Chapter Five

Part One – The 'Boy- Chief'

Three months after leaving the Iron Islands,

It had been nearly three months since they had left the Iron Islands, to begin their journey north. Their armada had been relatively small, at first; a 'mere' two- hundred ships, though it had since grown considerably larger.
The first part of their journey had been slow: A meandering path, as they rendezvoused with the subjugated- forces. Once they had, the pace picked up, the new ships forming the leading edge of the force, the most dangerous position.

Two miles behind the subjugated forces, sailed the Kraken Lords' "original" armada; Two miles behind them, came the Kraken Lords' Warship; from which the Thirteen Lords both commanded, and deployed. With them, sailed the two massive, lumbering, hostage- ships: manned, and guarded, by their Lords' most loyal followers.

As they drew nearer to their destination, a halt was called; four Kraken Lords disembarked from their warship, and took up their positions: Lord Blackthorn would take two ships, and see to 'arranging for an informant' to relay their enemies' plans to them; Lord Emric would go to Berk, to get the measure of their Chief, and the mysterious 'Dragon Master', Hiccup. The other two would oversee activities on the front lines; each accompanied by a small force of personal- guards.

Once their ships were in position, off to one side of the 'main force'; the two hostage- ships, and two other boats, dropped anchor… This was as far as they would go.
The rest continued on for another four miles, than the rest of the Kraken Armada, including the Lords' ship, also dropped anchor.
Than the fleets of the subjugated- chieftains continued forward: joined by the four Lords, each commanding their two ships.

Five days before The Council of Chiefs, On-board the Kraken Lords' Command Ship,

Save for the smaller 'feast hall', and the fact that fewer men were present, the atmosphere during supper was much the same as it had been back on the Iron Islands; nine 'serving girls' moved through the hall, while the men ate and took turns tormenting them.
At the head of the hall, the Kraken Lords sat; again, much the same as they had on the Iron Islands. The main difference: nine of the thirteen were now in attendance.

About halfway through the meal, the doors at the foot of the hall were pushed open, and five men entered: the two men who had brought word of Drago's defeat, two honor guards, and… The noise of conversation faded to silence: the third man … was Lord Emric.
And one look at Lord Emric's face made it clear that something was very wrong. "He… He's Chief now; the Dragon Master rules Berk! He… he'll be on their Council, when it convenes!"

Lord Malcolm, who sat two seats to the High- Lord's left, snorted, "As if that matters … He's just a boy; it's not like…"

The High- Kraken gestured, and Lord Malcolm fell silent. "Did he accept our … 'offer'?" the High- Lord asked, pointedly.
The entire hall seemed to be holding its breath… The 'offer' was one that awed and terrified in equal measure: Full Membership to the Kraken Council, in exchange for betraying the North, and bringing it into their power.

"He agreed to our request for an audience; doubtless to get the measure of whoever was sent, but … But he never gave me the chance to extend the offer." Lord Emric said, shaking his head. He took a deep breath, and added, "He… He claims that Drago was responsible for his father's murder, and ended the meeting on that note."

Off to one side, two of the serving girls, sisters, breathed a soft sigh of relief, and exchanged a glance. It still seemed like a lot to hope for, but if this 'dragon- master' had defeated Drago, than maybe…?

"That is … unfortunate," The Kraken Lord said, with a slight shrug. "But it changes nothing; Lord Blackthorn has secured sufficient leverage to keep our informant 'motivated', and he has relocated to a secure location." He returned his attention to Lord Emric, "Back to this 'Dragon Master' … Describe him: do the rumors we've heard have any basis in fact?"

A shudder passed through Lord Emric, "My lord; if anything, the rumors fall short: A boy he may be, but when he heard the name 'Drago'… I've never seen anger like that before." He took a deep breath, and continued. "He doesn't look like much: Average height, slight build… Wore a suit of black, scale- like armor; covered him completely from the neck down, and some sort of … flight- suit, over it. He held a matching, full- face helmet; an exact likeness of a Night- Fury's head; and, sheathed at his waist, was a sword that appeared to have been forged of the same material."

The High Lord nodded, curtly, "Anything else, of note?"

