Chapter Two
Burgus was never an island at peace. Twenty years ago, the wife of Chief Volstaf had passed on after giving birth to their only daughter, and the future heir to Burgus. When she died, Volstaf had disowned his daughter, and thus, began the chain of events that followed.
When Stoick the Vast arrived and announced that Volstaf's daughter was alive and living on Berk, it stirred a frenzy within the island. People were panicking as they realized what their 'fair' Chief had done. And worse, what they had done to his own daughter. A few months after the big reveal, their once proud community was torn apart during a raid. The few people who survived were left wondering if this was a curse sent by Odin himself.
Was Odin angry with them for what they had done? If so, then he made a very valid argument. Less than twenty people had survived the worst raid in Viking history. Dragons were slain and left to rot in the sun. Villagers who fought valiantly lay where they too were slain by the dragons. The blood-stained ground would never look the same after that terrible week. The people of Burgus didn't even get a chance to perform a proper vigil when a second wave hit. This time in the form of Dagur the Deranged.
He had taken what was left of the survivors, believing they were all captured or killed. Little did he suspect that a few, vigilant young adults had managed to escape. Now, they were hiding in one of the caves that was once ruled by dragons. The very same cave where Aniu grew up with her family. Karn Larson, Layla Grimm, Rose Grimm, Aster Hawthorn, and Killian Günther were the very last true survivors of Burgus. A very meager, and pathetic number.
"We have to do something," Layla whispered as she peered around the corner of their cave. Dagur had yet to discover their hiding place, but it was only a matter of time before he or his men found them. They were lucky, though. Karn was the one who had fought off Dagur's men when they started overpowering Killian, who had lost his sword during the first raid. "I'm tired of sitting around and waiting for him to find us. This is nerve-wracking."
"What exactly are we supposed to do?" Karn demanded, glaring at the brunette as she looked at the ground shamefully. Karn was covered in several wounds and old scars, but he showed them with pride rather than shame. One fine cut on his cheek was still fresh, courtesy of fighting Dagur's men. "Would you rather leap out of our hiding place and give away our position? I'm sure Dagur would love that. In fact, he might promote you to one of his top warriors!"
"Karn, that's enough," Killian snapped. "Arguing isn't going to get us anywhere. Our families didn't die for us to rip each other's throats out." Karn lowered his raised weapon after realizing that Killian was right. As much as he hated to admit it, they needed each other in order to survive this damned island. Dagur certainly wasn't the only threat out there, and if a dragon decided to stay in the cave for the night, they were screwed.
"Alright, I see your point," he muttered crossly, then he joined Rose and Aster as they looked at him solemnly. They had faced the worst of the devastation: Rose for being taken by Dagur himself, and almost killed until Killian came to her rescue, and Aster for almost being killed by a Monstrous Nightmare. He had a nasty burn mark on one side of his face where the Nightmare had blasted him with fire.
"I wish Zena was here," Rose said, her voice so quiet that everyone had to strain to hear her. "She would know what to do." Karn only scoffed at the mention of Zena… though if he was being honest, he would admit that he missed her too.
He'd always had a crush on Zena, from the first time he'd met her. But the chance of actually getting together with her was slim. She'd chosen to go with that traitor, and the Berkians. He had no doubt that the dragons had taken her, and secretly hoped that they had.
"Well, Zena isn't here. So we have to work together, and fight for our survival," Aster pointed out, brushing off the dust from his tunic. "We're all that's left of Burgus, and we aren't going to let it fall to ruin."
Everyone threw him wary looks when he said that. Whatever fate the Gods had placed on their shoulders, they would have to fight this battle together. They weren't going to admit that they needed help. Not anytime soon, at least.
…
"Alright, just one time, and I promise you can call the shots after this," Aniu said as Cybele soared over the island of Berk. She and Cybele had been working on some new techniques with the flight suit that Hiccup had designed for her. And one of them happened to include practicing her archery while spinning mid-air. If she could open up the flight suit and fire arrows, it gave her a huge advantage in battle.
