Author's Note: Sorry for the wait been focusing a lot of "Family Ties". I'm sorry to say that the next chapter will take a while to post as the second the last chapter is proving a bit difficult right now. For now I hope this helps fill the gaps. Also I needed to point out something i forgot to add in. In the previous chapter after Hiccup killed the Berserker he picked up one of the bottles that were used in the village raid. I realized I forgot to add this somehow in the previous chapter but it's fixed. Hope it's not confusing. Any way, enjoy.
Chapter 9: Taunts and Respite
Hiccup's lungs burned as he was forced to come to a stop, hunching over with both hands planted on his knees. His shallow breathing could be heard as he tried to control it, especially as his left leg is throbbing in pain due to the strain. The teen had been running in a random direction for a long while after what transpired some time ago. He didn't look back at all during this whole exchange, fearing that someone could be behind him…but most of all trying to run away from what he had done. After running for quite a while he stopped as his body needed the rest before he keeled over from exhaustion. Pulling his head up he found himself near a large tree, which thankfully had a good grouping of bushes surrounding it. Perfect cover!
Almost instantly his bag and shield is dropped as his back hit against the tree trunk, sliding down until he was sitting on the ground, panting still as he tried to get in as much air as possible. His tunic sleeve then being used to wipe the sweat from his brow as he needed to calm down and recover. He wasn't sure how long he sat there, but soon enough his breathing started to get slower and even, making him relax some…only for a new feeling to take its place.
His face scrunched up into a wince as the pain in his stump became known. The flesh started to burn like it was on fire, as a throbbing sensation coursed through as all that running really irritated it. The metal from the prosthetic making the flesh uncomfortable the more they kept touching one another. Knowing now wouldn't be a good idea as he could get spotted, he then proceeded to reach down and started to remove his prosthetic. Undoing the straps, he gripped the warm metal and started to pull it off…only to hiss harshly from the sudden action, as the fresh air could now hit the raw skin and causing him to shiver. Dropping the metal to the side with a thud, Hiccup then braved himself to look down at the stump, seeing the flesh is red with irritation. His stump hasn't been like this for a while, not since the initial days when he was getting used to his metal leg. Back then the stump would get irritated easily and prove difficult to walk on. Thankfully, he knew how to deal with it for now, although he wouldn't be able to fully take care of it as he didn't have any of the meds that would be needed. Yet judging by the color of the skin there wasn't any signs of infection, that's good as it would just need to rest it for a bit.
Both of his hands then reached down and made contact with the irritated skill, hissing once more from the touch as the small burn returned. Initially both hands recoiled but soon returned as he fully touched the skin and started to massage it. The throbbing caused him to cringe as the pain flared up, but thankfully, he soon let out a sigh as the sensation soon faded into a soothing one. Thankfully, this is helping some, but it might still take a while for the irritation to go away but judging by how there is no other sounds around, he considered himself safe for the time being.
It was then the realization finally kicked in.
The teen can remember vividly what he had done, feeling the knife that is still placed on his belt, the metal still stained in red. Even without closing his eyes Hiccup can remember the look on the Berserker's face as his throat was sliced open…all because of him again. His hands stopped rubbing his stump as his head slowly dropped down. Both eyes could still see the blood that had been squirted on him, which is thankfully dried, but is still visible. Even though it didn't touch his skin the teen felt sick almost as if it was touching him. Wearing his enemy's blood is something that just sent shivers down his body and only made things more real to him. "Why…why do I keep on doing this?" his shaky voice spoke up.
Why that one? Why did he kill him when he couldn't kill beforehand? Mind going back to the one Berserker that basically tackled him, and how the teen managed to disable him temporarily. He had the chance to kill him but didn't….he wasn't sure why he spared his life, but he did, only to kill again as his life was on the line. Hiccup wasn't a violent person, already not being a normal Viking, he knew he would rather preserve life, but here he was taking them. This would be the third life he took ever since the attack on Berk started, and to be honest Hiccup didn't like it at all. It took a lot of will power not to hurl up the contents of his stomach, as he tried to swallow it down.
