Gee, these two week time intervals are passing so quickly...
In the last chapter, Hiccup and Astrid arrived back at the village of Berk, only to discover that the majority of the Viking tribe had left to drive the dragons out of their nest, after it was accidentally discovered by a Viking fisherman during Astrid's absence.
Hiccup was not pleased to be back in Berk, and tense words were exchanged with some of the younger Vikings, but in the end the stubborn villagers were convinced, with the help of the once caged dragons to ally with their generational enemies in order to defeat a common foe...for now.
The group of yound adults then set off on the backs of these dragons towards the Nest, with Hiccup at their head, and the safety of their home behind them...
Chapter Seven: The Red Death
Great, stony spires whipped past the small flight of dragons at such frantic speeds they became indistinguishable blurs amongst the great expanse of cold water and grey fog.
A great wave of blankness began to slowly engulf Astrid's mind like the warm, hazy breeze of a mid-summer's day, in complete contrast with the current surroundings.
It were as though her inner self was trying desperately to protect her from the horror of what she was about to face.
The others looked no better.
Fishlegs had ceased his incessant, intrigued fidgeting and was now quite green in the face...a shade mirrored perfectly in the features of the Gronckle he was riding; both of them looked like they were about to be sick.
The twins were casting nervous glances at one another and stroking their respective Zippleback head occasionally, while the double-headed dragon shared its riders' agitation.
Snotlout seemed to be the calmest.
His face looked as though it was set in stone, a look of grim defiance on his broad features.
The Nightmare he was riding seemed almost eager to begin battle, urging itself and its rider ever onwards with grim determination.
As for Astrid...she was just surprised that she was getting so good at reading the expressions on everyone's faces.
It seemed that she had learned a thing or two from Hiccup after all.
All of a sudden, a terrifying roar crashed down upon the flight's ears, tearing at the air itself.
Aside from the incredible, ear-splitting volume of the cry, that angry, enraged, furious, voice carried with it such fear and horror, that Astrid felt the Nadder beneath her shudder.
Placing her hand upon top of its head, the young woman closed her eyes momentarily and willed her mind to reach out to connect with her Nadder.
It was a strange technique which she had, once or twice, noticed Hiccup perform with Toothless.
She could only guess that it was how the two communicated so well, but could not think of a better time to try to create such a link between herself and her own dragon.
Her own dragon...
"Please, I need to know..." Astrid spoke inwardly, more with intention that anything else, "do you know what we are about to face?" She wasn't particularly surprised to get an answer almost immediately; the Nadder had been placing small thoughts and odd phrases into her mind throughout the entire trip so far, each one louder than the last, as though it was also trying to connect with her.
"I do," came the simple answer.
"Then...can you tell me if there's any hope for us...at all?"
"If we can set aside our differences for at least this one time, and put our collective efforts to this single task, then yes. But only if. I sense...there is still doubt in your mind. Doubt, and fear...fear of dragons...of us."
"Well, I'm sorry, but it may take many of us some time to...unlearn what we've been taught as Vikings."
"I understand this. Believe me, I do. I spent so many years captive in that cage of yours hoping only to live to see the next day dawn, that it is impossible for me not to feel some animosity towards your kind."
"Then, I guess, for at least this one time, we both have to put those feelings to one side and focus on the present."
"Indeed."
Intrigued as she was by this new bond she shared with the Nadder, Astrid still found it difficult to wrench her mind away from certain unanswered questions.
The mental link was tiring to sustain, but with one last push of willpower, she posed a further question.
"Why did you run from Hiccup and Toothless back on the mountain?" It seemed for a moment as though the Nadder's mind tensed up, unwilling to answer the question...at least not wholly.
"There are some things," it said after a moment's pause, "that he should probably tell you himself.
But know this; there are events in that boy's past so terrifying that they would make you quail even in comparison to what we must now face."
Astrid tore her mind back to the waking world, feeling the wind against and the rhythmic pulse of the dragon's wingbeats once again.
Realising that she was shaking a little, the young woman glanced around at the surroundings and the others.
It seemed that her little conversation with the Nadder had lasted no more than a few seconds, although really it had felt like so much longer.
There was another huge roar, even more piercing than the last.
They were getting close.
"Are we seriously going to do this?" Astrid's head whipped around to look a very fearful Fishlegs, perched precariously on the top of the Gronckle, and giving her a look which clearly said 'I-really-don't-want-to-die-so-please-don't-make-me-do-this'.
"Think about it! What can the four of us and three dragons do against a monster the size of Berk? There's a ninety-five percent chance that we're just throwing our lives away–" Astrid opened her mouth to interject angrily, but it was Snotlout who go there first.
"Oh, shut up!" he snarled, looking quite livid, and the Nightmare gave an angry bark, as though sharing his feelings. "It's do or die! And I don't mean for us! If we don't at least try to take this thing down then over half of our tribe is gonna be KILLED!" It seemed that here was a Viking who had finally sorted out where his priorities lay.
"Well, said!" chorused the twins, and Fishlegs blushed a deep shade of scarlet.
"But...aren't we at least going to have some kind of battle plan?" he asked feebly, staring around at the rest of them.
Astrid sighed; it was the one thing she had not yet considered, but thankfully, the answer was fairly simple.
"Well you're the dragon expert! Once we see the thing you can...analyse it and find out what its weaknesses are! And hopefully by the time Hiccup get's there he'll be able to finish it off!"
"Are you sure he's coming back?" called Ruffnut anxiously. "He hasn't just deserted us–"
"Of course not!" yelled Astrid fiercely, incensed that the female twin could even think of asking such a question.
But inwardly, she couldn't shake that seed of doubt from her mind.
"Have you, Hiccup?"
Suddenly, an immense, rocky spire loomed out of the fog ahead, and the small flight of dragons decelerated and began to soar slowly downwards.
As great beaches of fine pebbles and huge, stony spires appeared out of the gloom below them, there was a sudden burst of hot, orange flames in the corner of her eye, and Astrid's head whipped around in the direction of this startling new blast of light and heat.
And there they were.
There it was.
Death.
Red Death.
