CHAPTER ONE

DIAMOND OF LIFE

Hiccup could feel his entire body experiencing a slow decay. He tried to stand up straight, but he quickly collapsed on the ground. He squeezed his eyes shut and tightened his fists. The pain was unbearable. The poison was quick. It would end his life when the sun would start to rise. He groaned as he found himself alone on the rocky beach. The dragon that confronted him had dealt him a great blow: its two fangs had pierced through his skin and injected his veins with its toxic fluid. Hiccup would gain a victory by killing the dragon, but the result was still bittersweet.

Hiccup tried to get back up on his two feet. He couldn't help but feel hopeless. He knew that he would succumb to the poison. His choices had grown limited. He crept closer to the water. A thick fog had enveloped the entire coast. Despite the sharp pain in his body, he managed to fight through it. The cure would soon be reached. He had already spotted the ring on the rocks. It would soon be caught in the waves and lost at sea. But Hiccup needed it. He knew what it was capable of. He never thought he needed it. There would have been no reason for him to use it, especially when he was so young. At twenty years of age, he still remembered the words from the Viking that once possessed it two years ago. It would have been stupid for Hiccup to even wear it on his finger.

But now, he found himself caught in a desperate situation. He was dying, but the ring would no longer permit it. He needed the ring. It would give him what him, his friends, his parents, and his dragon truly needed. It would help him live again…but not without consequences.

The one-legged Viking finally reached out with his hand and grabbed the ring. He held it on the palm of his hand and brought it closer to his face. A blue rectangular diamond had been embedded on the ring. The Diamond of Life. He caressed it with his fingers. He already envisioned the things that would change as soon as he would wear it on his ring. The pain in his body wouldn't go away. He felt weak and completely vulnerable to outside forces. He had no other choice.

He whispered to himself, "It's been a good life."

He took the ring and slid it on his index finger. The blue diamond began to glow. It had become a clear signal that it took control of his body and helped him recover. The pain slowly subsided. The bluish glow grew brighter. Hiccup finally felt normal again.

He stood up straight. The pain in his body had disappeared. He breathed a big sigh of relief. It felt as if the venom never even existed in the first place. The glow from the blue diamond still didn't fade. Hiccup knew what it meant. The ring was in the process of giving him a full recovery. He would have to wait until it finished its job. By morning, he would be healthy again. In fact, he would be completely different.

He stood on the shores of Berk and watched as the fog had dissipated. The full moon had risen above the Barbaric Archipelago. Hiccup observed the endless oceanic horizon, where the stars were still shining in the late hours of the night.

He stood still on the beach and started to wonder. What would he look like tomorrow?

Stoick and Valka had been searching for him all night. They couldn't find him back at home, and they couldn't find him at the top of the cliffs. But as the sun began to rise in the east, they had finally found their son. They had reunited with Toothless the Dragon before they spotted the young Viking on the rocky shore. All three of them ran up to him.

Hiccup did absolutely nothing. He just stood there with his eyes fixed on the horizon. The cool breeze made his brown hair sway in different directions. He had a little smile on his face that didn't appear to vanish anytime soon.

Stoick immediately noticed a bluish glow on Hiccup's finger. "Son, are you alright?"

Hiccup chuckled lightly. "I'll always am."

"What happened? We've been looking all over this island for you. Fangfeast didn't hurt you, did he?"

Toothless popped up from behind Hiccup and licked his hand. Hiccup, in turn, patted his dragon on the head. Both dragon and rider smiled at each other. Hiccup could only reminisce on the good times the two of them had shared.

He whispered, "I'm so glad I had the chance to meet you. We really had a hell of a good time. There are no regrets on my side, and I hope you feel the same way."

Valka stepped closer. "Hiccup, what is that ring you're wearing?"

Hiccup kissed Toothless's forehead. He just wished he would have one last ride. But the Diamond of Life would start the process soon enough.

Hiccup could feel his eyes watering up. "I miss you already."

Toothless appeared more perplexed than before.

Valka grabbed Hiccup by the arm. "What's gotten into you?"

Hiccup finally turned to look at his parents.

Valka asked again, "That ring…what is it doing?"

Hiccup fought through his despair and smiled at his parents. "Mom, dad, I'm really going to miss this place. Sure, it's been pretty boring sometimes. But overall, it's a really good home and I wouldn't have it any other way. I still wish I could have seen the things beyond this island. You know. Rome and the Highlands and places like that. And hey, I wonder if the Egyptians have dragons of their own. That'd be an interesting sight to see."

Stoick placed his hand on Hiccup's shoulder. "What's gotten into you? You're not dying, are you? Please tell me that you're not dying."

Hiccup laid his hand on Stoick's own. "You can relax. I'm not dying. I'm just a little nervous. It's too bad about me. I could've seen myself growing older with you guys…but I hope he'll follow my footsteps very carefully."

All of a sudden, Hiccup could feel something crawling upon his skin. He looked down at his hand. A faint bluish glow had spread all across his right hand and slowly disappeared. The process had already started. Toothless started whining.

Valka gasped. "What's going on?!"

