Exodus and Return-us
Chapter 25
Author's Note: Alright, I don't know if this is some sort of FanFic initiation, but I posted last chapter much quicker than usual (as of late) and I F.I.N.A.L.L.Y.broke 100,000 words and I didn't even get a single comment from the last chapter. Either this was some sort of elaborate prank, or y'all haven't even checked since you assume my updates take forever :D. Either way, I'm back and already know that you guys are going to love this chapter, so I want to hear all about it in the comments. Whenever I get to 250 comments (I'm 41 away) I'll post my three favorite comments so far so if you have something funny to say then that's always a good bet. Now, READ! ;D
Hiccup's Letter
I hope to Asgard that Thuggory never finds these letters. I already here enough crap from him about Astrid, but if he actually knew how awkward things were? I'd never hear the end of it from him. Well, maybe he wouldn't kick a man while he's down; I suppose even Thug would have a little more grace than to throw salt in a gaping wound.
But yes, just when I thought that things would be better without Astrid, she decided to wrap herself around me on that flight, even when she didn't need to. It was a cheap tactic, but very effective, and I feel like we made decent progress that night; however, none of our dragons seem too keen on giving us 'romantic' rides anymore. Stupid black eel.
Well, where was I? Oh yes, after I sent the ships back. I doubled my fleet and did so much more than that to my wallet, and each ship looked so full that it would capsize. I had mentally mapped out where everything would go, and was looking at creating a vacation mansion in this Mediterranean Ocean, seeing as it is so much warmer down here. There were multiple days where I even had to wear short sleeves, and some of the…people…Thuggory stumbled upon liked to wear even less than that. At least that gave me something to hold over his head.
Now, we were on our journey to Rome. Originally, I just wanted to make a good impression with their ruler and establish a basis for a world-wide Order. There was still the problem of spreading dragons world-wide, but that was for another time. They needed a place to go before they could leave their homes.
On our way to Rome, after my 'nightmares' had become a nightly occurrence, suddenly there was a night were I didn't have any nightmares. I couldn't remember having any dreams at all, and even though I woke up before anyone else, I still felt more refreshed than I had in a while…
I slowly cracked my eyes open. I wasn't certain what time it was, but I didn't hear anyone else up and about, so it was probably early. I had made a habit of sleeping under Toothless' wing whenever we traveled through the wild, as it was not only warm but comfortable. Toothless always heated the ground, and my Red Death abilities allowed me to withstand that the searing heat. It usually cooled down to normal temperatures within an hour, but until then it was as if you were being tucked in by the Gods themselves.
Another perk of sleeping under the wing was that no matter what was going on outside, inside was always dark and calm. His wing helped block out some sound, and the darkness practically begged you to go to sleep. Occasionally, I would even forgo a bed and sleep with Toothless if I really needed a haven from all distractions. There was seldom anything more comforting than a dragon, and I've discovered numerous ways that that's true.
So combine all this with that fact that I didn't have a nightmare? It was as if I had been reborn! My body felt as if I had just replaced every muscles with a brand new one, just itching to be used. I stretched my legs straight out, and I felt like a cat awakening from a nap. I rolled my neck, not having soreness from holding my head up. I stretched my arms, savoring the—
Wait a minute. One of my arms didn't move. It's pinned under something.
Well, that's certainly a way to jolt yourself back to reality. Yea, I just woke up feeling great and now my arm is dead.
I took the time to focus on what I could feel. Toothless' breathing suggested that he was awake, but pretending to be asleep (or trying to get back to sleep; heaven knows he's good at that). Come to think of it, it was a lot warmer in here than it usually was in the morning. I usually slept only in my special underneath-armor clothes: a thin, soft shirt without sleeves that kept my armor from rubbing against my back and chest, and similar shorts that go to my knees for a similar (but much more important) task. Because they were light, it left me susceptible to colder temperatures in the morning, but right now I felt like I was sleeping next to a fire. It wasn't a stifling heat that made you resent the warmth around you; instead, I was the type of heat that welcomed you and made you feel comfortable.
So far, I knew that I really loved the rare early morning warmth I had and my arm was pinned. Occasionally, Toothless leg would pin me down if I tossed around too much in my sleep, so the arm wasn't too shocking. The warmth could have just been a warmer night.
I decided to give up on the mystery, thinking it to be solved, and gently laid my head onto my shoulder as I tried to get more sleep. Before it got there, my head landed on something soft, and my entire body froze. There wasn't anything about Toothless that was soft (save for maybe his fighting!), and it definitely didn't have that particular smell. As soon as I realized the scent, everything made perfect sense.
