Chapter Thirty Five
Another day of training in the Academy went by. All of the Viking teens were gathered in the arena while Hiccup told them about Astrid's wonderful plan.
"Okay, gang, over here. Tomorrow's training session was actually Astrid's idea, so Alex and I will let her explain it," Hiccup explained after gesturing to the Hofferson girl.
Everyone minus Hiccup, Jacob and I groaned. By now we'd gotten used to Astrid's vigorous training exercises. She was actually the one who'd taught me a few defensive moves, and I'd learned quite a lot from them. I looked at the dragons in amusement when even they looked a bit disappointed.
"What?" she asked.
"Your training missions are hard," Fishlegs complained.
"They are not," Astrid retorted.
"Hand to claw combat," Fishlegs pointed out, revealing a bandaged hand.
"Spine dodging," Snotlout added.
"Hot lava swimming?" added Tuffnut.
"We never did that," I pointed out, thankful we haven't yet.
"Yeah, but we should've. It's way better than hand to claw combat," Tuffnut retorted.
"No offense, Astrid, but your training missions are a bit harsh," I put in, glancing at the others warily. Already I'd gone through half of my medical supplies that were normally applied to dragon wounds. Luckily they worked just as well on humans. "Maybe you might want to tone it down a bit... I can't gather enough supplies to last us for another month if this keeps up."
Astrid gave me one look that said she would talk about this later. While I had no problems with her rigorous training, I did have a valid point. Finding herbs, especially on this island, was difficult. Usually I had to go out with Snowfire on her island to gather what supplies were needed.
"Well, this mission is easy," Astrid explained while pulling out a map that showed Dragon Island. "You just have to go from this beach on the east side to this cave on the west side." Well, that didn't seem all that bad. I was surprised Astrid could restrain herself. "At night," Astrid added without missing a beat. Cue the groans that followed. "With no camping gear." More groans. "And no dragons." And even more groans.
I glanced at Snowfire uneasily as she glared at Astrid. If there was one thing I'd learned about her, it was that she didn't like being separated. And judging by the glare she was giving, this wasn't an exception.
'I will not abandon my rider,' Snowfire retorted, shooting Astrid a look that would've sent any other Viking packing. Unfortunately, Astrid wasn't like any other Viking.
"What? That's crazy! What's the point?" Snotlout demanded, giving Astrid a glare of his own. Astrid just looked excited as she explained tomorrow's mission.
"To work on our stealth skill and our Wild Dragon Defense," she explained. "Think about it, what would happen if we were without our dragons on an unknown island? We'd be defenseless."
"What about her? She can bond with most dragons," Tuffnut pointed out, gesturing to me.
"Astrid's right," Hiccup agreed with the blond shield-maiden, ignoring Tuffnut's comment. "We all know how strong we are with our dragons, but we have to be able to survive and defend ourselves if we ever get separated from them."
"It's like boy scouts all over again," Jacob said with a roll of his eyes. "Only this time we won't have a compass to guide us anywhere."
"You're not scared, are you?" I asked with a smirk. By now I'd gotten used to outdoor survival skills. Being on Berk had helped enhance them.
"Well, not really. Just... a bit on edge," he admitted with a shrug.
I just laughed at that and patted him on the shoulder. There were times when I loved making references to our world, especially just to see the looks on everyone's faces. But this was not one of those times. Tonight was going to be interesting.
...
That night, we'd landed on Dragon Island.
All of us were holding lanterns and had packed weapons to defend ourselves with. Hiccup brought his new shield, Astrid brought her battle axe, while I brought along my double-swords. I'd been practicing with them over the last couple of days, and my fencing skills were getting better with each day. Fishlegs had a hammer with him, while Snotlout, the twins and Jacob carried a sword.
"Okay, one of us is going to have to skip the drill and take the dragons into the cave on the other side of the island. That way, they won't try and stop us," Hiccup explained just as a Deadly Nadder flew towards us. At that moment, Toothless, Snowfire and Stormfly fired warning shots at it, effectively scaring it off. "Just like that. Okay, so, who's going to watch the dragons?"
'We should be going with you,' Snowfire growled softly, nudging me with her snout. I simply patted her on the shoulder.
"You know the rules, Snow," I reminded her. "Go with them, I'll be fine."
"I think the obvious choice is—" Fishlegs' enthusiastic response was cut off when Tuffnut suddenly chimed in,
"Me! I volunteer."
"But – but I have way more dragon knowledge," Fishlegs protested.
"Yeah, in a book," Tuffnut retorted. "But I... feel them, in here." He placed a hand on his heart as if to prove his point. "Besides, I did say 'me' first."
"Ah, I can't believe I'm saying this, but Tuffnut's right," Hiccup cut in. "Fishlegs, no one can argue with your dragon knowledge. But if Alvin attacks with his dragons, we need to be able to face them any day or night, on our own, without help."
"I hate it when you make sense," Fishlegs grumbled.
A few seconds had passed before we were saying goodbye. Snowfire had pressed her snout against my forehead as my hands were wrapped around her. Being apart was difficult for us. I never realized how much I relied on Snowfire for support.
'Promise me that you will stay safe, little one,' she spoke in an oddly soothing voice.
"I will," I reassured her. "And try not to go looking for me behind Tuffnut's back. I don't like cheating."
