Disclaimer: This is starting to sound a little redundant. Same thing applies with this chapter. See the disclaimers of previous chapters to get a better idea.
All right guys/gals. In this chapter we'll see the part where Hiccup and Toothless get struck by lightning. It is a little lengthy, and so will future chapters. Once the plot gets rolling you'll be expecting to see 10,000 word updates from me. No more of... this.
Well, anyways. Thank you all for reading and reviewing. Especially 'ANON'. Yes, I do realize that I've rushed things a little too much in the last chapter. So, hopefully, this chapter will make up for the last one.
Please enjoy ;)
Chapter Four: Incurring the Wrath of Mother Nature
He knew that he was dead long before he made contact with the ground.
How did he know that?
First off, the chances of surviving a lightning strike was pretty low. Dodging it was even harder. Especially if you were surrounded by metal. And his prosthetic metal leg did not help make that any easier. Secondly, losing consciousness a thousand feet above the air is not a good idea. Especially when you are depending on your consciousness to handle the situation. Thirdly, he was caught off guard by the storm. It was as if someone had decided to fiddle with the weather and screwed up with the weather controls. And storms here on the Hebrides could get very nasty. They'd dump an ocean on you and the violent winds only made matters worse.
What was even worse was that Hiccup had flown straight into a storm cloud. And it did not help matters that his dragon had went into DefCon 1 during the entire course of the journey through the storm cloud.
It had started out as a friendly race between Hiccup and Astrid. Both were on their dragons of course.
"See ya later!" Hiccup had exclaimed when Astrid and her Nadder started to lag behind. It did not come as a surprise. Hiccup had always won when it came to dragon speed races, thanks to Toothless, who seemed to be enjoying himself. Hiccup couldn't blame his dragon. The young Viking wished that he had sprouted wings. That would be defined as 'awesome'. Even if he'd look hideous with a pair of long wings attached to his back, he would not complain. Experiencing the thrill of free flight every day would compensate for the hideous looks. The cool wind blasting his face and the ability to soar into the clouds… Hiccup couldn't ask for more.
Then Astrid decided to change plans.
"The last person who gets back to Berk loses!" With that, she turned her Nadder around and headed back to the said island. Hiccup grinned and changed the position of the tail fin by shifting the pedal. By doing so, the dragon made a sharp turn to the right and shot through the air like a speeding bullet. They were traveling so fast that Hiccup's eyes stung from the wind that was currently bombarding his face. He really hoped that he wouldn't get unseated from the saddle and get caught in the wind shear. That would have been unfavorable for the both of them. Soon, they were catching up with Astrid and her Nadder. The girl turned her head to look at Hiccup and gave him a sly grin. Then, she muttered something to her dragon and they shot off into the distance. Hiccup had never seen a Nadder fly that fast before. Even he and Toothless had some difficulty in closing up the already widening gap between the two dragons. Perhaps the real reason that Astrid had lagged behind was that she had it all planned out. And she was not going to lose the race this time round.
"Let's show 'em what we're made of, Toothless." Hiccup said to his dragon. The reptile nodded his head and picked up speed, eyes trained on the blue speck that was Hiccup's girlfriend. It was as if the Night Fury had activated his afterburners, because they were screaming through the air in no time. Hiccup's eardrums were throbbing from the screech but, hey, who's complaining? Riding on a Night Fury is not something you'd get every day. With every passing minute, Berk loomed closer and so did Astrid and Stormfly.
"Faster." Hiccup coaxed. He wasn't going to lose this race. No. He was riding on a Night Fury. The fastest breed of dragons. The unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. Yes. He wasn't going to be bested by a Viking female who rides on a Nadder.
Okay, maybe he'd still get pummeled to death by Astrid if they were ever engaged in a one-on-one combat, but still.
"Hey, Astrid! How ya doing?" the Viking boy called out to the Girl on The Nadder. She turned around and was a little surprised at their sudden appearance, but that look was quickly replaced by that of determination. The kind of determination you'd expect from people who are intent on beating you in whatever they do.
"I'm not losing to you this time round. Not even Odin could change my mind." She said with a mischievous smile playing on her lips. That proved that she wasn't going to give up trying. So wasn't Hiccup. He simply laughed.
