"The difference between a successful person and others is not lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will." – Vince Lombardi

Chapter 16

I returned to Dragon's Edge with a huge smile on my face. Then I saw Heather and Dagur waiting for me, and I suddenly felt extremely self-conscious. I know they just wanted to help, but the idea of talking about what happened was too embarrassing. I dashed into my hut without looking at them. I closed the door and turned around. I nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw the siblings had somehow made it there before me.

"Brennda, you're back!" Dagur said happily.

"How did it go with Harald?" Heather asked with a smile.

I flushed. "I, uh, we don't need to talk about that."

Heather smirked. "That good, huh?"

"Don't worry," Dagur said. "Heather updated me on everything!"

I winced. Great. I gave Heather a desperate look. "I know I said I want him to help, but talking to him will be awkward..."

"Then talk to me," Heather said. "Don't focus on him."

"Hey!" Dagur protested.

I took a deep breath. "Alright." It would be good to obtain some insight. "So... remember what I said about Harald being receptive to my physical affection?"

Heather nodded.

"I tried that, and it worked. Really well. He let his guard down and allowed himself to enjoy my touch. I was in control for once... until he kissed me."

Heather grinned. "You did a really good job."

I smiled tentatively. "Yeah. Not that it wasn't wonderful, but it made it hard to talk and get him to open up. I didn't think it would get that far."

Heather raised her eyebrows. "He's a guy. What did you expect?"

"But he's always so control of his emotions."

"And he's still human." Heather shook her head. "Honestly, I'm surprised he lasted this long. If it wasn't for the gas masks you had to wear on Dragon Island, I bet he would have kissed you then."

I blushed. "N-Not true." Then I remembered the way he had looked at me. Maybe it was true.

Heather smirked. "Anyway, I think you made progress. It sounds like physical touch is his weakness. You could use it sparingly in the future to get him to be honest with you."

"You can use it against him to get you to do what you want!" Dagur said a little too excitedly. He pounded his fist into his palm. "You could crush him!"

I gaped at him. "No! That's the opposite of what I want to do!" I turned to Heather. "I thought you explained things to him."

"I did," Heather said.

"She said you want to beat him," Dagur said with a wicked grin.

Heather shot her brother a look. "She's in love with him, Dagur. Beating him means bringing him over to her side."

Dagur blinked. "Oh. You should have been more specific."

Heather rolled her eyes. "Next time I'll remember I'm not talking to someone who's sane."

"Anyway," I said, "Dagur, I do want your advice. Stormheart certainly complicates things, but even leaving her aside, I'm afraid Harald is going to run again because I got too close. He's always done it, even when he was pretending to be our friend on the Edge. Every time I made progress, he suddenly grew cold and distant."

"That makes sense," Dagur said. "You made him feel vulnerable, and no one likes that."

"He's afraid of getting hurt," Heather added.

I nodded. "He has abandonment issues. I keep trying to show him I won't hurt him, but I don't think he's gotten the message yet. And he seems to believe caring about someone is a weakness."

"That's because it is a weakness," Dagur said.

Heather frowned at him. "Dagur..."

"But I won't hurt him," I said.

"Doesn't matter," said Dagur. "Other people can hurt you."

I stared at him, uncomprehending. "What?"

"Think about it. It's easy when you only have to look after yourself. Decisions are simple calculations about what will benefit you the most. But when you suddenly have another person to consider..." His eyes flickered to Heather. "It complicates everything. Suddenly, part of your happiness depends on another person's happiness, and you can't control that. There's so much that can go wrong. And that's terrifying."

"I... never thought about it that way." But it made perfect sense.

Dagur grinned. "That's why you need me. It's different for you because you have a whole community of people who care about you, but for guys like Harald and me? One person can mess everything up. What if one of his enemies finds out about you and threatens to hurt you to get him to do what they want? That's villain 101. And what if one of his allies hurts you in a battle? What if Stormheart orders him to hurt you?"

