Chapter 10
Early the next morning Chris woke up. Serenity was still in his arms, fast asleep. She no longer felt cold. Her dragon's blood had returned her temperature to normal. Her cheeks were rosy pink. Chris carefully pulled a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. He wished they could lay like that for eternity. But eventually Serenity woke up. She looked up at him and smiled.
"Good morning," she yawned.
"How do you feel?" Chris asked.
"Bit thirsty," said Serenity. "But I don't feel cold anymore, or feverish."
"Good," Chris said, beaming. "Well, we have a lot to do today."
"Windwalker plans to unlock Aurora's titan wing," said Serenity, she sounded worried.
"She's letting Mom use her magic as a safety net again," Chris said. "So, there's little chance of her getting hurt." Serenity sighed and relaxed a bit.
They got out of bed and went outside. The dragons were awake already. Tenor beamed when he saw his rider and nuzzled her cheek. Serenity hugged him.
"You feeling better?" Tenor asked.
"Yes, thanks for not letting me drown," Serenity said. Tenor purred. "Chris was nice enough to keep me warm, so I didn't get a chill." Tenor gave a knowing smile.
"You two always did have each other's back," he said. Serenity looked over at Aurora. She was looking confident.
"You all right ma'am?" Serenity said.
"Yes, Father has assured me that nothing bad will happen," Aurora said.
"The Berkians want to watch this time," Re said. "After seeing Tenor with his tian wing unlocked."
"I imagine they'll get quite a show," Chris said, sitting beside the fire.
"They haven't seen a dragon unlock their titan wing since Toothless took on the Bewilderbeast," Re said. Unlike Aurora, he looked very nervous. He was fidgeting on the spot and his tail kept twitching.
"Have you foreseen the task you'll have to overcome?" Windwalker asked Aurora.
"No," said Aurora. "Not in great detail at least. All I can see is that I will be up very high, and I can see Re pacing nervously." Re didn't say anything.
"Well we should get going," said Windwalker. "The sooner the better."
"Why're you in such a hurry to unlock everyone's titan wing?" Serenity asked.
"It will help them in their next battle," Windwalker explained. "With their titan wing activated they will be stronger, and it will make it easier to overcome any threat to their family, friends, or their country." She then turned to Aurora. "You should leave your armor here, you won't need it." Aurora stared blankly ahead, then she clicked her talons and her amor vanished. Her blue scales glittered like gems in the morning light.
"Chris and Serenity should come help us set up," Windwalker said. "Re and Tenor, you two can go gather the Berkians."
"All right," Re said, hesitantly. Chris mounted Windwalker and Serenity mounted Aurora bareback. They took off and headed for the tall mountain peak that towered over the island.
They landed on a large ledge near the very top. It was plenty big enough for several dragons to roost on. Waiting for them were seven huge boulders in various shapes. Chains were wrapped around each one. Next to the boulders was a large leather harness with more chains attached to it.
"The Gronkles here have been so helpful with setting this up," said Windwalker.
"They'll do anything for their fellow dragons," said Serenity. "And they won't even ask any questions." She and Chris put the harness on Aurora, making sure it wasn't too tight. By the time they were finished Re, Tenor, and the Berkians all landed on the ledge.
"Wow, we're really high up," said Tuffnut, looking over the edge. "Far higher than I've ever been." He looked so excited.
"So how does this work exactly?" asked Hiccup.
"Every dragon has a power inside them," Aurora explained. "And some dragons have the ability to summon that power to make themselves faster, or stronger, or make their fire hotter. It can change their colors or physical form. Much like how other reptiles can change their colors or make themselves look bigger. Toothless was able to summon that power to break out of the ice, and Tenor was able to summon it to break his bonds."
"You think you can do it without your magic?" asked Stormfly.
"She'll have to," said Windwalker. "All dragons before her have done it. Now, enough talking. Lets get to work. Chris are you ready?" Chris attached the chains from the harness to all seven boulders, then picked up a large stick from behind one of the boulders. Re snorted and tossed his head nervously. Serenity stood beside him and stroked his neck. Chris used the stick to tip the first boulder over the edge. The chain went taught and Aurora felt herself being pulled towards the edge. She dug her claws into the stone and pulled against the weight of the boulder. Windwalker unlocked her titan wing, her scales glowed bright blue. She nodded at Chris who shoved another boulder off the cliff. Aurora was jerked backwards when the rope went taught. She could feel herself sliding towards the edge after the boulders. Her hind claws lost their grip a bit. She dug her talons deeper into the stone.
