Legend of Spyro: Four Pillars of Aether, Book II

by Blazcowitz43

Three years later, Warfang has fallen and tyranny reigns. Guilt-ridden and long thought dead, Spyro has left his home and prophecy behind for a new life of peace with the dragonflies in the distant swamps. But the war rages on for Cynder, Flame and Ember, who among others fight back against Gaul's rule as Malefor's return draws nearer. Will the Four Who Lived become one again?

2. Chapter 2: Wind, Fire, Ice, Blood

Chapter 2 : Wind, Fire, Ice, Blood

When the shoreline had finally vanished over the horizon, Cynder had looked back at her companions and pointed with her head towards the clouds, the three of them climbing from sea level and entering the clouds just as she had suggested. None of them had said a word since taking flight, which was just as well as none of them could have said anything that wouldn't have been predictable. Just the three of them without Spyro's reassuring confidence was truly alien to them, yet it seemed Flame and Ember were willing to let Cynder assume the role of leader of the trio, at least until they were reunited with the purple dragon. She just hoped that her navigational skills were up to par to allow for that reunion to occur. The flight from the besieged city twisted Cynder's heart, filling her with an interwoven sense of relief and guilt. Relief to be so far away from the dangers of Warfang, guilt for leaving Mason and so many brave others behind who had helped them to escape and had stayed behind. She wondered how Remi and his crew were faring, if they were safe or not. She knew that the three of them could have done little against the invading Ape army, but Cynder's guilt would not subside as she thought of all those who had not escaped.

Like a nightmare coming to life; she couldn't stop from thinking back to the underground shelter, the terrible anguish and fear she saw in the eyes of the wounded and the everyday folk of Warfang seeking refuge. A cold shiver rippled through her as if she had suddenly been submerged in ice as her thoughts inevitably, hatefully, turned to the room where the dead were being put aside; the rows of dragons and moles covered in size appropriate white sheets, many stained with crimson blood. Her eyes flickered as she recalled the morbid curiosity that had drawn her to one of the covered bodies, one of a dragoness her own size and age; Glacious. Never in her life had Cynder felt anything but contempt for her and the elitist bullying that she had most often been the victim of, but the shock of seeing her dead had been no less painful to her had they been friends.

After an hour or more of flying, the howl of the wind blowing against them was broken by the voice of Flame who finally uttered the inevitable, "Are we heading the right way?"

His voice broke the black dragoness from her melancholy train of thought, to which she answered back with a swift, "Yes, we are!"

"Shouldn't we see the temple by now?" he called through the wind.

"We're flying against the wind; it'll take us longer!" Ember explained smartly, "Besides, it would be pretty hard to miss a landmass like that!"

"Yeah," Cynder muttered quietly to herself, "And pretty embarrassing."

The layer of cloud they flew above had thickened as they pressed on, not allowing for them to see a great distance ahead, but it did provide at least some sense of security, even though the black dragoness feared it was a false one. Ahead was an even larger cloud bank, rising up in front of them like a frothy white mountain, Cynder looking down and catching only brief glimpses of the ocean below them. A fearful uncertainty began to twist in her stomach, making her wonder if they were in fact off course, flying over empty ocean to heaven knows where. She decided they had to take the risk and drop below the clouds, turning her head to the right and looking over her shoulder to Flame and Ember.

"We need to go down and get a better look, make sure we're not off course," she called out over the wind.

"You saying you're lost?" Ember cried harshly.

"Then that means we're all lost, Ember!" Flame complained in a snarky tone. Cynder rolled her eyes as she replied,

"We can't see anything through these clouds. We need a better look."

"Do we all have to go down?" Flame asked uneasily, "It might be dangerous…"

"Never mind then, I'll do it!" Cynder snapped crossly, not waiting to hear anything more from them as she threw her head down and dived through the cloud cover, feeling a faint moistness on her body as she dove through the clouds. For a few moments she saw only the white mist of the clouds as she passed through them, leaving her blinded until she burst through the other side and beheld the sunlit ocean below. Immediately she pulled up and levelled out just below the cloud cover, shaking the moistness from her eyes as she quickly looked around for threats. Below her was only ocean and behind her was only empty sky, the black dragoness turning her gaze forward as she looked for her bearings.

A whoosh of wind behind her made her look back, Cynder looking in surprise to see Ember appearing behind her, followed moments later by Flame who soared right past the two of them as if intently diving towards the sea.

"Hey! Up here!" the pink dragoness called down as the red dragon looked up and sheepishly realized his mistake, pulling his head up and curving back up towards the pair of dragonesses. Ember eyed Cynder with a mock accusatory look, jeering,

"You trying to show off or something? Prove you're braver than us?"

Cynder chuckled shortly as Flame pounced up behind her and beside Ember, panting, "My bad, overshot it!"

"Well," the black dragoness declared as she looked straight ahead, "Without Spyro around somebody has got to be the hero around here."

"And you're that somebody?" Ember sneered.

"Rather you than me, Cynder!" Flame confessed in a frenzied voice as he anxiously looked around, "Oh, come on let's find Spyro already!"

"Keep your head on, Flame," Ember reassured him with a kind smile, "Once Cynder un-loses us, we'll meet him at the temple, alright?" she said as she cast a mischievous look towards the newly declared 'hero' of the group.

Cynder snorted, "Sure, no pressure…"

It was right after that moment that the black dragoness's emerald eyes widened, her mouth remaining open as her words trailed off with the wind as the distant haze of the horizon was crowned by a billowing cloud of black smoke. The silence told her that the others had seen it too as the growing shape in the distance rose up out of the sea to reveal a familiar yet perverted scene. The rolling hills of the mushroom forests came into view as the island home of the Dragon temple appeared on the horizon. The towering structure of the dragon temple stood out as clear as crystal, the overhanging clouds of black smoke rising from the ground as flames burned in and around the temple grounds. A fearful gasp escaped Cynder's lips as a pair of Dreadwings dived down from the clouds and landed on the dome of the temple, clambering across it as their frightful shrieks rang through the air.

'Not the temple too!' the black dragoness thought in horror as the smell of the rising smoke began to reach her nostrils. She soon recognized several more Dreadwings in the distance, fortunately flying away from the temple carrying what looked like bundles or more of the explosive barrel bombs. Whatever it was, they did not seem to be heading back towards Warfang.

'Oh Spyro, please be okay…'

"They're here too!" Flame cried in half fear and half anger, "Spyro shouldn't taken care of these guys…"

"Maybe he's not here yet!" Ember added with thin optimism, "Maybe we just got here first."

"Or maybe he's here and needs out help!" Cynder declared harshly as a determined scowl angled across her face, "We've got the clear them out and find him!"

"Wait a minute!" Flame shouted hastily, "Shouldn't we come up with a plan first?"

The response to the red fire dragon was not even an argument; without hesitation the black dragoness let out a furious snarl that exposed her fangs as she reeled back and then plunged into a dive, leaving Flame and Ember startled as they were left alone yet again.

"Cynder, wait!" Ember called after her, but she and Flame watched as Cynder continued her dive, pulling up sharply and levelling out as she flew level towards the temple balcony, never once looking back to see if they were following her.

"She got a death wish or something?" Flame asked incredulously.

The sea passed beneath her in a blur, the shoreline following suite as Cynder carried herself as fast as her wings would allow as she soared towards the temple balcony. The rising black clouds had filled the sky behind the temple as patches of the mushroom forest began to be overcome by streaks of orange flame. With her eyes narrowed, they locked onto two pairs of Ape soldiers that were mindlessly hammering and chipping away with hammers and battle axes against the decorative archway before the end of the temple balcony. Utterly enthralled in the pointless vandalism of ancient stonework, none of them saw her speeding towards them with a bloodcurdling fury in her eyes as her front claws braced like the talons of an eagle. Taking a sharp breath as the balcony swiftly approached, the black dragoness attacked.

'Where are you, Spyro?'

