Escaped
Stoick took a deep breath and tried to compose himself. He couldn't take it any longer, this game of cat-and-mouse regarding their relationship. If he pushed Valka away - again - he would never forgive himself. He wasn't sure how she would respond to bluntly asking to reaffirm their marriage vows, but he decided to man up and press forward. Nothing would happen if he did nothing and he knew it.
But how to proceed? Just walk up to her and say, "Valka, would you like to be my wife again?" No. Tasteless. Unimaginative. Too blunt, even for Stoick. Besides, he wanted her to have at least some time after realizing what he was asking to make a decision.
What would the old Stoick do? he asked himself. The old Stoick, the man who hadn't yet lost his wife, did not hide behind an emotionless face. The mind of that husband and father had not yet crawled into a hardened shell to hide behind his calculating role as a chief. The old Stoick was truly happy, ecstatic about life. The sun was brighter, the rain wetter, the winter wind more refreshing, the snow whiter.
So what if dragons were raiding and stealing their livestock? Their love burned hotter than a Nadder's fire. So what if a single raid had just wiped out so many homes that the Great Hall nearly burst with occupants? They had each other. So what if his dancing resembled a seizure and his singing wasn't that good? People would just have to endure his tireless attempts to win the heart of the woman who held his. That was the old Stoick the Vast.
With a newfound resolve, he looked over at his… at Valka. She had her back turned, holding a clay pitcher to collect water that was trickling down from the floes of ice that surrounded their chamber. She had explained that she had carved channels from the top of this fortress, where a dragon could melt some of the accumulated snow to send fresh water trickling down. It was a tad salty but still quite good and a lot more convenient than flying off to some lake on another island.
He started whistling the intro to an old song he and Valka used to sing. The tune wandered up and down carelessly, like giggling children running up and down the steps to the Great Hall. Hiccup was still rubbing the sleep from his eyes, but Gobber dreamily said, "Oh, I love this one."
The whistling had the intended effect. Valka tensed up, clearly recognizing the tune. It was fairly common for any wedding night, but it was their song. They sang it together after each mug of ale. The next day, they were regaled with tales of how each iteration became less intelligible and more amusing to watch.
Stoick stood next to Valka. Her rigid fingers released the pitcher she was holding when Stoick's shoulder brushed against hers, but he grabbed it and gently set it down, whistling all the while. Reaching the end of the stanza, he started softly singing, which was something he had never done in twenty years, and he initially cringed because it sure sounded like it.
I'll swim and sail on savage seas,
with na'er a fear of drowning.
And gladly ride the waves of life,
If you will marry me.
Valka was as stiff as stone, eyes downcast. Stoick decided to press his luck by gently brushing a finger along her jawline, trying to get her to look at him.
No scorching sun nor freezing cold will-
Gobber jovially interrupted, "Will stop me on my jour… ney… Sorry."
Stoick picked up the pitcher and chucked it at the blacksmith, who caught it with a chuckle. Stoick rolled his eyes. Gobber being Gobber. He then resumed the song, determined not to back down and give up.
If you will promise me your heart…
He was starting to feel truly worried. There was no response from Valka. Was she in shock? He was ready to catch her if she fainted, but the suspense was killing him. Accept him or reject him, he needed a response!
And… love…
He faltered. Still nothing from Valka, no sign of even having heard him. He gently grasped her trembling hand in his. She was still standing there, back turned, not even glancing over at Stoick.
Suddenly, he doubted himself. This was a bad idea. Too much, too fast, too soon. He stared at the ground in dejection. Foolish! He thought to himself. What, are you sixteen again? You cannot bring back the past! You will always be alone because you're too cold and-
And love me for eternity.
Valka's melodious voice rang out softly, timidly. Stoick felt light-headed as he let the air rush out of his lungs. Valka took in a shaky breath, rolled her shoulders square, gave a sideways look into Stoick's eyes, and took a step past him. Stoick felt like his heart was going to beat its way out of his chest when she actually continued to sing on.
My dearest one, my darling dear,
Your mighty words astound me.
