So I thought I'd try my hand at a How To Train Your Dragon Story, and recently, I've been watching a lot of a show called The Last Kingdom (not for kiddies), and thought that an HTTYD story would work well when gelled with the story of The Last Kingdom, hence the title.
And don't forget to go to DaisytheDoodleDog's profile for both the prequel to this story and some awesome Hiccstrid stories. She's my co-writer for this as well.
So, without further ado, I present HTTYD: The Last Kingdom
Hiccup had been flying south for hours now. Where in Hel was he? At least he had the presence of mind to pack a map of the lands to the south. Something called England was his destination, he'd decided. He'd heard his dad speak about it often enough; supposedly they could one day leave Berk and forge a new life for themselves there.
The idea of this new land had always fascinated Hiccup, so he'd read up on England whenever he could. He knew the four different kingdoms that reigned in England; Northumbria, Mercia, East Anglia and the most powerful of them all, Wessex. He also knew that Northumbria as almost entirely subservient to the Danes, half of Merica had fallen to their leader, Ubba. Guthrum, one of Ubba's subordinates, had carved out his own kingdom from the destruction of Northumbria.
"Come on bud, we need to figure out where we are. Land there." He said, pointing to a forest clearing. Toothless obediently touched down as Hiccup climbed off him, opening one of the bags he had with him to consult his map. "Okay . . . we should be in . . . East Anglia. Maybe the King of East Anglia will have us, hey bud?" He said, gently elbowing Toothless in a friendly way. Toothless let out a disinterested grunt. Hiccup rolled his eyes again and looked at his map. If he was reading it right, he was only a few miles from Rendlesham, the capital of East Anglia. With luck, the King there would take him in. "We gotta go, bud. Only a few miles to Rendlesham." He said, climbing back on Toothless. The dragon seemed to nod, before taking to the skies once again. Hiccup was expecting to find a bustling city filled with people who, with a little bit of luck, wouldn't attack him or Toothless on sight.
What he found instead turned his expression to one of horror.
Rendlesham was ablaze. Buildings were burning, and he could hear the screams of the dying. "Toothless, we have to land there bud." He said. Toothless seemed to nod again, before promptly landing them in the town square, which of course just happened to be where most of the Danes were.
"Night Fury!" One of them shouted. Another one, a giant of a man with blonde hair, war paint down one side of his face and a decidedly unfriendly looking axe cradled in his right hand looked straight at him. This must be Ubba, Hiccup thought as he climbed off Toothless.
"500 pieces of silver to whoever brings me its head!" Ubba shouted, and suddenly a dozen Danes charged at them
"Wait, wait!" Hiccup shouted as Toothless moved to protect him. "I'm a Dane!"
"Hold!" Ubba commanded. Instantly, the warriors halted as Ubba approached. Needless to say, he towered over Hiccup, as he would most men. "What did you say, boy?"
"I-I . . . I'm a Dane." He spluttered.
"From where?"
"B-Berk. My f-father's Stoick the V-Vast." He continued stuttering. Ubba smiled at that, but he even made that look unsettling.
"Ah, Stoick . . . an old friend of mine. Come! The East Anglian King Edmund is facing his God in what these people call a church." Ubba said, escorting Hiccup along.
"What about my dragon?"
"No man will touch the Night Fury, or I will personally rip their guts out." He ordered. The soldiers looked at each other, confused at their lord's mercy to the dragon. Still, they knew better than to antagonise him. They lowered their weapons as Hiccup and Ubba approached the church. They entered, and Hiccup saw a sight he would never forget. 6 Danes were standing around who had to be a badly battered King Edmund. "Guthrum! This is the son of Stoick the Vast of Berk!"
"What is your name, then?" Guthrum asked, casually taking a bit out of an apple. He was shorter and less heavily built that Ubba, but still looked strong, if somewhat saner than Ubba.
"H-Hiccup. Hiccup Haddock III." Hiccup said. Guthrum nodded, before turning his attention back to King Edmund. "Who is that man?" He asked, pointing at a stain-glass window. The window was patterned in such a way that it shows a man tied to a tree with several arrows sticking out of him.
"Saint Sebastien." The Englishman responded.
"Why is he full of arrows?" Hiccup asked tentatively, almost nervous of the answer.
"Do you wish me to tell the story?" Edmund asked.
"We have time." Guthrum replied.
"Well . . . Saint Sebastien was a Roman soldier who found God. His Emperor, Diocletian, discovered this, and ordered him to be filled with arrows, which his archers did. The arrows did not kill him though; he was beaten to death later after admonishing Diocletian for his cruelty towards Christians."
"The arrows did not kill him?" Guthrum asked, intrigued.
"The grace of God allowed him to live." Edmund replied.
"So if I order my men to fill you with arrows, will you live?" Ubba asked.
"If that is God's will, yes."
"And if you die?"
"That is because God wills it." Edmund said, remaining steadfast. Ubba signalled to the four other Danes to nock arrows. They raised their bows and released barely a second later, skewering Edmund.
"Hmph. It seems his God did not save him." Ubba replied as he and the others left. Hiccup didn't though. How could his own father not mention how brutal the Danes in England were? What had these people done to them? They'd lived in peace before Ragnar Lothbrok's raiders had first landed years ago.
He had to get out of here.
