More trouble.

10: Dragon Bones

The Lava-Lout Tribe

The Outcast ship, looking badly damaged, docked in the harbor of Berk, Stoick moving down to greet them, his hand resting on his axe. Alvin the Treacherous had once been his friend, almost as close as he and Gobber were to date. But that had long since passed them both by in his exile from the island.

But when the man stomped down the docks, it was to see that not only was the ship in dire straights, but so was her crew...or lack there of. The deck was covered in blood, and corpses, and the captain was no where to be seen.

"In the name of Odin, what happened?" The man breathed out as he was joined by Gobber and Astrid, "Astrid, send for Gothi, there might be some survivors. Gobber, you're with me."

"Aye, Stoick," Gobber said, twisting his axe into his stump, "Astrid, make sure ye hurry back. Would'nae want ye to miss all t'e fun if it comes down to it, eh?"

Astrid nodded and raced off in search of the elder.

Stoick and Gobber stepped onto the ship, avoiding the fallen Outcasts, noting that some of them were cleaved from head to hip. "By the gods, what did this? A dragon?"

"Nay, Stoick," the aged blacksmith frowned, dipping down to pick of a strange-looking dagger, "T'was no dragon what did this...this is made of dragon bone..." he said, sniffing the weapon, "Lava-Louts."

"Aye," croaked a voice amid the bodies. Stoick looked toward the mast and saw the Outcast chief slumped against the mast, his armor covered in blood. "Good to see you, Stoick."

"Alvin," Stoick rushed to his former friend's side and helped him to his feet, "Are ye injured?"

"Nay," the man shook his head, "Just worn like boot leather. T'was a good fight."

Stoick and Gobber helped the man off of his ship, and onto the docks just as Astrid came running back with Gothi perched on her shoulders, "Ah, good, ye brought her, lass."

"Are there others?" Astrid asked, dipping down to set Gothi on her feet.

Stoick shook his head as the healer went to work, even as Alvin tried to wave her off. Alvin was too tired to protest very much, worn out as he was. His eyes drifted to Astrid, and the man found himself smiling. Stoick caught his gaze and frown, knocking him in the shoulder lightly. The two shared a small look that the girl didn't catch, but Gobber did.

"He needs rest," Gothi breathed out, "Hot food to restore his strength, and wine to numb his muscles."

Alvin chuckled, "I'd not object to a fine meal."

"Ye shall have it," the Hooligan chief said, patting him on the shoulder, "Then, we can talk about what happened."

Alvin nodded, "Lead the way, my former Shield Brother."

"Astrid, I hope ye've taken that...er, friend o' yours into care?" Stoick said, hinting at Astrid's new friend in Stormfly.

The girl nodded, "I left her at my house with Olga," she smiled, "They seem to like each other."

"Good, then I'd like ye to gather up the other chieftains," Stoick sighed, "I'm willing to bet that Olaf One-Brow isn't done with whatever he's up to, eh, Alvin?"

Alvin growled, "I can only wish that I'd made that half-giant bastard bleed," he sneered as the three men made for the mead hall. Astrid had scampered off in search of the others, the Outcast Chief smiling, "She's grown into a Valkyrie, hasn't she?"

Stoick nodded, "That she has, Alvin," he said, looking at the man, "Ye know ye doona have tae endure this any longer. She'll understand."

"Hating me because I am an enemy chief I can take, Stoick," Alvin frowned, "Hating me because of her parents I could never endure." He sighed, "She have a man, yet?"

"My son," Stoick said proudly, "The lad's really come into his own."

"Ah, not such a runt anymore, is he?" Alvin chuckled as Stoick scowled at him. "Oh, don't be giving me that look, Stoick, ye know ye thought the same thing when Valka handed him to ye fer the first time."

Stoick sighed, and nodded, "Aye, that I did." He then smiled, "But that boy's done more for this village than I could have ever imagined."

Some time later found the chieftains gathered around the council table as Alvin wolfed down the meal of roasted boar, and whipped turnips before washing it down with a near bucket full of mead. "Ah, honeyed mead spiced with juniper berries," the man sighed in contentment, "That's a taste that'll never get old."

