Between a Rock and a Hard Place
Hiccup and Toothless were heading for the clubhouse one afternoon. Hiccup suddenly spotted Morpho being approached by two unfamiliar dragons. One was light blue with darker blue wing membranes, the other was salmon red with brown on the trailing edge of his wings. The three dragons were talking in Dragontongue. Then they turned and headed for the clubhouse. They landed in front of Hiccup and Toothless.
"Hiccup, these two have something you should hear," Morpho said. "They're scouts his majesty hired to spy on Viggo's minions."
"Oh great," said Hiccup.
"We spotted a convoy of dragon hunter ships a few miles from here," said the blue dragon, who was a female Blackfang. "If you and your squadron left now you would be in perfect position to intercept."
"Thanks for the information, ummm," Hiccup said, waiting to hear what the dragon's names were.
"Oh, I'm Pangea," the blue dragon said. "And this is Flambé, she's a Whipfang."
"Where did you see this convoy?" Hiccup asked.
"Do you have a map?" asked Pangea. "We will show you."
"Yeah," said Hiccup. "I have one." He led the way into the clubhouse, which was deserted for the moment. Hiccup pulled out his map and spread it out on the table. The two scouts looked at it. Then Pangea pointed to a spot half way between Dragon's Edge and another island.
"It's there," she said. "Near that island."
"I'll get the other riders and well go check it out," Hiccup said. "Thanks." The two dragons left the clubhouse.
Hiccup rounded up the other riders. Morpho assigned Viper and Heddrod to go, along with Tenor. When they were all gathered, they took off and followed the two scouts to where they last saw the convoy. They went southwest, keeping their eyes open.
Soon the two scouts landed on a sea stack. The other riders and dragons landed next to them.
"There they are," said Pangea. She pointed to a tight convoy of hunting ships.
"Thank you scouts," said Tenor.
"What are we waiting for, lets go," said Snotlout impatiently.
"Those ships are in tight formation," said Hiccup.
"We can't attack without being spotted first," Fishlegs added.
"So, we need a distraction," said Astrid. Tenor opened his mouth about to say something, but Hiccup spoke first.
"Leave that to us," he said. He reached into his saddlebag and pulled something out. He went around to Toothless's tail and opened up a different tail fin, a yellow one.
"Hiccup, this is no time to play dress up," said Snotlout.
"I didn't even know that was possible on a dragon," said Heddrod, chuckling.
"It's made with a thin sheet of Gronkle iron," Hiccup explained.
"The added stability will let out fly low over the water without any wingflap," said Fishlegs.
"Exactly," said Hiccup. He switched the fins and put the red one back into the saddlebag, then he mounted Toothless. "Wait for my signal." They took off and dived towards the water. Astrid turned to the two scouts.
"You guys can go if you want to," she said.
"Are you kidding?" said Pangea, excitedly. "I've never seen a real Night Fury fly, I totally wouldn't mind staying and helping." Flambé cooned in agreement. They watched Hiccup and Toothless shoot across the water towards the convoy. Toothless was able to shut off all sound, since he didn't need to flap his wings. They shot passed the ships as silently as an owl. They circled back around then fired at the ships. The hunters were completely taken by surprise. The blast and smoke signaled the other riders. They didn't hesitate. They mounted their dragons and took off, the Draconians right next to them. They dived at the ships, blasting their weapons. Heather and Windshear sliced off their sails, so they couldn't go anywhere. Hiccup and Fishlegs landed on the deck of the lead ship, the others circled overhead.
"We'll be taking your cargo now," said Hiccup. While the Draconians dealt with the hunters Hiccup and Fishlegs went below to free the captured dragons.
But when the reached the deck below, they found no dragons but huge blocks of marble. They stood their a bit confused. With no dragons to release, they went back up. The hunters had been tied up.
"Hiccup there's no dragons on any of these ships," said Heather. "Just a bunch of marble rocks."
"Why would they put up a defense for a bunch of rocks?" asked Astrid.
"Marble's not that valuable," said Viper. Suddenly they heard the sound of dragons stampeding towards the convoy.
"Everyone in the air," Hiccup ordered. The riders mounted their dragons and took off with the Draconians.
