'Living with dragons has its ups…and its downs.'
Early mornings in Berk…not exactly serene and peaceful. A Deadly Nadder and Gronckle were roosting on the roofs of their Viking partners' houses. But due to the dragons' heavy weight, both houses roofs were destroyed!
'You need to stay calm. Keep a clear head. Not always easy with Vikings.'
Seeing that home repairs were the most common dragon-related problem in the village, Hiccup and Zenna quickly put their heads together to make a solution. Hence, the dragon perches were invented. Zenna smiled as her brilliant inventor friend drew up the plans. Hiccup then turned to his blacksmithing mentor, Gobber, for extra guidance.
"More supports?" Hiccup asked. Gobber thought about it for a minute.
"Eh, well, they are dragons." The two-limbed Viking shrugged.
"I better get the team assembled. We're gonna need all the help we can get." Zenna remarked, leaving the workshop to get the gang together for construction.
'In our own way, we're very reasonable.'
The whole team of Dragon Riders worked hard to put up all the perches around town. When the time came to test the perches' stability, the team anxiously watched as Astrid and Stormfly, their volunteer test subjects, approached one perch. Stormfly let out a squawk as she approached the perch. She wasn't exactly sure if the thin strip of metal could support her weight (which wasn't as heavy as her friend Meatlug's but, still on the rather weighty side) and nervously hovered in the air.
"It's okay, girl. Just take it easy." Astrid told her reassuringly. Trusting her Rider's good judgement, Stormfly carefully landed on the dragon perch and gripped the metal with her claws. Seconds passed…and the perch was still standing!
"Stability test complete! The perches pass!" Zenna proclaimed happily. "Yes! It works!" Hiccup said triumphantly. "Way to go!" Gobber cheered his apprentice on with pride.
"Whoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!" Snotlout whooped, relieved that he wouldn't have to fix his house's roof everyday from now on. Fishlegs gave a thumbs-up to Astrid, who patted Stormfly in praise of her good behavior.
A certain pair of Viking teens, however, weren't exactly happy.
Tuffnut frowned at the perches along with his sister, Ruffnut. "So we built these things so stuff wouldn't break?" he asked incredulously.
"Well…yeah. That's the whole point of the dragon perches. They'll keep the dragons off the roofs so they won't crash through them anymore." Zenna replied.
"I don't understand you people." Ruffnut scowled.
"And they tricked us into helping them build them. I feel so used…and sweaty." Tuffnut wrinkled his nose before going home to take a refreshing bath.
"They'll be thanking us later." Zenna rolled her eye at the Twins as she and Hiccup slammed hands.
'But when a problem is caused by something Vikings don't understand, they lose all sense of reason. And that can be very dangerous…'
That evening, Hiccup invited Zenna's family and Gobber to have a celebratory dinner at his house. Around the Haddocks' dining table, with their dragons having their own celebratory dinner of fresh salmon, Icelandic Cod and trout, the men and two women clanked their cups of water together in a toast.
"Perches for dragons! Some of your best work, you two." Stoick the Vast, Chief of Berk and Hiccup's Dad, praised his son and best human friend.
"We should have thought up of those perches ages ago." Henna Fiersome remarked before her husband, Edgar, gagged as he took a swig from his cup.
Unfortunately for them, the water they had used to fill their cups came from a well that had a dragon perch situated directly over it. Which meant that some…rather unpleasant things had tainted the water.
"Although we may need to move the one over the well…" Stoick mumbled, looking at his cup.
"Agreed…" Edgar grimaced, taking a bite out of the roast mutton to get rid of the awful taste in his mouth.
Hiccup and Zenna were too busy pitching in ideas to notice while their fathers both took their cups away as they talked. "And the perches are just the beginning! We can build landing areas for them, maybe even stables in the caves underneath the village and-" Hiccup rambled before Zenna chimed in with, "Oh! And we can build some sort of Dragon Clinic and maybe even convert the blacksmith area to this super cool Armory with all sorts of equipment for saddles and weapons."
Laughing, Stoick, Henna and Edgar stopped the two teens before they could run out of breath. "Easy, you two. Remember, Berk is still for people." Stoick told them.
"While your combined ideas are good, let's take it one idea at a time." Henna advised.
"We wouldn't want your brains getting tired from all that planning now, would we?" Edgar chuckled.
"Vikings before Dragons." Gobber nodded. At the blacksmith's words, Toothless and Stryka, Hiccup and Zenna's trusty best dragon friends, looked up at Gobber in confusion. Were they not part of Berk as well?
"Yeah, I said it. Deal with it." Gobber smirked at them.
But suddenly, the sound of thunder rumbling outside caught the two families and Gobber's attention. Going outside, Zenna, Hiccup, Stryka, Toothless, Gobber and Zenna and Hiccup's parents were shocked to see lightning striking down on Berk!
"The lightning is hitting everywhere." Hiccup observed.
"No kidding…eek!" Zenna yelped at the sound of thunder and hid behind her one-legged surrogate brother, frightened.
"It usually doesn't strike here in the village." Stoick said, troubled.
"What's with the sudden lightning storm?" Edgar asked, confused.
"We've never had lightning storms like this before…" Henna said, slightly worried.
"Thor must be angry. The only time I can remember lightning ever striking Berk—" Gobber began to say before he and Stoick looked at each other.
"Barnstat." The two men said at the exact same time.
"Barn-who?" Hiccup, Zenna, Edgar and Henna asked in confusion. "Jürgen Barnstat, drifter, sailed into town. He was stealing from widows and old men." Stoick informed them as Gobber motioned with his hammer hand to a scorched helmet hanging on the wall. "To punish him, Thor gave him a lightning bolt right to his helmet when he was fixing the mast on his ship to make his escape." Gobber told them.
"Ouch…" Zenna mumbled, wincing at the part of Barnstat getting electrocuted. "By the time Thor was finished with him, our whole fleet was on fire!" Stoick added.
"That must have been quite a lightning storm…" Edgar remarked.
"We shipped him off the island and Thor hasn't hit the village since." Gobber concluded.
"Well it's good that the lightning stopped, but…" Henna said, rather uncomfortable with the idea of throwing a petty thief off the island.
"Threw him off the island? Pretty harsh." Hiccup voiced Henna's thoughts. "It does seem like a rather heavy punishment for stealing." Zenna added before another lightning bolt struck down!
