Chapter 19

OMG! I'm so nervous posting that chapter, we have really reached the final battle, and I'm so scared to screw it up I had to make several drafts. Now, this should be at least decent, I hope you'll enjoy it!

Little summary: Rona, Astrid and Camicazi were captured by Viggo and Ryker. Hiccup told Eret to prepare their troops to attack Drago while he, Fishlegs and Heather went on a rescue mission, taking the Timberjack and Typhoomerang Hiccup was training along with them. While in captivity, Astrid realize Fury could be Hiccup.

The prisoners are fred, along with Valka and Cloudjumper who had been locked away for years. They also make the biggest part of the dragons held by Drago escape. As they took refuge in a cave, Valka tell them about the Alpha Drago had been training in secret and Hiccup realize this could change everything in Drago's favor.

So here you go, I hope you'll enjoy it!

What they learned about the Alpha was alarming: that beast could turn all their well-trained and armored dragons against them! Then, something else alarmed them even more: the arrival of Toothless and Lady's cubs: Loomy, Ebony and Foxy.

The three young Night Furies had stayed on Endris with Eret and they arrived shortly after Valka's reveal. Upon their sight, their parents both greeted them warmly, but Hiccup knew what it meant: their troops were getting close. No doubt Eret had taken them along with him, and if they were here, it meant their boats were close, even if the Night Furies would generally go faster than those. And if there was an Alpha ready to control their dragons around, then it meant a new army was coming to be served to Drago. They didn't have any time to lose.

The night was falling, and Hiccup intended to use that at his advantage. They would get to the Alpha tonight.

"I there anything to do in case it can make that call to our dragon?" Asked Heather

"Blindfold them, they would hear the call, but if they can't see the Alpha's stare, they'll be able to keep their mind in control."

"And where is it?" Wondered Hiccup.

"It's staying afar from the village, near the cliffs. Drago keeps him in chains and I'm pretty sure that poor beast is yearning for freedom," Valka sighed.

"How do you know that?" Asked Astrid. "Drago's control over the beast might be fragile, but what if he still manages to keep him under his thumb?"

"I'm pretty sure…"

"Pretty sure, but you can't be absolutely certain of that," Heather objected, understanding where Astrid was coming at with.

"Astrid, what's your point?" Fury wondered.

She knew they wouldn't like it, but well, be it. "There is something you have to take in consideration: you will probably have to kill that beast."

"No!" Valka protested. "That dragon is innocent! Drago abused him for many years…"

"It's war! We can't go without losses. The greatest number matters the most."

"If we throw all our ideals, it becomes meaningless!"

"And if we can't make concessions, thousands of dragons and humans could fall in Drago's hands! And all that for the sake of one dragon only!" Astrid sharply replied.

"Sorry, but Astrid is right. We can't lose now," Cami agreed.

Valka opened her mouth again but Fury stopped her. "Wait. We can still try to save that beast too."

Astrid suddenly remembered Viggo's words and she bit her lip. "Can I speak to you in private?"

They walked out of the cave and sat a bit apart, on a rock under the moonlight. She put a strand of hair behind her good ear. Hiccup couldn't help but put a comforting arm around her shoulders and she didn't push him away.

"You know, as much as I hate Viggo, there is one thing he said which is true: you're an idealist and idealism can't always stand up to cold reality."

Bouncing his foot, he sent a small rock away in the bushes. "So, you're saying that I'm taking it too far?"

"I say that sometimes, you have to put personal feelings and believes aside. That's what I did when I accepted to be your bride and leave Berk. And…Trust me, there are still personal feelings I'm putting aside, because what matter the most for now, my biggest goal, is to save our tribe and everyone else Drago could hurt. And I know it's yours as well. Remember those former slaves you showed me back on Endris? Think of them, they're the ones who made me realize I was wrong about a lot of things."

He remembered that day, her face as she had seen the people still being tended to. And yes, if Drago won, they would be at his mercy.

"I know we can't forget our ideals, but we can't lose sight of reality either," Astrid concluded.

He gulped. He knew she was right, and anyway, dragons had already died in battles, even though they had always done the best to free them and not kill. But he couldn't be blind, it happened indeed. People died, dragons died…Even the Red Death, he had killed her, she had been an Alpha and a dragon too, and he had killed her with no hesitation. Yes, the well-being of one dragon couldn't endanger the rest. On the other hand, that Alpha could be a fantastic asset for them too.

"I could still try to make that dragon join us. I mean, imagine if I could get that dragon on our side! In fact, if I can kill Drago first, this will be better. Not only they won't have any chief, but the Alpha won't be controlled by anyone. And Drago will be much easier to kill than an Alpha."

That was true, and as a strategist, Astrid could only agree. Killing Drago before the troops arrived was a much better option.