The pictures and paintings which the young woman had seen back in the halls of the hollow bastion did it no justice whatsoever.
The thing was colossal.
There were several audible gasps from her companions, and Astrid was not surprised to see looks of pure horror on their windswept faces.
The dragons looked just as terrified.
All four of the Zippleback's eyes were wide with fear, while the Gronckle simply refused to look at the beast, averting its gaze to one side.
Snotlout's Nightmare roared with agitation, and Astrid's Nadder shivered fearfully again.
The huge creature was at least the size of a small mountain, with great, grey wings, blood-red spines all down its back, and a huge mace for a tail.
But its head was the most peculiar looking thing of all.
It had a single set of pale, grey eyes, an excessively large lower jaw, and a gaping mouth that could easily swallow a longboat whole.
As the small flight of dragons bore down upon the beast from above, Astrid finally began to appreciate the magnitude of what they were about to do.
The battle they were about to fight.
The thing that they were about to try and destroy.
From her position high above the grey dragon, Astrid could make out throngs of terrified Vikings fleeing like ants across the stony beach from the towering form of the Red Death.
She could make out the steely glint of their weapons, useless upon the thick hide of the huge beast, and their brown fur vests, which would burn like parchment if set alight by flames from the monster's maw.
Turning to her right, the young woman saw the burning husks of some of the Vikings' longboats resting upon the shore, lit up like torches by some great gout of intense fire.
The villagers were trapped upon the island, and would be hunted down one by one and consumed or burned to ashes by the colossal dragon...unless Astrid and the others could help them.
But then something else caught her eye.
As the Vikings fled in droves before the howling Red Death, the young woman could make out the small figures of two single warriors standing to face the beast.
As she watched, one of them grabbed a large wooden stake from the ground, which had presumably been placed there along with many others to stave off an attack from numerous, smaller dragons.
Against the huge claws of this massive dragon, the small sliver of timber was now useless, but not in the hands of a strong and cunning Viking like Stoick the Vast.
As the chief hurled the stake up at the dragon's face with all his might, the small flight of dragons and its riders watched on in fear.
The beam of wood struck the dragon fair in the face, right below the eye, the sharp point glancing harmlessly off the Red Death's scaly hide but causing the beast to flinch with shock, and turn its attention to the tiny man on the ground who had irritated it so.
Roaring with displeasure, it reared its ugly head and peered down at the pair of Vikings which now seemed to be taunting it, each in turn shouting as loudly as they possibly could at it.
But Astrid had now seen enough to know that unless they acted now, there would soon be nothing left of Stoick the Vast and Gobber the Belch but a cloud of black soot and ashes.
"Follow me!" she shouted back to the Vikings behind her, and urged the Nadder into a downward spiral, heading straight for the dragon's head.
"It's now or never," she whispered to her flying companion, leaning down to bring her mouth close to the Nadder's head.
And as the Red Death reared back once again, preparing to unleash a torrent of raging flames upon the little pests at its feet, Astrid's dragon opened its mouth wide, took in a great breath of air, and fired.
The screaming burst of the powerful stream of fire sent shivers down the young woman's spine, but at the same time gave her a tremendous sense of exhilaration.
The blast hit the grey beast directly on the back of its neck, causing it to momentarily lose its concentration and roar with anger.
The fire did no visible damage, but had at least saved the two adults on the beach below from a grisly death.
From somewhere behind her, Astrid heard cheering and shouting.
"Good shot!" came Snotlout's voice, while the rest of the gang whooped and hollered, cheering her on.
As the dragons spread their wings wide and came around to glide over the towering beast's head, Astrid peered down at the pair of Vikings on the beach below, both of whom were staring up at the small flight of dragons with looks of pure amazement upon their uplifted faces.
"Look at us!" Tuffnut yelled from somewhere behind her. "We're on a dragon! We're on dragons, all of us!"
As a great bout of cheers arose from the crowd of the Vikings down on the beach, Astrid glanced back at the huge grey dragon behind them, now shaking its head in irritation as though trying to flick off an irksome fly.
Clearly, it was going to take a lot more than a dragon's simple fire-blast to do any kind of damage to the thing.
Perhaps Toothless' fire could penetrate its thick hide, but they would have to wait until Hiccup and the Night Fury turned up.
So until then...
"Alright, focus people!" Astrid shouted back at the other dragons and their riders, and all heads turned to her. "Fishlegs, break it down!" If anyone could find a weakness in this thing, he could.
And as the chubby Viking's eyes lit up like the brightest of candles, she could tell he was already analysing.
"Alright! Heavily armoured skull made for bashing and crushing! Steer clear of both! Small eyes, large nostrils! Relies on hearing and smell!" This all seemed to make sense...and in that case –
"Alright, 'Lout, 'Legs, hang in its blind spot! Make some noise, keep it confused!" The two male Vikings nodded in acknowledgement of her orders. "Ruff, Tuff, find out if it has a shot limit! Make it mad!"
"That's my specialty!" replied Ruffnut joyously, delighted at the idea of actually being told to cause aggravation and provocation.
"Since when?" interjected her twin-brother furiously. "Everyone knows I'm more irritating! See?" And the blond Viking boy flipped upside down upon his dragon head, pulling a grotesque face at his sister, who retaliated by grabbing at his head with a playful sneer.
Astrid sighed; this was really no time for games.
"Just do what I told you! I'll wait for the right time to make a move and see if I can hit a soft spot or something!" But as the small flight of dragons split off into even smaller wings and circled back around towards the huge grey beast, the young woman felt a shiver of nervousness course down her spine, followed almost immediately by a bizarre sense of pride.
It seemed that she was doing exactly what Hiccup would have done in the same situation...
"Don' worry! We got it all covered!" shouted Snotlout in reply, as the other three dragons descended upon the Red Death.
Astrid glanced over her right shoulder and peered back at the hordes of fleeing Vikings, who were at least smart enough to run from such a monster.
She could just make out the figures of Stoick and Gobber pelting after the rest of the villagers at top speed.
A flickering fire in the corner of her eye attracted her attention, and Astrid suddenly found herself staring at the great row of burning sails and timber...the last remnants of the Vikings' fleet of longboats.
