Astrid sat alone on the edge of the landing platform of the stables after her patrol shift, legs dangling loosely over the empty below. Darkness had washed over Dragon's Edge a while ago, dragging along the nightlife. Dawn would be coming soon, and she hadn't shut one eye. She listened attentively at the crickets chirping happily in the background, the distant coo of a Night Terror, and the repetitive swoosh as the waves crashed on the beach of the island. Her eyes stared blankly down at the black water, studying its surface while the big bright moon reflected vividly on the dark waves. The world lacked colors at night, but she couldn't ever come to admit it to be less beautiful than daytime when the bright and warm sun kissed their world, allowing the colors to flow freely like a stream breaking out of a barrage of ice.
A low burble had Astrid look over her shoulder to see Toothless approaching. The Night Fury heavily walked to her side. Astrid was used to seeing Toothless hopping around happily like a ball of energy that could not be contained, especially when Hiccup was around. But she could tell this whole thing was affecting him just as much as it was affecting them all Riders. He cooed and lied down next to her, head down.
"I know, Toothless," she said softly, gently running her hand over his scaly head. "I miss him too."
The cold breeze brushed her golden bangs out of her eyes and stroked her skin ever so gently. So many things had happened in so little time. She pressed her palm on the wooden planks next to her, missing the warm hand of Hiccup. It was not so long ago they'd sit right here to watch the sun go down. She wished she could reach out to him. She knew he was still under that monster's skin, somehow. She wondered if he was desperately trying to get out like a dragon trapped in a cage or if he was dozing off like a Terrible Terror on a rooftop. She knew this could only last so long. Fishlegs had explained everything about how the venom worked. He'd listed everything, from its effects to its connection to the Dragon Hunters. It was just a matter of time. But how long would that last? She doubted her team could take this any longer. The longer Hiccup was under the venom's effect, the more damage he was causing to their team. She knew this was Viggo's exact intention, to tear them apart from the inside. She knew that and kept repeating it to herself over and over again. It wasn't Hiccup's fault, but damage was still damage, no matter who was causing it; whether it was the mastermind behind it all or the puppet at the end of the strings.
Astrid sighed, allowing her shoulders to drop and releasing the tension that had kept her together for so long. She was exhausted. This whole story was exhausting. She pressed the back of her hand against her forehead, trying to slow down her thoughts. But it was no use. She was so tired but refused to sleep. Talk about conflict. She was at war with her own self now... There was a moment of peace where she just breathed, stepping out of reality to take a break. She allowed her mind to rest, but only for so long.
It was the sudden alarming roar belonging to none other dragon than a Razorwhip that had Astrid snap alert to see the silver outline of the dragon soaring overhead, Heather holding tight to the extended handles of her saddle. There was a split second where the shieldmaiden studied Heather's posture on the saddle, noticing how she was leaning forward as if she'd just returned from a fight and been chased down by a dozen Dragon Flyers hot on her tail. That's when the unmistakable screech of a Singetail had Astrid spin around on her feet to look up over the island past their base, a cold shiver running down her spine. Toothless growled dangerously, eyes narrowed up at the incoming danger.
There were no words needed for an explanation as Astrid watched wide-eyed and in disbelief as three Flyers soared low over the buildings, the sparks at the dragons' tail tips preparing fireballs to be launched down at the island.
"Astrid!" called Heather, slowing her agitated Razorwhip down to a hover in front of her best friend who'd quickly shifted her behavior to one of equal agitation, hands balled into tight fists as she observed the Singetails screeching and firing down at the base, interrupting the peaceful and quiet that took place moments ago, the flames lighting up the night like an erupting volcano on a dark and lonely island.
Astrid watched as the Flyers circled back over the ocean for another attack. She could hear the cries of the Singetails as the Flyers mercilessly tugged on the chains in their mouths and whipped their backs and necks without pity, exploiting their natural aggressive behavior to their advantage against them.
