Dark Legacy. Chapter 4

Chapter 4. Firmly Grounded
By: Dardarax

Disclaimer: I Dardarax, do not own Spyro, Cynder, the guardians or any other place or character belonging to the Spyro franchise. Should I ever actually come to possess the franchise I will jump up in down in my underwear and yell out splidoinky five times. Several of my characters are featured in this chapter, and their names are listed below.

Dawn had broken many hours ago, and the sun was now nearing its peak. Far below the Dragon Temple rose up in all of its glory. Its smooth white stone walls shone in the bright sunlight. At the south east corner of the Temple a large domed coliseum loomed up around several smaller buildings. All were connected by long halls that stretched between the structures, connecting them like spokes in a giant wheel.
A garden of statues surrounded the coliseum, here the memorials of all the heroes, both named and unnamed stood. For these heroes had defended the Temple against the second resurrection, and Malefor's armies. Many lives were lost among every race, and these statues stood in their honour. They symbolised the valour and commitment of all who lost their lives, protecting the place that would raise the next generation of protectors, and Guardians.
These sights were lost on Savron who sat bored while Cyril lectured him on how badly he had done with his latest attempt at the blizzard technique.
"Come now Savron, you are the only one who hasn't grasped this technique yet. You don't want to disgrace your grand heritage with your lack of skill do you?" The Ice Guardian asked a condescending expression on his face. Savron sighed, placing a paw to his forehead; he could feel a headache building up. For Savron the problem was not the technique, it was the tutor. Every time Savron would make the slightest error, Cyril would mention how Savron could use drastic improvements. And every time he got something right Cyril would say something like:
"Adequate, but a long way off the greatness of my noble ancestors."
It drove Savron crazy. He could care less about heritage and legacy. Savron had enough trouble living under his father's legacy, let alone the legacy of all of Cyril's ancestors. Savron was trying to learn the blizzard technique, where a dragon cocoons itself in freezing wind and mows through the enemy. Savron understood the concept and the destructive power of the technique; however he could not support it.
Normally an ice dragon concentrates on creating a spiral of icy wind beneath them, supporting their weight and spinning the dragon like a top. However Savron couldn't keep the current constant. And the nonstop comments and criticism from Cyril were primarily at fault. Alone Savron could achieve the technique, but every time he tried to prove it to Cyril he was unable to hold his concentration.
"I can do it without the criticism Cyril, you keep breaking my concentration!" Savron growled at the arrogant Ice Guardian.
"If you can't hold it while I'm commenting, how do you expect to hold it while being attacked?" Cyril questioned. His logic only served to infuriate Savron further.  
"If you would help me rather than comparing me to your ancestors every five seconds I could Cyril!" Savron snarled angrily. The two sat in the middle of an open air training ground found near the coliseum. Sitting off to the side a small crowd of ice dragons watched the two argue. This was a scene that occurred often, Savron would come up to practice a technique and fail because of Cyril's boasting. Every single ice dragon here had perfected the technique, but Savron couldn't even remain aloft long enough to bowl over a single training dummy.
Cyril was about to respond when a loud gong sounded. Cyril looked to the hourglass beside him that had just run empty, and shook his head.
"All right class is over, remember to practice every day. Oh and Savron I'll test you again tomorrow on your control over blizzard. Good day." Everyone sat up, and stretched, slightly cramped, before moving towards the door. A small ice dragon, relatively scrawny in comparison to the others ran over to Savron.
"You're doing better, Savron. You just need to focus on keeping your balance. Without the proper balance, the vortex of air created will not support your weight, thereby causing you to fall." The young dragon spouted, as they walked towards the door. The dragon was a sky blue. Three overly large horns adorned his head. Two curled backwards, and the third thrust forward from his forehead, running parallel with his long muzzle. His horns were an azure blue, and his eyes a deep green.
"Plus," the dragon continued as they exited the room. "If you focus more energy into the base of the blizzard, it would be considerably easier to balance, and adding greater force to your…"
"Thanks Sleet," Savron interrupted the young dragon's rant. "But like I said a million times before, I can do it.  Just not while that big mouth yabbers on about his ancestors."
"Well maybe I help you practice by throwing rocks at you while you practice Blizzard?" Sleet joked.
"I suppose it would be less painful than listening to Cyril's boasting." Savron laughed as they entered the statue gardens.
"So, I hear you're grounded today. I guess that means our adventure is off, right?" Sleet asked, sounding a little disappointed. Savron grinned down at the younger dragon.
"Of course not! It just means it will be a little shorter than usual. Mom and dad are off on a trip to town, and won't be here to supervise me." Sleet looked at Savron dubiously.