"You can try, but remember that maybe…"

"Maybe we'll have to kill it. You're right."

"You know, I wounded Drago when I ran away with Rona, you'll have an advantage."

"Thank you. Come, we don't have much time."

He stood up and started to walk toward the cave again when she grabbed his arm and stopped him. He looked at her and in spite of the feeble moonlight rays, he could sense she was hesitating. She looked at him, with a strange expression.

"If I die while doing this, I want to die knowing what a kiss from Fury feels like."

His eyes widened and she encircled his neck, before she could touch his lips, his arms embraced her tightly and longingly. Their lips met, and they both felt a vertigo at it. All anger she could feel at Hiccup vanished for a moment. She felt his hands running over her back while holding her tightly, sending shivers in her, just like the hand going up in her neck and into her hair. He felt her fingers going through his hairs as well while the other was gripping his shoulder strongly. The shivers of delight crossing them, the way their bodies were pressing and trembling and the passion rising between them was just making them forget they would have to part. Hiccup couldn't believe this was finally happening, that he had her, this godly woman was here in his arms, Astrid, his Astrid! He made her bent over slightly, still so eager, and she longed to have him, to have more, he was what she wanted, she knew it now, there was no doubt anymore. She knew how affection and true love were different, and this was true love…

Their lips finally parted, her back was still slightly bent over, she straightened it and he continued to embrace her, rubbing his lips against her hair and against her neck. They were both panting and trembling, her nails dug into his neck and ran over his back as he kissed her neck greedily. She gripped his head to kiss him once more.

When their lips parted, she looked at him in the eyes again and didn't say a word. Anger rose again, even though she still wanted him, even if she was thankful too. But in spite of her anger, she didn't want to get into that fight without getting this first. Cause if one of them died... She could live without punching Hiccup for lying to her. But she would always regret not showing her other feelings.

She loved him. Hiccup or Fury, she loved him. If he was Hiccup, she surely wouldn't forget everything he did, she would give him a hard time, but…She loved him. And that was kinda infuriating.

She really wanted to hit him but held herself. It wasn't the right moment. Once that mess stopped, she would clear things up, but not now. All that mattered right now was stopping Drago. As they went back to the cave, they saw Heather and Fishlegs talking closely, while Cami was taking care of the fire and Valka tending to the dragons. Rona was sleeping, leaning against Calla's side along with Toothless, Foxy, Ebony and Loomy.

Astrid went to the little girl and saw she looked perfectly fine. Fishlegs and Heather stood up and they noticed they were holding hands. Fishlegs spoke first: "We have an idea. We thought of attacking the boats as a distraction against Drago."

"He is expecting a distraction," Fury objected

"Yes, but he and his troops won't be able to stand and do nothing while we make their boats burn. They have already lost most of the dragons they kept, they won't tolerating losing their boats as well. It would open the way to our soldiers, they would meet no naval defense as they arrive."

"Yeah, that's a perfect mission for the Timberjack, his wings would destroy the ships even faster than fire," Astrid reminded him.

Fury thought for a second: "We could indeed attack the boat. I could send Lady to go with you: if they see Plasma blast, they could believe I'm with you too, while I would be sneaking to the Alpha."

"In addition to that, it would make them waste their poisonous arrows if they have any," Heather reminded him.

She could be right. Some time ago, they had destroyed stocks, but maybe they got time to produce a new stock. Krogan didn't have any; at least, it didn't seem like it. Yet that didn't mean Drago's army didn't have any now.

"That's a possibility. Destroy as many watch tower as you can as well, those around the harbor. We'll have to make that distraction as useful as possible."

They didn't spend too much time planning; it was a risky but simple plan: free the Alpha and possibly kill Drago if they could find him while the other would create a useful distraction. Leaving Rona alone with the three young Night Furies in the cave worried both Hiccup and Astrid a lot, but they didn't have any other choice. Anyway, the three little dragons seemed to like the little girl already and even though they were young, they were still Night Furies. As they arrived above the enemy's town, they split in two groups.

O o O

While Fury, Cami and Valka went toward the Alpha, Heather led Astrid and Fishlegs toward the boats. She called Lady who followed her along with the Timberjack and the Typhoomerang.

Starting a fire in the harbor wasn't that easy; it was made of wood but the wood was mostly wet. The catapults targeted them, throwing huge rocks, but that wasn't the biggest threats. Dodging and swirling, the riders watched out for the arrows. Astrid and Heather fired the harbor repeatedly, along with Lady and the Typhoomerang who created a tornado of fire among their attackers. The wind and the flames almost made Astrid's head turn; she sighted another catapult ready to shoot.

"Stormfly, fire!"