Stoick chuckled, "Always was the best we had," he commented, "Now, why don't we get down to what happened to ye?"

Alvin frowned, glaring down at his mug, "What is there to say, Stoick?" The man growled, "I got your message about the meeting to deal with the dragons once and fer all, but when I was about to set sail, who should darken me shores but that half-giant bastard, Olaf!" He growled, the grip on his mug groaning from his grip, "I thought he intended to sail along with us, but when I caught sight of his men, all of them decked out in dragon bone and scale armor, I knew it was no friendly meeting. He attacked, and slaughtered all of me men. Then he set the village ablaze." He looked at the gathered chiefs. "None of my tribe are left thanks to that monster."

Stoick growled, thumping his fist against the table, "I knew I never should've invited them!" He snapped, pinching the bridge of his nose, "Gods, they're worse than the dragons! At least they know how to protect their own, but these bastards just wiped out an entire tribe!"

"We are Outcast," Alvin reminded him, "Much as we think of ourselves as a tribe, Stoick, we really weren't. Some came from Berk, others from Berserker Island, and more from the Bog-Burglars."

Dagur ground his teeth, "That doesn't give him the right to kill all of your people," the deranged Berserker spat, "I may have the madness, but even I can recognize who my foes are when I've gone mad!"

Bertha stepped forward, "Did any of me former sisters make it out?"

"None, Bertha," Alvin said, looking at her, "And you know I wish they had. Olaf is not kind to women."

"Dickless bastard!" The Valkyrie sneered, her hand falling to her war axe, "Stoick, what are we tae do about these beasts?!"

Stoick sighed in defeat, "I cannae sail out after him, much as I want to, believe me." He growled, "T'is all we can do to figure out what to do about this giant dragon I've told ye all about."

"All but me," Alvin looked at him, "What giant dragon?"

Stoick quickly explained all that had gone on in the last few days, including the two new residents of Berk, Toothless and Stormfly. Alvin's eyes looked ready to pop clean out of his head, "I...think I may have had too much to drink...did ye just say ye've tamed a pair of Night Furies, Stoick?"

"Aye, that I did," Stoick confirmed, holding out the flagon for him, "Care for another round?"

Alvin nearly laughed, "I think I need to have a clear head for what's to come, me old friend." He said, setting his mug aside, "As for what we should do about the Lava-Louts...they'll be coming this way next."

Stoick nodded, expecting as much. For whatever reason, the Lava-Louts wanted the his tribe gone the most. He couldn't remember if there was a blood feud between them or not, nor did he recall ever having any contact with a member of the tribe in the past.

"Then we should get ready to welcome them, don't ye think?" Stoick grinned at the other chiefs, whom all nodded, all except for Mogadon, who was gritting his teeth for some reason. "Mogadon?"

"Where is that boy of yers!?" He snapped, "Me son was supposed to be back by now!"

Stoick frowned. The day was near done, and they'd yet to see hide nor hair of the two heirs. Which worried the man greatly.

"I don't know, Mogadon," he relented, "But I have faith me son to come back to us with that proof ye wanted." He said, "Make no mistake, ye are the one that wanted this. And ye are to blame if harm befalls them."

"I don't like yer tone, Stoick," the Meathead chieftain growled, his fists clenching tightly, "Keep in mind that if that dragon harmed me boy, I'll - "

"That is enough, from both o' ye!" Bertha shouted, slamming her axe into the table, "We all be worried about those boys, but starting a row about it right now won't be helping anyone!" She sneered at the two men, "Stoick, that boy o' yers had some fine weaponry; does Gobber have anymore in stock? We're gonna need it."

"I believe that they made several sets of armor, too," the man said, "Me son is a master smith in weaponry, and Gobber is a master armorer. Both of them have given up what they made for the village. Mithril(1) is what Gobber's been calling the stuff. Hiccup's swords, bow, and arrows are made from the same stuff. And there's more. A black metal Hiccup discovered is strong enough to slice through iron. Acid-hardened iron."

