A/N: Don't say anything about the date, I know. Oh well.

I am shifting more towards original content slowly, however. I plan to finish this story over the summer.

~Order of the Concritters~

The Inner Flame

Chapter 19: Summer Freeze

Spyro tread around in a small circle with Shadow, continuing to smell the new dragon. He wondered where he had come from, how far he had flown, perhaps if he knew anyone from the temple….

Shadow was a large and muscular dragon, looking confident with his body. He looked genuinely unafraid of Spyro, who felt belittled at this. He had never felt like this before, especially at the sight of a strange dragon.

"I was just trying to get back to that Temple place. I seemed to have lost my footing…." stated Shadow, with the intent of toning down the awkward air between the two.

The whole group's heads tilted as if they were one and the new dragon was flooded with an intense barrage of questions.

"What Temple?"

"Where is it?"

"Do you know any of the guardians from there?"

"Who are you? I've never seen you around the temple before!"

"It's…that Temple with all of the element symbols in the floor. You know, with the training dummies and stuff? That place. I left a long time ago searching for some killer dragon and have been lost ever since."

Spyro's eyes widened at this new discovery. Perhaps this dragon was sent to destroy Malefor even before him?

The wind was blowing even more furiously now. Some wheat stocks fluttered through the air, signifying the true power of nature.

"What's your name again?" asked Spyro. His amethyst eyes lightened a little more in the fierce sunlight. He squinted to more thoroughly examine the deeper intricate features of the green dragon.

"Shadow, my name is Shadow…do you come from where I come from?"

"I think we do. I'm Spyro, and this is Cynder, Nano, Zayril, and uhh…Flame." He listed the dragons that were with him as each of them stepped forward in turn. Cynder blinked harshly at the swoon in Spyro's voice at the mention of Flame's name. Shadow seemed not to notice; however, he did look at Spyro and Cynder standing beside each other lovingly; as if they were a couple. Spyro made a short shake of his head to indicate the green dragons' thoughts were not as it seemed. He still failed to offer a reply. Apparently, that was the end of that.

"So, anyways… you wanted to hit Dante's Freezer by the night's end, Spyro?" probed Flame coyly. It seemed to be an effort to get the group dismounted from the green fields and large sections of wheat known as Tall Plains.

"Yeah, I think it would be a great place to stay the night. Plus, that means we could make it back home tomorrow. Cynder, you and I could head back out for Malefor after dropping everyone else there," directed Spyro. "Unless there are any objections?"

Shadow stepped forward.

"Malefor? This is who you're after?" Shadow looked wide-eyed and impressed. His eyes practically looked glazed.

"Yes, Ignitus sent us. What's with the look?" asked Spyro. He was staring into the dragon's odd expression and complexion, as if he was expecting to receive something new.

"Ignitus is still alive? He never mentioned me?" asked Shadow, his head dropping slightly.

"You know him?" queried Spyro. This was something interest-piquing….

"I was sent a long time ago to accomplish the same task as you. He was the one that dispatched me alone. I can't believe he's forgotten me…" Shadow trailed off, deep in thought and wonder at what Ignitus, and Spyro for that matter, must be thinking.

"Come on, we're going to be home in a couple days…maybe you could make amends with him or something," said Spyro with a hint of a smile on his face.

Shadow did nothing but sit and stare into the air.

~xxxXxxx~

The group had been in the air for a little while now, floating aimlessly north, towards the coldest depths of the Dragon Realms. The first stop would be Dante's Freezer for the night, then around the ice-covered area back to the North Temple, the original location of many of the members of this group.

The wind temperature dropped greatly in an instant. It was a chilling feeling, one of direct fear and even anxiety for Spyro. The wind slowly increased in speed as a land mass appeared over the water horizon.

"This is it, guys! Let's land and explore this place, and see where we can sleep for the night."

A/N: Short chapter… but better than nothing, yeah?

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