"Anyone out thurr?" asked Holt.

        "Nope," Lizanaich scanned the hills, "neither hide nor scale in them thar hills."

        "Wot sorta accent's that?"

        "Central Hylian," he turned with a smirk, "they got a lotta ranches there."

        "You worked on any of 'em?" the soldier shuffled near the fire.

        "Naaah no one would have me on account of all...this."

He gestured to his body before shuffling back towards the burrow they had found beneath the snow, sheltered from eyes and winds as their faces glowed with amber against the crackling wisps of firelight over the wall behind them.  The sky was darkening to a winter's dusk, the lizalfos wrapping his feathered cloak tighter round himself as Jeremy thumped his knees and rubbed his arms being as close to the fire he could without burning.

        "I thought you mammals could handle this," said Lizanaich.

        "When we got bloody fur on aye," Holt muttered, "s'alright though ah can handle a bit o' chill."

        "I can't."

        "Thought you said you lived in the highlands?"

        "Gerudo, highlands, which are close to the desert, it's just not scorching hot but still warm."

        "Ohhh righ', see there's highlands back where ahm from, well, north of mah country an' they're cold as fuck."

        "Right right," Liz rubbed at his neck leaning back at the wall, "what was your home like?"

        "Well," Holt looked up to the sky, "small town called Brecon in a land called Cymru, not very big but got a long history behind it.  Lotsa chapels, me fam used to go to Llanfaes every once a week, listened to sermons about God an' such."

        "Mobenheim told me you guys only worship the one right?"

        "Well depends on wot religion you 'ave, but ah sorta left that whole nonsense a long time back.  Town also had a military barracks, trained in thuh Monmouthshire Regiment then got shipped off to war an' well you know thuh rest o' that."

        "Actually I don't," the lizard leaned forwards, "just bits and pieces, so you're a straight-up soldier?"

        "Aye, aren't you?"

        "Nope," he rested his knuckles against his chin, "never really got trained, I was just revived again and again and I learned from my mistakes on what not to do to stop getting killed over and over."

        "Bloody 'ell," Jeremy sighed puffing his cheeks, "sounds awful not gonna lie."

        "Yeah it kinda sucks."

        "Wot about uhhh...aging, cuz if you keep dyin' again an' again-"

        "It's...kinda hard to explain, we got kinda made from dark magic so it's given us a longer lifespan than others."

        "Wait yer not born naturally?"

        "No no we are!" Liz waved his hand.  "We just got an essence in us that sorta...well, I don't really know the whole story so let's just say it's half-and-half."

        "S'alrigh' ah know thuh feeling," Holt waved him back, "considerin' ah wuz born a century before anyone else on thuh base."

        "Right, time travel, you drop your ocarina somewhere?"

        "My wot?"

        "It's sorta like a fat flute never mind it's an old joke anyway yeah bein' alive in a different time's weird."

        "Well ah haven't lived as long as you," Holt shrugged with widened arms, "ah got sucked through time, not killed an' revived over an' over."

        "Right, but, you understand."

        "Oh aye ah wuz talkin' with yer buddy Mobenheim about it, he's a nice lad."

        "He is."  Liz nodded with a grin.  "Best of us in all the village, without him I'd be screwed."

        "Awww don' say that, yer thuh leader you done plenty good!"

        "Name one thing I've done good."

        "Came out 'ere to kick that skull-headed bastard's arse right in his coccyx."

        "HAH!  Hhmhmhaha, okay yeah that's true."

        "Cuz you seem to 'andle yerself well fer sumbody not trained in an army."

        "You learn a lot about not getting yourself killed after the first fifty times," he shrugged with a wider smirk, "I'm sure you'd have learned the same."

        "Mmmm," Holt rubbed the bridge of his eyes, "don' have that luxury as a human."

        "I don't have that now, and it's not a luxury trust me the novelty wears off a while."

        "Fair enough."

The two took turns keeping watch, Holt sleeping off beside the fire as Liz kept on watch before they swapped an hour later with the lizalfos laying on his front and letting the heat soak through his scales.  The human tried to make himself small against the burrow, scanning the horizons where islands covered in snow floated with bristling pine trees blanketed in white dust.  Snow fell at a constant pace, light tender wisps that drifted on a breeze and settled on his head like the kiss of angels' wings.  He sighed keeping watch towards the mines they had exited from, the peak of the mountain they had climbed now behind them as a much-less intimidating obstacle when at the summit of the world.  From his post he saw the floating islands of snow, like little teacakes with frost-tipped trees and a clear pink sky above that reminded Jeremy of Neapolitan ice cream, soft rose with an underline of pale yellow where the horizon met the other hills of the region.

        "HEY!"

A voice called out from the cave exit as he saw two purple blobs.  He waved them over with ecstatic grin as  they galloped towards him and slinked straight into the burrow causing a start to Lizanaich

        "Awwww  thank fuck," Jeremy hugged them both, "you lads alrigh'?!"

        "No sweat!" said the younger Spyro.  "Just did a li'l cave adventure."

        "The word is spelunking," said the older Spyro nudging him, "we did fight that shadow again."

        "The one chasing after the thief?" Liz sat up straight.

        "He said that if we kept pursuing him we would die, but...I don't think he's working for him."

        "Well thuh bastard called himself a dragon hunter righ'?" Holt crossed his arms.  "Musta been whut he meant."

        "So what?!" Owain scoffed stretching by the flames.  "Maybe other dragons sure, but I'm not just any other dragon and by I, I mean both of us!"

        "Still we should be careful," Flash nodded, "the shadow was pretty strong, didn't seem to want to kill us, I didn't sense that kind of feeling."

        "You think he's chasing after the thief too?" Liz rubbed his horn.

        "I think so, he's from this world I know that, the shadow that is, and he's definitely hunting down this Hektore to bring back his world."

        "So our goals are the same, why didn't he help?"

        "Just thought he could do it himself," Owain rolled his eyes, "like yeah he's pretty strong but jeez after we kicked his butt he STILL turned us down, what a dillweed!"

        "Well now we're altogether again I guess we should head out soon."

        "Let 'em rest first," Holt patted his side to them, "get yerselves warmed up, it's cold out thurr."

        "Thanks dad," Owain butted his side playfully.

        "We've got thick scales and make fire in our bellies," Flash sat politely, "I think we can handle a little snow."

        "Alrigh' alrigh' just keepin' an eye out for ya," he petted them both, "let's brace ourselves an' then head off."

Warming themselves up for a half-hour, they readied themselves for the great wilds of the snowbound summit.  Soft crunches underfoot echoed through the cold breeze as they tried to search for any means of life, but not a single creature could be seen.  No birds, no burrowing beasts, nothing.  The more they realised this the more eerie the landscape became as they saw icy paths through the arctic glade, forests clustered together and even spreading out across the little islands that floated next to each other.  The dragons drifted from land to land with ease, cold wings flapping through the sky as Lizanaich tightened his cloak and Jeremy never stopped moving, rushing through the snow as his feet punched through the thick white to clear paths and leap over gaps.

Sometimes they found a snowman, sitting on its lonesome crafted by childish hands as a brittle reminder of those who had once lived.  Other times they would risk crossing lakes completely frozen where both Spyros guided the group over the least-treacherous parts.  The ice was a shocking electric blue that surprised them, matching the giant crystals that loomed above the pale summits with a piercing shine, lighthouses to guide them through the empty wastes.  Some of the crystals had fallen over to form bridges between the isles, treacherous sapphire that twinkled above the abyss where hundreds of hills dotted the world below in pastels of blue, green and white.

        "Hnnnngh," Holt shuddered amidst, "makes me wish ah'd been to Scotland."

