Chapter Three

The sun shone on the canvas tents, and eventually Rayden was roused out of his sleep. There was a soft hand on his shoulder. He didn't care, he was tired… But the hand kept shaking him. Begrudgingly, he opened his eyes. He twisted in his sleeping furs. Freya realized he was awake and she lifted her lingering hand off of his shoulder.

"Hiccup told me to wake you up. We're leaving in an hour."

"Thanks."

She left the tent and Rayden slowly tried to shape his hair into an acceptable position. While packing up, his thoughts were about Hiccup. Hopefully he'd found some luck with the throwing knife. It seemed like he had. When Rayden peeked out of his tent, Hiccup was just retrieving the weapon from the log, which was peppered with holes. Grinning, Rayden retreated back inside his tent and strapped on his scabbard. Taking his saxe in one hand, he slipped outside, tossed the saxe into the air, and caught it by the blade. He threw as hard as he could, and the log was cleaved in two by the heavy knife. Hiccup glared at him.

"I was trying for three in a row!"

"Only three?"

"I just started last night! I'll practice till I get it right!"

"No. Practice until you don't get it wrong."

Hiccup went searching for another target, while Rayden began to pack his things. Freya slipped out of Astrid's tent, apparently having woken her as well. It didn't take long for Rayden to put his things in the saddlebag of his dragon. Then he dismantled his tent, practicing extra care with the canvas. After it was rolled up and put inside its bag, he took his knife back from Hiccup and examined the edges. Satisfied with the result, he sheathed it.

Toothless and Hiccup flew off and returned a few minutes later with a dragon-mouthful of fish. The dragons stuffed themselves full before they left, but they all snapped up a few more fish just in case. Once they get to the mainland they will be able to hunt plenty of stags to feed themselves. Rayden had only seen deer a few times, and it dawned on him that the others probably hadn't seen any. He was sure there were none on Berk.

They had only been on the saddle for about an hour, and Rayden wasn't very optimistic. The wind was constant and strong, trying to blow them off course. At first it was almost nonexistent and the trio of dragons had been showing off with feats of aerial stunts, Toothless easily winning with a double backflip while simultaneously spinning. But then the wind came, and they had to concentrate to keep towards the right direction. They kept the struggle up for another few hours, occasionally flying over small islands, until the biggest island yet was underneath them. They were debating whether or not to land, but all of them knew they would have to. The storm was escalating rapidly. There was yet to be rain, though soon the gales would be so strong they would force even Toothless into the seas.

It took nearly half-an-hour to locate an ideal campsite. A huge fallen redwood closed one side of the small clearing, and two of the four sides were thick with trees. The last side gave an unprecedented view of the ocean and its roiling waves. The dragons were exhausted and did not complain as the four travelers unpacked. They unsaddled the dragons so that they could sleep comfortably. The saddles were stowed under the fallen tree to keep them dry in the event of rain. Freya, Astrid and Hiccup were setting up their tents, but Rayden merely draped his canvass in the branches of a tree and sat under them. He was going to keep watch. The others tried to convince him to sleep but he didn't want to. Their safety was more important. There could be aggressive dragons on this isle, emotionally scarred from Viking encounters. It was a long shot to say there could be Berserkers or Outcasts, but Rayden thought it is better to be on the safe side.

Well into the night, Rayden was leaning against a tree staring into the darkness. He was keeping his gaze away from the fire to preserve his night vision. A rustle behind him signalled one of the tents' opening. He didn't speak, just kept a hold of his bow. It was draped across his lap with an arrow on the string. He assumed whoever it was had come out to get a drink or go to relieve themselves, so he was surprised when a warm blanket was draped over him and he turned to see Freya settling down beside him.

"Thanks for keeping watch. I'm not lying when I say I feel more secure. I've seen what you can do with those knives."

Rayden lifted his bow a few inches and smirked.

"I have this, too."

"Are you good at it?"

"See that tree near the beach? The one with the big knot in it?"

Freya couldn't see it, but she eventually made out the maple tree with the oddly shaped knoll in it, after her night vision improved.

"I see it. It's at least thirty steps away! You can't hit that!" She taunted him.

