The Legend of Spyro: Origins_Chapter 23
#23 of Spyro Origins
Author's notes:
Hi there! NO... I'm not dead yet... and no... I have no intention of leaving this story to die come hell or high water! I tried to update this chapter by New Year, but I guess I just could not do it.
I have a very important and personal announcement to make and that I want to share. I am now a graduate! I am an Industrial and System Engineer! After 4.5 years of hard study and work, I have finally done it!
Now... this is the second largest chapter and because of that, I will split it in two parts (Or chapter 23 and 24). It's somewhat slow, but I hope that the end (chapter 24) is satisfactory for all... as it was for me.
Go ahead and enjoy it.
Oh... one more thing. I would really like to see some drawing of this story out there. So, if anyone wants to draw, just send me a private message, and go ahead. One more thing... if there is a really cool and amazing drawing, I might offer writing a short story for it.
If someone could create me a cool icon (avatar, profile image, whatever it is called) I would greatly apreciate it.
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The Legend of Spyro: Origins_Chapter 23
"I see land!" Shockwave exclaimed with joy.
"Finally!" Spyro exclaimed in relief.
They had been flying for hours. Ever since they had left Warfang in the early hours in the morning they had been on the air. Once they had left Warfang, it took no time to reach the sea. After that, an endless sight of water lay before them, but they knew where their objective was, so they pushed forward.
Hour after hour of sea passed beneath them. Spyro felt his head dizzy at the thought of so much water. He had seen the sea before, true, but he had always had land nearby, mostly in the form of small islands, but land nonetheless. But this... nothing was in sight except water.
Now, noon was long past and night fall was only an hour or two away. Their wings were tried from all the exertion they had done to cross the sea. Spyro saw the wisdom in Terrador's words when he told them to wait and have a good night sleep. But now, land lay in sight and the weary travelers pushed forward with renew strength at the sight of it, eager to lie down for a while to rest their aching wings.
When they finally were flying over land, the weary travelers started to glide down until they reached the ground. Immediately after their paws touched the ground, Spyro's wings fell limp, going all the way to reach the ground.
"I think I have not filed this long before" he puffed.
Cynder and Shockwave were in no better shape either. Incendio, from all inactivity in the last days, also fell rather tried.
"Well, older and dragons in top shape tend to fly this distances easily" Shockwave informed them.
From the lot, he seemed be the least affected by the journey.
"Come on, I didn't even broke a sweat" Sparx said from Spyro's head.
Spyro gave a low growl in annoyance. Sparx had flown a few minutes by their side after land had disappeared behind them before hopping on Spyro to catching a ride. And now he just lay there, saying those things!
Spyro tilted his head sideways, making Sparx yelp in fright and loose his balance above Spyro's head and fall to the ground.
"Hey! What was that for?" Sparx demanded from the ground, rubbing his head.
"That comment was greatly inappropriate, Sparx" Spyro admonished. "You should be more careful of what comes out of that mouth of yours"
Sparx got up and grumbled to himself a little bit.
"Let's find some water" Incendio suggested.
Everybody agreed, although grudgingly, and walked into some wooden area that was nearby. Water would certainly be located there.
Spyro walked near Cynder as they watched Incendio closely. Spyro was happy that he had accompanied them in this mission; but he could not help but remember... and think what had happened last night. He decided to voice his musings with Cynder.
"Hey, Cynder, have you not wondered why Incendio is here?" Spyro asked in a low voice.
"What do you mean?" she asked back.
"What I say is that don't you find it odd that he is here. I mean, last time we saw him he seemed he could barely get up. Now... look at him!" he looked at him. "He suddenly appeared at the meeting last night and he volunteered for this mission, even when he had missed a lot of details"
"I have been having those thought too" Cynder confessed, shooting a quick glance at Incendio. "I wonder what made him get up so suddenly" she wondered.
"Maybe we should ask him" Spyro suggested.
"No!" Cynder warned. "Look at him. Although he is up and about and putting a strong face, underneath he is on the verge of falling apart. I would suggest we wait some time before we ask him that"
Spyro look at Incendio, who was walking ahead of them. He saw how his steps were full of purpose and strength that emanated not from his body, but of his will. Yet, he held his head lower than usual. He saw what Cynder meant. He was still in a delicate position.
"I see what you mean, and you are right. We should wait" Spyro agreed.
They found a nearby stream of water after a while. All dragons immediately went to the stream and drank deeply. The water was refreshing and cool, moistening the dry throat. But that tend to happen when a dragon fly long distances without water.
They rested near the stream for a while, relaxing after the long and strenuous journey. But they didn't stay long.
"We should get moving" Incendio said.
"What?!" three different dragons exclaimed.
"But we just got here!" Shockwave said.
"So what?" Incendio dismissed his complaint.
"Nightfall will arrive soon" Spyro said.
"We still got an hour or two of daylight" Incendio informed them.
"I think we should rest now" Cynder suggested.
"I think we should move while the light lasts. At nightfall, we will rest" Incendio told them.
"We can barely move!" Shockwave complained.
"WE DO NOT HAVE TIME!" Incendio suddenly exploded, making the three other to rear their head back in surprise.
Spyro suddenly felt fear. He had never seen Incendio explode like that, and it was frightening. What had happened to Incendio to make him like this?
"The humans do not have time!" Incendio continued his outburst. "They are dying! Are we just to remain here to rest for a while when a few minutes could mean life or death to one of them?"
The fire dragon turned to look at each of them in the eye, daring them to say anything. When it was Spyro's turn, he looked straight into Incendio's eye. They sent shivers down Spyro's spine. It seemed that those eyes could see even to the deepest part of one's soul, and it was disturbing.
Incendio's eyes were ablaze and shone with anger and Spyro looked away with shame filling his being. He knew that Incendio was right. Every moment in this race against time could make the difference.
After a few moments of silence, Incendio spoke again.