"So you're going to disobey your parents, and go anyway? Is that smart?"
"They won't ever know. Come on lets go get Typhous." The two took off, rapidly gaining altitude. They soared over the Temple, looking down into its many gardens and buildings. Savron had to slow his pace so Sleet could catch up. Sleet had very little muscle, and had difficulty gaining any. No matter what exercising he did, no matter how hard he worked, he could not build muscle. However, muscle mass was a reasonable exchange for the power Sleet could wield.
The young ice dragon was quite possibly the most powerful dragon in the Temple.  Capable of freezing a lake solid while in the middle of a volcano, Sleet possessed more raw magical power than any of the Guardians. However he had difficulty controlling it and often wound up overcharging his techniques. He also had trouble using his power in combat. Sleet was so nervous he might lose control he was unable to utilize it effectively in a fight.   
Savron shouted and pointed to a small garden by the edge of the mushroom forest. The two descended to the small garden, full of plant life and small animals. In the center of the garden a silver-grey wind dragon sat examining the blooming flowers while humming to himself. The dragon wore stunning gold jewellery; chains of gold connected his six horns which swept back gracefully. Two bands of gold were clasped around his tail, and polished bracelets curled around his front paws. A scarf of ocean blue silk was wrapped around his elegant neck.
Typhous often reminded Savron of his mother, his body was of a slim build. His face was the same tear shape, ending in a beak like muzzle. A small crescent shaped blade tipped his tail. If it wasn't for his grey scales and slightly bulkier frame, he would have looked just like her. Typhous looked up as Savron and Sleet landed, and grinned, showing off pearly white fangs.
"Well, you're a little early today, Sav, Sleet."
"We got here as fast as we could, Typhous. You probably heard I'm grounded today, so we will have to shorten our outing."
"Ah, so you are not going to stay grounded then. That will just get you into more trouble."
"No it won't. Mom and dad are out in town. We'll go for an hour, and then I will come back and study. They will never know the difference." Savron beamed, sure his plan would work. Typhous and Sleet rolled their eyes. Cynder would find out, she always found out.
"Alright Sav, what are we doing today?" Sleet asked nervously. A lot of Savron's adventures held an element of danger in them. And they got in trouble frequently for being in places they shouldn't be, but Savron's adventures rarely ended badly.   
"Yesterday I saw some frogweeds out in the forest." Savron gestured to the mushroom forest with a paw. "So I figured we should hunt some frogweeds. You know, hone our skills in real combat, while exploring the forest."
Typhous and Sleet exchanged worried glances. Savron saw their reluctance and smiled winningly at them.
"Come on, they're no tougher than those Ape dummies, and what's the harm in a little fun? It'll be great!"
"I don't know Sav." Sleet muttered. "You picked the wrong pair to go hunting with."
"I conquer." Typhous agreed. "Sleet here couldn't fight close quarters for his life, and can barely manage to take one of those Ape dummies in a straight fight. Plus I don't like violence. Exploring is great but…"
Savron looked between the two of them, seeing his grand plan falling apart.
"There is no one else who can come with me guys. Igneous has his reading assignment, Tirren has her leadership class. And Zindy has her art project to work on. You're the only two who can come with me… I don't want to explore alone." Sleet and Typhous looked at each other guiltily, Savron was near to tears. They both knew he was faking it, but that wouldn't change the guilt they would feel at abandoning their friend.
"Fine but you owe us Sav." Typhous sighed. Savron looked at them wiping the imaginary tears from his eyes and grinned.
"Fair enough. Just one hour I promise." The three set off into the forest.
Up high in a mushroom tree a cloaked figure sat. Beneath his hood yellow fur spotted with black peeked through. A small muzzle and two large ears poked through the hood of his cloak. A bow and quiver of arrows were strapped to his back, and a sabre rested on his hip.
The cheetah watched as the three dragons stepped boldly into the forest. The ice and wind dragons following the noble purple as they marched. The cloaked feline waited until they were almost out of sight before following them into the forest.

High up in one of the Temple's many spires, a young red dragon lay on his bed of plush cushions reading. Sunlight shone through the large arched windows, small trinkets and toys lay scattered across the floor. The large door to Igneous's bedroom creaked open, and the pink head of an adult dragoness poked though.
"Ah, Iggy, you're still reading? I just can't believe Spyro would make you read that rubbish text book." Ember, Igneous's mother said exasperated.
"O-oh mom, it's you!" Igneous hastily closed the book and shoved it in the bed of cushions. "It's not that bad, you just have to read past the cover." Igneous swallowed nervously, hoping his mom didn't notice the slight blush that was hidden by his red scales. The 'text' book was really a series of romantic novels hidden beneath the bland cover. Spyro had given him the book as a reading assignment last night. Though Igneous wasn't sure, he believed Spyro had given him this specific book on purpose.
