Malefor's Last Reflection

Chapter 1: A Critical Moment

High above the burned lands of the gargantuan volcano, the Temple stood upon its floating Isle. Crowned under a halo of swirling ash and fire, it served as a haunting reminder to all who beheld it; the evil that plagued the land. Once it was a symbol of hope for the realms but now it was the centre of all its despair and the fortress of the one who threatened to end the world.

Within the halls of the desecrated monument, the Dark Master sat on his haunches before a shallow pool of glowing water. The pale aqua light emanating off the pool cast lifeless shadows of the purple dragon against the ash grey walls. For many hours he had stared into its depths, seeing beyond into places too distant to observe in detail.

What he saw at first gave him a fit of deep chuckles that reverberated around the Temple, but as the hours passed his amusement turned to anxiety and finally dread. Malefor looked up from the pool with his yellow eyes bulging and jaw hanging – utter disbelief written across his warped face.

"N-No," he stuttered shaking his head. Looking back down into the pool, his breathing became heavy and erratic as he witnessed streams of lava erupting from the Destroyer's massive form. "This can't be happening, not now, not when I'm so close… how?" Through the glowing water a new image came forth.

Two young dragons flew forth from the Destroyer's gullet, one purple, the other black. With its last breath, molten fire spewed from its mouth before the gigantic beast slowly petrified, never to move again.

Malefor's doomsday weapon had been vanquished from within by Spyro and Cynder.

His face contorted into a snarl and his breathing grew in volume until it drowned out the whistling of wind around the Temple spires. Malefor bared his fangs at the sight of jubilation from the dragons, moles and cheetahs. He could not allow this; would not allow this; not while he still lived.

"NO!" he roared, rising to all fours.

Malefor leapt over the Pool of Visions towards the hallway between the tattered banners of Ice and Fire. Racing through the Temple to the central foyer, he reached out with his powers to the Destroyer. Frantically he searched for what was left of its spirit. 'Where is it?! it can't be gone already', he thought. His anxiety was soaring by the time he entered the large foyer.

The hall he stood in held multiple platforms of charcoal grey granite that were placed irregularly throughout the foyer. Each platform was large enough to accommodate two fully grown dragons and had wide steps leading to a platform next to it. The lowest platform opened up to the tall metal doors of the Temple entrance – belittling all that strode through them, even Malefor. Above him an open ceiling gave way to the eye of the storm where the sky cast the platforms in a metallic sheen whilst leaving the walls in shadow.

Closing his eyes, Malefor felt for the dark aura that drove the Destroyer. If he could not find what he was looking for soon, it would be another three years before he could muster the energy necessary to resurrect the beast again. He knew though he would not have that luxury a second time, not with Spyro around to oppose him.

Weaving through the tangle of energy that permeated the world, Malefor encountered a fading entity surrounded by a veil of rapidly cooling tendrils. Drifting towards the anomaly he shuddered when a sudden jolt of electricity shot through his body,'Yes, there it is'.

Breathing a deep sigh of relief, Malefor immersed himself into the Destroyer's aura. He gasped as searing heat coursed through his veins and down his scaly legs. Despite the fact the energy was cooling, it burned his flesh, causing sweat to seep out between his dark magenta scales. He gritted his teeth and tensed his muscles as he began to feed energy to its spirit; preventing the great beast from dying on him. The cooling fire inside his limbs slowly but surely began to flare. A smile crept onto his muzzle as he relaxed and opened his eyes.

"Right," he groaned, wincing under the Destroyer's burning spirit, "that'll keep it alive while I figure this out."

Gathering his bearings Malefor assessed the damage wrought upon his charge. Initially the damage appeared to be relatively minor – the most notable problem being the severed left leg – but as he examined further the severity of the Destroyer's predicament became all the direr. Almost all the crystals that drove the great beast were shattered and the remaining ones were depleted of their magic.

Malefor's spirits fell.

Even if he supplied the energy to recharged those crystals, the Destroyer would move at a terribly slow speed. This would only leave it vulnerable to a renewed attack before it reached the Belt of Fire. Possessing the beast itself would overcome this dilemma, however his mana reserves were still exhausted from the initial resurrection of the beast. To go down this road would almost certainly mean his death and by extension, the Destroyer's too.

