Things can always get worse, Astrid thought. An army of four invisible dragons and invisible Vikings on them, Alvin the only visible one. Seemed to think he was invincible, not needing protection from the Berk riders, with that stupid horn. Its trill made her braid and spine shudder. Every time he blew on it, more mountain collapsed. What an arrogant son of a-
Metal darts shot through the air. One hit Stormfly on the neck, piercing her thick scales. The dragon immediately collapsed and crashed to the ground. Astrid wasn't hurt, but Stormfly gave a muffled moan. Yelps from Fishlegs and the twins as their dragons also went down with wet splashes. Rubble would have toppled on them, but their crystals shot out light to catch the falling rocks as the mountain continued to split open.
Astrid gasped as that large wave dragged a glowing Mud away. Not that she could have reached for him, because his hands wouldn't move, and there was Stormfly to worry about. He shot her a wild panicked expression before vanishing down the crumbling tunnel.
Alvin flew above them, barking orders at the Changewings. It seemed to be for "capture," not for "kill". That was the good news. The bad news was that he was following the wave, eyes on the trapped figure within.
"Come back and fight, you coward!" Astrid shouted at him. She pulled her axe from where it was strapped to her back, prepared to fling it at the Outcast's head. His Whispering Death shot spines in response, making her dodge them. They barely missed Stormfly, though only because the Nadder's tail shot spines in turn. Her dragon was down but not out for the count.
Fishlegs yelped in warning. The Changewings materialized although their riders hadn't. Green acid shot at the Berk riders, who had to dodge. Weapons appeared in mid-air; a large, double-headed axe aimed towards Astrid and Stormfly. Astrid bent her knees and held her own axe at the ready.
"Everyone, hand to hand combat! Protect your dragons!" she called, just as the double-headed axe attempted a vicious swing at her head. She ducked, felt the sharp air swoop over her head, and spun a distance from Stormfly. She beckoned with her left hand.
"Come on, you invisible creep! Bet you're ugly and wart-faced under all the Changewing skin!"
Astrid wasn't Hiccup, but her heckling worked. The axe came for her instead of Stormfly, and she backed away to gain more room for combat. The tunnel was still narrow, and the Changewings kept spitting acid at the rocks, widening them.
No dragons to fight dragons, but all Berk riders-sans Hiccup- had received warrior training. Fishlegs shielded Meatlug from the Changewing acid with his body, holding a large hammer and screaming. His eyes were bloodshot, and the gaping holes in his shirt made him look more terrifying. He threw his hammer at a Changewing who could not dodge in time, and it returned to his fist. The dragon went down with a broken wing. The other Changewings retreated; apparently they felt no loyalty in the time of battle.
It's always the bookish ones, Astrid thought, blocking another blow aimed at her shoulder. It was a strong swing, making her stumble. Her attacker seemed to realize how much difference strength made when battling with axes. She barely had time to regain her footing when he slashed at her stomach. This time, when she blocked the blow, an invisible hand punched her cheek. As she recoiled, it then swiped at her legs, knocking away balance. She went down, felt the axe blade at her throat.
"Dishonorable!" she croaked as that same hand grabbed her braid and lifted her. The axe made her move to the damp rock wall where she was pinned. It swung back, ready to slice her neck open.
The sound of spines shooting through the air, a yell, and the axe clattered to the ground. Astrid picked it up and went to where the spines were moving on the ground. She swiftly cut away the Changewing skin without nicking the man's real skin, ripped off his mask in bits. No time to save it for Hiccup to analyze later.
"Thank you for giving us a new training exercise. And you are an ugly Viking." She smirked at his cursing face, turned the double-headed axe, and hit him with the blunt head twice. Then she stood up and ran back to her prone dragon.
Stormfly was sedated but not down; she had shot the spines with her tail. She warbled with drowsy concern at the red mark on Astrid's cheek.
"I'm all right, girl." Astrid patted Stormfly on the left side, the same spot where she had hit the Nadder all those months ago. "A bruise for a bruise. Let's see where else you can aim."
They studied the battleground. The remaining invisible warriors had decided not to attack the Berserk teenager who weighed as much as his dragon, after Fishlegs caught every of their weapons. He soon amassed a large pile. They then focused their energy on the rainbow sword that circled Hiccup and Toothless, firing rows of darts. Toothless retaliated with plasma blasts as the sword's circling wavered. Harmful was wavering, however, and Astrid didn't blame it. If she had to defend her stupid boyfriend in the middle of battle and not have back-up-
The twins stood in front of their dragon, making sure neither Barf nor Belch lost their heads. They worked in tandem to protect each other, each with a hatchet instead of an axe. Even so, neither of them managed to land a blow against the single warrior attacking them and the Zippleback. In fact, they managed to hit each other more often. Astrid suspected they were doing it on purpose.
