(A/N: You can no doubt tell this is based off the episode Team Astrid as it's Mikekolt's friend who's inflicted this time with the fear that the next time he's away from home, there would not be anything there left for him. I may have portrayed his mother as being mean but that's just because she was upset at the time, his parents are in truth loving. The reason why she's the one telling him to give up his Terror will be revealed shortly, for now however this was the last chapter before I restarted everything. Now the story can be continued with this as we'll be getting back to the main threat in no time at all, although I haven't been making too much use of Mikekolt's weapon adaption tactic because people keep stating he's a just Gary Stu when that's bullshit; all because he's picking up every single weapon with no training. Guess what? You don't need specific training with those weapons dammit! Oh and this is a short chapter by the way so it's not as long as you think it's going to be, Enjoy)
A brand new dawn of the morning rose over the borders of the horizon among the home they lived in, as Mikekolt and Axethor were outside laying down in the grass; his Bravo team were enjoying themselves in the verdant and untamed lushful meadows where the rays of the sun were basking them all. Enjoying the warm winds that blew throughout the island as Tuskfang truly felt more comfortable with his new family that Mikekolt created for him, apparently he decided to split his long plissken type mullet in the back halfway upwards; having some of his hair spike up a little bit like before when he was an teenager, except they were longer and at an certain angle looked like porcupine quills diagonally spiking up in the front. Nothing at the time being seemed like something was going to happen, when it did Axethor appeared to be unfazed in the slightest; the issue at hand that was about to happen was going to influence a lot more about him than what he thinks, for he doesn't always get into fights with his mother because she loves him. However, this was when it began
Axethor had been here many times on request since he wonders what his Lair was like and he declined because of the threat of being followed, Korgan could send one of his Flyers to follow him from far behind before attacking and reporting the location to their leader. Exact same thing happened when Heather told him what happened when she was looking into her father at Vanaheim, she wanted to know more about him and get some closure; they had to stop the Flyer who followed her and once again they've managed to preserve the graveyard's sacredness. Of course that meant that Toothless had to destroy the map because Drayko felt that the Dragon Hunters should never know about the place, once they were sure that no one was following them and led them to many false leads; then it was safe to bring him here, he's not making the same mistake like she did and all he's really doing is making sure his Lair is all but hidden just like that. Let's say that it was discovered, he's got himself a new location and this time he's not going to make it so easily found; that's just an example right there
He showed him the places in his Lair like the Main Hall at the entrance, the blacksmith forge where he's developing his new weapons to add for his arsenal; his planning room and stables for his Dragons, having his ballista on the top should any of his enemies set foot right here as he's answered whatever questions he had and the tour went rather smoothly. He showed off the landmarks of the island like the Moltenrock Swamplands, the canyons and ravines along with the Tomb of Fallen Night Furies acting as their very own Vanaheim. That was all when he first came here, for the rest of the night they camped out and returned in the morning; now it was the morning as the two of them stood up. Axethor was ready to head back to the School of Dragons when Lethalruin returned with an message that he gave Mikekolt, immediately judging that this was not a good sign at all; coming from an place they know all too well as it's the same place they grew up in. Reading the letter and destroying it out of fury, Axethor asked him what was it; this was what's written:
"What the hell's going on, Mikekolt?" Axethor asked him as he snarled
"Now they've gone too far this time, it's the nefarious Dragonroot Company; they've attacked our tribe and the Chief knows what's happened. Let's go!" Mikekolt mounted onto Tuskfang immediately, taking off and getting the headstart on him
"If they attacked then... they better not destroyed my house!" Axethor shouted in alert as he mounted onto Vulcanus before following his friend to their home island
Later on as they flew in from the distance to see the smoke rising from their island, the ruins of what Owl Gut Island has become was getting closer; most of the houses were burned and left destroyed in ruins, worse of all some of their warriors were injured as they lied about in some places of the ground and others were struggling to stand up. This was not the work of a Marauder who'd always attacked their home that they know of to their knowledge, this was their leader who calls himself: the Infernal Jackal, the most vile and murderous of all Dragon Marauders amongst the weapons development division branch. This attack however was not like the others, as it was different and it was all about to be confirmed by the Chief himself as soon as they landed; with him approaching right away with Earthbreaker at his side
"Who's responsible for this?" Mikekolt knew it was the Marauders but this was not how they raided their island, even with the forces of the Dragonroot Company at their grasp
"It was the Infernal Jackal, that's who. A hit and run attack with explosive catapults and more volleys of flaming arrows that's just the beginning, many of the buildings were destroyed and our warriors were injured by the infected army of Dragons they have at their disposal. There is more bad news as Axethor, one of the buildings was your house; get over there now and see for yourself" Chief Gort explained as Axethor ran past him to rush over in order to see what remained of his house
Smashed into pieces and blown into smithereens, the home he grew up in was gone as he could only collapse onto his knees. Mikekolt's house was half damaged but no less still stood well enough for him to stay in while his house would be repaired. "If my parents had been home that moment..."