The Nadder shot her fire, but even though the catapult was damaged, the soldiers avoided it.

"Spikes!"

This time, a soldier was mortally wounded, and Lady shot the catapult into pieces. Astrid sighted a range of archers about to shot at the Typhoomerang and fired at them again. If she couldn't kill them all, she could at least stop them from shooting.

At the same time, Fishlegs and Meatlug lead the Timberjack to slice the boats with his razor like wings while covering him. A ship in fire could be saved if watered in time. But a ship sliced in half was doomed. Heather targeted every watch tower she could, archers would shoot from there and unlike those on the grounds they could take cover easily. She fired at the tower, but the wood was strong and it would take several attempts to take those down. An arrow hit Windshear, but thanks Thor it struck one of her hardest scales which wasn't affected. Her dragon swirled as a wave of arrows went toward them and a few crashed against the Razorwhip, but with no success.

Heather saw Fishlegs leading the Timberjack toward one of the last boats, while shooting at a catapult. Astrid was going up again after attacking a range of archers. Stormfly suddenly jolted. Heather's eyes widened as she saw them falling.

Astrid was stunned and horrified. Her dragon was flying a second ago, an arrow had grazed her and now she was powerlessly going down! She was falling fast, too fast! She clung at Stormfly as they approached the sea. She could swim, but she would be unable to help her dragon! She pinned herself against her Nadder, in order to protect herself from the impact. She heard a brutal sound and suddenly the cold enveloped her as well as the heavy waves. The sudden weight of the freezing water almost crushed her. She knew her only way to live was to let go of her dragon, but she tried one last time to shake her. Stormfly was going to drown!

Suddenly both dragons and woman were pulled up and Astrid had to grip the scales tighter as she felt the water weighing on her body. As she felt the cold air, her body shivering, she looked up to see Lady pulling up Stormfly by the tail. The Night Fury was strong, but the Nadder was heavy and the dragon was struggling to pull both of them up.

"Lady!"

She saw Heather and Windshear catching the Nadder along, helping the Night Fury a lot. They went toward the cliff, when Astrid sighted a shadow flying toward them.

"Heather, watch out!"

Her friend just had the time to look behind to see Ryker on a dragon, his axe ready to strike. She just had the time to block and Windshear had to let go of Stormfly. Once again alone to lift the Nadder, Lady could only get them at the bottom of the cliff, where Stormfly was laid to rest on the sand. Astrid looked at her and saw a cut made by the arrow. It was superficial, and Stormfly could shift a bit. Maybe there hadn't been enough poison to paralyze her completely? Maybe the cut hadn't been deep enough. Maybe she would regain her senses soon enough if Astrid was lucky.

Although they were a bit away from the harbor, some warriors sighted them. They arrived, rushing toward them, and there was at least a dozen. Astrid drew out her axe while Lady shot at them. The warrior roared and lunged at the attackers. If she couldn't slay them from the sky, they would learn to fear her on the ground!

Above them, Heather and Ryker were fighting. Both axes clashed, going at the rhythm of the two dragons who bit, fired and clawed at each other. Heather was a better rider but Ryker was still brutal and strong. He almost planted his blade in her skull but she dodged and attacked once more. She was swift! Ryker tried to keep balance and his dragon was also fighting, and one jolt from his Nightmare made him miss. He roared and cursed, at his dragon and at the girl.

"I'm gonna chop off her head, and after that, I'll chop off your head too!"

He furiously sent his axe but Heather dodged again. His blade hit Windshear's metallic scale while Heather made a swung for his neck. He back his head away. Heather's blade only grazed his neck, but the sharp blade dug into his flesh. His eyes widened as he felt pain and warm blood leaking.

His hand immediately went on the gash. It wasn't that big, but it was still bleeding heavily. He couldn't let that girl kill him! Heather attacked again but this time, Ryker's dragon fired at her. She dodged to the side and instead of her torso, her right arm was burned and she screamed in sheer pain. Her axe went down the ocean, as she tried to hold on. Ryker forced himself to deliver one final blow. He aimed for her head, but his vision blurred and he planted his axe in her burning arm instead. The girl started to fall from her dragon and Ryker followed her, his mind going dark. Windshear released Ryker's dragon and went down to save Heather when the Monstrous Nightmare attacked again, stopping her from saving her rider.

Heather fell unconscious toward the sea, and before she hit the water, Fishlegs caught her, Meatlug hardly made it in time. He slapped her arm which still had flames. He couldn't let her hair be burnt, otherwise her head would follow!

"Meatlug, shoot!" He yelled, showing the Nightmare.

The dragon wasn't expecting the blow, and Meatlug's, fire hit him right in the head. The dragon roared and Windshear went right at his neck. The Nightmare clawed and struggled, when Fishlegs's hammer hit the bottom of her neck so hard he heard a crack. The dragon started to fall and Windshear finished her before she could even hit the sea, tearing her throat apart.