She sounded more confident, more composed. She slowly turned to Stoick and extended an arm out, forearm bent up at the elbow, an invitation to dance with her.
But I've no need of mighty deeds,
when I feel your arms around me.
Stoick let out a gentle chortle and returned the gesture, crossing his arm with hers. This was their song, their dance, their moment, all over again. He took a deep breath and clasped her hands, starting to dance with her as he continued with his part of the song.
But I will bring you rings of gold,
I'll even sing you poetry,
And I will keep you from all harm,
If you would stay beside me.
It was almost impossible not to break down and cry. For the first time in uncountable years, he felt his eyes watering up. The way she looked at him… Gods, she was smiling! She was laughing! They were dancing together!
Stoick couldn't believe it. Twenty years apart, he thought to himself. Worlds away for all it mattered, but despite the distance and the dragons and the crazy warlords who want to conquer us, we're together again!
Valka cheerily slid right into her verse of the song.
I have no use for rings of gold,
I cannot bear your poetry,
I only want your hand to hold,
Stoick joined her in singing.
I only want you near me!
To love, to kiss, to sweetly hold,
For dancing and for dreaming,
Through all life's sorrows and delights,
I'll keep your love inside me.
I'll swim and sail the savage seas,
With na'er a fear of drowning!
And gladly ride the-
Thunder sounded out and the cavern shook. Stoick stumbled and landed in a roll, careful not to land on Valka.
"What was that?" he asked as he scrambled to his feet. Instantly, his instincts of a chief whose village regularly endured raids from dragons and Vikings alike took over.
Hiccup jumped up to his feet, hand and eyes on his dragon's snout. The dragon's sensor lobes crowning his head were dancing as the dragon closed his eyes and thrummed in concentration. Stoick knew he was using those to feel for thoughts or emotions or something to do with all people passively projecting something. It was all hocus pocus to Stoick, but that dragon had proven that he could detect almost any living thing in the area, even through solid stone walls. Once, he even spotted a Changewing dragon that was invisible to the eye.
Hiccup said, "Toothless can sense something. An army. An invasion."
"Drago," Stoick whispered.
Hiccup continued, saying, "They… No, they can't. You're sure, Bud? Yes, I see it, but maybe all this ice and stone is throwing your senses off? I know how silly that sounds, but this just can't be!"
"Spit it out," Stoick demanded.
Hiccup turned to face him with a horrified look on his face. "Yes, this must be Drago. Dad, the gang is there mixed in with his army, Astrid, Fishlegs, the twins, and Snotlout."
"Are they safe for now?" Stoick asked.
Hiccup stared into his dragon's eyes. "They… they're crazy!" Turning to Stoick, he said, "Yes. They are in a position to escape, but they need a distraction or they'll just get shot down as soon as they clear the ground."
Stoick looked at Toothless and said, "Tell them to stay put, then. We'll… figure something out."
"They have a Bewilderbeast, just like Dragon King, and it appears to be obedient to Drago," Hiccup added.
"The dragons!" Valka cried out.
She spun around to mount up on Cloudjumper but Stoick grabbed her hand. "Hold on, there," he gently said. "We're a family, now, and Drago is going to learn how big of a mistake it is to threaten those whom I love. Victory favors those who are prepared, so let's look before we leap."
The two ran out to the ledge overlooking the icy beach. Stoick's hard, calculating eyes took in the scene. A grey Bewilderbeast rammed the icy fortress and the whole place shook again. An army marched up from their boats, dragging and pushing various dragon traps and heavy artillery. He estimated over a thousand soldiers, all heavily clad and ready to fight dragons, along with a couple dozen heavy artillery pieces. A closer look confirmed the usual dragon-slaying arms of halberds, axes, hammers, bolas, and gods knew what else he couldn't see.
The grey Bewilderbeast looked up at their ledge and Stoick quickly dragged his wife back to safety just as a massive blast of ice hit. Spikes of ice erupted from the walls of the cave by the entrance to block that way out.
Valka tried to pull away but Stoick tightened his grip. "We can't rush into this blind!" he said. "War is my language, don't forget."
