Disclaimer: I do not own 'How To Train Your Dragon' nor do I own any of its characters. However, I do own the OCs that will be appearing in this piece of work, so please do not use them without my permission. Thank you very much.
Hi guys! Welcome back! This is a new story and I do not know if it would work out. I got this idea while I was taking the bus on the way home. I started work on it as soon as possible. However, you should not expect the next chapter to be up anytime soon.
Important Notice: I do notice that my descriptions of the two characters (OCs) in this chapter sounds like Mary Sue-ing or rather Gary Stu-ing. They are NOT Mary Sue (Gary Stu). I do not plan on making them immortal or anything that defies the laws of physics, or science for that matter. And also, a lot about them will be revealed in later chapters. Do not worry. They will not be like all-powerful and stuff. They are human. They have feelings. They can be scared. They are mortal. Period.
As for this story, it takes place after the movie. Probably about seven to eight months after the battle with the Green (or Red) Death. Rumors of the Berklanders living in harmony with the dragons have spread to as far as the Roman empire. I have taken the liberty to shift the Roman empire a few hundred years into the future in order to make this work. So, basically, in my story the Roman empire is the superpower here. The Vikings protect the Romans from the dragons and the Romans pay them money in exchange. But, after hearing the rumors, the bond of trust between the Vikings and the Romans have been severely weakened. The Romans sent scouts to search the area for suspicious activities, and the Vikings grew more paranoid of the Romans, especially Stoick. We won't be seeing Hiccup or Toothless in this chapter but we will in the future chapters.
Anyways, let's get on with the story.
Chapter One/Prologue: Rumors
It was a cold and dark night on the streets of Rome. A young man strode down a dark and deserted alleyway, towards an old and dilapidated wooden warehouse that stood in the middle of nowhere. The wooden warehouse was made out of wood, now greyed from age and neglect, it looked as if it was fit to collapse any moment. No one had known the reason behind its construction, and very few people had ever ventured close to it before. The repairmen daren't come in contact with the structure, and therefore it was left there, forgotten through the ages. However, it had become a popular meeting zone for this man… and another man.
The wooden door creaked on its hinges as the man pushed it open. The man was not very old, probably only in his early thirties. He had green eyes and a rather handsome hair that was the shade of auburn. He donned an off-white toga with a purple border. Always a fair magistrate, Aegidius Maximus The Fourth was not a man to be trifled with. Commanding a high position in the Roman court, he was one of the most famous magistrates in the history of Rome due to the fact that he had solved hundreds of puzzling murder cases during his career. As soon as he stepped into the warehouse, he was met by the smell of decaying wood; an obvious trait of an old warehouse. Then he saw it; the warm, soft glow of fire. Proceeding towards the source of the fire, which was a small hearth, he suddenly heard movement behind him. He froze.
"Anybody there?" he asked in a quavering voice.
The shadows continued to yield its secrets. Shrugging to himself, Aegidius continued on his way to the hearth. The only thing missing from the scene was the man he was supposed to meet. The man furrowed his eyebrows. Surely his friend could not have forgotten?
Aegidius decided to stay by the fire and wait for the man to arrive. He stoked the fire with a metal pole that he found lying on the ground. Scanning the warehouse, he saw that it had been emptier than when his last visit. That meant that someone had come in before he did; the fire was proof of that. Could that explain the apparent lack of his friend's presence? Perhaps someone, an intruder, had come into the warehouse and kidnapped his friend? He could not rule that out. However, before he could invent some new theories on his buddy's disappearance.
Something heavy slammed into the man. He groaned as the force catapulted him into the air, depositing him beside a huge wooden crate. He was pretty thankful that his head did not come in contact with the crate. Before he had the time to recover from this surprise ambush, a huge shadow blocked out the light from the fire. Aegidius felt something sharp press against his throat. He, however, did not break down and start begging for mercy. No, Aegidius was well known for keeping calm even under pressurising situations. He faced his attacker. The impostor had two cold, blue eyes that had barely any emotion in them. He spoke first.
"What's the password?" He hissed out in Latin.
Aegidius smiled and spoke.
"Janus."
Even after Aegidius had given the password, Quintus pressed his sword even harder into Aegldius's throat. He flinched before speaking.
"You can lower your sword, Quintus. Surely you would have figured out who I am by now."
Quintus surveyed Aegidius for a little while more, before he relaxed and lifted his sword, returning it into its place in the sword sheath. Quintus offered his hand and helped the shorter man up.