"They were at the buffalo races, they were alerted about the attack as soon as possible. Your house will be repaired" Chief Gort informed him
Axethor was not relieved either when he recieved this news about the fate of his parents, all fires that burned were extinguished and whatever supplies were needed was ferried to their island right away; just having his house rebuilt was not enough, he was too shaken up to be a little relieved that they survived. Staying at Mikekolt's place didn't matter to him at all as he felt like this was his fault for not sleeping here like he always does last night, half of the day was spent rebuilding and recovering from the hit and run attack caused by the Marauders and the Dragonroot Company; although it still didn't seem right for the former to preform this hit and run attack just like that. There were only two ketches and they still made an devastating assault on their village, he had no place to sleep and not even a place to talk with his parents at all. Just so happened on coincidence that Mikekolt heard about the news that his father is returning back home along with his mother, as he killed the stalker who was after her and at last they can be an family again; there's the relief for him that he can be happy, the same can not be established for Axethor. He won't cooperate in talking to anyone, was it really that traumatizing? They've been attacked plenty of times, it's not like Axethor was tolerant about this at all
Marauder Ships were a hybrid between the Ketches and Phinisis that the Indonesians sailed on as they kept the brigantine style of the Dragon Hunters, but also drew upon the design of Tiburonkolt's warship albeit in a smaller size as they had dual wide frontal sails seen on that from the ships used by the Egyptians; the kingdom of the Pharaoh whose massive and great desert land was very far far away from the Archipelago to the east who had their own Gods of the Pantheon to worship. Their frontal sails depicted their crest on the middle and stood out with the upwards curved blades as seen in the front, and backwards curved blades on the backside; being wide enough to transport weapons they've constructed and having their own traps ready at all times, as they were very nomadic andw ar mongering. Made sense as they had ripped banners flowing about on the ship on crossbar battlestaffs of their own, being quite the blacksmiths at their many desert strongholds which that's for sure; also had a pair of Rumblehorn to Triple Stryke wing shaped sails that spanned out diagonally upwards and out from the sides to give them extra speed when the galestorms start blowing as if they weren't fast enough already. They used ebony wood for fire resistance so they would not be taken out so easily, and gave their ships the appearance that looked like they've been in the battles of countless wars; as they looked haunting to say the least. Finally, they were adorned with various blades all around with some heavy weaponry loaded to the edge were not even an regular attack ship can survive a fleet of them; especially how cold blooded and merciless they all were, but Mikekolt's silent snake persona is worse than that and he's going to prove it to the Dragonroot Company's operations
In fact the Marauders had their own bloodsport as it involved mixed martial arts and brawling along with the infamous Lethal Lockdown torture method, especially when they've gotten an bunch of weapons involved since there's no penalty and is meant to encourage cheating; fair playing exactly is abandoned when they break their own rules. Regardless, the Knights have long since dealt with their little tournament and thus have fallen thanks to their efforts; as it was more of a underground combat sport that needed to be stopped. Dragon Combat Racing was more like his own personal underground combat bloodsport as there may not be death, but there is blood and he's more of a cultural albeit cold blooded man when he's watching it all happen from the shadows of the colosseum of theirs. They've even intergrated the sport in Mierveia Vde Rallie after the Dragons began to return to the place where they once flew
