Weeks later, somewhere beyond the Archipelago
Hiccup sighed as he scanned the horizon once again for any sign of land. He and Toothless had been flying for hours with no sign of even a sea stack to land and rest. The strain was taking its toll on the Night Fury. His wings dragged and his head drooped with exhaustion. If they didn't find somewhere to rest soon they would crash into the ocean and drown.
Hiccup scanned the horizon once again and once again came up with nothing. He glanced down at Toothless and saw the exhaustion in the dragon's eyes. His jaw clenched with sadness for his friend and he held back a shudder of fear and sadness. Feeling lost, he found himself uttering a tiny prayer.
"Gods… I know I haven't exactly been perfect. I've made a lot of mistakes in my life and I know you probably don't care. But please, if anyone…thing…god, can hear me, help me save Toothless. I can't live without him. Please… Help us…"
A few moments passed and he scanned the horizon again before a sudden intense floating light appeared in front of them. Toothless flared his wings and hovered in front of the light, turning his head away to shield his eyes as Hiccup raised a hand to do the same.
When his eyes had adjusted, Hiccup stared into the light and froze. Standing, or rather, floating there was a man, powerfully built, wearing simple white robes. He had shaggy gray hair and a thick gray beard running down to his chest. Around his neck he wore a heavy iron chain with a wooden hourglass hanging from one of the links. His feet were bare and he stood on the open air as if on solid ground. His face wore a mask of serenity and calmness. His eyes, however, were the most striking feature. They glowed with a warm golden light and held a gentle gleam to them.
The floating man stared at them silently for several moments and finally Hiccup spoke, his voice hoarse and nervous. "Who…who are you?" he asked quietly. The man gave a warm smile before speaking in a deep voice that seemed to echo with power and authority
"I have many names young one. Some call me Akatosh, some call me Auriel, and some call me Alkosh. But to you and your Night Fury I am Bormahu, or father in the language of dragons." As he spoke the words, Toothless' eyes widened with recognition and he dipped his head in reverence. Hiccup was confused to say the least, but before he could ask what was happening, Akatosh continued speaking. "I am not one of your Gods. My world is not this one and my domain is not in this plane. But I have heard your pleas and I have chosen to claim you as my own. I do this because I believe that you and your Night Fury friend have the potential to become the greatest champions my world has ever seen. I do this because I believe that you are worthy of becoming the last of my children. The last true dragons."
Hiccup wasn't sure what he meant by Champion or what he meant by the last true dragons but he certainly wasn't going to argue. If this…god…would save them from a watery grave then so be it. He met Toothless' gaze questioningly. "What do ya think bud?" He asked. If it were at all possible, the Night Fury looked…excited, like he was both eager and terrified of what would happen if they were to enter this god's domain. With his eyes narrowed to thin slits, Toothless gave a single nod to his rider.
Nodding, Hiccup met the god's golden gaze. "Alright then, we'll go with you." Akatosh gave another warm smile before he turned and gestured at the light behind him. It slowly expanded into a gateway large enough for Toothless to fly through. Akatosh stepped through first and Hiccup glanced at Toothless, who met his gaze and snorted before shaking his head and following the divine being through the gateway.
~oOo~
Ten Years Later, Skyrim, Northern Province of Tamriel
In the blackened sky of a cold and stormy Skyrim night, two Alpha Dov raced beneath the frozen clouds. One, a legendary dragon called a Night Fury, the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. As long as a ship, with wings almost double its length, and as tall as Whiterun's walls, its scales were the color of ebony and its eyes were like luminescent gage-green gems. Armored plates covered its massive form all the way to the tip of its tail where a prosthetic fin on its left side, made from black dragon's scales, allowed it to take flight. On the tail fin, the Sigil of Akatosh was printed in stark white with red outlines.
At the base of his neck, seated in a black leather saddle sat the other Dovah. The equally legendary warrior adopted by Akatosh and gifted with the blood and soul of a dragon. He was known throughout the land as Dovahkiin, or Dragonborn in the language of man. His daedric riding armor and black hooded cloak were a distinguished sight to most of the frozen northern kingdom of Tamriel.