"I had to check. Just in case you are an impostor, you know." Quintus stated.
"I should have been the one to check. I am the one who is bringing news, and I hope that it would not reach the ears of the wrong people."
They settled down beside the fire. Quintus stared at the fire, his eyes looking creepier than they had before. The reflection of the fire against those blue eyes made it look as if they were burning with some sort of cold fury. Aegidius then turned his gaze upon the taller man. Quintus Aemilianus Agricola was a proud and experienced Roman general. He wore a purple toga with gold embroidery, a clear sign that he had won many battles before. Quintus was in his early fifties, yet he was very fit. Vigilance had always been his top priority, therefore explaining his habit of greeting his visitors by pouncing on them and determining if they were a threat or not before letting them pass. He was also well-known for his cruelty towards his enemies. Whatever unspeakable acts of violence that Quintus had committed, only he and Aegidius knew.
"So, what news do you bring, my friend?"
The said Roman twirled his hair in uneasiness, as if he were debating whether he should tell the truth or not. Then he took in a deep breath and spoke.
"My friend. I've heard some disturbing rumours about the Vikings to the North."
Quintus arched his eyebrows, "What sort of disturbing news?"
Aegidius looked taken aback for a second, then he continued, "General, are you sure you want to know?"
"Shoot."
The young Roman magistrate stood up and started pacing around the fire, his eyebrows furrowed. He wore a worried look on his face. Clearly something about the rumours was very disturbing indeed. The Roman magistrate had never become worried about rumours. He had once said that rumours where false until proven true, and that they should not believe in such things. After a long moment of silence, the magistrate stopped pacing and looked into Quintus' eyes.
"I've heard rumours…" he paused, and continued a short while later. "… that the Vikings are training dragons and basically living in harmony with those beasts. I fear that they might go on a conquest for territorial expansion and invade our country." Aegidius finished, looking very worried indeed. Silence settled over the two Romans as the magistrate let the meaning of the sentence sink in.
It was a well-known fact that dragons have been plaguing the islands to the far north for centuries. The Vikings have been waging wars against those monsters in utter futility. Vikings have been protecting the countries to the south from the dragons.
Quintus contemplated the information. Could the rumours be true? Dragons and Vikings living in harmony? Then, he let out a laugh.
"You really think that the rumours are real? I can bet that it was just some lie!"
"I beg to differ, Quintus."
Said general stopped laughing. His expressions turned serious and he said, "What evidence do you have to support this ridiculous claim?"
The magistrate looked at the general nervously, their eyes locked.
"One of our scouts have spotted a Night Fury with a boy riding on it. They zoomed past the ship and disappeared into the clouds. That's not all. We have solid evidence from traders that dragons now inhabit the island of Berk."
That was disturbing news indeed. However, Quintus was still in doubt.
"Eyewitness accounts are unreliable. I have been in the military long enough to know that. The real enemy could be just dropping false information and then when you least expect it, they strike."
"True. It could have been false. But come to think of it, there could still be a possibility that the Vikings are indeed living in harmony with the dragons."
Quintus furrowed his eyebrows. Then, after a minute of silence, he finally spoke.
"What do you want me to do, Aegidius?"
Said magistrate considered the options that were available. Going to war with the Vikings right now with little information on how they were going about their lives right now proved to be a bad idea. The magistrate sighed and sat down beside his old friend.
"Have you decided on the appropriate course of action?"
Aegidius nodded his head and said, "But it'll be dangerous."
Quintus scoffed at the word 'dangerous'. He was a general, and there was no such word as dangerous in his dictionary.
"Pah. Dangerous? A true soldier at heart will be willing to take any risks."
The magistrate nodded his head. "You were ever the brave one, Quintus. Are you sure you want to do this? You might lose your life in the process."
"Whatever you say, friend."
Taking a deep breath, he assigned a mission to the general.
"I would like you to scout the area around the Gateway To Hell."
As brave as he was, Quintus knew that the Gateway To Hell, otherwise known as Porta Infernus, was an extremely treacherous place. The area was foggy all year round and was filled with jagged granite rocks. Even the most experienced Roman sailors have crashed their boat there and died or got lost in the intricate geographical maze of granite pillars. The general knew that he would have little chance of surviving in there, but took up the assignment anyway.
"Yes. I will go." He said with finality.
Aegidius looked at Quintus. He then took the general's hand and shook it.
"Its decided then."
"Yes."