"We're actually winning!" Fishlegs cried out with bloodlust. He shook his burning fist. "We may get out of here alive!"
That's when they heard Mud's scream and Alvin's laughter. That killed the battle mood. The twins lowered their weapons in confusion. Even the warriors' weapons stopped, hesitating, because it wasn't a scream of terror, but of agony. Mud's voice hadn't broken yet, making his shrieks shrill.
Despite her chilled heart, Astrid observed, and she whispered to her dragon, pointed at where the weapons aimed. Stormfly lifted her tail. They couldn't help Mud if they lost.
"It sounds like he's castrating the kid," one invisible warrior said. "I know he's a supernatural brat, but-"
"Now!" Astrid shouted, pointing at the weapons. Stormfly shot her spines with almost panicking fury. Fishlegs dodged, and there were rows of struggling invisible shapes.
"We need to help Mud!" he shouted.
"First we need to help ourselves!" Ruffnut shouted; she and her brother sprinted from the Changewings who landed around the spines. "Their stupid protective instinct is kicking in."
For once Ruffnut was right. The Changewings now worked as a team to separate the kids from their dragons; Fishlegs didn't move, but Astrid and the twins did. Green acid burnt the floor beneath their sprinting feet. They met spines with more acid, burning them mid-air.
"LJOS BRYMJA AKDIS!" Mud's voice shrieking words, even as it was strained with pain. "Protect the Berk riders and their dragons. Strike me-" There was scuffling as his voice quieted, then a yell from Alvin before Mud continued. "Strike me down if you see me. Don't hold back!"
The clouds pulsed with thunder; four bolts of lightning shot down. The Changewings looked up in alarm.
"Helmets off!" Astrid cried, remembering that metal attracted lightning. She had a headband, but there was clattering as the twins tugged at each other's horns and tossed them. Fishlegs let his tiny helmet bounce off the pinned Outcasts and Hysterics. They braced themselves, standing by their dragons.
They had nothing to worry about; the lightning struck the Changewings, hitting their tails. Squawking with alarm, their protective instincts failed; the lightning chased them away from the mountain, out into the distance.
"That's not possible!" Alvin screamed, as Astrid heard more bolts of lightning strike their way. "I've bound you with ironwood; you're completely helpless!"
"Not completely." Defiance and pain in Mud's voice. "Astrid, get yourself and the others out! The lightning will protect you"
"Call them off, son of Thor!"
A pause, Mud's voice struggling.
"No."
"Call them off!" Another scream from Mud that made Astrid's heart pound.
"No!"
"You're bound by spell! I order you to call the lightning off!" There was grunting from Mud, resistance.
"I relinquish freedom of the clouds!"
"Oh gods. 'Ljos Brymja' means light and thunder," Fishlegs said, looking smaller without his tiny helmet. "He talked to the lightning, and now he's given up control of it!"
That's when Astrid understood. Child of Fire and Thunder. Her expression became horrified. Dena vu coursed through her veins. She ran down the tunnel, but lightning shot in front of her.
"Mud, call it off!" she called. "The lightning will strike you!"
"Don't . . . worry! Take care of Harmful!" he shouted back, and then his cries became muffled. More crashing and they heard Alvin's large footsteps fade.
Heluth knew things had gone wrong before her phone rang. She knew because her soldiers called with reports of the tunnel collapsing. So inconvenient to make them support the volatile rock, delaying Modi's rescue. The warriors had to be structural rather than aggressive, much to their chagrin.
Then her phone rang for the hundredth time, and his caller ID came up. Her hand automatically pressed the rune on the purple strike.
"I'm working on it," she snapped at him. "That stupid Outcast is trying to cave us in; give us a few minutes to stabilize."
"Not many people live after calling me 'stupid,' Heluth. Ever wonder why?"
She dropped the phone. Her bouncer, who had been hovering over with concern, caught it. Cold laughter came from the crystal, unwanted and familiar.
"Not so talkative when taken by surprise, are you?"
"What are you doing with my cousin's property?"
"Negotiating," Alvin said calmly. "Are you aware of your part in Ragnorak, to raise armies of the undead to fight?"
