Hiccup smoothed his hand across Toothless' snout, trying to calm both his dragon and himself. "That was a rough fight, huh, bud?" He kept his voice low and his touch gentle. He couldn't still his hands, and his heart was still hammering in his chest. Toothless cooed and gently headbutted him. "You did good."
Toothless hummed and Hiccup closed his eyes, pressing their foreheads together. The scales of his dragon's forehead were cool against his own warm skin. They breathed each other's air, as Toothless huffed a breath through his wide nostrils, Hiccup inhaled. When Hiccup let a soft sigh past his lips, Toothless breathed in the air that left his lungs. Eventually, they began to breathe in tandem, their hearts beat together. They lost themselves in the feeling of each other, calmed themselves with the closeness of the other, let themselves relax into each other's space.
They felt as one being, one soul. Whole, with each other there to ground them.
The door banged open and Hiccup whirled around.
Four heavily armed Hunters stood in the doorway. "The Night Fury comes with us," the lead one said as a vile grin spread across his face. Toothless mantled his wings and raised his hackles, emitting a low growl from deep in his throat. Hiccup slipped into a fighting stance and steadied his fists. He didn't look like much, but he could pack one hel of a punch.
"I don't think so," Hiccup said.
"You are in no position to stop us, boy," the lead Hunter snarled. "That dragon of yours should have killed the Razorwhip when it had the chance. So instead, it will learn to do as it should through pain."
Hiccup sucked in a deep breath but refused to move. "No. If you want to hurt anyone, then you hurt me. He's my dragon and I'm the one who told him to spare the Razorwhip. So you take me and leave him alone."
The Hunter paused and thought for a moment, and then his face split into a cruel grin. "You have a point, boy. Fine. We want the beast at its best when it fights the Triple Stryke, anyway. It seems to be protective of you, too, so it might even learn better to listen to its new masters if we threaten you instead." The Hunter grinned savagely, and Hiccup gulped but held firm in his decision.
Toothless snarled and moved to stand in front of Hiccup protectively. Hiccup patted his side and Toothless turned to look at him with sad green eyes. "It's okay, bud. I'll be alright."
Toothless whined but moved back, curling himself into the corner. He was scared.
"It'll be okay, bud." Hiccup whispered to his dragon, hoping that it would give them both the strength to make it through whatever the Hunters were going to do to him.
One of the Hunters stepped forward and released the chain around Hiccup's foot, another one grabbed him by the arms while a third pulled his prosthetic off and tucked it into his belt. They held his arms in a bruising grip and dragged him through the door. He sent one last (hopefully) comforting look at Toothless before they slammed the door behind them.
Hiccup tried not to make any noise as the Hunters hauled him roughly through the halls, dragging him by the arms and, without his prosthetic, moving too fast for him to keep up. This, he supposed, was part of the punishment. His shoulders ached from the strain being put on them; he was limp in the Hunters' hold, foot dragging uselessly across the ground as he focused most of his attention on keeping his already aggravated stump safe and away from further irritation.
Eventually, they arrived at the Arena and tossed him unceremoniously to the ground in the middle of it.
"Keep him there," the ringleader said and stalked back into one of the tunnels, no doubt in order to get some nefarious tools. The other two Hunters manhandled Hiccup to his knees and shackled his wrists to the ground. The chains were just short enough that Hiccup had to lean forward and hunch his back a little lest he dislocate his shoulders.
When the lead Hunter returned a few moments later, he brought with him a rack of rather terrifying looking tools, all of them coated in dried blood and some of the more…specialized ones coated in something else; Hiccup didn't think he wanted to know exactly what.
"Get rid of that armor, boys." The ringleader began to inspect his cart of weapons while Hiccup was forced to sit still as two of the other Hunters stripped him down to his leggings.
"Let's start with this, shall we?" The one in charge pulled a gnarly looking chain from the rack and weighed it in his hands. "Yeah, let's start with this."
He gestured for the other Hunters to move and grinned. "Don't worry, we can take turns."
Hiccup suppressed a shudder.
He had to keep it together, be strong.
For Toothless.
The Hunter circled him a few times, letting the end of the chain trail along the ground. It rattled and clanged, and Hiccup had to fight the urge to flinch.
"You're going to count for me, boy," the Hunter snarled.
All of a sudden, the rattling and clanging stopped. There was a sharp, whistling sound and before Hiccup could prepare himself for what that meant, his back exploded with fire. He barely remembered to bite down on his tongue to hold back the scream that tried to tear itself from his throat.
He tasted blood.
"Count."
The chain whip cracked across his back again and Hiccup swore softly and clenched his jaw. The Hunter growled.
