Chapter 48

Three young humans and nine dragons; they certainly looked like an odd sight as they stood together on the rim of the entrance to the hidden world of the dragons. It had not been easy to say goodbye to Toothless, but they all knew there was far too much that needed to be done in only a short amount of time. Of the three dragons that were experiencing the open sky for the first time, Blue's Night Fury was by far the most impressed. He looked so cute as his head spun around, searching the horizon for any sign of the end that wasn't there.

"Well I guess we'd better mount up and get going; the Terrors are already on their way" Haley noted.

"You okay with Boris?" Blue asked.

"Don't you worry about us, we'll be fine" Haley nodded "You just do your best to keep that Night Fury under control."

Blue knew she was right, even though he did not want to admit it.

"Okay Bud, just like we did in the cavern" Blue reassured the Night Fury.

Even though Boris and Windstorm had already spent a few months on the surface, this time it felt different for them. This time they didn't sneak out of their former home, and this time they were not alone. Their Alpha had made it clear to them that he trusted these humans, and it was important for the five larger dragons to learn how to work with them. The Night Fury though was still too excited to think of work, because right now all he wanted to do was fly like he'd never flown before. The journey started well enough, with the five large dragons taking to the sky in quick succession, but they did not stay together very long at all.

"Hey where are you going?" Calla asked when Blue suddenly gained a considerable amount of altitude.

"Umm... up I'd say" Blue answered.

And up he went indeed. While the others continued on a straight course back to the Faroe Islands, Blue and the Night Fury flew up to the clouds.

"Keep going Haley" Calla called out "I'm going to see if I can catch our wayward leader."

She urged Windstorm to fly higher, but the Night Fury was already partially obscured by clouds. By the time Calla had approached the first foggy wisps, she had lost sight of the black dragon altogether. She started to shiver as they passed through the low cloud and could not help but wonder how her dragon was feeling. But as she looked down at the Nadder, she saw nothing on Windstorm's face except a look of determination; it was as if she too wanted to push herself, and discover her limits for the first time.

When Calla and Windstorm finally lifted above the cloud layer, they heard a strange sound coming from higher above them. It was a high pitch whine, almost a scream and as it grew louder, Calla looked up to see the Night Fury, wings pulled into a small arc, diving almost vertically in front of her.

"HI CALLA" Blue called out as they shot by.

The dragon soon burst out of the bottom of the cloud layer and continued to gain velocity at an alarming rate.

"Come on speedy, I think you've pushed yourself enough for your first open air flight" Blue insisted.

The Night Fury did not want to lose this feeling of exhilaration, but even he could see the ocean getting closer. So he raised his tail ever so slightly and dipped the trailing edge of his wings, slowing his progress and lifting him gradually out of their dive. But the Night Fury certainly did not want to lose this wonderful momentum and so he pulled back and shot up again towards the open sky. He and Blue soon reached the cloud layer again, just as Calla and Windstorm came into view after exiting the mist.

"Whoa, that is one fast dragon" Calla gasped when the Night Fury pulled alongside.

"Yeah... I think I'll call him Speedy" Blue grinned while petting the dragon's neck.

"Definitely suits him" Calla nodded "but are you sure you don't want to give a cool name like Ninja... or Fire Blade?"

"I like Speedy; and I think it's pretty cool" Blue disagreed.

"Yeah but... you like broccoli" Calla grinned as she guided her dragon back down.

Blue thought about what she had said for a moment.

"What's wrong with liking broccoli?" he asked Speedy before following her down.

'

'

The small group of humans and dragons first returned to Windstorm's cave to pack up their camping gear before continuing on. As they packed, Calla suddenly stopped and just stared at the others for a moment. Blue didn't notice until he swung his pack onto his back, and saw her standing perfectly still.

"You okay Calla?" he asked.

She took a sharp breath as her mind instantly snapped back into the real world.

"Oh... Blue... I was just thinking... look at us; we're the new Dragon Riders!"

"The reality of it just hit you, did it?" Blue smiled.

"Yeah... and it feels weird" Calla slowly shook her head "Is this what you were feeling back in the dragon's world when we were lying on the ground with Toothless?"

"What are you feeling exactly?" Blue asked.

"Pressure... uncertainty... I'm not sure we can do it."

"That's exactly what I was feeling" Blue nodded "and it may not be easy to start with, but I'm sure it'll get better over time as we gain experience. If we can get more people behind us, we'll be much better off too."

"Yeah that's true... maybe we should head back to Berk and introduce our new dragons to the One and All crew. I'm looking forward to seeing DeGroot pass out again" Calla smiled.

"I'm sure we'll get back to Berk eventually, but for now I've got other plans."

'

'

The new Dragon Riders soon put the first part of Blues plan into effect by flying back to the farm of Simon Lisberg, where their arrival caused quite a stir.

"Oh just look at them Olaf, so many different dragons" Thorston said, almost dancing on the spot.

"My goodness, we thought you said there was only one other dragon here" Olaf said to the Dragon Riders.

"Yeah well, we found a few hundred thousand more" Calla shrugged.

"A few hundred thousand?" Simon repeated as he struggled with his front steps "Where are we going to put them all?"

"Hopefully you shouldn't see any more in the short term, but they'll come eventually so it's extremely important that we pass on some dragon knowledge quickly before we move on. How long will it take to get some of the locals back here?" Blue asked urgently.

"Let me see" Thorston wondered "It's a bit too late to get them here today, but I could send word and tell them to come first thing in the morning."

