Hello, everyone! Here is the next chappie; it's amazing how much time I've had over this break, and I am very thankful for it. More chapters ready for you, coming soon! Thank you to all of you who recently followed and favourited and reviewed, and thank you to those who are still reading since Chapter One.
Chapter Thirty-Six: Rule Number One
The beauty and freedom the sea held for Ruffnut wore off quickly when her motion sickness took over her body like lightning over a Skrill's wings. After five days of constant hurling and other bodily discomforts, she resorted to keeping her body half-hung over the railing of the ship, ready to barf into the waters below at any moment. Trader Johann had fed her a large meal a week prior and when it had a chance to rest in her starved belly, it refused to stay down.
"I never expected a dragon rider to have sea sickness," he said in a failed attempt at a joke.
"I don't do boats," Ruffnut slurred, a hiccup and a gurgle punctuating her strangled words. "Never have."
After that interaction, Johann chose to stay away. He let her hurl off the back of the boat while he steered the ship south towards another small fishing village, where he made a quick trade and exchanged a few words.
"Where you heading next, Johann?" one of the men asked as Johann untied the rope tethering Fancy Freya to the docks.
"Oh, I dunno," he replied. "North, probably."
"North?" the man scoffed uncertainly. "There's nothing up there anymore, surely you've heard about that."
"I wouldn't be so sure," Johann replied as he climbed onto his ship. "I've been hearing whispers."
"And what do those whispers say?" the man asked with a loud snort.
"Usually nonsense, really," Johann said with a sniff, which made the man laugh. "But recently? Someone 'round the bend told me a little something 'bout a Night Fury and his rider."
"You can't be serious," the man was quick to say, even though a little flicker behind his eyes told of an inkling of hope.
"Oh, but I can," Johann replied with a cheeky grin.
"You know of the treaty! If you sail up North, you'll –"
"I signed no treaty," Johann interrupted coldly. "I was ordered to stay away by a smelly fat man and his joke of a naval captain. Besides, if I want to brave the seas for a small vacation on what should be an abandoned island, then I'm going to do it. But Berk has always been gracious to me and I'd like to at least pay my respects. Wouldn't you?"
The man had no reply for Johann, and Johann nodded and lowered his sails. The wind caught them and slowly pulled them out of the bay. Johann set the wheel after taking a peek at his compass, and caught Ruffnut as she inched her way along the walls and the railings, trying to talk to him while still looking a strange shade of green.
"That's the last of the villages," Johann said with a huff.
"So we – we're heading to Berk," Ruffnut stated, trying to sound assertive. But she put the back of her hand against her lips and she swallowed painfully. "C'mon, let's go."
"Well, I was thinking –" Johann began as he rummaged in his side satchel all of a sudden. "Let's see – ah! Here."
He pulled his hand free and showed Ruffnut a vial. She looked at him with a scowl.
"What's that?" she asked.
"Ginger root," he replied happily. "Hard to find, but it will help with your tummy."
"I don't want help with my tummy," she retorted. "I want to go home."
Johann frowned. "I've been looking for this everywhere for you. Please, eat some so you can have some relief."
"I'll have relief when I can see my brother again."
"But –"
"No!" Ruffnut hiccuped. "I don't want any drugs, I don't trust you and I'm not comfortable sleeping around you!"
"Come now, after almost a week of icky things, don't you want to not puke for a few hours? I can give you the key to the door, you can sleep in my bed while I set course. I also found some teas – a wonderful old lady shorter than my knee gave them to me. It'll knock you right out, no dreams or nothing!"
Ruffnut growled. "What do you not understand? I am not gonna sleep on your stupid boat!"
Johann shut his mouth and looked away, hurt. He shook his head, but he pulled a key from a chain around his neck and forced it into her hand before she could protest. "I am not Dagur," he spat. "I am not like that monster that holed you up and I know that all you want to do is sleep. So you can take my key and lock yourself in. I've designed the lock so no one can get in. But you'll keel over from exhaustion long before we reach Berk, lass."
He handed her the vial of ginger root and the cloth bag of tea, and mumbling to himself awkwardly again, he crawled into his hammock on the other side of the ship and turned his back to her. "Oh! And remember rule number two? Don't make fun of my ship!"
Ruffnut didn't want to feel bad. She was justified in her distrust. But she had known Johann since she could walk to the docks and he never hurt a soul. But the torment of other men across the sea made her hatred overcome her each day. And sleeping meant nightmares. Anytime she let her eyes fall shut, she would see Dagur all over again, but it never felt like a normal dream. It was like she would be back there in the flesh, but she couldn't move, and she couldn't wake up.