"Two," Hiccup bit out as he grit his teeth.
"There you go," a hand fisted in his hair and yanked his head back until he was staring at the smirking Hunter. "Good boy." He shoved Hiccup's head back down so hard his chin bounced off his chest.
With the third stroke of the metal, Hiccup felt the skin of his back tear and warm blood began to trickle down from the wound.
"Three," he ground out.
"Four," he hissed as more skin split and his ears filled with the sounds of the Hunters' laughter.
For Toothless, he thought, willing himself to stay quiet and composed even as he filled to the brim with agony.
"Five."
For Toothless.
"Six."
For Toothless.
"Seven."
For Toothless.
His whole world narrowed to numbers and agony and For Toothless, For Toothless, For Toothless.
It seemed never ending, infinite.
At some point, he lost count. He couldn't remember when.
But the blows continued to rain down on him, the chain ripping his back to shreds, skin hanging from him in bloody tatters.
He bit down on his tongue to keep from screaming, the iron taste of blood quickly filling his mouth. He spat a mouthful of the stuff onto the ground in front of him.
The chain stopped cracking down on him. Hiccup hesitated to breathe, waiting for the next blow to fall, the next wave of pain to hit. When it didn't come, he allowed himself to droop, his tense shoulders relaxing and his shaking muscles releasing.
The raw nerves in his exposed, bloody back screamed in agony as the chain was brought down one last time and Hiccup howled.
He wailed, flayed open and raw.
There was an answering roar from across the Arena and Hiccup watched Toothless scrabble frantically at the cage door through his tears. He choked on a sob and tried to remember how to breathe.
For Toothless.
He closed his eyes and gasped for air.
He could do this.
For Toothless.
He opened his eyes and glared at the Hunter, now standing in front of him with a triumphant look on his face as he held the bloody chain, the whip.
"Rot in Hel," he panted, and spat another glob of bloody saliva at the Hunter's feet.
The Hunter snarled and pulled his arm back, still holding the bloodied chain. It sang through the air and crashed into the side of Hiccup's face.
Hiccup shrieked at the immediate fire that ran from his cheek to his eye to his temple. Blood spilled down the side of his face and he tried to curl in on himself but that stretched out his ravaged back, causing him to sob and attempt to straighten out.
The air around him was filled with the raucous laughter of the Hunters as they stood around him, reveling in his pain.
He looked between them to meet the horrified green eyes of his best friend. He gathered his strength and tried to breathe through the agony that burned through him. He steeled his expression and let his determination and hatred strike together like a flint in his eyes. He twisted his lips into a sneer, ignoring the lightning that shot up the side of his face at the movement.
Before he or the Hunter could do anything else, the Hunter that had taken his prosthetic stepped forward.
"Hey, boss!" He said, pulling said false leg from his belt. "What if you used this to give him a few good bruises?"
The leader looked over and tilted his head, considering.
"That just might be a good idea," he praised the underling who beamed at the recognition. "He probably won't ever want to wear the thing again. Go ahead, get on over there."
The Hunter grinned and changed his grip on Hiccup's prosthetic, advancing slowly.
Gods, this wasn't going to be fun.
Toothless snarled and growled and paced restlessly at the bars of the stupid cage. He was angry. And he was scared. Those damned hunters had his Hiccup, and they were hurting him! His Hiccup was screaming and crying, and they were hurting him and no one was allowed to hurt his Hiccup!
His Hiccup cried out again as one of the stupid Hunters beat him with the leg-not-leg that his Hiccup had to wear ever since Toothless hadn't been able to catch him in time as they fell into the Red Death's explosion. Toothless snarled and thought about all the ways he would make the Hunters pay for what they had done to his Hiccup. He would tear them limb from fucking limb, listen to their screams as they bled out before him.
Toothless pawed at what his Hiccup called a muzzle, wrapped around his snout to keep his mouth closed. He couldn't bite or shoot plasma blasts and he couldn't roar like he wanted because his mouth was forced shut and he couldn't get his claws in a position to pull it off!
He watched as his Hiccup leaked-sobbed. Toothless couldn't take a single breath without his nose being assaulted by the scent of his Hiccup's blood and agony. His Hiccup howled as the leg-not-leg slammed into the side of his head, right where the metal-chain-whip had split his soft-not-scale flesh. The wound began bleeding again in earnest.
Toothless howled with his Hiccup. His Hiccup's pain was also his-pain.
The Hunters were laughing and reveling in his Hiccup's shaking, crying, and bleeding. They bared their teeth in excitement when his Hiccup whimpered and enjoyed making him hurt.
