Forty: Prove It.
"FIRE!"
The purple blast slammed into the nearest Monstrous Nightmare and blasted it aside, tossing it into the next Nadder. Toothless folded his wings as they swooped down and he shot a Zippleback that was on the brink of attacking Ivar Hofferson before he opened his wings and soared above the shocked Vikings.
"NIGHT FURY?" Gobber called automatically, realising halfway through what was happening.
"There's someone on its back!" Hoark called.
"Pay attention to the dragons around us," the Chief commanded him, stunning a Monstrous Nightmare with a mighty blow from his hammer. Ivar Hofferson stood back-to-back with Hoark as they fought off the Zippleback while Phlegma dodged Nadder spines and Gobber knocked a Gronckle out cold. But more were massing and there was a roar as the black shape accelerated round once more. Hiccup felt the dragon tense and he knew Toothless was about to fire again.
The next two purple blasts drove the dragons back enough to allow the Vikings to escape the trap and as they surged free, another group came forward, including Spitelout, Yaklips, Goatface and Not-At-All Silent Sven, all viciously engaging the dragons.
"There's a Night Fury!" Snotlout yelled, emerging from the darkness behind the houses. Hiccup, from Toothless, wondered if anyone had noticed at all that the Heir had no sign of a bucket or any grime from smoke and had clearly been shirking. His father peered up and saw the faintest outline blurring against the clouds that were orange-tinted with the reflections of the fires.
"Get the nets-and man the catapults!" Spitelout yelled. Stoick punched another Nightmare and drove it back with a flurry of ferocious blows as Hiccup banked round, seeing the raiding dragons still much more vicious than previously. He leaned right and Toothless responded, following his lead so they could drive a trio of Nadders away from the sheep pen, then following up by clearing the attacking dragons from the warehouses.
"That dragon seems to be chasing off the others from our food," Phlegma commented, her dark eyes peering across the Plaza.
"It's a Night Fury!" Spitelout spat. "It has to be killed!" And he nodded to his allies, each grabbing a weighted net. Hoark grabbed a net as well while Ack on the catapults launched a heavy stone and some nets at the climbing Night Fury. Hiccup saw them late and yelled, the glancing blow knocking the dragon sideways.
"Hang on, bud," Hiccup grunted, hauling hard on the saddle and desperately pressing on the pedal to keep the tail open. He glanced down to see Stoick yelling at Spitelout-but the metal chain net wrapped around the struggling Night Fury, fouling his wings. Toothless gave a desperate roar as they crashed from the sky, impacting and skidding across the Plaza, almost stopping at the Forge. The Vikings raced forward, seeing the huddled shape on the dragon.
"There's a Rider!"
"He's controlling the raid!"
"He's a traitor!"
"Mildew was right!"
Spears started jabbing at him and he flinched as Toothless gave a huge roar, managing to fill his mouth with plasma and fire a blast that split the net and tossed the nearest couple of vikings back. But before they could make a break for it, eager Vikings threw themselves onto the dragon and pinned him down. Hiccup found blows raining down on him until a shape approached and slammed them aside.
"STAND BACK!" Stoick roared, his powerful shape standing between his son and the Vikings.
"The boy is a traitor!" Spitelout retorted triumphantly. "I knew there was something wrong with him!"
"He's controlling the dragons!" That was Boarbum, a very fat and hairy man who bore more than a passing resemblance to a pig.
"What nonsense!" Phlegma cut in. "We've been raided for three hundred years. That boy is fifteen! He clearly isn't the one in control of them!"
"It's in the Nest!" Hoark added loyally.
"He was on a dragon!" Spitelout argued. "That's treason. And this boy has already been warned!"
"But he fought them off us and saved us!" Gobber argued.
"That doesn't matter!" Goatface retorted.
"I rather think it does," Ivar Hofferson replied sternly. "He saved our lives, knowing what he was risking." Then he looked up at the Chief. "I think you know more about this, Chief?" Stoick nodded.