"Please, by all means." He said with a slight trace of sarcasm beneath his voice. Yeah, right. Like he'd pass up an opportunity to outrun, sorry, outfly his opponent. Never in a million years would he do that. Hiccup had finally found something that he excelled at, well, besides blacksmithing. Once you get a taste of besting every one else, you get addicted to it. Hiccup was no exception. The female took that as a challenge and coaxed her dragon to fly even faster.
"See ya later!" Astrid said, mimicking Hiccup's voice and speeding off into the distance. The Nadder was obviously straining from the effort to keep up its speed. The Viking male smiled. He knew that the Nadder would not be able to sustain such speeds for long. Nadders are built for land combat, with their cannon-like fire and superb agility. They weren't built for flying at high speeds. Night Furies are built for that purpose, with their awesome firepower and sleek streamlined body, they had the natural advantage over here. Then, just as Hiccup had predicted, the Nadder began to lose her stamina, slowing down a little and started to lag behind. Toothless easily overtook the Nadder and continued flying towards Berk.
"Losing speed, eh?" Hiccup taunted. Astrid replied by giving him a 'you-will-get-it-from-me-later' kind of look. Not exactly what you'd want from a girl who could dislocate your jaws with little effort. Okay, at least she only dislocated the jaws of those boys who tricked her into letting them kiss her. That was fine by Hiccup, because he was planning on exploring the islands beyond Berk, which meant that he wasn't going to return to the village anytime soon, which also meant that he wasn't going to get socked by Astrid anytime soon. Yes, he would have to face his girlfriend sometime in the very near future but all he could think of now is to fly into the clouds. To experience the wonderful sky, just as Astrid had.
"Accelerate!" Hiccup yelled. And his dragon did. They went faster and faster, gaining altitude and increased the distance between them and their pursuers, if they could even be called that. The clouds came closer, looming overhead tantalizingly, as if it were waiting for someone to touch it. Hiccup very much wanted to reach for it, however, he first had to finish the race. Berk loomed closer, and soon, the harbor came into view, so did the Vikings that were busying themselves on the wooden planks.
Hiccup decided to make a dramatic entrance, so he changed the position of the artificial tail fin and they soared into the air. Only when they reached a high enough altitude did they plunge back to the earth. Toothless did a reverse tumble in the air and dived straight down, screeching as he did so. The wing sliced through the air, producing that familiar ballistic shrieking noise that Night Furies were well known for. Hiccup wondered if the Vikings on Berk were stunned by the sudden appearance of the shriek, and he wasn't disappointed. The instant the shriek reached a pitch that was barely audible, the cries of the humans could be heard echoing through the air.
"Night Fury! Get down!"
Hiccup could see the Vikings ducking down in fear. All of them. As if they were expecting the catapults to suddenly explode or something. Toothless pulled out of the dive before they hit the ground and soared into the air once again, blasting several trees with a good amount of wind in the process. The green forest was a blur beneath them. Hiccup could never get enough of this. It was like some sort of addiction. Flying. And it'd be cool to be able to breathe fire too. What joy! Hiccup could imagine himself decimating the entire forest with a firestorm of his own creation and then circling the scene of destruction from above. The boy got a little jealous of his dragon sometimes. Who could blame him?
A huge cliff that was entirely coated with snow loomed up ahead of him. While the rest of the island was too low to be a hinderance, he knew that the mountain was going to hurt… if he had went on a head-on collision with the wall of stone. Not to mention that Toothless would be suffering from a concussion, or perhaps from severe brain damage. With eyes trained on the tall geographical feature, he said.
"When we hit that mountain, get us into the clouds. Can you do that, bud?"
The dragon grunted and the boy took that as a 'yes'. They were headed straight for the cliff. It was an apparent suicide mission, but Hiccup had a lot of faith in his dragon. They were traveling through the air so fast that the cliff was… just right there. Hiccup's eyes widened and he shifted the pedal into the right position, causing the both of them to soar upwards into the air. Toothless pumped his wings hard, propelling himself into the sky. They were mere inches from the cliff such that Hiccup could feel it racing past his feet, well, his right feet.
"Yeah! Go baby!" Hiccup shouted. And he had quite the shout for a person his size. His shouts reverberated through the valley below and rang out to the island and beyond. The boy would not have been surprised if his father were to say that he had heard him shouting. So much for being the weakest Viking in the village.
