Chapter Thirteen Between Lightning and a hot place

The silence that engulfed the group following Glory's confession could only be

described as eerie. Every dragon was silent for different reasons however. Toothless

was staring at Glory as if she was the missing piece of a puzzle, which she was. She

was the final Guardian they had been looking for. Toothless was filled with shock yet

relief at first, but a sense of doubt filled his mind, at the idea that Glory hadn't

admitted this fact earlier. This doubt wasn't filled by betrayal as Sisu or Spyros were,

rather it was filled with speculation, as to why she hadn't presented herself as the

Nightwing Queen when they had first met. Was she ashamed of this fact? Toothless

could only ponder for a moment longer though, as the dragon who was most

shocked and enraged by this news made his confusion apparent.

"WHAT?" Charizard roared, causing birds to scatter in fear. "That's impossible!

You're a rainwing! How could you be ruler of the Nightwings?!" Glory placed a wing

over her head, suspecting that this was coming.

"About a year ago, there was an…incident with the Nightwing tribe." The guardians

turned to see that Pineapple was still there. "Their tribe needed a new home, and

Glory agreed to let them if they accepted her as their new queen." Glory nodded in

agreement, yet she didn't look proud or even happy about that fact. "Their old queen,

Queen Battlewinger, didn't approve though," she elaborated, before looking out

towards the forest. "She died when the volcano erupted." While Toothless didn't need

an explanation, and Spyro frankly didn't care, Sisu started to put the pieces together

"Oh. OH!" she cried, looking at Glory with wide eyes. "So you're the one we had to

find!" Spyro rolled his eyes, but Charizard didn't notice, as he turned towards Sisu in

disbelief. "WHAT?! NO she isn't! The prophecy called for a dragon who's 'mystique

fills her flight', not a dragon who sleeps in the light!" Both Sisu and Spyro had to

muffle their laughter, while Toothless winced a little, as Glory's scales changed into

shades of red. "Well I'm sorry If I'm a disappointment, but I'm not going to apologise

for protecting my tribe." She then directed her attention towards Sisu and Spyro, who

immediately ceased laughing and regained serious expressions. "If you ask me, I

would double check your prophecy, since I've had my fair deal of prophecies which

have ended up fake." Charizard's tail erupted, as he clenched his snout in fury.

"This isn't some amateur conducted riddle, this is the safety of every realm and

dragon who inhabits them!"

Toothless could tell things were going to get worse if this discussion continued, and

after what had happened in Warfang, Toothless didn't want to waste time arguing.

"Look, it doesn't matter what the prophecy says." he insisted, getting between Glory

and Charizard. "If Glory is the queen of the Nightwings now, then that means she's

the last Titanwing we need right?" Before Charizard could respond, Glory's scales

shifted to a combination of blue and white with undertones of green. "Woah, woah

woah, hoard your scavengers," she demanded, putting her talons in the air. "First of

all, I can safely assure you I am not, repeat, NOT going anywhere with a group of

dragons I just met." She pointed accusingly towards the four, causing Sisu to place a

talon against her chest. "Second of all, how can you even be sure I'm the 'titanwing'

you've been looking for? We don't even know what Titanwings are!" Despite seeming

hurt by Glory's remark, Sisu steped forward with a pleading look."Please your

majesty. If you don't help us, then this could happen to every dragon in this forest." In

response, Glory turned towards her with a dumbfounded look.

"You think I don't understand that?" She rebounded, the panic she was feeling now

evident in her tone. "That's why I should be here to protect my people, instead of

running off with a bunch of strange dragons to do who knows what!" Now Toothless

himself was starting to panic. It had been tough to win Spyro's favour, but it seemed

less and less likely they were going to persuade the rainwing queen. "Queen Glory, I

understand how you're feeling." Toothless appealed, with Sisu turning towards him,

sensing the desperation in his voice. "I was in the exact same boat as you when I

learnt about the prophecy and the existence of the realms." Before Toothless could

continue, Glory turned towards Toothless with an accusing look. "Then why are you

here?" she demanded, as red flashed through her scales. "Why didn't you stay to

defend your friends? To defend your family!" Toothless moved his head back, as his

eyes widened at the memories of losing Stormfly and Light Fury materialised. As the

pain set in, Toothless looked away, shutting his eyes and clenching his teeth in

agony. Engulfed in sympathy, Sisu nuzzled herself against Toothless, entwining her

tail with his. Glory saw that she had taken things too far, as her scaled changed from

rebellious red to melancholy blue and white. "I'm- I'm sorry I didn't mean it like that,"

she remorse, before hanging her head and sighing. "it's just…"

"Guys!" Spyro shouted, causing every head to point upwards and look at the purple

dragon. "Why are we even fighting about this? If this Elderess guy is the one who

can awaken our powers, can't we just travel to him right now and then come back."