"Maybe Spitelout and the rest of you could get back to fighting the raid and preserving our stores," the Chief commented coldly. "The raid is still going on! We can sort this out once the village is safe!"
"NO!" Spitelout shouted, his pallid blue eyes narrowed and icy with rage. "NO! We sort this out now. You seem to be blind to the crimes that slave while you are unfairly prejudiced against Snotlout! You seem to be finding fault with him ever since that…creature…came here and…"
"You mean I finally saw what everyone else sees-that he is a lazy, arrogant, selfish, completely unsuitable person to be the Heir to my Chiefdom," Stoick replied angrily as Sven and Phlegma darted to help subdue some Gronckles who were after the sheep again.
"And that boy is a nasty little whore and an Outcast slave!" Spitelout yelled. "He should be driven off Berk and sent back to his Outcast owners! He's nothing…"
"HE IS MY SON!" Stoick bellowed.
Absolute silence fell over the Plaza with even the dragons taking flight at such a furious roar. All the villagers turned to see their Chief standing in front of his brother, his massive fists clenched with his hammer raised and ready for battle, his flaming hair and face reddened further by the lights of the flames. Spitelout stared at him for a long moment-then burst into laughter.
"Your son?" he scoffed. "Thor, that is pitiful! That little thrall must have heard you talking and concocted some yak and chicken story…"
"How?" Stoick asked pointedly. "After all, after he returned, he went home with you…and you treated him extraordinarily poorly. I doubt he garnered any details of my personal life or marriage from his time in your home, Spitelout…"
"Then he did his research before he came to Berk…or he visited here before…"
"He's never been to Berk before-and how could he know, when he was a prisoner in the whorehouse at the Port, that he would run into me?" Stoick asked pointedly. "I asked him about his family-and then my trusted Councillors made some enquiries for me." The Chief's cool grey-green eyes narrowed and he fixed Goatface with a piercing glare. "Your wife's niece was the one who took him, Goatface."
"Marte?" the man murmured and then he looked surprised. "So that was why Phlegma came round and was talking…oh, never mind…" Spitelout turned in a rage and stared at him.
"What? You KNEW about this?" he accused his friend.
"Well…yeah…"
"There is no doubt," Stoick announced proudly. "The boy is my son!"
"So that explains why you went to rescue him," Ivar murmured but the Chief shook his head.
"Yes-but even were he not, I would still rescue a young man who was given up as hostage and who had saved my life," he reminded the man.
"But he's not a Hooligan!" Yaklips protested.
"Actually-the laddie is," Gobber put in, glancing around. The dragons had gone and most of the people were trying to put out the fires and tally the damage as the Council argued amongst themselves. He could see the fire crew trotting down the Plaza towards the crowd. "The son of Chief Stoick the Vast Haddock and Chieftess Valka Haddock. Guess what that makes this boy?"
There were sharp intakes of breath.
"He's an Outcast!" Spitelout yelled. "He cannot be even acknowledged-let alone our Heir!"
"And he's a traitor!" Yaklips added. "He's riding a dragon…"
"Hiccup is doing some work for me," Stoick announced to the gathering crowd. Pretty much all the warriors were closing on them now and Hiccup rested a reassuring hand on the fearful Toothless. Bound and restrained in the net and ropes, a rope tight around his muzzle, the dragon was helpless. Even as he tried to reassure the dragon, Boarbum hauled him out of the saddle and he yelped and struggled, but was held firm. "He has trained this dragon and has finally located the Nest. We're just reconnoitring the location while I plan a final, decisive strike to end the raids, once and for all…"
Hiccup glanced over at his father and forced himself not to stare. Had he not known anything different, he would have believed Stoick, for every word he said sounded absolutely convincing. There were murmurs.
