Hey, hey, hey, hey. Slay or be Slain is out and you should go read it. Yeah, you the reader should read. Mind. Blown. Boosh. Also i have recently finished state testing (hopefully) so I should be posting more frequently now.

The air was filled with aromas. Sweet, sour, ghastly, and delectable. These scents filled a semi-conscious boy's nose while his ears were occupied, being the only other sense seeming to work. He heard the repeated tap croak tap croak of wood against wood. His head was swimming with nausea and pain prohibiting him from opening his eyes. The veins running up and down along his body felt as if they were made of a thousand suns but every other part of his body was shivering beneath the blankets he had awoken in. Hiccup fought through the headache and slowly opened his eyes, meeting bright lights that caused him to shut his eyes once again for a few seconds. After feeling he had adjusted to the abrupt greeting of light Hiccup opened his eyes slowly and carefully. Not looking at the open window ahead.

Hiccup lay in a small twin bed covered in a large white wool blanket and soft pillows beneath his head. The room Hiccup is currently within is what you would call a complete mess. Shelves were filled with bottles, books, and jars holding herbs. A large bookcase that went from the floor up to the ceiling was filled with books of all sorts and in many languages, most of which Hiccup couldn't understand but from the ones he could it looked like their owner was into medicine. Across from Hiccup in the rectangular room was a small open closet filled with child-sized clothes and Hiccup Night Fury armor was neatly hung up with the rest. The open window was to Hiccup's right and it illuminated the room completely with the early morning sun. Which means…

"I've been out for a day!" yelled Hiccup abruptly disturbing the peace and quiet. He had alerted a nest of birds in the nearby tree from in the tree. He sat up too quickly and instantly felt light-headed and nauseated once again but fought through it and quickly got out of bed. He staggered towards the door and ignored the pain shooting up his legs and instead focused on the voices that grew louder and louder the closer he got to the door. One was husky and thick with an unknown accent, two were angry women but Hiccup couldn't tell who since the closed door muffled all sounds, and the last was a repeated array of taps on wood. He finally brought up enough strength to move his shaking and bruised hand up to the door handle and turn it, opening the door to madness.

Stormfly and Astrid were bickering with each other to one side of the room. They looked tired, angry, and worried all at once. Something wasn't right but Hiccup decided to ask later. Toothless was sitting in a wooden chair and talking with two other people whose faces were new to Hiccup but the voices weren't. The husky thick voice belonged to a large man with a long braided blonde moustache and robust chin jutting out from the bottom of his face. On each side of his head were large ears that grew outward at a slight angle from the man's head which was covered by an odd large metal hat. He sat on a cushioned bench beside a small woman roughly the size of a child. Her left eye was wide open and looked as if it would pop at any moment while the other was squinted and decisive. In both hands she held a long wooden stick with stone and metal trinkets attached to the top that jungled and clanked whenever the stick moved. A hunch claimed her tunic-covered back and the long white hair flowed downward from the scalp.

"What's going on," Hiccup croaked. His voice cracking and bringing all attention to him.

Everyone turned their head to the boy and instantly sprang to their feet, except Astrid and Stormfly who ran to the boy and crushed him in their embrace. Hiccup almost fell back but found someone's hand behind his back to keep him upright. Looking up Hiccup saw that his savior was Hookfang. He hadn't heard or seen him before but was still glad to see the man none the less.

"Finally you're awake," he said with a grin. Hiccup noticed the bruises and scrapes on the man's face and became concerned.

"What happened?"

"Oh nothing. We just got into some trouble getting the twins, nothing I can't handle," Hookfang replied. "But you took much worse than I did"

" Gothi and Meatlug spent nearly two days patching you up" said Astrid after letting go of Hiccup and looking up at him with watery eyes.

"Hey I did some stuff too for the las," said the man walking towards Hiccup and the others. Hiccup thought the tapping sound was the elderly woman's stick tapping the ground but now he noticed that it was the man's leg. It was cut off from the knee down and replaced with a wooden peg. The same thing occurred on the man's hand except it was replaced with a metal club. Add that to the ever growing list of things to ask.

