HTTYD:Ryka and Luka
This is Wenslock, the dead of winter has reached its peak, as the clans of the village stay with their families huddling closely to hold out their frostbitten hands to the toasty, blazing fire. The children are cozy, happily snoozing to their carefree and juvenile dreams, as parents cover their tiny, shivering bodies with another wooly blanket. These times are unpredictable, for winters on our tiny island can be harsh with eye-blinding blizzards, and icicles sharp enough to stab a Viking and kill him instantly. It's probably around midnight, I'm supposed to be sleeping, but I'm wide awake, I've been waiting for my queue, and I'm growing anxious for tonight is going to be something special. Or as my father tells me, "Ryka, it's time to head out, are you ready?" my father whispers from the outside of my bedroom door.
I slowly open my door, so that Mother doesn't hear it screech across the wooden floor, "Yeah Dad, I'm ready!" With my backpack ready, and my warm, wooly cloak wrapped around my tiny figurate, I aim for the front door, but I am stopped in my tracks. "Whoa! Hold on a second there, Ryka," my dad whispers softly, "I have something for you." He makes me close my eyes, and hold out my hands. When I open my eyes, there in my hands are my father's old hunting gloves, they are wrinkled, old, and have holes in some of the fingers, but I have always admired its craftsmanship. "You're giving me your gloves?" I ask in astonishment. He nods his head, and smiles, "Yes, I know how much you love them, so they're yours now."
I gently giggle with joy, as I put my dad's gloves on my hands, Dad is puts on his cloak and grabs his backpack on our way out the door. Dad slowly closes it so we won't wake my mother up, and we trudge through the snowy and icy pathway up to Eagle Pass. The village grows smaller and smaller as we get closer to Jasper Forest, as we draw nearer to the trail all that stands in front of me are evergreen trees. "There may be patches of black ice on the trail, so follow…" "Follow your footsteps," I recite proudly, "I'm seventeen Dad, I know your rules." I smile at him, he just chuckles his hearty laugh, "Alright, if you feel like you might fall, I'll be in front of you." We start to walk the trail, my dad keeps watching for black ice as we carry along, I observe as the trees swallow us until there is nothing but forest surrounding. I watch my dad, Ronin the Reckless, he has the best senses of any Viking on the island, he can hear the faintest cry of a baby dragon. He can smell smoke from a mile away, and smell when rain or snow will come, but what amazes me is his keen sight.
My dad can see black ice at night, he can see any movement of a human or animal, and he can see in dark caves. No one else has this ability in my family, except for me, and some of my uncle Wolf. That's why I always tease my dad when he tells me his black ice rule, because I can see the black ice that he sees, "So, where are we going?" I question breaking the silence, "There's something out here that I want to show you," he replies. "Don't worry, it's not that much further." The wind is getting colder; my boots are soaked from tramping in the snow, I rub my hands together to create friction, that produces a little heat, and I even huff my breath to provide warmth for my numb, feeless fingers. "Hey Ryka, get over here!" my dad alleges excitedly.
I walk over towards my dad, he holds my hand, "It can be a bit slippery down through the walkway, so I'll help you step down," he explains. I nod my head showing him that I understand, then he escorts me down the undulating path. The trail begins to become narrow, and we have to squeeze through some rocks like foxes. When we finally make it to the bottom of the trail, I find myself in a deep, snowy cove, my dad walks me to the centerpiece and what stands before me. A beautiful frozen waterfall and a small lake, covered with crystalized ice and snow. "Wow, this is amazing!" I exclaim with excitement; I couldn't take my eyes off the gorgeous scenery. "I had a feeling, that you'd love the cove." Dad chuckles, "I used to bring your mother here, when we were younger. This was the place we'd come to relax and unwind after a long work day." I mutter, "Really?"