Rayden shrugged off the blanket and rose into a half crouch. He raised his bow, drew, aimed and released all in one languid, smooth movement. The arrow sailed true. Straight into the middle of the knot.

"Wow!"

Rayden was glad he had impressed her. Though his curiosity overpowered him and he was forced to ask what was on his mind:

"Do you miss her?"

He settled back into his blankets as Freya's face took a downcast expression. So he saw, she noted.

"My sister you mean?"

"Yeah."

"More than you can imagine ."

Rayden didn't know how to continue the conversation.

Freya looked like she was at the verge of tears, and then she became expressionless. Yet Rayden could notice a touch of sadness.

"She didn't want to say goodbye. I just got back from a trip to another island that mass produces thyme. It helps with…"

"… reducing fever?" Rayden finished for her.

"Yes. Only I was gone for over two weeks. Now I had to leave again. It didn't make her happy. She thought I didn't want to be around her."

"Do you?"

"Of course I do! But I told her that the help of any sick and injured were more important than anything else, and she took it better than I thought she would..."

"So here we are. You sacrificed a lot to come and help those people. You made the right choice."

He reached out a hand and took hers in an attempt to comfort her. It worked. She looked into his blue eyes and smiled.

"I guess it was."

Hiccup chose that moment to come out of his tent and ruin their mood. He noticed the intertwined hands but made no mention as they quickly separated with no small amount of blushing. Hiccup had come to relieve Rayden of his watch. Toothless had woken as well, and playfully but half-heartedly took a swing at Rayden. The poor drake was still tired, and soon settled back down into a restful sleep beside Hiccup. Rayden unstrung his bow and slumped against the tree beside Freya, and was asleep in moments.

Rayden was still beside her when he woke up, and boasted a sore shoulder from where it had frequently rubbed against hers throughout the night. She was rubbing at a similar ache. Astrid and Hiccup were already packing. Rayden and Freya hurried to do the same, and then Rayden claimed he will head out to hunt for some rabbit, maybe even a deer. If there were any on this island. Freya happily decided to accompany him. She wasn't as quiet as Rayden, stalking along with his bow in his left hand and an arrow in his right. But she wasn't so loud as to jeopardize his chances of a catch.

After around half of a kilometre of walking, they stumbled upon a clearing with a few deer were grazing. By sheer luck they didn't alert one and soon he had singled out a small doe with a pronounced limp in her left foreleg. A well placed shot took her in the heart and she dropped. The rest of the group scattered. After he skinned it and took the choice meats they left the rest for the predators. The walk back was uneventful, though Freya seemed to be very happy to spend some time with him.

After they returned Hiccup was again practicing with the throwing knife, which Rayden had lent him. He was coming along well; his technique was showing signs of development. He could almost hit mostly blade first now, but he couldn't rush it at all, or else he failed. Astrid was carving a piece of wood into a crude decryption of a Night Fury. Hiccup stoked the fire and went to the beach, grabbing a few smooth, flat stones. He set these on the coals for a makeshift frying pan. Some of the meat was cut into strips and fried while he boiled the rest into a stew, with a dash of spices from Hiccup's provisions. The large pot strapped on Toothless was bulky, but definitely worthwhile. After tasting the first bits, everyone, even Hiccup himself agreed that he was a good cook. They all laughed and enjoyed their meal.

Spirits had risen, and soon they were all talking as if they were still in the great hall for the morning meal. The dragons were playing with each other, joyful to be unsaddled and free to play. That is, after Rayden and Hiccup made sure they wouldn't burn down the forest. I can't believe that just yesterday there was a storm on our heels, and now we are all as merry as can be, Rayden thought, and he was sure that his thoughts mirrored what the others were thinking. More than once he found Freya's stormy grey eyes meeting his, and himself smiling back at her with enthusiasm. It was about an hour before noon before they readied to go. If this was the pace to be set to make it to Blood's Peak by their four week deadline, than Rayden could definitely get used to it.