"What do we do, then?" she implored, face creased with worry.
"Berk," he whispered.
"What?"
"We have hundreds of dragons on Berk. A dozen tribes also have dragon riders nowadays. This is a threat to them as much as us; they will answer our call. Drago has ships, but he's after your dragons and they can fly. We'll all fly to Berk, combine our forces, and Drago will regret trying to tangle with us."
"But what about the hatchlings?!" Valka shouted in hysteria. "They can't fly! And what of the injured dragons?!"
"And our riders!" Hiccup demanded. "I will not leave Astrid behind!"
Stoick closed his eyes. "It's hard, I know, but we can't win a head-on confrontation here. Dragons can carry hatchlings. We can try to get the riders out if the risk isn't too great. Valka, you have, what, six hundred dragons here?"
"They're not my property to be thrown at an enemy!" she screeched.
Stoick nodded. "Good, then we're in agreement that we don't want to fight. Not here and now, at least. Your dragons will be cut down if they attack head-on."
The mountain shook. A ball of purple fire flew down the tunnel and shattered the ice that was blocking the entrance. Just as their sight cleared, the massive white form of the Dragon King exploded out of the water offshore. The great beast plowed through the army on the beach and slammed into the flank of the attacking Bewilderbeast. Deafening bellows from both of them filled the air and the whole world seemed to shake.
"Gods above," Stoick whispered. He forgot about him - her, whatever. "Toothless!" he shouted, "Tell the Dragon King to back off! We don't need a dead hero! Just swim away. If the gray one chases, then all the better to lure it away."
"I have to go help her!" Valka pleaded, twisting out of Stoick's grasp. He realized they were tangled too much to simply pull back, now that dragons from the sanctuary started to flock to their alpha's aid. Further escalation was inevitable.
Stoick pinched the bridge of his nose. "Do not leave me alone again," he pleaded.
Valka hopped up on her dragon and looked at him. "I won't. I promise. I still have our wedding ring."
Stoick grinned. "Then Gothi will place it in my hand so I can slide it onto your finger again."
Valka balked at that. She knew he was charging her to stay safe for his sake as well as hers. She and her dragon slowly turned, as though suddenly hesitant to leave, and took off.
Stoick, Hiccup, Gobber, and their dragons convened. "So, what's the plan, chief?" Gobber asked.
The chief thought for a moment and turned to the Night Fury. "Toothless, you need to be the battle master to these dragons here. Make them listen to you. Show your teeth. Demand they obey you. You've had a lot of experience fighting Vikings and that's what they need to be effective and survive this day."
Toothless pantomimed reaching out with a front paw and stomping on the ground. Stoick grinned. "Yeah, just like The Trial, you cheeky bastard. I still can't believe you did that."
Hiccup said, "But Dad, Toothless can't just demand they obey him! If they'll obey anyone it's-"
"The Dragon King, yes," Stoick interrupted. "Then it's their own wasted lives if they don't obey Toothless. If they won't flee like civilians or obey like soldiers, then they'll die like animals." Ignoring Hiccup's spluttering objections, Stoick turned to Toothless. "Remember three years ago, when Hiccup was taken captive on the Berserker ship? Remember how we had the dragons fly above the range of arrows and lob fire?"
The dragon snorted and cave a curt nod. "Good. Nightmares, Nadders, Gronckles, anyone whose fire will carry the distance. Do what it takes to make these dragons follow you. Make it rain. Burn their ships and raze a curtain of smoke and mist. That will get our riders and their dragons out safely."
"But Dad," Hiccup pleaded, "There's got to be a better way. War is what Drago wants. Let me go talk to Drago and-"
Stoick shoved Hiccup at his dragon. "Now go, Toothless! And take your rider with you!"
"No!" Hiccup insisted. "We can't just-"
"Go! Toothless knows what to do!"
"Dad-"
"Enough, Hiccup! Fly, now, and keep your feet off the ground."
"But-"
Stoick bridled at Hiccup and bellowed, "THAT'S AN ORDER, SON!"