Igneous had started on the book not long after breakfast, and found it not quite as he expected. Igneous was only supposed to read chapter three to six. He was on eleven now.
"Well you should take a break none the less. It's a beautiful day outside. Oh and you have a visitor." Ember opened the door wider and an emerald green dragoness stepped in. She was very attractive by dragon standards, being both slim and curvy. The strong muscles that layered her only served to accent her features. Four horns adorned her head like a crown, twisting together at the base before separating. She wore little jewellery, consisting of the sapphire necklace that matched her eyes perfectly, and the emerald studded rings she wore on her upper pair of horns.
She walked with regal grace into the room, and then nodded at Ember.
"Thank you miss, but could you leave us alone now?" Ember giggled and waved.
"Alright, I'll leave you two love birds alone." Ember closed the door behind her and Igneous groaned. When Ember was gone, the emerald dragoness's formal expression cracked into a smile. She turned to face Igneous.
"Well Iggy, how has your day been?" She spoke lightly, her words echoing silent laughter. Igneous frowned.
"Tirren, only mom can call me that." The red dragon's frown fell away, revealing a wide grin beneath. "So what are you doing here? I thought you had a leadership program going on?"
"I did." Tirren laughed, walking closer to Igneous, who sat up leaving the book behind. "But I finished it an hour early."
"That's Tirren all right. Motivating the masses with her quick wit and silver tongue." Igneous remarked with a smile.
"That's Igneous for you." Tirren responded smiling back. "Stating the obvious while trying to get the girl." Igneous blushed.
"S-so what are you doing here Rin?" Igneous repeated stuttering slightly.
"Well I figured we could go for a walk out in the gardens. Since you don't have any classes right now."
"That sounds great!" Igneous said happily. "I finished the reading assignment Spyro gave me. Let's go!" Tirren gave the book on the bed a glance; a look of horror crossing over her face.
"I didn't know Spyro was so cruel as to make you read that book!"
"Oh! No! It's not really a text book. It's a bunch of novels put together in a text book cover."
"Really?" Tirren asked intrigued. She stepped up and picked up the book. "I didn't think the purple saviour was so sneaky." She opened the book at random and examined the page. She blushed furiously and hastily put the book back down. "Or this pervy."
Her comment made Igneous chuckle, which Tirren echoed. "Well since you're done studying, let's go for a stroll."
Together Igneous and Tirren walked over to the door. The two slipped through a sitting room where Ember sat painting. The pink dragoness gave the two a wave as they slipped out into the hallway. The hall was sparsely crowded with students, dragons of every colour and sex strolled down the hall chatting. Igneous and Tirren joined the crowd and moved towards the landing platform not far away.
They reached the platform only to find a large red dragon landing there. He wore ceremonial armour, embellished with patterns of fire. A large crest on the chest piece marked him as the captain of the Temple guard. Igneous rushed up to meet the steel clad figure, a large grin plastered to his face.
"Hey dad!" The red dragon looked down at Igneous and grinned. His smile mostly hidden under his helmet.
"Igneous! Out and about now are you. I guess that means you're done reading that horrid book?"
"Yes master Flame, we're just going out for a stroll." Tirren answered for Igneous. Flame looked down at the green dragoness and grinned.
"Good, you young dragons need to get out more. Studying isn't everything you know." Flame turned to address his son once more. "So how was the studying?"
"It was… Interesting." Igneous responded managing not to blush. Flame frowned.
"Really? I hated that book. I don't know why Spyro kept his. I burned mine when I finished. Couldn't stand to look at that thing for another minute."  Flame winked at the two.
"Well I got to get going. Ember is waiting for me to bring her the latest gossip. Catch you later." Flame walked past them and into the hall. The crowd opened up for the Captain of the Guard, letting him pass undisturbed. His ceremonial armour rattled as he strode away.
"All right let's go Igneous!" Tirren laughed as she ran onto the landing platform and took off. Igneous following close behind her.

Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the mushroom cap canopy above. The air both murky and dank held the rank odour of rotting vegetation, in the ever swampy forests surrounding the Temple. Savron, Sleet and Typhous trudged along through the undergrowth, stepping around mud pools that Sleet identified as sinkholes. The three tried to remain as close to dry land as possible, but found themselves crossing more and more muddy patches and stagnant pools.
"Ugh, this is disgusting!" Typhous complained from the back of the line. "My scarf is ruined!" Typhous pulled his now torn and muddy scarf from yet another bramble patch, trying to stay as far from the soggy mud as possible.
