Sorry it took so long guys. I have been studying for exams this week and as well been busy with other things, but I thankfully managed to find the time to type this chapter out, so I hope you guys enjoy!

Without further ado, let's get right into it!

Hiccup and Astrid sat with Magnus and Eira in their tent that night after the news was given to them by Fishlegs, and when she woke up, the three of them slowly began to let her in on the discovery.

If anything, Eira was beyond being surprised or shocked.

"I- I can't believe it." she said as she took a sip of water from the small bowl in her hands. "I'm actually pregnant, bearing our future. I never saw this coming, and yet I feel…"

She looked up at Magnus, smiling. "Happy. I am so happy."

Magnus smiled back at Eira, placing his right hand over her stomach as he gently placed his forehead against hers.

"It's hard to believe we've come this far." said Magnus with a cheery tone. "Two months ago we were just friends, and now look at us- look at where we are. We're a family now… well, almost."

His eyes narrowed down as his smiled extended even more across his face, still keeping his forehead against Eira's. "But still." he said, looking back at her. "You make me the happiest man in the world."

For a moment Eira felt her heart melt from those words, and after not even a few seconds Magnus leaned in and gently met his lips with hers, causing her to blush before they separated, holding each other in their arms.

Hiccup and Astrid's faces beamed with joy as they watched it unfold, looking back at each other with both of their hands holding one another.

"It's amazing how families can be made with even just the slightest amounts of faith and love." said Astrid, eyeing the embraced couple. "First Magnus and Eira get into a relationship like us, and now Fishlegs confirms that Eira is pregnant."

"It will take months until they become a family, but right now their bond is stronger than ever." replied Hiccup, with his mind shifting towards the thought of Astrid, as well as his own Dragon. "...Reminds me of my bond with both you and Toothless... Though I do wonder, how was Fishlegs able to know that Eira was pregnant in such a short time?"

"Small changes happen during that time which a healer, or someone experienced like Fishlegs, can recognize." answered Magnus, looking back at Hiccup. "I guess it shouldn't have been that surprising. But then again, my worry for Eira was why I didn't wonder about it."

Hiccup shrugged, but then grinned. "Well, it's good to know that you two are on your way to becoming parents… well, at least until you-"

"We'll get that handled." nodded Magnus. "But for right now, it's best we just wait to see what happens. I also suggest that we all get some sleep. Midnight is going to be here in a few hours so we'd better get some good rest."

Hiccup and Astrid nodded in agreement as they calmly made their way out of the tent, wishing Magnus and Eira "Good night" once they were out in the darkness of night.

The two young Vikings then began making their way back to their tent where Toothless and Stormfly were without a doubt sleeping, and as they walked, Hiccup and Astrid could not bother but to glance back at each other, occasionally giving each other smiles.

"You know," began Astrid. "This reminds me of that one rainy day back on Berk, when it was just us two with our Dragons. Except this time…"

"It's softly snowing of course." Hiccup chuckled, glancing up. "I'll be honest, I always viewed Scandinavia as nothing but a frozen wasteland. After seeing this place however, I guess this isn't bad at all."

Astrid nodded in agreement. "Though I do wonder, why hasn't Ivar bothered making a settlement here? He could have made this place into an impenetrable fortress."

"It seems Ivar doesn't care for proper strategy by this point. The amount of care he gives about it is as little as the care he shows towards his men and people. He may be ruthless and intelligent, but he does not give a yak about the new ways."

"New ways?" asked Astrid.

Hiccup sighed, rolling his lips. "It's a long story." he said. "Magnus told me that Ivar's father, Ragnar Lothbrök, wanted to find a place to settle at one point; to live a more peaceful life. A life of farming, hunting, and overall, a good life with his family. Eventually, his love for raiding shattered that dream, yet it was clear that it still stood strong in his heart..."

"...Ivar on the other hand is different." he continued. "He tore his family apart, spat on the thought of his father's dream, and loves nothing more than war. It is for this reason his brothers want him dealt with as much as I do."

"And the thought of Ivar is not bothering you?" asked Astrid. "You don't seem to be angry when bringing him up."

"There is no point in me being infuriated with Ivar anymore." sighed Hiccup. "He's already fighting a losing war, and I have no doubt that he will lose in less than a week. With hundreds of dragons now at our side, there is little he can do."