Hiccup cringed from his dragon's saddle. Toothless started to turn around, but Stoick stopped him with a stare, looking at Hiccup expectantly, waiting for a reply.
Finally, Hiccup ground out, "Yes sir," and Stoick dropped his challenging stare so they could go. The duo spun around and shot out of the cave and into the sky.
With that settled, Stoick clambered up onto Skullcrusher's back and Gobber worked his way onto Grump.
"I'm guessing that leaves us as the Valka protection team?" Gobber asked.
Stoick nodded. "Aye. Move out."
########
########
Eret, son of Eret, took a moment to contemplate his life. Here he was, the greatest dragon trapper alive, hunkered down below a Nadder's belly, next to a fiery shield-maiden who despised everything about him, probably because she was jealous that he was so much greater than her fishbone boyfriend.
He contemplated the dragon that stood above them. It was still saddled from when it was captured, thankfully. Astrid said Eret could ride in the saddle instead of dangling from below, "So Storm has her claws free for the enemy," as she said.
He contemplated the open sky above that he could see as he peeked out from under the dragon, through the opened top of the dome trap they were in. He had dangled from the flying dragon's talons before and it was absolutely terrifying. The very idea that he'd willingly go up in the air again, suspended only by a couple little wings and trust in a dragon, was so scary that he almost decided to jump out of the trap and go down fighting Drago's countless soldiers. Almost.
He contemplated the large army he could hear swarming past their trap, complete with catapults, ballistae, and bola launchers. Drago had a ways to go before he could plow across the world and take every fortified city he wanted, but the force was already quite substantial.
He contemplated how the ground shook as that white Bewilderbeast exploded out of the water and charged at Drago's beast. Its massive body blocked out the blue sky above for a moment and Eret may have wet himself a little.
"Just a little longer," Astrid said. With the ear-ringing clamor all around, they no longer needed to keep their voices down.
"That Bewilderbeast is gonna step on us!" he insisted.
"Don't worry. She knows we're here," Astrid calmly said.
"How would you know? And don't say-"
"Stormfly told me. Duh!"
Eret sighed. Massive Bewilderbeasts were trading blows, a large army was swarming the beach of some gods-forbidden iceberg mountain, and Drago's dragons were flying support for his soldiers… and their escape plan hinged entirely on a bloody crazy shield-maiden allegedly taking orders from a bloody dragon.
"Here they come," Astrid said.
The blue sky turned into a maelstrom of colors as hundreds of dragons flew directly above. Arrows flew up at them, but the native dragons were too high for that. A few nearby soldiers cried out in pain as those flying arrows came down on top of them.
"C'mon Toothless, you can do it," Astrid chanted.
"Do what?" Eret demanded.
"Keep the dragons focused on their task. He's not their alpha, and the two Bewilderbeasts are fighting for control of all the dragons here. Toothless can project his thoughts far and wide with those sensor lobes on his head, and he commands respect for having killed the Red Death. Hopefully, that's enough for him to exert some influence over all the dragons here as the rogue element."
Eret stared at the crazy girl. "I officially regret having asked."
The sky suddenly flared orange and red. Eret blinked rapidly, trying to let his eyes to adjust to the intense light. It was as if the sun itself was falling on top of them.
"Yes!" Astrid crowed. "We're gonna make it out of here!" She turned to Eret and said, "Take a deep breath and hold it."
"But why? What is going on?"
"Now! Deep breath if you want to live!"
Eret complied as the blazing haze came into focus. Hundreds of fireballs fell like molten hail. Shields, clothing, and catapults sizzled and smoldered. The din of shouting grew louder and screams of pain split the air. Some of a Monstrous Nightmare's burning gel splashed off the Nadder's scales. Smoke soon billowed into their trap, making breathing a difficult task. Eret pressed his face to the ground for any wisps of clean air he could find and took a deep breath.
The dragon lifted off of them and Astrid scurried to her feet, hauling Eret with her. They both scrambled onto the dragon's back with Eret seated behind Astrid. Through the burning smoke, he could see Astrid cinch a leather strap around her waist. She grabbed his hands and pulled them around her. With breathing being a luxury they could not afford, Eret recognized the wordless indication to hold on tight and complied.
