary that her eyes ached just from keeping them open. While she shuddered and cringed, just about ready to collapse, a cool feeling washed over her and then the feeling of warm scales, and her strength returned enough that she stood up and leaned against Spyro, and her vision cleared enough to focus on Kaos.

Now it was Kaos's hands that twitched, his scowl growing wider as he laid on his knees still while pulsing waves burst from him and warded off those around. His brow twitched next as he gritted his teeth together, then stumbled back as he glanced around. At every angle he was surrounded by someone, whether it was Chihiro or one of the Skylanders in one instance, an Elder Elemental in another or one of the ancient portal masters next—but, not once did they attack. They just met his scowl with confusion, eyes tense as they backed away from the shrieking, ringing waves and pulses of magic that echoed from Kaos's body…

And then, the light faded from Kaos's hands and he snarled as he stood up! He was at full height now and the injuries his body had sustained slowly faded as he basked in the light. A smile thinned across his lips as he clasped his hand, not once bothering to back down even though he remained completely surrounded still.

"But, before I can deal with that incessant ghost," Kaos hissed, "I'd better take care of you!"

Kaos flicked out his wrists and a blast of scarlet magic burst from his palms, shooting straight to where Vatra, Jorden and 'Enehana laid! Its light flared against the faces as it came in, and 'Enehana took it head-on, rushing into the fray and falling their lowest as they slammed their hands against the floor! The flap of their backpack flung open in response, spewing out all sorts of metal and machinery that fashioned into a barrier and blocked the blow right where it came! Its red light flashed against the floor, its tile turning crimson in that moment and orange the next as 'Enehana leaped over the barricade and charged straight for Kaos. He snarled and shot off more blasts, and in turn 'Enehana swept to the side and flicked out their arm!

A screeching noise hit the air as the barricade behind them rushed to the front and blew the blasts back, combining the blasts into one as they hurtled back towards Kaos! Kaos in turn gasped, shooting out another, paler red blast that clashed against the force of his old ones, the light turning the floor warm and crimson as the two blasts pushed and tugged against each other. The light burned against him, tinting his face red with crimson magic sparks that leaped from his tense, throbbing veins! A softer crackle came from behind him, and he turned around and split his hands, holding out a second one to shoulder the electrically-charged, gauntlet-bound punch that came from Vaayu behind him!

Vaayu grunted in turn, twisting his arm as he pushed his fist closer to Kaos's chest while the lightning grew stronger, seeping into the sparks that bounced from Kaos's skin! Kaos's eyes grew wide as he screeched out, finally collapsing as the magic blasts from behind slammed into him and pushed him across the floor! The static crackled off of his body as he groaned from the holes torn through his robes, and though he couldn't speak, his eyes scrunching and squinting in pain with every shock he got showed the pained state he was left in. A sky blue light cast over him as Vaayu stormed up and raised a hand while his gauntlets dispelled, and Kaos just barely craned up his head.

But as Vaayu reached out for Kaos's collar, Kaos smirked and shot up his arm! He squeezed Vaayu's wrist as Vaayu gasped, and in that moment a burst of red magic shot Vaayu across the battlefield!

Kaos cackled as he pushed himself up from the battlefield while a red shield enveloped him, then turned invisible for moments with only the sunlight reflecting off of it a sign of its existence. Cracking his knuckles, Kaos floated up and rushed for Vaayu with red lightning crackling at his fingertips—then, a single bullet smashed through his shield! The bullet shattered a hole in the shield's front as it passed over Kaos's shoulder and tore another hole in the back on its way out, then a flurry joined that single bullet! Each one smashed through the safety of Kaos's shield, turning it a solid, pale red and filling it with thin cracks as Kaos himself planted to the bottom to avoid the bullets. And then, then bullets ended and the shield shattered completely, leaving behind faint red sparkles as it cascaded down on the battlefield!

Kaos gasped, but not for long as a burst of sunlight brushed behind his ear!

He yelped in pain as the light beam flew into the sky, and leaped away as the screech of another came! Floating further into the air, Kaos flung out a hand and blocked off another oncoming beam of light only for a rock to smash through it! Kaos tumbled through the skies, then teleported away as even more rocks and light beams shot for him, now paired with bursts of fire from below! The flurry was great and ascended down on him from all angles, trapping him in a solid bubble of hot, bright stone, and it was all he could do to float and teleport away!

And down on the ground, Chihiro smirked. She crossed her arms as her eyes drifted over to where Hot Head, Tree Rex, Crusher, and Bouncer shot away at Kaos like they were shooting for fish in a barrel, then to Kaos himself as he shouted and bellowed out curses and insults. Then, she lifted her arms and flicked out her wrist, and in turn the soft brush of magic touched her palm before the familiar hilt of a sword pressed its way in.

"You know," Chihiro remarked as she squeezed her sword's hilt, "we can't let them have all the fun!"

Chihiro grunted as she leaped in the air, its cold breeze brushing against her hair and blowing it back as she hovered above, then she corkscrewed into Kaos's side and knocked him back! She teleported away just before the burning flames that were en route to Kaos could hit her, but just in time to catch him as a hot rock smashed into his back and knocked him forward! The attacking flurries relented as Kaos rolled up and locked eyes with Chihiro, his eyes' red hue turning hot and venomous the moment they latched onto her.

"Portal poster!" Kaos cried as he flicked out his hand. "Who do you think you are, knocking into me like that?!"

"The person who's gonna stop you, that's what!" Chihiro cried as she brandished her sword and charged in!

With one slash of her sword, a bright flare of cyan energy burst out in a wave and shot right for Kaos, who in turn summoned a bright red sword and shielded the blow with the blunt side of its blade! Cyan sparkles exploded from the burst, then dispersed as Kaos zipped right for Chihiro and swung his own blade in turn—a blow she met as it came with her own sword. Her blade was thinner, and only barely kept the sword from recoiling forward and slashing her head open, but it held it well enough that she pushed it back aside with a single swing. Kaos struck next, pulling his whole weight into one swing as he aimed for her neck, and Chihiro in turn summoned a second sword and shouldered it off! One swing of the sword pair and the blade flew back again, this time going only inches from Kaos's face before he swung it right for Chihiro. She leaped back and held up her blades, but instead of aiming for her, the blade swung right through her swords' blades, slicing them in half! The swords exploded into sparkles, and Kaos cackled in her face.

"Well, well, seems like you've gotten rusty, portal-poster!" Kaos sneered as he held his sword over his shoulder. "As to be expected of a measly apprentice, of course~"

Chihiro clenched her teeth, then jumped back and snapped her fingers behind her back. A surge of power rushed through her again, one like a kind of overwhelming excitement that left her head spinning for moments before leaving. And as the adrenaline faded, Chihiro smirked at the sight of a single, cyan glow that brushed against the back of Kaos's shoulders.

"I don't know, I think even an apprentice could see that sword right behind you!" Chihiro cried.