Sisu turned towards the boy, and nodded in enthusiasm.

"That's a good idea, Spyro. Charizard, how many crystals do we…" Sisu's voice

halted as she turned to face Charizard, only to find the fire dragon was no longer

there. "Charizard?" Toothless, Spyro and Glory also turned towards where Charizard

had been, before looking around, seeing no signs of him. "Where did he go?" Spyro

questioned, as Toothless looked around frantically.

"Your weird fire dragon?" Deathbringer questioned, causing the guardians to turn

towards him. "He left while you were all arguing. Went that way." As Deathbringer

pointed out in the forest, Spyro stomped up to him with an annoyed expression. "You

think maybe you should have told us that earlier?!" Toothless didn't care however, as

the Night Fury immediately jumped off the platform, flying into the forest below.

"Charizard! Wait!"

Despite being unsure of his master's desires, once Kandikis was fully informed, he

understood completely, despite his initial shock. "All this time," Kandikis started,

while looking at the ground. "This entire time, he tricked everybody." Malefor did not

respond, yet he, Sentinel and Gargoyle Light Fury looked at him in silence, as the

fallen dragon pondered. Then he chuckled, before the chuckle gave way to a laugh,

and after a few moments, Kandikis was laughing like an asylum patient. "Of

COURSE!" he cackled. "It all makes sense now! What deceitful intelligence!"

Malefor's glare intensified, as he watched the scene unfold. "Now you understand

the truth, my servant." Malefor amused, as Kandikis turned towards him. "Indeed I

do, and fear not, your majesty," Kandikis proclaimed, bowing elegantly as his ropes

moved in sync with his body. "I will not fail you." Malefor shadow altered, as the

shape of his fist clenching became clear. "Ensure you do not. Once the guardians

are dead, find Elderess and his temple, and gather as many crystals as possible to

fuel the shadow Ether for my return." Hearing Malefor's demand caused Kandikis to

go wide eyed, as he looked up in awe. "You…you will return to the living realm?" As

Kandikis looked in shock, Malefor turned towards the sky, watching as smoke exited

the volcano's walls. "For many generations, I have watched as the realms have

forgotten me and my power, all because of those who denied me my destiny."

Malefor turned towards Kandikis and his troops, who all hung their heads in respect

for their master. "But now they're perfect worlds have become fractured without their

guidance, and amidst their chaos, I will claim my revenge and fulfil my purpose."

By the time Toothless had caught up with Charizard, the sun had well and truly set, casting

darkness over the Rainforest kingdom. This partly worried Toothless, given the Drunn would

be more active, yet his frustrated confusion prevailed. "Charizard!" the disgruntled Night Fury

roared, receiving no response from the prevailing fire dragon. "Charizard, where in Berk are

you going?!" Toothless roared, unaware that Sisu and Spyro were following behind.

Charizard didn't stop, yet he replied bluntly to the Night Fury's question. "To find answers."

Toothless' mouth dropped in confusion. "What are you talking about?" He shut his eyes,

lifting his wings against his head as he gritted his teeth. "You said to yourself it's not safe out

here at night, so why are you journeying off into a forest in the middle of the night?!"

Charizard grunted, as he tilted his head towards the Night Fury. "That Rainwing can't be the

last guardian! It goes against all logic that she's even queen of the Nightwings!" The fire

dragon's reasoning caused Toothless to grit his teeth harder. "Arrrgh! That's why you're

wandering around here! Look, whether or not she's the guardian or not, going to who knows

where isn't any better!" Charizard didn't respond, and Toothless looked up at the fire dragon

in desperation. "Do you even know where you're going!" Charizard turned his head once

more, yet didn't stop. "A rainwing said the Nightwing village is just across a river ahead. I'll

find answers there." Toothless was in disbelief. Charizard was going to get himself, or worse,

the rest of them killed or turned to stone, all over some vague words apart from a piece of

scripture. Toothless knew reasoning wasn't going to work, but there was one thing he could

do to stop the fire dragon.

