A/N: Next and final chapter should be up next week! Thanks for sticking with Tengan this long. It's been a fun journey and I'll be sad to see her go.
Chapter 29
"Let me know when you give up." Dagur taunted lightly as he sat across the room, one leg propped up over the other and his head resting on his palm.
"Never." Tengan hissed back as she struggled to get her feet under her for another attempt. While settling into the long, cushioned bench in the main room of their house had been easy, getting up proved to be a monumental challenge. It seemed the growth of their child had reached an exponential rate, every morning she swore her stomach was a bit larger than the night before. If the near constant kicking and stretching were any indication, it seemed almost as if the baby had grown impatient in the last couple months and was determined to make its appearance sooner than nature intended.
Not that either parent actually minded, of course. Dagur seemed to have developed a second sense for when the child would kick or move and was always there, palm over Tengan's belly and a wide, lopsided grin on his face. Even during the long hours she spent shut up in the library, alternating between meticulously recreating every scrap of knowledge she would recall and transcribing more of Oswald's many papers, Dagur would always manage to check in on her moments before the child began another series of acrobatics. The pair often joked the infant was determined to prove how strong a Berserker they are to their father.
"It's bad enough the Riders left us behind after I was the one who discovered the possibility of a dragon eye in your father's papers." She grunted as she collapsed back into the sloped chair again, her chest slightly heaving. "Now our furniture conspires against me."
Dagur chuckled and stood, crossing the space between them with two easy strides. He smiled sympathetically, holding his hands out. "Let me help you." He suggested gently. "I know you'll want to check over the medical supplies before the ship leaves and the sooner they can leave-"
"The sooner they'll reach Berk, and more importantly, Stoick." Tengan finished as she folded her hands in his, accepting her loss against the seat for now. Stoick's recent fall and current battle for his life after a vicious attack from a small group of Fliers took precedence over her stubborn independence. "Dagur, my love, I think we might have to consider taking a page from Hiccup's book." She paused to plant a small kiss of thanks on his lips. "You, me, and Heather are the only three on this island capable of flying on dragon back. This medicine could get to Berk in less than two days if we also had Auxiliary Riders."
"You have a point." He mused as he shifted to nudge their front door open without relinquishing his hold on her arm. "It is rather tiresome to have to fly supplies back and forth myself. As chief, I have a few other things I'd rather be focusing on." With a smile, he planted a series of quick kisses on Tengan's neck while his free hand gently caressed her rounded belly just in time to feel a sharp kick. "Ha! You see? Our son agrees with me!"
"So today it's a boy?" Tengan teased as she bit back giggles from the ticklish sensation of the wild tangles of his beard. "Last night you were telling me all about how our daughter is going to have a hard time finding any suitors worthy of her."
"My argument stands whether we have a son or a daughter." Dagur responded with a light huff. "No one will be good enough for our first born. I mean, they'll be carrying on a powerful legacy. High chief and chieftess of the Berserker tribe, Scribes of the Shimmering Shores and, if I may add, two of the best Dragon Riders the archipelago has ever seen."
The pair continued to banter playfully as they headed downhill towards the docks, their conversation only shifting away from the impending addition to the family once Heater joined them. The trio mused over the surprisingly unequal distribution of "excitement" between the Berserkers and Dragon Riders as of late. In a couple short months, through infrequent visits and sparse letters, they learned that Ruffnut had been temporarily been anointed as a Wingmaiden, an Armorwing had a dragon eye lens fused to its body, Viggo's betrayal of the Hunters and his subsequent death at the hands of his own hubris, and of a Death Song trap to lure in dragons for the Hunters to sell, just to name a few.
After a quick final check of the medical supplies being shipped off to Berk, they decided to spend the quiet afternoon up at the stables. It had been some time since any of the dragons had enjoyed a detailed grooming and they certainly had the time to dedicate to it. The nearly cloudless sky and warmer weather seemed to agree; it was a nearly perfect day to sit back and catch up on minute chores and obligations.
"Yes, of course, a perfect day of peace and quiet. Everyone in their right place, doing what they do best, proudly for the Berserker name." Dagur added as the trio began the long, slow ascent towards the stables. "I gotta say, I'm bored as hell." He added with a small smile towards Tengan and Heather.
"I have to agree." Tengan responded with a sigh. "As nice as it has been to rest, I can't help but miss the action we used to see with the Riders."
