Uniting the Tribes 7
Berserker Island came into view and Astrid was rather astounded to see the vast armada already organizing to go into battle. Despite their admittedly deranged chieftain the Berserkers were renowned for their military tact and speedy action to war. Hopefully this was a good sign that they were willing to help Berk and no attack it. Guiding Stormfly over the island Astrid searched for Hiccup and Toothless, hoping to spot the two and maybe head home before Hiccup got himself into any more trouble than usual. She had a bad feeling in the pit of her belly and when it came to Hiccup that feeling was rarely ever wrong.
"I don't see them," Snotlout called from Hookfang as they swooped overhead. He had a worried frown plastered on his face as he looked about. His face brightened as he spotted another dragon rider. "Hey, is that Dagur on a…ah shit. He has a Skrill."
Astrid cursed. The last thing anyone needed was Dagur the Deranged on the back of a dragon let alone a Skrill. No wonder Hiccup hadn't returned yet, he was probably too busy trying to deal with Dagur and his bloody Skrill. Well they didn't have time for Dagur and his stupid games. "Come on," she told Snotlout. Together they flew toward the Berserker chief ready to fight to find Hiccup if need be but before they could Dagur was already off again, heading out over the ocean toward Outcast Island. "What the…?"
A Skrill was in many ways like a Nightfury. They were one of the fastest dragons in the Archipelago and as soon as Dagur was over open water he and his Skrill shot off and it took all Stormfly's and Hookfang's skill to keep them in sight. However, twenty kilometers later it wasn't Dagur that drew their attention anymore it was the Screaming Death speeding toward Dragon Island followed closely by the very familiar forms of Toothless and Hiccup. Not far behind them was Valka on Cloudjumper. Dagur immediately altered course and so did the two Hooligans. Astrid's fear and worry grew as Dagur came along Hiccup and Toothless but rather than start blasting at them they seemed to be talking but Hiccup did seem rather worried. Together they sped after the Screaming Death, neither one firing upon the huge dragon which made things all the more confusing. Worse they were going in exactly the wrong direction.
Snotlout was just as curious as Astrid and looked to her with raised brows. "I thought we were supposed to meet up on Berk not attack Drago head on. It's completely crazy." A smirk lit his face. "I like it! Let's take the bastard out now instead of waiting for him."
Astrid's frown deepened. This didn't sound like something Hiccup would do. Maybe Dagur…okay, yeah, maybe Hiccup too but he usually had a plan to work with. This was not a plan in Astrid's opinion.
. . .
Alvin was moving fast, faster than Hiccup ever expected and for the first time he wasn't sure if Toothless could catch up. He stayed lying flat on Toothless's back as they sped over the ocean after the large serpentine white dragon. The frills along Toothless's spine opened wide as he boosted his speed in an attempt to overtake the far larger dragon but just as he was about to the Nightfury suddenly roared in fury and banked to the left.
"Toothless?" Hiccup asked but it became clear all too quickly when he realized they had reached Dragon Island. His grip on the saddle tightened and he quickly debated what to do. He hated to admit it but he was afraid, afraid of the Alpha trying to take control of Toothless and the other dragons again, afraid of what might happen if Toothless lost control of himself again. He hadn't had time to warn Alvin or Dagur what might happen if the Alpha did try to take their dragons, of how even their best friends could be taken from them and turned into weapons. But Alvin and his dragon were flying straight at Drago, he had to stop him. The last thing anyone needed was the Alpha getting its tusks on a Screaming Death; entire islands would be destroyed in minutes, including Berk. "Come on, bud."
Toothless crooned, not happy with the idea yet yearning for a rematch against the gigantic dragon that made even the Screaming Death look small in comparison. He flew in a vast circle, picking up speed as he did so and aimed for the Alpha, hoping to distract it from Alvin and the Screaming Death. Alvin was more intent on facing Drago than the Alpha anyway. Plasma blast after plasma blast fired down on the ice dragon, luring it away from Drago and the other riders. It didn't take much to force it away. The Alpha was afraid of Toothless, after all he was the first dragon to ever break free of its spell and take control of its pack so he didn't put up much of a fight and descended into the water, much to Drago's outrage.
