Dragon Friend (sequel to the dragon boy) Chapter 16 - Battle Begins
frostcup fanfic
Authors note: so here at last is the battle dun dun dun! What will happen?! You'll have to wait and find out ;-P I hope you enjoy this chapter! Please let me know what you thought and until tommorow I bid you adieu^^
The battle was crazy. Hundreds of things going on at once. Valka's dragons flying out to meet Drago's in combat- colliding, and falling, through the air. Blasts of fire, randomly, fell from the sky and hit the battlefield. Several dragons fell prey to traps; seeking to help their ensnared brethren, only to find themselves trapped- lured in by their instinct to protect. Catapults continued to fire at the nest. Some dragons were clipped by the falling debris. Others accidentally got in the way of rocks.
Valka stood on the back of Cloudjumper, directing the troops to where they were needed. Hiccup flew by, firing a blast at a trap, and releasing the dragon trapped inside. He looked back to see it flying out, joyously, but Hiccup could tell the fight went badly.
The dragons of the nest were greatly outnumbered. Nets were fired constantly at the sky, so that you had to forever be on your guard to avoid them.
The dragons of the nest were determined to protect their home, but at the sight of the huge army before them, many of them faltered. Some of them fell victim to terror, and proved easy targets for either the nets, or the opposing dragons.
Fear began to spread amongst the dragons, as everything seemed to be overwhelming them. The catapults. The nets. The traps. The soldiers. The dragons.
Hiccup could tell Cloudjumper was trying to hold them strong, as he roared out to the dragons, trying to keep order in the chaos of battle, but he could tell it wasn't enough. Things were slowly disintegrating, and once they starting to fall into disorder, they were easy prey.
Things would only spiral downwards from then on, but they were powerless to stop it. Hiccup couldn't embolden the dragons. He couldn't bring in some magical support, he couldn't wave a hand and make the catapults vanish. He was helpless in this. He couldn't stop the fear spreading- he was terrified himself!
So much fighting. So much loss. This was war. This was exactly what he'd set off from Berk to avoid... and he'd failed, and everything was going wrong as a result.
Toothless looked back at him, sensing the stress in his rider, and purred, reassuringly. Hiccup reached out, and stroked his dragon's head.
"Yeah, thanks bud, I know. But things aren't going all that great, and it doesn't look like they're gonna get any better." He told the Night Fury, slightly comforted by his friend's concern.
'Wanna bet.' Came an unexpected reply.
'Jack! Where-' From the other side of the ice barrier, a blast of ice fired up into the air. Hiccup grinned- he knew that ice anywhere.
It exploded in midair, into icy shards, and mist, which swirled into a intricate, spherical shape.
The mark of the Sky Dragon.
Hiccup recognised it from his story books as a kid, but he'd never seen Jack use it.
It was a call to arms, and there was no one to call. But, now, the symbol had changed. It wasn't a call to arms anymore, it was a symbol of strength. Hiccup could almost feel the hope stirring in the defending dragons, and the fear spreading through the enemy. It looks like they were taking on more than they bargained for.
A few seconds after the symbol appeared, a familiar white winged dragon flew up below it.
The Sky Dragon, in all his glory. Frost edged scales glinting in the pale sunlight, huge wings barely beating to keep him hovered there.
It was an impressive sight to say the least, but what followed next, even more so. The Alpha appeared, rising up from behind Jack. Humungous tusks swinging through the air, as he broke through the thick wall of ice like it was glass. The Sky Dragon stayed still in the air, as the Alpha made his appearance- somehow more striking by doing nothing, than the Alpha breaking through the ice.
He roared at the sky, rallying the Alpha's dragons, and warning the dragons of the army- they attempt to take this nest, they'll have to go past him first. Many dragons, throughout the battlefield, answered his call, and threw themselves at the stunned enemy with renewed determination.
Hiccup wasn't scared anymore, suddenly, he felt like punching the air. Jack was here, and the Alpha was here. They could do this. So what if thousands of soldiers stood in their way- against them- they didn't stand a chance.
