by Onk Beakman
“Sounds heavenly,” the Bone Dragon smiled sleepily.
“Okay, then,” said Stump Smash, waving for Flynn to start bringing down his frozen cargo. “You return our friends to normal and we’ll release you.”
“I can get back to sleep?”
“Sure thing,” shouted Flynn from the balloon as he lowered the statues of Kaos, Squirmgrub, and Master Eon to the ground. “Looks like you could do with your beauty sleep.”
“Not helpful,” Countdown snapped at the pilot.
“Sorry!”
“I don’t care,” said the dragon. “As long as I can get some shut-eye.”
“So we have a deal?” asked Stump.
The Bone Dragon didn’t reply. Instead, it took a deep breath and snorted. Steam billowed out across the crater, blocking their view. It was like being in a yeti sauna.
Stump Smash coughed among the hot vapors, but grinned when he heard Flameslinger laugh.
“My bow!” the elf exclaimed, holding his gleaming weapon in the air. “It’s gold again.”
“That’s not all!” Wrecking Ball cheered, bouncing forward to lick a very un-statue-like Spyro.
“Hey, knock it off,” said the purple dragon, playfully batting the grub aside. “I’m pleased to see you, too, Wrecks.”
Around them, all the other Skylanders had come back to life, stretching as if woken from a deep sleep. A cheer went up from the trees as the steam washed over their leafy brothers and sisters, the sound of laughter filling the Giggling Forest once again.
“How’s that?” asked the Bone Dragon, as Stump Smash looked around happily.
“Perfect,” the Life Skylander said, beaming. “ Just perfect.”
“Indeed it is, SKYBLUNDERER!” a weedy voice said with a sneer.
Stump Smash spun around but was knocked off his feet by a bolt of energy.
“Kaos!” Spyro spat as the Skylanders all spun around in unison.
Now freed from the dragon’s curse, Kaos was standing, energy crackling around his hands. “Who else wants to taste my Dark Lightning of DOOOOOM?”
He glared at the assembled Skylanders as they stalked toward him.
“Lord Kaos,” muttered Glumshanks. His legs were now back to normal, and he looked as if he wanted to use them. “Are you sure this is a good idea? There are an awful lot of them.”
“And only one of you,” pointed out Stump Smash, whacking his hammers together.
Kaos broke into a roar of hideous laughter. “That’s all I need! Summon my Strength-Sapping Storm of the Darkest Lightning Yet!”
Electricity streamed down from the sky, striking the Skylanders in turn.
“Can’t move,” wheezed Countdown, as the lightning shorted out his missiles.
“Can’t even see,” moaned Wrecking Ball.
Stump Smash tried to push himself up, but he couldn’t budge. He’d already used some of his own Life force to accelerate the acorns’ growth and trap the Bone Dragon. Now, Kaos’s infernal light show was sapping what little strength he had left.
“BWA-HA-HAAAAA!” crowed Kaos, watching the Skylanders squirm. “I told you my plan would work!”
“Did you?” Glumshanks asked, looking completely bemused.
“Of course I did, IDIOT!” Kaos squeaked. “Allow the Bone Dragon to turn me to stone so that the Skylosers would capture it for me. It worked perfectly!”
Glumshanks exchanged a look with Squirmgrub. “Did you get the memo on this one?”
The Warrior Librarian shook his mechanical head.
“And now I receive my prize,” gloated Kaos, turning his gaze toward the trapped Bone Dragon. “The Life segment is mine! Victory belongs to KAOS!”
Chapter Twelve
The Life Segment
Kaos scampered toward the Bone Dragon, almost dribbling in anticipation. Stump Smash couldn’t believe the evil Portal Master had won, after everything they’d gone through.
But hang on! Master Eon! Where was Master Eon? Stump Smash glanced over at the cage, but it was smashed to pieces and completely empty.
“Life segment,” Kaos boomed at the dragon. “I command you to return to your true form.”
“And I command you to STOP THIS.”
It all happened so fast. One minute, Kaos’s dark lightning was bearing down on them, the next it was gone. Stump Smash looked up to see Kaos standing stock-still, arms outstretched . . . and wearing a look of utter shock.
“Glumshanks!” he screamed. “I can’t move! Tell me I haven’t been turned to stone again!”
“You haven’t,” replied the Troll, equally trapped. “It’s worse than that.”
“What’s worse than being turned into a living statue?” Kaos wailed.
“I am,” said Master Eon, stepping in front of the tiny Portal Master. The old man towered over Kaos, the orb at the end of his staff glowing brightly. “You’re not the only one who knows a few tricks, you know.”
Eon clicked his fingers, and the Book of Power shot out of Squirmgrub’s hands, flew over to the old man, and tucked itself beneath his arm. Another click, and the Warrior Librarian’s armor disintegrated to reveal a very small and very scared-looking bookworm.
“Release me!” commanded Kaos. “I demand that you release me now!”
“So you can steal the Life segment?” Master Eon shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
“But the Bone Dragon is mine,” blustered Kaos, eyes wide with fury.
