Chapter 122: Heart of the Dragon Part 1: Finding the Dragon
Six years ago
In a distant world, within a chasm in the shape of a dragon, called Kumandra, lived five tribes, each living in a separate section of the dragon shaped chasm and each named after a part of a dragon, which were: Fang, Heart, Talon, Spine, and Tail. In Heart, a girl was suiting up and got her weapons, sneaking over rooftops and into a secret area, forbidden for all but a select few to enter, where she examined the tunnel to see where to go before examining the passage way, checking for traps, which she found one as she put her hand onto one of the stone slabs, which sunk and she dodged out of the way, narrowly avoiding being captured by a hidden cage trap, smiling.
"Wow, someone's trying to be clever." The girl said, pulling out a small ball and tapping it, revealing to be a small furry creature in a shell like a roly-poly. "Alright Tuk Tuk, let's show them what clever really looks like."
She then released the little animal from her hand and the baby animal rolled across the floor, triggering the traps as he rolled along before getting distracted by an insect, which the girl got him back on track and triggered the last trap, crawling underneath the nets towards her little friend.
"Nice work Tuk Tuk." The girl said.
She then got up and examined the door, finding the locking mechanism to be a singular circle with many holes in it, so she took out the two wooden rods she brought with her and put them into the holes, turning the stone lock to align the image and allowing the door to open, finding a staircase with water that was flowing up the stairs instead of down them. She took her shoes off and walked up the stairs, being as quiet as possible as she ascended the stairs until she was at the very top, looking into the room and seeing a glowing blue gemstone, a glowing orb of magic that generated a lot of magic in the room, creating the water in it.
"Wow." The girl said. "The Dragon Gem. Wait a second." She then looked behind her, looking down the stairs as she tried to find something. "No way it's this easy." She then looked back to the stone and there stood a man wearing all black with a large sword and wearing a mask to hide his identity, the girl smiling. "Chief Benja. Look, I know you're going to try and stop me, but trust me, you won't."
"Do not mistake spirit for skill young one." Benja replied. "I promise, you won't set foot on the Dragon Gems inner circle. Not even a toe."
"Then you might want to take out that blade." The girl said. "You're going to need it."
"Not today." Benja replied. The girl took out her two wooden rods and spun them around, getting ready to fight the protector as she lunged for him, attacking with all her might, but every attempt to get past him failed as he blocked her way and her attacks, keeping up with the girl as she leapt around and leapt for the gem, but was always blocked at every turn and after a minute of fighting, the protector knocked the rods out of her hands and pointed his sheathed weapon at her, booping her nose playfully as a joke, removing his mask. "Like I said, not one foot on the inner circle. You lost Raya."
"Did I?" Raya asked.
The man looked down and to his surprise, Raya did have her toe on the inner circle, surprising the man as he looked to her.
"Raya." Benja said, helping her up. "I probably should have said two feet."
"Hey, don't beat yourself up too much Chief Benja." Raya replied. "You gave it your best."
"I won't." Benja replied. "And it's either father or Ba to you." He smiled at her still and put his hand on her shoulder. "I'm proud of you Dew Drop. You've passed the test."
He then moved out of the way so his daughter could get a look at the Dragon Gem, Raya in full amazement as she stared at it.
"Wow, the spirit of Sisu." Raya said, both her and her father kneeling to it.
"Generation after generation, our family has sworn to protect the gem." Benja said. "And today, you shall join that legacy." He then scooped some water up in his hands, making a cup as he looked to her. "Raya, Princess of Heart, my daughter, you are now a guardian of the Dragon Gem." He then poured the water onto his daughters head, the water droplets rolling down her head as she bowed her head before they levitated into the air, Raya in full amazement at what she was witnessing, watching the droplets circle around her and her father as they joined the water on the Dragon Gem, smiling at the honor she was given as she took in the sight of the Dragon Gem. "Come Raya, we have much preparation to do in the morning if we hope to unite Kumandra again."
Raya and her father then got up from the circle, her father wrapping his arm around his daughters shoulder as they walked out of the room and down the stairs, but as they descended, a golden light was shining in the room, floating down towards the Dragon Gem as it entered the mystical gemstone, the Symbol appearing on the gem before hiding itself so no one could see it.
Present Day
In the wastelands of Kumandra, a now grown up Raya was riding a mutated Armadillo along the wastelands towards a specific location, passing by multiple statues of stone people as she went, passing a cart that had a family who suffered a recent attack, seeing they were now statues, feeling sorry for them, but she kept going until she reached a cliff side, overlooking a vast canyon with a small river, near nonexistent as she pulled out a map, looking over the map of the land with symbols of the five different tribes and a lot of X's on the map, circling the tip of a tail as she looked to the dried up canyon.
