"Hello, my name is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third," Hiccup said, his voice remaining calm and composed, "I was the one who trained the dragons, and I, was the one who became a dragon myself."
The room went instantly quiet. Only the sound of the wind howling outside the giant wooden doors made a subtle sound that faintly reverberated around the room. Hiccup looked around the room slowly, seeing hanging mouths and wide eyes of disbelief.
"Dude, how high am I? I could've sworn that dragon just talked, hahaha," one viking said from Hiccup's right. No one responded to the viking, everyone just kept staring at Hiccup as if no one had heard him. Hiccup looked behind him, seeing the Berk vikings nodded their heads approvingly, ushering him on.
"As I said, I became a dragon myself a few weeks ago," Hiccup said cautiously, "At first, I believed I had been cursed by the Gods for befriending a dragon, but now I see, that it was a gift. This gift was bestowed upon me for the specific reason to help bridge the gap between humans and dragons, to be the connection that binds the two species together. To bring together two different worlds and cultures is the destiny that the Gods above have given me." Hiccup finished his last few words confidently. The room was still very quiet, so much so that Hiccup could hear his own heart beating in his chest nervously.
"That dragon really is talking!" one viking in front of Hiccup shouted. Instantly the entire room was flooded with yelling, questions, demands, confused gibberish. Hiccup took a few steps back, not knowing where to look, what to say, or what to do. The yelling only intensified when no answers were met immediately, leading to several chiefs bickering with each other. Hiccup looked back but only saw his father and most the other Berk vikings join in on the shouting match. The young Night Fury quickly looked to Toothless who shrugged his shoulders, overwhelmed by the noise. Snotlout was looking around the room in disappointment, seeing a flash of his future. Astrid seemed to have remained calm and tried shouting something to him.
"What?" Hiccup asked shouted, being met with a quizzical look from Astrid who tried again to shout something back to him. There was something about the situation they were in, the shouting chiefs, the screams echoing in his head, the slamming of fists, all of it just cumulated in Hiccup's head quickly, sending him over the edge for the first time in a while.
"Stop!" Hiccup yelled, being met with no response,"Stop yelling!" Still no one paid attention to the shouting dragon, increasing his anger even more. He used to always be treated like he wasn't there and he'd be damned if he let that happen again.
"Enough!" Yelled a voice from the left of Hiccup. He recognized the rough voice as Calder. The room fell silent rather quickly as attention turned towards the chief. Calder slowly rose from his chair and walked over towards Hiccup. The young Night Fury raised a paw when he noticed Toothless and Stoick making their way over to him. The two looked at him in confusion and worry but obliged his wishes. Calder quickly came to a stop in front of the Night Fury. Even sitting on his tail and making himself appear larger, he was still short in comparison to the large man who must've been twice the size of Stoick. Hiccup wondered to himself how that was even possible but figured it was just his imagination and nerves playing with his mind.
"A talking dragon," Calder said, observing the young Night Fury before him,"and a Night Fury at that. Tell me, what did you say your name was." The viking looked on, intrigued by the situation. The hesitation that was present before seemed to have disappeared rather quickly.
"Hiccup, sir. Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third," Hiccup replied, keeping the same confidence in his voice as before. The chief looked at him surprised and quickly brought his gaze to Stoick.
"Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third as in your son Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third?" Calder asked, his rough voice smoothing out as his voice raised to a higher pitch, one that had a sense of curiosity and surprise. Stoick nodded slowly, and stroked his beard slowly.
"Yes, as in my son, Calder," Stoick replied cautiously. Calder quickly looked back to the Night Fury sitting in front of him.
"You've got to be kidding me," Calder said in disbelief, "There's no way. No one has seen a Night Fury before now, how do we know that's not a skill you devils have?" Hiccup cocked his head to the side, unsure how to answer that question. After a few moments of silence, Hiccup just decided to tell him the only response he could.
"You're just gonna have to trust me on this," Hiccup said. Calder looked at the young Night Fury, squinting his eyes at the boy, tilting his head to the sides to get a good look. The chief took a step back and crossed his arms, looking to the rest of the Berk vikings.
"Is he who he says he is?" Calder asked quickly. Stoick walked forward with Toothless following him closely. The Berk chief put a hand on his son's shoulder, and nodded his head.
"I watched the change happen right in front of my very own eyes. Several minutes of blood, screaming, and confusion transformed my son into a Night Fury," Stoick said, "This dragon is my son." Calder eyed the boy curiously before looking around the room at the other vikings. The all were too confused and bewildered to think properly and just walked on. Calder brought his gaze back to the trio in front of him, looking to Toothless.
"Can you talk too?" Calder asked. Toothless shook his head in response.
"He's an actual dragon, pure Night Fury," Hiccup said, "The one I shot out of the sky and trained." Calder looked at the boy and back to Stoick.
"It was your son who trained the dragon, Stoick?" Calder asked in surprise. Stoick nodded his head, looking around the room with a tinge of pride glowing off of him.
