The day after the encounter with the Izila and their merciless leader was rather calm and peaceful. No hostiles were sighted anywhere near the village, and the Beast Masters planned to make the most of it with the rest of the Wenja. Astrid started to test her reflexes by catching fruits that Jayma threw at her from time to time. Fishlegs helped Wogah in carving small totems that other Wenja would use to help in praying for their ancestors' spirits. Snotlout and Karoosh would wrestle one another to test each other's strength and determination. Tuffnut and Ruffnut simply accompanied Urki in playing musical instruments to pass the time and to entertain other members of their tribe who were their audience.
As the responsible chief, Hiccup chose to take a walk around the Wenja village with the owl soaring high above and the lion proudly strutting by his side. The other animals would often watch their human companions going about with their daily activities or gently demand petting from the present villagers, particularly the young and lighthearted children. Whenever the lion gave Hiccup a friendly nudge, the latter would always ruffle the great feline's furry mane.
"Days like these don't come around very often, bud," Hiccup said with sincere warmth, as laughter and exultant singing became the dominant noises in the village. "I'm just glad we have time to rest and enjoy life, even for a little bit. This is what we need to raise morale the next time we run into the Udam and the Izila."
When the moon revealed itself from the clouds, the Beast Masters were exhausted by the energy they've spent for the day and by the bountiful feast they were dining on. The animals had fallen asleep in the great cave, and this motivated the six friends in resting. But before one of them could call it an evening, Sayla walked towards them with an unbiased expression on her face.
"Tensay wishes to see all of you in his hut."
"Oh dear," Snotlout's mild dread had the others correctly guessed what the Wenja shaman wished to discuss.
The Beast Masters gulped and clenched their stomachs lightly before they gently entered Tensay's hut. Once they were inside, they witnessed the shaman chanting and adding tiny herbs to the leopard skulls that were already filled with blood and eyeballs.
"Our spirits hunger for another vision, huh?" asked Tuffnut as the six friends sat down in front of the skulls. The callous stench of the blood and eyeballs were already surging into the noses of their would-be consumers.
"Yes," Tensay answered. "This time, it is for the Izila. Drink them and see through their eyes."
Refusing a shaman's offer had been considered as an act of disrespect, no matter how much the Beast Masters wished to not get drunk again. There was no turning back and they all swallowed the atrocious concoctions, experiencing wooziness and the anticipation of another spiritual madness.
Astrid was the first to wake up from the shadows and to find that they had been sent into a gulley that had been enveloped in an orange haze, smoke, and ash.
"This is, somewhat different than the last one," commented Fishlegs.
"Yeah. Now it's all smoky and has hints of a fire going on."
Hiccup's ears caught distant noises originating ahead of him, but Astrid decided to take the lead this time. Palls of smoke and floating embers drifted around the air, whilst ash covered the charred trees, grass, and the dirt that shielded the ground. Soon, the Beast Masters walked into a clearing occupied with Izila and megalithic stones decorated with blue paintings. Astrid breathed her relief that the Izila were more concentrated in praying and chanting towards the dim sky.
"Do not touch Krati!"
The fist of the Wenja chieftess tightened their grip when she and her friends witnessed Batari standing behind an altar flanked by stone braziers. In the center of the altar was a stone mask adorned with protruding white crystals. Batari reiterated her warning while frantically stretched her hands out as if to stop the Beast Masters from walking towards her. Astrid was more interested in the mask on the altar and just as she tried to claim it, flames slowly burst across her surroundings and blinded everyone with searing light.
"Here we go again!" Astrid proclaimed.
"Get ready guys!" added Hiccup.
Within seconds, the fire was extinguished and the group found themselves standing in a flaming village adjacent to a volcano that was about to erupt. To make things more fantastic, all six Beast Masters were wielding a scorching bow with a quiver of burning arrows.
"Oh yeah! Now we're talking!"
"Let's turn the heat up, baby!"
The Twins' enthusiasm and excitement outweighed those of the other four, and they would contemplate on their current situation if Izila warriors decided not to launch their projectiles. Astrid was swift in dodging with a roll before she let her first arrow loose at some of the Izila. The arrow instantly set the Izila ablaze and made them cry in pain before a small flaming meteor crashed and turned them into ashes. Everyone was awestruck by their new weapons' capability, and Snotlout got his taste of the action when he obliterated some Izila with his arrows.