Snowfire only hummed in amusement at that, and blew out an icy mist on my face. Once we'd said our goodbyes, Snowfire reluctantly stayed behind as Toothless started following us.
"No, no, no, Toothless," Hiccup scolded as the Night Fury tried getting ahead. "You have to stay with Tuffnut." Toothless looked at him in confusion, than gave Tuffnut an annoyed look. Oh, I could already see this would not end well with Tuffnut. "I can't believe I'm saying this either, but, uh, he's the boss."
"That's right. You heard that. Boss man. Head honcho. The big... boss honcho guy. The honch-boss," Tuffnut began spitting out randomly. "Hey, anybody know where that cave is?" he suddenly asked. I nearly facepalmed at that question. "Just messing with you..." he started laughing nervously. "Or am I?"
I watched Snowfire leave with the other dragons reluctantly. My heart felt heavy at the thought of leaving her behind. But I knew that this kind of training could save both of us in the future.
"Remember, this about stealth, not speed. It doesn't matter how fast you get there. What's important is how you handle a wild dragon if you ever come across one," Hiccup explained. "Understand?" We all nodded in agreement, and started walking off in different directions. "Alright, good luck everyone. I'll see you back at the cave."
...
Meanwhile, Tuffnut had managed to get all the dragons into the cave. It was the same cave where they had taken down the Red Death, and an eerie feeling seemed to surround everyone. Snowfire had kept to herself for the most part while Toothless and the others started a campfire.
"Alright, who's up for an all-nighter?" Tuffnut asked his dragon companions, who only yawned in response. "You guys are gonna love my ghost stories."
Snowfire only rolled her eyes at the male twin. She had tried making her way out of the cave, followed closely by Toothless, when Tuffnut suddenly jumped in front of them.
"Hey, not so fast, Mr. Night Fury and Miss White Terror!" Tuffnut scolded, crossing his arms. "Remember the mission: No dragon help. That means you two. Besides, I'm in charge."
'Do you really want to challenge my strength?' Snowfire thought incredulously.
Of course the male Thorston twin didn't hear her. It seemed only those with enough intelligence could hear her thoughts, and Tuffnut cocked his head stupidly to one side.
Then Toothless suddenly whacked his tail at Tuffnut's face, sending him flying into a stalactite. Barf and Belch, Hookfang, and Meatlug merely looked at him with bored expressions while Snowfire hummed in amusement. Tuffnut was now hanging from the ceiling, looking down at the dragons in annoyance.
"Yeah, I knew that was coming! Uh, little help here? Help out your boss honcho?" he asked while dangling from the ceiling. Toothless obliged by firing a plasma blast at the stalactite, freeing Tuffnut.
'Something tells me that this is going to be a long night,' Snowfire sighed in annoyance. Toothless only warbled in agreement.
...
Astrid had been doing well by jumping from rock to rock. This training was just what she needed. Her skills needed some toning, especially when it came to stealth. It was the best aspect she had when it came to keeping an eye on those who could turn on the people of Berk. Besides, she mostly used those skills to keep an eye on Alex and her friends. Something about those three had always thrown Astrid off, and she especially didn't like Alex.
Her thoughts were cut short when she came face-to-face with a wild Deadly Nadder, the same one from before.
"Okay... a wild Nadder... should be simple enough. Move to the blind spot and..." Astrid tried moving to the side where it was more difficult to spot her. But the moment she tried moving was when the Nadder roared at her. "Playing the spine game, huh?" she asked while doing a cartwheel to maneuver around the spikes it was throwing. Then she did a somersault just as it fired more spines. The wild Nadder squawked in outrage, clearly not happy that some human was giving it such a hard time. "So, what do you wanna do now?" she demanded tauntingly.
The Nadder had decided at that point that it had enough with this strange human. It's wings ruffled in shame as it crawled away in defeat and humiliation.
...
Snotlout confidently jumped from boulder to boulder while brandishing his sword. "Snotlout Jorgenson... Super Viking!" he said cockily as he lay down on a fallen log. "At home in the wilderness and—" Snotlout suddenly shouted as he fell from the log and into a tide pool.
He climbed out of the pool in time to see three Terrible Terrors crawling out of their hiding place. "Alright, bring it on, wild dragons! I'm ready for you!" he said boldly, face set with determination. The three Terrors merely looked at him with their large eyes. "Okay? You want some? You wanna piece of Snotlout?" he jeered them on, and the red and orange colored one started getting annoyed with his arrogance. "Bring it on, you little—" Snotlout didn't get the chance to finish his challenge when all three Terrors suddenly lunged at him. Snotlout screamed in surprise when he was suddenly thrown into the tide pool again.
...
Meanwhile, in the more densely forested part of the island, Ruffnut carefully crept along the fern-covered floor. Hearing a roar in the distance, the female Thorston twin turned around in time to see a wild Monstrous Nightmare right in front of her.
"Monstrous Nightmares... fast in a straight line, but not so good in turns," she tried to recite what Alex had told her. "He's probably as afraid of me as I am of him... right?" she asked hesitantly. But the Monstrous Nightmare was creeping towards her, and Ruffnut realized that it was now a good time to flee. "Nope, I'm definitely more afraid!" she shouted in panic, dropping her weapon in the process of running, only to realize that the dragon was chasing after her. "Left! Left!" she shrieked as she rounded the corner, only to come face-to-face with the dragon again. "Right! Right!" she shouted, getting the same results. "It's like he's inside my head!" Poor Ruffnut wasn't even aware that she had been running in circles the entire time until finally running in a straight line.
