Author's Note: Chapter Sixteen already? Wow! The Google Doc that I'm writing this story in currently has 105 pages and 33,865 words making this story my longest story as of right now! =D WOO!
I hope you enjoy chapter sixteen! =D
Chapter Sixteen: Things Get Worser
The Dragon Riders rode in somber silence for the rest of the flight. The clouds were dark, which only added on to the already gloomy mood for the six Riders and their dragons. Astrid eventually hopped back onto Stormfly, but a sorrowful look still remained on her face. The Riders had lost the Lynthear, Dewdrop, and Astrid had lost a friend.
Tuffnut was the first to break the silence. "What are we going to do?"
Hiccup drew in a breath. "I honestly don't know…" With the last Lynthear gone, the Riders wouldn't be able to complete the cure recipe. Hiccup sighed to himself. They should've gotten the tears sooner or just stayed underground to avoid the attack.
"Who was that guy?" asked Ruffnut.
"I don't know," said Hiccup. "But whoever he is, he sure doesn't like us."
"That's obvious," said Snotlout. "I mean, he and his men nearly killed us."
"We need to come up with a new plan," said Astrid. The Hofferson girl was still upset about losing Dewdrop, but she knew that she needed to snap out of her sadness and focus so she could help the others. "Snowdrop was the last Lynthear. Did the notes say anything about an alternative to Lynthear tears?"
"No," said Hiccup sadly. "It specifically said Lynthear tears. There isn't any other dragon in the entire archipelago that can cry."
Long silence followed. All hope seemed lost. The cure was incomplete, the Lynthear was gone, a group of dragon hunters were out for them, and Berk possibly wouldn't survive the Inyitis outbreak. Hiccup squeezed his eyes shut, forcing the tears not to fall. He was going to lose his father, which meant that he would become chief in his place.
I'm...I'm not ready… thought Hiccup. He wasn't ready for the burdens that the chief carries. He wasn't ready for it at all. He couldn't bring himself to think that his father would be dead in a couple of days. Hiccup bit his lip. What were they going to do?
"I mean...at least things can't get any worser," said Tuffnut.
"It's worse," corrected Astrid with a hint of irritation in her voice.
"But things have already gotten worse," said Ruffnut. "So things can only get worser."
Astrid— not in the mood to argue with the twins—sighed and continued to stare straight ahead. The Riders were flying through the dark sky with no destination whatsoever. Hiccup knew they needed to come up with something. Something that would cure the Inyitis once and for all and possibly stop whatever the hunters they had encountered back on Dewdrop's island were planning. But no matter how much Hiccup tried to come up with something, he just couldn't. It seemed as if there wasn't a way out of this one.
"How about we stop somewhere to rest?" said Astrid. "It's getting dark and it looks like it might rain."
Hiccup nodded and the Riders set out to find shelter. They came across a small island in the middle of the ocean and luckily, it came with a large cave. The Dragon Riders walked inside and Astrid collected some firewood before entering. She placed them in the middle of the room and told Stormfly to light it. The Nadder obeyed and shot a small blast of fire at the pile of sticks, causing them to catch fire. Astrid sat down next to Hiccup, who was staring into the flames deep in thought.
Astrid laid a hand on his shoulder. "We'll figure something out," she said.
"But that's the thing," said Hiccup. He turned to face her, his forest green eyes reflecting worry. "It doesn't seem like we'll figure something out. In fact, it seems like things aren't going to get any better. Dewdrop's gone, we lost the last ingredient, and those crazy dragon hunters are still out there. And to top it off, we all might come down with Inyitits at any minute. How are we going to figure something out?"
Astrid bit her lower lip. She didn't know how to respond. Hiccup sighed and turned to face the dancing flames again. Toothless crooned beside him and Hiccup began to rub his head subconsciously.
"I just...I don't know what to do, Astrid," said Hiccup.
"I don't either," said Astrid. "But I know you'll come up with something. We're not giving up just yet, Hiccup."
Hiccup only nodded in response and Astrid decided to let him rest. Hiccup had been through a lot and discovering that his father had caught Inyitits only added on to the worry that he was currently going through. And now that they had lost the Lynthear, who had the final and last ingredient that they needed, Hiccup was probably thinking about what would happen to Berk.
And what would happen to them.
The Dragon Riders had been exposed to Inyitis long enough to at least catch a few traces of it. Astrid hoped that the virus wouldn't kick in until after they got the cure, but Fishlegs had already come down with it, meaning that it was only a matter of time before one of them (or all of them) caught the illness to.
Astrid shook those thoughts out of her head and focused on what was lying in front of her. The Riders were all in a somber mood, and she was too. But they needed to stay strong, not just for themselves, but for all of Berk.
The Dragon Riders stayed silent for the next few minutes, and it wasn't until the storm started that they decided to get some rest. Astrid leaned against Stormfly's scales and watched the fire slowly go out, and once it did, she fell asleep.
