If you look to my profile page, I officially changed the update schedule. It's been decided.
Frozen:
Winter had always started early in Berk, and the first few weeks were always the hardest, but the week long freeze they were experiencing now was unlike they'd ever had. As wind and snow raged outside in the freezing temperatures below what Berk even considered normal, the Dragon Riders were hunkered down in one of the much larger cages in the academy. Light from outside poked through the wooden boards allowing them to see as Hiccup stood before the chalk board attempting to teach.
"So, as you can see by the chart", Hiccup directed to the diagram drawn on the board, her back turned to the teens. "Proper wing control can be achieved by―" A fire ball splat on her chart. Hiccup stopped abruptly, frozen and tense in annoyance. She growled to herself draconically, then turned to face the riders. "Okay. Okay, who shot that fire ball?" she spoke sternly, staring specifically at Snotlout, the boy feigning innocence as he whistled.
"Why are you looking at me?" he asked.
Hiccup just dropped it. "Come on, guys, I don't want to be here anymore than you do", she sympathized. "Can we just get back to training? Please?"
"I say we play twenty questions instead", Snotlout countered. "Anyone? Anyone? Astrid, why do you love me so much?"
Astrid only gagged, trying to keep her lunch down.
"Me, me, me! I'll go first!" Tuffnut exclaimed. "Question number one―Ow! Owow!" he screamed, Snotlout having signaled Hookfang to pummel Tuffnut with his tail. "How do you play Twenty Questions?" Tuffnut finished.
"Ah", Hiccup groaned and whined at the same time, her head in her hands. "Can we try to stay focused? Even for a second?" she questioned.
"We've been stuck inside for a week straight because of this crazy weather", Aric said, sharpening his ax. "We're all starting to go a little nuts." To prove his point, he pointed out Fishlegs who was in the corner with a sleeping Meatlug.
"Ooh, Mr. Pinky", he talked and played with her claws. "Don't tell the others, but you are my favorite."
"Barf and Belch just found out they have tails!" Ruffnut exclaimed with laughter. "And it looks like they really hate that idea", she said, their dragon chasing and trying to bite their own tail. In reality, what ever crazy was going around was apparently effecting the dragons too.
"Yeah, I got the same way when I found out I had a tail", Tuffnut said. Then he began chasing said tail. "You can't hide from me forever you invisible tail!"
Ruffnut giggled at the action, strolling up to Hiccup who was staring perplexed. "I may have told Tuff he has a tail too", she whispered.
Hiccup sighed exasperated. At this rate it wouldn't be long before she lost her own mind. That's when the door opened, snow flurrying in as the strong frozen winds blew, before it was then pushed closed. It was her dad.
"Odin's Ghost, it's cold out there!" her dad expressed. "Worst freeze in the history of Berk! My― My beard is frozen solid."
"So, father, what brings you to the academy?" Hiccup asked.
"Trader Johann hasn't reported to port. If he's trapped out in this storm, he won't last through the night. I was thinki―"
"Oh, yes, I can go!" Hiccup was practically bouncing. "Uh, you know, Night Furies are great at finding things in the dark", she raced to Toothless' side, her brother sitting up at attention, wanting out just as much. "Toothless and I are the perfect team for the job."
"Eh, I don't know…"
"Please dad!" she interrupted. "If you ever cared for me at all, the way a father cares for his daughter, then you would let me leave", she nearly begged, before directing to the mad house that was this bunker. Her father sighed.
"Bolt the door behind you when you leave?" he made his way out. "Please."
"Yes!" Hiccup jumped.
Hiccup and Toothless both took flight as soon as possible, night on the horizon. As they flew over the ocean, Hiccup rubbed her arms for warmth, temperatures getting colder as the sun dipped lower.
"It's getting pretty dark, bud. Wanna do the honors?" Hiccup asked.
Toothless let out his sonic roar, but as he did, sound waves bounced back from below them. Sensing this, Hiccup looked down, and saw something she'd never seen before.
"Whoa, look at that", she awed, slats of ice frozen solid over the surface of the ocean. "I've never seen the ocean frozen solid before."
"Me neither", Toothless awed at the sight himself.
"It's no wonder Trader Johann can't get to port. No one could get through this." A rumble was then heard, and it caused Hiccup's ears to perk in alert. "Wait, do you hear that?" she asked.
