When Stoick said that the next day would be a cold one, his words were no bluff. Soon the morning came upon the town of Berk, and with it, the first snowfall before winter - which was still months away.
Because of this, Hiccup and the riders had to wear warmer gear, thus they wore furred cloaks and tunics, with the exception of Arn who still had his grey fur mantle around his shoulders and upper chest.
But even with their warm clothes, they could still feel the coldness of the weather piercing their skin, and this didn't help those who were at work repairing the damaged huts from the raid.
As they stood outside Gobber's workshop waiting for the old smithy to come out, they could see the forge from though the window of the shop's counter blazing out it's flames.
This made the Twins in particular needy for warmth and rest as they roughly tucked their cloaks close to themselves.
Tuffnut groaned with exhaustion. "We've been waiting here forever, Hiccup! What's with the hold up?"
"Yeah, you said yourself that Gobber had something important to say! I don't see him anywhere..." said Ruffnut in agreement. The two were obviously impatient.
Hiccup sighed, wrapping his brown furred cloak tightly around himself. "Guys, we've only been here for five minutes. I assure you he'll be out soon. I mean- it's not like he's working on a project."
Ruffnut grunted with a whiny manner. "Yeeep, we have to stay out here while our dragons get to stay indoors and sleep. Good idea Hiccup! Such a veeeery good idea-"
Suddenly the door to the workshop barged opened as Gobber the Belch came walking out with his pants half-pulled up and his grotesque underwear showing to which the group all cringed to in disgust.
Hiccup could only assume he was at his outhouse… again.
"Gobber… were you really-"
"Eh, sorry Hiccup," said Gobber as he fully pulled up his pants before proceeding to approach them. "Had another… load again. But that doesn't matter."
"And I'm glad it doesn't," replied Astrid. "Still, we came here as you wanted us to. What's this about?"
"Well," began Gobber. "As you know, we still need help getting the town sorted back out. The roads and plaza have been cleared up of all the corpses from last night's raid which we burnt, and the villagers are hard at work repairing the huts of any damage. It's thanks to you lads and lasses and your efforts last night that this is all possible…"
The large viking paused for a moment. "But we're running low on resources. Our stocks and storehouses are ruined, meaning we cannot hope to feast or feed this village well enough unless we do something about it."
"I think I get the hint," said Hiccup. "You want us to go out into the wilds and hunt for food?"
"Preferably meat, but aye."
"But where can we search?" asked Arn. "You said yourself that Snotlout set up an outpost near your hunting grounds. He could have warriors guarding it, and besides, we're in no condition right now for a real fight."
"We don't need the hunting grounds," replied Astrid suggestively. "We can go to the fjords and search for meat there. Maybe even hunt the local boars and wolves that stalk it."
"The fjords?" asked Gobber as he glanced up at the cloudy, snowy sky with a sigh. "Ah great."
Fishlegs's eyes widened with uncertainty. "Wolf meat? Are you sure we can eat that?"
"Doesn't hurt to find out, now does it?" she asked him with a smirk. "My grandfather once told me that he ate wolf meat during a spring hunt, as he had nothing else. If it was safe for him, then it'll safe for us."
"Plus, we'll still have boar."
"Well, looks like it's off to the fjords then," answered Hiccup, looking back at Gobber. "Though we may need some bows and arrows. However, we won't be taking the dragons with us."
"What?!" groaned Tuffnut. "That's a bunch of yak dung!"
"It's the right call, though," nodded Fishlegs. "They're way too tired and hungry as a result of the raid. We'll need to rely on each other for this hunt."
"Not a problem for me," said Astrid.
Arn shook his head with a small grin. "Nor for me."
"Good," replied Hiccup eagerly. "Now Gobber, how about those bows and arrows?"
"I'll have them ready for you in just a moment, Hiccup!"
…
"S- So cold," Fishlegs shivered dreadfully. "I think I should've stayed back."