"I don't know if this is a good idea," Cybele warbled, looking worried as Aniu got ready to jump. "Remember what happened the last few times?"
"Cybele, I'm never going to learn anything if I don't take risks and learn from my mistakes," Aniu pointed out. That was something Valka had taught her, when they first met. "Besides, I think I can make this work if I get the altitude right."
Cybele didn't look happy as Aniu had her fly higher, until they reached the top of the mountains that were covered in snow all year round. Once Cybele had reached the proper height, and was flying over the area where Aniu had placed several targets for practice, she leveled out. Aniu had to adjust her quiver so that it didn't get in the way of her flight suit. She had learned the first time that it was more than just a distraction, and almost crashed into the ocean until Cybele caught her.
With one graceful leap, Aniu twisted in the air and pulled open her flight suit as she grabbed her bow. She let out a yelp of surprise and sheer happiness as she found herself soaring alongside Cybele. Cybele just gave her a look that said she wasn't going to enjoy seeing what happened next.
Aniu didn't care. The moment she was soaring through the air, she pulled on the bow string. The arrow was aimed at her nearest target, strapped just under a tree. Once fired, the arrow hit its target head-on.
"Aniu, look out!" Cybele's warning almost came too late. Aniu had been so focused on firing her arrow that she didn't notice the mountain coming up a little too fast for her liking. Luckily, Cybele was able to catch up with her before she crashed head-first into the mountain.
"I almost had it that time," Aniu gasped as Cybele landed in a clearing down below. The female Night Fury only shook her head and grumbled under her breath in annoyance.
"Yes, until I had to catch you, again," she muttered crossly. "Do you remember what Toothless said about catching Hiccup all those times? They were not pleasant moments."
Aniu smirked at that, knowing full well Hiccup would have kept trying no matter what. He wasn't a quitter, that's for sure. She let out a sigh of contentment and rolled onto her back while Cybele rested in the warm sun.
Days like these made her wish they would last forever. It was just another carefree day with her best friend/sister. But Aniu had made a commitment to the people of Berk, as well as her future husband. Not that she didn't mind spending time with the people of Berk. They had become much more accepting of dragons and humans who could speak with dragons over the past few months.
"We should probably go back," Aniu sighed when she realized how late it was getting. She didn't spend much time in the village itself. She was still uncomfortable around people, and Hiccup had taken notice. To her relief, he hadn't pressed why she was so uncomfortable. But she knew that it was only a matter of time before they started asking questions.
Cybele was all too happy to oblige, ready to see her mate who was back in the village with the Chief. Once they had taken off, Aniu almost wished that they could stay up in the air longer. This was perfect flying weather. The breeze wasn't too strong, and it was oddly warm out. Warm weather on Berk was a rare occasion, and one that people usually took advantage of.
"Morning, Aniu," Zena greeted them cheerfully the moment they landed in the village plaza. "I see you're hard at work with the new flight suit," she added with a knowing smirk. Shockwave was standing right beside her, growling in contentment as she placed a hand on his snout. "Hiccup's at the stables if you wanna go see him."
"How's the new saddle working for Shockwave?" Aniu asked when the Skrill looked at her pointedly. Skrills were probably the most unique dragons Aniu had ever seen. Zena's in particular was feisty, but he had a gentle nature that was different from what the Book of Dragons mentioned. Most Skrills weren't the most social of dragons, so to see him getting along with Cybele and Toothless was even more unusual.
"It works perfectly," Zena replied cheerfully. "I never would've thought of making the straps out of rubber instead of metal… Hiccup told me that metal conducts electricity, so it makes sense to change the straps."
Aniu nodded in agreement, realizing that there were so many things that Hiccup had discovered thanks to dragons. Skrills were able to create electricity that was supercharged from the spines on their necks. That was why they were drawn to thunderstorms, and every few months, Zena would take Shockwave out to sea just for that reason.