        "Where's that?" asked Spyro-Owain.

        "North of mah home, Anna from thuh base is from there, thinkin' ah should go visit 'er when we all get back 'ome."

        "Aw jeez, wish I could help you guys get back sooner."

        "Aw is fine we'll figure it out eventually...or, yanno, die 'ere but honestly, ahm not too bothered about going back to civilisation."

        "Whysat?" the dragon shook snow off his head.

        "Well ah mean, ahm so used to it now, bein' with Oddie, livin' out in thuh wilds...sorta tempted to just not go back if the choice is there."

        "Really?"

        "Hmmm," Holt shrugged with a slight cough, "mebbe ahm just gettin' old, mebbe ahm just tired of people...honestly might be because Oddie's the only one that understands me."

        "I haven't met the guy yet but you all really love him huh?"

        "Flash met 'im," he pointed to the other drake walking beside Liz, "Oddie ah met some years ago when we were first stuck 'ere, he washed up on the beach cuz his...well, summat 'appened an' he fell into thuh sea, so we cleaned up an' nursed 'im back to health."

        "Wow, glad he's okay," the dragon grinned, "so what you mean when you said he understood you?"

        "Well ah always felt lahk an outcast, an' he always felt that way too bein' a bit too different from those around ya."

        "That sucks," Spyro bumped at Holt's waist, "never felt that way but I know a couple guys that felt like that, but that's what friends are for right?"

        "Aye," Holt chuckled rubbing his head, "an' Oddie's thuh best friend I ever 'ad."

        "I've had a lotta friends, both in the Dragon Realms and everywhere else, an' all of them are different but when we all get together, NOTHING can stop us!"

        "Hahaha, well you musta heard all thuh stories of them anomalies we fought before aye?"

        "Uhh, no?" he leaned his head back.

        "Ohohoh well strap yerself in cuz ah got TONS of stories for ya."

        "This not the boring kinda stories right, with all the kissing an' paperwork and stuff, cuz I'd like to not grow old listening to that."

        "HMHAH, cheeky bugger, naw naw this is thuh good stuff with lotsa fightin' an' violence!"

        "OOOH SICK!"

Whilst Holt regaled the feisty young drake with tales of derring-do and interdimensional battles, his elder other kept in pace with Liz as they scouted towards the rising peaks of glacial beauty, spires of azure that crowned the evening sky whilst the snow kept dusting over their heads and backs, shaking it off occasionally when the buildup turned too cold.

        "Damn this place is pretty," Liz gasped staring over the edge, "reminds me of Mount Lanayru."

        "You're not too cold are you?" Spyro-Flash leapt over a ridge.

        "Nah my cloak helps," he pulled it tighter to his chest, "s'a lot warmer than it looks."

        "That's good."  He waited for the lizalfos to leap beside him.  "I promise you we'll get your friend's thing back."

        "I know, I believe you," Liz nodded, "especially after you kicked that thief's ass with your magic, seriously you handle every element or what?"

        "Most of them," he shrugged, "took me a long time to learn them and I need to recharge wherever I can but since there's a lot of magic resonance around these isles I can manage."

        "So what you absorb magic?"

        "Sort of?  There was some really nice water back in the caverns that helped a lot, all those minerals."

        "Ohhhh yeah volcano water is the beeest," Lizanaich shivered, "me an' Mohberra used to go to these hot springs at the base of Death Mountain-"

        "Wait, DEATH mountain?"

        "It's just a name don't worry about it," he waved his hand, "I mean yeah there's falling rocks an' lava pools but not at the base of it where all the hot springs are, anyways, these hot springs soaked suuuuper good into your bones so me and Mohberra got time to chill out in one of them.  Then he brought out his skillet, let it roast over a burning rock, fried up some eggs with some butter in them."

        "What...sort of eggs?" Flash gulped with a cringe.

        "Wha, cucco eggs of course jeez come on don't look at me like that!"

        "Right, right, sorry haha."

        "Anyways," Liz leapt onto a crystal bridge, "that skillet's not just a piece of him, it's a piece of me, there's memories in that thing of the times him and I had."

        "It's a memento," the dragon nodded flying past, "I understand, that makes me want to get it back even more."

        "Thank you...Mohberra would've liked you."

        "I'm sure I'd like him too...you know."

He stopped on the other side of the bridge waiting for Liz to join him.

        "I had this mentor, his name was Ignitus.  He taught me everything about dragons, about where I came from, how things came out, braced me for the future and my life and what I had to do to help keep the world safe and alive.  He was...I mean, I already have a father but he was like a second father."

        "Sounds a great guy," said the chief walking beside him.

        "He was, I...I couldn't have gotten this far if it wasn't for him, he always did his best to keep me safe and...he made me feel closer and less alone than ever I felt.  And then, then came the...the war against Malefor and his hordes of darkness and he...sacrificed himself to save me."

He felt Lizanaich's hand upon his neck, pulling him into a hug as he sighed.

        "I'm sorry."

        "N-no, no it's fine I-"

        "You don't have to say anything, I know what you-"

        "No, please, let me say this."

The dragon pulled back with a firm nod and a deep breath.

        "I thought, that he had died and I had to keep going for the sake of everyone around me.  It was hard, and I hated it, and sometimes I wanted to give up, sometimes I wanted to just fight everything and destroy and just break but I couldn't, I knew that I couldn't.  But I also knew that, I had friends to keep me going."

        "I'm sorry about your mentor," muttered Liz.

        "No no, don't be.  Because I found out he survived the attack, I was so relieved but I really thought he had died for the longest time."

        "Oh...w-well that's good I'm glad he's okay."

        "But he told me something, when I found him again."  Spyro stood firm to his tallest height.  "Death isn't really the end.  No matter what happens, we're just living in one world before moving on to the next.  I've seen it happen too, I've seen where they go."

        "Wait...seriously?" he gasped.  "You seen the...afterlife?"

        "I've seen close to it, I've seen near where those have gone and it's beautiful.  I know Mohberra is out there, watching over you and wanting you to keep everyone in your village safe and that is a fact I can tell you now."

He placed his paw on the chieftain's shoulder.

        "He's proud of you.  You're not alone, just remember the ones here with you and that he's cheering you on from the other world."

        "I...I just miss him," sighed Lizanaich.

        "He misses you too.  You'll meet him again one day, you just have to keep everyone safe first so by the time you're gone, they'll be fine."

        "Yeah...yeah, you're right."  He smiled with a deep breath.  "Thank you.  That...that really helped."

        "You're doing great."  He butted against his chest.  "I believe in you too, we're stopping that thief and saving these isles right?"

        "Damn right."  They bumped fists as he stomped through the tundra.  "Come on, let's get outta here before nightfall."

        "Right behind you!"

He galloped behind him with crunching feet, Holt and the second Spyro catching up after them as the eve turned colder with night soon approaching.  In truth it was still evening, but the higher altitudes brought night quicker to them as the chill deepened in their bones.  Icy paths lured them towards a giant cliff face that almost resembled a mirror, their faces reflected in opal as they peered upwards to trace a path that Lizanaich started with, followed by Owain-Spyro and Holt taking up the rear.  Spyro-Flash flew upwards with a gust of wings to scout the higher regions, guiding them away from dead ends as they pushed within the largest cracks and scaled with a mixture of claws and pickaxe digging into the sheer ice.  Half-trapped in the cliff, they clambered through twisting passages that slipped back and forth behind the wall with Flash-Spyro still keeping pace with them in gentle flaps.  Colder it became as they started to shiver from the heights, cracking fractures in the cliff as an hour of climbing brought them to the halfway point.