"Come on!" Incendio said, this time more calmly. "We have to move"
No one complained or refused this time.
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"Look at those things!"
"They are huge!"
"They are rather intimidating"
They had finally arrived at the base of the Kalakean Mountains after flying for a while.
They had flown one hour after the little argument they had before finally succumbing to exhaustion. They had landed and didn't even bother to get some dinner; so tired they were that they had gone straight to sleep.
They woke a lot more refreshed and with a lot hunger. Their bellies craved for some food so they took some time to pick some berries and some kind of fruit that grew there. They ate them quite happily as they picked them. After that, they were ready to depart.
After a few hours of flying, their eyes finally saw the mountains appear on the distance. They could barely be seen at that distance, but when they approached, they became larger and larger. They extend far away toward the east and west until the sky met the horizon.
White snow covered their pointy peaks, indicating that up there, there were in a forever snow covered landscape. They were huge! Big! Bigger than anything the group had ever seen. The only thing that could compare to it was the vastness of the ocean.
Spyro strained his neck to see upward watching the mountains getting closer as he continued his flight.
"Makes one feel small" he said.
"Now you feel like I do all the time" Sparx said sarcastically.
Spyro looked at the tall mountains and sighed. It would be one heck of a climb.
"It will take a lot of effort to climb all the way" Shockwave complained.
"You may be right" Incendio agreed. "We should look for a thermal updraft. It will make our climbing a lot easier"
The idea was not bad. It would surely spare them a lot of unnecessary effort. So, they group started to look for the hot air current. It took some time to find one, but luck was on their side.
"I think I see one" Shockwave announced. "There!" he pointed.
He was right. There seemed to be and updraft just a few minutes away from their position, indicated by how the clouds above seemed to go up in a spiral motion.
"Do you think this one will do?" Shockwave asked as they got closer.
"If it doesn't, then we will have to climb the hard way" Incendio responded somewhat sarcastically. "All right, I will go first"
After he said that, he flew straight into the thermal current. With a yelp of surprise, he shot straight upwards with an astonishing speed.
"Wow! That is quite a draft!" Spyro exclaimed.
He looked up at Incendio as he got smaller by the second in the hot air current. It would take no time to reach the highest peaks in with this updraft. Luck seemed to be on their side.
"Right, I'm next" Spyro announced as he flew straight into the hot air current.
"Yikes!" he yelped in surprise as he felt how his body felt heavier as he suddenly accelerated.
Looking down, he saw how the ground seemed to get father away and smaller with each passing moment. Then, he looked up, looking at his objective.
He continued rising for a few minutes, going up at an incredible speed. Soon enough, he reached the clouds.
"How much farther will this air current take me?" he wondered out loud.
He tried in vain to look around him, hoping to catch a glimpse of anything, but the clouds around him covered everything. The tick mist prevented him from seen anything more than a few feet away from him.
He continued rising in the thermal draft amidst the clouds when he felt his body decelerate somewhat. He reckoned that he was just about to exit the hot air current. Immediately after he went out of it, cold air hit him. It was so unexpected that caught Spyro off guard, losing his concentration for a few moments.
And that's when the heavy mist proved to be dangerous.
Just after he was regaining his composure to the sudden exposure to the cold, the thick mist seemed to lessen and Spyro's eye widen at what appeared in front of him.
The steep slopes of the moutons were in front of him! And he was going straight for them!
Spyro tried to change directions in the few moments he had left before he rammed the wall of earth before him. The speed from which he shot out of the air current would make sure he got plastered on mountain side.
Spyro changed directions with all his might; making his wings bore the extreme pressure he laid upon them to change his flight path. He barely managed to veer right, his tail making contact with the mountain.
"That was close!" he exclaimed out loud once he decelerated as he looked somewhat in shock to where he almost crashed.
He suddenly saw movement on the edge of his vision. He turned shapely and saw the form of Cynder and the bright glow of Sparx as they shot out the air current... directly toward the mountain.
"CYNDER!" Spyro yelled in warning.
Spyro saw how Cynder recoiled at the sudden appearance of the mountain before her. Like he did, she tried to evade the mountain. Her excellent agility made sure she avoided the moutons by a larger margin than Spyro. Sparx, being smaller and more maneuverable, didn't even have trouble.
"Cynder! Are you all right?" Spyro asked as he winged his way toward her.
"Yeah, I am!" she assured him.
"Me too bro. Thanks for asking" Sparx said sarcastically.
Spyro gave an apologetic look to his foster brother.
"Where is Incendio?" Cynder called as she looked around.
"I don't know" Spyro confessed. "I have not seen him"
"Do you think that...?" Cynder trailed off as he looked at the mountain.
Spyro felt fear. What if Incendio had crashed? He would have fallen down, to who know where!
"And Shockwave?" Spyro asked. "We should warn him"
"He was just behind me" Cynder said.
And if summoned by magic, they saw how the yellow dragon also came out of the air current at an alarming speed.
"SHOCKWAVE! WATCH OUT!" Spyro and Cynder yelled in unison.
But it was already too late.
As Spyro, he seemed to be caught off guard by the sudden exposure to the cold airs. It took him a moment too late to be aware of the predicament he was in.
He yelped in surprise at the sudden appearance of a wall before him and tried to lessen his speed. But it was not enough.
Shockwave hit the slope hard. Then, he started falling.
"NOOO!!" Spyro yelled as he dived down to reach him.
Shockwave tumbled downward, bouncing off the slopes of the mountains only to gravity to pull him down again. Since it was a slope and not a cliff, Shockwave could not manage t open his wing and fly away. The ground prevented it.
Spyro was diving, trying to reach his friend before he picked enough speed and entered the thick mist, but he was too far. Shockwave was already too near that point.
Suddenly, a pair of red forearms shot outward from a small ledge and managed to catch Shockwave by the tail before he went further down.
"Got you!"
