This is based on sachsm082's suggestion and I have decided to make it a two-parter. Hope you guys like it :)
NOTE: I DO NOT OWN HTTYD!
Dragon Hunters, Beware the One-Eyed Valkyrie (PART I)
Half asleep, Zenna was vaguely aware of a light tickling sensation on her back. Instinct kicked in and she tried to swat it away only for it to come back and travel up to her neck. She heard a soft chuckle and smiled slightly to herself. Those tickles were, in fact, kisses. Waking up to the feeling of Eret's breath and lips on her skin was definitely Zenna's favorite way to wake up every morning. It made her feel ready to seize the day no matter what the weather and helped her forget whatever problems she had the previous day. They'd been married for almost two years, now, and they were still madly in love with each other. Zenna often thought she already knew everything to make Eret feel loved but, then, she would learn something new, a quirk, a little nugget of knowledge, or a new story, and she would find another way or two (often up to five) to let him know that she loved him.
"Good morning, love," Eret, her husband, whispered. "Good morning," Zenna yawned, rolling over so she was facing him in bed. She, then, felt the babies kick and she laughed softly. "And, of course, good morning to you two as well," she cooed, pressing her hands to her baby bump while keeping her eye closed. Eret laughed as well and gently kissed her bump and softly cooed to it in such a manner so adorable that it made Zenna open her eye and giggle. Eret momentarily paused in his cooing to his unborn children to give her a playful smirk.
"You're so cute when you do that, get all fatherly and soft…" Zenna whispered, threading her fingers through his thick mussed up hair. "Yeah, but don't tell anyone. I've got a tough reputation to uphold," Eret chuckled, startling when he felt the babies kick at him. "Looks like our kids don't give a hoot about your tough reputation!" Zenna laughed as she sat up and hugged her baby bump, feeling the babies calm down. Eret sat up as well and wrapped his arms around her, lavishing her with kisses, resting one hand on top of her baby bump. They were expecting twins, something that made Zenna jubilant (Eret as well, although he had initially fainted at the news due to shock), within four months.
"We've only got about four months of peace left before we welcome these two little rascals into the world. Perhaps we should take advantage of that and spend the whole day today in bed?" Eret suggested, nuzzling Zenna's neck. The one-eyed Dragon Doctor sighed as he lightly nipped her skin. "Sounds tempting, but aren't we supposed to join the team on a surveillance trip to the Edge?" Zenna asked softly. Eret furrowed his brow and carefully brushed Zenna's long black hair with a brush he found on the nightstand. "Are you sure you're up for it? Not that I doubt you, Zen, but being five months pregnant…I don't think you should be leaving Berk for extended periods of time. What if something happens to you three?" he murmured worriedly. "Eret, I'll be okay. Besides, you, Hiccup, and I made an agreement that I'll go by boat, remember?" Zenna reminded him. "True, but I do recall that you made us agree to take you along…" Eret mused, soothingly rubbing small circles on Zenna's tummy. He, then, bent down and rested his cheek against his wife's baby bump, a worried look on his face. "I just don't want anything bad to happen to you three…Odin knows that I will never forgive myself if something did…" he murmured.
Zenna sighed and had Eret meet her gaze. "Hey…it'll be okay. This will be just a quick surveillance trip. We'll just go there, Fishlegs will do a census on all the dragons living there, we clean up the clubhouse and the huts, and then, we'll go. Nothing bad will happen, Eret, so don't worry. Besides, I may be five months pregnant but that doesn't mean I can't fight. I'm still as fit and fierce as ever," she reassured him and, to prove her point, gave Eret a light punch in the arm. "Ow! I know, Zen. No need to remind me," Eret winced, rubbing his arm.
Zenna smiled and got out of bed, smoothing out the wrinkles of her maternity dress, before looking down at her feet. "It won't be long until my feet can't be seen anymore…Holy Shields, what if I start waddling? That'd be embarrassing…" she mumbled. "Waddling…I think you'll look adorable," Eret grinned, still sitting up on bed. Zenna rolled her eye at him and proceeded to dress. Eret remained in bed, keeping his eyes covered in respect to his wife's privacy, until Zenna cleared her throat to let him know that she was done. Uncovering his eyes, Eret saw Zenna dressed in a long purple tunic that showed off her baby bump, a brown leather skirt, and brown boots. "Is it just me or do you just keep getting more beautiful?" he asked, grinning. Zenna lightly laughed and got out of the room to let him change.
'I'm never going to get enough of that dork,' the one-eyed Dragon Doctor thought as she lovingly rubbed her baby bump, feeling the babies move, and smiled. "I love you two so much…Daddy and I can't wait to meet you both…" she whispered and, in response, the babies lightly kicked.
