(AN) - Expect one chapter every one or two weeks from now on. I had bit of trouble writing this, but at least I got it done.
'...' - Gobber reading Javelin or Gothi's writing.
Chapter 18: Background
He let the boat dock first before landing. Gobber carefully took Hiccup into his arms and got out of the salvaged boat. Toothless and Twilight followed behind the blacksmith.
Meanwhile, Stoick was giving orders. "Gobber, take Hiccup to my house and get Gothi to him."
"Yup."
He turned to Javelin. "You, wait for me outside the Great Hall. Stay there until I come."
The Crimson Fury nodded, then Stoick turned to leave. He noticed his sister hesitating, not knowing who to follow. He walked up to her and said, "Go with Toothless. He'll need your support."
"Are you sure?"
"I am." He looked past Twilight. "He's waiting for you. Go on."
She turned around and bounded after Toothless. He watched them go up the wooden ramps, then took off into the sky. He lost a little balance, but quickly corrected it. Once he was high enough, Javelin took his time flying to the Great Hall.
He landed next to the stairs leading to the doors. Some of the Vikings were visibly suspicious of his presence, but he didn't care. Silently, he prayed that Hiccup would pull through. But he knew his blood-brother would. It was just a matter of when.
When his mind went off on the trail of loss, memories of Talon Squad resurfaced. He closed his eyes, and let the images form out of the black fog.
Oscar, the squad commander, his emerald green armor illuminated by the Tatooine suns. Like a fluid, the scene changed from the desert to perimeter of a New Republic base. He came running out of the blood-red fog, stopping every now and then to fire into the mists. A flash, a roar, and the rocket touched his armor a second later, sending the commando in all directions. Javelin swore he could see the millisecond look of shock on Oscar's face beneath his helmet.
His body was pulled away from the carnage by a midnight armored glove, the hand belonging to his closest brother in the squad, Drake. Javelin's head turned to see yet another memory. Drake was halfway between him and the still bloody fog, firing his backup pistols into it, red lasers coming out in retaliation. He turned to yell, "Go! Run!" Drake returned to the battle at hand to take a shot in the torso. He knelt down, but still kept firing. Finally, a quartet of bolts finished him, the last one striking him in the face, just as it had happened with Candle. Javelin watched his body fall, then looked away and ran into the fog in front of him.
The two images stilled next to each other. "Ni su'cuyi, gar kyr'adyc, ni partayli, gar darasuum, Candle, Oscar, bal Drake." Again, the pronunciation was foreign on his dragon tongue, but the words were clear in his mind. I'm still alive, but you are dead. I remember you, so you are eternal, Candle, Oscar, and Drake.
With a deep breath, he opened his eyes to stare at the ground, his draconian tears watering the grass and dirt at his feet. He looked up to see a crowd of Vikings and dragons before him. Twilight walked in front of them and brought her head up to his as he laid down.
"Is that why you were gone those nights every year?" She asked in concern.
"Yes." His voice had the tone of grief. "I remember, so that my brothers will always live in here." He drew a paw over his heart. "Once I forget, they're gone forever."
Twilight brought her eyes to his. "Then I won't forget, either."
"This is my burden, sis."
She ran her head with sympathy and sibling love along his own. "Now it's ours. I won't forget your brothers, Javelin, nor will I ever forget Mom and Dad," she whispered in her brother's ear.
He closed his eyes again, taking in what Twilight had promised. "Thank you, Little One."
She giggled as she drew back. "I always liked being called that, big brother."
Javelin smiled, gathering a few chuckles from some of the Vikings. They stopped when Stoick made his way to the front. "Come on inside, dragon," he said before continuing up the stairs.
The Crimson Fury got up and looked to his sister. "You can come too, I think."
Twilight did a quick smile, then walked next to her brother into the Great Hall.
They followed the Chief of Berk to the head of the large fire pit gracing the center of the building. Most of the villagers hung back until the two dragons were on the other side before piling in. Seeing an actual Night Fury was a bit scary, but the crimson one was frightening. In hopes of easing their fear, Javelin sat down behind Stoick. It didn't do much, but every bit helps.
"Quiet down, everyone!" Stoick ordered. "Quiet down!" The din diminished. "Thank you. As you all know, we managed to come back from the Dragon's Nest. I am very happy to say that we didn't lose anyone."
The crowd cheered in joy and relief. One concerned person managed to ask, "Where is everyone, then?"
"I'll get to that soon. I have more good news: we will never be raided AGAIN!" Once again, the crowd erupted. Stoick waited before continuing. "From what I've been told and seen, the beasts were under the control of a giant dragon."
Some of the smarter villagers (which were very few in number) began to see fault. One of the village scholars, Bjarte Ingermann, brought to light. "Hold on. If this thing was as large as you say, then how did you manage to defeat it without casualties?"
"To answer truthfully, we didn't."
Fortunately for Stoick and Javelin, Gobber entered the hall. "Aye, it's true. Pardon me, make way," he said as he made his way through to Stoick. The blacksmith was carrying a leather mat and bag full of sand.