"Hiccup, what is that?" Toothless asked, and Hiccup looked up to see a large moving cloud of frost moving towards them. It continued to move passed and beneath them over the surface of the ice.
"I don't know", Hiccup shook her head. "But I'm glad we're up here, and it's down there."
Toothless used his echolocation again, when his ears perked. "There's something up ahead", he said.
"Then let's go", Hiccup told him, and they raced on forward. Well into the night they flew, sound their only guide, when finally, after hours of searching, Hiccup saw Johann's ship stuck in the ice. "There he is!" Hiccup roared with glee, and they steered towards the boat landing on the figurehead.
"Miss Hiccup, you're a welcome sight for these weary eyes!" Johann said gratefully. After getting him onto Toothless, the trader a tad weary about flying, Hiccup and Toothless set off back to Berk. "In all my years on the briny deep, I have never witnessed a freeze quite like this one; ice as thick as Thor's hammer. I even considered abandoning my ship and traveling to Berk on foot", Johann shared as he sat behind her.
"Well, you won't have to worry about that now, Johann. Just enjoy the ride." As they headed east, the sun was beginning to rise. From that Hiccup realized she and Toothless had been flying all night, so they had another long flight ahead of them to get back. Hiccup didn't mind though. She enjoyed long quiet flights.
"Excellent!" Johann cut through the silence. "We shall pass the time with stories of my grand adventures that are sure to warm your heart and stoke the fires of your imagination. Did I ever tell you about the time I found myself up against the man eating metal masons of Minori Mjore…"
Toothless and Hiccup both looked to one another, each knowing the agonizingly long winded, boring, probably made up stories that were to come. So much for escaping insanity. Even as the sun rose higher into the sky, morning turning into afternoon, Johann went on talking, and talking, and talking.
"...but it was not a yak; it was his daughter!" he was on his tenth story, probably―she'd lost count. "I could not believe! She looked like a yak and her name was Yakmine. And that, Miss Hiccup, is how the King of Ennuden made me an honorary member of his royal court."
Hiccup was sure she was about to lose it, when at last she saw Berk. "Oh look, we're here", she cut Johann's next tale. "Thank Odin", she muttered.
"Thank every god", Toothless added, shaking his head a bit.
When they landed within the village, it was quiet; much too quiet. The streets were bare and still, almost as if it were a ghost town. Wind howled, but no voice was carried.
"Hmm, not the welcome I'm accustomed to, but nonetheless", Johann said, Hiccup and he both getting off Toothless.
"Something's not right" , Toothless growled, crouched in defense. "Stay alert."
"What's going on?" Hiccup wondered.
"This reminds me of the time I arrived on the island of red―"
Hiccup rose her hand, cutting Johann off. Now wasn't the time for another story.
"Hello?! Anyone?! Dad?!" she called, but nothing but still frigid air answered. "Toothless is right. Something's wrong." Walking through town, Hiccup, Toothless, and Johann looked around for anything; some kind of clue as to what was going on, when Hiccup saw an ax standing upright in the ground. Hiccup raced to it, the weapon familiar, when she realized why. "Dad?" It was her father's. Hiccup's heart raced as she rushed home, Toothless and Johann on her tail. The only reason it would be stuck in the ground like that was if there a some kind of fight, and it had been knocked from his hand.
"Miss Hiccup, if you could slow down?" Johann called behind her, but Hiccup didn't listen, thoughts of what happened racing through her mind. Did Dagur attack? How could he have gotten passed the ice? Did he take everyone hostage? When Hiccup reached the house, she slammed the door open, but nothing. The house was perfectly normal. The only thing out of place was the fire going in the pit, and a cup spilled on the ground, almost as if he'd been in a rush. Hiccup picked the cup up, and looked into the emptiness of the house.
"Where are you?" she whispered. From the town, to her house, everything was too orderly and clean; too vacant. Whatever happened, it wasn't the Berserkers. Dagur would have wanted to leave his mark; send a message. No, something else came to Berk, and it either forced an evacuation, or everyone into hiding. But what could have caused Berk to hide? Closing the door, Hiccup and Toothless made their way back down the hill, Johann somewhere behind them.
"Are you okay?" Toothless checked, her brother clearly worried for her.
"Yeah, bud. But we need to look everywhere. Find where they're all hiding", Hiccup was hopeful.