She looked down at the teas in her bone-thin hand and felt her eyes droop. Sleep did sound like a good idea, and if Johann was right in saying it wouldn't let her dream, she was willing to try it. She took the key and, after a few stubborn hours of walking past it, she finally opened it and slammed it shut, locking the door quickly so she wouldn't change her mind. She was quick to boil the water over the small flame in the corner and she downed the scalding mixture as fast she could. Then, she ate half the root through groans and gags and forced herself to at least sit on the bed.
The furs made her nose wrinkle. The bed smelled like Johann. She almost considered sitting on the floor, but the bed made her backside relax, and soon, she convinced herself to at least lie on top of the fur stiffly, like a plank of wood as she waited for the tea to kick in. She constantly looked towards the door, as if Johann would break in and be there, twirling his moustache and giggling menacingly. But in her drugged stupor, the thought just made her snort loudly as she began falling asleep, her stomach not entirely sure if it wanted to upchuck or snooze. It must have settled on snooze, because after a week of almost nothing, Ruffnut fell under the deepest sleep of her life.
Johann, like Ruffnut, had fallen asleep hours after they had departed. He hadn't been able to sleep with Ruffnut being violently ill around him, but now she was asleep, so was he. At first, he only wanted a tiny nap. Just a little doze-away, enough to clear his head. He'd be awake to make Ruffnut and himself another terrible meal and he'd count his stock.
But Johann misjudged his exhaustion, and stayed sleeping as the night crawled towards him. Even when he was shivering, the back of his mind convinced him to curl into a tighter ball so he could go back to dreaming of large Viking women and huge lamb roasts slathered in gravy upon thick peasant bread with a horn of ale in his fist…
When the rain sprinkled his face, he startled awake. And as soon as he sat up, the rain began to pour, and a streak of lightning cracked over the ship, deafening him a single second later. He tumbled out of his hammock, tangling his legs in the netting. He wriggled as the ship began to bob violently, the mast creaking dangerously.
"Ruffnut!" he yelled. He kicked his feet until they came free. They popped out of his leather boots and he ran to the door. "Let me in!"
But Ruffnut was dead to the world, sleeping deep under the furs with drool pouring out of her mouth, deaf as Johann banged against the door.
The water broke over the railing, slamming into Johann and shoving him against the door. He fell as the water sucked him back, and when he jumped to his feet, he ran for the creaking mast. He had to lower the sail, he knew. The wind was biting into it too violently, it would turn the ship over itself if he didn't.
Ruffnut was safe inside the room, he reminded himself. So he began untying the sails as fast as he could, ducking every time lightning flashed overhead. But the waves were getting rougher and rougher, and began flinging him around in every which way. Bamboozled after being smashed in the face with icy salt water, he staggered back towards the mast and clung to it for dear life.
"Hold on Freya!" he screamed over the wind. "We're gonna be fine! Just stay upright, girl, this isn't so bad!"
Truthfully, this was turning into one of the worst storms Fancy Freya had the pleasure of sailing into. Johann never sailed across the sea at this time of year because of these storms. Why the hell did he think he could do it now? But he laughed nervously as his heart raced in his chilled chest as he reminded himself over and over again that he was going to be okay if he held on tight enough, now that the sails were almost untethered. Water was sloshing over the deck, soaking Johann to the bone, and the cold took his breath away.
He felt the ship rise into the air as a huge swell carried them up, up, up. The ship crashed down, smashing Johann's head back painfully as the ship landed. Ruffnut groaned and opened her eyes. She had been thrown from the bed, and it was too dark to see. She struggled to her feet, holding her head, as she fumbled for the key.
The boat rocked again and she was torn from the door. She cried out as she flew back, crashing into the shelves behind her full of worldly wares. Trinkets, large and small, all fell on top of her as her body smacked into the floor. Awake, she sloppily scrambled to her feet. Luckily, the force of the waves tipped the back of the boat up roughly, which sent her half-flying towards the door once more. The wind was knocked from her as thunder and water rocked the ship so hard, her bones rattled when she made contact with the door. She fumbled again in the dark until she shoved the key into the lock, cranking it over and pulling the door. The boat rocked back and she clawed for the door as she flew away from it again, and water spilled in.
She gasped and cried out as the icy water splashed up her body. It almost ripped her clothes off before it sucked back, pulling her with it. Suddenly, she was outside. The wind froze her eyes as the clothes that hung off her clung to her body heavily. She struggled to stand, squinting through the mist for any sign of Johann.
