I haven't forgotten about this or any of my stories. If you've kept up with my profile notes, I have mentioned that there have been things outside the world of fanfiction that have been going on. I'm doing my best to keep cranking out chapters, but things could be delayed. My hope is that I'll be able to keep you updated with exactly what's going on in my profile page where I normal put current and upcoming project information. But for now, enjoy this next chapter of Trials of the Dragon Trainers.
With the events of the Fireworms and the Rumblehorn now behind them, the outpost was now more complete. Repairs from both instances had been made and improvements to the base were added. The riders decided they needed additional security measures. Hiccup and Toothless were putting the final touches on a large spyglass made out of a barrel.
Hiccup lowered the hammer and stepped back. "All right. I think one more plasma blast should do the trick, bud."
Toothless fired a carefully controlled plasma blast to fuse the metal in place.
"Whoo!" Hiccup fanned the smoke out of his face. "Great job!"
"Thank you," said Toothless.
Astrid stepped up to the spyglass and looked through it. "Nice. I can see straight to the horizon. That should definitely make it harder for anyone to sneak up on us."
Hiccup turned to Grim and Deathshriek. "And thanks for making that spur of the moments trip to get the glass."
Grim yawned. "You're welcome."
"Now I wonder how the twins' lookout tower is coming along," said Hiccup.
"I can only imagine," Astrid said flatly, crossing her arms.
"If you do not need Deathshriek or me, I am going to check on Fishlegs and then we are going to bed." said Grim with another yawn.
"Sure thing, Grim," said Hiccup. "We got everything covered here."
Grim nodded and he and Deathshriek walked around the side of the clubhouse with the open door. Fishlegs had the Dragon Eye out and was projecting images on the wall using the light from Meatlug's lava spew on the floor. Fishlegs was scribbling something down in a notebook.
"Very interesting," Fishlegs muttered to himself. He walked over and pulled over a basket of rocks for Meatlug. "Okay, girl, let's move on to rock experiment test subject number three: river stones." He scribbled something else into the journal.
Grim was about to ask what Fishlegs was working on, but someone else beat him to it.
"Hey! What are you doing, Fishlegs?" Snotlout asked loudly. He was leaning against the other side of the doorframe.
Grim startled a little at the sudden outburst.
Fishlegs turned around. "Oh, hey, Snotlout, Grim. Well, if you're asking me, I'm testing how different rocks make Meatlug produce different flame and how that changes the projections in the Dragon Eye."
"Oh, that's right," said Snotlout sarcastically. "I just remembered, you're boring and I don't care." He walked away.
Meatlug spat out a puddle of lava in front of the Dragon Eye.
"Yup! Couldn't have put it better myself, girl," said Fishlegs with a smile.
Grim chuckled.
"Grim, do you want to stick around and help?" Fishlegs asked.
Grim shook his head. "No. I need to sleep. Deathshriek and I flew nonstop for the glass Hiccup needed. We are going to bed." He turned and left.
"Suit yourself," Fishlegs called after him.
Grim walked back to his hut. He was just about at the porch when he heard Fishlegs yelling.
"Hiccup! Hiccup! Come quickly!"
Grim turned around and started running back to the clubhouse. As he reached the door, so did Hiccup. They ran inside.
"Fishlegs!" they called.
"Careful where you step!" Fishlegs told them.
There were different colors of lava covering the floor. They had to pick their way through the rainbow of molten rock. Fishlegs was on Meatlug and they were hovering near the ceiling. Fishlegs was scribbling in his notebook. Meatlug came down and found a clear place to land.
"Fishlegs, what's wrong?" Hiccup asked.
"Wrong?" Fishlegs chuckled. "Nothing's wrong, except that I may have just made the greatest discovery in the history of Berkian civilization." He raised his hands to the ceiling.
Hiccup and Grim looked up. The Dragon Eye was projecting images on the ceiling.
"Whoa, Fishlegs, is that -?" Hiccup started.
Meatlug took off and Fishlegs pointed to the different projections.
"Mm-hmm! This is a Gronkle . . . and here's the boulder . . . surrounded by water . . . and the two mountain peaks! Dark Deep!" Fishlegs squealed.