"What would make Vikings hide?"
"I don't know. But whatever it is, it could still be here, so be careful. Johann, check as many houses you can. Toothless and I are gonna do the same before heading for the academy. If you see or hear anything, just scream."
"Of course, Miss Hiccup. I shall search for any who may still be lurking about", Johann replied.
"Thanks, Johann. Let's go, bud." She and Toothless ran off, checking every house, every nook and cranny. Nothing. Barrels were cleaned out, and homes were left similar to how her's was. Definitely signs of an evacuation. But why? Next, she and Toothless flew to the academy. It was the same, the space bare of anything to even suggest anyone had even been there. Then she spotted the cage she and the riders had been hiding out in.
'There', Hiccup thought, and certain, she stepped up to the cage, opened the door, and saw…
"Nothing..."
"Hey", one blue Terrible Terror chirped. He sat on the board, left the same as how she'd left it.
"Well, almost nothing", Hiccup amended. Finding Johann, Hiccup hoped he had more luck than she did, although she doubted it. "Johann, anything?" she asked as Toothless landed.
"The whole town, Miss Hiccup, it's empty", Johann said as Hiccup dismounted.
"I know. It's as if everyone just disappeared? And no sign of whatever caused this", Hiccup said. Deciding they had to keep moving, Hiccup led Toothless and Johann down the empty street.
"I don't like this one bit", he said. "There was one time I was on a trade run with a man who claimed to be a warlock and…" Johann went on with another story, when out of the corner of her eye, Hiccup swore she saw something run passed the semi-opened door of Fishlegs' house.
"Let's go, Toothless. Johann, stay here", Hiccup said, before rushing towards the house with Toothless. Pushing the door open, Hiccup looked inside to find it wasn't quite like the others. Barrels and tables were tipped over, and dishes and bags of food were splayed out on the floor. Someone, or something, was definitely here. "Hello?" she called, further walking inside, when she caught a shadow lurking from above. As soon as she'd turned to look at it, however, the figure fell, and everything went black.
000
Feeling as if a dragon just fell on top of her, Hiccup opened her eyes to find herself on the floor, and Toothless standing over her. "Toothless?" she mumbled. Then a face blocked her vision of Toothless, and a startled scream tore through Hiccup. That is, until she realized it was only one of her best friends. "Fishlegs! Don't scare me like that!" she exclaimed.
"Hiccup, oh thank Thor", Fishlegs picked her up into a tight hug. "I-I'm so sorry I fell on you."
"Okay…Fishlegs…" Hiccup said as her ribs and wings were crushed. He dropped her, Hiccup flopping backwards.
"Fast, really fast, too fast", Fishlegs began to ramble. "Speedy. Oh, and their sting; paralyzing sting!"
"Whoa, hold on, Fishlegs", Hiccup stood herself up. "What are you talking about?"
Fishlegs glanced around as if making sure someone, or something, wasn't listening. "Speed Stingers", he then ominously said.
"Speed Stingers? Here?"
"I hate those guys", Toothless grumbled.
"It all started after nightfall", Fishlegs explained. "They don't fly, but they're fast. Faster than any dragon I've ever seen. And they hide in the shadows. Scavengers. Looking for anything they can find. One drop of their venom can paralyze a human, or dragon, in an instant. They move in a pack following a leader, who directs them like a war chief."
"I know all that, Fishlegs", Hiccup interrupted. "But what about Berk?"
"The attack came out of nowhere, almost like an ambush. We tried to fight them off, but there were just too many. By the time Stoick ordered everybody to the cove, the entire village had been overrun."
"Well, where are the Speed Stingers now?"
Fishlegs began to hyperventilate. "I don't know? The sun came up and they disappeared. But they'll be back. They come out at night."
"I-I don't understand. Why come back here, Fishlegs? Why not stay with everyone else at the cove?"
To answer, Fishlegs brought them outside and looked up. Looking up too, Hiccup saw what kept Fishlegs here. "Just look at her", he said. "So majestic." Up on the roof was Meatlug, paralyzed in a fighting stance.
"How did I miss that?" Hiccup wondered.
"She tried to draw them away so I could escape. I just couldn't leave her."
"How did we miss that?" Johann suddenly stood behind them.
Getting up on the roof, Fishlegs and Johann tried to move Meatlug off from the roof. It didn't appear to be going well.