“The Bone Dragon is not the Life segment,” Master Eon announced, his voice echoing around the crater.
Stump Smash stepped up beside his Portal Master, pointing at the Book of Power beneath Eon’s arm. “But the book is glowing.”
Eon looked down at the book. “Indeed it is, Stump Smash—but only because it is near something the Bone Dragon has been guarding all these years.”
“I don’t get it,” said Spyro, jumping over to them.
“I assume Hugo showed you a picture of the beast?” Eon said.
“How did you know?” Stump Smash gasped.
“It is what I would have done, and for all his faults Hugo has learned much. But have you, Stump Smash?”
“I . . . I don’t understand,” Stump Smash said, feeling more than a little lost.
“Look at the Bone Dragon,” Master Eon advised. “Look closely. Is there anything that wasn’t in the picture?”
Stump Smash turned to study the beast, trying to remember the painting in Hugo’s book. The bones were the same, the wings, the stone heart beating in its chest . . .
“Hold on!” Stump exclaimed. “The heart. It wasn’t in the picture. It wasn’t there at all.”
Eon smiled and turned to the monster. “Because Bone Dragons don’t need hearts, do they?”
The dragon nodded. “It was a good-luck charm—or at least it was supposed to be. It’s never caused me anything but trouble.”
“It was given to you before your slumber?” Eon asked.
“Yes, years ago. I saved a wizard from a Geargolem. He was so grateful, he gave me this stone.”
“A stone heart,” Stump Smash said quietly. “The opposite of life itself.”
Master Eon smiled. “The Life segment of the mask. May I?”
The Bone Dragon looked down at its ribcage. “Will I be left alone if I give it to you?”
Master Eon patted the creature on the snout. “I can ensure you’re never disturbed again.”
“NOOOO!” screamed Kaos as the elderly Portal Master reached inside the dragon and plucked the heart from between its ribs. “That’s mine! If anyone should have the segment it is I, KAOS.”
“I can think of no one worse,” said Master Eon. The heart glittered in his hand and became a segment of the mask.
“You old FOOL!” spat Kaos. “You think you’ve won, but I have the other segment
s. When I find the Fire and Magic pieces, you will feel my wrath. You shall rue the day you ever crossed KAOS. Keep your pathetic segment for now. It’s only a matter of time before I get ahold of the next one . . .”
Stump Smash frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Kaos grinned the kind of grin that would make monsters nervous.
“You’ll see . . .”
And, with a flash of light, Kaos and his Troll were gone.
“Lord Kaos,” squeaked the tiny form of Squirmgrub, backing away from a hungry-looking Wrecking Ball. “You forgot me!”
“I don’t think he did,” growled Spyro, snatching up the worm. “The Chief Curator wants to have a word with you.”
“And our friend wants to get back to sleep,” boomed Master Eon. “Everyone, out of the crater. Flynn, you better get clear.”
The Skylanders scrambled to the edge of the clearing, Flynn’s balloon rising high above them.
Master Eon tapped his staff against the ground and the trees pinning the Bone Dragon vanished, magically transforming into a swarm of butterflies that burst up into the sky. The Bone Dragon sighed happily, stretched his wings, and curled up into a ball.
It was snoring even before Flameslinger had helped Master Eon out of the crater.
“Thank you, my friend,” the Portal Master said. “Now, Countdown, we’re going to need a rather big explosion . . .”
Chapter Thirteen
Back to Sleep
The Giggling Forest was silenced for a moment as Countdown’s head detonated. Earth was thrown up into the air, and the Bone Dragon was buried once and for all.
“Sleep well.” Stump Smash nodded as Master Eon rapped his staff against the newly laid ground. Immediately, green shoots poked their way through the forest floor, basking in the sunlight.
“Soon there will be new trees to join the laughter,” Master Eon said, smiling. “The Bone Dragon will be able to snooze undisturbed for all eternity.”
“And what about the Book of Power?” Stump Smash asked, glancing at the book tucked under the Portal Master’s arm.
“I think we’ll take it back to the citadel.”
Flameslinger frowned. “Not the Eternal Archive?”
“Squirmgrub has proved that the archive is not as safe as Curator Wiggleworth believed. I think it is time we went home.”
“What about Kaos?” asked Stump Smash. “He still has the other segments . . .”
“And will continue to look for the rest,” Master Eon agreed. “But we will be ready for him.”
The Skylanders cheered and whooped, but Stump Smash thought he saw a hint of worry pass over Master Eon’s lined face.
“Master Eon?”
The Portal Master looked down and smiled.
“Don’t worry, Stump Smash. There’s nothing wrong. I was just wondering what Kaos meant when he spoke of the next segment.”
Stump Smash thought back to their archenemy’s ravings.
“It’s only a matter of time,” Stump repeated, still none the wiser.
“Indeed,” said Master Eon, gazing at his celebrating Skylanders. “And that’s what worries me . . .”