"Please let this be it." Raya said. her friend Tuk Tuk was looking around for something to eat, Raya patting her only friend as she smiled. "Don't worry Tuk Tuk, we'll find you something to eat. Don't worry about it."
She then heard something break above her, looking up as she saw the sky was growing dark, worrying something was going to happen and something did happen, watching as from the dark clouds a ball of purple fire was falling from the sky and into the canyon she was overlooking, wondering what it was that fell from the sky as she rode Tuk Tuk down to check it out and see what it was. In the entrance of the canyon, a small crater near the nearly dried up river, a purple claw reached up and grabbed the ledge of the crater, pulling himself out of the crater and groaning as he rubbed his head, having a massive headache from hitting his head.
"Ugh, my head." Spike said, rubbing his head and looking around, finding himself in the mouth of the canyon. "Where... am I? And... how'd I get here?"
"Run." A voice said, though it was faint, freaking Spike out.
"Who's there!?" Spike shouted, looking around. "Who are you!?"
"Run." The voice replied, but this time louder, clearer, and familiar to the baby dragon. "Run Spike, run. RUN!"
A second later, a black and purple mist appeared right in front of Spike, screeching as it appeared and scarring Spike, causing him to fall on his rear, fumbling to get back up before getting up and running away, the dark mist following close behind the baby dragon, outrunning it, but toying with it's prey as it approached. Spike ran as far and as fast as his legs could carry him. As he was running away, he saw someone at the edge of the canyon, fear rising as he was running, wanting to stop, but the creature behind him was gaining and was getting closer.
"Keep running." The voice said. "Trust her."
Spike had no choice but to listen, running up to the woman as she stood her ground, both fearing the beast as Spike ran up to her and hid behind her, watching the creature get closer and closer towards them, but Raya pulled out a small glowing stone, which it didn't seem to like as it screeched in fear and terror, fleeing away from the woman and the baby dragon, leaving them alone.
"Wooh, thank you miss." Spike said, the woman putting the gem back in her pouch. "You saved me."
"No problem little guy." Raya said, kneeling down to him. "Wow, you're... a dragon."
"I am indeed." Spike said. "The name's Spike. And... you are?"
"Oh, I'm Raya." She replied. "Princess of Heart."
"You're a princess!?" Spike asked, completely shocked. "Wait, hold on, where am I anyway?"
"You... don't know?" Raya asked, Spike shrugging his shoulders. "This is Kumandra, the great chasm of the dragons. And we're close to the territory of Tail, who are a bunch of mercenaries who'll cut your throat if you're not careful."
"Then, why are we here?" Spike asked. "Or should I say, why are you here?"
"I'm looking for the legendary dragon, Sisu." Raya replied. "She's the only one who can help me fix this mess we're in. This is the last place I have yet to look, so I'm hoping she's here."
"Well, mind if I tag along?" Spike asked. "I don't fancy running into those things again without some protection."
"Well, I could use the company, so I guess it's alright." Raya replied. "Come on, follow me."
Raya and Spike got onto Tuk Tuk, which radar had to help the baby dragon up onto her ride as they rode deeper into the canyon to find Sizu, hoping she was where Raya says she'll be. Outside of the world, the Harmony came out of Warp space and approached the next world, which appeared to be a large wasteland with minimal water and trees with a massive dragon in the middle of it, everyone looking at it.
"Oh my, so drab." Rarity said. "Is this the next world we're to visit?"
"This is it." May replied, looking at the computer. "The coordinated put us here at this world, which the scanner says it's called... Kumandra. I don't believe it."
"What's so special about this world?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"This world is basically on the precipice of light and darkness." May replied, confusing everyone. "Five hundred years ago, this world once lived in harmony with dragons. Humans and dragons lived peacefully, coexisted with one another. The dragons provided the humans with water and with the weather while the humans helped to protect and worshiped them, making them feel special. However, there are a bunch of creatures known as the Druun, who fed off the life force from humans and all living creatures, multiplying with each one they take."
"I also heard about this world." Midnight said, walking to the console and hopping up, looking at it. "The Dark Overlord told me this world was destroyed after the last dragon was killed, the world swallowed by the darkness after the people continued to war against one another, the Drunn swallowing up all of the worlds life force."
"So, how do we prevent this from happening?" Fluttershy asked.
A moment later, Twilight's saddle bag started to glow, indicating the next riddle was ready as she took the book out and opened it.
"We're about to find out." Twilight replied, looking at the letters as they appeared. "Trust destroyed, anger and hate within, distrust for others not of her kin. A gem of blue, a symbol of the heart, warring clans fight where trust fell apart. Restore the trust with the clans of five, members of each are the key to restore the hope, to make the world alive."
"Sounds like this world is at war." Cadence said. "How are we going to restore trust when they possibly won't even talk to one another?"
"It won't be easy, that's for sure." Rosy said. "I can sense a lot of darkness down there, a lot of hate and... distrust."
