Astrid tightened her grip on the handle of her weapon, glaring up at the Dragon Hunter with more spite than she'd ever felt and aimed at someone.
"Trying out one last attempt to save your beloved, Astrid?" said Viggo, lifting up his chin high with a sick smirk stretching his lips from the corner of his mouth. "Hasn't he hurt you enough?"
"Nothing of what he did or said was on him," she countered, baring her teeth.
"Mmh," said Viggo, looking around before returning his eyes on her as if expressing his disappointment toward her reply. "I genuinely thought you were brighter than this, my dear. Putting yourself at my mercy is only of advantage to me."
Astrid frowned, demanding clarification.
"Oh, don't give me that look, Astrid," said Viggo. "You know very well I would have it my way, sooner or later, one way or another. With all honesty, you played your role fine. Well... Almost."
Astrid watched fearfully as one of his men handed him a crossbow of his own. Whatever Viggo was loading into the device, it wasn't an arrow like every single one of his Hunters had locked in their own crossbow. She watched him aim it down on them and both Hiccup and Astrid froze like they'd been victims of a Deathsong's unbreakable amber substance.
"I assume you have a backup plan…" mumbled Hiccup over his shoulder, barely raising his voice as if it might trigger one of those crossbows.
"Uh, not exactly… I kinda improvised in all honesty…" she replied, grimacing at her major mistake.
"Oh. Then we're out of next moves I guess…"
"Your guess is correct."
Multiple sounds of fingers pressing on the triggers made heard, ready to fire, and Astrid and Hiccup pressed against each other again as if they stood a chance.
"I'm afraid our time together must come to an end, Astrid," said Viggo, bringing down his own crossbow with a single hand while the other remained hidden behind him elegantly. "But don't take it personally. It's strictly business." He eyed his men with a grim look. "Fire."
Stormfly leaped over the two Riders, using her wings to shield them both while the arrows bounced off her spotted scales. The second the first wave seized, she shot a series of spines of her own. But because of the Dragon Root serum still in her system, her aim was sloppy and sent multiple spines stabbing the wall of the arena, missing her targets by a lot. She roared her fury, still very disoriented. Hiccup saw the tail coming to swipe them off their feet and quickly tackled Astrid before any damage could be done. The sharp spines missed them by an inch as Stormfly kept on expressing her anger and confusion.
Hiccup was aiming for the exit with Astrid closely following behind him. The gates were locked down, but Astrid still had a few tricks off her sleeves and stuck her ax in the gap between the metal and stone, forcing the heavy gate up to create a gap large enough for them to slide through.
Viggo looked down at the scene in frustration and shut one eye, aiming down at the duo with determination which he noted his men lacked. With his target in sight, he pulled the trigger and fired.
Hiccup gasped at the sudden sting in the back of his neck and reached out to pull out a dart, the familiar violet glow staining the tip of the needle. He blinked multiple times, feeling the effects of the poison take over his senses all over again. A shiver traveled down his spine. He shook his head, trying to fight it off. He felt his hands press on his temples as his consciousness seemed to fade away while his body remained awake.
"No!" shouted Astrid, grabbing the bars of the gate from the other side, watching as history repeated itself all over again. "No, no, not again! Hiccup! Please, fight it! Don't do this to me!"
Hiccup could still hear her but it was as if she was fading away too, along with the rest of the world. He collapsed to his knees, folding himself with his head between his fists.
"Oh, but he can't help it, can he?" spoke Viggo, his words echoing all around the arena like a voice in Astrid's head. "Everyone's secrets – desires – hidden truths about how they truly feel and what they really want. My orders, were simply to make them be heard."
Hiccup wailed, throwing himself back. Astrid watched with terror, unable to do anything to help him. She watched as his eyes snapped wide with fear, the violet glow taking over the emerald green she'd only had the chance to see again.
"My my, think of all the possibilities," continued Viggo, walking slowly along the edge of the arena.
"So that's it?" shouted Astrid from where she stood, hands balled into fists. "Use your enemy's mind against all that stands in your way?"
"Oh, sounds so much darker when you say it like that," said Viggo, smiling grimly. "But yes."