"The ancestral home of all the Gronkles," said Hiccup.
"It's real, Hiccup! And we finally found it!" Fishlegs celebrated.
"Yeah!" They turned around to see Snotlout walking up to them. "What's so great about this?" he asked.
"Do I really have to explain?" Fishlegs asked, exasperated.
"Your boring discovery? Yes." Snotlout crossed his arms and smiled, clearly not really caring.
"Dark Deep is an island that up until now we were never really sure existed," explained Fishlegs. "It's not in the Book of Dragons anywhere. However, in Bork's papers, there is a mention of it, but only briefly and in context to a completely different species. If we are able to find Dark Deep, it could unlock so many secrets, not only of the Gronkles, but the entire Boulder Class of dragons. Do you understand how amazing this is?"
Snotlout just cleaned his ear. He hadn't been paying attention.
Hiccup and Grim glared at him.
Seeing they were paying attention to him, Snotlout had the decency to look a little embarrassed. "Check that, I absolutely don't care." He walked away.
Fishlegs had Meatlug hover close to the floor. "Hiccup, I have taken the liberty of charting a course based on these encryptions. This island is so remote, it's farther than we've ever flown before."
Meatlug let out an excited growl.
"Ho-ho, I never seen Meatlug so excited!" laughed Fishlegs, rubbing at her face. "Just think, I'm going to be the first Berkian to ever set foot on Dark Deep. What an honor!"
Hiccup put his hands up and smiled. "Okay, I get it, Fishlegs. But Toothless and I should go with you, just in case you need help. And maybe Grim and Deathshriek for good measure."
Fishlegs's expression fell a little. "Okay, you can come, too. But I'm the first one who can step foot, remember? You can be the second, and third," he added petulantly.
"We promise, Fishlegs," said Grim.
"Well, then welcome aboard, Hiccup, Grim," said Fishlegs. "Come on, Meatlug, we need to go pack!"
Meatlug zipped over their heads and out of the clubhouse.
Hiccup chuckled. "He's excited."
"Yes," Grim agreed. "Now, I do believe I was going to go to bed. I hope Fishlegs is planning on leaving in the morning?"
"I'll make sure he does," said Hiccup. "Can't have a rider and dragon falling out of the sky because of exhaustion."
Grim woke early to pack provisions and check his weapons. His dragon claws were in good shape and only his knife needed a bit of sharpening.
"Good morning, Grim," Deathshriek greeted.
"Good morning, Deathshriek," Grim responded in Gronkle dialect.
Deathshriek tilted his head to the side. "Any particular reason you are using Gronkle dialect this morning?"
"I want to be prepared," replied Grim. "Gronkle is a dialect I am very familiar with, but we haven't had a chance to see if the Berkian Gronkle dialect is the same as the Gronkles out here."
"Hmm, true. Death Song, Rumblehorn, Night Terrors, all dragons we have not encountered before and we cannot understand their words," said Deathshriek.
"There has to be something we are missing," said Grim, looking at the ground.
Deathshriek nudged him in the side. "We will learn, Grim. You speak multiple human languages and Dragonese. I can understand humans. We can learn another language."
Grim smiled. "Yes, we can."
They went out to the clubhouse and saw Fishlegs and Meatlug getting ready to leave. They were both excited. Meatlug couldn't hold still as Fishlegs tried to fill her saddle bags.
"Ready?" asked Grim.
"You bet! We're just waiting on Hiccup," said Fishlegs.
Grim looked around. "Where is Hiccup?"
"I'm not sure," said Fishlegs. "I think he went to see the twins' tower."
Toothless flew up.
"You guys ready?" called Hiccup.
"You bet! Let's go!" Fishlegs clambered onto Meatlug.
They flew across the ocean on the course Fishlegs came up with.
"Dark Deep, at last I found you," sang Fishlegs, Meatlug leading the way. "Dark Deep, the Gronkles surround you."
Hiccup laughed. "Fishlegs, I haven't you this excited since Snoggletog morning when we were seven."
"Whoo-hoo! I know. I couldn't even finish third breakfast," said Fishlegs. "I hope I don't get too hungry. Dark Deep, here we come!"
