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geminiamethyst · 1 year

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Let The Flames Begin. Chapter 10: Spirits Lifted

Chapter 1: click HERE

Chapter 9: click HERE

Chapter 11: click HERE

“Here’s an ice pack for that bruise.”

“Thank you, Hugo.”

“Would you like anything else? Tea? Water?”

“No, thank you. This is more than enough.”

Flameslinger didn’t know how long he had been sitting down in the office for. The moment that he was escorted, he lost all sense of time around him. Hugo got him to the office and rushed to find a compress for his bruised cheek. Once he had completed his task, he just left the Fire Skylander alone to collect his thoughts. His nerves had calmed down slightly, but he still felt shaken by the whole experience.. Flameslinger honestly didn’t know what to think right now. He had been so cautious. And now those that he had never wanted to see again had found him. He just didn’t understand it. Maybe he wasn’t as careful as he thought. Word may have gotten around or maybe even a picture without his knowledge. After that had reached his so called “family”, they could have connected the dots together or came out here on a whim just to see if it was their “son” after all. Flameslinger should’ve just played dumb and pretended that he didn’t know them at all. Instead, he was so shocked to see them that he couldn’t think of a way to trick them. How could he have been so stupid?!

Flameslinger had these thoughts swirling around in his head until he heard a door close and someone approaching him. He knew that no one else was in the library that the office was located in. Judging by the slow steps and the extra sound of a staff tapping the ground, that has to be Master Eon. Flameslinger didn’t say anything, he just sat there with this sensation of calmness that Eon was offering.

“Apologies for the wait. I was speaking with Buzz and some other members of security about the incident.” The Portal Master sighed as he took a seat across from the Skylander. The Fire Skylander didn’t say anything to that. He wasn’t sure if security would need to be more alert, but if his “parents” came back, it might be necessary. “How are you feeling?”

“A little rattled but I’ve been through worse.” Flameslinger said, taking the compress off of his face. The area was still sore but didn’t feel as swollen as it did before. He’ll have a proper look at it later but he was sure that it wasn’t too serious.

“Can you tell me what happened before I had arrived?” Eon asked again, his tone patient. Flameslinger wasn’t sure how to answer because a part of him was still processing the events a little bit. Then again, he was probably overthinking things. He’ll just say the basic stuff and not talk about anything else.

“They…don’t want me to be a Skylander.” Flameslinger stated carefully. He almost called them his parents, but he stopped himself from doing it. He reminded himself that they were never his parents, even if they were related by blood. “They wanted me to go back with them. I refused. This is my home. I don’t want to leave.” They can’t make him leave. There was more that Flameslinger wanted to add, but it was like his tongue had stopped working at that point.

“Why were they trying to take you back with them?” Eon questioned, concern lacing his voice. Flameslinger froze at that moment. He had honestly hoped that this question could be avoided. Stump Smash was the only one that knew his secret. He didn’t want anyone else finding out.

“I…I can’t…” was all that he could muster, his fists clenching in his lap. Don’t say anything. He knew that Master Eon wouldn’t exploit him like his “parents” had done, but he still can’t speak about his eyes. He can’t let anything slip out, the less that everyone knows, the better that he can hide his secrets. Only Stump Smash knew, and he’d rather keep it that way.

“Flameslinger, I know of your eyes.”

Flameslinger’s head snapped up upon hearing that. He stared right at Eon, who had a patient smile on his face. How did he know? He shouldn’t have been able to know about this. Flameslinger thought back to what that couple had said to him. They did mention his eyes, but that was before the Portal Master had approached the situation. Maybe the confusion was loud enough or Eon was close enough to hear it? No, Eon said that he knew about his eyes. If he did overhear that part of the conversation, he wouldn’t say anything about. He’d probably question it. So that means that he might have heard about Flameslinger, long before he ran away.