The three inside the cliff shivered as they recovered their strength, Holt bringing out some food along with Lizanaich who shared between them and Spyro-Owain whilst Flash managed to land into a wide-enough gap and join them for a small dinner, mostly meat both real and artificial along with some herbs and hydroponic vegetables to form a miniature feast.  Spyro made a fire work with the smallest gathering of wood and rock that Holt brought with him, propping it away from the ice best they could just to not completely freeze before they recovered their strength enough for the next hour of ice-scaling.  It was an arduous struggle, even for the flighted dragon who braved against the frozen winds that whipped and whistled past his face with shrieking force the higher they reached.  Soon they found the true peak of the Radiant Isles, a wide plateau trapped in midnight's spell from whence the sun was banished.  The wind had stopped as they ascended above the clouds but the air was freezing to the soul as the dragons started to shudder with clouded breaths.  The short walk became their longest, trudging through the frost as their eyes became bitter with rime laced across their lids and cementing over their limbs to turn them stiffer with each step, shivering harder to the point they fell on their knees and felt their lungs turning to ice.  The dragons reached the farthest with Holt coming up a close second and Lizanaich struggling back with a deep wheezing to the point of crawling.

        "Hey-ey no, don't give up on me!"

        "NNNGH!"  He felt Spyro-Owain push up beside him.  "I-i'm not, GIVING UP!"

        "Yeah I know yer not just come on!"

A tender flame burned underneath him to warm up his chest, fuelling his heart enough to push him upwards and onwards whilst Flash did the same for Holt, putting a slow-burn against his body to help return the feeling to his limbs.  With help from the dragons they managed to reach the other side of the summits where they discovered twisting paths of ice like giant turquoise ribbons.  The sky was wrought with borealis, the northern lights whispering across eternity as curtains of jade parted between the stars twinkling eternal through the realms of saintly lights that drifted over the world.

        "Woah," Lizanaich stared above, "that...it's beautiful."

        "Never s-seen 'em before," shivered Holt, "northern lights aye?"

        "Y-yeah," he clapped his arms, "seen 'em before in the...the...H-hebra mountains."

        "Ah never seen 'em 'til now...god."

        "Yeah they're amazing," said Spyro-Owain, "how do you think they get made?"

        "Well," Liz gazed across the sky, "some tribes say it's a long river where the dead arrive to the other world on boats to reach."

        "Woah...that sounds cool, and so's this slide check THIS out!"

        "C-careful!" Holt barked pulling him back.  "Get a frozen-arse slidin' down th-that!"

        "Hahahaha!" Flash cracked up breathing on Holt's chest.  "I don't think that ever happened to me."

        "Me either!" said his other.  "And I been down a lotta slides, you think it goes all the way to the bottom?!"

        "I-i dunno," whinged the lizalfos, "d-do, do I look like a-a-an ice expert?!"

        "Well I'm totally sliding down that thing either way!"

        "Sooner than you think," Flash pointed towards one islet, "look who's waiting for us."

Peering through the mist of white that capped the world above the clouds, they saw a rotund shape framed against the snow resembling a very large penguin as Spyro-Owain gasped and stretched his neck immediately towards them.  In the bristling winds sheltered beneath some trees stood Moneybags wrapped in a thick puffy coat, his arms struggling to bend as he tried to shiver his words into a wrist-based device.

        "A-a-are you almost d-done with your plan?!"

        "Another day should be enough," said the voice when he pressed it to his ear against the wind, "what's the status on the dragons?"

        "I haven't seen them," he stared across the ice with his monocle fogged-up, "hopefully we buried them GOOD in the mines enough to delay them a week or two-"

        "Kill."

        "Wh-what?!"

        "I ordered you to kill them, not delay them."

        "Wait, wait I thought you wanted me to retrieve them!"

        "And to kill them if they resist."

        "O-oh...oh, I-i-i see," he rubbed his neck with great effort of his limbs, "well, believe you me I showed them a thing or two, hard a fight as they put up they certainly did not get past me!"

        "HEY PENNYWUSS!"

        "WH-WHAT, WHO THE-...oh."  His monocle slipped from his face.  "Oh you cannot be serious."

        "ICE TO SEE YAAA!" Spyro shouted waving his paw.  "YOU READY FOR ROUND TWO?!"

        "Oh, O-OHHH NO!"

        "They survived?" the voice snarled from his comms.

        "U-u-u-U-UH no, NOOO I just have to um, correct a few things I-"

        "Don't.  Even think of lying to me.  Stop them, no matter what, break them, shatter their bones and bring me their flesh intact."

        "G-GOOD, GRACIOUS!" he clutched his heart from such words.  "Th-that's, that...rather macabre is it not?!"

        "What's worse for you?  Leaving with empty pockets, or leaving with stained hands?"

Staring down the slope then back to the four, the bear tapped his fingers and clicked off his comms with a shudder down his spine.

        "No no no this...this won't do, I have to stop them, but nothing short of outright murder could and that just simply WON'T do...wait.  I don't have to KILL them...I just have to beat them unconscious...yes, yes, good idea, risky but so was the stock trade.  Alright."

He clicked to another channel on his communique.

        "Fireworks Squadron come in, are you ready!?"

        "U-uhhh, nearly!" the comms squeaked.  "Just gotta get in position first!"

        "What am I even paying you for, they're RIGHT THERE!"

        "Uhhh, wh-what ARE you paying us boss?!"

        "NEVER MIND JUST SHOOT THEM!"

From behind one of the trees Moneybags pulled out a machine resembling a snowmobile, black motorycle-top with tank treads underneath as he revved up fast to vault onto the icy slope.  Spyro-Flash breathed a thick frost forming quickly into an frigid platform the moment he saw the bear making his escape.

        "HOP ON QUICK!"

        "Woa-woa-woah when could you do THAT?!" cried Holt.

        "HURRY WE'RE LOSING HIM!"

They all leapt upon the platform as it scooted onto the slope, the four of them hugging each other tight as it picked up speed to a shrieking force against the whittling snow that turned to daggers across their faces.  The slope twisted with wide curving sides as the two dragons took over on steering, using their bodies to lean whilst the other two kept watch for Moneybags escaping.  Sometimes the icy path would split, causing them all to lean one way and make certain they kept the chase, the sounds of the rumbling snowmobile coughing out fumes behind him as he tried firing back with his laser pistol, his shots missing wide from the mark in his efforts to keep steering.  Sometimes the ice ramped up over gaps as he whimpered with a yell when he launched the gap, followed by the foursome who panicked even more.

        "MOVE BACK MOVE BACK!" Liz shouted.

        "ARE WE RAMPING THIS?!" cried Owain.

        "YOU DAMN RIGHT WE ARE, PULL BACK TO GET US SOME LIFT!"

Moving someways back, they pulled the front of the platform upwards as it launched hard over the gap, crashing down with a crack that startled them as Spyro-Flash hissed a thicker breeze of ice to refortify their steed.  Then came the fireworks whistling across the sky over their heads.

        "Wot, wot thuh fuck?!"

        "What is this new year's eve?!" cried Spyro-Owain.

        "No idea bu-OH FUCK, GO  RIGHT!"

