A/N: I'm so, so sorry I haven't updated in such a long time. I meant to update this the week that Race to the Edge premiered, and even had the first part written... but I suddenly got some serious stomach problems, and was in a lot of pain for most of that week. After that, I had a week-long trip so I didn't have a computer available. I was going to tell you guys that when I updated... but I couldn't write. Heck, I couldn't even concenetrate on watching stuff.

I want to try to have a new chapter before the end of January, because for the first fifteen days of February I'll be going to a house without Internet, but I think I'm going to bring my computer and work on new chapters anyway. I make no promises, though.

Again, I'm sorry this took so long.

Astrid was deep in thought as Stormfly flew towards her destination. Brant's words troubled her; at first, she'd refused to believe them, but she knew the man well. He was a typical coward henchman, and that kind of men were quick to tell the truth and betray their bosses in order to avoid death. Which meant that what he said about the ring was true, and she knew there was nobody but Asger who wore jewellery in such a strange fashion; it had always been her way of easily identifying him.

This also posed another problem; Asger would never betray her on his own, she knew. He had a deep sense of loyalty, a quality she required of her closest allies, and she'd given him a second chance at life. He owed everything he had to her, and he wouldn't just turn on her for no reason at all. Unfortunately, this meant that there was someone else after her, someone who had planned all of this. She wasn't worried about the fact that said person probably wanted her dead – there was always a price on her head after all- but rather the fact that they'd managed to orchestrate an elaborate plan that involved her most trusted partners. She needed to find out who they were, and fast.

It could be Dagur, trying to send her off his trail, but he was rarely one to plan so much; she knew the Berserker chief preferred brute strength, and although he definitely didn't lack cunning, his methods only went as far as allying with other criminals and sneaking his soldiers into enemy territory. No, this was someone new, who for some reason didn't want her getting to Dagur, but why? They weren't protecting him; the criminals with large organisations like hers, and the one that was after her, didn't get into deals with people as unpredictable as Dagur. So what other reason was there? If she didn't get the Berserker chief, it really only made a difference to her, since it prevented her from gaining the trust of the Berkians...

The realisation hit her then. Of course. This wasn't about Dagur; this was about stopping her from getting her hands on the dragons. She'd promised to capture the madman in exchange for a dragon; if she didn't keep her end of the deal, then she wouldn't get one. Whoever was responsible for all this, then, somehow knew that she was going to Berk and had correctly assumed that she would try to get a dragon. The question was: was there an ulterior motive for not wanting her to achieve her goal? Were they just afraid of the upper hand she'd get, or did they want something else?

The answer to that, she decided, was something that she'd have to set about discovering later. First, she had to deal with Asger, and then she'd need to catch Dagur and put the Haddock's suspicions to rest. Well, the father's, anyway; she could sense that Hiccup already trusted her, albeit reluctantly. Once that was done... as much as she'd have liked to keep a close eye on Hiccup, she'd have to trust his protection to others, as she'd done so far, and find her mysterious enemy. Besides, if they captured Dagur, that should ensure Hiccup's safety, at least until she came back.

Stormfly's squawking brought her back to reality and she realised she was already flying over the island where Asger's village was. She directed her Nadder towards a cliff where she knew the man usually was, and as they approached and the people noticed them, she could hear their screaming. Thankfully, nobody attacked; she wasn't in the mood for dodging manoeuvres, and if they were scared, they would leave them alone, which would be for the best; she didn't want any witnesses.

While she landed, she saw that Asger was only now turning around, as if he'd only just heard all the noise, which knowing him was probably true; he had a tendency to get lost in thought. He looked at her as she walked over to him, neither of them saying a word. He knew exactly why she was there, she could tell by the look in his eyes. There was determination in them, and a bit of fear, but mostly he seemed sad that they'd reached this point. She understood him; she felt the same.

For several moments, they just stood there in silence. Finally, he spoke.

"So, it's over then."

He seemed at peace with it. He'd probably had a lot of time to think about it, she guessed.

