CHAPTER 4
What was that in his ears?
A drum?
It was loud enough to be one…
His body… it was growing less and less numb by the moment…
Hiccup felt awareness creep into his mind and he was filled with a wave of relief. The trolls! They had rescued him! They were reversing this stone curse!
The drumming sound he soon realized was his own heartbeat, loud and ringing in his ears. A few moments later, his lungs expanded, greedily gulping in the air.
His body collapsed, his arm thudding to his side. He felt so ungodly tired…
"P… Prui?" he rapsed, coughing dryly. His eyes fluttered open, hoping to see the trolls around him, or maybe even the cave of the apothecary.
But what greeted him was an inky black sky full with stars, and not a soul in sight.
Hiccup blinked, lifting his head and looking around.
He was in the middle of the forest, and covered head to toe in vines, not to mention a thick layer of dirt and grime. He frowned, ripping the overgrown vines off him. More magic from the wizard, no doubt…
The wizard.
He stiffened, looking around. Where was he?
There was no sign of him, but there was no sign of the trolls, either.
"Hello?" he called softly, squinting through the darkness.
A rustling to his left caught his attention and he turned. A stone was rolling towards him, making him sag in relief. "Prui? Is that you?" he croaked, forcing himself to stand on unsteady feet.
A troll unfurled, one he didn't recognized, but he felt relieved all the same. But then he paused.
The troll was looking at him… fearfully?
"Are you… Hiccup?" the troll squeaked in a nasally voice. Hiccup frowned but nodded.
"Where am I? Where's the wizard?" he demanded. The troll hesitated.
"Er… wait right there, I need to go back," he said.
"Wait—but the wizard could come back at any second!" Hiccup protested, looking around sharply.
"Uhhhh, the wizard's kinda… dead?" the troll replied hesitantly. Hiccup froze, whipping his head back to the troll in shock.
Dead? The wizard was dead?
Relief flooded him and he sagged, dropping to his knees.
"Thank Odin," he groaned. "Oh, thank the gods…"
"Y-you stay right there, I need to get Elder Pryn," the troll squeaked and quickly rolled off into the darkness. Hiccup hardly noticed them leave, that familiar numbness creeping in again, but he felt his mind start to whirl.
How long had he been turned to stone? How long had the wizard been dead? Why had he woken up in the middle of the forest? What had happened?
Half an hour seemed to pass, before the rustling of vines and twigs snapping caught Hiccup's attention again. He looked up, spotting at least a dozen rocks rolling towards him. They all unfurled a few feet away, staring at him with large, wonder-filled eyes.
Hiccup realized he recognized none of them. He squinted, wondering where Prui was, or any of the others that had helped rescue him before.
"Out of the way, old lady coming through," an old feeble female voice spoke up, and an old troll hobbled her way forward. She stopped before Hiccup, her aged face lined with wrinkles. "Well, may the gods pluck me up and skip me like a stone. You're awake."
Hiccup stared, an uneasy feeling growing in his gut.
"...Who are you?" he croaked.
"Oh, you probably don't recognize me," the elder smiled sadly. "Bless your heart… but to you, it's only been a few hours, hasn't it? You don't know how long you've been asleep."
"Who are you?" Hiccup demanded, his heart pounding.
"Pryn," the troll replied. "That small child who gave you the bracelet?"
Hiccup froze, his blood running cold.
No… it couldn't be! She was so… old!
But… then what did this mean?
"How… h-how long was I turned to stone?" he croaked, trembling. Pryn sighed, slowly shaking her head.
"We trolls live a very, very long time… much longer than humans do," she said softly. "You must understand, Hiccup—,"
"HOW LONG?!" Hiccup bellowed.
"It's been over eight hundred years," Pryn said sadly. "It is the year 1832."
Hiccup heard, but didn't process. He stared at the troll, the words slowly spinning in his mind until he forced a laugh.
"You—you're joking right? This is a joke?" he croaked, shaking. "This has to be a joke."
"Help carry him to the village," Pryn instructed to the other trolls. "He's going to faint any second."
"Wait… you can't… I can't be…" Hiccup felt his head bob woozily, until his head lolled back and he indeed fainted.
Eight hundred years.
It was completely unfathomable.
