Only one more chapter to go! Please re-read the previous chapter because I've made a few edits. Hope you all enjoy this chapter.
The Beginning of a New Era:
A powerful force erupted from the orb, spreading might waves of energy across the land of Kumandra, vanquishing the Drunn for good. The energy waves then drifted up into the sky, causing them to turn blue and start a rain shower.
The rain poured down on every single being and dragon that the vile forces of discord had petrified. The statues cracked and everyone came back.
Raya felt herself breathing for air. She turned to her side and saw Tong and Noi and the Ongis cheering for joy. Boun was pounding his fists in the air jumping around for joy. "Yes! Yes! Woah!" he tripped. He realised his feet were still tone but thankfully the rain unpetrified them and he could stand up. She noticed that Namaari was standing next to her, holding her shoulder. She was surprised.
Namaari let go. Raya looked at her hesitantly. Would she truly forgive her or not?
She suddenly realised that she was being clung to by a statue. She managed to wiggle her way out of it. She saw it was Hiccup.
"Hiccup," she breathed.
Everyone stared at her and the statue.
"Why didn't it work?" Boun asked.
"No. No," Raya shook her head. She planted her cheeks on his face. "No," she began to sob and leaned against the statue. "No! Hiccup! No! No!"
She cried and hugged his statue. Everyone behind her was traumatised. Tong embraced a grief-stricken Noi whilst Boun fell to his knees, shedding silent tears.
Namaari pressed her lips together and closed her eyes, feeling guilty again. As they grieved, she turned her back and walked silently away. She turned her head towards the pile of rocks, underneath which her mother lay. She shed a few tears as she climbed out of the pile away from the scene.
"No! Hiccup! No!" Raya's tears fell onto his body. "No! No! Hiccup!" She cried silently as she held his statue. But just then she heard magical whooshing from in front of her. She stood back, watching Hiccup's petrified body as blue energy cracks travelled up his body to his head and his eyes, cracking the stone. In an instant, the stone dissolved and Hiccup stood in front of them. He opened his green eyes and looked toward Raya.
"Raya?"
Raya cried out tears of joy. Before Hiccup could even open his arms, she threw her arms around him, hugging him tightly and he hugged her back. After a long moment, she pulled back and cupped his cheeks. "I knew you could do it Hiccup,"
Before Hiccup could even talk back, she had already planted a giant kiss on his lips and he pulled her close again as she wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Oh come on! Get a room!" Tong complained.
"Yeah! You both are gonna make me barf!" Boun felt sick watching their snogging.
Hiccup and Raya pulled apart but still hung onto each other. Turning their heads they saw Tong, Boun, Noi and the Ongis rushing to them, engulfing them both in their arms they had done it. They had saved Kumandra.
"Wait…where's Namaari?" Hiccup asked.
Raya and the others steered around.
"I bet she's escaped again," Boun cursed. "She's got a lot to pay for,"
"No Boun," Hiccup refused. "She's not worth it,"
"Even after what she did?" Boun asked.
Hiccup couldn't answer. He just couldn't let his rage take control of him like this again.
"Is that…" Boun drifted off. He cringed at the sight of the arm under the pile of rocks.
"Yes," Raya said solemnly. She may have hated Virana deeply for her part in her kingdom's petrification like Namaari, but no one deserved to die in such a painful way.
They climbed out of the giant hole to the surface above where they were warmly greeted by all their friends. Raya embraced her aunt and cousins in tears. Hiccup peered around, desperately searching for his little dragons. His eyes spilt out tears when he saw them flapping towards him. "Smokey! Sharpshot!" Hiccup held out his arms.
The little dragons squealed for delight and they flew into his arms and flooded his face with licks.
"Tuk-Tuk!" Raya cheered as her pillbug bounded towards her like an optimistic puppy with its mother. He nuzzled her face when she hugged him.
They stared around and saw water returning to the rivers. Just then, out of the corner of their eye, over the waterfall in the far distance came a herd of water dragons of multiple colours. They had returned. As they descended toward the river surrounding Fang, they began performing some sort of dance off the shore of the kingdom.
As they did, a mass of water floated out from under the sea, revealing Sisu. She gasped, breathing life again. She started flying around. Her heart jumped when she saw her siblings, her family.
"Pranee! Amba! Jagan! Pengu! Yeah!" she galloped across the sky with them feeling overjoyed that they were reunited together, in the real world, after so many years. She stared down and saw all her friends waving to her. She galloped down towards Hiccup and Raya who ran to greet her. As she landed, she splashed them with water and they laughed.
She stood before with proud recognition. "I – am – so – hungry,"
"Want some jerky?" Raya offered.