Fishlegs went to shore and saw plasma blast shot. Lady and Astrid were fighting together against warriors before a limp Stormfly. He would have been worried for the dragon of Heather wasn't here, in arms, unconscious, maybe dead. They landed down behind their friends, and while Meatlug started to attack warriors along with Lady, Astrid and Windshear, Fishlegs led Heather down and immediately took her pulse. She was still alive! He took the water flask at his belt and killed the flames before cleaning her wounds. At least, it wasn't bleeding thanks to the fire, but the wound was very bad, he could see her bone through the burned flesh!

He heard Astrid roaring again: the soldiers were getting closer. He tied a piece of cloth around Heather's wound; he didn't know if it would do much, but it would have to do. Seizing his hammer, he placed himself before Heather and started to hit whoever would try to attack him or his wounded friend.

He didn't know for how long it lasted. It was still night while they were still slicing or crushing their enemies, while the dragons burned and tore their flesh. Astrid and Fishlegs would have been killed by the bigger number of soldiers, but Thank Thor, the dragons were here to flip the balance in their favor. The Typhoomerang was still wrecking havoc in the harbor, occupying most of the troops with his fiery tornado which reduced arrows into ashes before those could reach its target.

Most of their attackers were down, the three dragons and the two humans protecting both Stormfly and Heather while making sure they had one another backs. Astrid maimed one warrior who tried to send his hammer at Stormfly while Fishlegs slammed another one in the chest with his hammer, fatally breaking all his ribs. Only a few remained and they were retreating. Astrid jumped to Stormfly.

"Hey, girl, you'll be alright?"

Her dragon was starting to move again, but couldn't stand yet. At least she was regaining control of her body. She then went to Heather who was still unconscious but alive. They had to hide her somewhere else, maybe Fishlegs could carry her to the cave where Rona was? As she stood, something weird happened. The dragons who had been fighting suddenly stilled and looked up, all at the same time, in a way which didn't feel natural.

Even Stormfly did, even though she couldn't stand. She now seemed completely cold-blooded where she was actually agitated a few seconds ago. They weren't fighting the soldiers anymore. In fact, they all started to fly.

Both Astrid and Fishlegs understood: Oh Thor!

O o O

Fury, Cami and Valka approached the cliffs cautiously. There were many torches enlightened around. The Alpha was guarded, and Hiccup realized that he should have taken another rider with him, three dragons and warriors weren't that much. But then now, discretion didn't call for big numbers. There was one flank of the mountain which was less guarded, because of what seemed like a ravine or a canyon. They could easily get there and slid to the Alpha.

They fled toward the ravine enlightened by the weak moonlight. Numerous trees were around, the light of the torches almost sinisterly throwing shades on them, reminder of the presence of the enemies. They were getting close when they heard a loud guttural noise which seemed to fill the whole night. What was that? The Alpha? Hiccup felt a chill, this beast was as enormous as the Red Death and that wasn't his fondest memory.

A metallic sound sliced through the night.

Valka yelped as a net caught Cloudjumper's back paws and tail. The dragon fell while the chain attached to the net dragged them toward their captor. Camicazi dodged a net while Toothless swirled to avoid another one made of rope. But another went their way and if it was bit too high to reach the Night Fury, it slammed Hiccup. The violence of the shock made the rider loose balance right when Toothless tried to swirl. He felt his body and metal feet slipping. His hands aimlessly tried to grab. Toothless's started to plunge as well and Hiccup's horrified eyes saw him being caught.

He was falling and Toothless was caught in a net. Was this the death of him? It wasn't the first time he fell from his dragon, and each time he would see his life before his eyes. This time was no different. His back felt pain and for a second, he thought he was dead. But something broke under his back; he felt broken woods, and leaves enveloping him. A tree! He grabbed a branch but it broke. His fall wasn't entirely stopped but it was slowed. He landed on his feet and immediately rolled on his side.

The impact was painful, he had cuts on his hands, chin and neck, and he knew his body would be half-covered in bruises. He brought a hand to touch his sides. No broken rib it seemed. As his body shivered in pain, Hiccup shook his head and looked up, he saw several figures, led by one he could recognized between dozens.

"Viggo!"

"You weren't expecting me, were you?"

The light of the torches around allowed him see clearly enough, and Fury could only get back on his shaky feet and seize his swords. This didn't seem to worry the guys around. A new projectile was shot at Camicazi as she tried to rescue them. She managed to hide in the dark. Soldiers were now surrounding them, Cloudjumper's upper body had been wrapped in another net. Both he and Toothless were struggling in their nets, but the metal was heavy and they were intertwined in it. Valka was held by a big and strong woman who was twisting her arm behind her back.