"Then mayhaps we should consider how to handle him the next time we see him." yawned Astrid. "For now, let's get some sleep. We're getting close to our tent…"

...

Most slept easy that night, but when the white cloudy and cool morning soon came almost everyone around the war camp was wide and awake - and as well as impatient for the fight that was soon to come. That included Hiccup, Astrid, and the Riders.

The six young Vikings stood near the cliffs with their Dragons, looking over the edge of the mountain towards the fields of the highlands down below. In their minds they could imagine what it would be like once the battle began.

Snotlout lightly sighed. "It'll be a long and hard fight once Ivar discovers us, but at least we'll be able to give that cripple what he deserves after what he's done. Right Hookfang?"

Hookfang only responded by rolling his eyes with a huff of steam from his nostrils, clearly showing that he did not care much about Snotlout's boast.

"Don't underestimate him." said Hiccup, still gazing out with his arms crossed. "Ivar may be a cripple, but he is a great warrior. Possibly greater than all of us. He is a Viking killing machine, especially on his war chariot. If we go into melee combat with him, he would most likely just run us over or axe us down."

"...But with a Dragon, we could take him down when he is vulnerable."

"Hey, maybe Magnus could even stab him with another lightning bolt." snickered Tuffnut. "I mean- ya saw what he did to Vlar, right? He-"

"We get it, Tuff." interrupted Astrid, almost rolling her eyes. "But like Hiccup said, reaching him won't be easy; especially since he's almost always guarded by over a hundred warriors and a dozen or so Devastators."

"Aye." nodded Hiccup. "Until Gobber arrives, we can't get too close to him, otherwise he will just wipe us off from the face of the earth like that… so he'll have to come to us."

Hiccup's eyes slowly shifted away as he glanced back at the siege weapons that were lined up along the cliffs, including the two large trebuchet that towered over the others.

"Let's hope those weapons are as good as Magnus said they are. If they fall, we won't be able to-"

"Hiccup."

The sound of Stoick's voice caught Hiccup's attention as he spun around to face the large Chieftain who approached him with haste.

"Dad?" he asked. "You sound like you're in a rush. Do you have a message for me or something?"

"I do." he nodded, gesturing towards the piece of parchment in his hands. "One of Gobber's riders flew by an hour ago with this letter in hand. It's from Gobber himself. I guess he managed to find out where we are."

"Well, what does it say?" asked Astrid.

Stoick sighed as he glanced back at it. "Took some time for me to figure out due to Gobber's terrible handwriting… but Magnus was able to help. Long-story short; Gobber says that he and his riders are on route to our location. They'll be here in the late noon or so, hopefully before any fighting begins. Until then however, we'll have to wait patiently."

"...Hopefully before any fighting begins?" asked Fishlegs. "What does that mean, Chief? It's not like Ivar has already returned, and yet you sound worried."

"I am… a little bit." said Stoick, turning his head as he gazed down towards the plains of the highlands. "It's been getting colder recently, especially today. I feel as if something dark is approaching us from the North. Like a storm. But when it arrives, we must all be ready for it no matter what…"

Without anything else to say, Stoick nodded as he turned his back, making his way back towards the camp. "If you lads and lasses need anything, you know where to find me."

The Riders gave no response as he walked off, only confused faces at what he said. Was he referring to the darkness as Ivar?

"Something dark?" asked Hiccup. "Can't be Ivar, can it? As dangerous as he is he does not seem that big of a threat anymore ever since the start of all this."

"But the battle will still be bigger than any other before." said Astrid. "They have a bigger army. But we too have a big army now, Hiccup. Maybe your father is referring to the next battle to come? It will be a mess after all."

Hiccup gave a shrug. "We'll just have to wait and see. For now, let's get back to shelter. It's getting cold…"

…

The sound of drums banged louder than the wind blowing in their faces. Each stomping step they took bellowed across the highlands like thunder, marching in unison with catapults and Devastators at their sides.

The Great Army marched through the fields of the highlands like an unstoppable wave of iron and steel, not stopping for anything whether it was food or rest. The Vikings, Barbarians, and Slavic warriors were impatient, yearning for the call of battle.

Ahead of them at the very front of the ranks, Ivar rode atop his horse-pulled war chariot, occasionally spinning his bullhook in circles as the one hundred Dragons above him flew with ease. Their scent was the reason the Great Army was heading into the direction that they were marching into.