It seemed like nothing but curveball after curveball had been thrown at Hiccup in the past twenty four hours. First, he was kidnapped. Then, his dragon was killed, and their bodies mutilated and conjoined in a horrific way. And now this.
Turned to stone for eight hundred years.
Were the gods punishing him for running away? Was this some sort of divine justice? As if he would have been able to return home before, but now it seemed as if something was specifically making sure that never happened. Like a nail in a coffin.
Nothing would ever be the same again.
Dully, he stared into the bowl of soup that a troll had offered to him. He stared at the little strange noodles floating in the broth, not one ounce of hunger stirring within him. He felt numb, completely and utterly numb…
What did Berk look like, though? How had it changed in eight hundred years? He was scared to find out…
"Cheer up," the troll that had given him the soup said brightly. "It's not all bad!"
Hiccup gave him a look that quickly shut him up.
Not all bad. Yeah right.
Hiccup slowly sipped the soup without much hunger, wondering just what the hell he was going to do now. It wasn't as if Hiccup had been able to do much before, transformed the way he was. But at least before he'd known that world. Now? He had no idea what the world was like, what had changed. A lot could change in eight hundred years….
"Hiccup," a familiar voice broke the silence. Hiccup looked up to see Elder Pryn hobbling into the cave.
"Hey," he grunted.
"I do not know if there is a solution to… well, this centuries long sleep," Pryn said slowly. "But our king. I do know he would be able to fix your curse, at the very least. You could… be normal again. Try to start a new life."
Hiccup stared at her, not much hope lifting in his heart.
"Where do I find him?" he grunted.
"We know someone who will be more than happy to take you there," she smiled. She patted his arm. "Take all the time you need to rest, Hiccup. You've been through so much, too much. No child should know the pain you—"
"Yes, thank you," Hiccup growled, turning away. "I get it. My life sucks, what else is new? It's always been this way. I"m named 'Hiccup', aren't I? The screw up, the one always dealt a bad hand!"
Pryn sadly looked at him.
"I'll let you rest," she said, rolling away. Hiccup bit down a smart ass retort and stared down at the soup.
Eight hundred years…
The days slowly turned into weeks. And weeks, to months.
The trolls… were nice. They smiled at Hiccup, they made him feel welcome… but Hiccup's heart felt numb to it all.
It took him weeks to even leave the cave. He was scared to leave it, afraid of what could be beyond those rocky walls. Greif weighed him down like an anvil, but the only reason he didn't feel it in its entirety was the numbness in his heart, threatening to swallow him just as the stone curse had.
Nothing would ever be the same again. Darkness in his heart greeted him every day, to the point where he considered it an old friend now. The weight that the grief had in his soul made it nearly impossible to even do the simplest of tasks, such as eat or even get up to use the bathroom.
But the trolls had been patient with him.
Kind.
Understanding.
They had encouraged him to take just a few steps outside. And eventually, he had. The light of the sun had blinded him, but the warmth it brought… it was a welcome change to the cave he'd been lying in for a few weeks now.
Apparently, trolls did not bathe often, but they encouraged Hiccup to. Such a task seemed impossible to him, when he could hardly even find the energy to eat or do any other basic human function. So they had simply carried him to some hot springs and dunked him into the hot water.
That had sucked. But hey, he was clean. And the hot water had felt… nice.
They had brought new clothes for him, clothes that sometimes washed ashore on their island in chests from the sea. They were strange, foreign clothes. Smooth to the touch, unlike the roughness that was viking material. These were silky, pristine…
It was yet another change. But seeing as his old clothes were dirty, smelly, full of holes, and over eight hundred years old… well, he had to keep the new ones.
They encouraged him to eat as often as he could. Most days, Hiccup could hardly even bring himself to, but the trolls had been there, making sure he ate just a little bit to keep his strength.
They were so caring, to the point that Hiccup marveled where those stories had even come from. Why would someone make up horrible stories about such kind creatures?
He also had some other questions bubble up, as he grew more comfortable living with the trolls.
He had a vague idea of why the wizard had turned him into stone, but… what had broken the curse? Why had he even woken up at all?
He asked this to the troll elder one evening, as she came to visit and check upon him.
"Ah," she hummed. "Well, some spells work differently. What happened to you was a simple petrification spell. Such spells are usually meant to preserve things for long periods of time, but not keep them frozen forever. The spell… simply wore off," she explained.
