Crash and Spyro, A Friendship Across Lifetimes

Chapter 36: The Dark Dragons

CYNDER could only watch at what Spyro had become. Malefor had beaten him down and scolded him. He was on the brink of death, and somehow got up to face Malefor one last desperate time. But once he stood up and succumbed to his rage and fear, he was a different Dragon then. She could see, no... feel the difference in him. The transformation may have looked only physical, but Spyro changed on the inside as well. Cynder and Spyro had though that they were the only Dragons alive for around five months before Thomas, Magnus, and Malefor showed up. And during that time, Spyro had overcome his grief and became the hope she and these citizens of Avalar needed, most of who were gathered around her right now. The magic that he was learning and getting accustom to had inspired them; they started to believe there was someone out there who could rival the Sorceress. Through him, the Professor was able to gather all these people who had lost so much together and finally stand a chance of defeating her.

That Spyro had been defeated by Malefor. What was clashing with Malefor now was something else. He was ferocious, he was terrifying, and he was powerful. Spyro and Malefor had taken to the air at this point, leaving much of the beach where their battle had started on fire and decimated. The fight had become very dangerous to those who were watching. Magnus raised a magical barrier over the Avalar Resistance as a torrent of flame danced over Magnus' shield. Thomas ordered everyone to retreat from the beach and enter the Professor's laboratory. Everyone quickly moved inside, although one particular Cheetah was brimming with anger.

"What the hell is going on Dragons? Talk!" Hunter yelled impatiently as the ground literally shook for a moment. "Who exactly is Malefor and why is he attacking Spyro?"

"It's complicated" Magnus responded as everyone in the laboratory murmured and chattered in a panic, though Cynder, Thomas, Sheila, the Professor, Byrd, and Bentley were listening to this conversation intently.

"Well clarify it, now!"

"Malefor has been corrupted by the Power Gems. He, like the Sorceress, seeks to wield their full power. Why he is here I don't know."

"I was under the impression that the Sorceress killed him, when 'Malefor' tried to save your lives."

"That not entirely true, Hunter. Thomas and I both thought that the Sorceress did indeed kill Malefor and take his six Power Gems when she attacked Artisans. But his intention was not to save our lives."

"I'm not sure we should treat Malefor as an adversary" Hunter then said, surprising everyone in the group.

"No" Thomas said rather abruptly, "he cannot be trusted, he is too dangerous!"

"He may be dangerous, but he wants to kills the Sorceress. And although it may look cruel, I think he's trying to train Spyro."

"Are you insane!?" Cynder reacted in horror. "He's trying to kill Spyro, and none of us are trying to do a damn thing about it!"

"I think I have to agree with Hunter" Byrd said rather calmly. "Though none of us can be sure of Malefor's intentions, let's not forget that our plans to invade Artisans have been compromised. The Sorceress knows where we are and what we plan to do. We need to relocate and regroup, now. And having Malefor around will increase our odds of surviving an ordeal with the Sorceress, since he's proved he's a match against her. For now, we have no choice but to trust him as long as he doesn't kill Spyro."

"What, we can't stop our plans to retake the Dragon Realms. We cannot abandon all the Dragons there." Cynder complained.

"We have no choice," Byrd responded, "The Sorceress and her armies are already waiting for us to fall into her trap. The Professor is the only one who knows how to free the Dragons trapped in Crystal, and he cannot be a liability while we combat the Sorceress' forces there. We have to abandon freeing the Dragons for now."

"I can agree that we need to postpone freeing the Dragons in the Dragon Realms, but trusting Malefor is way too risky. I won't allow him to kill any of you." Thomas said sternly.

"Listen," Hunter said comfortingly to the elder Dragon, "Your son may be dangerous, but I'm no saint, either. I've killed plenty of Rhynocs and don't regret a single kill. This isn't about right and wrong anymore, or about your feelings. Malefor has rescued you and Magnus' life whether you admit it or not, found Spyro's 'important' dragonfly, identified the traitor amongst this group, and can evidently go toe to toe with the Sorceress. And now I've seen him unlock a power that was dormant in Spyro. It may not be perfect, but I think we need him to win."

"That dormant power is the exact reason why the Sorceress and Malefor are the way they are." Thomas responded angrily. "It's a dark surge of murderous intent. Spyro is just as dangerous as his uncle while stuck in that state of mind."

"Well the only way Spyro's going to beat the Sorceress is if he 'intends' to murder that bitch in cold blood." Hunter responded coldly.