And what it hit sent Zenna and her family into a panic.
"OUR HOUSE!" Zenna screamed in horror as she watched her home's roof go up in flames! "Oh Thor, why?!" Edgar gasped in shock.
"We need to put it out before our home burns to the ground!" Henna shrieked in alarm. "Gobber." Stoick ordered his friend, who rushed to get a fire brigade organized to put the fire on Zenna's house out.
"Come on, Zen!" Hiccup grabbed his surrogate sister's hand and they ran along with their dragons to help. Serpent and Serpentine, Henna and Edgar's Hideous Zippleback, were already with Thornado and extinguishing the fire on the Fiersome house's roof with troughs of water they had picked up.
"Good work, Serpent!" Edgar praised his Zippleback head since they were doing it all on their own.
"Serpentine, my family and I owe you and your sibling!" Henna thanked her Zippleback head gratefully. Stryka cheered her friends on as the fire was put out.
"Your mother and I'll go check the house to be safe. Zenna, stay with Hiccup and the Chief." Edgar instructed his daughter firmly. "Okay, Dad." Zenna nodded, relieved that her house hadn't burnt down and followed Hiccup and Stoick.
Lightning was striking down everywhere! And roofs were getting torched! A little Terrible Terror, spooked by all the chaos, let out a cry for help before it was rescued by Astrid and Stormfly.
"Gobber, organize a bucket brigade. I'm going up to the Great Hall." Stoick instructed his old friend, seeing that more houses were on fire. But when the Chief left, a lightning bolt struck nearby and scared the living daylights right out of Toothless and Stryka and made them run off!
"Toothless!" "Stryka!" Hiccup and Zenna shouted in alarm as their two Night Furies disappeared.
"I gotta find Toothless." Hiccup mumbled worriedly.
"And I need to find Stryka. Let's search together." Zenna said urgently and the two of them headed off to find their dragons.
Meanwhile, the other Dragon Riders were watching the destruction. The Twins, in particular, were very pleased. "Yeah, now that's what I'm talking about!" Tuffnut grinned, not exactly minding the terrified screams of Vikings. "I've always liked Thor." Ruffnut said in agreement, enraptured by the destruction.
"Oh, I love these storms! When it rains, I cancel bath night and just stand outside with nothing but a sponge and a bar of soap." Snotlout said gleefully.
"We know. The village has had meetings about it." Fishlegs grimaced, remembering the times he and the others would be staying indoors while a storm was raging and seeing Snotlout, stark naked, bathing in the rain.
Honestly, it gave him and everyone else nightmares every time that scenario happened.
That's when Hiccup and Zenna showed up, all out of breath.
"We can't find them anywhere!" Zenna panted, worried.
"W-we need your help. We need to find Toothless and Stryka!" Hiccup stammered out.
"I just saw them by the Great Hall." Astrid replied in surprise.
"Then please take us there!" Zenna requested. Astrid obliged and helped the two best friends on Stormfly before taking off.
Meanwhile Stoick was assisting some men who had gotten struck by the lightning. "Don't worry, men. You're gonna be alright." He told them reassuringly as Bucket, Mulch and Zenna's parents arrived.
"Oh, you poor dears…" Henna murmured as she tended to the men. "Our house is fine. We just need to fix the roof. But I fear others aren't faring very well, Stoick." Edgar reported to Stoick, his face grim.
Mulch was worried as well. "It's striking throughout the entire village. It's like we're under siege!" he exclaimed.
"I've never seen Thor this angry!" Bucket said nervously as lightning kept striking down.
At that point, Hiccup and Zenna had reached the Great Hall and had spotted Toothless and Stryka on a nearby perch. "Toothless!" "Stryka!" Hiccup and Zenna called out to their two Night Furies. But before their two best dragon friends could come over to them, lightning struck the perch!
Roaring with fear, Toothless and Stryka hopped onto another perch only to get nearly zapped by lightning again!
And a certain old grump took special notice of this…
"Did you all see that?" Mildew called out to the villagers. Everyone looked at Toothless and Stryka as they dodged lightning bolts as they leaped from perch to perch. Indeed, it seemed as if the lightning was trying to hit the two Night Furies!
"Look! The lightning is following them!" Mulch observed in surprise.
"Toothless!" Hiccup cried out.
"Stryka!" Zenna called out. The two Night Furies quickly bounded over to their two Riders, who gently cuddled them to calm them down.
That's when Mildew got to the front of the crowd. At last, he finally had the opportunity to get rid of Berk's Dragon Training duo.
"Don't you all understand? Thor is mad at all of us! And I'll tell you why. Because of them!" he cried out, pointing at Toothless and Stryka accusingly.
"What?!" Zenna shrieked in shock, her one violet eye flashing in anger.
"As you all know, the Night Furies are the unholy offsprings of lightning and death itself! We've let them live among us and now we will all pay the price!" Mildew carried on, some of the villagers beginning to murmur amongst themselves in agreement.
"Well, it did seem as though the lightning struck right at the dragons." Mulch said nervously. "Mulch, whose side are you on?!" Zenna asked, shocked. "Yes! Right at the dragons! And a lightning storm the likes of which we've never had! There is but one thing for us to do: banish the Night Furies! It's the only way!" Mildew yelled.
Zenna, who was practically ready to charge at the old coot, looked at Hiccup in shock. Hiccup was shocked as well. What on earth was Mildew trying to do?!
"Thor is angry at us because of the Night Furies. You all saw it!" Mildew declared. Some of the villagers were now starting to believe Mildew's claim and were now rallying against Toothless and Stryka, who both whimpered and pressed themselves closer to their Riders. "What?! No! This is ridiculous!" Hiccup cried out.
"Whatever Mildew is saying, don't believe it for a second!" Zenna tried to persuade the villagers.
"If we don't act now, well, need I remind you of…Barnstat!" Mildew said menacingly. All the villagers cried out in alarm, remembering the terrible lightning storm that had ravaged the island all those years ago. Stoick saw the distressed faces of his son and his surrogate sister and stepped forward in order to silence the people.
"You're right, all of you! Thor is angry, but I don't believe he's angry at Toothless and Stryka." Stoick boomed. "That's right! Have you all forgotten what Toothless and Stryka have done for this village?!" Hiccup said in agreement. "If it weren't for them, we'd still be fighting the dragons! They took down the tyrannical Red Death, which helped us all to make peace with the dragons!" Zenna added, glaring at Mildew.