I met his steady gaze. "Like how Viggo ordered you to kill Heather?" I remembered that night perfectly. I don't think any of us expected the outcome.

"Exactly."

"How did you... deal with it?" I glanced at Heather to see if she was uncomfortable with the questioning, but she seemed just as interested in his answer as me.

"There are only two ways to handle that type of weakness. First, you can do everything you can to destroy your feelings. But it must be absolute. There's no room for playing in the middle. The second is to realize your priories have altered and do everything you can to protect the other person. That is when caring becomes a strength. You're never stronger than when you have someone to protect." Dagur smiled at Heather, and she smiled back at him.

I nodded. "Destroy the weakness or turn it into a strength... That actually makes a lot of sense."

Dagur grinned. "See? I know what I'm talking about!"

"Harald has definitely not chosen the first option," Heather said. "He does try to protect her whenever he can."

"But I don't know if I can say he's chosen the second," I said. "He's in denial about it at least. He's still trying not to care. He just... can't."

"That's good news for you," Dagur said. "If he can't commit to the first option, he will eventually move onto the second. He may think he can give in only a little, but that won't work in the long run. Eventually he will have to choose, and the longer he takes to make a decision, the harder it will be to not give in."

"So... This hot and cold attitude is a good sign?"

"Yes! That's what I'm saying!"

"Let's just hope he realized the truth before it gets too dangerous," Heather said. "While it may work, we do not want to have to resort to putting Brennda's life on the line."

"Agreed," I said.

Dagur grinned at us. "Stick with me, and I'll help you figure him out! And if you need help with a real battle, like a fight against Stormheart, I'm here for that too!"

I laughed at his enthusiasm. "Thanks, Dagur. I appreciate it." I paused. "And I'm really glad you're on our side."

Dagur smiled. "So am I, little Berserker."

The following day, Astrid, Heather, and I created machines using Deadly Nadder spines to scare off the wild Triple Stryke if she returned. After that, Dagur insisted on training with me. He wanted to teach me how to be a proper Berserker. Whatever that means.

The next morning, he gathered Astrid, Fishlegs, and me together at the base. "We need to figure out why the Triple Stryke acted so aggressively," he said. "I can't bear the idea of something like this happening to Sleuther. If anyone hurt my baby I'd take my axe and I'd-"

I cleared my throat. "Dagur..."

Dagur grinned. "Sorry. I got carried away."

"You do have a point," Astrid said. "That Triple Stryke reacted to the clicking sounds of the Nadder spines, but when we got close, it all went wrong. Something stuck in my mind about how that dragon was acting. The only time I've ever come across a dragon this unstable was when all our dragons were infested by those awful Grimora. I wonder if the Triple Stryke is infested by them..."

"That idea had occurred to me, too!" Fishlegs said.

"What exactly are Grimora?" I asked.

"The Grimora are worm-like parasites with tiny wings and sharp teeth that latch onto passing dragons. Once they latch on, the crawl under a dragon's scales and inject a toxin that drives a good dragon mad. They're relentless, and we know only one of their weaknesses: salt. Lucky for us, they're quite rare and only live in freshwater biomes such as ponds, lakes, streams, rivers and wetlands!"

"Yo Fishlegs, my man!" Tuffnut said as he sauntered over to us. "Did you just say 'Grimora'? I see you've been to Hobblegrunt Island, too. Ruffnut and I think that they might be living in those weird patches of water that just popped up. We're keeping Barf and belch away, but Ruffnut thinks we might be able to get them to feed on me. I can't wait!"

I gave him an odd look. "You have a weird idea of fun."

"Wait, you saw Grimora at Hobblegrunt Island?" Fishlegs said. "What ecosystem could they have found on that island since there are no freshwater lakes? Well, whatever the answer, this is huge news. We need to tell Hiccup right away! "

We found Hiccup at his hut and told him the news. He decided we should go to Hobblegrunt Island and check for Grimora. Upon arriving, we did indeed find a strange pool of water... and inside swam the tiny Grimora.

