Chapter Two
HICCUP PANTED as he beat his over large wings slowly, careful not to fly too far ahead of the rest of the hunting party. Almost the entire nest was out that night; the two-legs wouldn't even know what hit them.
"Hiccup!" A thunderous growl sounded from the night fury's left and he twisted his head quickly, still flying straight. Staring straight at his mentor, he gave a short grunt by means of greeting him and lolled his tongue out, making a few happy chirps. The rumblehorn beside him simply snarled, looking away from his younger companion and instead surveying the land below. "Pay attention, flower-breath, or you'll ruin the whole trip!"
Hiccup winced at the snapped words, his heart dropping momentarily; flower-breath was arguably the most insulting name ever invented, essentially implying that the accused had no real worth as a noble dragon—and it was even more painful when the words came from the mouth of one's own mentor. But he soon recovered, being well accustomed to ridicule.
"Yeah, yeah, I know!" he grumbled, his cheerful demeanour gone as his tail drooped slightly; yelping as he dropped a little in the air, he quickly readjusted his tail fins and climbed back, trying not to meet his mentor's eyes. There was no reason for him to do so—he knew exactly the disapproving look Stoick would shoot at him. He'd seen it enough times. Instead, he scanned the expansive world below and let out a breath of glee at being so free. Taking in every little detail of this miraculous place, far more beautiful than the rocky island of the nest, his eyes quickly landing upon a small cluster of seemingly misplaced golden dots.
"That's... That's it, right? We're nearly there!"
A short grunt was the only affirmation he received.
His ears immediately shot forwards as he momentarily became breathless, excitement coursing through his sleek, athletic body. "Well, I guess I'll go and wait up ahead, huh?" he murmured, remaining still for only a second before beating his massive wings heavily and angling his body so that he shot upwards, climbing even higher into the eternal sky. The exhilaration was like nothing he'd ever felt before; he'd never been trusted to go to such extremes. But now he could, and even though it was a luxury bestowed upon him out of desperation rather than faith he was going to make the most of it.
It was barely a minute before the rest of the party reached firing distance from the village and in literally seconds a cacophony of noise erupted, shattering the relative peace of the otherwise tranquil, cloudless night. The soft spots of light from the two-legs' flames were overshadowed as the dragons' own breath illuminated the town, colouring the side of the hill in a fiery palette of oranges and reds.
Waiting for a little while, having been given strict instructions not to come down until at least a good number of dragons had something to take back—though technically, a good number was open to his interpretation—Hiccup flew in small, dizzying circles, his heart pounding excitedly as he surveyed the scene. But his enthusiasm soon won out; deciding that he'd seen at least a few of his peers beginning to haul their prey—some more sizeable than others—back to the nest he then dove, his wings folded tightly against his side as he plummeted.
The wind rushed over his ears and made his eyes water, and the only smell he could pick up on was that of the salty sea air. But he kept on, forcing himself to find a target that would, if destroyed, leave the two-legs weaker and allow his comrades more success—and prove that he wasn't such a waste of space after all.
It wasn't too hard to find a decent victim for his plasma flames, even from such a large distance away—Hiccup's eyesight was, a fact he could be proud of, second to none, as were his other senses. Even the Queen couldn't challenge him in vision, though she could easily see much further than he could with her awe-inspring, terrifying numerous eyes. But she would have never found the seemingly perfect prey that he had set his heart upon.
Nestled into the edge of the cliff, two massive wooden slabs were positioned, concealing some kind of cave. Such was a fact of which Hiccup was certain, given the warm glow of fire which seeped out around the edges; if there was fire, then surely the place was one of great importance? Such was the case in the nest—the nesting room, for example, was always kept hot—and so it seemed to be obvious, at least in his opinion. And if that wasn't enough proof, the presence of the wooden slabs—surely to keep everyone out—and the two-legs guards just outside who were presently sparring with a few bulky trickles all but confirmed his assumptions that it was a site of great importance.