"Astrid, I am so sorry!" said Heather, meeting her best friend's gaze, fear still shining bright in the Berserker's green eyes. "W-we tried to fight them off but—"
"It's okay, Heather," said Astrid, cutting her off before she said something that translated to 'I wasn't good enough'. Astrid swore under her breath, quickly gazing back at the locked doors of the stables, imagining the discreet grin on Hiccup's face. She tightened her lips, giving her head a good shake to wipe out the image from her brain. She needed to focus. The other Riders hadn't taken long to react to the sound of the explosions and flew down on their dragons, landing on the platform for their orders.
"They got the drop on us, Astrid!" shouted Snotlout, pushing his helmet back from his eyes after landing clumsily on Hookfang.
"Listen," she snapped, grabbing her teammates' attention. Fishlegs looked like he was ready to puke, Snotlout was scared but wouldn't come to admit it and the twins seemed ready to join the chaos. Dagur landed a few moments after, joining his sister's side, already looking as battle-worn as Heather. Astrid knew they must've decided to engage the enemy on their own at first sight, being Berserkers. She met their eyes, a dark shade spreading over her irises. "There's only one reason they'd be here."
"To kill us all?!" gasped Tuffnut, holding his helmet down by its horns.
"Yes," said Astrid, holding the male twin's gaze confidently. "But I think they're more likely to be after Hiccup."
"Oh, of course," said Snotlout, throwing his arms in the air.
"You guys need to hold them off," she ordered, lifting her gaze to see the Flyers coming back around.
"What are you gonna do?" asked Fishlegs, although he looked like he didn't really want to know.
Multiple blasts came raining down on them like a meteor shower before she could answer and Astrid ordered them all off with a loud and authoritative "GO!"
Astrid didn't waste another heartbeat and sprinted for the stables with Toothless by her side, missed by a blast by only a few meters. The fireball burned through the wooden planks of the platform, leaving a large hole in the deck that she knew would be a pain to patch up later.
Well… if there even was a 'later'.
Splitter flew in all directions and Astrid shielded her eyes with her arm, gasping as the temperature around her quickly rose with the flames licking the wood.
She threw the gates wide open with a grunt and ran up to Hiccup's cell like she'd forgotten everything about the venom, throwing his door wide. The Night Fury remained at the entrance, keeping a close eye out for any undesired visitors.
"You," she hissed, jabbing a finger under his chin while he straightened up, eyeing her hand with stern eyes. "No funny business…"
Hiccup sneered at her warning, shaking his head sideways in amusement. "Why, I wouldn't dream of it, milady," he said, raising an eyebrow charmingly to which Astrid rolled her eyes and groaned. She closed her hand on the front of his armor and pulled him out, peering outside as the flames already started eating away at the landing platform, turning the wood to charcoal. Toothless could recognize the change in his rider and narrowed his eyes on him warningly, ready to protect Astrid should he try anything.
"Alright, listen here," she said, pulling down on his armor for him to be at her eye-level. For the last two years, Hiccup had grown taller than her. She usually didn't mind it at all but in this situation, with that cocky smile printed on his lips and that arrogant look in his eyes burning into hers, she wished she could just tower over him much like she'd do with Snotlout anytime he'd say something stupid or still tried flirting with her for no reason. Hiccup narrowed his eyes on her as she grabbed a rope hanging from the wall along with other tools and worked on his wrists, bounding them together tightly. He looked displeased but didn't stop her. She returned her attention on his violet eyes, waving her index at his face like he'd been a bad dragon. "If you know anything about Viggo, Krogan, or Johann, anything about everything that's been going on, I need to know now."
Hiccup scoffed, straightening up a little like he was wondering if she was being serious. "Even if I knew anything, you really think I'd tell?" he said, taking her very poorly.
"I don't wanna have to see you get hurt, Hiccup," she said, sincerely. She shook her head slightly sideways. "And I don't wanna have to see any of the other Riders – our friends - get hurt."