The rockets came spiralling downwards to hit the track, bursting with joyous explosion in a myriad of colours that almost blinded them as they veered right to avoid it.  More explosions came rattling down the slope as a screeching volley descended upon them, forcing the group to swerve in serpentine as they slid left and right, past the thudding bombardment as they kept their sights upon the chugging snowmobile that wound its way down further and further to the bottom of the region.  Sometimes a firework popped too close as Owain shielded himself with his wings, with Flash shooting them off-course with defusing bursts of ice that dampened their wicks and rendered them useless.  Shot after shot came from unseen gunners in the mist, their horns shining from caves and crevices as they blasted cannons with fizzing projectiles packed full of gunpowder, sometimes getting lucky shot to even crack through the slope and cause parts of the icy ridge to nearly collapse.  Spyro-Flash managed to steer the course with constant bursts of icy breath smoothing over their path, whilst Liz and Holt swung their weapons up high when any incoming projectiles threatened to hit bullseye.

        "HAVING FUN ARE WE?!" shouted Moneybags in front.

        "NOT FUN ENOUGH!" cried Spyro-Owain.  "I'VE BEEN TO LIBRARIES MORE FUN THAN THIS!"

        "EY DON'T KNOCK IT!" Holt yelled.  "BOOKS ARE FUN!"

        "YEAH MORE THAN THIS IDIOT!"

        "WHAT ABOUT THOSE IDIOTS THEN?!"

Liz pointed back towards a sudden roaring of engines as a fleet of snowmobiles advanced upon them with two rhynocs on each.  Armed with rifles they started firing upon their ride with lasers that threatened to melt the ice, shrieking scars as Holt and Lizanaich turned fully towards their pursuers with shotgun and spear at the ready.

        "KEEP THIS THING FLOATING!" shouted Holt.  "AHLL DEAL WITH THESE BASTARDS!"

        "Gimme yer rope!" Liz replied.  "I'm helping too!"

Tying the rope to his harpoon he deflected two lasers with a spin of his spear before charging it up with a jolt of lightning through his horn and hurled it straight towards one of the machines.  The spark burst through the metallic chassis and shorted out the engine, causing it to stall sharp as they stopped dead on the slope to get rammed from behind by another snowmobile, crunching against each other to violently careen off the side of the slope and fall into the abyss whilst Liz yanked back his spear almost magnetising to his hand.

        "NICE ONE DAB!" Holt cackled taking his aim.  "Ahll get thuh drivers, you get thuh horses!"

        "They're not horses they're machines!" shouted Liz.

        "Ah know just teasin' ya mate!"

        "JUST KEEP THEM OFF OUR BACKS!" cried Spyro-Flash.  "SPYRO HELP ME STEER THIS!"

        "YOU GOT IT PAL!"

The dragons kept out in front, not even dodging the bear's shots for his terrible aim whilst he kept driving forwards trying to trick them into opposite paths or ramping over ridges to avoid the gaps that threatened them with infinite death.  The further they went down the warmer it became but only slightly as white drifted to blue and a great jade expanse opened up beneath them.  Holt took his shots carefully at the rhynocs chasing, blsating their armoured heads or sometimes shooting the treads to knock them back and send them crashing over the ridge, some even getting crushed under the treads of their fellow riders who ramped off their bodies and kept shooting at the four.  One by one the snowmobiles were picked off either by harpoon electrified or shotgun aimed precise as it could with one rider getting close enough to whallop with his fist, the sergeant ducking under the swipe before whamming his face with the butt of his gun like a baseball bat.  The lizalfos followed up by jamming his harpoon into the steering, cracking the fuselage enough to send it violently careening left as the rider went screaming off the edge.

        "ALRIGHT, WE'RE GOOD!" cried Jeremy.  "NOW JUST THUH ONE BASTARD LEFT!"

        "DON'T SHOOT HIM!" shouted Spyro-Owain.  "THAT FAT SACK O' WADS AIN'T GETTING AWAY THAT EASY!"

        "ON THE CONTRARY!" barked Moneybags.  "MY ESCAPE HAS ONLY JUST BEGUN!"

Pumping the gas he shot forwards with a boost of nitrous oxide, surging blue flames from his exhaust to blast even farther ahead.

        "SHIT HE'S GETTING AWAY!" cried Liz.

        "Alright let's step it up!" Owain turned to the back.  "Spyro let's blast this!"

        "What?!" cried Flash.

        "You an' me, we make our own turbo right?!"

        "...yeah, yeah alright but we get one chance!"

        "That's all I'll need!"  He turned to the sergeant and the chief.  "Keep this thing straight alright!?"

        "No prob!" Holt saluted.

They switched themselves round as both dragons moved to the back and heaved their deepest breath, feeling the burn rumble in their throats as their chests expanded thicker causing their bodies to shake harder.  With one single breath they blew their thickest flame together as one single inferno that jettisoned the platform to a lightning speed, shrieking past their ears with a shocking wind that almost ripped the skin from their faces.  Holt and Liz kept course as best they could, shifting with their bodies hard to steer sharp around curves and vault over treacherous gaps almost in flight across the summits.  The burning flames caused the track behind them to almost disappear, charring through the thickest ice and melting the thinner parts completely to almost vapourise in the heated mist, roaring red embers flickering behind the icy platform that shrunk smaller beneath.  Downwards they spiralled, tearing towards the glorious green of the world below as the bear looked behind when he smelt the burning flames.

        "AAAAAGH!"

He immediately regretted it.

        "N-NO, NOOO G-GET AWAY, GET AWAY DAMN YOU!"

        "YER ARSE IS MINE TEDDY-BOY!" shouted Holt.

        "KEEP IT STRAIGHT WE ALMOST GOT 'IM!" cried Liz.

Faster and faster the slope took them as it started to slant downwards, soon replaced by rock and gravel that scarred at the underside of their melting steed with Moneybags stuttering in hard crunches when the treads tore up against the stone.  Snow disappeared from their sight, black and emerald shades beneath the sunset sky as the flames ripped even harder over the rocky path, blackening a trail fierce behind them as the ice finally shattered in their descent towards a grand ancient jungle.

        "S-STOP, STOP!" shouted Liz.

        "WE'RE GONNA CRASH!"

Holt pointed towards a towering pillar as both dragons stopped, heaving with a harsh gasping of air as they saw Moneybags veer suddenly to try and avoid the giant column, only to leap off at the last minute with a piercing scream and fall into the depths of the forest.  The four followed suit as the ice crackled to finally split beneath their feet, praying for the best as both dragons glided whilst Holt and Lizanaich grabbed for the nearest tree beneath the cliff face.  What remained of their ride went colliding with the snowmobile in a furious explosion, fire and smoke rising from the twisted remains as the melting water further dripped into the engine to cause violent bursts from the dead machine.

        "Well that was something," said Owain gliding past, "still a lot more fun than the races!"

        "JEREMY!?" cried Flash flapping over.  "LIZ, ARE YOU OKAY?!"

        "DOWN 'ERE!" the human shouted.

They circled round to his voice as they cast their gaze over the tremendous jungle, a glorious sea of green as far as the eye could see with the cold breaths of the summit leaving them.  Closer they descended to see the trees parting where much to their surprise were old wooden bridges and steps crafted from branches, ropes tethered around trunks that had been cut in half to form houses with roofs over spaces.  The clustering forest hid them well from above as they swerved through the leaves, landing upon the plaza of an empty village where Holt and Liz had fallen.

        "Uhhh you need some help?!" Spyro looked up at them.

        "I'm alright," Liz waved halfway stuck in a roof, "just gimme a moment."

        "Me leg's hurt bad," winced Jeremy trapped in a cluster of vines, "think one o' these bastards is cuttin' me circulation."

Flash walked over to the human and flapped up to quickly shred the cords, carefully freeing his leg and letting safely fall to the floor as Owain pulled Liz through the roof to crumple flat.

        "NNGH, dammit."

        "S-sorry, you alright?" he asked.

        "Yeaaah I suffered worse," Liz brushed himself off, "least we're not freezing to death."