Kaos grunted and turned around, and in that moment a large cyan sword swung for him, shooting him with a blast that knocked him down into the skies! Kaos's sword slipped from his hands and exploded as he plummeted downwards, screaming the whole time until Spyro charged into his back and knocked him back into the skies!

Kaos steadied himself, rolling in midair before shaking it off and shooting blasts of magic down at Spyro, who in turn flicked his wings and shot out shields of shiny metal that captured the blasts! As both the magic and the shields exploded, Spyro yanked out his jaw and spat out a bright, burning hot fireball! The fireball shot at Kaos, and Kaos in turn retaliated with a blast of blue fire that slammed into it, splitting the fireball for a moment. The white flames of Spyro's fire crawled over the blue fire of Kaos's own fireball as it stretched and straining from the impact, then its jaws snapped over the halves of Kaos's fireball! Its body turned a pale blue for moments, then back to white as it expanded in size and slammed right into Kaos! A faint screech echoed from within the fires as they burned, then extinguished and dropped Kaos down into the depths!

Kaos himself shrieked and patted away the hot white embers that clung to his tattered clothing before a stream of water burst from the side and knocked him to the ground!

Kaos grunted as he slammed into the marble floors, cracking them slightly on first impact before he slid across the floor. The water poured out from his dampened clothes, and he snarled as Gill Grunt strode and loomed over him. Kaos twisted up, reaching out for Gill Grunt—but Gill Grunt just swept away, and Stealth Elf leaped out in his place with blades bared!

Kaos gasped and rolled away as Stealth Elf came down, but a golden blast smashed into his back and knocked him right into Stealth Elf's grip anyways! Her blades slashed against his face, leaving nasty, bloody wounds like lengthy scratches across it, and Kaos cried out as he covered his face! He finally slouched over and panted, his hands still covering his face as he trembled, but made not a move otherwise!

"Quick, he's down!" Chihiro cried as she shot out her hands. "Take him in!"

Spyro swept down from the skies and surrounded Kaos right as the rest of Chihiro's group crowded around him, and she herself just gulped. The magic screeched as it consolidated in her hands, numbing them with raw magic power. Her heart trembled a little at the sight of Kaos reeling before her, but Chihiro steadied herself and threw out her hands—just one spell to knock him out! Just one spell and this whole mission would be done!

The beam of magic came out in a massive, flaring burst like a burning laser so powerful it knocked Chihiro herself back a bit! She reeled up right as it came just inches from Kaos himself… And then, disappeared as a powerful gust blew into the room and beat down like the winds of a tornado!

The gust knocked Chihiro down on the floor, the others across the battlefield and Kaos on his back, just inches away from where she laid! His hands peeled from his bloody face, revealing eyes screwed shut as he moaned in pain, and Chihiro grunted as she yanked his wrist.

"I'm not letting you get away, Kaos!" Chihiro cried as she squeezed his wrist tight, so tight that not even the raging winds that lashed down above her could break the grip. "I'm not making the same mistake again!"

But Kaos didn't retort, not even to make a witty remark or break free—he just laid limp in her grip. Chihiro grunted, and the wind relented enough that she lifted him up and squeezed him tighter, his body nothing more than a feather's weight in her grip… But another gust blew down and tossed her off balance as she did, and she stumbled back.

Her head flung itself up, and there before her, hovering right behind the rims of the battlefield was that Conquertron! Its polished red and gold metal shone in the burning light, and its figure was so big that its chest only barely poked out over the island. Its eyes flashed a bit brighter as all eyes turned on it, then its mouth slowly drew open with white smoke pouring out! It almost seemed like it was going to attack for a moment, but as the smoke cleared what came out of its mouth wasn't a rocket or a cannon or anything like that. No, it was a speaker!

"Lord Arkilles!" cried some robotic-sounding voice from the speaker. "The preparations for the vault trip have been completed! Your presence is requested immediately!"

And in that moment, the arm in Chihiro's grip regained its weight and knocked her back! The blow came quickly enough that Chihiro released it on instinct, before she could even comprehend the fact that Kaos's body jerked out of her grip and flung itself forward. It wasn't until a low, smooth voice echoed out from it that Chihiro realized Kaos stood in front of her, his consciousness fully regained despite his injuries.

But no, that laughter wasn't Kaos's, no—that deep voice, it was Arkilles all the way!

"Perfect timing, minion!" Arkilles cried.

Chihiro blinked just one tiny blink, and the next thing she knew, hot red light lashed against her and knocked her back on the ground! The light faded as she hit the ground, and Kaos or Arkilles was gone, only the faintest trail of magic a sign that he had even been on the battlefield. A faint red light trailed into the Conquertron… And then, that same mocking, snide, deep laughter bellowed over the Conquertron's speakers, poisoning Chihiro's ears and the rest of her body with its smug, proud, distant laughter.

"Anyways, I have a date with the Secret Vault of Secrets," Arkilles proclaimed, "and I'm afraid none of you are invited! So sorry to say…" Arkilles chuckled a bit more. "But, I do have a little parting gift for you!"

Arkilles cleared his throat for a moment, then the loudspeaker crackled, shooting out a wave of feedback so loud it forced everyone around to cover their ears.

"BRUTE! Take care of these pests for me, will you?"

"Alright, Lord Kaos!" shouted another voice over the loudspeaker.

"I TOLD YOU TO QUIT CALLING ME THAT!"

A glimmer of red light formed on the battlefield, and out from it came a tall jawbreaker with emerald green skin, blank eyes and a jaw full of teeth dressed from head to toe in fancy leather armor. He smirked as he came up and pounded his knuckles together...

But, Chihiro couldn't worry about that right now! She grunted and pushed herself up, narrowing her eyes as she smacked her feet into the ground. The magic flooded into her veins, and she shot into the skies next, shooting right for the open mouth of the Conquertron. If she just slid right into their, she could yank him out and get him! The Conquertron came closer into view as it slowly closed its mouth, and Chihiro leaned in, speeding forward so fast that the world around blurred—

And then, stopped. Something hard and solid smacked right into Chihiro's head, and the pain it left behind was so strong and numbing that Chihiro fell out of the skies like a dead fly. In her concussion she only barely made out Arkilles, laughing his head off as he stood on the other end of a sparkling red dome that completely enveloped the battlefield, then he, he… No, he was turning away! That Conquertron turning away, surely to fly off and escape just when Chihiro finally had the opportunity to take Kaos in!

But, there was nothing she could do about it. The wind pushed down on her as she collapsed, and the most she could do was teleport down to the floor before it came for her too. The cold marble struck her back, and she just groaned, laying on her side as the Conquertron flew up, further and further away from the red tint of the shielded dome…

And with it, her chance to catch Kaos.

§

"There's no way you're stopping Lord Kaos, not on my watch!" Brute cried as he staggered up and wiped himself off. The smoke curled around his limbs, accenting his muscles as he pounded his fists together. "As long as I stand, I'll fight so that Lord Kaos can reclaim his empire! He'll finally have the rightful kingdom he deserves…" Brute chuckled and twiddled his fingers together. "And then, he can take me fishing, just like he promised!"