They broke through the clouds and with that came a blast of cold air. They soared past the top of the cliff and Hiccup shifted the position of the pedal, causing the dragon to fly parallel to the ground, only at much higher altitudes. The air here was much thinner too, and Hiccup was beginning to pant in an effort to inhale as much oxygen as he could, which was very difficult as there was very little oxygen in the air to begin with. The Viking boy decided that it was best that they descended into lower altitudes to prevent the possibility that he might die of suffocation up here. Better alive than dead anyway. Shifting the pedal once again, the duo dipped back into the realm that was free of clouds. Hiccup saw that they had covered a large distance, and was already three quarters of the way across Berk, albeit a rather tiny Berk as viewed from up here. The young boy spotted an island in the distance and decided that he would head for it. He was in a good mood today, if you put aside all those things that had transpired that morning, so he wanted to explore the place.
That would turn out to be a bad decision. At least for Hiccup.
They dived downwards, although not as fast as they had when they were teasing the Vikings back there. But it was still enough to create a slight whistling shriek as they did so. The feeling was incredible. Fortunately for Hiccup, he wasn't acrophobic. If he were, he would be hyperventilating. The sight was breathtaking nonetheless. Imagine a huge island beneath you, covered in lush green conifers, surrounded by an ocean that twinkled in the sunlight. An ocean that had crystal clear water and shone with a blue brilliance. That was the kind of sight you'd get when you are going on a vertical nose dive with your dragon. That is, if you don't pass out from the sheer brilliance, or fear. Slowly, they pulled out of the dive at around two thousand feet from the ground and continued on their trajectory towards the island.
Things would have gone better if not for the interference of the weather.
Mother Nature was bad. She was naughty. You'd wake up in the day to perfect weather, sunny day, blue skies and all. But nature can be deceiving. Don't judge the weather by its looks. Just when you are going on a vacation to the beach and then nature almost always manages to screw up that perfect day. Be it an earthquake or a tempest, your day would get ruined. As if matters were going to be very different for Hiccup and Toothless. They were about to experience the true horror of Mother Nature.
The scenic ride was very pleasurable. One of the reasons why Hiccup loved to take Toothless on rides like that was that he was able to take his mind off things. Sometimes life on Berk gets very busy and the boy would hitch a ride on his personal dragon and go explore the island. Their little adventures took them to places that they would never dream of going to. One such example was the sky. Up until he met Toothless, it was virtually impossible to reach for the clouds. That is, if you climb the vertical cliff that stood in the middle of Berk. But even climbing that would prove to be impossible, even for a man like Stoick. So every now and then, the frail, little, not-so-awesome geek would climb aboard his strong, medium-sized, all-so-awesome reptile (not to mention useless) and they would both soar into the sky, pushing boundaries and reaching newer heights. Oh, and friendly little races like that with Astrid were also common. Heck, even the village started to hold monthly dragon speed races to get away from the hustle and bustle of life.
Hiccup spotted some granite pillar formations poking out of the sea. He did not know how they got there, or were formed. All that he knew about these strange structures were that they had existed for as long as this island had. Not that he did not respect them, but he and most probably Toothless, wanted to have some fun and to let off some steam. So, they decided to blast these structures into half.
Time for target practice. Well, at least for the dragon.
"All right, Toothless. You are going to enjoy this. See those pillars over there? I want you to cut them clean into half, you got that?" Hiccup enquired.
The dragon was more than happy to comply. Because he hadn't been target practicing for a long period of time. But, hey, who's complaining?
The blacksmith's apprentice let Toothless zoom past one of the pillars before shifting the pedal into position. They were used to this already. Heck, they've even brought down the Red Death. Toothless stopped mid-air and did a full reverse tumble, building up his gas and zeroing in on the pillar. The all-too-familiar shriek pierced the air like a knife and the dragon got busy letting loose the blue ball of death. Hiccup felt his dragon's muscle tense up and then at the last second before they pulled out of the dive, the dragon relaxed his muscles suddenly. It was comparable to that of a spring. The rider's body was shaking from the force that was used to propel the fireball into its intended target. And it hit dead centre.
The explosion was like a cannon blast. Hiccup could feel the vibrations even from this distance. The entire ocean was bathed in the brilliant sapphire light as the blue halo danced across the air. For a moment, the granite pillar seemed to shudder under the immense intensity of the explosion. There was a sizzling noise as the fire continued to burn ferociously, causing the granite to turn red-hot. Then, it started to crumble as cracks made itself known on the structure, but it still looked sturdy and wasn't going to go down. Yet. Hiccup decided that another bombing run would end the pillar's life right there and then. And so he went in for the kill.