        "Yeah this place is a LOT better, could catch some zees if we weren't chasing this jerk."

        "Where'd that bastard head off to?" Holt gasped with a limp.  "Didn't see where he went?"

        "Ahead of us," Flash pointed northeast, "he had a parachute so he should be fine."

        "Oh ah wuz so worried, thank god," he rolled his eyes marching forth, "well then lessee whut new place we got then."

        "You alright, you look hurt."

        "Ahll manage dab, ahm not made o' glass."

        "Lemme check."

The lizalfos stopped him to lift his leg, feeling along the length of his limb before rolling up the pantleg to see lacerations from the vines leaving thorny wounds across his knee.

        "Yeah I'm gonna need some disinfectant and a bandage."

        "Awww fuck," he muttered.

        "Spyro could you make some cold water over this?"

        "Sure."

The older dragon breathed a thick watery frost over the wounds turning to frigid water, dripping off his fangs to wash out the grit and thorns buried within as Holt gasped tightening his teeth.

        "NNNGH, F-fwc...hhhh, th-that sanitary dab?!"

        "It's magic," said Liz, "of course it's sanitary it's just ethers."

The wounds were soon clean as Liz pulled out a poultice from his satchel, binding the leg with gauze and mushed plants to staunch the bleeding and shield it from further infection.

        "Alright that should do."

        "Thanks,"  the soldier walked with less of a limp, "that does help a lot actually."

        "Let's keep going then."

Despite the remnants of civilisation around them, they felt more alone than they did on the mountains as they walked over bridges that swayed under their feet with ropes creaking at their sides as they kept weapons free.  Liz stepped out in front, his eyes swivelling in opposing directions as he gazed through the curtain of green surrounding the world, keeping his spear tight as the dragons followed up with Holt between them, offering their heads as support when he leaned against one or the other in his growing steps.  Pots and benches littered the grounds with scenes of violence, shattered tools and pictures of creatures in various postures living their lives and trading with others whilst children played around their feet.  It was a stark contrast to the petrified bodies they encountered once again, trapped in time and a lifeless state as faces wrought with fear and sufferance gripped each other in howls of silent scream.  Sometimes they found toys and smaller tools crafted for little hands, broken or discarded at the feet of their owners as they wandered through homes and past little crowds in the plazas formed from trees.

Sometimes the path would end where only dark waters awaited them, swamps of thickening blue with strange floating plants and suspicious shapes beneath the surface as they looked for a way forward.  There were vines oddly-made with artifical weaving that when pulled brought down a rumbling contraption in the form of a large wooden lift, creaking with sturdy wheels unseen from above as Spyro-Owain and Holt went in first to test its weight, with Spyro-Flash taking over to winch it back up then down again for Liz to climb in solo before the dragon flew upwards to join them.  Larger huts welcomed them in circular shapes with trellises for walls, ivy creeping along the outside and wrapping around the struts with a gentle tropical breeze.  It only made the sight of the frozen bodies worse as fractured limbs and cracked faces gasped towards the sun hidden beyond the canopy.

        "This place is really well-developed," muttered Liz, "never had treehouses this good back in Hyrule."

        "Whut sorta place did you have?" asked Holt.

        "Well, mostly just platforms above the ground, not stuff with actual roofs and definitely not these lifts...besides I'm not a tree person, more into rocks and mountains."

        "Which surprises me," said Flash turning back to him, "I mean your village is in the marsh."

        "That was their choice not mine, but I did ask to have a higher house, I'm not great with the damp."

        "Me either," said Owain trotting beside, "gets my flames all smoky."

        "God this is terrible," Jeremy sighed rubbing his head, "all these people just...you think we'll be able to get 'em back?"

        "We have to," Flash stroked one of the frozen faces, "we have to help these people, Beaufort said if we can just reverse Hektore's magic we can bring these people back."

        "Aren't they dead?" Liz hunched over the body.  "Some of them are in pieces, they're not gonna come back together."

        "I don't know how," the dragon shook his head walking onwards, "but if their elder says they can be brought back then I believe him.  And we have to do what we can to save them."

        "Spoken like a true hero!" said Owain bumping fists.  "That Beaufort guy said to head through the jungle and find some ruins, that's where we'll give Hektore the smacktore!"

        "Hahah, too right dab," Holt petted his horns, "alright well hope thuh rest of this stuff is still workin' as good as that lift."

        "Should be," said Flash nodding, "this happened recently, I only saw that dragon hunter two weeks ago back in Avalar."

        "And Moneybags was squarin' up those rhynocs last week," said Owain, "but yanno, that's kinda been bothering me.  How'd some bearocrat from my world and some skullhead from your world make any plans before coming here?!"

        "He's not from my world," the older dragon shook his head, "the shadow apes are but he's not, from what Beaufort said I think this dragon-hunter's from here."

        "Makes sense," Liz scratched his cheek, "so how did they cross over to other worlds before the humans did their anomaly shit?"

        "I'm gonna guess this Hektore dude," the smaller dragon swished his tail, "if he's got enough magic to petrify everyone on these isles then what's stopping him from going to other worlds?!"

        "That's the thing though.  Why does he want THESE islands instead of trying to take over our home?"

        "Mebbe that's why he's attacking us," Holt crossed his arms, "set these islands as his home base but expand his territory out thurr to our place."

        "And stealing Mohberra's skillet?" Liz sneered with tightening fists.

        "Well he's a hunter righ'?  Don' they normally collect trophies an' stuff?"

        "Yanno, yeah that's true!" Spyro-Owain jumped up between them.  "My pal Hunter loves collecting trophies, but they're usually like medals and orbs an' stuff!"

        "My friend Hunter does that too," Flash smirked, "pelts mainly or stuff that he can wear."

        "Oh that pisses me the FUCK off!" the lizalfos sparked shooting volts from his horn.  "We're wasting time, come on let's break this fucker open!"

Marching stiff into the jungle Liz tightened his claws on his spear whilst the rest followed with nervous looks, stepping carefully between broken bodies and fractured faces left strewn across the houses.  The call of snarling beasts and whistling birds gave some small comfort for life still existing on the isles, the soft swaying of trees brushing their leaves against their faces.  The bridges kept stable under their feet, more lifts they discovered still in use that Flash operated as they headed up and down along further walkways to discover more of the petrified populace in various states of decay, broken legs and severed arms beneath half-faced creatures unfortunate.  Sometimes the path would take them higher above the trees, closer to the sky where the sunset kissed upon their faces with a simmering warmth that bathed the verdant lands in shining amber.  Other times the villages dwindled downwards closer to the swamp itself, the thickening bubbles of slime and algae causing a damp heat that sunk into their scales and caused Jeremy to sweat profusely, staining through his clothes in patches as he drank from his water with the reptiles taking smaller sips.

The marsh gurgled with threatening ire as they kept their distance from the water's edge, hopping over platforms sculpted from tree trunks whenever the bridges stopped short as they came upon a different place hidden within the depths of the rainforest.  Ruins started to appear from between the trees, moss-covered stones in the swamp that jutted like broken teeth where small lizards and large bugs formed unsteady ceasefires with each other, crawling and skittling over the rock and nestling within for safety before conflicts would arise from growing hunger, tongues versus pincers in a brief struggle for dominance over their small wretched sinking domain.

        "Woah is this it?" asked Spyro-Owain.

        "Sure looks like it," muttered Liz, "I seen enough ruins in my time to know what one is."

        "Ah seen plenty," said Holt bracing his gun, "not as old as this one."

        "Same here," said Spyro-Flash, "somehow those ones are worse right?"

        "Yeah...much worse."

