Author's Note:
Hello everyone and welcome to the next chapter. As promised, this one details tournament day and Snotlout's first public display of his archery skills. Thank you all for your continued support and I hope you enjoy the chapter.
I own nothing.
Chapter 11
Berk's arena was packed to the brim.
The excitement for the Summer Games had spread like wildfire and every member of the tribe was present, as well as a few visitors. Vikings of all kinds filled out the stands and beyond, some even using their dragons to get a better view, and almost every one of Berk's clans had at least someone representing them. Of course, it was a competition between individuals but most clans would rally behind their members and all were aware of how their performance reflected upon their own clan. The only clan not represented was the Haddock clan but since it mostly consisted of Hiccup's family it wasn't that surprising, as such, they were acting as the neutral judges and referees for the tournament.
With the age range sitting at fifteen and above, both veterans and greenhorns would be competing together. Some could consider it unfair but most Vikings relished such a challenge and no one complained about it and besides, many young Vikings dreamed of besting their elders.
Gently pushing his way through the packed crowds, Eret made room for the elderly woman behind him.
Snotlout's grandmother shuffled along as quickly as she could, leaning on her grandson's arm for support, "Well this has turned into quite the big hullabaloo, hasn't it?"
The teen grinned, "Yeah, it really is something. I don't think this many turned up for Thawfest fifteen years ago."
"The village has grown in size over the years, I believe it's the biggest it's ever been in its history."
Eret called back, "Well, that's what several years of peace will do. There's been no major conflicts since Drago and the peace with the dragons means even less warring to stunt Berk's growth."
"Don't forget how our chief has managed to negotiate agreements with the other tribes." The older woman added, "The Archipelago hasn't been this united since…well…ever."
As they made their way through the throng in the stands, Snotlout glanced around, "So, see anywhere you want to sit Grandma?"
She pointed out a spot, "Over there, beside Gustav and his wife. Their little boy is just about the sweetest baby you'll ever meet, mini Gustav certainly takes far more after his mother than father."
"Wait! Gustav called his son Gustav?"
She smiled at her grandson's question, "Well, it was actually Heida's idea but yes, the lad has his father's name."
They pushed their way through to the couple and Gustav nodded in a friendly manner, "Hello, good to see you guys."
One of the things Snotlout was still trying to get his head round was how much Gustav had changed. He was much taller and had put on some serious muscle, he also was the commander of the Dragon Guard and everyone said he and Fanghook were second only to the Original Riders. Having seen them flying together first hand, Snotlout could believe it. With years of experience as leader of the A-Team and then the Dragon Guard, Gustav had matured considerably and become a respected, reliable member of the village, with his own group of fans made up of many of the young boys of Berk.
Though busy with his duties and with looking after his family, he'd been welcoming to Snotlout and the teen was slightly shocked by the kindness he'd been shown by someone he'd once put down upon.
Eret returned the greeting, "Good to see you too Gustav." He smiled at Gustav's wife, "Same to you Heida."
Snotlout's gran plonked herself down beside the mother and leaned over baby Gustav, "And how are you young sir?"
The baby gurgled and waved his arms and the elderly woman nodded understandingly, "Yes, I'm looking forward to the tournament as well."
Eret clapped Snotlout on the shoulder, "Don't you need to register your equipment?"
"Yeah, I should go and do that." He looked to his grandmother, "I'm probably going to get a bit more practice in before the archery starts. You okay here?"
She waved him away, "Of course, you just go and make sure you're all set for the event. Me and Eret will be cheering loudly for you from here."
With a quick grin, Snotlout hurried off.
It was Gobber who was in charge of inspecting participent's equipment, while Valka did a quick check up of each of the competing dragons. Having entered both normal and dragonback archery, Snotlout had to see both of them.
Having seen Gobber first, he made his way to Valka's section along with Hookfang.
The queue was long since so many people were entering but he didn't mind the wait too much. Around him, people chatted excitedly or hurried past to get a good seat, a little way off, some men had already opened a barrel of mead and were swigging it away jovially, their faces already slightly red. There was a practice ground set up nearby and he could see competitors working away, trying to squeeze a little more training or simply getting themselves warmed up. There was a distinct lack of archers but he knew that those events were probably the least popular at of all of them.
From what he knew, most people signed up to the archery events were older, seasoned warriors, making him the youngest by quite some margin. There were also very few of them, including him, there were only four in both events, making them the smallest events there. He was also the only one who was only signed up for the archery events, most saw it a minor skill and were simply taking part simply because they could rather than seriously competing.
In essence, this made him probably the biggest oddity in the entire tournament and word had spread.
Each competitor knew who else was taking part in their events and it hadn't taken long for people to notice that he was only entered in for archery. This had caused a ripple of speculation through the village, no one had seen him use a bow before and most didn't even know he could. Once you added his work on his bow, quiver and arrows to the mix, people started to take more notice and suddenly, the archery events gained a surge of interest, purely because they were curious to see how he did.