"Yeah let's get run over by a dragon stampede," Tenor said, to himself. The riders and dragons flew towards the wild dragons. The Draconians stayed clear of the stampede, but the Berkians got completely swamped.
"We need to follow this stampede to its source," said Hiccup. "These dragons are fleeing for a reason." Suddenly Fishlegs spotted an island dead ahead.
"There," he said, pointing to it. A loud boom came from the island that shook the sky. Suddenly a Nadder clipped Barf and Belch's wing, causing the Zippleback to spiral towards the island. They crashed into the trees. The other riders and dragons landed near the trees. The Twins and their Zippleback came limping out of the trees.
"It's all good," said Tuffnut, sounding winded.
"Doesn't look like Barf and Belch are going anywhere though," said Ruffnut. The Zippleback had sprained his left front leg and his right wing
"No worries, Serenity can fix him right up," said Viper. "She fixed me up when I hurt my wing." Meanwhile Tenor and the rest of the Draconians were looking at something else.
"Hiccup we found more ships," Tenor said. Hiccup and the riders followed his gaze. Indeed there were three more hunting ships.
"Those ships are just like the ones from the convoy," said Fishlegs. "Something's going on here."
"You think?" said Heddrod. Suddenly they heard footsteps and the sound of wheels heading their way.
"Someone's coming, hide," said Hiccup. Everyone ducked behind trees. A few hunters walked passed, pulling a cart full of more marble blocks. They talked amongst themselves. Hiccup spotted Viper and Heddrod fidgeting out of the corner of his eye. Toothless jumped out of the woods and blocked the hunters' path, he growled. Viper handed Hiccup a coil of rope she got from the ship. The riders tied up the hunters. The Draconians tensed up and growled at them. The lead hunter glared back at Hiccup.
"I've stared down the throat of a Whispering Death," he said. "You don't scare me." Hiccup turned to Snotlout who snapped his fingers. Hookfang landed and burst into flames. The hunter flinched. Then Viper lowered her head into the hunter's blind spot and gnashed her black teeth, growling. The hunter started to sweat.
"Ok, I'll talk," he said. "Two more convoys left early this morning. They were heading for..." He was cut off by Tuffnut knocking him out with a branch. They all glared at him.
"Tuffnut, he was about to tell us everything," said Fishlegs.
"He was?" said Tuffnut. The hunter got back up, but Tuffnut knocked him out again. Hiccup groaned in frustration.
"Astrid, you Heather, and Snotlout head out," he said. "See if you can track down that other convoy."
"Ve'll come too," said Flambé, with a thick french accent. "Ve vere 'ired as scouts and ve are good at tracking."
"Great," said Hiccup. "The rest of us will stay and look for mor answers. Heather, Astrid, and Snotlout mounted their dragons and took off with the two scouts. The others headed farther into the island.
They went around rocks and fallen trees. About every thirty seconds a loud boom would shake the ground. They approached a huge marble quarry, swarming with hunters. Two huge wrecking balls were smacking into the wall of the quarry, knocking the marble loose.
"That would explained the booms," said Fishlegs.
"What does Viggo want with all this marble?" Hiccup wondered aloud.
"Marble's very strong," said Viper. "One of the reason our castle's interior is made out of it."
"We need to stop this operation," said Hiccup. "Ruff, Tuff, you attack from the ground. Heddrod, Tenor, you two take out those ships so the marble can't get off the island. Fishlegs, Viper, we'll attack from the air." The Twins steered their Zippleback into the trees. Heddrod and Tenor took off and headed for the docks.
"Fishlegs, you cover me and Toothless as we take out those wrecking balls with Viper," said Hiccup, mounting Toothless. They took off and headed towards the wrecking balls. Viper fired at the hunters, making them scatter. Toothless opened his mouth to fire at the two wrecking balls, but Fishlegs and Meatlug blocked him.
"Stop Hiccup!" said Fishlegs. "Look closer. Those aren't wrecking balls, they're Catastrophic Quakens." Hiccup, and the two dragons looked again, and saw that it was true. The two Quakens were shackled to wooden polls and being forced to roll into a ball and hit the side of the quarry.
"Oh, so they are," said Viper. The Quakens hit the wall again, causing a huge shockwave to hit the air borne dragons and completely wiped out the Twins and Zippleback. They crashed into the trees again.