"Come on your majesty, from what I've heard about you this should be easy," Windwalker said. Chris pushed another boulder over. Aurora threw her shoulders into the harness and slowly pulled herself back onto the ledge. Chris continued to push the boulders over the cliff's edge. Aurora was being pulled closer to the edge. She clenched her teeth and pulled as hard as she could, but gravity was winning.
Soon there was only two boulders left. Aurora's back talons were in danger of sliding off. Re was getting more and more anxious. Serenity kept stroking his neck. She could feel his whole body go tense. Windwalker nodded at Chris, and he pushed another boulder over. Aurora's hind talons lost their grip and she was now hanging on by her front talons. She flapped her wings and used her back talons to dig into the rock. She summoned all her raw strength. She pushed herself up with her legs and wings. She was clenching her teeth so hard she could feel her jaws getting sore. She inched her way back onto the ledge. She could feel a change in her body getting noticeably bigger, and it had nothing to do with her magic. Aurora snarled in frustration. She could feel every muscle in her body getting sore. But just as she got her hind legs back onto the ledge, Chris pushed the last boulder over. Aurora could fight no more, and the boulder tugged her right off the ledge. Re roared loudly and spread his wings to fly after her, but Windwalker blocked him.
"Don't, she's fine Re," she said. Serenity hugged Re's head, which also kept him from taking off. They all waited to hear the loud thud of Aurora hitting the rocks below, but they never heard it.
Then a few minuets later, Aurora soared over the ledge with all seven boulders still hanging from her harness. The air was filled with the sound of her powerful wingbeats. She set the boulders back on the ledge, then perched on top of them. She stood up, her wings still open. The crowd all stared at her. The queen looked different.
Her turquoise underbelly was now the same silvery grey as her eyes. The horizontal ridges on her belly had elongated into upside down V's, stretching towards the middle of her back. It ran from her chest, to her tail. The whip end of her tail had become longer, and turned the same shade of silvery gray. Her horns, spines and wings membranes were also the same color. On her face silver obtuse triangles had appeared under each eye, and a silver arch shape had appeared on her forehead.
She stood at her full height and admired her titan wing, extending each wing. Then she threw back her head and shot a jet of silver flames into the air. She then jumped off the boulders, and held herself tall. Chris and Serenity moved forward to remove her harness. Serenity noticed that Aurora's scales had become as hard as diamond, harder and stronger than her armor. Once the harness was off Aurora went over to Re, who had finally relaxed.
"Are you all right?" Re asked.
"Bit sore, but I'm just fine," Aurora assured him, nuzzling his neck. "You'll be next I imagine." Re took a deep breath, he didn't look afraid yet.
"I guess Steal was right, silver does look good on you," he said.
"Indeed," Aurora said. They were approached by the rest of the group.
"That was incredible your majesty," said Hookfang.
"Weren't you scared at all?" asked Astrid.
"Perhaps a little bit," said Aurora. "But as a queen I must put on a brave face." She held her head high, and put a paw over her chest. She noticed that her talons had become bigger. She turned to one of the boulders, and slashed at it. Her sharp talons left gashes in the rock, that were a good three inches deep. She then turned to the chain wrapped around the boulder. She swung her tail around and gave the chain a powerful whiplash, and the chain fell off the boulder.
"Very impressive your majesty," said Meatlug. "You think your magic is stronger?"
"I would suspect so," said Aurora. She fired her silvery flames at the boulder. It melted into hot, liquefied metal.
"Wow, that's awesome," said Ruffnut.
"That's as hot as Stormfly's fire," said Astrid. Aurora folded her wings.
"Thank you Windwalker," she said.
"You're welcome ma'am," said Windwalker.
"I should be heading back, I've got work to do," said Hiccup.
"I'll help you," Re said.
"I'm going to go experiment with this," Aurora said, admiring her talons. So the riders mounted their dragons and took off. When Aurora's new scales hit the sunlight, they shone like pieces of silver. She noticed the other dragons looking at her out of the corner of their eye. She didn't mind, she was used to being stared at.