"But what about Spike?" Twilight asked. "Can you sense him!?"
"I sense something." Rosy replied. "But... I'm unsure what it is. But it is familiar."
"Then it has to be him." Twilight said. "I'm going down."
"Hold on Twilight." May said, turning to her. "It's not exactly safe down there with the Druun around."
"I know, but Spike's possibly down there and is probably scared out of his mind!" Twilight exclaimed. "I'm going down."
"Then I'm going with you." May replied, getting up. "You'll need someone who knows how to use water magic."
"I'll also go." Rosy said. "Through the Force, I can help to keep us safe and avoid the Druun."
"I'll go as well." Midnight said.
"And why should we trust you?" Rainbow Dash asked. "You tried to kill us during Cider season!"
"Look, I know I did terrible things, but I want to do this." Midnight said, looking to the world below them. "I want to make up for them and I want to help find Spyro."
No one in the room had any reason to trust Midnight Sky, remembering some of the things she did, but Applejack walked up, hugging the unicorn and surprising her before smiling at her.
"Well Ah trust ya." Applejack said. "That's why Ah'm going with ya as well."
"Me too!" Pinkie exclaimed bouncing around. "My Pinkie sense might come in handy and I can help you to avoid all the baddies!"
"Alright, that's the limit of who I'm taking." May said, walking to the middle of the room. "We all ready?"
The five ponies walked into the middle of the room and she raised her Keyblade, surrounding them in a ball of light before shooting out of the cockpit and made their way to the world's surface. A little bit later, the light came down from the sky and towards the chasm Raya and Spike were in, the light touching the ground and fading, May and the ponies coming out of the light and seeing the canyon, though it was sunny, they felt cold, like they could feel something was about to happen.
"Why do I feel cold all of a sudden?" Midnight asked, looking around. "I'm never cold, at least when I'm out in the sun."
"That Midnight, is the darkness." Rosy replied. "You never felt this way because you were always in the darkness, until today."
"Well I don't exactly like it." Midnight said. "Any chance I can switch sides again?"
"Focus girls." Twilight said. "We need to find the Heart Piece and we need to find Spike, if he's here."
"Found him!" Pinkie said, looking to her left. "He's over there."
They all looked over to where Pinkie was pointing to and saw, to their disbelief, the baby dragon and he was walking with Raya towards a shipwreck, running towards them to call out to the baby dragon.
"So, you think this Sisu is here?" Spike asked.
"I hope so." Raya replied. "I've been searching for six years and haven't had any luck. This is the last place I haven't looked yet."
"Well, maybe you'll get lucky and find her." Spike said. "My friend Pinkie Pie is great with finding ponies, and dragons. Maybe-"
"Spike!" Twilight shouted.
Spike looked behind him and saw his friends, joy welling up inside of him, but Raya was immediately on the defensive, reaching for her sword, but saw Spike run up to them, laughing and giggling. As the group ran, Twilight ran faster than the rest of them, glad to see her assistant was alright and when they both go t close enough, Twilight hugged him as Spike hugged her back, both glad to see the other was alright.
"Twilight, I'm glad to see you again!" Spike said.
"I'm happy you're alright Spike." Twilight replied, looking up and seeing Raya walking towards them. "And... who's this?"
"Oh, this is Raya." Spike replied, ending the hug and walking up to her. "She saved me from a monster called a Druun."
"All I did was the right thing." Raya replied. "He came running away from a Druun and I had no choice but to protect myself and this little guy. And, who are all of you?"
"Oh, I'm Twilight Sparkle." Twilight replied. "These are my friends Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rosy Hearts, May, and Midngiht Sky. Though I don't fully trust her yet."
"Oh come on Twilight!" Rosy said.
"It's alright Rosy, I deserved that." Midngiht replied.
"Well, thanks for saving Spike." Twilight said. "But Spike, how'd you get here anyway?"
"Funny you should ask." Spike replied. "I'll explain as we go to the shipwreck"
They then started walking together towards the shipwreck, Spike talking as they walked.
Yesterday
In Equestria, Spike was finishing up cleaning the library before relaxing against the recently cleaned bookcase when he heard someone knocking, getting up and walking over to see who it was and was surprised to see Icy and Ember were there.
"Hey Spike." Icy said.
"Oh, hey girls!" Spike said excitedly. "Haven't seen you in a while. Where were ya?"
"We were at home." Ember replied. "We finally got permission to return home and visit our families. And, as expected, they aren't happy with us."
"Oh, how so?" Spike asked.
"Well, My father says I'm too soft and should have joined the raid." Icy answered. "Destroying the egg and the ponies, but I chose to help and protect them, so they don't want to see me again, ever."
"Same with mine." Ember replied. "Though my mom pleaded for me to be given a break, my father was adamant, refusing to let me come home until I bring the heads of the ponies who ruined the raid. Pfft, like I'm going to do that. I made a lot of friends here, better than what I had back home."