Before them lied the entrance to a temple of sorts, wrought with serpents that crept between vines and gazed upon the intruders with unblinking eyes of a thin piercing sliver as they approached the looming gate, a fortress rising above with crumbling walls and a stone arch fallen to disuse as if desperate to block their way.  Climbing over the wreckage they entered a long jade passage where faces had been carved into the wall, resembling that of Beaufort's kind with odd symbols underneath and stones crumbling under their feet.  The floor was treacherous as they stepped lightly as they could, feeling the cracks beneath their toes as they staggered against the walls heading deeper within as the light faded behind them, stuttering shafts that struggled to creep in through dilapidated roofs.  Some passages were walled off by stone, whilst others offered more than two paths as the dragons kept them straight with a scent that tickled Owain's nose.

        "Moneybags," he snarled, "he's here definitely."

        "So he's run off back to his master," Liz crept forwards raising his spear.

        "Stay close, there's a lotta places to get lost round here it looks."

        "Oh I ain't going anywhere, not until I get Mohberra's skillet back."

Taking the front Spyro-Owain picked up the scent, leading them through halls that twisted sharp and led them deeper within the complex.  The musty air weighed down upon them as the dragon struggled to sniff out further, the stale breath of stones and rotting leaves that mulched underfoot, bark that twisted through the gaps and the remnants of skin shed from reptiles who passed giving the stench of cold leather around them.  The floor started to disappear the further they went, water underneath showing the wretched murk of shapes unknown as blackness filled the walls with the increasing scent of mold clogging their nostrils.  Soon they encountered wider gaps and the sounds of rumbling stone turning against each other, ancient machinery rotating stone platforms over the wide wretched swamp in a slow-moving conveyor belt set into the wall.  Taking a platform each they felt the grinding under their feet, treacherously shaking their legs as they squatted carefully to steady themselves to the other side as Holt pulled out a torch for Spyro to light through the darkness.

        "How deep does this damn thing go?" asked Liz.

        "Not deep enough apparently," muttered Flash, "you got that scent still Spyro?"

        "Yep," Owain snuffled the floor keeping away from the fungus, "recognise that perfume anywhere, even out here."

        "Alright keep close, I don't like the feeling of this place."

        "I don't think anyone did, you notice how we haven't found any bodies here?"

        "Aye that's true," muttered Holt raising the torch up high, "not hearin' any more machines down that way."

        "Let's keep going."

The deeper they travelled the less destruction they saw, instead finding decay in the form of mulch and crusted plants that wrapped tightly in death.  The flames struggled against the dampening heat, a wet cloud invisible over their heads as Flash blew on the torch to keep it strong whilst Lizanaich kept guard over Owain tracking the scent of money, the puerile stench of ursine airs thinning in his nostrils as they ascended a large ramp widening outwards to leave the damp behind.  An eternity passed as the feeling of night came to their senses, a cold nocturnal air whistling through the cracks before they came across a grand room almost shaped like an auditorum where seats faced towards a mural.  Dozens of figures holding aloft crystals that shone a purest blue to fill the sky with colour.  Islands floated around the corners each showing the same light and larger crystals focusing their sheen upon a central point as if feeding the sun with power.

        "What IS this?" asked Owain feeling his voice echo.

        "Sum sorta ritual?" Holt squinted holding the light up.

        "Nooo I think it's something else," Liz stepped closer to the wall, "see how there's no leader in the group, everyone wearing the same clothes?"

        "Ohhh yeah yer righ'...so whutsat mean?"

        "Means that they all gathered here for a purpose," he squinted raising himself on his toes, "there's no podium in this room either, no centre person...they're all lifting crystals that are also coming from the islands."

        "Maybe that's how the islands keep up?" said Owain cocking his head.  "They gotta have some source of magic right, so maybe that's what they're doing?"

        "That sounds right...yeah...wait."

One part of the mural was beyond their light.

        "Jeremy check this out, move your light here."

        "Alrigh'......woah."

Deep in the darkest corner of the room where the mural barely reached, a black screeching maw was painted into the wall with horns and mandibles, a brazen pair of fiendish eyes burned with neon-white in the glint of the torch, just above a shining stone that shimmered black with reflection.

        "Who thuh fuck's this bastard?" muttered Holt.

        "Someone they don't want to see," the lizalfos rubbed his chin, "look how this whole part isn't painted like the rest of the mural, but he is."

        "He has no place," said Spyro-Flash, "he's an outcast."

        "Or worse...also got this weird shiny part, like-"

        "A mirror."  The dragon looked to his smaller self.  "Hektore."

        "That's gotta be the guy right?!" cried Owain.

        "A monster with a dark mirror, it has to be him.  OH!"  Flash turned towards Jeremy.  "The sword, you still have it right?!"

        "No worries dab," Holt patted his pack, "we're all set 'ere."

        "Now that we know what our enemy looks like we can-"

        "What, exactly?"

A voice boomed out from across the hall as Owain arched his back with fumes from his snout.

        "THERE YOU ARE!" he barked.

        "I must say I am QUITE honoured for you to have hounded me so profusely."  The bear walked into the light with one hand behind his back.  "All four of you have quite the luck of the devils on you."

        "Where's your boss?!" shouted Owain.  "I'll tell the folks back home to go easy on you if you tell us."

        "Ahhh now that just won't do," he tutted waving a finger, "I have my own arrangements to make dear Spyro, and it would reflect terribly on me if I were to divulge company secrets."

        "Lahk you 'ave any fuckin' loyalty," Holt snorted, "ah know yer type, money's the only thing you care about."

        "Now that is just RUDE!  You hardly know anything about me!"

        "You tried to sell off a baby dragon," Flash squinted at him.

        "Oh for PETE'S SAKE do you HAVE to keep bringing that u-"

CH-CHKKH!

He became suddenly aware of a shotgun pointed at his monocle.

        "Give me one good reason not to blow yer fuckin' head off."

        "...alright."  The bear brought out the hand behind his back.  "Do you know what this is?"

        "Some kinda iron block?" Liz squinted at the device.

        "A remote control, for detonating the sixteen explosive parts that I have laid out around this room.  I only have to press this-"

        "Can shoot faster than that," muttered Jeremy.

        "Can you?  I only have to squeeze my hand a little bit and all of you get buried like you should have been at the mines."

        "You're a damn coward," the lizalfos snorted.

        "Better to live a coward than die a hero, unlike SOME purple dragons seem to think."

        "Alright," Flash stood firm with a deep sigh, "what do you want?"

        "I want you all to come with me, out of this dank decrepit dungeon-"

        "It's a temple."

        "Whatever I hate this damp disgusting place and it does terrible things to my suit so come with or else."

        "You wanna lead us to Hektore huh?" Owain chuckled shaking his head.  "Alright, gotta say, you doing smarter than usual Pennywuss."

        "Do I hear a deal?"  He looked between the dragon and Holt.  "Please put down your weapon good sir, so we may engage in our business negotiation."

        "Hmph."  The sergeant pulled back his gun and holstered.  "Fine, lead on ya plum-faced twat."

        "Goodness Spyro you really are keeping worse company these days."

        "Better company than you," the smaller drake puffed with smoke, "come on lead us outta here and into your trap."

        "What trap, whatever do you mean?" he turned his back walking to the exit.

        "You're just gonna lead us out and we get captured when our guard is down and you hand us over to Hektore and you get patted on the head, and you get more money selling off dragons like they're property."

        "You really should let that go, grudges don't behoove you."

        "I'd rather behoove your face off a cliff."

        "Ahahaha how droll, how droll indeed," he waved his hand with the remote control, "let's see how long that attitude shall last once we leave this turgid place."