"The Twins," said Hiccup, officially worried. He, Fishlegs, and Viper landed near where they'd crashed. Fishlegs turned and watched the hunters smashing large hammers onto the ground, the two Quakens reluctantly hit the rock wall.
"It's the vibrations Hiccup," said Fishlegs. "They've trained the Quakens to respond to the vibrations when the hammer hits the ground. Trapping them, then fighting them, now working them against their will. This is monstrous. I know these dragons. They may seem angry and aggressive, but they have a softer side."
"Perhaps the hunters know that," said Viper. "And are taking advantage of it. I agree, though monstrous is a bit of an understatement."
"You're right, no dragon deserves to be treated like this," said Hiccup. "We will find a way to free those dragons."
"Well you can count on us to hit them with a branch," said Tuffnut, as he and Ruffnut stumbled out of the trees.
"Ruff, Tuff you're okay," said Hiccup, relieved. "How's Barf and Belch?" The Twins turned towards the Zippleback, which looked severely winded.
"They're fine," said Tuffnut. "We Throstons are known for our thick craniums." He took his helmet off and wrapped his knuckles on his head.
"Sounds hallow," said Viper.
"So what's your plan to free those dragons?" asked Ruffnut. Hiccup considered.
"There's not much room for maneuverability in that quarry," he said. "But I have just the thing that will help cause a distraction so Fishlegs and Meatlug can infiltrate." He reached into his saddlebag and pulled out another tail fin, in turquoise. Toothless didn't look too excited.
Over the ocean Heather, Snotlout, Astrid, and all the dragons kept their eyes open for any more convoys. They were heading in the direction the previous one had been heading. The two scouts talked between each other in Dragontongue.
"Look down there," said Astrid. She pointed to the water below. They spotted another convoy.
"Looks like our missing convoy," said Heather.
"We should hang back," said Astrid. "And follow them to Viggo's drop point." They all agreed.
Back at the quarry Hiccup and Toothless flew at the hunters. The others were hiding and waiting their turn. The hunters fired Dragonroot arrows at Toothless. He did a fast spin and dodged it.
"Careful bud, this new tail is very sensitive," Hiccup said. Toothless sighed. He fired back at the hunters, making them run. Then they dived into the quarry and circled round, drawing all the fire. Barf and Belch ran in a big circle, Barf let out a huge cloud of green gas. Then Viper swooped down and shot bright yellow flames at the gas, making it explode. The hunters ran for cover.
"Ok, they're distracted," said Hiccup. "Fishlegs, now!" Fishlegs and Meatlug flew over to the Quakens. Meatlug shot the chains, and the Quakens were released. They collapsed and didn't move. Hiccup and Toothless hovered over the hunters in the quarry.
"We've halted your operations, now leave," said Hiccup. The hunters just laughed and didn't move. They banged their huge hammers on the ground, then pointed them at Fishlegs. The Quakens woke up and took off, growling at Fishlegs.
"What are you doing, you're free," said Fishlegs nervously. But the two dragons paid no attention. They charged at Fishlegs. He got out of the way pronto. The Quakens rolled into a ball and hit the ground with all force. The shockwave pushed the flying dragons away from the quarry. Then the Quakens rolled after the Twins and their Zippleback. Hiccup steered Toothless after them. Barf and Belch couldn't take off because of their sprained wing. Toothless shot the two Quakens with the plasma blast. It did the trick. The Quakens spun round a chased after Hiccup and Toothless. Hiccup steered Toothless through the trees. The blue tail fin helped with avoiding the trees, however it wouldn't let Toothless fly higher than the trees. The Quakens were catching up to them. They reached a clearing where the Quakens were able to cut Toothless off. They slammed into the ground, causing two shockwaves to hit each other. Toothless was badly overwhelmed.
Fishlegs watched it all from high above. He hoped the other Draconians would catch up to them soon.
"They're in trouble," said Fishlegs panicking. "I know these dragons." Without much thinking he steered Meatlug towards the thundering Quakens, as they charged after Hiccup and Toothless. Fishlegs put himself between them and the Quakens. The two dragons only picked up speed. Meatlug saw that they weren't slowing down and got out of the way. The Quaken spun around, lifted off the ground, and threw themselves at Fishlegs. They were just about to get crushed when Tenor zipped out of nowhere and pulled them out of the way. The Quakens hit the ground, send a shockwave so big it sent all the other dragons and riders flying in all directions. When the dust cleared everyone got shakily to their feet. Tenor and Heddrod had returned from their small mission.