"Well, we found them," Hiccup said. "That Triple Stryke must have gotten too close to the pond and gotten infected. I don't know how Stormheart is involved, but it looks like it might have been an accident."

I shrugged. "Maybe. Harald does seem to like this island a whole lot..."

"We need to figure out a way to keep our dragons from making the same mistake without destroying this ecosystem. Come to think of it, I don't even know how this pond got here; it wasn't here last week."

"Of course this wasn't here before," Fishlegs said. "It's a vernal pool! Vernal pools are temporary pools of water that usually form in the spring and dry up by summer. While they're full, they function as a habitat for plants, amphibians (like salamanders), and reptiles (such as turtles). These creatures migrate to vernal pools because they are isolated sources of water. The young ones can grow strong here without the threat of predators."

"How long will the pool be here?" I asked.

"This little microcosm of life won't last more than a few months. The Grimora rely on their habitat, like all animals, so they'll have to move on once the vernal pool dries up. This means nature will take care of the problem in the long run, so we just need to find a short term solution!"

"Allow me to interrupt, esteemed Vikings," Ruffnut said. "The 'Nuts have been preparing for just this occasion. Tuffnut is currently working feverishly to finish painting signs we can place around the vernal pool. Wild dragons will come by, see the sign, and stay away! "

Astrid gave her a look. "Ruffnut, dragons can't read... "

"Wait Astrid," said Hiccup. "Ruffnut, that's not a bad idea! That will warn dragon riders away from the Grimora, at least."

So, we waited for Tuffnut to return with the signs, which turned out looking pretty good. Hiccup and Dagur dug dirt mounds on either side of the vernal pool, and Tuffnut and I hammered them in.

"You know, that sign doesn't look half bad," Hiccup said.

"Whoo!" Dagur exclaimed. "Digging these mounds really eased the tension in my shoulders. Take it from me: sweating really cools out the anger.

I smirked at him. "I bet. How does the sign look?"

"I love it! Little flying worm parasites like the Grimora aren't my thing, but you know what? They're exactly Heather's style. Ha! I love my weird little sister."

"Good idea," Hiccup said. "I'll go talk to her at the School and see if we can come up with a solution to treat the infected Triple Stryke."

After Hiccup took off, the rest of us returned to Dragon's Edge. Dagur and I trained together for awhile. The next day, we decided to go to the School together to check up on Heather. We did not get far before someone at the School called my name:

"Brennda! Over here!"

I turned around to see Eret jogging towards me, trailed by Skulder. I gave them a small smile. "Hey, guys. What's going on?"

"Nothing," Eret said. "We just haven't seen you in awhile."

"Sorry about that. We've been... dealing with something on Dragon's Edge."

"Krogan?"

"Pirates!" Dagur said much too cheerfully for the situation.

"Pirates?" Skulder squeaked, his eyes wide in fear.

"I take it Harald's back?" Eret said.

I nodded. "Yep. And he brought friends. A whole crew of them. Harald introduced me to their captain: Nikora Stormheart."

"Stormheart?" Eret repeated.

"Do you know her?"

"Not personally, but..." He looked around at each of us. "During my trapper days, I occasionally ran into warriors from the Mongrel tribe. Their leader, King Stormheart, was killed by Drago. His daughters, Nikora and Eir, escaped with their lives."

"And now Nikora's here." My eyes narrowed in thought. "That's... interesting. Thank you, Eret. Do you have any idea if she's a friend or foe?"

"Of course she's a foe if she's some pirate captain," Skulder said.

"Your jumpy friend is probably right," Dagur said.

"I couldn't say either way," Eret said. "And before you ask, I do not have any idea what she's doing here."

"Nothing good, I can tell you that much," Skulder said.

"Well, she claims she wants peace," I said. "But she also said she'd destroy us if we got in her way..."

"And she sent a Grimora-infected Triple Stryke to attack Dragon's Edge," Dagur added.

"We don't know know that for sure."