"Well you shouldn't have brought it to the swamp then Typhous." Savron remarked, a wicked grin playing on his face.
"Technically this isn't the swamp." Sleet corrected Savron. "The swamp is farther into the forest. It is far worse than what we have gone through now. With more sinkholes, toxic fumes and…"
"We get it smarty tail." Savron interrupted Sleet, who scowled at Savron. The three dragons trudged on in silence for a few minutes before Typhous shouted out.
"I see a frogweed! It's over there!" Savron and Sleet turned to where the muddy wind dragon pointed. A small plant like creature surfaced out of the mud. It had red appendages extending out of it like tiny arms. A large mouth opened out of it like that of frog's, and a thick green tongue stuck out. It let out a croak, and all around the three dragons more frogweeds appeared out of the mud.
"It looks like we walked straight into their nest." Sleet commented, as he cowered behind Savron.
"More fun for us." Savron grinned, small bursts of flame flickered from his nostrils.
"Oh dear, I hope my scarf survives this." Typhous sighed, extending his claws. The frogweeds moved slowly, creeping across the ground. Savron struck first, spitting a ball of fire into a small cluster of the creatures. They burst into flame, shrieking they hopped back into the mud. Typhous released a blast of wind, catching a stray frogweed and hurling it into the air. With a quick snort in its direction Typhous sent two blades of air at the flying weed. It was sliced into a fine salad. Sleet cowered behind the two, too afraid to attack.  
"Typhous cover me, I'm going in!" Savron yelled, and charged at the oncoming wave of frogweeds. Savron unleashed a blaze of flame as he reached them, reducing several to ash. Then Savron used his claws and horns to rip the frogweeds apart. Typhous sent blasts of wind at the weeds that got too close to the purple dragon.
Sleet watched the carnage with awe, and then movement caught his eye. Several frogweeds were approaching from behind, unnoticed by Typhous or Savron. Realising that neither would react in time to stop them Sleet stood up. Gathering all his courage he prepared to attack. The frogweeds pounced; Sleet shut his eyes tightly and unleashed his attack. Cold magic energy flowed up into the small ice dragon, exploding from his maw in a torrent of liquid ice.
Both Typhous and Savron felt a wave of cold air hit them; the soggy ground beneath them froze instantly. They turned to Sleet, and their eyes widened. Sleet stood quivering in front of a small garden of frozen Frogweeds, the mushroom trees behind them were pillars of ice crystals. The area around Sleet was covered in frost, and his breath came out in clouds of steam.
The last frogweeds retreated back into the forest, their mud holes frozen solid by the scrawny dragon's power.
"Awesome Sleet! I see you have been practicing control. Not two weeks ago you would have frozen us too!" Savron shouted, laughing. Sleet flushed and gave Savron a shy smile.
"Yes, very splendid. Savron we have hunted some frogweeds, can we go back now?" Typhous asked, plainly eager to return to the Temple. Savron frowned.
"It has only been what, twenty minutes since we left? We still have loads of time to hunt. And admit it Typhous, you had fun." The grey wind dragon sighed and reluctantly nodded.
"I admit it was thrilling, but we really should go back now. We might miss lunch and I am famished."
"Don't worry about lunch, I brought some with me." Savron opened a pouch he wore around his neck and pulled out some wrapped food. Typhous swiped a wrapped turkey leg from Savron's paws and began gnawing, ripping the cooked flesh from the bone. Sleet and Savron each took some food from the pouch and chowed down. Savron was the first to finish; he looked up and addressed the two.
"Are either of you hurt?" Typhous looked up at the purple curiously.
"No. Why do you need to…? No! No you didn't!" Savron grinned and shook the pouch depositing several small glowing red crystals into his paw.
"Where did you get life crystals?!" Sleet gawked at the glowing shards. Life crystals were the rarest and most valuable of all dragon stones. Capable of healing a wound instantly they had become a rare commodity when the dragons had returned. The red crystals had been harvested from the land until only a few natural patches of crystal remained. Only the richest of dragons could afford to buy more than a handful of these life giving jewels. The Temple sported the largest crystal garden in the Dragon realms, and made a tidy sum off of the rapidly growing crystals.
"I swiped them from dad's supply room. I only took a few, just in case."
"You… you idiot! We will get into more trouble than any adventure you could possibly conceive just by taking those gems! What were you thinking!?" Typhous roared at Savron, who gave the wind dragon an injured look before slipping the shards back into the pouch.
"I was only thinking of our welfare. But if you are so worried about it I won't use them, even if you're hurt. That way no one will ever know we took the crystals." Savron turned away from the two abruptly and walked deeper into the forest.