Talk about skewed priorities, Chihiro thought as she grunted and pushed herself from the ground. Her body still ached from the sores that robot left her, a lingering reminder of her failure, but she shook it off and snarled.

That Brute stood before her, his body glowing red—or perhaps that was the light of the shield, brimming down on him and once more reminding Chihiro of her failures with every moment she laid on this battlefield. The Conquertron lingered in the skies, distant but still close enough that she could probably catch up to it with a running start! So, she slapped a hand against her shoulder and closed her eyes, focusing entirely on the feeling of running as swift as the wind, taking strides as fast as a cheetah, just going as fast as she could until she could reach that Conquertron!

The magic popped and crackled in her blood, bursting against her skin in a way that felt like her body was about to burst, a feeling so intense that she gritted her teeth just to keep from screaming out in agony… But then, it settled, and what left was a smooth, swift feeling, chilling like a soothingly cold breeze on a hot day. A warm, scaly feeling came to her next, and when Chihiro snapped her eyes open and turned down to her free hand, she found a purple paw had wrapped around her hand. Spyro flew beside her now, his eyes a cool, calming violet in color as he squeezed her hand.

"We'll leave this guy to you!" Chihiro cried as she turned back to the others. "We're going after Kaos!"

Chihiro didn't even wait for a reply from the rest of her group—no, she turned around and bolted immediately, rushing across the battlefield in wide leaps and strides. Not once did her hand release from Spyro's grip, instead squeezing it as tight as she could. Her head craned up to the dome, its bright red light lording over her as it blocked her off from that Conquertron, from her target, from her chance to fix her mistakes. Her hand shook a little, but another squeeze brought her attention back down to Spyro and steadied her heart with a single glance of his violet eyes.

"If we attack at the same time with all our power," Chihiro shouted over the winds that whipped around her as she ran, "we might be able to break a hole in that thing!"

"Worth a shot!" Spyro shouted back.

His wings flapped as they reached the edge of the ballroom floor, and with one last stride they sprung from the floor, soaring well above the crowds of shouting and gasping robots and the battle below! The brimming red light of the barrier laid inches from their faces, and they both clung tight as Spyro lowered his head, bearing his horns so that they'd be the first thing to make contact. With a flap of his wings, they shot towards the barrier and flung out their hands and paws, magic charging around them with such fury that they became miniature suns of raw elemental power, and with one more flap they both smashed right into the barrier!

Chihiro's body let off some ugly cracking noise as a sharp pain shot through her hard enough that she let out a bloodthirsty wail! The pain clouded her vision, but left it just clear enough that she caught her magic burst pressing against the barrier, which stretched like rubber as they pushed tighter… But, not once did it thin or break!

In those few moments, it just stretched back and shot them down to the floor like a catapult!

Chihiro hugged Spyro tight and turned around, bracing herself for the full impact of the marble floors as the world around her screeched, then something yanked her by the neck, pulling her away from Spyro and across the air. The movement was so sudden it brought twice the pain and left Chihiro gagging and gasping for air as her captor pulled her back, and before she knew it her eyes faced Brute's bloodthirsty ones as he chuckled.

"Thought you could pull a fast one on me, didn't ya?" Brute chuckled. He tugged a bit on his jacket, then pulled it down to reveal a glimmering red core embedded directly into his chest, its red light pulsing like a heart's beat as it burned against his skin. "Too bad! As long as I stand, that barrier stands with me!"

Brute cackled as he slammed Chihiro onto the floor, and she only screamed as her head crashed into cold, hard marble! The few shards that broke off slashed into the back of her scalp, and she shuddered as she rolled on her side and patted the back of her head to be met with something warm and wet—oh, god, she was bleeding, wasn't she? Regardless of if she was or not, her head throbbed so badly she couldn't even see! She could only barely keep her eyes open enough to find Spyro laying by her side, his wings curled around the rest of his shaking body like a security blanket as he groaned in pained tones Chihiro could barely make out and tried to get up. But, he shook so badly that he couldn't even lay upright! It was all he could to just lay there, just as it was for Chihiro!

The blood pounded and rushed through Chihiro's ears like a raging river, blocking out all other noise as Brute sauntered towards her and cracked his knuckles. He raised a fist, surely ready to strike down—but before he could, a bright flash of chartreuse light burst forward, shining so bright that it burned against Chihiro's eyes! She winced and planted her face on the floor as the light's heat brushed against her back, and she only barely heard Brute scream over the rush of blood in her ears before she finally turned around and opened her eyes. Though her vision blurred, she could barely make out Brute soaring across the sky before diving down below the battlefield's floor.

Then, something rough and wooden brushed underneath her and Spyro, and a cool sensation rushed through her veins, energizing her like she just woke up and was ready to face the day! The haze in her head cleared enough that she could see and hear properly once more, and the first thing she found herself looking at was Tree Rex, who smiled as he carefully cradled her and Spyro in his palm while its grooves glowed with green light.

"Are you two alright?" he asked.

"We are now," Spyro said as he stood up and flicked his wings.

Tree Rex nodded sagely, and his smile disappeared as he glanced first over the ballroom, then up to the barrier as it light slowly faded and flickered. Its once bright, imposing red glow had faded to a lighter color, and it thinned enough that the sky broke through in some places—then, it flickered! It faded in and out for moments, and the red lighting it once imposed on the battlefield relented in warm afternoon hues… But a bright flash came and it solidified into a burning crimson once more!

A few small gasps came from down below as the red light washed over them, but the largest of them all came from Chihiro. She blinked as she glanced up first to the barrier that stood strong over the arena once more, then to the empty space over the ballroom where Brute had fallen. She stilled her gaze then leaped out of Tree Rex's palm and floated over to the edge of the battlefield.

"Brute's gone, right?" Chihiro asked as she gazed down into the massive fall below and the pool of water it ended in, which had been tinted red by the barrier's light. "So why hasn't the barrier gone done?"

A soft, barely-heard plink or two came from the pool as its water rippled just so that it could hardly be seen. The ripples grew as the plinks continued, and some kind of garbled noise like a babbling brooks came from the waters, shaking the pool even further until it shuddered and lashed against the stone walls it sat in. The noise grew louder, clearer, rising with the waters as they gushed up—but no, the waters themselves weren't rising on their own! In fact, it was more like something was coming out of them! The babbling noise cleared into laughter as the pillar of water sank back into the depths, but a figure rose from its waves and cackled as two spell punks clad in gold and green robes strained and lifted him out of the waters!

"You can't get rid of me that easily!" Brute cried as the spell punks heaved him up before Chihiro!

Chihiro gasped, then summoned a sword and hopped back as the spell punks dropped Brute before her. His eyes shone with a new kind of venom, a red pulse not unlike the looming lights of the barrier as the power core flashed beneath his armor, and that red glow quickly spread to the rest of his body as he cracked his knuckles. A sneer crossed his face, and he released his knuckles as the glow glazed over his muscles, highlighting them in a way that accented his high-held, imposing stature as he crossed the battlefield.