Toothless felt his own blood boil with hatred towards those monsters that dared to hurt his Hiccup.
Hiccup panted and squeezed his eyes shut. Thor, it hurt. Everything hurt.
He ducked his head and wished he could curl in on himself to try and alleviate the pain in his undoubtably bruised or broken ribs.
His back was drenched with blood and his front would be mottled with nasty bruises soon.
It was hard to breathe.
He couldn't think straight, either.
Hiccup had no idea how long he had been chained there in the middle of the arena, left to bake in the sun. He knew that the ruined skin of his back was burning, and he thought he was dehydrated. The Hunters had left him there some time ago, alone with his pains and the useless thoughts swirling through his head.
He wondered if the others were okay. If Snotlout had gotten out and warned the others. He wondered if they were looking for him.
His mind began to drift again, coherency slipping through his fingers. He twitched his hands, longing for the feeling of smooth scales beneath his fingers and a warm presence by his side.
He gasped.
Toothless.
He lifted his head and looked with tired eyes across the arena.
Toothless was pressed up against the bars of the door, staring at him with large, terrified eyes. Hiccup's chest began to hurt for another reason.
The pain and fear he saw in his best friend's eyes stole what little breath he had from his lungs.
Toothless keened and pushed his head against the bars of the cage. Hiccup pulled on his chained wrists, desperate as Toothless was to be back by his side.
Hiccup whimpered at the pain that ripped through his whole body at the movement and Toothless whined with him.
Hiccup closed his eyes and tried to breathe, to get control of himself back, but he couldn't fill his lungs or restore order to his thoughts.
He looked back at Toothless and tried to smile at him. The twinge of his split lip and protest of his torn cheek caused him to second guess that decision, though.
He grimaced reflexively, which was just as bad a choice, evidently, and he hissed.
The human entrance to the arena creaked open and the Hunters from before spilled back out to surround him. He glared at them and, despite the pain it caused him, twisted his lips into a snarl. The Hunters only laughed.
"Look!" One of them cried, "He's trying to be intimidating!"
The rest of them chuckled.
Someone kicked the back of his head and Hiccup pitched forward, screaming as his abused back stretched; barely scabbed over wounds and fragile, burnt skin split and tore anew, fresh blood trickling down to further stain his trousers and the rock of the arena floor. He stayed slumped over, unable to bring himself to move.
"He's more pathetic than a mewling kitten!" Another one quipped, and fresh laughter erupted around him.
"Come now, boys," the leader said, clapping a heavy hand down on Hiccup's shoulder, making him gasp and cry out again. "You have to give him a little credit; not everyone would give themselves up for some mindless beast! He must be a special brand of stupid!"
Uproarious laughter.
Thunder in his head.
Lightning across his back and shooting through his ribs.
Hiccup slowly began to fall out of himself, his ability to grasp what was going on around him slipping away.
He was jerked violently back to himself, however, when a hand fisted itself in his hair and yanked him up.
He screamed.
Toothless snarled as the Hunters laughed at his Hiccup's pain, growled when one of them kicked him.
His Hiccup stayed curled up, bent over and wheezing.
A Hunter reached down and grabbed his Hiccup's head-fur and yanked him up.
His Hiccup screamed and Toothless clawed desperately at the horrid bars separating him from his Hiccup, pulled harshly on the chain around his-ankle that kept him from moving too far.
Toothless could do nothing but watch as the Hunters pulled an oddly shaped metal thing from a fire they had set up before they left. He was confused, but then his Hiccup began to scream and struggle.
Whatever that thing was, his Hiccup was afraid of it. The end of it was glowing red-hot. Toothless watched in horror as his Hiccup thrashed against the hands that closed around him.
One Hunter stood with a hand pulling his Hiccup's head back with a hand in his head-fur and the other clenched around his jaw, keeping his Hiccup's head in place. Another Hunter grabbed his Hiccup's forelegs so tight they turned white.
The Hunter holding the metal-thing stepped closer to his Hiccup and Toothless watched with mounting apprehension as his boy scrunched his eyes shut and seemed to resign himself to whatever was about to happen.
The Hunter pressed the metal-thing into the exposed skin of his Hiccup's neck and the air was filled with the scent of burning-burning-burning and pain-pain-pain, the sound of screaming-screaming-screaming and crying-crying-crying.
Toothless and his Hiccup screamed-screamed-screamed and cried-cried-cried together.
Fire.
He was on fire.
There was fire spreading through his veins and he was screamingscreamingscreaming he was burning please, Thor, someone save him!