"Not that hungry," Sisu refused gently.
Raya and Hiccup chuckled. Sisu pulled them into her arms and hugged them tightly. They felt squeezed but they hugged her back, pressing their faces into her fur. Their hands found one another. As they touched, Raya opened her eyes and they met Hiccup's. They smiled.
"Thank you. You saved my life," Hiccup said gratefully as Sisu let them go. "You saved both of us,"
Sisu smiled in appreciation but then she turned so sad. "I am so…so sorry guys. I never should have risked your lives like this,"
"It's okay Sisu," Raya said. "We're sorry as well. But let us move forward together. You were right. It worked?"
"What worked?"
"We placed our trust in Hiccup and he did it," Raya took his hand. "I saw something inside him that he didn't see inside himself. Just like your siblings,"
"I don't think I could have done it without Namaari. It took all my guts to let go of that rage just to place it together with her. I felt like I had no choice," Half of Hiccup wished he could have killed her earlier, but in some way, his other half was telling him not to. He had to rise above his rage and overcome his pride. And he had done just that.
"I'm so proud of you two," Sisu said proudly. Unexpectantly her face dropped and she looked a little pale. "I can't believe…I killed someone. To save you guys,"
"You could have just stunned him," Hiccup said. "Why didn't you?"
"Because I felt so angry at how he was harming you two. I just…let my rage take control of me and make me do something I know I will regret forever. I'm glad you two didn't follow the same path I did," Sisu's words made Hiccup feel deeply valued in a way that he wished Stoick was proud of him before. But he no longer needed that. He had Raya, Sisu and his friends.
Sisu's siblings landed behind her. They bowed their heads in acknowledgement at the heroes standing before them.
"Well done Raya and Hiccup," the purple one named Pranee praised.
"You know our names?" Raya asked befuddled.
"Yes. When we came back to life, we saw a vision of what you both did. What all of you did," Pranee said.
"Because of you the Drunn are defeated and Kumandra will be united once again," the violet one Jagan conceded.
Sisu turned to them. "Please…will you help me resurrect our Night fury friend Toothless?"
Hiccup felt his heart-lifting. "You mean…you can bring him back too?"
Raya was beyond tears too. "Can you really?"
"We will do that," Pengu promised. They galloped on water platforms following Sisu towards the great cliff where Toothless had been killed. The other dragons followed behind them. They began the same performance of dance above the water. As they did, Hiccup reached to Raya's hand and clutched it tightly. Would this work on a dragon who wasn't from this land? Hiccup was worried. He didn't want to raise his hopes too high. But Raya was positive Toothless could be brought back.
They watched the dragons stop dancing around. They waited. And waited. Nothing happened.
Hiccup hung his head shedding tears. He thought he would finally be reunited with his best friend and brother in all but blood. But nothing had happened. He felt Raya hugging his side and Tong's hand on his shoulders.
Just then, there was a massive glow from the water. Sisu and her siblings stared down as a black see-through bubble of water ascended into the air. It was Toothless.
Hiccup felt his heart leap into his throat. He felt his eyes watering up. They fell down his face. Raya was tearing up too. They embraced one another with uttermost joy before turning back to the wonder which had befallen them.
The bubble popped. As if on instinct, Toothless's wings started flapping. He opened his eyes feeling like he had woken up from a deep sleep. He saw light. He found himself flying in the air without Hiccup but he wasn't struggling. He looked down at his tail and he saw that it was a whole again. He didn't have a missing fin. It was incredible.
He realised that he wasn't alone. He started around and saw serpentine dragons perching on water platforms in mid-air under a gentle shower. He snarled, remembering their history with his kind, how they had cast them out because they allowed the actions of a few to cloud their judgement.
"Toothless! It's all right! It's me!" Sisu shouted.
Toothless turned his head and he saw Sisu floating in front of him. "Sisu?"
"Please forgive me Toothless," she begged. "You died because of me. I hope that you can forgive me,"
Toothless looked into her eyes and he saw the true guilt in them.
"I should have listened to you from the very beginning. I was so wrapped up in trying to create a better world that I didn't think of anyone's safety and I should have. Because of that Hiccup was nearly killed and you gave your life to save him,"
"Where is Hiccup? Is he safe?"
"Yes. And it's all done,"
"What do you mean?"
"The Druun are gone. This time for good. And the Dragon Flyers are no more," Sisu promised.
Toothless couldn't believe how much had happened whilst he was dead. He wondered how Hiccup was able to endeavour it all on his own.
"I'm so sorry that I put Hiccup through all this as well. He's missed you so much greatly. I just hope that in time I can earn your forgiveness,"
"You already have," Toothless said.
