Prologue

Ignitus watched with pride as he gazed at Spyro and Cynder through his omniscient hourglass. They were finally free to live their lives, forever excused from the strife that had plagued the world for so long. High above Avalar they soared, chasing each other around in a cyclical dance that mimicked the rise and fall of the sun and moon. The expressions on their faces sung out with euphoria, and the new Chronicler watched the wind whip through their wings. Moments after he'd begun to watch, Ignitus found himself smiling, and he ended the vision through which he'd been watching. He had pried enough, and opted to let his still-young companions enjoy each other's presence without intrusion.

The large hourglass in the center of the room ceased its luminescent glow, and the dim stillness returned. The once red dragon stood fixated on what he'd just seen, and it slowly dawned on him that this was just one of the soon-to-be many happy occasions that he could record in the Books of Time. Satisfied with such a joyous occupation, which he'd surely have until time in memoriam, Ignitus used his newly acquired telepathic abilities to levitate a scriber's quill and bring to him both Spyro and Cynder's separate books. But as he was about to write, he stopped, and had brief thought. It was meek and second-minded, but it was just ambitious enough to work. The dragon returned the books to whence they came with a small flex of his power, and instead brought to him a new book; it's pages were all blank. Ignitus began to write, and he started to recount the couple's journey together. It didn't take too long for Ignitus to finish the tale, and then create more pages eager to be filled as the pair's future unfolded. The former Guardian was certain of one thing, and it was that no matter what lie ahead in the distant future, his students, his friends, especially Spyro and Cynder, they would always face it together. Pleased with his first major contribution to the Books, Ignitus set the quill down, and put the book in its rightful place on the shelves of the White Isle's extensive library. It seemed like a puzzle, and it perfectly complimented the other colorful spines of the other books and scrolls.

Between the silence that followed and what came next, Ignitus found himself to be curious. Looking around, it finally started to sink in that not only was he surrounded by an absolute wellspring of knowledge, but it was in fact the most intense wellspring across the realms. The entire history of the dragon race, most of it anyhow, was all contained under a single roof, and then some. Ignitus started to glance around the circular room, and even with all the stories and epics that he could've chosen from, there was one story in particular he wanted to read most of all.

"Back then…we'd no way of knowing why, but we do now." He softly said to himself under the nightly lighting of the hourglass.

Bringing the image of his desired novel into mind, he felt a chill cascade down his spine. The tale he wished to read was riddled with treachery, greed, and of course, malevolence. His mind's eye reached out to it, and in a matter of second he raised his eyelids and found that he'd summoned forth the very book he'd been seeking. Ignitus knew that contained within its pages was the very story that would answer why he'd been forced to struggle so in life. The book before him, floating in the air like a cloud on high, was the story of Malefor, the Dark Master.

"Malefor," the name sent ripples through the wise dragon as he spoke it aloud, "I'm ready to learn why." With that, Ignitus braved his doubt and opened the book and started to read.