Behind him was an old, short woman. Her name was Gothi, if Javelin's memory served him correctly. She was the village elder and one of Berk's best healers. Without fear, she approached the Crimson Fury, who respectfully bowed down in response.
The people who could see what was going on were still, both in fear and shock. Gothi brought her hand up and ran it down the dragon's head. When she removed it, the beast looked at her with large, brown eyes. To make the situation even more unbelievable, it helped Gothi over to her writing mat, which Gobber had just finished setting up.
Stoick turned to the woman. "Gothi, would you like to speak now?" She shook her head, motioning for the chief to finish his piece. "As I said, we didn't slay the monster. My son, Hiccup, and his dragons did."
Half the crowd went up in laughter, while the other half was confused. Stoick was about to yell for silence when the Crimson Fury did for him. Everyone jumped at the deep roar.
"Thank you," Javelin said. He made his way to Gothi. Gesturing his silver paw to the sand, he quietly asked, "May I?"
Fortunately, Gothi understood the motion and nodded. She moved to the side to make room.
"What is it going to do, write?"
Javelin chuckled and smirked. He bent down and dragged his dexterous claw through the sand.
His move surprised those around him. Gobber said the words out loud, "He said, 'The claim that Hiccup and his dragons slayed the Red Death is true.'" A careful wipe, then another set. 'On my blood-brotherhood with Hiccup do I swear this.'
Javelin took a deep breath and prepared for the near-instant protests. They did make his ears hurt, but he still stood proud as Stoick glared at him. "Explain yourself and your actions, demon."
'With pleasure.' Javelin roared again for silence, so everyone in the Great Hall could hear clearly. 'But first, no matter what I write, you must not interrupt. Do I have your word from each of you?'
Hesitantly, everyone voiced their agreement.
'Good. It began fifteen years ago when I entered the archipelago. Call me an explorer or a warrior seeking solace with his loss, I came across an island that would be my home for a long time. I encountered a family of Night Furies, two parents and their unhatched daughter.' After he wrote this, he smiled at Twilight.
'I saw my adopted sister's hatching that same night. Twilight.' When Gobber said her name, the dragoness walked and sat down next to Javelin. 'I became a part of the family within several days, and stayed with them for many years. Two more dragons came to be a part of us in time: Match and Spark the Zippleback, and Splatter, a Monstrous Nightmare.'
'When Twilight was ten, a group of shipwrecked sailors landed on our island. I managed to get help from the nearby village of Riak. By day's end, they left with the condition that they do whatever it takes to stop anyone from coming to the island.'
'Regardless of the tale that had been born, several hunters tried their luck.' With an unsettling smile, he wrote, 'They're still in the island.' The dragon chuckled, but quickly fell silent as Twilight's face fell in grief. 'Two weeks ago, a large party of Berserkers arrived. Helplessly, we saw them slaughter our friends and parents.'
'We escaped and landed here during the raid. While my sister stayed with Toothless during the day, I got myself a job as Gobber's assistant in Dragon Training. From there, I formed close relationships with them as well as Hiccup. I grew to see him as a friend and brother. The evening after their first true flight, I created a blood-bond with him. After that, Twilight pressed for a bond of her own and I became an actual brother.'
'The next day after training, Astrid Hofferson found us. We took her and brought her over to our standpoint. That night, all five of us found the nest and the beast that ruled there. Hofferson wanted to tell you, Stoick, but Hiccup refused. Doing so would have been the end of everyone, especially Hiccup.'
'I escorted her back home, but I told her to come to the arena if she wanted. She did come and saw our new family.' Javelin paused and looked at Twilight. "You want me to tell them or wait?"
She pondered for a few seconds before answering. "No, not yet. It's too soon."
The Crimson Fury went back to writing. 'I found out that my body was changing, and so did Astrid. My blood had reacted to my sister's, eventually leading to the form before you now. Everything after that night, you all know.'
When he finished, he looked up to see a variety of looks on the villagers' faces. Some were of anger, of outrage, while others were of fear. A small few were of sympathy towards the duo's loss. Quickly, he added more words. 'Those of you who brightened at joy at our parent's deaths, ask yourself this. What if they were your parents, your family? You should not be smiling then.'
Javelin backed away, signaling he was done. Feeling he no longer needed his presence there, the dragon made his way to the door. When Twilight came out, he asked, "Did I do the right thing, sis? Should I have told them about us?"
"It was going to come out sooner or later. Seems right that you let it out."
Javelin nodded in agreement. "Where's Hiccup's house? I should be there with Toothless."
"I thought you'd have known these things by now, seeing as how you spent most of the day with him."
A laugh. "Oh, only for training, Little One. Lead the way," he said, moving to the side. Twilight led him to the Chief's house.
(AN) - Phew. Hope you liked this one. We are slowly coming to the end of this ride, but as I said before, I don't know when.
As always, thank you for your review, adipose169.
As a courtesy, please do read 'The Little Girl and the Dragons' by Dolphinheart99. I know you like it. For those of you who have read 'Memory', I will most likely begin Dragons' Destiny once I finish this crossover.
Stay strong and OYA!