"I swore on my life that I'd make sure Lord Kaos got his empire back and we'd get our fishing trip!" Brute proclaimed as he drew his hands into fists. "If I let you beat me that easily, I'd be disgracing his good name!"

Brute pounded his fists together, and the pool shuddered, shaking the arena along with it! The tiles below his feet rattled, and yet Brute didn't move even an inch from his spot as the water splashed and tiles rushed up from the bottom of the arena. They fused themselves to the existing battlefield and formed a proper floor, and in turn Brute just pounded his fists together once more, this time doing so with such force that it punched the air with a soundwave!

The force knocked Chihiro on her back, and she grunted and forced open her stinging eyes to find that Brute's red glow had faded and the spell punks who lifted him up now surrounded him, circling around him as their bodies glowed with a green light!

It pressed against the red glow coming from Brute before eating it whole, its light so bright it highlighted the dull greens of Brute's own skin before engulfing him completely in its grip! An agonizing, ear-bleeding scream came next, leaving the barrier shaking and the crowds of Arkeyan solders in the stands covering their ears as Brute's body warped underneath the blanket of green light that smothered him. His limbs stretched and thinned as his body lurched over and rose taller, growing like a tree until it stood only a few feet away from the barrier itself, then the limbs twisted together like vines while beams of light spread over the cold marble of the battlefield. His hat slipped away, carried off by the winds as the light from Brute faded and unveiled him at last… Well, if that could even be called Brute, anymore.

His skin had turned to some kind of vine-like substance, and his arms and legs into masses of vines that flooded the battlefield below! The armor over his arms and legs had fused into his skin as tall, firm thorns, but the rest had broken off—or maybe it had merged completely into his body too as the large brown patches that covered his chest. Long, thorny branches like fangs jutted from his massive open jaws, and his eyes glowed with that same green glow that had transmogrified him for only moments before he let out another mighty, bellowing roar!

The force of his voice was so great that it shot the spell punks who enchanted him right into the stands, but it lasted for only a moment before he groaned and slowly lifted his arm. Its massive weight cast a shadow over the battlefield as it crashed down, with such force that the tiles around cracked! The marble shards from the battlefield leaped up and slashed against his arm, yet they left no marks against its tough hide. Instead they just collapsed down to the broken floor, then as Brute pounded again, the tiles they called home rumbled and collapsed! The tiles fell in a zig-zag pattern as they short forward, falling down to the water and splashing into the depths in droves as they came right for Chihiro!

She gasped, leaping up and preparing to fly off, but right as she jumped into the air, the familiar feeling of rough wood hit her back! Tree Rex had swept her into his hands before she even realized, and she only blinked as he leaped up and landed on the middle part of the ballroom, the sole part that hadn't completely collapsed underneath the weight of Brute's strike. She turned to her side as groaning came from it, and smiled when she found only Spyro and Gill Grunt beside her. The sharp sounds of a screeching wheel came to her next as Bouncer and Hot Head wheeled up next, then another sharp pound as a Crusher slammed the top of his hammer into the ground and leaped across on it like a pole vault!

Hot Head shifted back to normal, then grimaced. "That's one big weed!" Hot Head remarked as he lifted his gaze up to Brute.

And Hot Head was right—even the Elder Elementals were hardly a speck compared to Brute! Someone of that size would take an eternity to pass! Just the sight of him left Chihiro's heart bubbling with rage. Arkilles probably set this all up so he could make an easy getaway! She gritted her teeth, about ready to erupt, but a soft laugh from Tree Rex above cooled her rage.

"Why are you laughing? There's no way we'll beat that guy before Arkilles makes his getaway!" Chihiro cried.

Hearing this, Tree Rex just gave Chihiro a warm, kindly smile.

"He's a pretty big guy, true," Tree Rex remarked, his smile growing as he glanced towards Bouncer, Crusher and Hot Head. "But, we're—URK!"

A thick vine slapped around Tree Rex and squeezed him tight, so tight that Chihiro slipped out of his grip! Tree Rex's eyes bulged out of his wooden skull as the vines leaped up and squeezed him tighter, and Chihiro reached out to cast a spell and free him. Her hand stretched out, and another vine latched around it and squeezed! The pain was sharp and numbing, and joined by a second as another vine latched onto her free hands, then a third squeezed her waist and yanked her from the floor!

Chihiro's body strained as the vines flew off and dangled her above the pits of water before, yet she couldn't cast a spell or fight her way out. Their grip was tight and constricting and squeezed her so tight that her body might've popped in half if it continued any longer! Her eyes blurred, but she forced them open nonetheless and glared back at Brute, who just flung his head back and cried as his eyes glowed in a toxic shade of green!

The water splashed and roared below Chihiro as the pools of water below turned green in turn, and an entire forest of vines shot up from the pools! They were giant snakes emerging from the leaves and striking for their prey as they lashed out for the others and yanked them off one by one, slapping weapons out of hands and flinging them like rag dolls as the vines themselves teetered across the pools and the battlefield!

The vines that squeezed Chihiro tightened, and she shouted out as hot, shocking pain raced through her body. It shot in bolts, coursing like lighting as her face ached in one spot and numbed in the other, while the rest of her body grew so numb she wasn't even sure it was there anymore. The pain clouded her vision, and she struggled to keep sense of the world around her as the pain numbed her brain.

A few sparks of light, one red and another orange, caught her eyes and she turned her attention to the side, where someone just… Slipped from the vines? Wait, those glows and the slipped—that had to be 'Enehana and Vatra! The two of them held out their hands, and flares of fire and light came from their blurry bodies as they shot at the vines! The blasts bounced off and vanished soon after, disappearing without a remnant left, but they didn't relent. They just shot again and again, their blasts bashing and lashing against the vines' bodies.

Then finally, one vine thinned before it unwrapped and sank back down into the ground! A few more vines joined the first one, then a figure with a brown spark glistening from their body leaped out and clapped their hands so strongly, so firmly that it rang in Chihiro's ears!

A sharp shing came next, and the pain surging through Chihiro's body relented a little, enough that her vision cleared and the rest of her body felt like it was attached to her head again. Something like a tingling feeling lingered in her wrists while something cool and solid came underneath her, and she glanced down to find that the vines which one held her had unwound! Instead of the vines, she stood above the pools below on a large, shiny brown crystal skewered right through the largest of those vines!

Chihiro smiled for a moment, then gasped and jumped away as the vines twitched and glowed green—but instead of reaching for her, they just shot out and repaired their own wounds as they flew towards the battlefield! They latched around the battlefield as they wove themselves into a tight bridge that covered out the gaps in the floor, then their glow faded and they swayed just slightly. Tree Rex dropped onto them as a green glow faded from his own eyes, but they didn't even flinch! They just stood tall as he made his way to the battlefield, as did the others!