The massive dragon had obviously torched the whole lot to stop its meal escaping.
Such firepower!
She could only hope that the others could hold their own against the beast and avoid its fiery breath.
Circling back around high over the great thing's head, Astrid watched nervously as the twins and their mount shot past the Red Death's huge maw, and promptly evaded a pair of massive fire-blasts with relative ease; at least they could do their job.
'Lout and 'Legs were bashing their weapons hard against their shields right up against the beast's ears in the hope of befuddling it, but the noise seemed to be doing very little.
Astrid cursed out loud as the Red Death opened two extra pairs of evil, grey eyes and peered menacingly at the tiny bugs flitting around its head.
"No blind spot then..." she muttered furiously to herself, mind racing with insane thoughts and crazy notions of what to do...
"Little one, your head is like the murky waters of churning fjord; difficult to fathom, impossible to traverse, and no use to anyone.
Calm yourself!" But for the first time, Astrid found herself slightly frustrated by the idea of being told what to do by a dragon.
"Hey! I'm not the one who shied away from one little boy and his dragon just because of some scary stories!" But this was a very bad thing to say indeed.
"How DARE you insult my courage!" the Nadder roared into Astrid's mind, and the young woman flinched at the sudden blast of thought.
"I could buck you from my neck and watch you tumble back to earth without a second thought! You know NOTHING of what that boy did while he was away from your village!" Astrid sighed angrily, admitting inwardly that she was, in fact, wrong to think of such matters in such a way.
And once again, her curiosity was aroused –
Astrid immediately stopped and focussed her thoughts on the present; if they were to survive this battle, she would have to put all other thoughts aside for the time being and focus all of her efforts onto the single task ahead.
Astrid pressed herself flat against the Nadder's scaly back and directed it straight down towards the huge, grey head of the Red Death.
"I'm sorry I said that," she admitted strongly, closing her eyes briefly to apologise to the dragon upon which she flew. "It was wrong and inappropriate and I'm sorry!" Without waiting for a reply, she guided the Nadder straight towards the eyes of the huge beast below.
The blue dragon had, it seemed, both accepted her apology and realised what she was trying to do.
Screeching a mighty battle-cry, the Nadder let out a single shot of fire from its mouth, and swerved immediately to the right to avoid the blast.
The fireball connected directly with the monster's eye, and erupted into a searing explosion of light and heat.
The great beast roared with irritation, and shook its head angrily, but moments later, as Astrid looked back over her shoulder, she saw that the fire had done no damage whatsoever; even the thing's eyes were fireproof.
Coming back around for another pass, she watched in horror as 'Lout and 'Legs continued to bash their weapons against their shields, unaware that all they were doing was causing the dragons that they were riding to lose concentration.
The Nightmare shook its head dazedly, and practically fell sideways into the head of the Red Death, knocking its rider flying.
As Snotlout came to a grinding halt atop the huge beast's head, Fishlegs' Gronckle began to spin in circles, spiralling down towards the stony beach below.
"Snotlout! Do something!" Astrid heard him shriek as the boy hurled his mace over to the beleaguered Viking who now stood precariously atop the head of the Red Death.
The beast had obviously given up on the twins, for it refused to bat even one of its six eyelids as the Zippleback swooped overhead once again, its riders hurling all manner of abuse and insults.
Instead it opted to set its sights on that chubby little Viking and the Gronckle which had so delightfully decided to crash right beside one of its very large and spiny feet...
Thinking like a dragon was obviously something which Astrid was going to have to get used to.
Fishlegs yelled in fright as the Red Death raised one of its huge claws up into the air, preparing to squash the terrified Viking deep into the grey rocks of the desolate beach.
"I can't miss!" yelled Snotlout gleefully, climbing down over the huge beasts head and whacking its eyes repeatedly with Fishlegs' mace. "What's wrong, buddy? Got somethin' in your eye?" With a terrific roar, the Red Death lurched to one side, and its claw came crashing back down just the right of Fishlegs' prone form upon the beach.
He was alright.
For now, at least.
"Yeah!" shouted Astrid approvingly as she and the Nadder swooped over the monster's head. "You're the Viking!" Snotlout looked up momentarily to give her a joyous grin; it seemed that in battle, the boy's horribly mean and selfish attitudes were replaced by real Viking strength and courage.
But the Red Death did not approve of this little ant scratching at its eyes, and with a simple jerk of its head it flicked Snotlout carelessly into the air.
The Viking barely managed to avoid toppling to his death upon the rocky shores below, and clung onto the side of the beast's hideous head.
Guiding the Nadder back around towards the twins, Astrid yelled out to the two of them "Get Snotlout out of there!"
"I'm on it!" they both chorused, but she could still hear them bickering about who was "on it" first as the Nadder hurtled away, swooping down over Fishlegs.
"Are you alright?" she called out, and the blue dragon screeched what was obviously the same question to the downed Gronckle.
"Fine, fine!" 'Legs yelled in reply, and the chubby, brown dragon barked what could only be the same answer.
Veering back upwards, Astrid tailed the twins and watched as Snotlout took a massive leap of faith, hurling himself from the tip of the beast's snout, and into oncoming Zippleback, which caught him safely and proceeded to turn away sharply.
Still following the double-headed dragon on its course away from the Red Death, Astrid breathed a deep sigh of relief–
But her brief moment of serenity was cut drastically short by a horrid noise emanating from the gullet of the huge monster behind her...
As Toothless sped ever onwards towards the Dragon's Nest, Hiccup imagined that he could almost hear the faint sounds of a raging battle.
The terrifying roar of an enraged dragon, the shouts and cries of suffering Vikings, and the screams of his dying companions – shaking angrily, the boy pinched himself, giving himself a proper wakeup to the current situation.
He could only hope that his small delay had not cost the lives of any more Vikings...
Breathing deeply, he reached out to connect with the mind of his faithful friend.
"In case we don't get out of this one alive bud, I just wanted to say that–" But Toothless interrupted him with a sharp, rebuking growl.