The nearest Ape looked up, his eyes popping out as he let out a scream of alarm as Cynder swooped around, the blade of her tail slashing under his neck as she soared through the archway, looping up to the left as the others Apes shouted and pointed at the intruder as the first collapsed to the floor in a choking mess. The dark thrill of the kill washed over Cynder like a momentary heatwave as she banked sharply back around towards the others, one grasping a crossbow previously leaned against the wall of the balcony. She opened her mouth as she flew towards him, channeling her mana into column of concentrated air, shooting fourth like a near invisible fist that slammed into the ape's chest, knocking him off his feet and sending him careening over the edge as she made her second past, a third ape swinging and missing her with his axe. Cynder banked to her right around the outside curve of the balcony's circular end platform, glaring at the two remaining Apes as they snarled and shouted at her, waving their weapons in the air. Swiftly, she swung around hard, aiming head on towards the center of the balcony as the two Apes waited for her, howling and hollering as she swept down onto the stone floor, the speed of her flight turning into a fast sprint as she charged them.

The two Apes snarled as they rushed towards her side by side, the black dragoness aiming square between them as she galloped across the floor, her heart racing as she eyed their raised weapons; axe to the right, hammer to the left. The black dragoness sprang into the air as they swung at her, both strikes missing by a hair's width as she spun in the air, wrapping her wings around herself as her tail scythe slashed the pair of them on the side as she twirled through the air. Twin cries of pain filled the air as she landed hard but steadily on her feet, spinning around to face them as the two Apes turned to her as they clutched their wounds. The black dragoness glared at them as they snarled, still clutching their weapons as the bloody patches to their sides grew ever more, dripping onto the floor. Cynder hunched down and took a fighting stance, bracing her claws and fangs for her next strike.

The Ape with the hammer now to her right raised his weapon as he roared, just as a blast of turquoise mist exploded around him, freezing him in an instant to a statue of solid ice! The Ape beside looked on in shock the moment before a burst of fire exploded against his lower back, causing him to throw his axe away in panic as he clutched his burning tail, howling in terror as he jumped frantically about like his feet were on hot coals. Cynder looked behind the squealing Ape and saw Flame and Ember soaring in from above, the burning Ape by now dragging his backside around the circular end platform to try and extinguish the flames. He succeeded just as Flame and Ember zoomed over, clouting him across the back of the head with their tail spikes and knocking him down hard as they landed swiftly on the balcony in front of Cynder. There was a pause as they caught their breath, the pair looking at the bloodstains on the ground and the drips falling from their companion's tail blade as she looked at them as fiercely as though they were the enemy.

"I think maybe she does," Ember replied cautiously to Flame's earlier question, "But not for herself…" she said as she reflected on the ferocity they had seen moments before their own arrival. The black dragoness's eyes twitched between them before she swung around towards the temple.

"Come on!" she ordered hastily, "We've got to get inside and find Spyro!"

"Cynder, we don't even know if he's here!" Flame pleaded as Ember gave him a cautionary wave, knowing his pleas would be unheeded. From atop the temple dome, the two Dreadwings saw them, letting out short, rapid shrieks of alarm as they alerted however many other Apes there were that they had intruders. Cynder gave no hint of being deterred.

"We won't find out from out here!" she told Flame defiantly, "Are you ready?"

"No, but there's no going back now…" Ember replied humorlessly.

"Isn't there?" queried Flame uneasily. The icy stare he received from the pink dragoness was answer enough, but a creaking thud towards the temple drew his attention. The round doors to the dojo had opened up and standing just behind them was the muscular mass of an Ape Commander, holding up a much larger battle-axe than the one discarded earlier by the lowly Ape soldier. Even from afar, the young red dragon could feel his scorn for them as he gave an evil stare, hollering and wailing in Ape grunts and calls before he thrust his axe towards them in an obvious order of attack.

"I mean, right," Flame nodded apprehensively, "No going back…"

The two Dreadwings atop the dome grasped the edge of the roof with their claws as they hungrily eyed the three young dragons, the Ape Commander's order summoning a line of troops that came streaming from inside the dojo and out onto the balcony. They quickly counted eight soldiers and two Ape Lieutenants bringing up the rear and blocking their path as the Commander remained well inside, Cynder quickly looking behind to Flame and Ember to see them taking a ready stance with her; fearful but resolute.

"Let's get started," she announced dryly. As if to heed her request, the two Dreadwings wailed and leapt from the dojo roof, springing into the air before diving towards them as the Ape soldiers charged. Cynder boldly rushed at them as Flame and Ember followed behind with their eyes on the diving bat monsters. The pink dragoness opened her mouth towards them as rapid flashes of blue Ice magic formed spear like icicles that shot like arrows towards the first Dreadwing, striking like a barrage of arrows that froze its wings as Flame cast a powerful sheet of fire that singed the feet of the second and drove the creature into retreat.

Cynder ducked as the frozen bat monster clipped the balcony railing and cartwheeled over the heads of the charging Apes, throwing its rider into the air as she galloped forward. In a flash she jumped up into the air into a spin, her wings fanning out as a swirling cloud of air kept her hanging as she spun as quick as a blinking eye, her wings throwing out two great surges of air that blasted the Apes back, sending them tumbling over each other like leaves caught in a breeze. As she touched back down, Flame and Ember stood shoulder to shoulder with her before the trio dashed across the newly freed space towards the disorganized Apes.

"Stop them!" the Ape Commander shouted from inside the dojo, not making an effort to enter the battle as the three young dragons pressed on. Most of the Ape soldiers were still struggling to their feet when the trio attacked; slashing with their claws and striking with their tails as a frenzied melee broke out. Cynder's fangs clamped onto an ape's arm after he threw a missed punch, yanking him back and hurling him towards Flame as he then tossed the ape into the air with his horns before leaping up and tail swiping him over the railing. A shot of Ice from Ember froze another solid as she swiped her claws across the face of a second, three of them dealt with in a matter of seconds. The rest came rushing at them with a Lieutenant leading the way, curved sword in hand as Cynder, Flame and Ember stood firm.

The red fire dragon suddenly leapt forward, surprising his companions as he exclaimed fiercely, "This one's for Warfang!" as his head jolted forward like he had sneezed, a glowing ball of fire arching overhead towards the Apes, the lead officer and two soldiers leaping forward to escape the blast. The fireball exploded in the ranks behind them, catching two of them alight as the rest of the Apes hastily backed away as the balcony was filled with fire. Flame seemed afraid of his own success as he grimaced and quickly stepped back in line with his companions as the Lieutenant and two soldiers picked themselves back up.

There was no time to complement their friend's shot as Cynder took the lead, rushing the leading Ape lieutenant as he slashed at her with his blade, Cynder ducking low before she pounced up and slammed her head into his face, making him stumble back as she, though dazed, pounced again. Her weight knocked him down as she stood atop him and her claws delivered the fatal strike, Flame and Ember contending with the two subordinates in a flurry of fangs and claws. Standing victorious, the three young dragons looked up to see the wall of fire had mostly died down and the remaining soldiers and second Ape Lieutenant on the other side of it. The soldiers formed a front rank with long spears outstretched to them, daring them to charge. Just as the dragon trio took a step towards them, a shrill wail from above reminded the three dragons of the second Dreadwing, which suddenly came swooping in from the left!

"Watch out!" Ember shouted, just before the Dreadwing's deafening sonic scream struck them like they were being violently shaken, zooming over them as the three were left with their ears paralyzed. Cynder had lost her vision for a moment, resisting the urge to clutch at her aching head, trying to remain focused on the Apes in front as they took obvious note of the dragon's incapacitation. As the Dreadwing seemed to disappear out of view, the Ape Lieutenant stood forward with something in his hand and reached down with it towards the dying flames, Cynder's eyes widening as she saw the spark of a fuse light up on a dark sphere clutched in the Apes' fist.