Chihiro teleported onto the battlefield as they filtered in, but the moment her legs hit solid ground, they completely gave out and she fell to her knees! Her body ached with tingling, stinging pains, and her chest itself ached with a heavy pain, as if a weight had been dropped right onto her shoulders. Guess those vines had taken more out of Chihiro than she had thought, so she sparked up her hand with a little bit of healing magic and massaged her shoulder with it. The sounds of the others plopping and panting and resting echoed around her, but she just smiled and sighed as the healing magic flooded into her body and worked its, well, magic! The aches faded away and her body swelled with strength and magic in its place, enough that she jumped to her feet and stomped on the battleground!

Cyan magic lit the ballroom floor, its tiles glowing like the dance floor it was as the light engulfed everyone around her, and when the light faded, they all jumped back to their feet! They all mumbled in awe and flexed a little, just to test the pain—but didn't stick for long, as another mighty roar came from Brute and nearly blew them into the walls! Feet just barely stuck to the battlefield as everyone held their own against the blow, and they all glanced up to find Brute listlessly swaying from side to side, some kind of glowing green drool seeping from his jaws and burning against his skin before he roared again!

That glowing green spittle splattered across the battlefield and steamed for a moment before they evaporated under the harsh red light of the barrier, leaving behind large, white onion bulbs with withered sprouts poking from the gaps in their tattered skin.

The bulbs shuddered and rocked back and forth for moments, then with one last swing them pushed themselves upright and shuddered as withered tendrils burst from their ends, forming a functional pair of legs while their side sprouts twisted into something like arms! Their faded skin peeled away to unveil fanged mouths and round eyes carved into their bodies, then their eyes glowed green and they yowled as they charged forward! An awful fume burst from their spouts as they ran, then they lowered their tops and shot off burning, fuming bundles of spores!

Spyro winced and ducked as once came straight for him, and as it flew over his back, his eyes turned cobalt and he dove into the few burgundy shadows that coated the arena! His body disappeared into their dark sanctuary right as the last of the spore blasts passed him by, then his shadowy form streaked against the ground and lifted up slightly as he came in for the charging onion monsters! The sudden, speedy dash threw them off-pace and spun then in dizzying circles, then he leaped out and flicked the shadows off his wings as they spun and squealed before him.

"Stealth Elf, now!" Spyro cried as he lifted his head!

Stealth Elf nodded, then she flipped out of the group and towards the onion monsters with such speed and grace that she was barely seen to the eyes! With one last flip she landed right in the heart of the group, then a burst of green spores flooded out and engulfed the onion monsters! Only their pained shrieks and the sound of slashing blades echoed from the clouds as slices of the wind cut the mist away, leaving behind the chopped corpses of the onion monsters as the spores disappeared. Their slashed halves slid off of their bodies and spilled along the floor as Stealth Elf emerged and flicked the onion juice from her daggers, then turned around and kicked back another, barely-together onion warrior before it could launch itself at her. She scoffed as the onion warrior slid into slices behind her, but as she turned around and ran back to the group, a mighty roar sounded from above!

She immediately jumped back and brandished her blades, ready to slice—then ducked as a gigantic onion monster leaped right above her!

It crashed on the ground ahead of her with such force that the whole ground shuddered, then it gnashed its teeth as its eyes fell on Tree Rex. The onion monster fell to all fours like some kind of rabid beast and bounded forward, its eyes growing wider as it leaped in the air and right over Tree Rex. It jumped in for its landing, and a thick orange laser sliced right through its center, cutting a perfect hole in the rest of its body and knocking its face back onto the ground in the process. The two broken parts landed by Tree Rex's feet and wilted away as he nudged them aside, with even their rotten remains fading and withering away until they were nothing more than specks of grime on the marble floors, and Tree Rex himself just grimaced as he stepped up.

Brute roared again in the distance, and the normally-red lights that tinted the battlefield turned a sickening green as a bright shower of green light rained down from above! Tree Rex held a hand over his eyes and gasped, then he immediately slammed his fist and hit the floor as green vines burst from the battlefield and wrapped above them all, intertwining until they formed a tight vine barrier that blocked out the light. The sounds of splattering gunk and the screeches of those minions roared outside the barrier's safety, but Tree Rex just squeezed his eyes shut and snarled as he stretched his fingers out the furthest they could. Their tips glowed green, and bolts of life magic shot out in five directions before slamming into the barrier's base, and with the spell taken in, the barrier shuddered and grew larger, thicker as another wave of sizzling acid splattered against its outside. A third wave splashed next, and the sounds of growling outside grew as something rammed into the barrier of vines with enough force that it split it open!

The light of the battlefield poured over as Tree Rex opened his eyes, then snarled and zapped off a few of the onion minions with some well-timed solar charges. But, even as they flew off and fell into the waters below, Tree Rex didn't smile or rest easy—because he, no, all of them were completely surrounded! While he had taken shelter, they coated the entire floor around them, their beady eyes piercing into souls while onion juice leaked from the gaping mouths. Tree Rex stepped back and winced as a sea of endless white cloven bodies faced him, but quickly retracted his foot as its back brushed up against 'Enehana.

"There's no way we'll take all these guys out in time to catch up!" Chihiro cried as she rushed up behind him. She winced and summoned a sword. "We'll have to get straight to Brute and take him down…"

Another growl came from behind her, and Chihiro slashed it away! That stinging substance that came whenever people cut onions floated forward and stung her eyes with tears, but she quickly wiped it away and slashed a few more, then kicked them off so they would sting her eyes no more. While the onion monsters bounced away, Chihiro winced and turned back to the tightly-packed armies of their buddies that crowded the battlefield.

"But, how are we supposed to get past all these guys?"

"Just leave that part to me," 'Enehana said as they walked up beside Chihiro.

With a few shimmies of their shoulders, they slid their backpack off and flipped it open, then dove inside and rummaged through whatever was stuck in there. Chihiro could barely make out its contents between the awful sounds of clashing and grinding metal, and it's not like she got a chance—just as quickly as they slid off their backpack, they fished out something small and round and closed it up, then slipped their backpack back on with a grin as they eyed the object in question. Chihiro herself just leaned over their shoulder and raised a brow, because that tiny little marble that now rested in their hand, barely big enough to sit even in the creases of their glove, didn't exactly seem impressive to her… But then, they stepped forward and slammed it against the ground!

A bright orange flashed of light came, one so bright that it warded off the onion monsters while the sounds of something metallic unfolding and spreading out churned! The light faded to a glisten, and the vague shape of an airship came into view, then the light faded to unveil just that! The ship was comprised of shiny, clean metal, and looked sturdy and big enough that it could probably carry them all! But, wait, why would they have an airship of all things in there?

"I always come prepared for anything," 'Enehana said, seemingly reading Chihiro's mind in that instance.

They bolted forward, then flung themself onto the ship side and then on the deck with another flip before bolting towards the ship's wheel. With a single spin the engine puffed and creaked, yowling so loudly that the onion monsters around screeched and backed away, some not even bothering to watch their footing and falling into the ocean! The ship hovered above the ground just slightly, white smoke puffing from its exhaust pipes as its propellers churned with all they head.

