Chapter 10

Another Step Forward

"Be extra quiet, we don't want to scare him now."

Hiccup heard the voices outside of his cell. He was still on the ship heading to an unknown destination. Night fall had already come and darkness filled whatever space and corners it could find.

The only thing that kept the darkness at bay was the moonlight that went through every window and bounced off every mirror. Not that there were that many mirrors on the ship, Hiccup only knew they were aboard because he kept on seeing light shine out of windows instead of accepting the light shining through it.

"What we gonna do if he ain't go along with 'tis?"

"Well don't let 'em have a chance."

"Alright then,"

Hiccup was laying on the floor using the blanket they had left him. His back was facing the door so the only way he could tell they were coming in was by the sound of metal clinking together outside the door, Hiccup thought it was most likely keys.

He heard the door starting to unlock, very slowly.

"Don't do anything stupid now, we don't wanna wake 'em."

What are they up too? Hiccup still pretended that he was asleep.

He could hear the floor boards creak as they walked around the room, whatever they were doing Hiccup assumed it was nothing good.

"'Ya put that'at stopper in de'a door right?"

"I ain't tha' dumb, of course I did."

Within the little time the men had been in the room, Hiccup had already came up with most of his plan to escape,

As they came closer to Hiccup, he laid perfectly still. In order for his plan to work, he knew if he went to early it would ruin his whole entire plan.

He heard one of the floor boards creak right next to his head. Now, it was time to move into action.

His eyes snapped open, he instantly saw a shadow of a man right in front of him on the wall.

He kicked his leg towards the general area of the man's knees behind him. He kicked something, he felt his good foot hit something hard, and judging by the sounds that came after the impact, he'd definitely caused some pain to the man.

The other one had noticed something was wrong at this point,

As he came over, Hiccup scrambled to get up. He threw the blanket at the approaching man causing him to stumble back a bit in surprise.

The man Hiccup had kicked in the knee was now on the floor.

It appeared he'd done more damage then he thought. None of that mattered at the moment, there was still one man who was still able to recapture him. The blanket he'd thrown at him was in the floor now and was out of reach from Hiccup. The door was still propped open by some object- a piece of wood is what he assumed. Door open or not, Hiccup was on the other side of the small room oposite of the door way.

"You've got nowhere to go sonny." The man said with a sly grin creeping on his face.

Hiccup looked around the room, then said, "I'll figure something out,"

Hiccup was actually hoping he'd figure something out. Because at this rate, he was indeed going nowhere.

The man took a slow step forward towards Hiccup.

Time wasn't on Hiccup's side at the moment, everything he could think of needed another person's help in order for it to work.

" 'Ya come up with anything yet?" The man's taunts were weak to say the least. Hiccup did have a plan, but it was an All or nothing sort of plan.

Here goes nothing.

Right before Hiccup could even attempt his risky plan The man approaching him, fell to the floor. He'd tripped over the other one on the floor, creating the perfect opening for him.

It only took a few quick steps for Hiccup to get around both the men and to the cracked doorway.

The man that tripped was starting to get back on his feet, Hiccup didn't worry too much about that, he was focusing on getting out the door before he caught up to him. The door opened with ease as Hiccup slipped his was through. Right when Hiccup made it out of the door, he was pulled back by his sleeve on his tunic. The man had caught him through the door way.

Nothing was stopping Hiccup, he pulled away with all his might, the man lost grip on his sleeve and his hand slid back into the room from tightly gripping the sleeve.

The man was about to reach out again, So Hiccup had to act quickly. The board they used to prop open the door was still there, so in the split second he kicked the board back into the room, and used the door handle to slam the door shut.

BANG!

The sound couldn't be mistaken, the man's hand had hit the door in attempt to get it open again. Hiccup stepped away from the door slowly while taking deep breaths. The banging continued on the door, but no one was around at the moment to be able to hear them.

He took a few more deep breaths, Once his breathing had returned to closer to normal he took a look at where he was on the ship.

All he knew about his current location was he was below deck. There were stairs to his left, But he could already see there were grates covering the opening to the outside world. That meant he needed keys.

Another bang came from the door, along with a few shouts. They had the keys, Hiccup thought. He thought about going back in some how to retrieve they keys, but everything that came to mind was suicide.

"Great," He mumbled under his breath. "I've only escaped a minute ago, and I'm already trapped agian,"

"You here something?"

Hiccup snapped his head I'm the direction of the voice.

"Yeah, somethings banging around down there."

Hiccup looked for a spot to hide frantically, if he didn't hide, he'd probably be punished for hurting one of the guards. The footsteps were getting louder, he was running out of time until they were right on top of him. There was no way out, the hallway was clear of any crates or objects big enough for him to hide in or behind.

He scaned the hallway once again for anything to help him. But instead of looking for something to hide behind in the hallway, he looked for another exit.

At the very end of the hallway he spotted it, another doorway that hopefully lead somewhere else on the ship. The only problem was that the doorway was- in fact at the end of the hallway. In the same direction of the incoming men.

Seconds was all Hiccup had to decided whether or not he would go through that door. Even assuming it was unlocked. Hiccup looked around the area one more time to triple check there was no other options.

