I Own Nothing—and if anyone hasn't figured that out by now they're clearly not reading the tops of my chapters
All Right Reserved
Chapter 19
Into the Night
"Oh no! Here comes the big mean dragon!" Dagur cried as he held a stuffed dragon over a wooden boat. "Oh what will we do? It's the evil, mean, unsporting, and unbrotherly Dragon King come to blow us up! Oh no!" He moved a figurine of himself towards the dragon. "But wait! Here comes the dashingly insane Dagur to save the day! Yes! He swings his sword and cuts the dragon into teeny tiny pieces!"
At that moment a guard burst into the room. "Sir! The prisoners are escaping!"
"That's nice. Now he takes his sword and goes to duel the evil, mean, unsporting, and unbrotherly Dragon King! And it's a terrific duel! The King swings and he blocks it with all the—ESCAPING!" He jumped to his feet and ran out the door. "Why didn't you say so?" He ran back in, grabbed his sword, and glanced at his surprised guard in disgust. "And they just had to interrupt my awesome game! That Hiccup he's so inconsiderate; and that Drago and his stupid schemes, he's such a…a…ooh…moron!"
"Yes sir?"
Dagur paused. "Moron?"
"Yes sir?"
"Your name is 'Moron'?"
"Oh yes sir!"
"What kind of mother names her kid Moron?" Dagur shouted.
"Me mum thought it sounded sweet!
"Should have named her that. Now, where was I? Oh yes, escaping people! Quick, where's my sword?"
"You're holding it, sir."
"Oh yes. Thank you…moron."
With a roar like a lion Stoick charged straight at the men who were charging at him. So sudden and ferocious was his attack that the Berserkers broke and ran down the street the way they had come.
"Cowards!" Stoick bellowed after them. "Come back and fight me if you dare!" He saw someone out of the corner of his eye and swung his axe, nearly decapitating Astrid, who ducked just in time.
"This is not really the time for heroics, Chief!" she shouted at him as if used to regularly seeing him nearly getting killed. The others, with Spitelout in the lead, were already further down the road. They reached a crossroads and saw more guards coming.
"They won't run this time." Snotlout said nervously. Hiccup glanced around, picked out a house, and grinned.
"Steady, Snot. Quick, give me a leg up!"
"You'll want it, peg-leg!" Snotlout tried to joke as he heaved Hiccup upwards. Hiccup climbed onto the roof. He ran down it and slammed Inferno and himself into the old and crumbling chimney. The chimney should have been repaired a decade ago, for it now tumbled off the roof and onto the guards passing below. Loud shouts of pain went up as the bricks broke on their helmets and pummeled them to the ground. Suddenly imbued with excitement the two Jorgensons charged on the few men who had escaped the barrage. Snotlout inflicted bruise after bruise with his club and his father flung men into the walls and through windows like they were toy soldiers. Meantime Hiccup ignited inferno again and swung it in the air.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Snotlout screamed up at him.
"Drop 'em." He replied as he reached down and helped Snotlout join him on the roof.
Up on a sea stack Fishlegs had been impatiently scanning Berserker Island. His eye was glued to Hiccup's optical enhancement tube (his own term for it). Equally impatient were the Twins and horde of dragons behind him. Most impatient of all was Toothless, who had been pacing in random directions for hours. Suddenly Fishlegs lurched forward with excitement, nearly falling off the sea stack in the process.
"I see him! That's the signal! Ruff, Tuff! Let 'em have it!"
"Up on the roofs again, huh!" Astrid grinned as Hiccup pulled her up.
"A most charming place to watch the nights wonders, milady." He replied dryly. "And Stoick, here's a rule to keep in mind on Berk: never build homes so close together!" Indeed, due to population and terrain, the homes on Berserker were so close and compact that they could jump from roof to roof with little risk of falling. On the downside, Stoick and Spitelout were both very heavy. Stoick broke through one weak rooftop when he landed on it and fell right into a Berserker's bedroom.
"Beg yer pardon!" he grinned embarrassedly as the couple he had disturbed screamed and pulled blankets over themselves. With difficulty and some aid from Hiccup he climbed back onto the rooftop. "Fine time to be love making!" An arrow landed inches from his hand. "Oh come on! How can you dunderheads miss a target this big?"
The man in charge of the archers was shouting the exact same thing. Then he roared "Fire at will!"
"Not at me, not at me!" one archer screamed,
"Wilhelm, will you just shut up and fire already!"
Laughing eerily, Hiccup jumped next to Stoick with his shield raised.
"You go and I'll cover you!" Arrows clanged on the metal.