The survivors whose houses were damaged and destroyed slept in the Main Hall for the night with the rays of the moonlight basking and bathing over them all, Mikekolt in particular was if one could call him alseep and huddled into himself in the earlier hours of the night; however he would get out of bed and go off by himself to explore the island when he had nowhere to go, as he felt that he couldn't leave Axethor today after what happened. In this time without a father and mother for they should've been back when he needed them, knowing Roachkolt was never around too much and his mother was living elsewhere to hide from someone who was now dead; he grew lonesome and this problem alone caused him dispair. Times like this one and others like these made him enter his cold blooded silent snake persona, as his skin flushed out before draining his blood; revealing his veins on his face as well as making him look calm and uninterested when he was really lightheaded due to his mind feeling numb, those actions he's committed were just enough to have blood rush it's way back to where it belonged in the first place
Axethor couldn't sleep and lied there awake, he couldn't stand having to sleep with the very destruction of his home haunting him; if his parents had been there then they would blame him for not being present when they needed him there. Feeling like he would be tormented in vain that this time around they were not at the buffalo races, but they couldn't defend the two of themselves against their hit and run attack. He was shivering in the cold to thinking in his mind how it would exactly play out, Mikekolt didn't seem to be the least concerned about what might've happened if they were there; but he guessed it's just him and that's how he is in the affairs of others. It wasn't long before Marva came to him, wanting to take him to her father as she's pretty upset about what happened; but he's not alone in this event. He got up and followed her to the Chief outside down the steps, who was waiting to talk to him about how to deal with this issue
"You're haunted by what the fate of your parents would've become had they been present, I assume?" Chief Gort asked him as Axethor nodded before sitting down
"Mikekolt had every right to keep his Lair hidden even from me, because not only would I be followed by Korgan and the Dragon Flyers; but I would've done something to prevent this by being here so that my house wouldn't be destroyed" Axethor admitted
"There was nothing you could've done to stop this, you know that as much as I do myself" The Chief stated
"I know that up there in my gut I still blame myself, I want to protect my home"
"We are warriors, the both of us; sworn to defend all who stand behind our backs who are without courage to fight for themselves" Chief Gort knew what he felt and what he was going to ask next
"How can I soothe this feeling and make sure it's gone?" Axethor was desperate for answers
"Axethor, it's not going away and it can't leave; to own this mistake is so that you may know to make sure that you do everything in your grasp to ensure you will never let it bother you again. This is your choice to make for both you and Vulcanus, I know that if you do this then Mikekolt would be the next victim of this hit and run attack; you think that would give you the right to force him into joining you in whatever you decide, but this is for you alone as they have their own rights to decide what they should do in making this feeling never to bother you again. The Castlekroftservkhalls forge their own paths and control their own destinies, no one else tells them what they must do; use that example given to you and imagine them as your family" Chief Gort's wisdom filled words as the leader of the Tribe convinced him as he breathed out with his response
"I could at least try and convince him to stay with me..." Axethor then got up and left to head back into the Main Hall, ready to sleep it off for the rest of the night
HTTYD
The next morning Axethor was ready to announce his new intentions to Mikekolt, may not sit well with him but he's not willing to make the same mistake twice; he's done so once and his house was destroyed but rebuilt thanks to their construction workers who are always ready to repair something like this after the raids caused by the Dragon Marauders. First problem at hand was trying to find him because he's been planning to strike back by attacking one of the desert strongholds they've got stationed around, deciding to attack the closest one near him as he's aware they're armed with some of the most dangerous weapons built by them as well as knowing they're out for both his and Drayko's blood. That alone's not going to let them get the chance to stop him from carrying out his plans, he's going to track them down and he will see the island fully recover from their attack because there's no telling how long until they strike again; that is the answer to how long before they attack
Axethor found him at his desk inside of his bedroom, he was ready to tell him about what he wanted to tell him: "There are you are, Mikekolt I've been trying to find you for ages; there's something I want to tell you: You were right to not let me come with you to the Whispering Caribbean, it was a mistake and I should've just stopped right there; but that's not all I have to tell you..." Axethor paused at the end