"Then we've no time tae lose," the Bog-Burglar chieftess said, smiling in delight, "Let's get our people strapped up, and armed. We've a bunch o' louts tae deal with!"

=x=

Meanwhile...

"I don't like the look of those storm clouds, Hiccup," Thuggory said from behind the young Hooligan, "Winter's almost in full swing, so that could very well be an ice storm coming our way!"

Hiccup looked back at him, "I know, but we're out over open water, where am I supposed to land?" He asked as Toothless sped over the water, "We're still a long ways out from Berk!"

Thuggory groaned, "This isn't good," he shivered, "This is definitely a winter storm we're about to fly into!"

Hiccup frowned and looked down at his friend, "Toothless, you gotta get us away from that storm!"

The dragon warbled as he looked back at him, smiling. No sooner had he made the request than Toothless shot straight up into the clouds above them. Thuggory yelled in fright, thinking the clouds solid, but to his surprise they passed right through them, his clothes and armor becoming soaked through. And then Toothless burst through the top of the clouds.

"Whoa," Hiccup breathed out. Before him lay a vast expanse of clouds below them, above was the fire of the gods shining brilliantly with its eerie light. The stars were already lighting up the night sky above them, even though he could still see the sun just cresting above the clouds.

"I've never..." Thuggory breathed out, stunned by the sight, "Hiccup, I never thought I'd say it, but I envy dragons if they get to see things like this."

Hiccup nodded, and patted the dragon on the neck, earning a croon from his friend. "We still need to land," he commented, "It's getting way too cold, and we're not dressed for a winter storm, even if we're flying above it."

Thuggory nodded, "Head west of here," he said, "There's a small cluster of islands that have a bunch of caves on them. Whispering Death burrows, I think. Should be safe enough for a couple of hours."

Hiccup nodded as thunder rolled off in the distance, prompting him to turn Toothless westward.

Half an hour later found them hovering over an island lush with pine trees, and obviously pock-marked with holes and caves. Landing on the island the two young men immediately made for the caves, the storm already too close for comfort. They found a cave that was protected by a cluster of pine trees, and the pair gathered up a large pile of wood which Toothless set ablaze with a small blast of flames.

No sooner was their fire going than the storm hit. Wind and hail howled outside the cave as the storm raged, making the fire a welcome comfort. "Looks like we should get comfortable." Hiccup sighed, frowning slightly, "I was hoping we could get back home."

Thuggory shrugged, "Can't control the weather, Hic," the older teen said, frowning himself, "I'm kind'a worried about my dad, too. Something's not been right with him lately."

"He did push for us to come out here," Hiccup relented, "But I figure he's just being cautious, right?"

Thuggory frowned, "Not sure. I mean, yeah, my dad's shrewd and all, but he's never put me in particular in a danger zone. Sure, I've fought dragons before, sorry Toothless," he said as an after thought as the dragon looked at him with a hurt expression. "But putting me on the back of a dragon? Never thought he'd insist on something like that."

Hiccup frowned as he poked at the fire, "You're right. He trusted me with you way too easily for someone that hates dragons as much as he does..." He sighed, "I don't know, Thug, but we should probably just - "

A huffing grunt caught their attention as something large crashed into the ground outside their cave. Thuggory was immediately on edge, reaching for his sword, but Hiccup took a glance at Toothless, who looked toward the entrance with interest, but not fear, or anger. The dragon was calm.

Not a moment later, however, the huffing got louder, and into the cave stumbled a medium-sized dragon with mottled black and grey skin, and, oddly, a metal face-mask strapped over his muzzle. Hiccup also noticed that the beast was injured, favoring its right back leg which was bleeding from a small but deep gash.

The dragon paid them little attention as it hobbled into the cave, and marched right up to the fire, laying itself down next to the flames with a deep sigh as the warm seeped into his drenched hide.

"Easy, Thuggory," the younger man smiled, "I don't think this guy wants a fight."

"How can you be so sure about that?!" Thuggory hissed frantically, spooked by the strange dragon. "And what kind of dragon is this?! We don't even know what it is?!"