"Fine, but ya can't hold them off forever!" Stoick shouted. Hiccup risked a quick glance towards the docks.
"I don't need to! Listen everyone, no matter what happens within the next few minutes, keep running and don't stop for any reason!"
Snotlout looked at Astrid confused. "What happens in the next few minutes?"
High up in the air, far above the reach of arrows, Ruff and Tuff were riding on a Zippleback. A flock of dragons was right behind them, each one carrying a jar full of black powder.
"3…2…1…Down they go!" Ruffnut screamed joyfully. Each dragon breathed into their jar and let it drop right onto the ships below them.
Instantly the harbor shook as if an earthquake had hit. A roar like a hundred thunderstorms bellowed through the air. People on shore far from the escaping prisoners were jolted out of bed by the sudden noise. Ships exploded into flames as they were blown in half. Masts came crashing down. Hulls went flying out of the water. Boats were reduced into splinters and driftwood. And up in the air Ruff and Tuff watched with glee and flung down their own exploding jars.
"Take that!"
"Awesome destruction!"
"Eat this!"
"That one's for your mother!"
Meanwhile, down on the water, the ships were suddenly sized in the jaws of Scauldrons, who bit through the wood like a cracker.
Dagur had gone down at the docks been organizing his guards, as he had been told the prisoners would go there. He had a front row seat to see the destruction.
"No! My precious fleet! My precious fleet!" He wailed, "Oh my poor children, why are you getting blown up and leaving your loving father?" He then abruptly grew angry. "Why didn't somebody tell me they were going to do that?" He suddenly spun around, grabbed the man Moron and threw him into the harbor.
"I do hate it when people destroy my ships." He said, sitting down pensively. He then grabbed a mandolin from an astonished sailor and began to sing a Viking funeral song. Alvin and Drago arrived and exchanged incredulous looks.
"Well, 'e ain't called Dagur the Deranged fer nothin'." Alvin said with a shrug.
"Never mind that now! Come on!" This was not what he had counted on. "And open fire on those dragons up there! Fire, you worms, fire!"
In spite of Hiccup's orders, the escapees stopped and stared at the sight. Hiccup impatiently urged them forward. Thankfully the explosions had arrested the attention of the guards as well, so no projectiles were being shot at them.
"Come on!" Hiccup shouted at them.
"What in the name of Thor was that?" Snotlout shouted as they ran.
"Insane Twins, dragons, and jars full of a combustible powder invented in China." Hiccup replied, rather proudly. They reached the point where they could not travel on the roofs anymore and began climbing down.
"The Twins are here?" Astrid cried as she landed.
"And Fishlegs. We'll be seeing them in a few minutes." He pointed. 200 meters away was the watchtower. "Just up that and we're home free! And then we'll get to see part two!"
"Part Two?" Stoick shouted, "You've practically destroyed the entire fleet already! What else is there?"
"Why, the victory celebration of course!" Hiccup said as if it was obvious.
"I think 'e's as nuts as the Twins are!" Spitelout commented. Seeing Hiccup's eerie grin in the firelight led some credibility to that statement. At once the grin vanished.
"Behind you!"
Astrid ducked just in time again. Drago's pike missed her head by an inch. With a roar he charged, swinging his weapon like a madman. Hiccup lunged forward and slammed his shield into the man's face. Instead of recoiling Drago grabbed the shield and threw it and its owner into the ground. He then stomped on Hiccup's shield arm. Screaming, Hiccup kicked Drago with his metal foot. It did no good, and Drago retaliated by slamming his pike into Hiccup's head. At the same instant, probably without even thinking about it, Hiccup shot fire shot from his gauntlet into Drago's clothes. As they were made of dragon skin it had no effect on them. Drago roared again and raised his pike, but before he could finish him off Stoick and Astrid charged, with Snotlout right behind. Alvin suddenly appeared and slammed into Stoick, knocking him right into Astrid. The three of them fell onto the ground in a heap. Snotlout evaded them but when he saw Drago's massive hulk before him he froze. Drago gave a horrible laugh.
"Afraid to face me, coward?"
Yes he was, at least without help. But he provided enough distraction for Hiccup to use his gauntlet again. This time he pointed it upwards so the fire went right into Drago's face!
Drago ran for the harbor screaming; his very head appeared to be engulfed in flames. Alvin, Stoick, and Astrid had gotten out for their jumble and were standing ready for the opponent to attack. Upon seeing he was outnumbered and shocked by the fate of his ally, Alvin suddenly retreated into the mass of guards that were approaching. Without pausing Stoick pulled Hiccup up and they staggered for the watchtower ramp. Spitelout had run ahead of them once Drago had appeared and had ended up fighting a small Berserker group that had attempted to sneak around and cut them off. Astrid charged in without hesitation and her sudden and ferocious attack drove them off.