Letting his tongue loll out, Hiccup began his dive, his mind in overdrive as he prepared to strike. Perhaps, as was the case for dragons, it was the nesting cave for the two-legs females to lay their eggs? In which case, blowing it up would be a major success; killing off the next generation of vermin and securing a large hoard of food for the Queen! It was killing two birds with one blast!
Feeling his heart leap up into his chest as he drew nearer, the two-legs suddenly shouting at crying out in a panic as his distinctive whistle filled the air, he opened his mouth and focused his gaze upon his target, willing himself not to miss. And then, as he folded his wings closer to his sides and readied himself to fly off, he let the charged gas go. For just a second he watched in awe of himself as the bright blue ball of destruction sailed through the air, smashing just a tiny bit off target into the wooden doors and immediately blasting them to scrappy shards; a moment later, he snapped out his wings and soared off into the opposite direction, adrenaline coursing through his body.
Landing down in a patch of grass just beyond the village, he gave a short chuff as he watched the chaos unfurling below. It made the previous madness look tame, in fact. Sitting quietly for a minute or so, taking a moment to relieve himself of the itch behind his ear and to regain his breath, Hiccup narrowed his eyes and surveyed the scene, wondering what it was exactly which he had struck, pondering whether his assumptions had been correct. It certainly seemed as if he had struck a good spot; the dragons were swarming the area, many being cut down by the two-legs but even more coming out none the worse for wear, and with things trapped in their claws, as well!
Curiosity suddenly overwhelming him, Hiccup clambered up to his paws and looked about a few times, then galloping fairly noiselessly through the long grass over to the edge of the cliff which he'd found himself upon. Flicking his ears about a few times as well, he then opened his wings and climbed a little carelessly down onto a ledge. Looking about for any more outcroppings, wary of the fact that flying might alert the two-legs to his presence, he then grunted in disappointment as he found none and instead smashed his claws into the rocky wall, digging them in and yelping as he skidded down, landing fairly heavily on his tail.
Grunting quietly as a great wave of pain rushed through his body—he'd fallen pretty badly, he supposed—Hiccup shakily stood up and padded forwards, recognising immediately the delightful smell of fish. Feeling his mouth immediately begin to water—oh, dear Queen, what a smell it was!—he then leapt towards the source, ignoring the pain as his entire world was overcome with pleasure.
Skidding to a stop at the side of the wooden slabs which he'd targeted before, Hiccup took a deep breath in and sighed, his wings falling limp as he dragged his paws forwards, his tongue lolling out. Glancing about quickly he then pushed past the still-burning fragments of remaining wood and into the two-legs' cave, gasping at the sight before his eyes. It was, quite literally, a mountain of fish! Giving a loud chirp, Hiccup tossed his head before pouncing onto the great mound, shovelling salmon and perch into his mouth as hastily as he could.
Most of his nest-mates had already left, it seemed, carrying back clawfuls of fish for the Queen—but he wasn't quite ready to go yet. This was too great a find to waste, and he'd get plenty enough praise when he returned home whether he was on time or just a little late.
Rolling over and delighting in the feel of the oily, smooth fish on his own scales, Hiccup grunted and sighed, his tail flicking slightly though it twinged as he did so—he was simply too happy to even notice. Then nuzzling into the depths of the mountain, he chirped happily as he tunnelled through, munching on as many of the delicacies as possible, roasting the odd one here and there just for the sake of it.
Caught up in his own bliss, Hiccup's finely attuned ears did not register the slight disturbance coming from the entrance to the cave. When he finally did resurface, however, his mouth completely full with fish, he gave a roar of terror when his eyes landed upon the two-legs specimen blocking his exit.
Swallowing the last of his fish quickly and reminding himself to get home soon enough to regurgitate some of them, he let his teeth click out as he snarled, climbing down the pile of fish unsteadily, slipping a few times. Then opening his wings wide, he threw his head back and gave a deafening roar, a battle cry which he'd never had call to use, and began to charge up an attack, waiting for the two-legs male—he smelt like a male—to back off.
The foolish thing only stayed where it was.
