And so, here we are! To those who thought I was going to end the story last chapter; worry not, my friends! We still have a long way to go! For this chapter, our characters will have a break from the conflict. But nonetheless, I still hope you guys like this one!

Also, thanks to Xythisdi1987, Zoeki, Dabzzygirl, and KorrieChan for reviewing last chapter! Glad you guys enjoyed it!

Now, let's read on, shall we?

Hiccup felt a soft breeze hit his face as his vision slowly began to come back to him. He was unsure as to where he was, as everything was still a blur. However, he was quick to realize that he was laying down atop a bedroll.

He then felt cold drops of water hit his face as if it were rain falling from the sky, but as his sense of sound kicked in, he could hear better from the environment around him.

And he was right. Rain indeed fell down upon him.

Soon enough, his vision cleared up entirely. He opened his eyes as wide as he could, and faced up from where he laid, noticing that he laid beneath a tree. More notably however, he was in the middle of a forest under the cover of night.

He also noticed to his left that there was a dim lit lantern that was slightly opened, as well as a brown furred cloak covering him as if it were a blanket.

He sighed, shaking his head as he attempted to sit up. But as he did, he felt his left shoulder ache with pain, and he groaned before grasping onto it.

"Gah…" he grunted, staring around to inspect his surroundings. "Where am I?"

"You're safe."

A nearby voice suddenly spoke out, catching the lad's attention as he spotted a familiar figure nearby, who gazed with relief upon seeing him awaken.

"You're finally awake." said Magnus. "I was worried that Odin had already taken you to Valhalla. Thankfully, that was not the case. Here you are, all in one piece... Thank the Gods you are still alive, brother."

Hiccup gave a small grin, gladdened to see the familiar face of his friend.

"You're alive…" Hiccup said in a weak voice.

Magnus replied with a nod. "Of course I am. What were you thinking? That a simple pellet of burning metal could take me down? Well think again."

Hiccup shrugged, giving off an exhausted sigh as he slowly proceeded to rotate his body to face Magnus, whilst also keeping the cloak on for warmth. He then looked around, knowing definite that he was in the middle of the woods. But exactly where?

"Where are we, Magnus?" he asked the older Viking.

"We're in a forest, of course." he replied. "Specifically, a forest North and far from where we landed. For now, it's our temporary shelter."

"...Temporary?"

He nodded back at the younger lad. "Aye… it's really unfortunate that we could not take Skyrsdok's hold. And now we're stuck here in the middle of this forest as a result, with very limited troops."

Hiccup's head immediately looked up towards Magnus, eye-widened. "Wait- what? ...What happened to our forces?"

The Viking sighed, shaking his head. "It was a tragedy, Hiccup." he said softly. "When the entirety of the Great Army showed up and started chasing us down, many were caught in the crosshairs of battle. We suffered greatly by the hundreds; more than five hundred of our warriors were killed, and many more were taken prisoner."

"...Astrid and your friends, along with their Dragons, were among the ones who were captured."

Hiccup gasped upon hearing the name. "Astrid…" he whispered.

His hand suddenly began tightening into a fist. He could not believe it. His friends, their Dragons, and the beautiful caring shield maiden who he loved, were all captured by Ivar, and now directly in the palm of his hands.

'How could this happen?' he thought, discarding the cloak, and closing his eyes as tears shed from his both of his eyes.

"W- What about Toothless? What about my father?" he asked Magnus, stuttering.

"...Stoick is missing in action." he responded with a shake of his head. "He and the other Chieftains escaped with some of their men, whilst Eira and Sigurd are out there somewhere, likely with the rest of the Warsung… I on the other hand only managed to rally fifteen of my men."

He then let out a breath of air, tilting his head to his right. "...And as for Toothless."

Hiccup opened his eyes, staring into the direction of where Magnus was looking. In the distance, he saw a black scaly figure laying down atop heated earth, exhausted, and covered in cuts and bruises.