His hands started to tremble as the kill stayed within his mind, another face to add in with the rest he saw when he closed his eyes. His mind is overloaded with thoughts, all of them scrambled as he wasn't sure how to sort through them. Should he feel guilty? Did they deserve this? His father told him how this was a time where he would need to kill in order to survive, but how could he? This went against all he stood for, yet he's also a Viking and would have to adapt, especially since his life is on the line. He's the heir, and would one day become chief, meaning something like this would be apart of his future life.
Hiccup didn't want to kill at all, but he keeps being put into positions where he can't help himself. "How many more? How many more will have to die by my hands?" he asked himself, not sure how to answer that. Thoughts suddenly going back to the first kill he did…the very first one. It was unexpected and it scared him to the point where it nearly destroyed him. His father saying how the first kill is always the hardest, yet the second one is even harder…and so on, and so on…Hiccup can definitely feel it, and be a believer of those words. Every time he took a life, it felt like weight was thrust upon his shoulders, more and more would be added with each one. For a brief moment he could catch a glimpse of himself that he didn't like. How he was before, how cold he was, how closed off he was to others…and how he nearly killed defenseless people just to show he wasn't weak. It wasn't his proudest moment and just thinking of it made him shudder. His dreams couldn't even help him escape from this.
He had thought he was done with all the nightmares and allowing all those faces bother him but…it looks like he wasn't. Not so long ago he would hear the men's voices and see their faces, but he could shrug it off just barely but now…it was worse. He wasn't sure why but maybe killing once more only made those feelings stronger and made his mental barriers weaker towards them. This was a bad time for him to have nightmares about his kills, especially as he needed as much sleep as he could get. He could already feel fatigue easily taking him from the little amount of rest he had. From what he could tell he maybe got just under six hours of sleep all of last night, and he's pushing himself further than he has ever done so far.
How he wished someone was here for him, as the teen needed someone to talk to right now. Before he closed himself off and didn't want to talk about his problems, thinking it would help him not think about it. Oh, how the tables have turned right now. He's all alone, on his own without anyone for mental support. If only he got a chance to talk with his dad further, maybe it could have helped some more, but that wasn't possible. Why did Odin have to make such irony of his situation?
Shaking his head, he tried to rid himself of his current thoughts, at least so he could focus. Reaching over to his bag, he opened it to grab some more bread, popping it into his mouth before grabbing his water pouch. Opening it he downed some more water, needing it right now to keep his body going. It was then his eyes went over to the bottle he grabbed off the Berserker, both hands grabbing and inspecting it even further. The glass itself is dark green but he could see a liquid concoction within.
"So…this is what they used against the dragons and everyone else?" Hiccup asked out loud, looking it over more. He spotted the cork at the top, keeping it sealed. Curiosity getting the better of him he grabbed at it and pulled it off with a pop. Within seconds a murky odor came out as Hiccup started to breathe it in. All of a sudden both eyes widen as he started to cough, his hand instantly going to put the cork back in with haste and urgency. His vision got a bit blurry and head spun some inn mere seconds. Once the bottle was safely sealed Hiccup moved his head to the side to breathe in fresh air. The effects of the concoction within still in his system for a bit but started to clear up after a bit. His breathing increased slightly as he regained focus.
Once fully composed he looked back at, a bit surprised at how fast acting this stuff is. If he had inhaled anymore of it then he would have been out like a light. No wonder this stuff worked on the dragons, yet now he had a bottle of the stuff in his hands. "This could come in handy…if I use it right," Hiccup said to himself as he put the bottle down, making sure to stay away from the cork.
A shiver then went through his body as a cold wind blew past him, both arms folding together and rubbing at his clothed arms, trying his best to regain warmth. With the adrenaline wearing off it was then the cold weather was finally felt, and the need to get warmed up became present. Yet, the only way to do that was to build a fire…but he couldn't do that as the smoke could give away his position, there's no way that could happen. But what good is he if his body is too cold to move? He needed to warm up at least and get some feeling back into his body.
Taking another look around he found himself in a part of the forest where the trees are spread out, allowing more to be seen. In the distance he couldn't see anyone at all, which is good. He then listened and couldn't hear anything but the chirping of birds. That's good, as they wouldn't have been around if someone was approaching, right?