"Now get on!"

A squeal came from behind Chihiro, and she kicked away an onion monster before teleporting right onto the airship!

A few rumbles came as Hot Head, Tree Rex, Bouncer and Crusher all hopped on themselves, then the others all stormed forward, taking short moments to blast away the onion monsters themselves before climbing on! The ship itself tilted a bit with the added weight, but still stood tall as it hovered a bit taller, and with a lever pull from 'Enehana, the engines burned faster and the airship zoomed right into the heart of the fray!

The onion monsters squealed as the airship charged into them, knocking them across the sides and tearing gashes into their bodies. That eye-burning stuff reeked off of their exposed bodies as onion juice bled from the wide gaps and gashes left behind, and even more of the stuff streaked the side of the airship before streaking off and raining down on the ground as the airship flew forward! The airship climbed across the skies, its nose pointed right towards Brute as it shuddered and unloaded a few cannons! The cannons themselves shook like they were going to fire…

But another, more powerful quake came from the battlefield, and in that moment the battlefield split apart and erupted while an entire forest of thick, strong vines burst out! They lashed and slapped against the side of the airship, patting it in some kind of pursuit of something to latch onto, but with another push the airship broke free of their grip and shot towards Brute once more! The vines shot off in turn, lashing and slapping against the airship's hull as it flew just inches out of their reach.

And at the wheel, 'Enehana clenched their teeth and the steering wheel as the sounds of lashing, whipping vines grew louder. A screeching metal noise ripped through the air next, finally drawing away their attention in time for them to catch a vine ripping off part of the hull's casing, and with a scowl they blasted it away and turned towards the controls. Their mechanical fingers twitched as they flicked every switch, pressed every button, moved every slider they could… But the airship itself still ran at about the same speeds at it did before, and the vines were coming in fast!

Another sharp lash came from the back, and both 'Enehana and Vaayu winced as they glanced backwards as the vine that had gripped onto the airship's rear! With a wiggle of the airship the vine loosened its grip and slunk back, but as the airship sped off once more, its engine clunked and shuddered! Its altitude fell slightly, and the vines leaped in—but before they struck, a gust of wind burst underneath the airship and tossed it high in the sky!

'Enehana gasped and released the wheel in their slight moment of shock, but when a soft sky blue light dusted their face, they turned around and smiled as Vaayu leaned down and smiled back. They shared a nod, and 'Enehana turned their attention to the wheel once more, dutifully steering the airship so that it lingered above where Brute swayed listlessly from side to side. A few small, glowing green satellites rotated around Brute, and 'Enehana raised a brow at them before pressing a button. A telescope emerged from the hood of the airship, and 'Enehana peered through it for moments before humming and turning to the others.

"Everyone, come here!" 'Enehana called as they beckoned for the rest of the group. While the others circled around them, 'Enehana pushed the telescope's lens towards Chihiro and Spyro and urged them to take a peek. "I think I found out what's been giving him such a boost!"

Taking 'Enehana's urge, Chihiro peered through the lens, then frowned and clenched her brows. Those glowing green satellites had grown clearer, revealing themselves to be those spell punks from before! They still circled Brute like flies, their bodies glowing with the brightest green hues they held as they lifted their arms and danced around—undoubtedly, they were probably casting life spells on him!

Spyro brushed up beside Chihiro and peered through the telescope, then nodded and drew back.

"If we can take out the spell punks, he'll definitely take a big hit!" Spyro proclaimed, before he turned to Chihiro with that smug, slightly mischievous grin, the one she knew the meaning of all too well.

"Ready to fire things up, Chi?"

And Chihiro just smiled and bounced her magic sphere. "You know I am!"

The two of them grunted as they split, leaping off the side of the airship and zooming off towards Brute in a flash! Chihiro zipped in from the left side, going so fast that the world around her blurred and she almost passed out—but, she shook off the dizziness and flew right behind one of the spell punks, then slammed it in the back with her magic sphere!

The spell punk didn't even get enough time to react. One moment it cast its spells, next thing it knew it hurtled down to the floor, careening towards the vines that had shattered the floor below. One of the vines leaped up and snatched the spell punk, but as it cried out and tried to wiggle its way free, the vine just flailed it around like it was nothing more than a toy! A burst of warm red light came from above, and a second spell punk with embers clinging to its robes joined the first as it screamed and fell in the vine pits, then screamed some more as another vine latched onto it and shook it around! The two spell punks' cries grew shriller as the vines squeezed tighter, then…

"That's it, we're outta here!" They both cried as they disappeared in puffs of green smoke!

And as they disappeared, the glow surrounding Brute faded slightly, his skin growing duller and his muscles weaker! Though it was barely noticeably, it seemingly stunned him enough that he lurched forward, letting out confused grunts and groans as he tilted his head around. His head finally lowered down to the ground as his vines started to cease, reveal the unconscious, shrinking bodies of his onion minions, and he gently brushed the vines with his finger as he grunted some more.

Chihiro smiled, then teleported back onto the airship with a flash! Spyro reappeared beside her once more, the lingering red in his eyes fading for their usual gold, and they both nodded as they turned to 'Enehana.

"Now's your shot!" she and Spyro cried as one.

'Enehana nodded, then pulled down a lever and gripped the steering wheel tight as the engines revved. "FULL SPEED AHEAD!"

The airship screeched with fury as it shot towards Brute, cannons unloading from it the moment it moved! It skidded to a stop just inches from him, and Brute just turned and let out a curious grunt as he tilted his eyes, eyes transfixed on the charging cannons. Their screech rang in the air as their light flooded further, its golden orange glow reflecting in Brute's eyes as he stared with slack-jawed, almost absentminded curiosity… Then, he growled and lifted his hand before slamming it down over the airship, casting a shadow over its top!

The airship slid away as Brute swatted at them, and 'Enehana winced as they steered the ship up just below another swat could toss them through the air! They moved in a third time, and in turn Brute swung forward and yanked his jaws open as he crashed towards him, but the airship once again zipped off just before he could make its metal his next snack. Not that Brute cared—he just lifted his head and growled as he bared his fangs.

"It's no use, I can't get in close!" 'Enehana cried as they dodged another firm swat. "He's too aggressive!"

And hearing this, Chihiro hummed, then grinned as she held out a hand. "Well, if a close-ranged attack is out of the question," she said as she summoned a magic sphere and squeezed it like a rubber ball. "Then we'll just go for a ranged approach!"

"Right ahead of you!" Spyro cried from behind Chihiro.

Both he and Vatra stepped out from the back crowds on the airship, then with a smile Vatra turned to Hot Head.

"Hot Head, got on top of the ship and coat him in as much oil as you can," Vatra said. He cracked his knuckles, and his veins heated up with bright, warm light. "We'll take care of the rest!"