The young Viking gasped. "Toothless."

He quickly stood to his feet, walking over to the wounded yet exhausted Night Fury who laid flat on his stomach, and upon getting a closer glimpse at his companion, his friend, he became shocked as he stared at the Dragon's tail. He knelt down, and took a look at what had now become of it.

...Toothless was missing a tail fin.

"What- ...What happened, Magnus?" he asked, looking back at Magnus with reddened eyes. "What happened to Toothless' tail fin?

"Hiccup…" said Magnus as he stood to his feet, making his way towards him. "When- When you and Toothless were shot out of the sky, the Devastator that fired on you managed to hit the back of Toothless' tail. However, the left tail fin ignited in flames, and upon landing with impact, it was incinerated. We were only able to escape atop Toothless because his speed by foot was quick enough to outrun the enemy, and by then, the Devastators were out of range."

"...I am sorry, Hiccup. Toothless can't fly again."

The younger lad sighed, huffing out a breath of air from his mouth as his fist tightened its grip. The tears that went down his face no longer mattered to him. All that was left was pure hate, and a desire for vengeance.

His brows lowered, seemingly blinded with anger.

"Ivar did this… and I will make him pay with his life for it!" he growled, standing to his feet and quickly reaching for the Dragon's Blade, which was sheathed around his waist - but as he did, Magnus' hand suddenly grasped around the lad's as the older Viking gently pulled him back.

"Hold, Hiccup." Magnus replied calmly. "You're being too heavy on yourself. In this state, you can never fight against Ivar and hope to succeed. The best thing to do right now is to rest and regather your strength. After that, we will find your friends and free them from the enemy's clutches… I promise you. The time to fight will come, but it is not now."

The scrawny Viking looked down in guilt, slowly nodding his head. "I guess you're right. But it's just that- ...it pains me to see Toothless like this. He is my friend, and I cannot risk losing any more him. He's-"

Magnus held up a hand, silencing the lad as both his hands met his shoulders. "We will tend to him however we can, my friend. Together; you and I. And besides; a friend of Hiccup Haddock is a friend of mine. I won't let you down, lad. I'm sure that-"

The snap of a distant branch suddenly interrupted Magnus, causing him to turn his head to the right. From afar, the sounds of hasty footsteps could be heard rushing towards his direction. They were light, but the Chieftain also recognized them by the way they moved.

"It's alright, men." he called out. "You can show yourselves now."

The shadowy figures reacted on the Chieftain's command, and before them stood the fifteen Warsung warriors that Magnus mentioned, unharmed and exhausted.

They all walked towards their Chieftain, grouping up around him with their undivided attention on him.

"What news do you have to report?" Magnus asked them. "You came back so soon. I trust that you have all successfully scouted out the woods?"

"We have, sir." the captain replied. "But unfortunately we found nothing besides an abandoned camp that doesn't seem to have any useful supplies. There are tents, but a few of them seem to be in bad shape."

The young Chief nodded his head in approval. "It will have to suffice for now. And besides, we need to get out of this rain as soon as possible, or else one of us might catch a cold." he stated.

It was then that Hiccup spoke up. "Was there by chance… you found anything else?" he asked.

The captain arched a brow at Hiccup's question. But nonetheless, he was quick to answer the lad.

"There is something… or well, someone, that we saw from a distance."

Magnus arched a brow. "Someone?" he asked.

"We spotted someone running through the woods, not far from here. We couldn't get a perfect glimpse at who it was, and we were a bit cautious. Thinking about it now, however, I believe they appeared to be almost your height, sir… I think I know who it was."

Curiosity now ran through Magnus. "Who was it, captain?"

...

Eira ran through the woods with her hood tucked forward, and her cloak discarded as a result of the battle. By then, she did not know where she was, or to where she was going to. But what was for certain was that she was lost.