"J-Just a few minutes, that's all I need," Hiccup thought to himself as he then put his prosthetic back on, wincing as it was being placed back on his stump. At least the burning in it dulled enough for it to be tolerable, besides he'll just need it on for a few minutes.
Within Berk's jail, Stoick sat on the small bed that was set up within, the large man's back resting against the cool stone wall as he is lost in thought. It has been a day since his village was invaded and taken over, and to say the least the chief was left worried. The town he was supposed to protect was now in the hands of the Berserkers, all his people were being kept somewhere else, under guard mostly, and there was nothing he could do. Dagur had warned him that if he tries and break free then that would cost him greatly, and with his people in his clutches all he could do is comply and remain in this cell. Yet one of the most important things is currently taking point in his mind.
His son.
Stoick knew it was selfish of him to be thinking of Hiccup as the most important problem he's concerned about but blame it on parental feelings. The talk he had with Hiccup was distressing at most, especially hearing how he had killed again. When the chief heard that he wanted nothing more than to embrace his son, but there was a wall separating the two. He knew that taking a life again would be hard on Hiccup, especially since he's not the type that didn't want to kill anyone. Despite his age Hiccup is still a boy, and he was forced to do something a man was expected to do.
Either way, he was glad to see he was still free, but the fact that he was back in the village troubled him, but thankfully he must have gotten away. He only deduced this as no new news about it was heard or happened, which made him relieved. In all honesty Hiccup shouldn't have been in the village, the book of Dragons and Bork's notes weren't that important that he would risk being captured for it, but of course Hiccup would put other things above himself. He had to admire his son's for that but now that wasn't the important part. Stoick really wanted to be there for him, to help him through his apparent mental anguish as he must really be going through something bad and needs help. This only caused him to curse himself for getting captured, as he's now stuck here. What's worse is that Stoick told Hiccup that he would be expected to kill again, which part of him hoped he didn't have to, as his son has been through enough already and taking away more lives will east away at him till he crumbles.
"Hiccup…I hope you're doing ok out there," Stoick breathed out. For once, the less he heard about his son, the better things were in his mind. A loud creaking came from outside of his cell door, prompting him to look at the iron door, only for a angered scowl to appear, "What do you want?"
"That isn't a polite way to great your conqueror," Dagur smiled to himself as he stood just outside the metal door of the cell. A smirk now being seen as he leaned in, taking in his enemy's distressed face, "Why the long face?" he smugly said.
"Because I haven't gotten the chance to ring your neck!" Stoick sharply stood up from the bed and moved towards the door.
"Ah, ah!" Dagur responded back in a sharp tone, which made the chief freeze in place. The reaction only brought a pleasing smirk to the Berserker leader's face. "None of that or one of your people will get hurt."
Both of Stoick's hands clenched into fists, the bones popping in sheer rage. If it wasn't for the fact that his people's lives were on the line, he would break that door down and barrel through all the Berserkers and Outcasts, no matter how much he wanted to. For now, he just has to remain docile and not do anything hasty at all, yet that urge is hard trying to suppress. "What do you want?" he growled again.
"Straight to the point I see?" Dagur folded his arms before stepping forward. "Good idea, I hate drawling things out. For one thing, Hiccup is turning out to be a huge problem to me."
That caused Stoick to smirk, finding some satisfaction within those words. He wasn't sure what his son was doing that was giving Dagur trouble, but whatever it was must be good…that is unless it's what he thinks it is. Still, he didn't want to give away anything, so he kept up a good façade, "Like father, like son, I'd say."
Now it was Dagur's turn to clench his fist, "Oh you got that right…especially after killing two of my men."
Both of Stoick's eyes widened at that, the shock of it wasn't able to be suppressed as he couldn't have heard that right. He knew that Hiccup killed once, but now he did it a second time? What has been going on out there without him knowing? The concern grew even more as the desire to see Hiccup started to plant itself in his mind. Sadly, he had to keep his mind focus and not show any fear, or concern, even if it's for his son. He did his best to play off the shock in his mind, "Hiccup isn't like how you remember him."