There was painpainpain and firefirefire and he thought he was begging-pleading-sobbing make it stop please, Thor, make it stop!
He was howling and wailing and burning he was burning why was he burning--
There was pressure on his neck and he thought maybe that's where the fire was coming from and then the pressure lifted but he was still burning so maybe he was wrong why was he burning--
Cold.
Cold fell across him and Hiccup gasped and spluttered as he came back to himself. He shook his head to clear the water from his eyes and gasped at the fire that reignited in his neck.
Those damned Hunters had just branded his neck! They had just branded him!
As he became fully aware of his surroundings, Hiccup heard a horrible keen that shattered the air.
Hiccup wretched his head away from the Hunter holding him in place, ignoring the pain and renewed fire that shot through his neck. He stared with wide eyes at Toothless.
The Night Fury was crouched low with his head tossed up and eyes scrunched up. He had tucked his wings close to his body and tried to make himself look as small as possible.
Hiccup longed to reach out and place his hands on Toothless's face, to press their foreheads together and reassure him that he was okay. To reassure them both that they would make it through this.
The Hunters were laughing, and Hiccup just wanted to be with Toothless, he just wanted to go to his dragon, his best friend, and hug him. He wanted to press up against Toothless' side, tucked under his wing and listening to the dragon's steady heartbeat and deep breathing, relax in the warmth of his scales and presence.
Something struck his side and Hiccup gasped as he was roughly yanked from his reverie. Toothless' keening broke off and turned into an angry growl.
Hiccup lifted his head and met his dragon's eyes across the arena, trying to calm the both of them down.
He was tired. Oh so tired. He wanted nothing more than to close his eyes and succumb to the darkness that was swimming at the edges of his vision and tugging at the corners of his mind. He wanted to close his eyes and escape from the pain that had become his entire current existence.
But the agony wouldn't leave him alone, and neither would the Hunters. He would grit his teeth and bite his tongue and he would bear it. He would bear anything they had to throw at him.
For Toothless.
Hiccup didn't know how long they kept him out there, chained to the ground as they found new ways to torture him. At some point, everything began to bleed together into a red, agony-filled haze. He lost track of just what they did to him, what they used to shatter his bones and tear him apart piece by piece until he felt more pain that human, until he was made up of two things. Until his entire being was made up of bloody-raw-agony.
Until his only thought was For Toothless.
Those two words swirled around inside his otherwise empty skull (because he was pretty sure they had split open his head and ripped out his brain) endlessly and became the only thing he knew besides the ever-present pain.
Occasionally, emerald eyes and midnight colored scales broke through his haze and he heard strangled screams and horrible, animalistic sounds being ripped from a tortured throat (he thought maybe he was the one making that sound, but he couldn't remember if he had a body, or what his voice sounded like or even his own name so it couldn't be him it couldn't be it wasn't—) and a matching roar filled with rage-pain-anger-hate-fear-apologies-begging-please-mine-sorry-sorry-sorry-leave-mine-stop-hurt.
But then he would slip away again into nothingness only to be brought back by burning-screaming-throbbing-crying-breaking-bleeding—
The sun was long gone from the sky by the time they finally decided they were done with him.
Bathed in the silver light of the moon, the Hunters released him from the shackles and dragged him from the ground that was stained with his blood.
He was too exhausted and in too much pain to even try and move as they hauled him away, instead just letting his body suffer the abuse of the rough stone ground.
They unceremoniously threw him into the pen and laughed when he cried out weakly and curled up into a tight ball where he landed.
He shook with agony and sobs as he struggled to breathe. He shivered with the cold and the fear that they were just going to be back for him.
Then, there was a soft whine and warm air whooshed over him and he stilled.
He uncurled and reached a shaky hand toward his best friend.
"T-Toothless," he sobbed, voice scrapping from his dry, raw throat.
The dragon cooed plaintively at him and crept as close as he could before carefully grabbing his hand with a gummy mouth and pulling him to his side.
He cried out but quickly buried his face in warm, familiar scales as he sobbed.
Hiccup came back to himself as he huddled close to the safety of his first, and very best, friend. He took solace in the warmth of Toothless' scales and the steady sound of his heartbeat. He breathed carefully and finally let himself sink into the waiting arms of unconsciousness.
Toothless was—
He was—
He didn't have a word strong enough to describe the rage-anger-red-kill-kill-kill-hurt-how-dare-mine that thrummed through his entire being.