The dark skinned man stood at the bow of his flag ship, glaring at the Alpha as it sank into the deep waters, turning tail as Toothless fired at it, growling and snarling in warning. Drago turned his focus from his dragon to another, marveling in surprise at the odd looking snake like dragon covered in spikes and the large rider on its head. "Well…now there's a dragon," he muttered, suddenly intent on making the Screaming Death his. He chuckled lowly when he was recognized the rider of the beast, a man he had once planned to go into business with only to be betrayed.
Alvin's battle cry filled the air as he hurried toward Drago, his sword raised in challenge. His cry was echoed by Dagur as the younger chief took it upon himself to start attacking the neighboring ships, intent on crippling the entire fleet but he wasn't by himself. Snotlout and Hookfang began burning down masks and firing at people, Hookfang all too happy to put the fleet in ruins. He had a personal score to settle with Drago and he would get his revenge one way of another and Snotlout was not about to stop the Monstrous Nightmare from getting what he so richly deserved. It became utter chaos as the riders took on the boats and freed captured dragons, leaving Drago for Alvin. And Drago was waiting.
There's little warning when it comes to a sonic scream from the Screaming Death, no growls and snarls but the dragon riders knew the tell tail signs, the ways its frills flicked back ever so slightly. Snotlout gave a yell, seeing the first hints of frill quivering and at first Dagur resisted but at Valka's yell his Skrill shot skyward and out of possible danger. The sonic scream let loose moments later and tore through the ships, ripping sails and breaking masts. The sailors scrambled for cover but many were thrown in the sea.
Drago leaned into the force of the scream, fighting the shockwave with a force of his own. He didn't call upon the Alpha more interested in seeing what Alvin would do before ripping that astounding dragon away from him. But his focus was drawn away from Alvin when a familiar cry resounded overhead and a Nightfury came into sight. "Ah, the Dragon Master," he purred to himself, his dark gaze following the young Hooligan chief and his dragon. He turned toward the few sailors that remained on his ship. "Bring them down," he ordered, pointing at Hiccup and Toothless. "I want that boy."
There was a chorus of "Yes, sir!" as the men ran about and aimed their weapons skyward.
. . .
"Alvin!" Hiccup yelled, getting between the Screaming Death and fleet of heavily armed ships. "Alvin, stop. Please, you don't understand. This isn't the way to do it. I don't know what the Alpha will do with SD. It could take control just like it did Toothless and turn it against us."
The Outcast only frowned at him. "Out of my way, boy. That man deserves to die."
Hiccup shook his head. "That may be but we have a better chance of stopping him if we regroup with the other tribes and…" The cry of a Deadly Nadder caught his attention and Hiccup turned toward the sound, a sick feeling twisting his gut. Sure enough there was Astrid and Stormfly dodging fire from a group of pirates as they fought to free the dragons that had been captured. Now normally Hiccup would never worry over Astrid as he did right that moment. She was a competent warrior and rarely needed someone to watch her back but after losing his father not so long ago, a man who took down dragons and battle barbarians with barely more than a scratch of singed beard to show for it, Hiccup now feared the worst. He left Alvin, his fear overruling logic and he and Toothless sped toward Astrid and Stormfly as quickly as they could.
Alvin only sneered, his focus entirely on Drago now but the other man could care less, his attention following Hiccup's speedy movements. Had Alvin been less observant he would have attacked the warlord without a second thought but he knew that look, that mix or curiosity, bemusement and want and whether it was a desire to have the boy train his dragon as Alvin once did – funny how Hiccup opened to that idea after the war ended and Alvin proved to be a good friend to Stoick – or if it was something darker and far more sinister. Not willing to take chances he ordered the Screaming Death to fire at Drago before zipping after Hiccup.