To the young vikings, snow falling onto the town was one thing, but snow falling upon the fjords was another thing, especially at a higher altitude. Up in the cliffs, it felt as cold as Niffelheim itself.
Hiccup, Astrid, Fishlegs, the Twins, and Arn trudged through the snow, which now stood up to their ankles. They held their bows at the ready, and kept their eyes peeled in case anything dared to jump out at them, for their quivers were still stocked with plenty of arrows...
Along their journey atop the cliffs, they went through the plains of snow, over the hills, and through small patches of trees, all while pulling a large cart, filled with fresh meat carved from boars and wolves.
The Twins, who were the ones managing the cart, began to groan and sigh from exhaustion. Not only was it heavy, but it was felt like too much of a burden... and yet they still needed it. They knew that if they returned empty-handed, then then would most likely receive more than a mere lecturing from Stoick.
As such, they moved along...
Eventually, the young vikings soon came upon an opening. There were trees surrounding the wide clearing from the north and the east, whilst way down below to their west, the large icy river of the fjord continued flowing rampantly.
The snow was no longer up to their ankles, but it was nonetheless cold. Along with that however, it appeared to them as if there was no way forward. If anything, the only true way forward was back.
Hiccup sighed as he looked back at the others. "Where do we go from here?"
"I- I don't know," replied Astrid, staring at the distant trees. "These woods look too dense for our cart to go through. It won't fit."
"And it would take too long to cut them down," added Fishlegs.
"Maybe we should camp?" asked Arn. "We can't go back until we have enough meat, but I think we should plan out where to go from here, and maybe see if we can find a way forward. You know- scout out the area."
"Agreed," nodded Hiccup. "Fishlegs, Arn, get us some wood to set up a fire. Ruff, Tuff, find a spot to drop the cart and count our travelling rations. Astrid, help me clear out some of this snow so we can set up our fire."
"On it," said both of the Twins.
"We'll be back before you know it," nodded Arn as he and Fishlegs ran off towards the narrow woods.
To that, only Hiccup and Astrid remained.
The two looked at each other and exchanged nods, and thus proceeded to make a spot in the center of the area for their campfire, picking up small piles of snow and tossing them off to the side until the dirt from beneath was exposed. This would ensure that the fire would not extinguish itself from the snow's freezing touch.
Though their arms and hands were shivering, they nodded in approval as soon as their job was done.
"Agh," groaned Astrid. "It's so cold. My hands feel like they've been frostbitten..."
"It could be worse, Astrid," said Hiccup as he gave a light chuckle. "Remember where we fought Drago? It was right next to a mountain of Bewilderbeast ice, and in a frozen wasteland mind you."
Astrid sighed. "Yes, I remember Valka's Mountain. But it's been a while since I've felt cold weather like this... Gods, where in Midgard are Arn and Fishlegs with-?"
"Is this enough?" called out Arn's voice.
Hiccup and Astrid turned around, and from the woods, both Arn and Fishlegs came marching out with a pile of sticks and wood in their hands... though the same could not be said for Fishlegs.
The large lad was carrying six decently sized tree stumps, with three piled atop one another on each shoulder. To that, both Hiccup and Astrid gave surprised looks.
"Where did you guys find those stumps?" asked Astrid.
"Ask... the... survivalist..." said Fishlegs with a breathy voice, straining. "Arn suggested that we use them as… seats... Gods this is so heavy..."
"Seats?" spoke Hiccup and Astrid in unison.
"I've been out in the wilds for much of my life. Trust me, they won't break," assured Arn.
From there, the group began setting up their camp site. Arn placed down the pile of wood on the cleared spot, to which Astrid proceeded to rub two sticks from the pile to light the fire. This happened with quick success, and at the same time, Fishlegs went on to place the six sturdy tree stumps around the fire.
Soon enough, they were finished.
Hiccup crossed his arms, amused. "Well then, I'd say we've made some progress."
"And what about the Twins?" asked Astrid, to which Tuffnut then yelled in frustration, "Gods dammit! I've lost count again!"