"What are you doing with that sword, my friend?" The last one word almost sounded sincere. "You don't have your dragon anymore. Surrender and we might spare a few of them."

Hel, no! As Viggo advanced with his men, Fury did the only thing he could think of: he took off his mask.

At this, Viggo couldn't help but gape and even the rest of the soldiers were surprised. His face was enlightened enough by the torches around to allow them to see. They all stopped advancing as Viggo raised his hand. Fury's face was even more handsome than he remembered, especially with the light of the flames dancing on his face. The rider looked at him right in the eyes.

"No. This isn't ending like that. I'm confronting you in a fight. But I'm confronting you as the real me: my name's not Fury. I'm Hiccup Haddock, son of Stoick the Vast."

He could hardly see the slight twitch of Viggo's lips, but he knew he was shocked. Valka let out a little strangled sound, her eyes wide and her mouth hanging open. Hiccup didn't hear that, he advanced toward his enemy, and for once, Viggo was unable to think as usual. All he could take in was this: he finally had Fury's real name. But wait…

"Hiccup Haddock died, Astrid told me about it."

"I faked my death to escape my uncle," Hiccup declared, still approaching in an almost nonchalant way. "And you see, I'm not about to die today either."

As he was saying those words, a wave of fire was thrown at the soldiers. Screams were heard, Viggo threw himself away just in time. Hamera seized another warrior in her jaw and crushed him. Valka was taken out of her trance while her captor wasn't paying attention to her anymore. She sent her skull back in her captor's face and her pressure lessened under the shock. She threw herself down to get her weapon back. Hiccup immediately went to Toothless and started to take his net off. Suddenly, he heard someone rushing at him. He only had the time to draw out his sword. Viggo's weapon clashed against his blade.

Camicazi threw another wave of fire at their enemies, carefully avoiding Hiccup and Valka. She cursed internally: if only she had been able to get Viggo! She jumped off Hamera, letting the dragon slaughter soldiers on her own. She lunged at a soldier about to attack Valka while she was still fighting another one. She sent her axe into soldier's ribs, and though his armor protected him, the sudden blow startled him, making him loose balance. She sent her blade in his knee, making him fall down. She went for Valka's opponent, pushing the woman away.

"Free your dragon, I'll cover you!" She yelled while fighting.

Valka ran and helped Cloudjumper out of his net, and once the dragon was free, he fiercely attacked their opponents along with Hamera.

Things were getting out of hands, and yet, Viggo was exhilarated. Here was Fury, no, Hiccup! Here was the man he wanted, still so fierce and even more handsome than he remembered! And he could finally get him! Hiccup parried his next blow and pushed him away before going toward Toothless, but Viggo lunged at him, stopping him from trying to free his dragon.

"Come on, Hiccup! Your bloody dragon doesn't have anything to do between us! This is our moment!"

"And the last one!"

Viggo parried another blow; Hiccup attacked again, going right for his leg, Viggo backed away. His leg wasn't too damaged but it got a big slice. He cursed and looked at Hiccup with a mix of anger and desire.

"I'll punish you for that! While Drago will enjoy Astrid, I'll make sure you will be obedient!"

He wanted to make him impulsive, blind with anger. Hiccup had to do his best to remain level-headed. His sword grazed Viggo's shoulder and the man yelped and deflected the next blow before attacking again. Viggo wasn't trying to kill him, he wanted to disarm him. Hiccup had no such limits. He parried and sent his metallic foot into his stomach. Viggo backed away, his upper body bent. He just had the time to raise his sword to block the blow toward his head. He backed away again, and Hiccup lunged at him once more, when a big soldier lunged at Fury who had to parry his attack. Hiccup managed to defend himself, but now Viggo had regained his might.

"I want him alive!" The man roared. "Disarm him but no less!"

Hiccup clenched his teeth and furiously defended himself against the attacks of his two enemies. He made a slice on the big man's arm and dodged Viggo's next blow. He tried to plunge toward Toothless again, but the big soldier caught him back and punched him away. Hiccup backed away in time before Viggo could catch his arm. He had to stop backing away, they were going to corner him against rocks, he realized. He lunged at the big soldier. He couldn't let that happen!

Valka managed to slice the throat of a smaller soldier after almost getting beheaded. She looked around and saw Fury fighting Viggo and another soldier trying to corner him. No…Hiccup…Her son! The mother in her woke up and she angrily and fiercely fought off whoever could try to hurt him. She threw herself at the big soldier like a demon. She fought with all her rage, she managed to slice his arm and leg badly, but the man was strong and she had spent so many times in jail…A big blow threw her down and she rolled on the ground. She lost her axe and just saw the warrior raising his sword above her…

A blade sunk into his throat. Valka received a few drops on her face and could just roll away before the corpse fell down. She saw Hiccup (Her son, oh Thor, her son!) standing with his sword covered in blood. He immediately turned back to Viggo and could only dodge the handle of Viggo's sword aimed at his skull.