Sleek ebony plate armor covered his lean body, a faint red glow emanating from between the ribs that made up the majority of the material. Large pauldrons, topped with small studs protected his shoulders and sleek black chainmail linked with more metal plates protected his muscular upper arms. A pair of emblems, shaped like red skulls with fangs, sharpened teeth, and horns garnished his pauldrons.
His hands and forearms were protected by clawed gauntlets, studs covering his knuckles and a single spike tipping each of his elbows. Bone-Hawk rings adorned his fingers, each of them enchanted to increase his stamina and magicka. A matching amulet hung around his neck, enchanted to increase his healing rate and protect him from poisons and diseases. His legs were protected by more chainmail and black plates. Black boots and greaves protected his feet and shins; a pair of small spikes topping his knee guards.
A tattered black cloak and cowl, sewn from dragon-heart scales, reached down to his knees and both shrouded him in darkness as well as protected him from the biting cold of the high Skyrim air. Along with the cloak was a black mask, styled after the dragon priest masks he had spent years collecting. It was forged from ebony metal cooled in the blood of a Daedra, with fangs carved into the surface and runes in Dovahzul written around the mouth and eyeholes. Dubbed Kendov in Dovahzul, or warrior in the language of man, it served as both a symbol of its wearers might in battle as well as protected his face and eyes from the wind while flying and fighting.
Hanging across his back beneath the cloak was a massive daedric greatsword with more than fifteen accompanying daggers and knives spread across his body. Across the saddle in front of him, attached with leather straps, was a matching daedric bow, the weapon and its wielder capable of placing a twenty-four inch arrow on the eye of a Sabercat from more than three hundred yards away. An enchanted quiver filled with more than two thousand black shafted, frostbite venom coated arrows hung from his belt on his right side.
Hiccup "Bloodfang" StormCrown, former Viking and citizen of the island of Berk breathed in the freezing air as he stood in the stirrups and finally spotted their target, the Throat of the World, the tallest mountain on the continent of Tamriel, and the first place that he and Toothless had ever seen after they had been brought to this land. Toothless spotted it as well and growled before angling his body for the frozen peak.
They reached the familiar frozen mountain in mere minutes and Toothless alighted atop a large outcropping as silent as whisper, his armor enchanted to remain silent in accompaniment with his natural skill as a master hunter. Hiccup dismounted, and scanned the area for their mentor, the leader of the Greybeards, the ancient dragon Paarthurnax. He could usually be found resting atop a damaged ancient Nord word wall near the edge of the plateau, but he was nowhere in sight. The snow and wind whipped around them, making it almost impossible for them to see even with their enhanced eyesight.
Finally growing frustrated, Hiccup drew a deep icy breath and raised his face to the sky. "Lok... Vah, Koor!" the shout shot from his lips and struck the clouds over the mountain. Instantly they were dispelled in all directions leaving the sky clear and crisp. The twin moons, Masser and Secunda, greeted the pair and a faint green aurora begun to twirl through the air.
Toothless snorted in approval and used his flame to warm the rock beneath him before lying down, his wings tucked to his side and his tail drooped over the edge. Hiccup scanned the now clear sky but still found no sign of the ancient white dragon.
Paarthurnax had been the first being they had met when they had arrived from their own world through Akatosh' gateway and had been a source of comfort and guidance for both young dragons. When they had traveled through the planes to reach Mundus and Nirn, Akatosh had placed his mark on Hiccup and Toothless, making the young Viking Dragonborn and bonding the two as one. Needless to say, Paarthurnax had been more than surprised when he had felt the familiar soul of a dragon emanating from the young man. But he had become accustomed soon enough, deigning to take both under his tutelage. He had ordered the Graybeards to house Hiccup in the monastery of High Hrothgar lower on the mountain and to train him to use the Voice, they were more than eager to agree once they learned of his standing as Dragonborn. Hiccup had struggled at first with the intense training and academic studies, but quickly became acclimated to the new and strange situation they had found themselves in.
