I just have to say, guys, that I am insanely excited about this story. Too excited. (I mean, seriously, three chapters today? That only happens when I'm SUPER excited about something. :D) Because I know what's going to happen and...EEEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKK. XD
Oh, and side-note: MY POLL HAS BEEN UPDATED, AND PART 1 AND 2 OF "CROSS MY WINGS AND HOPE TO FLY" HAVE BEEN ADDED THERE! IF YOU WANT TO, PLEASE GO VOTE! I AM INSANELY INTRIGUED AS TO WHICH EPISODE MY READERS LIKED BEST! :D :D :D :D :D
Shout-outs:
wikelia: Sorry...:(
Galaxy-Mitsuko-Pegasus: Yes, Hiccup to the rescue! Whoop whoop! :D Yes, it will be very interesting...I am so excited about this story. :D
Dimentional Phaser: Truer words have never been spoken. :D
LunarCatNinja: Yep. Angry. Not good. Hiccup had better figure it out soon...
ShadowSpirit020: Barreck locked Toothless up with Hiccup so Toothless wouldn't cause confusion amongst the dragon riders as they wondered where Hiccup had gone without Toothless, and so Toothless couldn't save Hiccup. :) EVIL BARRECK I WANT HIM DEAD.
SnivyDragon: The dragon hunters are SO going to regret ever messing with Hiccup and his friends, especially Barreck and Viggo. I want all the dragon hunters to pay...and I look forward to writing Hiccup and Viggo's meeting. That should be fun. :D Thanks for the review! :D
The Ink Splotches: Yeah, Hiccup isn't going to be too happy when he meets up with Barreck. And Barreck isn't going to be too happy when he meets up with Hiccup, either. XD I love the ocean...right up until something brushes up against my leg. Then, I turn into Queen Nope. XD Go Hiccup! Devise that plan! :D SEEK VENGENANCE! XD
Charr2003: I can promise you more Hiccstrid in this story for sure. :D GO HICCUP! GO TEAM! WHAT TEAM!? *screams in the distance* HICCUP'S TEAM! Astrid may have the A-Team, but Hiccup has THE-Team. XD Thanks for the review! :D I know I sometimes update too fast for you to. ;)
SilverGhostWolf: Yay, he survived! :D
The Brucest Writer: Thank you so much! :D Yes, I think out of all of the other episodes so far (besides Skeletons in the Closet), these two have been my favorite to write. And I have a lot more planned for Cross My Wings and Hope to Fly Part 2, so stay tuned! :D Thanks a bunch for the review! :D I really appreciate the feedback! :D
RubyTheSkyWing: GO, HICCUP! DESTROY THE HUNTERS! :D
HappyPup1: Yes...not a very good move on your part, Barreck...XD
Animals Rule: We'll see what happens. :) And yeah, I suppose I am popular around here...well, I've been here for a while, and I've written a lot. ;)
Guest (#1): I'm sure you did. :)
Dimensional Girl: And you thought I was evil...XD Probably not in this fic, unfortunately, but maybe in another one! :D
"Hiccup has not come to release his friends," said Viggo calmly, staring out a barred window of their underground cavern beneath their base. "Are you quite sure you made it simple enough for him to escape, Blade?"
"I explained," said Barreck coolly. "Hiccup is a genius. You would be able to escape easily if one were to put you in the same position. Hiccup has a chance of escaping."
"And of course," said Viggo, "if he didn't manage to free himself, he would be dead, wouldn't he?"
"Quite," agreed Barreck. "Dead as a doornail. But I do not think he is dead, dear friend. I believe he has already escaped and is making his way towards us now."
"I agree," said Viggo, nodding. "In which case, withdraw the guards from their position of guarding the Dragon Eye, and have them double the guards of the prison."
Barreck smiled. "Because we both know," he said, "that Hiccup will not leave here without his friends."
"And if he does somehow manage to find the Dragon Eye beforehand," said Viggo, "we will simply steal it back from him when he reaches the cells. Care to make it so, my friend?"
Barreck nodded, smiling. "It will be made so, Snare," he said, and he turned and walked back down the long tunnel, towards the prison.
...
Barreck returned to the prison the next day, smiling cruelly. Astrid, Fishlegs, Snotlout, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut looked up at him, glaring coldly.