"Come on, hurry!" She shouted at Stoick. He was pulling Hiccup, but Hiccup was trying to break out of his grip, shouting that he could manage without help.
Some distance away from the action, Grimm and Evictus sat on a rock and watched the ocean.
"Why can't we be part of the fun?" the Timberjack grumbled.
"Because it's coming to us right now!" Grimm gestured with a wing. Several ships approaching the harbor had come into view.
"I'll take those two, you get the other, got it?"
They swooped down on the unsuspecting ships. With a loud roar the Skrill shot bolts of lightning from his mouth at the masts of his targets. The Timberjack meantime landed squarely on one ship, nearly capsizing it with his weight, and began tossing the attacking crewmen overboard like a bunch of toys.
Up on the sea stack Fishlegs had enjoyed the spectacle the Twins had put on, but as the dragons returned from their attack he kept his eye fixed on the watchtower.
"Come on, come on! Where are they?" He shouted impatiently. "Wait—there they are! There's Drago—look out!" He knew they'd never hear his warning cry but he could not help it, and he was very relieved to see them beat off their enemies. "They're going up the ramp!" He stood up and mounted Meatlug. "This is it, guys! We're going it!"
As if Toothless needed to be informed of that. The moment Fishlegs had stood up the Night Fury leapt off the sea stack and sped towards the tower.
There were not many guards on the ramp and they were easily dealt with. Spitelout was the first to the top.
"Well, we're 'ere! Now what?" He demanded.
Hiccup responded by seizing some of the wood from the signal fire and flinging it down onto their pursuers. His companions followed his example.
"That'll hold them a while." Hiccup said as he scanned the skies.
"But not ferever!" Spitelout retorted. "Did ya bring us up here to make it impossible to escape?"
Astrid and Snotlout looked at Hiccup and were relieved to see he was smiling. "Have you already forgotten about the people I live with?"
"The people you—" Spitelout looked up and saw the Night Fury approaching. A small flock of dragons was right behind it. At once he understood. "No! No, no, an' no! I am not riding one of those monsters!"
"Sprout wings and fly yourself then," Hiccup laughed. "Honestly, how'd you think I was going to escape?"
Stoick was just angry as Spitelout was about flying dragons, but his anger suddenly changed into astonishment. "Is that Fishlegs?" He exclaimed.
"Yep! And here he is to speak for himself!" Hiccup staggered forward to meet them. Toothless landed and charged towards him.
"Are you hurt? How bad? What did they do to you?"
"Later, Bud, first let's get out of here!"
"No, tell me now so I can pay them back before we leave!"
"Another time, Bud. This isn't over, you know that."
"It would be over if you let us finish them off now!" Toothless grumbled.
The King's attention was caught by movement on the ramp. "More men are coming. Fish, can you buy us some time?"
"I'll um…try," Fishlegs said nervously. Actual combat still made him uneasy. Hiccup put a reassuring hand on his arm.
"You're doing great. Just point Meatlug at the ramp and she'll do the rest. Can you do that?" Fishlegs nodded and steered his dragon away. She at once began belching molten rock onto the ramp below them. The King meantime turned around only to find Astrid was already climbing onto a Nadder.
She looked perfectly at ease sitting on the dragon. "I see you brought Stormfly along!"
"She volunteered for this, Astrid!" The King replied happily.
"I don't like my friends being held prisoners by those murderers!" Stormfly shuddered.
"Right, now, Snotlout, you're next. Hookfang!" A Monstrous Nightmare landed before them. Snotlout looked the most nervous he had been all night, and that was saying something. "Oh come on, you'll be fine! Hookfang won't hurt you…but they will!" he pointed at the men on the ramp. At that moment the ramp split in two due to Meatlug's fire. They were effectively stranded at the now inaccessible top of the tower. "Ok, maybe they won't, for a while anyway, but you still have to do it! Or are you too scared to do something even Hiccup the Useless could do?" This taunt and attempt at psychology did have the effect he hoped it would. Instead of strutting to the dragon like a puffed up rooster, Snotlout stared at his cousin as if seeing him for the first time.
"What?"
"Snotlout, yer not gettin' on that dragon, do ya hear me?" His father roared. At this Snotlout stepped forward and walked respectfully over to the Nightmare.
"What do you think you're—?"
"That's the spirit! Here, you'll need the rope and this mat to sit on…and Hookfang—no setting yourself on fire!"
"Aww nuts!"
Hiccup turned to the adults. "Your turn, Stoick! Thornado the Thunderdrum will be taking you!"