"Thunderclaw," Hiccup put in, smiling, "A few of them were put into the holding area a few years ago. They seemed pretty gentle."

"Yeah?" Thuggory frowned, sheathing his sword, "Then explain the mask it's wearing!"

Hiccupt scooted forward, slowly, so he wouldn't scare the newcomer, and held his hand out just under its nose. The Thunderclaw sniffed at him for a moment, and then laid its head down on its front paws, seemingly not caring about the boy in front of it. Hiccup took this as permission to approach, and took a good long look at the dragon.

The hide was dirty, and poorly cared for, and he could make out the rings of shackles on its feet where it had been bound. On closer inspection, he saw lash marks on the beast's neck; someone had been whipping this poor dragon.

Toothless scooted around him, crooning quietly, soothing the beast as it regarded the Night Fury and his rider.

"I don't think he's dangerous," Hiccup smiled as he went around the dragon to have a look at its wound, "As for the mask...I think he was captured and made to fight if these scars are anything to go on."

The Thunderclaw lowed a gentle rumble in his chest, looking over his shoulder at the boy as he examined the wound, and grumbled at him. Hiccup smiled at the beast, "It's okay, big guy, this won't take long." Huffing out a smokey breath, the dragon just laid his head back down on his paws and rested. The saddlebags that Hiccup had placed on Toothless held a few roles of bandages, and herbs meant for healing. The dragon hissed as he placed the herbs into the wound, and bandaged it.

All the while Thuggory kept his eyes on the beast. Never before had he seen such a healing. The face of the dragon, concealed as it was, let all of his pain show as he hissed and bared his teeth. Unconsciously, he reached over and placed his hand on the beast's rump, patting him soothingly as the dragon looked back at him for a moment, and gave a dip of his head. The message was clear: "Thank you."

"That should do it," Hiccup said, looking up from his work, "As soon as the storm lets up, we can get back home, and maybe this guy'll follow us."

Thuggory nodded, "Couldn't I ride him back like you did with Toothless?"

The younger man looked at him, and smirked, "I thought you were scared of him?"

"Not scared, wary," Thuggory growled, "Wouldn't you be a little jumpy if a strange dragon just sidled up to you in the middle of a hail storm?"

Hiccup held up his hands in apology, still grinning, "If he'll let you, you'll have to ride him bare-back."

"I've ridden horses without a saddle before," the Meathead heir said, shrugging, "Besides, it'd probably be a gentler ride than with Toothless. That devil's the wind!"

Toothless gave a chortling laugh as he went and curled up by the fire once more, and closed his eyes. Hiccup rose and settled against the Night Fury, "Well, nothing else we can do except wait for the storm to stop."

"I hope that's soon," Thuggory sighed, settling himself against the cave wall, "Wake me when it stops."

=x=

Back on Berk...

Astrid was busy showing off her rebuilt home to Camicazi and Heather as they, Ruffnut and Olga sat at her table sipping tea. "I still can't believe Hiccup did all of this for you," Camicazi smiled as she watched Stormfly dozing off by the hearth. "I mean, this is a beautiful house!"

"It is," Heather nodded, "I'm just sorry about what happened to you." She said, referring to her time without a real home, "It makes me sick to think that your own village turned against you like that. What were they thinking?"

"They weren't," Ruffnut offered, frowning angrily, "I bet anything Mildew was at the front of that little raid." She said, "You know he's been baying for blood ever since he found out that there's a dragon in the village? Stoick threatened to lock the man up when he started forming a mob to march up here and take Stormfly to the butchery."

Astrid reached for the handle of the black battle axe on her back, "I'd like to see him try it." She sneered, "I'll bet this axe Hiccup made would make him think twice."

Olga was sitting in Heather's lap throughout the little conversation munching on an apple dumpling, and looked up at the women, "How come no one likes Stormfly?" The little girl asked, "She's really nice."

"She's a dragon," Astrid sighed, sitting herself down at the table, "And adults like Mildew just don't like dragons, sweetie," she said, "But they'll get used to her, because after all that they've put me through, they won't dare come near her."