"I know right?" Spike asked, coming out of the tree house. "Who needs those other dragons anyway? They're nothing but jerks anyway."
"I know right?" Icy asked, looking to the ponies. "We also heard what happened to Spyro. How are the others doing?"
"Well, they're out there looking for his Heart Pieces." Spike replied, surprising the dragonesses.
"Wait, Heart Pieces?" Ember asked. "What Heart Pieces?"
"Apparently, Rosy scattered Spyro's heart into pieces, scattering them across the worlds." Spike replied. "Twilight and her friends are out there looking for them. Hopefully they found them, or at least some of them. Spyro... he was like the big brother I always wanted."
"Heh, we kinda guessed that." Icy said. "Any way, we wanted to-"
"Hey, what's that?" Ember asked, looking to her right.
The looked in the direction that Ember was looking in and saw what she was seeing, which was a Corridor of Darkness, but it looked unstable, moving irrationally and flickering as it tried to stabilize, but it never did, growing more and more unstable until it became got out of control and expanded, pulling in everything as it became unstable, catching the dragons off guard as they were suddenly pulled towards it, but Icy and Ember managed to dig into the ground, barely sliding towards the dark portal, but Spike wasn't as lucky. He flew straight for the Corridor of Darkness, rolling across the ground before he managed to dig his claws into the ground, stopping as the portal became unstable, shrinking as it collapsed on itself.
"Hold on Spike!" Icy shouted.
"I'm trying!" Spike shouted back.
However, he couldn't hold on as the force of the portal was pulling him in, his claws coming out of the ground as it pulled in whatever wasn't nailed down until he lost his grip and flew towards the portal, going through it as the Corridor closed, the dragonesses relieved that it was over, but horrified that Spike was sucked into the portal, wondering what happened to him and where he went.
Present day
"And then I flew through the portal and saw a container holding four Heart Pieces, a Hedgehog, a two-tailed fox, some weird red thing, and someone wearing the jacket from those organization guys." Spike said. "And before I knew it, I found myself here."
"Hmm, that's disturbing." May said.
"What does it mean?" Twilight asked.
"Well, Corridors of Darkness don't usually collapse like that." May answered. "I know, when I was still Malefor's little puppet, I would use those corridors to get from place to place, but they never collapse like that. Not unless someone's trying to open one, but doesn't know how to properly use the darkness yet."
"So what does that mean for us?" Applejack asked.
"Oh, oh, maybe it means there's another EVIL baddie bad guy out there, who discovered the darkness and is trying to figure out how to make their own portals!" Pinkie suggested.
"Pinkie!" Twilight exclaimed.
"No, she might be one to something." Rosy replied.
"What do you mean Rosy?" Midnight asked.
"I sense a disturbance in the Force." Rosy replied. "A strong disturbance in the Force."
"Well, whatever it is, we'll worry about it later." Twilight said. "So Raya, what happened to this place anyway?"
"The other clans, that's what." Raya replied. "I come from Heart, which is the place where the Dragon Gem resided, and it was my home. My father, who was the leader of Heart, wanted to bring the clans together and make Kumandra whole again, like it was five hundred years ago."
"Wait, you're a princess!?" Pinkie exclaimed excitedly.
"I am." Raya replied. "I was Princess of Heart, before the other clans came and ruined the little harmony we had."
"How'd that happen?" Applejack asked.
"Well, it all happened when I decided to trust someone from Fang." Raya replied. "Her name is Namaari, the princess of Fang, and when she and the other clans came, we had a celebration, hoping to make peace and bring the people together. I even had fun and played with Namaari, believing she wanted to be my friend as we both have a love for dragons."
"Then you'd like Spyro!" Pinkie said. "He's actually a dragon himself!"
"He is!?" Raya asked with surprise. "What kind!?"
"We're getting off topic." May said. "Raya, what happened after that?"
"I took her to the chamber where the Dragon Gem was." Raya replied. "I showed her the gem, but then she attacked me, betraying our friendship and stealing the Dragon Gem. I protected the gem as best I could, but she had backup, bringing soldiers, but my father came and stopped them."
"Why do I feel there's a 'but' somewhere in there?" Midnight asked.
"But, the other clans came and then my father got injured." Raya continued. "As a result, I tried to help him, but the other clans pushed through and tried to take the gem, breaking it into five different pieces, but something strange happened."
"What happened?" Twilight asked.
Raya kept on walking forward towards the shipwreck with everyone else, remembering the day that her home was lost and the gem was destroyed.
Six Years Ago
Raya was still young when she took Namaari to the Dragon gem, which her 'friend' betrayed her and her soldiers came to get the gem, but her father got in the way, but a moment later, the other clans came in with their weapons drawn, all claiming they should have the gem, which Raya got ready to fight as her father was in the way, looking back to Raya and then to the grey, noticing something was going on with it.
