Spyro: Dawn of Light, ch 17

SPYRO: DAWN OF LIGHT



CHAPTER 17



Spyro yawned and stared at the sky, waiting for the guardians to finish questioning the others.  Right next to him, Cynder was fast asleep, curled up into a near-perfect circle on the mushroom cap they were resting on.  She was still a bit warm and had been complaining about a headache.  Some grunting and a few impact sounds made Spyro roll onto his back and look upside-down at the punching game Neves and Caelos were having, punching each other on the shoulder progressively harder until one called for a stop.  Shimmer was nearby, blowing water-bubbles and amusing herself as she made them spin around each other in a growing sphere.  Flame and Plazyma were still inside.  Cynder yawned and rolled onto her back, stretching her legs and relaxing again as her dark scales absorbed the heat of the sun's light.  Spyro looked at her...why did she want to be around him so much now?  "Bet that monster scared her badly..."  What the hell were those things?  His eyes snapped back to reality when he realized Cynder was slowly moving, and with a yell he caught her just before she slid backwards off the mushroom.  She shrieked and woke up with a start, and Spyro pulled her back up.  

"Wha...what?!"

"You almost slid off!"

"Oh wow...how long was I asleep?  I didn't feel it at all..."

"We've only been out here for about two hours."

She yawned and rubbed her eyes.  "Mmmph...are they done yet?"

"Still waiting for Plazyma and Flame, but I think they'll be done soon."

She just nodded with closed eyes and flopped over again, covering her face with her wing.  On the ground, Neves was hovering above the ground as long as he could, and Spyro looked down when he heard Neves gasp with strain and fall to the ground.  "Owww...so painful on the wings..."  The ice dragon looked up at Caelos.  "Your wings are bigger, how long can you stay in the air?"

"Not very long.  I haven't practiced."

All of a sudden, a loud blast startled them out of their laziness and they looked up to see a dark cloud hovering in the air.  "What was that?!" Shimmer shrieked.

"Well, time to head back...that was Nightshade calling us back into the temple."

"Who?"

"You'll see him.  And Rivyera.  C'mon, they don't like to be kept waiting."  They followed Neves back into the temple and made their way into the dojo.  They found Plazyma and Flame already situated with the guardians.  When they were all seated, Neves with his parents and the others directly across from the older dragons, Cyril cleared his throat and addressed them.

"Though some things went astray on your rescue mission, you did a decent job.  However...Ripto's and Tephra's actions have awakened more evil."

"It will take some time before that evil spreads," Terrador continued.  "However, do not think you are getting any relaxation time.  You young ones are required elsewhere now."

"Where's our next mission?" Neves asked.  Ignitus sighed, his face growing serious.

"We'll need to send you youngsters in groups to different locations...to different realms."

Their faces lit up.  They were going to see new places?!  Cynder squealed.  "Yay!  Beaches and new places!"

"It's not so simple," Ignitus chuckled.  "It's good to see excitement, but at the same time, this is a dangerous assignment.  You six will not be travelling together at once.  You will need to split up."

"Six?" Flame asked.

"Yes, six," Nightshade said, folding his dark wing over the young fire dragon.  "You, Flame, will be staying here for training while they're gone."

"Awww...come on!  That's not fair!"

"Fairness is not life," Rivyera said in reply.  "Flame, unlike the others here, you do not truly know how to fight."

"Neither does Shimmer!"

"Hey!!  I'll have you know I was trained by the Settlement's best combat teacher!"

"Flame, your presence would be a burden to the others with your current knowledge.  True, your unique long-range attack would prove useful, but that's about all you have right now."  Ignitus looked Flame straight in the eyes.  "But don't worry.  I will personally see to your training in the ways of fire.  Terrador will be your combat instructor."

"Where are we going?"

"Yeah, and who're we teaming up with?"

"Patience," Terrador replied.  "Shimmer, Cynder, all of you have a few days to prepare.  We have not yet decided who's going with who, or really to where.  All we have right now are close guesses that are almost complete."

"Your duty now is to ensure that you are quite ready for the task," Cyril said.  "Gnorcs, rhynocs, and apes have invaded the various areas, most notably Cliff Town in the Peacekeeper's Canyon.  There appears to be a major project going on there.  Many of the local dragons have been forced from their dwellings there."

"I wanna go..." Flame sighed, but Rivyera chuckled to herself and lifted his face with the fin on her tail.