They flew until they came across an island with heavy dark clouds. It was barren of vegetation and made up of dark colored rock.
Meatlug landed and Fishlegs hopped off.
"Whoo! Oh, yeah! Oh, yeah, Fishlegs!" he cheered and giggled. "I can't believe I'm actually here."
Meatlug nudged him hard in the back. "What about me?"
"Sorry, girl. We're here." Fishlegs bent down and picked up a couple rocks. He tossed one to Meatlug as he began to sing and dance. "Dark Deep is your home, where all the rock eaters roam."
Toothless looked up at Hiccup. "Is this weird at all to you?"
Hiccup shrugged.
"Where Gronkles have fun eating rocks by the ton. And the rocks are all rocky with families of . . . rock . . . and they're feeding their . . ."
Toothless and Deathshriek landed behind him.
Fishlegs cleared his throat. "I'll work on that last part, guys."
Hiccup dismounted. "Hey, no, look, I love the song. It's just one thing: Where are the roaming Gronkles?" He motioned to the empty landscape. "You think we could've landed on the wrong . . ."
"No," Fishlegs answered. "That's Gravel Lake and that's definitely the dual peaks of Mount Grunt." He pointed to the different geographic features. "This is Dark Deep."
"Something's not right here," said Toothless, glancing around.
"Yeah, I'm with you, bud," said Hiccup.
"What do you think, Deathshriek?" Grim asked.
Deathshriek sniffed. "I smell dragons. Gronkles and something else. This island is not abandoned."
"Everyone, stay alert," Grim told them.
"Hey, over here!" Meatlug growled excitedly. She was looking down a crevice.
The others walked over to her.
"Oh, look," said Fishlegs. "Meatlug found some new friends."
In the crevice were three Gronkles.
"I told you there were Gronkles here," said Fishlegs.
Meatlug flew down to them. "Hi!"
They growled threateningly at her.
Fishlegs started to climb down, but fell to the bottom of the crevice. He stood up and cracked his back with a wince.
Toothless and Deathshriek jumped down with their riders.
"That's strange behavior for a Gronkle," said Hiccup. "They're usually pretty friendly."
The ground began to shake, startling them.
"Well, that could be what's doing it," said Fishlegs. "No one likes an earthquake."
Toothless lowered his head and hissed. "There's something here!"
"See?" said Fishlegs, motioning to Toothless.
Deathshriek shifted into a defensive position.
"In front of us!" snarled Toothless. "I can see it!"
"See what?" asked Grim, looking passed the Gronkles.
There was more rumbling and it was getting louder. They looked up the tunnel and saw something rolling towards them.
"Runaway boulder!" screamed Fishlegs.
The Gronkles shrieked in fear and started to fly away.
Toothless and Deathshriek ran forward and fired at the boulder.
"Meatlug!" shouted Fishlegs. He got up on her.
Toothless and Deathshriek's efforts weren't working. Grim looked behind him and saw Fishlegs and the Gronkles flying down the tunnel.
"Come on!" Grim told Hiccup.
The two riders turned their dragons and ran after the others. The boulder continued to get closer.
"Fishlegs!" shouted Hiccup.
He urged Toothless forward and swerved, crashing into the Gronkles and shoving them against the wall. Deathshriek leapt forward and pressed against the wall just in time. Grim felt a breeze on his cheek as the boulder rolled by.
"Phew," said Fishlegs, looking back at Hiccup. "That was close."
The sound of the rolling boulder stopped. It was only a little farther down the tunnel. Then it started rolling back towards them.
"Hey, uh, Fishlegs? When was the last time you saw a boulder roll uphill?" asked Hiccup.
"Uh, never," Fishlegs replied.
"Yeah, me neither," said Hiccup.
"That's not a boulder," said Deathshriek.
"Clearly," Grim responded.
"How is that possible?" Fishlegs asked in a panic.
"No time to find out!" Hiccup called as one of the Gronkles flew by him.
They all turned and flew away from the mysterious boulder. Looking up, they couldn't find a gap large enough for them to fly out of.
"We can't avoid it!" Fishlegs panicked.