"Listen to me!" Benja said, getting their attention. "Everyone, please listen. We all have a choice. We can continue to tear each other apart until we all die, or we can come together and build a better world." He then sheathed his blade, which made the people looked at him, thinking this was a trick before a few lowered their weapons. "We can still can still be Kumandra again. It's not too late, for this is something I still believe."
The other tribesmen looked at him, his words reaching a few of them as they lowered their weapons, thinking about what he said, but then someone raised a crossbow and fired, which he deflected the bolt, but it hit his leg, causing him pain as he fell.
"Pa!" Raya shouted, running to him.
However, this gave the other people an opening, rushing past and knocking them over as they all wrestled for the gem, which it slipped it of everyone's hands and fell to the ground, smashing into five as Raya said, but when it smashed, the blue light turned red, crimson mist swirling over the shattered gem pieces as the symbol appeared in the mist, everyone backing away from the mist.
"Anger, hatred, distrust." A mysterious voice said. "Your greed, need for power, and your ill will against each other have separated a once great people, bringing the Druun to your world. Now they will return and with them, the extinction of your world!"
The symbol them disappeared as the gem returned to blue, the earth shaking as cracks appeared in the floor, moving along the wall until it reached a dragon statue, causing it to fall and shatter into dozens of pieces, the people freezing as they looked to the shattered statue, feeling cold as all of a sudden, a Druun appeared from the shattered statue, screeching out and causing everyone to back away.
"Druun!" Benja shouted.
One of Fang's soldiers tried to fire a crossbow bolt into the Drunn, trying to kill it, but the bolt passed through the Druun as the Druun passed through him, taking his life force and turning him into a statue, with his head bowed and cupped his hands together, scaring everyone until Benja grabbed one of the gem pieces and held it up t the Druun, freaking it out and forcing it to back away, showing everyone there was still some magic in it, so each member of a clan reached for and grabbed a piece and bolted for the door, Raya running towards her father and helping him up and away from the Druun, crossing over the small stones in the pond that acted like stepping stones, crossing it and as soon as the Druun touched the water, it shrieked in pain, backing away.
"They're repelled by water." Benja said.
Raya helped her father out of the room and outside of the city, dragging him across the bridge as the people ran for their lives, trying to flee from the Druun, encouraging her father to keep running, but he looked around, finding chaos and panic everywhere, wondering if there was more to be done when time suddenly slowed down, looking around before looking to his daughter, wondering what was going on.
"With the Druun free, darkness has returned to this world." A voice said.
Benja looked behind him and from behind, he saw Spyro, walking towards him as he touched his Keyblade on the Druun, which seemed to cause it to sizzle and burn, though the Druun couldn't move, wondering who he was.
"Who are you?" Benja asked. "Why has time stopped?"
"Because I stopped it." Spyro replied, approaching them. "With the Druun freed, nothing will stop them from taking over. Well, almost nothing."
"What do you mean?" Benja asked.
"The gem can be made whole again." Spyro replied. "But only when the five become one. Five pieces, five clans, five people, putting their trust in one another."
"But... no one trusts anyone these days." Benja replied, looking to the gem fragment. "Five hundred years ago, Sizu created the gem to stop the Druun and bring the people together. But instead they fought over the gem, wanting its power for their own self interests."
"Such is human nature these days." Spyro replied, putting his hand on his shoulder. "Humans aren't perfect. Some are greedy, selfish, cruel, even pure evil, but that doesn't mean there isn't hope for all humanity." He then put his hand on the gemstone, power shining inside of the magic gem and surprising the leader of Heart. "Your daughter has a role to play in the destruction of the Druun. She and four others will defeat the Druun and bring the dragons back. All she needs to do is let go and put her faith in others, not just in herself. She must learn to trust others, despite where they come from or who others say they are because only when she lets go, will the light return."
A moment later, he let go of Benja's shoulder and time resumed, stopping suddenly as Raya stopped with him.
"Pa, come on!" Raya said. "We have to go! We need to hurry!" Benja then looked back, watching one of his people get turned to stone before someone else fell victim to them. "We need to go. I'll help you."
"Raya, you must listen." Benja said, holding his daughter. "You are the guardian of the Dragon Gem now."
"W-what?" Raya asked. "Father why are you saying this?"
"The gem still has light in it." Benja replied, giving the stone to her. "There's still hope!"
"No, we can still make it!" Raya replied. "We can make it together!"
"Raya..." Benja said, putting the gem in her hands. "Don't give up on them. Let go of your hate, trust them. Only when the five are made one will the Druun be defeated."
"Pa, that doesn't make any sense!" Raya replied.
"It will Dew Drop." Benja replied, kissing her head. "It will. I love you little Dew Drop."