"Flame, trust us, it'll be better for you to avoid the trip and train here.  Where they're headed, the enemies are much stronger than the ones you've faced so far.  They're easier to kill, but for young dragons like yourself, they can knock you out in three hits easily."

"Well...I guess...will I be able to see Ember though?"  He ignored Cynder's snort.

"Most likely."

"Why isn't she here with us, though?"

The elders all turned to Ignitus, and the young dragons followed their sight as the old fire dragon sighed.  "Ember is not one of us."

Flame stared at him in disbelief.  "Yes she is!  She's my friend!"

"You do not understand, Flame.  All of us in this room are rare."  A few eyes fell on Spyro and Cynder, but Ignitus shook his head.  "Not just Spyro.  Yes, he's the purple dragon...for ages, the purple dragon has been a creature of redeeming power, sent to vanquish evil.  Throughout history, the purple dragon has been a herald of the fall of evil, but also a messenger that evil is coming."

"So he's an omen of doom," Caelos said jokingly.

"To put it bluntly, yes."

"Ah crap..."  Spyro punched the floor and the others laughed.

"However...among the prophecies surrounding these fantastic creatures...there are puzzles.  One dragon, the first one, fell to darkness and became the most powerful enemy this world and its realms have ever seen.  He laid waste to half of them, and completely destroyed a quarter of the original realms before he was imprisoned."

"Wait..."  Shimmer held up her paw, thinking hard.  "If he was so powerful, how was he imprisoned?  With energy crystals?"

"Exactly.  The guardians of that time, cornered in the tallest tower of the Sky Kingdom -- otherwise known as Concurrent Skies -- energized eight powerful crystals that served as a lock for the portal they were creating.  The evil dragon, known as Malefor or the Dark Master, caught them and killed four of them before the other four trapped him inside the portal, locking it with the crystals."

"What were the elements they used?"

"The eight elements: fire, ice, wind, electricity, water, earth, darkness, and light.  Unfortunately...the light guardian, one of the last light dragons, was the fourth to be killed as he used himself as a distraction to deter Malefor while the remaining guardians finished the portal.  Malefor hated light; it was the one element he was never able to learn."

"Why not?" Spyro asked curiously.  "If he was a purple dragon, couldn't he learn light?"

"Theoretically...but he fell to his own lust for power."

Nightshade grunted.  "It's been theorized that Malefor could not learn light because, when he reached the correct power level, he was already corrupted.  He mastered the dark element and dark magic...it's thought that this specialization, this corruption, lost him his power of light."

"What's this got to do with the rest of us?" Plazyma asked, picking at her claws as she lay on the floor.

"Spyro, technically, is the bane of this age's evil.  That is, if he succeeds.  A few prior to him have failed, like Malefor."

Rivyera spoke up as Ignitus paused.  "Young dragons...we are entering an age of heavier darkness than we've ever known.  All of you are living proof."

"Could you please just tell us?" Shimmer asked.  She looked at Neves sitting by her.  "Neves, you're really quiet..."

"I already know all this.  And what's coming up."

"Well then, Seven, why not explain it?" Rivyera asked, and Neves coughed and pushed his glasses back up his muzzle.  

"Up until this recent age, the dragon of purple alone has been enough to stop the tides of darkness.  However...this age is the rise and return of many evils, past and present.  Spyro is but one dragon against the world's most powerful evil forces predicted to arrive, purple though he is.  That's where we come in."

"How?" Plazyma asked, looking over her wings in a bored fashion, still thinking this was all a waste of her time.

"As shown by our exploits, except for Caelos and Shimmer, we are the dragons predicted to assist Spyro."

"How do you know for sure?" Caelos asked suspiciously.

"These guys are the guardians, masters of the elements, the best a dragon can naturally become.  And yet Cyril himself has admitted that I wield more power and control with ice than he can hope for.  Plazyma, your lightning strike?  For other dragons, that's only possible with a Fury attack, yet you do it as easily as a breath attack.  Flame's long-range beam is technically impossible, especially with the explosive power it yields.  Cynder is unique because she's not purple, yet wields both fire and darkness and has so far unleashed a devastating Dark Fury that is technically impossible for her age.  Caelos caused a windstorm merely by flapping his wings and breathing.  Haven't seen Shimmer do anything special yet..."