...
"Cold and mi-miserable," Fishlegs stuttered before hearing something come through the bush. "What was that? Who's there?" he asked nervously, holding up his lantern. As he cautiously made his way through the forest, Fishlegs muttered under his breath, "Thanks, Astrid... Definitely helping with the survival here." That was when he realized too late that a Typhoomerang was right behind him.
...
It was oddly peaceful as I continued walking alone. Jacob had split off in a different direction to test his 'survival' skills. So far I hadn't run into any wild dragons. Which surprised me, and made me nervous. Something told me that it shouldn't be this easy. Dragons lived on Dragon Island, and wild dragons had a tendency to find me when I least expected.
That was when I noticed a pair of Gronckles butting heads with each other off in the distance. Two large stones were thrown in their direction, and the Gronckles jumped at them eagerly. I rolled my eyes at the sight, having already learned that Gronckles were far too easy to please.
My eyes narrowed when I realized that someone had thrown those stones to distract them. Obviously I wouldn't be alone on the island, but the chances of running into the others were pretty slim. Carefully I unsheathed my swords and ducked behind a bush.
"Quartz, you guys are so predictable." I almost groaned at the sound of Hiccup's voice. Only I would end up running into him of all the Riders stuck o the island. I quickly put my swords away and stepped out of the bush, only to find Hiccup looking at me in surprise. "Alex, what are—?" I cut him off before he could finish his question.
"Don't ask, I don't want to know," I replied with a shake of my head. "I see we're not the only ones camping out on the island," I added after noticing a campfire in the distance. Hiccup and I exchanged looks.
Campfires were anything but stealthy. Something told me that the other Riders were not responsible for this. Which could only mean that we were obviously not alone out here.
"We should probably see who's behind it," he suggested, gesturing to the smoke and flames in question.
I just rolled my eyes and nodded in agreement. Right, because sauntering into a campsite was always the best option. But, it wasn't like I had any choice in the matter. If I turned tail and ran, nothing good would come out of that.
...
'I'm bored,' Snowfire announced as Tuffnut rambled on with his 'ghost stories'. She couldn't stand listening to the male twin any longer. Toothless and the other dragons were pretty much in the same boat. They all had looks that said it all.
"Scratch, scratch... Who stole my golden hook? Scratch... scrrraaatttccchhh... Then he turned around and said, 'YOU DID!'!" The male twin had pointed an accusing finger at Meatlug, who simply rolled her eyes in annoyance while the other dragons just yawned. "Ooh, tough cave," he remarked after getting no response.
Both Toothless and Snowfire were tired of listening to Tuffnut's stories. They had fallen asleep when Snowfire suddenly jerked away, her head tilted towards the cave entrance while Toothless' ears flapped. Snowfire hated leaving her Rider behind, especially when she sensed the danger that surrounded the island.
Snowfire was just about to leave when Toothless had noticed. The Night Fury crept after her until Tuffnut finally spotted them leaving the cave.
"Look, I get it. You're both worried about your other halves. I feel both of your pains. Well, not really. I kind of like it when Ruffnut's in imminent danger. One time she was on fire and I just watched for a while. Anyway, you two can beat me with your tails, barbecue me with plasma blasts, freeze me with your icy breath, or even lightly massage my shoulders and neck. You really could, I need it! But I will not shirk my responsibility to the—" In the middle of his speech, Tuffnut realized that Toothless and Snowfire had fallen asleep along with the other dragons. "Sleeping? You're all sleeping?! Ah... not a bad idea..." Tuffnut began before falling asleep shortly after, on his feet.
...
It wasn't long before Hiccup and I reached the campsite. Sure enough I could see that whoever was camping here had packed enough supplies to last for a while. Yet it was oddly empty and the flames were still roaring. But the supplies weren't the only things I'd noticed that made my face pale.
Weapons were scattered along the area, from swords to shields. Dragon killing weapons.
"Someone's been here for a while," I remarked.
A shudder ran through me when I noticed the decorated dragon skull hidden nearby, along with food that looked too fresh for my liking.
"Well, obviously it couldn't be anyone from our group," Hiccup added with a shrug. He had a good point there. Astrid might have had survival skills like these, and maybe even Snotlout. But Fishlegs and Ruffnut were supposed to be stealthy, which meant they would be more likely to follow orders. Maybe.
"Then if it's not anyone we know, who...?" My question was cut short when Hiccup was suddenly tackled to the ground. Without a second thought, I pulled out my swords and prepared to fight when I recognized who was attacking Hiccup.
"Dagur?" Hiccup asked in disbelief.
Great. Because this night couldn't get anymore awkward. Of all the people I wanted to run into, Dagur was the least.
"Hiccup, old friend!" Dagur shouted as he picked up Hiccup in a bear hug. "You're alive." Then he noticed me. "And I see you're girlfriend is, too."
Both Hiccup and I coughed uncomfortably at that last statement. Luckily Dagur didn't seem to notice though.