He then picked her up and tossed her over the bridge, time seemingly slowing down as she watched the Druun pass over him, screaming out to her father as she fell into the river, the rapids taking her down stream as the Druun continued hunting for anyone in sight, Raya swimming to the shore and looking to the bridge, seeing her father and breaking down crying, holding the gem in her hand.
"It's all my fault." Raya said. "I shouldn't have trusted Namaari. I shouldn't have trusted any of them! We shouldn't have trusted them! I hate them! I hate them all!"
"You don't really mean that, do you Dew Drop?" Spyro asked, freaking Raya as she looked around.
"Who's there!?" Raya shouted. "Who are you!?"
"Quiet." Spyro replied, his voice echoing. "Or the Druun will find you."
"Where... are you?" Raya asked.
"Come to the water." Spyro replied, Raya looking to the river. "Sit with me. Don't worry, I won't hurt you."
Raya was skeptical at first, but then did as he asked, walking to the water and looking into it, seeing a reflection of herself and then one of Spyro, sitting criss-cross and calm, Raya freaking out as she looked to her right, but saw no one, looking back to the water.
"How...?" Raya asked.
"You hold a piece of the Dragon Gem." Spyro replied. "That means you can see me, but only when you're near water."
"Who are you?" Raya asked.
"I am Spyro, and I'm here to help you." Spyro replied.
"How?" Raya asked. "Can you defeat the Druun!? Can you reverse this!?"
"No." Spyro replied, crushing her spirits. "But I can tell you how to defeat them."
"How?" Raya asked.
"The gem is what held the Druun at bay, but now it's destroyed." Spyro replied. "You'll need help repairing it."
"But, who will help me?" Raya asked.
"Follow the water." Spyro replied, getting up. "Find the last dragon. Then, and only then, will your journey begin. When you find her, return to the river and I will instruct you further."
"Please, tell me how to find Sisu and repair the gem!" Raya pleaded.
"Only when the five are one, restored by trust, will the Druun be made undone." Spyro replied.
Spyro then disappeared from the water, leaving Raya alone, but she wasn't truly alone as Tuk Tuk crawled up her shoulder, purring as she wiped the tears away, determined to find Sizu.
Present Day
"And that's basically how it happened." Raya replied.
"Wow, I... I don't know what to say." Twilight said.
"That was awful!" Applejack said. "Ya'll lost yer father and were betrayed by yer friend."
"She's not my friend." Raya replied. "She betrayed my trust and now look what happened."
"I know the feeling." Midnight replied. "I also trusted someone and they turned out to be a snake. But I then found someone else who I can trust. Someone I can call friend."
"Yeah, so turn that frown upside down Raya!" Pinkie said, appearing from her hat and confusing her. "Just because one pony turned out to be a big old meanie, doesn't mean everyone else is like that!"
"And how would you know?" Raya asked, picking Pinkie up and putting her down, taking her hat back before looking to the shipwreck. "Six years of searching and we find ourselves at a literal shipwreck. That's not a bad sign, is it?"
"Depends on how you see it." May replied.
They soon arrived at the shipwreck and found a small hole in the hull of the ship, everyone climbing through it, but Tuk Tuk was too large for the hole, pushing as hard as he could, but couldn't get through, looking frustrated as the group walked through the wreck, following Raya as she followed the water all the way to a wall, where the tiny stream went into a crack in the wall.
"A wall?" Midnight asked. "We came all this way for a wall? Wow, interesting."
"Midnight." Rosy said.
"This has to be it." Raya said, walking to the wall and removing her boots. She approached the wall and started laying out different items from some plants to a parchment that had an image of Sizu, filling a bowl with some kind of herbs with a dragon over the bowl before pulling out a bottle of water, uncorking it. "Here goes... everything."
She then started pouring the water, singing an incantation as she poured the water, though no one knew the language, so they couldn't determine what she was singing, watching as Raya poured the last drop as she finished the incantation, praying as she waited for something to happen, everyone else watching and fearing for her.
"Well, that was a bust." Midnight said.
"Well, maybe she sang the song wrong!" Pinkie said.
"I don't think so." Rosy replied, turning to the entrance. "I sense something."
"What do you sense, danger!?" Midnight asked.
"Nope, no danger!" Pinkie replied. "My Pinkie Sense would have gone off."
As she said it, she started shivering, letting them know something unexpected was going to happen, so they summoned their Keyblades, ready for anything when Twilight looked to Raya, wanting to warn her something was coming when she saw the tiny stream had stopped, wondering what was going on when it started flowing backwards, nudging May to look and when she did, everyone else looked and were shocked by what they saw, seeing the water flow before droplets, large and small, levitated into the air, shocking them.
"Raya..." Spike said.
"Don't worry Spike." Raya said. "Nothing's going to happen."
"Then tell the water that." Midnight replied.