When the Hunters tossed his Hiccup (mine-mine-mine-hurt-mine-how-dare) back into the cage, rank with the scents of blood-pain-fear-sad-blood-blood-blood, Toothless was filled with unbridled rage that gave him the strength to roar and snap the muzzle keeping his jaws together. He snarled at the hunters and charged a plasma blast that he shot at the Hunters' retreating backs. Toothless nearly gave in to the urge to gnaw off his hind foot so that he could lunge at them and bite their heads off, rip them apart for what they had done.
But his Hiccup needed him more. So, he stayed put and did his best to comfort his boy (mine-mine-mine-how-dare-hurt-mine—), drawing him in close and wrapping him up in the protective shelter of his wings.
Toothless listened to his Hiccup leak-sob-cry-gasp until the noises of pain-sad-fear-relief trailed off into quiet, hitched breaths. He carefully unfurled his wings just enough to peak in at his boy and noticed that he was sleeping. Toothless huffed a relieved breath of his own from his nose and settled once more protectively around his boy.
Toothless closed his eyes and tried to block out the images of his Hiccup bleeding-broken-hurt-beaten, the sounds of his Hiccup screaming-crying-wailing-pleading-begging-sobbing-howling, and the scents of his Hiccup's pain-fear-agony-blood-burning, and instead focus on the feel of his Hiccup tucked safely against his chest, curled carefully within his wings, and the sound of his Hiccup's gentle, if hitched, breathing, and the sound of his Hiccup's strong, steady heartbeat.
The Hunters did not come back. Which was really very good for their health and continued existence, because if Toothless ever saw even one of their faces again, he was going to rip them apart with his claws and teeth and then charbroil their corpses with his plasma blasts.
He grumbled and huffed to himself in anger and annoyance until he felt his Hiccup begin to stir. Still muttering obscenities and detailing the violence he would unleash on those gods-awful Hunters should he ever see them again, Toothless slowly uncurled from around his boy.
His Hiccup groaned and slowly opened his eyes, blinking against the sudden light.
"Hey, bud," he said weakly, and Toothless stopped his swearing to coo and gently nuzzle his boy's face.
Happy-you-are-okay he tried to convey to his human, happy-thank-glad-how-dare-they-hurt-mine-mine-mine-safe-now-safe-safe-safe!
His Hiccup chuckled softly before gasping in pain. Toothless broke off his litany of safe-happy-mine-safe-safe-safe to instead begin sniffing his Hiccup over worriedly. Hurt-bad-hurt-hurt-how-help— he grumbled. His Hiccup gently shoved him off.
"I'll be alright, bud. We just need to get out of here, get back to the others," he said, attempting to stand.
Toothless did not like the sound of that. He narrowed his eyes and backed away from is Hiccup, eyeing him warily.
"Oh-wha—bud, come on, what are you doing?" His Hiccup said, holding his side and hiding a wince. Toothless growled.
Not-go-anywhere-hurt-bad-bad-bad-hurt, he protested, but his Hiccup didn't get the right message.
"Come on, bud, I know neither of us have our prosthetics, but I'm sure we can find your tail and even if I can't find my foot, we can lock your tail in place and that should be enough for us to be able to make it back to the Edge," he insisted
Toothless shook his head. No-fly! Hurt-bad-bad-bad! You-no-fly!
This time, his Hiccup seemed to get the message. "You're right, bud, I'm in no condition to fly, whether we find your tail and my foot or not. Gods, I probably couldn't even make it out the door like this." He shook his head and growled in frustration before wincing at the pain that shot through him at the movement. Toothless huffed, satisfied that his Hiccup would be staying right where he was, and turned to study the chain around his hind foot.
A few well-placed blasts should do it, he figured, and now that his mouth was free…
He charged up a plasma blast and fired at a weak point in the chain connecting his hind foot to the wall. It took two more blasts before the chain snapped. He warbled in triumph and turned to wiggle his now free appendage at his Hiccup, who grinned before being once more rudely reminded of his injuries.
"What should we do now, bud?" he asked. "If we find your tail, do you think you would be able to make it back to others to get help?"
Toothless ignored his Hiccup's protests for the moment and instead carefully prodded him until he was lying flat on the ground.
"Toothless, what are you doing? We need to figure out how to get out of here," he said.
Toothless began to gently wash his wounds, letting his saliva soothe the irritated skin and sink into the open gashes as he cleaned off the dried blood and grime. At first, his Hiccup squirmed, unsure and uncomfortable, but as Toothless's saliva began to cool and soothe his hurts he relaxed.
Toothless hummed as he continued to comfort his best friend and heal him what little he could, layering his saliva across burns, bruises, and gashes, until his Hiccup succumbed to unconsciousness once more.