The four of them suddenly turned towards Ruff and Tuff, who stood by the cart having difficulties counting out their rations.
"How in the name of Loki did you lose count, Tuff?" growled Ruffnut as she motioned towards the provisions of bread and water, placed out in front of them on an unrolled mat of wool. "Can't you see, stupid, that it's nine rations of bread and four canteens?!"
"Nine rations?" questioned Fishlegs angrily. "But there was supposed to be eighteen- ...wait, don't tell me you two dimwits ate..."
"We were starving," quickly replied Tuffnut. "So while you guys were working, we settled down and-"
"Tuffnut and Ruffnut, you idiots…" growled Astrid. "It was supposed to be three rations of bread for EACH of us, and you decided to EAT HALF OF THEM?! Nine loaves of bread won't be enough for the rest of us!"
"Astrid's right," said Arn, nodding at her. "But at least we still have our own water flasks. The Twins had theirs and-"
However, the lad spoke too soon. In that moment, Tuffnut began chugging down Astrid's flash of water, and as he gazed back at the shieldmaiden, he saw that she was not pleased.
"Oops," replied Tuffnut upon noticing her reaction.
Her hands turned into fists. "You son of a…"
Before she could make a move however, Hiccup's hand landed on her shoulder, and he lightly pulled her back. "Don't worry about it," he said as he shook his head. "You can have mine."
"But what about our food?" she asked. "The Twins ate half of it, and there isn't enough to split between the four of us."
"Uh, we can just have the meat in the cart," responded Tuffnut, to which Fishlegs shook his head.
"We were made clear to not cook nor take a single bite out of that meat. We all know you two want to eat as much as you can from it…"
"Not to worry, Fishlegs, I may have a solution." said Hiccup, gazing back at Arn with a smirk.
The blonde-headed viking gave a questioning look. "What?"
"What say you and I go for a hunt, Mister Survivalist?" asked Hiccup.
…
"Mmm, now this is food," said Arn, munching down on a rib of boar meat.
"Mhmm," replied Fishlegs, who was in a moment of enjoyment as much as the others.
After Hiccup and Arn left to go hunting, the two of them eventually came back with a dead boar in their possession, and from there, they carved out its meat and ribs before cooking the parts over the fire, using a hand-made rack crafted from sticks.
Everyone was enjoying the moment… except for the Twins, who sat there without their share.
"C'moooon, why can't we have our own share of boar meat? It's BOAR!" groaned Tuffnut.
"You ate our share of rations Tuff, so it's fair that we don't give you or Ruffnut your share until you two have learned your lesson," replied Astrid, holding up her rib tauntingly with a smirk.
She then looked to Hiccup. "Also, I've got to admit, as simple as this idea was - it was a good one."
"Why thank you, milady! I enjoy it as well."
"Milady? Eugh," responded Arn in slight disgust, to which Hiccup, Astrid, and Fishlegs light chuckled, save for the Twins.
Hiccup sighed, bringing his cloak closer around himself. "It's something Astrid and I have developed since the start of our relationship. In fact, everyone had the same reaction as you did at first."
"Pfft, the only reaction I have right now is hunger… or is it a feel-action-thingy? Yeah- that sounds about right."
"Uh, do you mean feeling, Tuffnut?" asked Hiccup, only to be immediately shushed by him.
"Shh shush! I'm trying to think here!"
"Umm… about what exactly?" asked Fishlegs. "Our only concerns should be getting enough meat to bring back to town, while also clearing this place for our scouts and hunters so they can hunt for more."
"Maybe Ruff and Tuff have had too much ale this morning," joked Arn. "Perhaps we should send them off to scout?"
"What?!" they both said in unison
To that however, Hiccup nodded in agreement. "That's a great idea! Maybe then we can find a way to move forward. Ruff, Tuff, you're both on scouting duty."
In that moment, the two vikings had no choice. Slowly but surely, they stood from the stumps that they sat upon and began walking off, making their way towards the woods.
