Ch24: Darkside

I don't own HTTYD or any of their all-star cast. I do owe my OOC and my OC.

Toothless ate his breakfast and was now heading deep into the forest. Behind him the female healer followed him. She said that it was to keep me out of trouble. Don't know why she thinks I'm going to get in trouble.

I might but I think it's rude that she thinks that I will.

"So are you just exploring the Island or are you looking for something specific?" I just realized this but why is she so calm being around me? We're supposed to be enemies but she's been protecting Hiccup and i even after she saw me.

I like it. Really I do.

It feels more natural. The distrust that most in this territory present may be normal but meeting people like Hiccup, Gobber, and this female just encourages me to keep doing what I think is right. Chances are that if more people were like them, people who take the time understand and learn rather than fight at first glance, and this whole conflict with the Uverworlders would not be an issue and would have been resolved long ago.

But unfortunately there are more quick shooters then careful observers on both sides here in this territory.

As much as I like to entertain that ideal scenario I should keep my focus on the here and now, and now I might or might not have a job to do which will require my attention.

I need to see if this island has a dragon prison or not. And if it does I'll need to free any captives.

Before I never knew that the humans were doing such a thing like imprisoning dragons. It's not right holding anyone imprisoned like they were on Berk just to be used as playthings. I know it's not the way Uverworlders handle prisoners, they just end them.

Freeing them might be a problem and not just the freeing them part. Theirs the issue of them wanting revenge and theirs duty to hunt me.

Once they're freed, like it or not, they will return to the queen then back to their home nest. They'll then want to destroy this whole land and all the Vikings on it as payback for what was done to them. I'm sure I can get them to agree not to come back here fires' blazing. I managed to convince the Berk captives; I just got to appeal to their pride and stroke their ego saying that revenge against ningen was beneath them or something like that. I'm confident I can do it.

Then there's the problem of me that can't be avoided. I don't know if the Dragons we freed on Berk told anyone or not about me but it don't matter. Because we split up, we moved fast, and were hit by a snow storm they didn't have a trail to follow Hiccup and me if they tried. These dragons won't have that problem. If they tell anyone I'm here every dragon within earshot will storm this land to get me and with Hiccup unconscious we can't escape. Best solution for this problem is to release them once hiccup and I are flight able and leave at the same time as the Uverworlders.

For now I'm just going to see who's in captivity here. And I'll only free them after I convince them not to seek revenge on this island and when Hiccup is up so we can leave immediately after we are done. That would be the ideal end here. No one dead, everyone free, and everyone happy.

Again I'm really confident we can do this.

Now where can I find such a prison here?

The one on Berk was close to mountainside so it might be the same here. It's a good place to start. I can figure that out faster with a higher view. Jumping up a tree I hear the healer complaining about me trying to shake her of my tail.

'Pfft if I had wanted to lose you I'd have done it a long time ago.'

Taking in my surroundings from the top of the tree doesn't give me much of an idea of where or if there is a prison here in this land. There are a few mountains but I'm not sure which the humans would set up a prison in. I figure that the best place to set one up would be in an area that would not be easy or detectable by raiding Uverworlders and fortified enough to prevent escape from any wingtype.

Yeah a place that would restrict Uverworlder fighting ability! That's what I should look for. Some spot that would restrict both flight in and out. So maybe I'm not looking for someplace real deep in the mountains but just deeply hidden enough to discourage dragons from going further. After all it'd have to be a place the humans could easily reach themselves.

I look back in the directions of the village and realize that the way the humans get there will be a path that is well traveled. If I find the path, I find where their prison may be.

I won't be able to find their path by scent, the snows hindering me from picking up the scents in the area. The best way for me to do this is to backtrack to the village, search out their most walked paths, and follow them till I find where I need to go.

Only problem with this is the chance of being spotted. Hmmmm, well I suppose that I can risk it. It's not a good idea but I'm sure I can pull it off. They're not looking for me and I'm sure I can out run them and hide if I'm sighted. Even if I'm seen I doubt the village will suspect Hiccup in connection to me if I am spotted but that will only work if they see I'm a dragon. If they think I'm a spying human then I'll have put Hiccup in danger of suspected infiltration.

Jumping down from the tree I find the healer still observing me. It's not the analytical stare that Hiccup first gave me but rather a simple observation like watch. "Did you see what you needed?"

'More or less.' I know what to do for now. For now I'll stick to surveillance of both Hiccup and the dragon prison, if I find it. Action would have to wait till later.

I start walking back to the village with the healer following close behind me. We reach the edge of the village and I watch the villagers do whatever daily activity's they do. The spot I'm at is high so it gives me a full view of the village and also keeps me away from their stares.

"I hope you are not planning on going in and saying hi."

'As if. Just getting a good look.'

I try to sift thru the numerous people to find someone who looks like they might be heading my way. Well if there is anyone going to the prison today. Worse case I end up stalking humans from this spot for days. Well by then Hiccup should be up and he can find it by just asking. We'll find it one way or another.

Then I see something that looks like a good lead. A collection of young children and Hiccup aged teens being led by a senior member of this tribe.

The rainbow scale said that they were prisoners to teach their young. An elder taking a group of younglings; looks like a training fieldtrip to me.

Making my choice to follow them I head off around the edge of the woods and reach the path they were on. The healer was still behind me. "You may want to be careful. That is Rockthroat and a group of his students. They must be going to get some extra dragon training."

I look over at her a raise my brow which she takes as a way to continue. "Our dragon training is already over and we already chose our champion and runner-ups and they slayed their first dragons. Those must be the remedial students that Rockthroat thought needed more training to be ready for when they enter the battlefield."

I look away and we continue following in stealth. I don't want to imagine what their training involves. It's nice that I found the way quickly but I still don't like where I'm going. Almost like walking into a trap.