Flameslinger hesitated, his hands shaking. Eon sat there patiently, waiting for his next movements. The elf finally lifted his hands. His fingertips touched the fabric of his blindfold. He hesitated again before he pushed the blindfold up to rest on his forehead. He kept his eyes closed until he finally felt like it was a good time to open them. It was the first time in so many years that anyone had seen his eyes like this. Flameslinger couldn’t begin to describe how it felt to see a genuine smile that greeted his eyes like this. All the looks that he had gotten in the past was selfishness, greed and some times disgust. The first one that didn’t have that look was Stump Smash the night that he ran away. Seeing a smile like that, seeing a face like this, almost felt like a breath of fresh air to him. Seeing the calm look on his face, Master Eon continued to explain:

“A long time ago, I had heard of an elf with a fire in his eyes and seemed to have a sort of psychic connection to flames. I was hoping to get you out of an environment where I suspected was horrible for you. I came the day after the night you ran away, just in time to beat the one that was purchasing you.

“When I was told that you ran away, I kept an ear open for rumours about you. Years later, I had heard a rumour about a blindfolded elf that had a perfect aim. While I wasn’t sure, I had my suspicions that it was you. So I had started attending to archery tournaments in the hopes of seeing you. I’m sorry that I couldn’t get to you back then, but I hope that you will continue to stay, where you can feel protected.”

Flameslinger couldn’t begin to describe how he was feeling at that moment. It was like a huge weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. He felt so light that he might as well be floating above where he was sitting. So, someone other than Stump did care about him back then, and more importantly wanted to save him. A part of him wonders about what could’ve happened if Master Eon had taken him in. He would’ve had a different life. He would’ve had a roof over his head. He would’ve had warm meals every day. He would’ve felt like he had a real family during his childhood.

But while there were pros, there are also some cons. Flameslinger might not have picked up archery. No one would’ve saved the Fire Spirit from the lake. He wouldn’t have met Stump Smash before the trolls attacked the forest. He wouldn’t know all the skills that he had gained whilst living alone. He probably wouldn’t even have his name. He wouldn’t be Flameslinger, he’d be someone else entirely.

And that honestly scared him a little just think on what could have been.

Flameslinger was snapped out of is thoughts when he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder. He looked up, staring right up at Eon’s calm face. The elf sat there, waiting for what the Portal Master was going to say or do next.

“I won’t say anything to the other Skylanders about your secret. I’ll let you tell them, if you wish to, in your own time.” Eon smiled confidently. Flameslinger felt much better hearing that. He still wasn’t ready to tell everyone else just yet, and he was glad that Eon was going to honour his wishes for his secret to be kept. Smiling gratefully, Flameslinger slipped his blindfold comfortably over his eyes. It felt good to feel safe revealing his eyes to Master Eon, but he felt better concealing them again. Guess it’s just the years of hiding that was the cause of it. He stood up, looking right up at the Portal Master, who continued to smile warmly at him. All that Flameslinger could see was trust. That was more than enough to convince him that his secrets remain secret.

“Thank you, Master Eon.” Flameslinger smiled as he bowed, his voice carrying the gratitude that he held.

“Try to take it easy for today. No doubt that you’ll want to get some rest after that conflict.” Eon said, patting the elf’s shoulder gently. Flameslinger continued to smiling gratefully, before he gathered up his sketchbook and pencil (they were resting peacefully on the desk). He bowed at the Portal Master again, before he started to make his way out of the library. He still couldn’t believe that someone was on his side all those years ago. A part of him still wished that he got to see Eon back then, but then remembered that he wouldn’t be who he is today if that happened.

Suddenly, he stopped walking. There was just one more thing that suddenly came to mind. Something that he hadn’t thought about for a long time.

“Master Eon? Do you know who I was being sold to?” Flameslinger asked, turning back to face Eon. If the Portal Master had been there ahead of the buyer, maybe he might have seen them. If he had, Flameslinger will know who to look out for should it come down to it. After all, his “parents” had found him by luck. If they still had contacts with whoever the buyer was, there’s no doubt that they might have given up that information for the sake of greed. He truly needed to try to be careful now more than ever if that were to happen.

“Unfortunately not. I had waited to see who would turn up, but they never arrived. My guess is that they saw me there and fled.” The Portal Master sighed, shaking his head sadly.

“Do you think that they might have given up on me?” Flameslinger asked, dread starting to flood inside of him.

“That I can’t answer.” Eon sighed again, wishing that he could give a better answer. He could tell that Flameslinger was starting to fear the worse, and he desperately wanted to try to make him feel better.