That is, except for what in the worlds was Astrid doing cuddled into my side?!
^Um…uh…Toothless? I know you're awake. I need some help. Do you have any clue why Astrid is here with me?^
Toothless groaned a little at being disturbed.
*Well, it had better not be what it looks like, especially not under my wing! How do you even know that it's Astrid?*
^Because I could…well…tell by her scent.^
*Her scent? You humans have pitiful noses. How do you recognize her smell!?*
I froze, realizing just how odd that did sound.
*…have you been in the position enough to be familiar with it?! DO I NEED TO WASH MY SCALES UNTIL THEY FALL OFF!?*
^Ugh, no! It's not that weird, I think. I just, well, used to be really lonely and idolized her, so as time went on I just kinda got used to it…^
*Um, that's not much better!*
^WHATEVER! Just, why is she in here? Do you know? Oh gods, is she naked!?^ As I was talking, that thought jumped into my head before I had a chance to…check. She was currently plastered to my side, and whenever you wear clothes for a while you don't feel them because you are used to them. So, I guess she had been here long enough that I couldn't tell what I was feeling.
Toothless didn't think about that, though.
*THAT'S IT! EVERYONE OUT!*
^Wait! If you leave now, I'll never get to figure out anything as she might kill me upon awakening if I don't have any answers!^
*I swear, if you make me regret this…*
I started to move around, hoping that I would be able to feel clothes on Astrid and therefore keep Toothless from starting a huge commotion. If for some reason she was naked, the last thing I needed was for Toothless to dump us on the ground in the middle of camp and wake everyone up. I moved the hand from the pinned arm around, not really sure where it was. I'd like to think that I felt fabric, but my heart died inside of me before I could tell.
*^Hiccup, you had better be very careful about where that hand is going!^* Astrid thought to both Toothless and myself.
*I'm going to kill you. You know that, right?*
*^If he's not careful, you'll have to get in line.^*
*WHY do you guys always gang up on me! I still don't know what's going on!*
Wait a minute. Astrid's awake? And she's still curled into my side? And I still don't know if she's wearing clothes?
What in Loki's left testicle is going on here!?
*Wait a minute. You know where you are right now?*
*^Yea. Don't ruin it, okay?^* There was an edge to her voice…er…thought?
*Uh. Okay. Would you mind explaining a few things to me? I think it's safe to say I'm lost…*
*^YES, I am wearing clothes. Same as you, actually. The underneath-armor stuff.^*
*OH PRAISE THOR!*
Normally I would have laughed at Toothless, but right now I was too relieved for anything else.
^Okay, that's good news. So, uh, where exactly is my hand, anyways?^
*^Well, think this one through, genius. You are laying on your back. I am curled into your side in a hug, between your arm and your body. Nevermind my legs…^* as she said the last part, naturally I had to think about it. She was straddling the side of my hips, meaning one of her legs was swung over mine as if she were trying to wrap herself around me and GODS I needed to stop thinking about this before this gets really awkward! *^…but that means that your entire arm is behind my back. Given that you're taller than me now, your arms go farther than mine. So what do you think that you have a hold of?^*
I'm not certain if that was bitter, seductive, sarcastic, or apathetic, but one thing was absolutely certain: I IMMEDIATELY let go of her butt.
*Think happy thoughts….think happy thoughts…think happy thoughts…*
With that behind us, I slowly regained the courage to speak again.
Oh, if only I knew what a good time I could have been having right there…it's not every day you wake up like this.
*Um…so, how did we get like this? Don't get me wrong, I slept great but I think I may have had a heart attack in the last five minutes.*
*You started having another nightmare. Recently, you shake and shiver while you have them, and it's been freaking us out.* Toothless chimed in.
*^You've been doing it for a while now, and it's been killing me to know what you were going through. Last night I couldn't take standing by anymore, so I tried to calm you down.^*
*If by calm you down, she means give you a giant bear hug and never let go, then yes. That's what happened.*
I couldn't see, but I'm certain Astrid shot Toothless a glare. I could feel it.
It felt dangerous.
*^SO…once I settled in with you, the shaking just stopped. Suddenly, you just went limp in my arms and I couldn't bring myself to leave…^*
*Oh gods, PLEASE tell me that's not a euphemism!*
This time I'm positive that she glared at him, and I joined in.
^*And so I stayed the night. I guess I got carried away while we slept and just wrapped myself even tighter…^* Astrid finished. She said every word slowly and intentionally, as if daring Toothless to say something.