"Come off it you two." Heather scolded playfully. "In a week or so you'll be busier than you can possibly imagine."
"Not if Auntie Heather agrees to take the little one from time to time so I can sleep... like she promised." Tengan teased. "Besides, a week is a long time to be bored."
A long, low horn reverberated from the docks, freezing the trio in their tracks. As they turned to face the commotion, far off on the horizon, several large smudges could barely be seen.
"Incoming ships? Were either of you expecting company?" Dagur asked the young women with him as he squinted his eyes to get a better look. "I don't have any guests on my calendar."
"No. Gothi is expecting a shipment of herbs and ointments from us, she knows not to send anyone." Tengan answered as she shielded her eyes from the sun. "And those ships are far too large to be from my people."
Heather frowned as she retrieved a large spyglass and pressed it to her eye. "It looks like these are uninvited guests. Take a look, brother." She passed the spyglass off, her face lined with a mixture of worry and anticipation.
"Dragon Hunters." Dagur spat as he passed the spyglass to Tengan and gripped his axe. "Looks like I won't be bored today after all." Grinning, he nodded as Heather began to prep her double-handed axe. The smile faded completely from his face as he caught sight of Tengan unsheathing her sword. "No way. You're heading either to our hut or up to the stables."
Tengan snarled back as she pressed the spyglass back into Heather's chest with a little too much force. Her anger flared, and the world around her momentarily glowed as red as her partner's hair. "Don't you dare try to send me off!" She roared over the reverberating call of horns as the warriors around them began to scramble to their positions. "Heavy with child or not, this is my home. THESE are my people. I am a Berserker and will defend them at your side."
Dagur's grip on his axe slackened as his expressions rapidly morphed form shock, to frustration, to finally, a love-sick grin. "Have I ever told you how much I love you?"
Tengan grinned back, her teeth bared and her eyes hard, well aware Heather was rolling her eyes at the display off to her left. "Every day, my love. Now, how about we get ready to remind these intruders why no one dares to invade Berserker Isle?"
"Sir! Fliers and ships approaching!" One of the guards,a younger man already riddled with old burns and battle scars along his arms called over to Dagur. "What are your orders?"
Dagur stepped forward, his fierce gaze set on the approaching threat. "Train your catapults and arrows on the ships BEHIND the fliers, and wait for my signal!"
"Are you insane?!" The younger man hollered back even as he hastened to obey the chief's command.
"That's already been established." Dagur snapped back as he spared the warrior a quick glare. "JUST TRUST ME!" He roared at the bewildered cluster of men, squashing any further arguments.
"What do you think this is about?" Heather murmured quietly to Tengan and Dagur as she crouched into a readying position, her axe held almost to her chest.
"I hope I'm wrong." Tengan murmured back as she widened her combat stance to make room for her large stomach. "But it seems there might be something on our island that may lead them to the King of Dragons. Hiccup's last letter mentioned the Riders were close to cracking the code and that the Fliers weren't far behind them."
"If that's the case, then where are Hiccup and the others?" Heather hissed as the Singetails approached, the sunlight glittering of their emerald hides.
"He'll be here." Dagur asserted to the young women as a cat-like smile spread across his face. "Brother's always half a step ahead of them. Until then we'll have to handle these interlopers….. Comeon Krogan." He urged under his breath, just loud enough for the others to hear him. "You know you want some of this." He swayed back and forth on the balls of his feet, the image of a large hunting cat waiting to ambush its prey from a patch of tall grass. "Bring it in for the real thing, big boy."
Tengan, despite her trepidation, couldn't help but grin. Her bonded partner's love of battle was always highly contagious. She never thought she'd grow to love her swordplay nearly as much as the written word, but it was damned near impossible not to when Dagur made the whole event so alluring.
As the Singetails passed by the closest set of sea stacks, her eyes widened with mild surprise as the dragons began to balk and buck as they veered sharply away from the shore. "Of course!" She gasped. "How could I have forgotten?"
"Really, baby?" Dagur teased. "I have to say I'm disappointed." With a wink, he turned slightly to face the men stationed at the catapults. "NOW! FIRE!"
The twang of taunt ropes being cut free filled the air as the men, momentarily dumbstruck at the helpless armada of dragons before them, sprang into action. Flaming boulders, flanked by whistling arrows soared past the panicking dragons to find their marks among the now unprotected ships below them. The sharp crack of breaking wood, followed by the anguished howls of men pierced by arrows rose into the air.