"Uh, last time I checked," Hiccup replied nervously. I quickly lowered my swords. Dagur didn't see us as a threat, and if he saw my swords, he could easily change his mind. "So, uh... I haven't seen you since—"
"Since you saved me from that dragon attack on Berk?" asked Dagur while swinging a sword around. "And then you were all, 'Dagur, save yourself!' And I was like, 'what? Okay, I'm out of here.' But you stayed and then you must've—" He stopped after realizing he didn't know why we were here. I narrowed my eyes when Dagur continued watching Hiccup curiously. "So... what are you two doing here?" he asked nonchalantly.
"What-What are we doing here?" Hiccup asked, glancing at me.
"Don't answer that," Dagur quickly intervened. "I know exactly what you two are doing here." Hiccup and I exchanged nervous looks. My hands gripped my swords tighter, and I was ready for whatever this crazy lunatic would throw at us. "You two are here for the same reason I am, Hiccup. You're here to hunt dragons."
The grip on my swords loosened a little, but the tension didn't. Something in the back of my mind told me that I wanted to tell Dagur why we were here. Yet I knew where that would lead. We'd both be screwed if Dagur found out the truth.
"Okay, you got us. That's what we're here for," Hiccup said after chuckling nervously.
"Yeah, just the two of us," I added.
"So, whatever happened to the Night Fury, and the White Terror, Hiccup?" Dagur asked.
"Oh, well... bad news, it uh, got away," Hiccup replied calmly.
"That's great news!" Dagur exclaimed, grabbing Hiccup's shoulder.
"It-It is?" Hiccup asked in confusion.
"Yes. New plan. The three of us are going to hunt the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. And that White Terror, and we're going to take them down, once and for all."
Dagur's explanation sent shivers of rage through me. The very thought of hunting down Snowfire like she was some wild animal made me uncomfortable. Dragons were creatures that deserved respect, and peace.
"Uh, okay," Hiccup replied awkwardly.
Dagur than pulled Hiccup aside and dragged him towards the campfire, ignoring me completely. I just rolled my eyes at that. By now I've gotten used to the gesture, especially when I was back in our world. What Dagur did next only made me want to slap him across the face. He started howling like a wolf.
"Come on. Howl with me. It feels good," Dagur said, looking at Hiccup with that deranged expression. Hiccup decided to humor him by howling along, but I refused. I wasn't stooping down to Dagur's level. All the while, Dagur was laughing. Then he went on to explain what had happened after he'd left Berk. "Hiccup, ever since I left Berk, I haven't been able to stop thinking about you," Dagur explained.
Okay, way too much information. I was beginning to wonder if Dagur had forgotten I was even with them. Which could be both a good thing and a bad thing.
"Well, that's kind of strange," Hiccup said, feeling more awkward than ever. "Yet oddly flattering."
"Not you, personally," Dagur suddenly added. "You and that Night Fury. It's like you – you knew that dragon. You were inside it's head, rattling it's cage and that, my muscularly challenged friend, that's when I decided I needed to know about dragons too. So I came here and I learned about them, one by one."
"Well, that explains your... rather unusual decorations," I murmured, gesturing to the skulls that littered the campsite.
"Ah, yes... my trophies," Dagur sighed in contentment. "But I'm still missing two." He pointed to two spots on the sword, and I had to suppress a shudder. "The head of a Night Fury, and White Terror."
"Shame there's only one Night Fury," Hiccup replied with a shrug.
"And only one White Terror, who absolutely hates humans," I added under my breath.
"Yeah, well, I learned a lot about other dragons," Dagur explained while pulling out a Deadly Nadder's spike. "The Deadly Nadder. Got this in the leg. It was awesome." He then pointed at a Monstrous Nightmare skull. "The Monstrous Nightmare. Look at it. Not so monstrous now, are you?" I was ready to gag when he pulled out a piece of cooked meat and ate it. "And don't even get me started on the Gronckle."
"Uh, is that...?" Hiccup started nervously, having caught my expression.
"Nope, it's yak," Dagur replied. "Anyways, those big boys are faster than you'd think." Suddenly we all heard the roar of a dragon, and Dagur reached for a crossbow nearby.
"Whoa," Hiccup gasped in surprise at Dagur's reaction time. "Nice crossbow."
"My hunting weapon of choice," he replied with too much chagrin for my liking. Then he noticed the weapon Hiccup was carrying. "Just a shield?"
"Yeah, yeah. Just – just a shield. Just a plain, old shield," Hiccup replied warily.
"Very ornate. My sister had one just like that," Dagur said thoughtfully. "I myself never felt the need to hide in combat." Then he caught sight of my swords. "And I see you feel the same way, judging by those swords."
"I only use them in self defense," I shot back. "And when someone deserves to feel their sharp edge."
I didn't miss the look Hiccup gave me. Normally I was never very violent. But when it came to defending my friends, and the dragons, I would gladly cut someone's head off. It always depended on the situation.
"So... just how long have you been here, Dagur?" Hiccup asked, trying to change the uneasy subject.
"Couple of days. Weeks, maybe. Hard to tell," Dagur replied with a shrug. "It's all a blur when you're on the hunt. Gotta focus." He then turned and looked straight at Hiccup. "Eyes front, little man!" he suddenly shouted.
"You know, it's recommended that you get at least six hours of sleep for each day," I suggested, already having guessed that Dagur was also sleep deprived. "It'll help you stay more focused."
