=Normal POV=

{Saturday, June 18, 2022-3:50 pm}

(Archian Preparatory; Dragon Training Field)

Hiccup was on edge, and all his friends could see it as they were dressed in cap and gown, lined up, and ready to march out in ten minutes for the ceremony. Astrid didn't want to interrupt whatever Hiccup was thinking about, but she was worried for him. Snotlout looked back at her since they were all spread out and mouthed; ask if he's alright. Astrid sighed as she went to confront Hiccup.

"Babe?" Astrid asked.

"Hm? What's up? You okay?" Hiccup smiled at her.

"Yes, I was just…Worried about you," Astrid stated.

"Me? Whatever for?" Hiccup blinked.

"You seem like you're in your own world. All our friends are concerned that something is going on that you're not telling us," Astrid said softly.

"I've just got a bad feeling, Ast. Toothless is on edge; he senses something isn't right. I'm just on guard," Hiccup explained.

"Drago?" Astrid questioned. Hiccup stared at her and nodded once. "Call Hoark, now. We still don't know what Drago is planning, and if he decides to launch an attack today, a lot of people could get hurt…I know you are strong, but everyone needs help sometimes. Call Hoark, and let him know that something feels wrong and to come just in case,"

"You're right," Hiccup nodded as he located his phone and dialed Hoark's number. "Hey, it's me. Look, I don't have any information or updates from my guys…But something doesn't feel right today. My dragon is on edge, and so am I. I don't know if anything will happen, but this is a highly crowded area because of graduation…I don't want to see anyone get hurt,"

"We'll come prepared for anything and observe," Hoark replied; then the call ended. Hiccup shrugged and put his phone away.

"Hoark said they'd come and observe, but only take action if something happens," Hiccup informed. Astrid smiled a bit and hugged Hiccup tightly.

"I should get back to my spot," Astrid informed as she went to walk away, but Hiccup grabbed her hand gently.

"Astrid, wait," Hiccup stopped her as she looked at him with a smile.

"Yeah?" Astrid asked.

"There's something I have to tell you," Hiccup started.

"Okay, go ahead," Astrid invited.

"About yesterday morning…I should have said it then, but-," Hiccup began.

"Alright, boys and girls; it's time!" Mogadon announced as everyone lined up quickly to their spaces.

"Oh, tell me later, babe. Gods, this is exciting; we're gonna be graduates!" Astrid squealed as she kissed his cheek and hurried back to her place. Hiccup sighed; he would tell her as soon as this was over as long as nothing went wrong.

. . .

{5:15 pm}

An hour and fifteen minutes into the ceremony, everything seemed to be going fine. Still, Hiccup couldn't shake the feeling something awful was about to happen. The ceremony began as planned; the teachers exited first, then Mogadon, and finally, the students. There were so many people here as Archian Prep was the main school for Archia Isle. Parents, siblings, and just some on-lookers. Mogadon Meatsen spoke first to welcome everyone; then a few others stepped up bringing the time to now. Mogadon was back at the podium; it was the time to bring up the Valedictorian.

"I'm proud to announce and welcome to the stage your Archian Preparatory Class of 2022 Valedictorian, Hiccup Haddock!" Mogadon clapped as did everyone else. Hiccup sighed heavily as he rose from his seat and moved up the stairs to the stage; he shook Mogadon's hand as the man stepped back giving the space to Hiccup.

Finally, after a few moments; it quieted down as Hiccup looked out to everyone. "Alright, uh…Thank you, Mr. Meatsen," Hiccup started. "I'm going to be entirely honest here; I did not prepare a speech for this. I had ample time, but as we all know it can happen; life got in the way. So, I'm going to do what I do best and wing it for you," he admitted as a few people laughed. "Most would say that Kindergarten is the start of our independent journey in life. But are we really on our own? We're born, and we get our parents for five to six years teaching us how to walk, talk, and more; they guide and prepare us for school. Now, we're five or six and starting school. Great, but are we on our own? No, because we get not only our parents but teachers as well, guiding and teaching us the essential things we need to know. Yeah; it got harder each grade we ascended into, but can we sit here and say that we were independent?" he asked.

