Author's Notes:

Hey there! And welcome to my new story, I have to be honest here guys, I had a hell of a time coming up with a new idea for you good folks. I had no clue where this one came from, but it's something I thought would make an interesting tale.

Spyro the Dragon is © Activision, not me, I'm just a dumb fan who likes writing stories about it.

Chapter 1: It's In The Game

Have you ever had something really wild happen to you? Something no one else would ever believe happened but you knew it did? Well, I sure did...

Let me start at the beginning. My name is Zane Andrews, I'm about 18 years old, fresh outta high school, I had hair that was very black and very out of control. Kevin always says I look like the lead singer of a screamo band. It's not my fault, this hair refuses to be tamed. Besides, it makes me stand out. My wardrobe usually consists of a black and purple stripped hoodie, black jeans, and black sneakers. I've had the term "slacker" thrown at me from time to time, mostly due to my love for video games and relaxed while somewhat lazy demeanor,. Maybe they're right, maybe not, I really don't care.

Kevin Naton on the other hand, he was the exact opposite, he was athletic, somewhat high strung, and a guy who was on top of almost everything. He had black hair too, but his was shorter and more tame than my wild hedgehog hair, it kinda resembled a mullet almost. He wore a black t-shirt with a red heart with blue wings printed on it, a blue undershirt, blue jeans, and black and blue sneakers.

Kevin was a bit of a gamer too, but he wasn't just an ordinary gamer, no sir, he had a strange fascination with bootlegs and ROM hacks. He had a whole book shelf chuck full of bootleg games for various systems and fifty different boot disks for each one of the CD consoles. That is if he didn't already have a modded version of said console. I never understood it myself, it's not like they were that much different from the legit copies. But I guess we all have our hobbies right?

Well this little addiction of Kevin's would land us in the most bizarre adventure we ever had. And it all started with a package...

I had just got up, I was clad only in a Rise Against t-shirt and plaid pajama pants. Me and Kevin had been living in this apartment since we graduated high school, it wasn't much, but it was home. But I digress, when I got out of the apartment to get the mail I noticed a brown package sitting right there in front of the door. I picked it up, figuring it was yet another piece of sketchy gaming equipment Kevin had snagged off Ebay.

I know it's wrong of me to open this since it's not for me, but I'm sure Kevin wouldn't mind if I had a peek. So I tore the brown paper off the package and inside was exactly what I was expecting, another bootleg game. God doesn't he have enough? The game was apparently supposed to be a Spyro game, which one I couldn't tell you because it just said "Spyro" on it in purple sharpie. How come these bootleggers never get creative with these things? They just write the name on the disk and that's it. Whatever...

Kevin then came out of his own room. "Hey Zane, what's that?" He asked me groggily, rubbing his eyes. He was clad in his usual t-shirt I described earlier, but he now had a pair of blue and black plaid pajama pants on.

I showed him the game. "Another bootleg Kev? I'm starting to think we need to have an intervention." I teased, however oddly enough Kevin looked surprised and confused by the bootleg.

He snatched it from my hand to get a closer look. "I didn't order this..." He stated, puzzled by the game he held in his hands.

I gave him a skeptical look, "Nice try dude, if you're gonna have an addiction you can at least own up to it, or come up with a better lie." I said, who did he think he was fooling? Who else in this apartment ordered fake games off the internet?

However Kevin seemed committed to his story. "I'm not lying man, I never ordered this thing." Kevin insisted.

I shook my head. "Then why did it appear in front of our door dude?" I asked him, still not convinced.

Kevin shook his head. "Maybe I did and I just forgot, I dunno..." Kevin theorized before going over to the TV. Which looked like it was on life support with all the wires connected to it. Each one with a game machine on the end.

I followed him. "What are you doing?" I asked him.

Kevin turned to face me. "I'm going to play it nitwit, that is what it's for you know." Kevin answered as he placed the disk in his modded PS2. "You sure you didn't order this hedgehog hair? We both know Spyro's your secret shame." Kevin teased me.

He just had to bring it there didn't he? Yeah I liked Spyro, I've liked him since I played the first one on the PlayStation. In fact it was him that gave me my love for dragons in the first place, but I never ordered no bootleg, why would I? I already have 90% of his games, all legit copies by the way. "Dude Spyro may be my thing, but bootleg games are yours." I retorted.