"Not until I take out that Night Fury, and White Terror," Dagur retorted. "I know they're on the island, Hiccup. I can feel it, right here." He placed a hand on his heart as if to prove a point. He then made things more awkward by grabbing Hiccup's hand and placing it over his own heart. "You feel it too, don't you, Hiccup?" he asked, placing both hands on Hiccup's heart.
"Uh, no... I just feel very awkward," Hiccup replied, sounding more uncomfortable by the minute.
"Yep, I'd rather cut your hand off than let you touch my heart," I added in a dangerously low voice. Dagur only smirked at my response, than started laughing.
"I like her. She's got a lot of fight in her, Hiccup," he said before pushing Hiccup to the ground. "You better watch your back, or I just might take her for myself." God, I seriously wish I could just shut the bastard up. "I'm going to grab my gear. Then we're going to get that Night Fury, and White Terror, brother."
"'Brother'?" Hiccup repeated in confusion.
"That's right, you and me," Dagur replied.
"And the awkward continues," Hiccup muttered under his breath.
My mind wandered off to what would happen if Dagur found Snowfire or the other dragons. She wouldn't hesitate to rip his throat out if he tried attacking. But part of me was secretly wishing she would. Yet another part of me knew that wasn't the answer.
"Sooner or later, he's going to find out the truth," I said under my breath.
It wasn't long before Dagur had gotten ready for the hunt to begin. We stopped though when he heard something off in the distance. My heart nearly skipped a beat at the sound of something heavy approaching us. Definitely too big for a Night Fury, and too confident to be Snowfire.
"Shh, that could be him," Dagur said, holding up his crossbow.
"No, that sounds too big," Hiccup told him.
"Hm... Loud, big footsteps... It's either a Gronckle, or Monstrous Nightmare," I added.
Dagur then pulled us down, much to my annoyance, and looked up to see a Monstrous Nightmare flying around and firing a fire blast.
"You're right," Dagur said before holding up his crossbow and taking aim. "I'm taking it down, anyways. Just for fun." Once again I felt sick at the thought of taking down an innocent dragon. Luckily, Hiccup intervened and pushed the crossbow away. Dagur then turned and glared at him. "How dare you?" he demanded.
"I – I had to," Hiccup stammered, trying to look for a suitable explanation. "The Night Fury would have smelled it."
"And the White Terror wouldn't go anywhere near a dragon killing," I put in.
"They can do that?" Dagur asked in surprise.
"Oh, yes. Oh, excellent sense of smell. They would have sensed the danger and fled," Hiccup replied.
"White Terrors are notorious for fleeing from humans, especially when they're involved in dragon killings," I added as a precaution.
"Look at us," Dagur said, looking at the both of us. "You, this little runt of a – well, you know what you are. And you, a beautiful dragon maiden. And me, Dagur the Deranged. Who would've thought we'd make such a formidable team."
By now I was struggling not to gag as Hiccup narrowed his eyes at Dagur's reference to me. Something told me this would not end well for the both of us.
"Not me, that's for sure," Hiccup muttered crossly.
"Let's move out," Dagur said after dragging us both along the hunt.
...
Tuffnut, meanwhile, was still fast asleep in the cave. What had woken him up was a rock falling off the roof, effectively hitting him on the head.
"Huh, what a great dream – what?" Tuffnut asked the moment he realized the dragons were gone. "Oh, really? That's how you're going to do me? I don't think so." He ran out of the cave to start looking for the dragons. "Oh, it's on dragons. It is so on."
...
Hiccup and I were still hunting dragons with Dagur the Deranged. Dagur had suddenly stopped and pulled us behind a rock. I was getting tired of being pushed around, especially by some guy who seriously had it out for me.
"Listen," he scolded after shushing us for the umpteenth time. My eyes narrowed at the sound of footsteps approaching us. "Smaller this time. Could be a Night Fury."
"That actually sounds more like a wild yak to me," Hiccup said with a roll of his eyes. Dagur didn't care. He aimed his crossbow at the bushes where the noises were coming from. Hiccup was ready to push the crossbow away again, but stopped when Snotlout emerged from the bushes. "Ah, close enough." We moved from our hiding places while Dagur remained behind.
"Hiccup, Alex!" he exclaimed, sighing in relief as he approached us. "Whoa, am I glad to see you. You would not believe what I've been through. This place is crawling with wild dragons."
"You know, there is a reason it's called Dragon Island," I coughed lightly, earning looks from both Hiccup and Snotlout. Then Snotlout noticed that Dagur was standing beside us.
"Dagur! What are you doing here?" he asked in surprise.
"Snot-hat, is it?" Dagur asked, not sounding all too interested.
"Uh, Snotlout," he corrected, sounding a bit disappointed by Dagur's lack of interest.
"Whatever," Dagur muttered, then turned to Hiccup and I. "I thought you two said you were alone."
"We, we thought we were!" Hiccup exclaimed, then turned to Snotlout with an accusing look. "Snotlout! You were supposed to stay at base camp."
"Huh?" Snotlout asked in confusion.
"While Alex and I are hunting dragons here in the forest," Hiccup explained.
"You and Alex are doing what in where?" Snotlout asked.
"Not the sharpest arrow in the quiver, is he?" Dagur asked in amusement.
"No kidding," I said with a roll of my eyes.
"Play along," Hiccup said to Snotlout once Dagur was out of ear-shot. "We cannot let Dagur know about our dragons."