"I have brought a few extra guards to help keep you company," said Barreck, gesturing to a large group of well-armed dragon hunter soldiers behind him, who instantly spread themselves about the room, hiding in the shadows so that they were impossible to see.
Astrid lifted her head. Then, as soon as Barreck left, she turned back to the other riders, whispering so that none of the many guards heard her speak.
"They're doubling the guards," she said, "because they think Hiccup escaped."
"Yes!" said Snotlout quietly, fist-bumping Tuffnut. "I knew he could do it!"
"But they're redoubling the guards," said Fishlegs quietly, "because they know the first place Hiccup will go is here, to try and save us."
"What's wrong with that?" said Tuffnut, eying Fishlegs suspiciously. "Do you not want to be saved? You go through all this trouble not to get captured, and when you do get captured, you don't want to be rescued."
"No," said Astrid. "You heard what Viggo said. He'll kill Hiccup."
"Um, I could be wrong," said Snotlout, "but the last time Viggo tried to kill Hiccup, Hiccup ended up being perfectly fine, and Viggo ended up nearly dying himself. The entire Berkian armada and the Berserker army was against him."
"Um, I could be wrong, too," said Fishlegs, raising his finger, "but I hardly think getting a dagger through your stomach can hardly count as being 'perfectly fine.'"
"I didn't say he was fine instantly!" said Snotlout. "Thor! Do I have to specify everything I say?"
"Viggo isn't going to slip up a second time," said Astrid. "I wouldn't be surprised if he and his men shot Hiccup and Toothless down the instant they got in firing range."
All eyes turned to her instantly, all full of shock and horror.
"And...what?" said Snotlout finally. "What do we do?"
"What can we do, Snotlout?" said Ruffnut sadly. "We let Barreck lead us into a trap. We did it to ourselves. If we hadn't been so busy fighting we probably would have figured it out a lot sooner."
"Let's just hope Hiccup is okay," said Astrid. "And...let's hope he doesn't come here at all."
"This," said Tuffnut, "is the weirdest thing ever, but okay. Let's hope Hiccup doesn't rescue us."
"We'll figure out a way out ourselves," said Astrid. "Without Hiccup. If Hiccup does come after us…"
Well…
No one wanted to finish that statement.
…
Toothless shot across the blackening sky. Night was falling rapidly, the sun sinking behind the horizon as though pulled down. It was falling fast; too fast. Night was coming, and Hiccup knew that he and Toothless were also coming up on the dragon hunter base.
"Okay!" Hiccup said. "So we know there's an entrance from the water, in the cave Barreck told us about...I don't think he was lying about that. He would have lured the dragon riders inside the base before revealing his true identity."
Toothless growled and shot towards the water, flying close to the surface of the waves. After a few more minutes of flying, the sun finally disappeared, and the dragon hunter base came into sight.
It was hard to see anything in the dark, but Hiccup still managed to find the shoreline of the island. When he did, he pointed towards it.
"Do your thing, Toothless," he said.
Toothless nodded and fired a plasma blast into the water. Upon impact, purple rings spread from it, and Hiccup was able to make out the opening of a cave beneath the waves in the faint glow of light.
"There, I saw it!" he said, pointing to the water. "That's the entrance!"
Toothless shot towards it, wings tucked close to his body. He dove into the water and curved upwards into the cave; there was a steep uphill climb, still in water, but then, they broke the surface, and Toothless landed on solid ground.
They were in.
Hiccup dismounted, drawing his dagger from his belt, which he had grabbed just before leaving the Clubhouse. "Alright…" he said, looking around. "That was...too easy."
The earthen walls were lined with torches, but there wasn't a soldier in sight. Hiccup looked carefully, making sure there weren't any lurking in the shadows, and then, he stepped forward, Toothless walking behind in his wake.
When they reached the three-way branch in the tunnel, Hiccup looked, thinking silently to himself, brows furrowed. "So…" he said. "Barreck wanted us to go down the center tunnel, didn't he?"
Toothless growled his agreement.
"In which case," said Hiccup, "we'll go down the opposite tunnel." He looked to the left, and then, he looked to the right.
Which way to go?"
"Um...left," he said. "No, wait, right…" And he and Toothless turned and made their way down the right hand tunnel. The floor sloped steeply, and Hiccup was careful not to slip. The ground finally leveled out, but he couldn't see anything; it was pitch black down here.