"Feeding that mush you call soup to him doesn't count Gobber," said Astrid " That stuff almost put me under."

Now was Toothless' turn to act. He walked with the lady at his side who Hiccup guessed was Gothi and stood in front of Hiccup. "Now that you're awake we have to talk. Stormfly go get the others especially the twins. We almost died saving them so I hope they're chatty," he said in an authoritative voice.

Stormfly nodded and gave Hiccup a final hug before departing through the wooden double doors at the end of the square room.

"Come las," said Gobber with an arm around Hiccup's shoulder and turning to look down upon Gothi. She looked at Hiccup straight in the eye and tapped the flat end of her stick against the wooden floor twice. A small smile appeared on her face along with a nod. "We have much to discuss,"

After giving Hiccup a few minutes to fully adjust to the pain and stiffness of his aching body the group gathered around in the room. Currently Hiccup sat on a bench with Meatlug and Heather facing Toothless, Gobber, and Gothi. The others were all standing except for the twins, Barf and Belch. They were lazily snoring and snoozing on the ground. They were bruised, beaten, and covered in scars from head to toe and Meatlug had to restitch a few that had reopened after Drago's ruthless torturing. Somehow they didn't seem in any way crippled by it or so says Hookfang.

"You could rip every nail from their fingers, each tooth from their jaws, and break each bone in their body one by one if you wanted. They still wouldn't talk. Pain and destruction is their home," Hookfang told him when asked how they were so nonchalant.

Barf and Belch were completely identical in every way. Tall, lanky, and always trying to touch something. They're hazel eyes looked almost yellow and wouldn't stay in one place for long. They searched and conived, looking for something to make go boom. Both had low red mohawks that went from their widows peaks all the down to the nape of their necks. Gothi had supplied light green colored shirts and dark green jeans. Nobody questioned why she had something like that since only Hiccup and his friends wore them.

While Stormfly had gathered Heather, the twins, and Meatlug Hiccup had been given a brief recap of the events preceding his unconsciousness. The team who went to save the twins were momentarily stopped by an enemy, Drago Bludvist. From what he heard the guy wasn't friendly and was even less someone Hiccup wanted to meet, in battle or otherwise. Before Drago could stike Stormfly down Toothless and Hookfang stabbed him through the shoulders and knocked him to the ground. The pain and sudden force was enough to send the man into a state of unconsciousness. When the trio got into the torture chamber being used as a holding cell, they found Barf and Belch bruised, beaten, cut, and broken in various ways but still smiling and laughing like it was nothing. They were hardcore to not be phased by the queen's torture.

Hiccup had been collected by Gothi and Gobber who were the emperor's advisor and personal doctor. Dagur had instructed them to get and heal Hiccup to full capacity then return him to the palace for a feast in Dagur's honor. One that has been postponed by the maniac himself due to Hiccup's condition. He really wanted his new "toy" there to play with.

"You're not going," said Heather. "Dagur is a twisted conniving rat and most definitely wants something of you,"

"And the fangs aren't forgiving people. You've killed two of their brethren and left their bodies in the dust, literally," added Astrid. The worried look still hadn't left her tired eyes and it concerned Hiccup to no end.

"Well he can't just stay here. Dagur will scour the city in search of his entertainment especially a violent one."

"So what he goes and gets hurt more? The remaining fangs will be there and they'll no doubt try something," said Hookfang.

"Aye i'll be with the las. No harm'll come to the boy," said Gobber with a smile. Everyone looked at him for a moment before turning back to their bickering. Except Toothless.

He kept his eyes on Hiccup and never looked away. They locked eyes and stayed there for what seemed like hours to Hiccup but he didn't know what it meant.

Hiccup sighed and put his head in his hands. The fangs, his father, and now Dagur? Nothing was going right for the boy and he wouldn't get a break anytime soon. "This would be so simple if the kingdom knew about Dagur's treachery," he thought inwardly. Then something in his mind sparked.

"Hiccup," said Toothless finally. His silence was broken and the random authoritative voice spooked everyone into silence.

He stood and walked to the open window, looking over the city of Rome from where Gothi's house was perched near the city's edge and next to the mediterranean. "Dagur is a clumsy fool. He makes constant mistakes and leaves loose ends all over, isn't that what you said Heather?" He turned and looked at the black haired girl.