They couldn't believe their luck! An enormous tail-wind had sprung up behind them and it seemed to be pushing them towards their destination. They wouldn't even have to stop again before the mainland, and the force of the wind was so strong the dragons barely flapped at all. They locked their wings and let the winds carry them at great speeds. They were making great time, traveling so fast that just a few hours after midday they could see the mainland in the distance. They were about to leave the lands of the archipelago, two hundred metres away from the beach and everything was fine, until disaster struck.

The new leather added to Astrid's saddle to accommodate Freya was old, and not as strong as it should have been. So it was in danger of snapping as it frayed against Stormfly's scales. Finally, the leather harness broke, the metal buckle still strapped to it. Rayden heard the snap! He turned his head to see the metal buckle strike Freya's temple with the force of a whip. He was close enough to see her eyes roll back and she slid off of the saddle before Astrid could catch her. Rayden stared on in horror as she fell.

Astrid couldn't catch her, and she was about to jump after her, when Rayden flew past her and dived into the water. He saw her slowly sinking to the depths of the bottom. He swam after and grabbed her by the collar of her shirt, then started to drag her up. He was almost out of breath and spots swarmed his vision, but at last, he broke the surface. Gasping for air, he pulled Freya onto his chest to keep he head above water. Rayden started backstroking towards the shore when Toothless was suddenly hovering above them. Rayden yelled out at Hiccup:

"Take her! I can swim there!"

Hiccup nodded and Toothless grabbed Freya's shoulders with his forepaws and lifted her out of the water. She was flown to the beach and gently set down when Astrid landed next to them. She plugged Freya's nose and breathed air into her mouth, then pushed her stomach in an attempt to force the water out of her body. It worked, and soon Freya was leaning on her side, retching and vomiting water onto the sand beside her.

Rayden was still a few hundred feet from shore, but his concern for Freya and the incoming tide sped him to the shore. Winded, he was walking, waist deep in water, when he was relieved to see that Freya was back on her feet, running towards him. When she got to him she jumped on him, pulling him into a tight embrace, and making them both fall back into the water. When they submerged, water was still draining past her lips when she spoke.

"Thank you."

She planted a tentative kiss on his cheek and hugged him. He returned the hug, and an hour later they were changed and wrapped in blankets by the fire, sipping hot turkey broth, thanks to Toothless, who was considerate enough to not eat all of the fowl that he found. Freya and Rayden sat close together, laughing at each other as they sneezed repeatedly. Eventually, their chills left them and they could only feel the warmth of the fire, and the warmth of each other's company.

Astrid's saddle was reverted to normal size, and the old leather was hung in a tree, providing a new target for Hiccup, who was still faithfully practicing with the throwing knife. Eventually Rayden took back the blade and handed him the saxe knife.

"You're learning really well. I've noticed you hit your mark about five times out of ten, which is amazing for how long you've been practicing. You show a lot of enthusiasm."

"Thanks!"

"Now take the saxe. It's quite a bit heavier, so you can make the knife strike hilt first as well, to stun a target. Stand five metres away, practice for an hour at hitting blade first, and then another hour hitting hilt first. Then move back to seven metres. That's about maximum range for your throws. Eventually you'll be able to throw farther."

Hiccup followed his instructions to the letter and went right to practice.

As Rayden unsaddled his Nadder, Freya crept up on him. Well, tried to say the least. He heard her coming and turned to face her. She huffed.

"I thought I was being quiet!"

"Is that why you're kicking sand all over the place?"

She laughed and moved to help him with the saddle. They worked in silence, glad to be near each other, though glad to admit that, probably not. She seemed to be waiting for him to say something.

"Umm… I'm glad you're still alive."

She laughed and reached forward to touch his arm.

"I have you to thank for that."

"Another second and it would have been Astrid jumping in."

"With those bulky shoulder guards she would've sunk!"

He laughed and they set up their tents next to each other. Then she leaned forward and pecked him on the cheek once again, then smiled at him.

"Goodnight." He crawled into his tent and stayed up for another hour, thinking of her. Then, as darkness fully overtook them, he slowly sunk into sleep.

Chapter Three! In case you were wondering, in my story Berk is situated in the Scandinavian Archipelago, between Finland and Sweden. The Gang's destination is in Northern Africa. Make sure to review to suggest, request, or ask a question! Also, don't forget to check out Revanhun, my editor!