Toothless looked back and fired at plasma blast. It didn't do anything.
Grim noticed an offshoot. "In here!" He turned Deathshriek hard and disappeared into the tunnel.
The others followed him and the mysterious boulder rolled by. Hiccup and Fishlegs had been thrown off during the escape and rubbed their heads.
Grim slipped off Deathshriek. "Are you all right?" he asked, kneeling next to Hiccup.
"Yeah." Hiccup stood up and brushed himself off.
The three Gronkles were up at the tiny gap, pushing at each other and trying to get through.
"It doesn't look like we can fly out," said Hiccup.
Fishlegs rubbed at Meatlug's jaw. "It's okay. I think we lost it."
Hiccup and Toothless started walking for the opening they came through. "Then let's move out, quietly."
They checked to see if the close was clear and walked out. They only took a few steps when they heard an odd sound. They looked at back at an embarrassed Fishlegs.
"What? That's what happens when you don't eat third breakfast," he said.
The rumbling came back in force and the boulder rolled into sight.
"Uh, guys?" Fishlegs said quietly.
"I see it," said Hiccup.
They got ready to jump back into the offshoot.
The boulder then flipped around, opening up to show a giant dragon covered in spikes. The eyes were under the nose. It opened its mouth and roared. The lower jaw was split into two, a tongue in each.
They covered their ears.
The dragon stomped towards them. Hiccup yelled and jumped out of the way. It turned around and smashed its thick tail against the tunnel, causing rocks to crumble and fall. Toothless covered Hiccup and Fishlegs with his wings. Grim slid under Deathshriek's wing for protection. The Gronkles whimpered as rocks fell on them.
The dragon looked back and snarled.
"Impressive!" Fishlegs said excitedly. "Definitely a Boulder Class! Hiccup, Grim, what do you think of Catastrophic Quaken as a name?"
"Well, I think we should probably name it later and focus on not getting killed by it now," Hiccup replied, jumping back into Toothless's saddle.
Toothless fired a plasma blast. The dragon reared back and roared. Toothless zipped around the narrow tunnel, the newly named Catastrophic Quaken chasing him. It smashed some rock away from the crevice, opening it up wide enough for them to get out.
"As long as it's rolled up in that ball, I think we're safe," said Hiccup. "Fishlegs, Grim, get those Gronkles in the air."
"Come quick!" Grim ordered in Gronkle, not knowing if they could understand that particular dialect. He gestured to them, hoping they were smart enough to know to follow.
They flew out of the crevice and flew high. The Quaken followed after them. Grim looked back and saw it falling back to the ground, rolling into a ball. It hit the ground with such force it produced a shockwave that knocked them around in the air. Fishlegs and Meatlug screamed and were separated. Hiccup and Grim managed to stay on their dragons' backs as they tumbled through the air.
"Okay, on second thought, maybe we're not so safe after all," Hiccup said, steering Toothless over to a falling Fishlegs.
Toothless caught Fishlegs and tossed him back onto Meatlug.
"Fishlegs, Meatlug, retreat!" Hiccup ordered.
"I thought you'd never ask," said Fishlegs.
The Quaken roared at them.
Grim had Deathshriek fly around the Quaken and shriek at it. The Quaken roared back. Grim saw Toothless, Meatlug, and the Gronkles flying away.
"Disappear," Grim ordered.
Deathshriek and Grim turned invisible and flew after the others.
"Really? More Gronkles?" Snotlout exclaimed when he saw what they returned with.
The three Gronkles ran off to explore Dragon's Edge.
"Just a few stray Gronkles," said Hiccup. "We should be able to handle that."
Ruffnut laughed. "Just a few strays he says."
"Yeah, you should really have a look at this," said Astrid, jerking her thumb over her shoulder.
Down the embankment were at least two dozen more Gronkles.
"So this is where all the Gronkles of Dark Deep went," said Hiccup.
"Can you believe they flew all this way?" asked Fishlegs. "Gronkles may be slow, but they are tenacious."