After breakfast, Zenna and Eret joined Hiccup, Astrid, Snotlout, Heather, Fishlegs, the Twins, and their dragons at the port. Stryka, Zenna's one-eyed female Night Fury, and Skulcrusher, Eret's Rumblehorn, both went to their Riders and excitedly wiggled their rumps. "Hey, girl…I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed on the saddle at the moment," Zenna apologized to Stryka, petting her snout. Stryka warbled, pouting slightly, but nodded and nuzzled Zenna's pregnant belly. She knew that her Rider was with child and dragon riding would be too dangerous for her. She was okay with Zenna not being allowed to ride her for a while…as long as she was going to Dragon's Edge with her. Zenna smiled as Stryka nuzzled her tummy and gave her a hug. "Thanks for understanding, girl," she told her. Stryka smiled her toothless smile and joined Hiccup and Toothless.
Skullcrusher grunted and nudged Eret, waiting for him to get on the saddle. "Sorry, buddy. I have to go with Zenna on my ship to take care of her," Eret said, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. Skullcrusher let out a snort and shrugged his wings. "Yeah, I know. Taking care of a pregnant lady takes a lot of time. But, don't worry, Skull. We'll go flying after the surveillance trip. For now, you stay with the other dragons and keep an eye on them. What do you say?" Eret smiled, knowing that his scaly friend would immediately assume guard duty. Skullcrusher rumbled and straightened up, ready to protect. "Always a dragon to be counted on," Eret grinned, patting Skullcrusher's battle axe-shaped snout.
"Okay, team. Looks like we're all set. The seven of us will fly to the Edge. Make sure to keep an eye out for any danger," Hiccup instructed his fellow Dragon Riders before turning to Eret and Zenna. "You two will be following us by boat. Just to be safe, I think Skullcrusher and Stryka should accompany you both. And, Eret, I take it that your crew will be joining on this voyage?" Hiccup asked the former dragon trapper. "Affirmative, Chief. They're already onboard," Eret nodded and glanced at his ship where, like he just said, his crew was waiting for him.
"All right, let's move out!" Hiccup ordered the team. He, Astrid, Snotlout, Heather, Fishlegs, and the Twins all mounted their dragons and took off into the sky while Eret and Zenna boarded the ship and set sail, Stryka and Skullcrusher flying right alongside them.
It takes approximately 34 hours to get to Dragon's Edge via dragon and twice as long by ship. Luckily, the winds were favorable, and Stryka and Skullcrusher, being able dragons, were able to pull the ship along at great speeds. On top of that, Eret's old dragon trapping ship was designed for speed and it cut through the waters like a swift arrow. Ug, Teeny, and No-Name were glad to be out on the open water once again. Only this time, they were out on the open water as freemen. No dragon trapping to do and, in fact, not a single dragon trap they allowed to grace their deck. This was the life…
"BLLLLLEEEEEECCCHHH! BLLAAARRRGGGGHHH! Holy Shields…UWWWAAACCCKKK!"
Although, they couldn't really say the same for their captain's wife, whom had been retching for the past 15 minutes. Eret's crew watched with sympathetic looks as Eret held Zenna's hair away from her face and awkwardly rubbed her back as she vomited over the side of the ship. "There, there…that's it…let it all out…" Eret murmured soothingly, grimacing slightly as Zenna lost her breakfast. "Ugh…maybe sailing while you're pregnant worsens morning sickness…Holy Shields, this is vile…" Zenna groaned as she expelled the last of her stomach's contents. Stryka crooned worriedly and hovered near her. "I'll turn us around and get us back to Berk…" Teeny offered but Zenna stopped him. "No, we're staying true to our course. Dragon's Edge…" she told him. "But Lady Zenna, you're not feeling well…" Ug pointed out. "This is absolutely normal, Ug. I'm perfectly fine. I just…need to sit down for a bit on a portion of the boat that's not…rocking so much…" Zenna shook her head, feeling a bit woozy. Eret guided her to the middle of the deck, which was where the least movement was, and put up a small crate for her to sit down on.
No-Name, then, suddenly went below deck, coming back about ten minutes later with a warm cup of tea. "Something to calm your stomach, Lady Zenna," he offered timidly, handing her the cup after getting an approving nod from Eret. "Thank you, No-Name…" Zenna took the cup gratefully and slowly sipped tea throughout the rest of the voyage. Eret stood by her and gently combed his fingers through her hair. "Just take it easy, Zen, all right?" he requested softly. "All right…" Zenna whispered, finishing her tea, and leaned against Eret's strong frame, falling fast asleep in minutes.
