"Now, let's do something about Berk's little vermin problem…"
The front gates of Jorgenson Village were easily taken care of, blasted down by Toothless, which caused Snotlout and his lackeys to retreat back to the hall. But the fun was only beginning.
As the young chieftain and the rest of the gang entered through the gates, a swarm of thirty Jorgenson warriors came rushing towards them, armed and ready.
Astrid, Arn, Fishlegs, and the Twins were ready to charge them, but Hiccup raised his hand up - ordering them to hold.
"Uh, Hiccup?!" Astrid called out concerningly, but Hiccup just lifted both arms up to his sides, as if he wanted them to charge.
As the thirty guards began closing in, four arrows suddenly flew by the young vikings' heads, let loose from behind by a few elven archers, and in turn, four of the warriors were immediately shot down.
The Jorgenson warriors, upon seeing this, halted their charge, only for Hiccup to bellow loudly, "ATTACK!"
Hiccup and the others hastily rushed towards the enemy vikings as the berkians, elves, and dwarves came flooding through the gate and began running through the town, with some of them assisting their leader.
The fight had now begun.
As the young chieftain of Berk brought his axe up and around, the Jorgenson warrior he clashed with performed a swift block with his shield before attempting to strike, but to that, Hiccup merely raised his own in response, and used it to push the larger viking's weapon to the side. This in turn created an opening, exposing him for Hiccup to attack, and thus, the lad immediately lobbed his axe into the warrior's right shoulder and chest, making quick work of him as the lad tossed him aside.
Being among the Wings of Midgard however, Hiccup also began using his fiery magics against the Jorgenson warriors; and the damage was significant. At one point, one of the vikings attempted to pounce onto the lad, but with his managed anger, he conjured up a fireball and simply blasted the warrior away at point-blank range, face-first, searing him gruesomely as he rolled around the ground screaming and burning.
Hiccup's voice then rose up for the others to hear. "Remember to use your magic, guys! We're the Wings of Midgard after all!"
"You can't be serious! We don't even know any spells!" replied Astrid who was holding her ground.
"Just get angry!" replied Hiccup. "Get angrier than you've ever been before! Imagine yourself as if you're on fire, and then let it out!"
Astrid took this into note as she fought. The lass was striking hard with her axe as it met with the shield of a shieldmaiden, who attempted to knock the Berkian over by ramming into her with her shield raised. But as the Jorgenson warrior charged forward, Astrid immediately pulled her axe back and dodged to the side, causing the enemy shieldmaiden to ram into nothing but the thin air around her as she fell face-first to the ground.
Now standing behind her, Astrid began to utilize Hiccup's advice. She began to get angry; very angry. Slowly but surely, she felt the heat in her hands begin burning up, as if they were on fire, and within her palms, a spark suddenly came to life and soon manifested into flames. As this happened, the enemy shieldmaiden had finally gotten back up onto her feet, and as she spun around to face Astrid, her eyes lit up in shock.
It was too late for her.
"FÚRE!" Astrid furiously bellowed.
From her hands, the lass launched forth a fireball at the shieldmaiden, and in a matter of seconds, the warrioress was set aflame and thrown back in an explosion of fire. Astrid smirked, lucky to remember what Hiccup chanted during the fight against Drago's golem.
"I think I'm already getting the hang of this..."
Meanwhile, Fishlegs, in the midst of the fight, was already as angered as Astrid. He swung his hammer and bashed with his shield against the opponents that came before him, and while fighting, he imagined what it would be like if his weapon was on fire, and thus, using his anger, he was able to channel his rage and creatively ignite his hammer aflame, making the situation all the more dangerous for his foes.
"Well, that's new..." he said to himself.
Using this newfound enchantment, the Ingerman turned his eyes towards one of the Jorgenson warriors. Without a second thought, the lad charged the man, raising his hammer over his shoulder before bringing it down upon his head. The attack was so hard and sudden however, it dented through the warrior's helm with a metal clang, followed by the sound of a loud crack. There was without a doubt that the blow lethal.
