Detroit- Six years ago
It had been roughly two weeks since Hiccup and Heather lost Scott, two weeks since his perspective as a hero changed forever. His father noted the change, each and every time they went out. But tonight it was different- tonight he was onto something.
He'd let Heather know about it immediately, and made the trek to Detroit in record time, not telling his father at all about what he'd found or what he had planned. His father would just have to be left in the dark on this one.
Hiccup perched himself upon a rooftop, peering into a dimly lit bar from across the street. He heard her footsteps approaching, but said nothing for the time being. Instead, he simply stared through the lenses of his binoculars and watched as several people conversed amongst themselves in the bar.
Heather nudged his shoulder gently, her usual upbeat tone having been drained for the past couple of weeks. He turned to her then, drawing the binoculars down and placing them into a pouch on his belt.
"Why are we here exactly? You weren't very detailed when you said 'Hey, meet new across from this bar, I found something!" She exclaims, with Hiccup merely nodding in response.
"I found him. The man who runs that little group...the one that took Scott from us." He says, Heather's eyes instantly narrowing as she slid her mask over them. "Let's get her done." Was her response.
The two stalkedthe bar for a bit longer, before eventually deciding to move in. The stealthy approach would be their usual choice, but this was more so an act of vengeance than it was an act of justice. Had it been an act of justice, the floorboards in the center of the bar wouldn't have burst open , having every eye in the place turn towards it. The obvious gang members and felons drew their weapons, with regular bar patrons and civilians looking on in shock.
Finally, the voice of the Night Fury cut into the air. "We're looking for Roman Riviera...all of those tied to him stay where you are. Regular civilians, leave now." He said before grappling through the now open floor and swinging into a landing in front of the bar, a few of the stools having been blown onto the floor and pushed over. There were wood splinters littering the area, with the civilians who'd say at the bar scrambling to their feet in fear.
His green lensed eyes panned over everyone inside before locking onto one man, who had a similar build to him save for his shorter height. He had jet black hair which had been slicked back and a scruffy beard. He looked like the type of low life you'd expect to see here. He had a brief moment of clarity, realizing he could've hurt a few civilians had he not been more careful. But it was a controlled blast , made for fear and entry. The wooden flooring itself took the most damage, the most that would happen to anyone above would be a simple fall to the floor.
He wasted little time in walking towards Roman, pausing briefly as several men around him pointed their weapons at him. He stared Roman down, then took a further step so that he was a mere six inches away from him.
"Your little gun running operation is over. That explosion a couple weeks ago cost far more than you could ever know." He stated, Roman's eyebrows knitting together in frustration.
"So you're responsible for that? A lot of my products were lost in there, and a lot of my men arrested. I'll see to it that you are properly paid back." He said with a snap of his fingers. He turned away from Night Fury as his men began to close in, and essentially drowned out the various grunts of pain and exertion that followed in favor of pouring himself a glass of bourbon.
"You're an idiot." Came another voice, drawing out a sigh and leading him to turn his attention towards Windshear as she approached with three bladed talons drawn.
"And you're annoying." Was Roman's response as he moved to draw out a gun, but found his hand being stuck to the table by a sudden white blur. He looked down with a shout of pain as his hand ran red, one of the bladed talons she'd shown up with having been planted though his hand and into the table.
"Jesus Christ!!" The man shrieked from the pain as Windshear made her way over to him. She wasted little time in whisking the glass of bourbon from the table and pouring it onto the man's hand. His shriek of pain only got higher at the action.
"Stings doesn't it?" She asks with a condescending tone as Night Fury walks over and punches the back of the man's head hard enough to send his face into the table. Lifting his head up to see the both of them, Night Fury drew out one of his shuriken and drug it slowly across the side of the man's face.
"You've done a lot of wrong. Hurt a lot of people with the things you've been selling. But all that ends tonight." He says with a growl in his tone as Windshear simply nods . Roman pants slightly as he attempts to stay awake from the pain shooting through his body.
"I'm begging you, please don't kill me.." he said softly, Night Fury chuckling before releasing his head and letting it drop down a bit.
"We're not gonna kill you…" he said plainly, Windshear reaching for her blade and pulling it free. "But we are going to make you wish you were dead."
Upon hearing that, Roman's eyes went wide.
It was about 30 minutes before the police arrived, finding a bar full of unconscious criminals and one of the tables stained with blood. The criminals had been carted away in police cars, most of their injuries being little to nothing.
But Roman himself was beaten within an inch of his life- gashes from strange blades evident on his thighs and abdomen, bruises that tore the skin on his face and caused heavy bleeding, and a horrific burn mark- a brand of the word "Fury" left embedded on the side of his neck.
Hiccup stood in the bathroom of Heather's apartment, washing away the blood from his gloves while staring into the mirror at his own reflection. Flashes of every hit they'd launch the man's way began to play over and over again. Up until the moment he branded the man with no remorse. Hiccup could feel his stomach turning slightly- Roman was so defenseless to them.