"Cherry bomb!" she shouted on reflex, realizing that she could not even hear herself shout it as the ape laughed before hurling the bomb towards them. In the edge of her vision, she saw Flame and Ember darting back, but she, against her own will almost, found herself rushing forward as the bomb came hurtling at them. The black dragoness pulled her head back and threw it forward, a short thrust of Wind shooting from her maw like a gale that caught the bomb inches from her face, sending it back towards its sender. Cynder ducked and shielded behind her wings as she braced for the inevitable blast.

Flame and Ember ducked when the blast came, a ball of black and orange smoke erupting in the air as splinters were thrown about as the grenade exploded nigh on perfectly between the dragons and Apes, sparing them both the brunt of its force as the smoke of the blast twirled in the air.

"Cynder!" Flame and Ember cried together, their numbed ears only just picking up their own voices even with the additional blast as the black dragoness stumbled back towards them, her eyes wide with shock and pain as they saw tiny droplets of blood falling to the floor from her wings, riddled by fragments.

"She's hurt!" Flame exclaimed, sharing a worried glance with Ember before looking past Cynder to see the Apes were composing themselves after the blast, the Lieutenant sneering vilely as he and his subordinates began closing on them slowly. As the black dragoness rushed to re-join them, she froze in fear just as a loud thud on the floor behind them reminded her friends of the other threat that had returned! Flame and Ember spun around to see the Dreadwing had landed in the center of the balcony's end platform, its glowing eyes beaming as its drool-soaked jaws snapped in violent, excited anticipation.

"They got us sandwiched!" Flame grimaced dreadfully, naturally using a food analogy as Ember turned to Cynder as she finally stumbled up to them, panting as her wings continued to bleed.

"Cynder, you're hurt!" Ember shouted as they still struggled to hear themselves as the black dragoness turned and backed up to them as the Apes crept towards them.

"I'm fine!" she panted heavily, wincing as she dared not look at the state of her wings, "I just can't… I can't…."

"Can you fly?" Flame called back as he tried to make himself look larger to the Dreadwing as it snarled and snapped at them only a short distance away.

"No…" she replied hauntingly, knowing that taking to the skies would be the best tactic for them to use right then, but equally aware that her friends would not take flight if it meant leaving her behind. Flame and Ember bunched up closer to her as the three of them gazed warily at the encroaching danger, the Apes chuckling menacingly as their outstretched spears loomed towards them, the snarling Dreadwing snapping like a rabid dog.

As Cynder looked forward towards the temple, she noticed the large Ape Commander had emerged from the safety of the dojo, accompanied by several more Ape soldiers and came rushing with seething fury towards the other advancing Apes, a bellowing order to halt bringing them to a stop as the smaller Lieutenant turned to his superior. She watched in confusion as the great Ape grabbed the smaller one by his tunic and started shaking him and yelling obscenities that even with her affected hearing, she heard well enough.

"Did you forget your orders!?" the Commander asked viciously at the end of his tirade, scolding him before he swung the back of his hand across the Lieutenants face, bloodying his nose before he then thrust his subordinate back in behind his halted troops.

'What orders?' Cynder wondered as she saw the fear stricken Ape Lieutenant quivering in his boots as he felt the presence of his hulking superior behind him.

"Anybody got a plan?" asked Flame in fearful pitch, glancing over to Ember with a sharp, "Any ideas, Ember?"

"Cynder, what do we do?" she deferred the question to the black dragoness who found herself unable to take her eyes of the menacing Ape Commander as his eyes refused to move from anywhere but her as his battle-scarred face darkened with a hard scowl.

"Kill the others, but the black female is wanted alive by the king!" he shouted, jabbing his finger towards the black dragoness in question.

"What did he say?" Ember asked with frightened confusion as Cynder felt her heart stop and her blood freeze, her mind racing back to their first clash with the Apes in the tunnels of the catacombs, when they had been subdued by the sickly knockout gas. As clearly as though the words were her own, she remembered what only she and Spyro over heard before she passed out…

"The King will be more pleased if we bring him alive. Bring the others too." "But our orders were only to keep the black female alive."

"Doesn't change the outcome. Gaul will be glad to slay the purple whelpling himself. There might be promotions in order."

Then her frightened conversation with Spyro in the temple garden….

"Gaul is up to something, Spyro. He wouldn't try and kill off the purple dragon unless it was part of something bigger. And whatever his plans are, somehow, I'm a part of it."

"But I just said he was about to murder you! He couldn't have wanted you for anything except for that!" Spyro had said.

"He said he had other plans beyond just killing you, Spyro. Somehow, I think I was supposed to have a part in that…"

Flame's pupils shrank as he saw another four Dreadwings flying in from the balcony's left side, the formation splitting into pairs and moving around both flanks of the walkway, the beasts hovering in place as they screeched and snarled, surrounding the three young dragons. He and Ember found themselves backing up, bumping into each other's tails as the sudden touch nearly made them jump. He looked behind at her and even felt himself blush, the pink dragoness either not noticing or too preoccupied with the present danger to care. Looking back, Flame gazed around at the surrounding foes, thinking that he, Ember and Cynder hadn't enough mana between them to deal with them all. He wondered why they were all just staring at them, wondering if he could try flaming one of them, but then the others should surely attack and overwhelm him, Cynder and the dragoness who he was hopelessly infatuated with. All this time, Cynder continued to stare ahead as if in a trance, her eyes unmoving even as the rank of Apes closed in, their spears now only a few feet from her.

"Cynder? Cynder!" Ember cried as she failed to answer her, the black dragoness finally showing a sign of life as she drew a silent breath and then, curiously, closed her eyes and bowed her head as if in prayer or contemplation. Ember's heart was burning with adrenaline when a gust of wind suddenly appeared as if from nowhere, sweeping by her feet and around herself and Flame as it started to pick up speed. The Apes suddenly stopped in their advance, watching the spontaneous gust cautiously as it howled and grew in size, a silvery veil of air blew around the balcony, moving faster and stronger and seemed to concentrate around the dragons like a tornado forming in a storm even as the sky above remained blue. The air grew thicker with specks of ash of the nearby fires alongside twigs and dust from far way pulled into the growing vortex. The Dreadwings struggled to keep in place and the Ape troops found themselves swaying in the strengthening breeze as the dragon in is center, Cynder, slowly lifted her head and opened her eyes as Flame and Ember watched in excited realization. Behind his underlings, the Ape Commander suddenly turned his back and ran for the door as the black dragoness was lifted into the air to the length of her tail, pulling her limbs in for streamlining as her bloodied wings fanned out with a booming howl of the now cyclonic wind.

Panicking, the Apes threw their spears towards her, but the swirling wall of air caught them as they danced around the now spinning dragoness, the Dreadwings trying to escape as the Apes turned to run after their cowardly Commander, but the pull of the great vortex was too great as they were both drawn back as if by invisible ropes no matter how hard they fought to escape. One ape tumbled back and was sucked into the vortex with a girlish scream, followed by another as he struck a third off his footing and sent them both rolling into the cyclone. Flame and Ember, near deafened by the raging wind, huddled together under Cynder as she spun like a wheel in the air, her wings propelling the air that encircled them as a Dreadwing was roped into the Wind Fury.

Flame and Ember watched in amazement as the bat monster flailed around them like it was weightless, the rest following one by one as Cynder's Fury roared in a swirling cyclone that tossed their foes like ragdolls around the sky. The pair looked at her as she spun so gracefully yet with such deadly purpose, the force of her cyclone drawing in the clouds above into a swirling overcast canopy as Cynder's pose changed, stretching her front and back legs out as she continued spinning. Suddenly, her tail curled up and she came to an instant stop facing the temple, the dragoness slamming her feet down into the ground as the swirling cyclone erupted into a shockwave of expanding air, bellowing out a thunder like roar as the Apes and Dreadwings were thrown in all directions, some slamming into the temple whilst others were sent flying into the forest or towards the sea. A lingering swirl of wind carried on around the three dragons before dying out, the sky clearing and the air becoming still as if nothing had happened.

