I hate biking trips...especially when I'm out of town where there's no internet and I have to wake up early because my mom won't let me wait in the hotel room alone so I have to sit there bored in the lobby.
Anyway, this is the forth chapter! For some reason, it seems like my first story was more successful. But who cares, I'm writing these fan fictions for fun.
I DO NOT OWN HTTYD! If I did...more shipping would be going on. :)
Again, this chapter has elements from the third book. I won't be able to finish this story unless I can't my hands on the tenth book that I can't find anywhere in my country, so it's going to be a while before I finish this story.
~Kyra (no, that is not my real name. Pen names are awesome)
Chapter Four: Fort Sinister
After tossing and turning in his bed, Hiccup opened his eyes and decided to stare at the ceiling for a while. His father had gone out with Thornado on some daily flying. Toothless allowed Hiccup to sleep in, which he had to admit he found a little weird. On the other hand, he could use some sleep.
Astrid wasn't up either. She was still fast asleep on her bed. Unfortunately for the two teens, peace and quiet didn't last long. Stormfly was waiting for her outside so she decided to take the opportunity to sleep in.
The door to their house suddenly burst open. "Hiccup!" a female voice yelled.
"Flaming sheep!" Hiccup blurted out quickly in surprise as he jolted upright. The noise also suddenly woke Astrid up. Hiccup rubbed his eyes before noticing that Camicazi stood at their door. She was panting heavily and her eyes were filled with panic.
"What happened?" Hiccup asked, concerned as he felt himself waking up.
"Hrani," she wheezed in between quick and short breaths. "Runa and Thuggory," she continued to choke out. Hiccup threw the covers of his bed and walked over to Camicazi slowly. "It's okay. Calm down, Camicazi," he said softly. "Talk to me."
Camicazi looked like she was about to burst into tears. She bit her lip. "Hrani and the others," she began in a quivering voice, "were captured by the Romans!"
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Stoick, Mogadon and Bertha paced back and forth uneasily in the Meade Hall. Some more vikings have arrived from their islands who wanted to get a chance to speak during The Thing, including Gobber who came with Sven and Spitelout. However, the meeting couldn't start properly unless all the heirs are present and accounted for.
"Where's Hiccup?" Stoick murmured to himself. "And Astrid."
"And my daughter," Bertha added.
"Not to mention my son," said Mogadon. Stoick averted his gaze to the Meade Hall's big doors, hoping that they would burst open any moment with his son, Astrid on the others with their dragons. "Where are they?"
"You wouldn't suppose that something happened, would you?" asked Bertha. From her slightly shaking voice, everyone could tell that she was worried about her daughter. She immediately reassure herself. "What am I saying. Camicazi and Hrani are Bog Burglars. They'll be fine!"
"And Thuggory and Runa are fearsome Meatheads! Those two wouldn't go down so easily."
This however, did not reassure Stoick at all. His son was Hiccup after all. And even though he was, presumably, with Astrid, Stoick was still worried. He needed to reassure himself too. "You're right," he said. "We worry too much. Besides, have you heard that my son managed to fight on par with Norbert the Nutjob?"
"Really?" Bertha exclaimed in surprise. "Stoick, you must regale us with the thrilling details while we wait for our heirs and the representatives." Nodding, the three chiefs took a seat at one of the nearby wooden tables as they tried to block out their fears of what might really be happening.
Gobber looked at Stoick from another table. The chief's eyes were distracted and solemn. Sighing, Gobber looked at the Meade Hall's doors. "Stop making us worry about you all the time, Hiccup."
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"You're crazy," Camicazi and Astrid hissed in unison at Hiccup who pressed his back onto the rocks of the valley. He peered over the rocks to see a large fort-like building. It's black color made Hiccup think of nightmares and the night. "No wonder the Romans call it 'Fort Sinister'," he whispered to himself.
"Hiccup, this is completely reckless. You do realize that we can just tell the chiefs about this right?" Camicazi reminded him.
"Yes, I do," Hiccup answered sternly, his gaze not leaving the fort. "But they're all so concentrated about the meeting. If they push the rescue mission until after, who knows what's going to happen to the others."
Camicazi leaned in towards Astrid. "Is he always this stubborn?"
"It runs in the family. You'll get used to it." All three vikings brought their swords with them. Astrid turned towards Hiccup. "You could have at least brought Toothless."
Sighing, Hiccup turned around. "Astrid, we're going to be facing Romans."
"All the more reason we're going to need him!"