That sick feeling went away just as quickly as it had come, and he smirked when he realized one important thing- he deserved it. They didn't kill him, even if they should've they wouldn't . That's a line they'd never cross, no matter what. But Hiccup has to admit, beating that monster within an inch of his life and making him bleed for all he's done truly felt like justice.
Immortals Mansion
"You know you fucked up right?" Came a voice, drawing Hiccup from his thoughts. He turned towards the male voice, his eyes meeting with Snotlout's. Snot was sporting a cast over his left arm and a bandage over his forehead, his black hair cascading down over it.
"Yeah I know." Was his response, carrying a tone that wished to drop the subject. The two were in the computer room, with security camera footage of Gustav's apartment playing on the main screen.
"You also know stalking the kid isn't going to help right?" Was Snotlout's next comment, drawing a sigh from Hiccup as Toothless walked into the room and sat down beside his chair. He brought a hand over to pet the German Shepherd before replying.
"I know...I'm just making sure he's alright. Giving him space, time even."
"Time? Hiccup, it's been three weeks." Snotlout replied as he finally made his way over to stand next to his seated cousin. "Just call him, go see him. Something."
"I will...I will when the time's right." Was the Auburn haired man's response. This response concluded their discussion, as Snotlout changed the topic finally.
"Anything on Viggo? His side took a pretty heavy blow too and he's been silent since then." He'd noted
"You're right...I've been looking into it, but I haven't found anything from any of them. Even at the site of the explosion, none of them were recovered but they were all alive."
"That's weird." Said snot as he wiggles his fingers from beneath his cast. "Everyone's getting ready for them. Training as best they can, but we took a huge blow this time Hic." He said
Hiccup nodded. Astrid had been slowly getting back into fighting shape, as had Tuffnut and Cami. Cami's leg healed about a day after it was broken, but she's still struggling to return to her full speed. Eret was fine, his injuries having healed rather quickly. Heather too was recovering, a few sprains but nothing too extreme. All of them were in a rougher condition than usual. And yet all of them were still willing to fight.
Hiccup wouldn't allow it though- he himself had just made a full recovery from the injuries he sustained recently. And no way in hell was he sending them out to fight like this, it was a handicap.
He stood up and looked to Snot, then to Toothless. "I'm calling a meeting." He said.
Meeting Room
"Alright. It's come to my attention that I ...fucked up." Hiccup starts, looking around at everyone present.
Astrid, Heather, Camicazi, Snotlout, Throk, Ruffnut,Eret Tuffnut and Toothless. "I took two untrained soldiers into the field...I went in without a proper plan, and I pushed away my apprentice. You guys aren't fully recovered, least not all of you. I want to make sure we're at one hundred percent the next time we move."
"What are you getting at?" Eret asked as he sat up in his seat.
"I'm benching some of you, until recovery is complete." He says, rather bluntly. There was an audible gasp in the room, Hiccup turning towards one of the paintings on the wall behind him.
"Hiccup don't do this. We're more than capable of-" Heather had began, Hiccup turning and shooting her a look.
"I'm not risking your lives like that. Once you're recovered and able to move at a normal rate, then you can come back out- we all can roll out as Immortals. But until that day comes, you guys are to stay here and heal."
"Stay here and heal? What are we, children?" Tuffnut asked as he stood up, stumbling into Ruffnut's arms.
"You certainly act like one Tobias James." His sister said with a teasing tone, watching as he pushed her away and fell back into his chair.
"You're not children. But if you believe that you can go out in this state, and fight these criminals- you're wrong." Hiccup retorted , his eyes licking onto Tuffnut's stumbling form. "Benched. Until further notice."
No one seemed to want to argue it anymore, he seemingly had his mind set.
Downtown Dragon's Edge- Hours later
Six men had met in an alley, off the corner of Thornton Boulevard and Adger Avenue. The tallest of the men, an African American man sporting a goatee and blonde dyed hair had just handed over a briefcase to a shorter Irish man. He was backed by two other men, a taller Scottish man and a Caucasian man who was the same height.
The African American was backed by two Caucasian men with shaved heads. "You sure about this?" He asked the Irish man who merely nodded.
"It's getting worse out here. These suits are running our business into the ground." He replied before resting the case on the ground and popping it open, smiling at what he'd found inside. It was an experimental rocket launcher- built similar to a Air-Tronic GS-777, with two rockets in tow.
"This is some heavy heat. We'll ship several more and some ammo to your workshop later on." The taller man confirms as the Irish smirks
"Perfect. Pleasure doing business. Jimmy." He said, turning towards the Scotsman who held a silver briefcase. "Pay the nice man."
The man made a move, but soon found himself dropping to the ground in pain as he clutched his hand. He found a red , 8 pointed shuriken lying there.
"You people sicken me." Came an obviously modified voice, all of the men turning their heads towards the rooftop and looking on as a short figure loomed overhead. This was Fanghook, who wore his usual suit with a few changes- his dragon head mask having been replaced with an open head cowl (think of a black version of Kid Flash), with red eyes shining in the dark.
"It's that Fanghook kid!!" Shouted the arms dealer as the Irish buyer scrambled for his handgun.
