I neither own nor claim any rights to "How to Train Your Dragon"

Jarin and the Riders of Berk
Chapter 14 - To Ride The Wind

"Okay, my friend," Shadowhorn heard Jarin say as he felt his two-leg pat him on the side of his neck. "We've been working towards this for days. I want you to know that whatever happens, I am proud of you, and I love you." As always, the sounds coming out of Jarin's mouth meant nothing, but the pure essence of thought conveyed the meaning, and more importantly, the truth behind it. He felt Jarin's pride and joy over his recovery, and he felt his love. It was the strongest and most sincere love that any friend could have for another, and for the first time, Shadowhorn thanked the Creator-of-All for every day of his life, including the seemingly endless days of torment at the hands of the despised ones. Each event was a stepping stone that led him here, to this place he would forever after call his home, and to a people who he would forever call his friends, and to Jarin who he would now and forever call his brother.

To fly again, thought Shadowhorn. I will soar through the sky and help my people bring down the despised ones, and free the one who welcomed me to this, his home... OUR home.

"Are you ready?" Jarin asked him, and he crooned in affirmation. "Then let's fly."

The plan was to run towards the cliff, gaining speed. The cliff dropped off to the ocean and was deep enough that if his wings were still too weak to support his weight in the air, that both he and Jarin would survive the fall. He knew that he would not be able to stay in the air long. Jarin had explained to him that just as it took time for him to gain strength to stand and walk again, it would also take time for his wings to regain their strength. He also knew that it was possible that even as much as they had worked together to exercise his wings, this may not work today. But he was determined to try.

He started forward, gaining speed and flapping his wings, the cliff edge coming closer and closer. He HAD to do this. Closer

Closer...

Closer...

NOW!

He leaped into the air off the edge of the cliff, and began plummeting towards the ocean. "NO!" he shouted, though he knew that all Jarin would have heard was an angry roar... This cannot happen. I cannot fail. I WILL not fail.

He flapped his wings harder and managed to level out and begin slowing the fall... The descent stopped and he began to rise... "YES!" he shouted again, with what he knew was a roar of triumph.

"Excellent, Shadowhorn!" Jarin cheered him, and he reveled in the mirth. He extended his wings and began to soar. He had seen two-legs weep tears of joy. If he had tears to weep, he would be weeping them now. For so long he was certain he would never fly again, and here he was, riding the wind once more. And he was sharing the experience with Jarin, who was just as thrilled as he was. NOW he understood why Toothless said he never wanted to fly without Hiccup.

The joy began to fade as he began to feel the vibration of strained muscles building up in his wings... Not to be undone, he gracefully swung around and began heading back to the top of the cliff. I won't crash... I won't crash... I won't crash. He repeated in his mind over and over like a litany to ward off an undesired fate. It must have worked, because he slowed at the last second and touched down with only a slight stumble. He felt Jarin swing off his neck and saw him come up in front of him, a huge grin on his face. He reached out with both hands, and placed them on either side if his face. There were tears in his eyes.

Shadowhorn became aware that while he was airborne, a small crowd had gathered to watch, and they were cheering and applauding wildly, clearly overjoyed at his achievement.

O O O

Hiccup approached Jarin who had cupped Shadowhorn's face in his hands and was staring into the dragon's eyes. "I am very pleased with the work you have done with Shadowhorn, Jarin," he said. "He's remarkable."

"Thanks, Hiccup," Jarin said. "Even though he can fly again, I am afraid that he is not yet ready for combat."

Hiccup nodded. "We're not going into combat."

Jarin looked confused. "We're not?"

"No," said Hiccup. "The more I thought about it, the more this whole thing feels like a trap. I cannot take the chance on sending so many Dragons away, not knowing what that madman is up to. For all we know, he may be waiting for us to weaken ourselves and take an opportunity to strike. It's my dad he's holding. I know that. But as much as I want to go charging in to break him out of there, I must see to it that Berk remains safe.

"So I have an assignment for you. As the sun begins to set tonight, I want you and Tarina..." he sighed and took a deep breath. "...to take Toothless and fly to that island. Find out what you can about where he's being held. If you can get him out, then by all means do so. But at the very least, I need an experienced Rider's observation of the land.

"Come with me, and I'll give you a crash course in learning to control the tail fin. You shouldn't have to worry about anything fancy. You'll be going in under the cover of night, and I do not know of any other dragon that can be as stealthy as Toothless, except for a changewing, but they can turn invisible, so it's an even match.

"If you need to get out of there, rely on his speed above all else. They don't ride dragons, so a short burst of speed and you are out of their range."