"Yep, this cove is hidden off, and your mother and I found this place by accident. We'd have picnics, and we swam in the lake in the summer, we'd sneak off late at night in the winter to ice skate on the lake." I began to picture my parents, young, rebellious, and deeply enchanted by love, and I smile at the sight of that. "That sounds wonderful, what else happened?" I ask curiously. "Well, many years went by, I became chief of the village, we got married, and we had a new baby to take care of, so as time went on your mother began to forget about our special little cove" my dad replies. "I still come here every now and then, to check up on the cove, and relive the memories. Your mother may not remember them, but I chose to never forget the place where I fell in love with the love of my life." He stands there silently, he seems heartbroken and disappointed. I hug my dad, "Mother loves you, always remember that. She loves you and I love you too," I encourage. Dad hugs me back, strokes my long black hair, and kisses the top of my cold blooded forehead, "I love you too Ryka," Dad replies.
The moment was perfect, until I feel my dad's chest tense up, I step back to see what is wrong, "Dad, what is it? I whisper quietly. He didn't answer, his face expression looks like something is bothering him, his eyes are carefully observing the cove. "Dad, what's…" "Keep your voice down!" he orders in a hush voice. I turn to examine the terrain, I carefully listen for any strange sounds, there is nothing that I can see. Then the aroma of gas met my nostrils, I feel the pupils in my eyes begin to widen. Then the earth begins to shake violently, "Whoa!" I yell alarmed. "Dad!" I tumble into a fresh batch of snow, which cushioned my fall. "Ryka, are you all right?" my dad came running towards me. I stand effortlessly, "Yeah, I'm okay." I reassure him as I dust of the snow of my cloak. "Ryka, we need to head back home, come on," he motions for me to walk towards our exit. I did not move on command, I glance at the frozen waterfall, it looks like there is some movement coming from behind. "Ryka, let's go, there is something off, we need to get to higher ground." My dad demands firmly.
We start to walk up the trail, leaving the beautiful cove behind us, and as we stroll the way home. When we stumble across a giant hole in the ground, my dad kneels down to study it, I walk around the scene, I spot a dragon spine laying in a snow pile. "Dad, it looks like a dragon came through here." I state as I hand him the spine. "A Whispering Death, that explains why the earth was shaking." He concedes, "We need to get out of here, quickly, before it comes back." We start racing towards the village, and just when we think that the Whispering Death wouldn't spot us, the dragon had blocked our path. He was gigantic, his many rows of teeth are razor sharp along with his spine covered body and tail. I saw the look in my dad's eyes, he has a plan brewing inside his brain, I nod to acknowledge it. "How are we going to defeat this guy?" I ask loudly. My dad reaches for his crossbow, "When I tell you to run, you run! Don't look back, you understand?" I knew what he was going to do. "Dad, no I'm not leaving you!" I cry. "Listen, I need to draw this dragon away from the village, I need you to trust me!" I was hesitant to abandon my father with this lethal cold- blooded dragon. He quickly hugs me, and kisses me on my forehead, "Ryka, it's going to be alright, I promise." He wipes away a tear from my face, "You're my strong girl, I love you." He smiles at me for reassurance.
He shoots at the Whispering Death; he misses purposely to catch the dragon's attention. "Now, go!" he shouts. I race towards the village; I look back once to see my dad running deeper into the dark forest. I sprint to the house, and kicked the door open. "Mom! Uncle Wolf!" I scream my voice with terror. My uncle Wolf came running, with my mother close behind, "Ryka! Thank Gods! Where have you been? I was worried sick!" My mother cried. "Come on, we need to gather some men and help Dad!" I exclaim.
"What? Where is he?" Wolf asked concerned. "He's in Eagle Pass, we encountered a Whispering Death and he's driving it away from the village! We need to go help him!" I order. Wolf grabs his gear, and assemblies some of Wenslock's best Vikings, and they went after my father. My mother dressed into her gear, and went along with Wolf. I wanted to go with them, but my mother made me stay put in the house. I remove all of my soaked clothing and set them aside. I sit in my father's chair, as I warm my frozen body by the fireplace, my mother advised for me to head back to bed, but I refused her suggestion. I can't sleep, my father is out there somewhere, risking his life to save our village from destruction, and here I am stuck inside, when I should be out there helping them search for him.
I examine my dad's hunting gloves that were still on my hands, they are worn, wrinkled leather, there are a few holes where the thumbs are, I sink my nose into them, the scent of aged-wood from when my dad would chop firewood lingers for a few seconds. I stare as the flames danced around, I pray to the Gods, "Dad, please be safe, please come home."