As he waited to be seen by Valka, he could see nearby people pointing and looking at him, commenting quietly on his equipment to their neighbours. It was obvious that what he was using was unique and people started to linger nearby, trying to learn more.
Eventually, Valka waved him over.
As Hookfang remained still, she ran her hands over him, commenting as she did so, "Well Snotlout, Hookfang certainly is fit and healthy and in peak condition too." She rubbed some of his gel between her fingers, "His gel seems especially good, it looks like some of the highest quality I've ever seen and there's more of it than normal."
Snotlout scratched his head, "Really, it's the same amount he's always had."
She frowned, "Interesting." She examined him closer, "While he is physically weaker than most other Nightmares, it seems his firepower might actually be much stronger, especially if he produces this much high-quality gel all the time." She shook her head, "But I can look into that later. In terms of today he's more than well enough to take part." She smiled at him, "Good luck out there."
Hookfang briefly nuzzled her in thanks then sauntered over to Snotlout and lightly butted him towards the training field. Snotlout grumbled in annoyance, "Hookfang! I was planning on going there anyway." He called back as his dragon continued to forcefully nudge him onwards, "Thank you...okay, okay, I'm going already, stop butting me! Pushy dragon."
Valka chuckled at them before turning her attention to the next dragon.
The tournament was proving to be an excellent success and Hiccup watched it all from the Chief's chair.
All the events had seen large turnouts with many people competing in them and they'd all been hard fought. For him, the axe events had been particularly entertaining, partly because he had Astrid next to him criticising every single person's form and skill, it only got funnier when his son started giving his opinion as well, little Stoick had high expectations just like his mother.
About halfway through, Gobber approached him.
Hiccup smiled at his former mentor, "Hey Gobber, how's everything going behind the scenes?"
The blacksmith waved his hand dismissively, "Just fine, Valka's got everything well under control and running smoothly." He then frowned, "Well, a couple of the Jorgensons tried to kick up a fuss but yer mother shut them up pretty quick."
Hiccup simply nodded, he'd expected a little trouble from the Jorgensons but he knew his mother could handle them easily, she was Spitelout's brother after all. If Gobber wasn't concerned then it was likely nothing beyond their normal trouble, it hadn't caused any visible issues anyway.
"How's Snotlout?"
It was Astrid who'd asked and Gobber and Hiccup shared small smiles at the concern in her voice before the older man answered, "He's just fine, he's been practising with that bow of his in preparation for the archery events." He shook his head fondly, "And I have to say it, that bow he's made is something else, not to mention the quiver and arrows. He's really worked hard on them and I might go as far to say as they're some of the best bits of archery equipment I've seen."
Hiccup grinned, "You can say that again. Apparently, the bow was actually made by his great-grandfather, he just added and altered it."
Gobber nodded sagely, "Now that explains it, his great-grandfather was one of the best archers Berk had ever seen, not that many people cared unfortunately."
"Maybe Snotlout's inherited his skills."
Gobber grinned at Hiccup's words, "Maybe…"
Astrid eyed him suspiciously, "You know for certain, don't you?"
The blacksmith shrugged, "Well. I might've sneaked a peak at him practising before coming to see ye."
"How good is he?"
He smiled mysteriously at Astrid's question, "Wasn't really there long enough to say but it'll be well wort hanging around to watch."
"Gobber…"
He began sauntering away, "Sorry, I've got to see how things are going, see ye later."
"Get back here!"
Hiccup laughed at his wife, "Calm down milady, we'll see how good Snotlout is for ourselves soon enough."
The Summer Games were drawing to a close, with only the archery events left.
As the least popular events, they'd been slotted in at the end where most people, due to tiredness or other reasons, would want to leave. Normally, people would start to leave so as to get ready for the celebratory feast in the Great Hall but unusually, almost everyone was staying to watch.
In the stands, Eret was sat with Snotlout's grandmother watching as helpers prepared the arena for the event. The elderly woman rubbed her hands in excitement, "Here we go. I've been waiting all day to see this."
Above the arena, sitting behind a Thunder Ear, Fishlegs and Tuffnut were commentating on the events and the Ingerman's voice rang out as the last helper scurried out of the arena, "Ladies and Gentlemen, we're just about to start the last set of events of this year's Summer Games…Archery!"
There were cheers and roars from the crowd and Tuffnut spoke next, "And here come the competitors! First up…the wildest warrior upon the seas…HORGRUNN INGERMAN!"
The Ingermans roared loudly as one of their senior warriors strode confidently into the arena, he held quite the reputation upon Berk and had already done well in several other events.
Fishlegs introduced the next competitor, "And second…we have the tricky, twister…TORNUTT THORSTON!"
The Thorston clan screamed their lungs out as a thin, gangly limbed man ran in, he was known to be quick and hard to read in combat and had held his own in the Sword Fighting event.