Sisu was heart-struck by his words. "Thank. "Now…. I believe someone is waiting for you down there," she pointed her snout down towards Hiccup who stood on the shore.
Toothless licked her face and he shot off like a rocket.
Sisu froze. She couldn't believe Toothless had licked her face.
Hiccup's heart soared when he saw Toothless flying back toward him. He had always dreamed of seeing Toothless fly again without his help. And now he was back with a complete tail and he wasn't even choosing freedom. He was choosing to come back to him. He started running along the shore, watching as Toothless descended towards him. He flew along beside him before he circled and landed in front of him, splashing some water in his face.
Hiccup just laughed and looked back at him. "Toothless," he breathed out joyfully.
"Hiccup?" Toothless spoke again, surprising his person with his human words.
"You can talk in that form?" Hiccup was beyond tears.
"I sure can. And I'm loving it,"
Hiccup couldn't hold back. He threw his arms around his neck and Toothless purred, embracing him back tightly with both his front legs and wings.
"I thought I lost you," Hiccup sniffled.
"You'll never lose me," Toothless promised. "Never. Ever," he tightened his protective wings around his human brother. Sharpshot and Smokey joined in the hug and they licked Toothless's face. He didn't care that it annoyed him. He was just so glad to be reunited with his family.
Raya stood by watching the sight with tears. So did everyone else. Sisu then perched on Raya's other side. She couldn't take her eyes off the loving sight.
"You did it Sisu," Raya patted her side. "You brought back Toothless,"
"Come on," Sisu brushed off. "I can't take all the credit. It was the other dragons,"
"But you convinced them to. He wouldn't be alive right now if it wasn't for you,"
Sisu smiled.
"Aw, it's good to breathe in your glorious dragon stench again," Tong complimented Toothless.
Toothless frowned and snorted. "I suppose I'll take that as a compliment,"
"He can speak human words without being human?" Boun breathed.
"He sure can," Hiccup said proudly. "It seems like it's all done. The threat is over,"
"It sure is," Raya chuckled, coming over to him. She turned to their friends. "Are you guys ready to see your families?"
They all nodded.
"Good,"
"What will happen to the people of Fang?" Tong asked. "Their chieftess is dead and Namaari is gone,"
"What do you mean gone?" Sisu asked.
"She was right with us when we all came back. Then she just disappeared," Raya said. "But we will look for her. In the meantime, we will look after Fang,'
"And what of the princess if she comes back?" Toothless asked. He still held a grudge against Namaari for what she had done. He couldn't forgive so easily.
"We won't forgive her too easily. But we must rise above it," Hiccup said wisely. "We're better than this,"
"Spoken very wisely," Raya said proudly. "Let's go home,"
The people of Heart helped the people of Fang. They were disheartened to learn that their chieftess was dead. Whilst a great many blamed the Heart soldiers, others had finally come to terms with the fact their monarchs had played a part in what happened, even though they truly never meant for anyone to get killed,"
To prove their word, Hiccup and Raya promised they would look for Namaari and grant her redemption for her crimes on the condition that she would never harm or betray anyone ever again. It was difficult for them to trust their word but when Hiccup and Raya had told that Hiccup put aside his rage to allow Namaari to help him save the world with the dragon gem, they realised that they deserved a chance of understanding. General Atitya would become the new leader of Fang until Namaari was found. To prove their new alliance, Raya would allow ten Heart soldiers to help them reconstruct their lands. Soon it was time to return home and endeavour the new world which had been reborn.
Tong head back to Spine. All the villagers were gathering around again and he was joyfully reunited with his wife and son. Some Heart soldiers who had accompanied them there arrested the Talon soldiers who had attacked them. Tong's trust in the Heart soldiers assured his people they were friends when Tong reminded them of how Raya had helped him save them earlier.
Noi and the Ongis returned to Talon and to their enjoyment they saw a mother searching for her baby, Noi's mother. The elderly chieftess was arrested and the true chief regained his throne.
Boun sailed back home and to his delight, he saw a family waving to him from the docks. "Look it's Boun!" his older sister cried.
In the next few days, the three members of those tribes told their people what Princess of Raya of Heart and done for them, what they had done for each other. Soon the story of Hiccup and his dragons began to spread throughout the land as they reflected on how they had battled dragon flyers to protect them. They owed those heroes and Raya everything for saving the land and restoring peace.
With the dragons returned and the Drunn gone, the world became a peaceful paradise once again. There was just one family who needed reuniting.