While Hiccup studied and learned about Nirn from the Greybeards, Toothless had been undergoing his own training. He learned everything he could from the elder dragon about all aspects of life, including flying, fighting, surviving, and most importantly, speaking. Toothless was already fluent in Dragonese, the language that dragons spoke to one another in their birth world, but with Paarthurnax' help, he soon was versed and fluent in Dovahzul, the dragon language on Nirn. The language of mortals however, remained impossible for him, and so he simply spoke in Dovahzul, using Hiccup as his translator when he spoke to someone else. Unfortunately, as the two had grown, so had the power of their Thu'ums, until it reached the point where if Toothless spoke, his voice would shake the earth and topple buildings if he weren't careful, forcing him to remain silent except in situations of Absolute necessity.
Just as Hiccup was about to give up searching for his mentor, the powerful whoosh of displaced air and the thunderous sound of a Dovah landing caused the both of them to turn their heads sharply towards the peak of the mountain. But it wasn't Paarthurnax that they saw. Instead, a massive dragon, several times larger than Toothless, comprised of glowing golden scales and with wings that looked like they were made of pure sunlight, roosted at the very peak. Instant recognition spurred both Toothless and Hiccup to bow out of respect and reverence for the creature above them.
Akatosh, the great golden dragon looked down at his two sons. One, an alpha Night Fury and more powerful than any of his living sons, including Paarthurnax. The other, a former Viking and the last of Akatosh's true children. The man born with the flesh of a mortal, but the blood and soul of a dragon. Hiccup, the lost heir of Berk and the most interesting mortal that Akatosh had ever laid eyes on. Alessia, Martin, Tiber Septim, and Ysgramor, all of them were legends in their own right. But they all paled in comparison to this one.
This boy, whom was considered a runt by his own people and presumed to grow up worthless and alone, had changed the course of Tamriel's history and the history of Nirn as a whole. From a boy who could barely lift a sword as a child to a full-grown man with the strength and speed to wrestle a legendary dragon, he had seized hold of his destiny with both hands and steered it whatever way he chose, oftentimes surprising not just his father, but many of the other eight divines.
And he had proven his mettle time and time again, from slaying the divine dragon Alduin the World Eater to defeating Harkon the Vampire King and destroying Miraak the First Dragonborn, he was one of the greatest warriors to ever walk the face of Nirn, revered throughout the nine holds of Skyrim and the rest of Tamriel for his skills.
In just ten short years this boy had accomplished more than most mortals did in a lifetime. Becoming Harbinger of the Companions, a feat that many of his original kin would never be able to achieve, for the skill and intelligence it would take. Ascending to the position of Arch-Mage of the College of Winterhold, in a land where magic was something shunned and feared by most, he had taken a quick proficiency to it, being able to use his logical and analytical mind to better understand and more easily master spells in months when they would take others years. In the magical world, he was known as Arch-Mage Zidrigal the Wise. Few outside the college knew that he was less than twenty-five years old.
His time in Skyrim had also hardened him as a man. Where once he might have been hesitant to kill, be the victim man or dragon, he now stood as one of the deadliest warriors to walk Tamriel's surface. In the Imperial Legion he was known as the Black Legionnaire, renowned for his leadership and discipline under fire. He and his dragon had brought about the downfall of Ulfric Stormcloak, the Jarl of Windhelm and leader of the Stormcloak rebellion.
He had also driven off the Aldmeri Dominion, forcing them to return to their home in the Summerset Isles, or face his wrath. The hundreds of decimated Justiciars and Thalmor soldiers a decisive enough motivator for the elves to rescind their decrees and return the worship of Talos to Skyrim.
He also had more, illegitimate accomplishments as well. Becoming Listener of the Dark Brotherhood and Master of the Thieves Guild had trained him to move like a shadow, to deliver a blade or retrieve an item. He was a master of stealth and could move through a crowded street like he was invisible.
Pride filled Akatosh as he looked upon his greatest children and he raised his head to release a powerful, awe-inspiring roar that shook the sky and the mountain with its force. Then, when it was done, he looked down upon them and spoke in Dovahzul, his powerful, echoing voice warping the air with its energy.
"Drem Yol Lok Dovahkiin ahrk Dovah Vulon Nah!" Hiccup and Toothless rose at their fathers greeting and met his golden eye. Hiccup responded in Dovahzul as well. "Drem Yol Lok Bormahu Akatosh. It is good to see you once again. But I must ask, why have you come here?" Toothless shared his curiosity and Akatosh lowered his massive golden head to see his youngest sons eye-to-eye.