She sprinted faster, breathing intensely whilst looking back, hoping that she was not being followed. The thought of Ivar's warriors was at the top of her mind, and all the while, it kept her anxious. Anything could happen at that moment.

But even as the rain fell upon her, and her frightened thoughts coursed through her head, she still kept running. Yet again however, she bore no clue as to where she was.

"Where am I!?" she asked herself, her voice seemingly cracking. "Where in the Gods' names am I!? Where is everyone!? Hiccup!? Astrid!? Magnu-!"

All of a sudden, the front of her foot collided with a rock lodging from the ground, and just like so, she fell down to the ground chest first, thus covering herself in wet dirt. Yet at the same time, she felt a pain fill her ankle.

To that, Eira slowly lifted herself up with the help of her arms, and began limping forward, only to stop after several paces as a sharp pain filled her ankle, thus causing her to collapse back down on the ground, this time onto her knees. To her, it felt hopeless.

This time, she did not bother standing back up. She merely pressed a hand to the dirty ground, and gazed down, her eyes trembling. Soon enough, a tear ran down her face, only for another to follow... and then another... and then another.

And with that, Eira's walls came tumbling down...

"...Magnus." she whimpered, placing her other hand over her eyes as she started to sob. "Where are you...? WHERE ARE YOU!?"

Eira gasped through her tears, now crying aloud; loud enough for anyone several yards away to hear.

To her, it was as if she was completely alone, as if there was no one left. Brought to the brink of ruin by a maddened boy-king, and with not a single familiar face in sight, it felt as if everything was for nothing. As if the light of hope had faded off the horizon... Instead, there was only the freezing darkness.

"Why me...?" she asked herself through her stuttering sobs, rolling backwards as she raised her knees to her chin and curled herself up into a ball.

...And then, she heard it.

The sudden sound of footsteps through the dirt immediately caught Eira's attention, causing her breath to shake and stutter. Perhaps Ivar's warriors did not give up the chase, and had now found her. Yet even then, she did not bother looking. What happened at Skyrsdok that day had completely broken her morale...

...So what was the point in trying to fight back?

However, much to her surprise, instead of being pulled to her feet or knocked unconscious, or even killed, a warm, gentle hand wrapped itself around one of Eira's, to which the other then lifted her chin, causing her eyes to meet the figure before her. Black hair, blue eyes, and a familiar face.

"...I would never abandon you to them," said Magnus. "Not for anything."

The lass choked back a gasp, to which another tear followed. To this, she lunged for Magnus's arms, albeit causing him to fall to the ground. Yet she did not care, and neither did he, and as the two hugged, Magnus gently placed a hand against the back of her head.

"Breathe, Eira," he sighed. "You're safe now..."

The two sat there for a very long moment, with Magnus comforting Eira as she leaned her forehead against his shoulder. Much to his surprise, he had not noticed that he had been rocking her back and forth, slowly and gently. As tough as Eira was for most of the time, at this moment, she was vulnerable, and to him, she was precious.

The rain that poured from the sky that night reflected the feelings that the two norse shared for each other, but it something more than worry or sadness...

…

Hiccup poked a stick around in the small fire that he had set up next to Toothless, making sure that it remained lit, and warm enough for the two of them.

Because the rain had started die down a little bit as time went on, it soon became appropriate for him to set up a fire. By that point it was now just drizzle coming down.

The Warsung warriors too had been able to setup fires around the site, and they even managed to salvage up tents from the abandoned camp which were now placed all around the area to provide shelter for themselves, as well as for Hiccup, Magnus, and Eira.

However, despite the cover being placed around for everyone to sleep under and to shelter in, everyone was more active and on the lookout rather than exhausted or rested. They were all uneasy.

Especially Hiccup, who sat there next to his dragon, rubbing his palm against his scaley head to keep him relaxed and calm. He still could not forget what Ivar had done to the Night Fury, and one way or another, he would make the mad boy-king pay for it.

"Just hang in there, Toothless." he whispered to the dragon. "You'll be back up on your feet in no time."