Ivar knew that they were getting closer and closer.

Behind him as well, the Völsung, Saxons, and Jomsvikings along with their generals marched along with the front ranks of the army, stomping their boots as loud as they could to match their rhythm to the sound of the drums.

But that was not the true glory of his army.

Above him, from behind the grey clouds, the sound of two great wings from Ivar's beast slowly flapped as it followed wherever the Viking treaded. To make it better for him, Ivar would also slam his bullhook loud against his chariot - making a piercing sound that reminded the beast he controlled who was in command.

However, it was then that Ivar suddenly rose his hand, ordering the army to stop completely, and with a giant footstep in unison they came to a total halt, including the Dragons.

Ivar peered ahead of him, spotting the small but noticeable mountain plateau a couple of miles in the distance, and immediately he felt a familiar scent hit his nose as it travelled in the wind.

"...Hiccup." he said, tightening the grip on his bullhook as a twisted smile formed on the front of his face. "Oh you are much closer in my grasp than you think I am."

"My God-King?"

The voice of the Saxon general caught Ivar's attention, making him turn his head around to face him. "What is it?"

"...My God-King." the Saxon general repeated. "I do not mean to be rude, but how do you know we are going in the right direction? For all we know, Hiccup Haddock could be anywhere in this Hel of a highland."

Ivar smirked, shaking his head with a chuckle. "Patience." he said. "Blood will be spilled soon enough, for every foe that is slain today on the battlefield will be a sacrifice to me! But for you three generals, you will bring me the heads of Hiccup's most loyal companions; Magnus, Eira, and this Astrid that the men have been mentioning, for you will earn my favor!"

"I will fight with you until they are all dead, my God-King!" chuckled the Saxon general. "The Saxons are with you and your Norsemen, as we have been for hundreds of years!"

"We too will help bring you their heads!" the Jomsviking general saluted. "Your elite guard will stand by you in this battle!"

"So will your tribe, my God-King." said the Völsung general. "I will succeed where Olaf failed! Your enemies will fall!"

Satisfied with confidence, Ivar then turned his head back towards the mountain in the far distance, raising his bullhook for all to see, including his Dragons.

"Berkians... Warsung… ALL OF THEM! The battlefield will lie LITTERED with their bodies, and it will be their grave! TO WAR!"

The moment Ivar ordered his horse forward, the thousands of warriors and maidens that stood behind him immediately continued marching as the drums once more began to bang. With that, he began swinging his bullhook around in circles, and slammed it against his chariot with a loud scream. In response, a sudden, giant roar from Ivar's beast thundered onto his dragons, ordering them to fly forward.

The dragons, without any choice, followed Ivar as the pupils in their eyes thinned out.

…

"We can't take this anymore!" Snorre let out as he slammed his hand against the war table. "Where is that coward Ivar!? We want to fight him already!"

Stoick and the other Chieftains, as well as Hiccup and Magnus, were all gathered in the center of their camp. They all stood around the war table underneath a large tent, and for hours they had been arguing about further action.

Although most thought it best to wait, others were getting impatient.

Stoick shook his head. "You are acting too hasty, Snorre!" he grunted. "Do you not understand that if you go out there in an attempt to hunt Ivar, you and your whole Thunderhead Tribe will be slaughtered? Ivar will destroy you just like that!"

"Not if we work together in finding him and hunting him!" replied Arngrim. "That Boy-King has done enough to us already! It's time we get payback and do the same thing to him that he did to us back at Skyrsdok! We must wipe him out!"

"Your idea is childish and stupid as you are! Both of you!" said Ubba as he paced back and forth, glaring at Snorre and Arngrim. "You two are suggesting for us to charge out into the open field and take on Ivar head-on. That, is suicide. Did you forget what Hvitserk, Sigurd and I told you before about our brother before we marched here? He is not like the other Chieftains that you took on, nor like Vlar."

"He's right." nodded Sigurd. "You must take into consideration that we three are the Sons of Ragnar Lothbrök. Not you. We know Ivar better than anyone else. Even Hiccup and Magnus know nearly as much as we do."

"That is boar crap!" spat Snorre.