"Night Fury won't be far behind." He called as everyone, save for the man with the injured hand, readied their pistols and aimed towards the boy on the roof.
Fanghook gave an audible sigh upon hearing the mention of his former mentor, before throwing three pellets down that burst and flooded the alley with a thick fog. They all opened fire, not seeing that his form had receded from the roof and into the alley. As he landed, he swept the nearest man's leg from beneath him and slammed one of his escrima sticks into his throat before sending a powerful shock throughout his body.
This had been the Irish man's other accomplice, who first met the fury of a boy enraged. Fanghook lept out as the smoke slowly cleared and grabbed the African American by his throat before moving beneath his left arm and going into a front flip, slamming the man into the ground as he landed before sending five sharp punches to his face- that did the trick.
He was out for the fight , leaving three men standing. The Irish man soon met a fist to the face that sent him onto his back before Fanghook turned his attention to the last two henchmen that remained.
He paused for a moment before spinning on his left heel and thrusting out his right foot to deliver a sharp kick to the first bald man's head, sending him to the floor. Immediately after this, he turned and thrust his elbow into the other man's stomach just as he opened fire on the boy from point blank range- the bullet easily being avoided by the boy as he continued his assault, bringing up a fist for a powerful uppercut that sent the man to the floor.
With them down, this left only the Irish man standing. Fanghook turned as he neared a strange -click- and watched as the man cackled while firing the rocket launcher towards him.
Gustav's eyes widened momentarily before he cartwheeled out of the way, the rocket flying into the back of the alley and hitting the arms dealers car. This lit the alley up, a blaze that could be seen for about a mile. Gustav bit his tongue, silently cursing himself for the spectacle before leaping at the Irish man and landing onto him with a downwards elbow towards his clavicle. This broke the bone upon impact and sent the man into shock.
With all of them down, Gustav panted softly as he looked around at the unconscious bodies.
"...fuck Night Fury." He muttered before walking out of the alley. He hadn't realized he'd had an audience, a security camera on the ship nearby having recorded the whole event.
And on top of that same building, a black suited figure watched in interest before tapping onto the side of her ear.
"This kids got issues...and potential." She said.
The next morning
The immortals sat in the kitchen at watched as the news replayed alleyway footage of a fight from the previous night, the reporter having noted that the hero "Fanghook" had been the one to take down the dealers.
Hiccup's face hardened slightly as he saw the explosion, and he shook his head as Astrid laid a hand upon his shoulder. Everyone turned to look at him then- hearing the words he uttered whilst walking away.
The first word had been censored by the news station, but it rang clear what he'd said.
"...F* Night Fury."
"Someone's angry." Ruffnut said in a sing song voice as she picked at her bowl of Cap'n Crunch, Tuff slapping her arm gently.
"Hey, stop reminding Hiccup of his massive mistake in firing Gustav." He said before Astrid slapped the back of his head in annoyance
"Don't listen to them Hiccup." She said, watching as the man gave a sigh.
"They're not wrong… I really fucked up." He admitted to them, his eyes moving back to the news report before flipping the channel to a cartoon. Hiccup turned and dumped his half empty bowl of cereal into the waste disposal then leaving the bowl in the sink.
He left the kitchen, leaving everyone to look on in bewilderment. It wasn't very long before they heard the front door close and his car peel off from the estate.
"I got a bad feeling about this." Eret uttered was he took a bite from a breakfast bar, Ruffnut shaking her head and replying
"You have a bad feeling about everything."
Larson's Apartment
Gustav pushes open the door to his apartment and took a look into the kitchen, finding it odd that it was empty. Usually when he returned from his gym time in the mornings, his mom would be cooking something in the kitchen. But today it was empty...why? He walked over to the kitchen while removing an earbud from his left ear and kneeling down.
{Large grease splatter on the floor. Trailing up to the front of the stove. Frying pan with discarded bacon pieces nearby.} this was all obvious things to see.
So he had to look deeper, find the hidden details in this. { A subtle footprint, made from a heavy step, most likely a sharp step back to avoid something..or a leap back in fear.}
He moved on from there and looked up to the counter of the kitchen, finding the knife rack being overturned and his mother's red handled cleaver gone.
{Definite signs of defense- she was either attacked or surprised as hell. Even still if it was a simple surprise she wouldn't have left that grease and stuff on the floor.}
It was all confirmed by now- coming together like a puzzle in his head. He kneeled down and looked over the floor again, finding an imprint from a boot on the floor. {Bootprint. Unfamiliar but left behind by a size six female boot. Most likely a lightweight material given the lightness of the imprint.}
Gustav sighed softly as he stood up, saying no words. Soon, his right fist was plunged into the wall beside the refrigerator. "Son of a bitch!!" He swore, his head soon whipping towards the front door as a knock was heard.
He wasted little time in picking up one of the smaller knives from the overturned rack and easing towards the door. It had no peephole, something had concerned him when they first moved in, but he soon got over it. But now he couldn't get over it.
As he opened the door slowly, he thrust his hand out and aimed at the right side of the person's abdomen, finding his forearm being caught mid thrust. He traced the hand back up and was met with a familiar pair of emerald eyes, moving back in slight disgust, yet a feeling a wash of relief at the same time.