"Well, then who do you two suppose he's angry at?" Mildew raised an eyebrow at the Chief and two Viking teens. "I don't presume to know Thor's mind, Mildew. But we will find a way to soothe his anger." Stoick chided the old man. Mildew scowled at the Chief and the two Dragon Riders.
Then his eye caught sight of Zenna's shield, which was strapped to Stryka's saddle, and practically waltzed over to Stryka to pry it off! "Hey! That's mine!" Zenna cried out while Stryka growled. Mildew took one look at the shield and smiled wickedly.
"Well, look at this! The Fiersome family crest has a lightning bolt painted on it!" he declared, showing the shield to everyone. Zenna looked at Mildew strangely. What did her family crest have to do with Thor's anger?
"Now, I have the utmost respect for Edgar and Henna." Mildew began, bowing with mock courtesy to Zenna's parents before looking at Zenna accusingly. "But, their daughter? I mean, look at her! Not only does she ride a Night Fury, she's got an eye that has the color of lightning! Perhaps Thor is angry at her as well!" Mildew accused.
Hiccup's heart nearly stopped beating while Zenna paled.
"Perhaps Thor thinks of her as a cursed child who needs to be eliminated!" Mildew carried on.
That's when Edgar and Henna got mad. If it weren't for Stoick and Gobber holding them back, Mildew would've gotten beaten to a pulp for sure!
"You dare say that about our daughter?! Mildew, you have stooped to the lowest of the low!" Edgar bellowed.
"Our daughter is not a cursed child! If anything, she has been a blessing to us and to all of Berk and I will not, absolutely will not, stand for her to be accused of invoking Thor's wrath!" Henna said sharply.
But Mildew's words were beginning to have an effect on the people, even as the old coot left. Hiccup could only take hold of Zenna's hand and squeeze it to reassure her. Zenna stayed quiet that whole night. She wasn't ready to admit it…but she was starting to feel scared. Not just for Stryka, but for herself as well…
Then...
"MOVE PEPOLE...!"
"Was that, Aurora?" Astrid asked, looking at the sky seeing a blue and red dragon... falling towards them!
"LOOKOUT!" Aurora screamed.
"INCOMING!" Hiccup cried and everyone scrambled and got out of the way as Aurora and Shadow came crashing down.
THUD!
"Ugh... ouch..." Aurora groaned as she rubbed her head. Shadow grunted, "Well that was a rough landing.."
"Aurora!" Hiccup cried as he and the others came over, "Are you alright?"
"We're fine, Hiccup." Aurora stated.
"That was a pretty rough crash." Zenna added with concern.
"Nothing we can't handle." Aurora added.
"What are you doing here? In a lightning storm no less?" Henna asked and three little chirps were heard and he group saw the Night Light hatchlings flying down to them.
"Awwww..." The villagers went at the sight of the three hatchlings, "Dart, Ruffrunner and Pouncer wanted to come and see you all." Aurora explained.
"And judging my the lightning hitting near the village, something's up right?" Aurora questioned with a raised eyebrow.
The next day was a pale one. No sign of rain but the barely audible sounds of thunder rumbling could still be heard. Hiccup, Zenna and the gang were outside with their dragons, trying to come up with a solution.
"Another storm is coming." Hiccup murmured worriedly.
"Thor tore a hole in the Great Hall. Maybe he's hungry? I know I am." Tuffnut suggested helpfully.
"We need to make Thor happy. But what do you get the God of Thunder and Lightning?" Hiccup asked his friends.
"Maybe a spare hammer?" Zenna piped up, making everyone look at her. "You know, in case his Mjolnir gets lost or something." she shrugged.
"Practical, Zen…But I think we need something more than that." Hiccup said before noticing some villagers passing by. One of them pointed at Zenna and whispered something that made the other villagers cast suspicious looks at the one-eyed Fiersome girl. Zenna visibly paled and looked down at her boots, suddenly taking an interest to them.
Hiccup and the other Dragon Riders looked at each other worriedly. They'd heard Mildew's speech last night and Aurora was told about it too. They didn't believe one bit of it, especially on the part of Zenna being a cursed child. Toothless and Stryka, they were all worried enough for them both. But, Zenna? Accused of making Thor angry with them? Mildew had officially crossed an unwritten boundary: Threaten the dragons and their Riders, and there will be hell to pay…
"Don't worry, Zen. We're going to protect you, Toothless and Stryka at all costs." Hiccup reassured Zenna, who looked up at her friends.
"If Mildew wants to get to you three, they'll have to go through all of us." Astrid added, gesturing to herself, her friends and her dragons.
Finally Zenna cracked a small smile. Now that their friend's morale had been boosted, it was time to get some serious planning done!
"In the past, I know Thor's enjoyed a sacrifice or two." Fishlegs piped up.
"Let's sacrifice Tuffnut!" Ruffnut suggested excitedly. Tuffnut looked willing enough.
"Okay, what time should I be there? There better be fire involved!" he said.
"Nobody's gonna be sacrificed!" Hiccup scolded the Twins.
"Not yet, anyway." Snotlout snickered.
"Snotlout!" Zenna chided the Jorgenson boy.
"I had an aunt who was cursed by Odin once. She had to pay tribute to him by sailing to the end of the Earth." Astrid chimed in.
"Did it work?" Fishlegs asked her.
"I don't know. I guess she couldn't find it, because she kept showing up from the opposite direction." Astrid said, shrugging.
"Come to think of it, I've been hearing rumors that the Earth's round and not flat. I wonder if that's the reason why." Zenna said thoughtfully.
"The Gods have never been mad at anyone from our family." Fishlegs informed his friends before suddenly realizing that there was a possibility that it might happen someday so he decided to do a little ritual that was said to promote good luck.
"Knock on wood. Hop on one foot. Slap a Jorgenson." Fishlegs said, doing all the things required but, on the last part, lightly poked Snotlout which resulted in him getting shoved to the ground. Snotlout smirked as he presented his idea.
"If I were Thor, I would want a giant statue." He said, standing on Hookfang's head. "Of myself, Snotlout, as Thor!" he proudly declared.