When they reached the village Aurora separated from the others and headed above the cloud line. When she was out of sight, she hovered hovered in midair. Up here she could do magic without being seen. She did a few small spells at first, and with her titan wing they were easer and more powerful. She moved onto harder ones, like making the clouds solid enough to walk on. She landed on one and it was like landing on a bed of snow, that wasn't cold. She smiled, proud of herself. She then tried a spell she hadn't used since she was a dragonet. She pulled the clouds in around her, and spun them into a small hurricane. The eye of which was just big enough for her to fly through. She scanned her brain for a location, and settled for Draconia. She was nervous about doing this trick. The last time she tried it she's almost lost her wings, and it drained her of so much energy she was not able to get back and Draco had to rescue her. She looked into the eye of the mini hurricane, and saw her castle clear as the moon. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and jumped through the portal. It felt like flying through water without the splash. She opened her eyes and saw the castle and lagoon bellow her. She looked behind her and saw that the portal had closed as soon as she'd gone through. She smiled and sighed with relief. She landed on one of the towers. She summoned more clouds and formed another portal to get back to Berk. She picked a spot where she wouldn't be seen. She dove back through and found herself in the Cove. She landed and got a drink from the pond. She then sat on her haunches, and looked down at the water. She decided to do one last spell before deactivating her titan wing. She dipped a talon into the water. It glowed for a second then showed something else besides the trees and sky above.
Aurora could now see the colossal palace where Draco lived. It looked like a giant cathedral made entirely of glass and crystal, and five hundred times bigger than any cathedral on Earth, past, present, or future. It sat in the middle of a vast ocean. Sunlight reflected off both the water and the cathedral, making the whole area look as though it were made of diamonds. She cleared the spell, and the water returned to normal. She deactivated her titan wing, and headed back to the village.
Back at the village Hiccup and Toothless were doing their jobs. Re assisted while he waited for Aurora to return.
"So you're leaving soon?" Hiccup said, as he and Re walked through the plaza.
"Day after tomorrow," Re said.
"Things will get more stressful when you're gone," Hiccup said. Re halted.
"I may have a solution to that problem too," he said, looking at something over Hiccup's shoulder. Hiccup followed his gaze and spotted Astrid grooming Stormfly. Hiccup was quick to figure out what Re was getting at.
"I don't know if I'm ready for that," he said. Re snorted and sat on his haunches.
"Well you'll never be ready if you keep stalling," Re said. "You two have worked very well together. She's always had your back, and you've always had hers."
"Yeah I know what you're going to say next," Hiccup said. "I've faced many scary things in the past, why should I be afraid to talk to a girl." Re smirked.
"Actually, I was going to say why be afraid to talk to a girl you talk to everyday?" he said. "I wouldn't be half the king I am today if it weren't for Aurora. And if Stoic were here, I bet he'd say the same thing about Valka." Hiccup sighed in defeat.
"All right, I'll talk to Astrid," he said. "Tomorrow." Re's eyes narrowed. Hiccup turned to leave.
"Oh, no you don't," Re said. He whipped his tail around and wrapped it around Hiccup's legs. He tripped and fell face down into the mud. Re got to his feet and planed a front paw on Hiccup's back, holding him down.
"How about you go talk to her now?" Re suggested.
"Now?" Hiccup said, his voice muffled.
"What's wrong with now?" Re asked. "The sooner the better."
"What's wrong with tomorrow?" Hiccup asked.
"Because by the time tomorrow comes, you'll have convinced yourself to wait another day," Re explained. "I've seen humans do it before. If you can do it tomorrow, you can do it today. And if you do it today, it has a better chance of getting done." Hiccup heaved another sigh.
"Okay, if you let me up I'll go talk to Astrid," he said.
"You promise?" Re asked.
"Yes, I promise," Hiccup said. Re got off Hiccup and he sat up. He scraped the mud off his face. Re clamped his teeth on Hiccup's collar and pulled him to his feet.
"But what will I say to her?" he asked, brushing himself off.
"You'll think of something," Re said. He then looked over towards Astrid and Stormfly. "Hey Astrid, can you come over here a minuet!" Curious, Astrid stopped what she was doing and came over. Stormfly followed her.
"Yes Re?" asked Astrid.
"Hiccup has something to ask you," Re said. He turned to leave.
"Where are you going?" Hiccup asked.
"I'm going to see where Aurora is," Re said. "I'll be back." He spread his wings and took off. He turned and hovered.