Hiccup chuckled darkly, the Viggo in him sticking out like a sore thumb. "You have such high hopes," he said with mockery in his eyes. His humor shifted like a wind changes directions and a dark shade washed over his features as he stared right into her eyes, no smile or any sort of content to be seen. "It's over. Those Dragon Flyers will take us all out. You, me, the other Dragon Riders, and all of our allies, are going down."
"You don't mean that," she said, an edge of disgust to her tone. "Fine. You don't wanna help? I don't care. 'Cause I know this isn't you, Hiccup. The real Hiccup would lay down his life if it meant saving his friends and everything he fights for. I would leave you here, but I know Hiccup is still in there, and I will bring him back, no matter how long that takes."
She didn't give him the opportunity to flash a remark and grabbed the rope between his wrists and pulled, giving him no choice but to follow.
"Now what do you think you're doing?" he asked as they stepped outside with Toothless shielding them with his wing. Singetails flew closely by, chased by their teammates shouting out their battle cries. "This is pointless!"
Astrid raised an eyebrow at him over her shoulder as they paused on the side of the building, watching out for a clear path to make a sprint for one of the huts so she could lock him up in a much more resistant building than the stables while they fought off the attack. When the twins on their Zippleback flew by, chasing a Flyer with gas trailing off from the two-headed dragon's mouth, Astrid took off, tugging on the bonds for Hiccup to follow. She ran blindly in the green cloud, out of sight from the enemy, and exited just in time before Belch sparked it up. The explosion lit up the night along with multiple more fires eating away at the trees and bridges.
Astrid kept running, attentive for any surprise attacks from either side or above her as she ran in the open, avoiding getting scorched by the flames and wild embers floating around her. She had her eyes locked on her own hut, well aware of how many sheets of metal she'd nailed down on the roof and walls in case of a situation just like this. She threw the door open and tossed Hiccup in like a prisoner in a cell.
She didn't entirely feel guilty as he grunted from the impact with the floor, pushing himself up with his elbows to glare at her.
"Hiccup, you can fight this," she said, a wave of compassion washing over her as she watched the one she loved – her betrothed – meet her gaze with a toxic glare. "It's not too late."
"Too late?" echoed Hiccup, leaning forward, hands resting on the floor. "Too late for what? For the Dragon Riders to fall? We already have and you just can't see it! The time of dragons has passed. With us out of the way, everything will crumble. Berk, the Defenders of the Wing, the Berserkers, the Wingmaidens - all of them! Johann is inevitable. He already has all of the lenses. It's only a matter of time before he finds the King of Dragons. And when he does, it's over, for everyone." He paused, fire in his eyes. "And you know that as much as I do, Astrid."
Astrid didn't say anything and stared at him with the most disappointed and disapproving scowl she'd ever managed to feature on her face.
"You stay," she ordered before pulling on the handle, closing the door shut. She grabbed a spear from the barrel filled up with sharp weapons next to her hut's entrance and stuck it tightly in the mechanism to open her door, locking Hiccup in.
She quickly ran the back of her hand across her eyes, staining her face black from the smoke that had stuck to her skin. Toothless burbled at her, dragging her attention on him. The dragon looked up at the sky and Astrid followed his gaze to the battle, watching with mixed feelings as explosions erupted in the dark sky while the outpost suffered significant damage. Astrid couldn't remember the last time they'd been under attack like this. One thing for sure, this was Krogan's doing. The style of the attack was all too similar to the ones from Wingmaiden Island.
The squawk from a Deadly Nadder had Astrid's attention shift to her own dragon as Stormfly descended from above to land next to her. She rattled her crown, the agitation and excitement making her pupils narrow to slits.
"Yeah, girl," she said, patting her head before hopping up on the saddle. "We may join the fun now."
Shit just went from zero to a hundred real f*cking quick