"Is everyone okay?" asked Hiccup.
"We're okay," said Ruffnut. "But Barf took a branch to the eye." Barf opened his left eye, it was red and swollen. Hiccup gagged at the sight. Heddrod turned to Fishlegs.
"What were you doing back there?" he asked. "You were about to get smashed by those two." Fishlegs took a deep breath.
"They respond more to the cruelty of their captors, then to someone trying to help them," he said.
Fishlegs, freeing those dragons is going to be tricky," said Hiccup. "Especially if they don't want to be freed. They've obviously been in captivity for a very long time."
"There has to be a way to get through to them somehow," said Fishlegs.
"Maybe," said Hiccup. "But we have to accept the fact that it may be too late to save them. Sorry Fishlegs."
"Tenor, you wouldn't turn your back on your fellow dragons would you," said Fishlegs. Tenor exchanged a glance with the other dragons.
"I wouldn't," Tenor said. "I would do everything possible to save them."
While Hiccup and Fishlegs surveyed the quarry, Ruffnut fashioned an eye patch for Barf. Hiccup watched the hunters and Quakens in the quarry.
"We have to stop this operation," he said. "Viggo needs this marble for something."
"But we also can't risk hurting the Quakens," said Fishlegs. Suddenly the air filled with a white gas. It a strong stench of rotten eggs.
"Ugh, Barf, you got gas breath," said Tuffnut. "Pop in a mint."
"It's not Barf's breath," said Hiccup. They followed the gas. Viper looked bellow her. She'd been standing on a fissure.
"It's a fissure, and gas," said Fishlegs. Suddenly the ground shook again, but everyone kept their footing.
"Quaken related?" Viper asked.
"No, that tremor wasn't Quaken related," said Hiccup. "Not directly at least."
"What do you mean?" asked Fishlegs.
"Those earlier tremors that we thought were Quakens, was actually the island's instability," said Hiccup.
"That's probably why those wild dragons were fleeing this island in the first place," said Fishlegs. "All that minning of the marble and the constant Quaken strikes are causing this island to become unstable." Hiccup considered.
"You know Fishlegs, there may be a way to stop these operations and free those Quakens after all," he said.
The other half of the team were still on the trail of the convoy. The hunters didn't seem to notice them. They followed the convoy, until an island came into view.
"Does this place look familiar to anyone else?" asked Astrid.
"Yeah, too familiar," said Heather. They were approaching Viggo's base. It was swarming with hunters and ships. Neither Viggo or Ryker were anywhere in sight.
"I think I know why Viggo needs all that marble," said Snotlout. He pointed to an enormous dome made of large, marble bricks.
"Viggo's making an impenetrable fortress," said Heather.
"Almost impenetrable," said Astrid. She pointed to a gapping hole in the roof of the dome. They could see the hunters busy at work.
"What do you say we make some renovations," said Snotlout. Without hesitation they dove into the fortress through the hole, the two scouts right behind them. They attached the hunters, and brunt the construction equipment. But when they fired at the beams holding up the dome, they couldn't make a dent.
"You're wasting your time," said Pangea. "Marble is completely immune to dragon attacks."
"Viggo's created the ultimate dragon proof fortress," said Snotlout.
"One more shipment of marble and it will be complete," said Heather. "And no dragon will be able to take it down."
"Hopefully the others are stopping said shipment," said Pangea.
"We should go tell Hiccup what we found," said Heather. They took off and headed back towards the other island.
Back on the other island Hiccup and the others went to the edge of the quarry. The two Quakens were back at work as wrecking balls. The hunters kept slamming their hammers into the ground. Toothless let out a loud roar and all the hunters turned to look up at them.
"Stop what you're doing and leave now," Hiccup should. "Haven't you noticed that the island is unstable." The hunters exchanged a glance, then went over to the Quakens.
"I knew you were reasonable," said Hiccup. But no sooner had he said that, then the hunters released the Quakens and ordered them to attack again.