"Hiccup, this is neither necessary nor wanted–"
"I don't care! Just let me say it anyway!" The dragon considered for only a second before acquiescing.
"Fine, let's hear it."
"I just want you to know, Toothless, that I'm...so glad I met you, and that it's really been quite an amazing experience having a dragon for a friend, so thank you. There, you happy?" He had touched a soft spot within the Night Fury's strong heart, and was not surprised to have to wait for an answer, which, when it came, was somewhat tearful and emotional.
"And may I say, little Hiccup, that it has been truly delightful to have met such a loving, caring and thoughtful Viking, one who would willingly give up his place within his own home village to help a dragon like myself. Thank you!"
Scratching Toothless' head affectionately, Hiccup allowed a small smile to pass across his face, and was pleased to see that the Night Fury was attempting that ridiculous grin that he occasionally tried to do whenever his human friend was feeling particularly down and out.
"We've had some good times together, eh?"
"And some bad ones too," Toothless reminded him, firing a shot of reality into Hiccup's happy memories.
"Too right..." the boy concurred with a slight frown. "But now we're going to do something which will help to set everything right!"
Toothless growled in admiration of rider's fierce determination, but acted the realist once again.
"Just remember what I told you about the Red Death...they are far more dangerous than you can even imagine..."
As the sounds of battle began to break through the confines of Hiccup's imagination and penetrate the surrounding mists of the Eastern Seas, the boy pulled himself back into the physical world and peered ahead at the looming shape of the Dragon's Island.
Toothless snarled and shook his head, and his rider bent down over the dragon's neck, flattening himself against the Night Fury's back, the pair braced itself for anything and everything.
Speeding past numerous stony sea stacks at breakneck speed, Hiccup caught a glimpse of a large mass of Vikings moving along the desolate beaches far below, obviously fleeing from something.
Something...
An immense, grey and red form began to slowly appear out of the swirling mists surrounding the Dragon's Island, its long tail thrashing around like mad, a pair of great, ragged wings furled at its sides...The Red Death was more fearsome in life than any words Hiccup could think of to describe it.
With a large head and jaw, six small, grey eyes and a scaly hide covered in great red spines, it was easily the most evil thing he had ever seen.
And it was angry...very angry.
As the two of them drew closer and closer, Hiccup was able to make out the forms of several dragons flitting around the beast's head.
Two winged reptiles swooped over the monster's nose, but it followed them with those piercing grey eyes, and opened its mouth wide.
Hiccup's heart skipped a beat, and his immediate impulse was to shout out in warning, despite knowing that he was still too far away to be heard, instead of trying to roast its intended victims, the beast began to take a deep breath, sucking in as much air as possible; it wanted a meal, and it wanted one now.
This was enough for Hiccup.
His face twisting into an angry snarl not unlike that which Toothless occasionally put on when he was feeling particularly enraged, the boy flicked the Night Fury's tail-fin into the dive position, and set his sights on the monsters maw; he could not be responsible for anyone else's death, directly or otherwise.
Sensing his intentions, Toothless growled appreciatively, and brought his wings around in preparation for the drop.
"Here we go then!" hissed Hiccup, and the Night Fury roared, flattening his ears back against his head and positioned the flaps on the side of his head such that a faint whistling noise was produced by the rushing of air through the slits between the dragon's ears and its crown fins.
Toothless and his rider began to dive, and the faint noise began to increase in strength as the two of them gained speed, climbing in volume until it became a veritable shriek.
As Hiccup peered ahead at the rapidly approaching form of the Red Death, the scream of the Night Fury reached such ear-piercing levels that it resounded off the surrounding cliffs and sea stacks, announcing with forceful vigour the arrival of the boy and his dragon.
What was unmistakably a Deadly Nadder was now barely a couple of yards from the gaping maw of the hungry beast intent on swallowing it whole, and Hiccup's heart leapt into his mouth.
He could see Astrid atop the struggling dragon, trying desperately to keep her hold upon the Nadder's scaly back, but she was fighting a losing battle against the immense volumes of air the Red Death was sucking up in its efforts to snag itself a snack.
In spite of his focussed state of mind, the boy could not stop that familiar cascade of terrified emotions breaking like a torrential flood into his heart.
"I can't lose anyone else!" he whispered in anguish, and directed Toothless' snout straight at the monster's face.
Waiting for just the right moment, the Night Fury opened his mouth wide, gathering air for the blast.
Only when the two of them were merely fifty feet from the huge beast's face, the terrified expression on Astrid's face and that of the Nadder were completely distinguishable, did Toothless let loose.
The piercing scream of the Night Fury combined with the searing roar of the fireball which he now unleashed felt like they were tearing Hiccup's ears out...but the result was absolute.
The fiery comet connected directly with the monster's face, and the heat from resulting explosion reached out even to Hiccup's prone form atop the black dragon, now shooting by a such great speeds that even the familiar streams of condensed air were starting to accumulate on the Night Fury's snout and wings.
Such power was there imbibed in the fireball that the blast sent the Red Death reeling away in shock, and knocked Astrid clean off the Nadder's back, the two of them beginning to fall back towards the earth, albeit on separate paths.
While the spined blue dragon could at least prevent itself from crashing to the ground in a fatal smashing of bones and crushing of limbs, its rider could not.
As Toothless rapidly gained height once again, Hiccup flicked the tail-fin around and the black dragon came to a screeching halt in the air.
Clutching tightly at the harness, the boy was almost thrown from the saddle by the immense force of the Night Fury half-turning for a second time in mid-air, and then pointing himself back to face the towering form of the Red Death.
Astrid's frail form could now be seen falling helplessly towards the ground, flailing in terror at what was about to become of her.
But Hiccup could not let that happen.
Would not let that happen.
Throwing himself and the dragon once again into a steep, calculated dive, Hiccup set his sights on the young woman's small body hurtling towards the ground, and flattened himself against the Night Fury's back.
Toothless roared again, speeding down towards Astrid's form.
They had to get there in time...they had to.
Hiccup's heart could not survive another terrible blow, such as the death of–
The black dragon swooped directly underneath the grey monster's head, so very close the ground, and Hiccup felt a slight jerk as something connected with Toothless' legs.