Abandoning their ships and their frontal assault, the Fliers, lead by a visibly frustrated Krogan, began to climb sharply towards the mountain peak of the island, apparently determined to fly over whatever was affecting their mounts than through it.
"Daugr!" Heather gasped as she watched the Fliers slip out of bow range. "If they manage to get directly above us, we'll be sitting ducks! They'll destroy everything!"
"They won't." Was the chief's mild response as he split his attention between the sinking armada before him and the large group of Singetails now almost directly above him.
"My love, how do you know this?" Tengan responded with a mild edge of concern in her voice. All it would take was one volley of fireballs from the dragons and the Berserkers would be forced into abandoning the island.
A familiar, growing crescendo of a roar began building in the distance. Smiling, Dagur pointed up, directly towards the Sun and the source of the noise. "Because, like I said, Brother is always half a step ahead of them."
The trio craned their necks and watched with a mixture of joy and relief as Toothless, flanked by the Riders and an additional Nadder, dove out from the cover of the Sun. In quick succession, the Riders dispatched nearly half of the Flier's force, the unseated vikings tumbling endlessly towards the rocky shores below. Those who managed to maintain control of their dragons turned and fled back towards the cover of their retreating, un-burned ships, leaving Krogan and his alpha Singetail surrounded by the Riders. After a tense moment, he too turned and fled, leading the meager remains of his force away from Berserker Isle.
Tengan joined the other Berserkers in a loud cheer as the Riders dipped as low as their dragons would allow before angling off towards the cliff-top stables. "How could you have possibly known that would happen?" She asked Dagur, face full of awe as the trio began the long walk up the path to meet their very much appreciated guests.
"Seriously, brother. That was an amazing bit of strategy." Heather added with a playful punch to his shoulder.
"Honestly?" Dagur grinned at the pair. "I had no idea. Just a hunch really. Hiccup's always in the right place at the right time." Laughing at their looks of utter shock, he offered his arm to Tengan. "Come on. We've got a bit of a climb and something tells me Brother isn't likely to be patient today."
It was a bittersweet reunion for Tengan, seeing the friends she had so recently parted with gathered around the stable. Spitelout and Mala's presence seemed particularly strange, until the Riders filled the Berserkers in on their latest discoveries through short, quick sentences. "So you were sent to bring Hiccup back to Berk to take over as acting chief while Stoick is… recovering." She added delicately as she nodded towards Spitelout. "But you all decided to divert and check on Dramillion Island when the lenses showed it to be the home of the King of Dragons?"
"But it actually wasn't!" Fishlegs piped in excitedly, his hands clasped around Heather's. "The titan-wing Dramillion's fire was the last piece of the puzzle. We would have been here sooner but the Flier's nearly killed it and we had to get it to Queen Mala. You see-"
"I still don't understand what this has to do with our home." Heather interrupted gently as she smiled at Fishlegs. "Why have we been attacked? I thought they were looking for the King of Dragons?"
Hiccup, who had been silently observing the island through a spyglass, abruptly turned to face the group. "They are. The map says it lives here. And…" He sighed. "I'm guessing it's beneath the island. That's why dragons can't fly here."
"It's a defense mechanism." Fishlegs added quietly.
Tengan, who had been leaning heavily against Rumble's side in an attempt to regain some of the energy she lost in the climb up, suddenly launched forward, her eyes wide. "Its mind control abilities." She gasped. "It's been deflecting any dragon that flies too close. Even dozens of them at once… This dragon is extremely powerful."
"Exactly." Astrid added with a savage nod. "No wonder Krogan and Johann want it so badly. They could conceivably control every dragon on the archipelago."
Dagur grinned, his eyes flashing dangerously. "The King of Dragons is a Berserker!" He let out a quick bark of laughter. "It makes perfect sense to me! I mean, what else would he be? Tengan!" He turned on her, his excitement bubbling over. "We have to make sure a scroll gets to Makara! This should be recorded for all to know!"
"While I am all for the preservation of knowledge," Mala interrupted, a stained edge to her voice "That might have to wait. It looks like a second fleet of ships is approaching from the south side of the island."