Eret slightly chuckled and turned to his crew. "I'll take her below deck so she can rest. You three keep an eye out. If you see Dragon's Edge or any of the other Riders, let me know," he instructed, hoisting Zenna into his arms. Eret's crew nodded and kept a sharp eye out while their captain went below deck, his sleeping wife in his arms. Setting Zenna down on one of the cabin beds, Eret leaned against a wall and just watched her sleep. He smiled as he saw Zenna slightly shift in her sleep, her left arm flung across her baby bump while her right rested near her head. 'Every day, I always find another new way to adore her…' Eret thought as he decided to be near his wife. Resting his head near Zenna's belly, Eret smiled and whispered to his unborn babies, "I want you two to know that I already love you both so much. I haven't seen you both yet…I don't even know if you're going to be boys or girls but…I love you two already forever…just like how I love your mother. We're so excited to see you two…Four more months…I can't wait to hold you both in my arms…Daddy loves you two forever and ever and ever…" smiling when he saw a faint smile appear on Zenna's lips.
A few hours later, Eret heard his crew holler, "Land! Land!" and Zenna woke up at precisely that moment. "Have a good sleep, love?" Eret asked her. "The best, actually. I guess we're near Dragon's Edge," Zenna nodded, swinging her feet off the bed. But before she and Eret could get to the stairs leading to the deck, they heard Eret's crew shout…
"DRAGON HUNTERS!"
Eye widening in alarm, Zenna sprinted up to the deck along with her husband where they both saw a horrifying sight.
A small fleet of ships was anchored just off the coast of Dragon's Edge and they were firing arrows, chains, and nets at Hiccup and Toothless, Astrid and Stormfly, Snotlout and Hookfang, Heather and Windshear, Fishlegs and Meatlug, and the Twins and Barf and Belch!
"No!" Zenna screamed as, one by one, her friends and their dragons were shot down and captured. Stryka roared in alarm and immediately flew to her beloved mate's aid but Toothless, seeing her even as he was caged, roared at Stryka to flee. And just in time, too, for the Dragon Hunters had spotted the one-eyed female Night Fury! "Another Night Fury?! Take it down! Capture it!" one of the Dragon Hunters, a tall, bulky, and intimidating figure, yelled from the bow and several Dragon Hunters aimed their Dragon Root-tipped arrows at Stryka. Luckily, Stryka opened her special back spines and, with her increased aerodynamics, was able to escape into the clouds. "Go with her, Skull," Eret ordered his Rumblehorn just as his men managed to steer the ship behind a sea stack to hide them. Skullcrusher nodded and took to the air, making sure to dodge the Hunters' traps, before disappearing into the safety of the clouds.
Safely hidden from view, Eret, Zenna, Ug, Teeny, and No-Name watched as the Dragon Hunter ships sailed by and they overheard the crew talking to their leader.
"We lost the Night Fury, Ryker, along with that Rumblehorn."
Zenna noticed Eret's face pale and saw him clench his fists.
"Well, well, Hiccup Haddock. You didn't tell us that you were harboring another Night Fury. Your own Night Fury's mate, I suppose? Who's the Rider?"
"I won't answer to any question you ask me, Ryker."
Eret felt Zenna tense at the sound of Hiccup's voice and reassuringly squeezed her hand.
"Ah, a tough nut to crack, eh? We'll see how you hold up under Viggo at Melody Island. Set sail! We'll head back to Dragon's Edge later to find the other Night Fury and that Rumblehorn."
Once the last of the Dragon Hunter ships had sailed out of view, Eret's ship glided out of its hiding place. Zenna quickly performed her Night Fury call and Stryka immediately came back to her. She looked to Eret, expecting him to do his Rumblehorn call to have Skullcrusher come, but, to her worry, Eret was furiously pacing up and down on the deck, a look that mixed anger with worry on his face. Zenna was the one to call Skullcrusher back and the Rumblehorn answered, diving down onto the deck.
"What do we do?" No-Name asked, looking worried.
"One of those Dragon Hunters wasn't just any Dragon Hunter. That was Ryker Grimborn!" Ug exclaimed.
"We have to send a distress call to Berk! The Chief's been kidnapped along with most of the best Riders! If we head off to face Ryker and his brother on our own, we won't stand a chance!" Teeny said nervously.
"No, it'll take too long to have reinforcements sent. We have to sail to Melody Island now to rescue the Riders. Those Hunters, unless they're patient enough to wait for Hiccup to crack, aren't going to keep our friends alive that much longer. Let's go," Eret faced his crew with a determined look and began to order them about to hasten their journey.