The dragon's legs coiled up, as did Eret's internal organs. They sprang into the air and his stomach shot down to his feet, while his heart leaped into his throat. The wind rushed by in a deafening cacophony as those wings pulled them almost straight up into the air. His eyes burned too much to see anything. All he could do was hold on tight.
They cleared the smoke and Eret gasped for air. Looking around, he could see blue sky above, black smoke beneath, and dragons of every size, shape, and color swarming all around. A line of razor netting with iron weights flailed just off to the right and Eret felt something hard dig into his ribs.
"WAKE UP!" Astrid shouted at him. "Down! Lean forward!"
Eret almost lost his grip and his stomach as the dragon suddenly dropped like a rock. He clung tighter to Astrid, hanging on for dear life.
"Lean right!" Astrid shouted back at him. It wasn't until another tangle of razor netting flew just past the dragon's left wing that Eret's mind allowed him to process what she said and start to react. She elbowed him in the ribs again.
"Up!" she shouted. "Lean back! Right! Get down!"
The dragon flipped onto its side and stretched out a leg to deflect another projectile. Eret's mind flailed to keep up with processing Astrid's commands and forcing his shocked body to cooperate, all while attempting to come to terms with the chaos all around. They were upside-down for a moment and he could swear he felt the fletching of an arrow graze past his neck. He almost lost his grip, but they finally leveled out and Eret breathed a sigh of relief, which was cut off when they suddenly shot straight up.
Somehow, through the clattering chaos, he heard the twins gleefully shouting something about glorious explosions. Fishlegs squealed, "Nice moves, girl!" and Snotlout chanted, "Snotfang, Snotfang, oi oi oi!"
Finally, they leveled off, far above the maelstrom raging on the ground. In one swift move, Astrid unfastened the tethers holding her to her dragon, flipped around to face Eret, and punched him in the stomach.
"What was that for?!" Eret wheezed.
Astrid scowled at him. "When I say lean, you lean. When I say duck, you duck. By Odin's blind eye, I've never seen an oaf so slow as you."
"But-"
"I need instant cooperation."
"But-"
"When we're on Stormfly's back," she jabbed a thumb to her chest, "I am alpha. I am your master. You instantly obey my orders and you never question me. Anything less and you may as well swan dive off my dragon right now!"
"But-"
"But what?!" Astrid shouted. Her face was red from the exertion of her outburst. "Speak, you simpering child!"
"But I-" Eret sputtered, gasping for breath, trying to wrestle his spinning mind into order. "You were… there was… And I lost grip… And…" He finally blurted out, "I'm trying!"
The dragon let out a trilling warble that seemed to calm Astrid down. "Alright," she spun around to face forward again and said more calmly, "I suppose flying can be intense at first. Just promise me you'll obey without question when I order you to lean or duck or something like that. No second-guessing me, just blind trust. Deal?"
Eret took in a few more rapid, deep breaths and said, "Deal. So, now what?"
He scanned the scenery below them. His eyes crossed as he tried to make sense of the scale of what he was seeing. A swarm of ants rushed across the beach. At least, that's what Drago's army looked like. At the edge of the battlefield, the two Bewilderbeasts had settled into ramming each other head-on, trying to impale the other with their massive tusks. Eret's mind whirled as he tried to contemplate how high they were. He had climbed mountains taller, but it was still so mind-boggling to see down in all directions around him, and impossible not to feel like he was falling to his death.
A Zippleback settled in just above Eret and one of its heads lowered down right next to them, revealing a sight that made Eret yelp and lean away.
"Oh, good, my snoogie bun made it out of there in one piece!" Ruffnut said in a raspy voice that she was probably trying to make sound smooth and seductive.
"Astrid, help!" Eret hissed.
The shield-maiden looked back and rolled her eyes. "I'm not the one with the wings. Try convincing Stormfly to help you out."
"What?" Eret batted at Ruffnut's lips, which were trying to reach to his face. "That doesn't even… how?"