"Why don't you see if Toothless needs help with anything," he said to Stormfly. The Nadder squawked in agreement, and took off as well. When the two dragons were gone, Hiccup turned to Astrid.
"So what is it you want to ask me?" Astrid asked.
"Well, Re's been helping me with chiefing lately," Hiccup said.
"Yes, I've seen that," said Astrid. "He seems be a very good coach."
"He is," Hiccup agreed. "But he will be going back to Draconia very soon, and he won't be able to coach me much longer. I was hoping you would help me around the village." Astrid beamed.
"I would gladly help out in any way I can," she said.
"Re says we work very well together," Hiccup said.
"What do you think?" asked Astrid.
"I think Re's right, we do work very well together," Hiccup said.
"Re has been a good ally all these years," said Astrid. "Him and his comrades." She glanced over to where Re was conversing with Toothless and Cloudjumper, in Dragontongue.
"He fought alongside my parents and carried them to safety during the Battle of the Bewilderbeast, even though his mouth had been stabbed," Hiccup said. "And he was willing to fly me back to Berk, all with a bleeding mouth."
"He has the strength of a true warrior," said Astrid.
"I couldn't imagine a world without him," Hiccup said. They walked off, still talking.
Re watched them, feeling proud of himself. Toothless and Cloudjumper followed his gaze.
"So, why'd you decide to help Hiccup?" Toothless asked.
"Because," Re sighed. "I want to."
"You think the two of them will be mates?" Cloudjumber asked gesturing to Hiccup and Astrid.
"Oh, yeah," Re said. Just then Aurora landed beside them.
"Hello," she said happily.
"How'd your experiments go?" Re asked.
"Wonderfully," Aurora said. "My titan wing does effect my magic."
"You look prettier without your armor on ma'am," said Cloudjumper.
"Thank you," said Aurora. "But I must wear armor if I am to stay that way. And I should go put it back on now. Excuse me." She walked off.
She went back up to the Apple Tree. She found Tenor and Windwalker dozing off, their riders doing the same. However they sat up when Aurora landed beside them.
"Mom, you're back," Chris said, getting to his feet.
"I didn't mean to wake you," Aurora said.
"You didn't wake us," Windwalker said. "We weren't really sleeping." Aurora made a scooping motion with her paw, and her armor appeared and attached itself to her body.
"Ahh, that's better," she said.
"Is your armor held together be magic?" Windwalker asked.
"Yes," said Aurora. "But don't tell them that." She gestured with her head towards the village. "Everyone else's armor is held together by regular means. Now about this sardine school. Why don't you two nightly dragons head out tonight. You'll be able to get the fish before anyone else does."
"How do we know other predators haven't gotten it already?" Tenor asked.
"I've been watching it," Aurora said. "No one else has touched it yet. But it is heading for a very big ambush, and by the time tomorrow night rolls in there won't be much fish left."
"Very well," said Windwalker. "We'll head out this evening. Which direction do we fly in?" Aurora considered.
"Northwest," she said after a few minuets. "About twenty miles."
"I can find it," Tenor said. "We'll head out when the stars come out, so I can get my bearings."
"How're you going to find northwest without a compass?" Windwalker asked.
"Tenor is a master at navigating with the stars," Serenity said. "He's never gotten lost." Tenor purred.
"I'll show you," he said.
So when the stars came out Tenor and Windwalker took off. Windwalker let Tenor be in the lead.
"So how can you tell which way's north?" she asked. Tenor slowed down so they were flying side by side.
"That star there," Tenor pointed to a tiny star, surrounded by slightly larger ones. "That's Polaris, The North Star. If it's directly in front of you you're heading north, if it's directly on your right you're heading west, if it's on your left you're going east, and if it's behind you you're heading south."
"Can you find your way during the day too?" Windwalker asked.
"Sure," said Tenor. "The sun is a star too. Right now, the North Star is only slightly on our right so we're heading northwest." Windwalker looked up at the sky again. She could no longer tell were the North Star was.
"How do you find the North Star?" she asked. Tenor hovered in the air, and she followed suit.
"You see those stars that form the shape of a ladle?" he asked, pointing to the stars again. Windwalker followed his gaze. After looking at the stars for a second she saw what he was referring to. A group of seven stars formed the shape of a ladle.