Tuffnut took the next one, "Thirdly…we have the swift, swordsman of the warrior clan, and favourite to win these events…AGAR HOFFERSON!"
The Hoffersons went wild as one of their finest representatives bounded in to join his fellows, he'd dominated the sword and axe events and most knew his archery was fairly decent.
The cheers lasted longer, forcing Fishlegs to yell above them, "And finally…he's the one who was frozen for fifteen years and is the surprise competitor of these events…SNOTLOUT JORGENSON!"
Eret was forced to duck as Snotlout's grandmother leapt to her feet, swinging her arms like crazy and yelling louder than anyone, "GO GET THEM GRANDSON!"
Walking steadily out, Snotlout grinned up at her and waved in response before standing next to the others. Even as he added his cheers to the noise, Eret noticed that Snotlout's support was distinctly more subdued when compared with the others, especially with regards to his own clan members. As the teen stood next to his competition, it was revealed that he was only half their height and the age difference was very obvious.
Fishlegs ran over the rules, "Now, in the Normal Archery, the competitors will shoot from behind a set line at the targets before them. Each target is shaped like a person and the archer has to call out which section of the target he will hit, they are limited to three arrows and their score will be decided by the judges. Scoring will depend on whether they hit their declared target, how difficult said target was to hit and how far behind the line they fired from. They have one target each and the scores will not be revealed until each person has shot."
Tuffnut spoke next, "Without further ado…let the archery carnage…BEGIN!"
The crowd laughed at Tuffnut's overdramatic words as the first shooter stepped up.
"And Horgrunn is first up, choosing to fire from just behind the line. Possibly a tactical choice if he's after a difficult set of shots."
The Ingerman held up his bow, "Two hands and a head!"
The crowd oohed at his choice as Tuffnut commented, "It seems you were right, Fishlegs my friend."
"Indeed, with the way the target's hands are held out to the side of the body, they are far narrower and more difficult to hit. Opting to be as close as possible will work in Horgrunn's favour."
The crowd hushed as Horgrunn prepared to fire.
THUNK!
He hit the first hand dead centre.
THUNK!
The second hand received an arrow to the thumb.
THUNK!
The last arrow embedded itself in the target's head.
The crowd cheered as Horgrunn nodded in satisfaction, pleased with the result. Fishlegs' voice sounded out, "And he's done it! That'll probably elicit a good score from the judges so he did well."
"Indeed, he did." Tuffnut responded, "He may not get any extra points since he shot from the line, but it was a good three arrows he fired. Let's see if our next archer can top it."
From there, the event continued with each competitor keeping close scores. Tornutt managed to hit the head twice and the heart from two paces behind the line and Agarr managed two hands and a heart from three paces back, leaving only Snotlout to shoot.
"And finally, we have our youngest archer. Like the others, Snotlout is using his own bow and arrows, though they appear to be markedly different from Berk's normal designs."
Fishlegs took up Tuffnut's explanation, "It seems that the bow was actually created by his great-grandfather, who was a gifted archer, and Snotlout has altered and worked upon the original design himself. The quiver and his arrows are all his own creation."
"And must I say…that quiver certainly looks impressive. Those colours and that design just work!"
"The quiver also boasts a unique arrow-locking mechanism designed by our own chief some time ago, holding the arrows in securely while allowing easy drawing."
As they spoke, Snotlout took his position, a good ten paces behind the line.
Eret frowned, "Isn't he a bit far back?"
Snotlout's grandmother simply smirked, "Not at all, I'm sure he could shoot from even further back if he wanted to. Just watch."
Snotlout held up his bow, "Two eyes and the right hand!"
The crowd gasped in surprise, which was mirrored in Tuffnut's voice, "And he's just called two eyes, no one has ever declared such a target before!"
"He seems to be really kicking up the heat in this event, let's see if he can pull it off."
The crowd fell into a deathly hush, waiting with bated breath to see if the teen could deliver upon his claim.
THUNK! THUNK! THUNK!
In rapid succession, three arrows embeded themselves in the target, one in each eye and one right in the centre of the right hand. There was a delay as everyone took time to realise what happened until the boy's grandmother leapt to her feet wildly, "THAT'S MY GRANDSON!"
As the rest of the crowd roared and whooped, Fishlegs bellowed above them, "And he's done it! What a series of shots! Even without knowing the final scores I think it's clear who the winner is!"
Tuffnut's voice was filled with amazement, "No kidding! Pulling off such a difficult set of shots from ten paces back means instant victory for Snotlout. Looks like the rest will have to watch out in the Dragonback Archery!"
Even as he stood applauding Snotlout's fine shooting, Eret was shaking his head in amazement.
Snotlout was in a class of his own.
PS-Unfortunately the chapter was starting to run long so the Dragonback Archery will be detailed in the next one. Please let me know what you thought and I'll hopefully update soon.