"You know, he probably was thinking about us when he brought those crystals." Sleet whispered. Typhous nodded, sighing. Then the grey took off after the purple, Sleet right behind him.
"Sav!" Typhous shouted, racing up behind his purple friend. "Wait up!" Savron stopped and glanced back at Typhous who stood panting.
"I'm sorry I yelled at you. You were only thinking about our wellbeing, and it wasn't right of me to tell you off. I'm sorry." Savron smiled at the grey, forgiving.
"It's all right; I understand why you would be so concerned about me taking life crystals. But my dad has a chest full of them, he wouldn't miss a few."
"Hey Sav, did you happen to bring any magic crystals, I'm feeling a little tired here." Sleet asked, wheezing, having just caught up. Savron pulled three small green crystals from his pouch and passed one to each of them. They popped each into their mouths and swallowed. Immediately they felt rejuvenated, and ready for another fight. Magic crystals were far more common than life crystals, and far less expensive. They restored a dragon's supply of magical energy, allowing an exhausted dragon to continue fighting long after they should have collapsed.
"Um guys." Typhous murmured as the other two stretched, exhilarated from the energy producing crystals. "We may have a problem."
"What?" Savron asked, glancing over to the wind dragon, who stood eyes wide, gazing at the monster that approached them. It was a hulking monstrosity of eight legs. Its green body was covered in plant life and fungus; a bulbous head supported nine glowing red eyes. It hissed and advanced on the three dragons.
"Oh shit! It's a bulb spider!" Sleet whimpered, cowering behind Savron who stood boldly.
"Oh come on, Sleet. It's only one spider, we can take it." Savron declared confidently. As if on cue more hissing erupted around the dragons. A dozen or so more bulb spiders, each larger than the dragons scuttled from holes nearby, or clambered down trees.
"Damn it Sav!" Typhous shouted at Savron, who stood shocked, mouth agape. "You know better than to say things like that! Fate just loves to prove cocky dragons wrong!" The spiders encircled the dragons, hissing at the intruders. They stayed just out of range, scuttling around, looking for weakness.
"Well, we're dragons, we…we can take them. I squish spiders all the time, no big deal." Savron boasted, his voice quavering, betraying his doubt.
"We're outnumbered, six to one. We're surrounded, and a long ways from home with no help likely to come. It will take a miracle to get us out of this!" Sleet sobbed, defeated.
"Way to drown our hopes Sleet." Savron growled, more at the arachnids than his friend.
"We can win Sleet. If we continue to hope, and work together we can take these filthy beasts." Typhous said soothingly, patting the shoulder of his distraught friend. "But we need your help." Sleet looked up at the wind dragon, whose ruined scarf flapping in the breeze. Sleet tried to smile.
"Alright, I'll try. I don't want to die here."
"Then let's go!" The dragons faced back to back, towards the horde of bulb spiders. Each readied their powers, hoping to take down as many as possible before engaging in a claw to fang fight. The arachnids charged, scuttling across the sodden ground towards their prey.  
The three struck with all their elemental fury. Typhous sent gusts of tornado force winds that blew the spiders into nearby trees with sickening cracks. Savron released arcs of lightning, his strongest element into the advancing horde. Causing the beasts to spasm and twitch as the electricity coursed through their thick bodies. While most devastating of them all, Sleet unleashed his power, keeping a tight control of each attack. The small dragon fired controlled bursts of icy liquid into the horde, turning spiders into ice sculptures.
By the time the horde of arachnids reached the three dragons half of their numbers had been slain, lying broken behind them. The bulb spiders attacked. Leaping and spinning they struck at the three with razor sharp legs. Savron leapt to the side, narrowly dodging the green beast's attack. The purple dragon rammed the spider when it stopped, and hurled it into another that was preparing to attack Typhous. The grey was desperately trying to defend Sleet, who was helpless in the close quarters fight.
"Ty! Keep Sleet safe! I will try and hold them off!" Savron shouted, clawing at a nearby spider. The grey spared Savron a nod before tearing at a spider with his tail blade. Savron turned back to the spiders in front of him, which charged the young purple dragon. Taking a deep breath, and summoning some of his last reserves of power, Savron expelled a column of molten flame. The spiders reared back from the fire, exposing their soft bellies. Savron seeing an opening charged the beasts and rammed his sharp horns into stomach of the nearest spider, bowling it over. Wasting no time he clawed at the soft belly of the bulb spider tearing it open, it writhed for a moment before falling still.
Sleet cowered behind Typhous, who was rapidly weakening from the constant attacks the spiders launched. Typhous was nearly out of magical energy, and was now forced to engage the beasts head on. His slim body was fast but not strong, and he was barely bruising their ego. He held the beasts back only by the speed alone. Typhous was covered in scratches and cuts, his scarf was missing and his jewellery was encrusted with mud.