Camicazi nodded, "You could use her in battle, too." She pointed out, "Flying on the back of a dragon could give a bowman a really good advantage."

Before Astrid could respond, there was a loud thudding on her door, "Oy, Astrid," Gobber roared out, waking Stormfly, "We need ye and that girls tae get ready tae fight! We've an invasion comin'!"

"What?!" Astrid bolted to the door. She flung it open and found Gobber with his hook raised to knock again, "What's happening?!"

"Lava-Louts," Gobber said, pressing a crate into her arms, "Here, that's armor made from the same stuff that Hiccup's swords are, Mithril I calls it," he said, "One for each o' ya in there. The rest o' ye'll need tae come down tae the forge for weapons. Astrid, ye've got that axe from Hiccup, so ye'll be fine."

"Stormfly," Astrid called out to the dragon, who bounded toward her in a few leaps. Astrid smiled and caressed her muzzle, "You stay here and look after Olga for me, alright?"

The dragon crooned mournfully, but gave a confirming nod, moving back into the house to where Olga was sitting as Camicazi, Ruffnut and Heather moved toward her.

"What's the plan?" The blonde girl asked of the smith, "How do we deal with them?"

Gobber grinned, "Frankly, I'd like Ruff and Tuff tae help me with a few...surprises."

Ruffnut grinned at the man, "What did you have in mind?"

=x=

Dusk was just settling as Stoick spied the first ship along the horizon. The sails were easily recognized by the fact that they were made from bleached dragon hide, and the ships themselves were decorated with dragon bones, skulls and spikes of every size.

"Hm, four ships," the man said, taking the spyglass away, "That'd be about thirty men altogether for each ship, wouldn't ye say, Alvin?"

"Aye, that I would," Alvin said, having a look for himself, "Olaf will most likely lead the charge. We kill him, though, and they won't stop. This is gonna be Hel, ye know that, don'cha?"

Stoick nodded, "Aye, I know it, but what can I do?" He frowned, "I'd rather have my people fight to the last and protect themselves rather than be slaughtered like cattle, or oxen."

Alvin nodded in understanding as he watched the people of Berk as well as the men and women of the Bog-Burglars, Berserkers, Hysterics and Meatheads moving about through the village. "I'll just get into place then, shall I?"

"Please do, but don't over do it, Al," the Hooligan chief said, "Ye still need tae tell the wee lass about her parents."

"Don't go reminding me about that, else I may just let one of them sea-rats gut me." Alvin ground out, looking at his old friend, "How can I tell the lass that it's my fault that her parents are gone?"

"Just like that, really," Stoick chuckled, sighing, "Ah, Alvin, I know how ye feel. Look at me. I pushed my own son away hoping it would keep him safe, but that did'nae work. He just became what I should've been a long time ago."

Alvin snorted, "At least he won't hate you for what you've done, unlike me." He sighed, moving off through the village.

Stoick remained, however, his gaze locked on the coming ships. Olaf, he knew, was a ruthless monster of a warrior if tales about him had any merit. And by Thor he hoped that those tales were as false as stories about the Rim of the Sky.

"Chief," Astrid's voice caught his attention as the young woman came up behind him, her new armor gleaming in the waning light, "Everything's ready in the village. We're just waiting for your orders."

Stoick regarded her for a moment and knew immediately why his son had given his heart to her. Astrid was a beautiful young woman, and now looked to be a true Valkyrie wearing the black armor made for her by his son, and Gobber. The black axe attached to her back looked like it could cut through just about anything, the blue and yellow war paint on her face made her look almost feral.

"Have all the women and children that cannae fight been secured?" Stoick asked, looking off toward the village.

"Yeah, I put them all at my place since it a half-mile out from the village and well hidden by the trees." She said, clutching at her axe, "They're really coming for us, aren't they?"

Stoick nodded, frowning, his brow furrowed, "Aye, that they are, m'dear, that they are." He said, "The twins' traps should be ready. Eric and Ingrid ought tae be with their wee lass, but they insisted on fighting. Good that ye've taken all of those people in, lass, though wouldn't have blamed ye if ye didn't."