While Fishlegs like everyone else was rolling over them like an angry dragon, the Twins on the other hand were not exactly the best at thinking out their strategies. So when they fought, they fought together as one, and with some effort they were able to take down their foes. One would distract, and the other would strike. Being Thorstons however, they took down their enemies in brutal ways.
At one point, Tuffnut even tried to mimic the others and cast a spell, but instead he ended up setting his right foot on fire, nearly burning it.
"OW OW OW! MY FOOT!" screamed Tuffnut as he stomped his foot into the ground, eventually putting it out. "I HATE YOU, MAGIC!"
Ruffnut rolled her eyes. "Oh stop whining already!"
All while the group fought, Arn was having a situation of his own. The Alsworn heir struggled to keep up against a rather large Jorgenson warrior who came out of nowhere and suddenly began to attack him. Arn struck at the viking, but their weapons became weapon-locked, and the large man started pushing his great axe against the lad's sword which was now leaning closer and closer to Arn's face, and to this he knew he was in deep trouble.
He couldn't use magic. He was no Wing of Midgard. So what could he do?
It was then that in that moment that Arn saw a fireball from his right hurl towards the warrior's legs, causing sparks to fly as the large man backed up from the lad. He felt like he was stung by electricity.
Looking to his right, Arn saw Hiccup whose hands were burning with flames. The young chieftain gave a nod as he turned his back and continued fighting on.
Suddenly Arn saw his moment. He quickly turned around and advanced on the enemy warrior, making light but swift attacks that were too quick for the large man to counter. Arn started from the viking's legs, striking from the sides until he made his way up to the waist and chest. This time he struck and stabbed forward, slicing and dicing cuts all across the man's upper body.
At one point, the Jorgenson warrior tried to perform a "deadly" attack by swinging in a complete circle, and Arn viewed it as one of the most ridiculous attacks he had ever seen. As soon as the warrior's back was turned to him, the young viking struck.
With a strong and sturdy kick, he pushed the larger viking into a nearby brazier - sending him crashing hard into it, which in turn set him ablaze. The man screamed in pain as he landed on his back and began rolling around, all in an attempt to put himself out.
Arn then made his finishing move. He marched over, making a swift and decisive attack as he brought his sword down upon the viking's head, decapitating him from his burning body.
"Well… at least that's done with."
Time went on, and it was by then that the enemy's numbers were beginning to further drop. Even as more came in to back them up, they simply stood no chance. The remaining Jorgenson warriors who fought with Hiccup and the group began to throw down their weapons, raising their arms up in defeat. They realized now that what they were up against was no ordinary force.
They were out of their league.
What placed the nail in the coffin for them was when an overconfident group attempted to run down Hiccup and the gang, but Toothless, who was standing near his rider, fired a quick yet lethal plasma blast at the charging Jorgenson warriors, taking them out as simply as such.
It became clear to them that there was no way for them to fight back without getting slaughtered. Fifty Jorgenson warriors now laid dead, and to that, there was no point to continue.
"W- Wait! We surrender!" one called out as he fell to his knees, and soon the rest followed. It was by then that a large group of fifty vikings, elves, and dwarves came in with their weapons pointed at them. There was no way to fight. If they refused to surrender there and then, it would be a slaughter.
Hiccup and the group stood victorious over their defeated foes, but the fight was far from over.
The young chieftain looked back at his forces with a nod. "All of you, hold this position and make sure our 'prisoners' here don't escape. Ruff, Tuff, I want you two to stay here as well."
"You got it, chief," Tuffnut snickered as he shifted to look towards their surrendered foe, as if he planned to do something wicked to them.
"Oh brother," Hiccup facepalmed, now glancing down at Toothless. "Bud, remain here with them and make sure they don't touch the prisoners, all right?"
"All right," huffed the Night Fury. "Just… be careful with Snotlout, alright?"
"I will, bud."
"Wait, what about us?" asked Astrid, gesturing towards Fishlegs, Arn, and herself. "What do you want us to do?"
"You four are coming with me," he nodded. "Snotlout and his lackeys need to be taken care of…"
...
"MY TOWN IS BURNING! DAMN THOSE GUARDS FOR BEING COWARDS!"