Cynder let out a sudden gasp, her feet slipping as she collapsed onto the floor, Flame and Ember rushing to her side.

"Whoa, easy, Cynder!" Flame exclaimed excitedly, nudging the right side of her head, "You saved our lives!"

"That's was incredible!" Ember cried as she and Flame grasped Cynder by her shoulders, lifting her up into a sit as she wearily rocked her head about. The black dragoness was shaking, her wings still bleeding as she unsteadily looked to her two companions as they beamed at her.

"You blew those guys into next century!" Flame praised as the black dragoness could only groan groggily.

"We…We can't stay here," she forced out, her back legs struggling to lift her lower half up, "Got to keep moving…"

"Just a take a minute," Ember advised cautiously, "That stunt really took a lot out of you…"

"I'm fine!" Cynder snarled, forcing herself onto all fours as she painfully gritted her teeth, her companions both giving her a few inches space as she glared coldly towards the distant temple door. A hateful scowl that appeared made Flame and Ember follow her gaze as they looked to the door and saw the reason for it. Peeking from inside the doorway, the cowardly Ape Commander, having escaped the Wind Fury, turned and hurriedly darted back inside the temple.

"He's fast for having such little legs…" Cynder remarked venomously as she took a stumbling few steps forward, Flame and Ember quickly rushing in to steady her from falling.

"Let us take the lead," Flame insisted quite spontaneously, "You're not recovered yet."

Ember raised her head to him in surprise as the red dragon gave her a nod as if coaxing her to agree. She looked back to Cynder who, although she held a fierce look in her eyes, was certainly worse for wear. Flame's volunteering of them to take the lead seemed almost brave of him.

"Right, you stay behind us," the pink dragoness advised her female companion, looking to Flame with a grim face as he took a spot close beside her. She turned her eyes ahead just as he turned his head to the left to gaze at her, privately hoping she found his sudden bravado appealing, but knowing in his heart he still wished Spyro was there to take the lead like he always did.

Despite how begrudging she felt about it, Cynder nodded in agreement as she caught her breath.

"Just don't get too far ahead," she told them in between gasps of air, Flame and Ember nodding surely to her before looking back towards the temple to where the cowardly Ape Commander had gone. They took off at a brisk pace, Cynder doing her best to keep up with them despite her obvious struggle. They crossed over the length of the walkway as the open door awaited them, Flame and Ember looking to each other first before looking to Cynder, who only nodded for them to go on. With that, the red Fire dragon looked to the pink Ice dragoness, mouthing, "I'll take left, you take right," to her, to which she nodded before the pair bravely burst inside the dojo.

Leaping through the doorway, they rushed to either side of the entrance, the great dragon statue welcoming them in silence as they scanned quickly around, the sound of footsteps warning them as two pairs of Ape soldiers came rushing around both sides of the statue, arms and claws outstretched as they charged. As if reflecting each other's movements, Flame and Ember released a burst of Fire and Ice on the first of their pair, one bursting into flames and one freezing in a terrified pose as the remaining two pounced. Flame leapt back and struck the ape on his side with his claws as Ember launched into a somersault that struck the ape on her side under the chin with her tail. Before Cynder could decide where to intervene first, she watched as the pair delivered the fatal blow to their opponents almost in sync, neither of them noticing the uncanny coincidence as they looked up and saw the dojo was now clear.

"Let's keep going!" Ember proclaimed, she and Flame glancing behind at Cynder before they leapt over the bodies of the fallen foes and continued around the statue, the black dragoness following behind Ember as the group met up again on the other side. The door to the grotto was open to them, a mild trail of smoke coming from inside along with the smell of burning as they saw the faint glimmer of flames against the wall to the left of the Pool of Visions. Panting and energized with adrenaline, the three only paused for a moment before they rushed through into the grotto, Ember taking the lead this time.

"Check your corners!" Cynder advised from behind as she barely kept pace with them, fearful she could not be depended upon if her companions found themselves overwhelmed or caught off guard. She wondered how many more of them there might be, and why they still had seen no sign of Spyro or any of the Guardians. The doors to the sparring area and living quarters were closed as they entered, the Pool of Visions shimmering away as it did as they took stock of the room. The source of the fire was a small burning lump in the corner of the room, which they quickly realized were the Elemental flags which had adorned the walls, torn down and burned as broken pottery and upturned boxes littered the floor. The grotto, site of the terrible massacre they had survived as eggs twelve years ago, had been vandalized and ransacked for anything valuable as the three young dragons looked around in disgust.

"No respect for anything…" Ember growled coldly as she passed by the burning flags, a quick exhale of misty Ice smothering them as Flame and Cynder passed around the other side of the pool.

"Where'd the big guy go?" the red dragon asked as he looked up at the closed door to the dormitories, the black dragoness stepping up to the door to the sparring area. She turned her head to the left and stood on her hind legs, pressing her paws into the door and pressing her right side to it, listening through as her companions held their tongues and watched her for a response. A few tense seconds passed by, when suddenly a noise caught their attention, a sound which came not from the sparring room but from the dormitories. Flame then mimicked Cynder's actions and stood up against the door as the noise sounded again; a sound like a something being broken or shifted across the floor somewhere behind the door. Another thud came and then another, but only Flame with his ear to the door could hear what sounded like muffled grunting like someone trying to speak with a cloth over their mouth. He looked back to the two dragonesses and said just above a whisper,

"I think there's someone who needs help through there!"

Cynder dropped down and away from the door, gasping hopefully, "Spyro?" just as the sparring door opened beside her.

"Cynder!" screamed Ember in alarm.

The black dragoness spun around in a flash, just in time to be greeted by a charging mass of snarling teeth and claws that bowled her over! She could barely scream as the drooling, fearsome face of a Deathhound looked down at her as it pinned her to the ground, its long tongue flicking in and out like a snake. A dozen more came rushing into the grotto, howling and snarling as they rushed at Flame and Ember, forcing them back towards the other side of the room.

"Watch out!" cried Flame as he and Ember stood shoulder to shoulder before the door to the dojo as the cowardly Ape Commander and two more Lieutenants then made their appearance, rushing in after the hounds and straight towards Cynder, the Commander pulling the hound off her and seizing her in his grip.

"Get away from me! Help!" she yelled as she tried to swipe, but the hulking Ape lifted her effortlessly and slammed her back into the ground, dazing her as he then lifted her and turned to rush out the door.

"Cynder!" Flame and Ember cried in unison, the snarling Death Hounds blocking the way around the Pool of Visions as the door closed behind the Commander and the two others, leaving them alone with the murderous reptile/dog hybrids.

"We've got to get after him, help Cynder!" Ember declared firmly, even as the Deathhounds inched closer, growling hungrily.

"Can we save ourselves, first?" Flame queried meekly, the pair stepping back slowly as the hounds crept towards them. Suddenly, one of them broke into a sprint, setting off all the others as the pack rushed the two dragons, the nearest one headed for Ember.

"Lookout!" the red dragon wailed, bounding in front of her with a fiery blast from his mouth, dousing a trio of the hounds as they crashed into him even as they were set alight, knocking him back into Ember as the ones behind scrambled back to avoid the flames as the first three flailed and perished.

"Flame!" Ember could only exclaim at his impromptu heroism as they crashed to the floor, the red dragon falling over her back as she fell on her right side. Looking up, she saw the other Deathhounds hesitating, but quickly overcoming the death of their brethren and jumping over the bodies to rush them.

"Watch out!" she warned, shoving Flame to the side to clear her path, the red dragon exclaiming a short "Whoa!" as he was thrown over. She breathed a shimmering blanket of Ice over the floor, the Deathhounds slipping and falling as they ran, Ember's breath forming a wave like barrier of Ice that rose a few meters off the ground, which the sliding hounds slid and crashed into.

"Get up! Hurry!" she cried as leapt to her feet, waiting for Flame to finish scrambling upright as they both then dashed for the dojo, the Deathhounds barking and howling furiously as they tried to clamber over the wall of Ice.