"No!" Toothless roared, causing Charizard to stop in his tracks. Sisu and Spyro looked

between each other with worried expressions, as Charizard turned towards Toothless with a

dangerous expression.

"What did you just say?" A streak of flame left the dragon's mouth as he growled, and while

Toothless cowered slightly on the inside, he stood strong and kept his ground.

"I said no," Toothless repeated in a firm tone, standing up tall and straightening his wings by

his side. "As king, I forbid you from going on a wild goose chase on your own." Charizard

rose an eyebrow, before smirking in an unfriendly tone. "Oh, so now you decide you want to

be a king." His smirk then disappeared, as smoke exited the gaps between his teeth. "How

ironic it's to sabotage the very reason you're here in the first place!" Toothless flared his

wings open in response. "The only reason I came here was to save my family!" Toothless

stopped for a moment upon realising what he had just said, before frowning and shaking his

head. "You know what? Yeah, you're right! I don't care about being king! I didn't even want to

be king in the first place!" The Fury's revelation shocked Sisu. She thought Toothless' pain

had only been due to him being separated from his home, yet she never would have

expected the problem to be this deep. "Then why did you listen to me?" Charizard roared, as

he fully turned around with an enraged yet confused expression. "You could have journeyed

into the realms on your own, yet you helped find the Guardians, so you are their leader!"

Toothless' frown lowered with an expression of doubt. "You don't believe that!" he roared.

"You never believed that! From the first moment we've met, you've doubted every action I've

made!" Now Charizard's brow lowered, as his tail flame began to grow. "I did! But I followed

you because I needed you! Because you were the only chance I had of even salvaging this

prophecy!" Charizard then turned around, clutching his face as he shut his eyes in

frustration. "But of course, just like everything else, that's gone up in flames!" Toothless

audibly groaned, rolling his eyes so hard they could leave his head. "Oh for the love of, WHY

do you care about this stupid prophecy so much?" Toothless demanded, before marching

right up to Charizard back. "What could be so blastedly important, that you've been

shovelling than crap down our throats for days on end?!" Without warning, Charizard's tail

flame exploded, as the dragon spun towards Toothless with bared teeth.

"BECAUSE MY FAMILY BELIEVED IN IT!"

The forest fell silent for a brief moment. Not a single animal was audible due to the argument

between their predators. Toothless was staring at Charizard with a shocked expression,

while Sisu and Spyro were also watching from the back, with wide eyes and gaping mouths.

"You want to know why I'M here Night Fury? Because my parents decided it to be so!"

Charizard's tail had set a few weeds on fire, yet a moat of mud that surrounded the patch

prevented the blaze from spreading. "From the moment I hatched, I was chosen as the

dragonet who would be taught in the ways of the guardians, and as a result, I never even got

to meet my family." Steam began to emit from Charizard's eyes, and the fire dragon's voice

began to crack."And guess what, I never will, because that SNAKE of a dragon killed them.

Every last one of my kind is gone, and this prophecy is the only thing I have to avenge their

memory, and to make Kandikis SUFFER for what he did to them!" Charizard's last roar

caused echoes to bounce through the forest, yet Toothless stood still, frozen in shock.

Charizard glared into Toothless' eyes for a moment, before huffing a sigh of smoke. "But that

doesn't matter to you right?" The fire dragon lifted in wings as he backed away. "All you care

about is getting your perfect little world back, right?" Toothless didn't respond, as Charizard

just shook his head in disapproval. "You wouldn't have a clue of what it's like to be on your

own!"