He cooed softly at his boy and nuzzled his hair before turning to the door. Now that his Hiccup was safe, he had something he had to do.
"Dammit, Snotlout," Astrid grumbled as they tailed the Terrible Terror.
"Gods, they were taken to dragon fights," Fishlegs shuddered. "I hope they're okay."
"If they aren't," Astrid glared over her shoulder at Snotlout threateningly. He gulped.
"They will be," he said. "They have to be."
"We've been flying around trying to find Hiccup and Toothless after you got them captured since yesterday!" Heather yelled, glaring at him. "They've definitely been drugged at least once, and Toothless has to have been forced into at least one fight by now. When we find them, it'll be a miracle if they're both in one piece."
The twins wisely kept silent as everyone thought about what horrors they might find when they finally reached their friends.
Toothless prowled through the compound, sniffing and listening for any trace of the Hunters. He freed any other trapped dragons he came across and, after warning them to stay away from his Hiccup, let them run off to exact their own revenge. When he came upon the three-tailed-clicker dragon that he would have had to fight had he not broken free, he carefully released him and asked him for a favor. He readily agreed and Toothless returned to his search.
He would make them pay for what they had done.
He found three Hunters in a room on the other side of the arena, sitting around a table, drinking, and eating, and laughing. He snarled and burst through the door, relishing in their terrified shrieks. He lunged for the one nearest him, snapping his jaws shut around his throat and snapping his head to the side.
The second Hunter was fumbling for a weapon at his side, but Toothless was on him before he could free it from the sheath. He sunk his claws into the Hunter's shoulders and fired at plasma blast at the third one's head as he tried to run away. He tore viciously at the second one's chest, sinking his claws deep into flesh and muscle until he could rip out his heart and spit it on the floor.
He whirled to the fallen body of the third Hunter, taking in the charred remains of his head, and returned to his Hunt.
Hiccup thought he could hear screaming. But as he groaned and twitched, a soft grumble greeted him, and a warm presence wrapped around him, muting the screams. He settled back down into sleep, safe in the knowledge that someone was protecting him.
Toothless circled the small group of Hunters that had tried to escape through the arena, eyeing them and growling. He roared and lunged. He sunk his claws into one's throat and tore it out as he fired a plasma blast into another's chest. A third swung at him with a sword that bounced harmlessly off his scales and he whirled around to bite off the offender's hand, smiling grimly at his screams before slamming him into the ground and snapping his neck. He smacked another one that tried to sneak up behind him with his tail, breaking his ribs and sending him flying across the arena to break against the wall.
The fifth and sixth Hunters tried to team up on him, each coming at him from a different side with blades raised high. He snarled and fired two plasma blasts in quick succession, taking them both out. He glanced back over his shoulder to check on his Hiccup through the bars of the cage where they had been held and hummed in satisfaction when he saw that he was safe.
One last sweep of the compound to make sure there wasn't anyone left, and then he would return to his boy's side while they waited for the others.
As they approached the island, Astrid noticed that it looked suspiciously empty.
"Stay close," she called to the others. "We don't know just how many are hiding. Heather, lead us to the way in."
They flew low, ducking beneath the tree cover and landing to walk toward the entrance to the underground compound. As they neared, the dragons balked, letting out cries of alarm and backing away.
"What's going on with the dragons?" Fishlegs cried, climbing down off Meatlug, and attempting to calm her down.
"I don't know," Astrid said, sliding off Stormfly's back and running her hand down her dragon's neck. "Obviously they know something's up. Maybe they saw or heard something we haven't yet."
"I think they smell something," Heather said, "they're flaring their nostrils."
Astrid studied Stormfly closer and realized that Heather was right. Stormfly kept jerking her head back, her eyes wide with fear as her nostrils flared with shallow breaths.
"You're right." She grimaced. "We'll leave the dragons here if they don't want to come any farther."
The others nodded and slid from their saddles, gently patting their dragons before telling them to stay put.
Astrid pulled her ax from her hip and nodded for Heather to lead the way.
Toothless ripped apart the wooden table, still nearly blind with rage. He huffed and snarled, shredding furniture and scoring the floors as he made his way through the compound back toward his Hiccup, determined to leave every last room in pieces.
He slashed at the walls to vent his frustration and wrinkled his nose when he stepped on some Hunter's squishy remains. He turned the final corner toward his Hiccup and breathed deeply, relaxing at the scent of his boy being so close and knowing that he was safe.
He flicked bits of flesh from his claws and shook off any loose droplets of blood before slinking into the room.
It was quiet, eerily so, as they snuck into the compound. A few steps in and Astrid gagged, slapping her hand over her mouth and nose as she staggered back.