The group rushed over to the cliff edge and huddled together as they watched several groups of men disembark on the distant shore. As they began to charge towards the village, a second set of ships began their approach from the north, picking their way through the scattered remains of their first attempt as they sailed into the harbor.
Tengan's eyes widened in horror at the display below. As the ships in the north fired volley after volley over the village's wall, the foot soldiers from the south smashed through anything that came across their path. Cries of rage, pain, and anger rose to the cliffs as the Berserkers fought back. "No!" She cried out weakly as one of the homes near the edge of the settlement went up in flames.
"Those are out people down there!" Dagur roared in rage as he unsheathed his axe and made quick, meaningful eye contact with Tengan and Heather. "We have to do something."
Heather turned to the Riders, a feral snarl on her face. "We'd rather die in battle than hide in shame."
Tengan readied her sword as well, her face set as several conflicting thoughts and emotions rushed through her. In an instant, they all vanished, leaving her with a single conclusion; she would not bring her child into a world full of fear. Either they would succeed, or she would have to make peace with meeting the babe in her next life. "This ends today."
"No one's hiding!" Hiccup interjected, his eyes widening with worry as he caught their meaning. "And we're not staying here. But our chances of surviving without dragons is very slim!" His eyes flicked quickly to Tengan before he settled his gaze on Dagur. "We need to stay calm."
"No." Dagur countered as she stormed over to Hiccup. "We need to stay STRONG. We need to fight."
It seemed the two were ready to quite literally butt heads when a high pitched, keening roar broke the tension. Their eyes drawn skyward, the group watched at Atali, flanked by a small group of Wingmaidens, dove past the group and towards the carnage below.
"Of course!" Tengan cried out in relief. "The baby Razorwhips! They were able to attend our ceremony. They're not affected by the King of Dragons for some reason!" She grinned as, with the help of the Wingmaidens, the battle began to turn in favor of the Berserkers.
"I sent a Terror Mail when we were on Cladera Cay." Hiccup explained, his voice light. "Wasn't sure it would make it in time so I didn't want to get anyone's hopes up."
"Maybe now that the babies have gotten through, we might have a window for our dragons." Dagur piped in hopefully.
"It's worth a shot." Hiccup agreed. "You all see what you can do, Toothless and I will use the distraction to try to find the King before Johann or Krogan can."
With quick murmurs of agreement, the group, minus Hiccup, ran to their dragons and mounted up. After a brief discussion, it was decided Mala would partner with Shattermaster as long as she maintained a position in the center of their formation to compensate for her little experience fighting on dragon back and the poor Gronkle's disability. With a clashing chorus of determined battle cries, they took to the air in tight formation, angling towards the clamor of battle below them.
"Dagur, Heather, Ruff and Tuff, engage with the Wingmaidens!" Astrid called out from the front of their group. "They need the backup. Full frontal attack!"
"Nothing like a full frontal attack to get the day rolling!" Tuffnut grinned as he cracked his knuckles and settled into a low crouch in the saddle.
"I couldn't agree more!" Heather added, a savage grin stretching across her face. "Are you ready, Brother?"
"Those are my people too, Astrid!" Tengan added urgently. "I should be going with them."
"No." The blond added quickly, her tone unwavering. "I need you with me."
"We'll be back before you know it." Dagur added with a soothing smile. Before she could counter, he loosed a wild, Berserker cry that was quickly picked up by Heather and the twins as their dragons dipped into a steep dive.
"Snotlout, take your father and outflank them on the northern side." Astrid continued. "Then squeeze, got it?"
"Oh we'll squeeze 'em alright." Snotlout grinned, slamming his fist into his open palm.
"Like a ripe tomato under me armpit!" Spitelout added as he and his son peeled off from the group.
"Fishlegs, Mala, Tengan, you're with me." Astrid commanded the remainder of the group as she veered away from the center of the fighting.
Tengan glanced back and forth between Stormfly's retreating back and the black and yellow blur of Sleuther down below. She could feel the reluctance to pull away flowing from Rumble as well and knew that if she urged him to dive, he would obey. Groaning under her breath in frustration, she forced her attention on Astrid and urged the Skrill to follow. "What's the plan?" She shouted after catching up, struggling to hide her annoyance at being separated from her family.
"Those boats can't be allowed to drip off any more soldiers!" Astrid hollered over her shoulder as they swung out towards the docks. "We need to take out as many as possible."