"We're not gettin' on that thing!" Spitelout shouted.
"I never said you were! I said Stoick was!" He saw Stoick looked uncertain. "Stoick, what good will honoring Valka's memory do you right now? If you end up in Valhalla now, do you think she's going to be impressed that you died rather than ride a dragon for a few hours?"
Stoick shook his head and came forward. "Fine, but this doesn't change anything."
"Try telling us that after you've ridden him," Toothless smirked.
"And now, Spitelout, you have three choices—stay here and be turned into fish bait when the Berserkers arrive—or starve to death if they don't build the ramp fast enough, which is possible given how they've got a bunch of homes and ships to rebuild too, so I guess you've got four choices—anyway, you can stay here, you can get on Shamrock's back, or let Shamrock pick you up in his claws and carry you away! And believe me, that is not a very comfortable way to travel!"
"I'll never submit ta this madness!" Spitelout shouted. "'Ow do we know you won't drown us at sea?"
"Clutching at straws and you know it. If I had wanted you dead, I could have just left you here and saved myself a lot of pain and trouble! And while I did not come here to save you, I'm not leaving anyone behind now! Shamrock, pick him up!" The Treejumper advanced. Spitelout took a step back and nearly fell off the edge.
"Oh for the love of Thor! Spitelout, get on that dragon!" Stoick ordered.
After the ramp had collapsed, Fishlegs had been observing the action below. Now he turned back and flew near them. "Hiccup, they're pulling out catapults and crossbows!"
"Right, let's get going!" Hiccup climbed onto Toothless, "Bud, give the order for Part 2! And everyone for Valhalla's sake, climb higher and watch out!"
After the bombardment Ruff and Tuff had returned to their sea stack base. There they heard the infamous call of the Night Fury. Unlike most Vikings, they had never gotten down when they heard that sound, and now they were thrilled to hear it.
"Time for Part 2!"
"Light 'em up!"
They rushed with lit torches to a large pile of what appeared to be pipes attached to sticks which they had spread out on the ground. The Zippleback took his position behind a number of them. This time Tuffnut gave the command. He had won the fight for it earlier.
"3…2…1…fire!"
The tubes shot away like arrows from a crossbow. They sped downwards and towards the wrecked up harbor, some in a straight line, some in a corkscrew formation, but all headed for the same area. And then they exploded. With an ear splitting boom a shower of bright colors burst into the sky.
"What are those things?" Astrid yelled to Hiccup.
"They're called fireworks. They're very popular for celebrations in China. They use the same kind of powder the explosives used, only this was for more spectacle and distraction than to do any damage. Still, when aimed right…" some fireworks had indeed hit a random target, and more fires were breaking out down below.
"You picked up a lot of things from China, didn't you?" Astrid asked rhetorically. "And I must say, with all of these weapons, why hasn't China conquered the world yet?"
Hiccup laughed hollowly. "The world is huge, Astrid. Even on a Dragon it would take months to go all the way around it."
Stoick was impressed. "I'd hate to be on the receiving end of those things. I might just commission more from you. What I could do with them in a proper battle—!"
Hiccup laughed hollowly again. "Well, Stoick, that's why we're flying so high—watch it!" A firework spiraled up towards them and nearly got Hookfang before plummeting towards the earth again. "As I was saying, I wouldn't rely on them in battle. It's impossible to aim them properly or get them to explode when you want them to. All you can do is point them somewhere, preferably upwards, and hope they go off somewhere you aren't. But don't worry—I told the Twins to use everything, so they hopefully won't be able to use them on Berk!"
"And speaking of which!" Ruffnut sang as they joined them on their Zippleback. The remainder of the flock that had accompanied them had already departed.
"Look at us! We're on a dragon!" Tuffnut jubilantly announced. Stoick looked flabbergasted. It was a sight he had never expected to see in all his life.
Suddenly Spitelout pointed. "Ships! They'll catch us! I'll betcha didn't count on this, did ya, Dragon King?"
Hiccup laughed for real this time. "After all we just did you're worried about two ships? We're well out of range, Spitelout, so just relax. And if my calculations are correct, Grimm and Evictus should be finishing up with those two right about now." Sure enough, the Timberjack and Skrill came swooping towards them.
"Did you enjoy yourself, Evictus? Did you throw lots of people overboard?"
Evictus looked very proud of himself.
On Berserk a heavily bandaged Drago furiously watched the dragons leave. The fireworks had sent the men scurrying for cover, but did little damage. Not that that was any comfort, given how everything else had.
"This is not the end!" he roared after the fleeing figures. "This is only the beginning!"