"Maybe we should go to them" Haley suggested "They weren't very happy about the dragons before, but if we can somehow show them that dragons won't burn your houses down if you know how to handle them, perhaps they'll be more open to the idea of not starting a fight."

"Good idea" Blue agreed "we'll go straight after breakfast and then we'll have to leave."

"Already? But you just got here" Thorston's face fell.

"Sorry but we've got a lot to do and many miles to travel" Blue shrugged "But first we've got to get word to our friends back on the Striker, and tell them what we're planning to do."

"How you going to do that?" Olaf wondered.

"Don't worry, we've got communications equipment on the yacht" Calla nodded.

"Oh... um... about that, Olaf and me went down to Sund to check on your yacht while you were gone. There are a lot of people on this island who's main desire is to be anywhere but here, and one of them must have... stolen it" Thorston admitted.

"Don't worry" Calla laughed "It's still there, you just couldn't see it. Hey Blue, do you think we could take these guys on a little dragon ride."

"We can try... if they're game" Blue agreed.

They were indeed all willing to take this opportunity of a lifetime, even though it took a good half hour to get the men familiar with the dragons, and to get some of the dragons used to having humans on their backs. Working with the Zippleback was simply a case of taking the time needed to show the dragon what they wanted and what to expect, and the results of this training worked out very well for Olaf and Thorston. They did not sit high on the dragon's necks as the twins would many centuries ago, but back at the shoulders of the Zippleback.

The real trouble came when Blue and Haley made a valiant attempt to convince the Gronkle to let Simon ride on its back. Time and again the stubborn dragon simply refused to cooperate, eventually to the point where Simon offered to stay behind.

"Here's an idea" Calla said "Why don't we put Simon on Windstorm, and I'll have a try with the Gronkle?"

"Well you have had more experience with dragons, so yeah; let's try it" Blue agreed.

Simon felt a little weird getting on the same creature that had injured him a few days ago, but there was no doubt Windstorm really was a completely different dragon now. Unfortunately though, the Gronckle was still causing nothing but trouble for Calla and Blue. No matter how much they tried to calm the irritable dragon and win him over, he just continued to be cranky and distant.

"Maybe I could go with you on Speedy" Calla suggested.

"I suppose... but I really don't want to give up this quickly" Blue shook his head "Toothless trusted us with these dragons and I certainly don't want to let him down."

"An admirable thought, but how long is this stubborn little guy going to keep us waiting?" Haley wondered.

"Come on Blue, you've read a lot about dragons; what did you find out about Gronckles" Calla said encouragingly.

A look of realisation slowly crept over the young man's face, along with a healthy dose of excitement.

"That's it" he declared before kissing her "Calla; I love you."

"Yes... I know" she smirked as Blue ran off.

Seeing a feeding bucket hanging near the henhouse, Blue rushed over and threw the grain inside to a small group of very thankful chickens. He then disappeared out of sight for a short time when he was obscured by Simon's barn. When he returned, Blue was carrying the bucket close to his chest, obviously struggling under the weight.

"What have you got there" Simon asked as he looked down from Windstorm's back.

"Something that should bring joy and contentment to any healthy Gronckle" Blue smiled.

As he walked up, Calla looked inside, looked confused and looked doubtful.

"Rocks?" she shook her head.

"Yup, a few sedimentary with a generous helping of basalt; he should love this" Blue winked.

Much to everyones surprise, the short stocky dragon did indeed love what he was given. Blue held a fist sized piece of basalt in front of the Gronckles nostrils, and the change in it demeanour was instantaneous. The dragon started to pant and shake it tail, as its mouth opened with its tongue hanging out the right side.

"I can't believe it... they actually eat rocks" Thorston stared, wide eyed at the sight.

"Gronckles don't really eat the rocks, but they need them to stay healthy" Blue explained "Many dragon produce a flammable liquid, gel or gas to create their fire attacks, but the Gronckle has a speciality; it can combine the heat in its fire glands with the crushed rock to create molten lava. Not having enough rock for a Gronckle could be compared to us not having enough internal bacteria."

"Well he certainly looks happier now" Calla smiled as she scratched the dragon's rough hide.

"Wanna try getting on him again?"

"I'm not ready to give up just yet" Calla said with determination.

"Good girl" Blue nodded and then looked down to the dragon.

"Come on... you've seen us riding the other dragons, I promise it won't hurt" he tried to be encouraging.

Blue need not have worried because now that he was feeling better, he was actually looking forward to serving his Alpha by partnering with these humans. Calla could still see there was a definite stubborn streak to this dragon, but she was sure he would soon become one of the team.

"Right then..." Blue called out as he got up on Speedy's back "it's only a short hop down the hill to Sund, so let's get going."

All three of the first time riders cried out in surprise as the dragons lifted off the ground and quickly gained height. It is said that once you learn to ride a bicycle, you never really forget how it's done; but even after a thousand years, no words have ever been able to describe the combination of exhilaration and terror a person experiences the very first time they ride a dragon.

'

'

Maybe I should point out at this stage that these three islanders do not end up as the next batch of Dragon Riders, but I thought it would be fun to let them have a short flight.

Still no sign of work in the future so in order to get some exercise while I'm stuck at home, I've returned to something I have not done for many years...ballet. I'm not much of a dancer but the warm up and stretching exercises help after spending so much time indoors.

So I'll leave you now with that frightening mental image and say once again more story in a few days :D Marty.