Mildew glanced out of a large cave carefully as the grey Nightfury took off above him, flying out to sea before angling around the island slowly, he pushed his small boat off the beach, weaving between seas stacks carefully to avoid being spotted from the air, the plan required timing the girl would be above them within a half hour if that Nightfury matched Toothless.
His small boat clunked against a much larger boat and a ladder was lowered to him, he scrambled up it quickly and grinned.
"The dragon boy's back in the forest." Mildew announced calmly.
A wicked grin set across Alvin's face "Excellent."
Astrid glanced around herself, trying to make out anything over the ocean the spread around her, surely the Outcasts were coming, Mildew abandoning the weapons was just too coincidental, even if they had no way to prove the old man was working with them everything about the day just set her on edge, Ghost warbled and gestured with her head towards something and Astrid followed the dragons gaze.
Astrid's eyes widened, how did Outcast's ships get there?! There was no way they knew how to navigate the sea stacks? A net flew towards he quickly and Ghost shredded it with a quick blast as Astrid pulled back into the air, not wanting to relive falling off a dragon again as she sped over the island, she didn't know when they had landed but they weren't using the bays which meant no one was in a position to stop them.
She was trying to remember where that cave exited, where would the Outcasts like appear? Unfortunately there were just too many possibilities to narrow it down at all, she landed with a loud thud in the centre of Berk and her head snapped around, looking for Ruffnut and Fishlegs.
Had the Outcasts already been here? Were Fishlegs and Ruffnut already gone?
"Astrid?" The blonde calmed as the voice made its way to her ears curiously.
"The Outcasts are already here, they landed on the beach near the stacks and are using a massive cave!" Astrid said urgently
"I know the cave you're talking about, it comes out in two major areas in the eastern forest and one a little closer to Berk." Fishlegs sounded quickly
"Wait that means." Ruffnut started slowly.
Astrid's eyes widened "Hiccup!" She darted back to Ghost and launched onto the dragons back, Ghost turned her nose to the sky for half a second before launching into the sky.
"What are we going to do?" Ruffnut asked Fishlegs, she didn't have a dragon, they wouldn't be much help if they ran.
"Meatlug can carry two, we'll go to the cave closer to Berk and set off the firework so Tuff and Snotlout come to us." Fishlegs plotted calmly as he whistled sharply, Meatlug flopped onto the ground heavily and the two teens climbed onto her back.
Hiccup frowned at the ocean in front of him, he should have been able to see something by now or Astrid should have shown up to tell him if she found nothing, there's been no fireworks, was Alvin planning on not attacking at all?
A twig snapped and Hiccup's head snapped around he jumped back narrowly evading an axe swing from a large Outcast, Hiccup darted over to Toothless he grabbed the firework and tossed into the air "Toothless fire!" The dragon complied lighting the firework up in the sky, the loud bang and the sudden influx of light cause the Outcasts nearest him to stagger, Hiccup slammed his faceplate back down and signaled for Toothless to take off as he bolted into the forest.
"Hah! The dragon boys on the run!" Alvin cackled as his men followed close behind.
Hiccup's surprise melted as he moved between the tree's, with the sun beginning to fall this part of the island was settling more into his territory, mist began rising from the forest floor and the wonder at how the Outcast's managed to get so close without any of them realizing faded, Hiccup glanced around the edge of the tree he was leaning against as the Outcasts spread out in front of him.
"I didn't think my warning could be misinterpreted Alvin." He called as he moved.
Alvin growled "Oh? And What warning would that be?"
"You won't leave this island alive." Hiccup warned as he drew his weapon calmly.
"Hah it's going to take more than one boy to stop me." Alvin cackled loudly.
Hiccup launched forward blade glinting slightly as he brought it across an Outcasts chest before kicking off and disappearing into the brush, the man let out a shout and the soldiers around him moved to the source of the sound.
"You can't stop what you can't see Alvin." Hiccup growled darkly as he moved again.