        "That word doesn't mean what you think it means," said Flash.

        "DON'T correct me."

        "Then buy a dictionary instead of another suit."

The bear's other fist tightened in contemplation on whether to punch the dragon or not.  It soon relaxed as they walked out of the ruins heading up a second ramp, reaching higher above the swamp as they felt the wind from the trees whistling down the great passage whilst Holt kept his torch aloft.  The gasping breeze shot embers over their heads, the flame like a beating heart as they slowly ascended to the outside world once again where they found a large clearing of tall stone pillars in lengthly rows with statues of Beaufort's people accurately rendered in moss-weathered stone.  Forests surrounded them as a border of trees with few paths between, old broken roads worn by many feet that led towards the temple building.

        "So this was the entrance," murmured Liz.

        "Where's your guards this time?" Owain barked.

        "Ohhh, no need for them," said Moneybags turning to them, "see, I know you're going to try to reach Hektore regardless of my wishes."

        "Heyyy look at you using your brain for once!"

        "So I decided why not bring you there on my OWN terms instead?"

        "WAI-NO!"

He pressed the remote.  Much to their surprise then expectant fury there was no trembling explosion, no devastation of the earth and a dozen blasts, but instead something that heaved and wheezed with shivering metallic gasps.  They looked behind to see a large humanoid shape stand on the top of the temple, launching itself forwards with colossal feet to crunch straight behind Moneybags and tower over them.  A headless machine with giant fists shaped like boxing gloves, a mechanical monolith over a good 40 feet with chrome-steel skin and a glassy dome that opened up to summon a golden beam of light that trapped the bear within, floating him upwards to pull him into its cockpit.

        "Oh you fuckin' serious?" gasped Holt.

        "Indeed," said the ursine wealth, "I'm sorry Spyro, but it's just business, you understand."

        "Oh sure," Owain shrugged, "and it's my business to beat your face into the dirt!"

        "How the shit did this guy get a GUARDIAN?!" cried Liz.

        "I commissioned a fine engineer from Robotica farms," he chuckled as the lid closed over him, "even as machines those bumpkins don't know the good sum of money, I paid forty-percent less on this Hugelist thanks to their ignorance."

        "Hyoojilist, what kinda stupid name is that?!"

        "If you had a VOCABULARY you would find it hilarious, but it's enough to beat you!"  He strapped two gloves from the cockpit which caused the machine's fists to mimic his.  "Did I ever tell you I was a champion bantamweigh-"

        "Yeah yeah whatever did you even STUDY anything?!" Owain snorted his flame.  "Or d'you just bribe everyone to give you a degree?"

        "SILENCE!  I don't have to take that slander anymore from you, Spyro!  Time for you to be put in your place, ONCE and FOR ALL!"

The machine balled its fists fully and went into boxing stance, stomping its feet causing the pillars to quake around them before he took a first swing at the dragons.  The party split in different directions, running over the central courtyard as Holt and Liz went behind the robot whilst both dragons kept Moneybags occupied.  The Hugelist charged at the drakes and whammed its fists into the earth with crunching force, cracking the stone paths underneath whilst Flash flew above and Owain rolled between the fists.  Seeing one dragon take flight the bear turned and swung with a fast jab quicker than Flash expected, forcing him to loop out of its path when the second fist came swatting hard near his wing.  Countering with a blast of ice to crack against the glassy dome, he dove between the hands when they tried to crush him between and clawed hard at the cockpit.

        "Oh I'm SORRY!" mocked the bear with glinting monocle.  "Did you think I was so cheap to not spring for the duraplex option?!"

He tried to grab the beast but only managed to ping him in the head with the flick of his huge finger, sending Flash hurling briefly through the sky before he recovered mid-flight and shook his head clear.  A shotgun blast at the back of the Hugelist's leg sent tiny shudders through his thigh as the machine turned to half-kick at the soldier, his half-roll just enough to evade the sweeping foot despite his steadying limp as he took another shot at the steel knee to make it ping with a dent.  Lizanaich took the chance to clang his harpoon against the heel and send a jolt of lightning through his body to it, but even that wasn't enough to cause more than a shiver through its limb as Moneybags lifted his leg to come down with a hard stomp as Liz scuttled fast from its shadow amidst crackling stone and crunching earth.

The sergeant and lizalfos kept strafing round the courtyard keeping as far as they could from the humongous steps that shook the earth, the reptile dodging between the legs to strike and pierce at any joints he could reach upon the legs to electrocute, but none were within reach.  He considered briefly going for the back of the knee but the height and solid sheen discouraged him as he looked to Jeremy who was ducking near one of the pillars, trying to keep out of sight as he squinted looking over the enemy.

        "HIDING ARE WE?!"

The machine saw his uniform discoloured briefly against the moss.

        "Well that just won't DO!"

        "AWW FWC!"

A grievous hand came crushing against the pillar to send it over, crunching hard cold knuckle against the stone as it fell with little complaint, causing Holt to scurry from its shadow as it shattered to a dozen bits of lumpen rock that sent clouds of dust across the field.  Saving his ammo the soldier rushed to the nearest cover, ducking to roll against a thick undergrowth as he used the dust to mask his escape whilst Liz stabbed the back of the giant's heel once again to keep him distracted, a soft tingling that made him kick back with a soft shuffle that whacked the lizard hard in the chest to send him rolling backwards til he stopped with a planting of his spear in the stone cobbles.  Keeping his eye on the soldier who hid in the grass, Moneybags grabbed one of the statues with one hand and tossed it towards the undergrowth as Jeremy scarpered from the crackling smash of thick stone across the field, head in pieces as soulful eyes rolled into the dirt, the bear guffawing at the sight of the soldier running with limp.

        "What a pathetic little miscreant!"  He raised his foot above the human.  "Emphasis on the ANT!"

        "FUCK OFF!"

He dove towards the trees as the Hugelist stomped harder towards him, not quite aiming to crush him but close enough to watch him scurry and hide angrily beneath the roots of a tree.  The bear grabbed at the trunk aiming to rip it free with both hands before a flash of flame streaked over his face, scratching claws that he barely paid attention to as he swatted at the irksome beast flying round his head.  Throughout his pursuit of Jeremy, the Hugelist had been assailed by Spyro the elder trying to break through the dome, hitting him with different elements of ice, lightning and earth but none seemed to break through or even stay upon the perspicacious shield.

        "Noooo nooo that just won't DO!" he barked at the dragon.  "And here I thought you were smarter than the other whelp!"

He took aim towards Flash as one of his fists suddenly punched out of its socket, stretching on a long cabled tether that surprised the dragon to dodge too late and clip him by the leg with a hard smack as he careened near one of the pillars, saving himself just with a half-circle sweep as the Hugelist's fist clanked back into its arm.  He turned and fired towards Lizanaich that he caught out of the corner of his eye with another propelling rocket punch that crunched into a statue and took half of its body clean off its feet, shrapnel flying the side of his head as Liz covered beneath a rocky pillar.  Yet through all of this Moneybags had forgotten his primary opponent, one who was nowhere to be seen.

Said opponent was scrabbling up one of the stone pillars with his claws to reach the top, looming a good 10 feet taller than the machine as he motioned his other self to keep distracting the Hugelist, Flash giving look with a grin as he swooped close to the cockpit and shot balls of fire briefly to bounce over the shield whilst the mech swung its fists, turning in a deft heel-step to spin and punch with a boxer's jab that Spyro-Flash ducked beneath then swerved a ruthless uppercut that shot straight up to the sky.  All to keep the colossus turned from his true opponent who leapt and glided onto the machine's back, digging his claws into the grooves searching for a panel to dislodge.  He found a small set of screws as the machine kept turning and stomping with controlled swings and punches, grappling tight with his body flush against the cold steel as he pressed his claw into each screwhead and twisted them out of their holes, each one the size of his eye before having to wrench the last inch out to send it clattering to the stone.

