Chapter 6: First Encounter
Just in a point of reference, things in italics are typically in thoughts or dream sequence and written text will be in bold.
Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Balto or How to Train your Dragon. They both belong to their respective owners and this is just for fun, NOT for profit.
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(Hiccup POV)
I ducked back into town to go to the Catapult Tower and then started to head west from there. When I got to the site where the Night Fury collapsed the prints were gone, but the ropes and bolas were still there along with a few scraps of black fur. I picked up the bolas to examine one . Just like the last time, when I looked at the metal I saw a familiar pair of green eyes. Is it weird that this no longer surprise me?
"You again? What is with you?"
The eyes raised a brow – or fur? Let's stick with brow – And gave me a look, 'You tell me.'
"If I did, I would be here now would I?" I talking to a pair of freaking imaginary eyes. "Can't you at least give me a hint here?"
The eyes looked to my left, but I didn't see anything there.
"What about there?"
The bola ball I was holding started to hum
"What you want me to head that way or something?" (*1)
The eyes raised a brow at me again and started vibrated as if to say, 'You think?'
"Alright, I'll take that as a yes."
I started to head north. In a way, I let the eyes guide me as I make a trek through the forest. So long I stayed on course, the bola continued to vibrate and it stops when I veer off course . It continued like this until I passed by a strange boulder and it started to vibrate so violently that it started to give off a humming sound. I looked around the boulder and it didn't seem all that special. It just looked like a giant pointed rock with a dip near it's tip, that is until I looked at it from a certain angle. From where I stood it looked abstractly like a wolf howling or something. When I stepped closer to be a better look at it, the ground from underneath me and slide down into a cavern.
Behind me, I could see there was a hole covered by moss with a flexible split in it and a steep slope, but not enough to make me trapped down here. Above me was a cone shaped hole that poured light into the cavern and I could only assume the hole was from the dip in the wolf boulder. The sizable cavern that I was in had a circular shape with ferns lining the wall and an pond with an evergreen at the center. With all my time in the repair shop, I would say that the cavern is probably 6 dog sleds in diameter (*2).
Curious, I walk around the cavern until I see movement among the ferns. Blending with the green leaves were the piercing eyes that has been haunting me for the last few hours. Before I could make a move, the eye emerged to reveal a large black wolf head, the Night Fury. I would here a faint growl coming from it, but it wasn't baring his teeth. I was lock in it's gaze, so when it closed it's eyes I did the same, but I started to lose consciousness.
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When I open my eyes, I was in the void of blue swirls again with those damn eye again. However it was more then just eyes, I was able to see the wolf's head like in the cavern while the rest of it's body remained in the shadow.
"So... Do have any idea what's going on or are we both in the dark.?" I said while gesturing back and forth between it and myself.
"I have a bit of knowledge of what's going on."
"Oh that's a relieve... Wait... YOU CAN TALK?!" I exclaimed with shock.
"Of course not, human. In this state, our consciousness are connected and that allows us to communicate telepathically. On the account of why this is so, I'm still consulting with the Spirits about that."
"So, can you fill me in on what you do know?"
"I suppose." the wolf said in a bored drawl. "For what ever the reason, the Spirits have bind our an'gix (*3). With this in mind, we can communicate telepathically whenever we are unconscious and, in some cases, when we look into reflective surfaces."
"Interesting."
"But know this human, I'm not exactly keen on this becoming a regular occurrence. I was simply testing this new ability and that you are to leave as soon as you wake up. Is that understood." The Night Fury thought with a creased brow.
"Sure. But what about...?"
"Silence." he snapped while baring his teeth. "Leave. Now."
Before I could get another word in his face started to disappear and my vision started to turn black. By the time that my vision came back, I saw that I was still in the cavern, but it wasn't as bright as it was before. Looking up into the opening, I saw that the sun was starting to set. Before I went up the slope I cam down from I looked around as saw the eyes again. I must have been looking too long, because I started to hear a growl coming from it and I took that as my cue to leave. I scurried up the slope and slipped through the split in the moss above. When I was up on my feet again, I saw that you really wouldn't have known that there was a cavern right beneath you. But I couldn't waste any more daylight and started to head back into town. I pulled out my notebook from my jacket and started to sketch the head of the Night Fury that I saw while I was unconscious.
And just for my gracious amount of luck, as soon as I clapped my notebook shut, there was a thunderclap and a few drops of sleet. I stuffed my notebook back into my jacket and trudged through the now pouring sludge rain as I made my way back into town.
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I was dredged from head to toe by the time that I reached the Great Hall and the doors open and closed for me to slip in. There was only a few people in the Hall, but seated near the center of the fire pit I could see and faintly hear Gobber and the trainees going over today's lesson. Not wanting to starve, I sloughed my wet boots toward them.
"Alright. Where did Astrid go wrong in the ring today?" Gobber said to the recruits that were eating dinner by the glow of the fire pit.
"I was doing too many cartwheels and not enough somersaults to dodge. It threw my timing off and came off as sloppy."
"Yeah. We noticed." Ruffnut said as as Tuffand she rolled their eyes.
"No, no, you were great. That was so 'Astrid'." Snotlout said as he tried to grab Astrid's hand only to almost being stabbed with a knife.
"But she's right,your know. You have to be tough on yourselves." Gobber pauses a beat as notice me as I grabbed a plate of chicken. All eyes turned to me, some was glaring like Snotlout and others were more pitiful like Astrid or Gobber; I've learned to ignore it and sit at the next table. "Where did Hiccup go wrong?"