Ruffnut screamed his name over the howling wind, fear ripping her apart every which way. She grabbed the mast and held it, feeling it creak within her arms, and her breaths whistled in and out frantically.
Johann grabbed her from behind, seizing one of her arms. Ruffnut shrieked but Johann yelled over her. "You should have stayed in the room!" he cried. Ruffnut struggled against him.
"Let go of me!" she screamed. Johann's grip didn't loosen. But when Ruffnut looked up, it wasn't Johann looking back it her. It was Dagur.
"It's me!" the apparition replied loudly. "It's me, Johann!"
Ruffnut slowly crumpled to the ground, frozen at the sight of the face staring back at her. "N-No, you're lying!"
"Look at me!" Johann yelled desperately. He pulled her up and dragged her towards one of the railings. Ruffnut struggled, screaming. She thought Dagur was going to throw her over the side of the boat. "Remember, rule number one!"
"Please," Ruffnut begged as Johann pushed her up against the railing. The moment her hips connected with the wooden beam, she screamed again. Looking over the huge expanse of furious ocean as Johann bent her over the railing, she began to wail and wriggle. "Stop it! Get off me!"
Johann used to sail with sailors who carried their memories with them everywhere they went. Storms, wars, robberies – some people couldn't let go of some things. That wasn't their fault, he knew as he felt for his belt. Ruffnut spun around and tried to hit him, but Johann stopped her fist with one of her hands.
"I'm going to tie you to the boat!" Johann yelled to her. Ruffnut's eyes flickered under the flash of lightning. But there was a hint of recognition.
"Johann?" She blinked and tried to shake her head. "Why are you on top of me?!"
"I'm tying you to the boat!" he replied as the boat began to rise again, twice as high as before. He pulled his belt free. "I need you to sit down! I'm going to tie your body to the boat! The room is waterlogged, but you'll get thrown or pulled off by the waves if I don't!"
The boat rose higher and higher into the air, and Johann blinked the salt water from his eyes as he spun Ruffnut around and wrapped the double-long belt around Ruffnut's belly once, twice, and buckled it, tightening it with a grunt.
"Hold onto the railing!" he cried. "Freya's gonna drop harder than a dragon shot out of the sky when this wave breaks! I'm gonna let go and find myself some rope! Don't let go!"
Johann left her and tried to run back towards the port-side. He grabbed his hammock, and with one of his fishing knives, he slashed at the rope. The boat began to tip forward and Ruffnut clung to the railing of the boat for dear life, clenching her teeth and sobbing.
"Hold on, Ruffnut!" Johann repeated as the hammock came free. "I'm coming!"
He cursed to himself.
"I should have never done this, I should have stuck to the coast!"
He rushed with the hammock to Ruffnut, where he wrapped himself around his waist. He threw the ends under the railing and tried to tie it as the boat crashed down.
Feeling the boat tumble from under her, Ruffnut held on with all her might. Johann abandoned the knot he was tying and threw himself over Ruffnut as the boat landed jarringly.
"Just hold on! Just hold –"
A wave flew over the edge of the boat and tried to pull Ruffnut over the boat. She shrieked as she felt her body fly over the edge, but the belt caught her. She dangled from it, the air crushed out of her. A wave battered her back and smacked her head into the railing, sending her into a world of darkness.
"I told you to leave her at home!" Netmug yelled to Cauli. They had just flown out of the storm, heading south towards the fishing villages.
"She wanted to come with us, I'm not like you! I don't lock up my women like you do!"
"Guys, stop it!" Hiccup ordered. He looked back towards the storm. Barb had been separated in the clouds, but Rose could still hear the dragon.
"The Scauldron is taking Barb home," Rose assured Netmug. "She'll be fine, the Scauldron couldn't handle the storm in the air."
"You better be right," Netmug spat as they flew on.
Far north, a ship emerged from the torment of the storm. Men, battered and exhausted, were reattaching the sails and returning the small ship to its rightful ways. The captain shivered as he looked onwards towards the north.
"We lost Hjerm," one of the men told him sadly. "Got washed by one of them waves."
The captain didn't take his gaze off the ocean ahead. "I liked Hjerm," he sighed. "I shouldn't have sent him out when I did…"
But the captain smiled and gave his man a nod.
"His death won't be for naught," the captain said. "We sail onwards. I want to reach the borders of the alliance before nightfall."
His tribesmen all set to work on the ship as he looked at his compass and rolled his neck, cracking it. He shuddered and snapped his compass shut. He jumped over the railing onto the main deck and ran towards the spar. He climbed it and perched on it, looking ahead with a squint. Berk was within his reach. Dagur and Alvin had sent him to find more dragons, and being the finest dragon trapper sailing the sea, there was no man better suited for the challenge. Just thinking about the dragons he'd find nesting around Berk made him smile.