Hiccup stared down at the boy, releasing his grip before speaking. "You greet all your visitors like that?"
He asks, a hint of a smirk arising. {Perfect thrust, had I been slower I'd be in trouble right now.}
"Just the ones that fire me." Was the teens response as he moved away from the man and walked back towards the kitchen, Hiccup taking that as a notion to come in. Hiccup noticed the lack of food and silence, an eerie feeling soon creeping up on him.
"Where's-"
"Gone. Obvious signs of a struggle. I was just about to check her room before making a final conclusion- but everything is silent."
"She's not there. I don't hear her breathing and the only heartbeats present are ours." {His heart is racing. He's worried out his mind right now.}
"Hey. Calm down." He'd say before moving towards the kitchen"We're gonna find her."
Gustav had originally planned to shrug off the man's attempts at helping. He wanted to do it alone- find his mother and ensure her safety no matter what. But looking up at Hiccup, he couldn't help but feel the same as he did when he'd met the man for the first time….lost. He regained his bearing, soon recalling the events of the past month. Gustav turned to the man with a look fo disdain planted upon his face.
"Why would I accept your help after what you did?"
Hiccup sighed softly as he said this, running a hand through his hair and stopping at the braid at the bottom of his head-courtesy of Astrid. "Because I was wrong." He finally said, letting free the words he'd been withholding for the past three weeks. Had he thought of what he would say to the boy before now? Several times. Had he finally decided upon what he'd say? Not once. But now , in the heat of the moment, he knew exactly what he needed to say.
"I shouldn't have said what I did. I shouldn't have done what I did, and I realized that only after I calmed down. Gustav, I truly am sorry for firing you, for casting you out like that. I'm sorry for everything I said, and I want you t-"
"Shut up." Gustav responded, tears welling up in his eyes. "I get it- you're sorry. But I'm not gonna work with you again if you'll just snap and fire me when you're upset. I'll come back when I feel it's right...but for now, let's find my mother." He concluded.
Hiccuo was a bit hesitant to reply, trying his best to think before he spoke this time. "Alright." He said, before turning and heading out the door. Gustav lingered for a moment, his eyes moving over the scene once more before following suit.
…..
"I feel like we completely ignored Thanksgiving. I mean Christmas is literally a few weeks away now." Tuffnut comments as he stands atop a ladder in the foyer of the Immortals' Manor, placing a string of lights around a 15 foot tall pine tree they'd picked up the previous day.
"Can you blame us? With all that's been going on lately I'm surprised we haven't missed every holiday." Astrid replies as she and Ruff go towards the lower parts of the tree to set up the lights.
"You're right. But hopefully we'll be done with all this Viggo business by the time Christmas Day rolls around."
Astrid gave a subtle scoff and looked at her. "Yeah...doubt it." The smell that whipped throughout the mansion was a bit strange, but comforting nonetheless. Astrid found herself in a comforting feeling as the scent of gingerbread mixed with cinnamon made its way through, and soon moved to pick up a cookie off of a plate that Eret had carried into the room.
"Knowing that slime ball he'll likely try something ON Christmas." Eret says as he sets the plate down and picks up a mug of hot chocolate, taking a slow sip of the beverage.
"I wouldn't be surprised if he did." Ruffnut responded as she did the same. All three of them turned their attention towards the front door as Hiccup rushed into the manor, Gustav following behind.
"Hey what's going on?" Astrid asked as the two vigilantes took off into the computer room. She gave a glance to Eret and Ruff, all three of them soon following the other two.
Hiccup took his seat at the computer and pulled up one of the cameras from Gustav's apartment, causing Gustav to scowl slightly
"You bugged my apartment?"
"It was so I could make sure you were alright!" Hiccup responded abruptly, turning his focus back to rewinding and displaying the events of the morning. The other three entered the room, having caught small bits of their interaction and watching the camera.
"There. There she is cooking breakfast." Gustav said as he watched his mother's form at work in the kitchen- this having been mere hours ago. He stirred slightly as the window near the kitchen slid open from the outside, a black clad female slipping inside and taking the woman by surprise, leading her to waste the food onto the floor.
"That explains that." Gustav says as the black clad figure stalked towards his mother. He visibly tensed up as his mother was grabbed and dragged out of the apartment after that- a handgun having been pointed at her during the altercation.
"Dear God…" Ruffnut muttered softly as Eret placed a hand onto Gustav's shoulder, trying to calm the boy down a bit.
Hiccup looked to Gustav then to the others "We're gonna find her."
"How?!" Gustav asked with tears welling up in his eyes . "We don't even know who that black suited chick is! How can we possibly find her now?"
"Because Gustav- if she took your mom, she's going to want something in exchange. Meaning she knows who you are." He explained plainly, leaving Gustav in confusion.
….
Mala stormed out of the living room with a look of frustration planted upon her face. "I'm tired of this!" She shouts with a sigh as she picks up her bookbag and heads down the block leading to her bus stop. She'd been dealing with issues with her father for the past few weeks now- issues that never seemed to get any better.