"Free Toothless!"

Valka just obeyed, she wanted to help her son, but the Night Fury would be more useful than her. She rushed at the dragon and undid the net as quickly as possible. Once he was free, Toothless's first move was to rush to his rider and Viggo. As she was about to follow him, Valka saw Cloudjumper going at her and she saw fear in his eyes. What was wrong?

Then it emerged.

An enormous shadow masked the stars and the moon above them. The Alpha! The beast had been awoken! She tore the bottom of her shirt and immediately blindfolded Cloudjumper.

Toothless stilled when he saw the beast and Hiccup was also surprised. Viggo hit him, pushing him on the ground. He couldn't take that occasion, as Toothless lunged toward him. All he could do was hid behind a rock as plasma blast was shot at him. He didn't try to hide furthermore. The Alpha was here and soon that damn Night Fury wouldn't be a problem anymore…

Even he heard the call. It sounded like a strange mix of a growl and a cooing. His human ears could just perceive it, but the dragons…He risked to take a peak and smirked at what he saw.

"Toothless…"

Hiccup saw Toothless looking at the Alpha in a trance-like state. He went to his dragon and tried to shake him from that state but Toothless didn't react. No! Toothless!

"Hiccup! Blindfold him!"

He tore of his sleeve and went to do that when Toothless suddenly turned and whipped his tail at Hiccup's legs, sending him down. The young man jerked upward as Toothless opened his jaw. The look in his eyes! Oh he had never seen him like this, this wasn't Toothless! He looked like a monster!

"Bud, can you hear me? It's me, don't let it get to you!"

But the Night Fury slowly approached, that predatory look in his eyes, and purple flames appeared. Hiccup rolled on the side as Toothless shot and though he avoided the plasma blast, Toothless seized his leg in his jaw and threw him away forcefully, sending him to roll in the dust once again. The pain as he felt the teeth planted in his leg was still nothing compared to the feeling of losing his friend. Hiccup tried to get up once more, when his torso was seized in jaws. In a flash, he saw himself being stabbed by teeth, he tried to get his sword, but as he started to get up in the air, Hiccup realized it didn't hurt.

He looked up to see it was Cloudjumper holding him. Plasma blast was shot, Toothless couldn't fly on his own, but he could still shot at them. Hamera was going after them as well, and fired at them. Hiccup saw Camicazi in Cloujumper's claws. Her head was dangling, she was limp. Was she dead? The flames almost reached them and Cloudjumper took a shot at her. It didn't reach her, and Cloudjumper had to rush to escape her pursuit. They went up to the cloud, the wind so powerful that Hiccup wondered if it wasn't going to rip it from the dragon's jaws. In the grey, dark clouds, Hiccup's head turned, it seemed like it wouldn't end. Something he was usually used to was now overwhelming as he had no control of what was happening.

His body jerked upward slightly as Cloudjumper slowed up above the shadow. He caught sight of the pale and slim arc of the moon, before plunging again in the clouds, going down this time. Hiccup grabbed the jaw, trying to keep his body as still as possible. They landed in the forest, between rocks and huge trees. Cloudjumper released Hiccup from his jaws and he immediately went to Camicazi, carrying her to the most comfortable spot he could find. Her temple was bleeding and had a bruise, but her heart was beating and she was breathing normally. She was only knocked out.

"What happened?"

"Her dragon attacked her. If I and Cloudjumper hadn't been able to get her and you…"

Yes, he knew what would have happened…Hiccup's heart was still pounding in fear, his body quivering, not because he feared to be killed, but the fear to be without Toothless. His dragon had been taken! And the Alpha was going to take them all down! And, oh Thor! What happened to his friends?! To Astrid?! He whipped the cold sweat from his forehead, he was quivering, for Thor's sake, he had to stop! He had to get Toothless back! And he had to search for them! Cami was starting to stir at least.

Valka suddenly grabbed him by the arm, her breathing was ragged as well, he couldn't see her eyes but he could sense she was as agitated as he was.

"You said you're Stoick's son?"

"What?"

"Are you really Hiccup of Berk?!"

That stunned him. "Yes, I am, why does it matter?!"

She seemed to be trembling. Hiccup didn't know what was wrong with her, and right now, he didn't care. He was growing angry at her: there were much more urgent matters than that!

"You…" She started before he stopped her.