Dagur had finally gotten his act together, had realized what had happened and thrown more people into the ocean, then finally got a salvage party organized. Alvin was off somewhere, either getting drunk or beating and berating guards or possibly both, so Drago was alone with nothing to do but think.
He was not a man who liked failing, but he believed himself smart enough to learn from it. He did not, however, ever admit that the failings were his fault. His plan had been perfectly sound, but the fools working for him had botched it up. It was not his fault! It was all because Dagur had not installed launchers that could fire high enough! It was because Alvin had not properly organized the guards! It was because the guards and Vikings were a bunch of fools and weaklings and cowards! If they had acted with the proper amount of strength and will this would never have happened! He wished he had different allies or no allies at all, but for the moment he was stuck with them.
"As for the King, he's smart, I'll give him that, but I'll show him." Drago growled. He gingerly touched his burned face. He had to admit those gauntlets had been very remarkable. He would have to build a pair for himself someday. "He can't pull the same trick twice and expect it to work." He thought for a minute about his backup plans, but knew it would do him little good right now. The destruction out in the harbor put an end to sea travel for a while, so until Adoncia returned, he would be stranded on Berserker.
"He's bought himself a respite, yes, but it's only a respite." He grinned at the memory of torturing him, "and I made him pay pretty heavily for it!"
Out over the ocean the Dragon King might have agreed with Drago. Now that the excitement was over the King began to feel the reaction setting in. He had almost forgotten his injuries during the escape. He had been so busy and so full of adrenaline that he had barely given a thought to his condition. Now that he could, however, his body began to ache horribly. He'd probably reopened most of his wounds from the cells, and his arm and shoulder started to throb. In fact, most of his body began to throb and burn. His breathing grew ragged and short, and despite the fact it was night he began to sweat and feel feverish.
Since the King was in the front of the group, nobody seemed aware of his condition. Spitelout was shouting about how much he hated this and would rather be back in his cell (something the normally tolerant Shamrock was starting to wish as well). Fishlegs and the Twins were trying to tell Astrid, Stoick, and Snotlout about what had happened while trying to get information out of them. It was proving difficult to hear with the wind blowing in their ears, so Stoick finally told them to wait until later to talk, and each was left to their own thoughts.
Snotlout was trying to figure out what to make of his cousin. Up until today he had seen Hiccup as, well, Hiccup the Useless. Such a title summed up his contempt and disdain for him. But now he saw a brave man who had ignored his own pains and had taken the trouble to save him, to save a man who had made his life horrible at every possible moment. It was as if everything Snotlout had known up until today had been taken away from him. He had been scared in those cells and during the escape, and there had been moments where he wanted to run rather than fight, but to see his weak runt of a cousin fight as if it was child's play, even after being flogged and beaten! He felt something he had never truly felt before: shame.
He overheard snatches of a conversation between the Twins and Fishlegs. Evidently they had discovered such a love for flying and the excitement that came with it that they were resolved to get dragons on Berk or go with Hiccup to the Sanctuary. He wondered if he would go with them. It was not as though there was much for him on Berk, after all. He was clearly not going to be the Chief now at any rate; he sensed the debate would shift to Hiccup verses Astrid. This would make his father even more of a pain to live with, whereas Hiccup had been awfully civil to him during the escape. And he had not deserved any of it. Gods, he had never felt such self loathing before.
The Nightmare grunted slightly. He felt a strange sense of freedom riding him. Perhaps it was how everyone felt on the back of a flying dragon, for he recalled Astrid had made similar statements when describing her first flight. Whatever it was, he found himself enjoying it, and decided that he agreed with Fishlegs and the Twins. 'Let the dragons come to Berk and let me continue to ride Hookfang,' he thought, 'we're Vikings, we can handle it.'
He wondered what his father would think about it. Actually, on second thought, he did not wonder about it. He knew what his father would think about it. The thing to wonder about was what was he going to do about it?
Authors Note and Replies:
This version of Drago has a habit of never blaming himself when things go wrong. A very bad habit to get into when you're trying to work with people who have a contradictory opinion.
To the reader Aiacco: Yes, I occasionally make some references in this story, but no, Hercules was not the inspiration behind that Greek tragedy remark. Actually, I think inspiration for that part came from the brilliant miniseries "I Claudius." One character comments that the Imperial family sounds like a Greek tragedy because all the family members are murdering each other.
To the reader Gwencarson126: Thanks for your compliments. Yes, there will be some HiccupxAstrid in the coming future. Some of your questions I leave for the coming chapters to answer, but I'm very glad you noticed Hiccup's reaction to that question about Fort Flay, because it was written that way intentionally.