Jarin nodded. "What if we are caught?"

Hiccup fixed him with an expression that seemed foreign to him, but typically seemed right at home on his father's face. "Don't get caught."

Jarin sighed, his shoulders slumping. This was going to be interesting.

O O O

Now that he could move about on his own free will, Shadowhorn decided that he would spend time in the town. While the shade room at the Academy would never feel like the dungeon he was chained up in for all that time, it was beginning to feel a little cramped. He wanted to sleep under the stars tonight, and he was interested in finding Skydancer, the spinetail he met on his first outing and had spoken with in passing a few times since. Not that he could fly again, the two-legs didn't think he needed to be escorted around, so he was finally free to wander about. There was a promise of going fishing he intended to keep. And now he could...

He snapped out of his daydream and noticed that Jarin and Hiccup, were speaking quietly, the former looking concerned and the latter looking authoritative. He couldn't hear them, but he could sense the general vibe of their thoughts. It was not pleasant. He watched Hiccup turn away, leaving Jarin standing with shoulders slumped. His two-leg had done all he could to make him happy, so he wanted to return the favor. He stepped forward and rested his chin on Jarin's shoulder.

Jarin reached up and patted the dragon on the cheek. "well, friend," he said. "I'm leaving tonight with Tarina to take care of something. I may be gone for a while. I wish I could take you with me, but you still need a lot of exercise before your wings are strong enough."

The joy that Shadowhorn was feeling melted away. His two-leg leaving? Where was he going. With her? Why? Her... THERE! "NO!" he wailed, though he knew it came out as a mournful wail.

"It's okay, my friend," Jarin said. "I promise that when we get back, we'll go flying again. And you'll get stronger and it won't be long before I'll get to take you with me when I have to go do things like this. You'll be fine"

Shadowhorn didn't feel fine. The enthusiasm he had for going into the town was gone. Now all he wanted to do was curl up where he was and just die. His two-leg was going THERE. Home of the despised ones. He knew it had something to do with the chief being in trouble there. But no creature of good conscience needed to go THERE. He moaned forlornly at Jarin.

"I promise you that I will be back." Jarin said.

"Jarin," called hiccup. "Come on."

"Got to go, friend," Jarin said to Shadowhorn. "I need to learn to ride Toothless."

So Toothless would be carrying Jarin and Tarina to THAT place. That gave Shadowhorn some reassurance. He had yet to see the Darkwing in action, but the other Dragons spoke of Toothless with almost reverant respect, and a measure of fear. Clearly they knew what he was capable of, and it was truly well that Toothless was going with Jarin. He would worry about his two-leg's safety, of course. But the odds of him actually coming home had just gone up. And then they would be together, to ride the wind again.

O O O

Jarin was a quick learner. The instructions Hiccup gave him were clear and concise, as well they should be from the person who literally wrote a book on Dragon Riding. Of course, the book did not include pedal positions for riding Toothless. It was written for those in mind who would be riding dragons not suffering from a handicap like Toothless suffered

Toothless was patient and enthusiastic with Jarin in control. Though Jarin's bond was with Shadowhorn alone, he felt that the Night Fury trusted him. He may be a junior Trainer and novice rider by the standards of those who rode against the Red Death, but he knew what he was doing, and Toothless clearly felt that.

They were coming around to land when they saw somethimg they did not expect. On the horizon and coming closer was a Monstrous Nightmare.

"Jarin, move to intercept," Hiccup ordered from behind him, and Jarin did as instructed. As they drew closer the were met with a most pleasant surprise. On the back of the Monstrous Nightmare was none other than Stoick the Vast himself...

Come on now... Did you really think that someone like Stoick would need to be rescued like some damsel in distress? While Hiccup had been spending several days preparing for some sort of infiltration, it stands to reason that Stoick would not have just been content to languish in a dungeon. The truth is I sort of wrote myself into a corner with this, and it really makes sense for Stoick to find his own way out of the situation he found himself in.

Just because Stoick manages to escape on his own does not mean the problems with the despised ones are over. I've got plans that invove them.

Please give feedback, and thanks for reading.

By the way... I feel the need to give a shout out to Cke1st. I've been immensely enjoying "Snart's Saga". I want to clarify that I used the name "Skydancer" for a female Nadder that Shadowhorn meets before I started reading your work. The name just seemed to fit a Nadder, and that was the sole reason for my choice for it. If you would prefer that I rename the Nadder I will gladly do so when I give the series an editing pass. Thanks for a great story.