…
The next morning, the Riders set out once again. Hiccup had a vague plan, but he didn't know if he was being brave or insane. He told the other Riders what he was thinking, and they reacted in the way he had expected that they would.
"Are you crazy?!" cried Astrid.
"Yep," said Hiccup. "Clearly that's the word that defines me."
"Seriously, Hiccup, how come you haven't joined the Loki side yet?" asked Tuffnut.
"He thinks he isn't worthy enough," said Ruffnut. "Hiccup, we'll show you the ropes once you join our side."
"I'm not joining your side," said Hiccup as he shook his head. "But I really think we should hunt down those hunters."
"They nearly killed us!" shouted Snotlout.
"Nearly" said Hiccup. "We need to know how they found us. Maybe this whole thing is connected to them somehow. Think about it, why else would they hunt down Dewdrop?"
"He has a point," Astrid said. "Lynthears are known for their tears healing properties. Other than that, Lynthears are pretty much invisible in the dragon world."
"So we follow these crazy hunters who want to kill us, find out what they know about Lynthears, and then we leave?" said Snotlout.
"Yes," said Hiccup. "But we're also going to see if they have any tears. If they've been capturing Lynthears, then they have to have some Lynthear tears."
The Dragon Riders set off toward the direction to follow the dragon hunters they had encountered. Hiccup remembered seeing their ships head west, so the Riders went westward. Hiccup hoped that they'd find something to end the illness rampaging through Berk before it was too late.
And if they didn't...Hiccup didn't know what would happen next.
…
The Dragon Riders stayed hidden in the clouds to avoid the ships detection below. Hiccup used his spyglass to look ahead, and saw what looked like an island not too far from where they were. Hiccup placed the spyglass back into his saddlebag and turned to the others.
"Okay, gang. We need to be careful. We don't know what lies ahead of us, so we need to be alert and ready for anything. That means no rushing in unless you know you have backup and no exploding things at random," said Hiccup in a serious tone. Ruffnut and Tuffnut sighed, but nodded along with the others and the Riders crossed into the unknown waters. Hiccup watched as the ships below began to dock and the men that they had encountered on Dewdrop's island began to hop off of their ships and head toward what looked like their Great Hall. It was built within a rocky mountain and didn't look like it was in very good shape. Hiccup wondered what had happened for their island to fall into such ruin, but he pushed those thoughts out of his mind and focused on what he and the other Dragon Riders were there for, to find Lynthear tears and get out.
"Okay, Bud, let's go," Hiccup said to his Night Fury. Toothless grumbled in response and began to dive down toward the more forestry area of the island. The Riders landed in a clearing and ran up to where they could overlook the entire island. Men were hauling their weapons and catapults back toward the Great Hall, and several others were working on repairing ships.
"I wonder where they're going to strike next," said Astrid. "Hopefully they won't be attacking so soon, though."
"I hope so too," said Hiccup. "But why did they want Snowdrop in the first place? It doesn't look like anyone here has Inyitis."
"Maybe they wanted to keep Snowdrop for her tears in case the disease spread to other islands," said Astrid. "Then other tribes would have to come here and pay for the last cure ingredient to cure their villages.
"That's so unfair," said Snotlout.
Astrid snapped her head in his direction, an upset look on her face. "So this is unfair? Did you already forget how you were charging people for water when the well ran out of it?"
"That was an entirely different situation," said Snotlout. "This is different."
"Uh, it kind of applies to the same topic," said Ruffnut.
"Shut up!" snapped Snotlout. The twin Thorstans just rolled their eyes.
Hiccup peered down at the preparations that were going on down below. It did look like they were getting ready to attack someplace else. Hiccup then realized something.
"But if these men wanted Dewdrop, they wouldn't have killed her," said Hiccup. "They didn't look angry at all when Snowdrop was shot."
Astrid gripped the handle of her axe. "I think what we have here is sabotage."
"That makes total sense," said Tuffnut. "They must have known about the outbreak on Berk so they went out of their way to find the rarest ingredient and kill it before we could get to it."
The Dragon Riders and their dragons stared at Tuffnut in shock. Tuffnut scoffed.
"Hey, I can't be the smart one too?" said Tuffnut.
"Yeah, we're not stupid!" added Ruffnut.
Hiccup shook his head. "We didn't say you were stupid. It's just...oh, nevermind." He turned back toward the Great Hall. "We need to see what's going on in there."
Ruffnut smiled mischievously. "Oohh, breaking and entering?"
"Well, yes, but we're going to have to be sneaky," said Hiccup. "So more like sneaking in."
"What do you have in mind, Dragon Boy?" asked Astrid.
"Just follow my lead," said Hiccup. And the Riders ran down toward the village.
…
"This is not what I thought you had in mind," said Astrid.
The Riders had painted their clothes black so they would blend in better with their surroundings. They also managed to take some armor that was laying around so their appearances wouldn't look too recognizable if they encountered the same men that had attacked them back on Snowdrop's island. Hiccup stared at his reflection in the water and shrugged.