A lot of students said no together or just shook their heads. "However, here we are now. Most of us are seventeen, eighteen, maybe a little older if you stayed back," Hiccup said as more laughed a bit. "What is today to us? Graduation, right? We spent the last twelve years doing homework, classwork, maybe a couple field trips here and there, but we busted our butts to pass and be here today, and about to graduate High School. So is today really the end? Of High School, yes. But not our journies. No, this is only the beginning. Today marks us starting our independence. We're adults; it's up to us to live using all we've gained from our parents and educators. Sure, our parents can offer advice, but they can't tell us how to live anymore. Maybe some of you are going off to college; some might be moving out, some might be working already or leaving here today thinking Oh, man, this means I gotta get a job,"

"No matter where you're going, or what you choose to do from here on out; it's your choice. This is your time to think about what you wanna do with your lives. This is the time you can make mistakes and learn from them. This is the start of our lives, our independence. So go ahead; mess up, but learn from it and keep going. Never stop. Life is a long road with potholes, rocks, and some mountains. Yeah, you're gonna get knocked down. Things won't go your way. But pick yourself up, brush it off and keep moving forward. This is the beginning, the starting line. No matter what you're going for; you will reach it if you keep going," Hiccup stated looking out to all of them.

"Our lives are a road we constantly move on. And there are mountains we have to climb starting today when you hold your diploma in your hands. You will get tired, you will fall down, and sometimes you will lose, but don't give up. It doesn't matter how fast you get there, and it doesn't matter what's waiting on the other side. Just keep climbing. We all make it there at some point. It's all about the climb because who are we if not shaped by our past and the choices we made along the way. And to help everyone remember that message; I've been working on a little something that was inspired by the girl who gave me those words that I passed on today; Miss. Astrid Hofferson,"

Astrid blushed a bit as Hiccup smiled as he looked to Mogadon and nodded. The man nodded back as Hiccup went behind the stage to grab something, then returned with a guitar strapped around his shoulder and hanging in front of his midsection. Hiccup gave a thumbs up to the person running the music as he pressed a button and it fell quiet.

"I can almost see it; that dream I'm dreaming. But there's a voice inside my head saying 'you'll never reach it.' Every step I'm taking. Every move I make feels lost with no direction. My faith is shaking. But I…I gotta keep trying. Gotta keep my head held high!" Hiccup started while playing the soft notes on his guitar.

"There's always gonna be another mountain; I'm always gonna wanna make it move. Always gonna be an uphill battle; sometimes I'm gonna have to lose. Ain't about how fast I get there. Ain't about what's waiting on the other side! It's the climb!" this time, the music picked up more.

"The struggles I'm facing. The chances I'm taking; sometimes might knock me down, but no, I'm not breaking. I may not know it, but these are the moments that I'm gonna remember most, yeah. Just gotta keep going. And I…I gotta be strong! Just keep pushing on!" he sang out as Astrid sniffled a bit; Hiccup took her father's words and turned it into something inspirational and beautiful.

"Cause there's always gonna be another mountain; I'm always gonna wanna make it move. Always gonna be an uphill battle; sometimes I'm gonna have to lose. Ain't about how fast I get there. Ain't about what's waiting on the other side! It's the climb!" it became a pretty nice guitar solo as people were smiling, cheering, and swaying together like at a concert during a slow memorial song. The music softened a bit now.

"There's always gonna be another mountain. I'm always gonna wanna make it move. Always gonna be an uphill battle, sometimes you're gonna have to lose!" Hiccup sang louder. "Ain't about how fast I get there. Ain't about what's waiting on the other side! It's the climb! Yeah, yeah! Keep on moving, keep climbing. Keep the faith, baby! It's all about, all about the climb! Keep the faith; keep your faith! Woah!" the music came to an end as everyone jumped up applauding and cheering. Hiccup took a small bow as he went to put his guitar away; then walk off stage to return to his seat. However, something stopped him. Toothless's roar.

"Hiccup!" a voice called. Hiccup looked around seeing Viggo, and Ryker right beside him rushing up. Hiccup grabbed the edge of the stage and jumped down to meet them.

"He's coming, now," Ryker panted.

"What?" Hiccup asked, astonished.

"We don't know how he did it, but he found a Bewilderbeast and Drago is coming here now with an army of dragons," Viggo explained. "He discovered us, and we managed to escape, but he's not far behind to kill us, and you…"

"We'll never be able to clear this place…" Hiccup looked at them.