Raya's eyes shot open, turning to look behind to see what Midnight was talking about and to her surprise, she saw the water levitating in the air, all forming up into a single line before gathering to a larger orb, collecting until blue mist shot out, blocking their view for a moment before the mist cleared up, revealing a water dragon with a large horn on her head.
"Oh my, where am I" The dragon asked. "Pingu, Amba, Pranii? Where are you?"
"Oh mighty SIsu!" Raya announced, holding her hands up as a circle.
"Who said that!?" Sisu asked, looking around, but ended up smacking Raya and May onto the ground, coming out of the mist to see who was there. "Hello?"
"Ow." May said, getting Sisu's attention.
"Oh, sorry, didn't see you there." Sisu said, picking them up and dusting them off.
"By the ancestors, you're... you're..." May said, trying to find the right words.
"You're... Sisu!" Raya said.
"And you're... people!" Sisu said, putting them down. "Actually people! What are your names?"
"I'm Raya." Raya replied. "And this is May."
"And you're not made of stone." Sisu said. "Which means... IT WORKED! IT WORKED! DID YOU HEAR THAT PINGU!? IT WORKED! Hey, you guys got any food?"
"Right here!" Pinkie said, pulling out some cinnamon rolls.
"Oh, thanks little pony." Sisu said, putting Raya and May down. "I was so focused on saving everything that I..." She then froze as soon as she tried to take a bite, looking back to Pinkie, who waved her hoof. "Um, did that pony just talk?"
"Yes indeedily do!" Pinkie replied, freaking Sisu out.
"WOW, O...k." Sisu said. "Not the strangest thing I've seen today."
"Today?" Raya asked. "What day do you think it is?"
"Tuesday." Sisu replied, taking the Cinnamon roll and eating it. "Hey, this is pretty good! What is this thing!?"
"A cinnamon roll!" Pinkie replied. "I got tons of different kinds of pastries!"
"Oh, I like her already." Sisu said, finishing off the roll. "What's your name pink pony?"
"I'm Pinkie Pie!" Pinkie replied. "And these are my friends! Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rosy Hearts, Midnight Sky, and Spike!"
"Oh my goodness, a baby dragon!" Sisu said, picking him up. "Oh, he's so adorable! Hey, where'd you come from? Where's your parents?"
"From Equestria." Spike replied, which Twilight used her spell to zip his lips together, making a literal zipper.
"Equestria?" Sisu asked. "Why does that sound familiar?"
"Sisu, there are a few things we need to catch you up on." Raya said.
"Oh yeah, like what?" Sisu asked.
Raya looked to May, who motioned it was all her before looking to the ponies, equally as nervous and refusing to say anything.
"Well, the thing is... you've been asleep for five hundred years." Raya said.
"Five hundred years?" Sisu asked. "Wow, talk about a Power Nap. Are any of the other dragons back?"
"No, they're not." Raya replied, concerning Sisu. "They never came back."
"Seriously!?" Sisu asked, looking more concerned. "And the gem? Is it alright?"
"Funny you should mention that." Raya said, trying to figure out how to explain it.
"What happened to the gem?" Sisu asked, raising an eyebrow.
"It sort of... it broke." Raya replied.
"YOU BROKE IT!?!?" Sisu shouted, Tuk Tuk falling over while the ponies, except for Rosy and Midnight, dove for cover. "Oh, oh my, this is bad. I've been asleep for five hundred years, you brought back the Druun, none of my brothers and sisters came back. Why didn't they come back!?"
"I don't know." Raya replied.
"Well, this is fantastic!" Sisu said. "Breaking the gem brings back the Druun and will doom the world!"
"I still have a large chunk of it." Raya said, pulling it out.
"Is that supposed to make me feel better!?" SIsu exclaimed. "If I said I lost a puppy and you said 'Well we still have a large chunk of it's will that make you feel better!?"
"Nope, it wouldn't!" Pinkie replied, bouncing to her. "But, can't you just make another one?"
"No, I can't just make another one." Sisu replied. "Doesn't work like that."
"But you're a dragon." Twilight said. "Our best friend is a dragon and he can do anything."
"Wait, your friend's a dragon?" Sisu asked, looking to Spike.
"Don't look at me, they're talking about Spyro." Spike replied.
"Who's Spyro?" Sisu asked.
"Nt the point right now, why can't you make another gem?" May asked.
"Well, I'll be real with you guys." Sisu replied. "I'm not exactly the best dragon to have."
"But you saved the world." Raya said, holding up the parchment.
"Yeah, I did do that." Sisu replied. "But... you ever have a group project and there was that one kid who didn't pitch in as much, but ended up with the same grade?"
"Back in school, had somethin' like that." Applejack said.
"Yeah, so, I didn't exactly make the gem." Sisu said, picking the piece up. :Yeah, all I did was turn it in."
