Many thanks to everyone for the positive reaction to this weird little story, I can hardly wait to see the reaction to the last two chapters, where weird does not begin to describe it.
Good to see you Vin. I'm happy you've joined the rest of the regular Snoggletog bunch.
Chapter 4
Even inside the protected harbour at the bottom of the cliffs, the wind had whipped up the water into a high chop. The boat creaked and groaned as it rubbed up against the dock, making it near impossible to set the rigging.
"We need to hold the ship steady" Marty said as he untied the forestay line leading from the bow to the top of the mast.
"Brilliant idea; I'll get the backstay" Fishlegs agreed as he made for the stern.
With the ends of the ropes held tight, the two men climbed back onto the dock; one going forward and the other back. As soon as they were in position, they both pulled on the ropes, still tied to the top of the mast, with all their might. Now that the mast was held steady, Ruffnut and Tuffnut were able to climb the rigging.
"Well done everyone" Hiccup shouted above the wind "Astrid, Snotlout, feed up the mainsail. Ruff, Tuff, tie it up storm short."
The mast started to creak under the strain, leaving Marty and Fishlegs little time to get back on board and re-tie the rope stays before the mast split.
"Let me help you" Astrid said as Marty leapt off the dock and onto the deck.
They both stumbled forward, where Marty held the rope taught while Astrid tied it off, as Snotlout did the same at the stern. With the rigging taken care of, Ruffnut and Tuffnut now had to climb down while the mast. Now able to move freely, the mast swayed violently back and forth. Tuffnut wrapped the main halyard once around his ankle and slid down to the deck but when Ruffnut tried to do the same, a sharp gust of wind sent the ship into the dock, causing the young woman to lose her grip.
The heaving deck move up to meet her as she dropped, but a split second before Ruffnut fell to a painful death, she was caught by two strong muscular arms. Surprised to find she was not bleeding and all her limbs were still intact, Ruffnut looked up into the face of the man who had saved her.
"My hero" she declared as she reached out to reward him with a kiss.
"No time for that now, we've got to cast off before the boat is smashed to pieces" Marty said, dropping the girl to her feet.
"So close!" Ruffnut snapped her fingers.
With the longship finally underway, it seemed fortune was with them at last for once Hiccup had brought the bow around to an easterly heading, they found themselves in a following wind. The intrepid team could not hope to reach their destination till well into the next day, so anyone not working on deck was ordered below to rest as best they could, in preparation for a later shift.
For hour after hour, the solid Berkian ship sailed on, creaking and twisting as it crested each wave before crashing down into the trough below. Sleep was not easy to come by for the Dragon Riders below deck as they lay on unused sails, sat back in coils of rope, or sway back and forth in one of the hammocks. A lurch to starboard shook Marty awake and he noticed Fishlegs sitting on his own near the stern, so he rose and went to talk to the Gronckle rider.
"Something wrong Fishlegs?"
"Huh? Oh... nothing; it's silly really" the young man replied and looked away.
"If it's bothering you, then it can't be too silly" Marty said as he sat down close by.
"Well... it's like this" Fishlegs began "The weather has been acting strange for months now, but until you identified the source of the problem, I never came close to making the connection. I'm supposed to be the guy Hiccup can depend on to be analytical. I'm supposed to be the smart one, and I failed everyone."
"I wouldn't say that" Marty said, laying back against the side of the ship "You are smart; and if Gothi wasn't able to work out what the problem was, you shouldn't beat yourself up over it either."
"Yeah but you managed to find the answer in less than a day" Fishlegs sighed.
"No I didn't; the medallion sparked when I tried to touch it because I'm not from this dimension. That means I'm not smarter than you, and it was pure chance I found it when I did" Marty admitted, not mentioning it was because the Nightmare rider was showing off at the time.
"I suppose you're right; thanks Marty, it's good to have you around" Fishlegs said, perking up a little.
Rising to his feet, the inter-dimensional traveller brushed himself off and smiled.