Spyro saw with delight that Incendio had managed to stop Shockwave fall, probably saving his life. If the fire dragon hadn't been down there, Shockwave would have continued going down.
"Incendio!" Spyro exclaimed with delight as he aligned himself to land in the small ledge where the two dragons were located.
Incendio gave a quick look around.
"It's good to see that everybody made it.
"Where were you?" Cynder asked as she landed.
"After I went out of the current, I crashed. Since it was not as hard like Shockwave's, I managed to maintain balance enough not to tumble down. I managed to land here afterward. I saw how each of you exited the current at alarming speeds"
"Good thing Shockwave passed near enough for you to catch" Spyro said as he looked at the yellow dragon.
He seemed to be somewhat dizzy from all the flips he did while his journey down the mountain. He also seemed to be in a semblance of shock with the brush with the near death experience.
"Hey... are you all right?" Spyro asked.
"Just give a few moments" he managed to whisper.
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After the incident, they continued to go up. Since visibility was poor, they decided that flying was out of the question. They climbed the slope that had nearly been the end of them until they reached more even ground.
Snow covered the whole place and they didn't manage to see any form of plant life. However, the lack of life did not deter them from their objective. With each step they took, the cold weather seemed to intensify.
"I have never felt this cold" Incendio said as his body shivered.
"I have" Shockwave said. "My clan once went to the northern islands. It was as cold as here"
"I once went to Dante's Freezer" Spyro told them. "It's as cold here as is was there"
They continued walking mountain for some hours. They searched for the Sky Flower, hoping to get luck and see them early on this journey. However, there was neither sign nor indication that any plant life was living in this part of the mountains.
"Where are they?" Shockwave cried in desperation. "We have walked for hours and no sign of them!"
"We are still in the outer parts of the mountains" Spyro answered. "Meadow said that the flowers were located in the deepest part of them"
"Then what are we waiting for. Let's go!"
"We are going there!" Cynder answered this time. "But, if you haven't noticed, heavy mist surrounds us. Flying would be very dangerous"
Once Shockwave took a look around him and saw nothing but mist, he grumbled to himself.
Everybody was like him. Being unable to find anything in this mist; and not being able to fly to cover ground more quickly, got on their nerves. And Sparx... he also got on everybody nerves. His desperation made him an extreme annoyance. He cracked foolish jokes, insulted everyone, made unsavory comments and so much more.
"And that when I went... WHAM... and ...POW. They guy never stood a chance against my superior strength" Sparx said.
"Yes Sparx" Spyro sighed. "I was there you know"
Sparx was once again retailing their adventures. He made a lot more emphasis on his achievements that Spyro's, like when he lead the refugees of Warfang underground; or when he became a god by the Atlawa tribe. Right now, he was telling how he beat the crap out of the two pets of the captain of the pirate fleet.
As for the listeners... they already had enough of Sparx to last them for a while. Incendio was grinding his teeth and Shockwave face was that of one that could kill Sparx. Cynder maintained her composure, since she had already been exposed to Sparx and his comments and talks of his exploits; but Spyro saw how her tail twitched from time to time, indicating that she was annoyed.
"Sparx" Spyro sighed. "Could you remain silent for a few minutes?"
"Why?"
"Allow us to have a small moment of silence and peace" Spyro pleaded.
"Why? Don't you like my interesting and charming self?" Sparx asked as if he was insulted.
"Wait..." Incendio said suddenly. "I think I am starting to see more clearly"
"Really?" the other three dragons asked hopefully.
"I think so. We might get out of this damn mist. Hopefully, enough to actually fly"
Those words lifted the mood of everyone.
It was not long before it proved to be true. Well, almost true. The mist had lessened considerably, allowing them to see farther. Probably enough to fly.
As if by magic, the mist suddenly ended and the group started at the sight before them.
Mountains! Mountains everywhere! All covered in snow! The group had apparently taken a route or a pass that allowed them to cross the exterior mountains and enter the inner parts. A small valley, also covered in snow, lay before them surrounded by mountains. Some pines could be seen in the valley, indicating that the valley at least had some plant life. If trees grew in this valley, then it meant that the flowers could also be here.
The sight was beautiful and pristine; untouched by any form of civilization. The sun, that was making it was down by now, spread its light in the area, making the snow reflect it light and produce sparks of lighting and colors.
It was a beautiful sight, yet a desolate one.
They groups stood a few moments in silence, admiring the scene that lay before them.
"Let's get going" Incendio said as he took some steps forward and spread his wings.
With a jump, he launched himself into the sky and beat his wings, trying to get altitude. Then, he started to glide down the valley.
"I do not know how a flower could be alive in such a place" Shockwave said before he too also jumped into the sky.
Thus, they began searching the small valley for any sign of the mysterious flower.
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"I don't know about you guys, but I think we should find shelter" Shockwave said.
They had spent the reminder of the day searching in the small valley. They had split in two teams, and separated searching for the fabled Sky Flowers. They looked in every nook and every ditch, but luck was not on their side.
After hours of searching the group came together gain.
"We need to continue our search for the flowers!" Incendio shot back.
"The sun had already gone past the mountains. In a couple of hours will be night and the temperature will drop considerably!" Shockwave countered. "We must find shelter before it happens. Besides, we have already covered this valley in our search. It would be pointless to continue here"
"Fine!" Incendio said bitterly. "We search for a cave... after we find the flowers"
"Did you even listen what I just said?" Shockwave asked.
"Guys, calm down!" Spyro said as he put himself between the two of them. "Both of you are right. We shall go and start our journey to the next valley, since we have already searched this one. We cannot waste time here. But if we find a cave in the journey, we stop and spend the night. We have to rest and the temperature will drop considerably in the night. It would be prudent to find shelter"
"Fine!" Incendio said. "Come on. Let's get out of this valley" he said before jumping and taking to the air.
Spyro watched him go, concerned etched in his face. Cynder came from behind, also looking at Incendio as he continued to make his way.
"Concerned for him?" she asked.