"Oh, like that isn't apparently," Dagur rolled his eyes, not amused at all, as he got closer to the door and smirked. "If he wants to kill my men, then we're going to have fun hunting him down."
Both of Stoick's eyes rose as anger started to course through him again, fear as well laced in. His voice turned dangerous, with murderous intent, "Stay away from my son-"
"Or else what? You forget who has the advantage here," Dagur gloated, loving the angered look on Stoick's face. "It's only a matter of time before we catch him, but don't worry I want him alive. And once I have him, I'll make him watch as I kill that Night Fury of his…oh how glorious that moment will be-"
Stoick's hand hit the metal door, causing a loud bang to echo through the building. The door remained on its hinges, despite the fact Stoick could have easily broken it down. The chief had to reduce his strength no matter how much he wanted to kill Dagur. Hearing him talk about his plans just made him even more angry, especially what he said about his plans for Toothless. The chief had to do his best to control his anger before he did something he would regret. "Hear my words Dagur, you haven't won…not by a longshot. You will not harm Hiccup, nor Toothless, you will be ended, and I hope by Odin it's by my hand."
That just caused the Berserker chief to laugh, finding the situation amusing to him as he loved getting a rile out of the larger man, "That's all talk Stoick, and believe me when-"
Just then all talk stopped as the door to the jails opened, and in came Savage, who had a troubled expression on his face, "Uh…sir…"
"What is it?" Dagur growled at bit, not liking being interrupted in the middle of his fun.
"Sir, some scouts came back from the forest…sir they found another dead body, an Outcast this time," Savage nervously announced, preparing himself for the reaction.
"What!?" the teen responded back in surprise.
"Y-Yes, they found it hidden underneath some tree branches, almost like it was purposely hidden. Judging by the looks of it he has been dead for many hours," Savage followed up, as a small silence took over the area.
"Interesting…." Dagur responded, yet not in anger or anything similar. This only seemed to perk his interest even more before turning to Stoick. "Scratch that, now that's three men Hiccup has killed."
"Three?!" Stoick couldn't help but think, the shock overtaking him at the mere thought of his son killing so many already seemed unfathomable. Now the concerned doubled, who knows what is going on in his son's head. He could see the distress on his face when Hiccup admitted to killing one person but three?! His poor son.
"Are the Outcasts combing the forest?" Dagur then asked.
"They are, but it'll take them a while to check every part of the forest due to the size," Savage responded, calming down a bit as it seemed like Dagur isn't going to go off the deep end.
"Good, I'll be joining them soon enough," the teen then made for the door. "If Hiccup is going to keep killing my men then it's only proper, I join in…after all what's better than an old fashion hunt?"
"Very good sir," Savage nodded, following his leader out.
"Make sure to double the guards here, have to make sure Stoick here doesn't get any ideas," Dagur responded as the two headed for the door.
"You'll pay for this Dagur! Don't you dare lay a hand on Hiccup!" Stoick's hands were clenching at the bars, threatening to bend them. His words went ignored, expect for a laugh as the door is closed, leaving him alone once more in silence. There were so many more things he wanted to say to Dagur but didn't want to risk saying something that could make him regret his words. Now alone he allowed his face to fall and head hang as he sank down to his knees. Fear and worry consuming him at the mention of the Berserker leader's plans. Hiccup needed help, but there was no one to give it, and he's stuck here allowing it to happen. Some father he is. He can't protect his village now, and he can't protect his child! In many ways he considered this another failure towards the boy…a huge one in his books.
"Odin…please, watch over my son, and aid him," Stoick spoke as tears threaten to fall from his face.
A neat pile of sticks had been gathered together on a clean patch of dirt, Hiccup sighing in relief after checking it over and deeming it good. Reaching into his bag be pulled out the flint and tinder, taking another look around just to make sure no one is around before scrapping the two stones together. Small sparks came out as they were moved closer to the sticks, the sparks hitting the wood. It took a minute, but a small flame caught on and started to burn the gathered wood. Smiling he put both items down before gently blowing at the flame, fanning it out so it could spread. In mere moments the fire got bigger and started to engulf the firewood, producing a comforting warmth.