"Valka, I must get my dragon back, can Cloudjumper find him?" He asked while taking of his injured leg. It was bleeding but those kind of damages could be repaired with stitches. He tied something around it tightly. It would have to do.

"Oh! Hum, he doesn't have anything with his smell, but if your dragon can't fly on his own, he will probably be on the ground. It won't be easy to restrain a Night Fury…"

"I didn't expect anything easy," he declared while putting on his mask again. He tied his torn sleeve which should have blindfolded Toothless around his arm.

"Uhhh…"

He saw Cami opening her eyes, and cupped the side of her face while shaking her shoulder. "You hear me?"

"What…"

"Listen, I have to go get Toothless back, do you understand?"

"Uh…Yeah."

"You'll try to get toward the harbor, don't get sighted, you have to try to find our friends, okay? Please, try to help them. Remind them they have to cover their dragons' eyes to get them out of the Alpha's control."

"Okay…Yes, I'm…I'll do that."

He gave her a nod and left her there. The sun was getting closer and closer. The Alpha was now in the sea, waiting for the enemy's troops. Flying among the dragons, Hiccup and Valka hoped the obscurity would last long enough to dissimulate them. Hiccup looked around, and couldn't see any of the Furies and for once he cursed their natural predisposition to hide in the dark. His ears tried to catch any sound which could help but he heard none. They looked over the spot they were previously at, but no dragon was here. Toothless, where are you?

"Hiccup, here!"

Valka showed him something and he could hardly see it. He saw a move, a shadow a bit darker than the dying night. A Night Fury! Valka immediately lead Cloudjumper to the flying beast and Hiccup prepared himself to jump. He tightly held the piece of cloth Valka gave him in hand, Hiccup knew it had to be Lady.

"Try to fly above her!"

Valka made Cloudjumper turn sharply and when he was about to get above Lady, Fury took his chance. His mind registered Valka yelping in fear but all he focused on was the shadow. He crashed against the dragon's back and started to slip as Lady shrieked and struggled. Hiccup gripped her with all his might, his tights almost crushing the dragon's sides, but he felt his hands starting to slip, he was losing balance…

"Lady! Stop that! Listen to me!"

She continued when Cloudjumper suddenly caught the Night Fury by the tail and pulled her along with him, startling her. She wasn't struggling to get the human off her back, but to fly, with her tail prisoner, it was hard for her to keep balance. Hiccup tightened his grip and swiftly put the torn sleeve around her eyes. She vigorously shook her head but Hiccup fought to remain stable enough, and eventually, her moves slowed, only her wings continued to flip in the air. Hiccup tightly tied the cloth and spoke to her:

"Lady, hey! My beauty, it's me. Look, I know you don't want a rider, but you got to listen to me. I'll lead you, we must free Toothless."

She let out a small sound and Hiccup made a sign to Valka to release her. Lady wasn't used to have a rider, so leading her wouldn't be easy, especially with a blindfold! But at least she was free from the Alpha's hold! Hiccup knew he had to get Toothless before anything else; when they were in the air, they were just one being and a blindfold wouldn't change that. He had to go down, Toothless was probably on the ground.

"Come on, Lady. Like this…"

"Hiccup!"

Cloudjumper spat fire before Hiccup could realize what was happening. Lady shrieked and Hiccup saw what Valka was targeting: Drago! He was mounted on Toothless! Anger overtook him. No fucking way!

"Come on, Lady. Let's get your husband back!"

Thanks God, Drago was struggling with the pedal, and Toothless had a hard time keeping balance. Hiccup smirked: maybe Drago had tamed an Alpha, but he would always be a better rider than him! Lady roared, and followed Hiccup's directive. They went right toward Drago, who ordered Toothless to shoot at Cloudjumper who was fighting against Hamera and Windshear. Toothless shot at Valka's dragon and his plasma blast violently hit his wing.

In a roar, Cloudjumper started to lose balance as his wounded wing was struggling to maintain him and his rider in the air. Drago was about to attack them when Hiccup attacked. The Fire of his sword illuminated his enemy's face as he aimed right at Drago's head. The man tried to dodge and while his head was spared, his shoulder with the metallic arm wasn't. Drago yelled in pain and Toothless shot at the two. Lady felt the heat coming, and dodged without Hiccup telling her before lunging toward him. She couldn't see Toothless, but she could hear and smell him.

"Fury! You're finally going to die, boy!"

"You have yet to make me bleed!"

Drago was about to attack but Toothless lost balance again and swooned. Lady grabbed him by the neck. It wasn't enough to hurt him, but he wouldn't be able to move as freely as before. Hiccup blocked Drago's attack and went for his good arm. Drago already had one fake arm, if he could wound the other, the fight was won! But the man was good.

"I almost got her, you know, your little…"

"I know Astrid, you flesh-seller! She wouldn't yield to you! Now, it's my dragon I'm getting back!"