        "WOULD YOU-GAH, STAND STILL?!" roared the boxer.

        "I'm not standing you idiot!" said Flash loop-de-loop.  "I'm flying, maybe you should get glasses!"

        "I am PERFECTLY capable of watching you squirm!" he missed with an overhead swing.

        "Then why are you wearing a monocle?!"

        "Because I am of a DISTINCT peerage unlike you!" his fist crunched into a pillar that fell into the woods with dusted cloud.

        "Oh you're distinct alright," Flash flapped in close with a burst of flame over the dome, "distinctly annoying, no wonder that dragon-hunter never shows up when you're around, probably can't stand you!"

        "What's that supposed to mean?!"

        "I'm saying he's using you for your mercenaries, not for your brains or personality."

        "Oh don't even try to turn me against him, I'm not falling for your tricks!"

        "TOO LATE!"

        "Wh-WHAT?!"

Something clanged with a sharp thud that echoed across the field, Moneybags turning to see an entire plate of cold steel laying at his feet.  A moment to process was enough for Flash to come straight for the Hugelist's back which was now exposed, showing a series of plated circuits that he immediately assaulted with belching flames scarring over the metal covers.

        "A-AAAAGH, NO, NO GET OFF, GET OFF!"

The Hugelist suddenly pranced with frantic fluster, hopping on its feet and trying to reach back behind to pat out the flames whilst Spyro-Owain taunted in front of him.

        "HEY BOTTOM-DOLLAR, YOU DROPPED SOMETHING!"

        "Y-YOU, ARROGANT LITTLE THIEF!"

        "OH YEAH SAYS THE BABY-SNATCHER!"

        "THAT, IS ENOUGH OUT OF YOU!"

Moneybags leapt forwards with both feet high, crunching upon the plate as Spyro dodged with a wing-tuck roll laughing at the bear to further infuriate him.  Holt came out from the trees when he heard the clang and gestured to Lizanaich who rushed up beside him as they watched the machine frantically stomp and punch into the earth in chasing after the purple dragon.

        "We got a chance 'ere," Holt muttered, "think you can aim yer spear righ' in thurr?"

        "Just gimme a good shot," the lizalfos grinned clenching his staff, "try an' get him to keep still."

        "Alrigh' get yerself in position."

Rushing forth the soldier took a shotgun blast to the exposed back causing Moneybags to turn round with a start, roaring as he tried to stomp him with Holt dodging through the legs to join Owain's side as he quickly muttered:

        "Keep 'im busy facin' this way."

        "Got it, HEY MOULDYBAGS!"

        "WH-WHAT?!"  The mech sneered bending down at them.

        "YOU WIPE YOUR FAT BUTT WITH PAPER NOTES OR WHAT!?" the small drake jumped like a dog.  "CUZ IF YA DO THAT'S LIKE WHAT, TEN-THOUSAND PER WIPE?!"

        "YOU, DISGUSTING LITTLE TRIPEHOUND!"

        "Oh he's just mad because it's true," said Flash hovering above looking past him, "glad paper money exists because coins would hurt a lot more!"

        "Naw naw he'd never touch coins," scoffed Jeremy, "closest solid he'd touch is his kidney stones!"

        "SHUT UP, SHUT UP ALL OF YOU!"

His arms shot out to grab one of the pillars nearby and wrench it violently from its root.  The gang of three backed up as quick as they could to avoid the sudden crush of 50-feet stone as Moneybags threw it upon them, a looming shadow as they dodged towards his feet where he kicked Holt in the side and booted Owain across the field.  But it was nothing compared to the inscrutable pain that shunted deep through his back.

        "GA-A-A-A-A-A-AAAAAAARRRRGH!"

        "Got 'em."  Lizanaich grinned.  "LET'S BREAK THIS FUCKER!"

The Hugelist staggered forwards from the spear plunged intto its exposed circuits, ripping through the boards with violent electrical sparks that started to pop and fizz with explosive bursts as Moneybags lurched with stumbling feet.

        "N-NO, WHAT ARE YOU-GAAAH!  TH-THIS IS, THIS, Y-YOU CHEATS, YOU FILTHY CHEATS!"

        "Sorry pal!" shouted Holt.  "Looks lahk yer goin' down fer the count!"

        "NO-G-GAH!" his leg trembled with a psychotic spasm.  "S-STOP IT, YOU INGRATES I WILL NOT LET YOU-GA-AAAARGH!"

Trying to swing at the nearest opponent, his lumbering fist became a sluggish sweep that hit none of them as they kept their distance, Holt and Spyro-Flash racing to behind as the sergeant took his shot whilst the dragon fired a burst of lightning from his throat, further overloading the machine as something blasted from its back causing its leg to fall completely as the driver struggled to push forwards with a dragging heel.  His last swing of his giant fist went reaching hard towards the dragon, flying above him with a rocket shoot that missed completely in an arc and came crashing down towards his domed shield.  His cry of fear came when the steel knuckle crunched inches from his face, the cockpit starting to shatter as the Hugelist fell forwards onto its knees then finally collapsed with a smouldering fume out of its back.  The bear popped his exit door and clambered out swift as he could, but not fast enough to be halted by all four of his opponents as Liz walked up wrenching his spear from the machine's back.

        "Well," he chuckled pointing towards him, "first time I ever took down a guardian, thanks for that."

        "N-now now let's," the bear stuttered raising his hands, "let's be reasonable we're all sensible chaps!"

        "Ahm not yer fuckin' chap," Holt pumped his shotgun at his face, "now howsabout you help us come find yer boss on our OWN terms?"

        "And no more tricks," said Spyro-Flash flapping down in front of him, "you've lost your army, you've lost your mech-"

        "And your boss is next!" Owain bonked his head with his horns.  "So here's OUR deal, you take us to your boss, we keep your hands tied an' if you don't turn on us I'll take you back and NOT burn the monocle into your face until it's fused to your eyes!"

        "ALRIGHT, RIGHT!" He shuddered covering his face.  "I will...t-take you to him, that is all I'll do just...please don't let him know I failed, he'll do MONSTROUS things to me!"

        "Oh don't worry, after we're done, the only guy you gotta worry about is ME."

He motioned to Jeremy who slipped round and pulled the bear onto his feet, searching all of his pockets for any other surprises before tying his arms back with rope almost painfully by the wrists.

        "Ohhhh ah see," Holt yanked the wristwatch from his arm, "so that's how ya been keepin' touch."

        "G-GIVE THAT BACK!" he cried.

        "Nawww naw, yer comin' with us."

He forced Moneybags to stumble off the Hugelist's remains as Spyro-Owain stood in front of him.

        "Now take me to your leader."

        "Do you really have to say that?" the bear snorted.

        "Nope but I'm doing it anyway so start marchin' Pennywuss!"

        "An' no funny stuff!"  Holt flicked a finger on his snout.  "Mah trigger finger's itching!"

        "And It's faster than I can tell him to stop, so don't risk it!"

        "Fine FINE, fine!" Moneybags gasped sneering back.  "Just keep your thug under control."

        "Oh he isn't mine, he's called a friend, something you never had now get going Dummybags!"

        "Y-YAIIIE!"

The dragon smacked his rump with a wing as the bear started walking, taking a path through the trees as the four followed on to where a greater fiend lied beneath the island's depths.  Something that made the very earth become as deep and black as the sky itself.