*Oh, just—that's…Odin, why?* Toothless choked out. I mean, he literally choked after what Astrid said.
Suddenly, I got an idea: see how far we could push Toothless before he gets up. I just hope Astrid knows to play along, though I suspect she does.
^Wait, so if one hand was there, where is my other hand at?
Astrid caught on immediately.
*^I think it's resting on my thigh. You know, the leg that's straddling your waist?^* She said it slowly and partially seductively. Toothless had caught onto our game, and was holding out.
^Oh, really? I thought I felt skin. How short are your under'-armor shorts?^
*^Why don't you move that hand up and find out?^* Now, that was very plainly a seductive voice.
Toothless suddenly jumped up, removing our wing-blanket and exposing the world around us.
*UGH! YOU GUYS ARE DISGUSTING! I THOUGHT ALL THAT CAME AFTER YOU ACTUALLY STARTED DATING!* Toothless yelled that, allowing anyone around to hear it; before you knew it, there were countless human and dragon eyes staring right at us. Astrid had yet to untangle herself from my side. Somewhere in the sea of surprised faces staring at us were two people that would never let me hear the end of this: Thuggory and my mother.
This was not going to be a fun explanation.
SCENE BREAK (RETURN TO HICCUP'S LETTER)
Yea. That certainly entangled things with Astrid. I still hadn't decided completely, but the fact that she kept my nightmares away almost seemed like a divine push in her direction. For the next two weeks, as we scouted the lands around Italy and its capital Rome, Astrid and I would rest at night under Toothless' wing. Nir didn't mind; he was a bumpy dragon and it wasn't comfortable for anyone if someone slept under his wing.
Once we decided we were ready for Rome, we made a line straight to Trajan's palace. We were one day's flight away when we stopped for the night, and like the new usual Astrid joined me under Toothless wing. That night, however, I did end up having a dream. There wasn't any fighting (and Astrid never said that I shook); it was just a dream of myself in that empty plane we usually fought in.
As I looked around, suddenly a noise from above startled me and I drew my sword instinctively. I brought it over my head for protection, and I blocked a lightning bolt that I had outdrew. A voice, presumably Thor's, told me that the Romans were protected by their own gods, and that I was about to face by far my toughest challenge yet. Thor told me that all my training was for this moment, and I panicked. It couldn't be here already! It had barely been any time, and I had yet to defeat my other self. Thor told me that all I had done had prepared me for this, but that it was still a toss-up over whether I would fully succeed.
We landed outside the gates of a beautiful city. From the air, we could tell it had been teeming with life and business. However, we were more concerned with the soldiers guarding the gate.
"We're here to speak with Trajan, immediately!" I yelled from atop Fate. Everyone wore their full, colorful, terrifying armor, and the dragons had all been given war paint. Fate's paint was simple, with our crest (flames with two sets of eyes, mine and his, appearing through them) upon his forehead. All the rest of the dragons features sharp lines and brisk, sharp images to match the danger that they all presented. All in all, we were terrifying enough to send the average Joe running home for a change of pants.
These soldiers were no different, and immediately backed away. To their credit, they had the presence of mind to stand long enough to throw a spear at me. I drew my right arm up, then launched an ice capsule from my shield that split the spear in two on its flight.
"Take us to Trajan, or we will make our presence known another way!" I yelled, more furious than before. They dispatched a messenger to run ahead, and the rest of the men told us to follow them. They walked ahead to clear the streets, each one of them sweating profusely because they knew what walked just behind them: Fin had come to town, the one thing they did not want happening.
Eventually, we crossed a miniature moat, similar to the larger body of water that normal travelers would cross to get to Rome. Now we were at the center of Rome, and the marble structures here were both brilliant and extremely sturdy.
We walked forward until we were in the middle of a courtyard, and we could see the emperor's throne on the other side, underneath an awning. Behind him lay a building I assumed to be the emperor's residence, and it encircled the courtyard except the opening that we had just come through.
We walked forward until we were fifteen yards away from the emperor. I rose in my saddle, then performed a front flip that allowed me to land in front of Toothless. It was a trick I had perfected just for this occasion.
The emperor was a powerful-looking man. I had heard that he first gained rise through the military, and was considered a practical man. He looked like he could fist fight a bear, and come out unscathed. All of the men surrounding him that weren't obviously advisers were just a threatening, if not more so.