"Another shot, Toothless."
They both soared into the air, doing a complete loop that would deposit them at the other side of the granite pillar, during which Toothless started to tense up his body and build up gas. Folding his wings inwards, they sped through the air at close to supersonic speeds. Hiccup wouldn't be surprised if he were to be the first Viking ever to break the sound barrier. But now all he wanted to see was for that pathetic little pillar in front of him to crumble into the depths of the ocean. Toothless screamed across the air, full speed, body vibrating from the sheer speed and violence of it all. All his energies and concentration now went into delivering that awesome blast of fire. Following that you would have a brilliant fireworks display. Very nice deal, eh? Only if one could withstand the persistent shrieking that had the ability to impair one's hearing. Then it could be very enjoyable.
The granite pillar sped towards them, more like they sped towards the granite pillar. Toothless contracted his pupils, focused on the target with all his willpower, tensed up his body, and let loose the deadly fireball. After that, all that was left was to hope that the fireball would find its mark. However, Toothless won't be doing that. Why? Because Night Furies had an uncanny ability to be able to have a hundred percent accuracy, no matter the circumstances. Unless the target moved then that was a different thing all together. The fireball slammed into the pillar with such ferocity that the structure vibrated. Yes, it vibrated. This time it was a clean shot. The fireball penetrated the pillar and sprayed its brilliant blue flames in a straight line leading away from the pillar. The granite structure shuddered and crumbled, falling into the ocean and hitting the surface of the water with a consistent plopping noise. Ripples disturbed the calm surface of the ocean as rock of all sizes continued to disengage themselves from the main pillar. Satisfied, Hiccup and Toothless circled the site of the devastation. The red-hot rocks vaporized the water as they plunged. The ocean bubbled and hissed aggressively, as if it were offended by its offering of hot rocks.
"Well, that was a nice shot." Hiccup commented. And he meant it. Toothless nodded his approval.
This was turning out to be better than Hiccup had expected. At least until he meets Astrid, who would surely start the 'that was for blah blah blah, and that is for everything else' thingy once again. Hiccup was used to it already. Because Astrid would do that every time he met her. Somehow, she would be able to cook up some strange reason and sock her boyfriend in the arm, then she would pull him in for a kiss. Strange behavior. But if he was going to receive a kiss at the end of it, he would give a damn in the world for what happens before the kiss. Heck, he could even stand there for the entire day trying to remember his name if not for Toothless, who would alway have this naughty look in his eyes, as if he enjoyed watching his rider getting kissed. Not that he did not like the look but something about it was wrong. Dragons aren't supposed to be watching humans conducting their intimate make-out sessions. However, that would prove to be very difficult as Toothless always stood guard by Hiccup's side, acting as if he were his rider's guardian angel. More like guardian dragon. And that was a frequent occurrence ever since Toothless found out that Hiccup had lost his leg. So much for human privacy.
The wind had picked up speed and the sky was turning dark. Not because it was late and the sun was about to set, but it was because of something else. Something much more terrifying than the sun going down the horizon or of the moon resuming its position in the night sky. No. It was due to the fact that the tempests around this area is very terrifying. And when they strike, they strike without warning. Hiccup had remembered a piece of advice that his father had given to him months ago. It was about keeping safe while he was flying Toothless. As good as they were, the duo were not invincible. Hiccup knew full well why they weren't invincible. There had been an accident a few months ago that involved the death of a fellow Viking and his dragon. The dangers that the natural environment posed were far more devastating than anything the Red Death could throw at them.
"Remember not to stray too far away from Berk. The weather could turn nasty in the blink of an eye." his father had advised. Thankfully, they had stuck to the advice and not stray too far. No accident had befallen them while they were at it. And Hiccup was rather relieved about that. But as for today, it seemed that they had strayed a little too far away from the safety of the island of Berk and they were at the mercy of the weather. Hiccup had heard of how huge trading ships often get lost in the middle of severe tempests like those present at the area around Berk. Hiccup figured that if a storm of that magnitude could pretend to be Odin and toss ships around wherever it wanted, it would not take much for the storm to down two pathetic little biological beings that had just invaded its territory. Suddenly a picturesque afternoon was turning out to be a not so picturesque afternoon thanks to the storm. Hiccup thought that if they needed to get out of here fast, they had to be prepared.