"Yeah" Spyro answered. "He is so determined to get those flowers that I fear he is overlooking his safety"
"I noticed that too" Cynder sighed. "I really hope his emotional wounds heal so we can actually know why he is acting as such"
"But in the meantime, he is right and we have to move while we can" Spyro said urgently as he saw that Shockwave had also gone to the air.
Thus, they left the small valley and entered the mist once again. It was not as heavy as earlier, but there it was, giving the place a gloom feeling with the small amount of sunlight that actually made it though. They continue their way toward the inner parts of the mountains. They had in mind to go to higher grounds where they might be able to have a better view of the surrounding areas.
The temperature dropped considerably once they entered the mist, making this place the coldest place they had ever been. The groups started to shiver almost immediately as they continued their way upwards.
Unfortunately, the mist became thick enough at one point where they had to land once again and continue on foot. They would again rise to the air when the crossed that part.
They climbed steep cliffs and jumped over small ravines and walked at a fast pace to reach their objective before nightfall. These were strenuous activities and they had been doing them for a while now and were reaching really high parts of the mountains. That's why the group was tired and was having trouble breathing.
"Spyro, lest stop for a while" Cynder panted as she walked behind Spyro. "I am tried"
"We can do it Cynder, just a little awhile longer" Spyro encouraged as he also panted with extortion following Shockwave.
"We... are... near... the next... valley" Incendio said between gasps as he lead the procession.
They continued walking, no one saying anything. Spyro felt his vision began to blur as he continue going up the mountains. His mind also took time to process the information that his senses told him. His body responses also became slower.
_ 'What is happening?'he though as he shook his head, trying to clear his vision. _'Why am I seeing like this?'
He took a deep breath to try to clear his thought; but, somehow, he felt that every breath he took didn't hold enough air. He took deeper breaths and tried harder to take in the air to his lungs. But no matter how many lungful he took, it was not enough.
'Why can't I breathe?'
He suddenly heard a voice calling him. Somehow, it seemed so faint that he must be his imagination. Oddly enough, Spyro didn't react toward it and he didn't even thought of it; he just continued walking.
"Spyro!" he heard again someone call, as if the caller was far away. Again, Spyro ignored the voice.
Then, a yellow glowed suddenly appeared in front of him. Spyro looked at it with mild curiosity, too tried to even think.
"Spyro!" a voice that emanated from the yellow glow in front of him shouted "Yo, Spyro, can you hear me?"
Spyro's mind slowly began to regain his senses.
"Sparx?" Spyro asked.
"About time you answered. I have been calling you for a long time. You seemed to have been out of your mind back there" the dragonfly answered with annoyance.
"Sorry. So, what's wrong?"
"I have been meaning to tell you that Cynder has fallen behind"
"What?" Spyro asked with surprise as he snapped his head back.
He managed to make out the form of Cynder. Her black scales were in contrast with the white snow. She seemed to have collapsed and was now lying on her side, her sides rising and falling in quick motions.
"Cynder!" Spyro gasped.
He was next to her in an instant.
"Cynder! Are you all right?" he asked, the first traces of panic slowly making his way toward him.
Cynder panted some more before her eyes went upward, inside her head and fell unconscious.
"Sparx, go and get Shockwave and Incendio" Spyro yelled at his foster brother.
"Sure thing" the dragonfly said he followed the two dragons.
Spyro tried to wake Cynder up, but there was no reaction from her. He became very worried for her. However, he could see her sides rising and falling with each breath he took. That means she was alive.
The mist had already covered the forms of the older dragons, but Sparx followed the tracks they had left in the snow. It took some minutes to make the other two dragons come back. During that time, Cynder seemed to have recovered since she took more even breaths. The new arrivals seemed to be out of it however.
"What... happened?" Incendio asked as he got closer, panting all the way.
"I don't know" Spyro told them as he also panted "She fell unconscious"
Spyro tried t wake Cynder once more, and this time, he succeeded.
"Cynder?" Spyro was beside her in an instant, looking at her expectantly.
"What happened" Cynder asked as she opened her eyes.
"You fell unconscious"
Slowly, Cynder began to rise from the ground. When she did stand on her feet, she seemed to be having trouble keeping balance.
"Cynder? Are you all right?" Spyro asked, still worried about her.
"My head is spinning" She informed as he took deep breaths. "And I can't breathe properly"
Spyro looked at her with surprise. Can't breathe? Then, realization hit him. He also had trouble breathing. As apparently Shockwave and Incendio did. All of them seemed to have trouble breathing.
"I am having trouble breathing too" Shockwave said. "There seems to be not enough air"
"I can't believe I forgot" Incendio murmured under his breath, barely loud enough to catch everyone's attention.
"What did you forgot?" Spyro asked.
"Master Terrador's warning. He told me that the air in high places becomes thin. That is why we have trouble breathing. There is not enough air as we are used to"
"And what about Cynder? Why did she faint?" Spyro asked.
"Exertion. When we were climbing we did physical exertion and our body demanded more oxygen. Fainting was the result of not having enough. It could have happened to any of us"
"So, the higher we go, the less air there will be?" Cynder asked.
"Looks like it" Incendio told them.
Shockwave seemed to think as he looked at the top of the mountain.
"If that is true, then I think we should head to lower grounds"
"What?" Incendio asked with some disbelief. "We should continue going higher. We will have a good view of the land that surrounds us"
"We cannot!" Shockwave said. "Going higher could be dangerous"
"We are near the top. We should push forward"
"It is too dangerous!" Shockwave said. "Any of us could faint like Cynder did if we continue to go higher"
"We have each other to wake the one who falls" Incendio said.
Spyro started to note some hints of annoyance creeping into the fire dragon's voice. He looked at the two arguing dragons, deciding if he should interfere.
"We almost didn't notice Cynder when she fainted" Shockwave continued. "The lack of air clouds our minds. We could leave one behind... or get lost"
"We just have to keep our mind focused" Incendio said somewhat matter-of-factly.