"Yeah, tell me about," Tuffnut grumbled, leaning against a tree. He saw a Gronkle pick up a rock and try to eat it. "Hey, don't you put that rock in your mouth! You have no idea where it's been, mister! Shoo! Shoo!" He chased after the dragon.
Astrid turned to Hiccup. "Hiccup, these guys are out of control. We have to get them back to their own island."
"There might a problem with that," said Hiccup.
"Uh-huh," agreed Fishlegs. "They've been chased from their homeland by a giant Boulder Class dragon: the Catastrophic Quaken, to be exact."
"Quaken, shmaken," said Snotlout, shoving his way in. "You let one lousy dragon take over Meatlug's entire island?"
"It's not that simple, Snotlout," Fishlegs said.
Snotlout rolled his eyes. "Oh, sure it is. Quaken: 1, Meatlug: ehnt! Pathetic."
"Okay. Let's just drop it," said Hiccup, not wanting to deal with their bickering. "We have a bigger problem here. We need to wrangle all these wild Gronkles. And since I unfairly doubted the twins, I'm putting them in charge."
"Awesome!" said Tuffnut, tossing a rock between his hands. "It'll be nice to get to know these guys a little bit better. We got off to a little bit of a rocky start to our relationship." He chuckled.
The riders walked off at the terrible pun.
Tuffnut stopped laughing. "You see what I did there? I'll explain it later. My humor can be quite complex."
The twins got on their dragon and began rounding up the wild Gronkles at the training arena.
Grim and Deathshriek watched from off to the side. They were listening to Barf and Belch growl at the Gronkles as they were rounded up.
"No, not that way!"
"I got you now!"
"Belly flop!"
"Ow, ow, ow!"
"Sorry, Tuffnut!"
"Bad dragon!"
Grim could hear the Gronkles talking back to them, but still was having trouble discerning what they were saying outside of the tone of growls and snarls. Across the way on the other side of the arena, he saw Fishlegs and Meatlug sitting and watching, too.
"They are miserable," Grim said.
Deathshriek turned away from the arena and to where Grim was looking.
"Dark Deep wasn't what they expected," Grim went on.
"And what did you expect?" Deathshriek asked.
"I was not expecting another, larger Boulder Class dragon to take the island from the Gronkles," he answered.
Grim and Deathshriek turned back to the arena. Two Gronkles were fighting over a rock. They growled and squabbled.
"Mine!"
Grim and Deathshriek both gasped.
"You heard that?" asked Deathshriek.
"That was one of the wild Gronkles, right?" Grim asked, straightening up with excitement. "I understood it!"
Deathshriek trilled. "So did I!"
Grim listened as the Gronkles turned their anger on Barf and Belch.
"'Bully . . . two heads. Good snack ruined.'"
"I heard the same," said Deathshriek. "The pitches and tones are different, but it's still the same words. Yes, some of the vocalizations for things are different, but it is no different from hearing you speaking human with your Irish lilt."
"We won't know for sure until we try it with other dragons, not just Gronkles," Grim pointed out. "But it is a start."
The next morning, Grim went to find Hiccup. He was outside trying to straighten out a rod from Toothless's prosthetic.
"Need some help?" Grim asked.
"No, I think I got it," said Hiccup, putting the rod up against a rock and pounding it out with a hammer.
Fishlegs walked up to them. "Hey. What are you up to?" he asked quietly.
Hiccup turned around. "Ah, just trying to strengthen the iron in this tail piece. Toothless keeps bending it when he makes turns."
"I'm a strong dragon," Toothless said, butting Hiccup's arm.
"Don't you, bud?" Hiccup asked fondly. He turned his attention back to Fishlegs. "So what's up?"
"I was just wondering what the plan was," said Fishlegs, scratching the back of his head.
Hiccup looked at him. "The plan?" he asked.
"For Dark Deep?" Fishlegs went on. "The Quaken? How are we going to get rid of it?"
"Oh, yeah," said Hiccup. He turned back to keep working on the rod. "I've been thinking about that, Fishlegs. And I'm not so sure we should, uh, get rid of it, that is."
"What?" Fishlegs asked in disbelief.
Grim was a little surprised at his brother's announcement.