Let me just fly a little bit more.
That would prove to be a very bad decision. For the both of them. The winds lashed ferociously at them. The storm system was beginning to take shape. The sky darkened even further and it started to drizzle. Lightning flashed across the sky and was accompanied by the roar of thunder. They would die a horrible death indeed if the bolt of lightning were to hit them.
Just a little more.
Toothless started to panic. He could sense that the storm was overhead. And Hiccup guess that it would be very hazardous for dragons to fly high in the sky in this type of weather. It must be some sort of instinct that had been hardwired into the brains of the dragon.
"Just stay with me a little longer, bud." Hiccup assured. Instead of being assured, Toothless went from DefCon 4 to DefCon 3. Not a very good sign. The dragon could very well toss Hiccup off his back if he were panicking.
That was when it started to rain. And it was not just any rain. It was as if an entire ocean was being dumped out of the cloud. The cold winds lashed out at Hiccup. He was soaked to the skin as the rain pelted relentlessly and mercilessly at the duo. And the dragon had entered a heightened state of panic. So much so that he was hyperventilating. DefCon 2.
The visibility had dropped to zero. Nothing could be seen through the rain and the impenetrable darkness of the storm clouds. Hiccup knew that they were hopelessly lost. Without any source of heat and light, they were doomed. Now they were sitting ducks, waiting for the lighting to strike them. He wondered if his father was still waiting for him back on Berk. If he was worrying. Worried that his son might get lost in the storm. Or worse, if he had died in the storm. That day would prove to be the day Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third and his Night Fury, Toothless, vanished from the face of the earth without a trace. Stoick the Vast would be left to mourn for his son. The Viking scouts would search for his son high and low, but would come up empty. Then he could picture his father weeping at the loss of his son. Nothing would be left of him. Not even a bone or a piece of skin.
There was a brilliant flash of white light as the bolt of lightning streaked across the dark sky. A clap of thunder followed shortly afterwards. Hiccup could feel his chest vibrating from the sheer violence of nature's creation. The sun had apparently disappeared behind all these clouds. Hiccup could only wonder how these tempests formed. How they had so much power to block out the sun. How they had so much power to play Odin and wreak mass havoc. There was no time to ponder about all those as a flash of light so close to him snapped him back into reality. What was that flash of light?
Turns out it was a bolt of lightning. He was bathed in a wave of heat and was blasted by a loud crack as the electrical wonder flashed out of existence. He was seriously beginning to doubt his chances of navigating out of this storm in one piece. The bolt of lightning seemed to have affected Toothless as well. For he had officially gone from DefCon 2 to DefCon 1. He was hyperventilating, if you could even call that hyperventilating. And he was ready to pitch his rider off his back. It was not normal for dragons to hang out in such conditions like these. The Night Fury knew full well of that. If you stayed in the air for too long, you'd get struck by those lightning things. And there was going to be a good chance that you'd sent on a one way ticket to Valhalla. Not a very nice way to end your life. At least, not when you are enjoying life.
But that was where they were headed for.
An idea came to Hiccup's mind. He thought back to how Toothless had shot a fireball into the distance after their first successful flight. It had the ability to detonate mid-air. So why not utilize it right now? The Viking boy decided to test out that hypothesis. He bent over and said into the dragon's ear, which wasn't easy as the dragon was still DefCon 1-ing away. However, he did manage to get the dragon's attention anyway. And it was crucial to maintain a connection right now.
"Toothless. Why not you try to fire a shot into the air? We could do with some light." Hiccup suggested. The dragon was quick on the uptake and begun building up gas, firing up for a shot. Then, he released it into the outside world. The little blue bolt of fire sped into the distance, providing a little light. Hiccup hoped that the fireball would be able to survive the unrelenting winds and rain. The bolt of fire disappeared for a while, and Hiccup thought that the fireball really had been extinguished. However, all hopes were restored when a flash of blue light in the distance stood out like a beacon amongst the dark murkiness of the sky. It provided some relief as it radiated heat in all directions and provided a little bit of light. Hiccup could see the blue sea underneath as the fireball exploded. There was a distinct sizzling as the fireball evaporated the rainwater that had landed on it. It did not last long. Soon, the fire dissipated, along with whatever hope that was tied to it. Now they were trapped, really trapped.