"Or not," said Tenor. The Quakens rammed into the wall of the quarry, knocking everyone back. But that strike cause the whole island to shake and open up more fissures. Hiccup quickly mounted Toothless and took off. But before he could strike back, the Quakens hit the ground again. The shockwave hit Toothless, he and Hiccup were knocked out of the air and into a crevasse. They got to their feet and looked up to see one of the Quakens looking down at them. He growled and glared at them. Suddenly the ledge gave way and the Quaken fell into the crevasse as well. The dragon hit the ground and was covered in boulders, unable to get to his feet.
Fishlegs watched with Meatlug and Viper as the other Quaken went to investigate the crevasse. Fishlegs noticed that the second Quaken seemed a bit worried.
"You don't want to hurt your friend," said Fishlegs. "Maybe there is a way to reach you." He turned to Viper. "Can you go get me one of those hammers?" Viper nodded. She spread her wings and took off. She flew back to the quarry and snatched a hammer right out of a hunter's hands. She carried it back to Fishlegs. She handed it to him and he carried over to the crevasse, Meatlug and Viper followed.
"Here it goes," said Fishlegs. He tapped the hammer on the ground to get the Quaken's attention. He looked up at Fishlegs curiously. Using the hammer, Fishlegs gave Meatlug a silent command to go down into the crevasse. She did so. Then Fishlegs gave the same order to the second Quaken. He seemed to nod once. Then he took off, rolled into a ball, and smashed his way down to the other Quaken. He landed next to the other one, and they both faced Hiccup and Toothless.
"Fishlegs!" Hiccup yelled, as the two Quakens were eyeing him.
"It's ok Hiccup, they're on our side," said Viper. "I think." Fishlegs tapped the hammer again to get the Quakens' attention. They looked up at him, and he pointed the hammer at the sky. They flew out of the crevasse and landed on the ground in front of Fishlegs. The island started shaking again. Hiccup quickly got on Toothless and they took off. The Draconians followed.
"Fishlegs, we need to get out of here," Hiccup yelled. Fishlegs mounted Meatlug, and using the hammer ordered all boulder class dragons to take off. Everyone flew off the island as fast as they could. But as they cleared the coast, Heddrod noticed the Twins and the Zippleback struggling to get off the island in a boat.
"Tenor!" he called. Tenor turned around to see what the trouble was. The two dragons dove down, grabbed the boat in their talons, and flew the Twins and Zippleback to safety. Viper pitched in as well. They all watched the island crumble into the sea. At that moment Astrid and the rest of the team joined them.
"What happened to Barf and Belch? Why's the island sunk? And where did those two Quakens come from?" asked Snotlout. "I feel like we've missed a lot."
"Hiccup we know what Viggo wants with the marble," said Astrid.
"He's building a dragon proof stronghold," said Heather.
"A stronghold?" said Hiccup, shocked. "Well we need to take it down at once."
"It's no use Hiccup," said Astrid. "It's strong enough to withstand any dragon attack."
"I have an idea of how we can take it down," said Fishlegs, looking at the two Quakens.
As Viper and Heddrod flew the Twins and Zippleback back to Dragon's Edge, the others flew back to Viggo's base. When they got there, they found the hunters waiting for them. The marble dome waited as well. Fishlegs pointed at it with the hammer. The Quakens responded at once. They rolled into balls and slammed into the ground. The shockwave knocked the marble bricks loose. The Quakens rolled at high speed into the dome, making it collapse. The hunters scattered. A minuet later the dome was nothing more than a pile of marble dust. Everyone landed. The Quakens approached Fishlegs, awaiting their next order.
"No," said Fishlegs strongly. "No, more, work." He tossed the hammer aside and Tenor destroyed it with a plasma blast. Fishlegs petted one of the Quakens on the snout, it rumbled with pleasure. Hiccup approached them.
"How many dragons does Viggo have out there?" Fishlegs asked.
"If there are more dragons out there like this, we'll find them and free them," Hiccup promised. "Now, lead us to Dark Deep. It's time for these Quakens to enjoy their retirement. They've earned it." The riders mounted their dragons and took off. Tenor looked behind him at the destroyed dome.
"Oh man, Viggo's really not going to like this," he laughed. They all left the dome far behind. The two scouts went back out to scout some more, and everyone else went to Dark Deep.