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A/N: I get the feeling this story isn't going to be as short as I want it to be... Oh well. Be prepared for raging emotions as Spyro and Cynder learn that friends can be found in the strangest of places. Inspired, again, by Guide You Home (I Would Die for You) by Rebecca Kneubuhl and Gabriel Mann. This is the first two chapters since Chapter 1 is short. There is some mild blood/gore/violence in Chapter 2. Semi-port from FanFiction(dot)net.

Lost and... Alone?

By:

Glek

Disclaimer: Spyro and all related material are copyright 2008 Sierra Entertainment in the US and/or other countries. All other material belongs to me (Glek). This story is written without any intentions of gaining profit in any way, shape, or form.

Chapter 1: In the Beginning

"Cyril, have you seen Cynder this morning?" Spyro asked the Ice Guardian as they passed in the hall.

"Why, yes, I have." The blue dragon replied in his usual stuck up manner. "I believe she was going down to the river to look for some fish for breakfast. She is probably still there, seeing as the fish in the river are barely big enough to make a decent meal."

"For a fully grown dragon, yeah." Sparx commented. "Keep in mind, big guy, Cynder ain't even half your size."

"Well, that is true... I suppose."

"Thanks Cyril."

/-\

Fishing had been good. Cynder was enjoying the fish and the nice weather. The river was running high, so catching was easy. The black dragoness sat back to look at the sun. She decided one last fish. Leaning over the river, Cynder scouted for another fish. However, the high-running river had eroded the shoreline, and Cynder's weight proved too much for the weakened ground to hold. With a surprised cry, she tumbled head first into the water.

Instantly, the current grabbed her and dragged her under. Struggling, Cynder burst back to the surface and found herself a large distance down river. The water clung to her wings, making flight a non-option unless she could get clear of the river. A short ways down river, the water took two paths, one at a more calm rate, the other raging like the water around her. Cynder struggled to get clear of the current, into calmer waters, but the river had been known to overpower fully grown dragons when high. In the end, she had no choice but to follow the more dangerous route.

A low rumble built in the distance, and Cynder could see mist a short distance away. A large number of rocks jutted out of the river like teeth. In desperation, Cynder reached out and grabbed hold of one, using it to anchor herself against the water. Her mind worked rapidly to try to find a way to shore, but the rocks didn't offer enough grip to get on top and the river was now flanked by high walls cut by the water. Debris swirled by, various sticks, leaves, and some larger pieces of wood.

Cynder spotted one rather large piece of wood, probably the remains of a tree trunk, swirling towards her. The cold water was sapping her strength, and she closed her eyes, hoping desperately that the trunk would miss. A few long seconds dragged past before something slammed into Cynder's back, right on top of where one of her wings joined her torso. The pain was excruciating and in it, she released her hold on the rock.

The merciless current grabbed her once more and sent her over the waterfall. The wind gripped at her wings, worsening the already blinding pain. Unable to handle it, Cynder blacked out before she reached the bottom, where the water threw her against the rocks, sending her into unconsciousness. Bruised, cut, and with a broken wing, Cynder drifted down the river until the current ran her up against the shore. She continued to lie there as the sun peaked, then sunk, and finally vanished, relinquishing its hold over the sky to the moon and the stars.

Chapter 2: Alone?

Cynder's eyes flicked beneath their lids as her mind slowly climbed back from the blackness. Eventually, she managed to open one eye, the one not lying in the water and mud. Everything was blurred and distorted. Slowly, edges sharpened and the world became more distinct. She was in a forest, the moonlight streaming through small gaps in the canopy. It gave the forest a sinister feel, creating pockets of light weak, struggling light among the shadows. Shadows which seemed to move and swirl when viewed from the corner of one's eye. Shadows which could have hidden anything.

Cautiously, Cynder pushed herself onto her front legs, wincing at the sting of several cuts. One was deep and bleeding steadily, running along the inside of her left foreleg. She examined the rest of her body. She had a few other large lacerations, two on her stomach, one on her back which had several splinters in it, and another on her left hindquarter. They were all bleeding sluggishly but steadily.

Attempting to inspect her wings, Cynder tried to bring her right wing forward so she could see it. Blinding pain leaped up her wing and into her shoulder. She bit back a scream, reducing it to a whimper. The wing was dislocated from the joint and probably fractured in several spots near the joint. She could feel the bone grating as she twitched the wing involuntarily. Fuzzily, the back of her mind registered that flying was not an option. The rest of her tried to handle the pain.

Eventually, the pain subsided and she looked around at the forest. The river lazily flowed past, providing more light by opening the canopy. There was no sign of the waterfall she had fallen down. Cynder considered following the river, but without being able to fly, she wouldn't get any further then the cliff the waterfall rested on. She had two other options. Follow the river downstream and see if she could reach the sea or head into the forest. If she could reach the coast, she could follow it until she found the Great Dam, or what was left of it, and from there, Warfang would be easy to find. The forest, however, likely had better and easier food sources, but there was no telling where it could lead.

I should at least bandage these cuts up. If they keep bleeding like this, I'm going to bleed to death.

Cynder journeyed a short distance into the forest, looking for some sort of long plant leaf or vine she could use as a bandage or tourniquet. She was cautious. She could have sworn she saw movement in the shadows and that she heard voices whispering to each other.

"Hello?" Cynder asked timidly. "Is anyone there?"

The hushed noises stopped. Cynder continued her search, keeping the river in hearing distance. Eventually, the whispers started again, quieter, but there none the less.

"Who's there?" Cynder asked, starting to lose her cool. "Show yourselves!"

Again, the whispers vanished, only to resume later.

"Please..." Cynder begged. "This isn't funny. I don't want to hurt you... I just need some help."

"Help..." Came the raspy whisper, echoed by several other voices. "She needs... help."

"Yes!"

"Help!"

"She needs help!"

"Please..." Cynder whimpered, terrified by the apparent number of voices. "Don't hurt me."

"How should we help her?" The raspy voice asked.

"How?"

"Yes, how?"

"Indeed."

"I say," proclaimed a new voice, "we help put her out of her misery."

"Excellent idea."

"Mmmm, I like that."

"Sounds good."

"Lets do it."

"NO!" Cynder screamed, twisting to meet the first shadow as it rushed her.

The shadow creatures were just that, shadow. Cynder's claws and trail simply caused them to break apart into a mist, only to reform behind the ranks of their allies. They were intangible, yet when one finally broke through Cynder's defences, their claws were razor sharp and cold as ice. It scored a direct strike on her side, the claws slicing through scale and flesh and leaving a stinging cold, numb feeling that slowed Cynder down, letting more attacks slip through her defences.

Eventually, Cynder collapsed, unable to hold herself up.

"Please..." She begged, weeping slightly. "Don't do this."

"Everything that has a beginning has an end, silly." The raspy shadow said, standing over her head. "This is yours."

It pulled her head up, claw tightening around Cynder's throat, slowly choking the life from her. The last thing Cynder saw before she blacked out was the creature's terrible maw, filled with teeth, opening wide.

A/N 2: Just a note on the scaling of Spyro characters. Concept art from TLoS: DotD shows Spyro and Cynder being the just slightly shorted then a human (when Spyro and Cynder are measure from the head). In-game, Hunter is shown to be human height (by the eagle he has) and that puts Spyro and Cynder at the size of a large dog, small pony. I will be using the latter scale.