Then, suddenly, up ahead, he saw a light. A single ray of light, cast by a chandelier up ahead with lit candles strung from it, hanging from the earthen ceiling. Hiccup looked up at it, and then looked at the object it was hanging over.
Hiccup gasped.
The Dragon Eye sat on a hay-colored brick pedestal.
"No way," Hiccup whispered to himself, shaking his head. "No way…" He stepped forward, half expecting soldiers to leap from the shadows and tackle him…
But they never did, and he took another step forward, watching where he stepped should the floor be boobytrapped.
"We found it," he said, and he smiled, exhaling through his mouth. "I can't believe we actually found it…"
He reached a hand out towards it.
And stopped at the last second, his smile fading. He looked at the Dragon Eye, and then, he looked back up at the tunnel that had led them down here in the first place. Toothless watched him in confusion, wondering silently what Hiccup was planning.
"We'll come back for it," said Hiccup. "But first, we need to find the others."
And he and Toothless left back up the tunnel from whence they had come, heading upwards, back to the three-way fork.
"Alright," Hiccup said once they had returned. "This time, let's go down the left tunnel...this should be the one that leads to the prison…"
He and Toothless took a step forward.
And that was as far as they got before they were ambushed by the dragon hunter soldiers. They came out of nowhere, in all directions, and Hiccup and Toothless didn't have time to react.
…
Astrid, Fishlegs, Snotlout, and the twins waited in their cell, hoping against hope that somehow, in the end, everything would turn out alright. Astrid was trying to think up a plan in her head, but her thoughts were muddled, and her hopes were crushed by the intimidating prison bars placed between them and freedom.
Footsteps suddenly broke her from her fug of thoughts, and she turned. Barreck and Viggo stepped into her line of sight, dozens of soldiers around them.
"We are moving Astrid to a different cell," said Viggo, "but only temporarily." Barreck slid the key into the lock, opened the door, and Ryker grabbed Astrid's forearm and yanked her out before she could protest. Barreck slammed the door and locked it behind them.
"She will return to you soon enough," said Viggo coldly, and turning with Ryker, Barreck, and Astrid, they headed off.
"I'll be fine!" Astrid called over her shoulder at her friends. "Don't worry about me! They won't hurt me!"
"Strong words coming from the mouth of a prisoner," snapped Ryker.
"Ryker, calm yourself," said Viggo coolly. "This woman is our guest. Treat her with respect."
"She is our prisoner," said Ryker angrily.
"You know," said Astrid, trying to think clearly and not let her fear get the better of her. Ryker, Viggo, and Barreck turned and led her up the tunnel leading down to the prisons, but she barely registered this, "Hiccup isn't going to like the fact that you captured us, and when he gets here, he is going to end you all-"
"An empty threat," said Viggo calmly.
"How come?" snapped Astrid.
Viggo smiled, putting his hand against the door leading out of the prison cells. "He's already here," said Viggo.
Astrid hardly had the chance to register this before Viggo pushed the door open.
Hiccup was standing, two soldiers on either of his sides, hands clasped around his forearms to restrain him. His hands were bound behind his back; there was an ugly, purple, discolored bruise on his head.
He smiled sheepishly at her, though it was more of a wince. "Sorry, Astrid," he said.
Astrid's reaction was instant. "You idiot!" she shouted. "You stupid idiot, Hiccup!"
"How did I see that coming?" Hiccup said, jerking against the hold the soldiers had on him. "Would you loosen up already?"
Viggo folded his hands and smiled. "Hello, Hiccup," he said.
Hiccup met his eyes, and then, after a few moments of silence, he sighed. "I should've known you weren't really dead," he said. "Implanting a traitor within our midst, tricking us into coming here...Ryker wouldn't have been smart enough to do that."
"Indeed," said Viggo. "Geniuses like us will either find a way, or make one, Hiccup Haddock."
Hiccup laughed mirthlessly. "You're fooling yourself, Viggo," he said.
Viggo shook his head. "There are two ways to be fooled," he said. "One, is to believe what isn't true, and the other, is to refuse to believe what is."
"Yeah, and what about lying, and deceiving yourself?" said Hiccup lowly. "Did you forget about that little detail, Viggo?"
Viggo looked at him. His expression wasn't readable. "Come," said Viggo. "Now that you have been reunited, we are moving you to your temporary cells to discuss something of concern."