Lord Emric nodded, "His Night- Fury: we saw it; right after I mentioned Drago, there was this growling; the crowd parted, and it came forward … Could tell just by looking at it that it wanted to cut us down where we stood; probably would have, if Hiccup hadn't stopped it… Just placed a hand on its shoulder, turned back to us, and said 'my friend, here, is about as 'fond' of the name 'Drago' as I am; we have nothing more to say to one another'." Emric paused to wipe his brow, "Whatever power this 'Hiccup' has over dragons goes far beyond anything Drago had, that much is clear."

The High- Lord gestured, first to Lord Emric, than to the other Lords at the high table. They gathered together, to discuss the latest news.
Once they had, the men seated at the tables also began to talk amongst themselves. There was the usual boasting, jokes, and general bravado; but a sense of unease also hung in the air, though they all tried to ignore it.

By now, more of the serving girls had gathered, near the back of the room; none of them dared to speak, but they could tell, from one another's expressions, that a similar thought was on all of their minds: 'Maybe, just maybe…'

Part Two – The Need For Secrecy

With the 'official business' they had gathered to discuss settled, for the time being; and some of their questions answered, the Council of Chiefs broke, for the day.
It was late afternoon, too late to set out for home, but most elected to return to the boats they had come on, with the intent to depart at first light. All of them were eager to return to their tribes: to ensure that all was well, and to begin preparations for what was to come.

Once the other chiefs, their guards, and the other villagers of Berk, had filed out of the hall, Astrid and Valka moved to join Hiccup. Thommen, Leanne, Lara, and Thom also remained behind.

For several moments, no one spoke. Than Valka wiped her eyes, and said, "I wish your father could have been here to see you, today, Hiccup; he would've been … so proud."

"For good reason," Thommen agreed. "That was…"

"You talked to Thor?" Thom burst out, as though unable to contain the words any longer. "What was it like?"

"Unexpected," Hiccup said, smiling, his gaze distant. "My first thought was that I'd died, but even I couldn't have dreamed- up everything that's happened since, so I'm confident I can rule that out."

Lara hesitated for a moment, than asked the question that had been on her mind ever since Hiccup had described his conversation with Thor; "Speaking of Thor, there was something else I wanted to ask, but I figured I should wait…"
Hiccup nodded, and she continued, "You said that Thor removed parts of the conversation from your memory because 'the time was not right' … 'Was', as in past- tense..."
Lara let her sentence drift off; the implications were clear to all of them.

For a moment, no one spoke. Finally, Hiccup turned to Thommen and Leanne, "You have a clever daughter." Turning back to Lara, Hiccup continued, "You're right; my memories were restored six months ago." He placed a hand on Toothless's snout. "Through us, the dragons learned our language, and the way we live; both crucial to our coexisting." He turned back to Lara, "We are the living embodiments of the peace: if one of us died, prematurely, the connection we opened will begin to dissolve… It would be the start of a new war, one that'd make the Three Hundred Year War look insignificant; a minor inconvenience."
He was silent for a moment, taking in their expressions. Than he continued, "That would be the price of failure… If we are successful in our task, the connection between humans and dragons, will stabilize and become permanent; as a result of the reward Thor promised me, during our conversation, following The Battle of The Red Death."

Astrid took a step forward, "Hiccup… are you sure you should be talking about this? I mean," she turned to Thommen, Leanne, and their children, "I'm not saying that we don't trust you, it's just…" There was a slight quiver in her voice, as she spoke.

Hiccup turned to Astrid, "I know, Astrid, but a great many questions were asked, today; and more will be asked, once this war is over. If other chiefs start asking the right questions, it may reach the point of having to refuse to disclose more information; which would only complicate matters." He turned to Thommen, "However, if even one or two other chiefs knew the full truth, and would confirm the need for secrecy, it should be sufficient."

Thommen frowned, "This sounds… serious."

"It is," Hiccup agreed. "In fact, if I am to say any more than I have already, I will have to ask for the oaths of secrecy, I mentioned."

Lara hesitated for a moment, "And… who would we be swearing by, exactly?"