"You're name terrorizes my citizens and stirs up my people, and you have the gall to show your face before me. Tell me why I shouldn't destroy you now, Fin." Trajan decreed. His voice was deep and powerful, and he was clearly not pleased with my presence.
"Because I've not come to fight, nor could you destroy me if you tried." I responded coolly.
"I'm afraid I don't agree with either statement." Trajan signaled for his men to engage, and they all threw spears directly at me. In all, about 20 spears came flying at me from the hands of strong men who knew what they were doing.
I timed the delay between the throwers, and sideflipped to my right to dodge the first 10. This allowed me to throw another ice cap, which knocked 4 more out of commission. 3 spears easily missed their mark, leaving only three more to deal with. I reached out and caught two by the staff-part before they could hit me, then spun them to deflect the third. All of that took place in under three seconds, but I had miscounted and a twenty-first spear came a second later, going right at my stomach. I threw my head backwards and my body followed, until I was at a 90 degree angle in my knees, and the spear flew above me. I plucked it out of the air with two hands, then stabbed it into the ground behind my head while still parallel to the ground. With the spear firmly planted, I kicked my legs off the ground and pulled myself up the spear until I was doing a handstand on top of the spear, before half-flipping to land with one foot on the spear. Now balanced atop of the spear, I returned my sight to Trajan.
"You're going to have to do better than that. It's not just me here, you know."
Trajan glanced back at Toothless and the Squad (the official battle terminology for a group of the Order), who all either snarled to stood in a way that made their threat clear.
"You're as good as the tales. What is it that you want, anyways?" Trajan asked.
I mentally patted myself on the back. Tough guys like to test each other out; that's just how respect among meatheads works, so I had to prove myself despite all the rumors of my abilities. Now that I had, Trajan is at least willing to listen.
"We represent a new Order in the world: an Order of Dragon Riders, called to keep peace between men and humans. We are not looking to take over land. Our goal is to see dragons lived throughout the world, and have men live with them, and even train them. We don't even require their loyalty, unless they show signs of a special bond. For your alliance, we would see dragons spread through your lands, assuming that the cruelty stops."
The whole time, everyone's heads had gone back and forth between each other, as they were clearly taken aback by our offer. We would probably get that a lot, and so I decided to throw in a clause about what Astrid saw in Gallia.
"'Cruelty?' I'm not certain I understand your meaning." One of Trajan's advisers commented. There was a clear edge to his voice, and he likely didn't like what I was insinuating.
"The treatment of your peoples, conquered or otherwise. Your soldiers harass them, steal from them, and even rape them on occasion. I have no issue with granting you the right to ride dragons as long as this behavior stops: it makes for bad trainers, and I will not see a dragon abused." I replied. I finished in a very stern manner, knowing that it would upset them.
"You dare accuse our leader of leading a nation of rapists, while you are more concerned with your pets!" One of the largest warriors yelled. Trajan signaled for him to be quiet, as the emperor was still in thought.
"I image that these are more than pets to you. It seems similar to the bond with a warrior's favorite warhorse, though I suspect this runs deeper and dragons are more powerful." Trajan stated.
"Ah, so you are more than a warrior. Indeed, these creatures are fiercely intelligent and capable of mind-boggling bonds."
He thought for a moment more, and his party dared not say a word.
"I will overlook your obvious insults to my name, and extend my full support to your proposition. I will not stand for any more comments such as that, and will not be changing anything about my reign. If you do not accept this, then may Jupiter have mercy on your soul, for I won't."
I thought it over. It would accomplish my main goal, but also give him the satisfaction of winning.
*^Take that! We're not going to get a better offer!^*
"And if I do refuse?" I asked.
Trajan nodded to one of his warriors, and they brought a hammer down onto the ground. Suddenly, from the clear sky above us, lightning came down and struck the ground in front of his hammer.
"Then you will have declared war on Jupiter himself!" Trajan answered, calmly but threateningly.
Almost every one of the squad told me to take the deal. It was everything we came to accomplish, and would be a huge first step. There was one voice I was listening for: a big, black eel who I recently had decided that I rather liked, despite his pride.
*Lightning, huh? We can teach these insolent pricks a thing or two about that.*
I couldn't agree more.
I drew my sword, which Nir had charged for me earlier, and sent a blast of lightning that caught that warrior in the chest and knocked him over backwards. He lived, but was surprised beyond belief.
Everything went to quiet, that you could have heard a grain of sand dropping in an hour glass. It was the perfect environment for my dramatic flair.
"Well, then, I guess I get to kick your god's ass!" I shouted.