"Ragnorak isn't happening," she told him. "Fighting is such a drag. Where is my cousin?"
"You lied to me, death goddess, and I don't like liars. I swore on the Loki tree not to mess with minds or souls, but I said nothing about physical pain." There was a smack and a muffled grunt.
"Mo," she said, her tone exposing fright.
"It's amazing how much pain you can put a god through, when you own a bit of him. Ironwood manacles also help."
This wasn't supposed to happen; Modi was supposed to restore the Green Death's magic, get rewarded with his essence restored, and get free of this arrogant mortal. Something had gone wrong.
"What do you want?" she asked.
"What I've wanted from the beginning: your allegiance. Your armies at my beck and all."
"And if I pledge both to you, you won't hurt him?"
She heard a faint, muffled voice of protest, and then it stopped. Mo must have realized that making any sound wouldn't help.
"As long as you don't trick me. Or lie to me."
"Then you need to see me in person, to make the oath binding," she frowned. "And I need to see my cousin unharmed. Let me talk to him."
"What?"
"I need to know that he's with you."
There was an unwrapping of cloth, a face slammed against the phone, causing static. "Lu." Mud's voice, hoarse and gritty.
"Mo. Has he hurt you?"
"Not badly." Mo was a terrible liar. "You're going to go through with this. You're going to pledge the undead to him."
"You promised me that you'd live. I didn't mean a life of pain." Her voice tinged with regret. If Jo hadn't brought him and the hiccup here. If the army hadn't had those construction problems. If, if-
Modi took a ragged deep breath. "You're going to have to do the formal 'seal the deal with the drink.' Old-fashioned rules, you know."
"Yeah. Any requests?" she asked sarcastically to hide her fear and confusion. Usually a phone pledge would do.
"A Reverse Trojan."
"What?"
"A Reverse Trojan. Three parts ciders for the color, one part tonic water, a splash of blueberry juice for misdirection, and shaken for a long time on the rocks. A long, long time."
Modi hated cider. He also didn't think fruits and alcohol should mix. He was trying to tell her something.
"A Reverse Trojan. Got it," she said. "Don't let him hurt you anymore."
"Then I won't speak disrespectfully." Another smack, and she heard Modi grunt. Heluth winced. Alvin returned.
"Tell your soldiers not to attack, and have them bring us to a place for parley. We're in one of your tunnels, waiting."
"Understood. No attacking and parley," she recited, nervous. "I'll send someone over. See you in a few minutes." She hung up before he could respond.
Heluth sat back, skeletal fist under her chin. Alvin had her cousin, a resurrected Whispering Death, and stolen essence. She had to deal with all three, as well as Mud's message. "Trojan" often referred to sneaking in using an outer disguise, usually a present. Misdirection. Time.
The construction workers milled around her. Her bouncer poured her a fresh cider. She looked at them, and she looked at her rainbow phone.
"Here's the plan," she said.
"Oh mother Frigga!" Astrid cursed. She couldn't let the lightning strike her, not if she wanted to help. Hiccup and Mud didn't need a barbecued shield-maiden. Curse her practical mind!
The lightning herded her back to Fishlegs and the twins, and it pulsed around them in electric bars. Different bolts encased their dragons, not that Stormfly or the twins' Zippleback could move. Dragon nip was potent stuff.
Hiccup through all this had remained silent. He still stood with Toothless supporting him like a green statue, as if the left leg that he had put on tethered him to the ground.
Some bolts struck the invisible Outcasts, and the visible ones, stunning them. The injured Changewing shrieked as it got electrocuted. Stormfly squawked in alarm.
"He saved us," Fishlegs whimpered as dragon flesh fried in front of them. "From the Changewings."
"Some rescue," Tuffnut said, "trapping us with lightning."
"It's like we're in an electric cage," Ruffnut said. She put out her hand to demonstrate, and yelled with a thrill as the lightning forced her back. "Now that is a shock!"
"Can you find a way out?" Astrid asked them. She normally wouldn't ask the twins to fry their brains, but this was an emergency, and they were good at frying their brains.
"We can try!" The twins slapped high-fives to each other and charged forward. The electric bolts knocked them back, and they cheered. Then they charged again.
And again. And again.
"Stop it!" Astrid cried after the fifth time. "It's not working."
"The bolts must be at a lower voltage, so as not to harm us but to repel us," Fishlegs volunteered. "Like having a Terrible Terror rather than a Night Fury bite you."