Astrid shook her head, her braid bouncing, "It's not who I am. I may have been treated like dirt at some point, but now...I really have something to fight for, you know?"

"Aye, and so do I," he grunted out a chuckle, "I still want tae live to see my first grandchild, ye know?"

Astrid blushed slightly, but the thought had crossed her mind when she had shared her bed with Hiccup that one night. She could see it quite clearly. Hiccup working in the forge, and a small auburn-haired child bouncing into the smithy and into his arms. She could even see Toothless and Stormfly playing with a small band of tiny Night Furies. And she wanted that. She wanted that badly.

"Get ready," Stoick growled, hefting his axe, "It's time."

The dragon bone ships crashed into the shores of Berk, the warriors pouring out of them in droves. They moved through the village, fast and silent. At their center was a truly giant of a man at twleve feet tall, dressed in the same bone armor as his men, carrying a massive dragon bone mace in his grasp. The ground nearly shook with each step he took as he made his way into the village he and his people hated most.

"Bring me the chief," he growled out to his men as the first house was broken into...and the roaring of his men while they were doused with a searing liquid.

Changewing acid was strong enough to eat through even the thickest of bones with ease, and the Lava-Louts were soaked in the noxious stuff as soon as they tried to enter any of the houses.

"CHARGE!" The village roared to life as the combined tribes rushed headlong into battle. Pots of flaming liquid were thrown into the fray as the Lava-Louts surged forward, even as they burned alive in their armor. Nightmare gel.

Dagur himself led the charge, his heart hammering in his chest as he stormed ahead of his kin. The Mithril battle axe he held flew through the air, and crashed through armored flesh, spraying the ground in his berserker fury. The attacking tribe roared their challenge as they met the defense of Berk. Their bone-weapons proving just as effective as Hiccup's new weapons.

Astrid had given out a wild war cry of her own as she lept into the battle. Her axe sliced right through the dragon bone armor of the enemy tribe cleanly. She was a whirlwind of destruction as she struck blow after blow, not even caring if she killed her target or not, and merely moved on to the next one.

Arrows flew through the air, finding chinks in the armor, or plowing right through it in some cases as the darts found their marks and felled the bone-clad warriors. Blood dripped from her weapon once she took a small breath, her face smeared with it. As she was about to lunge back into the fray, the sound of heavy footsteps reached her as the massive figure of the Lava-Lout chieftain loomed over her, his massive mace raised.

"Astrid!" Ruffnut screamed, and tackled the girl out of harm's way. The mace crashed into the ground, throwing dust and dirt all around as the two girls scrambled back to their feet. "We need to get out of here!"

"No," Astrid snarled, "We can't back down, not even from him!" She readied her axe as Ruffnut hefted a silvery Claymore, "You take the left."

"You take the right," Ruffnut nodded, "Good luck, Sister."

Olaf turned his massive head toward them, his eyes gleaming in the light of fires blazing all around them, "You two should have run while had the chance," he growled in a grotesquely gravely voice, "Now I'll break your legs, and give you to my men. You will take a long time to die."

"Go!" Astrid darted forward on the right, and then darted to the left as Ruffnut did the same by darting two the right while Olaf swung again. The massive weapon missed, just barely passing and grazing Ruffnut's helmet, and the pair slashed at the man's legs. Astrid buried her black blade all the way to the haft, planting her foot on the bony shin guard and yanking it free in a spray of red as Ruffnut whipped around and slashed open the back of his knee, forcing a howl of rage and pain from the man.

"Astrid, up and over!" Ruffnut shouted, sliding behind the man and cupping her hands together. Astrid took the hint as she ran back, and stepped into her friend's grasp before she was thrown, and vaulted over the giant. She brought her axe up and over her head, and brought it down on his armored head...and the blade slid off of his helmet, splitting it in two, and taking his left ear with it. The man's face became enraged as he bared his teeth, filed to fangs, and swung at the two girls again. Astrid was quick to move out of the way as she landed, rolling out of his range.

