Disclaimer: the Characters of How to Train Your Dragon belong to Dreamworks

Everything else is by Travis Church

Silence filled the grand hall and Ilias felt his own fears grow with each and every beat of his heart. But he felt something inside the silence: fear. Were these people afraid of what he had just said? They should be, there is no reason why they should not. But he may have unearthed a fear that had been long dead. There is something out there that is worse than their Green Death.

"Why should we believe you? Or your story?" Stoic stepped forward to question the elder. "How do you know that there is something that horrible? Maybe you've mixed up the Rage with the Green Death."

"I can assure you my host," Stoic winced at the word, "The Rage and the Green Death are two completely different entities with two different purposes."

"How?" A Viking in the crowd asked.

"The Green Death is but a product of the Rage. The Green Death's purpose on this mortal plain is to survive like any other creature whereas the Rage's purpose is to annihilate the mortal plain that we stand on."

"I've had enough of this!" Stoic bellowed. "Get them out of here and put them in the barracks! I'm not sure what you're trying to do or who you're trying to fool," he said stepping forward to confront the duo. "But I'm not dealing with this anymore."

"But-" Ilias pleaded.

"No! We shall decide your fate later, you are no longer welcome here."

Ilias was lead by a Viking and Decessus hauled up by two others. When they left Stoic called forth everyone of importance to the meeting chambers.

Stoic lead them to a door and opened it furiously, he waited for eleven Viking men to take their seats at a wooden table and waited a bit longer. When the village elder stepped forward and entered the room, everyone stood up and greeted her.

Knowing that there was not a single warrior in absence, he shut the door and sat down at the side of the elder.

One Viking with a wild beard started, "What if they're spies?"

Another one continued off the assumption, "What if they're scouts for another people?"

Then an additional Viking jumped in, "What if they're both!"

"Silence!" Stoic bellowed, "We cannot judge who these people are yet. But we can say that they have been lying to us."

A softer voice chimed in, "Maybe they do mean well?"

"And throw a myth that there is something worse than the Green Death?" The Viking across from him said. "I have lived through invasions, plagues, and blizzards. But I have never seen something worse than the Green Death."

The arguments raged on, even Stoic was caught up in the furor, but when the village elder raised a thin hand up the chaos ended. "Stoic," her aged voice crooned, "how is your boy doing?"

Not wanting to offend the elder by ignoring her question, he replied, "He's fine. I mean, he's had these screaming fits at night. But he's leg's better now and-"

"What screaming?" She stopped him.

"He says it's a nightmare, but I think it's about that day we killed the Green Death."

"Interesting, bring him here. We shall not utter a word until Hiccup is here." She pointed to a man on the opposite side of her and he left the room for Hiccup. He returned moments later and Hiccup awkwardly strode before the gathering. "Hiccup," she began, "Tell us about your nightmares."

Surprised at the village elder's question about his dreams, he paused for a moment to recall every event. "Well sometimes I dream I'm falling off Toothless and he's too far away to catch me. And sometimes I dream that the Green Death is right in front of me. But I had this one dream where I was wandering these tunnels and when I got out of the tunnel, Berk was on fire. I went back into the tunnels and just ran." He stopped to remind himself that they were only dreams. "But I'm okay."

"Was there smoke in the latter dream?"

Astonished by her inquiry, he responded, "Yes."

"Was it thick ugly smoke? Like when we burn large trees?"

"Yeah."

"What about the tunnels? When you returned to the tunnels, how long were you traveling? Roughly a month's time?"

"Yes! Wait, how do you know all of this?"

She ignored Hiccup's question and spoke, "Bring the two from the barracks. We must speak to them."

She pointed to the same warrior and two others and they went off to retrieve the strangers. This time, they heard shouting outside the chamber and when they returned Ilias was calmly escorted to the front of the table while Decessus was thrown down to the floor next to the merchant.

"Ilias Ibn Khaldun al Safi," his attention was distracted momentarily as he helped Decessus to his feet. "What is the Rage?"

"Explain yourself."

"What is the Rage exactly? It's shape, it's character, it's potential for destruction. What is it?"

"Well," he finished dusting of his companion, "The Rage in my vision is this hulking demon. It resided inside of a volcano, which I am absolutely sure that the volcano is the one where the Green Death once took residence within, somewhere seven days off of here. Not a single mortal could find the Rage for it was nestled inside pillars of stone and unnatural Earth. The smoke that would be created by the Rage would only be hidden inside the layers of fog surrounding it. It has tentacles that reach out in every direction, spanning the length of thirty days of travel by boat. The fire is impossible to quell as its flames are inhuman and originate from the dawn of the world's creation. The nexus of the Rage is within that volcano and that is what I am sure of."

He finished his glib and awaited the mockery and the barrage of questions. But the village elder stopped the inevitable flood with her hand. "Ilias Ibn Khaldun al Safi and Decessus, I have no doubt that you are both traders and merchants. But this mission, this righteous mission of yours, has some credibility."

"What!" Many of the warriors exclaimed.

