"Our findings indicate that not only did these giant's remains belong to a bewilderbeast, but that there was a second bewilderbeast on this island during the battle that left it uninhabited. Note the directionality of this ice formation, which is opposite to all the rest," Valka said, pointing for the camera to the ice formation that looked like it was blasted from the sea, not the mountain. "Also note the differing directions of footprints embedded in the stone, roughly the same size as the giant mummified dragon found on the island here. These footprints lead from the mountain, and these from the sea, which is consistent with the overturned ships on the shore fanning out in the same direction."

Hiccup wasn't the one holding the camera. He'd volunteered, but given his clumsy tendencies, everyone thought it was best he didn't hold the expensive camera equipment on uneven terrain to document what they found and propose their theories based on the archaeological finds. So, while his mother was explaining how the fatal injuries to the bewilderbeast body matched the shape and size of its own tusks, indicating another beast of the same species and size was to blame for its death, Hiccup was taking notes while another archaeologist prepared one of the hydraulic rescue tools to pull open one of the giant metal domes found in the middle of the battlefield. There were dozens of them, and one of them had a shriveled dragon's wing sticking out of it, so they could only assume they were dragon traps.

So far, they were empty except that one that had closed on the poor dragon's wing. It was horrible to find...two dragons' remains, one of them bound to the floor of the trap. Hiccup couldn't say on the record what he theorized because it was speculation not based in fact, but he was sure the trap was to draw in dragons trying to save the ones that were bound.

His attention was drawn back to the present by the sound of crushing metal - the hydraulic tool had pried apart the jaws of the trap, bending them out of the way. They tried again, moving it up higher to pry more of the trap open, and Hiccup shone his flashlight into the trap. "Whoa... Whoa! Oh...oh my god, that's..."

It wasn't empty like the others. Inside the trap, tied into the bottom, was a Woolly Howl. Not just any Woolly Howl, but a Titan Wing Woolly Howl. Titan Wing dragons were much bigger than their average counterparts - and according to the journal Hiccup had just finished translating two months before, dragons became Titan Wings in their old age, the final and strongest stage of their lives. More notably, they often changed their colors, and the Woolly Howl turned from brown to light purple.

"I can't pull anything else apart, or the trap's just going to snap closed again," the archaeologist Hiccup was working with said. "We'll have to do the investigating from out here- Hey! What are you doing?!"

Hiccup had tucked his notebook and pencil into his pocket and was hoisting himself up onto the platform of the trap. "I'm going in to get a better look."

"What? You can't do that! What if the trap closes on you?"

Hiccup rolled his eyes and turned to look back at the other. "If it closes, use the Jaws of Life you have there to pry it open more so I can get back out. I just need to confirm the species of dragon, then we can worry about why it wasn't broken open like all the other traps. Okay?" Hiccup knew his partner couldn't very well argue with him. They did need to catalog what they found, and the easiest way to do that was to get inside the trap with the dragon. And, even bundled up as he was, Hiccup was still the skinniest one present, so he could climb in much easier.

"This is fascinating..." Hiccup mumbled, pulling his notebook back out. He raised his voice so his partner outside could hear what he was saying. "The body isn't mummified like the others... Being inside the trap shouldn't have affected its condition. There was a gap near the bottom of the opening that would have allowed sufficient airflow... Do you think it's because the Woolly Howl's natural habitat was snowy climates? I don't see why that would prevent mummification...but these remains are almost perfectly preserved."

"I don't know, man... I'm just an archaeologist, not like your mom. I don't know much about dragons."

"Oh, okay..." Hiccup sighed. Well, at least he didn't need to try and discuss this with his partner. He decided to focus his attention on his notebook, scribbling down what he observed about the dragon's remains. Belly white and devoid of scales, coloration and size consistent with documentation of Titan Wing Woolly Howls... "Shit!" he gasped, pulling back from where he'd been observing the dragon's wings. The talons on the ends were still so sharp, it sliced right through Hiccup's heavy coat. He swallowed...any more and that would have been his arm. He noted that, and then reached back in, careful to avoid the wings this time. He felt along the dragon's torso, before breathing in sharply at what he felt.

"This dragon didn't die of cold exposure like the others," he called out to his partner. "I was right, Woolly Howls were well equipped to live in cold climates... He starved to death in here."

"God...that's horrible..." his partner mumbled, looking in for a moment before having to look away again. Hiccup didn't blame him. "How did you determine it's male?"

"I'm up close and personal with him right now and you really have to ask that question?"

"...Fair enough. Wait...I thought that bewilderbeasts were meant to live in cold climates, too. It shot all those ice pillars. Why did it-"

Hiccup stuck his head out of the trap, which visibly made the archaeologist nervous. He even yelped, his eyes migrating to the edges of the trap as though he was afraid it'd close on Hiccup's head. "Draconologists have speculated that bewilderbeasts were amphibious dragons, and it was better equipped to be under the water, below sea level, or in caves. Since it looks like another one came out of the sea to fight the one living on the island, that's most likely accurate, and that means-"

"Okay, I get it, it makes sense to you, please get your neck out of the line of the trap, dude! You're freaking me out!"

Hiccup grinned and shook his head. He did as he was asked, and got back to inspecting the remains, making notes and sketching what he could before he got to the tail, where the scales were smaller and much less sharp. Where the dragon was restrained at the legs, tail, and neck, some of the scales had been chipped off and the skin beneath was torn. This dragon had struggled to break itself free until it couldn't move anymore. It was muzzled, so it couldn't call for help, and the skin around that was raw, too. This was cruel, brutal, and heartless...he was sure it was Drago's doing. Absolutely sure of it.

Hiccup wanted to untie the poor thing, just like he wanted to untie the others, but his job was not the retrieval of the remains, it was to catalog his findings. Removing the shackles and the muzzle would compromise the find. This would be his mother's job when she made her way to the traps...but there was something else he could do to honor the poor beast... He had to...this just wasn't right. This poor guy had survived into his old age to grow into a Titan Wing, only to be captured by Drago Bludvist and starve to death, scared and alone, being used as bait. Hiccup III wrote in his journal that elderly dragons were supposed to go to a place called Vanaheim at the end of their lives - a sacred resting place for dragons - and he didn't get to do that. He had to do something for him.

And he knew exactly what he could do.