"Unless," murmuring to himself, "Unless I draw energy from…" Malefor frowned and began growling, "No! No I mustn't do that!"

Malefor's uneasiness was not unwarranted. Since his resurrection at the Well of Souls, he was determined to ensure his personal security above all else. After reclaiming the Temple as his seat, he raised it high above the land, forged the Belt of Fire and had his army patrol the Burned Lands. Out of all the measures taken, the Belt of Fire was an unparalleled success. Any attempts to break through or fly over it had ended in failure.

Memories of a cocky band of dragons brought a smirk to Malefor's face as he thought about his ingenious ploy. He found it most amusing when those with the gift of flight braved the ferocious currents above the flames.

He shook the delight from his face when he realised he was going off on a tangent. Now was not the time to indulge in fond memories. He had to make a choice.

He knew without the Belt of Fire there was a very real chance he could have been undermined or defeated before he summoned the Destroyer. Never would he consider diverting energy from the flames at the expense of his safety. Even if it was convenient, he couldn't bear the thought of potentially letting history repeat itself. He shuddered as images of his previous downfall flashed through his mind just considering that prospect.

Now though, at the pinnacle of his destiny, it dawned on him that he may have to go back on his promise. But perhaps if he waited for the dragons, moles and cheetahs to return to Warfang, he could circumvent this problem and just recharge the remaining crystals.

Malefor was brought out of his contemplation when he noticed a temperature shift in his paws. The stifling heat under his scales became more bearable than before. He also noticed his massive frame felt lighter and more at rest. Fear gripped his heart as he realised what was happening.

The spark in the Destroyer's flame began to fade again, and quickly.

Immediately Malefor imparted more energy to the Destroyer's spirit, but it did little to kindle the great beast. Panic encompassed him when his talons matched the temperature of the granite floor. In minutes the Destroyer's spirit would vanish from the world and he would be set back three years. There was no time.

Malefor groaned, blowing wisps of indigo smoke from his nostrils, "I guess I have no choice."

Reaching out to the Belt of Fire, he tapped into the perpetual inferno. Closing his eyes, Malefor quickly entered a state of meditation, breathing deeply and slowly. Pillars of fire danced around his magical intrusion, threatening to distract him. Within seconds the intense heat of the flames rose and fell with Malefor's breathing as they became one and the same. When he was ready, he let the pure energies of the inferno flow towards his inner fire.

Blazing warmth spread throughout his chest like steam from boiling water. Malefor mildly revelled from the surge of power spilling into his being. As his inner fire grew into his limbs and down his tail, he barely noticed his paws lifting off of the cold granite floor. He slowly levitated up into the void above the main foyer – eyes still closed – while he consumed the raging fires at the Burned Lands edge.

While the Belt of Fire diminished, bright purple sparks began to arc from Malefor as violet light emanated off his scales. The foyer began to vibrated to his power as a faint but audible hum grew louder; like the roar of a waterfall in a flash flood.

Opening his eyes, Malefor sucked in his breath to the one sight that horrified him. A whirlwind of water-like flames licked around his body while strands of electricity rippled erratically throughout the foyer. Everywhere his eyes darted the colour of his world was the same: the walls, the floor, the swirling air, the arcs of electricity and even his faded bronze underbelly; all bathed in an eerie bright indigo.

Flashes of his nightmares invaded his mind: clawing for dear life onto anything, alien beasts flying in an indigo void, dragons hovering back from the cusp of a ferocious torrent pulling him away, forever being ripped apart, his screams echoing endlessly and... 'that' face.

Terror dug its nails into Malefor while he focussed back on the Belt of Fire. In seconds anyone with elemental magic would be able to pass through the inferno with ease. His nerve broke and without thinking he severed his magical link with the Belt of Fire…

What had he done?!

Before he could do anything about it, the currents of energy shrivelled away from Malefor's body like dried leaves in an autumn wind. 'No! No! I'm not ready yet!' Try as he might, he couldn't grasp or synchronise with the pool of energy at the edge of the Burned lands anymore.

Behind the veins of purple electricity, the glowing form of Malefor reared his head and roared his anguish. The sound of his frustration carried out of the Temple and into the swirling clouds around, echoing back and forth.