"Oh gods," she gasped.
Snotlout frowned and took a few steps forward. It took a few moments for him to register it, and then he gagged too.
The whole place reeked of blood. It hung heavy in the air, oppressive and inescapable. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Snotlout noticed Fishlegs throwing up behind him and the twins' exaggerated gagging. But he couldn't tear his eyes from the gruesome sight before him.
The walls and floor were streaked with blood, and bodies littered the floor. Guts spilled across the ground and some bodies were missing entire appendages.
The flickering torches on the walls only amplified the horror.
They each had to gather themselves before carefully picking their way down the halls. Each firmly kept their gaze focused straight ahead, refusing to think about what they were stepping in.
The further into the compound they ventured, the worse it got. They started noticing gashes in the walls and floor, scorch marks everywhere. The stench of burned flesh mingled with the heavy scent of blood, only worsening as they went.
The only sounds were those of their squelching footsteps and their shallow breaths.
Everywhere they looked, bodies and gore greeted them.
"What happened," Snotlout whispered, terrified.
"I don't know," Astrid replied, "But whatever did this, it must have been angry."
Snotlout shuddered.
"I just hope that whatever it was, it's gone." Heather nudged a body with her foot.
Snotlout gulped. Gods he hoped so, too.
Toothless heard muttering and careful footsteps approaching them. He heaved himself to his feet, mumbling a quiet reassurance back at his boy and the other, and stalked toward the shattered remains of the door.
He would not let anyone else touch his Hiccup.
They made their way toward the arena and dragon pens, picking their way around eviscerated corpses and smoldering hunks of flesh.
They turned a corner and spotted a doorway at the end of hall.
"Careful," Astrid muttered back to the others. "Stay quiet."
The others nodded and made no sound.
As they approached, a growl broke the air. They froze.
A large shape stalked out of the room and glared them down.
It was Toothless.
He was covered in blood and guts, his claws and teeth stained red. His wings mantled and hackles raised as he stared them down.
His eyes were mere slits as he snarled at them.
He charged a plasma blast in his throat.
Astrid started. He didn't recognize them!
"Duck!" She cried and dropped to the floor, hearing the others thud to the ground behind her as a plasma blast sailed over their heads.
Astrid scrambled to her feet and dropped her ax to the ground. She held her hands out in front of herself placatingly. "Toothless, please, it's us," she tried, but Toothless only snarled and threw himself at her.
Astrid yelped and dove out of the way. Claws still glistening with drying blood barely missed her side.
"Toothless, it's me! It's Astrid!" She cried as she dodged jaws caked with blood and razor-sharp claws aiming to take her out.
The others watched on in horror a few steps away, not daring to try and step in for fear that Toothless's blind rage would be turned on them.
In a desperate attempt to get the enraged dragon to recognize her, Astrid flung herself toward him and scrambled up onto his back. He bucked and thrashed, howling at her but she refused to be thrown.
"Toothless, please, you need to calm down!" She pleaded with him and pressed one hand firmly to his forehead like she had seen Hiccup do to calm him down when he was worked up. "Please," she whispered and pressed her forehead to his crown. Toothless stilled.
Astrid sat up and Toothless tilted his head back to look at her.
He cooed, and Astrid smiled at him. His eyes were blown wide as he gave her his signature gummy grin. It was rather terrifying given the gore that covered him, but she was just relieved that he finally recognized her.
"There you are," she sighed. Toothless wiggled and she slid off his back. "Now, where's Hiccup?"
Toothless turned and bolted back into the room he had emerged from earlier with a whine.
Astrid and the others hesitantly peered through the doorway.
Toothless was gurgling and bobbing at another dragon that had tucked themself into the darkest, farthest corner from the doors. As the Riders watched, they clicked back at Toothless before unfurling their wings and tail to reveal Hiccup laying on the floor.
"Hiccup!" Astrid cried and rushed forward.
Toothless jerked in front of Hiccup's prone form and snarled, hackles raised. The other dragon roared, and three tails raised above their head, poised to strike. She froze and waited for Toothless to relax again.
When he did, he turned and grunted something to the other dragon and they, too, stood down. They both backed away and Astrid approached Hiccup again, this time slowly.
"Oh, Hiccup," she whispered as she took in what damage she could see. Toothless whined and gently bumped her side. She turned to see him watching her with sad, mournful eyes.
"We'll get him to Gothi. He'll be alright," she reassured him, placing her hand comfortingly on his nose. She could only hope she wasn't lying.
It was a long, stressful flight back to the Edge. Astrid had sent Snotlout ahead to Berk to fetch Gothi and the Chief while the rest of them stayed behind to look after Hiccup and Toothless.