"Yes-the Nest is incredibly difficult to find," Stoick announced. "We've been searching since I was Chief and never gotten close. Yet this boy has found the Nest on his dragon and they can lead us there once more, to finally defeat the evil that ravages our home and steals everything from us!" There were ragged cheers but Spitelout looked fit to kill. He glanced pointedly over to Snotlout.
"The boy has to be jailed, Stoick-you know that," he insisted. "And the creature killed."
"NO!" Hiccup cried, struggling. "No! He saved my life. He saved your lives from the attack when you went on Search. He saved you today! He's no danger!"
"He's a dragon!" Yaklips told him incredulously. "A dangerous ravening beast that kills without mercy and helps destroy the village. A Night Fury has attacked this village many times!"
"The dragon is necessary to leads to the Nest," Stoick cut in "Unless you know where it is, Yaklips. Or you, Boarbum? Or you, Spitelout?"
The silence was deafening.
"Thought so," the Chief commented. "The dragon will be caged in the Arena with the others."
"And the boy in the jail…at least until we leave," Spitelout insisted. "Just so no one accidentally sets the Night Fury free…"
"No! You can't lock him up!" Astrid shouted, running forward. "He doesn't deserve it. He has done everything you asked of him-and he's the only person who has done Dragon Training and who has actually trained a dragon instead of just killing one! He doesn't deserve to be treated as an Outcast when he saved the Chief-he should be treated as a hero!"
"Except he isn't-is he, Astrid?" Snotlout sneered. "He's a branded Outcast slave-and that means he's nothing. He was riding the dragon so he is a traitor. He's lucky to be alive." And he lowered his voice. "And his luck may run out…"
"Why you…" she growled and lunged at him-but he ducked back and Yaklips grabbed her.
"I think she needs locking up as well-or we may find the boy miraculously gets free…" Spitelout determined. "At least until we have left for the Nest-because we will leave in the early morning, Stoick. The sooner we get there, the sooner we kill this monster and end the threat of all dragons to Berk!" This time, there were wild cheers and the Chief looked around. Even his own followers, his most trusted friends were cheering and he knew if Mulch, Sven, Phlegma and Gobber were cheering, there was no talking them down. He would be overthrown as Chief if he went against their will-and that would spell doom certainly for the Night Fury and probably for the boy-and himself.
"In the morning," he said heavily, peering at the pinkish eastern sky: there would only be a couple of short hours before the sun had risen. Forcing his face to remain calm, he walked over to Boarbum and glared at the man until he released his son. Carefully, he grasped Hiccup's shoulders. "I'm sorry, son-but we have to do this. Otherwise, Spitelout will seize the village as Chief and then I think both of us may be exiled at best-or killed at worst. At least this way, I can look after Toothless." He sighed.
"Dad-you can't win this battle…" Hiccup breathed. The Chief nodded, his face pensive.
"I know," he murmured. "But we have to do it anyway and hope for the best. And hope that my brave and inventive son will find a way to solve this and save the village." Hiccup took a step forward and hugged his father, the powerful arms wrapping around his skinny shape.
"I promise-I will find a way, Dad," the boy whispered. "I won't let you down!" Stoick nuzzled against his head.
"I know you won't,' he murmured. "Take care, son. Never forget I love you." And then he pulled away and spoke louder for the benefit of the others. "Be strong, son. We'll be back when the demons are vanquished!" Boarbum grabbed his arm and he and Astrid were led away while Toothless was hauled off towards the Arena. Spitelout glanced arrogantly round his supporters.
"You talk a good game, Stoick-about reaching the Nest and destroying it," he challenged his half-brother. "Now prove it."
"In the morning," Stoick said gruffly, his eyes trailing after the small shape being hauled off to the jail. "The village is damaged and there are fires still to be put out. Go about your assigned tasks! Everyone! And then we can gather what we need to end this threat once and for all."