"Yes." She paused and sighed. "If you had come to me, I could've helped you. We could've avoided all of this." She looked at the cliff. "But now it's too late."

His voice tightened. "They threatened my family", he said. He was pleading, pleading for her to understand the reason for all this.

"Of course they did." So her suspicions were right. "Asger... I'll take care of your family, whatever they need."

"I know you will." He hesitated for a beat. "Which is why I'll tell you that Dagur is at the little island just north of Berserker Island, and he'll be there for at least another week."

"So close?" she raised her eyebrows, but she didn't doubt the information. He was giving her something that would help before he died; trying to prove his loyalty, such as it was, until the end.

"It's the last place anybody would think to look." She nodded, and he swallowed. "One last thing. My wife... She has no idea. If you could make it look like an accident... for her..."

Her voice hardened. "Look out at the water."

Slowly, Asger turned around and stepped closer to the edge of the cliff. She went towards him, taking a strip of leather out of her pocket, and hooked it around his neck. When he went limp, she tossed his body down the cliff. Everyone had seen a dragon come this way; it was the perfect cover.

Having finished, she walked back towards Stormfly and mounted up. As her Nadder took off towards Berk, she felt glad that her father had taught her about the value of loyalty. She never would've got anywhere with traitorous employees.

Hiccup hammered away at the blade of his fire sword. With everything that had happened in the last few days, he'd nearly forgotten about it, but while he waited for Astrid Hofferson to come back, he'd remembered how excited he'd been about this project. The blade would have to be extra resistant, since it'd be set on fire every time he took it out, but that was exactly why he'd picked Gronckle iron for it; he knew firsthand how well it withstood fire.

It was a relief to be at the forge alone; the last two days had been rather weird. The other riders seemed to realise that something was up, even if they didn't know exactly what. Snotlout, thankfully, hadn't talked about what he'd seen when he and the blonde had arrived at the dragon arena, which was a mercy; it would've been much more difficult to keep everything a secret if the twins heard about it. He had no idea of what Snotlout thought he saw, but he hadn't been asked about it. He'd wondered about that, until once he noticed the dark-haired Viking looking at Stoick with what could only be described as dread. That's when he understood that his father had probably told him to keep his mouth shut.

He didn't know who else knew about Astrid Hofferson; the whole village had heard her ask for a deal, but nobody had seen her get it, and then they'd seen her being brought to the dungeon, so they'd obviously assumed she was being kept a prisoner. Hiccup understood his father's reasons; the less people who knew about the deal, the better. Which was why he was avoiding the others (especially Fishlegs, who knew him the best) and their questions; he didn't want to lie to his friends.

Suddenly, there was knocking. He turned towards the door, but saw no one there. He heard the knocking again, and realised that it came from the window, on the other side of the smithy. He went towards it and almost jumped when he saw Heather crouched outside. Toothless raised his head and warbled questioningly at his reaction. The girl didn't say anything, just pointed towards a narrow path that led away from the village, and walked towards it. Understanding immediately, he carefully put away the unfinished weapon and hurried down the path with the raven-haired girl, followed by Toothless. He wondered if it was Astrid Hofferson who was already back. It seemed too soon, but then again he guessed she had no reason to be slow about it; if anything, she'd probably been in a hurry.

Wait. Why don't I just ask?

"Is she back?" Heather just nodded and kept on walking. The path they were on was built on the cliff's side, away from the view of the village; perfect to keep them hidden. After a while, they arrived at the forest, and they hadn't gone much further when the blue Deadly Nadder – Stormfly, he remembered- appeared, her owner beside her. She smiled when she saw him. His Night Fury, meanwhile, stepped forward to meet the other dragon.

"Hiccup", she greeted. "I know where Dagur is. Shall we get going?"

For a moment, he didn't speak as her words sunk in. Straight to the point, for once, he thought.

"Are you sure of that?"

"Yes. I took care of the... problem in my organisation. There are no more traitors inside."

"And how did you get the information about Dagur?"