“But whoever they were, they must have been scared by you. Unless they heard about me running away first.” Flameslinger tried to counter gently. However, it was more of a reassurance for himself than anything else. He just wanted to believe that because he was a Skylander now, his pursuer had given up by now. After all, he should technically be untouchable. They shouldn’t come after him, not now, not ever. So why was this doubt in his mind that he was still a target?

“Either way, it’s still unknown as to who they are and if they’re still pursuing you.” Eon responded sadly, thinking the same thing as the Skylander before him. He then became stern as he stood in front of Flameslinger once more, placing a hand on his shoulder again. “I’d feel better if you stayed on your toes, Flameslinger. When you’re on missions, stay alert and try to stick close to your teammates.”

“I will. Thank you.” Flameslinger vowed, determined to try not to let his fears cloud his head. However, as he walked away, trying to find somewhere for him to be alone, the fear just started to become more apparent to him. And he was reminded of how he was back then: small, weak, and worse of all, unable to fight back.

#skylanders #skylanders spyro's adventure #hugo skylanders #skylanders giants #Skylanders Swap Force #skylanders trap team #Skylanders Imaginators #skylanders superchargers #flameslinger #master eon

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geminiamethyst · 2 years

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Let The Flames Begin. Chapter 7: Training

Chapter 1: click HERE

Chapter 6: click HERE

Chapter 8: click HERE

Sorry this took a long time. I was busy with getting things ready for uni. Thank you everyone for waiting patiently.

All through the night, Flameslinger slept peacefully. He never had such a good sleep since he had left home. He had always slept outside in the forest and, on the odd occasion, in caves. The moment he had laid down in this soft bed and buried himself under the covers, he passed out completely. This was the most peaceful he felt for a long time. He felt safe whilst he slept too. He honestly thought that he would have trouble sleeping, but he took it like a fish to water. It’s was so peaceful that he was tempted to not get out of bed the next morning. But as he woke up before everyone else, mainly out of routine, he remembered what Stump Smash had told him the day before. It was his first day of training.

Since the assault course was being currently used by another team, Flameslinger’s had decided to use the arena to do their morning training. It was mostly for various combat styles, whether it be long range or up close. Flameslinger didn’t get started right away like a couple of the others. Instead he watched them as observingly as he could. He was faced with the possibility that he’ll be working alongside his housemates so he’ll need to look at their strengths and weaknesses. Those that mainly do melee attacks seemed to have good strength for a frontal assault but don’t have enough time to get away if they need to. Those that do long range attacks have time to get away, but need to rely on good aim and instinct if they need to hit a target whilst moving. It seemed simple enough.

As he thought this, Flameslinger’s attention was drawn to what Lightning Rod was doing. He and Chill were working on their long range attacks, with Chill operating the controls for the program. Lightning Rod relentlessly aimed and shot bolts at each hologram, hitting each one without hesitating. When he was done, he didn’t seem to have broken a sweat and was barely even panting.

“Not bad, Lightning Rod.” Chill chuckled, glancing up at the scoreboard.

“Pretty good aim if I do say so myself.” Lightning Rod flexed, proud of himself. Flameslinger looked at the scoreboard himself. It seemed that Lightning Rod topped it with a near perfect score. He had only missed once or twice but he didn’t seem upset by it.

“May I try?” Flameslinger asked, approaching the two.

“Sure!” Chill smiled, keen to see what Flameslinger was going to bring. The elf stepped towards the battle area and slipped an arrow into his bow. “Let’s see. Switching to easy mode.”

“No! Not easy. Keep it the same.” Flameslinger said. He might regret doing it at the same level as Lightning Rod, but he didn’t want to feel like he was starting from the bottom. He was skilled enough with his archery. He shot Chompies for years and won every archery tournament that he had competed in. He always wanted more of a challenge and test his limits, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to do that.

“You sure?” Chill asked with a raised eyebrow. Flameslinger only nodded once, mentally preparing himself for the program to start. “Okay. Don’t come crying to me when you get a low score.”