Seeing that her husband had suddenly gotten agitated upon hearing Ryker's name, Zenna sensed that he knew something about the Dragon Hunters that she did not. She'd been told by Hiccup about the Grimborn brothers. There was Ryker, the Hunter they saw just now, who was the brawny one and, more or less, knew the weaknesses of every dragon. And, then, there was Viggo Grimborn, whom Hiccup had told her was a skilled tactician, having beaten her bonded blood brother in a high stakes version of Maces and Talons to obtain the Dragon Eye, a mysterious artifact of Dragon Hunter origin that Hiccup and his friends had gotten back in order to protect the dragons from being captured.
Zenna, personally, had never met any of the two.
Well, it looked like she was about to…
"Eret, is there…is there something I should know about you and the Dragon Hunters?" Zenna asked her husband, not failing to notice the slightly nervous looks of Eret's crew. Eret frowned and, upon seeing his wife's face, sighed.
"I've met them before, Viggo and Ryker, years ago. My crew and I were one of the best trappers in Drago's army and they came to us. The two of them admired our work and offered us a spot in the Dragon Hunters, showing us their base of operations and all of their equipment used for capturing dragons…and killing them. Of course, we were already working for Drago at the time. We couldn't just quit our jobs and follow Viggo and Ryker. Also, personally, I hated them. They treated the dragons well enough only to have them slaughtered for their hide or, sometimes, in the Gronckles' case, overworked them to the point of exhaustion to produce metal for their weapons. At least with Drago, he kept the dragons alive. Long story short: I refused to work with Viggo and Ryker and they, in the friendliest of terms, have developed a rather strong dislike for me," he explained. Zenna pressed her lips into a thin line as she absorbed all of this new information before looking at him in the eye. "You're going to fight them, I just know it…I'm fighting alongside you," she told him seriously.
Eret's brown eyes widened in shock and he frantically shook his head. "No way. Absolutely not, Zenna, it's too dangerous. I won't let you," he told her. "Hiccup's told me all about these Dragon Hunters. I know that Ryker will be tough to beat, considering that he's as big as a yak on fortifiers, but I know how to fight. And I bet that none of them have seen fighting techniques like mine before. As for Viggo, I know that he's the smart one and it'll take a fiendishly clever and cunning plan to outsmart him. As for why I really want to join you on this one, it's because they won't expect me. They don't know anything about me, Eret. They know you for sure, but not me. We can use it to our advantage and get the jump on them," Zenna insisted. Eret firmly shook his head. "Zen, I can't allow you to risk your life on this. You know perfectly why," he said sternly before his gaze briefly went down to her stomach, already bigger than its usual size. Zenna sighed and placed her hands protectively on her baby bump. "I know perfectly why, Eret…but I can't let you fight this on your own. Your crew, I know, is perfectly capable of helping you but I think saving our friends is going to require all of us to fight. Please…let me join this fight and, for the rest of my pregnancy, I'll stay on Berk and out of danger…Eret, I want to fight…please," she pleaded with him.
No-Name, Teeny, and Ug looked at each other worriedly before looking back at the couple. Zenna stood straight and tall, but she had her hands clasped in front of her, hoping that Eret would say yes while Eret, himself, looked conflicted.
Zenna made a perfectly good point. It was going to take all five of them working together with Stryka and Skullcrusher, the only dragons they had, to save seven Dragon Riders and six dragons. As for the fiendishly clever and cunning plan, their knowledge of the Dragon Hunters not knowing Zenna can be a good example of the element of surprise and they could use that to their advantage…
But there was also the risk of…of Zenna getting hurt…along with the babies…
Finally, Eret gave Zenna his answer.
"Zenna, I'm sorry…but I can't let you fight and that's final."
As she began to open her mouth to protest, Zenna then spotted a dot of land on the horizon. "That looks like Melody Island," she said, consulting the map she kept with her at all times. Eret noted that she looked upset and tried to apologize but Zenna cut him off. "It's okay. I know…you're just trying to protect us," saying this, Zenna walked away from him. Eret inwardly groaned and placed his hand to his head.
"Sir, what do we do now?"
Seeing his crew awaiting his orders, Eret put on a brave face.
"Okay, lads, here's what we need to do…"
But even as they neared Melody Island and as their plan was formed, Eret couldn't help but glance at Zenna often, whom had decided to stay on one side with Stryka, and noticed that she was looking at him with…dare he think it…contempt.
'Odin, I think I messed up big time…' Eret thought, feeling guilty, as the ship neared Melody Island…
He could only hope that he and his crew would be able to pull this rescue off…
And, more than anything, Eret hoped he could patch things up with Zenna…
Drama bomb! Yes, I could not help but use an LSP term for this author's note!
What do you think happens next? Leave a review! Who knows? Maybe I'll incorporate your sugestions into the next chapter. See you!
-GuardianDragon98
