Chapter 1: Freedom
A/N: Well, after months and months of waiting and procrastinating (on my part), the sequel to "Uncharted Skies" is finally here! In this adventure, the Dragon Riders, six years later, are faced with all-new enemies, allies, and a mysterious society. So, grab your popcorn and hold onto your helmets, because this is going to be a rocky ride!
Danna's POV
I sneaked out of the house, the colors of sunrise just barely peeking out of the sky. I made sure to write a quick note to Hiccup saying where I was going, but I still made sure not to wake anyone.
I silently walked out into the village, careful to step around the sleeping dragons that line the pathways. I was so focused on watching my step that I didn't notice a figure walking toward me. We collided, and I was thrown to the ground. I shook my head, dazed for a second, before I realized who it was: Erik.
"Danna! I'm so sorry I-" He began, before I shushed him.
"Do you want to wake the whole village? Some of these Vikings aren't the friendliest people in the morning." I asked, whispering. He apologized, and held out his hand to help me up.
"What are you doing this early in the morning, anyway?" I asked, now standing.
"I was about to ask you the same question." He sighed, but then continued, "I was going to get Stormfast and go flying." He admitted.
"Really? I was about to go flying myself."
"Well, how about we go flying together? It'll be fun." He asked. I smiled, and then answered, "Sure. Do you need any help with Stormfast? We both know what he's like in the morning." He agreed, and after waking Stormfast up and dodging a few electric sparks, we took off, Erik on Stormfast, and me in my Night Fury form.
Up in the sky, I could see the sun's rays just below the horizon. The wind was to our backs and the ocean ahead of us. I spread my wings as wide as they would go, letting the wind be my guide. I rode an updraft, and then dove back down beside Erik. He couldn't resist showing off a little bit, and he and Stormfast flew around me doing tricks like backflips, dives and corkscrews. He rode next to me, a smug look on both his face and Stormfast's, but then it was my turn.
I folded my wings in, falling toward the ocean, before snapping them open and riding on the new air current above the waves. I found a particularly strong updraft, and used it to rise above the ocean. I flew straight up, spinning like a top, before doing a small backflip and flying into the clouds around me. I turned and spun, letting my instincts control me. I turned back toward Erik, a look of amazement on his face, and I dove down in his direction. Before we crashed, though, I opened my wings and shot up into the clouds again. Once I was high enough, I leveled out, Erik coming up beside me.
"That was some fancy flying, Danna." He said. I smirked, then replied, "The show's not over yet."
With that, I dove back down to the ocean, my wings flat against my body. I changed my form mid-air, falling in my human body. When I saw the ocean below, I decided it was time to show him, and imagined my Night Fury wings and tail. As I got nearer to the waves below, I felt my wings against my clothes. I opened them suddenly, rising with the burst of air under them. Erik soon joined me, and together we flew through the clouds surrounding us.
"Wow; how'd you learn to do that?" He asked in amazement. I shrugged, like flying with dragon wings was the most normal thing in the world.
"I've been practicing." I replied. I saw land up ahead, and signaled to Erik to land. We found a flat, grassy plain and decided to land there. As my feet touched ground again, the jet black wings and tail receded until I was completely human. Erik landed behind me, and Stormfast fell asleep right there.
"That was amazing back there." Erik said as he walked up to me observing the now blue sky. I faced him, and he took my hands in his.
"You're amazing." He finished, and I smiled shyly at his words.
"Thank you, but you don't want to know how many times I nearly fell out of the sky working on that trick." I joked. We lay down on the soft grass together, enjoying each other's company, when I heard the cry of a dragon in the distance. I sat up immediately, looking for the trouble.
"What is it? What's wrong?" Erik asked me, concerned.
"Oh, sorry. Sometimes I forget that normal people don't have as sensitive hearing as I do." He sighed, and then asked, "Do you have to brag every time?" I smiled and nodded, before turning my attention back to the dragon cry.
This time when it roared, I heard enough to pinpoint where it was. I led Erik and Stormfast to where I heard, and sure enough, there was a Monstrous Nightmare caught in a hanging metal net. Whoever designed these traps was definitely smarted than Rogues, that's for sure. I cautiously took out my staff that was strapped to my back and swung out the blade at the end. I approached the Nightmare, careful not to scare it, before sawing the chain links on the net loose. When the tear was big enough, the Nightmare crawled out. However, it stayed by my side, when we both heard rustling in the grass around us.
Before we could react, soldiers surrounded us, binding Stormfast's mouth and body and dousing him in water. I fought with two more as the rest surrounded Erik.
"Two against one?" I taunted as I kicked one in the helmet and jabbed the butt of my staff against the other's stomach. "Hardly seems fair." As I pushed both of them back into the grasses, I saw that the soldiers had nearly overpowered Erik. I narrowed my eyes, before jumping in and blocking their attacks with my staff. I disarmed one, grabbed another's wrist and sent them into the grass, and kicked at least five soldiers in the stomach before they decided they had enough and retreated. I was about to go after them, but Erik's hand grabbed my wrist, stopping me.
"Whoa, Danna; I think they learned their lesson." The combination of his hand and voice brought me back to the present. I felt dizzy for a second and almost collapsed on the ground, but Erik put his hands around my waist and pulled me up so that our bodies were nearly touching. My eyes widened a little at the sudden act; it wasn't usually like Erik to do something like that. We froze there for a moment, looking into each other's eyes, before he broke the trance and backed away.
"Well, uh, we should- we should probably be getting back to Berk now." He awkwardly turned to Stormfast and cut the ropes holding him down and jumping into his saddle. I nodded and changed form before taking off into the air and headed toward home.