"Or he might try to take them home as his 'trophies'," I added, my eyes narrowing in disgust at the thought.
"Wait, you mean—" Snotlout's eyes widened in alarm when he finally understood what we were trying to tell him.
...
Tuffnut was still looking for the dragons. He didn't want to be seen as the one who disobeyed orders. Especially since this was all the dragons' fault anyways. Why couldn't they just be good reptiles and stay where they were? He then stopped at the sight of Zippleback tracks in the ground.
"Hm... Zippleback tracks..." He looked at the tracks thoughtfully before seeing the dragon the prints belonged to. He walked up to the Zippleback, thinking it was Barf and Belch, and kicked it on the tail. "Gotcha! Now back to the cave – what?" It took him a few seconds to realize that the Zippleback wasn't Barf and Belch, but in fact, a wild dragon. "I thought uh... I thought you were someone else," he tried explaining, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment.
He then started to run away as the Hideous Zippleback gave chase, letting loose gas and sparking it along the way. Luckily Tuffnut was able to do a somersault to get away.
"Look, it was just a simple misunderstanding!" he tried getting it off his hair. Just then an explosion sounded behind him. He saw a tree ahead of him and timed it right so that the Hideous Zippleback would slam in between it with it's necks. He laughed and turned to face it. "Hah, dragon trainer one. Wild Zippleback, zero."
The Zippleback chose that moment to let loose some gas from one head. Tuffnut ran away before the other head could ignite it with a spark.
...
The four of us had continued searching for Toothless and Snowfire. Dagur was unaware that we were leading him down the wrong path, or at least trying to. But the moment Snotlout bumped into someone was when we heard a familiar scream, or two familiar screams.
"Okay, you two can calm down now," I muttered after covering my ears as Hiccup and Dagur caught up with us.
"Fishlegs, would you look? It's Dagur, who is also out hunting dragons, just like us," Hiccup explained.
"Yes. We are dragon hunters, out hunting," Snotlout chimed in.
"Hiccup, you and Alex's definition of 'alone', and mine, are very different," Dagur said, narrowing his eyes in suspicion.
"Yeah, everyone else wanted to tag along just in case," I explained warily. "Something about wanting the glory for themselves."
"Well, that explains why we keep running into your friends," Dagur muttered, looking at Fishlegs and Snotlout. "But perhaps this one can help us—"
"Hunt dragons!" Snotlout cut in. "Cause that's what we're doing. Hunting."
"Dragons!" Hiccup added helpfully.
"Okay..." Fishlegs said, finally catching on what we were trying to tell him.
Slowly we made our way through a densely wooded part of the forest. Hiccup and Dagur were walking side-by-side, and I couldn't help but glare at Dagur's head. He really was insane, and couldn't be trusted. I wouldn't take my eyes off him one minute. If he hurt anyone because I was careless, I would never forgive myself.
"You know, we're a lot alike," Dagur said, wrapping his arm around Hiccup.
"Really? H-How is that so?" Hiccup asked uneasily.
"Well, we're both born leaders," Dagur explained.
"Oh, yeah. He's right about that," Fishlegs nodded in agreement.
"Sons of Chiefs," Dagur added.
"Yeah, that's true." At this point Hiccup sounded bored, and I had to roll my eyes.
"Who had to be eliminated so that we could gain control," Dagur suddenly finished.
"Yes – wait, what?" Hiccup asked in shock. "No, no. My dad hasn't been eliminated from anything."
"But he could, easily. Just say the word," Dagur said, firing an arrow at Fishlegs' lantern, impaling it on a tree by it's holder.
Both Fishlegs and Snotlout looked uneasy at the thought of taking down Stoick. Even I was getting annoyed with Dagur. But Hiccup was able to keep on a neutral face throughout the situation against Dagur's death-threat to his father.
"Yeah... that's something to think about," he said, trying his best to sound nonchalant.
A rustling sound came from the nearby bushes, and Dagur loaded another arrow onto his crossbow before taking aim. Once again I rolled my eyes, wondering just how long we would have to put up with this idiot. Though silently I was praying that it was a wild coming and not ours.
That was when I noticed Astrid suddenly punching Snotlout in the face, followed by a somersault into one of the nearby bushes. Leave it to Astrid to make things a little easier. I'd have to thank her again later. Unfortunately the loud rustling had caught Dagur's attention, and he was approaching the bush warily with his crossbow in hand.
"Which one of your friends is it going to be this time?" he asked.
"It's hard to say," Hiccup replied with a shrug.
Suddenly a plasma blast came rushing past, narrowly missing Dagur in the process. My heart nearly skipped a beat when I saw Toothless and Snowfire peering down at us. Dagur's eyes widened in excitement at the sight, all the more reason for me to wish I'd punched him sooner.
"The Night Fury, and White Terror!" he gasped. "Hiccup, my brother, you've done it! You've led me right to it!" He then aimed his arrow at Toothless, who was in the direct line of fire. Snowfire was smart enough to know when to retreat. "Arrow, meet dragon. Dragon, meet—"
"No, no, Dagur, wait!" Hiccup suddenly interrupted. "I would like to do it."
"I saw it first," Dagur argued.
"Yes, but I led you to him – I mean, it," Hiccup retorted, correcting himself just in the nick of time.
"But I brought the crossbow," Dagur snapped, grabbing the crossbow once again. "All you brought is some ornate shield, and to use Alex's swords, you'd have to get close enough for an attack. Now stand aside."