With a final pat atop his head, he stood to his feet, and turned to walk in the other direction, particularly towards Magnus and Eira, who sat in front of a fire together, drinking water from leather canteens whilst speaking in hushed tones; yet they both seemed dreaded and exhausted.

As Hiccup slowly approached them, both their attentions fell on the younger lad, and Magnus gave a nod at him.

"Sorry- if I'm disturbing you." he said, glancing at the two. "I was just wondering if I could-"

"Go ahead, feel free to sit." Magnus replied, quick to answering Hiccup's question. "Also, there's really no need to ask. Not like you're disturbing anyone..."

The scrawny lad nodded, sitting opposite from Magnus and Eira on the other side of the fire, although the two of them still continued to gaze at it. By then, it was almost as if they had nothing to say, though Hiccup was in a rather talkative mood.

"So…" he began. "Is there anything that I should know? I mean, Eira was out there, so perhaps she knew what happened to everyone?"

"...I guess." she nodded with her head still resting on Magnus' shoulder. "Something tells me that our friends might be closer than we think."

Hiccup arched a brow, curious. "What do you mean?"

She spun her eyes to face the young man, albeit barely. "When we began fleeing from the enemy and into the plains, Ivar had some of his forces to follow us. A small number of them managed to chase us all the way here, into this forest… yet for some reason, a number of those he captured were brought along in the pursuit. I can't be certain our friends are among them, but it seems like he wants us all executed at the same time."

Hiccup rose a brow at the lass's words. "I don't know about you, but part of me believes that those are our friends out there, and if it truly is them, then we'll have to set them free... Also, bringing prisoners along for a pursuit? It is as slow as it is stupid. When did Ivar become so dull with his strategies?"

"Ivar is Ivar, I guess," replied Magnus, his eyes glancing between them. "Though I must say, if you truly believe our friends are out there, then we must go looking for them as soon as possible. If we idle around too long, then they might-"

"I won't let them lay a single finger on them," grunted Hiccup, his voice in a low tone as his right hand fell to his sheathed sword. "They already caused enough harm to Toothless, and I won't let the same happen to anyone else; my friends especially. Once we go out there to fight them, I will-"

Upon unsheathing the sword, Hiccup immediately heard a metal crack emanate from within the sheath, and as he pulled it out, his eyes widened with horror, for he found the mighty weapon now broken into two.

"What…?" was all Hiccup could utter before giving off a heavy and unamused sigh... The sword that Magnus had given to him all the way back in Kattegat, which he had bore with him every step of the way, was now shattered. Only part of the blade remained attached to the hilt.

"It seems that heavy fall from the devastator's projectile destroyed more than just Toothless' tail fin." Magnus replied, shaking his head. "I am very sorry, Hiccup."

To this, he immediately stood up from the log he sat on, lightly nudging Eira's head off his shoulder, before approaching Hiccup from the side as he stuck out his hands, palms upwards.

"Here, let me take that blade." he said to Hiccup. "Even though I can't fix your dragon's tail, maybe there is something that I can do about this."

"...Well- I guess you can say that I no longer have need of it." replied Hiccup as he willingly handed over the hilt to Magnus, along with the sheath that bore the other half. "It was yours from the beginning, so you keep it. I'll just stick to one blade."

"Hmph. If you insist," the older lad smirked, taking hold of the hilt and sheath as he made his way back to his spot, laying both parts of the blade on the ground next to him. Yet as he sat down next to Eira, Hiccup, who gazed across the fire, noticed the two now holding hands in a tightened manner, almost as if they were beginning some sort of bond, like the one he had with Astrid.

...But by Odin, how could he know?

The only thing he was concerned about was his own stomach, for in the midst of his thoughts, it rumbled from hunger, and with that, he soon realized that if he and the others were to have any chance of survival, they would need find some food soon.

And if not, then he and the others would surely starve to death...