The first light of morning could be seen from the lip of the Quarry, Hunter was crouched near the door, Spyro’s unconscious form by his side. He mentally prepared himself for what he had to do. He hadn’t slept since he’d woken up to Spyro’s frozen body on top of his chest.
The second that door opens I rush the guard, knock him out, kill him if I have to, take his club and then I’m gonna carry Spyro out of here. Either we escape together or we die together, no other way.
Hunter worked to steady his breathing, he glanced over at Spyro, who hadn’t changed since he’d been brought back from the brink of death. “I swear.” Hunter said, his heart pounding, “I swear they’ll never lay a hand on you again.” His hands were shaking, the odds of success were impossibly low but what other choice did he have? There was no other way.
The minutes ticked by and the light of the sun got brighter and brighter. Any second now.
Suddenly there was a sound like thunder and a whoosh of heated air blasted into the cell followed by screaming outside the cell door and the stamping of feet.
What’s happening, Hunter couldn’t comprehend it, but it didn’t change anything in his mind, Spyro was the only thing that concerned him. “Whatever this is, I promise, I’ll protect you from it,” he whispered.
The chaos outside continued for several minutes, then there was a loud thump like something had hit the ground just outside the cell door. Hunter tensed up, ready to attack whatever came through it. The door didn’t open though, instead powerful clawed hands grabbed the iron bars of the door and pulled on them, ripping them off their hinges.
Hunter’s heart pounded as a shadow loomed in the doorway and a tall scaled figure entered the cell. Titan, leader of the Peacekeeper dragons, stood before Hunter. The Cheetah was unable to lower his guard, instead speaking slowly. “Am…am I dead? Are we dead?”
Titan looks at the hunched cheetah unsure how to respond for a second before speaking with an extended claw “Come young cheetah, we’re getting you out of here,” he said before noticing Spyro lying next to Hunter. “I can carry him,’ Titan said, reaching his clawed hand toward Spyro.
Hunter immediately snapped out of his daze. “No!” he yelled, placing a firm protective hand on Spyro’s side, then composed himself, trying to fight against the protective instincts that had built up over the last 12 hours. “No,” he said more calmly, “I got him.”
Titan studied Hunter for a second, before nodding. “Alright,” he said. “Come on, there’s a balloon waiting to take you back to the Dragon Realms.” He offered a hand to Hunter, who hesitantly took it, and rose to his feet.
Hunter groaned as he rose, pushing past the searing pain in his back, ignoring it. He turned around and gently picked Spyro up.
Titan got a good look at the injuries on Hunter’s back, his narrowed eyes, taking in the sight of the ripped flesh, raw and bloody with torn patches of fur. He balled his clawed hands tightly, anger in his eyes, averting his gaze as Hunter turned around.
With the little dragon nestled safely in Hunter’s arms, the cheetah followed Titan out of the cell and into the morning light. The quarry was pure chaos, a dozen dragons roared through the skies, reigning fire down into the pit, sending the Hyenas running in a panic. Others were on the ground, ripping cells open and freeing slaves.
Titan turned to Hunter and spoke, “the slavers have been routed, they shouldn’t trouble you.” He pointed a clawed hand toward the other end of the Quarry, a balloon waited there. “Now go, I’ll keep an eye on you from above.” He spread his wings and quickly lifted into the air.
Hunter began walking toward the balloon, his back screaming with every step. He adjusted his grip on Spyro and looked down at him. The dragon’s breathing was slow but steady, it’s really over Hunter thought, we’re going home.
He kept thinking any moment he’d wake up back in that cell, with a guard pounding on the door. The balloon was getting closer and closer, meter by meter. It all seemed so impossible, the beating of dragon wings, fire raging all around, like something out of a dream.
Suddenly he heard a groan in his arms, he looked down to see Spyro opening his eyes. “Hunter...” Spyro said weakly, “what’s happening?”
Hunter gave a small smile. “Everything’s fine buddy, we’re getting out of here.”
Spyro looked at him confused before slipping back into unconsciousness. Hunter tightened his hold on the dragon. Sleep now friend, soon you’ll wake up back home.
As they approached the balloon, Hunter caught sight of the cart Spyro hauled, his own blood still on the ground from the whipping, he shivered at the sight of it but kept moving,
After an agonizing march they finally reached the balloon, the diminutive balloonist nodded as Hunter lowered Spyro into the basket and then carefully climbed in himself, trying to avoid exacerbating the pain in his back.
The balloonist flared the burner and they were soon in the air. Gripping the balloon ropes, Hunter looked down at the Quarry, the place that had been his prison for two weeks, Spyro’s for twice that.
The dragons weren’t just burning the mining equipment, they were literally melting the rock. Former slaves were being guided up the ramp out of the Quarry by dragons on the ground, all while the lower levels were being turned to glass. The Hyenas were reaching the top of the ramp, fleeing into the desert.
So this is the true power of dragons. Hunter thought. He’d seen what Spyro could do, how the kid could handle pretty much anything thrown his way, but fully grown dragons…they were a force of nature.
Despite his exhaustion and worry for Spyro, who laid at his feet, Hunter felt a certain peace knowing the horrible place below, where he and his best friend suffered under the lash of the hyenas, would never hurt anyone again.
The balloon drifted onward across the desert, toward the safety of the Dragon Realms.