"Well, I'm not sure that we have the right to interfere," Hiccup explained. "I mean, that's what happens in nature all the time. The Quaken has taken over the island for now. And one day, maybe a bigger dragon will come along and the Quaken will be chased off. You know, who's to say? I'm sorry, Fishlegs."
Fishlegs frowned and his shoulders slumped. He turned and walked away.
Grim turned to Hiccup. "Are you sure that is the best course of action?"
"What do you want me to do, Grim?" asked Hiccup. "That is a big, nasty dragon. I don't think we could drive it off. It could come back and take over the island again. And I don't want to think of the other option."
Killing the Quaken. Grim knew it was completely out of the question.
"This way the Quaken is left alone, the Gronkles are safe, and we don't have to fight," said Hiccup.
Grim hummed.
"Look, Grim, this isn't an ideal situation, but this is the best idea I've got," Hiccup went on. "If you can think of something better, I'm all ears."
Sadly, Grim could not. He walked away, trying to plan alternatives. The Gronkles couldn't permanently stay on the island, especially not so close to the base. Perhaps there was another island they could relocate them to.
The next day Grim was not much closer to a solution. While there were other islands in the area where Gronkles could live, he did not know if those islands would be able to sustain their native dragon population plus an entire herd of Gronkles.
Grim noticed Fishlegs approaching Snotlout and Hookfang. The latter two were napping over by some barrels. Grim was quick to turn invisible and get close enough to overhear their conversation.
Fishlegs put his fingers together, looking sheepish. "And let's just keep this between us. We don't want to bother Hiccup with any of this."
Grim raised a brow. They were up to something.
"I feel you on that," said Snotlout. He punched his fist into his hand. "Now it's time to get dirty."
Grim had a feeling that this was not going to end well.
He followed them into the forest. Snotlout drew on a rock while Fishlegs took notes from beside Meatlug.
"The key to fighting dirty is never face your opponent," said Snotlout. "Look at the sky, your boots, anything but their eyes. Then lower the boom when they least expect it!"
Snotlout painted a crude Gronkle on a boulder and Fishlegs told Meatlug to charge it. She steeled herself and charged forward with great determination. She head-butted it and fell back, the boulder barely moving. She did it time after time with the same result.
Fishlegs patted her on the back. "Come on, girl!"
She pawed at the ground and charged again. She hit the boulder and slumped to the ground. The boulder crumbled, revealing Hiccup walking by. Meatlug quickly shoved the rocks out of sight and the boys scrambled to look like they weren't doing what they were doing. Grim had to fight back a snicker.
The next "lesson" was in the form of a hide and seek game. Snotlout and Hookfang were walking through the trees. Fishlegs and Meatlug dropped out of the trees and landed on top of them. Hiccup was moving a basket and saw the riders and dragons chasing each other around, Snotlout yelling at Fishlegs while Fishlegs taunted him. From his hiding place, Grim munched on some dried fruit as he watched thoroughly entertained.
Meatlug charged at another boulder with a Gronkle painted on it. Fishlegs was standing next to it with Snotlout behind him. When she got close enough, Fishlegs side-stepped and Meatlug tackled Snotlout. Snotlout let out a scream and Grim just about choked.
Fishlegs and Meatlug stood before Snotlout and Hookfang.
"Well, well, well," Snotlout said, his nose plugged up with wads of fabric, "I didn't think it was possible. What with you being all you and all, but you're actually ready."
"You really think so?" asked Fishlegs.
Snotlout opened his mouth to say something.
"I knew you were up to something," said Hiccup.
The wads plugged up Snotlout's nose shot out in surprise. They turned to see Hiccup and Toothless walking out from behind some trees. Behind them was Grim and Deathshriek.
"Fishlegs, have you been training to take on the Quaken?" Hiccup asked.
"You don't have to answer that!" Snotlout quickly said, cutting off Fishlegs.
"Oh, yes, he does," argued Hiccup. "Fishlegs?"
"Fine!" Fishlegs admitted. "Yes! We have!"
Snotlout turned away and groaned.