"We might all faint at the same time! What will happen then? There will be no one to wake us! We will freeze to death!"
"We have to be strong! They humans back on Warfang need us. We have to get that flower!" Incendio said, now anger coming into his voice.
Spyro started to get scared at the levels of heat this conversation was starting to get. He didn't want to see his two friends argue with each other like that.
"By the Ancestors, Incendio; just hear what you are saying! It's too dangerous to continue going higher!" Shockwave exasperated.
"And leave the humans to die? Is that what you want?" Incendio growled.
"Incendio, use your head and think! We will do the humans no good if we die in the process of getting that flower!"
"Listen to me you...." Incendio said threateningly.
"STOP!" Spyro roared once he had heard enough of the two arguing dragons.
Both arguing dragons stopped their heated conversation and looked at Spyro with surprise. It was rare for the purple dragon to lose his temper and go like that.
"Stop arguing!" ordered them both. Then, he looked at Incendio. "Shockwave is right. It's too dangerous if we continue forward. We have to go back"
"And let the humans die?" Incendio challenged him.
"Of course not! That is why we are here. But, as Shockwave said, we will do no good if we die in these mountains before we deliver the plant to them"
Incendio gave a low and threatening at Spyro. The purple dragon looked in surprise at Incendio, who was on the verge of attacking.
"Incendio" Spyro tried to calm him down. "I also care for the humans, but we have to face things at they are"
"You... of all people... say that we have to face things as they are?" Incendio spat. "You... who defied the facts... confronted Malefor... and saved the world?"
"That was an unnecessary remark, Incendio" Cynder hissed her displeasure. "But yes... we defied the odds back then, but there was no other choice!"
"Nor do we have now"
"Yes we do!" Cynder told him flatly. "You are just too focused on one route to archive your goal, that you no do not see there are others"
Incendio gave a low rumble of displeasure.
"Incendio..." Cynder said more calmly and in a more gently tone. "We will find the cure"
Incendio gave a low growl.
"Incendio..." Spyro said.
The fire dragon closed his eyes for a moment and took several deep breaths as he tried to calm himself.
"All right" he said finally, although he seems reluctant. "We have to stay together. We will descend the mountain"
He then walked past them without saying anything more and traveled down the mountain.
"I'm worried about him" Spyro said in a low voice.
"Me too" Cynder agreed as she overheard. "Now, he is not only overlooking his safety; he now is overlooking ours too. And he is deliberately going into needless danger in his search"
"I know. We have to keep an eye on him" Spyro decided.
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They were still searching for a cave to pass the night in when the night caught them. The light the sun gave went out so fast after the sun has set, that it caught the travelers by surprise. They guessed that they still had some time before night, but not the darkness.
The mountains blocked the sunlight, making the night arrive earlier. And as night came and the sunlight receded, so did the warmth the sun rays gave. Temperature dropped considerably and the wind picked up speed, causing the travelers to shiver from the cold. To make matters worse, it started to snow.
"Where is a cave where you need one?" Cynder asked rhetorically in annoyance as they walked in the darkness.
"We should have heeded Shockwave's warning about finding a cave sooner" Spyro pointed out, much to the displeasure of Incendio.
They had been outside, suffering the weather for a while now, and the chill was starting to get into their bones.
"Don't worry, bro; I have already found myself a newt warm spot" Sparx said with a smug and full of content voice
Spyro turned down to look at his chest with a glare. Sparx had gotten inside the satchel where the flowers were supposed to be placed. Since the bag was in contact with his chest, his body temperature kept the insides warm, giving Sparx a nice spot to hide from the elements.
They continued walking around for a while before they finally found a cave.
"Finally!" Cynder exclaimed happily as the sight of the dark entrance.
"Come on! Lest get inside" Spyro suggested as he moved in.
The dragons entered the dark cave. It was not so deep and it didn't have a nice decor, but it would serve. However, the inside of the cave was as near as cold as the outside.
"Ugh..." Cynder complained. "It cold in here. Almost as it is outside"
Before anyone said anything else, Incendio exhaled some fire as a rock that was on a corner. The torrent of fire lighted the cave, allowing the resident to view their shelter as well as heating up things a little bit. When he finished exhaling fire, the place had warmed up considerably.
"No point in staying awake" the fire dragon said. "We should get some sleep"
Spyro lay on the spot. He curled on himself to keep as much body warmth as possible. He gave a contented sigh of satisfaction as he finally could relax. The same were along the same lines too. Everyone accommodated themselves as they could and curled to keep themselves warm in the night. Sparx positioned himself over Spyros head, his usually sleeping spot when they were on the wilderness.
Unfortunately, they didn't have anything to eat, so they tried to sleep with their stomachs empty.
They heat Incendio had provided gave the residents of the cave a relaxing feeling that incited them to sleep. However, the cold weather outside somehow managed to continuously steal every inch of heat available. It wasn't too long before the cave was starting to feel cold again.
They were beginning to dose off, when a sudden burst of wind made its way inside the cave, making everyone gave a slight shiver. Once the wind passed, the cave felt notoriously colder.
With a groan, Spyro turned his head and used his fire to heat the same stone Incendio had exhaled earlier.
"That won't work for too long" Cynder said as she eyed Spyro use his flame.
"I guess you are right. But this is better than nothing" Spyro answered before continuing his breath attack.
He kept the fire going for a much longer period of time than Incendio did. Spyro only stopped when he felt his elemental power drain low.
"That should do" he said.
Before he managed to accommodate himself again, he felt someone brush against him. He turned in surprise only to see Cynder was lying next to him.
"Don't look too surprised, we have slept like this before" Cynder gave an amused smile as he saw him. "Besides, this way we will keep our body warmth"
At that, Spyro gave a small smile. He lay down on the ground and he lifted his wing, inviting Cynder next to him. With a small laugh, she did so and laid her head next to his. Spyro lowered his wind, effectively making a sort of blanket form her.