The Outcast he rushed barely registered surprise as Hiccup spun passed him, blood spattered the ground as she shifted and ran along a small clearing, a sword swept over his head and he slid to his knees, slashing the leg of the person who attacked him, the Outcast fell to the ground and Hiccup spun to his feet and stabbed the soldier through the back of the head without breaking stride or slowing down.
"What are you blubbering idiots doing?! Stop spreading out and regroup, we are going all the way to Berk." The outcasts abruptly stopped searching for Hiccup and moved to Alvin's side forming a quick line as they advanced into the forest, Hiccup perched above them silently, he lifted his hand slowly and clenched his fist, Toothless spun in the air and let out a quick shot of fire, effectively forcing the men to dive out of the way as Hiccup practically pin dropped from his perch, the Outcast he landed on top of didn't have time to scream as Hiccup's blade squelched through his chest.
Hiccup's eyes narrowed as he got to his feet slowly, a crossbow bolt whistled towards him and his knife whipped around, the shot reflected into the air with a metallic chink, Hiccup lowered back slightly and launched forward, his blade slicing across a man's chest as he pivoted around a second stab and brought his knife forward slicing through the attackers neck.
A set of bolts whistled towards him and Hiccup spun, shield snapping out of his arm with a loud click, the bolts reflected of the metal and fell to the ground uselessly, Hiccup shifted his weight and cocked his arm back punching the air with the shield, two small fang like daggers launched from the sides and thudded against the chests of a pair of the crossbowmen who fell to the ground limply.
Hiccup braced against his shield as Alvin brought an axe down, the two locked glares for a moment "You can't kill us all without tiring, we will simply outlast you then Berk is ripe for the taking."
Hiccup lifted an eyebrow as a crossbow bolt flew over Alvin's shoulder, it slammed against Hiccup's helmet and the boy staggered, Alvin stepped forward into a powerful kick into Hiccups' chest, Hiccup flew backwards and slammed against a tree with a loud thud, his helmet hit the ground with a thud.
Hiccup spat blood from his mouth as he got to his feet and wiped at his lip, Alvin smirked and Hiccup looked at the blood smeared on his hand for a moment before his mouth split into a cold smirk, a low ruble started in his chest before it descended into loud hysterical laughter.
"You're going to take Berk you?!" He got out between laughs "You have no idea how outmatched you are do you?!"
An outcast let out a cry and charged towards Hiccup, the men's battle cry quickly turned into a gurgling fit as Hiccup seemed to lazily sway to the side before slamming the points of his shield into the man's throat, he pulled the shield back, revealing a long blade protruding from above his wrist "Do you honestly think I lead you here without a plan?!"
Hiccup's laughter didn't cease, but another sound was hidden behind it, Alvin frowned as Hiccup's laughter cut off "Allow me to introduce the rest of the dragon riders."
"Stop just starting at him, end him!" Alvin bellowed angrily, a line of crossbows took aim at Hiccup and fired before something larger landed with a thud in front of him, the wall off metal deflected the bolts and Hiccup sagged against the tree and held his ribs with a grimace "Took you long enough." He grunted.
"You know my penchant for theatrical timing," Fishlegs joked, a thick smog of green settled above the Outcasts line before it ignited, sending the men scattering in every direction, Alvin glared at the group of dragon riders as Snotlout dropped from Hookfang and moved next to Fishlegs, Fishlegs kept the large shield open and moved in between Hiccup and the Outcasts the few men who managed to collect themselves quickly rushed at Snotlout who drew his sword calmly, he rotated it slightly in front of himself as he widened his stance before drawing back the blade show forward in a quick flash of metal, Snotlout drew back and slapped a sword away before darting forward and reversing his grip, he drove the sword back and spun forward pulling the blade free and deflecting a blow into the air before slashing at the last opponent diagonally.
Tuffnut and Ruffnut were the next ones to join the battlefield, leaving Barf and Belch to do as they pleased as they landed lightly beside Hiccup and the other two teens, Hiccup groaned as he pushed himself to his feet, his ribs sounding their disagreement to his movement.