"Astrid, we have only two dragons!" Hiccup replied, slightly forcefully. "If we're going up against an entire army of arrows and catapults, we're not going to stand a chance and be on our way to Valhalla before we could say our prayers. I had to have Toothless and Stormfly stay behind. We're going to have to sneak in then get out without being noticed. Two dragons aren't going to help us do that."
Seeing that Hiccup was determined, Astrid had no choice but to back down. "How did they get captured in the first place?" Astrid asked, turning to Camicazi. She pursed her lips. "We didn't do anything, really. The four of us were just walking around the valley this morning since Thuggory sort of dared us to go this close to the Roman Fort."
"Of course, it was Thuggory's idea," Astrid muttered. "I'm going to pulverize him later." She gripped the hilt of her sword. Camicazi paused for a moment before continuing. "Anyway, the Romans suddenly grabbed us. They demanded us for the secret of how to tame the dragons."
Hiccup groaned frustratedly. "Now I have to hide from Romans too? At least they got the taming bit right."
"Of course we didn't tell me him because first of all we didn't know," said Camicazi. "But even if we did, we wouldn't say anything anyway. They tried to kidnap all of us but I managed to get away." She paused for a moment before saying in a much more confident voice, "But I wouldn't worry about Hrani too much. After all, you can't keep a Bog Burglar under a lock and key."
"That's nice and all, but we still need to go rescue them," Hiccup answered then thought for a moment. "Since Hrani and the others are prisoners, they'll probably be locked in the dungeons. Then that means to free them, we're going to need to find the keys."
Camicazi started fetching for something in her small pouch. "You mean these?" She brought out a pair of rusty silver keys. Hiccup stared at them miraculously. "How did you get those?" he cried, taking them from her. Camicazi shrugged. "I am a Bog Burglar after all. Stealing's our specialty. And that guy that grabbed us was wide open."
"We might actually be able to do this," Astrid said cheerfully. Hiccup eyed her suspiciously. "Were you doubting me, Astrid?"
"Maybe."
Rolling his eyes, Hiccup looked at the fort again. There was only one gate, and that was the one in front. He pressed his lips. There had to be a way of getting in without being noticed. Looking much farther to the right, Hiccup managed to make out what he think was a wagon that was being pulled by yaks. The wagon's roof was covered with a thin white layer of snow. It parked at the foot of a hill just a good sprint away from where the viking teens were hiding. Wagons weren't often used in the archipelago due to the mountainous terrain. But there's on here. "Might as well hitch a ride," said Hiccup, finishing his thoughts. "Follow me."
Leading the way, Hiccup kept himself low as he ran across the valley with Astrid and Camicazi following him close behind. They crept up to the wagon as the driver walked away to spring a leak. "Let's give him a little privacy," Hiccup whispered as he hauled himself into the wagon.
Astrid and Camicazi looked at each other with concern before climbing in after Hiccup. Inside the wagon was dark and was carrying barrels. Hiccup crawled behind one of them and crouched down, staying out of sight.
"Can't you just sit down normally?" Camicazi asked him still in a quiet voice.
"I wouldn't believe that the Romans are idiots," Hiccup answered in an equally low volume. "I bet that they would check the cargo before letting it in the fort. Let's not take any chances."
Nodding, Astrid hid behind the barrel on the right and Camicazi squatted down next to her. The smell of wine and beer streamed out of the barrels. Eventually, Hiccup had to pinch his nose to stop the smell from coming in.
A few moments later, the wagon slowly began to move. This is the first time any of the viking teens had been in one and they all had to agree that it wasn't a really enjoyable experience. Hiccup had to continually push at the barrels whenever they hit a bump to prevent them from squishing him flat.
After what seemed like an agonizing ride, the wagon finally came to a stop. A roman peered his head inside the wagon, observing it's contents. Astrid barely had time to duck in time. She turned to Hiccup who mouthed "told ya", earning him an annoyed look from Astrid.
The Roman soon left and the wagon made it's way into the fort. It slowly came to a stop. Slowly, Hiccup emerged from behind his barrel and poked his head out the wagon. They were backed against a stone wall with a flight of stone stairs to his left. Hiccup looked around left and right. Seeing that the coast was clear for the time being, he jumped out of the wagon. Astrid and Camicazi jumped out after him, landing softly on their feet.
The viking then took up the flight of stairs that led them to a large stone corridor. "Now what?" Camicazi whispered. Hiccup thought for a moment. "Dungeons are normally kept at the lower levels to prevent prisoners from escaping. And suicide."
"Then it would help if we had a map of this place," said Astrid.