Ruffnut kept ducking and dodging behind him, taking whatever chance she could see to cut into him with her sword. Olaf had had enough of that, and kicked out, catching the girl in the chest, and throwing her into a building more than thirty yards away where she crumpled and lay. Astrid saw this and gave out a mad screech as she attacked again.

She got in close as the giant swung at her again, and attacked the weak plating around his wrist, her blade biting into the man's arm below the armor. His grip on the mace weakened with the blow, forcing him to drop the weapon. Astrid saw her chance and swung right at his midsection.

"GAH!" Olaf sank to his knees as the blade sank deeply into his armor, biting into flesh. Blood dribbled from his mouth as he glared at the woman, "Hooligan wench!"

"Son of a half-troll!" Astrid snapped, taking a silvery dagger from her belt, and plunged it into his skull. Olaf's eyes rolled back into his head as he fell to the side. Not taking the time to celebrate her victory, Astrid gripped the haft of her axe and yanked it out, but felt herself slammed to the ground by another attacker. Another Lava-Lout appeared above her with a bone-sword poised to run her through.

An arrow flew like an angry hornet and plunged into the man's armored head, knocking him over where he did not rise again. Astrid looked from where the arrow had come, and saw Heather waving at her alongside Camicazi, who was also armed with one of the silvery bows.

Astrid nodded her thanks, and went to check on Ruffnut. The girl was just picking herself up as Astrid knelt beside her, "Hey, Sis, are you alright?"

Ruffnut shook her head to clear her vision, "Ugh, what the Helheim hit me?" She asked aloud, and looked over to where the Lava-Lout chief lay dead. "Oh, you got him, huh?"

Astrid smiled at her, "Yeah, I got him, thanks to you," she said, helping the girl to her feet, "You good to fight?"

"Just point me in the right direction," Ruffnut said, shaking her head again, and taking up her sword, "Where's that idiot brother of mine?"

"Last I saw of him he was throwing flaming pots of Nightmare gel at the Lava-Louts." Astrid said, smirking, "He gets to have all the fun, huh?"

Ruffnut giggled, and nodded as they trudged back into the battle.

Across the village, Stoick was throwing warrior across the field, and plunging his sword into another. He then picked up a hay cart, and threw it into an advancing wave of warriors, crushing them before they could get too far.

The battle was going well. Gobber's ideas about using the Nightmare gel, and Changewing acid had been ingenious. Now all they had to do was hold them off until they'd had enough.

"ARGH!" Stoick whipped around just in time to block the strike of a blade, but to his ire, it wasn't the blade of a Lava-Lout, but of an ally.

"Mogadon!" Stoick scowled, "Ye'd better have a good explanation for this!"

"Does it matter?!" The Meathead chief roared angrily and struck again. The two chiefs traded blows, neither one giving an inch as Mogadon desperately tried to kill Stoick, "We never should've come here!" Mogadon sneered, "I could've had my people off our island long before Olaf got to us! And then I'd be rid of you, you weak-hearted fool!"

"What have I ever done to earn such a betrayal!" Stoick demanded, "We've been friends for years!"

"And yet you've never once reached out a hand to anyone else!" Mogadon roared furiously, "I never would have asked, but you should've seen it for yourself how my people were suffering!"

"They're fighting with me!" Stoick growled, "If you have their loyalty, then where are they?!"

Mogadon roared and slashed at the man, his blow parried, and was kicked back, "They won't follow me anymore!" Mogadon growled, holding his bruised ribs, "Thuggory, my son, he's just like your damned runt of a son!" He growled, staggering forward, "If I'd left him here, then they'd have all turned against me as soon as I raised my blade!"

"So you sent your only son into what could be a death trap," Stoick sneered, his hand gripping his sword tightly, "All to get him out of the way, and maybe even kill him? You're no chief!"

"Neither are you!" Mogadon roared, and raised his blade. Just as he was about to strike, and sword point exploded from his chest. "Guh!"