"It isn't." said Hiccup. "Magnus and I lived in Scandinavia for years. We know what it's like here. Unless you listen to Ubba and his brothers then all I can say is that you stand no chance fighting Ivar."

"I agree with the Sons of Lothbrök, but I must ask; do you two even have any idea if Ivar is even here by now?" asked Mala, crossing her arms. "He could still be sailing across the Archipelago looking for whatever he is interested in. Maybe even gold and silver. Remember that his general Olaf was the one who sacked much of the Archipelago before he shipped off hundreds of pounds of gold and silver back to Ivar. It could be that he's still looking for any remaining scraps."

"That seems unlikely." said Magnus. "Olaf left nearly nothing left even after we took him out, and although we have yet to retrieve the wealth that he stole we must consider what Ivar is actually doing. His men and allies may still be around, but I doubt he was around when our scouts were captured."

"The real question is. Where is he?"

"He could be anywhere." Hvitserk shrugged, leaning over the table as he stared down at the map of Norway. "He could be here, or back in the Archipelago which to me now seems unlikely."

"Why so, brother?" asked Sigurd. "What do you think Ivar could be possibly doing?"

Hvitserk sighed, shaking his head. "I don't know. But doesn't it seem strange to you that the Great Army is acting now in an attempt to look for us? We were safe in Dragon's Wake, and then a week passes by after Vlar's defeat and almost immediately we find out that our enemy is closing in thanks to some Danish scouts. My concern is; why would they do it now?"

"...E's right. Makes no sense." spoke Alvin. "Why wou'd 'ey begin ta amass now? Those bloody Vikin's are wastin' 'heir time wif-"

Before anyone else could speak however, the loud sound of a distant but muffled BOOM turned the attention of everyone under the tent away from the conversation. At first they did not give much thought to it, but then another explosion followed, more closer.

"What… is that?" spoke Stoick.

It was then that Hiccup spotted Toothless running towards him from the distance, with Astrid and Eira at his side along with their Dragons, Stormfly and Thorwind.

The two shieldmaidens nearly fell off balance as they stopped in front of Hiccup and Magnus, panting.

"Toothless, Astrid?" asked Hiccup. "What's going on? What's happening!?"

Astrid straightened herself out, giving him a look of shock. "Hiccup, they came out of nowhere! Eira and I were just walking around looking for the others when Toothless came rushing towards us. When we found out what was going, we came looking for you. They've found us, Hiccup!"

"What-?"

Hiccup was immediately cut off as he sudden spotted multitudes of warriors behind Astrid rushing in groups towards the direction of the cliffs, but before he knew it, a fiery projectile came flying in through the air, landing near the warriors and causing an explosion that set nearby tents aflame.

The impact was so great that it made the ground shake, causing everyone to nearly fall down to their feet.

Hiccup's brows lowered as he glared out into the direction that the blast came from. "He's here."

Without another word, Hiccup unsheathed his fiery blade, storming out of the tent as he swiftly began making his way to the cliffs, along with Toothless following behind him.

"Hiccup, wait!" Stoick shouted as he, Magnus, Eira, Astrid, and the other Chieftains quickly ran out after him.

Hiccup did not bother to look back. He continued running through the camp, passing by warriors and maidens who too were running to the front to see what was going on, all whilst artillery fire rained down upon them.

Finally, as Hiccup reached the cliffs, he came to a sliding stop as he gazed upon the great threat that finally stood before him, gathered down below as snow began to lightly fall.

The Great Viking Army stood in position below the mountain, lined up by the thousands as they continued firing their catapults and Devastators at the mountain's base. Yet even as Hiccup saw this, he was not afraid. He placed one foot forward. This time he would not retreat.

"No retreats." Hiccup said to himself. "This time, we fight!"

As confident as he was, Hiccup was as well able to surprisingly spot a familiar figure that stood out to him. In the center of the large horde of Nordic, Germanic, and Slavic warriors, a young man stood war atop his war-chariot, ready to battle out against the Archipelago Vikings once again.

...Ivar the Boneless.

Ivar looked up towards the cliffs, grinning with his brows lowered as he spotted the young Heir of Berk.

"Hiccup."

"Ivar…"

Though I do love myself some Magra, I promise there will be more Hiccstrid, especially after this next battle...

The second to last battle begins next chapter.

Until then however:

To be continued...