Kevin just rolled his eyes and put the game in. "Doesn't even say which one it is, god I hate it when bootleggers get lazy like this..." Kevin complained. I had to agree, it would have been nice to know which Spyro game this was. "Spyro 3 perhaps?" I guessed, don't know why I went to three, it was one of the only ones I didn't have, yet, so maybe that's why?

Kevin groaned. "God I hope not, that game is notorious for being cruel to bootleggers." Kevin replied, well yeah, that was true, I had seen videos of what that game does when it finds out you aren't playing legit. Kevin turned the game on, it took a few minutes to boot up, but suddenly a little picture of Spyro appeared on the screen and I instantly knew which game it was. "It's Legend of Spyro dude." I explained.

Kevin gave another groan. "God dammit, I hate the legend series, it's so linear and combat heavy... And Sparx is such an annoying little dink in this... I liked it better when he was silent." Kevin whined. As far as Spyro goes, Kevin was in the "Spyro hasn't been good since the PS1" camp.

I didn't mind the Legend Series that much, I thought the story was cool, the design of the dragons were pretty sick in my opinion, especially the guardians. But then again, I liked just about any game you threw at me, Kevin took a lot more to please when it came to games. But whatever, I had a small laugh. "Dude you're just miffed because Cynder kicked your ass like 30 times." I said, I couldn't resist getting in that cheap shot. "Dude shut up! She was a cheap bitch and you know it! Her and that f**king tail!" Kevin snapped back.

However we stopped when the title screen came up, something was very wrong here, the text, logos, and music were fine, but the backdrop wasn't. Instead of Spyro's egg floating in the river as it should have been. It was instead an extreme close up of a yellow eye with a slitted pupil. I recognized it from somewhere but I didn't know where...

Kevin selected "New Game" the screen went black instantly. After a while it had seemed the game crashed. "Figures." Kevin said slightly annoyed. He put the controller down and walked off. "Dude aren't you gonna turn it off first?" I called out to him but he was already gone as I heard the bathroom door close.

I went to turn it off for him but suddenly a pair of yellow eyes appeared on screen. So suddenly in fact that it caused me to jump. The pair of eyes just stared into mine, what the hell kind of game was this? It was almost like the eyes were examining me. "Yes... you'll do." a voice said.

Suddenly a dragon shaped shadow came out of the TV! Like something out of a horror movie! Before I could react it went right into my chest, like a ghost phasing through a wall. My heart was beating a mile a minute. What the hell was that? Was I just seeing things? Yeah... yeah that had to be it, just my mind playing tricks. However, what appeared on screen kinda made me question that theory, it was just plane text, but what it said... it was unnerving.

"Three years, three years I've waited... plotted my revenge, but now thanks to you, the Dark Master is reborn..."

What the hell did it mean by that? Another bit of text appeared below it. It only made me feel worse.

"Soon, Zane Andrews will be no more, only Malefor will remain!"

It knew my name... that... that was messed up. Suddenly I felt a surge of pain erupt through my body, I cried out as I fell to the floor. The apartment began to shake and rattle violently, Kevin came rushing out of the bathroom. "ZANE?! ZANE! Dude you okay? What's happening?!" Kevin asked me as he rushed to my aid.

I was wheezing, I could taste my own blood rushing to my mouth as I felt my body shift and convulse. The pain was immense, unbearable even. I gave out, losing consciousness from whatever it was that was happening to me.

Later...

I opened my eyes, my body felt very wrong for some reason, like it wasn't really my own. I tried to stand up but I fell right on my back, hitting the floor with a thud. I tried again but was only met with the same result. I then noticed my arm was now a dark, pale purple. I screamed, trust me you would too if you found one of your limbs had suddenly changed color. I then noticed my hand wasn't a hand anymore, it was a paw, complete with several sharp claws.

I looked around the apartment, everything was where it had been before, except, were was Kevin? Well I got my answer when I saw Kevin come back into the room, a panicked expression on his face as he frantically dialed 911 on his cell phone. "Dammit! Why don't I have any reception?!" Kevin cursed.

Kevin then stopped cold when he saw me. "Z...Zane?!" He questioned. I knew at this point my appearance had drastically changed so I wasn't surprised at his reaction, but I had no clue what I was exactly.

I stumbled towards him, walking on four legs wasn't as easy as you'd think it'd be. "Kevin.. what... what happened to me?!" I asked him, unable to hide my fear even slightly.

Kevin looked me over, sharing my panic. "Dude, you're a dragon!" Kevin told me. Am I nuts? Or did Kevin just say I was a dragon? I... I can't be a dragon! They aren't even real! I rushed to the bathroom as best as I could with my knew anatomy. I looked into the mirror and... Kevin was right... I was a dragon.

