I make a few references to the Voluspa. Thanks again to my editor for her help in creating the dragon mythology.

I can tell how nervous Hiccup is even without our mental connection. (He's shaking all over, and not from the cold.) As we fly towards the nest, I try to reassure Hiccup about the Queen.

"You have no reason to be afraid, Hiccup. The Queen is a wise and just ruler of the nest. She will put your skills to good use. Maybe you could even show us how to hunt better so we won't have to raid the two-legs big-horns' nests."

Hiccup seems to realize something. "In all the time I've known you, I've never asked you about the Queen. Who is she exactly? You obviously have a high opinion of her."

I think about providing an image, but he should see her magnificence in person. "The Queen is our sole guardian against those who attack our nest. I'm sure you've heard of the fog surrounding it, right?"

"I have. My dad calls it Helheim's gate."

"Well, the mist is a spell of the Queens making. The fog hides a barrier that causes intruders to lose their sense of direction. They wander in circles for a few hours before they get bored and leave. Or something like that. I'm not entirely sure how it works. All I know is that you need a memory stone to find your way through."

Hiccup contemplates this. "So if, hypothetically, you were to lead someone without a memory stone to the general area, would they be able to follow you in?"

"I believe so. Some prey manages to survive on its journey to the nest, Why?" What is Hiccup thinking?

"Hypothetically, if a Viking were to use a dragon as a guide, would they find the nest?"

I scoff at this. "Why would any dragon lead the enemy to our home? It would likely lead to the deaths of all the invaders, and the traitor wouldn't ever get the chance to be reborn." As if the Vikings could take down the Queen. Hiccup might with time and resources, but this will ensure that won't happen.

Hiccup seems piqued by something else I just said, though. "Reborn?"

That's right, Hiccup and his people have their own idea of how the world is made. "You have your ideas for how humans and the world were born, right? Something about a tree and a giant?"

"Yes, we believe the world, Midgard, is the corpse of the giant Ymir, and growing from that corpse is a tree connected to eight other worlds."

I look down at Hiccup. "Seriously? How does that even make sense?"

He tries to shrug his shoulders, but since I'm holding them, it looks like his head is bobbing instead. "In some arcane way too advanced for us to understand? All I know is that's what I've been told all my life. How do you believe dragons came into being?"

I pause to consider what words I should use. I've never had to explain our beliefs to anyone who wasn't also a dragon. To make things clearer I make sure to provide images along with my commentary. "Well, we don't really know how the world came into being. Some think the land was a desolate place, ravaged by a cataclysmic war that killed all life on, in, and around it. During this period of emptiness, the land began to yearn to have new life on it again. So to do this, it sprouted great mountains that could breathe fire."

"You mean volcanoes?" Hiccup asks. So he's heard of them. That makes things easier.

"Yes, these volcanoes don't spew fire often. Usually, several lifetimes pass between eruptions. But when they do erupt, the fire and earth they spew creates a black cloud. Within this cloud, it is chaos. Earth and sky fighting in a great, uh what's the phrase I'm looking for? Oh! It's a cataclysmic maelstrom. And from this chaos the first dragons were born. Some say live adult dragons flew out of the storm, but personally, I think eggs were formed and fell to the ground, which hatched after all the chaos was over."

Hiccup was silent for a while, thinking over the story I had told him. "That's one interesting origin story. Did all dragons come from that eruption?"

"No, it was some old race of dragons that are now extinct. But supposedly, if there is a strong enough eruption, a brand new species of dragon will emerge. In fact, Gronckles have a particular volcano from which they believe the first of their species emerged." I provide an image of a rather stony landscape. "The location is far west of here. There are several other volcanoes from which various dragon species are said to have come from."

"Hey, Toothless, as fascinating as the idea of a post Ragnarok society is, could you continue telling me more about the Queen, please?"

I sigh but agree that we had gotten a bit off-topic. It was just so exciting being able to talk about the origin of all dragons with someone like Hiccup. It makes so much more sense then that ridiculous story about a tree and a giant. "Right. Anyway, the Queen makes the fog barrier around the nest. In exchange for the protection of living in her domain, we feed her, as she exerts most of her energy to maintain the barrier. She is also the one who raised me." I try not to have flashbacks that Hiccup could pick up on. "I hatched in the nest, my egg having been found abandoned. The Queen did her best to raise me herself with the help of several other loyal dragons. When other dragons went on raids, she didn't want me going at first. She wants me to become part of her, her…" I struggle to find the right word. "Hey, Hiccup, what's a good word for a group of advisors?"