If his earlier panic was suffocating, he was choking on it now. The Destroyer would die in a minute and he still didn't have the energy required to possess the behemoth, at least not without drawing from his raw power and thus leaving him in a weakened state. As unsettling as that prospect was, with the Belt of Fire on the precipice of effectiveness, Malefor knew it was now or never.

His destiny was calling.

Malefor closed his eyes once more and curled up into a ball with his wings shielding his body. Inhaling air into his lungs, he drew all the violet tentacles of fire and electricity into his glowing form. When all the residual energy was within him, he focussed his mind on the Destroyer. Sliding his consciousness into the great beast, he imparted energy to recharge the remaining crystals.

In one swift motion, Malefor released his pent-up breath, extended his wings to their full span and roared to sky as he opened his eyes. Nothing could be seen but the blinding violet light of his fury.

The first thing he saw again was the dancing of electricity in his eyes until it faded to reveal the world ahead of him. He was facing west and could see the setting sun over the distant Warfang to the south west. Up ahead was the Belt of Fire and beyond that he could see the Temple floating above the volcano; but he could barely make it out behind the purple haze of his fury within. Next, he noticed the cries of jubilation and relief from his enemies, the roar of water and the freezing deluge of dam water cascading against his gigantic earthen legs from his left. In this current form, it felt like his true body was being crushed in a vice grip. He had successfully possessed the Destroyer and now saw what its eyes saw.

He only had moments before his fury would expire and his natural strength would sap. Spreading his essence out from his titanic chest, the fury energy raced down into his mammoth limbs as he prepared to move the behemoth. Twitching his giant hand, he reached forward with a solid arm of rock and grasped the cliff of the canyon.

The dragons, cheetahs and moles immediately silenced their cheering as they realised to their horror that the Destroyer was not dead. Malefor was almost certain he heard a cry of denial from his enemy's ranks.

Pulling himself up and out of the water, he brought his severed leg back in contact with its submerged counterpart. The fusing of rock felt like hot steel ripping into Malefor's tendons in his left leg and unfortunately – while in this form – he couldn't roar his displeasure to even try to relieve the pain.

Not wasting anymore time, Malefor brought his other arm up to the edge of the canyon and pushed the destroyer's body up. Moving his massive form, he took huge strides down the canyon to his right; allowing the water's momentum to help push him along.

Panic overcame the dragons, cheetahs and moles as they madly scurried to do something about the reanimated beast fulfilling its journey. Almost immediately the Destroyer gathered speed and, although they gave chase, it soon left them behind. With every step the possessed Destroyer took, the surrounding countryside shook violently while huge waves parted from its wading legs.

Malefor was in complete agony. Every motion he put into the great beast felt like his flesh was being flattened against his bones by avalanches of molten lava. There was no curse or scream that could have been loud enough to express the pain he was in.

Barging the massive bulk of the Destroyer around the bend in the canyon, Malefor found himself facing the west again with the Belt of Fire just several lunges before him. Making a bee-line straight for it, he barely noticed the behemoth becoming heavier. High above the volcano, the Temple itself came back into view as the purple haze that hid it disappeared. 'Oh no!'

Malefor collapsed under the Destroyer's momentous weight. His fury had ended and his form collided with the canyon bank at the foot of the inferno. The earth shook with cataclysmic force and every fibre of Malefor's existence screamed. He felt his life force drain away into the beast's aura as he pushed on with all his might to finish its journey.

Summoning as much raw power as he could, Malefor extended the Destroyer's right arm up in front of him. This action alone caused his mind's hold on the beast to slip away. His vision began to fade and he couldn't feel the difference between the Destroyer's body or his own. Reaching forwards, wisps of fire danced and curled at the end of his rocky digits. With one last heave, he slid his rocky palm through the wall of fire.

His mind obliterated as every particle of his essence lit up with the heat of thousands of embers tearing up the destroyer's tail, back and finally at his fire encased stone hand. When his eyes flicked back to life, Malefor found himself back in his natural form in the Temple foyer.

"ARRHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Malefor screamed as his body hung convulsing above the foyer floor.

His entire being was smoking while his screams rent the air. Utterly spent from the ordeal, exhaustion silenced him. Without magic to suspend him or the strength to beat his wings, Malefor fell limp out of the air like a dead bird. The last thing he remembered before falling unconscious was the brutal impact to his chest and the sound of his jaw cracking as it hit the scorched granite floor.