"You do know we're trying to make him happy?" Astrid asked him.
"Exactly!" Snotlout replied, kissing his biceps.
"Oh this is bad for my eye…" Zenna groaned, covering her one eye with her eye patch while Astrid covered her mouth in disgust. "I think I just threw up in my mouth." She grimaced.
But Hiccup's eyes lit up at his cousin's idea.
"Actually, that's not a bad idea." He piped up, making Zenna uncover her eye as she soon caught on with Hiccup's plan.
"It's not an idea, it's a reflex." Astrid informed her boyfriend, still not catching on.
"What? No! I-I mean the statue." Hiccup corrected himself. Astrid turned green once more and threw up in her mouth at that point.
"There I go again." She grimaced.
"No! Not Snotlout! Thor!" Hiccup corrected himself again, causing Snotlout to stop kissing his biceps.
"A statue of Thor…that does sound like a better gift." Zenna remarked.
"Hmm, Berk has never given Thor a statue." Fishlegs pointed out.
"Well, then it's high time we did!" Hiccup said.
And with those words, construction began on Thor's statue!
The Twins were assigned on constructing the lower legs. At one point, they both started bonking each other on the heads with their hammers. "Yowch!" Tuffnut yelped before retaliating with another bonk to his sister's helmet! "Ouch!" Ruffnut yelped, hitting Tuffnut back. "Quit bonking each other silly, you two!" Zenna told them as she worked on Thor's shield. Suddenly she saw the Twins throw their hammers at Mildew, who was passing by!
"Hooligans! Cursed child!" Mildew shook his fist, directing his last shout at Zenna who tried her best to ignore him.
"Technically, we're all Hooligans! Hooligan Tribe remember, Mildew?!" Ruffnut hollered at the old man.
"And call Zen a cursed child again then we'll throw something heavier at 'ya!" Tuffnut hollered as well.
Once Mildew was gone, the Twins grinned at Zenna.
"We got your back, Zen!" Ruffnut chirped.
"Just like Hiccup!" Tuffnut added, smiling. Zenna couldn't help but smile at their supportiveness as she finished the shield.
Snotlout, meanwhile, was having Hookfang melt down some metal for extra plates on Thor's knee. But when Hiccup and Zenna passed by, they noticed something significantly wrong about Thor's knee.
"Great job. Uh, one issue. Thor's knee bends the other way. You know, like a knee…on a person?" Hiccup told his cousin. Snotlout looked thoughtful for a second as he looked at his own knee.
"Oops…" he mumbled sheepishly.
"It's not a total loss. We can use it as an arm." Zenna suggested before hearing some of the village brats jeering at her.
"Cursed child!" "Sacrifice her to Thor!" "Hit the road, Fiersome!"
Snotlout and Hiccup both glared as Zenna visibly flinched at the hurtful words. "Okay, Hookfang! Sic 'em!" Snotlout commanded his Monstrous Nightmare. And for once, Hookfang obeyed and lit himself up! Hiccup and Zenna could only watch in awe as Hookfang chased the village brats away before going back to Snotlout, who petted him in praise. "Hey, nobody trash talks a lady in my presence." Snotlout said smugly.
"Thanks, Snotlout." Zenna said shyly as they moved on to watch Astrid work with Stormfly in making Thor's cape.
"Don't worry about those no-good followers of Mildew, Zen. Stormfly and I chased them off earlier." The blonde shield maiden told her one-eyed friend.
"Thanks again, Astrid." Zenna smiled as she and Hiccup moved on.
Fishlegs scurried back and forth to keep Meatlug from tipping over as he worked on Thor's metal pants, which Meatlug served as the mold. "What are you doing?" "And why is Meatlug surrounded in metal?" Hiccup and Zenna asked, confused. "I'm making Thor's pants. I hope they're not too tight. I hate it when my pants are too tight. I feel so bloated." Fishlegs told them. "They look fine to me…" Zenna said before Fishlegs suddenly cried out, "DUCK!" and made her duck as one of Mildew's followers threw a fist-sized rock at Zenna! Good thing Meatlug ate it!
"Cursed child! Invoker of Thor's wrath!" the no-good Mildew follower cursed at Zenna. Now the one-eyed Fiersome girl could only look down at the ground in shame.
"Leave her alone!" Fishlegs and Hiccup both yelled.
"Shadow..." Aurora said to her Dramillion who roared and scurried after the follower who ran away in fear.
"You okay, Zen?" Hiccup asked worriedly.
"Yeah…" Zenna mumbled. Turning to his friends and seeing their finished work, Hiccup said, "Okay, guys, we better start welding these pieces together." Before they all called on their dragons to help. Once the statue was done, Hiccup smiled.
"Yeah. I really think Thor's gonna like this." He said before noticing that Zenna was still sad.
"Don't worry, Zenna. We'll show to them that you, Toothless and Stryka aren't causing Thor's anger." He reassured his surrogate sister. Zenna looked at him hopefully.
"I hope so…" she said before looking at the statue worriedly.
"Still…there's something about the statue that makes me feel uneasy…" she said thoughtfully.
"And what would that be?" Hiccup raised an eyebrow at her.
"I dunno…Maybe I'm just thinking too hard…" Zenna shrugged, a little unsure.
But truth be told, Zenna really hoped that Thor's anger would soon be appeased…For her and Hiccup's two Night Furies' sake and also for her own sake…
Later that day, all of Berk was gathered by the Great Hall and looking at the tarp-covered thing in front of them in wonder. Hiccup and Zenna were at the front with Toothless and Stryka, ready to unveil the statue.
"Attention! Attention, everyone! Okay, so, Zenna and I know we're not exactly Thor's favorite people right now, but we are sure that this beautiful statue will go a long way toward getting us back to his good graces! So, without further ado…" Hiccup said and then nodded to Zenna. "Behold, Thor the Thunderer, Wielder of Mjolnir!" Zenna proclaimed as she, Hiccup, Toothless and Stryka unveiled the statue with a grand flourish!
The villagers cheered and gasped in awe at the great, towering statue of the hammer wielding Norse god and applauded. "Well done! Thor will appreciate this tribute, and will smile upon us once again!" Stoick smiled at his son and his son's best human friend as well as their two Night Furies.
"Wonderful statue you and your friends made, love!" Edgar praised his daughter. "Cursed child, my foot! More like gifted child!" Henna smiled as she embraced her daughter.