Speeding away from the monstrous Red Death, barely ten feet from the ground, Hiccup leaned as far over the dragon's side as was possible without risking his potentially fatal fall from the saddle, but still could not see what he now so hoped for.
"Did you get her?" he cried frantically, barely concentrating on anything else.
Toothless bent his head forwards to look back between his legs, and let out a bizarre noise somewhere between growl and a laugh.
Bringing his scaly snout back up to a horizontal level, the Night Fury, shot Hiccup a brief grin, and the boy felt the knot of tension which had been building up in his stomach loosen.
Astrid was safe.
As Toothless began to slow his flight, the dragon and his rider soared around across the desolate, stony beach, and came in to land just out of sight of the large mob of Vikings.
The throng had now ceased its terrified flight and turned back to watch the battle now raging between the sons and daughters of their village riding their own arch enemies, and a monstrosity never before seen by any Viking's eyes.
Pausing only momentarily in his landing to release Astrid from the clutches of his paws, Toothless crunched down upon the grey pebbles covering the misty shores of the Dragon's Island, now riddled with shards of pulverised stone and pieces of smouldering timber, scattered by the ocean currents from the smouldering husks of the longboats.
Leaping without a second thought from Toothless' saddle, Hiccup rushed around the dragon's side to see the young woman kneeling upon the beach with her hands upon her knees and her head staring directly at the ground, breathing deeply.
"Astrid!
Are you alright?" She was shaking a little, and Hiccup wasn't surprised to feel that she was drenched in a layer of cold sweat as he knelt down in front of her and placed a hand upon her shoulder.
"I'm f-fine," she stammered not meeting his gaze.
"...'f you'd c-come only a second l-later –"
"I'm here now," the boy cut in fiercely, terrified that his delay had very nearly cost Astrid her life. "And I'm going to finish this...once and for all." Standing back up, Hiccup made to get back into the saddle, but was surprised to feel the sudden grasp of Astrid's cold and clammy hand upon the back of his.
"W-Wait, Hiccup, wait..." The boy sighed with exasperation, turning back to look at the blond Viking.
"Astrid, I need to get back up there and help the others! This thing's my responsibility now; I'm not going to let it hurt anyone else –"
"Hiccup, I love you."
The words fell like boulders upon the boy's head, smiting him with a sense of the surreal, rendering his mind completely inert.
Did she really just...?
Astrid was now looking straight at him, a slight smile present on her smooth face, her eyes glowing with the moisture of brimming tears, barely visible under her messy, windswept hair.
"Now go! GO!" She gave him a push towards Toothless, who was now baring his teeth savagely and giving Astrid a revolted look, and Hiccup staggered backwards, still reeling from the impact of what she had just said to him.
Finally realising that he was, in fact, not dreaming and instead standing awake and alive on the desolate, grey beaches of the Dragon's Island, the boy turned.
Without another word, he climbed swiftly up onto the Night Fury's neck, and with a flick of his foot, the boy and his dragon were off once more, hurtling skyward with fierce determination.
Not even the furious pounding of Toothless' wings and the growing screeches of an enraged giant could distract Hiccup enough, and the boy turned to look back over his shoulder at Astrid's receding form, now being swarmed by anxious Viking adults.
Shaking his head with a sigh, Hiccup turned once again to look ahead at the Red Death, which was now busy treading on the rest of the Viking longboats which rested in the shallows, splintering them into millions of burning fragments with its boulder-sized, spine-soled feet and roaring in rage.
In spite of his own anger towards the immense beast, which had already claimed the lives of several Vikings that day, Hiccup's instinctive impulse to at least try to end the conflict peacefully kicked in.
Sensing his rider's intentions, Toothless gave a warning growl.
It was evident that he believed the boy's intentions would get them both killed, and precede the deaths of the every single Viking on the Dragon's Island.
"But I have to at least try," Hiccup thought pleadingly, and Toothless hissed in grudging acquiescence.
"I have to give him a chance."
Flying slowly towards the immense form of the colossal, grey dragon on the beach below, Hiccup held his breath, his nerves tingling with shock and awe at his own bravery...or perhaps it was just foolishness, plain and simple.
The rest of the gang was nowhere to be seen, and he could only hope that they had escaped and joined up with the rest of the Vikings.
Soaring over the beast's head, the boy leaned over to one side and took a deep breath.
"I know you can both hear and understand me," he shouted down at the Red Death, and all six of the monster's eyes immediately flicked upwards to stare at Hiccup and Toothless hovering above her nose. "So I'm only going to say this once; I want you to leave! Fly back to the Far East, take the rest of your kind with you, and harm no other dragon or human ever again!" The beast paused in its demolition of the few remaining Viking ships, almost as if it were giving his words serious consideration.
"The alternative," Hiccup continued, without batting an eyelid, "is your destruction!"
The dragon's answer was clear and simple.
Letting out a terrific roar of defiance, the Dragon King reared up on his hind legs, effectively doubling his height so that the huge beast's open maw was now right at the level at which Toothless was hovering.
Diving to one side, the boy and his dragon barely managed to avoid the lunge of the furious monster, which slammed back down with its crushing claws, sending sprays of icy water all down the side of the mountainous nest which formed the centre of the island.
"Well if that's your answer...!" Hiccup shouted before flicking Toothless' tail-fin into a climb and shooting off away from the Red Death.
As the two of them reached almost half a mile up in the air, they turned back, and the boy looked down at his immense adversary which still staring up at them with death in his cold, grey eyes.
"That thing has wings," Hiccup spoke fiercely, and Toothless growled in acknowledgement, realising immediately what his rider's plan was. "Let's see if he can use them!"
Turning sharply at the apex of their climb, the two of them were suddenly speeding back down towards the Dragon King, aiming straight for the head once again.
As the Night Fury's scream began to grow once again, tearing at the surrounding air like relentless talons of piercing sound, Hiccup looked down into the beast's eyes.
The Red Death simply stood there, as though contemplative or thoughtful, staring straight back at the boy with all six of his eyes.
But Hiccup knew what was to be done, and he would not falter in his efforts to bring the beast down.