"Yeah. What's your point?" she answered.

"My point is, Dagur killed his father and framed you and Astrid with treason. Nobody would've said anything against it since Oswald was dead, you two were nowhere to be found, and Dagur was the emperor at the time," Hiccup explained now facing the group with his back to the window.

Gothi tapped her stick on the ground twice and looked at Gobber. She shook the trinkets at the stick's head and Gobber met her eyes.

"What is it Gobber," asked Stormfly.

"She says, uh. She saw Dagur go in Oswald's broom, owe!" he yelled when Gothi knocked the stick against his head. "Room. The las saw him enter and ain't yell for help until hours later. She even heard Oswald scream and yell, thems seemed to be arguing bout' somein'.

"Has anyone ever questioned your judgement or word?" asked Toothless. He looked from Hiccup to the elder and seemed to pick up on what she was saying. Gothi nodded no and tapped her stick on the ground once, twice, three times.

"Dat means no. Nobody ever disagreed wit' her," said Gobber. He was then knocked in the head again by the stick. "Nobody except me at least," His flesh hand went up to the spot he had been hit and rubbed it.

"Then we just have to get Gothi and Gobber to speak out against Dagur!" said Astrid excitedly. She stood up and beamed with hope. Heather's hand landed on her shoulder and she was brought back down.

"We'd have to get them in front of everyone in Rome for that to happen. The only time everyone is there is during an execution, coronation, or when it's an arena fight," she said sadly and sat back down with her now saddened cousin.

Hiccup sighed and looked from one worried face to another. Hope was beginning to dwindle and nothing would be able to restore it.

"Explosion!" yelled Barf and Belch. Everyone jumped and grabbed a weapon from somewhere. Either behind, under, or in the seats.

"I was sitting on your axe!?" yelled Hiccup holding up a pillow. Astrid shrugged and put down her weapon.

"Sorry," she said.

Toothless put his black bladed katana away. The edge was tinted dark green and the metal guard was formed in an oval-like curve made of two tail-like metal plated. The grey wrap covered the grip and stopped at it's golden bottom. Toothless laid the sword with it's twin underneath the sofa. "What you got," he said. All eyes were now on the twins who were grinning widely like maniacs.

"We make something explode," said Barf

"Then Hiccup comes and stops it," continued Belch.

"Then seen as a hero,"

"He'll be invited inside,"

"And a feast will be held in his honor!" they both said at once. Everyone stayed silent and stared at the twins. Some of that torture must've knocked a few things loose. Hiccup and Hookfang exchanged glances before Hookfang coughed, gaining everyone's attention. Except the twins of course who were already planning their next prank.

"Even if we do that," he began, "how do we make sure Hiccup isn't taking the blame? Dagur is an idiot and sees violence as a good luck charm," Hookfang yawned. "We have to think of something fast that DOESN'T get anyone hurt, anything destroyed, and nothing painted"

The twins seemed to dim in comparison to their previous jolly states.

"Not even a tomato-" began Barf.

"Through a window?" ended Belch.

"None," answered Hookfang. Everyone sighed in relief at the statement but they were still at square one.

Hiccup turned and looked back out the window. The hour was early and the sun slowly rose above the horizon, awakening the city of Rome and all it's inhabitants. Cattle, farmers, gladiators, merchants, nobles. Everyone had something to do for the day but Hiccup knew of a few people who didn't. His eyes scoured the city until it landed on a school. The sounds of metal clashing against metal and groans mixing with grunts echoed through the education center for Rome's finest fighters.

"Lad? You've been staring out that there window for quite a spell. You ok?" asked Gobber. His thick accent was mixed with unnecessary concern.

Hiccup turned around and met eyes with everyone else. His were bright and hopeful while theirs were confused and clouded.

"I know some people,"

Hey I haven't posted something as soon as i'd wished too. I was working on state testing along with class finals, I got sick for a while, and I just had a block. If this chapter seems iffy it's because of said block. Hope you enjoy and if you like it don't forget to review.

Pack Ink, signing out