Back in the dojo, the pair paused to catch their breath as the red dragon complained, "Careful, will you? I hit my head when you threw me over!"

"Sorry!" she apologized hastily, eyeing him strangely as he looked at the Ice barrier down the hall, "What was with you jumping in front of me like that?" she asked queerly.

"That's because I'm in…" Flame began swiftly before he caught his near slip of the tongue, substituting with his answer, "I'm in the zone! Y'know, all fired up and all that…" he blushed as the pink dragoness raised an eyebrow.

Before either of them could remark any further, a chorus of vicious howling and snarling drew their eyes back as the Deathhounds snapped and clawed at the Ice wall, slowly breaking it down as they clambered over each other for a chance to reach their prey. Looking at each other forlornly, the two dragons braced for a deadly clash. Flame's eyes then latched onto the great dragon statue behind them, his mouth and eyes opening wide as he was suddenly instilled with an idea.

"What is it?" Ember asked as she noticed his changed expression. Without replaying, the red dragon bounded over to the edge of the great statue, the dojo floor beginning to rumble as the statue began to descend slowly into the floor.

"What are you doing?" demanded Ember as Flame turned back to her excitedly.

"Giving us some more room!" he replied brightly, "Remember 'Chase the Tail?', like what Ignitus taught us?"

"Yeah…"

"Let's do that now! When those hounds break through, we'll freeze 'em and fry 'em at the same time!"

"You sure?" Ember asked, just as a heart chilling crack made them jump as they saw the jaws of a Deathhound chomping away at the top of the Ice barrier, the rest of it beginning to splinter and crack as the rest of the pack threw themselves against it.

"Okay, good idea!" she answered hastily as the statue completed its decent, she and Flame leaping inside the elemental circle as the floor closed over barely before their feet touched it. Facing each other, the two stood around the center ring of the circle, realizing that for the first time in their lives, they would solely be trusting the other with their lives. There was no Spyro or Cynder or any Guardians to help them. They had to trust that neither of them would foul up, that the two of them could face this challenge themselves.

"Okay, you ready?" Flame asked heavily as Ember looked at the Deathhounds that were just seconds from breaking through, her head shaking faintly.

"I wish Spyro was here…" she whimpered timidly. Her pinning for the purple dragon hurt Flame's heart as always, but just as always, he buried it deep inside along with his seemingly misplaced feelings for her.

"Me too but are you ready?" he asked her again more urgently, the cracking Ice barrier making his nerves stretch thin.

"I'm ready!" she replied with a crack in her voice, just as the barrier shattered like a mirror across the ground, the numerous sets of snarling Deathhound jaws running in a frenzied pack towards them.

"Now!" Flame barked.

The two dragons broke into a run, following each other in a circle as they both did naught but watch each other's tails as if trying to catch them. A few quick spins built up momentum and then they both pounced, their wings taking them into flight as the pack of Deathhounds converged on them. In a red and pink spiral, they climbed like a corkscrew into the air just out of reach as the hounds leapt up, snarling and snapping at them as they gathered around the dojo floor like circling sharks, hoping to catch them.

"Hit 'em now!" Flame called out as he and Ember circled above, the pair then looking down as the dojo's replenishing energy boosted their mana, manifesting in the destructive downpour that followed right after. Simultaneously, the two dragons unleashed a swirling twin beam of Fire and Ice, the Deathhounds below panicking as they were scorched and frozen in rapid succession. The floor of the dojo flashed in rays of flaming orange and freezing blue as the two elemental currents chased and washed over the trail of the other, the air filling with flying embers and white snowflakes that was as beautiful as it was destructive.

Several rapid rotations soon left the dojo floor free of foes as Flame and Ember's interwoven streams finally came to an end, the pair coming to a hovering stop beside each other as they watched the spectacle below. For only a moment the center of the dojo floor was a perfect ying-yang of glistening Ice and crackling Fire before the sparks of the latter shriveled away the tail end of the Ice as from the other end the Fire was drowned by the melting Ice. The ashen and frozen remains of the Deathhounds evaporated with the dojo's magic as the stone floor soon returned to normal as the sparks and snowflakes faded into nothing as Flame and Ember touched down onto the floor.

"Wow!" Ember exclaimed.

"That showed 'em, didn't it?" Flame said roguishly, beaming with pride as he grinned to the pink dragoness in as heroic a fashion as he could. She turned to him and saw his grin, Ember seeming to blush at how well the two had worked together, only for it to fade as her expression returned to one of alarm.

"We've got to help Cynder!" Come on!" she wailed before she took off running for the door, Flame shaking himself out of his act as he set off after her.

"R-right, sure!" he stammered.

Ember and Flame ran back through the grotto, the former on the left and the latter on the right, past the Pool of Visions and through the door to the sparring area which opened for them as they approached. Passing down the hall, they saw the elemental banners that adorned it had been torn down as well, fueling them on as the door at the end opened up to the sparring room. Running through, they were startled by the sight of the sparring room; boxes of weapons and supplies were scattered about, training dummies had been torn apart and gutted, the flags of the hall were burning in a pile to the left of the door. But their focus soon turned to what they saw at the far end of the room where a heavy banging rang through the room. The Cowardly Ape Commander and his Lieutenants were standing with their back to them, the larger of the three desperately striking the outer door with his axe, trying to break it down as he held Cynder up in his left hand, the black dragoness seemingly too dazed and weakened to fight back. Flame and Ember skidded to a halt about halfway across the room.

"Hey, monkey face!" Flame jeered as the Ape stopped halfway through a swing, "Give us our friend back!"

The Commander and his underlings spun around fiercely, the teeth of the former's bottom jaw flexing out as he snarled at them.

"Those damn hounds should've torn you's apart!" he snapped harshly, bracing his Axe menacingly as Ember smirked at the site of the numerous strikes against the door.

"You can't get out through there; that door won't open if there are intruders inside, like you. You'll have to come back this way," she explained pompously as she and Flame took a ready stance together. The Commander took two steps forward, flexing his arms as he growled at the two dragons, just as Cynder lifted her dazed head and stared helplessly towards her captor.

"Then we'll deal with you's ourselves" the Ape barked as he jabbed his fearsome axe forward at Flame and Ember, who both saw their companion suddenly raise her head stoutly as her dangling tail reeled back and slashed up, its blade striking along the Ape Commander' side as he cried out in pain. He furiously turned to his left as he held her up as his bloodied side wept quickly, snarling as he hurled the black dragoness across the room where she struck the wall and fell like a stone.

"No!" Flame and Ember exclaimed as she fell in a motionless heap as the Ape turned back to them, ignoring the blood seeping through his dark fur as he braced his axe and clenched his fists. The two young dragons scowled as they prepared for the next fight, expecting the two Lieutenants to be ordered in first, but curiously they stepped back and the Commander moved forwards. He raised his axe in the air, Flame and Ember noticing the gem in its handle for the first time as a strange glow appeared around the weapon as he slammed it into the ground, a burst of sickly green magic appeared from the impact, surging from the gem and rippling across the ground the full width of the room and at head height of the young dragons!

"Lookou-" Ember didn't finish as the shockwave struck her and Flame, knocking them over as the wave shot past and disappeared before it reached the end of the room.

"Get 'em, boys!" the Commander ordered as the two Lieutenants broke into a charge with their weapons ready, striding towards the two dragons as they hastily clambered back to their feet.

"I'm really starting to hate magic!" Flame cursed as he rose wobblily to all fours alongside Ember, the awful drained feeling of before weighing down their bodies as they both tried to usher their elements, but a brief burst of Fire and a thin cloud of Ice was all that came!

"Not again!" Ember complained just as the two Apes attacked, swinging at them with their curved blades as the two dragons dodge rolled on instinct, Ember left and Flame right. The separation was nearly cause for panic, but they both entered their separate duels as the Apes stabbed and swung at them, the two dragons nimbly but barely avoiding each one, their mana stifled by the draining green pulse.