"Ah Thor, I hate my life." Hiccup cursed quietly. But sprung right into action and ran towards the door.

The hallway wasn't that long, that wasn't what made Hiccup hesitant. He'd herd the guards coming towards the cell he was locked in for a whole minute. Unsure of the speed they were walking and how long it would take for them to get there.

Panic was a very big factor at the moment. The door was only a few feet away, but judging by the sound of the footsteps, so were the guards. Hiccup took hold of the door handle and pulled.

The door didn't budge. Hiccup kept pulling in hope the door would somehow open with his constant pulling. As Hiccup leaned against the door to pull the door even harder, it opened a little with his weight against it.

Of course, Hiccup thought in realization.

He pushed the door this time, and it swinged open. He scurried inside the opening in a hurry. Right when he closed the door he could hear foot steps coming towards the doorway.

He held his breath, because . . . Panic was still a big factor at the moment.

The foot steps turned and headed down the hallway Hiccup had just been in. He breathed out a breath in relief. They didn't catch him.

Right as he thought those words, he remembered the men he'd trapped in the room. Fear gripped his heart once again, just waiting for the men to find him.

The footsteps could be heard coming back towards the door, seeming to take their time know Hiccup was just about hyperventilating.

"I was sure I 'eard somthin'." Was all Hiccup could hear as the men past by the doorway, and back down the hallway from which they came. But that was all Hiccup needed to hear.

They didn't catch him.

"Well, minus the fact you're still locked below deck of their ship." He said to himself.

He shook his head in attempt to clear out his thoughts. He really shouldn't be talking to himself when he needed to escape.

When he finally came back to the real world, he took a look at his surroundings. It wasn't a room like Hiccup had expected. It was actually another hallway.

Unlike the previous hallway he was just in, this one had many doorways leading to unknown places aboard the ship. He counted three doors on each side of the hallway, only the one closest to him on his left didn't have a standard wooden door like the rest. Instead it had bars like a cage.

When he walked up to it, he could see several weapons inside. As he continued scanning the small weaponry, he spotted something on the opposite wall across from him.

There were keys hanging on a hook, just sitting there perfectly. He knew there was no way he'd be able to reach through and get them, and he also knew the door wouldn't open with sheer force. They had the room locked.

"Seriously?" Hiccup asked out loud. "Who keep keys in a room that needs a key?" Not waiting for an answer from some mysterious voice, He continued walking down the hallway in hope of finding another set of keys to get the keys.

He decided to check the other rooms first. The first door he tried was the one next to the weapons. He pushed against the wooden door, but nothing happened.

And as he continued to push and pull the old door, It wouldn't budge. The door was locked. That was not something Hiccup had accountant for.

He went across the hallway and tried the first door, and it too was locked.

"Come on," Hiccup mumbled.

He was met with the same results on the next door to his left and the last one across the hallway, and another one he found at the end of the hall.

Hiccup was just about to give up, but when he heard something that sounded another person coming, sparked a new desire to find a way out.

After recalling which doors he'd already tried, he realized that he only tried five of the six doors.

There was still one more left.

Sprinting towards the last door, Hiccup pushed the door with all his might, and the door swung open. Not waiting to find out if the noise was another human or not, He slipped through the opening of the door and closed it as quickly as possible. Nothing came or went within the few minutes that he stood there.

Hiccup slowly peeled himself away from the door, hoping not to create too much noise.

The area he was in was about five feet each way, with two doors. One on the left and one straight ahead. There were grates above him so he was able to see all of these things with the moonlight shining through.

He also knew that if anyone were to walk by up on deck, they'd see him too. Hiccup moved towards the door that was in front of him. It was slightly ajared, letting a little light shine through the opening.

The ship let out long creak as he got closer to the door. Almost like it was warning him from going any farther. He also heard water splashing. Not from the ocean, but it sounded as if someone had poured water into a cup. With curiosity winning in this situation, Hiccup pushed the door slightly to see inside.

He only opened it a tad more for him to be able to see, he still held onto the door though. The room was very bright, there was a large port hole on the left side of the room. The moon shined perfectly through it and onto a mirror split into many parts, facing different directions to spread the light. Hiccup couldn't see much else of the room, he could have open the door wider, but there was a person inside.

Wait, Hiccup froze in his spot. There was a man in the room.

The man had his back turned towards Hiccup and was leaning over a desk with a mirror attached to the back. Hiccup couldn't see much of the man, except for his black hair and his shirtless muscular back.

The man splashed some water on his face from a bowl set on the desk. He held his eyes a little longer after most of the liquid already fell from his face. This whole time, Hiccup watched the man's reflection through the mirror. The man still kept his head down as he grabbed the sides of the desk again. He took a in deep breath through his nose, then exhaled through his mouth.

Hiccup looked at the top of the mirror and spotted a helmet hanging on the corner. But that helmet had a metal mask attached to it, just like the man that brought him here . . .

"Just a little longer," He heard the man mumble. "Just a little longer, and it'll all be over." The man looked up into the mirror at his reflection.