“This oughta be interesting.” Lightning Rod smirked as he crossed his arms. If that was meant to be a taunt, Flameslinger didn’t hear it. He only just focused on concentration. He heard a small whir of the program being started. He saw a hologram of a Drow changing at him. Then he let go of his arrow. More holograms kept coming. He could kind of see why Lightning Rod missed a couple of them. He started by firing off one at a time, but then he tried to up his game a bit. He shot a volley of arrows into the air, hitting almost all of the holograms. Any that he didn’t hit, he quickly shot with only one arrow. When an enemy got close to him, he started to run, leaving a trail of fire behind him. The trail that he made seem to do damage too. Something that he felt like could come in handy. He didn’t think for long as he let instinct take over and shoot his arrows effortlessly. The program ended after he fired home more arrow. Flameslinger almost felt relieved when it was over. Honestly, near the end, he felt like he was at his limit. He panted a little, and even started to break into a bit of sweat. Maybe he should’ve started with an easier level after all. Now’s not the time to think that.

He turned and was met with everyone just staring at him. The others seemed to have stopped to watch him train. It was a little intimidating. However, Flameslinger couldn’t say anything because everyone just looked shocked more than anything. Their eyes were wide and were quite slack jawed. Expect for Lightning Rod, who seemed to be shocked and was on the verge of getting angry.

“What?” The elf asked, looking at each of the Skylanders’ faces. He then realised that they weren’t exactly looking at him per say. He turned to look at the scoreboard. To say that he was on there would be an understatement. He topped the board, beating Lightning Rod. Oh…that’s why everyone was surprised.

Flameslinger turned to look at everyone again, only to be met with Lightning Rod looming over him.

He seemed furious, his face darkening and his cloud starting to create small rumbles of thunder. Everyone suddenly looked like they had seen a ghost (no offence to any of the Undead Skylanders that were actually ghosts). Even Stump Smash and Sprocket (who stood up to the Storm Giant no problem yesterday) seemed to be quite scared. Panic was creeping in, making Flameslinger have that urge to run away. However, it turned to confusion when the Storm Giant suddenly burst out laughing, the rumbling in his cloud becoming abruptly silent. The laughter wasn’t cruel or malicious. It was just a joyous laughter that held no ill will.

“I like this kid!” Lightning Rod boomed as he slapped Flameslinger’s back. He held the elf upright as he stumbled a little. “Sorry if I scared you there. Looking forward to working with you!”

Flameslinger couldn’t respond to that as Lightning Rod started to float away from him. He honestly didn’t know what to think right now. His heart felt like it was going to burst before the Storm Giant started laughing. He almost lost his grip on his bow due to being so shocked by the whole thing. He really did think that he was going to be in a fight that he couldn’t win. The only thing that he could think of was, what just happened?

“Congrats! If you’re cool with Lightning Rod, you’re off to a good start.” Rider chuckled as Fright paced up to the still stunned elf. They watched as Stump started to berate the Storm Giant, while Lightning Rod just couldn’t keep this proud smile off his face. “It’s rare for someone to beat him at anything. It seems that he sees a friendly rivalry between you two.”

A friendly rivalry? Hopefully that will be just that. The last thing that Flameslinger wanted was to make enemies with the people that he would potentially fight alongside.

———————————————————————————

Meanwhile, back within the walls of the Academy, Master Eon was watching the training patiently. He had kept an eye on each of the teams, but more so on Flameslinger. Being a new face within the grounds, he thought it would be a good idea to keep a close eye on the elf. He wanted to make sure that he was comfortable in this new environment. He was aware of the social situation and not feeling comfortable in crowds, but he truly wanted Flameslinger to feel like he had a real home at the Academy.

“What do you think Master Eon? Still think that you made a good choice?” Hugo asked, pushing his glasses up his nose. The Mabu had been observing the training alongside the Portal Master, feeling just as intrigued.

“Of course. Flameslinger will make a great Skylander.” Eon smiled proudly before he stroked his beard in concern. “But remember, it’s still his choice to make. Give him some time. Or at least until after his first mission.”

#skylanders #skylanders giants #skylanders spyro's adventure #Skylanders Swap Force #skylanders superchargers #Skylanders Imaginators #flameslinger #stump smash #fright rider #Lightning Rod #chill #sprocket #master eon #hugo skylanders

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