"Leave me out of it, I've gotten myself bigger asses to blow and fry out of the dunes of the deserts; while you can go back to the School of Dragons, I must return to my Lair in two hours to get myself equipped in my Dragon Scale Armor. I'll be back in awhile and if my armor's damaged then that can be fixed, the blood's going to be gone but the filthy stains of the swamp are staying since I prefer stealth in the environment" Mikekolt finished up putting some flip on buckles onto his ribbed gloves that had that rubbery elastic slap effect, along with a spider-web pattern that was hard to see unless one looked close enough
"No Mikekolt, last night I've decided that I have made my choice. I'm not going back to the School of Dragons, I'm staying here on Owl Gut Island; but I also want you to stay here with me too" Axethor admitted the truth to him as Mikekolt paused for a moment before telling him what he thought
"How about... I go back to my Lair while you stay here?" Mikekolt replied after thinking
"Last night I spoke with the Chief about what I should do, both of us are warriors and we all live by a code" Axethor informed him more about his decision to stay here
"I live by no one's code Axethor, neither does Breyerkolt; you know that" Mikekolt reminded him as he got up from his desk
"We're not leaving Owl Gut Island defenseless again, I can't after what's happened thanks to the Dragonroot Company and the Marauder's forces did this to us; I could've lost my parents if they were home that time" Axethor made a point but his friend would not relent with his thoughts
"A Tribe like our home makes no difference from a hit and run assault, they're strong enough to deal with raids like these and I am not going to stay here; I've got my own motives now Axethor, you're not keeping me here. But if you're going to defend this places then you're going to train your main Alpha team to defend our home, be ready if they come to strike if you're absent" Mikekolt got up and proceeded to leave
"But I can't train this team to defend our home without your help, I need you with me so this can never happen again; all I'm asking is that you join me in doing what's right because you're always going off on your own and what ever happened to the times we were together? Your father's going to be back soon but that's not enough to make you stay with me? Same thing's going to happen again except your house will be destroyed, if Vulcanus gets injured then I-" Axethor called after him but Mikekolt was through hearing his pleas to force him into staying here with him, and thus left on his own as his father won't return until later
As his dark brushed bronze and crayola golden necklace was given four cylinders around with two on the diagonal edges and two close together on the front sides from the left to right, up close was some engravings: it was a spider whose upper four legs were curved inward while the bottom legs were long as they were not only straightened, but went down to the bottom of the web that it was in front of; with it's outer and upper leg also curved downwards like a scimitar through the lower leg, towards the abdomen. He walked up the steps leading to the Main Hall as he wanted to have a word with their Chief before heading out back to deal with their attackers
Upon entering inside he found the Chief taking a drink at one of the tables, Mikekolt did not find Earthbreaker anywhere in the Main Hall and believed he was off resting elsewhere as it wasn't even midday just yet. He's not on par with his friend's decision into forcing him to stay here when he's got motives of his own, believing that he was the one who talked to Axethor about staying here on Owl Gut Island so that he can always defend his home without leaving it defenseless ever again; he approached him in order to confront him about what his friend is going on about. He's not looking to argue with the Chief but he's got his own reasons not to stay here by Axethor's side, no matter the reasons because that's not in his blood to do that at all
"Chief, I know you talked to Axethor last night; what makes you think I give a shit about what happened to him? That's not a excuse to force me into staying here at your island because I'm not doing the same, it's terrible to think about the consequences if his parents were there but I am not abandoning my plans for those Marauders!" Mikekolt confronted him as Chief Gort got up to explain to him