The young chieftain's ebony dragon flew in front of Stormfly and Astrid and blasted a shot of plasma at an incoming boulder. It exploded into thousands of little pieces. It was followed by a net and the two dragons just managed to dart out of the way before being snagged and the two blasted at it and every other incoming projectile.
"We can't keep this up," Astrid yelled over to Hiccup.
"Neither can they," he countered with false bravado. At least he hoped. He looked about, surprised by the number of riders that had joined in the fight. Under normal circumstances six dragons would be more than enough to take out a small army of ships but then again these trappers were used to battling dragons and while they had yet to capture theirs it didn't mean they wouldn't get a lucky shot and take someone down. "We need to regroup," he told Astrid, still trying to stay between her and the onslaught of nets. His mind was racing. Where were Gustav and the junior riders? Why weren't they at their posts? If they left now Drago would only follow. The boats were crippled but the Alpha could just pull them to Berk. He wasn't quite sure what to do.
He didn't have long to think about it as a bola came from the right, aimed directly at them. Hiccup didn't think twice, he had Toothless dive toward it in an attempt to keep it from hitting Astrid and Stormfly and while they were able to keep the two safe they were hit by a second one, or rather Hiccup was hit. The force of the bola dislodged his prosthetic foot from its harness and he was thrown off Toothless with such force that the air was sucked out of his lungs as his vision momentarily bled to white. He heard Toothless's cry, felt his claws scrap at his armor as he tried to catch him but it was no good, they were both falling and this time they couldn't save each other.
"Hiccup!" Astrid screamed as Stormfly dove for them.
But two slightly faster dragons beat her to the punch. Hookfang snagged Toothless while Alvin caught Hiccup, grasping the net before the boy plunged into the sea. Hiccup gasped at the sudden decent and looked up in surprise as he was hauled onto the back of the Screaming Death. Alvin didn't immediately cut the ropes, seeing as they were still being fired upon and Drago was screaming like a lunatic and swinging his staff, calling upon the Alpha.
Snotlout looked toward the crazed trapper with actual fear. "Ah, maybe we should pull out and regroup. The other riders should be home by now," he said, surprising everyone with his desire to retreat but after what Drago had done to Hookfang he had good reason.
"Where's Gustav?" asked Hiccup but at the moment it really didn't matter. Drago was regrouping his men and aiming their full assault at the Screaming Death, intent on capturing the young chief.
Alvin cut the ropes of the net. "Sadly, lad, Snotlout's right. We don't stand a chance if that creature reappears." He didn't add that Drago seemed to be targeting Hiccup but he did keep a hand on the young man for a moment or two before feeling it was safe to let him be.
Hiccup only gave him a weary look, as if not fully trusting him which wasn't really anything new, then stood up. "Snotlout, count of three," he called to his cousin who patted Hookfang's neck. Then Hiccup began running along the Screaming Death's head while counting silently to himself and leapt off the huge dragon. A split second later Hookfang threw Toothless up toward him and the Nightfury's wings flared open to control his decent and try to catch Hiccup. They connect together with practiced ease. Hiccup reconnected his metal foot to the gear that controlled Toothless prosthetic tail. It took a few seconds to get control and they plummeted toward the water before banking skyward and it was a good thing they did. The Alpha shot out of the water at the same time, its colossal mouth wide open and snapping at Toothless's tail. The other riders shot out of the way as quickly as they could. Toothless glanced back and shot a warning blast at it. It backed down but Hiccup could see that it was as hungry as Toothless for a rematch but it would have to wait.
Making sure everyone else was okay he gave the order to retreat. For now everyone was safe and once they reached Berk they would fortify the village and hoping the other tribe leaders were on their way because it won't be long until Drago reaches the island.
Hiccup tried to focus on that and not the pain cruising up and down his left side where a bola had hit him with bruising force. He grunted and pressed his fingers against it. It hurt but it was something he could deal with later, after Drago was stopped.
