Hello! Back again! I thought it would take longer to finish this one but I got so obsessed with the idea, I got it written down in record time. I hope you enjoy, it's a little different than my usual. I've never written post THW before, but I hope you'll enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing.

Full summary:

Post-THW. "Dragons have always been a part of life. Our hierarchy is built on their existence. With them gone, that hierarchy has crumbled. And now, Vikings are regrouping to create of movement that will bring the dragons back, and help the people return to the way things were." It's been a decade since the departure of the dragons, and life on New Berk couldn't be better. But as a new threat emerges, Hiccup must take action to save everything he's fought for... and joins forces with an old enemy.

Prologue

Out there, beyond the sunset, lies the home of dragons. Legends tell of ships that sailed too close to it, only to drop off the edge of the world, never to be seen again. But those sailors who turned back told tales of a great waterfall and dragons guarding the entrance to a hidden world…

Not just a nest, but a land from which all dragons come…

The legends of the Hidden World… for a long time, they'd been stories like any other. Merchants were known for great tales, and this one had been no different from the rest for a very long time. Like any other legend, it was nothing but a traditional story popularly regarded as part of history… yet not one could quite prove its authenticity. And who would want to? That's all they were: stories.

But everything changed with the dragons' sudden disappearance over the past 10 years…

Vanished.

Without a trace.

Leaving not a bone nor a fang for men to remember them by…

The legends of the Hidden World became more and more popular over the years but remained nothing less than a myth. Despite the explorations for the great waterfall as described by old merchants, the mystery remained unsolved, and the dragons, absent.

One would think that over the past 10 years, the subject of the dragons would drop and that Vikings across the Archipelago would move on.

But people kept wondering…

Where did the dragons go? And why did they leave?

And a lot of Vikings, stubborn as they were, refused to accept this new world in which they now lived. And a lot more people were ready to do whatever it took to go back to the way things were…

"The Hidden World? That's just some old myth. Just and old mariners' tale!" said a Viking scornfully, raising his mug high as he expressed his doubt and mockery. Clamouring filled the environment of the gloomy bar where Vikings gathered for various reasons. "And even if it was real… no one's ever lived to tell the tale." He sat across a table, facing another Viking of a different tribe showing his amusement at the statement. The ambience of the Northern Markets' bar was a loud and suffocating one with its dim lighting and its crowdedness. But it was also the only place in the entire Barbaric Archipelago where Vikings from various tribes could gather on neutral ground and exchange regardless of where they came from.

The Viking chuckled amusingly before looking him in the eye.

"That's exactly what they want us to believe," he said, his smile expressing his certainty. "The past decade has left the Archipelago in a state of disorder. It's about time things go back to the way they should be."

"By bringing the dragons back?" said the Viking doubtfully, his amusement vanishing like fog in the morning when he noticed the confidence featuring across the other man's face. "Have you lost yah mind? We don't even know if the legends are real. Let alone where to begin searching."

"That's why I have this map," said the stranger, pulling out the rolled-up tainted piece of paper. He spread it across the table, revealing the drawn islands and scribbles surrounding them. "Traced by Grimmel the Grizzly himself; one of the greatest and most famous Dragon Killers that have ever lived." He scoffed. "Got it off a gold baron in a market further west. If only that trader knew what he had in his possession when he sold it…"

"We'll be sailing off the edge of the world before we find a place that doesn't even exist," continued the Viking, still not buying his partner's pitch sale.

"There's always a little bit of truth in legends, friend…" he said, studying the map as if he hadn't done so a hundred times before. "This one is no different. If some of it is true and the dragons are indeed hiding… then we need to start off by finding the one who controls them…"

"The Dragon Conqueror?" guessed the Viking, rolling his eyes in disbelief. "You've gotta be kidding me… The Dragon Conqueror never existed! They're all just stories to put children to bed!"

"Oh, the Dragon Conqueror is real alright…"

The two Vikings turned to the new voice. The stranger sat at a nearby table plunged in the shadows where the eerie lighting of the torches barely reached. It was the cold glow of the moonlight penetrating through the cracks in the ceiling and shining on his form that confirmed he wasn't just the ghost of a long-dead Viking. He felt the hard stares burn his cloak while he took a sip of his drink, unbothered by the hostile energy on him. The tension between them built up like a cold breeze whistling by; announcing the storm coming their way as it growled loudly in the distance. The world around them remained lively with people talking and shouting, clinks of drinks and laughter ever so present in the background. Neither of the two men made a move on the stranger as he sat still, his composure somewhat unnerving to the two Vikings who'd been talking alone. They remained still, and the Viking with the map cleared his throat, breaking the rising tension.

"And… you are?" he asked, a slight hint of hostility to his tone.

"Don't worry about it," said the stranger with a sigh, his voice deep and hoarse. "I am of no importance anymore."

"You know something, friend?" pressed the Viking, cocking his eyebrow curiously at him, wondering. "If you do… We'd be more than interested. The world has been in chaos since the departure of the dragons. Our organization seeks to restore things to the way they were. If you help us, you would be most handsomely rewarded…"

"I'm not interested in rewards," stated the stranger, nearly cutting him off. It was easy to tell he wasn't impressed by any of it as he took another sip. "Or your organization…"

The two Vikings exchanged a glance before frowning at the stranger offendedly. He put his glass down.

"The Dragon Conqueror is not someone you want to deal with, trust me…" He turned to meet their gazes for the first time, revealing his cruelly scarred face.

The expression flashing across the two men's faces was one of fear and astonishment. The Viking with the map blinked and cleared his throat.

"You, um, seem like a man with an interesting story," he managed, unable to keep his eyes off the nasty scar making up half of the stranger's face. "Care to share?"

"Not particularly," he said with a bored tone, turning away from them. "Just keep your distances and there won't be any trouble."

"We're not a small number who believe the world was better when there were dragons," said the Viking persistently, approaching the stranger with hopes he would be more open. "Don't you see? We're just trying to make the world a better place again." He furrowed his eyebrows, fixating the mysterious scarred stranger insistently. "If we find the Dragon Conqueror, he can bring back the dragons, and things will finally go back to the way they were." He exchanged a hesitant glance with the Viking with whom he'd been discussing before. "If you help us… We can help you with your revenge."

"I no longer give my allegiance to political parties," replied the stranger, seeming bored with this conversation while he studied the content of his glass. "Besides... those days are behind me." He turned to face the two Vikings again, his expression grim. "One can learn to adapt and survive in this new world… or die with the past. The choice is yours, gentlemen…"

The stranger casually adjusted the cloak around his form and flipped the hood over his head before getting up and pushing past them, disappearing into the crowd.