With one AirPod in her left ear, she allowed the sound of Green Day's 'Holiday' to carry her towards her destination, but soon found herself stopping as the sound of a car horn blaring up the street caught her attention. She looked up at the vehicle , a red 2015 Jeep Caravan. She smirked as she laid eyes on the driver, and gave a nod to Throk as he pulled up beside her.
"Need a lift?" He asked after lowering his passenger side window, Mala merely chuckling in response.
"Nah, I kinda like the smell and loudness of the school bus." She replied with a touch of sarcasm before pulling at the door handle and sliding into the empty passenger seat. "Ya know I never did ask about your car before.." She said, looking over to Throk "You didn't have this when you first got to our school. When did it come along?"
He smiled and began to drive off down the main road. "Oh, my dad got it for me." He explained, remembering the interaction between himself and Stoick just a couple of days before.
It was in Berk, Stoick's 10 bedroom house as he called it. Hiccup called it Haddock Manor, which made more sense. He and Stoick had sat down to talk for the eighth time since they first met. After Stoick got over the initial shock of meeting the clone, he welcomed him to the Haddock family with open arms and introduced him to a group of friends as his son.
The story was altered, so that he was introduced as a boarding school kid who'd decided to attend public school for the first time in years, at Stoick and Hiccup's pushing. When questioned on why he hadn't been referenced before, Stoick merely said that they didn't wish to put him into the public eye as much as they did Hiccup. Hiccup even went as far as fabricating baby pictures and childhood images of the two of them for anyone with questions.
And just like that Stoick had two sons- one age 24 and one age 18. The Jeep had been a sort of welcome gift from the older Haddock man, providing a forged Berk driver's license and an ID with the vehicle. Throk knee how to drive from information that had been previously placed into his mind during his creation.
Throk mulled over these events in his head as the two made the drive to their school. He was so deep in thought and still so focused on the road that he'd missed the question Mala had thrown his way. He cast her a glance before recoiling from his thoughts. "Huh?"
"I said when do I get to meet your dad and brother?" She asked, repeating the question. This question honestly made Throk gulp. Should he tell her? Would that be alright?
"I don't know." Easy answer, right?
"I sure hope it's soon. You're a really cool dude and I'd like to know more about you." She replied with a smile as she set her seat back a bit, Throk nodding and smiling as well.
"Thanks, I think you're cool too."
The rest of the drive was silent, and soon they were met with the gray brick exterior of their school, Throk pulling into the first parking spot he could find before shutting off the engine. As the two walked towards the school, Throk cast a look over at Lars and his football buddies. The jock who'd bullied Gustav before merely looked back at him with a glare, though he still didn't know that Throk was to blame for his injury a while back.
An injury that cost him most of the football season, and gave Throk the chance to shine on the field after he officially tried out for the quarterback position. Lars sure knew how to carry out a grudge. But he'd be ignored today, tomorrow and any other time he glared Throk's way.
"That guy really has it out for you huh?" Mala asks as she observes the two's shared looks while they continue their entrance into the school.
"Yeah, but I pay him no mind." He says while opening the door and holding it open for her. As the two made their way towards their lockers, Mala ran a hand through her hair and looked to Throk, clearing her throat before speaking. "So my mom has asked about you…"
Throk's eyes widened for a moment as she said this, causing him to turn towards her while approaching his locker. "Really? What's she asked?" He began to unlock the locker.
"She just wants to know when she'll get to meet you. I know it may be um...sudden, but I've told her a lot about you and-"
"How bout tonight?" Throk asks as he closed the locker and turns to her with a smile. "I'm free tonight."
"Awesome." She said with a smile of her own before checking the time on her phone. "We should get to class."
———
Hiccup honestly didn't know where to start when searching for Gustav's mother. He did know that going over the crime scene again would help to get a better grasp of the situation. So here he was, standing the kitchen of their apartment and looking over every mynute detail of it.
So far he'd found little more than before. He analyzers the window next, finding the markings left from the grappling hook. "This is weird.." he commented to himself as Gustav walked out of the bedroom with a sliver of paper in hand.
"I got something." He said, drawing Hiccup's attention towards him.
He took the sliver and unfolded it, finding it to be a note seemingly left by the kidnapper.
"537 Baruchel Avenue. Five o'clock tonight." He read the words aloud, casting a glance to Gustav. He'd had a worried look upon his face now.
"It could be a trap." He says plainly, trying not to cry again. Hiccup nodded subtly.
"We'll be ready then."
—-/
It was just another boring day at the news station. No one actually seemed to have anything planned for after work, per usual. Instead, Heather found herself making the short walk to the empty parking lot and fumbling with her keys after another daily interaction with Derek the weatherman. That man was...interesting.
Finally, she found the key for her sky blue 2016 Honda Accord. Pressing the unlock button a single time, she pulled the door open and tossed her bag into the passenger seat. But as she moved to get into the driver's seat, something made her stop. Her eyes cut around the parking lot, finding nothing but empty cars in the dark lot.