"He's a chief alright," Alvin sneered from behind him, "He is my chief, and I'm the only one allowed to kill him." He pulled the sword from his chest, and let the man drop.

Stoick snorted as Alvin cleaned his blade, "Ye just had to go and poke yer nose in my fight, didn't ye?"

"Feh, you're welcome," Alvin chuckled, "You know he wasn't worth. Besides, you wouldn't want his son blaming you for his death, would you?"

Stoick shook his head, "No, I suppose not." He said, his ear twitching, "Do...do ye hear something?"

Alvin frowned and listened for a moment.

A high-pitched keening was coming from somewhere, and getting louder...and louder! "Night Fury!"

"Hiccup!" Stoick looked to the sky as the Night Fury, Toothless, arrowed through the aid, screeching at the top of his lungs. He flew over a cluster of Lava-Louts and let loose a blast of fire into their midst.

A second roar sounded as another dragon, this one mottled black and grey and carrying Thuggory if Stoick's eyes were still as good as they once were. The dragon let loose a blast of greenish fire, engulfing another cluster of warriors.

=x=

Once the two dragons and their riders arrived, the battle began to wane. While the Lava-Louts were fierce and unafraid of death, the combined efforts of the five other tribes was more than enough to beat them back, and utterly destroy their forces. The dragons attacking the army had only sped things along.

And not the villagers piled the bodies of the dead on the ships, preparing to push them out to sea.

"That was quite an entrance, lad," Alvin commented to the young Hooligan heir as he helped with the clean up. "Never thought I'd see the day when someone would ride atop a dragon, let alone a Night Fury."

Hiccup shook his head, "I just wish we'd gotten back sooner," Hiccup said, tossing a piece of bone armor into a pile, "Gods, I never thought we'd be attacked by one of our own."

Alvin sighed and clapped the boy on the shoulder, "As you live life, you'll find that a great many things will happen that you do not expect." He said, and tossed another body onto the boats, "That's the last of them," he turned and hollered, "Stoick! We're ready down here!"

The ships were pushed back out to see, and set ablaze. No words were said over the invaders bodies as the ships burned and sank below the waves. Throughout it all, however, Hiccup hadn't caught sight of Astrid.

The young man worried that she'd been injured during the battle. Hiccup and Toothless then traveled through the village, taking in the destruction. Greetings were called out as he passed. The villagers praised him, him of all people. Even though he had done good, however, he couldn't feel like he had done right. So many were dead.

"Mama," Hiccup stopped dead in his tracks. He knew that voice. "Papa?"

'Oh, dear gods, please no,' he prayed silently. And of course, his prayers went unanswered as he turned about and saw little Olga, Stormfly at her side, searching through the village. He hadn't seen Eric or Ingrid since returning to the village the previous evening. But...that didn't mean...

And then he saw Astrid moving toward the little girl and pick her up in her arms, "Auntie...where's Mama and Papa?" The girl asked.

Astrid shook her head, "I...don't know, sweetie..."

Stormfly crooned sorrowfully, nudging against her friend, and looking up at the child. Toothless warbled out a quiet greeting as he and Hiccup moved toward them. Astrid's face lit up happily for a moment as she saw them.

Hiccupt hugged both of them tightly. "Olga?" The little girl looked at him, her little eyes red and puffy, "I...don't really know that much about being a father...nothing at all, really." He said, frowning, "But if you'll let me - "

"If you'll let us," Astrid put in, smiling at the little girl, "We could try?"

Olga was looking between the two of them, her face falling. "Mama and Papa aren't coming back, are they?"

Armor: Elder Scrolls: Oblivion Mithril armor set - standard - to be evolved into Nordic Carved Armor.

Astrid: Elder Scrolls Skyrim Ebony armor set (No helmet). One Skyrim-Ebony battle axe.

Weapons: Elder Scrolls: Oblivion Silver Weapons(full set-I.E. Mithril)

Yeah, I know, how could I do that to poor little Olga? Because I am a cruel bas - song of a half-troll (pardon me). Anyway, crazy as this chapter was, I hoped you all enjoyed it. If so, leave a review.