"I mean, we don't look so bad," said Hiccup. He pulled his scarf up so that it was covering half of his face. "Make sure to put on these so that they don't recognize our faces."
"Ugh, I hate scarfs," complained Ruffnut as she pulled her's over her mouth. "They're so stuffy."
"It's better than having everyone here know who you are," said Astrid as she pulled her on. "Come on, let's get to work."
Hiccup turned to Toothless and the other dragons. "You guys stay here. We can't disguise you so you're going to be lookouts in case anything goes wrong."
The dragons nodded obediently and the Riders left the forest and entered the village once again and walked through it without drawing any unwanted attention. They were conspicuous but inconspicuous at the same time. Hiccup smiled to himself. Their plan was working.
When they arrived at the Great Hall, the man who had shot Dewdrop was standing guard. Astrid felt rage heat up within her and drew her axe but Hiccup stopped her.
"Remember the plan," he said. Astrid sighed and sheathed her axe to her back once again, but shot the man a dirty look as they entered the Great Hall.
"You have no idea how much I want to sever his limbs right now," growled Astrid.
The Dragon RIders walked through the large, crowded area and came across a door that led to the hallway. The hallway had several doors, but one door in particular seemed to be a storage room.
"Let's check this place out," said Hiccup.
"Snotlout, you keep a lookout," said Astrid.
Snotlout blinked. "Why me? Why not the twins?"
Astrid crossed her arms. "They can hardly look out for themselves. Do you really think they can handle being lookout?"
Snotlout huffed. "Fine."
Hiccup, Astrid, and the twins headed inside the small storage room and looked around. The room was filled with mostly weapons and other things, but there was something in the middle of a shelf that caught Hiccup's eye. He picked up the small jar and looked inside.
"I'm not the only one who thinks that this looks like a jar of tears, right?" said Hiccup as he showed the others the container. A clear liquid was inside, but it didn't look like water. In fact, the liquid was a pale blue unlike normal human tears.
"I think Hiccup's right," said Astrid. "These do look somewhat like tears if you disregard the color."
"We found the tears! Woo!" cheered Ruffnut. Hiccup, Astrid, and Tuffnut shushed her.
"We found the tears. Woo!" she whispered.
Snotlout ran inside. "They're coming! They're coming!"
"Quick! Hide in the closets!" Hiccup said quickly. The Riders each head in separate closets. Ruffnut and Tuffnut hid in one, Snotlout hid in the other, and Hiccup and Astrid hid in the last one. Hiccup shut the closet door and squeezed next to Astrid.
"It's so cramped in here!" she whispered.
"I know, but it's safer in here than it is out there," said Hiccup. The two clamped their mouths shut when they heard the door slam open and the sound of boots thumping on the ground. Hiccup held his breath and tried his best not to make a sound.
"You said you saw unfamiliar people walk down here?" said a familiar voice. It was the voice that belonged to the man Hiccup fought back on Dewdrop's island. Hiccup frowned and listened carefully.
"Yes, Ingvar," said a new voice, one that Hiccup didn't recognize. "I've never seen them before and they were acting a little suspicious."
"Keep an eye out for them, then," said the man whose name Hiccup now knew was Ingvar. "I have a feeling those people may be those blasted Riders we fought earlier."
Hiccup heard the two men leave and let out a breath. He opened the door and stepped out. Astrid followed soon after.
"It's safe to come out now," said Hiccup.
"Finally," said Ruffnut. She opened the door and jumped out. She turned to Tuffnut. "You take up too much room."
"You take up too much room," Tuffnut retorted.
"Guys, please don't start this now," said Astrid. "We need to get out of here."
Hiccup nodded. He made sure that he had the Lynthear tears and the Riders made their way out the door, unnoticed. They reached the forest clearing again, and Hiccup turned to the Riders with a smile on his face.
"Hey, we did it!" said Hiccup happily. "Nobody caught us!"
At that moment, hundreds of men erupted from the bushes. The Dragon Riders stepped into a defensive circle, and Hiccup suddenly realized that their dragons weren't in the area.
They must've found them, thought Hiccup as he mentally groaned. Hiccup watched as Ingvar stepped forward.
"I believe you have something that belongs to me," he said with a sneer. Hiccup still kept a firm grip on the bottle that contained Lynthear tears.
"I'm not giving it back," said Hiccup.
"You're going to have to get through us if you want it," said Astrid as she held her axe.
Ingvar chuckled, but Hiccup heard the inauspiciousness in it. "That won't be so hard. Men...FIRE!"
Five darts flew through the air and before the Rider had enough time to react, the darts lodged themselves in either one of their legs or arms. Hiccup yanked the dart out of his right arm but it was too late. The dart was already taking effect. Hiccup watched as the world began to spin, and he could feel himself falling, but he never felt himself hit the ground.