Tengan nodded. "It may be best if we split into pairs. You and Fishlegs can take the ones to the east. Mala and I will take the ones to the west. I know which maneuvers Shattermaster can use safely."
"Agreed." Astrid nodded as she and Fishlegs began to bank to the left.
"Mala!" Tengan cried out as she slowed to allow the Gronckle to catch up. "I'm sure you've noticed but Shattermaster had a broken right wing. It's healed but doesn't work as well as it used to."
"I had. What did you have in mind?" The queen nodded in deference to the younger ruler.
"He can't pick up speed as easily but his tail is still a powerful bludgeon." Glancing down, she pointed at the lead ship on their side. "We'll come at them from a dive. Rumble and I will lay down cover fire. Once we're low enough you'll lay as flat on his back as possible and ask him to do a 'Shatter Scatter'. Hold on tight and lay flat. He'll flip over and punch a hole in the hull with his tail. Rumble and I will be ready to catch and pull you both back up for another run."
"Understood." Mala nodded, reaching down to pat the wriggling dragon's shoulder.
As one, the pair of dragons rose and dove towards their opponents, Rumble quickly overtaking Shattermaster as they descended. As they neared bow range, Tengan tapped her heels to her dragon, signaling for him to release a shower of blinding lightning. "NOW!" She hollered, her eyes squinted against the sharp light.
The plan worked beautifully. Aided by the speed from their dive, Shattermaster managed to flip himself over and plunge through two ships before losing momentum. In that moment, Rumble set off another blinding shower of lighting as his large claws clamped down on the Gronckle's sides.
"It worked!" Mala gasped as Rumble released her and Shattermaster once they had climbed well out of arrow range.
"Yes, it did." Tengan agreed with a smile. "You did well with him. Ready fo-" She cut off as a wave of pain spread through her lower back and abdomen, forcing her to curl in on herself.
"Are you alright?" Mala asked quickly, her eyes raking over the young woman.
"I'm fine." Tengan answered through gritted teeth as the pan subsided. "Just pushed myself a little too far. Backaches have been commonplace for me lately." She smiled. "Let's get set up for another run, Rumble has enough lightning stored for at least another four or five attempts."
The pair dove again and again, each time resulting in a hunter's ship sinking beneath the waves. Small stolen glances at their friends showed they were faring pretty well. Through a combination of lava blasts and spines, Astrid and Fishlegs had taken down a few ships themselves. Snotlout and Spitelout, whenever the Hunter were preoccupied with the others, had been doing an excellent job of burning holes in their sails. From the booming laughter emanating from somewhere behind them, Tengan hoped it meant Dagur, Heather, and the twins were faring well.
The ungodly screeches of a pack of Singetails filled the air as the remaining Fliers took to the air once more. With silent understanding, Astrid, Tengan, Mala, Fishlegs, Snotlout, and Spitelout fell back to regroup as they watched the wave of dragons approach.
"Any ideas?" Fishlegs asked meekly, his eyes wide with terror.
A deep, furious roar that seemed to shake the very air around them answered, forcing all in the area to halt. All eyes, human and dragon, darted around in an attempt to locate the owner of such a rage filled sound.
"It must be the King of Dragons!" Astrid cried out as she struggled to steady Stormfly.
Recovering quickly, the Fliers whipped their Singetails into a frenzy as they approached the exhausted Riders. Falling into formation, the group readied their weapons, all aware they may just be the last time they rushed into battle together.
As the first Singetail approached, a new, strangely melodious roar rang out as a thick, amber colored goo struck the lead Flier and sent him tumbling to the ground below. A large, shimmering dragon of yellow and blue pulled alongside the group, his eyes sparkling.
"That can't be Garf!" Tengan cried out as she grinned at the Deathsong. "How could he have known where we were? Or that we needed him?"
"He's not the only one, it seems!" Mala called out as she pointed above and behind the group.
A strong gust of wind preceded the impossibly large dragon pack. The sun was blotted out as an endless sea of green, blue, yellow, red, brown, white, gray, and purple scales soared over the riders and towards the remaining Hunters and Fliers. The sigetails were immediately overwhelmed. Unable to do more than hover among the onslaught, their captors were quickly and unceremoniously plucked and thrown from their backs. Below, the remaining Hunter ships began to rock ominously as seadragon after seadragon rammed into the reinforced hulls.