Once again, the terrific scream of the black dragon combined with the scorching sound of his fiery attack to produce an overtone of pure destruction, and the white fireball struck the Dragon King square in the face.
As the pair of them shot over the stony sea stacks behind the grey monster, Hiccup glanced back over his shoulder to see the Red Death lying on its side with black smoke billowing from the blast on his face.
His huge sides heaving with deep breaths, the beast almost seemed like he could hardly find the energy or willpower to get back up and fight...
A huge, ragged wing spread out from where it had been neatly furled at the monster's side, casting an immense, dark shadow over the beach even though the sun was now almost invisible behind a panoramic curtain of dull, murky mist.
Merely a moment later, the Red Death was airborne, his great, grey wings propelling him skyward with massive, concussive beats which whipped up cyclonic gales of dust and pebbles from the desolate beach below.
The first part of Hiccup's plan had succeeded.
"Now I just need to figure out how to take it down," the boy thought to himself, and Toothless concurred with a sharp nod. "At least now that it's flying I can try to make it crash–"
But he had little more time to think, for the Red Death was not only flying, but had set his sights on the Night Fury and his rider, malicious intent visible in his six, menacing grey eyes.
Tearing his gaze away from the strangely enthralling sight of such a monstrosity in full flight, Hiccup checked his surroundings for something...anything that could help him.
A towering, volcanic mountain, countless rocky sea stacks, a stone-grey beach stretching for miles around the island, and a sky filled with billowing black clouds which blotted out the afternoon sun with their bulk, indicating that a storm was on the way...
And into Hiccup's mind exploded an idea that just might work.
Dangerous, to say the least...but it was the best they had, and they both knew it.
Toothless banked sharply, veering back around to look directly at the monster for just a moment, before turning back away to face out to sea, taunting the beast, goading him into chasing the pair of them.
Hiccup was almost deafened by the Dragon King's response, a terrific roar of ear-splitting magnitude...but the boy was no longer scared; this was something which had been a long time coming, and he was prepared for it.
"Come on!" he shouted over his shoulder at the colossal beast, who was now tailing them with all six beady eyes and its entire flying form. "Are you feeling hungry? Come and get me!" The Red Death roared again, and made a dive at the pair of them.
But Toothless was simply far too swift for the grey monstrosity, and swerved to one side with a kind of smooth agility that only the Night Fury possessed.
Growling in anger at his failed lunge, his immense wings beating powerfully to keep him airborne, the Red Death turned and began to fly directly behind the boy and his dragon, giving chase at last.
Swooping over the beach once again, Toothless put in an extra spurt of speed, pushing the two of them forward.
As Hiccup and the Night Fury shot over the stony shores and out amongst the numerous sea stacks, the boy turned to the right to glance back at the island, ever aware of the monster in the corner of his eye.
There, crowded back together on the desolate beach, were the Vikings, all looking up at him, watching his aerial dance with death...Hiccup could only hope that, when it was all over, no matter the outcome, they would still let him choose his own path; stay in the village or leave once again...assuming he was still alive.
Shuddering at the thought, the boy glanced back over his shoulder again.
The Red Death was getting closer.
It seemed that, in outright flying pace, they were outmatched by their gigantic opponent, and would very soon be caught.
It was time for the next phase of Hiccup's plan.
Flinching as the monster smashed its way through several sea stacks with pure brute force in its attempts to get to the boy and his dragon, Hiccup glanced back at the beach once again.
It seemed, although his ears may have been deceiving him, that the Vikings were cheering him on...perhaps there was hope yet, and not just for his battle with the Red Death.
"Alright Toothless," the boy spoke with determination, "time to disappear!" With a flick of his foot, Hiccup sent the Night Fury into a sudden, steep climb, heading straight for the dark skies above.
"Come on bud!" Veering upwards, the boy could sense the monster's presence still behind him, but now beginning to fall back a little; he couldn't climb quite as fast as the Night Fury.
This tactic would not only buy the two of them some more time, but also brought them closer to the fall of the Dragon King.
The beast, who was evidently less than pleased at seeing his prey speeding away from him up into the cloudy sky, let out another roar...and took in a deep breath.
"You ready, bud?" Hiccup shouted above the howl of the wind, and Toothless gave a loud bark. "Here it comes!" And the two of them fell away to one side, just in time to avoid a huge fire-blast from the monster's gaping maw.
The flames tore through the air with a scorching intensity, but passed harmlessly by the boy and his dragon, and Hiccup gave silent praise to the Night Fury's flying skills and his own awareness; any contact with such an inferno would not be desirable, to say the least.
As raggedy clouds began to whip by Toothless' lithe body, the black dragon continued to beat his wings as hard as he could, sending the two of them ever further skyward, and Hiccup took a quick glance back over his shoulder one last time.
Thrusting itself upwards in hot pursuit was the formidable form of the Dragon King, and below him were the icy seas surrounding the Dragon's Island and the huge nest itself, swathed in great clouds of murky fog, the whole expanse laid out miles below...a fall from this height would be fatal...even for a monstrosity the as enormous as that which now followed Hiccup, determined to catch and devour the boy and his dragon.
As masses of dark clouds began to envelop Toothless' speeding form, Hiccup twisted his foot around a little, and the black dragon slowly began to plateau out.
The rushing wingbeats of the colossal dragon behind them now began to fade a little, and the boy swerved violently left, and then right again several times, determined to lose the beast in the dense, stormy clouds.
After a moment or two, it seemed to have worked, for the concussive wingbeats of the Red Death faded almost entirely...or at least, they seemed to come to a halt, as though the monster was simply hovering there...Hiccup pictured the beast turning agitatedly, peering one way and then the other into the clouds, trying desperately to spot his quarry, and smiled at the thought.
His moment of amusement was short lived, however, for what came next was an experience unsurpassed in ferocity and terror by anything that the boy had ever before experienced.
"Come out, come out little one...I know you're hiding in there somewhere..." The thoughts punched directly into Hiccup's mind, as loud and clear as though they had been bellowed straight into his ears by an angry Viking, and as unstoppable as the night itself, relentlessly forcing their way through every last piece of mental defence like shadows of pitch darkness eclipsing the light of day entirely.