"Whoever is there. Come out now and I'll go easy on you." She mutters, reaching a hand into the right pocket of her black capri pants.
"I'm sure you will." A familiar voice said as a dark clad figure rounded the corner of the building and stared at her. Viggo smirked beneath his helmet at her, but Heather focused on the new alteration to his helmet.
The right eye hold was covered and smoothed down, a white X over the eye.
"I see Hiccup left a mark." Heather comments with a scowl before drawing out a razor talon and taking a defensive stance. The man seemed to just stalk her in silence before even moving.
It was the swiftest of motions, a blue canister flying towards her and going off a few seconds before it hit the ground. The area was sprayed with a blue fog, that left her coughing wildly as she backed away from it and tried to focus.
Her sight began to blur then, and she tried to stand strong as the figure approached through the fog. She was going to attack, launch the projectile at his clavicle before going in for a punch. But she stopped. The figure that stepped out of the fog wasn't Viggo Grimborn...it her brother, Dagur.
He looked happy. Clean cut even. Wearing a green button up shirt with black slacks .
"D-Dagur?" She asked in disbelief as she dropped her weapon. The sound of it flattering against the floor went unheard as she approached him. She didn't move away, didn't drag herself from this moment. Her brother was here, alive and well right before her eyes. And then, he wasn't.
The second Dagur reached her, his first shot out in a swift and unforgiving motion, striking her to the ground. The darkness she was greeted with upon hitting the ground was not nearly as cruel as what she'd just seen.
4:55 PM
The Night Fury's Nightcycle slowed to a stop as he reached the building. A quick glance could tell that it was still under construction- a new building for Ingerman Plastics. He silently cursed himself as he approached the entrance and began to make his way up, still a bit upset about how the last Ingerman building burned down during his confrontation with Snotlout. Tapping the communicator in his mask, he relayed a message to his team.
"I'm heading up now."
His team viewed the situation from the Manor's computer room, Astrid sitting at the main chair and watching via a drone camera. "We've got eyes on you." She confirmed
Night Fury turned towards the drone and gave a thumbs up before heading inside.
"Grimborn!! Where are you?" He called out into the darkness of the first floor. He wasn't expecting an intercom to activate and begin speaking to him from one of the corners.
"The roof. Meet me there and be quick."
He gave a roll of his eyes hearing that, and moved up the stairs as quickly as he could. It was a short run to the top, there were only five floors to the building to that certainly helped. As he reached the rooftop entrance, several plans played on in his head.
He looked out onto the roof after pushing the door open, and found Viggo standing at the edge with two small crane devices set up on the sides of the roof. One to the left, one to the right.
Viggo turned towards him with a subtle wave and paced on the edge of the roof.
"So glad you could make it. All the more glad that you left your team at home." He says as Night Fury steps a bit closer.
"Today's lesson, is about decision making." He continues, much to Night Fury's confusion.
"What?" He asks, growing tired of whatever game Viggo had initiated.
"You want the boy's mother , right?" Viggo asks before lifting up a small remote and causing the left crane to pull its wire up, revealing Gustav's mother tied to the cable with a terrified look upon her face and a piece of cloth wrapped around her mouth.
"Viggo…" Night Fury began.
"But this isn't going to be an easy one." Viggo says as he presses another button, the right crane shifting its line and pulling up another woman.
Night Fury recognizes the dark haired form instantly, and clenched his fists in frustration. "What the hell are you doing with her?!?" He asked , ready to lunge at the man.
"Calm down now Hiccup." Was his response. Another button was pressed and the Cranes shifted again. The interior shifted and the plates on the outside of them slid open to reveal two strange speaker like devices.
Almost as soon as they were revealed, Night Fury was belted with a strange energy and sent to the floor.
"What the hell?!?" He shouted as he tried to analyze the devices with his mask. "What type of energy is this?" He asked. He ran a hand over his chest and found that the plating had been stripped and the suit torn into by the blast.
"The best money can buy." Viggo says with a smirk upon his face.
"Next ones going to be bigger." He says as the devices charge up again and lock onto Night Fury.
He whipped to his knee and brought his cape out to block the next attack- this one sending him flying back with his cape burning on his back. He rolled over to snuff the flames and lifted the material, finding several large gashes and burn marks left over from the blast.
"Predictable." Viggo said before drawing a hand gun and firing it off at Night Fury's side. The bullet was fired with amazing precision- Night Fury notes this as he felt the bullet rip through the clasp that held his grapnel launcher to his belt. The sound of the launcher clattering to the ground followed after , and he had grown tired of this.
"What are you trying to do here?" He asked, moving towards The launcher on the ground. Viggo's gun came up again and fired a round off at the launcher just as he picked it up, the bullet landing in the barrel. This caused the launcher to jam as Night Fury moves to test it- and led him to throw it down in frustration.
"Do you know how hard it is to produce the perfect cable for this?" He asks with a scowl as Viggo shakes his head and returns to his trigger.