"I believe you mean council." Hiccup provides an image of several two-legs big-horns in a room, discussing a variety of problems and how to solve them.

"Yeah, council. Anyway, the Queen wants me to be a part of her council one day. She ultimately decided my having battle experience would help test me and make me worthy of such an honor. But when she finally let me join in the fray, she had me do long-distance fighting. She felt I was too important to fight tooth and claw."

"Good move on her part. Not knowing what a Night Fury looks like makes you all the scarier."

I chuckle at this. "I actually realized that only a few days ago, when we shared memories. Unholy offspring of lightning and death itself? Not gonna lie, my ego was well fed that day."

"Yeah, I noticed." Hiccup is quiet for a few minutes. I can tell that he is thinking hard about everything I have revealed to him. Finally, hesitantly, as if trying out a new idea, he asks, "Toothless, you said earlier that dragons were born from volcanoes, right? Is that why memory stones are thrown into lava? A ritual to return them to the source?"

What is Hiccup talking about? Dragons don't throw their memory stones into volcanoes. I don't get a chance to correct him before we are entering a thick fog.

"We're here." As I fly through the fog, I hold Hiccup tighter to my chest. Especially as I see other dragons hauling in their own goods. I see a Nightmare carrying a sea-prey of some kind. There's also a lone Zippleback carrying it's dead counterpart's corpse. She must hope for a rebirth, as a Gronckle next to her is carrying enough for two. I'm brought out of my speculations when a familiar dragon spots me.

'Night wing alive, joy, relief.' The individual who recognizes me is a Monstrous Nightmare with blue scales instead of the usual red. She is carrying a lightly scorched bull. 'Query, where were you?'

"Long story." I quickly realize I just used human language and quickly adjust. 'Shot down, broke free, injured, healed, potential ally.'Its's here she notices the very alive human with a memory stone I'm carrying.

'Query, two-legs big-horns, bears memory stone?'

'Not two-legs big-horns, he's two-legs sharp-eyes. Potential ally. Healed me, helped me, returning favor.'

She looks at Hiccup. 'Query, listening?'

Hiccup responds to this. 'Yes, I understand, I hear. Greetings.' He makes sure to emphasize that he can hear her.

She forgets to flap her wings and descends a few feet before righting herself. 'Query, tell me?'

The fog parts and we can see the nest. 'Explain later.' I look down at Hiccup. "We're here."

Whenever I would think of the dragons' nest, I'd visualize rocky outcroppings with several ledges. Maybe rivers of lava and brimstone flowing miles below them. So I'm somewhat satisfied when I see the only thing that needs updating is the ominous red fog swirling far below us. That may be where I would find the lava river. There's certainly a less than faint odor of brimstone recommending the possibility. As I observe the nest and update my expectations, Toothless lands on one of the stone outcroppings, giving me a view of the dragons dropping all the food they have collected into the red fog below. I even see the unfused Zippleback from earlier drop its dead companion into the red void.

I peer over the edge, but can't see anything except endlessly swirling fog and a steady stream of dragons dropping fish, sheep, and other livestock into a crater. The dropped prey disappears instantly, swallowed by the slightly menacing ocean of fog. "Well, it's satisfying to know all our food has been dropped down a hole."

"Patience, Hiccup, all will be made clear momentarily." Just as Toothless says this, an injured Gronckle flies over the pit and regurgitates, yes, regurgitates a fish of some kind. I can't tell what from the distance but based on the size it's a rather small morsel. (In fact, I think it is only half a fish.)

'Injured… weak…' What is that? The Gronckle must have heard it too, for it tries to quickly fly upwards. 'Can't go on… reincarnation required…' A pair of massive jaws shoot out from the fog and engulf the Gronckle. That may sound far-fetched, but when I say massive, I mean that its scales could be fashioned into shields. This thing is that big. It's sinking back into the fog but stops and looks at us, at me.