Flame was backed towards the wall where a training dummy in the likeness of an Ape Lieutenant was propped up, the real-life equivalent breaking into a charge as he raised his sword above his head, aiming for the red dragon as he nearly jumped in fright as his tail end bumped into the dummy behind him. Flame yelped and leapt to his left, the sword slashing down into the dummy, becoming stuck in the tangle of straw and sticks! Seizing his chance, Flame pounced up and slashed with his claws, bloodying the ape's shoulders and neck as he threw out his elbow and caught the red dragon in the chest, knocking him back. Flame kept his balance and landed on his feet, gritting his teeth as he dived straight back into the fight.

"Hurry up and kill 'em already!" the Commander bellowed furiously as he stayed back from the action, reaching behind and clutching something in his hand as he watched his subordinates trying and failing to eliminate the two dragons.

Ember led her opponent through the sparring room as he gave chase, skipping off boxes and debris as the ape struggled to keep up with the spritely dragoness. She bounded over a pile of wooden boxes, the pursuing Ape crashing through them as he slashed at the ground where she had just been, Ember flashing a quick look over her shoulder as she ran. The Lieutenant raised his sword and hurled it mightily after her, the blade swinging through the air as it flew towards her, Ember ducking just in time as it flew over her head! The sword embedded itself in the wall, its handle swaying as its owner cried out in anger as Ember jumped in the air, taking flight just above the ground as she swung tightly around back towards her foe. She caught a glimpse of Flame, latched onto the arm of the other Ape lieutenant like a hungry wolf as he tried desperately to shake the dragon off while she flew towards her own attacker. The Ape picked up a box over his head and threw it towards her, Ember shooting up and dodging it as he hurriedly picked up another as she soared towards him. Just as he raised it, Ember threw herself backwards, her feet and tail smacking him in the head and sending the crate into the air, the dragoness flipping over and down onto her feet as the crate came down with a sickening crash on the Ape's head, leaving him twitching before becoming motionless.

At that moment, Flame was still doggedly latched onto his foe, biting and clawing like a mongoose fighting a snake as the Ape stumbled about and grabbed at him however he could as the Commander remained away from the action, edging towards the unresponsive Cynder in the corner of the room. As Ember rushed to aid the red dragon, the Commander slipped across in front of the black dragoness, Cynder moaning faintly as he reached into a pouch tied to his belt. Next to it was a large key dangling from his belt as he drew a trio of red cherry bombs from the pouch, holding them up and touching the tied fuses on the shimmering green gem of his scepter, the fuses igniting as if held to a flame as he grinned devilishly. Under the combined ferocity of the two dragons, the hapless Ape Lieutenant was dragged to the floor, bloody and frightened as the pair of wild eyed dragons pounced onto his chest.

"I surrender! I surrender!" he begged, throwing his hands up as he expected the worst, Flame and Ember's fearsome looks fading almost at once as they stopped in their assault; their fighting drive stifled by the Apes pleads for mercy.

"Coward!" barked the Commander, heaving the cheery bomb bundle towards them as it left a trail of sparks behind through the air. Flame and Ember pounced clear off the pleading Ape who tried to escape the oncoming explosive to no avail, the cherry bombs exploding in a ground shaking blast that drowned out his screams as the two dragons hit the floor.

"They kill their own guys?" Flame asked Ember in horrific disbelief, the air filled with the swirling black smoke of the blast.

"Hurry before he kills us!" she cried as they both scrambled back to their feet, turning to face the Commander as he primed another bundle and hurled it at them. Seeing it sailing through the air, Flame and Ember both shouted "Duck!" to each other as they then, to the surprise of each other, unconsciously performed the same synchronized action. Meaning to protect the other, they both leapt up towards the incoming explosive with their wings opened, throwing themselves into opposing spins as their wings interlocked and struck the cheery bombs together, the combined mass sending it back across the room as the Commander's eyes went white with fear. He threw his arms in front just as the bundle went off, showering him in a cloud of flying debris as Flame and Ember held onto each other as they hit the floor, wincing as splinters grazed over their wings.

Once the roar of the blast had died down and the smoke cleared, Flame and Ember opened their eyes and were shocked to see how closely they held each other, the two dragons clutching each other tightly with wings clasped around the other like protective cloaks. The pink dragoness coughed awkwardly as she tugged to pull away, the red dragon seemingly reluctant to do so before finally releasing her, the two quickly looking themselves over as Flame swore he saw Ember blush before a weak cough drew their attention. Looking ahead, the Ape Commander was slumped against the outer door, his uniform and armor grazed and bloodied from the bomb blast with seemingly little life remaining in him. Off in the corner was Cynder, lifting her head as she was apparently unscathed by the blast.

"Cynder!" Flame and Ember shouted together, ignoring the wounded Ape as they rushed towards the black dragoness who had now managed to push herself up into a sit, her still bleeding wings drooping down beside her.

"It hurts… it hurts…" she winced coarsely as her companions appeared before her.

"It's okay, Cynder. We took care of them!" Flame told her confidently as a hoarse groan from the Ape Commander drew all their eyes.

"Care of them enough, anyway…" Ember commented as she carefully placed a paw on Cynder's back, grimacing at the blood streaking her body, "Is anything broken? He hit you pretty hard…"

Cynder didn't answer, her eyes locked firmly on the Ape by the door as her friends did their best to care for her, the black dragoness seemingly focused on something greater than any pain she was feeling. Her seeming obliviousness to them made Flame wave his paw in front of her eyes, fearing she was somehow made blind.

"Cynder? Are you okay?"

Without a word, she suddenly jumped to her feet and pushed between the pair of them, taking them off guard as Cynder limped towards the Ape Commander as he lay dying, coughing and groaning out his last few moments of life.

"What are you doing?" Ember demanded as they followed her, Cynder pushing through the pain that riddled her as she jumped onto the slumped Ape's chest, making his head pop up as she clutched him by his collar, glaring into his eyes and ignoring that he could conceivably still crush her with his great arms.

"What does Gaul want with me? What does he want?" she snapped as Flame and Ember wrestled her back off the giant Ape.

"Are you crazy? He could kill you even now!" the red dragon rasped as he and Ember pulled her away.

"He won't!" she barked back fiercely, gritting her teeth and breathing heavily, "They could have done that plenty of times, but they want me alive!"

"What are you talking about?" Ember asked bewilderedly as Cynder broke from the hold they had on her, the black dragoness seething with rage as she scowled at the mortally wounded Ape who could do nothing but gaze back with empty eyes as he seemed resigned to his fate. She jumped back onto his chest and regripped his collar as Flame and Ember stood by anxiously.

"Why am I important to him?" she snarled as the Ape moaned groggily, "What does he want with me? What does he know?!"

The dying Ape coughed harshly, blood dripping from his mouth as his uniform became more of the same color from the countless pieces of shrapnel that had torn through him.

"Orders…" he coughed out barely, his eyes beginning to fade as all his strength seemed to fade, "Orders is… orders…"

"Why? WHY?!" Cynder yelled, her voice echoing down the room as the ferocity of her tone unsettled her companions. The Ape coughed again as he lay his head back limply, a vicious glint appearing in Cynder's eyes as she suddenly turned on her side, bringing her tail up towards the Ape as its scythe swung under his neck.

"Cynder, wait!" Flame exclaimed as he and Ember watched in shock as she slashed the blade across his neck, the Commander's eyes bulging in horror as he gurgled away the last few moments of his life as the black dragoness gazed at him vehemently. Ember's face hardened as her aqua blue eyes became icy with disgust,

"What the hell was that? He was already done for!"

"I put him out of his misery," Cynder hissed over her shoulder, even as she didn't take her eyes off the wretched gorilla.

"That was no mercy kill, Cynder," Flame added despairingly, "Ignitus never taught us to be like that!"