Not only that, but I kinda looked like Malefor... I had his yellow reptilian eyes, his horns, his colors, the only remnants of me was my hair. Which looked more solid than it used to, almost like it was made of rubber. "Oh god oh god!" I repeated, what the hell am I going to do? I can't live the rest of my life looking like a video game villain! I'd be captured by the military and shipped off to Area 51 to be dissected!

I suddenly got a headache, I clutched my head as the pain increased, it was like some asshole was driving a pike through my eyeball. I looked up at the mirror to see Malefor sitting right behind me with the biggest sh**eating grin on his face. "I admit, it's not much, but in my position I can't be picky." He said as if this wasn't messed up at all.

I turned around only to see no one there. I chanced a look at the mirror again, he was still there. "Confused? I suppose you would be, allow me to explain, I'm taking over your body. My old one was trapped by that infernal Spyro and I needed a new one. That disk was a creation of one of my followers, foolish creatures who actually worshiped me as some kind of god." Malefor said with a laugh. "They managed to store my spirit onto it, and transferred it to a world out of reach of the ancestors. So that I could choose a creature to transfer into. You might as well say your goodbyes now human, for soon this body will be under my control." Malefor added before vanishing into nothing.

Oh god! What am I going to do?! I have a video game villain inside my brain and he's gonna hijack my body like it's a new car! I ripped the bathroom door open where Kevin was waiting for me. "Dude Malefor's inside my brain!" I explained to him.

Kevin had the same reaction any rational human being would have at this. A "not sure if serious" kind of look. "That game, it had his spirit on it or something and now he's gonna hijack my body! DO SOMETHING!" I screamed, grabbing him by the shirt and shaking him violently.

"What do you want me to do about it?! Perform an exorcism?! Call the Ghost Busters?!" Kevin said breaking free from my grip. I was still in full on panic mode. How could I not be?! I was about to lose my body to a guy who's voice was so distorted people needed subtitles to understand what the hell he was saying! I'm so screwed...

Suddenly there was a knocking on the door, me and Kevin looked at each other, Kevin then in one motion scooped up a blanket and threw it over my head. "DUDE!" I objected.

I couldn't see a thing, but I knew Kevin had begun to move towards the door. "Sorry man, but I can't have anyone seeing you like that." Kevin said...

Man, wasn't this a weird day, I kept expecting to wake up any second, how Zane wound up becoming a dragon would forever remain a mystery, I didn't buy his "possessed by Malefor" story, who would? The old Dark Master had a lot of being fictional clogging his schedule. However I began to rethink that when I opened the door to see a group of what could only be described as a bunch of wolves in druid robes. Okaaaay... I also noticed that instead of the stairway that was supposed to be outside our apartment, we were in a forest. Okay... I'm never eating gas station burritos EVER again!

The wolf monks said nothing, just standing there, being creepy, and fuzzy. "C...can I help you?" I asked, not entirely sure I wanted the answer. One of the druids lifted his head, his golden eyes now visible from under his hood. "We've come for our master." He said in a raspy voice.

I blinked. "Riiiiight... I hate to uh... burst your bubble there Fido, but your master is in another castle. It's just me here so why don't you and your friends just go on your way to do... wolf things..." I said hoping they'd buy it.

They didn't, not even for a second, I could see it on their faces, they knew I was full of it. "You would not be here if he was not inside. You will allow us entry, or we shall force our way in!" The wolf demanded. Oh crap what do I do? I can't give Zane to these wackjobs! Who knows what they'll do to the poor guy! So like a moron I decided to slam the door right in their faces. Smooth as ice Kevin, smooth as ice.

I rushed over to Zane, removing the blanket from its place. "What's going on? Who was that?" Zane asked me as I did this, I rushed over to the window and opened it.

I could hear the wolves banging on the door trying to get inside. "You're new fans. And they aren't taking no for an answer." I told him before ushering Zane towards the window. "Whoa! What are you doing?!" Zane yelled as I did this.

I pushed him out the window, he hit the grassy ground with a thud, I went to climb out myself when the door flew open and the wolves came pouring in. It was like something out of a zombie movie or something! I hopped out of the window. The wolves yelling in disapproval.

Me and Zane both ran as fast as we could, I don't know what the hell is going on, but I did know one thing, I'm never buying bootleg games again!

A/N- What waits for our intrepid heroes outside their apartment? And who were those wolf druids? Stay tuned to find out!