'Queen.' Toothless bows to the dragon. This is the Queen?! No wonder they have to raid villages to feed her. I can only see her head and It's obvious a herd of cattle would only be an appetizer. 'I've returned, healed, bring ally.' She rises farther from the fog, but it almost seems to cling to her. Soon enough, we're looking into the six eyes of the dragon Queen. 'Two-legs sharp-eyes, friend, healed me. Name, Hiccup.' Toothless doesn't use my name, but simply conveys its meaning to the Queen.

What the Queen does next is unexpected. "Hiksti… unin hvat mulabra... ach ono yawë... medh Dwerva-Vaengr?" She can speak?! "Uin hvat mulabra... ach ono hávr... ai eldunari?" I don't understand the words, but I feel more than hear the query behind them. She wants to know how I came across Toothless and why I have a gem in my forehead. She also feels… nervous? It almost feels like-

"Let's show her our memories." My thoughts are interrupted by Toothless as he provides the Queen with a summary of the past few weeks. The Queen looks between the two of us in shock. I also feel a sardonic amusement coming from her, but not directed at us. It must be some private joke of her's.

"Tannlaus...?" The Queen looks at Toothless. Where have I heard that word before? I'd heard of Hiksti too, but I can't place it. "Thäet... ilumëo." Her intentions are less clear this time, though Toothless seems to take this as praise. She turns to face me. 'Query… not favored... by two-legs big-horns?'

I provide a negative.'No, not favored, seen as weak.'

Realizing I don't understand the language she goes back to the thought speech of dragons. 'Two-legs sharp-eyes… why come?' I'm not sure what to say to this, so I tell her my wish.

'Desire? To belong. Love, be loved.'(") It's the best answer I have. The Queen is silent for a long moment, mulling over this new information before coming to a decision.

'Night-wing… alive and well… return with ally… query… join council?' Toothless nearly falls backward at this.

'Honored, gratitude, query, two-legs sharp-eyes?' Toothless looks to me.

'Two-legs sharp-eyes… reborn… become dragon…' the Queen looks at me now.

'Query, reborn?' I'm not sure how such a thing is even possible. Plus I'm still on edge after seeing her eat that still-living Gronckle. 'Not dragon, I'm two-legs.'

'Have memory stone… reincarnation possible…' I'm then shown an image of various dragons dying, the Queen eating them, and her sending their spirits to unborn dragons. But for some reason, the image is a little… off. I don't know why, but I don't believe the Queen is as benevolent as Toothless makes her out to be. The Queen starts to get impatient and sinks into the fog. 'Night-wing… drop him.'

I'm terrified when Toothless starts pushing me towards the edge. "Toothless, what are you doing?! I'll die!"

The Night Fury looks at me quizzically. "You'll be fine, Hiccup. I've met other dragons who've been reincarnated. It's true."

I rack my brain for an explanation. Then I remember the day after our first flight. "Toothless, you once told me my ideas look so realistic they can be confused for memories? Well, I think that's what's going on here. The Queen is using fabricated memories to manipulate everyone."

Toothless is shocked by the accusation. "Why would she do such a thing? She's the one who raised me, Hiccup! For what reason would she do such kind things otherwise?"

I look down at the mist, remembering the odd number of eyes. "I have an idea why, but if that is the case, then we need to form Shade Fury and have her move faster than the fog." I offer my hand. "Do you trust me?

Toothless is irresolute for more time than I would like. I don't blame him though. I'm basically asking him to choose between the dragon who raised him and the human who shot him down and didn't even have the stomach to kill him. As I lose all hope of survival, Toothless presses his snout into my palm. "I trust you, partner of life."

We fuse, and the Queen is not happy.

So here's the Queen, I tried doing something different than the usual source of all evil variant I see in most stories.

Fanreader26: How was it? was it what you were expecting? if not there's more to come.

Umbra Lycan: Unfortunately she's still evil. I just wanted to try a scenario where the dragons thought she was good.

Zeky: I'm undecided whether or not to give the Queen a redemption arc, some parts of her might, but not others.

To those curious, the language the Queen speaks is the Inheritance cycle's Ancient Language with some old Norse filling in the gaps. Let me know what you think of her.