One old coot, however, still didn't seem so happy.
Mildew scowled as the crowd began to disperse. A mere statue of Thor wasn't going to appease the god's anger! The two Night Furies and Fiersome child were still on Berk!
"You really think this is enough to appease the mighty Thor, while you allow two Night Furies and a cursed child in your midst?! YOU'RE FOOLS! ALL OF 'YA!" he barked at them. Pouncer, Dart and Ruffrunner didn't take kindly to that and started hitting Mildew on the head, "Ow! Stop that!" he cried but the Night Lights laughed at his misery, until it struck Dart with his stick.
Dart roared in pain and he fell on the ground, "Dart!" Aurora gasped. Pouncer and Ruffrunner flew over to their injured sister. Mildew just scoffed with a smirk, "Serves that thing right.."
"Shwut uwp, Miwldwew!" Stryka roared in her garbled human speak, surprising Stoick, Henna and Edgar. Mildew could only gape at Stryka speechless.
"Mwy Rwidwer awnd myw mwate are innocssent! Swo, lweave thwem alwone!" Stryka growled at Mildew threateningly, causing the old man to run away in fright.
"Way to tell him, girl." Zenna grinned at her one-eyed Night Fury, who looked very pleased with herself, while Toothless smiled and nuzzled his beloved mate lovingly.
"Thor's beard…did Stryka just speak?" Stoick asked, eyes wide.
"She's been practicing." Hiccup informed his father.
"As usual, Zen, your dragoness never fails to amaze us." Henna remarked.
"Stryka sure is full of surprises now, isn't she?" Edgar laughed. Zenna smiled at her parents.
"She sure is, Mom and Dad. She sure is." She said, scratching Stryka behind her ears. Stryka smiled toothlessly and nuzzled Zenna as well.
"Oh, Stryka…What would Hiccup and I do without you and Toothless?" Zenna laughed as she and Hiccup embraced their two best dragon friends in the whole, wide world.
"Just to be on the safe side, Zen…I think you and your parents should stay at our house for a while…Just to be safe…" Hiccup then suggested, still very much worried about his surrogate sister.
"My son's got a point. Until this whole thing blows over, Edgar and Henna, you two and your daughter and your dragons will stay with us." Stoick nodded in agreement.
That evening…things didn't get better. Rather than make Thor happy, the statue just seemed to attract more lightning!
"Unbelievable. Even more lightning than the last storm." Hiccup frowned as he, Aurora, Gobber and Zenna watched the storm from inside the Haddock house. "Oh, joy…" Zenna sighed.
"I don't understand. We gave Thor a giant statue!" Gobber said in exasperation.
"Maybe it wasn't giant enough?" Edgar guessed.
"Edgar, you sometimes think of the silliest things…" Henna sighed at her husband.
"It was a gallant effort, son, but it looks as though this is not what Thor wanted." Stoick sighed.
Then Gobber noticed Toothless and Stryka and took a side step away from them!
"Gobber, what are you doing?" Hiccup asked. "I love Toothless and Stryka, I'm just erring on the side of caution." Gobber admitted sheepishly. "Really, Gob? Really?" Zenna rolled her eye at the two-limbed blacksmith.
Toothless and Stryka crooned worriedly and sidled up to their two Riders for comfort. "Hey, don't worry, bud. Zenna and I are not gonna let anything happen to you and Stryka. No matter what some people think!" Hiccup comforted his dragon, directing his last sentence at Gobber who looked down sheepishly at the ground.
Zenna merely hugged Stryka who gently licked her face. "…Maybe I need to be sacrificed to Thor to make him happy…" she said quietly, but loudly enough for everyone in the house to hear her. Toothless and Stryka roared in alarm while Stoick, Hiccup, Gobber, Edgar and Henna looked at the brave Fiersome girl in shock.
"Zenna love, don't say that!" Henna exclaimed in horror. "But Mildew and his followers are calling me a cursed child…Maybe they're right…" Zenna mumbled. Edgar shook his head. "Who cares what they think, my dear? And they are all wrong! You are not a cursed child, Zenna, and your mother and I don't want you to ever think of yourself as one, you hear me?" he said emphatically. Zenna could only nod.
Stoick went over to her and gently patted her back. "Your parents are right, Zenna. You're no cursed child, nor will you ever be. If anything…you are a great blessing…to the village and to my family…" he said softly. "And if anyone tries to ship you off the island, they'll have to go through my entire dungeon of weapons! I can wield three axes and two maces all at once!" Gobber told her heartily.
Hiccup only said a few words, but his hug spoke volumes as he hugged the one-eyed girl and whispered, "I'll never let anyone hurt you or take you away from me, Zenna…Okay?" to which Zenna whispered back, "Okay…"
Meanwhile Meatlug was trying to sleep when she heard Fishlegs whimpering from under the bed. When his Gronckle uncovered the sheets shielding him from the terrifying storm, Fishlegs tried to put on a brave face.
"I know you're scared, girl. If you wanna hold me, that's what I'm here for." He said nervously. Knowing that she wasn't the one scared, Meatlug softly rumbled and gave Fishlegs a cuddle.
The Twins, however, were on the roof of their house and cracking nuts on each other's helmets to eat while they watched the lightning storm. "Whoa…Look at all that damage and destruction." Ruffnut said in amazement.
"I know. It's so beautiful!" Tuffnut agreed with his sister.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Ruffnut gasped as she watched a bolt of lightning strike a nearby house!
"Whoa…Nobody blows stuff up like Thor." Tuffnut said in awe as he and Ruffnut butted helmets.
At the plaza, things were getting worse! The villagers cried out in fear as the statue, combined with all the dragon perches, directed multiple lightning bolts in different directions and set homes ablaze! In the midst of all this chaos, Mildew was ready to get the villagers on his side.
"That's what Thor thinks of the statue! I told you what he wants, and we haven't given it to him! Until we rid this island of those Night Furies and that cursed Fiersome child, Thor's fire will continue to rain down upon us!" Mildew declared. And this time, almost all of the villagers rallied with him. They now blindly believed that Toothless, Stryka and Zenna were the cause of Thor's anger…and they wanted to get rid of them…
"Y-You don't really think Thor is angry because of Toothless, Stryka and Zenna, do you?" Hiccup asked nervously as he tightly clung onto Toothless while he held Zenna's hand in his.