"So, she eats rocks, you say", Johann said as he pushed from Meatlug's backside, Fishlegs pulling from her raised paw. "That makes sense." Then he got a face full of Meatlug's gas. "Ooh. Oh dear, that's quite an effect." He fell back and out of Hiccup's vision.
"Movement!" Fishlegs exclaimed. "This is very good. It means the paralysis is only temporary. Come up and help, Hiccup", he called her up, so as Toothless climbed, Hiccup leaped and flew up.
"Uh, where's Johann?" she asked, Johann not in sight.
"I'm okay!" Johann's voice rang from below. Hiccup looked over to see him in a cart beside the house. "I actually landed on my fluffy bits!"
"Toothless, you came across Speed Stingers in the past, right?" Hiccup asked.
"Once or twice", Toothless replied.
"What's the deal with this paralysis?" she placed a hand on Meatlug's flank. "How long does it last?"
"Hard to say. I've never been stung."
"It could be hours, or maybe even days before the effect fully wears off." Fishlegs added mulling over the possibilities. "But there's nothing about it in the Book of Dragons or Bork's papers." Fishlegs then stared out over the island towards the sea. "How do you think the Speed Stingers got here? They can't fly."
"If I had to guess, I would say it's 'cause the ocean was frozen solid, creating an ice bridge from their island to ours", Hiccup said. "We need to get to the cove, right away."
Walking around to Meatlug's side of which Fishlegs was also standing, the two pushed, and she fell right into the cart. And also on Johann.
"I'm alright", his muffled voice called.
000
Arriving to the cove, Fishlegs and Johann wheeling Meatlug in, Hiccup didn't see her people; she saw statues. As she walked through the cove, all she saw were her people paralyzed and placed on the grass. Then she came upon one different from the rest. This 'statue' stood on a large rock, his sword raised, frozen in battle.
"Dad", Hiccup breathed. How could she have left?
Thornado sat beside him, looking at her with sad eyes. "He'll be okay", he promised.
"He gave as good as he got, Hiccup", Gobber came up to her. "It took six of those Speed Stingers to freeze the poor bugger."
That only worried Hiccup more, but then her dad began to speak, or at least tried to with his mouth frozen open.
"You bet ya, Chief", Gobber responded.
"What did he say?" Hiccup asked hopeful.
"No clue", Gobber shattered that hope. "Don't want to make him feel worse than he already does", he whispered.
"I should have been here", Hiccup admitted. "Toothless and I could have helped!"
"Nonsense, lass, there were too many of them. Nothing would have mattered."
Hiccup wished she could have believed that.
"Tell ya one thing", Gobber continued. "Those Stingers would be dining on smoked sturgeon and yak jerky if it weren't for your father."
Her dad tried speaking again, words unrecognizable.
"Couldn't agree with ya more, Stoick!" Gobber replied, before shrugging to Hiccup.
"HICCUP!" Hiccup heard Aric's voice, and she turned to see him running towards her.
"Aric!" Hiccup felt some relief come back to her, and barreled herself into him. They hugged each other for a moment, before letting go. Aric stood back a bit. "How's everyone else?" Hiccup had to know.
"Everyone's fine. Well, except for…" he looked to Snotlout, whom was being slapped with his own frozen hands by the twins.
"Stop hitting yourself", Ruffnut teased.
"Stop hitting yourself, stop hitting yourself", Tuffnut followed. "Stop picking your own nose, stop scratching yourself…" he continued, Hiccup, Aric, Gobber, and now Astrid watching the scene.
"Actually if you think about it, it's really not so bad", Aric said.
"If he stayed like this forever, I wouldn't complain", Astrid added.
000
It had been a while since she'd arrived, and Hiccup spent that time thinking. She sat against her father's pedestal, tail wrapped around her legs, drawing a Speed Stinger in the dirt as her father's shadow encased her small form. Six stings was so many; too many. Would the venom ever wear off? Would her dad ever be the same? Who knew the effects so much paralyzing venom could have on a human? She shouldn't have left. Her father wouldn't have left. He dealt with crazy Vikings everyday, yet when it just came to her friends acting wild, she bailed like a coward. And now, more than half the village was paralyzed, including her own family. If she had stayed, if she had been there, maybe she and Toothless could have saved him; maybe they could have saved them all.