Hiccup had yet to wake up and Toothless refused to leave his side. As soon as they had set down on the Edge, he had trailed behind Astrid like a lost puppy as she carried Hiccup to the Clubhouse where she laid him on a cot they kept in the back. He'd settled down right at the head of the bed, resting his head beside Hiccup's, and hadn't moved since.
It made a ghastly sight.
Hiccup, covered in burns (they had branded him!), bandages, and bruises, with Toothless laying faithfully by his side, covered in dried blood and bits of flesh.
Toothless held vigil over Hiccup's sleeping form, critically watching anyone that came near him. He glared anytime someone came to change Hiccup's bandages, and thoroughly washed him with his tongue before they were allowed to replace them.
In the time that it took Snotlout to return with Gothi and Stoick, Gobber in tow as well, the Clubhouse was filled with the scents of blood and rotting flesh. The Riders feared that, despite their best efforts, one of Hiccup's numerous wounds had become infected.
Only once Gothi had arrived and ushered everyone out of the Clubhouse did Toothless finally move from Hiccup's side, and only then did they realize that the rotting flesh smell was coming from him.
Astrid and Stoick coaxed Toothless away and finally washed away the blood and gore that coated him. He didn't acknowledge them or their attempts to get him to clean himself, almost as if he was in a state of shock. When they had finally scrubbed away the last of the blood and freed the last bit of old flesh from between his scales, they led him back up to wait outside the Clubhouse. As soon as they were within sight of the entrance, Toothless broke away and rushed over. He whined at the closed doors, the first real sound he had made since they got back, and settled down with his head resting on his front paws.
He returned to his silent vigil, staring at the doors and refusing to move or acknowledge the others that would come and sit with him.
Toothless waited and stared, stared and waited. He did not budge from his spot for anything until Gothi and Gobber emerged from inside, looking exhausted and worn. As soon as the doors creaked open, Toothless was on his feet. He shoved past the Elder and Gobber and disappeared inside.
Gothi shook her head but gazed fondly after him for a moment before fixing Gobber with a look.
Gobber cleared his throat. Everyone gathered closer, tense and afraid.
"He'll be fine," he said. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. "There'll be some nasty scars and it will take a while for him to heal up, but there's no signs of infection and Gothi got him all stitched up. She'll be leavin' a couple'a medicines 'ere for him, and she'll be stayin' a few more days just to keep an eye on the lad."
Gothi scribbled something in the dirt with her staff.
"Er, she says that you'll need to keep an eye on the wound on his horse—" Gothi whacked him with her staff. "—Sorry, on his face. She won't know until he wakes up if it's done any damage to his vision, and it will be the most susceptible to infection and the slowest to heal."
"When will he wake up?" Stoick asked, glancing at the doors. Gobber looked at Gothi, who shrugged.
"We don't know. Hopefully soon," he said.
"Can we see him?" Astrid asked tentatively. Gothi nodded but made a shushing motion.
"Yes," Gobber said. "So long as you're quiet and let him rest."
Astrid and Stoick nodded their thanks and then quietly crept into the Clubhouse, leaving the others to ask more questions or wander off.
It was dark, in the Clubhouse, and silent. A few torches flickered lazily on the walls as they approached the back corner where Hiccup lay, now properly tended to.
As they neared, they were able to make out where Toothless had resumed his position right by Hiccup's head, watching over him like he was afraid he would disappear.
His eyes flickered briefly to them before settling back on Hiccup's face.
Stoick lowered himself into a chair that sat waiting at Hiccup's bed side. He gently grabbed Hiccup's small hand, dwarfed by his own, and placed his other hand on Toothless's head.
"Thank you," he whispered, tears coming to his eyes unbidden, "Thank you for protecting him. Whatever happened there, whatever you both went through," his voice broke. "Thank you for bringing him back alive."
Toothless cooed and nuzzled the Chief's hand for a moment before settling his head back on the bed beside Hiccup's own.
Astrid sat on the floor and wrapped her arms around the dragon's neck, burying her face in his scales.
"I know you must have been scared, and angry, to have done what you did," she muttered, sniffling. "And I can't even imagine what must have happened to lead to all this," she pulled back and pressed a kiss to Toothless's forehead. "But thank you, for being there for him, and for taking care of him, and for keeping you both alive. Thank you."
Toothless curled his tail around her and settled his wing over her shoulder, pulling her into his side where she would remain, feeling calm and safe, until she fell asleep listening to Hiccup's soft breaths and the beating of his dragon's heart.