Snotlout paced furiously back and forth in his great hall. He was angry, but also afraid. Not only were hundreds of vikings, elves, and dwarves running through his town burning the town and killing his warriors, but many of them were surrendering. They were his loyal guards, and now they were backing down.
"Our soldiers are scattered throughout the town," stated Dogsbreath worryingly. "More than half of our warriors have been slain, and now we're exposed! We need to do something!"
"Might I recommend that dragon of ours?" Agatha suggested as she pointed to Hookfang who laid in the shadows, chained in the corner of the room. "He's been a useless reptile for quite a long time. Maybe it's time we make use out of him."
"Use the Nightmare to destroy our enemies?" snickered Wartihog wickedly. "Now that'll be something!"
"What...? No! Please no..." weakly crooned Hookfang in Dragonese.
Snotlout rubbed against the bristles of his stubble as he thought about it. It was true that he had broken Hookfang into his submission, yet at the same time, he knew Hookfang would try to disobey his commands. But the more he thought about it...
THUD!
All of a sudden, his eyes fell upon the front doors of the great hall, for it sounded if an axe was hurled at them. Curiously, Snotlout turned around and began towards them, but not before ordering his lackeys, Dogsbreath, Wartihog, and Agatha, to follow.
"You three, with me," he ordered, now unsheathing his sword and shield.
Upon opening the doors and stepping out, he saw that there was indeed an axe embedded in one of them. But in front of both him and the others, there stood four figures glaring him down.
There was Astrid, Fishlegs, Arn, and of course, his nemesis; Hiccup.
"Hiccup…" he growled as the young chieftain of Berk stepped forward, gripping both his axe and shield.
"Face me, Snotlout!" angrily spat Hiccup. "Answer for your crimes, you damn coward!"
At first, Snotlout gave no reaction to Hiccup's words… but then an evil smirk formed about his face, and soon it grew into a wicked grin as he made a taunt with his sword and shield.
"Hah! Come on in then!"
Snotlout and his henchmen marched their way back into the great hall, and with that, Hiccup, Astrid, Fishlegs, and Arn followed them in, angrily staring down the four rats that had plagued Berk for long enough.
As soon as they were all in, both groups lined up on opposite sides of the room, ready to run at each other and beat the Helheim out of one another. However, it would all go down to both Hiccup and Snotlout.
Who would win, and who would die.
As soon as they were all in position, both sides ran at each other and clashed. It was Hiccup against Snotlout, Astrid against Agatha, Fishlegs against Wartihog, and Arn against Dogsbreath.
For the most part, the fight was seemingly in the favor of Hiccup's friends, for the three warriors fought with their speed, skill, and brains in order to counteract the stronger Jorgenson vikings. However, the same could not be said for the brawl between Hiccup and Snotlout.
The two bashed their shields against one another, swinging their weapons with precision as they attacked with whatever they could muster. At first, it was Snotlout who had the advantage, aiming to push Hiccup into the wall as he vigorously slashed and sliced his sword at the scrawny viking. But in the next moment, the Chieftain of Berk suddenly gained the upper-hand, and with his perfected and improvised melee skills, he pushed back against Snotlout and attempted to pin him down, so he could finally finish this...
...And yet the battle just seemed too even.
"All I did..." growled Snotlout as their weapons entered a lock, before breaking it and continuing his assault. "I DID, FOR BERK!"
"YOU BETRAYED BERK!" spat Hiccup as he successfully sliced his axe across Snotlout's right arm, causing the Jorgenson to nearly drop his sword. "You accused us for killing your father when we had nothing to do with it! You tricked half of the Berkians into joining you, only to make them your puppets and slaves! YOU NEARLY TORE THIS ISLAND APART!"
"You have no proof of that!" responded Snotlout as he pushed Hiccup back with his shield. "I could've led Clan Jorgenson to a better future! But you ruined it!"
"Dragon-crap!" growled Hiccup. "The people of whom you exiled, and of whom left you, told me everything! You and your lackeys feasted in the hall, while all around you they starved! You left many of them without homes, and you even slaughtered INNOCENTS who had done nothing wrong! You have proven time and again what you are, and that is a monster!"