"It's gonna be dark soon", Aric appeared in her peripheral vision. "The Speed Stingers will be back for the rest of the food. Everyone wants to know what we're gonna do."
Before deciding on her answer, Hiccup looked up to her father's frozen form one last time. 'Maybe we still can', she thought. "Gather the other riders", she stood. "We're heading out." Erasing her drawing, Hiccup laid in wait for Aric to come back.
"Okay, we're ready", Aric said as he came back with Astrid, Fishlegs, and the twins in tow.
"Guys, these dragons only come out at night", Hiccup started off. "So, we need to find where they sleep during the day. The only problem is, we need to find their nest before sundown, or…"
"Can we not think about the or?" Astrid asked.
"Please?" Fishlegs agreed. "They came out of nowhere, like a pack of wild badgers. Scavenging, and-and-and―"
"And badge-ge-ging", Tuffnut said. Everyone looked to him confused. What was that even supposed to mean? "What? That's what a badger does? It badges."
"Well, thanks for that", Hiccup stated. "Uh, lets go!"
"Hold up!" Snotlout's voice paused the group. "You're not going on a Stinger hunt without me." It appeared that his head was now mobile, allowing him to talk, and for him to use the strength from his neck to stand himself up straight from the wall he had been lent up against.
"Whoa. That is seriously creepy", Tuffnut commented.
"His paralysis is wearing off", Astrid said non to happily.
"Lucky us", Aric followed. "Snotlout, unless you plan on flying Hookfang with your teeth, you're not going anywhere." But Snotlout never knew when to take 'no' for an answer. Hiccup had gathered up her shield, Aric his ax, Astrid her sword, when suddenly Snotlout was walking up to them.
"Snotlout Jorgenson reporting for duty", Snotlout saluted.
"What the―?" Aric asked, visibly confused.
Hiccup stepped closer to Snotlout, confused herself, until she saw another pair of feet behind Snotlout. She bent down and lent to the right to get a look. That was when Gustav showed, lifting Snotlout's arm out of his way.
"I'm Snotlout's arms and legs, Hiccup", he said proudly. "And together we are…"
" "Guslout" " the two said together, Gustav lifting Snotlout's left foot, and shaking Snotlout's hands in a jazz hands gesture.
"Stop with the hands", Snotlout told Gustav, and the boy stopped, dropping Snotlout's limbs. "Hiccup, you need as much dragon power as you can get", he then argued. Hiccup wasn't sure.
"I can't believe I'm actually about to say this, but he's right", Aric said surprisingly.
"You're kidding, right?" Hiccup checked.
"You heard what Gobber said; there are hundreds of them", Aric answered seriously.
"Alright, fine", Hiccup conceded.
"Yes!" Snotlout exclaimed. "Move my arm", he muttered over to Gustav. "Yes!" he then said again, but this time with his hand held in a thumbs up.
"Let's split up, and search for possible Speed Stinger hiding spots."
"Okey dokey, Hiccup", Gustav said, then proceeded in trying to walk Snotlout to Hookfang. "Come on. Let's go. Move with me", he muttered.
"Fishlegs, how's Meatlug doing?" Hiccup asked.
"She is raring to go, Hiccup", Fishlegs said. "Look at her." Looking, Meatlug's upper half seemed to be free, while her lower half was still frozen. Nevertheless, her wings worked, and she made great work of those, dragging herself along the ground. Up until she crashed.
"So what's the actual plan?" Aric asked.
"They follow they're leader in a giant pack, right?" Hiccup started.
"That's what I saw", Fishlegs affirmed.
"So the plan is, find the Speed Stingers, capture their leader, and use it to lead them away", Hiccup told them, and the riders all went to their dragons. But as Hiccup climbed on Toothless, she couldn't help, but to look to her father one more time. "Don't worry, dad", she whispered. "I'm gonna fix everything."
000
The riders all split up to search each section of the island. Astrid looked towards the mountains, she and Stormfly searching their caves. Taking a page from her brother's book of tricks, Stormfly's magnesium fire lit the darkness as it sat in her mouth like a torch. Hiccup, Aric, and Fishlegs all had different areas of forest, each with their own set of caves and caverns to search. Toothless had the advantage of echolocation, while Meatlug struggled to fly straight, the poor girl trying her hardest as Fishlegs encouraged her. The twins both had the village. They kicked down each and every door to every building, Ruffnut holding a spear as Tuffnut held a sword. At the last house, Tuffnut decided this time he'd enter slowly, his sister behind him, when Ruffnut poked his tail bone with her spear.