"I guess I'd better go and take my turn on deck. Try and get some sleep because I'm sure we'll need your sharp mind when we get to the eastern continent" Marty suggested.
"I will... and thanks; I feel much better now" Fishlegs nodded.
He watched as the man climbed the steps to the deck, and thought how lucky they were to have such a wise and humble person along with them on this adventure.
"Hi Astrid; I'll take over for a while, you go and relax" Marty said as he reached out for the tiller.
To his surprise, Astrid yelped and almost fell off the back of the boat.
"Are you alright" Marty asked, helping her up.
"Oh... sorry... I was lost in thought and you surprised me" she admitted.
"Understandable, it can get pretty boring just sitting here with nothing else to do and nobody to talk with" Marty said calmly.
He noticed as he placed his hand on the tiller, Astrid immediately pulled hers away sharply.
"What were you thinking of?" Marty asked innocently.
"Um... well to tell the truth... I was thinking about you actually" she admitted.
"I hope I don't have you worried; I only want to help and I promise I don't have any ulterior motives" Marty informed her.
"Oh it's not that!" Astrid shot back, afraid she may have offended the newcomer "I... that is to say we... are all very grateful for all the help you've given us, even going so far as to risk your own life."
"When friend's lives are at stake, I can't just stand back and watch" Marty said seriously.
"There's so much we don't know about you, and yet I... err we, feel very comfortable having you around."
"Feel free to ask any questions, and I will answer if I'm able to" Marty offered.
"This land you come from, I've never heard of it before" Astrid started with.
"That's because its thousands of miles away on the other side of the world" Marty admitted.
"Then how is it you seem to know most of us so well?" it was clear this fact bothered Astrid.
"Ah... that is rather hard to explain, but let me say that you, Hiccup and the Dragon Riders are quite well known, far and wide."
"I see... um... do you... err... have a... family?"
"I'm afraid not" Marty replied with regret.
"Oh... well then... I'm sure everyone on Berk would very pleased if you wanted to stay with me... I mean us... in the village" Astrid said eagerly.
"Tempting offer, but I'm not sure if that will be possible. We'll just have to wait and see" Marty sighed and looked off into the distance.
Astrid could tell there was something he wasn't telling her, but without knowing what question to ask, she had little hope of finding out what it was. There was so much more she wanted to know, but she was also feeling a little flustered and did not want to slip up again.
"Um... Ruffnut seems rather taken with you" Astrid said, steering the conversation away from herself.
"Yeah typical Ruffnut" Marty smiled and shook his head "Always interested in the new guy until someone else comes along."
She was trying to find out if Marty had any intention of acting on Ruff's advances, but instead Astrid was surprised to discover yet another example of just how much the man really knew about them all, and she worried about what he may know about her and her feelings. Astrid's mind raced as she wondered what she should say next but before she could open her mouth, the main hatch creaked open and Hiccup climbed out onto the deck.
"Hey there, how's everything going?" he asked.
"Great; I just took over from Astrid and the storm is letting up as well" Marty noted.
"It is?" Hiccup looked up at the clouds and saw his new friend was right.
"Looks like we were worried over nothing" Astrid said as she checked the wind "Maybe we should just turn back."
"I don't think that would be wise" Marty corrected her "I believe the improvement in the weather is simply because we have put a lot of miles between our ship and Berk. Things still look pretty bleak behind us."
Hiccup and Astrid turned their gaze to the horizon beyond the stern of the longship and saw that Marty was right. Hiccup began to wonder if there was anything this amazing man could not do.
"I suppose now my shift is over, I'd better get some rest" Astrid remarked and went below.
As she left, Hiccup noticed the backwards glance Astrid gave the man at the tiller. He wondered if he should say something or try to do something about it, but in the end he realised there was no point as he could not hope to compete with this magnificent man.
I know someone shouldn't laugh at their own jokes, but I'd forgotten how much I had falsely built myself up in this chapter and it made me crack up during the edit. Only two more chapters to go, so I'll see you all in a few days.
Marty & BooCat.