"I'll go prepare the ships, ready the supplies, and assemble your crew by tomorrow. Then, you'll set sail."
As they looked at each other, a loud crash made the both of them look up. General Quintus stood up immediately, sword unsheathed. Seeing the shadow that was rushing for the exit, he threw his sword in that direction. If there was one thing about general Quintus that was more terrifying than his cruel nature was that he never, never, misses. The sword impaled itself into the shin of the impostor. He let out a yelp of pain before collapsing in a heap in front of the wooden door. Both of the Romans made their way to the body of the intruder.
"Do you think that he is a Northerner?" enquired the magistrate. Since the general had met almost all sorts of people during his travels, battles, torture sessions and his long life, he would be able to recognise a person's nationality.
"Yes, he is one. A Viking to be more specific." The general spat out the word 'Viking' with great distaste.
"Do you think that he had overheard everything?"
"Not if he speaks Latin."
Both of them looked down at the Viking, who was moaning in pain. General Quintus grabbed the Viking and lifted the huge man up with one hand. The Roman general might have been old, but he was also very strong.
"Tell me, did you overhear everything?" Quintus spat, venom dripping from his words.
The Viking looked at him with his brown eyes. A smile spread across his face and he spoke, "Já, ég gerði."
"This person obviously doesn't know how to speak Latin. Which means that he doesn't understand our little conversation."
The Viking chuckled, taking the two Romans by surprise. Red blood still gushed from his sword wounds, but he seemed to be able to tolerate the pain.
"No, you fools. I do know how to speak Latin."
The Roman general dropped the Viking onto the ground. He moaned as he made contact, but quickly regained his composure. The Roman general was furious, a sure sign that something bad was about to happen. If there was one thing that people should learn is that they should never get on the bad side of General Quintus.
"How much did you hear?" the general demanded.
"All of it."
Frustration turned into anger. Anger transformed into blind rage; blind rage developed into cold fury and soon the general found himself punching the Viking in his face causing the man to groan in pain and he collapsed on the ground once again.
"Who do you work for, Viking? TELL ME!"
Chuckling, the Viking turned his head slowly and faced the two Romans.
"I report to Stoick the Vast, chief of the tribe."
The general's face whitened. Forcing himself to remain cool, he grabbed the Viking once again by his collar and spoke, this time in a softer and much more calm voice.
"What tribe?"
The Viking broke out in laughter again.
"What tribe, you ask. Well, good luck general. You'll have to kill me to get the answer."
"Oh, I will slaughter you anyway. But first, I'll have you tell me the truth. I repeat, for the last time: what tribe?"
The Viking did not answer immediately. Then, he spoke, "Well, the Hairy Hooligans of course. I am their spy. Of what use would this information be? We are going to attack you with dragons and Rome will be history!"
He then laughed as if there were no tomorrow. The general froze. So the Northerners have been planning on an attack. And with dragons too. The rumours have been true then. He exchanged glances with Aegidius and then turned back to face the Viking, who was still laughing. A cruel smile spread across Quintus's face.
"Yes, laugh all you want, Viking. Let's see just who'll be laughing in the end."
He extracted the sword from the Viking's shin and swung it directly at the man's neck, staining the walls with a crimson red liquid. The laughter died almost instantly as the man's head rolled on the ground, his body collapsing in a heap. Aegidius cringed at the sight. The Roman general then sheathed his sword and pretended that nothing had happened.
"Would you like to get someone to clean up this mess?" the general faked an innocent tone. Aegidius' face paled.
"You… you want me to clean this up?" he said in a quavering voice.
Quintus threw back his head and roared in laughter. The very cruelness of it chilled the magistrate to his bones. Quintus then slammed the warehouse entrance door behind him, causing Aegidius to wince. The magistrate did not relax until the laughters were lost in the distance, along with the demon.
A streak of lightning flashed across the sky and Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third awoke in his bed, surrounded by a pool of cold sweat, two thousand kilometres away.
End of Prologue.
That's it for the prologue. Tell me how I did. Should I continue with this story? Please tell me what you think about it. If you liked the story and want me to continue, leave a review. If you detested the story, leave a review. Suggestions are welcome.
Read & Review!
Oh, and addressing the Mary Sue (Gary Stu) note, Quintus is just a highly-trained general who excelled at marksmanship, that is why he could aim so well. Aegidius is just good at problem solving. I highly doubt that those two traits would be consequential to the story. And I am not going to do many of these chapters focusing only on them. There will be some, but not too excessive.
:)