"He wants you, not them. Take your dragon and get out of here, now!" Ryker told him.

"No; he'll just go after my friends and family if I run away," Hiccup argued.

"Hiccup! That's a hoard of dragons coming this way!" Astrid called to him. Hiccup looked back and saw them flocking towards the area. Hoark, Spitelout, and Alvin came forward.

"What is going on?" Hoark demanded.

"Drago found what he wanted…And he's on his way with that," Hiccup pointed to the mass of dragons. "To kill me. Those things are under the Bewilderbeast's control, and that dragon is a lot stronger than a Red Death…"

"We'll evacuate," Hoark said.

"And go where?! He has an army of dragons, how fucking far do you think we're gonna get without ours! If he takes control of them; we're screwed! It'll be just like with Red Death, and we'll enter the second dragon war," Hiccup glared.

"Then what do we do?" Alvin asked. Hiccup looked down a moment as he closed his eyes and sighed.

"I'll deal with him," Hiccup informed.

"No. Hiccup, no. This guy is nothing to mess with; he'll kill you, do you understand that?!" Spitelout said quickly.

"We've tried things the other way, and this is where it got us. Let me try a different approach by talking to him. Maybe I can get him to see that things don't have to be this way…" Hiccup offered.

"You can't talk to this guy!" Hoark scolded.

"Do you have a better idea?! This is what I'm good at. At the very least; it buys us some time to figure something else out," Hiccup remarked.

"Fine, but the second things go South, I want you out. Keep your Night Fury next to you," Hoark stated.

"Done," Hiccup nodded. "Toothless!" he called with a whistle to follow. The Night Fury bounded over and sat beside Hiccup as a man walked forward holding a spear like-staff. Behind him was a massive dragon; the Bewilderbeast.

"HICCUP HADDOCK!" the man called. Hiccup turned and faced him as he approached. The male was tall with long black dreads for hair and dark skin. "Johann and Krogan were right; you aren't much, but word around the islands is that you're the kid with the Night Fury who seems to escape, defeat, thwart, and otherwise ruin all my schemes. After you narrowly escaped death on Thursday…I decided that I just had to come to meet you in person,"

"And I was totally right too; you look like a psycho," Hiccup remarked sarcastically. Drago chuckled darkly as the mass of dragons flew overhead in a circle formation around the Bewilderbeast. "So, here we are…What happens now?"

"I plan to kill you," Drago confessed casually.

"Oh, is that so? Well, are you gonna do it?" Hiccup asked.

"Excuse me?" Drago questioned.

"I asked if you were going to kill me since you, uh, kind'a said you were going to," Hiccup stated.

"I am!" Drago glared.

"Then…What are you waiting for? I'm standing right here, completely unarmed. Why the hesitation? Do you actually have any idea at all of what you're doing? I mean…Red Death defeated, Dragon Eye blown to bits…" Hiccup shrugged a bit. "You've been trying to kill me since the Dragon Eye thing…You put a hit out on me and yet…I'm still here. So what's your deal, because it seems to me you just really suck at this world domination thing,"

"You're pretty cocky for a teenager about to die on his graduation day. And I suppose I have you to thank for all that failure," Drago remarked.

"Oh, well in that case; you're welcome for destroying your plans to take over the world. Better luck next time," Hiccup informed. "But I can't take all the credit. I mean, you just admitted to me that they were your failures…" he added. "So, since you've failed…What? Like five times now? How about I offer another way where I don't die, and you just…Let all this take over the world nonsense go?"

"And you think you can stop me?" Drago asked.

"Anything is possible," Hiccup said. "Let's run over this real quick, shall we? You spent the last seven years trying to take over the world, right? You set a Red Death on Dragon Island to buy yourself more time to find a Bewilderbeast, and somehow; I stumbled upon it flying one night and then defeated it. Moving on, you had the Hofferson's killed to gain access to a safe containing maps to the Dragon Eye, which I found, and then destroyed. So…That puts you at 0 for 2 attempts at world domination?" he asked.

Drago glared more. "You got lucky," he said.

"Not luck, skill. Now…Here we are. What do you think you'll accomplish here today?" Hiccup asked.