Cynder sighed in contentment once she felt his wings drape over her and she moved to be as close to his body as she could possibly be.
In that position, they slept, sharing each other warmth as the cold weather raged outside.
****************************++++++++++1+++++++++++++************************
"We have been like this for hours" Shockwave complained. "And we have yet to find what we came here for"
They had spent a cold night inside the cave where no one really rested that much. Somewhere during the night, all four dragons and one dragonfly had come together and slept next to each other to keep the warmth.
"We knew this might have happened" Spyro explained. Although he too was somewhat disappointed that yet have to find the flowers, he tried to keep his head. "We knew there could not be any flowers in here at all"
Morning had come and they had left the cave and continued their search. With no breakfast in them, they had continued their search for the cure of the illness that had plagued the humans. They had searched another three small valleys from top to bottom; but the flowers still were hidden.
"I don't know about you, but I guess we should start going back" Shockwave suggested.
"Not a chance!" Incendio said somewhat forcefully.
"Incendio is right" Cynder put in. "The humans are dying and they need our help"
At the mention of the humans, Spyro began to wonder about the well being of his friends.
'I wonder how is Ramirez, since he was the first one to fall ill... and Parker too'_Spyro thought of them. _'Have they healed without these flowers? We may be here for nothing'
But Spyro felt that that was not the case. He thought that they would not get well without some kind of aid. This disease had already proven to be lethal, and the sooner they got it back home, the better.
_'How many of them have had died?'_he could not help but wonder. Spyro gave a shiver that was not related to the cold he was feeling.
"We still a lot more ground to cover, so let's better move" Incendio suggested.
They continued walking, searching, trying to find what eluded them. After wandering about for some time, they found themselves in the entrance of a narrow passage in the mountains. They guessed that it would lead them to the next valley. Without anything to do in their current position, the group entered the narrow ravine.
It wasn't long before they passage got so narrow that they had to walk on single file. On their left, a wall of rock shot straight up so far one could not see the top. On their right was a cliff. The bottom was so down that one could not see what was down there. Further away from the cliff, the mountain rose again.
While they were at this narrow passage, the wind sped up due to it being the only passage the wind could fins across the mountains. It rose and fell sporadically and unexpectedly. Flying would be suicide because of the winds and because there was not a lot of space to maneuver.
Apart from that, they could hear and even see some rocks and sometimes snow falling from either side of the mountains. Most of them were small, but there were times when they could hear a much louder rumble when a larger one came crashing down.
The dragons, full of determination, went further ahead. As always, Incendio lead the group form up front. Cynder followed some distance behind; next came Spyro and then Shockwave. Sparx had chosen to ride inside Spyro's bag, thus preventing him from the cold and being able to have a nap at the same time. Also the strong wind would drag the small dragonfly away.
They had been inside the narrow ravine when some noise caused them to look up. Several large rocks were falling accompanied by a lot of snow following from the highest parts of the mountain.
"WATCH OUT!" Cynder yelled as she took several steps back to avoid the falling stones.
Incendio, being in the direct path of the avalanche, managed to jump out of the way before the rocks and snow slammed where he was moments before. After hitting on the ledge the travelers were using, the avalanche of rock and snow continued their ways down the cliff, falling into the darkness below as the noise of falling rock died away.
That rocks would have managed to break the spine of a dragon Incendio's size should it have fallen on top of him. And death would be a certainty to any dragon if they had fallen upon the head.
"Incendio!" Cynder yelled as she went her way toward him once the small avalanche had ended. "Are you all right?" she asked as Spyro and Shockwave looked from behind.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm all right" the fire dragon assured her.
"Hey what happened?" Sparx said as he exited his safe refuge inside Spyro's satchel and rubbing his eye, giving a huge yawn in the process.
"And avalanche almost got Incendio" Spyro explained.
"It did? Man... how could I have missed that?" Sparx said somewhat angry at having missed such an important event. "Can it be done again?" he asked hopefully with a tone of mischief.
Spyro only shot a glare at the small dragonfly before turning back to the others.
"This place is dangerous" Spyro observed. "We have to keep our eyes open"
"We shouldn't stay here any longer than necessary" Shockwave put in smartly. "So, I suggest we keep moving before an avalanche or the cold kill us"
"I think not" Incendio said in a low voice as he lowly rose to his feet.
Everybody turned to look at him in surprise. He seemed kind of dazed out, as if he couldn't think straight. His eyes seemed to be fixed into nothingness.
"What? What do you mean by that? What could possible make us stay in this place!" Shockwave exasperated.
"That!" Incendio said as he pointed with his snout.
The group turned o look at what he meant and gasped in surprise at what they saw.
"Is that...?"
"It has to be!"
There, on the wall of rock on the other side of the chasm, grew a small plant that sported six white flowers.
"The Sky Flower!" all of them shouted at the same time.
They were beautiful. The petals seemed to be made out of the purest white marble or the most pristine snow. It seemed to radiate a sense of peace and tranquility; that alone was from the weary travelers watching it.
The small plant grew directly out of the rock that rose vertically on the other side of the chasm. The petals were swinging with the strong with that rushed through the narrow pass. Their root must hang strong, thus preventing the delicate life from being ripped of its place.
A small and delicate piece of life. It seemed to be a miracle that such a flower could actually grow up in a place like this.
"We have finally found it!" Cynder shouted in joy.
Everyone was excited about their discovery. After so much effort, they had finally done it. They were looking at each other in triumph with a smile pasted on their faces at the accomplishment. They could pick the flowers and finally go home.
However, good sentiments must come to an end.
"Hate to spoil your good moment, but..." Sparx started.
"But what?" Spyro asked, looking at his foster brother that was floating next to him.
"Well, I may not know much about healing plants, but I'm sure that you need more than six flowers to heal a large population of humans"
The mood dropped like a stone.