Toothless had also answered the call, and flung himself at a nearby, staring Bullhorn. He was much bigger and stronger than the Night Fury, but Toothless wasn't about to be defeated by anything. He took down the startled dragon, easily. He didn't hurt it too bad- just enough that it wouldn't want to fight anymore, and would go crying off to its master.
Hiccup saw Jack zipping about through the air, all the other dragons seemed slow by comparison. He nipped into other dragons fights, shot ice at the wings of the enemy dragon, and then left to find another enemy. That seemed to be Jack's primary tactic- shooting ice at the wings of enemy dragons, to incapacitate them. Operation Hiccup, the Viking remembered. Oh, it had been so long, he thought.
"There." He yelled to his black dragon. A catapult was left undefended- this was there chance. "Alright, bud, aim for the left beam!" He told him. "Fire!" He shouted. Toothless' aim was true. The blast hit the side of the catapult- a blue pulse wave of energy spreading out of it, as the whole thing fell apart. Night Fury fire was powerful stuff, Hiccup noted.
'Nice one.' He heard the mental comment, as casually as if Toothless had just hit a practise target at the academy.
The Sky Dragon grinned at them.
'Miss me?' He smirked, Hiccup smiled back.
"Like a hole in the head." Jack chuckled.
'Listen, though. Don't take out all the catapults- you're gonna give me nothing to work with.' He requested. Hiccup had no idea what he meant. 'If you could take a few of those net throwing thingies, that'd be great.' He added. Hiccup sent him a questioning thought, to find out what for, but all he could get was 'wait and see' as his friend flew off.
He noticed a missile heading towards the nest, but rather than veering away from it, Jack flew towards it. What on earth is he doing?! Hiccup thought.
Jack spun in midair as he reached it, a blast of wind hit the projectile, and it rebounded back towards its throwers. Alarmed shouts rang out from the men, as the rock turned on them.
Hiccup laughed, yes- brilliant! He using their own weapons against them. In fact, Hiccup thought, he remembered Jack had used it before. He wasn't paying attention at the time- had it been with Cloudjumper? Oh well, whatever he'd used it for beforehand, now it was a really effective method of spreading chaos amongst the enemy. Jack flew up to boulder, after boulder. Redirecting each one at Drago's army.
Hiccup grinned with delight, the tables were turning, ever so slightly, in their favour. He was feeling rather happy, until, that was, he saw his mother.
He'd shot a passing glance at Cloudjumper, only to find the place he normally occupied, empty. When he finally spotted the Stormcutter, his worry grew.
The large dragon had been caught out by a net. Valka would have set him free, but she was being occupied by a man in a dragon skin cape.
There was only one man, Hiccup could think of, who would be so cruel as wear the coat of a dragon on his back.
Drago Bloodfist.
He was there, and he was fighting his mother. Valka wasn't doing so good. Drago was a skilled fighter, and she was under practiced. It was clear things were going to go wrong... and soon enough, he had her laying on her back; thick, wooden staff held to her neck.
Hiccup's heart leapt into his throat. No! He had not gone through so much to lose her again!
'It's alright, I got her!' He heard Jack calling to him, but he wouldn't e satisfied until she were safe.
He steered Toothless towards Drago and his mother, watching them intently.
Suddenly, Drago withdrew his staff, and began swinging it round his head. He was shouting in a way that would have been comical, if not the serious situation, and what followed after it.
A giant, grey-black dragon rose from the water, and headed for the land. Another dragon was bigger even than the Alpha- only slightly, but enough to pose a great danger to the white bewilderbeast.
A challenger.
Cold horror flooded Hiccup as Valka's words came back to him.
"The Alpha controls the dragons." If this dragon under the control of Drago won...
Hiccup realised the fight between this dragon and the Alpha wouldn't just determine the leader of the dragons.
It would determine the fate of the world itself.