"Yes, Hiccup was the one who trained the dragons," Stoick said proudly. Calder took a moment to process the situation and information that came into play. He raised his hand, pointing to Hiccup lightly.
"So, you shot a Night Fury out of the sky...with that contraption Stoick said you built...then you...trained it?" Calder asked quietly, getting a brisk nod from Hiccup, "Then you defeat the Red Death with this Night Fury...like Stoick explained a few days ago. After that, for some reason only known to the Gods, you transform...into a dragon...and why? Are you cursed? Is this your punishment for befriending a dragon, or maybe this is the secret power of the Night Furies? Why no one has ever lived to tell the tale because they became one themselves? " Hiccup expected questions like these to be asked, but he still had trouble finding his words, but eventually, he responded in the best way he could.
"No, this isn't a curse. This, despite what it looks like, is the change I needed in order to bring two warring species together. This is a gift from the Gods to help me do this. I am not the result of a harsh punishment the gods placed because I befriended a dragon," Hiccup said, starting off nervously but trails into confidence by the end of his sentence. Calder looked questioningly, debating whether or not to believe this kid, to believe any of whats going on. It was just too surreal and insane for him to comprehend.
"What makes you so sure?" Calder asked convictingly. Hiccup took a hesitant step back, the conviction in his voice catching the young Night Fury off-guard. He didn't quite know how to respond until he accidently bumped into Toothless. Looking back at his companion, he suddenly realized the reason he'd been going on through this ever growing difficult life.
"Because Toothless said so...and I trust him...more than anyone else," Hiccup said, a small smile forming on his face that quickly disappeared when he looked into Calder's eyes. The chief eyed the dragon curiously before letting out a loud laugh, his strong voice echoing throughout the room. Calder reached his hand down and rubbed Hiccup's head quickly before returning to his seat.
"I like you, and I believe you're telling the truth," Calder threw over his shoulder. The viking sat comfortably in his chair, looking around the room expectantly.
"And what have you chiefs made of the kid?" Calder asked quickly and loudly. Three other chiefs stood up, obviously from the other bigger tribes Stoick had talked about before. One of the chiefs looked a little scrawny compared to the rest, a quite a bit younger.
"The Ase have no quarrel with Berk and will have no involvement with further incursions that may arise," The viking started off, his voice strangely deep counteracting his stature and physique, "We will maintain the neutrality we have with the Berk tribe." With that, the young chief sat down, content with his answer. To his left, another chief threw in her opinion. This woman was average height with strong muscles bursting from her shining armour. She had a long scar trailing up from the elbow to her shoulder on her right arm, the scar running a jagged line. She had a smooth and crystalline voice that seemed to quell even the harshest of emotions matched perfectly with her next to flawless features and bright golden hair that was cut short.
"I have talked to my men, and we agree, that as the island of Stein, we'd like to learn from the vikings of Berk and negotiate a treaty for an alliance," The woman said smoothly and confidently, "We've been losing the war with the dragons for some time now, losing too many men and women to this unending battle. I see that a dragon with the gift to speak must be a sign from the Gods that this war must end." The viking sat down at her own pace, making herself comfortable. There was something about her that Hiccup liked about her, an aura of trust and believability just flowed from her. The final chief was rugged, old, and beaten by the years of hard battle. His gray hair grew unevenly from his scarred head, his beard cut short and on point. His right eye was covered by an eye patch, with a scar running under the leather. He was smaller and scrawnier than the rest as if he hadn't properly ate in several weeks. Hiccup looked closer and saw his cloak that flowed lowly behind him was made from what appeared to be Monstrous Nightmare skin, sending a quick burst of fear down into Hiccup's stomach. The old viking raised a finger at the young dragon, eyeing him suspiciously.
"The island of Langley will never align itself with these beasts," The old man said viciously, "We will have nothing to do with you blasphemous traitors. Do not come anywhere near our waters or we shall instigate attack. From this day forward, you will consider us enemies." Once the old man finished, he was met with several outcries from his Langely vikings, protesting against his actions. Hiccup noticed that all the vikings that were with him were in their early twenties at least, pretty young group to be attending an important conference such as this.
"Be it as you wish Jarl," Stoick said angrily, "Just know that we don't take kindly to those who do us harm. I suggest you follow the advice of your vikings and try to learn from us." The old viking laughed harshly at the Berk chief, looking at him maliciously.
"You may all be under the spell of those wicked fiends, but I'll never let my soul be tainted by their demonic ways!" The old chief yelled before he hobbled his way out of the room, throwing insults left and right as he pushed his way out the door, his Langely vikings following unhappily behind him. With a slow creak and quiet shut, the door to the conference room quietly shut.
"And the few remaining tribes, what are your decisions?" Stoick asked, turning his attention to the smaller few tribes that had attended the conference. Four more chiefs stepped up, giving their decisions.
"We remain neutral," said a middle-aged man.