The dark sky closed in like a vice, some sort of claustrophobic horror machine. Things aren't going well for Toothless either. He was very claustrophobic, unfortunately. If Toothless was freaked out, chances are that they would not be getting anywhere. At least for the moment. And the dragon was panting, which probably means that he is tired. Requesting him to fire another shot would probably exhaust him, which could mean that they plummet into the ocean. Now, if they were going to get out of this situation alive, he'd gotta rely on his instincts, and some luck.
"Let's get out of here, Toothless. Quick!" Hiccup said with an urgent tone. Things would go downhill if they stayed here any longer, and suddenly Hiccup wished that he'd just land on Berk after he had won the race. However, as of now, he did not have much choice than to submit to Odin's will. If Odin wanted him to live, he'd live. If Odin wanted him to die, he'd die. He muttered a silent prayer to his to-be killer and hoped that that would influence the god's decisions. Yeah, right. Like that would be much of a help right now. A flash of lightning and thunder was the answer he received after saying that prayer. So much for believing that Odin would help such a puny little Viking. They were now officially declared dead, and Toothless was still on DefCon 1. Bottom line was that they weren't getting anywhere. The Night Fury whined, and that made Hiccup whine too.
Another flash of lightning illuminated the pitch black sky and the rain lightened a bit. Did Odin really hear his prayers. The winds died down a little. That was an affirmation that the gods were on his side. However, it did not help that his dragon was pitching up and down, frantically beating his wings. The sky remained a solid black color. Hiccup guessed that there was no changing that fact. Another roll of thunder caught his attention, and Hiccup decided that the time had come to get the heck out of this place and to fly back to Berk.
However, Odin was not on the same page as the Viking that was currently invading one of his storms.
Hiccup had not expected to get out of this unharmed. He knew that he would get a cut somehow, or break a bone. Whichever befalls him.
However, nothing could have prepared him for what transpired next.
It all happened so fast, Hiccup did not have the time to react. And obviously Toothless didn't as well.
The first thing that occurred was that the light had enveloped the both of them. The light came first. It was as if they had entered a portal that would transport them into Valhalla or something. Then the heat struck. It wasn't like any heat. It was a very hot kind of heat. Hiccup could not find the right words to describe that kind of heat. He knew for a fact that the lightning had struck him, too fast for him to do anything that might have prevented this calamity from happening in the first place but it did anyway. Sparks flew everywhere as the electric current continued on its course up Hiccup's body. It felt like a thousand bees was stinging him. His muscles started to contact and there was a massive muscle spasm that lasted for a short while. But, miraculously, Hiccup survived the initial strike, so did Toothless. The bad news was…
The artificial tail fin had caught fire.
It was just like the battle with the Red Death. The tail fin was on fire and smoke was trailing behind them. But something about Hiccup had changed. He felt as if there was something alive in his body. Then, all of a sudden, images of the battle with the Red Death flooded his mind. It was as if he was reliving the moment. It was very fresh… and very real. He could feel the pain and the horror he had experienced. He could feel the joy. And the moments of despair. That was when he lost consciousness. The Night Fury whined. He could not control his descent. And there was a very good chance that his rider was still on the saddle, so he could not cocoon himself with his wings. In desperation, he wringed his body violently, causing Hiccup to fall off the saddle. Toothless caught Hiccup by his artificial limb by clamping his pearly whites on it and then pulling him in and embracing his rider within his limbs, just like he did after the Red Death exploded beneath their tails. Toothless was starting to lose consciousness as he sped towards the ground. There was no controlling this dive. He closed his eyes, resigning to his fate. Yes, he may die when he makes contact with the solid ground. If he did die, he just wanted to make sure that his rider was safe. Because his rider had healed him. Had helped him regain the ability to fly.
Then, he hit the ground with a violent thud and there was silence.
The storm had cleared up a little as the evening approached. General Quintus gazed at the horizon, scanning the seas for any potential enemies. He was standing on an outcropping that overlooked the ocean. There was a hundred foot vertical dive to a shore of jagged rocks. The ocean waves crashed violently against them, shaking the ground the Roman was standing on. However, he wasn't here to enjoy the scenery. He was here on a mission. On a spy mission to find out the truth about the Vikings and the dragons for himself. His magistrate friend had ordered him to do so, and so he did. So far, these ridiculous claims proved to be unfounded.