This was what Toothless had meant.
"But you cannot escape me!" The Red Death was speaking directly to Hiccup, in spite of the great distance separating the two of them, and the boy shuddered at the pure horror embedded in his words.
"I have seen into your heart, little Hiccup, and it is mine. I will devour you, savouring every last morsel. Your treacherous dragon will go next, he who so blindly turned to human companionship and betrayed his master, and all those Vikings that you love and cherish will follow."
The Dragon King's words carried tremendous power, and as the cold, moist air of a stormy afternoon continued to stream past Hiccup's face, the young man shut his eyes and tried to lock his mind, cringing at the pain which the beast was now inflicting upon him with mere thoughts alone.
Toothless could sense his rider's agony, and tried desperately to help the boy keep his grip on reality, growling in anger at the monster's cowardly attack on a weaker, human mind.
But his efforts were to no avail.
"Why prolong the pain?" the Red Death crooned horribly, now reaching out to touch Hiccup's very feelings themselves. "Death can be no better than what you are now feeling...the terrible memories you are ever experiencing...the thought the you and you alone are responsible for the deaths of so many..."
Hiccup could stand it no longer.
Screaming his fury to the sky, tears of agony streaming from his eyes, the young man flicked his foot once more and sent the black dragon into a steep dive back towards the direction from whence the terrible thoughts of the evil beast emanated.
Toothless roared again, enraged that his rider was in such pain, and began to let his scream of war built once again.
As the sound of the Night Fury's attack pierced Hiccup's mind and blocked out every last one of the Red Death's horrible thoughts, the two of them shot down towards the Dragon King, and Toothless let loose.
The fireball slammed into one of the beast's wings, the force and intensity of the heat blasting a small hole in the grey hide, not large enough to cause the monster to lose his ability to fly, but...
Swooping around for another pass, Hiccup wiped the last of the tears of pain from his eyes, and grinned savagely as the Red Death screeched with pain, his head whipping round in an attempt to follow the boy and his dragon...but not nearly fast enough.
As a second fireball tore through the grey fabric of the beast's wing, Toothless roared with equally ruthless joy at the monster's cries of anger and distress.
Again and again they struck, each time ripping open a new hole in the Dragon King's wings, none of them large enough to be crippling, yet all of them utterly necessary in Hiccup's plan for the monster's demise.
Enraged at this seemingly cowardly attack, the Red Death screamed to the clouds, took in another deep breath, and blasted a cyclonic wave of intense flames in all directions, spinning on the spot with powerful flaps form its ragged wings, determined to destroy the traitorous black dragon and his human counterpart.
Speeding away from one last strike against the beast, Hiccup and Toothless both glanced backwards at the great wall of fire rushing up behind them.
"Watch out!" shouted Hiccup, and veered the dragon to one side, desperate to avoid any kind of contact with the searing tongues of pure Hel.
But to no avail.
A small part of the fiery column lashed out at the Night Fury's tail-fin, the intense heat choking the leather wing and causing it to instantly burst into the flames.
Thankfully, the material was tough and would take a little while to burn through fully, but if Hiccup couldn't put the final parts of his plan into action quickly enough, it was going to be a long way down to the ground with a deadly crash at the end.
"Alright, time's up!" he spoke loudly. "Let's see if this works!" In a graceful arc, the boy and his dragon swooped back over and down towards the raging giant, aiming straight for its head once again, but this time with a different goal in mind.
"Come on! Is that the best you can do?" Hiccup jeered as fiercely as he possibly could, and Toothless let out an angry screech, saying just as much in his own way.
The Red Death's eyes instantly widened in surprise at the sudden appearance of the small, black dragon and his rider racing almost directly at the Dragon King, but reacted with the speed of a thunderbolt, opening his mouth wide for the oncoming Night Fury.
Swerving to one side at the last moment, the boy and his dragon just managed to avoid the crushing jaws of the grey giant, and they snapped shut on nothing but air, leaving an enraged and hungry monster with an empty mouth.
Screeching with frustration, the beast turned to face the Night Fury's tail, still beating his wings furiously in order to stay airborne, and gave chase once again, as the Hiccup and Toothless sped away...heading straight down towards the earth.
As Toothless pressed forward, beating his wings faster and faster, Hiccup's eyes began to smart from the icy chill of the stormy air rushing past the two of them at tremendous speeds, and watched as countless dark clouds shot by, many still concealing the ground below them, the ground which they were now hurtling towards at breakneck pace.
This was it; the last stage of his plan...and the most dangerous.
Ever conscious of the fact that his ability to fly was now slipping through his grasp with the slowly burning leather fin attached to the end of his tail, Toothless' eyes widened with fright...they were going to crash.
"Hang in there bud, we're good! Just a little bit longer!" Hiccup tried frantically to comfort the fearful Night Fury, but his own terror at the landing that was yet to come began to stab at his nerves like hot knives of pure horror.
The cold air tore at the boy's face, and Hiccup glanced over his shoulder once more.
The Red Death was directly behind them, plummeting straight towards the ground, intent on destroying the pesky little boy and his traitorous dragon who had caused the Dragon King so much fuss, blinded by rage and frustration...unaware of the danger lurking below the last clouds through which the three of them now plummeted.
The monster began to take in a huge breath, sucking in colossal volumes of air, preparing to blast his prey from the sky...just as Hiccup knew he would.
"Hold Toothless..." he spoke gently to the Night Fury, and the black dragon steeled himself, confident in his rider's abilities.
"Now!"
The two of them spun gracefully in mid air, turning right around to stare back at the looming form of the Red Death, now directly above them...and fired.
The blindingly white fireball shot straight into the monster's open jaws just as the three of them fell past the lowest clouds, and caused the flammable gasses built up in the beast's gullet to erupt into a raging inferno before they were ready to be expelled.
Unable to spit out the fiery maelstrom now raging inside his body, the Dragon King's eyes widened with fear upon realising that the stony shores of the Dragon's Island were now dangerously close and visible, rushing up towards the three of them at a tremendous pace.