"So why do you think I'm one of the group?" she asked, confused.

"It was told that the elements would find each other all at once, and guess what?  All except earth, we've pretty much found each other.  Oh wait...that's right, Shimmer pulled off a massive wave of water to cool the lava in that battle."

"Who's earth then?" Flame asked.  "Tephra?"

Ignitus grunted.  "We don't know, Flame...Tephra has been powerful, true, but her power seems to stem from an outside source...we can't tell for sure, though, but something's at work with her.  The earth element could be anywhere...might be Tephra, might be someone else.  All we can do is wait and see."

By the time the discussion ended, everyone was hungry again.  Neves was put in charge of showing everyone where to get their own food.  Shimmer disappeared for a good half an hour, and when Spyro and Cynder went to go see what was holding her up, the three of them returned to the temple with a large haul of fish.  All through the meal Ignitus kept questioning Spyro about the rescue mission.  

"She had an elemental lock on Ember's cell?"

"Yeah, but I think Ripto put it there, not Tephra.  It responded to my breaths, and I don't know how to breathe earth yet."

"Tell us about what they did to Ember; do you know?  Did she say anything about it?"

Cynder watched and listened as Spyro recounted what Ember had told him...or rather, what he had gotten from her endless mouth amid the various stories and tangents the pink dragoness had continuously gone off on.  Cynder felt a bit hurt...Spyro almost seemed to enjoy remembering all that.  Was the whole irritation thing just an act?  She didn't see that he was trying to hide his irritation from the guardians, and when Spyro looked at her as he gathered his thoughts he paused when he saw her glaring at him.  She looked back at her meal when she realized he was looking at her, and was quiet for the rest of the time until they were sent outside for some quick flight training before nightfall.  FInally, they were told to sleep, and Spyro flopped down in his favorite spot in the garden while everyone else got themselves situated.  He looked up and saw Cynder nearby.  "Hey Cynder...ready for tomorrow?"

"I guess..."

Her tone caught his attention and he sat up.  "Is something wrong?"

Cynder lay down by him with a frustrated snort.  "Spyro, why didn't you even try to locate us in that cave?"

"Hey, I had no idea you guys had followed me!"

"That little brat..."

Spyro stared at her as she glared at a blade of grass, and presently he smirked.  "You're jealous."

She started, staring wide-eyed at him.  "What?!  That's crazy!"

"Well, you tend to be crazy yourself..."

She snorted and looked away.  "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh come off it!  Ever since the explosion when we got outta there you've been upset at me; what's going on with you?  I saw the way you stared at us when Ember tried to flirt with me."

"Flirt?!"  Spyro yelled and fell aside in surprise as she whipped around and almost lashed at him.  "THAT SNOBBY LITTLE BRAT WAS MORE THAN FLIRTING!!  And what's worse, you didn't do anything about it!!"

"Well what could I do?  I tried everything short of physical violence with her in those tunnels!  I don't know what her problem is, but--"

"But you liked it; you liked her flirting over you!!"  Cynder turned around, hitting his nose with her tail, and walked off.

"Cynder!  Wait..."  She was already running off through the garden.  "Geez, what's her problem?"  He mulled it over for a while, wanting to let her sort it out, but he just didn't understand why she was so upset with him.  He got up and followed her, and found her at the gateway to the mushrooms, staring out into the darkness.  He quietly sat down by her and she turned her head away.  "Cynder...what the heck is going on here?  Why do you have such a problem with me now?"

"I'm not gonna comment."

Spyro growled in frustration.  "How can I solve this problem if you don't tell me what it is?"

"Go figure it out yourself, pink-lover!"  She ran away again, clipping his nose with her tail-blade.  Spyro stared at her, his paw absently running over the new scratch on his scales.

"Pink-lover?  Cynder you idiot, I can't stand Ember!"  Thinking against running after her he walked back to his sleeping spot, and pounded the ground angrily.  "Gaahhh...why're girls so frustrating?!  Why is she being so stupid?!"

At the other side of the garden, Shimmer was telling Neves stories that her mother had passed on to her about their island, when she noticed something move not too far away.  "Neves...did you see that?"

"No...what was it?"

"I'm gonna go check it out."  She crept low against the ground, following the footsteps, and lunged when the creature stopped.  The two grappled at each other on the ground until Shimmer shrieked, her neck caught in her catch's mouth.