Raya, Hiccup and his dragons, her aunt, cousins and their people approached their island. It was thriving more than ever and everything who had been petrified was cleaning up everything. Raya saw across the bridge her father. She felt her heart thumping harder than ever. She turned to Hiccup.
"Go on Raya," he encouraged.
She was still nervous. Would he recognise her?
"This is what you've been waiting for," Toothless reminded with a gummy smile.
"You're taking the first step again," Renata said.
Raya turned to her father again and took in a deep breath. She dismounted Tuk-Tuk and pulled off her hat. She walked towards the bridge and onto it. Her father was raising a flag. "Ba?"
Chief Benja stood still. He turned around and saw a grown-up Raya smiling. Tears filled his eyes. "Dewdrop?" He dropped the flag. He sprinted towards her.
"Ba!" Raya couldn't hold back. She flew right into his warm arms and cried. He stroked her head and kissed her hair. "I've missed you so much,"
"I missed you too dewdrop," he cried. "When I didn't find you…" he stopped. There was no need to continue. He was just so overjoyed to have his daughter back in his arms again. He let go of her and cupped her cheeks. "You look so much like your mother. She would be so proud of you," They embraced again.
Hiccup watched the scene and cried a little. Watching the father and daughter hug made an imaginary image form in his head. He began to cry a little.
"Hiccup…" Renata spoke up. "Is something wrong?"
"What? No. It's nothing," Hiccup wiped it away. "I just…I just wish I could have that…that love in my life,"
"You already have that Hiccup," Toothless spoke generously. "More than you think,"
He's right. Sharpshot and Smokey nuzzled his cheeks.
They walked forward towards the bridge. Benja saw them. He embraced his nephews and his sister-in-law and smiled at all of his people. He noticed Hiccup amongst them on his dragon whom he dismounted and his little dragons who perched on his shoulders.
"Who is this?" he asked.
Hiccup felt a little nervous. He was more nervous about revealing his relationship with his daughter than actually meeting him.
"Ba…this is Hiccup," Raya introduced. She bit her tongue to keep herself from telling him they were in a relationship. It was too awkward right now.
Hiccup bowed. "Chief Benja,"
"Welcome," Benja greeted. "And who are these?" he asked about the dragons not knowing who or what they were.
"These are my dragons Toothless, Smokey and Sharpshot. We're not from Kumandra. We come from a faraway land,"
"But they helped Raya save our world," Renata added in.
"He even risked his life to get us to safety," Luong added in.
Benja approached Hiccup and clasped his shoulders. "You are welcome here on Heart for helping my daughter and my people,'
Hiccup bowed his head in appreciation. "I hope you don't mind Chief Benja but we've brought some friends. And…" he twisted his head.
Sisu was towering over them.
"Is that really her?" Benja did a respective gesture with his hands.
"Chief Benja," Sisu bowed her head in respect. "Your daughter did you very proud,"
The people of Heart moved aside revealing dozens of citizens from the other tribes. Boun, Tong, Noi, and their families were there. And some Fang citizens. They were carrying gifts of apology in their hands much to Benja's surprise. "Where is the chief? And her daughter?" he asked.
Raya shook her head. "The chief is dead. But Namaari is nowhere to be found. We must help these people,"
Benja smiled proudly. "That's my girl. He turned to everyone who had come to pay their respects. "Welcome to Heart people! Let us rejoice in the new age that my daughter Princess Raya has brought!"
Everyone cheered.
"I didn't do it alone!" Raya announced. "I had Hiccup!" she turned to Hiccup who smiled back. "And his dragons!"
Toothless did a gummy smile. Sharpshot and Smokey did happy chirps.
"And Boun! And Tong! And Noi and the Ongis! And my Tuk-Tuk of course! They stood by my side right from the start! And so did Sisu!" he praised the dragon who was no longer the last of her kind. "We have now mended this broken world! We will no longer be enemies with one another! With the dragons back, let us rebuild the world and forever ensure we live in an era of peace and trust and kindness! Fang's citizens will not be held responsible for what happened! We must rise above our rage and help them rebuild what is broken! What is broken in all our lands! For now, let us rejoice!"
Everyone cheered. The Fang citizens looked nervous but none of the other tribes bore them any cold grudge.
Raya turned to her proud father. "Welcome to Kumandra ba,"
Everyone walked across the bridge. They watched Sisu gallop into the air to join her siblings as it rained slightly.
As they came to the island and entered the palace altogether where food and drinks were served, Hiccup smiled when she saw Raya having a happy family conversation with her family. She noticed and smiled over at him.
As she turned her head back, Hiccup's smile dropped. A painful ache from his heart began to spread through his body.