"Snotlout! Snotlout! Oi! Oi! Oi!"
Ruffnut and Tuffnut started to laugh maniacally as they rained fire upon the Izila who tried to bring harm to them and their friends. Fishlegs was able to follow his wife and brother-in-law's cue by nocking and set his arrows loose on the hostiles who were hiding behind torched huts. Hiccup and Astrid had each other's backs as they took turns in unleashing a storm of flaming arrows and meteors on any Izila who wished to enslave them.
"Suxli! Mensos! Help us!"
One of the Izila's shouts gained Astrid's attention. She has never heard those names before, though she knew that she would not be able to learn more about them until she escaped this blistering dream. When some of the Izila tried to use their tall standing stones to protect themselves, Astrid simply used her arrows to summon meteors to demolish her enemies and their covers. The Beast Masters thought that they have taken care of every Izila in the area when the volcano suddenly collapsed into rubbles and revealed the moon as it began to slowly eclipse the sun on the red, cloudless sky. An eerie yet comforting whisper slithered into Astrid's ears, which prompted her to send an arrow and a hail of meteors towards the moon. Small orange cracks started to manifest around the moon like an egg that was about to hatch, but it was not enough.
"Guys, we need to shoot our arrows to the moon!"
"The moon? Astrid, are you okay?"
"I know what I'm doing Hiccup. If you want this vision to end, trust me."
Reluctance transformed into trust as the five Beast Masters followed Astrid's cue in launching their arrows and meteors to the moon. The eclipse drew nearer with every fiery fissure and grand shadow began to shroud the world in darkness.
"Stop them!"
Despite the Izila's greatest efforts, they all continued to meet their demises through the Beast Masters' blazing counterattacks. Astrid led the Beast Masters up the conflagrating hills so that they could gain a closer and better shot at the moon.
"The moon is one tough rock!" Snotlout confessed.
"It is 'the moon', Snotlout," added Fishlegs.
"Well, this tough rock is about to be pulverized by our baking marksmanship!"
"Seconded, Tuff!"
"Alright, guys! When there is no Izila left to fight, ready your arrows when I say so!"
With great speed and preparing for Astrid's command, Hiccup took care of the remaining Izila and allowed everyone to draw their arrows at the eclipse with all of their strength.
"Now, Astrid?"
"Now!"
All six arrows twanged and rocketed towards the flaming moon. The moment they landed on the surface, a tremendous blinding explosion shattered the eclipse, sending gigantic debris soaring towards the land and turned everything black.
Nausea overwhelmed the Beast Masters when they woke up. However, they somehow did not need to vomit the contents of their stomachs, unlike the last time they ingested eyeballs.
"That was crazy," Fishlegs said with a yawn.
"Best vision yet," stated Ruffnut.
"Those Izila didn't stand a chance," Tuffnut announced.
"Beast Masters for the win!" declared Snotlout.
Astrid and Hiccup did not really share their friends' excitement as they watched Tensay squatting and gazing at them with silence.
"We saw the end of the Izila," were Astrid's first words in explaining her experience to the shaman. Tensay, however, shook his head solemnly. The mixture of fear and wonder in the shaman's eyes caused everyone to be silent.
"No," he told the Beast Masters. "It was the end of everything. It is what the Izila fear."
"The Izila mentioned the names 'Suxli' and 'Mensos'."
"Yes, Astrid. Those are the names the Izila give to the sun and the moon."
"We also saw Batari saying the name 'Krati'."
The mention of that name made the shaman slowly stand up and circle the hut with him slowly repeating the name. No one in Hiccup's group dared to interrupt or question Tensay's rumination.
"I have heard of that name from the Izila a long time ago when the Wenja were still scattered across Oros. Whenever the Izila said that name, it's like their voices had been consumed by dread." Tensay then noticed how some of the Beast Masters' eyes glanced to the exit of the hut. He did not disapprove of what they were implying. "You should go outside, all of you. I can think about this revelation in a clearer state when I'm alone."
The chief and chieftess of the Wenja were the last of the six to depart from the hut. Although the vision and Tensay's reaction to it still perplexed their minds, their noses and lungs embraced the crisp air that the morning of Oros bequeathed.