"Ignitus isn't here!" she snapped coldly as she spun around, jumping off the Ape's chest and back to the ground, "He's not here, Spyro's not here, it's just us!" she cried, her voice breaking as she found herself needing to catch her breath, Flame and Ember approaching her cautiously as the black dragoness sat on her haunches, panting heavily.

The red and pink dragons paused for a moment as their friend caught her breath, their eyes darting back to her bloodied tail blade curled behind her. Flame looked behind her to the great Ape, noticing the key on his belt and headed over to investigate as Ember moved to Cynder.

"Just what is this all about Gaul wanting you alive?" she asked angrily, "Where'd you get that idea?"

Cynder looked up crossly, her breathing still heavy as she met Ember's cold gaze, drawing a calming breath now that the cat was out of the bag. What she had only told Spyro she now had to tell them.

"Before, back in the catacombs," she explained, "Right before we got knocked out by the gas, I heard some of the Apes saying that Gaul wanted me alive for some reason. I heard it just before I passed out."

"What?" Ember recoiled, "How can you be sure? None of us heard them say that."

"Spyro did," Cynder replied slowly with a touch of guilt, Ember's face blowing up in startlement, "I asked him about it later. He said he heard the same thing."

The pink dragoness's body quivered with anger as her scowl deepened, "Why didn't you tell us?" she demanded.

"Can we worry about it later?" Flame's muffled voice interjected, drawing the pair's attention to him as the red dragon stood off to the side, the large key clasped in his mouth like a dog with a bone. Cynder and Ember glared at each other as the tension simmered in the air, but they both knew it could wait until a better time.

"Right," the black dragoness nodded shortly as she looked between her two companions, "Let's find out what that key is for. It's probably for whoever we heard on the other side of that door!"

"Let's go then…" Ember remarked bitterly, eyeing daggers at Cynder as she turned and ran back down the room towards the grotto with the others close behind.

The trio entered back into the grotto, standing before the door to the dormitories where they had heard the sounds coming from earlier. Flame still held the mysterious key in his mouth as Ember and Cynder both took opposite sides of the doorway, listening again for any sounds of danger or distress. Cynder could not avoid the cold look Ember gave her as they inched close enough to the door for it to open, a sign that showed there were no intruders on the other side. Even still, the three hesitated as the listened closely for the sounds they had heard before.

"Anything?" asked Flame's garbled voice over the key in his mouth, the answer coming in the form of what sounded like smothered cries from around the corner.

"Someone's there, let's go!" Ember ordered as she took the lead, seemingly out of spite to Cynder as she and Flame followed, rounding the bend into the dormitories before coming to a swift halt as the source of the noise became apparent.

"Terrador!" the three exclaimed as the great Earth Guardian lay crammed halfway into Ignitus's sleeping quarters, constricted inside a large net with his limbs bound and a heavy iron muzzle covering his mouth. He was on his left side as they found him, his eyes lighting up as he saw them, renewing his fight against his bonds as his muffled shouting continued. The three young dragons rushed to his side, looking over the net he was trapped in as Terrador kept bobbing his head at the key Flame was clutching in his mouth.

"That's it! Find the lock for this thing!" Cynder cried when she noticed this, the three quickly spreading out around the Earth Guardian as they searched for the lock to the net. The answer soon became apparent as Terrador rolled on his back and thrust his four paws up to tighten the net, revealing the bundled end of the net with a weighty lock binding it shut.

"Okay, I got it!" Flame nodded as he clambered up on top of Terrador, reaching the lock on the net as he balanced on the Earth Guardian's unsteady mass. He spun the key in his mouth as he pointed the tip towards the lock and forced it in, turning it with his teeth as a heavy click signified it had worked. The lock fell away with the key in it onto Terrador' chest before falling to the floor as Flame leapt clear as the net loosened. The Earth Guardian shuffled to pry the net open, the three young dragons pulling with their teeth to help open the net. Soon his feet were free of the net, Terrador stretching his bound legs as much as he could to pull the net away as it was pulled down around him.

"Hold on, we'll help you!" Ember promised as he rolled on his side like they had found, Cynder moving to remove his muzzle while the others moved to untie his legs. Terrador kept trying to speak through his bound mouth as the black dragoness looked for a means to remove it. The muzzle was iron with a metal strap that clasped around the back of Terrador's head, which she found a had a lock similar to the net.

"Quick, give me that key!" she cried as Flame and Ember finished untying the Earth Guardian's back legs, the red dragon quickly scooping up the discarded key and bringing it to Cynder, who recoiled in disgust and quickly invited him to take over than have herself handle the key that had been in his mouth. Steeping aside, she went to aid Ember as Flame unlocked the muzzle, the heavy bonding hitting the floor hard as Terrador gasped a free breath of fresh air as his chest heaved.

"Well done, young dragons…" he gasped heartily, "Well done!"

"It's okay, we've got it!" Ember assured as she and Cynder untied Terrador's front legs, the Earth Guardian stretching out his legs as soon as the bonds fell away, the three young dragons scrambling back out of the way as he clambered onto his feet, his enormous weight seeming to shake the temple as his great wings stretched out, shaking off the numbness of being constrained.

"Are you alright, Terrador? Are you hurt?" asked Flame worriedly as the great green dragon shook his head as he swayed on his feet.

"Nothing that won't heal," he replied lowly, working his jaw after having it clamped for so long, "They gaged me when they grew tired of what I had to say to them. The filthy wretches…" Terrador paused when his eyes settled on the poor state of Cynder's wings, torn and streaked with blood.

"My heavens! Cynder, you are wounded!" he exclaimed.

"I'm fine!" she dismissed hurriedly, though her eyes failed to hide the lingering pain, "Was there anyone else here? Is Spyro here?"

Terrador cast a confused look at her as he forced himself to stand tall on his wary legs. "Spyro? No, I thought he was with you," he said as he craned his neck down to better look at the black dragoness's injuries, "You mean you don't know where he is?"

Cynder froze in shock at the Guardian's response, her soul seeming to leave her body as she stood like one of the temple's statues, prompting Ember to step up and take on Terrador's question.

"He was with us in Warfang, but he insisted that we split up and make our own way out. He said it would be safer for us if he went on alone…"

"He said that Ignitus wanted us to come here, that we'd all meet up," explained Flame further. Terrador eyed the trio gravely as Cynder finally blinked and seemed to come back to the world with the rest of them.

"What about Ignitus, Cyril, Volteer? Have you heard anything of them?" he queried sharply.

"Nothing," Ember answered again, "We have not seen or heard from any of them! Warfang is a battleground, we don't know what's happened to them…" she remarked in dismay.

"Calm down, young dragoness," Terrador advised her in a soothing tone, "From what I overheard, it seems they wanted all of us alive. If they have been captured like I was, that at least may be one ray of hope…"

"You mean," Cynder suddenly interjected as she strangely tilted her head as she gazed up at the Earth Guardian, "As prisoners?"

"Never mind that now," Terrador replied shortly, turning back to Cynder as he eyed her wings gravely, "Are you sure you are alright, Cynder? I don't think you could fly in that condition."

"F-Fly?" she stammered, "I don't know, I mean, I haven't tried…"

"The temple isn't safe anymore," Terrador continued, "There will surely be more Apes on the way and after that blast sapped my strength, I don't think I can hold them for long. We need to regroup, find some allies and learn the full situation."

"You mean leave?" Cynder asked frightfully, "But we can't leave! Spyro has not got here yet!"

"I'm sure he's okay," Flame said, trying to settle her, "Terrador, couldn't we wait a little while for him?"

"We can't be sure of what has happened to him or anyone else in Warfang," Terrador replied dismally, "If more Apes arrive while we are still here, we may not have another chance to escape. We must take it while we have it!"

"No, we can't!" Ember screamed in a blood chilling voice, "We can't just leave without him! He would never abandon any of us like that! We have to wait for him!"