One spider snuck through Typhous's defense and pounced at the cowering Sleet. Typhous saw the attack but was too late to stop the strike. Sleet screamed as the beast reared up, the ice dragon cringed and waited for the blow. Instead he heard a buzzing sound and a thud. Opening his eyes he saw an arrow protruding from the eyes of the bulb spider, as it collapsed over dead.
Sleet looked up as a figure descended to the ground, holding a bow in one hand and an arrow in another, the cloaked cheetah nocked another arrow and sent it flying into the horde. Taking another spider in the eye.
    "Hunter!" Sleet cried his heart filling with hope. Savron turned from finishing off a third spider to look for the cloaked figure. He saw the cloaked feline strike down the second spider with a precisely aimed shot. Then the purple's eyes fell on Typhous. He and Sleet were surrounded by the last spiders, who were overcoming the weakened grey's defenses with ease.
"I'm coming guys!" Savron roared, as he charged the horde of beasts. Gathering the last of his magic energy to himself.
"Focus all of my power to my feet, and turn it in a spiral." Savron thought, as he reached the monstrosities. Releasing the magic in a slow but steady stream, he reared up on his hind paws and lifted from the ground. Spinning in a whirl of icy wind and shards of ice the purple slammed into the spiders, ploughing through them like a strong wind through loose leaves. The spiders flew backwards away from the exhausted pair, who sighed with relief. Savron spinning slowed, and then came to a stop. The purple smiled smugly at Sleet.
"Told you I could do it." Sleet nodded, smiling with relief, then movement caught his eye.
"Savron look out!" Sleet shouted, getting to his feet. From up high on a tree a spider launched itself at the purple dragon. Hunter saw it coming and fired a desperate shot at it, but missed. The beast landed on the purple, with a loud thud, Savron roared with pain as the spider began to claw at the helpless dragon.
"No!" Typhous roared, rushing up to aid Savron, tears running down his face. Typhous felt something inside him snap open, a flood of power poured through him. The grey, unable to control the energy, released it all at once. The remaining spiders flew into the air as a torrent of wind exploded around Typhous. A huge whirlwind caught the spiders and slammed them against trees, tearing rocks from the ground and slamming boulders into the dying arachnids. As a final act of vengeance, the bodies of the dead spiders were torn to pieces by blades of wind that Typhous sent in his fury.
The wind calmed and the corpses of their foes fell from the sky. Sleet got shakily to his feet, gazing at the torn battleground around him. Typhous staggered over to Savron who lay unmoving nearby.
"Sav!? Sav are you okay?" The young purple stirred and his eyes cracked open.
"That…was…awesome." Savron croaked, then he shivered and fell silent.
"Get up, come on get up!" Typhous moaned, shaking the unmoving form of Savron. Suddenly Typhous teetered and collapsed to the ground. Sleet ran up to the fallen grey but Hunter reached him first.
"Typhous is alright." The cheetah said, removing his hood. His fur was speckled with grey and silver hairs. "He's just exhausted from the fury he unleashed. Savron however is in greater danger."
"How bad is he?" Sleet asked, fear washing over him. The cheetah looked at the skinny ice dragon. Seeing the fear in his eyes, he smiled comfortingly.
"He should be alright. His wounds aren't fatal, but we should bring him to the infirmary just to be safe." Sleet nodded in agreement. Then a thought struck him.
"How will we get them back to the Temple? They are far too large to carry or drag." Hunter nodded in agreement. He placed his hands on Sleets shoulders and looked the young dragon in the eyes.
"I will go for help. You stay here and protect them. Okay?" Sleet was about to object but Hunter silenced him.
"You won't be able to find your way back here if you go. Plus I move faster than you in the forest. Trust me; I will be back with help soon." Sleet slumped, and nodded in agreement. Hunter patted the young dragon on the head and left without another word. His cloaked form quickly disappearing into the trees. Sleet sat down, and cast a glance back over his two fallen friends.
"Please hurry, I don't want to be left alone." The young ice dragon lay down, shivering in the cold dampness of the swamp. It was going to be a long wait.  

"…And that's how I got this scar from a cheese wheel." Igneous finished his long and ridiculous story, smiling as Tirren burst into another fit of laughter. Birds startled by the emerald green dragoness's guffaws, took flight from the surrounding trees. The two walked through a spacious garden, beds of flowers all beginning to bloom cast a rainbow of colours.
A small path of stones wound through a glade of trees and patches of flowers leading around the garden. The two friends strode amidst the plant life, smelling flowers and enjoying the feel of grass under their paws. This garden was their favourite, due to its natural feel, and many colourful flowers.