Opening his wings wide, the Red Death attempted to decelerate and stop himself from slamming into the rocky beach with deadly impact...and thus the final step of Hiccup's plan for the beast's demise came to fruition.
The numerous small holes torn in the monster's wings by the Night Fury's swift attacks high in the sky had not caused the Red Death to fall from the sky immediately, but now began to rip wide open with the pressing of air from below.
Choking on the inferno building inside him, the monster tried desperately to slow his descent...but to no avail.
There, right before his very eyes but just out of reach, were the two little beings who had brought him low – the boy and his dragon.
Hiccup felt a powerful surge of triumph, but his hopes immediately plummeted again upon realising that he and Toothless were still falling as fast as the Red Death, and would now not only slam into the ground with deadly force, but would also be crushed by the immense body of the Dragon King...torn apart by the following explosion.
Flicking his foot around once more, Hiccup gave praise to Thor that the artificial tail-fin was not yet completely burned out, and Toothless spread his wings wide to bring the two of them to an almost complete halt in the air.
Diving to one side, the Night Fury barely managed to avoid the plummeting form of the Red Death, which tore past them at lightning pace.
Realising how very close they now were to the ground, Hiccup kicked the stirrups one last time, sending the black dragon into a climb, trying to put as much distance between the two of them and –
Astrid bit her lip, watching in terror as the gigantic form of the Red Death hurtled helplessly towards the ground, the tiny, dark forms of Hiccup and Toothless barely visible against the monster's silhouette.
She had seen it all: the boy's daring game of cat and mouse with the monster, the bright, fiery flashes which had lit up the clouds like Thor's rage incarnate, Toothless' speeding form shooting out of the clouds, smoke billowing from his tail, and finally the perfect shot straight down the beast's throat which ignited the Red Death's innards.
To top it all off, the monster was now going to crash with fatal certainty into the desolate reach over which it had for so long ruled with cruel oppression.
They had won.
But Hiccup was still in danger.
The young man may have avoided being crushed under the beast's falling body, but Toothless' replacement fin could not sustain flight for much longer, and the two of them would most likely have a very hard landing ahead of them, even though they were now barely fifty yards from the ground and descending very slowly.
But what came next was terrifyingly unexpected.
Hiccup and Toothless began suddenly to climb very sharply, instead of simply trying to glide down to land softly at the water's edge...but why – and the answer tore asunder Astrid's confusion, with the final crash of the Red Death upon the rocky shores.
A tremendous explosion ripped through the dragon's body, tearing apart scales and skull with equal ease.
The fiery inferno of the beast's death cast intense shadows across the landscape for miles around, its last screech of defiance eclipsed by the immense, concussive blast which emanated outwards across the beach like winds of destruction incarnate.
As the monster's fiery death throes lit up the surroundings like an immense bonfire in the dark of deepest night, the crowd of Vikings was battered by the shockwave from the explosion which swept up a great cloud of dark, grey sand from the desolate beach, and several people were knocked clean off their feet by the powerful blast of heated air.
Bracing herself just in time to stand in the face of the winds, Astrid peered directly into the dusty skies above the growing inferno, searching desperately for any sign that Hiccup was still flying safe...
And there he was, flying straight upwards, barely escaping the rolling waves of flames which licked at the black dragon's tail, trying to capture and consume the two of them in the furnace of the Red Death's demise.
It looked for all the world like they were going to escape–
But then a dark shape loomed above the rider and dragon, a black silhouette extending up from the fires that swelled below.
The Red Death's huge tail swung wildly around, and now began to fall back towards the burning earth, right over the top of Hiccup and Toothless.
Astrid could see the two of them through the dust and smoke of that man-made Hel, trying to swerve out of the way of the gigantic club which threatened both of them with an abrupt end to their heroic flight.
It seemed that Toothless' burned fin could hold out no longer.
As the small piece of charred fabric finally fell away, barely visible against the darkening skies of evening nigh, the dragon turned to brace for the final blow of the Red Death.
Cursing that she could do nothing to help, Astrid cried out in fear, her own voice inaudible above the rumbling firestorm which swelled in the distance.
And then, her heart seemed, for just a moment, to come to a complete stop.
Hiccup flicked his left foot around again and again, trying to tweak the last remnants of Toothless' prosthetic tail-fin around and bring the two of them into a desperate dive to one side, anything to avoid the looming form of the Red Death's club like tail.
But it seemed that, even in death, the mighty beast would have the last say, and the young man felt the small piece of burned leather fall away, signifying his last loss of flight control for the Night Fury.
Time seemed to tick in slow motion for a few seconds, as Hiccup braced himself for the inevitable impact.
There was a tremendous jerk, a sickening crunching noise, and Hiccup felt a sharp pain shoot up his left leg, which was momentarily crushed between Toothless' body and the massive, grey tail of the Dragon King.
"I will take you with me, little one," hissed a faint voice in the back of Hiccup's mind, growing ever weaker as the fires of death rushed up to meet the boy and his dragon.
"Your death will be my very last..." But even as the horrid voice disappeared entirely, Hiccup was thrown from the Night Fury's back by the violent collision with the Red Death's final strike, and sent spinning back downwards, directly into the raging inferno below.
Helpless and frail in the hands of fate's cruel fires, Hiccup got one last glimpse of the great orange light of the fire which now began to engulf him, heard the faint, terrified cry which belonged to someone very familiar, and fell down...down...down into darkness.
All done.
I'd just like to make a quick point - telling me to "pls update asap" in your reviews will not make me upload new chapters any faster. The equation of my upload rate versus time is set at a constant two weeks, and such comments will not increase the dependent variable in this case.
I had some great critical reviews for the last chapter, and they actually made me stop and go back from where I'm currently writing in order to make things seem a little more sensible in later chapters. So please, your opinions and comments Leute!
I'm sorry if this chapter seemed a little too much like the film, but for where I want this story to end up, it was entirely necessary this way. Remember that everyone here is seven years older than they are in the film, with different outlooks on life, the universe and everything. Things will start to deviate away from the film again soon enough...
Zwei Wochen!
Lumpyness.