Hot Head nodded, then leaned over and gripped the top of the airship before climbing up to its roof, his presence indicated by the thunking noises that rang dully from the metal. The sounds of splattering came next, and Chihiro's attention turned from the roof to Brute as sleek, black oil washed over him while he wailed and flailed! The stuff coated his body like rain, drenching his arms and his chest in its sticky black ooze and trailing down over his body… Then, flames joined it next, lighting the world around in bright, warm hues as they hit the oil and exploded! Brute himself was barely visible under the initial explosion, but the flames relented quickly to reveal his charred body as he leaned over and hacked. Those initial fires had quickly quelled, reduced to just thin streaks of flames that ran along the thinning streaks of oil.

"Looks like they'll need a little boost!" Chihiro cried as she cracked her knuckles!

One again she leaped off the side of the airship, this time floating at a distance from Brute, then she rubbed her hands together. They grew tingly and bright blue as her magic flooded to her hands, centering in her palms and fingertips and leaving them with an extra-numb feeling, then she shot them out and tossed bolts of thunder right at Brute! The bolts slammed him square in the arms and chest, and the spark they provided was enough that the flames ignited with fury once more!

Brute's wails rang so thin they strained as if he could barely make them out, screeching the highest he could as the electrical fires burned away at his skin! Parts of the green flesh burned and charred as the flames started to dim, then a flash of steaming hot water jumped out and splashed over the flames—but they didn't extinguish! No, instead their electrical base crackled and the flames ignited, brighter and hotter than they were before. Brute wailed in anguish as the flames stretched forward, tickling his neck and chin as they crawled up his armies. Then, the flames billowed their highest and exploded, slamming Brute in the face with a hot burst of fire!

Brute screamed and leaned back, collapsing over the stands and completely crushing them under his gargantuan girth as he laid beaten and bruised. He groaned, raising his jaws like he was about to screech once more—but, they only laid wide-open and soundless as his head stretched back. That toxic green saliva trained from his chin as he choked out a few gasps and groans.

"He's down!" Chihiro cried as she floated down in front of him.

The airship in turn lowered down to meet Brute's chest, and from its ranks Crusher and Jorden shuffled forward, their bodies glowing brown.

"'N just to make sure that bloke stays down," Jorden shouted as they summoned their pickax and set off a few swings, "let's rock him up!"

Sharp, thin shards of brown energy darted through the air, joined by larger blasts as they slammed into Brute's wrists and waist! They swirled around him like thick, choking clouds, then their form grew sharp and spiky as they crystallized into gigantic, shiny and most of all firm crystals! The crystals hugged Brute tight, pinning him to the stands, and he couldn't even protest. He was so beaten, the most he could do was wince and groan in pain!

Chihiro chuckled, then flicked out her wrist. The sparks of magical lightning that curled around her fingertips shifted, transforming into the shape of a blade that widened and formed into a gigantic cleaver as she gripped its handle. Heaving it above her shoulder, Chihiro turned back to the others and beamed.

"Now let's finish this guy off!" Chihiro shouted as she shot out a thumbs up. "Everyone, hit 'em with your best shot!"

Chihiro turned back to Brute and grunted as she slashed her blade, shooting him with bursts of raw energy that hurtled straight for his chest, and as they flew the bursts themselves were joined by lasers and flames, large harpoons and gigantic bullets, sharp crystals and more, but they all fused as one as they slammed into Brute's chest, knocking him further into the stands! His wails of agony continued as the combined attack burst into an array of colors, the sheer agony of the screams shaking even the barrier as the light drowned him out! The bright, haunting lights eclipsed his form…

But below him, the vines and the onion monsters all jolted up and withered away till they were no more than dust and grime! Their remnants flew off in the wind as the light faded, and then none other than Brute—the normal Brute, not that horrendous monster—collapsed on the broken battlefield!

"Lord… Kaos…" Brute groaned as he laid beaten on the floor, "I, I, I failed you… I'll never be worthy of that fishing trip…"

Brute's head slunk down and laid sideways on the floor as some kind of glowing, toxic substance drooled out of his mouth. His hands twitched not, his eyes stayed blank even for more… And Chihiro just sighed and shook her head as she walked over to him, then gently kicked his arm for good measure. Despite the swift blow, Brute didn't wail in pain or react!

"Guess the dude really is out," Chihiro remarked before she lifted her head towards the arena and winced. "Does that mean the barrier?…"

A flickering sound like electricity shorting out echoed over the area as the red light of before faded in and out, and with a sharp sound like the crackle of electricity, the red light faded entirely! All that remained was the comforting blues of the afternoon sky with its puffy white clouds. But, the sounds that came afterwards weren't that of birdsong or anything normal—no, what came next was a collective, outraged roar!

The ground rumbled, and Chihiro grimaced as she turned back to the stands. The Arkeyan soldiers that once rested there and cheered had gone rabid, their eyes glowing crimson as they all piled out of the stands in floods and screeched cries of war as they grabbed their weapons! They poured over the ballroom in such tightly-packed ranks that they choked out everything else in a sea of red and gold, and their weapons glinted in the light as they raced forward!

"ATTACK THE INTRUDERS!" Cried the army that headed the front as they brandished their spears and swords, guns and cannons towards Chihiro, "MAKE SURE THEY DO NOT REACH OUR KING!"

Chihiro gasped and slipped out of the way as one nearly took her head off with its sword, then blasted off its head and leaped back as two more swung for her! The sounds of clunking metal resounded around her as even more of those robots surrounded her and attacked, and she gulped as she teleported over to the clearer parts of the battlefield. She found herself backed against the soft moss of Tree Rex's leg as the robots shuffled around and turned on her group once more, then she swept away and peered across the battlefield. At the other end, even more Arkeyans poured in and blocked off the entrance.

"We're surrounded!" Tree Rex cried, echoing Chihiro's thoughts in that very moment. He raised his solar cannon and clicked it, and a scowl formed on his face. "Everyone, prepare to fight!"

Chihiro herself raised up her hands, and a consolidation of sparkling cyan magic formed between her palms. She needed something big and solid, something that could wipe out entire waves of these guys—but what? A giant sword? A wrecking ball-sized flail? Chihiro's thoughts drifted away to the mental image of Wrecking Ball attached to a flail and squealing with glee as he ate up the enemies with every swing and she giggled for a moment, but a sharp swing pulled her out of her thoughts and she jumped away as a halberd-wielding robot swung for her! The magic dissipated, and she snarled as she readied a blast while the robot swung once more…

Then something shot right through its head and blew it clean off! Its arms fell limp as its body toppled over, while its halberd fell to Chihiro's feet! Chihiro lifted her head as the sound of cannons firing shot in the air, then turned around as even more of the oncoming Arkeyans fell limp!

"Wait, a cannon! That would be perfect!" Chihiro cried! She beamed and pounded a fist against her palm, but her smile quickly faded. "But wait, where did that come from?"

"HEY-OOOOOOOOO!"