"You have a choice to make here , hero!" He said. "I know a lot about you Hiccup. You're a billionaires son, you attended Berk Central High School, almost joined the military and you love dogs. But never mind all that now." He says while tugging on Heather's cable, and getting a look of annoyance from the woman. Had her mouth not been covered too, Viggo would getting a berating of epic proportions.
"You think yourself a hero. Think you can handle all the responsibilities that come with that term. But I'm here to tell you now...you can't."
Night Fury moves to draw his bo staff, stopping with his hand borvering over the metal weapon as he glared at Viggo.
"What is this?"
"It's a game of sorts...you choose one of them to set free, and the other one takes a leap of faith...you don't have much time to decide. You see Hiccup, I've been studying you. Analyzing you. Your fight patterns, tour tactics, your skill set. I basically know you like the back of my hand." He explains
"Which is howI knew you'd use your cape as a shielding when there wasn't enough time to reach and expand your staff into its shield state. Also how I knew you wouldn't simply leave your grapnel launcher on the ground, that's why I disposed of it for you."
"So you could play this sick game?"
"No Hiccup...so you couldn't cheat my game." Viggo says with a chuckle. "Now you can't glide down to save the other or swing down and catch them. You have to make this decision here and now."
Night Fury smirked then. "I have other ways."
"Such as? Your friends? They don't even know what's happening." Viggo replies, taking Hiccup aback slightly.
"My signal jammers are stopping them from receiving your messages, and they're blocking your drones signal..now I suppose your little speedster friend could woosh in and help you but, I'm afraid Hotstreak has already caused a bit of havoc for her to follow."
Night Fury let out a breath that he'd withheld as the man spoke. He couldn't find any other options here. Not yet atleast. "Look. Just let both of them go...and you can take me instead."
Viggo laughed at this. His laughter was like a knife cutting into the moment "I don't want you!! I just want to make you learn!" He exclaims before pressing another button. This caused the cranes to spin for a moment before coming to an abrupt stop, shocking the two women being held by them.
"Better hurry Hiccup." Viggo taunts from across the roof. At this point, he's actually weighing his options. What the hell could he do? It's times like this where he wished he had a-
His hand farted behind his back, grasping at something. There it is. His secondary grapnel launcher. He smirked to himself and drew out a shuriken, allowing the metal weapon to show to his enemy before launching it at him.
Viggo smacked it away in a huff and shouted back "Choose!!"
"Fine…." Night Fury said with a look towards Heather and then towards Cressida Larson.
"I choose Cressida." He decided, watching as Viggo's eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"That was...surprisingly easy for you. Alright then." He says while flipping a switch on the side of his controller and tapping two more buttons. This led the crane holding Gustav's mother to turn onwards and lower her onto the roof gently. He then walked over and removed her bindings before taking off her gag.
She rushed away from the edge and stumbled over to Night Fury, who rested a hand on her arm and led her to stay gently beside him.
"Well Night Fury...your choice has been made." Viggo comments as he presses another switch, Heather's eyes going wide as the crane began to release its cable.
"Indeed it has." Night Fury replies while launching another shuriken, this one knocking the controller out of his hand. He wasted no time in rushing across the roof and towards her- firing out his backup grapnel and aiming towards the cable.
But Viggo knew better.
A swift slashing motion led the grapnel's line to be cut apart, and led a crestfallen look to appear on the Night Fury's face.
"NO!!" He screamed as he rushed towards the edge, fumbling to catch the end of her cable. He just barely made it, but managed to grab on and stop her descent just in time.
"You fool!" Viggo shouted before sending a kick to Night Fury's side, leading him to release the cable.
"No no no no no!!!" He scurried to peer over the edge, and he knew then that he was truly too late. Viggo looked interesting with a smile on his face as he walked away from the scene. Hiccup could've turned and fought the man...but he was too focused on Heather's freefalling form.
Time seemed to slow to a standstill now. His mind was working at the speed of light as he prayed for a way to fix this...before it was too late. He felt helpless, like a child lost in the woods alone. Helpless to watch as his best friend fell from his grasp, fell from his safety. Memories flashed back and forth, of them growing up and becoming the heroes they'd become. And all of those memories began to break him
{Can you hear me screaming please don't leave me}
Her eyes moved around the area, finding nothing but blurred buildings and the darkness being kept away by the lights of each blur. And yet she still saw him, saw his outstretched hand trying to reach her, but not being able. Saw as he fumbled in the dark to reach for his grapnel, and found nothing. Saw as he screamed her name during her descent
{Hold on, I still want you}
Hiccup's breath hitched then, and it felt as though an eternity had passed since she was sent tumbling over the edge. His cape was in tatters, his grapnel was gone...he couldn't reach her in time..
{Come back, I still need you}
Silence filled the air now, or at least that's all he could hear. Soon the sounds of sirens rushing thought out the city and the screams of people below filled his ears. And he looked down, seeing it all. The blood splashed against the pavement, her body crumbled and contorted in ungodly ways. And her eyes, still open from it all. She felt it...she saw it all. The terror that coursed through her must have been great.
{Hold on, I still need you}
He was down into the streets almost an instant after, having ran and taken the fastest route he could find. He felt his heart pounding against his chest- almost as though it were telling him he was too late. He knew he was...but he needed to see her.