He sprinted as fast as his legs would allow back to the square. By now, the Danes watching him had lost interest, and gone to find somewhere else to do whatever the Hel they wanted. Hiccup quickly climbed on Toothless, eager to get away. "Come on Toothless, we have to go, bud." He said urgently. Toothless seemed to pick up on his tone and lifted off without delay. Below, he could hear Ubba yelling for his archers to shoot them down. Thankfully, Toothless was too quick for them. The arrows flew harmlessly by them as they made their way out of Rendlesham. "Okay, so East Anglia was a bust. We need to get to Witanceaster in Wessex. They'll want to know what happened here."
By the time Hiccup had made it to Witanceaster, it was dark. When he and Toothless landed outside the city, they were immediately accosted by two men carrying spears and shield and wearing mail armour. "Who are you supposed to be?" One of them asked.
"I have a message for the King." Hiccup replied. The soldiers laughed.
"You think we'll let you see the King? Just like that?" One of them asked.
"What is going on here?" Another voice came. A man rode up tp them on horseback. He was an old man, balding and with a grey beard, but still looking strong.
"This boy says he has a message for the King." The soldier said. The man on horseback turned to Hiccup.
"What's your name then, lad?" he asked.
"Hiccup Haddock III, sir." Hiccup replied.
"And what's the message?"
"I just flew here from Rendlesham. East Anglia has fallen." Hiccup said. The man's eyes widened and he snapped orders to let Hiccup in.
"Don't worry about your dragon, lad. We'll make sure he's looked after." The man said, climbing down from his horse. "I am Odda the Elder, an Ealdorman of Wessex. My son, Odda the Younger, is overseeing my estate in Devonshire." The man, Odda said.
"An honour, Lord." Hiccup said, bowing. For all of his father's faults, he had drummed into Hiccup that he was to show deference to nobility, and Hiccup figured that an Ealdorman in Wessex was similar to a Jarl back home. However, Berk and the rest of the Archipelago had been left alone by mainland Denmark, and thus, never had an appointed Jarl, even if they were part of Denmark.
"Tend to my horse as well." Odda called to the two men. They nodded back. "The king is indisposed at the moment; meeting with his advisors. However, his brother, Prince Alfred, is available." Odda said as he led Hiccup into Witanceaster proper. It was a far larger city than Hiccup had ever seen. The houses were no mere shacks either; several were built out of solid stone, as were the two large buildings that dominated the center of the city. Her as particularly intrigued by the building that had a large cross on top of it. "That's the cathedral, lad." Odda said, pointing at it. "That is where we pray to God; where we ask for salvation from the Danish hordes."
"I am a Dane, Lord."
"No matter! Alfred is an open minded young man." Odda said, escorting him inside the other large building that he guessed was the Royal stronghold. Once they were inside, Odda signalled to two soldiers wearing Wessex colours to get Prince Alfred immediately. Hiccup suddenly felt even smaller than usual; dwarfed by the large structure.
It was not long before Alfred entered the room. Hiccup was puzzled; the man certainly did not have a royal bearing. He was thin and well-groomed, yet Hiccup could see both a fierce intelligence and determination behind his eyes. He immediately sensed that Alfred was a man who fought with his brain first, before resorting to swords. "Odda, who is this?" Alfred asked.
"This is Hiccup Haddock, Lord. He's a Dane-"
"Then why is here?" Alfred interrupted.
"Lord, he might be Dane but he has brought us valuable information. Tell the Prince what you told me, lad." Odda encouraged.
"Uh, Lord . . . I . . . um . . ." Hiccup stuttered, unable to form words for a moment.
"It's okay lad. Take your time." Odda said. Hiccup took a few deep breaths, then started again.
"On my way here . . . I passed through Rendlesham."
"The capital of East Anglia?" Alfred asked.
"Yes, Lord. The Danes under the warlord Ubba have . . . they sacked it, Lord. East Anglia doesn't exist anymore. Guthrum owns it now." Hiccup explained.
"And why would Guthrum own it and not this Ubba you mentioned?" Alfred asked.
"Ubba is a warlord. He travels from place to place, raiding, pillaging, fighting, never settling down. I believe Guthrum is looking for a place to settle, and he chose East Anglia." Hiccup said, answering to the best of his ability. Alfred nodded, taking the information in.
"I will get this information to my brother, King Aethelred." He said, turning to Odda. "Odda, this boy has done us a service. See that he has food and lodgings for the night. If he came by horse-"
"Not by horse, Lord. He came by dragon." Odda said. Hiccup saw Alfred smile slightly at that.
"Came by dragon you say? Well then, see that his dragon is fed and has a stable for the night. It may surprise you, Hiccup Haddock, but dragons are not our enemies here." He said before turning around. Odda and Hiccup took that as their cue to leave. Hiccup, still a little stunned, barely noticed as the hours flew by and before long, it was dark. After dinner he finally climbed into the soft bed that he'd longed for after so many hours of flying. Likewise, Toothless, next door in the makeshift dragon stable, curled up and slept soundly.
Neither of them knew just how important they would be to the future of England.
And the first chapter of this story is done! Do remember to check out the profile of DaisytheDoodleDog for the official prequel to this story. I'm actually super-excited about this, so I do hope you'll follow me in this adventure.
Also, I am using the Anglo-Saxon names for towns in this story. Witanceaster is today known as Winchester.