"I now personally believe that neither of the three of us is responsible. In fact, I think that there might be a logical explanation for all of this." Zenna piped up, cuddling Stryka close and tightly holding onto Hiccup's hand. "Of course I don't." Stoick replied, Zenna's parents and Gobber shaking their heads in agreement as well.
Suddenly loud knocking accompanied by Mildew's angry shouting of, "Open up, Stoick! We've come for the Night Furies and the girl!" reached everyone's ears! Edgar and Henna frightfully hugged Zenna, who did her best to look brave along with Toothless and Stryka. Shadow and the Night Lights growled at the door.
Stoick took one look at Hiccup's worried face and knew what he had to do.
"But I'm afraid they do. Get Toothless, Stryka and Zenna to a safe place, Henna, Edgar and I'll try to reason with them." He told his son.
"But-" Hiccup began to protest.
"Just go!" Stoick silenced him as Edgar and Henna let their daughter go to Hiccup.
"Wait for us!" Aurora called.
"Safe travels, old friends. And take care of yourself as well, lass." Gobber said sadly to Toothless and Stryka, who rumbled softly their thanks, and patted Zenna's shoulder. Zenna nodded as she and Hiccup began to climb out of the window with their two Night Furies.
"Wait!" Edgar and Henna cried out, causing the two of them to look at Zenna's parents.
"Look after each other, you four." Henna said worriedly. "Hiccup…please look after our girl." Edgar said sadly. "We will, Mom and Dad." Zenna promised.
"I'll keep her safe, Mr. Fiersome." Hiccup promised as well before they left the house.
Toothless and Stryka let out soft growls of worry and nudged their Riders. "Don't worry, bud. It's you and me." Hiccup reassured Toothless, gently holding his scaly head. "We won't let them catch you and Toothless, Stryka. I promise." Zenna said softly. "And we're not going to let anyone hurt you as well, Zen…" Hiccup whispered, holding Zenna's hand.
"Okay?" he asked softly as he squeezed his surrogate sister's hand.
"Okay." Zenna replied, squeezing Hiccup's hand. With their two Night Furies following close behind, the two Dragon Riders ran off into the night.
Meanwhile Stoick opened the door of his house to be greeted by Mildew and an angry mob with torches ablaze! Gobber, Edgar and Henna backed him up, ready to throw the mob off the children's trail.
"Give up the dragons and the girl, Stoick! Look at your people. We've had enough!" Mildew yelled, the mob angrily shouting in agreement.
"You sick, slimy, slippery, no-good weasel…" Edgar muttered through gritted teeth.
"Mildew, you've gone too far with threatening our daughter!" Henna cried out and reached for her sword before Gobber stopped them. "You're too late. They're gone." Stoick informed the crowd.
"Stoick's already sent them off the island." Gobber told them all. But lightning still continued to rain down on the island, something that Mildew didn't fail to notice.
"Thor says otherwise. The dragons and Zenna must still be on the island. Find the Night Furies and the cursed child! Go!" he commanded the angry mob and they left in pursuit.
At the docks, Astrid joined Hiccup, Zenna, Toothless and Stryka with Stormfly.
"We can hide Toothless, Stryka and Zenna in the Cove for now." She suggested.
"Oh no, I am not going to hide in the Cove like a coward. If anything, I'm going to be out in the open and defending Toothless and Stryka." Zenna said stubbornly.
"They'll just find them. No. We have to leave." Hiccup told his girlfriend sadly. "We?" Astrid questioned.
"Sorry, Astrid…" Zenna apologized, knowing what her surrogate brother meant.
"He can't make it on his own. And I wouldn't want him to." Hiccup said, referring to Toothless before looking at Zenna and Stryka.
"And I promised Zenna's dad that I'll keep her and Stryka safe. I'm going with them, Astrid." He added.
"But you four will come back, right?" Astrid asked, feeling scared all of a sudden.
"Yeah, eventually. When they all realize this didn't happen because of Toothless, Stryka and Zenna." Hiccup replied, feeling a little less than hopeful.
"You guys can stay at my place with Shadow and the others." Aurora offered.
"Thanks Aurora." Hiccup added.
"Hopefully we won't be gone for too long…" Zenna sighed before tensing up as she, Hiccup and Astrid heard the angry mob!
"You two better go." Astrid advised them sadly.
With heavy hearts, the group got onto their dragons and took off…and Astrid and Stormfly sadly watched them leave. Just as the two Night Fury Riders and Aurora, Shadow and the Night Lights disappeared into the clouds, Mildew arrived. "Where's the boy?! And more importantly, where're the dragons and the girl?!" he asked, the lightning lighting up his face in a menacing manner. Stormfly let out a warning squawk while Astrid remained strong…and angry.
"I don't know, Mildew, but you got your wish. Hiccup, Toothless, Zenna and Stryka are gone." She said, furious at the old coot for driving her friends away.
Mildew didn't look convinced. "Oh, bah! Find the Night Furies and the girl! All of you!" he spat out venomously to the crowd and they continued their search. Astrid sighed heavily and looked up at the sky with Stormfly, praying that her boyfriend and his surrogate sister along with their dragons were safe…
Up in the clouds, Hiccup and Zenna carefully flew Toothless and Stryka as they avoided lightning bolts. "You know…the more I think about the situation, the more convinced I am that there might be some logical explanation…" Zenna mumbled, racking her brain to find an idea.
"Hmmm... what did you make the statue out of?" Aurora asked, curiously.
"We made it out of metal.." Hiccup replied, earning a facepalm from Aurora.
"What?" Hiccup asked.
"That was a big mistake.." Aurora deadpanned.
"Huh?" They all asked.
"Metal attracts lightning...!" Aurora exclaimed, exasperated.
"It does?!" Zenna exclaimed.
"Yes, the ions in the metal can attract electrical irons in the lightning so it attracts, which is why lightnings been hitting everything made of metal." Aurora explained.
"So that's why Lightning's been hitting the island.." Hiccup gasped in realization.
"And isn't Toothless' prosthetic fin made from metal?" Aurora asked.
"Yeah.. why-oh shoot!" Hiccup exclaimed when a lightning bolt suddenly struck Toothless' prosthetic tail fin!