Finally reaching the ground, his tears began to fall as he laid eyes upon her. His best friend, the one that held him up when he was down..she's gone. He trudged over to Heather's crestfallen form and lifted her head gently, not caring for the blood that seeped from the back and through the fabric of his gloves. He rocked her body gently, a motion that helped to comfort him slightly. And then he hugged her close, crying onto her chest as she lay still.
The funeral came mere days later, Hiccup sitting in the front row with the rest of his friends, all wearing black suits and ties or black dresses. Astrid rested a hand onto his shoulder as a form of comfort, but it did nothing to ease the guilt he felt as the pastor gave out words on Heather.
Carrying her casket felt like he was carrying the weight of the world- heavier than he ever expected it to be. As they walked out of the church doors, he cast a look over to Snotlout. But his cousin's head was down, facing the ground beneath them as they moved onwards. He, Eret, Snotlout and Throk had become pallbearers for the ceremony. And none of them felt good about it.
As Hiccup rested in the chair of the computer room that night, his mind was racked with images of her fall. He couldn't do anything to stop them, nor could he fix what he'd done. His thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of Snotlout who wore a leather jacket over a black shirt and a pair of blue jeans. He carried with himself a black duffel bag and merely glared at Hiccup.
Hiccup stared back at his cousin, neither one moving to speak in the moment. Hiccup finally got the courage to speak after moments of silence
"Snot, I-"
Snotlout heard none of it, grabbing his bag and turning to exit the room. He had enough of this, enough of the reckless decisions. And he'd lost more than he'd ever thought he would now.
Leaving the mansion, Snot gazed at the moon in the sky before walking over to his motorcycle and finally, taking off.
Hiccup heard each sound, listened as Snot left him, left them, behind. And he couldn't blame him. He looked over to the duffel bag that he'd packed earlier in the day, still pondering over his next move. But he already knew it.
His eyes moved down then, to the plane ticket that rested beside the keyboard. A one-way flight to Jiaju, China. He didn't even look up from it as Astrid entered the room and stood next to him.
"Are you alright?" She asked softly, though she already knew the answer. He looked up to her, eyes still red from the crying he'd done earlier on.
He simply shook his head and muttered a small "No."
"It's not your f-"
"Don't...please don't." He replied, cutting her off. It was his fault, no matter how they viewed the situation.
"Hiccup. You couldn't stop him, that's not on you."
"Yes it is Astrid. He's right...I claim to be a hero, and I still couldn't save both of them...I should've...I should've done something else. I don't know what else but I should've." He says, running a hand through his hair before looking towards the floor.
"She was my best friend. One of the closest allies I've ever had and now...now she's gone."
"I know you feel this way. But that situation was rigged for you to lose no matter what. You said it yourself, Viggo plotted it out to make sure you couldn't save her." She replied, growing a bit upset at his words.
"Astrid, I could've. I just know I could've done something more." He said, standing up and walking over to his bag.
"So what? You're just gonna leave too? You're our leader Hiccup!"
"No I'm not." He says, abruptly turning to look at her "I'm just an idiot in a suit...I'm not a leader and I'm certainly not a hero. Not anymore."
Astrid could feel it. Could feel the emotion he was sending, and she knew this would be a losing battle with him. His mind was set, deadset. And he couldn't change that, nor could she force him to stay.
"I need to leave...need to go. This...this is done for now." He says while lifting the bag and throwing the strap over his shoulders. He grabbed his plane ticket and made his way towards the door, looking at her one more time.
"I'll..I'll call you when I get there." He said, finally walking out of the room. Astrid couldn't help but to sit down in the chair and watch a s he walked out on her- tears welling up in her eyes.
Hiccup tossed his bag into the back of his car and started it up, speeding away from the manor for fear that he'd change his mind. He can't do this, not anymore. He's lost too much, and he's not going to lose anymore. As he drove, he found his thoughts carrying towards the beach on the north side. He and Astrid had frequented it in their time together , and it was the perfect place for releasing by a bonfire.
He still had an hour to check into the airport. An hour to get his shit together. So her turned onto the ramp leading towards the expressway, and drove until he reached beach. It was a rather short drive, most likely made short by his thoughts occupying his time.
Hiccup reached into his backseat for his briefcase and drew it out, staring at its contents for a moment before walking out into the sand.
It was a cool night to say the least, the weather was perfect. After admiring the stars and the moon for a bit, he enacted his plan. Dropping the case onto the ground, he opposed it open and stared at the black material inside.
The eyes of the Night Fury's mask stared back at him, almost berating him for his foolishness. But no more would they do that.
A moment or so later, the case and the suit inside was set ablaze. The materials took about seven minutes to fully start burning, but once they did he felt some form of peace.
Checking the time once again, Hiccup kicked a large amount of sand up to snuff the flames before getting back into his car. The burned and wrecked suit of the Night Fury sat there in the sand, unrecognizable to anyone who'd find it.
Driving off, his guilty conscience carried him along the way, and away from the life of the "hero".
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