A round shadow cast over her, and in Chihiro's moment of confusion, something snatched her off the ground and heaved her up! Her knees hit something solid and wooden, and her eyes fell on a fluttering red bandanna and a pair of brown leather gloves worn with use… Cali's! Chihiro gasped as she lifted her head to find Cali smiling before her, then glanced aside to find Flynn laughing with his whole chest as he piloted the bird's eye with one hand while the other spam-pressed a button and fired off cannons at rapid speed! The bird's eye lurched down, and Chihiro fell flat on her back with a sharp thunk!

Her head ached for a moment as the bird's eye tilted upright once more, and when she got back up she found the rest of the group all huddled together the best they could on the bird's eye—which was pretty darn hard given how big the Elder Elementals were. Tree Rex, Bouncer, Crusher and Hot Head huddled together around the pillar the best they could, and the other, smaller members of their team rested in their laps, clinging for dear life as the bird's eye swooped up! The arena below became little more than a spec in the distance as they all flew off, and the cries of the enraged Arkeyan soldiers only a distant wail.

"BOOM! Now THAT'S one for the autobiography!" Flynn cried as he chuckled and flexed. Both his hands latched onto the steering wheel once more, but his head craned towards the others with that silly grin of his. "Not everyone can pull off a swoop n' swerve like that,"—Flynn chuckled and straightened his scarf—"but I'm not just anyone!"

As Flynn chuckled and flexed again, Cali just rolled her eyes and chuckled herself. She almost seemed amused by his antics for a moment, but that little smile of hers disappeared as she turned back to Chihiro.

"What was going on down there?" Cali asked. "One minute we were making our way in, next thing we knew Kaos was flying off and the whole place was boarded off!"—Cali scratched her head and turned away—"the Machine Ghost was following him, and we tried to catch up, but by the time we got out of there we'd lost them…"

Hearing this, Chihiro instinctively breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank god, we still haven't lost him!" Chihiro panted, before shaking her head and glancing back at Cali. "Anyways, long story short, Kaos's making his way to Arkus!"

"ALREADY?" Flynn and Cali both cried.

Flynn gripped the pegs of his steering wheel tighter but quickly released them. "Looks like Skylands' greatest pilot is on the chase again!" Flynn smirked. "Just let me call in the ol' Dread-Yacht!"

Flynn stuck his fingers in and whistled, and right then the Dread-Yacht zipped up with such speed it nearly tossed them off the bird's eye! Flynn turned back to the wheel and steered the bird's eye back into its spot on the Dread-Yacht in a few flawless spins, seating it in with grace and a snug fit.

Flynn was the first to hop off then, adjusting his scarf as he bolted over to the pilot's spot.

"You might wanna hold on!" Flynn cried as he tapped a few buttons.

Chihiro stumbled off the bird's eyes and slipped onto the deck with the others, then sat down and sighed… But not for long! The ground rumbled underneath her, and the moment she glanced down, the whole ship shifted and twisted around her, tossing her and the others around with such fury that the wind roared and blocked out their shouts and cries of shock!

The world blurred around Chihiro before she hit solid ground with a sharp thunk, and when the world cleared, she stood on the deck no longer! Instead, she and the other members of her group were strewn about some kind of spacey cabin with a large windshield in the front peering to the world outside. Behind the windshield stood a large array of controls and Flynn, who tapped away at the wide variety of buttons with speed and diligence. The sound of shouts and screams ruminated from the top of the cabin, and with another loud thunk, the rest of the Dread-Yacht's passengers all spilled out from a gap in the ceiling and piled over the floor.

Sihiri sat at their top and groaned as she rubbed her head, but the moment she laid eyes on Vatra, she floated down and beamed.

"Vatra, how did it go?" she asked.

And hearing this, Vatra only winced. He pushed himself up so that he knelt before Sihiri, but he head laid bowed in shame. His hands trembled, their bandages glowing with heat for a moment before they settled… And finally, Vatra took a breath.

"It's worse than we thought," he spat out at last, "Arkilles, he's, he's alive!"

A round of gasps came from the Elder Elementals and the ancient portal masters alike, though among the rest the news was only met with quieted confusion and solemn silence. Their whole group crowded around Sihiri and Vatra, choking them out from the others' sight…

"Wait, what now?" Luz shouted, though he could hardly be seem from how tightly-packed the Elder Elementals were around him. "You're kidding, right? That guy should be burning in the pits right now!"

"Technically speaking, we shouldn't exactly be here standing either," Crusher remarked under his breath…

Though, he spoke a little too loudly, leaving it heard well enough that everyone else devolved into a kind of awkward silence. A few feet shuffled, and Crusher winced as he trailed away from the group—seems he realized he may have said the wrong thing.

"Moving along," Vatra added, breaking the silence at last. "Arkilles' spirit lived on, and he's possessing that rouge free magician and making his way to Arkus as we speak!"

Sihiri gasped, and with the gap left behind by Crusher's absence, could easily be seen squeezing her fist. "If he's going there, surely he's planning to revive his empire," Sihiri started, her voice cold as ice as she lifted her head up.

She cleared her throat for a moment, and her voice raised tall as she turned to Flynn. "Is there any way we can catch up with him?" she asked.

"On it, magic lady!" Flynn shouted back, throwing a thumbs up in the air for only a moment.

He tapped his console for a moment, and in the next a wave of static ruminated over the speakers, before slowly settling as a soft voice crackled over the speakers.

"Hello?" asked the Machine Ghost over the speakers. "Who is it?"

"Hey, little ghost dude!" Flynn called back. "So, heard you were tailing ol' big head to that secret vault, and I need you to—"

"Send you the coordinates?"

"Took the words right out of my mouth, little buddy! You're almost as great as I am. Almost!"

"I suppose that is a compliment."

"Course it is! Anyways, can you send them here?"

"Give me a moment, please…"

A green light shone over the Dread-Yacht's windshield, then faded for a moment before leaping right into the bed of controls rested below the windshield! It glowed and pulsed for a moment as Flynn glanced down, then beamed back up.

"Alright, it's over! I'll meet you there ASAP!"

"And I will keep an eye on Kaos until then."

The crackle of static filtered out after that, replaced only by the creaks and moans of the Dread-Yacht as Flynn pulled down on a lever. A few clunking and revving noises came next, and the room started to heat up as the Dread-Yacht leaned forward, while everyone around took their seats or preemptively crafted something to cling too… Everyone except Flynn, who just turned back and smiled with his hands still gripped tight to the wheel.

"Hold on to your hats, everyone!" Flynn cried as the engine revved harder. "We're going into overdrive!"

And with that spoken, the engine revved its hardest and the Dread-Yacht sped off fast, so fast that the world around was a blur! But while the others clung to their seats or whatever supports they had, they didn't bear looks of panic from the speed or the determination to fight they usually held. No, it was more like… Tension, but from the revelations of earlier or the fight that awaited, who knew?

Either way, Chihiro just sat steadfast as the Dread-Yacht flew, clasping her hands into tight fists as she lowered her head. Hopefully, hopefully they'd make it in time…