Siren

I quickly mounted Toothless as soon as all of the other riders took off. He was glowing a deep blue, and his wings were spread out. He immediately lifted off the ground and we flew toward Drago's boat, which was still there. Drago's back was to us, and I could still see blood dripping. I took out my sword and held it with my right, readying my left to fight. I'd learned through a shogun that it was good to know how to fight with boat hands as one hand could be injured, then you wouldn't be able to fight.

Toothless went down swiftly, and very slowly, I thrust the sword through Dagur. It was only then that I noticed something I should've realized when Alf shot Dagur and his arm fell in the water way too easily: It wasn't the real Dagur Bludvist. It was a dummy.

We'd been duped.

Where was the real Drago? He had to be on one of the ships.

But which one was it?

"You gotta help me here, bud. We have to find Drago." Toothless growled deeply. I could imagine his eyes becoming narrow slits, like they did when he was angry. We flew to the first and foremost of the ships. It was a large, dominating ship, with a ferocious dragon as its mast and huge spikes sticking through out the ship. It was the largest one out of all the ships, and I figured that the larger it was, the more likely Drago was on it.

I remember we flew so fast that my teeth were chattering from the cold, even though I tried to stop, it just wouldn't. I could feel goosebumps as I jumped off Toothless and landed on my right foot, kneeling on the ship. I felt a jolt of pain rush through my foot, and I could feel water dripping from my eyes. A flash of lightning boomed as I stood, and silently, I prayed to Odin for good luck. I was wearing a fingerless yak glove on my right hand, and I rubbed it for good luck. I then took it off and threw it on the deck.

"Odin, make this be my day. Help me kill Drago," I prayed.

Looking back now, I don't know how I thought throwing off the yak glove would give me good luck. I guess war does make you crazy sometimes.

I ran straight ahead for the first door I saw and kicked it down. Behind the door was a man with a red beard and green eyes. His skin was very pale, so pale that you could see his veins bulge out. He was shirtless, with only a very thin pair of pants to wear. I grabbed his shoulders and looked him in the eye.

"Where is Drago? Tell me or I'll make sure you lose a lot of blood," I said, gritting my teeth. I still can vividly remember the look in his eyes: No fear, just blank staring.

"I will," he said. HIs accent didn't sound like a Nordic one. I remembered those Viking Celts I'd met. The Celts had accents similar to his. Many had red hair and green eyes like he did. Could he be a Viking Celt?

I immediately felt skeptical: What if he was trying to get me killed by Drago? But then I remembered Eret, son of Eret. He worked for Drago, but was actually a good person who maybe didn't have another option for whatever reason. It could be the same with this man.

Or it could be different.

I gripped my sword very tightly. "If you do anything silly, it'll be your head rolling on this very deck. Understood?"

The man nodded. "Call me Llewlyn."

"Siren," I said, "Siren of the Hooligans, daughter of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, Dragon Conqueror and Chief of Berk. Bow down in fear at the sound of his name."

"Your father waged war against Drago many years ago, I believe?" Llewlyn said.

"Yes," I said. "And tonight, it'll end with Drago's head in my hands."

"Good. Many of us were waiting for this day."

I nodded. My instinct told me I could trust him, but I still had to be careful. He could still betray me.

"Drago is in the room directly to our left. Your appearance will take him by surprise," Llewlyn said.

"Alright," I said, breathing heavily, my chest swelling. "But mark my words: If you are lying, your head will end up like Drago's will."

Llewlyn nodded. "Yes."

My foot throbbing heavily, I kicked down the door directly left to the one Llewlyn was in, and I heard a gasp. A flash of thunder struck behind me, and I could see it was Drago Bludvist. It was the real man.

"It ends tonight, Drago," I said quietly, trying to sound more confident than I actually was. Drago was a big man compared to me, a skinny little stick.

I limped as I took a step forward and plunged my sword into Drago's side. I could hear a hiss of pain come as I was lifted off my feet by him.

"Well little girl. Do you really think you can stop me?" I could hear the venom in Drago's voice, and I can still hear it today. I don't know why, but at that moment, I could feel all my fear leave me. It was like a rush of...I don't know really. The luck of Odin, I suppose?

"Yes," I said, tightening my hold on the sword and raising. At that moment, I stabbed Drago's neck, and a sprout of blood erupted from his throat, splattering me and my face with it. I pulled the sword out as blood dripped down from it, then took another stab. This time, Drago dropped me and fell to the ground. I tried to get back up to both feet, but found, to my dismay, I was unable to. I got up to my knees and moved toward Drago, putting the sword down to make it easier and then picking it up again. I could hear groans coming from Drago's mouth. When I look back now, I find it scary how he could do that.

I raised the sword again and struck a hard blow to Drago's neck. Another boom of lightning came, and I could see Drago's severed head in a pool of blood.

I was right.

It had ended tonight, on July 23rd, just a few months before I'd turn seventeen.