Well, you can't argue with crazy.
Dagur started approaching Toothless, taking aim with his crossbow. Just as he did though, a pair of Terrible Terrors suddenly erupted out of nowhere, attacking Dagur in the process. Their surrounding had caused Dagur to miss his aim, and I looked towards the bushes in time to see Jacob and Astrid.
In the chaos, Hiccup managed to gesture for Toothless to run away, which he luckily did. Snowfire, on the other hand, was more difficult to convince. Eventually Jacob had to reach her and pry her away, though it could have taken two Vikings to get her to move.
"What's wrong with you?" Astrid demanded once they were all gone. "I almost had those Terrible Terrors. They were right in my hands."
"Terrors shmerrors. We're hunting Night Furies here, and White Terrors," Dagur retorted. His annoyance at missing Toothless was obvious. He then turned to look at Hiccup accusingly. "Did you leave everyone behind on Berk?" Hiccup only laughed nervously as Dagur walked away.
"Very funny, Dagur," he replied and joined Astrid.
"Did he say, 'hunting a Night Fury?'" Astrid asked in confusion, glaring at Dagur as he pulled an arrow from the tree.
"Yep, that's exactly what he said," I replied with a roll of my eyes.
"But Toothless is—" Astrid began, but Hiccup stopped her.
"I know," he muttered. "And if he is loose, then so are the other dragons. You guys need to go find Ruff and Tuff, grab your dragons and get out of here." I crossed my arms when he caught the look on Fishlegs' and Snotlout's faces. "Don't worry. Dagur won't hurt me. I'm his 'brother'."
"Until he finds out about Toothless and Snowfire," I put in, earning looks of surprise from everyone. "I'm just saying, Dagur isn't going to be so friendly if he finds out about them, and the other dragons on Berk."
"Or your abilities, for that matter," Astrid added. Dagur than chose that moment to appear out of nowhere, and wrapped an arm playfully around his neck.
"Come, Hiccup, while the trail is still fresh," he said.
"I-I can't hunt with an entourage," Hiccup started as Dagur began dragging him away. "Go back to Berk, leave us to our business."
Toothless was still running away while I caught up with Jacob and Snowfire. Sniper was close behind Jacob, growling in confusion when he saw Dagur running after Toothless.
'Did he try hurting you?' Snowfire asked as she nudged me.
"No, I'm okay," I reassured her. "Thanks for getting her away," I added to Jacob.
"Well, when you're dealing with a crazy lunatic, what are friends for?" he asked with an amused shrug. "So, what exactly is his plan, if he has any?"
"My guess is, he'll have to leave fighting Dagur," I muttered crossly. "Unless he's able to get Toothless away before Dagur realizes the truth, than we're all screwed."
'Then perhaps it's time we showed this 'Dagur' what a White Terror is capable of,' Snowfire suggested, her chest puffing out with pride. I only smirked at her in amusement before realizing that she did have a good point. Dagur was in for a nasty shock.
...
Dagur had continued firing arrows after Toothless as he made a beeline for the beach. The other dragon riders had fled to go look for their dragons. Hiccup had caught sight of Alex standing with Jacob and their dragons, and prayed to the Gods they wouldn't intervene unless necessary.
"You're not going to hit anything like that," Hiccup said after noticing what Dagur was doing.
"I know that," Dagur replied while firing another arrow in Toothless' direction. "I'm just trying to keep him running in that direction." He then lit another arrow on fire and aimed it into the sky.
"What was that?" Hiccup asked in surprise.
"To be honest, Hiccup, I didn't come here alone either," Dagur replied. Then several flaming arrows fired overhead.
"Dagur, Night Furies are very lethal. A few more men won't make a difference," Hiccup retorted.
"I agree. Lucky for us, I brought the entire armada along, and like, a bazillion armed Berserkers," Dagur told him.
Just as he said that, a hundred flaming arrows flew towards them. Hiccup had to raise his shield to keep them from puncturing his tunic. Dagur just laughed as though nothing was happening.
"Yeah, that might actually make a difference," Hiccup murmured, now sounding worried. He suddenly wished the others had stayed to help.
"Oh, yeah. We're going to drive that beast right to them. And they can finish it off," Dagur explained his plan.
"Not exactly sporting," Hiccup said with a roll of his eyes.
"I don't care about sporting. I care about killing that Night Fury and wearing it's skull as a helmet," Dagur snapped.
He then ran off after the Night Fury. Hiccup sighed in frustration as Dagur reloaded his crossbow and aimed at Toothless, who was now at the edge of a cliff and trapped. Hiccup watched the scene unfold before him, imagining the worst possible outcome. He knew that no matter what, there was no way to avoid a fight.
"Okay, that's it. I am not letting you kill that dragon," he intervened in a firm tone.
"This again?" Dagur sighed in annoyance. "Fine, you saw it first. You take home a wing or something."
"No, I'm pretty much taking home the whole thing," Hiccup retorted, then went on to make a dragon's call.
Dagur's eyes widened in surprise when he turned around to face Hiccup. He then heard Toothless' roar and looked up and saw him jumping above. Dagur's eyes narrowed when he noticed the saddle on his back.
"Is that...?" Dagur asked in disbelief.
"A saddle?" Hiccup finished. "Yes, Dagur. That's exactly what it is."