"What's with the sad face?" Toothless asked.
"Toothless…we can't stay here," Hiccup shook his head.
"What?!"
"As long as we're here we put Raya and everyone here in danger. So we must leave,"
Smokey and Smokey shook their heads at their feet.
"But Hiccup…we've found a place where we're happy, where you're happy,"
"How can I be happy knowing this land is in danger as long as we stay here? This was always intended from Talon anywhere. Krogan could have…" The last fight with Krogan back on Fang, right before Sisu came was a dark memory, Hiccup couldn't banish from his mind. It had replaced the dark memory of that day his father had scarred him. He had come so close to perhaps losing the girl whom he was now in love with.
Raya laughed for joy with her father. She then excused herself to go and find Hiccup. As she did, Sisu came in through the window and turned into a human, surprising everyone.
"Hey, Raya,"
"Hey, Sisu. Choosing the human look I see,"
"Yep. Might as well try,"
"Hey Raya!" Boun ran to them.
"Hey guys," she greeted. "Enjoying the party?"
"Yep. " Boun gorged himself on a round-shaped pastry with sprinkled sugar. "Your sugar tarts are the best.
"Just wait till that stew we made on your boat comes later. It's going to be so delicious," Raya excitedly wheezed.
"I look forward to that," Tong said, his mouth full of deserts and Noi and the Ongis eating too many treats on his shoulder.
"Wonder where Tuk-Tuk is,"
"He's probably stuffing his mouth," Raya's statement was confirmed correct when Tuk-Tuk came over with sugar all over his mouth. He did a loud burp.
"Uggh!" Tong groaned.
The baby and Ongis on his shoulder laughed.
"Hey, where's Hiccup?" Sisu noticed he wasn't with them.
"I was just about to go look for him," Raya walked around for everyone. "But there was no sign of Hiccup anywhere,"
"Where could he be? He wouldn't miss out on this party," Boun wondered.
Sisu turned to the windows. "Oh my," she jogged forward. She found a letter on a windowsill. "It's to you, Raya,"
Raya came over and unravelled the scroll. On it was a letter written in dark ink.
Dear Raya,
There are no words I have to tell you how much it hurts to leave. But I know that as long as my dragons and I stay here, we will only put you and everyone else in danger. Whomever Krogan works for will soon learn of his death and I am afraid that if he were to find me, he will hunt down every dragon here and kill you, our friends and all of your people. I fear he may already know for Sisu could not have been killed by a Flyer she didn't defeat.
Leaving is the only way to protect you and the people you love. Thank you so much for being the first human to ever show me true kindness. Thank you everyone else for being such amazing friends. I have spent eighteen years with very few humans being kind to me. I will forever cherish our time together as I spend the rest of my life in hiding.
Raya, I have never felt like this with anyone before. You are good and kind and compassionate and selfless and brave. You are perhaps the greatest warrior I have ever met. I hope one day I can return then, but until then…the touch of your kiss will be the soft feeling I will feel whenever I fall asleep every night and think of you.
Love Hiccup.
Raya sank to the ground, reading his letter. She started crying. Tuk-Tuk nuzzled his head against her hands to try and comfort her but it wasn't successful.
"Why would he leave like that?" Boun questioned.
"He's trying to protect us," Tong said. "If what he says is true then perhaps Kumandra might not be safe from the outside world as our people have believed for centuries,"
"I don't care if he thinks he'll put us in danger here! I'm going after him!" Raya declared. "I don't care if bad people are looking for him or if any greater threats from the outside world come here! He is one of us! This is his real home! This is the first real home he and his dragons have ever had in a century! And I love him!"
Her words held a strong impact on her friends. They could see the determination in her eyes, the courage, the selflessness.
"Raya's right," Tong agreed. "Hiccup is one of us. Whatever powerful forces are how there we can handle them,"
"And all of our dragons came back," Boun added in. "And we've got Toothless…who like Hiccup mentioned earlier is 'The Unholy Offspring and Lightning and Death Itself'. No enemy in the world can be a match for him!"
Noi agreed and so did the Ongis.
"Well then what are we waiting for? Let's go get him!" Sisu said resolutely. "We've got a boyfriend to catch,"
Oh no. Hiccup is leaving? Will Raya and the gang catch up to him? We'll have to wait and find out. I'm sorry that Namaari isn't here at the celebrations but here is a spoiler. There are going to be two sequels that will involve more 'How to train your Dragon' characters and she will make a return. And sorry about Virana dying but I wanted to add a bit of a tragedy to the story. Sorry to those who might not like it but that's how I'd like this story to go. Get ready for the finale! See you all very soon.