"Those "innocents" who died can rot in Helheim and kiss my boots in the afterlife for all I care! But if you are so sympathetic to them, I will gladly let you JOIN THEM!"
Snotlout let out a roar as he brought his sword down from above - aiming for Hiccup's head, but the lad rose his shield up to defend himself and blocked the attack before roughly kicking Snotlout at his shin with his prosthetic foot, causing him to back up and retreat his weapon as he hissed in pain. Before being able to react however, Snotlout found himself on the ground as Hiccup used his shield and body weight and pushed Snotlout to the floor.
Hiccup was ready to strike down Snotlout there and then. Using his strength, he brought his axe down in an arcing attack, but Snotlout quickly rolled to his right and dodged it. He then hastily stood to his feet and struck with the tip of his sword, aiming for Hiccup's heart. The lad in response rose his axe up, and with a strong parry, he countered the sword away, causing Snotlout to back up from the force of the strike. This left him wide and opened however as the young chieftain then lobbed his weapon into him - near his right shoulder.
Snotlout screamed at the painful sensation as blood began to drip down. He dropped his shield, leaving himself with just his sword as he held his left hand against the wound.
"You… you think you can- beat me!?" he chuckled. "You have forgotten who here has a Nightmare on their side… HOOKFANG!"
The sudden sound of chains was heard as a large, pale, red winged figure very slowly stepped out of the corner of the great hall. Upon looking up at Hookfang, Hiccup felt completely awful for him. The poor dragon was chained by his neck and feet in a miserable way, and his physical appearance nearly broke his heart. Not only did he appear weak and starved of sustenance, but his eyes and expression gave out one thing; and that was sadness. A painful sadness.
Never had he seen a dragon before like this.
"Wha… WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO YOUR DRAGON!?" shouted Hiccup, not even minding the fighting going on around him. "HOW LONG HAVE YOU LEFT HIM LIKE THIS!? YOU'RE STARVING HIM TO DEATH!"
"Heh, he's hungry for you," wickedly chuckled Snotlout. "Once he lights you ablaze, I'll let him feast on you!"
"YOU THINK HE WANTS THIS!?"
Hiccup was utterly disgusted. What he did to Hookfang made him hate Snotlout even more. Knowing Dragonese, he could even hear the dragon begging for his torture to stop.
"Please… stop…" whimpered Hookfang. "I don't want to hurt Hiccup! Please let me go!"
Snotlout laughed amusingly. "Do you hear that? He's ready to burn you!" he said. But not knowing Dragonese, he clearly did not understand a single word.
"You're wrong, Snotlout," Hiccup replied, shaking his head. "You do not understand dragons like I do. I can understand Hookfang's words. And all I hear is a broken dragon! He only wants to be free, and you're trying to make him kill me. But I know well that he doesn't want that."
"What…?" crooned Hookfang curiously, raising his head slightly. "How do you understand what I'm saying?"
"I'll tell you about it when you're freed, Hookfang. For now you have to break out! Fight back! Don't let Snotlout control you!"
"Haha! You can't turn my own pet against me, Useless! Hookfang is mine! He was never yours!"
"And you have lost the right to be his rider," said Hiccup as he still tried bolstering Hookfang on. "Come on, Hookfang! Show Snotlout who the real fighter is!"
"I… I'm too weak… not enough… fire…"
Hookfang lacked the flames he needed to make a single spark. A similar situation took place back when Snotlout had worked Hookfang too hard, and as such, he had lost the ability to light his fire... until he was lit back up by the Fireworm Queen. Now it seemed the same was happening here. The question was, how could Hiccup reignite his fire?
...Quickly however, an idea came to mind.
Hiccup's eyes glanced back at Snotlout, but with a glare.
The Jorgenson grinned. "Heh. Getting angry now, Useless? Is your plan not going as you-?"
It was then that his words came to an abrupt halt. As the Jorgenson watched as Hiccup's rage started to boil deeply, the look on his face suddenly changed. What he saw next was something he did not expect, and in Hiccup's eyes, he saw fire beginning to glow and burn. Pure hatred was all he felt, and with this feeling coursing through him, he began moving his hands in circles; and from them, flames started coming to life.