"Nwoooo!" Stryka roared in alarm as her mate began to lose altitude! "Hang on, boys!" Zenna cried out as they followed the quickly downward spiraling duo. "TOOTHLESS!" Hiccup screamed in fright as he and his best dragon friend went down! Oh, Thor! Their night had taken a turn for the worse!
At that moment, Mildew looked up to see a Night Fury with a smoking tail fin going down and another Night Fury following it! "Ah! There they are!" he alerted the angry mob.
Once the duo crash landed, Zenna and Stryka checked them both for injuries. "Whoo…You okay, bud?" Hiccup asked Toothless woozily. Toothless growled a yes growl while Stryka gently licked his face. "He's okay…but his tail…" Zenna murmured, looking at the burnt out prosthetic tail fin.
"I told you." Aurora declared.
"We gotta go back to the village and explain our findings!" Zenna said and hastily turned to leave.
That's when Mildew and his angry mob arrived, throwing bolas at Toothless and Stryka! The two Night Furies roared in fear as they were ensnared!
"Secure the dragons!" Mildew shouted to the men.
"Toothless!" "Stryka!" Hiccup and Zenna yelled in alarm before they were held down.
"No! Leave them alone!" the two teens cried as their two Night Furies were pulled towards a platform and chained up. But just when Hiccup thought that things couldn't get any worse, they did. The Viking holding Zenna down then picked her up and began to take her away!
"No! Zen!" Hiccup screamed, grabbing his surrogate sister's hand.
"Hicc! Hiccup!" Zenna yelped as their hands were harshly pulled apart and she was placed on the same platform Toothless and Stryka were on and chained up as well!
"Don't try and stop us, you'll only make it worse for your precious dragons and friend." Mildew sneered. "Let me go! Let us go, you bastards!" Zenna yelled as she wriggled about since her wrists and ankles were shackled to the cart. Toothless and Stryka both roared in distress as they were restrained all the more, frightening Hiccup.
"Toothless! Stryka! Zenna!" Hiccup shouted as he was held back by a couple of Mildew's followers.
"Say your goodbyes." Mildew said triumphantly as the cart was pulled away. Finally Hiccup broke free and ran as fast as his legs could carry him while shouting, "Toothless! Stryka! Zenna!" until he managed to grab onto the edges of the cart.
"We'll be okay, Hiccup! Explain our findings to them!" Zenna told him frantically as Hiccup soon lost his grip on the cart and they were pulled further away. "Toothless…Stryka…Zenna…" Hiccup said brokenly as he watched his three best and closest friends in the world get carted away.
"Well, that takes care of that." Mildew said with a victorious look on his face.
"Come on Hiccup, let's go." Aurora called as Shadow grabbed the boy and quickly flew off back to the village.
Stryka and Toothless crooned worriedly as they tried to nuzzle each other, the chains holding them down hindering them. "Don't worry, you two. We're gonna get out of this." Zenna murmured to them softly while trying to figure out a way to break her chains. But from the looks of it, she and the two Night Furies were going to need a miracle to break free. They were at the docks now and Mildew and his followers were readying a boat to float the three of them out to sea.
"Zenna!" "Sweetheart!"
Zenna paused from her trying to free herself and the dragons when she heard her parents. Edgar and Henna…they were inconsolable. The minute they saw Mildew, Zenna's parents both tried to attack him! Luckily Stoick and Gobber intervened and convinced them both to block the angry mob with them both.
"I know you're afraid. But this isn't how we do things on Berk! These dragons are not the beasts we once thought they were. They're part of us now." Stoick attempted to reason with his people.
"Not these two! Not anymore!" Mildew snapped, marching up to him and pointing his staff at Toothless and Stryka. Then he glared at Zenna, who glared right back at him.
"And that cursed child doesn't belong here anymore as well!" Mildew added. "Okay! That is the straw that breaks the dragon's back!" Edgar roared, taking out his sword.
"Let me at him!" Henna yelled as she unsheathed her own blade as she and her husband prepared to defend their daughter and the two Night Furies.
"Release the dragons and Zenna!" Stoick demanded.
"Open your eyes, Stoick. It's the only solution and you know it. It worked with Barnstat and it'll work on Toothless, Stryka and Zenna." Mildew retorted as the lightning storm intensified.
Meanwhile, Shadow landed in the village and Hiccup was running through, frantic to find his friends. Passing by the forge, the auburn headed teen noticed a metal spear leaning against the wall. Remembering Aurora's words, he quickly picked it up and hastened to reach the docks. That's when he bumped into Astrid and the rest of the gang.
"Hiccup! They've got Toothless, Stryka and Zenna! They're about to float them off to sea." Astrid worriedly reported. Hiccup nodded seriously.
"I know. Why do you think I have this?" he asked his friends, holding the spear.
That caused Astrid, Snotlout, Fishlegs, Ruffnut and Tuffnut to look at each other in confusion. What did the spear Hiccup was currently carrying have to do with Toothless, Stryka and Zenna being floated off to sea?
"Oh, tough one. How many guesses do we get? Five?" Tuffnut inquired eagerly. Hiccup sighed and rolled his eyes, seeing that time was running out. "Oookay…Astrid, fly me to the docks!" he said, grabbing Astrid's hand to help her hurry up.
The situation was getting tense. Mildew spurred the mob on and they were slowly advancing towards Toothless, Stryka and Zenna!
"If you want to get to them, you're gonna have to go through us!" Stoick warned the crowd, readying his sword along with Zenna's parents while Gobber held up his mace hand. Then Bucket and Mulch shoved their way through the crowd and joined them. "Thank you, lads." Stoick said gratefully to the two farmers-fishermen. Bucket, however, was a little bit apprehensive on switching sides.
"I-If we're choosing sides, Mulch, uh, there's more over there. Lots more." The bucket-wearing Viking mumbled uneasily, referring to the angry mob.
"We stand with the Chief, Bucket." Mulch said firmly. "Thanks, Bucket! Thanks, Mulch!" Zenna piped up as she continued trying to unchain herself, resorting to banging her legs against the wood to try and break her ankle shackles and also keeping Toothless and Stryka calm.
"Stop!"
That solitary voice made everyone look up. To Toothless, Stryka and Zenna's relief, Hiccup and Astrid came flying in on Stormfly with Aurora and Shadow close behind.