"Thank Thor," Hiccup said as his hands were placed near the fire, slowly getting warmed up. The sight of the flame bringing comfort to the teen as he stayed like this for a few minutes trying to get his body warmed up. It was a risk having this fire, but Hiccup needed this right now, he needed at least some kind of comfort for all he has been through. Just a few minutes to get warm before he puts it out, then he'll move on…he deserved that much hadn't he?
Thankfully his hands regained some feeling back as he then sat back, sighing in relief. Looking over to his bad he reached over and started going through it, pulling the map out once more. Opening it, he scanned to pinpoint his position on the paper, his finger tracing the parchment as he kept looking around to match his exact point. Soon enough his finger stopped on a spot nearly on the other side of Berk, very far from the village. It was still a bit away from the beach cave, but Hiccup could make it…that is until his hand went to rub where his stump it. It was still irritated, and needed some more times to rest, or else he won't be able to get that far.
"I won't be able to get to the caves today," he suddenly realized, much to his dismay. His stump needed a break, longer than the ones he had been giving it or else it could give out on him. He needed a place to lay low and ensure he wouldn't get spotted…yet where? He might not get lucky again falling asleep in the bushes, plus now the forest could have Outcasts and Berserkers all about looking for him. If he let his guard down for a moment he could get caught, especially in his current state as running would be difficult. Still, his head looked around as he at least tried to find something that could help, a hole in the base of the tree, more bushes, a cave by the mountain side, but nothing. If only-
"Wait…" he suddenly said as he looked up in the tree he's near, finding some thick branches on top….which is covered with many branches and foliage. "Now that I think of it…no one ever looks up." An idea started to form in his mind as he looked in his bag and spotted the rope he grabbed from the forge. An idea only solidifying as he knew that this could work…yet it would be a bit tricky.
A few minutes later the fire was put out with dirt, as a grunt left Hiccup's mouth as he climbed up the tree. Unfortunately, he had to apply pressure to his stump to get some proper footing on the tree. Both eyes closed as a hiss escaped him, but he was enduring the pain for now as he continued to make his way up. Thankfully there were plenty of branches that acted like steps along the way.
The teen not used to climbing trees, especially after losing his leg, but he managed to hold out as he got higher up and disappeared within the leaves. Looking up he spotted a thick branch sprouting out from the tree trunk in a horizontal position, a perfect spot. After some trial and error, he pulled himself up, and sat down on the branch, bring his legs up and forward so they rested on the wood, a huge sigh of relief coming out of his mouth as there is no more pressure on his stump. He took a moment to rest up, panting a bit from the exertion but thankfully he did it. Looking around he found plenty of leafy branches covering him up, perfect as someone would really need to look in order to spot him. Which he figured that none of the Berserkers or Outcasts would do as they would most likely be keeping their eyes forward. This only made him that more at eased as he could hide here for a while longer.
Looking around he found a nice groove in the branches, which the teen then wedged his shield into, which held it perfectly. Resting the bag onto his lap he pulled the rope out before putting the bag with his shield, making sure it wouldn't fall as well.
Sighing in relief that his stuff will be fine he then took the rope and started to wrap it around himself, effectively tying himself to the tree. Trying to stay balanced he then wrapped it underneath the branch he's sitting on and tied it around his body. Once it was wrapped around a good few times he tied it off before testing the tightness out. He moved a bit but not too much to be of concerned of. The rope remained tight and firm, yet thankfully not too tight to cut off any circulation to his legs. That's good as he won't have to worry about his legs falling asleep. Now if he had a sudden movement, he wouldn't fall out of it and to the ground. He's safe for now.
Yet one question in the back of his mind: For how long?
A/N: Hope you like. This one was mostly filler in a way but I couldn't think of how to proceed with the chapter, still I hope it was good. Especially as we got to see Stoick again and see what's going on in his mind. I hope it was a refreshing perspective. Thank you to those who are sticking by this story so far, I really appreciate it. I'll do what I can with Family Ties as it's almost done with, but also this one. Let me know if you have any questions and what you think. Till next time.