Charizard only became aware of Sisu and Spyro's presence when the dragoness winced,

likely guessing what would happen next. However, instead of exploding in rage, or attacking

the fire dragon. Toothless looked towards the ground, with a look of sadness. "You think just

because I have friends and family, I can't feel alone?" Toothless then lifted his head,

retractioning his teeth in the process. "I've lost my wife, my home, my best friend" Toothless

paused, glancing away as the pain started to materialize. "I saw my own mother impaled

through the chest as a hatchling, and she was the last Night Fury I ever saw." Sisu covered

her mouth as she gasped, while Spyro looked on with a shooken look. Charizard's angry

expression had faded, morphing into one of realization. "Yet I know she'll always be with

me," Toothless continued, as he fought the pain. "And so with Stormfly. And Light Fury. And

everyone I've ever lost. That's how I can keep going. Because I know they would want me

to." Toothless turned towards Sisu and Spyro, who had thought the Night Fury was unaware

of the presence beforehand. "They would all want us to keep fighting, not for vengeance, but

to protect others." Toothless then turned back towards Charizard, who was incapable of

responding. Toothless simply looked at the fire dragon with a determined frown. " I'm going

to fight for, not because I'm they're king, but because it's the right thing to do." As Toothless

finished, he turned around and walked back towards the Rainwing village. As Sisu and

Spyro parted to let him through, Charizard was unsure of what to say. "Toothless wait, I

didn't-" His words faltered as Sisu looked back at him, with a disgusted look on her face.

"Sisu, talk to him," Charizard requested, with a pleading look, to which Sisu just snarled.

"Don't worry, I will." She then turned around and followed Toothless, leaving only the fire

dragon, and the purple dragon, who watched the other two leave. "Charizard shook his head

in frustration and regret, gaining Spyro's attention, who walked up to the fire dragon, who

towered over the boy. Charizard noticed however, and extended his talons in a reasoning

gesture. "Spyro, listen. You've been searching for your kind for ages. Surely you must

understand my predicament?" Spyro simply tilted his head, as he gave the dragon a

disappointed look. "Yeah, I do," he responded bluntly, before turning around and walking

away. "But I'm not sure you do."

As Spyro followed after Toothless and Sisu, Charizard hung his head in defeat, unaware of

the rainwing who had been camouflage, watching the whole scene play out. Despite still

being unsure about these 'guardians', Glory could now see they were genuine, despite all

logic or knowledge of how the world worked. Despite understanding where Charizard was

coming from, she couldn't help but relate to the 'Night Fury'. According to what she had

heard, he didn't want to be apart of this prophecy, yet was going along with it to save his

family. He made it sound like it was elfish, yet as Glory turned her head, she couldn't help

but reflect on herself.

Although Toothless didn't have too much of a head start, Sisu still struggled to catch up to

him, due to the darkness obstructing the forest's surroundings. The Night Fury eventually

heard the dragoness' commotion, and stopped so she could catch up. Flicking a beetle off

her tail, Sisu paced up Toothless with an apologetic smile on his face. "Are you okay?" Sisu's

question resulted in a small smile from Toothless, reflecting on when she asked him the

same thing back in Kumundra. "Well, I've been better, but I'm not terrible." Toothless fake

laughed, as Sisu's sombre look grew. "I'm sorry Charizard dug into you like that." She hung

her head as she spoke."I should have stood up for you, but I just…froze." Toothless turned

his head, as his face broke in sympathy. "Oh Sisu. None of that was your fault." The water

dragoness lifted her head, meeting the Night Fury's eyes as he smiled. "Sometimes dragons

have to face battles on their own, and that's what I had to do." Sisu nodded in response,

before clutching the Night Fury's paw. "I'm going to help you get your family back, Teeth. No

matter the cost." Toothless raised his eyebrow, chuckling in response. "Teeth?" he

questioned, as Sisu snickered in embarrassment. "I'm guessing that's my new nickname?"

Sisu turned her head, closing her eyes as she shrugged. "Hey, if we're gonna be a team, you

should have one, right?" Toothless titled his head and gave a toothless grin. "Well, I guess

you make a point, Horns." Sisu burst out laughing, as Toothless soon joined in at the

idiocracy of that nickname. An extra chuckle behind the two caused them to spin around,

finding Spyro leaning against a tree behind them. Despite his best effort to hide it, Toothless

could tell Spyro was puffed from catching up with them. "Don't think you guys are going

alone." He finally managed to say with a smirk. "It's gonna take a lot more than some

grumpy fire dragon to tell me what I can or can't do." As Spyro finished, the figure of Glory

suddenly appeared beside him, shocking Toothless and Sisu. "That makes two of us," she

added, causing Spyro to turn around and jump in shock. As Glory approached Toothless, he

bowed his head slightly. "Your majesty, about what happened before…" Toothless paused

when Glory lifted her talons. "No need to explain. I saw that whole situation play out." Sisu

looked in shock realising Glory had followed them, whereas Toothless simply gave a relieved

smile. "So now you see we weren't lying?" Glory simply gave a sly smile in return. "I now

know you're either committed con artists, or that this prophecy really is important to you."