Stoick was about to grab Hiccup, but the young man stopped him and stepped back. "Don't touch me! You'll just complicate things."

Stoick was greatly concerned. "What's happening?"

The bluish glow on the Diamond of Life grew even brighter.

Hiccup sighed as he took two more steps back. He stood straight on the rocks and almost faltered for a second.

"Mom, Dad…I've been poisoned. Fangfeast injected me with his venom."

Stoick stepped closer. "We have to do something!"

Hiccup stopped him again. "It's alright. I'm not going to die. My body's dying, but I found a way to work around it."

He showed them the Diamond. "You see this ring? It's the Diamond Of Life. It's giving me a full recovery. I didn't want to wear it, but I knew I had no choice. It's helping my body regenerate. The venom is never going to get to me. That's the good news. The bad news is…"

It almost broke his heart to say what needed to be said.

"…The bad news is that I won't be around anymore. Everything about me is going to be brand new. My face, my hair…you're never going to see them again. And my voice. Well, you're never going to hear it again, either. I'm going to be a completely different person when this is over. I'll still be alive, but I won't be the same."

Stoick shook his head. "No…you're just talking nonsense."

Hiccup could feel a tear sliding down his cheek. "Dad, I'm sorry. You can't do anything about it. It has to stay this way. I won't be like this anymore. Someone else is going to take my place. But don't worry. He'll still be me. He'll still be your son. It'll feel a little scary, but trust me. He's going to be just like me. It'll feel like a normal day here on Berk."

The young Viking wiped away his tear. Despite the reality, he stayed optimistic. "When you see him…when you see the new me, please take good care of him. I have a feeling that he's going to do very well here. He'll do the same things that I've done. He'll be good friends with Ruffnut, Tuffnut…and Astrid. And best of all, he'll take good care of Toothless. That's the best thing that'll happen when he's around."

Toothless rubbed his head against Hiccup's waist. Hiccup caressed the dragon's head.

Hiccup had already accepted his fate. "Mom, Dad, I'm so proud to be a part of your family. I know we had some really hard times back then, but it's safe to say that I'm glad we worked things out."

Stoick and Valka stood beside each other, still confused but also dejected from hearing Hiccup's news.

Hiccup kept smiling. "The best part about this is that it ends here…with the four of us together. That's the perfect ending for a Viking like me."

He backed away even further from Stoick, Valka, and Toothless. His feet had reached the shallow water. The sun had already risen above the eastern horizon.

"Mom, Dad, Toothless…I love you. You're the best."

The strange feeling in his hands had returned. He looked down and discovered his right hand began to glow blue once more. His left hand followed the same pattern. Both of them had been caught in a deliberate illumination. The Diamond Of Life was almost finished. His hands glowed blue and it continued to grow brighter.

He gave one last look at the ones he loved. He gave one last smile before his permanent departure.

"Goodbye."

And then, his entire body received a bright flash of light. His spread his arms wide and swung his head back. The brilliant blue glow shrouded his entire body while producing a thunderous rumble that almost shook the rocky beach. The spectators had to cover their eyes with the back of their hands. Toothless turned his head around and squeezed his eyes shut. Valka started to run toward Hiccup, but Stoick pulled her back. The blue light enveloped Hiccup.

Everything about him started to change. His body underwent a complete transformation. Every cell in his body had been replaced with new ones. The venom would never be able to take his life.

The other young Vikings had arrived. Astrid, Snotlout, Tuffnut, Ruffnut, and Fishlegs had made a dash towards the coast. They would never suspect their own friend being the center of attention.

A scream echoed across the Isle of Berk. The blue light had disappeared. The screaming had stopped. Everything had grown silent again. Hiccup's body had changed entirely. His clothes had stayed the same, his slender figure remained unchanged, but his face and hair had become different.

Stoick and Valka couldn't believe what they had just witnessed. Hiccup's brown hair had been replaced with blacker and smoother strands. His green eyes had been changed to clear blue irises. His entire face had undergone a total modification. Hiccup was now a completely different person, just as he said he would be.

Toothless's eyes had widened at this transformation. The other young Vikings were confused as to what just transpired.

Hiccup was in awe as he stared down at his hands, and then at his parents. The Viking, now black-haired and blue-eyed, looked around with curiosity.

Even his voice became different. "I don't think I remember this. All of these rocks and the water. I bet there was a big battle here and I just missed it."

He noticed the Vikings that stared at him. "Oh, I remember you guys. You're my friends, my parents."

He pointed at Toothless with a smile on his face. "You're my dragon! We met each other five years ago. I remember!"

Then, he smiled disappeared. "Wait, what's my name again? Let me see…"

Hiccup walked around in a circle. Everyone around him looked on with shocked expressions. He whispered various names to himself.

Then, Hiccup gasped and snapped his finger. His eyes lit up. "That's it! Hiccup!"

His smile quickly faded again and his eyes wandered into space. "…Or was it Hickey?"

Toothless and the Vikings still couldn't comprehend the result of Hiccup's regeneration. The twenty-year-old Viking had completed his transformation. The Diamond ring on his finger no longer glowed. The day had started with the rebirth of a dragon rider.

TO BE CONTINUED…