"He showed up." Ruff suggested.
"He didn't get eaten?" Tuffnut said genuinely guessing.
"He's never where he should be." Snotlout said while glaring back at me.
"No, you oaf." Astrid said flicking an chicken bone at Snotlout. "We dodged just as well as the rest of us, but his timing was slow. He was distracted throughout the while exercise and that's what made him fail in the end."
"Thank you, Astrid. If you want to survive, you have to be observant of both your friends and your enemies. Protect your friends. Bend your enemies." He stood up and retrieved something from his bag on the ground. "You need to live and breathe this stuff." he said as he sets a giant book in the center of the table. "This is the Wolf Manual. Everything we know about every wolf we know of." There was a loud rumble of thunder outside. "With all that, there'll be no attacks tonight. Study up. Be more prepared tomorrow." Gobber said before grabbing his bag and fairing into the storm, leaving the teens staring at the book.
"Wait, you mean read? I can't read." Tuffnut said in slight panic.
"Of you can, your knucklehead!" Ruffnut said punching her twin in the head. "But who wants to while we're still alive?"
"Yeah, why read words when you can just kill the stuff the words tell you stuff about?" Snotlout said like it was a no brainer.
"Oh! I've read it like, seven times." Fishlegs suddenly exclaimed with a burst of excitement. "There's this water wolf that sprays boiling water at your face. And there's this other one that buries itself for like a week..."
"Yeah, that sounds great." Tuffnut said, cutting Fishlegs off.
"How about we go hunt that stuff down instead of just sitting around talking about it." Ruffnut said while getting up.
"I bet I can find it first." Tuffnut shoved his sister to the side and sprinted out.
"In your dreams." Ruffnut said running after them.
"Hey if anyone is bring back a kill it's going to be me." Snotlout yelled at them as he ran after them.
"Wait guys! You don't even know where to find them." Fishlegs followed after them while spouting out facts.
I got up and went to the table that now only sat Astrid and sat next to her. "Muttonheads. Am I right?"
"Tell me about it." Astrid said as she took the last sip of her watered-down mead. "I swear my dogs are smarter then them sometimes."
"So..." I glance at the book between us. "I guess we'll read this together." I said with a hopeful grin.
"Sorry, I've already read it." She says I she stood up and started to leave.
"Well, you could still walk me through it."
"I'd like to, but it need to go check on the pups and maybe do a bit of training on how to react to this type of weather." She pats me on the shoulder that sent a quick shiver up my spine. "Maybe next time."
"Oh... um... sure. See you tomorrow." I called after her.
As I saw her exit the hall, I saw that other were starting to clear out as well, leaving with nothing but the dying embers of the fire pit as my source of light. The sleet was starting to pour down harder and no one else was at home, so I stayed inside to read the Wolf Manual. The hall is vacant and dark, but pull a few candles and lanterns together from the other tables. I first opened the book to look at the contents and started reading.
WOLF CLASSIFICATIONS
Stoker class
Sharp class
Heavy class
Tidal class
Strike class
Fear class
Mystery class
*flips through pages*
Thunderdrum - This reclusive wolf inhabits caves near the sea and preferably near dark tide pools. When startled, the Thunderdrum produces a concussive sounding howl that can kill a man at close range. Extremely dangerous. Kill on sight.
My eyes drift to a lurid illustration of decapitated Explorers. Another page, another wolf.
Timberjack - This gigantic creature has unnaturally long ears that are razor sharp due to it being licked repeatedly. When their ears are spread like bull horns, it can slice through full grown trees...extremely dangerous. Kill on sight.
The illustrations seem to take on a life of their own, shifting and squirming in the candlelight.
Scauldron – It can ingest large sums of snow, boils in within their stomach, and sprays scalding water at its victim. Extremely dangerous.
The storm outside rages against the shuttered windows. And a sudden strike makes me jump, but presses on.
Changewing - Even newborn pups can spray acid. Kill on sight.
I hear the storm start to slack up a bit so I began flipping through the pages faster until it was nothing but a blur of wolves...
Gronckle. Zippleback. The Skrill. Bone Knapper. Whispering Death.
Burns its victims. Buries its victims. Chokes its victims. Turns its victims inside-out.
Extremely dangerous. Extremely dangerous. Kill on sight. Kill on sight. Kill on sight...
I stop on one page, the one few look for, the one I've been looking for.
Night Fury -
I was blank. No image. No physical description. But there was one withered entry.
Speed unknown. Size unknown. The unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. Never engage this wolf. Your only chance is to hide and pray it does not find you.
I reached into my vest and pulled my sketchbook out. I open it and flip through until I find my latest drawing, the Night Fury sketch. I laid it over the book's blank page and considers it. Seems legit.
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(*1) Ladies and Gentlemen, I have now made this fic into another episode of Lassie. Your welcome. ;)
(*2) I found that a dog sled is about 6-7 ft long, so the cave is 36-42 feet in diameter.
(*3) An'gix = state of mind or guts. I originally wanted to simply say soul or spirit, but I couldn't find a short and easy to type term. If you guys know of a source that does have soul or spirit, then let me know and provide the url.
Also if your a fan of the movie Balto or just want more insight on it, I suggest that you go onto YouTube and check out Channel Awesome's "Balto Nostalgia Critic Review" or "Balto 1st viewing". Both of them came out while I was writing this chapter and gave me a good laugh.
Thanks for all those that reviewed, every little bit helps. If you're new to the story, please let me know what you think with a review. Constructive criticism is accepted, but no flames please. And don't be too shy to check out some of my other stories.