"And..." Sparx continued, "We are here and the flowers are over there; on the other side of this dark hole"
The mood dropped even lower.
"As much as I hate to say, but Sparx is right" Cynder said in a depressed tone. "We still have a long way to go before we got enough flowers for everybody"
"The rock onto which the flowers clung is too far away to reach" Shockwave pointed out. "Not to mention that we can't get to those flowers" he sighed in defeat as he looked at the dark abysm that separated them from the flowers. "What a waste"
Spyro looked at the flowers with sadness in his eyes. Shockwave was right. They couldn't reach them. The flowers were far enough not to be reached by their mouths or paws. They also couldn't fly because of the strong wind. If they did, they would be dragged without control through the narrow ravine. The only way was make a jump of faith and search for a foothold that might not be there in the wall that stood in front of them.
Spyro continued to look at the flowers with sadness.
They were so close, yet so far... and there was nothing he could do about it.
"At least we know that they DO exist" Shockwave pointed out.
Spyro turned away and made the motion to continue.
"Come on" Spyro sighed. "Let's continue our search elsewhere"
"Yeah, keep moving bro" Sparx suggested. "I want to be kept warm" he said as he got into Spyro's bag once again.
Cynder went up first, opening the march that would lead the group further into the mountains to continue their search. Her eyes were half closed with a look of defeat in her eyes, much like Spyro's. She moved slowly, as if the continuous stress and the tiredness finally came up to her.
After Cynder, Shockwave came. He didn't seem to be as tired as Cynder, but he also moved slowly, as if defeat had a big weight on him.
Spyro turned to look at Incendio. He remained standing in the same spot where he had landed after he had escaped the avalanche. Unlike the rest of the group, his eyes showed incredible sadness as he looked at the ground in defeat. The fire dragon showed it on such a level and so openly that it surprised Spyro.
Spyro spent a few seconds looking at the red dragon, studying the red dragon. However, they did not have a lot of time.
"Come on Incendio; we have to go" Spyro urged. "No point in staying here"
Spyro turned away and took a few steps away, following the others. However, he did not feel Incendio following, so he turned to look back. Incendio had not moved; but unlike before, he was now looking at the flowers.
"Come on. We should not stay here for long" Spyro once again urged.
Incendio didn't even acknowledge him. Instead, Spyro how his eyes changed from sadness to determination. Then, he took reared as far away from the back chasm.
"Incendio? What are you doing?" Spyro asked, confused.
'What is he trying to do?' Spyro thought.
Incendio did not answer. He just kept his gaze fixed on the flowers beyond the chasm.
Then, he crouched low and using his powerful hind legs...
...he jumped.
"INCENDIO!" Spyro shouted at the top of his lungs.
Spyro was frozen, his lungs refused to take a breath and time seemed to slow as the fire dragon made its way in the air across the dark chasm. Incendio had dared to jump across the pit in the hopes to reach the flowers.
For a few moments, the fire dragon flew across the bottomless pit until he reached the wall on the other side. Preparing himself, Incendio hit the other side as his claws searched for any purchase he might find. For a few dreadful moments, his claws found nothing to hang to, and he started to fall. His claws scraped the surface of the wall, making small rocks turn free and start their way down.
For a few seconds, it seemed that he couldn't find a foot hold; but, after a few moments, he found one. Incendio dug his claws as hard as he could and he stopped his descent before it was out of control.
At that moment, Spyro dared once again to bring air into his lungs.
"INCENDIO!" Spyro shouted in concern.
Slowly, as the strong and fast wind hit, Incendio started to climb to where the prize he sought was located.
"What with all this racket?!" Sparx shouted annoyed from inside Spyro's bag as he lifted the cover and took a look around. "Can't a dragonfly have some sleep at all? I have been doing a lot of work lately if you hadn't noticed Spyro! I need my beauty sleep"
But Spyro didn't hear him. He kept focused on Incendio.
"Are you even listening to me?" Sparx asked in annoyance. Then, he spotted Incendio. "Oh... I guess that make a perfectly good explanation" he said more to himself.
The shouts of Spyro did not go unheard. Cynder and Shockwave, who had heard them, doubled back and returned with haste. Apparently, in their haste, they had left Sparx behind.
"Spyro!" Cynder shouted as she approached. "What's happening?"
"Incendio has jumped across the chasm and is climbing!" Spyro exclaimed once he spotted them.
Once they spotted where the fire dragons was located, they were left dumbfounded.
"Is he insane?!" Shockwave exclaimed. "He is going to kill himself!"
"Incendio!" Cynder shouted at Incendio. "Get back here!"
He completely ignored her.
The group was shouting at him to come back, but he refused to acknowledge. In the end, the group fell silent and continue to watch his progress.
When Incendio got next to the flowers, he dug his claws deep in the wall, stabilizing himself. He used his snout to open the satchel where the flowers were to be put once they got them. As for the flowers, Incendio moved his head forward very carefully and, using his mouth, picked one very delicately. He gave several small tugs to pull the flower and when it did come free, Incendio, moving very carefully as if being afraid of damaging the plant any further, placed inside his satchel. After the flower was safe inside his bag, he continued to the next one.
What Incendio was doing was dangerous and the better for everyone if he got out of there as fast as possible. Spyro, Cynder, and Shockwave stood frozen, watching Incendio pick the flower one by one. It took a few minutes to have all six flowers in Incendio's bag.
"Good! You have the flowers. Now get back here, Incendio" Spyro told the fire dragon urgently.
But at that moment, the hold he was using to keep himself balanced that have been so faithful to him during his stay, decided to give away. Incendio lost his footing. Instinct kicked in and he opened his wings to try to balance himself. He barely opened them while he searched for a new foothold, but that small mistake was enough.
As if fate was waiting for the dragon to make that particular mistake; there was a sudden air burst. Strong wind snapped Incendio's wings completely open, and dragged him away from the wall.