Not to be dissuaded, "Your description of this Rage matches young Hiccup's numerous nightmares."

"It does?" He squeaked.

"We have long believed in fate and her mystical plans for us. I knew at Hiccup's birth that he would be the one most affected by fate's decisions. If there is indeed a message from the Gods, Hiccup would have received it for he is blessed with fate's good will. Fate has brought us Hiccup and thus ending the dragon war. Fate has also unfortunately brought this horrible future to light. But it is not fate that shall end this, it shall be man. Ilias Ibn Khaldun al Safi and Decessus," she paused, "you are on a task that shall not be stopped by any mortal. Who are we to stop you? But if such a beast is unleashed upon the world because we idled as you risked your life, the honor that our ancestors have given us means nothing."

"Thank you for your acceptance of our mission." Ilias bowed to the village elder.

"My approval means nothing," she stopped, "In the face of death. Is there anything that we can provide you?"

"What!" One Viking exclaimed as he jumped from his chair, "They cannot-"

"We need an expeditionary force," Decessus offered while gripping his chest to speak.

"There is no way that-"

"You and your expeditionary force receive my blessings." The elder interrupted the same Viking. The room fell to silence as she made her decree. "Stoic, what I am about to say shall be very difficult to hear. Fate calls forward those who have been endowed with a task. No one is above that call. Fate has brought young Hiccup the visions of the Rage for some reason because he must find it. Stoic," she placed her shriveled hand on his large hand, "You must have Hiccup and Toothless go with them to find the Rage." His eyes hardened with concern at the request. "Stoic, you must do this."

"I understand village elder."

"But yet I see that you do not wish it to be, are you defiant?"

"No," he grimly denied, "I just wish it were not so."

She nodded and then proceeded, "Ilias Ibn Khaldun al Safi, how long shall it take to prepare your voyage."

"Decessus, what is your estimate?"

He counted in his mind and said plainly, "We can leave within the hour if we have some help getting supplies."

"Then what do you need?" Stoic asked.

Taken off guard by his sudden helpfulness, "Salt, meat or fish, vegetables, our things still at your guest room, wood, and flint."

"We shall deliver the supplies to your boat. Anything else?"

"No, that should be it." Decessus said.

"Then we'll get the supplies, I'll escort you to the room and Hiccup will begin to prepare for the voyage. Let's get moving."

They all moved out the meeting chamber to prepare for their journey out. Before he left, the village elder stopped him with her large staff. "Are you prepared for what is now Hiccup's mission?"

He stopped, and without looking back at her, he replied, "Who am I to let be in the way of fate's plans?" He continued to walk out the door, leaving her to question his motives.


The moon began to rise over Berk and doused the town in its sickly light. Ilias and Decessus worked quickly to vacate Stoic's home while the rest of the Vikings moved to collect the supplies.

"Hiccup?"

He looked up from Toothless's saddle to hear Stoic behind him. He opened the dragon stable doors fully and walked slowly over to his son.

"Hiccup, I hope you don't get hurt." Stoic said curtly.

"Uhh, thanks Dad. I won't." He finished latching some final pieces to the saddle.

"The day you fought the Green Death, I didn't know if you would come back. I prayed, Gods knew how many favors I asked of them, I prayed that you would return in one piece. But I knew that there was no fairness in that deal. So I prayed again," Hiccup stopped working, "I prayed that you come back to me unbroken. See there is a difference between a broken man and a wounded man. Gobber is a wounded man and he still runs the blacksmith shop. But, a broken man, a broken man is someone who has no purpose of life. They are shells of the past and remains of what were. I could not have that happen to you, my son, my only son!" Hiccup thought he heard sniffling, "So I pleaded that you come back unbroken and asked the Gods to do whatever they may but leave my boy unbroken!" Stoic bellowed to the night and stopped.

Hiccup turned around and faced his father, his now crying father.

"And so I pray again," he whispered, "Please come back to me unbroken."

Hiccup hobbled to him and gave him a comforting hug. They shared a moment in prayer in the cold Berkian night. "Dad," he mumbled from Stoic's clothing, "I will. I promise."

With that he broke the hug and lead Toothless past his father and outside the stables.

The walk to the shoreline was one of burning anticipation. They met Ilias and Decessus loading boxes onto the ship.

"Are you prepared to embark Hic-cough?" He and Toothless nodded, "Excellent, we shall travel for a few hours and then when you and your dragon feel the need to rest, you tell us so that way I may prepare an area for your respite.

And as the ship pushed off the shore, Hiccup boarded his dragon and prepared to fly away. Giving his final goodbyes to his father and his friends, he told Toothless to take to the sky.

They sailed and flew away for the hateful burning.

A/N: This is now the end of part one! I knew that First Truth was not enough to really close everything together. So consider this to be the real end of part one!

A big thank you to A Frumious Bandersnatch (where's that bando fic! I want bandos!), Spyden for his critiques, and eliasdarklight for recently adding this to their favorite list which has a very good selection of fanfiction.

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