As soon as they were both out of sight, the four vikings immediately continued their discussion.
"Ah the Twins… such a pain in the neck. Can't even get them to do a basic task properly."
"Then why do you bother having them around?" Arn asked Astrid, glancing back at her. "If they're really a burden for you all, why do you-"
"They aren't always like this," Hiccup added on. "At times, they're really useful. They helped us escape a collapsed cave, rescued us from dragon hunters, and even did a great job with fighting Drago Bludvist and his lackeys. Of course, that was a long time ago."
"Drago Bludvist, eh? You actually haven't told me much about him... Care to explain who he is?"
"More like who he was," replied Fishlegs. "All we can say is that he was the most wicked and warmongering foe we ever faced… of course, until the orcs came."
"Like the orcs, Drago had the intention of conquest," Astrid stated, all whilst eyeing the fire. "He commanded a large army of vikings, dwarves, and enslaved dragons by the thousands. We fought him at Valka's Mountain nearly a year ago..."
"It was a waste of life."
"Aye," nodded Hiccup. "Thousands of vikings and dwarves charged us, and thousands of them died. Not even his war machines could stop us."
"I think they were quite the surprise though," added Fishlegs intriguingly. "Drago's siege weapons, as well as his ships, were made not just with wood, but also metal. He may have had dozens of ballistae, catapults, and traps - but he also had a war machine that I never saw before in person. From what I read in books, it's refered to as a cannon. It shoots explosives using a fiery powder, and from what I know, only dwarves know how to make them."
"Well, Drago did have dwarves in his rank," said Astrid.
"I've heard of those," said Arn. "Never thought vikings could get ahold of them."
Hiccup leaned himself closer to the fire. "Hmph, those things were tough to deal with. But they were destroyed either way."
"And I assume you won the battle?" asked Arn.
"No," replied Astrid as she swallowed a bite from her warm rib of boar. "Unfortunately, with the aid of his alpha dragon, the Bewilderbeast, Drago won the battle, and took control of all the dragons. He even took control of Toothless and made him fire a plasma blast at Stoick. Thankfully, it only hit his side, but it severely injured him. Any closer to his chest… and he would have been-"
"I think we get it, Astrid," interrupted Hiccup before letting out a sigh. He did not want to think about the alternative of what could have happened.
"Still, we eventually found our way back to Berk, which was destroyed by the Bewilderbeast's ice, and we even managed to free the dragons of the alpha's control… through something so powerful that Drago himself could not even control it. Thanks to Toothless, his Bewilderbeast was defeated, but Drago himself did not make it."
"Aye," said Hiccup. "As Toothless became the new alpha, the Bewilderbeast went back into the sea and took Drago with him. We never found his body."
"...Well, at least that's in the past," smirked Arn, reaching over to pat Hiccup on the shoulder. "All I can say is that you should be happy that Drago did not win. Who knows what would've become of Berk."
"And what of the Twins?" said Astrid, suddenly bringing them into the conversation. "What's taking them so long?"
"Don't know," shrugged Hiccup. "Maybe they've-"
"HELP! HEEEELP!"
The voice of Tuffnut screaming caught their attention as they dropped everything they were doing, as well as their ribs. They stood to their feet as they saw both of the Twins running out of the woods, and as such, began wondering what in Midgard was happening.
The two vikings stopped before Hiccup, breathless.
Tuffnut spoke fast with his words. "Oh Loki, thank goodness we've made it back to you Hiccup. You wouldn't believe what we-"
"Whoa, slow down," said Hiccup. "Just tell me exactly happened. Did you guys find something? Is something chasing after you-?"
Hiccup's answer was immediately given. The sound of something large shook the ground, almost like gigantic footsteps, all whilst the trees to the north were being knocked over one by one.
Then a loud roar followed - the roar of something mighty and vicious that had the strength to brutally tear a viking in two with its bare hands. It was not the roar of a dragon, but the roar of a…
"Troll!" gasped Hiccup.