Landing in front of the crowd, Hiccup once again shouted, "Stop!" to the angry crowd, slightly silencing them.
"You could get rid of Toothless, Stryka and Zenna, you could throw them off the edge of the world, but it's not going to stop this lightning from destroying Berk." Hiccup addressed the crowd. And once he was sure he had everyone's attention, Hiccup held up the spear as lightning lit up the sky.
"It's the metal. The lightning is hitting the metal! Just think about it. We never had a lightning storm like this until we put up those perches, that statue, right? And they're all made of metal!" he informed them loudly.
Mildew was skeptic and determined to finish what he started. "Oh, bah! You ever heard of anything so insane?!" he asked the crowd angrily, which murmured in agreement.
"It' not insane. It's called you idiot!" Aurora shouted. Shadow roared to back her up. "Lightning is drawn to metal objects. And with all the metal around Berk right now, more lightning is striking down on the island more often."
But the crowd still wasn't convinced.
Suddenly, there was a large crash and a large bolt of lightning was heading for them. "WATCH OUT!" Hiccup yelled. To everyone's horror, Aurora took out her shield, stood directly in the lightnings' path and took it head on. "Aurora! NO!" Zenna and Hiccup shouted in horror.
Aurora grunted in pain as the electricity surged through her, "I... won't... give...UP!" she yelled and her Amulet and her Night Fury mark glowed brightly and to everyone's amazement, electricty started conducting around her entire body...!
"Aurora...?" Zenna gasped in awe.
Then Aurora, let out a Night Fury roar and shot out a plasma blast mixed with electricity at the clouds, creating a massive explosion, clearing the skies completely revealing the sunlight...!
"Odin's... Ghost..." Stoick gasped, having never seen anything like that in his life.
"What... just... happened...?" Gobber added.
Aurora dropped her shield and staggered back and forth, sparking with lightning before... she collapsed on the deck! "Aurora!" Shadow cried in horror. The Night Lights chirped in worry and nudged their caretaker, trying to wake her up. Stoick took Aurora in his arms and listened to her heart, "She's still alive, just unconscious.." Stoick said.
Then they all figured that Aurora needed to be brought to Zenna's place so she could rest.
"Alright, clear a path! She needs to rest!" Gobber barked to the crowd, who immediately parted as Stoick rushed away with Aurora in his arms and her dragon friends close behind.
The first thing Aurora was aware of when she woke up was that her entire body was sore. Wincing and putting a head on her aching head, she sat up in bed to be greeted by the little Night Lights. "Pouncer.. Dart.. Ruffrunner..." The three Night Lights gasped happily and nuzzled Aurora. "Yeah, you're okay." Pouncer cheered.
"Thank goodness." Dart added.
"Yeah, you're back.. yawn..." Ruffrunner cheered.
"Hehe... I'm glad to see you too." Aurora said and Shadow came up to her, "Aurora, are you alright?" he asked.
"I'm alright Shadow." Aurora said. "What happened?"
"You jumped in front of a lightning bolt and conducted the lightning through your body and fired a plasma blast mixed with it back into the sky and cleared the clouds.." Shadow explained, much to Aurora's shock.
"I-I did...?" Aurora gasped in awe. Shadow and the Night Lights nodded. "Yep and boy was everyone shocked." Shadow chuckled as Hiccup and the others came into the room, "Aroura, you're okay." Zenna gasped in joy hugging her, "Agh, easy Zenna, still a bit sore here.." Aurora grunted with a painful smile.
"Oh, sorry." Zenna apologized and then she went into her lecture and scolding mode, "You idiot of all idiots! Were you trying to get yourself killed?! Don't ever do that again, ever again! Do you hear me, Aurora?! DO?! YOU?! HEAR?! ME?!" Zenna all but yelled at Hiccup before ending her little lecture with Aurora getting a slight bonk to the head courtesy of her battle sticks. "Oww…! Yes, Zenna, I hear you! Loud and clear, I might add!" Aurora yelped before getting hugged again.
"Please don't scare me like that again.." Zenna said to her.
"Hehe, okay Zenna." Aurora stated.
"You gave the whole village quite a shock, Aurora when you shot out that dragon attack at the clouds." Henna stated with a small grin.
"Hehe, yeah.. I guess I did.." Aurora said sheepishly.
"Gothi said you should stay here for about a week to make sure there are no complications to your little stunt." Stoick advised Aurora and she nodded. "Okay."
Once things had settled down, the little group headed out of the Haddock house to find the villagers dismantling the statue of Thor while the other Dragon Riders watched.
"Oh, we worked so hard on that statue. Kind of a shame we have to just scrap it for parts." Hiccup sighed disappointedly. "Well, maybe we don't have to. Why don't you take it to one of the highest points on the island and leave it there?" Stoick suggested.
"That way we can still show our respect to Thor." Henna chimed in.
"Good idea, Stoick." Edgar smiled in agreement.
"Eh, I rather give it to a dragon." Aurora deadpanned.
"What dragon would want scrap metal?" Gobber asked.
"Armorwing." Aurora answered.
"Armor-who?" Hiccup and Zenna asked.
"Armorwing. Mystery Class dragon. Love collecting scrap metal to add to its body for armor." Aurora explained. "I'm sure the Armorwings back at my Sanctuary would love this."
"Alright Aurora, if you say so." Stoick stated. Aurora playfully rolled her eyes at the Chief while Hiccup and the others silently chuckled.
'No matter how much things change around here, Vikings are Vikings. They're not afraid to admit when they're wrong…'
In the afternoon, Hiccup and Zenna were at the Fiersome house and welcoming a steady stream of visitors bearing peace offerings to both Toothless and Stryka. Even Zenna received gifts of food and cloth from them all, which she was pretty sure that was going to keep her family going for the next few weeks without having to cook and buy cloth from the market due to the sheer amount of it!
Though the Night Lights kept trying to steal the cloth to put it on themselves and tried to steal some fish.
'And when they do, watch out! Cause you'll be up to your ears in pie and smoked fish…'
One little Viking girl happily fed Toothless and Stryka some fish, the two Night Furies crooning in thanks and let her pet them. Shadow nuzzled Aurora with a smile and she rubbed her Titan Wing Dramillion friend. "Looks like we're staying here a while boy."
"And I wouldn't have it any other way." Shadow said with joy.