"But only because we can't just sit by and let the Quaken take over Dark Deep," Fishlegs went on. "We all know the Gronkles can't stay here. This isn't their home, Hiccup. You want to talk about nature and what's right and who belongs where, the Dragon Eye; it says the Gronkles are supposed to live on Dark Deep and we're going to make sure they do. We're ready for it this time, Hiccup. Look. Meatlug, battle ready!"
Meatlug dropped into an attacking position and snarled. "Come at me!"
Toothless looked at her unimpressed and fired a small plasma blast right in her face.
"Ow, never mind," she moaned, dropping onto her belly.
"Battle ready?" Hiccup repeated. "Whoa! Fishlegs, this isn't you, it's him!" He motioned to Snotlout.
Snotlout stood proudly. "I know. Great, right?"
"No, not great!" cried Hiccup. He turned to Fishlegs. "You can't listen to Snotlout. That has disaster written all over it."
"Hey! I resent that!" shouted Snotlout. "When has anything I've ever done ended in disaster? Right, Hookfang?"
Hookfang was already in the air and flying away. "See ya!"
"Hookfang!" Snotlout shrieked after him. He turned back to the others with a sheepishly smile.
Deathshriek chuckled. "Hookfang has the right idea."
Hiccup went back to Fishlegs. "You're all brain and heart, Fishlegs. Not brawn and bragging."
"But Hiccup -."
"You're right, Fishlegs, they should be back on their home island. And you know what, we'll find a way to make that happen, but fighting the Quaken, that-that's not it." Hiccup put his hand on Fishlegs's shoulder.
Fishlegs quietly conceded.
Hiccup smiled and he and Toothless flew off, Snotlout glaring after them.
Barf and Belch burst through the trees behind Snotlout, the twins on their saddles.
"Uh, you didn't happen to see five – or twenty – wild Gronkles run through here by any chance," said Ruffnut.
"Not that we lost them or anything," Tuffnut quickly added. "And even if we did, we'd deny it."
"How could you lose twenty Gronkles?" Snotlout cried out.
"I know, right?" said Tuffnut. "We built a whole new pen for them."
Ruffnut let out a little laugh. "Yeah, out of rocks."
"And there's the answer," Barf and Belch trilled lowly.
The twins seemed to realize their error. "Oh. Right. Rocks, Gronkles."
Grim seemed to be physically pained and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Fishlegs, take Snotlout to get Hookfang and then come back and help us. Ruffnut, Tuffnut, let's go find those Gronkles." He swung himself up on Deathshriek and took off.
Grim and the twins worked to get the Gronkles rounded up. They found a few and herded them into the stables until they could get a new pen made.
Grim looked around at the sky from Deathshriek's back.
"Where are Fishlegs and Snotlout? They should be here by now," muttered Grim. "It's been almost an hour."
"Maybe Hookfang didn't feel like listening to Snotlout," Deathshriek said. "But then Fishlegs and Meatlug should be here."
"Found some!" Tuffnut cried.
Three Gronkles surrounded them.
"That seems to be a good start."
Grim turned to see Hiccup and Toothless flying towards them.
"I saw the Gronkles had escaped their pen," Hiccup told his brother. "Figured I come and help."
Grim gave a nod. "Have you seen Fishlegs or Snotlout? I told them to come help us."
"No, I haven't seen them," said Hiccup. His face darkened. "Wait a minute. Oh, no. Don't tell me."
"They went back to Dark Deep, didn't they?" Grim asked rhetorically.
"I'll grab Astrid," said Hiccup. "See if you can catch up with them."
"Right," said Grim. He turned to the twins. "Get those Gronkles back in their pen." He turned Deathshriek and started chasing after Fishlegs and Snotlout.
"Don't leave us behind!" Tuffnut shouted.
"We're not missing out on the fun!" Ruffnut yelled.
Grim and Hiccup ignored them and hurried to hopefully prevent a disaster.
Toothless, Deathshriek, and Stormfly flew as fast as they could to try to catch up to the two rogue riders. But with Dark Deep in sight and no sign of the others, they knew they were already somewhere on the island.
"We need to find these mutton-heads before they get themselves killed," said Hiccup.
"Look, there!" Astrid pointed. Hookfang was flying towards them. "Mutton-head incoming!"