"Shimmer?!"  Cynder backed away quickly.  "I'm so sorry, I thought you were..."

"What's going on?" Shimmer asked, rubbing her neck, but to her confusion Cynder ran off again, crying.  Neves ran up behind Shimmer.

"What happened?  What was it?"

"Cynder...she's really upset about something."  Shimmer ran after her, and Neves followed at a distance, wanting to stay as out of sight as possible in case Cynder was more emotional than he thought.  They found her deeper in, close to the temple wall, crying into her wing as she lay on the ground.  Shimmer wanted to go in, but Neves stopped her and shook his head.  

"I don't think we can help her right now, give her some down-time before confronting her."  Shimmer sighed and went back to their spot, but Neves stayed where he was to study the black dragoness.  He couldn't hear what she was saying, but she kept hitting herself in the head as if trying to knock something out.  Finally she settled down a bit and curled up, crying quietly to herself, and Neves slowly walked in, keeping a safe distance.  "Cynder?  You okay?"

"No...I don't know what's wrong with me..."  She sniffled and turned away.  "Just leave me alone before I hurt someone again..."

Neves sighed and walked away.  "Something's wrong...ever since that attack in the mountain...or is this just what girls do?"



The next few days they were run through all sorts of drills and tests and training sessions, rarely given a break except maybe half a day off to go have fun.  By the end of their first week in the temple they were able to lift themselves off the ground with their wings and fly for a bit, but their wing muscles were still too weak for true flight.  Finally, in the midst of a rainstorm, Ignitus gathered them all into the dojo.

"Young dragons, we've finally located the best areas for you to test your skills against.  Ripto's forces have finally established definite areas of control, and are just now beginning to make them stronger."

Terrador grunted with a bit of strain, and the whole room shook as the statue in the center lowered into the floor.  When the floor closed itself over the statue, a glowing pattern and shimmering archway appeared in the center of the circular room.  "Your mission is to scour the realms we send you to.  There's only a few that are currently plagued, but you will be put to the test before long."

"What do we hafta do?" Shimmer asked.

Rivyera looked towards the portal.  "The locals were forced to evacuate, and in the chaos their gems were scattered and stolen.  In the realms we are sending you to, gems are very important.  They are used as currency, but also as power sources.  Gather enough and certain areas will become accessible.  We think Ripto is trying to find the sources of the power for these jewels, but whatever he's up to, he's causing too much trouble."

"As we said before, six of you will be going.  Shimmer and Neves, Spyro and Cynder, and Caelos and Plazyma."  Ignitus cocked an eyebrow at Flame as the young dragon tried to hide behind Caelos.  "Flame, over here.  You still have a lot of training to do."

"Awww...c'mon..."  Flame walked over to Ignitus and sat down, looking lonely.  

"Ember is coming to the temple tomorrow to be with you, Flame; she needs to learn how to fight, seeing how Ripto seems to be targeting her."  Rivyera sat down by him.  "Don't worry, Flame, you're not really missing out on anything.  We've located a realm for you to practice in alongside Ember if she wants to."

Neves rolled his eyes and the others leaned closer.  "Can't tell she wants more kids, can you?  She's already treating us like her children..."  They laughed among themselves while Ignitus ran his paw along the portal archway.  

"I was hoping we wouldn't have to use this portal, but the others need time to activate.  Be careful, young dragons; the ride will be a bit bumpy getting there."  The portal color turned a bit bluish and they thought they saw a mountain range through its watery rippling energy.  "Seven, Shimmer, you're first.  The Magiccrafter's realm is treacherous but should be fairly easy to navigate.  If for any odd reason, you are defeated permanently, you'll be warped back here.  Keep in mind, though; defeat only allows Ripto's forces to further their actions there, and we can't risk him completing whatever he's started there.  Gems found are to be brought back here for safekeeping until the realms are safe again.  If you find any important items, bring them here so Ripto's forces can't get them."

Shimmer glanced at the portal nervously, and Neves nudged her slightly.  "C'mon, we're the only ones that can do this.  We'll be fine.  We can leave the realm at any time we choose, if that's any comfort."

She nervously followed him into the portal, and the others watched as the field of energy swallowed them up in a small flash.  Ignitus touched the portal again.  "Spyro, Cynder, you're next."



"So...the Magiccrafter's home...this is gonna be fun."

"What?  You don't like it?"