"You've messed with me for the last time," said Hiccup, his voice echoing as Snotlout began to back up. The flames across his palms became brighter and brighter, and the moment they were at their peak, he made his move...
...But rather than aiming at Snotlout, he looked to Hookfang and unleashed a beam of fiery magic towards the dragon, all in an effort to heat him up to full strength. Although Snotlout could have struck down Hiccup in that moment, he was simply too shocked. And thus, he merely stood there and watched in disbelief.
But as soon as the spell died out, Snotlout gave a giggle, before turning his eyes back to Hiccup as he erupted out in laughter. "Hahaha! You completely missed me, Useless!"
"Did I now?"
To that, what came next was unexpecting for Snotlout. As Hiccup motioned towards Hookfang, the Jorgenson watched as the dragon's pale color slowly turned back into that of a vibrant shade of red. The Monstrous Nightmare felt his strength starting to return, and upon standing to his draconic feet, he stretched out his wings and roared.
"I've… had… ENOUGH!" he bellowed, now glaring at Snotlout.
"H- Hookfang!? he stuttered, lifting his hands up as if it was in surrender. "L- Listen! We can talk about this- we- you don't have to hurt me! Please, Fangster?"
"You can't lie to me this time," growled Hookfang, his mouth and nostrils glowing. "But I feel like things are about to get very hot..."
"Uh oh…"
The reignited Monstrous Nightmare huffed and puffed heavily. As the back of his throat lit up like a raging inferno, he opened his mouth and unleashed a firestorm onto Snotlout; a firestorm of pain that the arrogant viking had given him for months without end.
And now the tables had turned.
Snotlout screamed as he was set aflame, dropping his sword. The flames burned mostly at his chest, but they quickly began to spread. Without thinking, he immediately ran for the doors of the hall and rushed out as fast as he could, running towards the nearby stables where his horse's drinking trough resided. To his luck, it was filled to the brim, and without any hesitation, he dived in and allowed the water to soak out the flames.
Surprisingly, his injuries were not as severe, and his hair remained intact. However, parts of his chest and limbs were nonetheless heavily seared, and patches of his clothing were ripped, tattered, and burnt.
He let out a sigh as he laid there like a pig. Some of the pain soon began to reside, but as he looked up from where he laid, he saw Hiccup standing before him, holding his axe to his throat.
With Hiccup as the victor, he had the chance to kill Snotlout there and then, and end it. All it would take was a mere hack of his axe at the Jorgenson's neck. Yet as he looked down at Snotlout, who bore a broken face of defeat... he quickly realized that it was not worth it.
And so, Hiccup grabbed Snotlout by the collar of his ruined tunic, and pulled him out of the trough, tugging him towards the front of his great hall. With that, he pushed him onto his back, and with the hard hilt of his weapon, he bashed it against Snotlout's forehead, knocking him out.
The Jorgenson's world went black.
Hiccup crouched down to Snotlout who was unconscious. "You don't deserve death... Instead, I will-"
"Hiccup!"
Astrid's voice rose up as she came marching out of the great hall with Fishlegs and Arn, and in their grasp, they dragged bloodied and beatened figures... Or rather- the lifeless bodies of Snotlout's henchmen.
Agatha was hacked in the shoulders and in the side of her chest by Astrid's axe. Wartihog's skull was broken in six places, and his head crushed in, all thanks to Fishlegs and his mighty hammer. And Dogsbreath was stabbed more than a dozen times in the chest by Arn's sword, and with both arms broken.
They were literally nothing but husks.
Astrid, Fishlegs, and Arn dropped them to the ground, and to that, Hiccup gave a look of approval.
"We're finished here," he said, receiving nods from them. "Clan Jorgenson is no more."
"What are your orders, chief?" asked Fishlegs.
"Rally everyone up and prepare to march back to town... and make sure to get Hookfang freed. Any of Snotlout's warriors who have surrendered will be given a proper trial… but I have other things planned for the Jorgenson himself."
"And I guess that's it then?" asked Arn.
Hiccup shook his head. "Not exactly. As a matter of fact, I actually want to speak with you when we get back to town. It's kind of an important matter..."