"So I was..." Dagur began, and Hiccup shook his head in frustration.
"Right all along," he replied after getting on Toothless' back. "We do not hunt dragons on Berk." He then pressed down on the stirrup and Toothless spread his wings. "We ride them."
"Your father lied to..." Dagur's eyes widened in shock as he realized what had happened. "You lied to me!"
"He was trying to keep the peace between our tribes," Hiccup tried reasoning with him. "So was I."
"By making a fool out of me?" Dagur demanded.
"You don't really need a lot of help with that, Dagur," Hiccup retorted. Dagur was about to pull out his sword when Toothless roared at him. He then looked defiantly at Hiccup. "Your move."
"You could have been my brother, Hiccup," Dagur said with a roll of his eyes. "Now, you're my enemy."
"Have it your way," Hiccup snapped. "But remember, we have the dragons, and we're not afraid to use them." He then looked down at Toothless. "Let's get out of here, bud."
They started flying off, but Dagur wasn't about to give up his prize so easily. He pulled out a bola and threw it at them. The bola wrapped around Toothless' tail, and he threw a second one that wrapped around his wings.
Toothless flew back to the ground, hard, throwing Hiccup off in the process. Dagur than threw a third bola that wrapped around Toothless' muzzle. He charged after Toothless with his sword held high, ready to deliver a killing blow, but Hiccup blocked it with his shield.
Both of them held their ground, not giving an inch. Annoyed, Dagur kicked Hiccup, sending him flying. Then he went on with his dream of killing Toothless, sword ready, when Hiccup's shield suddenly flew right towards him out of nowhere, and flew back to Hiccup's waiting arm.
Dagur rolled his eyes and started throwing daggers at Hiccup, who blocked them with his shield. That didn't stop Dagur from throwing more. The only thing that had stopped him was Toothless, whipping him across the face with his tail. Dagur was sent flying from the impact, but he landed right next to his crossbow and loaded an arrow.
"Your move, Hiccup," he sneered, aiming his crossbow at Hiccup.
He fired the arrow, and Hiccup moved behind a tree just as the arrow pierced the trunk. He saw Toothless trying to free himself and went to help, only to be nearly hit by several arrows. Dagur suddenly turned his attention on Toothless and started firing arrows at the Night Fury. Toothless was able to roll out of the way just in time.
"You can't hide forever!" Dagur shouted, aiming his crossbow at Hiccup again. Hiccup then emerged from his hiding place.
"I don't plan to," he replied.
His shield began to change into a different mode. The center hub swung out and the sides split apart, changing it into a crossbow. He then loaded one of the arrows and aimed it at Dagur before firing. But Dagur suddenly rolled out of the way, narrowly avoiding it.
"Nice try, brother," Dagur sneered.
Hiccup felt a shudder run through him at the thought of Dagur being his brother. There was no way he would ever consider Dagur as his brother. He fired another arrow at Dagur, only this one was a grappling line that hit a nearby tree.
"You missed!" Dagur told him.
"Did I?" Hiccup asked, giving the shield a big tug. Dagur looked up in time to see a large branch land on him.
"I have got to get me one of those ornate shields," he groaned.
Hiccup rushed over to Toothless and pulled out his dagger to cut off the ropes. Dagur pushed off the branch just in time to see Hiccup cutting the ropes free. Toothless let out a warning growl as Dagur started charging after them. That was when they both noticed the temperature was getting colder than usual.
Dagur stopped in his tracks at the sound of an eerie screech that seemed to echo off the island. His eyes narrowed with hate as he suddenly charged after Hiccup, who had his shield ready. The insane Beserker started pounding his fists on Hiccup's shield, desperate to gain the upper hand.
Toothless suddenly pulled himself free of the ropes when an icy blast was sent in Dagur's direction. The impact sent him flying, and Hiccup used the distraction to cut the rest of the ropes free. Dagur finally got back to his feet and was ready to attack again when he spotted the White Terror hovering above Toothless and Hiccup. Toothless fired a plasma blast at Dagur's sword, disarming him in a split second.
Dagur turned tail and ran the minute he realized he was outnumbered and out-powered, yelling, 'dragon attack!' along the way. Hiccup looked around to see that the other Dragon Riders had joined them.
"We better go, now. His men are on their way," he ordered.
"Come on, we can take him," Snotlout groaned with a roll of his eyes.
"Not today," Hiccup replied. "Dagur will be back, and next time, we'll be ready."
...
We flew off after that, relief washing over my shoulders. Putting up with Dagur had been more of a challenge than I was expecting.
"I'm not afraid to admit that Dagur scares me," I murmured thoughtfully.
"Well, it's good to know that we were able to scare him off," Jacob put in, smirking at the memory of Dagur running away.
'Dagur will be back,' Snowfire warned us. 'And when he returns, I will rip his throat out.'
I couldn't help but feel as if Dagur really would return. And if he did, something told me that it would only end in disaster. Hopefully, we would be ready like Hiccup had promised.
AN: Well, there's the next chapter. Next update probably won't be anytime soon, just a heads up.
KupcakeKrazed101 - Yep, it should be interesting to read about his reaction.
Wild Cat 214 - Indeed it does ;)
CartoonLoverBecky - Well, he certainly deserves those bout of curses. And believe me, you aren't the only one who thinks that :P