"It won't work!"
"My plans always work."
Stormfly squawked tiredly but still found a way to work despite the Dragon Root's effect and positioned herself in front of the gate as not-Hiccup rose to his feet and made a move to approach Astrid. Hiccup faced the dragon as if he were a bigger predator than the Nadder.
"Astrid, get out of there!" shouted Heather from above where she hovered on her dragon, but Astrid refused.
"No! I'm not leaving him again!" she rejected, crying out. Before Heather or any of the other Riders watching could say more, she slid back under the gate and into the heart of the typhoon.
Hiccup's toxic violet eyes darted from the dragon and onto her, locking with her ocean-blue irises. Astrid's heart broke all over again. She felt like she was right back at the beginning – right back to square one. She knew Hiccup. She knew the kind being he was beneath the poison, and the lack of emotions on his face made her shiver just like the very first time she'd face this venomized being. But this time, she refused to back down and let Viggo have it his way.
"Hiccup, listen to me," she said with a soothing tone, taking careful steps toward him as if the slightest sudden movement might trigger a violent reaction. He stood still, staring into her soul like a possessed child, which she could compare him to be at this point.
Everything around them seemed to fade away, yet every noise echoed back to her. She could hear the crossbows of the Hunters as they kept attentive and ready to fire at first order; the multiple wingbeats as her teammates hovered above, out of range, watching over her. She could sense Viggo's dark gaze piercing her flesh like razor-sharp blades, her own dragon's agitation at feeling trapped and vulnerable, not to mention still under the Dragon Root's effects. She could feel everything, sense every presence. She locked it all out and focused on the person standing before her. All she allowed herself to hear was her own breathing.
"You sure are a determined one, Astrid," commented Viggo, his voice echoing in the arena as if it were a deep and dark cave. "I'll give you that."
Astrid ignored it, locking him out of her head.
"Hiccup," she said, keeping her voice steady while the emotions surfaced. She fought the tears blinding her vision, blinking them away as she stared into his eyes. "Hey, it's me." She took another step forward while he stood still and straight. She wondered if he was fighting the effects behind those violet curtains. "It's me. I'm right here, Hiccup." Her voice cracked on the last words. She reached out a hand when she was close enough, and a wave of feels washed over her when he didn't pull away the moment she grabbed his hand and squeezed it gently. "Please… come back to me."
Viggo chuckled from above, and Astrid shut her eyes, unable to hold back the single tear streaming down her smoke-stained cheek.
"Oh, but he's not there anymore," said Viggo, standing tall and triumphant. "The poison runs through his veins now. He belongs to me. Anything I tell him to do, he will. And there's nothing you can do about it, dear. But… please. Try to bring him back. He will not fail me a second time..."
"Hiccup," she tried again, cupping his cold cheek with her warm hand, staring into his blank gaze. "It wasn't your fault. Viggo… he made you do it."
The other Dragon Riders hovering from above paid close attention and shared a painful look at Astrid's hope of getting their leader back.
"You'd never hurt anyone," continued Astrid, placing her other hand on his face, running her thumb across his skin like she'd done so many times in the past. She could see the pupils of his eyes dilate and narrow constantly while his expression remained blank. She smiled painfully, unable to hold back those tears that'd been filling up her vision. "You'd never hurt me."
Hiccup twitched sharply, blinking multiple times.
"I love you, Hiccup Haddock," said Astrid, pressing her forehead against his and shutting her eyes tight. "And I always will."
Hiccup pulled back from her grasp slowly, and for a moment, she thought she'd failed and he was only retrieving out of her warmth just to throw a hit under Viggo's orders. But no. He backed away blindly, head between hands. He was fighting it. He blinked again and raised his gaze to meet hers, emerald meeting blue. An uncontrollable smile stretched across her face. She wanted to throw herself in his arms and never let him go, but the battle was far from over.
"Enough!" shouted Viggo from the edge, clearly outraged to not have been able to predict the outcome that his puppet might just be strong enough to fight the mind-whelming venom. He turned to his men standing at his sides. "Hunters! Seize them!"