"Then perhaps I wasn't clear enough to him at the start, what I meant to tell him when I made a example using you was that he shouldn't force you into his choice of wanting to protect not only parents but his home from ending up in this state again; the boy's judgement has gotten into his mind like before. However I digress about what plans you have for the Marauders, I'll not ask of you to stop nor abandon them out of fear that you will be no match for their brutal numbers alone; but I demand that you cease in attacking their weapons depot they've got in their desert strongholds" Chief Gort asked of him at the end
"I will not..." Mikekolt's defiance became clear as he turned his back and left to head out
"Just like with Tiburonkolt and your father Roachkolt, this is not going to be easy once you begin the assault you've planned son; it'll be the downfall of you because there's more to what we think is happening here. By the time you return there's going to be hell breaking loose when the nefarious Dragonroot Company begins making their attack, they've gotten their station of operations all set up in every region judging by this point in time; Draconia and her allies will face danger from all sides. You'll return alive but be prepared for when we'll need you when the crisis begins, as will your journey" Chief Gort growled at first but warned him in the end as Mikekolt stopped at the doors before turning half his face to him
"If they strike down on us then I will see them fall in ruin, Maeve will never succeed in what she desires because whatever it was that caused her to lose her child; that does not give her the excuse to begin going on a journey for revenge just by driving them out of the home they live in, they were here first from the beginning and they're not getting evicted today. Thanks Chief, be sure to tell him what you meant to say to him and give him my regards about what's made him this way" Mikekolt's face was shrouded where his eyes could be visibly seen from the rays of the sun, before he left and climbed down the staircase
Mikekolt walked back to his house and met up with his half-brother Breyerkolt who came to see him after such an long absence: "Mikekolt, there are you are! I was looking for you after the news of our parents returning home reached us"
"Breyerkolt, I hate to break to you but I'll be going out to deal with the Marauders who attacked us; in the meantime you better make sure that the training with Axethor's new Alpha team goes well because we're not letting him break their spirits just so he has an reason to stay here. There are other important things than staying to defend our home" Mikekolt told him about what has been going on as well as where he's going
"You do not have to say another word brother, you've risked your life to save me once and I'm willing to convince Axethor not to go through on his decision; I will gather our allies while the Chief meets up with Drayko, I just can't risk doing this alone without you and Poseidonsplinter if he's captured" Breyerkolt held onto his Thunderdrum's saddle, stroking his scales atop of his head as he cooed
"They're not going to take us away, we'll do it together until the end Breyerkolt; nothing will get in our way" Mikekolt assured him
As he understood his motives and decided that he should take part in his journey, Breyerkolt ran off to gather their allies including Katetiburon to aid them; Mikekolt mounted onto Rain before taking off to begin their assault on the Marauder's desert stronghold. His journey to save Dragonkind is about to begin!
However, up to this point in time Frynir had gathered more than enough intel about him to conclude that he was definitely the man that she knew too well; but no, even more so than before as he carried Tiburonkolt's Tomahawk on him just like she imagined. He deserved to know the truth, even if that meant she had to separate him from his team; because what it was that she was hiding and wanted to show him, it will be the very last thing he sees her in this image he created out of her...
As the nefarious Dragonroot Company is about to put their nasty plan into action in the regions of the Archipelago, these are the names that I've changed for the better as they consist the following names along with their original names from Titan Uprising:
Berkian Territories (Berk Forest)
Northern Tundra (Frozen Tundra)
Flaming Deathlands (Burning Barrens)
Woodland Isles (Wild Woodland)
Unfathomable Marshlands (Mysterious Marshlands)
Meathead Timberlands (Hooligan Timberland)
Polarwind Wastelands (Coldwind Wastes)
Blistering Deserts (Blistering Badlands)
Barbaric Backcountries (Barbaric Back-Country)
Tormentful Boglands (Baneful Boglands)