"By me," An unseen voice stated. An instant later, there was a flash of light, and another figure stood before them; ten feet tall, and holding a hammer that crackled with electricity in his right hand.

Hiccup turned to the new arrival, and bowed from the waist, "Thor; it's been a while!"

Thor nodded, "Five years, or near enough as makes no matter … I see you have begun the second phase of your task; That is good."

An instant later, there was another flash of light, and a woman appeared next to Thor; also ten feet tall, with an aura of flames rippling around her. Hiccup bowed again, "Freya; to what do we owe the honor?"

Freya smiled, "I had some time on my hands, and I haven't spoken to you since I enhanced the flames when you forged your armor; excellent craftsmanship, I must say."

Toothless and the other dragons hurried forwards; bowing respectfully to Thor, before offering a slightly longer bow to Freya, calling her the 'Queen of Flames'.
The other humans remembered themselves, and followed their lead; they made no attempt to speak, however.

Both gods gave a brief nod of acknowledgement, than Freya turned to Hiccup, "I do not think you will have any trouble securing oaths of secrecy now; show them your true self, Dragon- Lord."

Part Three – The Dragon Lords; One Through Four

Hiccup inclined his head, and closed his eyes in concentration; his eyes glowed green, and the blue lines traced their pattern, across his dragon- scale armor. He smiled, "Three has always been a powerful number, as I recall."
As he spoke, a third wave of energy radiated outward from where he stood. As it did, the expressions of unease and uncertainty, on the faces of Thommen, Leanne, Lara and Thom changed into a mixture of awe and disbelief.

"You're… you're becoming… a… a God?" Lara stammered.

Hiccup nodded, "Slowly, but surely… I can only channel this energy for short periods of time; however." He was silent for a moment, than continued, "It is a gradual transition; during which I remain human, and can be killed, as can any human; I … I've already told you what that would mean."

Freya nodded, "It is a risk, one we have done our best to minimize, but a risk none the less; great victories always require the greatest risks." She turned to Thommen and his family. "Now, for a proper introduction," she gestured to Hiccup, "Before you stands The First of The Five 'Dragon- Lords'; who, on ascending to Asgard, shall take on the duty of preserving the peace between humans and dragons, until the end of time; He, The Four he chooses to aid him, and the dragons to whom they are partnered."

A moment later, the blue lines on Hiccup's armor faded back to black, though he seemed to have no trouble keeping his balance; unlike on previous occasions, on exiting the trance.
The silence that followed lasted for several minutes. Than Thommen, Leanne, Lara and Thom seemed to realize what the two gods were waiting for: one by one, they swore to keep the secret Hiccup had entrusted to them.
Thor and Freya nodded once, in approval, and than, with two simultaneous flashes of light, they were gone.

Leanne considered Hiccup for a moment, than shook her head in awe; "Gods…"

The corner of Hiccup's lip twitched, "That about sums it up; it surprised me, too, when Thor told me about it."

"Have you had any thoughts on who to pick for the other four Dragon- Lords?" Lara asked, than she hesitated, and added, "If you don't mind me asking."

"I've already named Astrid my lieutenant; she played a crucial role in the early stages, and has continued to, ever since," Hiccup said, smiling, as he spoke. "As for the other three," He was silent for a moment, "Each one has a particular … 'purpose', something that sets them apart, and a title that corresponds to it… Toothless and I, we're 'The Peacemakers', having initiated the process of making peace between humans and dragons; Astrid and Stormfly are 'The Lieutenants', second- in- command: they've been doing that for close to five years, and I've never regretted making that call." Astrid smiled at the praise, her face a little pink. "The third will be 'The Convert'… I'm not sure, but there's someone on Berk, who was once one of Drago's dragon- trappers: he defected to our side in the early- stages of the conflict, and took up dragon- riding… he's a possible candidate, but, as I said, I'm not sure. The fourth is 'The Envoy'; symbolizing the secrets of dragon- lore moving beyond Berks' boarders… There are two people I'm considering for that role," he turned to Astrid, "Heather is one, and the second…" he fell silent, and locked eyes with Lara. After a moment, he looked away, and shrugged, "Well; we'll see where things go."

To Be Continued…