A moment later, Sisu started to glow, catching everyone off guard as she glowed, lighting up the entire room.
"Wow." Raya said. "Sisu, you're... you're glowing."
"Aw, thank you." Sisu said, looking happy. "I use Aloe and river slime to maintain my-"
"No, she means you're literally glowing!" Twilight said. "Look!"
Sisu looked down at herself and looked happy, almost cheering for joy as she leapt around and held onto her tail.
"This is my little sister Amba's magic!" Sisu said. "I got the glow!"
"Wait, your little sister's magic?" Rosy asked.
"Yeah, each dragon has a unique kind of magic." Sisu replied.
"Wait, if that's so, what kind of magic do you have!?" Pinkie asked.
"I'm a really strong swimmer." Sisu replied, sounding proud of herself.
"Ok?" Raya replied. "Wait, if you touched this gem and gained her powers... you know what this means!?"
"That I don't need a nightlight anymore?" Sisu asked.
"No, of course not that." Raya replied. "You're still connected to the gems magic, which means you can still save the world! All we need to do is get the other pieces and-"
"I can reassemble the gem and boom the Druun away!" Sisu said, finishing the sentence before looking at the gem piece, seeing something in it. "Hey wait a minute, I don't remember this being in the gem."
"Wait, what is it?" Twilight asked.
"Have a look." Sisu replied.
She passed the gem to Twilight, who picked it up with her magic and looked at it, examining the piece until she saw what Sisu was talking about. To her surprise and pleasure, she saw a piece of the Symbol in the gem, a corner of the triangle with the Pegasi head, screeching for joy as she bounced around.
"YES!" Twilight screamed, surprising everyone else. "Yesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyes!"
"What is it Sugarcube?" Applejack asked. "What's got ya so excited?"
"Everypony, look!" Twilight replied. They all crowded around to see what she was happy about and saw what she did, the piece of the symbol in the gem. "The Dragon gem... it holds a piece of Spyro's heart!"
"Wow, wow, wow, back up there." Sisu said. "What is this about a heart?"
"Well, Spyro lost his heart and it's been scattered into twelve different pieces." Twilight replied. "We're out here looking for the Heart Pieces and already have seven of them."
"And a piece of your friend's heart is in the Dragon Gem?" Raya asked.
"Exactly!" Twilight replied. "Once we reassemble the gem, Spyro's Heart Piece will be made whole and we can get it!"
"Uh, hate t burst your bubble, but that won't exactly be easy." Raya said. "The other four clans have the pieces and I doubt they'll give them up without a fight."
"Why fight?" Sisu asked. "Can't we just explain what we need the pieces for?"
"You don't know nothing about the other clans." Raya replied. "They're the reason that the gem broke in the first place. My Ba tried to bring them together to bring Kumandra together, but they fought over the stone because they wanted its power and broke it, releasing the Druun. If we're going to reassemble the gem, we need to do it by force and retake the gems."
"Well, what about what Spyro said to you?" Midngiht asked. "That only when the five are made one, restored by trust, will the Druun be made undone?"
"Wait, he talked to you?" Sisu asked, looking creeped out. "A dead guy talked to you? Where's a talisman and some rosemary when you need it because that is creepy."
"He sometimes comes to us when we need help." Twilight said. "He gives advice and helps us when we ask for it. But, how are we going to get to the gem pieces?"
"Well, we're near Tails territory, and we're near their leaders home and the docks, so I guess we start there." Raya said.
"Well what are we waiting for!?" Pinkie asked. "Let's go!"
Pinkie then bounced through the roof of the shipwreck, leaving everyone speechless as they walked back the way they came, heading out of the shipwreck to get to Tail. On Mobius, the Overlord was finishing downloading information as a Conquerer walked in with information that the Overlord needed to hear.
"Overlord, scans indicate that the group collecting the Heart Pieces have arrived at the next world." The Conquerer said.
"There is an error in your logic circuits." The Overlord said. "I already have knowledge of their arrival."
"Apologies Overlord, but you must know, they're at a world that is about to disappear." The Conquerer replied. "If it disappears, then the pieces will be lost."
"Hmm, this information is quite disturbing." The Overlord said. "If the Heart Pieces disappear, then my plan will fail. Send the Heavy Armored Assault Walker to collect the pieces and bring them to me."
"Error 404: Page not fund." The Conquerer replied. "Our previous test on opening the corridors have failed and was opened in another world, nearly causing a collapse."
"The frequencies were off is all." The Overlord replied. "I have done some tuning and experimenting and have found the correct frequency to open a Corridors of Darkness. Once it is opened, send the HA-AW through and collect all the pieces."
"Confirmed." The Conquerer replied. "It shall be carried out."
The Conquerer turned and left the room, leaving the Overlord to continue its calculations alone as he made plans for what to do with the Heart Pieces.