"You want me to steal one?" Camicazi asked, cheerfully. Hiccup hastily placed a hand on Camicazi who was just about getting into a stance. "Um...I think it would be better if we could stay clear from as many Romans as possible."
"Then which way do we go? Up or down?"
Hiccup heard that Camicazi's voice was a little disappointed, but he really needed to put their and the other's safety above all else. "Let's try going up," he said, running down the corridor until he reached another flight of stairs going both to the upper and lower floors. Astrid and Camicazi were just right behind him.
Running up the stairs that led upward, Hiccup found himself in front of a large wooden door. He pushed his ears onto the door and heard voices coming from the other side.
"You know, it's kind of strange how this floor barely has any guards," Astrid pointed out. It was then that she noticed that Hiccup was doing. "Hiccup, do you hear anything?"
After pursing his lips, Hiccup quietly pushed the wooden door open. He found himself in a room that was filled with steam that quickly filled his vision. Taking a step forward, Hiccup found that his prosthetic foot landed on a stone tile that was covered in water. "This is-?" he whispered, "a Roman bath house?"
Astrid and Camicazi immediately jumped back, bumping into each other. "No wonder the guard's stay clear of this place," Camicazi murmured. She turned to Hiccup. "We should get out of here too you know."
"Hang on a minute," Hiccup quickly answered after he heard some more voices. They now sounded clearer and Hiccup finally managed to make out some words. He pushed himself against the door and hidden in the steam, eavesdropping on the conversation.
"Are you sure about this Fat Consul?" one voice in the bath house asked. It sounded a little raspy. It was at that moment that something in Hiccup's brain clicked. It immediately told him that he had to hear the rest of the conversation.
"Of course I'm sure! That Outcast Chief fellow seems like a reliably person," boomed a louder and lower voice. Hiccup assumed that it was the Fat Consul. "He promised to leave us alone in exchange for the boy. Capturing his friends is the easiest way to lure him out."
"I'll have the guards search the perimeters."
Quickly, Hiccup took steps back, running into Astrid and Camicazi. He pulled them down the stairs as they exclaimed. Peering up the staircase, Hiccup saw a man in a robe as he walked out of the bath and down the corridor, not noticing the three vikings on the staircase below. Hiccup's breathing eventually calmed down and he heaved a sigh of relief. His expression suddenly became serious.
"Hiccup?" Camicazi began, concerned. "What's wrong." The viking heir furrowed his eyebrows. "Those Romans were speaking in Norse. And they were talking about an 'Outcast Chief'."
"Alvin?" Astrid pondered. Hiccup nodded. "I think he hatched a plan with the Romans. Is he still after me?"
"Seems like it," Astrid answered. Hiccup turned around and headed down the stairs. "We should get to Hrani and the others then get out of here as fast as we can. I don't want to think about what might happen if we got caught."
Camicazi and Astrid nodded before following Hiccup back down the staircase. They had to wait for some guards to pass before they managed to sneak down to the lower levels. Their footsteps echoed in the spiraling staircase that became smaller and smaller. The atmosphere started to smell like rotten flesh.
In the middle of the staircase, Hiccup stopped abruptly, prompting Astrid and Camicazi to bump into him. "Hey!" Camicazi hissed. "Watch where you're going." Hiccup impatiently shushed her. In the dim torch light, Hiccup managed to make out shadows approaching them accompanied with footsteps.
"What do we do?" Astrid whispered. Hiccup's hand instinctively went for the hilt of his sword. "We don't have any other choice. We're going to have to force our way though."
As the shadows just about reached them, Hiccup unsheathed his sword and stepped out of the shadows. A yelp echoed through the stairway as Hiccup found that he pointed his blade at Hrani's throat with Thuggory and Runa standing right behind him. They looked alright and uninjured. Hiccup lowered his sword and placed it back in it's scabbard. "So you guys made it out," he said. "But how?"
Gathering his guts and thoughts, Hrani held up a pair of keys. "You can't keep a Bog Burglar under a lock and key." Camicazi gave him a thumbs up. Suddenly, much louder footsteps and yelling could be heard. The sounds came from both up and below.
"The prisoners have escaped!"
"All guards head towards the dungeon!"
Seconds later when Hiccup whipped his head left and right, he found himself surrounded by dozens of Roman guards. Astrid and Camicazi drew their swords. Hiccup followed their example. He sighed before muttering, "I knew that was bound to happen."
Current Date: February 18th
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I'm still trying to figure out my writing style. I think my style is more or less reading and the story works as if it was a television series, like the mannerisms and the language usage.
What do you, the readers, think?