Hiccup grimaced.
"Took a long time," he muttered.
"It did. It's a very effective spell," she agreed.
Hiccup picked at the scales on his arm, the two falling silent. Then, the elder spoke again.
"Do you still wish to go to the troll king?" she asked. Hiccup glanced up at her.
"Yeah," He muttered. "At some point, but…"
"But?"
"I just—what the hell am I supposed to do?" Hiccup croaked. "Even if he removes the spell, I can't go back home! Everyone I ever knew is gone! Where will I even go? What's even the point?"
"The point is that perhaps you can have a chance to start your life anew," Pryn said softly, taking his hand and patting it. "Find a town, meet new people, start fresh."
"But I don't know anything about this world," he objected. "I don't know any customs, any sort of… of languages that people might speak today. I don't know what the world is like anymore," he croaked.
"You'll never know if you don't try," Elder Pryn said. "I can help you, you know. Understanding other languages is a simple spell."
"Another spell?" Hiccup growled.
"I understand your hesitance," she said patiently. "But magic… is simply a tool. Yes, it has the power to do horrible things, but…" she bent down to the earth, where her fingertips glowed. A small flower sprouted where the light had shone, growing faster than Hiccup had ever seen something grow. "Magic… can be used for much good, too," she said softly.
Hiccup stared at the flower, unable to push down the uneasy feeling that had risen inside of him. He felt sick to death of magic at this point.
He leaned back against the wall but winced in pain as the wings got in the way. They were difficult to relax with, basically two giant growths on his back that were completely and utterly useless.
"I just… want things to be somewhat normal," he whispered.
"For that, you need to travel to the Troll King, and that means getting out of the cave every once in a while. We have someone who can take you, though," the troll smiled. Hiccup sighed, and for once he felt like agreeing with her.
"Yeah," he murmured. "I think… I'm ready to go."
"Good," Pryn hummed happily. "I'll send Brom with you, to guide you to the Troll King once you get to the mainland."
Hiccup slowly nodded, his eyes drooping.
When the troll king separated their bodies… Toothless would still be dead. Hiccup would honor his body in the traditional way that vikings honored the dead, and with it… he hoped to honor the spirits of his father, and the rest of his tribe as well.
Another stab of pain entered his heart as he realized he had not been able to send his father off to Valhalla, as he had always thought he would when he was an old man. He wondered if his father had given up hope that Hiccup would return, if he thought he was dead. Had his father disowned him after he'd run away? Had he searched for him?
Hiccup spread his wings out a little as he laid down, trying to get somewhat comfortable.
"Have you ever thought about flyin' with them?" Brom, the medicinal troll, asked him brightly. Hiccup glanced at him with a deep glare.
"No," he said shortly.
"Why not?"
"Because—because they're Toothless's wings, not mine," he growled.
"Well, they're kinda your wings, now—,"
"Brom, please," Hiccup snapped. "I'm not in the mood to talk about this."
"Okay, okay, fine," Brom shook his head. Hiccup sighed, getting up and crawling out of the cave. He needed to clear his head.
He straightened and marched down a path that was starting to grow somewhat familiar. He was greeted by trolls as he passed by, but he didn't answer their greetings, just wanting to be left alone for a while.
The forest had changed drastically in the eight hundred years. The last time he had seen the trees, they had been evenly spaced out, as if grown in an orchard. Now, the trees had grown to great sizes, and there were younger trees mixed in with the old. It looked much more haphazard and wild. Overgrown… like a forest should be.
He marched through the trees, Toothless's tail dragging behind him. It didn't even really look like his tail, it was skinnier than he remembered, not to mention the fact that there were two fins on the end now, courtesy of the wizard healing him.
Hiccup sighed, the wings on his back rustling with his unease. He glanced at them, feeling nothing but pain as he stared. How could he even think to call those wings his own? They didn't belong to him.
Hiccup slumped on a stump, but yelped as he sat on the tail. He cursed, brushing it out of the way as he sat again. The damn thing always got in the way…
He yanked at some leaves from a nearby vine, tearing them up in his fingers.
He sat there for a while, thinking of nothing and everything. That familiar numbness was creeping into his soul again…
He hadn't realized he'd sat there for hours until the rays of dusk shone through the trees, hitting his eyes. He blinked, looking away from the light.