Spyro, Cynder, Shockwave and Sparx gawked as Incendio hung in midair for a few moments. The scene looked so unreal: Incendio hovering in middle of the small ravine without beating his wings. In fact, Incendio managed to look at them with a 'Is this real?' look. However, this unreal scene came to an end quite quickly.
The wind picked up and Incendio was slammed back against the wall.
"INCENDIO!" the three other dragons shouted in unison.
The fire dragon was at the winds mercy. It picked him up and slammed him against the other side of the ravine, making his fall even more uncontrolled. Incendio began falling toward the black pit as he tried desperately to reach and grab a hold in the wall.
It was at that moment, that Incendio managed to understand what was happening. Spyro heard the fire dragon's screams of fear... and he saw how he descended towards the abysm, trying desperately to find anything to slow down his uncontrollable fall... but he was going downward to fast now.
"NOOO!!!" Spyro shouted as he saw Incendio's form disappearing in the darkness below, and his screams of fear dying away.
And then... he was gone. They couldn't see him... and they couldn't hear his screams. He was gone.
"INCENDIOOOOO!!!!" Spyro shouted down below, in hopes that the dragon might respond.
The other two dragons stood frozen from the shock, to really comprehending what had just happened.
"INCENDIO!" Spyro shouted again, but no answer came back.
'I have to help him!'_Spyro immediately thought. _'I have to get him out of there!'
Spyro leaned forward, desperately trying to find a way down to find his friend. He desperately looked left and right in an attempt to find something... anything that might help him. But there was not. Spyro began to get angry... angry at himself.
"Incendio answer me!"
'I should have stopped him!' Spyro shouted in his own mind.' I knew he was up to something, I just knew it! But I did not act; curiosity got the better of me and allowed him to do such a reckless thing! And now he is gone... because I did not act!'
He began to hyperventilate, trying to figure out a way to help Incendio. A rope? They did not have one. Climbing down? Too dangerous. How could he help him?
A chaos of emotions was making a mess of Spyro: guilt at not having helped his friend, failure at not having helped his friend when he counted on him, determination in helping him now when he needed him, fear at him being injured... or death down there, and hopelessness as he found no way to help him now.
He had just recently lost people close to him. Very close. Ignitus... his parents... and now Incendio too? Why did people close to him always seem to be the ones to die? Why not him?
"Spyro" someone said in a low voice from behind, cutting him from his own train of thought.
Spyro turned to look and saw Cynder with tears in her eyes.
"We have to help him!" Spyro said somewhat forcefully as he once again looked for a way to help Incendio.
"Spyro" Cynder said in a low voice once again. Spyro turned to look at her, tears beginning to form in his eyes. "Spyro... he is..."
"He is not dead!" Spyro said forcefully. He knew what Cynder was about to say, and that was exactly what he didn't want to hear, and that she was probably right. "He is not! Now help me find a way to help him"
Spyro continued yelling his name down the chasm, in hopes that he might waken Incendio from his unconsciousness... if he was even unconscious.
_'No... he is not dead!'_he thought desperately again.
"Spyro" Shockwave said in an urgent tone.
"Incendio might be injured. The more we argue the less chance he has" Spyro retorted.
"SPYRO!" Shockwave shouted, making Spyro look at her with confused and hurtful at eyes at him actions. "Listen" he said next with a more worried and low tone.
Spyro was confused at first by his request, but he did so anyway. He tried to listen to whatever he was supposed to listen. At first he heard nothing over the thumps of his fast beating heart, but then, he heard it: a low and menacing low rumble.
"What is that thing?" he asked out loud.
"I don't know, but it's getting louder" Shockwave informed.
The low rumble sounded as if was far away, but it was getting louder... and closer.
"I don't like the sound of that" Cynder said as she shifted from foot to foot.
The three dragons started to get nervous as the seconds passed.
Then, suddenly, Spyro felt something cold and wet fall on his head. He turned and looked up, only for more of snow to fall upon him. He closed his eye and proceeded to rub it in an attempt to clean it. When he managed to free any trace of snow from his eye, he looked around him. More snow was starting to fall.
"Does it suddenly this snow picked up?" he asked.
By each moment, the rumble was heard louder by the second, making the three dragon twitch and look every way.
Suddenly, unexpectedly, the rumble was really loud, it was near an overhead. The three dragons turned to look and saw how a huge cascade of snow fell into the narrow ravine in which they were in. Fortunately, the snow did not fall on top of them. Instead, it continued they journey downwards to be engulfed by the dark chasm.
"AVALANCHE!" Shockwave shouted above the loud rumbling. "WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE!"
Spyro looked and saw how the cascade was making itself bigger, indicating that more snow... a lot more... was coming it way. If they didn't moved fast, they would be crushed when the bigger wave of snow came.
The three dragons started to run away from the cascade of snow before Spyro stopped dead in his tracks.
"WAIT! What about Incendio?" he asked.
"We're gonna get buried if we don't leave now!" Shockwave shot back.
Heaps of snow started to fall on top of them. Spyro saw the truth the electric dragon was speaking the truth: the avalanche would bury them if they stay any longer.
"COME ON! WE HAVE TO GO NOW!" Shockwave shouted.
With one last glance at the place where Incendio had disappeared, Spyro turned around and fled the white cascaded that was coming after them.
"KEEP RUNNING!"
The cascade was getting larger, making the quantity of the snow to be enormous. By now, some heaps of snow were falling on the three struggling dragons that were trying to make their way out of the death trap they found themselves in.
"It's gaining on us!" Spyro shouted in fear.
No matter how hard they tried to run, the avalanche seemed always to be faster. And just when they exited the small ravine they were in, the wave caught them. Tons of snow hit them like a stone, throwing around the three dragons like some discarded piece of parchment in a windy day. They were turned around and rolled by the force of the avalanche.
Spyro just managed to give a small cry before the weight of the snow covered him completely and plunged him in a cold darkness.