"It's a pretty place!  But...I'm just not very comfortable in areas were you can slip and fall over ledges."  Shimmer glanced over the edge and shivered.

"Further in there's water.  C'mon."  Neves led the way, and Shimmer cautiously followed him...something didn't feel right.  She and Neves collected the scattered gems tossed around from the gnorc games as they wandered down the hallway, jumping over the pools of water in their way.

"Hey wait..."  Shimmer dove into one of the pools, and Neves walked to the edge and watched as she swam deep down and then disappeared into one of the walls through an entrance he couldn't see from above.  Half a minute later he heard bubbles in the pool behind him and Shimmer leapt out of the water with a key in her mouth.  She glanced up at him and cocked an eyebrow curiously.  "What?  Do I have something on me?"

Neves pulled his mouth shut and shook his head rapidly.  "Nothing, thought I saw something..."  She giggled and rolled her eyes, and hunkered lower to the floor.  Neves's eyes widened and he stepped back.  "Shimmer, no...ACK!!"  He shielded his face with his wing as she shook herself off, spraying water everywhere.  She laughed and flicked water at him with her tail, catching his face with the drops as he brought his wing down.  

"Gotcha," she laughed, sticking her tongue out at him.  He huffed and walked past her, and they continued into the realm entrance.  Not much further in they encountered some odd-looking silver-armored gnorcs carrying magical staves.  "Oh this is gonna be fun."  Shimmer raced up to one and ducked under its staff as it lashed at her, and she breathed a powerful stream of water at it.  Neves yelled and caught her as it hit her in the followthrough of its first strike.

"You okay?"

"Owww...I don't feel so good..."

"Armored enemies here are immune to breath attacks and most melee hits."  He quickly dashed through the whole line of gnorcs, knocking them every which way as he charged through them with his horns.  Shimmer watched as jewels flew from the gnorcs and disappeared when they touched Neves, and the enemies themselves disappeared in small puffs of sparks.  Neves looked back triumphantly, and she rolled her eyes.  

"Show-off..."  She looked back at him.  "What?"

"What's that thing floating by you?" he asked, pointing.  Shimmer looked behind herself and saw a glowing bug dancing through the air behind her with a bright blue glow.  

"Awww...it's cute!"  Shimmer stood up on her hind legs and stretched a paw to it, but it flitted around her paw and then went behind her again as she fell back on all fours.  "What're you doing here little guy?"

"Hey, I've got one too..."  She looked and saw a bright white fly buzzing around Neves.  A look of realization came across his face.  "Ahaaaa...I know why they're here."

"Why?"

"In these outer realms, some dragonflies are gifted with protective abilities...they're guarding us, Shimmer.  Yours is blue instead of white right now because it expended some energy shielding you from that hit."

"So...if I or you get hit, we're dead?"

"Not necessarily dead, but out cold definitely."

"Awww...poor little guy..."  She looked at her dragonfly.  "Do they talk?  How do we get their power back?"

"I don't think they can talk to us, but to re-energize them we need to either feed them butterflies or collect certain special power crystals...I think they're orbs.  Enough talk for now though, I hear more gnorcs outside and I don't think they're very happy."



Hundreds of miles away, another portal zapped and two dragons stepped out, their black and purple colors standing out against the sand they were walking on.

"A beach...yay, fun," Cynder said, tracing her claws in the sand.  Spyro sighed.

"Listen, Cynder, I'm sorry about that whole thing with Ember, but you're reacting to something that never was."

She sighed and looked away.  "I know..."

Spyro rubbed against her.  "Hey...c'mon, standing here isn't gonna get the problem solved."  She shrugged and followed him towards the large stone gate.  Not too far away she spotted something glittering, and cautiously crept across the sand towards it.  Spyro followed her and watched as she collected the glittering gem, and she purposely avoided his eyes as she walked back to him.  "Cynder...what would make you happy again?  I hate seeing you like this."

She shrugged again.  "I don't know..."

Spyro sat down in front of her.  "I need to know...why are you so upset about this whole me and Ember thing?  It was torture listening to her go on and on and on...why do you think I like her?"

"I can't talk about it..."

"Why not?"

"I just...I can't.  Can't talk about something I don't know."

"Well, take it from me, I never wanna see that little brat again if I can help it."

"How do I know you're not just saying that to cheer me up?"