"So, what's the plan?" Eret asked.

"Right now we're trying to figure out how to deal with the Triple Stryke. As for Stormheart... We need to be ready to defend ourselves, but we have to be careful not to instigate anything. We don't need to give her an excuse to attack us."

"She may not need an excuse," Dagur said.

"If she starts something, that gives us the moral high ground. And it's what Hiccup wants."

"Sounds like a plan to me," Eret said. "Let me know if there's anything I can do to help."

I gave him a small smile. "Thanks." I turned to Dagur. "Let's go talk to Heather."

"Brennda!" Eret called after me. "One last thing!"

I stopped and looked back at him. "Yes?"

He appeared to hesitate before responding. "Be careful in how you deal with Harald from now on. The rules are different now that he is working under someone else. There are benefits to that, but also... restrictions."

I noted the conflicting emotions in his eyes. I wanted to ask for more information, but there was no time. "Thank you. I will keep that in mind." Then I left and headed to the lab with Dagur.

"Brennda and Dagur!" Heather said when she spotted us. "What a pleasant surprise, unlike some Grimora we know. Who would have thought Hobblegrunt Island would become so dangerous overnight? Hiccup and I have been talking about what we can do. I hope we can find something."

"This has turned into an interesting week," I agreed.

"Speaking of accidentally exposure to supremely dangerous things: Johann has been asking for you. I wonder if it's about the conversation you had with Stormheart... (I was kidding about the 'dangerous' thing, of course. Johann is a dear.)"

I rolled my eyes. "Great. Probably more trouble. I'll go find him. Thanks, Heather." I wandered away from the lab in search of the trader. I found him at his trading post, appearing as nervous as the last time I saw him.

"Brennda!" he said in relief. "I am in dire need of your assistance! I'm so flustered I can barely think straight."

"If this is about pirates..."

Johann shook his head vigorously. "No, no! Earlier this week I was at Auction Island acquiring a set of rare gears that would be perfect for Hiccup's Dragon Eye project. A group of ruffians stole my boat with the package in it! It is imperative that we get the ship - and the goods - back! It is a unique ship with a horned dragon figurehead. Please, good Viking, can you help me out?"

I remembered Hiccup saying he intended to build a second Dragon Eye. It would probably be helpful to get those items back. "Fine. I suppose I can take a look for it."

"Sounds like a trip to Auction Island is in order!" Dagur said from behind me, causing me to nearly jump out of my skin. "(Sorry-not-sorry for eavesdropping.) That place is a festering pit of villainy, but I'll watch your back. We'll wrap this up quicker than you can say 'Ragnorok' five times over."

I sighed and shook my head at his enthusiasm. "Fine. It will be safer with the two of us."

Dagur grinned. "Off to Auction Island!"

We first checked in with Hiccup and Heather to let them know what we were doing. Then we took off on our dragons. Upon arriving at Auction Island, we told Bolt and Sleuther to circle around nearby for safety.

Dagur looked quite satisfied to be at our destination. "Breathe in and let the smell of this place soak into your bones, Brennda. This is the good stuff, the scent of saltwater and danger. How can anyone ask for more?"

I lifted my eyebrows. "Right..."

"Heather made me promise that I'd let you do all the talking, and that's probably for the best. Lead on! Let's find some scoundrel who's ready to spill his guts. (Figuratively, I promise.)"

"No problem!" I led the way up the steps to the main part of the island. "Don't worry, I've worked these guys before."

"Really?"

"Yep. I've been here with Eret." We reached the trading center, and I motioned for Dagur to stay behind. Then I approached the first dragon hunter I spotted. "Hey there, you wouldn't have happened to see a ship with a horned dragon figurehead around here, have you?"

The dragon hunter frowned. "A horned dragon ship... I don't think I've seen any of those around here recently. I'll need a little something if you want to jog my memory. You know, you look a little familiar... I don't think I like the look of your face." He moved in too close to me and leered at me.