That is, until a few hours ago.
It was stormy. The rain was pelting relentlessly at the makeshift tent. To make matters worse, lightning flashed across the sky at totally random intervals, letting out a huge crack as they did so. He was in his own tent, decorated with nothing but a nice little hearth that radiated warmth throughout the entire tent. And the Roman general was there, enjoying his plate of freshly-cooked chicken when one of his scouts came running into his tent. The guy was soaked in mud from his shoes upwards and had a frantic look on his face. The general wondered what could have caused his scout to go into a frenzy like that.
Probably a bear attacked has happened somewhere, hasn't it?
What he heard from the mouth of the scout was just what he needed to kick start a new day. Especially on a rainy day that manages to dampen your spirit somehow. Not for the general though.
"One of our scouts has spotted a bolt of lightning." he said.
What? A scout comes running to me at the break of dawn just to say that he had seen a bolt of lightning? Who was he trying to kid? Did he ever see a bolt of lightning before? Quintus could not accept it. If this scout was going to pop in to his tent every now and then to announce that he had seen a bolt of lightning, then he was going to use his powers as a general to have that scout executed by sundown. Quintus stood up to his full height, making the scout cower in fear. No one messed with Quintus, the revered general. Because those who messed with him usually end up dead. And they don't die peacefully. The general gripped the scout by his neck and lifted him into the air. He may be an old man approaching his fifties, but that doesn't stop him from being strong. He stared at the scout with such intensity that it was a miracle that the scout did not burn up in flames.
"You come into my hut just to tell me that you had seen a bolt of lightning?" Quintus spat. The scout shivered, but still managed to form words, albeit stammering.
"Yes… yes, sir. But there's more to that!" the scout hurriedly regurgitated out that last five words in order to prevent Quintus from tightening his death grip around his neck. The general looked amused for a moment, then he settled the scout down on his feet. The scout had to feel his neck and gasp for air before he could continue speaking.
"There was a panicked whine, as if it were coming from a dragon. Then we also spotted a trail of fire leading to that island." the scout pointed in the direction of an island that was almost flat. It took a while for the general to process all the information. When he did, he stared the scout down with a serious look.
"Bring me there." he demanded. The scout whimpered and agreed to bring the general there.
Soon, they were headed for the island where the scout had speculated that that was where the dragon had landed. General Quintus rowed the two-men boat himself, his eyes scanning the landscape.
"This better be good, scout. If not, off with your head." the general stated grimly. The scout could tell that his superior was not kidding around with him. People died when they worked in the military ranks. That was an occupational hazard. Even more so if your superior was in a very grumpy mood and demanded entertainment.
They made landfall not very long after. Both of them began scouring the landscape for any signs of a fallen dragon. After two hours, things weren't looking good… at least for the poor scout who had delivered the news in the first place.
"You are going to be in deep trouble." Quintus said. The scout trembled violently, eyes darting frantically around to see if there were any signs of the dragon at all. Then, on the third scan, his eyes hit something.
"There!" he announced. The general turned his head around and saw that one of the conifers was broken. Split into half. There were scratch marks all around its base, as if something was trying frantically to claw its way out. A dragon no doubt.
"You wait here." the general announced to the scout. He was more than happy to comply, for he wished not to encounter a full-grown dragon and have to die because of that. No thanks. That was definitely not in the job description when he first applied for the post.
The general approached the badly damaged tree cautiously, with his sword unsheathed. That was the basic rule of thumb. Never approach a suspicious object without getting armed. That would be suicidal.
That was when he saw the mud track. It looked fresh. And there were some metallic debris along with the faint smell of burnt leather. Something was here. And it burned something else over here. Quintus climbed over the pile of mud, sword at the ready, and was met with a sight he had never seen before. He had only heard of these dragons. Only heard of how terrifying they were. Of how they were silent killers of the night. Quintus could not help but smile at his own victory.
"We've struck gold"
End of chapter 4.
So Quintus has finally caught up with Hiccup and Toothless :O
In the next chapter, we'll be visiting Berk... without Hiccup and Toothless, cause they are pretty much screwed. Off to Rome they go.
As always, read and review!