"You ask why I stand before you once again?" He asked. Hiccup nodded. "Krosis, unfortunately, it is no good news. But it is not my duty nor my right to deliver it." Hiccup was befuddled by that statement until Akatosh motioned with his head to a spot behind them. When he turned he saw the absolute last thing he was expecting to see.
Standing a mere ten feet away was an Asgardian Valkyrie, garbed in carved silver armor and carrying a spear in her hand and a sword on her hip. Her long blonde hair was tied in two braids and a silver headband held the rest back from her face. Her bright blue eyes gazed at him with an intensity he wasn't accustomed to and she stepped forward to address them.
Too stunned by the presence of an immortal from his old world and pantheon Hiccup did nothing as she stepped forward and knelt on one knee. "Uhh…What's going on?" he asked with suspicion. The divine woman was beautiful to be certain, but she shouldn't have been there. She should have no reason to be in the new world where he and Toothless had made their home. After a few moments, the Valkyrie stood and spoke in a lilting voice that bespoke her position in Asgard.
"Riddari Hiccup. I have an urgent message to deliver to you and your Night Fury." She spoke urgently, her blue eyes never leaving the black eyeholes of his mask. Hiccup glanced to Toothless and saw the dragon snort before returning his gage-green eyes to the Valkyrie. "Well then, by all means, deliver your…message." Hiccup's hand slowly gripped the hilt of one of his many daggers hidden beneath the black cloak he wore.
"Riddari Hiccup, my masters have sent me here to bring you and your dragon back to Asgard to speak with them. They say that it is an urgent matter that involves your former home in the Barbaric Archipelago." Hiccup recoiled and Toothless hissed angrily at the Valkyrie, causing her to take several steps back in fear.
When the initial shock of what she had said wore off, it quickly became replaced with rage as his Dovah Sil roared to life. In a voice as cold as the mountain around them he spoke through clenched teeth. "So…after a lifetime of nothing, a lifetime of them ignoring me, suddenly they want me to come to them at their beck and call to perform some menial task for a place I would sooner burn to the ground than be forced to live in again. No. No I don't think I'll go. You can return to your masters and tell them that from now on they can forget about me." She seemed shocked, like her masters had told her that if she merely asked then he would come. She looked torn, but before she could move, Akatosh released a puff of golden fire that calmed both he and his Dovah Sil down instantly.
"I can understand your frustration my son. But do you not think it would be wise to, at the very least, go with her and see who these masters are and what it is they want from our world's champion?" Hiccup sighed as he glanced up and stared up at the massive golden dragon. "Aye, you're correct, I suppose we should at least go and see what it is they want from us." He spun around and pointed one sharp fingertip at her. "But, I make no promises nor vows that I will in any way assist you or your masters once I know what they want. And I want to be clear that if I do decide to decline I will be returned to this very spot!"
When she nodded he straightened and moved next to Toothless and mounted him, then he held out his hand for her to take. The Valkyrie stepped forward carefully and took it. She was surprised when he effortlessly lifted her onto the dragon's back directly behind him. He glanced at Akatosh, who watched him in turn. "I hope I don't need to say that if they try anything funny…well lets just say that there'll be a few less gods around to piss me off!" And with that Toothless leapt into the air. Akatosh laughed heartily at his child's ire.
As they climbed higher, Hiccup glanced at the Valkyrie over his shoulder. "Whatever you need to do to get us there, do it." She nodded before crouching behind him, causing Toothless to stop and hover in place, before she extended her right arm. A faint glow began to appear and Hiccup could feel the magic moving around her hand and into the air in front of them where it began to distort and warp the air. Finally she dropped her hand and watched the spot in front of them intently. After a few moments, the distortion changed and a solid portal appeared, wide enough for Toothless to fly though with his wings fully extended.
Toothless glanced back at his rider with narrowed eyes, asking if he truly wanted to do this. Hiccup rubbed his head reassuringly. "I know. I don't wanna do this either, so let's just get this over with eh bud?" Toothless snorted before flapping his mighty wings and flying through the portal.
Akatosh watched his two sons disappear through the portal to Asgard. He snorted with the thought of what would happen should Odin and his other deities upset the Night Fury and his rider. It would be a bloodbath, but likely not one that the Asgardians would survive.