"Our decision is neutral," said a middle-aged woman.
"We'd like to align ourselves with the Berk vikings, " said an old, wise chief.
"We revoke our current alignment with Berk and wish to become a neutral party," the final chief said, an unsure older chief.
Stoick nodded his head approvingly to the demands of the remaining tribes. The Berk chief turned his attention toward Calder who made himself comfortable in his chair, eating a leg of turkey to pass the time.
"You never gave us your answer Calder," Stoick asked expectantly. The Gunnar chief laughed slightly and cleared his throat.
"Our answer is a proposed alliance between our two tribes," Calder said with hope, looking towards Hiccup, "I feel you are the beacon of hope we all desperately needed to end this endless war." Hiccup felt flattered hearing these words, but a bit overwhelmed and pressured with this sudden responsibility to teach not just his tribe, but other tribes that are now looking at him wanting guidance to a hopefully brighter future. The young Night Fury's worries quickly vanished when he felt a reassuring paw in his shoulder. Looking over he saw the happy eyes of Toothless. With the place having cleared out substantially, Hiccup thought it would be alright to relax. Stoick patted his son's shoulder happily and proudly before making his way over to the Berk vikings.
"I knew you'd do great Hiccup," Toothless said, licking the boy affectionately. Hiccup leaned into his dragon and let out a loud breath.
"I felt like my heart was going to explode for a few seconds there," Hiccup replied lightheartedly, sending a gentle smile across his love's face. Toothless nodded his head, nuzzling slightly into Hiccup.
"I know, me too, but I told you things would be okay," Toothless said in a matter-of-factly voice, annoying Hiccup slightly.
"I don't know how, but you do have a knack of calling things," Hiccup said flatly, "Is the secret of the Night Furies seeing the future?" Toothless looked at his love, cocking his head to the side before letting out a light-hearted laugh.
"Maybe," Toothless said, sticking his tongue out playfully at Hiccup. The smaller dragon moved away from the larger and rolled his eyes, making his way towards the rest of the Berk vikings.
"If you do, that would be such a buzzkill. No surprises or anything," Hiccup said, swishing his tail in Toothless' face, getting a quick but gentle bite from the Night Fury. Hiccup looked back quickly and looked at him playfully.
"C'mon, we've got a lot to do bud," Hiccup said, motioning to the waiting Astrid and Snotlout who tried to act like they weren't watching on in amusement from the two. Sure it was awkward in the beginning, but even people like Snotlout had to admit they were a pretty cute couple. Even in tough times they can still have a good time with one another, a type of relationship Snotlout could only dream of.
Hiccup and Toothless walked out side by side next to Astrid and Snotlout, small talk being exchanged between the four as they descended the stairs that led up to the conference hall. Astrid suddenly stopped short and brought everyone's attention up. Many vikings froze where they were and looked on. Stoick was a few feet in front of the teens, his words harsh and disgusted.
"What do the Berserker's want? Dagur knows he's been banned from conferences until the foreseeable future," The chief said, his words filled with anger and pain from harsh memories that Dagur inflicted. Hiccup had heard the young chief survived his wounds, losing an arm in the final skirmish that was the failed Berserker invasion of Berk.
"You really think he'll listen to that?" Astrid yelled as she ran down towards the docks, grabbing an axe lying next to a crate, "I'll kill him! I'll kill him for what he's done! I'll cut off his head, stick on a stake and burn it!" Hiccup, and the others looked in surprise. The once calm Astrid had suddenly snapped at the thought of seeing Dagur. Even though Hiccup couldn't blame her in the slightest for wanting to kill that insane viking, seeing her snap like that was not what he expected. Stoick quickly rushed in behind and stole away the axe, throwing it to the side. The chief shook her lightly, and looked into her eyes.
"Astrid, keep your head," Stoick said calmly, "I know what you're feeling but now isn't the time." Astrid stared at the chief with an unresolved look, but reluctantly nodded her head.
"Good," Stoick said, stepping away from the young viking, "Berk vikings! It may be one ship, but prepare yourself for the worst!" Stoick shouted out orders to his men, followed by other chief's issuing the same. Knowing the Berserkers, they could've somehow managed to pack an entire armada into one ship to lower the enemy's defenses. Toothless and Hiccup hung at the back of the group along with Astrid, Snotlout, and any other young vikings that had come along. The ship slowly docked, a few hands on deck of the ship raising their hands in the air, slowly making their way from the ship.
"What's their angle on this?" Hiccup whispered to the group and was met with unsure answers and shrugs. One last viking leapt down from the ship confidently and walked tall towards the armed vikings. Hiccup stared in surprise, not entirely sure what to do or what to say, all he could do was observe and hope for the best.
"Well hello! My name's Iona! I'm the new chief of the Berserkers! Oh and trust me, I'm nothing like my brother was!" The girl in her early twenties said happily and confidently as she held her hand out to Stoick, "Nice to meet ya!"