"You're kidding me! Moles don't fly!" Tirren gasped through fits of laughter. Igneous grinned.
"This one did. And it did it fairly well, considering he was holding a brick of fruit cake and a feather duster." Igneous replied, to an explosion of giggles from his friend.
"You are such a fibber! You're no better than Savron!"
"I'm not lying! And Savron doesn't lie… much. He just exaggerates a lot and likes to tell stories." Igneous declared defensively.
"You mean like how he didn't lie about sneaking in to the female's corridor to try and take a peek?" Tirren countered smoothly. Igneous stopped in his tracks, and looked at Tirren dumbfounded.
"How did you…?" Igneous stuttered as Tirren turned to face the shocked fire dragon.
"You were outside my rooms when he suggested peeking. I heard the whole thing."
"Oh." Igneous whispered, a dark blush crept over his face, and his head drooped.
"I appreciate you trying to stop him though." Tirren commented as she saw the shame well up in her friend. Igneous glanced up at her and smiled weakly. He realised she was trying to cheer him up.
"You're welcome." He murmured, grateful. The two walked in silence for a time, admiring the scenery and enjoying the fresh air.
"You know, I think he knew that was my room." Tirren broke the silence after a time. "He has a thing for me, too bad I have no interest in a dragon like him." Igneous smirked.
"That's probably the reason he likes you so much. You're one of the only dragonesses here who isn't trying to get his attention." Tirren was about to reply when a strong, sneering voice cut in to their conversation.
"And here I thought you would be up in your room studying for your upcoming history test. Ancestors know you will need all the help you can get Igneous." Tirren and Igneous looked towards the source of the voice, and saw a fire dragon leading a small gang of dragons down the path towards them.
The speaker, Torch was a large red dragon; he was as big as Igneous with two horns, and a golden crest crowning his. He moved with a regal grace, and was dressed lavishly. Golden silks were draped across his muscular form, and a pendant of the finest craft hung around his neck. Behind him strolled three other dragons, the ice dragoness Wintra, Thunder the yellow, and Voltlyn.
Wintra was a frosty blue colour; she was graced with four horns that curled back like claws. Wintra was slim and curvy, and was considered the most attractive dragoness in the Temple. She was dressed as richly as Torch and bore the same air of importance, which was hampered only slightly by her being the smallest dragon there. Thunder the largest dragon of the group smiled wickedly. Two horns thrust forward like bolts of lightning and ran just above his eye level. He was a vibrant yellow and his chuckle rumbled through the garden like a drum roll.
Voltlyn was a topaz yellow, and like Thunder was a lightning dragon. She was built thicker than most females in the Temple, but was still fairly attractive. Her two horns curved gracefully over her head, curling towards each other but never touching. Her face ended in a delicate beak, which contrasted with her companions' muzzles. She walked straight backed, eyes downcast, never meeting anyone else's gaze, her face empty of expression.
Igneous growled as the group came to a stop in front of them.
"What do you want Torch?" Igneous demanded of the sneering red, unable to hide the snarl in his voice.
"I just wanted to congratulate you on your latest escapade!" Torch laughed making Igneous frown, eyes narrowing.
"What do you mean by that?" Igneous growled, small tongues of flame flickering from his nostrils.
"It's just I wasn't sure if you had any interest in females, and I was starting to worry." Torch's fangs were bared in a huge grin, behind him Thunder burst into a roaring laugh. Igneous made no attempt to hide his snarl now. He and Torch were archrivals, always competing, trying to outdo the other. It was common knowledge that he and Torch were evenly matched, both possessed unparalleled control over fire. They were top students in the Temple, having the highest marks in every class. At the moment Torch held the title of top student, with Igneous a close second.
Igneous crouched, flames flickering from between his bared teeth. But before he could respond Tirren stepped in front of Igneous and addressed Torch.
"And why were you worried that Igneous might not be interested in females?" Tirren inquired icily. "Oh! Was it because you were worried he might steal your lovers?" A smile broke through Igneous's scowl and from behind Torch Thunder burst into great guffaws.
"Shut up!" Wintra cuffed Thunder over the head. He turned to face her sharply, fangs bared. Torch's smile was gone in an instant, replaced with a scowl of his own. Wintra stepped up cutting off any response Torch might have made.
"Well, Miss Teacher's Pet has a poison tongue doesn't she? I bet it came in handy when you invited the crimson oaf and the pampered purple for a tumble in the night hmm?" Tirren stepped back, her mouth hanging open in shock at the ice dragoness's wicked implication. A smile returned to Torch's face as Tirren tried to regain her composure. Thunder who was enjoying the scene immensely nudged Voltlyn with his wing. The topaz dragoness was examining a patch of nearby flowers impassively, ignoring the two dragonesses squaring off.