Chapter One
The Frozen Seas
Anyone who has ever traveled to Skylands knows that it’s a magical place. Made up of an infinite number of floating realms, there’s an island for everyone. Like sun-drenched golden sands? No problem—head to Blistering Beach. Prefer the dark? Then you’ll love Moonlight Mountains. There’s even an island where volcanoes spew sweet popcorn high into the sky. Perfect if you’re feeling peckish.
Of course, not every island is popular. Take the Frozen Seas, for example. As the name suggests, it’s a chilly, unforgiving place. Massive waves of ice hang in the air, frozen in place ever since an everlasting winter fell upon the island millions of years ago. It’s so cold that visitors eat ice cream to warm themselves up!
Only people who really, really like the cold go to the Frozen Seas—which is why a Skylander by the name of Eruptor starts this story in a particularly bad mood.
Eruptor is a lava monster, born in the bowels of a volcano. Not the kind that gushes popcorn, but red-hot magma. He’s hot-headed in every sense of the word. Scalding lava bubbles beneath his rocky skin, ready to erupt at any moment, and he has a temper to match. Most of the time he keeps his bad moods in check, but he can’t help boiling over every now and then. Such as when he’s cold—and on this day he was very, very cold.
Eruptor gritted his teeth as he appeared on the top of one of those gigantic frozen waves. The wind had cut through him as soon as he leaped from a Portal, chilling him to his molten core.
“N-not g-good,” he stuttered, teeth chattering like castanets. “N-not g-good at-t-t all!”
“What are you talking about, ‘Ruptor?” said the hulking four-armed creature who appeared beside him. “This looks cool to me!”
“That’s the problem,” snarled Eruptor, turning to face the newcomer. “It’s all right for you, Slam Bam. You take an ice bath every night!”
It was true. As a yeti, Slam Bam loved subzero conditions. In fact, before he became a Skylander, he had lived on a floating glacier. He’d spent his days carving ice-sculptures and eating snow cones. His Arctic existence only came to an end when an evil Portal Master known as Kaos blasted Slam Bam’s glacier, setting him adrift. Luckily, the yeti washed up on an island that belonged to Master Eon, the greatest Portal Master of them all.
Eon had invited Slam Bam to join the Skylanders, the brave band of heroes who protect Skylands from evil villains like Kaos and his menacing minions. That is how Slam Bam had met Eruptor. Despite their differing temperatures, the two Skylanders became firm friends, united in their fight against the forces of the Darkness.
Slam Bam had always wanted to visit the Frozen Seas, but had never managed to persuade Eruptor to join him—until today. Eon had received a cry for help from the Seas’ icy wastes and quickly dispatched the two adventurers to investigate, along with a third Skylander.
“It’s fright time!” Grim Creeper announced as he appeared through the Portal, swirling his super-sharp scythe in excitement.
“Hey, watch what you’re doing, Grim,” chuckled Slam Bam, throwing up two of his arms in fake alarm. “I don’t need a haircut.”
Grim Creeper grinned. “Sorry, Slam. Just excited to be here.”
Eon had come across Grim Creeper after the young ghost saved the prestigious Grim Acres School for Ghost Wrangling. At first, Grim had been turned away from the academy. The Scaremaster in charge thought that the young spirit didn’t have what it took to be a reaper. Then, the school was attacked by a gang of galloping ghouls. The other pupils turned and fled in terror, but Grim stood his ground, saving students and teachers alike from the pesky poltergeists. Grim was welcomed into the school and, after he graduated, went on to join the Skylanders. This was his first mission and the Undead Skylander was itching to get started.
“So, what do we do now?” Grim Creeper asked.
“Go home?” Eruptor grumbled.
A look of shock passed over the phantom’s face. “You’re kidding, right?”
“Of course he is,” laughed Slam Bam. “Eruptor never gives up, no matter how much he moans. Ain’t that right?” The yeti nudged Eruptor in the ribs, causing the hair on his elbows to sizzle slightly against the lava monster’s red-hot hide.
Eruptor couldn’t hide a sneaky smile. “Cool it, Slam. I’ve got a rep to protect!”
Before Slam could reply, a scream sounded across the icy ocean.
“HEEEEEEELP!”
“Sounds like someone’s in trouble,” Grim Creeper said, clutching his scythe tighter than ever.
“That’s why we’re here,” rumbled Eruptor, peering over the edge of the huge wave. “But how do we get down?”
“We slide!” whooped Slam Bam, t
hrowing himself forward. Grim Creeper’s eyes widened as he watched the yeti zoom down the near-vertical drop of the frozen wave, arms outstretched like a surfer.
“That looks like fun,” the Undead Skylander said, taking off after Slam Bam. “Come on!”
Eruptor shrugged and leaped into action behind the other two Skylanders. The ice beneath his feet hissed as he picked up speed.
“Last one to the bottom’s a popsicle!” he shouted as he steamed past his friends.
What shocking discovery lies in wait for Eruptor? Can Kaos really travel through time? And can the Skylanders track down the next segment of the Mask of Power?
The answers await in . . .
ERUPTOR
MEETS THE NIGHTMARE KING
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