"Ahh!" Tuffnut screamed as he fell forward. "I've been stung!" he rubbed his backside. "I can't feel my tail!"
Ruffnut simply laughed, holding her spear up.
"When this paralysis wears off, you're dead."
Meanwhile, Gustav had been tasked in trying to fly Hookfang for Snotlout as they checked the beaches, which wasn't exactly the easiest of jobs.
"Okay, up, up, up is where the sky is, down is where the land is", Snotlout was bossing.
"I can't see, Snotlout, you're head's too big", Gustav complained, before tapping Hookfang twice with his foot. Hookfang responded, turning around with a flip that turned them upside down, and without his hands, Snotlout fell head first straight into the sand. Unfortunately, Gustav knew he couldn't leave him there, so he landed Hookfang onto the sand to dig him out.
"There will definitely be repercussions for this", Snotlout muffled out.
000
The riders all regrouped in the village, Fishlegs and Meatlug the last to arrive.
"So, anything?" Hiccup asked.
"Nothing", Aric said.
"Not a single Stinger", Astrid followed.
"Us neither", Fishlegs added.
"I got stung", Tuffnut said.
"No you didn't", Ruffnut countered.
"Are we sure we've checked every cave?" Hiccup checked. That's when she noticed Snotlout hadn't said anything. In fact, as soon as she'd asked, he'd been avoiding any and all eye contact. "Snotlout, did you check your caves?" she accused.
"Really? I'm insulted, Hiccup. Of course I did.", Snotlout defended. "Do you think I fell off my dragon, and spent hours trying to get out of the sand? Ha-ha! I didn't."
"He fell off his dragon and we spent hours trying to get him out of the sand", Gustav very, very quickly said.
"Gustav, make me punch you!" Snotlout yelled. Instead, Gustav made Snotlout punch himself.
"Never gets old", Tuffnut laughed with Ruffnut.
"Well, we know where to look", Hiccup figured. "Let's go!"
The riders fanned out across the beaches, Hookfang carrying the cage, when Astrid came across the very dragons they were searching for. Meeting just outside the cave, the cage placed, Hiccup stood beside Toothless with her shield. Sundown was upon them, so they had to move quick.
"Fishlegs, you and I will go in", Hiccup instructed. "Everyone else, stand on guard in case they wake up. And Gustav, you stay here with Snotlout and Hookfang."
"Right", Snotlout gave a thumbs up. "Hey", he exclaimed joyfully. "I did that all by myself!" His party was cut short though when Tuffnut slunk on by and shoved said thumb up into Snotlout's nose.
"Okay, gang, we're gonna have to move fast, because it will be sun down soon, and we have got to get that lead Stinger out of there. Without him, the pack is useless." With Fishlegs and Toothless at her side, Hiccup ventured into the cave. Around them, dozens of Speed Stingers slept completely unaware of their presence.
"Hiccup", Fishlegs whispered. "There he is", he pointed, and on a stalactite above was where a much larger Speed Stinger slept, his body and tail curled around it as he hung upside down. There were red stripes along his head and body, as well as a unique red dorsal fin on his head, as opposed to green the rest of the pack shared. Carefully taking aim, Hiccup clicked the trigger, and a bola silently shot out. It perfectly wrapped around the dragon, and Toothless leaped over to grab him. All that was left was to drag the dragon out, but as Hiccup and Fishlegs did so sundown came, and almost immediately, the Speed Stingers woke up.
"Um…Hiccup?" Fishlegs looked back worried. The pack was all stalking towards them, their leader staring at them with a death glare.
"We need to get this Stinger into the cage now!", Hiccup said urgently, her and Toothless trying to pull faster. But it was too late, as the alpha Stinger broke from the ropes and attacked. His tail struck for Hiccup first, Hiccup dodging away, and Toothless shot two plasma blasts in retaliation; one to push the Stinger back, and the other as a warning to stay back.
"Attack!" the alpha Stinger roared, but as the pack was about to exit the cave, they were suddenly blocked by a wall of fire. Hiccup turned to see it was Gustav, Snotlout sitting on Hookfang behind him. Hiccup smiled, Gustav's classes with her paying off.