She rolled her eyes. "As much as I enjoy our conversations, we really should get going."

"I have to get my father."

She raised an eyebrow. "And do you really think your father is going to let us go?"

"Yes. He told me he would."

Her eyebrow went higher. "Seriously?"

"Seriously. He said this was the last chance, though." He looked at her for a second. "Which is why I want to make sure you've got it right this time."

She smirked. "Why? You don't want to sneak behind your father's back?"

"I don't like to."

"So you have done it before."

He froze for a second, caught, then rolled his eyes. "Well, you can imagine I didn't exactly run to tell him about Toothless the moment I found him."

She chuckled. "True. All right then, go get the chief. The sooner we are gone, the better."

Nodding, he turned around and ran back to the village, his dragon trailing after him.

The silence was tense, but Hiccup didn't dare break it. His father hadn't made a comment when he told him the situation; he'd just gone to get Skullcrusher and then they'd been off immediately. Now the three dragons flew side by side. Stoick, like him, had asked the girl if she was sure of the information, but that was all; he'd been quiet the whole flight, and his son decided he preferred it to his shouting. Astrid Hofferson wore a look of determination, although there seemed to be a trace of amusement at his father's attitude. Behind her, Heather was completely expressionless. (He'd been surprised when the blonde insisted that she should come, but his father hadn't been opposed to the idea.) For his own part, Hiccup felt slightly nervous at the fact that they'd soon be facing who knew how many enemies, but he was determined to capture Dagur and end this once and for all.

They flew in a wide circle away from Berserker Island to prevent any possible attacks, and the island that was their destination soon came into view. Everyone fidgeted in their saddles at the proximity of it.

"All right", Astrid Hofferson suddenly spoke. "You know Dagur better than I do. Where would he be hiding?"

Hiccup looked down at the island. It seemed uninhabited, no signs of houses anywhere. The vegetation was dense; a huge forest spread in every direction.

"If he's so close to his home", he reflected, "then it's because he wants to keep an eye on it. I'd say he's on the southern part of the island, not too far from the edge of the forest. Somewhere he can both watch Berserker Island but also be hidden from the view of anyone. Right around here is our best bet."

"Very well then. We should probably approach from the north, though. He's bound to have guards in the southern part. Perhaps we ought to split up-"

"No", Stoick interrupted. "I may have agreed to come, but I still don't trust you."

She rolled her eyes. "Fine, all together it is. But I wonder if your dragon can be stealthy. His size doesn't exactly make him inconspicuous."

"Skullcrusher can disguise himself just fine. When we found him, he'd been hiding from my son and his friends for weeks. We walked right past him while we looked for him."

"If you say so. Let's go."

They landed in the forest, taking a roundabout route to avoid being seen, and started towards the south. Every now and then, they encountered a guard, but their dragons took care of them before they even saw them coming. At last they found a hidden hut, close to the edge of the cliff. They never would've noticed it from the air; not only was it well protected by the trees, but it'd been painted in green and brown so as to camouflage it with the environment. A number of Berserker soldiers walked around it.

"There's no way we can take all of them down without making any noise", Astrid Hofferson whispered from behind the bushes where they were hiding from view. "Dagur is going to know we're coming. We have to keep an eye out for him, lest he escape."

"He won't", Hiccup replied just as quietly. "He'll try to capture us."

"Right. I forgot you're his 'brother'. Well, that makes our jobs easier."

"So what are we waiting for?" Stoick asked. He didn't wait for an answer; he jumped right out into the open, yelling and swinging his axe at the nearest guard, who didn't have time to react before he was knocked down. Skullcrusher roared and followed his rider.

Beside Hiccup, the girl chuckled. "There goes our stealth. Oh well." Grabbing her axe from her back, she crawled around to the side and then jumped out too, along with her Nadder.

"Looks like it's our turn, bud." Toothless warbled and then loosened a plasma blast among the soldiers to make his presence known. Hiccup took his shield and, stepping out, joined the fray.