"I guess I was wrong to assume you could trust me..."  He stood up and walked away, feeling very hurt.  Something grabbed his tail and he looked back to see Cynder following him, his tail in her mouth.  "What?"

"I'm sorry, Spyro...I don't know what's wrong with me, that's part of this whole problem..."

"Whaddaya mean, 'what's wrong with you'?"

"I don't know!" she said defensively, stopping.

"I meant, what's going on that you don't know about?  Is something bothering you?"

"...Yes..."

"What is it?"

She opened her mouth several times, choking on her words every time as if someone suddenly grabbed her throat.  Finally she sighed and looked at the sand.  "I can't say...something's keeping me from talking about it..."

Spyro studied her for a bit, trying to figure out what might be wrong.  Cynder sighed heavily, and started when she felt Spyro rub against her again.  "Hey... C'mon Cynder, let's get going.  It'll be okay, you don't need to tell me now."  She followed him up the beach, and they both stopped at the gates, then looked at each other oddly.

"Where the heck are we again?"

"I'm guessing a sandbar or something..."  They were confused as they looked past the gates...stretching before them, instead of land like they'd thought was there, was a maze of sandbars and white-bricked buildings.  It was a beautiful sight, but at the same time confusing...where was the mainland they were supposed to be at?  It didn't matter, though; shortly after they stepped past the gates, a large gnorc ran up to them with a large shovel and a bucket, and quickly socked Spyro over the head.  Cynder yelled in anger and knocked it into the water with a well-aimed headbutt.  A single yellow gem popped out of the water and disappeared when it hit Cynder's hide.

"Spyro?  You okay?"

"I suddenly feel weaker...least I'm still standing..."  He looked up and noticed her looking at him oddly.  "What?"

"What's that little glowing speck flying around you?  Is that the dragonflies Ignitus told us to look for?"

"Are they," he corrected her.  "I don't know...I think so."

"Oh!"  Cynder spotted one hovering around her.  "Huh...they're kinda cute..."  She lifted her wing to it and it perched on her black wing-finger.  "Hey, you guys gonna help us?"

"Cynder...I think we should get moving..."

"Why?"  He indicated a beam of light rising into the sky from a far sandbar.  "Uh oh..."



Plazyma yelled and slapped a gnorc off the edge of a cliff with her tail, and as it fell a red gem flew back up and disappeared when it touched her.  Caelos blasted another with a powerful blast of air-breath and claimed the resulting gem.  Plazyma sighed and eyed the beam of light up ahead.  "Wow...so close yet so far..."

Caelos glanced back at the little dragonfly hovering around him.  "I know."

"Do you ever talk?"  He just shrugged and walked forward.  She followed him, keeping a bit of a distance, until he stopped with a strange sigh.

"Plazyma...on the mountain, why did you speak against me?  I've only done anything to you once, and that was an attempt at assistance."

She looked at him oddly.  "No, you kept bugging me for an entire month after that incident, and you almost killed me in a rockslide."

He returned the look.  "That meeting with the others when Shimmer was injured was the second time I've ever seen you in my life."

They stopped, staring at each other in confusion.  "Wait...so...who was bugging me?  He looked exactly like you."

"That's weird...I'm an only child."

Their eyes both widened in realization.  "They've escaped..." Plazyma whispered.  

Caelos was about to say something when a motion caught his eye.  Plazyma shrieked painfully as he threw her to the side, rolling himself with the motion.  She sat up to beat him, but caught sight of what he'd just saved her from and all thought of vengeance left her.  A huge beast decked out with spiked and bladed armor had charged at them and was looping back around to strike at them again, its four feet pounding against the ground in a mad frenzy.  Caelos blinded it with a hurried dust blast and Plazyma shorted it permanently with a bolt of electric breath.  It disappeared in a shower of sparks and three large purple jewels, which Caelos caught with his wind power and quickly collected.  "Sharp eyes, you'd better have them."

"I'm surprised I didn't sense his magnetic field..."  They travelled along the narrowing edge of the cliff and finally located the abandoned town, keeping low to avoid being seen.  Everywhere they looked they saw gnorcs, some just standing around doing nothing, others pacing back and forth...but what really caught their attention was a beam of light shooting up from the other side of the town.  "That can't be good..."

"No it isn't."

"I know that already!  C'mon, let's just get this done with."  They glided down to the foyer of a large white-stone building and charged headlong into Cliff Town.