Snarling, Hiccup tossed his head and tried to aim for the creature's head, preparing for a good, clean shot—and then a thought struck him. If he shot this two-legs, its nest-mates would surely attack back. He would be blocked in; even a night fury couldn't take on a whole herd of two-legs.
Hissing, Hiccup closed his mouth and took a step backwards, taking a breath before leaping from his vantage point. Keeping his wings held close to his side, knowing full well that opening them would only slow his run, he then sent a short blast at the two-legs' foot—he could at least have a little fun—and bounded by it as it roared, letting his heavy tail smash into the creature as he passed. It had been an uneccessary and, in hindsight, rather idiotic action; letting out a sudden howl of pain as the impact sent shuddering spasms up his spine, he tossed his head in discomfort and bucked a few times, snarling.
But still he ran, soon feeling the cool chill of the night air on his scales as he barreled out of the cave. Unwilling to waste any time in fleeing, though he was now much more confident that he would be okay—unlike the two-legs he could take to the skies—he stretched out his great wings and sent a short blast towards the mob of two-legs charging his way, all of whom were bellowing as they so adored. He then gave a short chuff and rushed forwards as the creature from before—who now sported a sickening bloodied leg—limped just in the edge of Hiccup's field of vision. In his paws he carried an equally stained contraption of sorts, one which was well known among dragon-kind as being the most dangerous of all.
It was, in Hiccup's opinion, like some kind of odd snake, with great balls of the funny smelling silver stuff that gronckles were occasionally known to eat stuck to the thing's head and tail. And it was as lethal to a dragon as a serpent was to a mouse; if that thing were to hunt him down, whether during flight or on the ground, he could potentially be forever grounded. And, by extension, dead.
He could see it leaping at him before he had chance to react or even to move. Jumping forwards, he winced as his paws connected with the smooth, cold rock which was his springboard and then he immediately began to beat his massive wings, feeling the rush of air around his body as he did so. He then followed up the initial propulsion with a strong push upwards from his powerful hind legs, sighing as he felt his body cutting up through the air as he began to climb, his tail suddenly complaining very loudly. Already in the correct position, though, it didn't hurt chronically; the second he tried to swerve, however—an act which should have been easy—he immediately felt torturous pain rear its ugly head, completely overwhelming him as he roared over and over again, writhing as he continued to climb.
As he'd expected, the snake struck soon after, making his pain even greater as both of his rear legs were bound to his stomach. His only relief came from the fact that his wings were, at least, still free to move and so, trying to ignore the pain, he straightened himself out and attempted to fly away. But it was to no avail; his movements were slow and he was getting tossed all over the place, every small gust of wind sending him tumbling. Despite his best efforts he could achieve no control; his tail was barely responsive and absolute torture, every endeavour to get it in the correct position resulting in little more than a slower fall.
It wasn't long before it all became too much, though at least the two-legs were no longer attacking. Giving a feeble groan Hiccup let his tail fall and he grunted, pain wracking his body as his wings alone failed to keep him properly airborne. He fell faster than he'd known was possible and closed his eyes, whimpering as he braced himself for the bone-shattering impact which was sure to come soon. And then, for the briefest of moments, he felt the tidal wave of torture as he smashed into some tree's branches, snapping them off as if they were nothing more than twigs. A moment later, just as he recognised the feel of the hard earth against his battered skin, he finally lost consciousness, saved from the agony which would surely have sent him mad if he'd experienced it.
Author's Note:
So, that's the first two chapters. I hope it was a decent introduction and fingers crossed you guys'll stick with me. So long as I can get enough support (reviews!) for this to keep me writing I will finish this fic, and it will not be left unfinished unless something happens that's out of my control. If you want proof of my commitment, I've written a frozen fic which totals over 500k words!
So, please review and fave! I will respond to every review personally in the chapter comments, guest and member alike! I can also take criticism so long as it's not rude, so if you've got any complaints throw them at me!
Hopefully, if this fic goes down well, I'll see you guys pretty soon with a new update! If I don't get reviews... Well, the fic will be discontinued. So if you like it, give me ten seconds of your time and support me!
-Luna