Even with snow on the ground the only sound to be heard was from the group we followed and the healers light tracks behind me.

All this walking makes me realize that I could have found this place in a second if I could still fly solo. I wonder how Hiccup would have done this? I know he would have asked first but what would he do if that failed? What steps would he take in my place?

We keep following the group until we reach an end to the tree cover.

"I'm still not sure what you intend to do but its better we go no further."

'Right.'

Since I can't get closer I'll just stay here and wait for them to leave. I can still see the edge of their prison and hear what they do from here. I can gather the wingtypes of whoevers in there.

"So you were looking for our Kill Ring?" I nod at the healer's question.

"What for? Do you intend to free the dragons? Is that what Hiccup and you have been doing?" I don't respond, instead I focus on what I hear in the prison area.

I hear nothing important in their conversation, advice on using one weapon or the other, how to improve your aim throwing a spear, weak points and how best to strike that point, or what to expect from each wingtype.

I really don't care about them talking about how they train or how they plan to prepare for future battles but there was one topic that seemed to drag on for a while and that got everyone present very excited, the final test four years ago where they had two participants rather than the usual one. Seems like the two known as Chapskin and Shazz were famous because broke tradition and took the final challenge together.

Aside from more human gossip like who's mating with who and which student will be the next year's champion, there was nothing that really got me interested. Truthfully the level of boasting they were doing was making me roll my eyes in exasperation so much that I actually was getting dizzy from doing it so many times.

After several hours they left. As they passed where I was hiding I noted that while they all look tried from the practice they were more irritated than anything else, like they'd done something to waste their time and now they're unsatisfied and frustrated.

Once I heard that no one was inside and the visitors were gone I started to make my way in. "You shouldn't go in there. There are no more dragons at present."

I ignore her and head up till I reach the locked gate. The place was very similar to the prison on Berk except that here there were piles of snow in the corners.

I have no need to go in so it didn't matter if it was locked or not. I just need to confirm the prisons captives. I didn't hear any when the humans where here so they may have just not trained with them this day and simple just worked on their slaying tactics.

But that's not the case either. There was no one here, human or Uverworlder.

"I don't know if it's the same on Berk but here our champion is not the only one that kills a dragon. The best student kills the most fearsome dragon which is usually a Monstrous Nightmare. The runner ups kill the remaining dragons. The students that were here were the ones that did not get the chance to slay or will be taking the training next year. So it does not matter if you come here, there are no dragons being held currently." She explains their training custom but she was wrong about one thing, there was something here.

It must have been at least a week or so but I can still smell it in the air, even degraded by the snowfall the scent hung strong. The fear, the anger, and all the blood that was spilt recently.

They weren't here anymore but I can still sense all the high emotions that filled this ring.

The smell and taste of blood was so thick in the air that it was as if I could see how they were each massacred on that day. Like an image piercing its way into my head. I felt how hard they tried to survive and how they were all murdered.

The first was just a weak mobflyer. He ran and flew fast but the human slowly killed it, chopping limb after limb and once it could no longer move he took it in his hands and twisted it head off like snapping a twig. They tossed the broken body away like trash.

A hardtail fought next. They moved well and avoided their executioner for some time but they eventually tired and once on the ground the human cornered and chopped him repeatedly with an ax like weapon till all that remained were a fleshy scaly pile of former hardtail.

Another hardtail fought. They must have tried to avenge their fellow wingtype but all their anger could achieve was a bruised and singed human who chopped off their lower jaw, clipped off one wing, and finally gutted them. Their insides were handled like a prize tossed and thrown in celebratory manner all over the place.

Then came forth a twinneck. They tried to snake themselves around the human but instead got one of their necks decapitated. The screams of the surviving brother echoed not for pain of body but pain of loss. He lost his closest family and had to suffer the slow and agonizing death the ningen dealt him by himself.

The death of their fellow Uverworlders frightened the next young and inexperienced rainbowscale. They couldn't be older than a first ager, barely just learning to fly from land to land, it may have even been his first contact with Ningens. They crushed his head and spattered their head innards into smears on the ground. Did he even get a chance to scream?

Then another first age. No they were younger than that. They murdered a hatchling watermouth. They probably didn't put up much of a defense, just fly around in a frenzied panic letting out smashing roars in all directions before the Ningen smashed its bones to slivers with their weapon.

Finally it was the heavywing. He fought with everything he had to avenge his slain comrades but was overcome by his ningen opponent. One attack crippled its wings so he couldn't fly and then they jammed their sword thru his mouth and nailed it to the ground so he couldn't use their jaw. They finished it by decapitated the final heavywing.

Once they were done they threw all their bodies into the center and burned their remains.

"We kill them all and collect newer and fresher dragons in their following raids. It keeps"

'Shut up!' I roar out to the ningen healer next to me. She stumbles back and looks ready to crawl away.

I look at the scene in the ring. Nothings there for the eyes, but the smell of death was thick to the nose. How do the ningens stand that smell? How can they just go and make that putrid air worse?

All this death was making my heart race and panic.

This wasn't war.

I try not to lose control. Everything in me was ready to blow that village and all the ningen present to ashes, to do what they did to these Uverworlders to them. I didn't know these Uverworlders but I still want to avenge them and all the others before them.

I want to kill them

I look to the female ningen that was close to me and close in on her.

My eyes narrow on her cowering figure, I can taste the gas filling my mouth ready to ignite and fire. My body continues in its well-practiced methods ready to fight. My flightlessness and all emotions on the war and protecting and even avenging were gone.

I just want to kill Kill my enemy kill my enemy kill them kill them kill kill kill kill kill

I look down at my target Kill

I take in their position kill

I determine my best point to shoot kill

I ready my aim kill

I lock on kill

I see green eyes kill