Hiccup gasped slightly, the man's eyes, they were green. Not like Hiccup eyes though, they were even brighter. Hiccup didn't even know it was possible for eyes to come in that color. His eyes were also big and round, slightly closer together then most people and his jaw line was sharp, accenting his small ears.

The man ran a hand through his hair, making him appear to be extremely stressed out. He heard him let a out a quick huff through his mouth before dropping his hand back on the desk.

Hiccup noticed the way the man's shoulders were tensed up, and the way he kept on looking at everything in the reflection of the mirror.

Hiccup could only assume he was over thinking something. He would know, he's done more times then he cared to admit. The man was drumming his finger against the edge of the desk, still looking around the room.

Hiccup also started examining the room, hoping to find the keys to unlock the room with the keys inside too unlock the grates covering the stairs.

These people were getting on his last nerve with all these locks.

Hiccup couldn't see any keys hanging anywhere from his spot in the door, but some part in him told him they were in there. He continued searching the room without actually going in it. The man continued drumming on the desk to a song unknown to him. That was, until he stopped.

First, Hiccup just assumed he found something else to distract him. It wasn't untill Hiccup heard the man mumble something that he realized something was off.

He looked back at the man through the mirror only to find him looking right back at Hiccup with a hand on the mirror.

They made eye contact, then the man smirked then said, "Well I'll be darned."

The man spun around quickly, while Hiccup on the other hand shut the door and began looking for a way out. He knew it was no use trying to go out the way he came, so that left him one option. The door on his right.

He didn't waste any time, he shoved the door with his shoulder and it opened with ease. Footsteps could be heard loud and clear from inside the room he was previously in.

Hiccup turned from the door and found a stair case, unlike the last one he found, this one didn't have a grates above it.

As he was dashing up the stairs, he heard the door slam open below.

"There you are!" The man stated.

There were only a few steps left untill he would reach the top, The man was also only a few steps behind Hiccup untill he could reach him. Hiccup made it to the deck, despite how close the man was behind him.

He remembered it being a farely small boat from when he was first brought aboard, and that was confirmed when he ran too the edge of it within a few seconds.

He leaned over the edge of the ship from the momentum of running do fast. Once he saw the size of the waves, he ditched the plan of swimming for shore.

Trying to back track, he turned around towards the way he came. Unlucky for him, The man was still behind him; plus a few extra men that had come too help.

There was silence on the deck.

The men across from Hiccup stood their place for reasons unknown to him. He kept on looking over the edge of the ship unintentionally. All he was trying to do was come up with a plan faster.

The man that first started chasing Hiccup took a cautious step forward.

"What are you doing Hiccup?" The man asked.

Hiccup didn't answer. With the man walking closer to him, and him being trapped, His first plan- jumping over board was becoming a very good option right now.

The man took another step forward.

"Don't do anything rash Hiccup," The man called out again. "We can work this out."

Hiccup snapped his head in the direction of the man.

"W-w-what do you mean?"

The man stood up straighter once he heard Hiccup speak.

"That water looks awfully cold there, and I'm guess'in by your leg you ain't the best swimmer."

The man took another step forward.

Panic was once again becoming a big factor in the situation. And Hiccup wasn't liking it very much to be frank. Even though his options were pretty limited he still tried to come up with a better plan.

The man took another step forward.

Hiccup stepped back away from the man, and now he was leaning against the railing.

"Ca-can you just stop for a moment?" Hiccup asked, he raised his arm out in front of him to stop the man if he came any closer.

The man stopped, but this time he raised his hands by his head in surrender.

Hiccup let out his breath he didn't know he was holding. Now the man was standing still he finally actually looked at him.

His hair was still as black as he remembered seeing them, and the man was still shirtless just as he remembered.

The main thing that he noticed now that he didn't notice in the room was how tall he was. He towered over Hiccup by at least a foot, so this whole time the man had to talk down to Hiccup.

There was still something that bothered Hiccup, something about the man reminded him of someone he might of known before. After a few more seconds of trying to figure out who he resembled, he finally gave in and decided to see if the man's name might bring back some memories.

"Who are you?"

The man lowered his hands slightly, then responded,

"I am Seth the Sane, The head Captain of Hysteria's Navy, and youngest son of Rubar the Untrustworthy."

Both Hiccup and the man- who's name is Seth, made eye contact again before Seth spoke once more.

"How 'ya do?"

Edited 3/5/2016

In case anyone asked, I died and then I came back to life before posting this.

Yeah, I didn't. But it was worth a shot.

I'm not even going to try and explian why it took me so long to write this chapter.

BUT!

I have some exciting news. :D Drum roll please.

*Drum roll*

Today is my 1st FanFiction birthday! *fireworks go off in the distance*

It's been a whole year since I've joined the crazy world of fanfiction.

And I'd like to Thank all of y'all who've supported me all this time and helped me along the way.

COOKIES FOR EVERYONE!

(: :) (: :) (: :) (: :) (: :) (: :)

Oh, um . . . I ran out of cookies for everyone. (Awkward.)

Well I'll just go make some more then!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

Bye!

-MFM