While the Riders simply looked on in awe, Heather, Dagur, and the twins climbed to join them, flanked by the Wingmaidens. Despite a few cuts and bruises, thankfully, none looked worse for wear.
"Oh thank the stars you're all alright." Tengan sighed in relief, a knot of tension easing within her she was unaware she even carried. As she slouched forward, another wave of pain shot through her back and belly once more, forcing her to sit up straight as she bit back a small cry of pain.
"Are you alright?" Dagur asked as he guided Sleuther in closer, concern etched in his face as he quickly eyed her for any injuries.
"I'm fine." Tengan protested with a weak smile as she drank in the wonderful sight of her uninjured partner. "Just a couple of backaches. It's been a while and quite a few pounds since my last battle. Thankfully, it seems we'll be ok now, thanks to the wild dragons."
"Where did all of them come from?" Heather asked with a wide, amazed smile as she held her arms out towards the sky.
Fishlegs beamed back at her. "The roar from the King of Dragons must have been a distress signal! It called forth all available dragons!"
"Then what are we still doing here?" Astrid called to the others, a triumphant smile on her face. "Let's work together and with the wild dragons. This ends today!"
With a unified cry, the Riders dove back into the frenzy, their dragons' energy seemingly restored by their newly swollen ranks. The Hunters seemed to lose their nerve at the sight of the tidal wave of fangs, claws, fire, and wings. A few managed to fire off an arrow or two, but most gave into blind panic. As they scrambled across decks or threw themselves into the ocean, wave after wave of dragon picked them off. Soon the harbor was ablaze with tiny islands of fire as the ships were engulfed. The newly freed Singetails seemed especially fond of turning on their former captors. As the screams of the Hunters died off, the wild dragons began to peel off and split as they made their way back to their own islands.
"Has anyone seen Hiccup?" Astrid chimed in as they circled over the burning harbor for a third time, confirming the absence of survivors on the charred husks of the Hunter's ships.
"No." Heather answered. "But I think I know where he might be. I saw him enter a cave when we were defending the village. It has one main exit."
Wordlessly, the group turned and followed Windshear back to the island, their dragons gliding as much as possible to preserve what little strength they had left. Thankfully, Heather's hunch was right. As they approached the wide mouth of the cave entrance, Hiccup and Toothless emerged holding-
"Is that the King of Dragons' egg!?" Fishlegs squealed in excitement as he slid from Meatlug's back.
"Yep." Hiccup smiled as he held the egg aloft for the group to see. "I never got to see the dragon, but it saved my life back there. It killed Johann before fleeing but had to leave it's egg behind when…. Wait, where's Krogan? You guys have him right?"
"No." Astrid added wearily, her exhausted yet relieved eyes trained on Hiccup. "We just finished checking the harbor for any stragglers and saw his SIngetail leave with the other dragons. We thought you had taken care of him." A chill seemed to run through the group at the realization that he had slipped away.
"Hey." Fishlegs piped in. "The King of Dragons is safe and so is the egg. That's all that matters. Krogan can wait for another day."
Tengan smiled as she leaned against Dagur's side, the events of the day taking their toll. "What of our people?" She murmured quietly as Hiccup began to fill the others in on his adventure in the caves.
Dagur looped an arm under her, easily supporting her weight. "No one died." He began as he pushed a strand of hair out of her face. "A few broken bones and a surplus of burns, but nothing you and the healers won't be able to sort out. A couple of the buildings burned down but nothing irreplaceable. Our home is fine, never even singed. I saw to that."
Sighing with relief, she let her weakened body lean further against him. "I suppose we should head back soon. Burns always heal better when treated quickly."
Dagur chuckled at her sleepy expression. "Yes, but the other healers are already on that. You need food and rest. Like Fishlegs said, everything else can wait."
Tengan opened her mouth to protest when a third, stronger wave of pain hit her, stealing the words from her mouth. This time, it radiated directly from the center of her abdomen and shot down to her hips. As she recovered from the sudden cramp, a spark of realization clicked into place. Aware that every person in the group was now staring at her with concern, though none nearly as much so as Dagur, she forced an exasperated smile. "While you're right my love that mostly everything else can wait, I fear there's one thing that cannot." She straightened as much as she could, drawing a deep, shaky breath, her hands rubbing soothing circles over her rounded belly. "Would you all mind helping me back to the house? I believe it's time for the newest Berserker to join us."