Though her sentiments were shared by the young trio, the sheer weight of her conviction was undeniably admirable, even if Cynder suspected it was fueled by her bubble headed fantasy that she and Spyro were an item. Regardless, her tone influenced the Earth Guardian as he carefully chose his words.

"Indeed, he might not," he confessed straightforwardly, "But if there is one thing that Spyro has proved to us in the last few days, it is that he is capable of overcoming great odds. We have to trust that he can take care of himself. You three have done well yourselves by making it here, but we must escape while we can!"

"No, I won't leave!" Ember cried with near fanatical zeal, "Spyro will come soon, I know it!"

"Ember," Terrador said in a sterner tone, "My priority is to get all of you somewhere safe. If Spyro is on his way then we may soon find him, but for now we must save ourselves."

Cynder looked at him forlornly, "Are you really sure, Terrador?"

The Earth Guardian nodded slowly, "I am, Cynder. In your condition you won't be able to fly under your own strength, I'll have to carry you out. Now come, we must leave at once!"

With that, the great green dragon strode quickly out of the room, turning towards the doorway that led to the memorial garden as Cynder, Flame and Ember watched his hulking form move ahead of them. The three young dragons shared an anxious glance with each other as the full weight of what was about to happen crashed down on them.

"Are we really doing this?" Ember hissed in rage.

"What else can we do?" Flame asked despondently, "Terrador's not going to let us stay and wait."

"If Spyro could see us now," Cynder added solemnly, "He'd be telling us to go. He'd want us to be safe before anything else and you know it."

Ember rolled her eyes, "Oh, of course you'd know!" she growled coldly, "Apparently you two tell all your little secrets to each other!"

"Hey, come on!" Flame stepped in objectively, "We don't have time for this right now!"

"He's right," Cynder acknowledged heavily, "Look, I'll tell you both the full story later on, okay? Lets just get out of here and find Spyro."

Ember grumbled bitterly, "You should have told us from the start…"

Cynder curled her bottom lip uneasily as she felt the pink dragoness's glare skewer her, Flame leaning back as if to keep himself clear of its razor-sharp edge as a booming voice echoed down the hall to them, "Come, young dragons, there is no time to lose!"

They looked to see Terrador waiting for them just on the bend where the passage led outside, beckoning with his large head for them to follow on. The trio cast a three way look at each other, taking one last glance around the dormitory before they decided there was nothing left but to follow.

"Guess we'd better go them, come on!" Flame declared resignedly as he took off in a gallop towards Terrador, Ember and lastly Cynder following behind. She barely kept pace with her companions, weighed down by her heavy heart as she felt her body seeming to reject the notion that they should leave the temple without Spyro. She looked up mournfully at Terrador as she reached the first door of the hallway leading to the outside, his determined expression telling her that there was no point in hoping for a change of mind.

"Come along now," the Earth Guardian instructed as he turned his massive bulk around in the hall, the three young dragons pausing behind until he was ready to move on. Then together they moved down the hall and approached the outside door leading to the garden, Terrador motioning them to stop as he poked his head out of the round doorway and cautiously surveyed for any danger. After a few moments, he nodded to them and moved on, leaving the temple behind as they followed the path through garden towards the stairs to the memorial site.

"Where are we going to, Terrador?" asked Ember quietly as she seemed to stay closer to Flame and barely looked in Cynder's direction.

"We'll make for Avalar and contact the Cheetah's, unless they have been attacked as well," he replied unsurely.

"You sure Prowlus won't turn his spears on us for a change?" Cynder asked cynically, "He made it clear he didn't want dragons in the valley anymore."

"For his sake he'd better get over himself," Terrador remarked sternly as they crested the steps to the memorial site, "But I want you all to see this before we go…"

Before any of them could ask what he meant, the answer became obvious as the sunlight caught the golden memorial statue of Pyra and the Mole at Arms who fought to defend the temple, only for it to highlight the shocking desecration inflicted on it by the damnable Apes. Cynder, Flame and Ember all gasped as they saw the once proud edifice smashed and broken, the head of the figure of Pyra cut off and the Mole statues dented from hammer blows and the arms of the figures broken off or deformed. The dedication plague was unreadable after countless hammer blows, sword and axe slashes rippled across the sacred site.

"Those…those…" Ember remarked speechlessly, unable to find a suitable word to describe the perpetrators of such disrespect.

"This is evil!" Flame declared in a furious cry of disgust, "Even for Apes, this is just plain evil!"

Although similarly furious, Cynder could not make herself do anything but look at the carnage in front of her as she felt her blood boil to the heat of a white-hot iron. Her face was hardened with anger, her claws on pure emotion growing out from her toes, craving the chance to tear through anyone involved in the desecration.

"I want you all to remember this," Terrador said firmly as he scowled at the remains of the once proud statue, "Our enemies have no code and no honor. Remember that this will be the fate of all that we believe and hold dear if we allow them to win, and we will not let them win! Now let us get underway so that we might live to see the day we make them pay for this insolence!"

"Too right!" Flame agreed viciously.

"The sooner the better!" Ember declared right after. There was an expectation that Cynder would follow up with her own remark, but the black dragoness just stared ahead at the statue, seemingly too enraged to say anything. That was only half true, however, as although she viewed the vandalism of the statue with disgust, she was in fact thinking more deeply about the missing fourth member of their usual party.

'Please, Spyro, just show up here right now,' she thought hopelessly, 'Don't let us leave you like this…'

As Flame and Ember eyed her silence curiously, Terrador turned towards her and bent his head down in front of her, finally provoking a reaction from her as her eyes quivered and looked up to him.

"We have to go now," Terrador ordered sternly but softly, "Cynder, I'm going to carry you out; you cannot fly with your wings like that. Would you please turn around?"

"O-Okay," she nodded weakly, turning herself around as the Earth Guardian's shadow loomed over her. She felt him stand over her as he sat on his haunches, his massive forelegs closing carefully around her as she was soon gripped in his mighty front paws as his wings stretched out.

"Flame, Ember, stay close to me and keep your eyes open!" he instructed to them as he drew a deep breath into his colossal chest, hunching down on his back legs before propelling himself into the air, the speed of which startled Cynder as she was pulled in close to his hard underbelly. The downforce of his wings delayed Flame and Ember for a moment before they swiftly took off together and caught up with the Earth Guardian. Cynder looked down and saw the canopy of the mushroom forest growing distant by the second as they climbed near vertically into the sky, Flame and Ember speeding after them.

"Are you alright, Cynder?" Terrador's voice boomed over the loud rush of air passing over them.

"I'm alright!" she shouted back, though that wasn't really how she felt, but then she thought no one must be feeling alright given the events of the day. She was blinded as they passed through a cloud, emerging on the other side as Terrador levelled out and began flying straight on. Cynder looked around for Flame and Ember, seeing them appear through the same cloud and flying side by side just underneath Terrador, the pair looking up at her as she gave them a short wave. The red dragon gave a gentle smirk and wave back, whereas Ember gave only a cold nod of acknowledgment before looking straight at the sky in front of them. Cynder buried the sting of Ember's harshness, lifting her head to gaze around the sky as Terrador carried her onward, hoping she might see a tiny speck on the horizon that would evolve into the likeness of Spyro, coming to finally meet up with them like he promised he would.

Moments passed by and then minutes, the black dragoness looking down and seeing the dome of the dragon temple its surrounding mushroom forest fading further and further away as they flew on. She looked back towards the horizon, scanning for a tell-tale purple silhouette and great crimson Fire Guardian coming from the mainland, praying for the smiling round cheeks of Spyro's big purple head to appear. She yearned for Ignitus's wise voice to tell her and her friends that they would turn around the calamities of the day. She wished to see the purple dragon's kind amethyst eyes look into hers as he told her that she need not have feared, for like she had told him; he never let anyone down. Never could Cynder have imagined, she would still be wishing for all these things three years later… after Spyro and Ignitus died.

End of Chapter 2

Next Chapter: Cold Reflection