Drago parried again and sent his axe toward Lady's head. Hiccup just had the time to block his blow with his own sword. He deflected and almost got Drago's head, the flame licked the man's face. He was blinded for a second and Hiccup tried to attack again when Lady suddenly went down. Hiccup saw with horror gigantic flames going at them and understood: the Typhoomerang. Oh Thor!

"Lady! Get away!"

Lady was avoiding the heat she was feeling, but without her eyes, she was still lost. The flames enlightened the dawn and Hiccup grinded his teeth in pain. The leather on his arm was starting to burn; he smacked it to smother the flame, all the while trying to remain on Lady who swirled away from the raging flames. Hiccup pushed her head to the right in the direction of the Typhoomerang.

"Shoot!"

Her plasma blast missed the raging dragon who flew toward them and opened his huge jaw already adorned with flames…Lady swirled away again, and shrieked as the flames licked her tail. Hiccup looked around, he couldn't see Drago anymore! He won't leave, he won't give me a chance to get away! He and Lady barely avoided another attack, as the Typhoomerang swirled into a tornado of fire. Lady is strong, but she isn't my dragon. I can't ride her like Toothless. He had to get Toothless back! He had to take down Drago in spite of the Typhoomerang. He leaned to the right, indicating Lady to go in that direction but she didn't understood immediately and the flames reached them. Both of them roared as the flames licked Lady's side and Hiccup's leg. A shadow flew up before them, and the rush of air startled Lady.

"Hiccup! Leave me the Typhoomerang!"

Valka was up again, Cloudjumper wasn't as fast as earlier, but he was flying again. He crashed himself against the Typhoomerang, leading him away from Lady and Hiccup. In spite of the pain from the burns, the young man felt a new rush of hope. Drago was here, right above the Alpha, struggling again with Toothless's tail, firelight and shadows dancing on his face. Hiccup sent Lady at him. The man roared as he saw his enemy still alive.

They ferociously fought again above the Alpha who couldn't shoot any ice at them, as it would have killed his master otherwise. Hiccup tried to aim either at his shoulder or head, swirling his sword, while Lady was trying to take Toothless off balance. Drago swirled his axe and almost got Hiccup, the blade grazed the mask and ripped it on his forehead, making a big gash. Hiccup yelled and only had time to dodge the other blow. Drago's arm and axe made a half circle and Hiccup saw his arm exposed. Taking to opening, he trusted his fiery blade in the flesh and Drago screamed in pain. He released his axe under the shock. His feet wrongly turned the pedal and Toothless started to fall.

Lady furiously grabbed her mat by the neck, half-smothering him and keeping him up. Drago was struggling to keep hold of Toothless. Hiccup aimed his sword at his head, when the man released his hold on Toothless. Hiccup saw him falling and thought he was gonna die, until he saw him catching the Alpha's gigantic horn. Hel! In spite of the pain, Drago could still use his hand for that.

Without waiting anymore, Hiccup tore off the bottom of his shirt and tied the cloth around his dragon's eyes while Lady was restraining him. Suddenly, Toothless stopped struggling; Hiccup jumped on him and put his prosthetic into the pedal. It was just like having his whole leg again! Lady released him without the need of Hiccup ordering her, and Toothless started to regain balance and fly on his own.

"Bud, hey! It's me, okay? You hear me, Toothless?"

His dragon was released by the two others and cooed gently, Hiccup grazed his snout and the dragon licked his hand. They started to fly toward the Alpha.

"It will be alright, buddy. We can do this together. Lady, follow us, my beauty!"

The female Fury followed them and cooed at Toothless who responded. Hiccup smirked as the Alpha shot huge spikes of ice at them. He and Toothless avoided easily, and so did Lady. Flying with Toothless was much more natural and fluid. But as Toothless swirled to avoid the attack, Hiccup suddenly saw something on the sea. Small dark forms, dozens of it. Hel! His ships! And maybe even Mala's ships! If Eret had informed her…The Alpha smelled the air, as if he knew dragons were arriving. And that sound he first heard when Toothless was taken started to be heard.

"Toothless, plasma blast!"

His dragon shot at him in the head, but the call had been given. Hiccup heard distant roars, and knew this was bad. Please, let's hope the ships can hold on!

"We can't lose time anymore, we have to kill that beast."

The Alpha shot his ice breath at them and enormous spikes appeared. Hiccup went up, and shot again at the Alpha.

Next chapter we'll see what happened to Astrid, Fishlegs and Heather. We'll also see how Eret will handle things now that the Alpha made his call. And of course, we'll see the boss fight! I was glad to have the kiss scene here! A bit of love before going back to war and all.

Don't hesitate to review!