"Try singing to her," Fishlegs casually suggested as his dragon fluttered up next to him. "Meatlug loves my singing and Nadders are known to be quite musical."
"Just smack the dragon and jerk her head to the side," Snotlout shouted as he flew in from below. "Works on Hookey"
Said dragon curled its head around and snapped at its rider.
"Just do as Hiccup does," Tuffnut said. "Also, Sis, really, you're kinda grossing me out with what you're trying to do to Eret."
"And what does Hiccup do?" Eret demanded.
"Oh, that's easy!" Ruffnut said. She ceased her attempts to kiss Eret… and her pelvic thrusts… and said in a nasally voice, "I'm Hiccup. All the dragons are my friend. You can be my friend too. My leg fell off. All the dragons love me." She stretched a hand towards Eret and said, "Oh, and you gotta touch their snout, like this."
Eret leaned away from Ruffnut's fingertips.
"I don't sound like that," a nasally voice declared from behind. The Night Fury and its rider slid alongside. "And my leg didn't fall off."
Eret suddenly stiffened and looked at the fishbone. Ruffnut managed to wrap a finger around his ear but he swatted it away.
"Oh, uhh, hi, Hiccup," he said timidly, eyeing the black dragon and its rows of teeth not far from Eret's head. "Sorry about, ya know, trying to shoot you down and… Uhhh, I mean-"
"Thank you," Hiccup said with the most sincere look. Eret's face went slack. "The dragons all filled me in. I owe you thanks for saving Astrid back there. If you didn't distract Drago from just taking Astrid and…" he faltered. "Thank you."
"Oh, don't listen to Storm," Astrid said in annoyance. "Eret saved me from nothing. Hey, Hiccup, want an extra passenger? He's even slower in the head than Bucket, I'll warn you."
"Astrid," Hiccup said testily, "how calm and collected were you on your first flight?"
Astrid turned red. "That doesn't count!" She pointed an accusing finger at the black dragon. "You were a real jerk back then."
The dragon pulled its teeth into its gums and curled its lips up into… some sort of… draconic smile? Eret just knew he must have looked like a fish out of water.
Droning on, Hiccup said, "I guess you nailed the symmetry, here, Astrid. Toothless was rude and I was trying to smooth things out. Here, Stormfly is trying to smooth things out with Eret and you are-"
"Oh, whatever." she snapped. "So, where have you been, anyway?"
Hiccup shrugged and pointed. "Catching up with Mom."
"Wait, she's alive?!" Snotlout shouted out.
Eret followed Hiccup's gesture to the battling Bewilderbeasts and a rider-dragon duo trying to intervene. He recognized the dragon and the sort of armor the rider was wearing, that was made from discarded scales and carapace plates of various dragons.
"That's the dragon thief!" He squealed in surprise. "She's your mother?!" He always assumed the thief was a man, not a woman, and looked at Hiccup in a new light, as the son of the career-ruining dragon thief.
Hiccup grinned. "Now you know where I get my stubbornness."
He flicked something over his eyes, completely blocking his vision, and his dragon folded its wings and dove straight down into the billowing smoke below.
Eret stared down at them. "Are all you dragon riders bat-shit crazy, or just the ones I've seen so far?"
Astrid actually chuckled at that. "Sit down, son. You haven't seen anything yet."
A/N:
Thanks for reading! Thank you, Colorful Crayola, for being my beta buddy.
Dragonrider's Fury, glad you saw Hiccup's snarkiness rubbing off on Toothless. It's a bit of a two-way street.
L'assassin orange, I'm relieved that the underlying vibe in Hiccup's dream didn't go unnoticed. I dunno why, but dreams are some of the most enjoyable bits to write for me.
Toothlessgolfer, Grimmel… Grimmel… *does a Google search*. Oh, him, right. Now I look forward to seeing the 3rd movie even more. Oh, and how did you possibly guess that Dancing and Dreaming was coming up? :P No unicorns trotting across a rainbow bridge here, but I suspect that's probably a relief to hear.