"You would know Wintra; you must have slept with half of the males in the Temple by now." Tirren spat, her face livid. Igneous watched with awe as the two dragonesses started exchanging insults that would raise the hair off a bald Ape. The two quickly ran out of insults and descended to name calling.
"Bitch!" Wintra snarled.
"Slut!" Tirren countered.

"Prosdrake!" Wintra hissed. Tirren flinched and Wintra grinned victoriously. As the ice dragoness turned to leave, Tirren caught Wintra's eyes.
"Heraclene." The emerald green dragoness murmured, loud enough for everyone to hear. Wintra froze, Torch and Thunder looked at Tirren shocked, and Voltlyn glanced up from the flowers her jaw falling open in horror. Igneous looked between the four's shocked expressions puzzled, having no idea what Heraclene meant.
Wintra screamed in fury and pounced on Tirren who rolled out from under her. The two began to claw at one another, their rage fuelling their bloodlust. The two clawed and bit, Tirren pinned Wintra down, and the two screamed in fury as they fought.
From high up a loud roar halted the two fighting dragonesses, everyone looked up. A huge earth dragon plummeted from the sky and landed beside the combatants with a crash, sending up a spray of earth.  
"Stop this at once!" The dragon bellowed. Tirren and Wintra disengaged and stood to attention.
"Master Terrador I…" Tirren stammered before being cut off by Terrador's powerful voice.
"Silence! Tirren you know the rules, all combat between students must be fought in the arena, and only after a challenge has been declared!" Terrador looked between the two dragonesses who stared up at the Earth Guardian with fear. Terrador felt a twinge of regret that he had been so harsh, but he refused to back down.
"It is clear that a challenge has been declared, so you will resolve your issues tomorrow at noon, understood?" The two dragonesses nodded vigorously. "Then be off with you! Classes are about to begin." Terrador turned to Tirren as Torch and his gang left hurriedly.
"Tirren," Terrador voice softened slightly as he gazed down at the stricken dragoness. "I don't care what your reasons are, but you should never be goaded into a fight. I'm sure you wouldn't have started this, but that is no excuse for continuing the confrontation. I will see you in class." Terrador turned and took off; his powerful wing beats nearly blowing Tirren and Igneous off their feet.
When the Earth Guardian finally disappeared around one of the Temple spires, Igneous walked over to Tirren, whose head hung low to the ground.
"Don't worry about it Tirren. I was about to rip that smug smile from Torch's face myself, and then I would have been in for it. But you did a way better job than I could have. The look on his face was priceless!" Igneous smiled, trying to cheer Tirren up.
"Yeah, it was pretty funny." Tirren agreed, smiling back at Igneous.
"Come on let's go to class, advanced combat is next right? I can show you a few tricks I've learned to help with tomorrow's fight." With Igneous in the lead the two made their way back to the Temple, taking shortcuts through bushes and flowerbeds. They were silent for a time, but finally Igneous couldn't hold it in anymore and asked.
"What was that Heraclene thing about? Like I know that a prosdrake is about as bad an insult you can get, seeing as they sell their bodies for money. But judging from Wintra's reaction, I think Heraclene is a lot worse." Tirren looked at Igneous as he paused to catch his breath and giggled.
"It is probably the worst thing you can say to a noble. Family feuds have been started because of that insult. I don't think you want to know, it's kind of gross."
"I think I can handle it." Igneous said, relieved to have Tirren her cheerful self again. Tirren thought about it for a moment, trying to decide how best to tell her friend. Then she shrugged and spoke calmly.
"Well a few years ago a noble dragoness named Heraclene was very bored, so she decided to go on an adventure. She flew up to the mountains and took shelter in a cave, too late she realised…" Tirren began whispering into Igneous's ear. His face turned from interest, to dread, to horror in a matter of seconds as she continued to whisper.
"…She enjoyed it so much that she came back every month for her special treatment. Eventually she was caught and banished for her actions. And that's the story behind Heraclene." Tirren finished blandly. Igneous was busy retching, horribly disturbed by the mental images running through his head.
"Sorry but I did warn you." Tirren smirked unsympathetically.
"Now I know… why Wintra… attacked you." Igneous gasped through a heaving stomach.
"Yeah, it's the worst insult to be compared to Heraclene. When I was first told what it meant I had the same reaction as you." In the distance a loud bell began to toll, Tirren and Igneous looked up then at each other.
"We're late!" The two shouted in unison. Heaving stomach forgotten they dashed into the Temple and down the hall towards their next class.