"Hiccup," a troll was rolling towards him. Niv, Hiccup was sure her name was. "Elder Pryn is looking for you."
"Coming," Hiccup sighed, slowly getting up. "Just… needed to clear my head," he said, though his head felt anything but clear.
The troll led him back to the village, where Elder Pryn was waiting for them.
"Are you up for travel, Hiccup?" she asked him. Hiccup slowly nodded.
He was ready to end this horrible curse.
"I'm ready."
"Good, follow me," Elder Pryn said, curling up and rolling off.
Hiccup followed her up a large hill, and down a faint path, until they reached the edge of a cliff that dropped sharply into the ocean. He stared at the water far below, confused.
"I thought we were going to take a boat there, or something?" he asked the Elder, who unfurled.
"No," she smiled. "I know someone who is more than willing to help you. But first..." she took his hand, and a soft pinkish glow emanated from her fingertips. Hiccup flinched back, yanking his hand away.
"What did you do?" he demanded.
"I gave you the gift of speech," the elder said calmly, unsurprised that he had yanked his hand away. "You may understand and speak any language you hear, now."
Hiccup stared at her, slowly looking down at his hand, then back.
"...Thanks," he muttered.
The elder nodded. She turned back towards the sea and took out a small pipe, blowing sharply into it. The sound echoed across the water, ringing in Hiccup's sensitive draconian ears. He winced. What the hell…?
For a moment, nothing seemed to happen. But then the water below began to froth and bubble, until something… giant rose out of the waves.
Hiccup gasped, stumbling back and tripping over his tail, sprawling on the ground. The thing kept rising and rising, its neck long and serpentine, until its head towered over the two of them on the cliff.
"Morning, Pryn," the giant beast rumbled, startling Hiccup even more.
It could speak?!
"It's evening, Slavinka," Pryn corrected her. The beast squinted at the sky.
"...Are you sure?"
"Quite sure."
"Huh. Must've been a long nap, then. Is this the boy?" the sea serpent asked, looking at Hiccup.
"What—who—what?!" Hiccup croaked.
"Bless his heart, he's quaking at the sight of me," the sea serpent chuckled. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna eat ya. I'm your escort!"
"Escort?" Hiccup echoed. He looked frantically at Pryn, who was nodding and smiling.
"It's alright, Hiccup, there's nothing to be afraid of. This is Slavinka, she is an ancient being."
"I may be a sea serpent, but I'm not like my cousins," Slavinka added. "I don't do the whole 'eating ships' thing. Bleagh." The serpent made a disgusted face. "All those wood chips in your mouth, that get stuck in your teeth for weeks? Splinters on your tongue? Noooo thank you, not for me."
Hiccup slowly stood up, staring at the sea serpent with wide eyes.
"You're… not what I expected," he said at last.
"I would certainly hope so," Slavinka shook out her giant fins, showering Hiccup and Pryn in seawater. Hiccup coughed, sputtering. "Well, shall we go then?" Slavinka said perkily.
"We're waiting for Brom, he'll be arriving soon," Pryn said, turning back to the path, where sure enough a few other stones were rolling up the hill.
The stones gathered and unfurled, to reveal trolls holding several parcels.
"We brought you some food for the journey," a troll called Min said to Hiccup, holding up a wrapped parcel. Hiccup gently took it with a tight smile.
"And a traveling cloak, as well," another troll said, holding it up. "It'll help hide your wings and tail if you come across any other humans before you reach the Troll King."
Hiccup took the cloak, feeling grateful. He smiled a little more warmly at the trolls.
"...thank you," he murmured. "You've all… been really kind to me."
"Of course!"
"Don't sweat it!"
"It's what we do!"
The chorus of voices spoke over one another, but Hiccup still gave a faint smile back.
"Ready to go?" the serpent called, lowering her head so Hiccup and Brom could climb on. Hiccup nodded, pulling on the cloak over his shoulders and tucked the parcel under his arm as he climbed onto the serpent's snout, Brom on his heels.
The serpent raised her head before slowly sliding back towards the water. She didn't dive underneath the waves, but simply glided above them, slinking through the sea like a watersnake.
Hiccup glanced back up the cliff, spotting Elder Pryn waving goodby. He raised his hand in farewell, until the distance grew too great and he couldn't see her anymore.