"That's right!" Snotlout exclaimed, looking to be free from the Stinger's venom as he punched his arms into the air. "Snotlout, Snotlout! Oi! Oi! Oi―" That is until the alpha Speed Stinger jumped and stung his backside.
Back to the ground the alpha and Toothless sized each other up. They circled one another, Toothless giving the Speed Stinger the chance to back down. Many species of dragons didn't fight if they didn't have to; however, those dragons respected the claim of a dragon's territory. Like the Whispering Death, Speed Stingers didn't appear to be one of those.
"He's too fast, Hiccup!" Fishlegs warned atop of Meatlug behind her.
"Not for a Night Fury!", Hiccup said confidently.
The Speed Stinger attacked first, striking his tail down. He nearly nicked Toothless' snout , but he'd jumped back in time, before immediately attacking with a plasma blast of which the Speed Stinger quickly jumped away from too. The Speed Stinger then changed his target to her. He struck his tail out, Hiccup blocking with her shield, but then he whipped and thrust his tail to the side. The force pulled her shield straight from her hand. In response, Toothless leaped over the Speed Stinger and caught the flying shield, immediately throwing it back to Hiccup, and the Halfling flawlessly catching it.
"Thanks, bud!" she called.
The alpha on the run, Toothless chased after him. The dragon leaped onto the rock structures, Toothless shooting two more plasma blasts, and Toothless jumped after him. The Speed Stinger ran, his pack being kept behind Hookfang's fire, when he screeched.
"Jump, now!"
On command, the pack jumped over the fire, quickly surrounding the riders. Hiccup raced to Toothless, needing to get them both in the air.
"Aric! Follow us!" Hiccup called, before Toothless leaped into the air.
"I think I know where you're going with this", Aric said as he and Shadowstar followed the duo.
Toothless shot one plasma blast down at the alpha Stinger, forcing him to jump back towards the cage a little ways behind him. Shadowstar followed suit, pushing him further back with two more plasma blasts. He was almost there, but not enough.
"Shadowstar, time to spike that Stinger", Aric then said, and Shadowstar shot a line of spines. As the alpha backed away from each spine, he walked right into the cage. With one more shot from Shadowstar's plasma blasts, the cage closed and locked.
"Yes! Got him!" Hiccup exclaimed. Stormfly landed on the cage to fly the alpha far away, but then the Stingers went into a frenzy to get their alpha back, and Astrid and Stormfly were trapped.
"Hiccup, there's too many of them!" Astrid shouted, unable to move without possibly getting stung. "We're surrounded!"
Hiccup tried to think of something to scare the pack off, but soon she didn't have to as a Thunderdrum's roar blew them all away. It was her dad, and he was riding Thornado.
"Dad, you're okay", Hiccup said with relief, her dad moving normally as he hopped off Thornado.
"Well, you didn't think I'd let you have all the fun, did you?" he said rounding the cage that held the Speed Stingers' alpha. "Remember me?!" he stared down the dragon, the Stinger only responding with an angry screech. "Now get him off my island", her dad said.
"You heard the Chief!" Hiccup exclaimed with a smile.
"With pleasure", Astrid said, and Stormfly lifted the cage in her claws.
000
Astrid and Stormfly led the Speed Stingers through the island, Aric and Hiccup right behind her and keeping the pack from getting too close with their dragons' plasma blasts. It wasn't long before Astrid caught sight of the ice bridge and flew down the hills of Berk, leading the Speed Stingers off the island. In Astrid and Stormfly's excitement, though, Stormfly had descended too fast. It made it more difficult for her to stop, and she got too close to the ice bridge below. It seemed the Speed Stinger dragons didn't miss an opportunity, because right then and there, a Speed Stinger had suddenly jumped onto the cage.
"Stormfly!" was all Astrid could shout before her dragon was stung. Stormfly crashed to the ground, the Speed Stinger thrown off in the process, and the two became sitting ducks to an oncoming pack of angry and wild Speed Stingers.
000
When Astrid went down, Hiccup knew straight away what to do, intent on protecting Astrid and getting that pack as far away from Berk as possible.
"We'll get the cage! Aric, you cover Astrid!" Hiccup directed, and she dove for the cage.