Astrid let forth a stream of curses. That's when the sky sucked up the bolts. They fled upward, as if returning to a stern master. Who knows, perhaps they were.
Everyone looked up, and their jaws dropped. A flash, and the ground became scorched. Fishlegs looked like he was going to faint. The invisible Vikings gave identical cries of surprise.
"I guess Thor Almighty heard your curses," Tuffnut said.
Thor didn't actually appear, and who did didn't surprise them. It was his entourage's choice of vehicles: lightning bolts. Stoick and Snotlout on their dragons as well as a woman who seemed to be made of wood were straddling the lightning. They were riding lightning bolts as if they were explosive horses. Thornado lay on his bolt, while Hookfang wrapped claws around his. The woman sat behind Stoick and clutched him.
The lightning returned to the sky, and they heard it hit more than one Outcast and Hysteric. Twin cheers from Vali and Vidar, and the clang of steel as they joined in active combat.
"That was the exciting route," Stoick commented to the woman. "How did you know Thor could do that?"
"I was in Asgard for several hundred years. You pick things up."
"She also had me." Loki appeared from behind Eos, unfolding himself from a shadowy form. "I've wanted to try that for ages."
"Woo-hoo!" Snotlout hopped off a revived Hookfang. "Don't you guys worry. Your backup is here."
"Good energy, Snotlout, but we already took care of the problems in here," Fishlegs said. He indicated the struggling spines and the dead Changewing. "We could have used you about twenty minutes ago."
"What?" Snotlout looked from face to haggard face. "You didn't even leave ONE murderous barbarian for me?"
"No," Astrid told him, unsympathetic. "We didn't have time with all the axes they were swinging at our throat."
"Go outside, ally with Thor and those two boys against the invaders," Stoick told Snotlout. "It's one thing to help mortals, but quite another to help the gods. Who knows, they may reward you."
This cheered up Snotlout. He hopped on Hookfang and made the motion to charge. His Nightmare set off an angry fireball and soared to the sky. Astrid felt relieved to see him become part of the battle. Almost.
"Thor brought you here?" Fishlegs asked.
"Yes," the woman said, wooden hair standing on one edge. She walked to where Hiccup stood. Toothless growled at her, and Harmful shone orange in warning. "Light travels extremely face, and light is made of lightning. It's also quite a thrilling ride. Where's Mud?"
"He's-" Astrid started, and her voice choked.
"Fury, this is important. You're my nephew. Let me heal your rider," the woman told the Night Fury. Toothless sniffed her, but he let her pass. Harmful stopped firing rainbow lights, lowered itself to her hand.
"Where is Muddy?"
"Alvin got him," Fishlegs said in barely a whisper. "They're down in the Underworld; there's a tunnel that leads to it. We would have followed, except the Changewings-"
The woman's face stretched with fear; Stoick's expression darkened. He had seen his son as well, swaying with his prosthetic against Toothless with unfocused, open eyes.
She held Hiccup in her arms; she traced her finger around the rune stone and patch of blood that had appeared on his shirt. Hiccup, without knowing, pressed against her and let his eyes close.
Stoick opened the shirt. The rune stone, having served its purpose crumbled into dust. The blood remained.
"We need to find them," Stoick said. "And get help for Hiccup. He's bleeding!"
"I will find them, and it's not Hiccup's blood," the woman retorted. "Astrid Hofferson? Is that you?"
"Um, yeah?" Astrid felt her neck hairs prickle.
"You've grown into a strong woman; your mother must be proud of you. Tell me, did Alvin hurt my son?"
"YOUR son?"
"Yes." The woman's eyes became narrow, and her tone became deadly. "Did Alvin. Hurt. My Son?"
"If you don't know, that's Eos, one angry fertility goddess," Loki piped up. "Best to answer honestly because she gives a mean slap."
Astrid couldn't bring herself to lie to a goddess. But she couldn't bring herself to give details, not to that worried, angry face. Her head dipped up and down to imitate a nod.
"That infernal-" the woman shuddered, and vines shot at the rocks, piercing them. Fishlegs squeaked, and the invisible Vikings went quiet.
"Val." Stoick placed an arm on her shoulders to calm her. "I'm scared too. He won't get away with this."
"He won't." She looked murderous. "We need to go to the Underworld. But we need to know what we're up against."
"That's easy enough." Stoick went to the one Outcast whose face covering had been ripped off. The chief lifted the poor man with one hand. "Tell us what Alvin has been up to."