Once Zena was finished experimenting with said rubber straps, she and Shockwave took off towards the rest of the Riders who were patrolling the island. Some had gone off to the Edge where a second colony of Riders was started. Aniu had learned over the last few years that to keep themselves busy, Hiccup and the other Riders had found a place where they could explore the rest of the archipelago, and discover the use of an object called the Dragon's Eye.
Sure enough, as she walked down the side of a rocky cliff, Aniu could see Toothless waiting inside the dragon stables. She exchanged one look with Cybele before making her way down towards the stables. Aniu's eyes narrowed with wariness when she saw Valka there as well, with Cloudjumper at her side.
"It is good to see that you've made it back alive, young Rider," Cloudjumper growled as he spotted the two of them. Aniu tilted her head to one side until she caught the knowing look Valka was giving her. She hadn't even realized that Valka would watch them, or that she wouldn't tell Hiccup about their little adventure, either.
"What's going on?" she asked after noticing that the stables were more crowded than usual.
"We found a Monstrous Nightmare badly wounded along the beach," Hiccup explained as he led her, Valka, Cloudjumper and Cybele towards one of the stables. "Turns out, he was holding onto something for dear life."
Aniu rose an eyebrow at that, realizing that there was indeed a reddish orange Monstrous Nightmare, similar to Hookfang, but different at the same time, resting in one of the stables. Valka must have calmed him down enough for them to bring him down here, because the injuries he received were horrifying.
"We haven't been able to pry the sword out of his talons, just yet," Valka added as she joined them, eyes falling upon the object in question. Aniu frowned as she leaned forward to get a closer look at the weapon. Her eyes lit up with recognition when she was able to make out the identity marks on the blade itself.
"That weapon was branded in Burgus," she whispered, earning a look of alarm from Hiccup, and a look of confusion from Valka.
"They're still at war with the dragons," Hiccup sighed after realizing that she was right. Together, they were able to pry the sword out of the Monstrous Nightmare's talons while Valka calmed him down. The language he spoke was too vulgar for Aniu to repeat out loud. He was not happy about being held 'captive', especially when it was humans who had inflicted such serious injuries.
"I don't understand, why would dragons still be attacking Burgus, when there's no reason for them to?" Toothless asked.
"Because we do not have a choice," the Monstrous Nightmare growled in response. "The Queen would have us attack again and again if necessary. She does not like human interference."
Aniu's eyes widened in alarm as she realized where he was getting at. She exchanged a look with the dragons, then translated to Hiccup what he had said. Valka had learned a bit of Dragonese thanks to Aniu, but it wasn't enough for her to understand what the Nightmare had said.
"Queen… does he mean another Red Death is out there?" Hiccup asked anxiously. Aniu bit the bottom of her lip before asking the Monstrous Nightmare if he had a description of the dragon that had given them 'permission' to attack Burgus. And sure enough, his description matched that of a Red Death almost perfectly.
"Another Red Death… Hiccup, if there is one near Burgus, then we need to stop her." As much as she hated the people of Burgus for what they had done to her, they didn't deserve annihilation.
"How do we even know if he's telling the truth?" Cloudjumper asked, tilting his head curiously to one side.
"That's a good question," Cybele admitted.
"I think we need to hold a meeting in the Great Hall," Hiccup sighed after thinking it through. "Even if he isn't telling the truth, Burgus is still at war with dragons. There might be a way to convince them that dragons aren't a threat."
Aniu wasn't too fond with the idea of convincing Burgus otherwise. But she knew that it would help if they stopped hurting the dragons for no reason. This Monstrous Nightmare was just another example of human intolerance. She knew now that dragons and humans could get along, if they were open-minded enough.
AN: So, there's the next chapter... I'm already looking forward to delving more into the island of Burgus, and possibly even more of Aniu's past. Should certainly be interesting to see what you lovely readers think of it :) At any rate, huge thanks to everyone who added this to your favorites and follows list.
Retrokill - Thanks for your review :)
MMM - You're almost spot-on with your guess about her past :) As for the wedding, unfortunately, it might not be happening for a while, along with a child. I've still got quite a few chapters planned before the real excitement begins ;)