And the soldiers dragged Astrid and Hiccup forward, following Viggo.
"What are you in for, Astrid?" Hiccup asked.
"Oh, you know me," said Astrid. "I try to keep out of trouble, you run off and do something stupid, and in the end, well, we both end up behind bars. What about you?"
"Ah, the usual," said Hiccup. "You guys get kidnapped, I get lured here, there's normally a lot of drama, someone always ends up doing something stupid, and the guards abandon their posts for some reason, and we manage to dumbfound these blockheads and escape. All in a day's work."
"Shut up back there!" snapped Ryker.
"MAYBE IF YOU DIDN'T KIDNAP US SO OFTEN," Hiccup called angrily, "I WOULDN'T HAVE A REASON TO PROTEST!"
Viggo opened another door that branched out from another tunnel, and the soldiers threw Astrid and Hiccup inside. The ground was made of brick, and Hiccup fell first while Astrid fell on top of him.
Viggo, Ryker, and Barreck stepped through the door and shut it, locking it behind them. Astrid and Hiccup got to their feet, hands still tied behind their backs.
Viggo nodded to Ryker, who stepped forward with a dagger. In two smooth slices, the bonds fell away.
"Now," said Viggo, "we would like to have a word with the two of you."
"Well, we're not going to stop you," said Hiccup.
"You kind of dragged us here against our will," said Astrid, "so if you have anything to say, say it now so we can return to our lives."
Ryker stepped forward, still clutching the dagger, but Barreck put out a hand to keep him back.
"Relax, Ryker," said Barreck. "Their sassy mouths can hurt us not. We are the ones with the weapons, but that does not mean we have to use them."
"Blade is correct, Ryker," said Viggo coolly. "You must learn to control your anger."
Ryker glared at them coldly. Hiccup and Astrid could feel the tension.
"We brought you here," said Viggo, "because I have a question to ask you both. The first question goes to Astrid."
He looked at Astrid. "Tell me honestly," he said. "You are dragon trainers, aren't you?"
Astrid didn't have a choice. She could see the hidden threat in Viggo's eyes: if she didn't answer truthfully, something bad was going to happen, not to her, but to Hiccup.
"Yes," said Astrid. "We're dragon trainers. What gave it away? The fact that we ride dragons every single time you see us? I'm surprised you even needed to ask the question."
"I was just clarifying," said Viggo, smiling coldly. "And the second question goes to Hiccup."
"You know what happened the last time you tried to interrogate me, Viggo," said Hiccup, sighing. "Your men ended up trying to get to Berk heading Northsouth. I pity those poor guys."
"Yes, indeed," said Viggo, "fools. But last time I interrogated you, Hiccup, I did not have her." He gestured to Astrid, and Ryker raised his dagger. "See where I am one step ahead of you, Hiccup?"
"One step forward," said Hiccup, shrugging, "two steps back."
"My question is this," said Viggo, ignoring him. "Ryker told me that you were the one to bring peace between the dragons by training a Night Fury," he said. "Is this true?"
"No way!" said Hiccup in mock shock. "You mean the Night Fury I used to fly here? Nope, there's no way I trained him! Oh, and his name's Toothless, by the way. But no, didn't train him."
Astrid had to admit, she admired Hiccup's guts. It was either going to save him or kill him in the end.
"I was just clarifying," said Viggo, putting forward his hand. He thought for a few moments, silently pondering. "Training dragons," he said. "In honesty, Hiccup Haddock, I am interested in learning how one would accomplish that."
"Oh, seriously?" said Hiccup, moaning. "It's Alvin all over again! Yeah, he was a loose cannon, too…"
"Then let me put it this way," said Viggo, folding his hands. "You show me what you can do, or I'll kill Miss Hofferson here." Ryker stepped forward, fingering the blade of his dagger. "Now tell me, Hiccup," said Viggo. "What is your decision?"
Hiccup glared coldly at him, shifted his gaze to Barreck, and then Ryker, and then, finally, he looked at Astrid with a look in his eyes that Astrid knew all too well. She shook her head, slightly, to try and tell him not to do it, but it was too late.
He looked right up at Viggo, eyes narrowed.
"What kind of dragon?" he said, defeated.
"Hiccup!" Astrid shouted. "No!"
Viggo smiled, ignoring Astrid entirely. "I had been hoping you would ask," he said.