"Never mind," I said quickly. I darted away before he could pick a fight. Looking around, I spotted that shifty storekeeper I had talked to in the past about Harald. Perhaps he would be willing to help me out now. I approached him and asked about the ship.

The storekeeper appeared to think about the question. "Hmm... there was a fight about that ship earlier this week. I was surprised; we haven't had a proper fist fight here in a month and the skinny guy didn't seem the fighting type. I was busy so I didn't get to watch... what a tragedy. I think the other guy mentioned that the ship was going to make a stop at Scuttleclaw Island. Maybe you'll find it there?"

"Great. Thank you!" I returned to Dagur and reported the news.

Dagur grinned at me. "You've got a knack for this detective stuff! Have you ever considered a change in scenery? I could use a sharp wit and a keen eye at Berserker Island. Odin knows Gustav didn't work out."

I chuckled lightly. "Maybe one day, Dagur."

"Well, look at us... we're getting a little ahead of ourselves, aren't we? We need to clean our plate before we can eat delicious yak pudding. Scuttleclaw Island ho!"

His attitude was infectious, and I found myself looking forward to the next part of our adventure. We reached Scuttlclaw Island and flew around in search of the ship. I spotted it first and led Dagur right to it.

"Ah hah! It looks like the ship has some guardians," Dagur said. "I'm so glad I tagged along - I love a challenge!"

I carefully inspected the ship. It was odd that there were no people around. Although, like Dagur said, there were some weird figures with weapons moving around. "Very strange..."

"Hmm... What do you think those things are, Sleuther? They look a little bit like Hiccup's targeting dummies except they're moving on their own. How is that happening?"

"Whoever took the ship must be pretty smart."

"Whatever. They're standing in our way but not for much longer. Let's take out their weapons!"

"I'm on it!" I flew closer to the ship and had Bolt shoot at the crossbows. The figures turned on us and raised their weapons.

"It looks like they plan on raising some objections. It must be my lucky day! As always, my trusty crossbow is armed and ready. I'm ready to fight if you are. Land on the ship and we'll crush these thieves!"

I flew down to the ship and landed next to Dagur. "Looks like we'll get some good use out of all our practice." I withdrew the ice axe Astrid gave me and charged. Dagur was right beside me, mauling down everything in his path. Soon, the ship was void of enemies.

Dagur grinned at our success. "Whoo! Justice is served and good wins. Destroying things feels so much better when you're on the side of good. I should have switched sides ages ago. Ha ha!"

I chuckled. "Better late than never."

"Now to reap the fruits of our labors. Let's go look for Johann's crate of goods!"

I searched around the ship for a crate. I found one in the back, and my heart immediately sunk. "Oh no..." I stared at the familiar symbol carved on the crate.

Dagur came up beside me to inspect it. "You know, Johann doesn't seem like the 'purple swirly' type to me. Do you think this symbol belongs to him?"

I took a deep breath. "Nope. That would be Stormheart's symbol. And that means this is her crate."

"Well, we can't just leave it stranded where anyone can take it. We'll have to make sure to get it back into the right hands."

"But that means this ship..."

"Probably also belong to Stormheart?"

I nodded.

Dagur slapped my back. "Don't look so glum! We still have work to do. I'll take this boat into safe waters while you get some answers from Johann. He's got some explaining to do."

I broke from my panic at the mention of Johann. My eyes tightened. "He certainly does. I'll take the crate back to Hiccup and see what he wants to do." I managed to lift the crate onto Bolt's back and held it steady as we flew.

"Let's go Sleuther, my stalwart companion!" I heard Dagur say below us. "Sailing might be slower than our usual pace, but I'll show you how to properly rig a ship. Everyone could always learn new skills, and who knows? Maybe you'll save my life with it one day."

His ridiculousness somewhat eased me. Still, I feared what was to come now. Something was wrong. And no matter what Johann said, I had the feeling Dagur and I just made a fatal error.

A/N: Ah, I love Dagur. Johann, not so much...