"Yes, I see it," she said.
"That's the Big Dipper," Tenor said. "The star that would be the tip of the bowel points to the North Star. It's two stars up. It a part of the Little Dipper's handle. Draco's tail is right between the two. Perhaps sometime I can show you my star charts." Then he grew sad again. "Unfortunately being a stargazer was yet another thing I was bullied for." He started moving again.
"There's no other stargazers in Draconia?" Windwalker asked.
"No," Tenor said. "Do you have any stargazers in your squadron?"
"No, we don't have any star charts," Windwalker said. "We found our way with Chris's maps and compass."
"I taught him a few of my navigation skills," Tenor said. "I've turned my room in the castle into a planetarium and observatory."
"Fascinating," said Windwalker. "Well we should pick up the pace, I'm getting hungry." Tenor put on a burst of speed, and she followed. They flew low over the water so they could spot the fish below.
Soon they spotted the school of sardines. It looked like an oil spill the size of a Submaripper. There were no other predators in sight. The two nightly dragons dove right in and grabbed as many fish as they could. Tenor spotted a small island to the west, but paid it no mind. They dove in and out of the water grabbing fish, tossing them to each other. They also caught any other fish that happened to be swimming by.
After fishing for an hour, they landed on a nearby sea stack. There were still many fish left. But they had had their fill. Windwalker sat on her haunches.
"That was lovely," she said, smacking her lips. "It's a shame we have to travel so far to find a feast of this sort."
"It is," Tenor agreed. "But worth it." Windwalker scooted closer to him. Tenor pinned his ears back bashfully.
"I don't see anything wrong with you being a stargazer," Windwalker said. Tenor smiled.
"Thanks," he said softly. Windwalker then entwined her tail around his. Tenor jumped a bit, and a shiver ran down his spin that had nothing to do with the chilly breeze.
"You okay?" Windwalker asked, looking down at his talons which were tense.
"I'm fine," Tenor said. "I'm still getting used to all this." He relaxed.
"I don't mean to make you uncomfortable," Windwalker said, pulling her tail back.
"You're not making me uncomfortable," Tenor said. "I'm still getting used to it, but that doesn't mean I don't like it."
"You're sure?" Windwalker asked.
"Yes, I'm sure," Tenor said. And he entwined his tail back around hers. She smiled, and he smiled back. Then Windwalker leaned forward and nuzzled his cheek. Tenor could feel her warm breath on his scales. He lowered his head absentmindedly. He touched his wing to hers.
"You're pretty good for a first timer," Windwalker said.
"Well, I've watched Re and Aurora all my life," Tenor said. "I may hide all the time, but I still know what goes one around me." Windwalker smiled wider, then licked Tenor's face. He purred, and another shiver ran down his spine. His heart started leaping like the sardine below. Windwalker took a step back.
"Well, can you find our way back?" Windwalker asked.
"How about you give it a shot this time," Tenor suggested. "You know how to find the North Star now."
"I don't know which direction to go," Windwalker said.
"Well, we came northwest to get here," Tenor said. "So to get back we'd have to go southeast." Windwalker looked up at the North Star, twinkling faintly. She turned so her left tail fin was facing it. She took off and Tenor followed her, they flew next to each other. Windwalker noticed the blissful smiled on Tenor's face. She was pretty sure by now that he'd make a good partner. She figured with his navigation skills, they would never get into the cliched argument of one wanting to follow a map and the other wanting to ask directions.
"Hey Tenor," she said. Tenor looked at her. "Have you given up on finding a mate entirely?"
"Well, no," Tenor said. "But I have slowed down the search a great deal."
"It would be very sad if every one else got a mate and you didn't," Windwalker said.
"Yeah well, life isn't fair," Tenor said.
"It could be," Windwalker said.
"What are you suggesting?" Tenor asked.
"It seems our riders are destined to be mates," Windwalker said. "Maybe we are too." Tenor looked surprised.
"But you'll be going back to your squadron soon," he said. "And I'll have to go back to Draconia."
"Right," Windwalker said. "But you will visit us when we find a new home won't you?" Tenor smiled.
"Sure I will," he said. "You still have Re's titan wing to unlock."
"We'll defiantly see more of each other then," Windwalker said. Tenor nodded. Then he thrust his wings back and picked up speed. Windwalker followed suit, and they sped back to Berk.