As Aric and Shadowstar blasted the ice around Astrid, creating a moat around her, Toothless took the cage holding the alpha. The Speed Stingers were forced to race around Astrid and Stormfly as they now chased Hiccup and Toothless. With no backup, Hiccup had to defend against the Stingers trying to jump and sting them herself. She used her shield to block against them and shove them off, and one even went for her left leg. The dragon had screeched in confusion when all he'd hit was metal.
"Weren't expecting the old metal leg, were ya", Hiccup bantered. "There, Toothless", she then pointed ahead. "That should be far enough."
That was when a Speed Stinger tried stinging Toothless' tail fin, ripping his prosthetic one instead.
"Toothless, we're going down!" Hiccup roared in freight and surprise.
"Hold on!" Toothless roared the same tones.
They crashed onto the ice, the cage thrown from Toothless' claws. It broke apart on impact letting the alpha Stinger escape, while Hiccup and Toothless stood at the ready.
The alpha threateningly hissed. "We don't normally go for human or dragon flesh, but now..." His stance was purely predatory. "I'll make an exception", he growled.
"Nice try, but you're not scaring us away!" Hiccup roared in confidence, then clicked the trigger on her shield. The cap flew off, but no bola came out. "No, no, no!", Hiccup nearly panicked. "Toothless!" she called, but apparently it hadn't been long enough for his fire to regenerate. When he tried to fire, nothing even built up. "And, no plasma blasts", Hiccup drawled. "Great."
"KILL!" the alpha roared, and the pack echoed it.
"Ready Toothless!" Hiccup roared, no other option than to hold their ground. The Speed Stingers charged, racing at them with the intent to paralyze and kill, but before they could reach them, fire rained from the sky.
"Hookfang, fire!"
It was the riders! Specifically Fishlegs, the twins, and Snotlout. And with Hookfang's fire, a wall was formed between Hiccup and Toothless and the Stingers. Once the fire dissipated, a break in the bridge had also been formed, ocean now the barrier. The alpha of the Stingers roared with frustration and anger, but with one last angered look, led his pack down the bridge, and hopefully back to where ever they'd come from.
"Nice shooting, Snotlout!" Hiccup shouted up as Hookfang landed, surprised at how fast the venom was already starting to wear off on him.
"Ha, no problem Hiccup", he said, his two hands strangely stiff on Hookfang's horns. "Ah!" he was easily flipped to Hookfang's underbelly, revealing Gustav behind him.
"Yeah, no problem, Hiccup", Gustav repeated.
Hiccup shook her head with a small smile; she should have known. Hookfang took off into the air again, Snotlout dangling. "Hey, put me DOWN! Repercussions! REPERCUSSIONS!"
While Gustav and Hookfang continued to mess with Snotlout, Ruff and Tuff flew Barf and Belch to Toothless, and the dragon picked him up in their claws for the flight home.
000
By the next morning, everyone save Snotlout and Stormfly were completely free from the Speed Stinger's venom, and they were all able to return to Berk to resume life as normal. Well, as normal as Berk could be.
With most of the ice over the ocean melted, Hiccup flew Johann back to his ship. She could hear Snotlout's shouts as the twins and Gustav continued to torture her poor cousin. The flight didn't take too long, as the boat had evidently drifted closer to the island.
"Thank you again for the rescue, Miss Hiccup", Johann said once they landed.
"No problem, Johann. I'm just glad everything's back to normal", Hiccup said, and she meant it. Johann stepped off, and then went to a pile of some of his trinkets.
"Before you go, I have something for you", he told her as he rummaged through. "A little token of my appreciation." He turned around and held out a bottle. "Pure squid ink", he announced. "Wrestled from the colossal squid of the Northern Waters."
"Wow, thanks Johann", Hiccup was genuinely surprised and grateful; he'd actually remembered.
"Yes, and there is actually a wonderful story that goes along with that bottle. Ten summers ago, deep under the currents of the Northern Waters, I was staring directly into the black eye…"
"What do you say we get out of here?" Hiccup trilled. As surprised and touched as Hiccup was that he'd went through all the trouble to get her a new bottle of squid ink, she wasn't willing to sit through another exaggerated story.
"I thought you'd never ask!" Toothless roared in glee, and before one could say dragon, they took off.
If you look to my profile page, I officially changed the update schedule. It's been decided.