Toothless rolled his eyes in response, as Spyro emitted a small chuckle. "So what if it's the

ladder?" Toothless questioned, as Glory's scale turned a mixture of dark blue with patches of

orange. "It means until you can help ensure the safety of my home and loved ones, then I

am not leaving you out of my sight," Glory proclaimed, before playfully adding "your majesty."

Toothless once again chuckled as his fins rustled. "Very well your majesty. Good to have you

a part of the team."

Arriving back into the platform, Glory had informed Deathbringer of her decision, much to his

displeasure. "You can't be serious!" he cried. "You can't seriously believe their story, or that

you're actually going with them!" Glory rolled her eyes in response, as her scales expressed

a mixture of yellow and green. "I've been through far worse Deathbringer," she insisted,

receiving a not at all convinced look from the self appointed guard. "Yeah, most of which you

only evaded because of the help of other dragonets!" He pointed accusingly at the

guardians, who stood at the side watching. "How can I be assured they will protect you?"

Before Glory replied, Spyro stepped forward, causing all eyes to fall on him. "Sir

Deathbringer," Spyro proclaimed, in an over the top serious voice. "I swear that if Glory does

not return to you unharmed, then you may track us three down and murder us." Sisu gulped

as she reached for her throat. "Yikes! I never agreed to that?" Toothless just smiled, as he

walked up to Glory, and brushed a wing next to hers. "Don't worry. I'll ensure nothing bad

happens to her." Although still doubtful, Deathbringer's hostility eased, as he locked eye

contact with Toothless. "Make sure of it," he instructed, as Toothless nodded in response.

Rolling her eyes at Deathbringer's spectacle, Glory turned towards the other guardians. "So,

where do we find this 'Elderess you guys were talking about earlier?" Before Toothless could

start, Sisu suddenly jolted up in panic. "Oh no! The crystals!" Toothless spun toward her, as

she looked back to him with frightened eyes. "Charizard has the transport crystals. Without

him, we can't travel to Elderess!" Toothless growled in response, shutting his eyes as he

didn't think about that earlier. As Glory and Sisu exchanged glances, Spyro could once again

be heard chuckling, and as the three looked at him. "Come on. Did you really think I didn't

take precautions?" Reaching into his mouth, he pulled out four crystals, enough to get the

four back to the Temple of Dilation. "Wh-when did you -" Toothless started, before Spyro

lifted his wing and answered. "Not Important." Glory looked at Spyro with admiration. "You're

a lot more capable than you let on, boy." Glory's comment resulted in Spyro shaking his paw

deva style. "It's a part of my charm," he started, before Toothless added, "Packaged with a

talkative mouth." Spyro frowned as Toothless smirked. "Shut up," he demanded, without

turning towards the Night Fury.

As Spyro handed the crystals towards Toothless, a loud explosion suddenly caught the

attention of the five dragons. Cries of terror followed before Deathbringer jumped out of the

window, followed by Glory, Toothless, and the others. A pair of rainwings suddenly appeared

in front of the group, who both matched each other with their pale white scales. "Your

majesty! The village is under attack!" one cried, before another added. "They just appeared

out of nowhere! From a distance, they looked like statues, but then they started moving

and…" Toothless lifted his paw to hush the dragonets, passing Glory as she looked towards

him in shock and confusion. "Is there a river nearby," he asked the queen, who nodded in

response. "Then tell everyone you know to shelter there," he instructed the two dragonets,

who looked towards their queen in confusion. Glory nodded, and as the two lifted into the air,

Glory once again looked towards Toothless. "Good job on keeping your promise," Glory

quipped, before looking in distress towards the chaos, alongside Toothless and the others.

The sounds of terror also caught the attention of Charizard, who had just reached the

nightwing village before the commotion had stopped him. Multiple Nightwings were exiting

the huts in confusion and fear, and when Charizard saw the occasional flashes of purple in

the distance, he immediately realised they had been found. Turning back towards the village,

the question that lingered in Charizard's head was whether or not he was about to go

through with what he was thinking.

A bit of a shorter Chapter, as I'm currently finalising the ideas for the third act of the

story. Stay tuned.