The three flew down in front of him.
"Snotlout, where's Fishlegs?" Hiccup asked.
"You know, that Quaken was a lot bigger than he said it was," Snotlout said.
"So you just left him?" cried Hiccup. He groaned. "Oh, my gods."
The three riders went onward to help Fishlegs.
"Oh, fine!" Grim heard Snotlout complain. "But my death is on your horns, Hookfang!"
A glance over his shoulder showed that Snotlout was following them.
When they got to the island, they could see the Quaken chasing Meatlug and Fishlegs.
"Stormfly, fire!" Astrid ordered.
Stormfly fired a stream of fire at the Quaken's side.
"Fishlegs!" Hiccup shouted.
The other dragons flew over, getting the Quaken's attention off Meatlug. It flew up and faced them.
"Go away!" the Quaken roared.
"Did you understand that?" asked Deathshriek.
"I did," Grim answered.
The Quaken growled and rolled into a ball, plummeting to the ground.
Remembering the last time, Grim yelled, "Brace!"
The impact of the Quaken sent off a shockwave in all directions. Riders and dragons screamed as they were sent tumbling through the air. Grim was almost thrown off. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Toothless somersaulting towards the ground.
Deathshriek flipped around and hovered. "Grim!"
"I'm fine," Grim responded. "Where are the others?"
Toothless went soaring up. Stormfly and Hookfang followed. Deathshriek ascended and they looked for the Quaken. The Quaken was inspecting a fissure and then flew away.
Deathshriek flew over to trio of riders as they flew around the area.
"I do not see Fishlegs or Meatlug," said Grim.
"They were on the ground when the Quaken attacked."
The Quaken swooped low and landed curled up in a ball. It rolled to a stop.
"What is it doing?" Grim wondered out loud.
The Quaken began rolling in the opposite direction.
Grim and Deathshriek looked at where it was rolling. There was a ridge. But in front of it was Fishlegs and Meatlug. And they weren't moving.
"What is he doing?" Astrid asked.
"It looks like he's trying to get himself killed," replied Snotlout.
"Fishlegs, get out of there!" Hiccup yelled.
Instead, Fishlegs walked forward and held out his hands like he was going to stop the massive rolling dragon. The Quaken hit a rock and went airborne. It uncurled and slammed down in front of Fishlegs.
Meatlug jumped between them. For a moment the two dragons stared down each other. At the same time, Fishlegs realized that he hadn't been crushed by the large dragon. Meatlug held her ground against the Quaken as it snarled at her and she growled right back. This exchange went on for several seconds. The Quaken relaxed and Meatlug rubbed her face against its snout.
"It's working!" Hiccup cried.
The twins and three Gronkles arrived and looked at the Quaken. The Gronkles flew down to the Quaken and circled it.
"Hey! I thought everyone said that thing was tough," said Tuffnut. "It doesn't look so tough to me."
The Quaken greeted the Gronkles before walking off with the Gronkles flying after it.
Grim and Hiccup walked over to Fishlegs.
"Fishlegs, that was just about the craziest and bravest, but mostly craziest, thing I have ever seen anyone do," said Hiccup.
"You were right, Hiccup. Fighting dirty isn't me." said Fishlegs. He looked at the Quaken. "That was me."
"It sure was," Hiccup agreed.
"You did great, Fishlegs," said Grim.
The Quaken crushed a rock into smaller pieces for the Gronkles to eat.
"The Quaken was just being defensive," explained Fishlegs. "It was scared and all by itself. It wasn't angry at all."
"Whoa, Fishlegs!" Snotlout called, sauntering up to them. "That was awesome! Just like I taught you. No need to thank me. Success is its own reward."
"Aw, really, Snotlout? Tell me more," Fishlegs said in sarcastic awe.
Snotlout opened his mouth to go on, but was cut off.
"Oh, yeah, that's right, I just remembered I don't care," Fishlegs said, walking away.
Hiccup burst into laughter and Grim chuckled.
"I taught him too well," Snotlout whined.
The next chapter is going to be two episodes in one. I have started reviewing the first episode and then I'm going to start there. I'll keep in touch with you on my profile page with what all is going on.