"Eret!" one of his men yelled.
"I'm having a moment," Eret responded as he sucked in a deep breath of ocean air.
"Well, can it wait? Looks like we've run into something."
Eret turned around, jumping off the spar back onto the deck. "A dragon?"
"No, a ship," the man responded. He handed Eret a telescope. He looked through it and raised his eyebrows to the sight of a ship bobbing in no discernible direction.
"Is it a Berserker?" the man asked.
"No," Eret replied stiffly. "It's a trader. But there shouldn't be any traders this far north. Looks like his ship's too damaged to sail."
He collapsed the telescope and ran up the stairs to the wheel.
"Let's go check it out!" he said with a smile. "Maybe the poor bastard has some stuff we can swipe."
He spun the wheel and approached the ship cautiously, but with a smile tugging at his mouth. It didn't take them long to get to the vessel. When they were close enough, Eret supped his hands around his mouth.
"Anyone there?!" he called. He waited for a few moments. "Hellooooo?!"
When no one responded, they flung some harpoons and rope over the railings, tethering the two ships together.
"I'll go up myself," Eret said boastfully. "There may not be anything of worth up here. I don't want to waste time, be ready to leave right away.
He climbed the rope deftly, his heart rising to the feeling of adventure. He really just wanted to find the ale before any of his other men did, to have that first taste. He pulled himself onto the ship and sighed, shaking his head and looking around with an eyebrow raised. The mast of the ship had totally snapped and was no longer on the ship, along with the sails and the wheel. Oddities and trinkets littered the deck along with barrels. Most were broken open, but some had survived. He wandered towards them nonchalantly, looking under debris here and there.
"Looks like the captain's been claimed by the sea!" he yelled to his crew. He found a chest tucked away under a pile of splintered wood and rotten fish that had spilled from a barrel. He reached down and picked it up, humming to himself and puckering his lips as he opened it with his thick fingers. He rummaged through the contents, which amassed mostly to sea water and iron bangles, but his fingers found something he had never seen before.
He pulled the fine silver chain free and raised his eyebrows as the Night Fury scale followed it. It hovered in front of his face for a moment as he marvelled at it.
Suddenly, someone grabbed his hair and wrenched his head back, resting a frigid blade against his stubbly throat.
"Drop the necklace. Right. Now."
Eret smirked at the sound of the woman's voice. "Sorry, lass, is this your ship?"
"You bet your ass it is. And you're trespassing."
"Come now, darling, I –"
Eret's smile disappeared as Ruffnut dug the blade harder against his skin. He choked and shut his mouth.
"Don't call me that," Ruffnut sneered. "I'm immune to the bullshit you men call 'charm' so here's how it's gonna be: you're gonna put the scale back and get the hell off my boat or I'll kill you. Understand?"
Eret cursed and slowly put the scale down. But before he put it back into the chest, he grabbed Ruffnut's wrist with the other hand, twisting it away from his neck.
"We've got a crazy one up here, boys!" he yelled. "Untie the ship!"
He whirled around and Ruffnut growled at him. But Eret glared at her, scrutinizing.
"Where are you from?" he asked slowly as he looked at the harsh corners of her starved face. She had split her eyebrow open and dried blood framed her right eye, bluer than the underside of an iceberg. Her body was worse for wear, and her shoulder was bandaged. "Are you alone?"
"Get your hands off me," she replied.
"Your ship has no mast. No sails. You can't go anywhere."
Ruffnut kneed him in the stomach. When he was bent over, she kicked him in the head, sending him back.
"I told you to get off my boat."
Eret sat up, holding his face with one hand and holding the other one up. "Alright, alright!" He got up and frowned at her. "Did you have to go overkill on my face?!"
"GET OFF MY BOAT!" Ruffnut shrieked again.
"I'm going!" Eret yelled back. He got up and stumbled past her to the ropes. "You can have your shitty 'boat'. I was gonna offer you a ride with us."
"Yeah right, move," Ruffnut spat as she kicked Eret's backside so hard, he tripped over the railing and fell on top of one of his own men upon his ship. Everyone cut the ropes and the ship lurched forward. Ruffnut watched them as they sailed away, a tiny pang of regret tugging at her gut.
That was probably the only chance she had at getting home now. She stifled a sniffle and grabbed the chest off the deck and tore it open, digging through it. But the scale was no where to be found. She pursed her lips and felt tears sting her eyes as she felt completely and entirely alone, and found herself yearning for another one of Johann's terrible meals.