"I have a dragon army," Drago scoffed.

"I have a Night Fury," Hiccup countered.

"You think you two can stop the Alpha?" Drago laughed a bit.

"We stopped Red Death," Hiccup reminded as Drago narrowed his eyes. "All this loss, for what? To be unstoppable? Rule the world? Dragons are kind, amazing creatures. They bring people together,"

"Or tear them apart," Drago said as he removed his left arm, revealing it to be a prosthetic. "I know what it's like to live in fear of dragons. But I vowed to rise above it. You should understand what it's like as you're missing a limb yourself, and caused by your dragon no less,"

"I don't hold it against him; he saved my life," Hiccup stated. "And newsflash, my life wouldn't have needed saving if someone hadn't planted a mountain-sized dragon an hour away from Archia Isle!" he grumbled.

"Dragons are meant to be controlled," Drago enlightened.

"No, you want dragons to control people. To make them follow you, and get rid of those who don't," Hiccup narrowed his eyes.

"Clever boy. So you think you know what the world wants? You think the dragons belong here, to be treated as allies, friends…Family?" Drago asked.

"The world wants peace, Drago. The bonds we have with our dragons are stronger than you could ever imagine; just let me show you…" Hiccup tried.

"No. Let me show you!" Drago glared. "AH!" he yelled out, whirling his bullhook around. "AHH!" the Bewilderbeast came forward next to him and stopped when Drago pointed down at the ground with the tip of his weapon. "No dragon can resist the Alpha's command. So he who controls the Alpha," Drago pointed to the Bewilderbeast. "Controls them all," then the motion turned on Toothless. The Night Fury crouched a little before looking at the King of Dragons. The Bewilderbeast stared, his eyes turning to slits and Toothless began reacting right away.

"Toothless…?" Hiccup asked. "Hey, what's wrong?" he tried as Toothless whined, shaking his head and jerking around.

"Witness true strength. The will over others. In the face of it," Drago started as Hiccup looked at him a bit worried. Was Toothless really falling under this thing's power? "You are nothing," Drago pointed at Hiccup as Toothless turned to face him now; his eyes in thin slits as well.

"Um…What did he just tell you?" Hiccup backed up a bit. Toothless prowled, snarling a bit and moving closer. "Stop, snap out of it," he ordered. Toothless moved closer still, and Hiccup continued to inch away slowly with his hands up.

"Hiccup! Get out of there!" Astrid shouted quickly, rising to her feet.

"Toothless, no…" Hiccup tried. The Night Fury didn't respond as he opened his mouth, charging a blast. "Stop.." Hiccup fell back and was cornered with nowhere to go. "NO!" he yelled as Toothless fired. Hiccup covered himself for impact, but it never came. Hiccup felt himself get pushed out of the way and hit the ground hard on his back with someone on top of him. Hiccup panted as he looked to see blonde hair on his chest. Instantly, his eyes widened as he sat up more and the body fell into his arms weakly. "Astrid?..."

"H-Hey…" Astrid smiled a bit.

"Why did you do that! What were you thinking! That blast could have killed you!" Hiccup screamed at her with worry.

"You're always saving me, aren't you?" Astrid fell unconscious.

"Astrid?...Astrid?!" Hiccup tried, shaking her a bit. No response. Toothless was still in position, smoke emitting from his mouth while panting, but still under control. Hiccup's blood ran cold as he quickly checked her breathing and pulse. Thank the Gods; she was alive. Hiccup closed his eyes, lowering his head and kissing Astrid's cheek before standing up and handing her form to Ryker. "Keep her safe…" he said while moving forward.

"W-Wait…Where are you going!?" Viggo asked quickly. Hiccup didn't turn back as he moved closer to Toothless now as Drago was beside the Night Fury, petting his head.

"Oh, you still think you have a chance…" Drago snickered.

"You think what you have is loyalty? A bond with that Bewilderbeast. All you've done is make it fear you to save its own kind who I'm sure you've killed to make it do what you want. You hurt Astrid…And now I'm gonna make you pay…" Hiccup tore off his cap and gown, revealing him in his riding suit. "I'm gonna get my dragon back and show you a thing or two about what happens when you hurt the woman I love and threaten my home. We're gonna finish this, just you and me," he added coldly.