As the villagers dispersed, talking amongst themselves in excitement and shock, Stoick watched his brother swagger up the village, his son trailing along with a smug expression on his face and followed by a half-dozen of his allies. He doubted the man would let Stoick and Hiccup live, now they were positively identified as kin-and a challenge to Snotlout's Heir status. But what else could he do? Let them kill the boy and his dragon? It had been a stopgap at best-but it bought them time. He just hoped the boy could come up with some completely unBerkian solution to the destruction of the Tribe. And at least he had Astrid to help him.
"Thor help us all," he murmured. Because if he got it wrong, the Tribe would be annihilated.
oOo
Astrid said nothing until the door closed, trapping the two teens in the cell before she looked at Hiccup. To his surprise, her eyes were shining with tears.
"Hey, hey, hey," Hiccup managed quickly. "Astrid, are you alright?" She nodded stubbornly, swiping her eyes on her arm-bindings and pressing her lips together in a thin line.
"I am so mad…" she said in a choked voice. "So mad at how…stupid they are. So mad that they are going to attack the Nest and get killed…so mad that my Dad is going with them. And so…so…SO mad that you gave yourself away…" He slumped onto the bench and his head bowed.
"I had to," he said hollowly. "They were outflanked. The dragons would have killed them. They were so aggressive this time. And I owe the Chief everything." His head bowed. "How-how much more do I have to have taken from me? Spitelout…he took me back to the whorehouse when the Chief rescued me. I had to escape again…and he has been horrible to me every since. I know he will kill Toothless once they reach the volcano…and we both know he'll arrange for something to happen to the Chief." He covered his face with his hands and ran his fingers through his hair. "And then me."
He yelped as he felt a punch to the shoulder. Astrid was leaning close to him, her eyes blazing.
"You muttonhead!" she scolded him. "You saved the Chief, Gobber…and my Dad. You knew the risks but you were willing to risk your life and Toothless's to save them. No matter what those muttonheaded Jorgensens say, that is brave and heroic and completely Viking!"
"But no one but you and the Chief maybe think that," he sighed. "Everyone else thinks I'm an Outcast and probably a traitor now."
"Hiccup-we're here and things don't look good," she said, scorching a little closer. "But Toothless is out there. He helped you fight against his own kind to save people who would attack him on sight. He was trapped and he's scared and locked up."
"He saved me when I was being chased, when I was cornered in the forest," Hiccup whispered. "He-took pity on me. He looked at me like I was a person-because he could see I was scared."
"I bet he's really scared now," Astrid said, resting her hand gently on his arm. "What are you going to do?"
"What can I do?" he asked despondently. "Everything I have touched had turned to an absolute disaster…I mean, I have threatened the Chief's rule, caused a split in the village, got you and I put in prison and my dragon dragged off to be killed. Oh and I've probably doomed the Hooligan Tribe."
"Enough!" Astrid told him sharply. "Someone did that but it wasn't you. What you did was look at our Tribe with fresh eyes, challenged what we all believed because you hadn't be taught to accept everything as immutable. And look at you! You've flown on a dragon! You've found the Nest. You've saved our warriors from a dragon ambush. You have saved the Chief's life. Hiccup-you are amazing! And if the idiots in this stupid Tribe don't understand that, then they deserve to be munched by that huge dragon!"
"Nope, they don't," Hiccup said. "Because most of them don't have a choice-they are being sacrificed for Jorgensen ambition. That's the stupid thing."
"Hiccup-you found a way to make Toothless fly. You saved me from being eaten by Nadders and being married to Snotout-and honestly, the Nadders would be preferable. You saved the Chief and my Dad. I believe in you." Her hand closed around his. "So what are you going to do?"
"Probably something just as stupid," he sighed as he squeezed her hand.
"And…?" Her voice was hopeful as he frowned and patted his pocket inside his fur vest that no one had bothered to check. There was a sheath sewn in with a small knife. He carefully fished it out and approached the lock. He looked up with a sudden flash of spirit and determination.
"And then I'm going to pick the lock, train the Arena dragons and go and save the village."