"Hiccup, I think you should take it easy." Fishlegs noted worriedly
"Can't afford to, they aren't retreating yet." Hiccup growled through his teeth as he winced, holding onto his knife was difficult pain clouded every movement he made, he glanced down at his side and realized a wide gash had opened up, he wasn't sure how he got it at all.
"Oh, they'll be retreating alright." Tuffnut laughed as he moved forward "Shall we dear sister?" He offered his hand as if he were inviting her to a dance, Ruffnut smirked and curtsied sarcastically as she took his hand.
"I thought you'd never ask dear brother!" She announced sarcastically the pair shifted slightly before darting forward, Hiccup tilted his head slightly as Ruffnut ducked, Tuffnut's mace flew over her head and Tuffnut jumped as Ruffnut's blade flew underneath him and slashed upwards, the pair covering each other's weaknesses and forcing strengths.
"Oh, I'm not getting outdone by those two," Snotlout shouted heartily as he rushed forward, sword twisting into a great sword he grabbed the handle and brought it across wide.
Fishlegs glanced at Hiccup one more time before he was forced to fight himself, a few Outcasts still after Hiccup, the shield snapped down into it's easier to handle for and Fishlegs braced as the pair attacked him, the axe bearing down on the shield heavily, Fishlegs spun the hammer in his hand and brought it across, slamming one man backwards and forcing the second off with a harsh shove Hiccup ignored his body's protests and darted forward, forcing pain out of his mind as his eyes narrowed on Alvin dangerously.
The boys knife dragged along the ground as he moved forward, a couple of Outcasts put themselves in the way and Hiccup slid and slowed slightly before moving forward, blade extending from his shield with a click, he moved into a quick punch and it launched forward catching the first man by surprise as it embedded in his chest, Hiccup pulled back and the blade was dragged back to its spot by a long chain.
The second Outcasts attack bounced off his shield and he cut the man down before continuing towards Alvin, a sword cut towards him and Hiccup dodged back, Alvin brandished his axe as Savage moved to Hiccups right, Hiccup eyed the pair for a moment before they rushed him, Hiccup crouched low before jumping into the air, flipping over quickly he slashed out, Alvin blocked and Savage took a quick step back before rushing forward again.
Hiccup bared his teeth as he forced the pain in his side out of his mind, as Savages sword grated along his shield he stepped up and pushed the man away before spinning forward and slamming a kick into Savage's side, Alvin through his axe and Hiccup's head snapped back as the blade graze against the top of his head taking a few strands of hair with it, Hiccup rotated and blocked Savages stab as Alvin brought a sword down, Hiccup dropped onto his knee as he glared at the two opponents, one leaning on his shield the other on his sword.
Hiccup growled and drove up, forcing the two men back and snapping around, taking Savage's leg out from under him and launching at Alvin, Alvin brought his sword up and blocked Hiccups as the boy leaned almost his entire body weight against the larger man. Alvin smirked as his fist cocked back and Hiccup rotated down, leg flying down and slamming into Alvin's nose, a sickening crunch echoed out of the blow and Hiccup landed with a light thud and staggered slightly, his side screamed at him before a wooden thunk echoed around in his ear.
Hiccup's head snapped down to see Savage's sword embedded half an inch into his stump, the realization that he'd would have lost a leg popped up in the back of his mind but he ignored it as he stepped around and slammed his foot down, Savage rolled out of the way of the kick.
Alvin and Savage eyed Hiccup carefully, the boy titled his head slightly and his neck cracked loudly before he rushed forward, Alvin's smile seemed to widen and Hiccup heard a click and his eyes widened before a sharp pain screamed from his right side, he glanced down and staggered, that was definitely not supposed to be there, a thick bolt of wood protruded from his side and his vision blurred.
Alvin and Savage advanced towards him quickly and Hiccup barely managed to make his arms move in time to block the relentless stream of strikes aimed at him, he couldn't buy enough time to signal Toothless, he didn't know where Astrid was, there was still an entire line between him and the other teens, his back came in contact with something and his mind vaguely arrived at the conclusion he had nowhere left to run.
His vision was fading in an out, he felt his grip on his knife slacken and he gritted his teeth and growled, adrenaline giving him enough strength to lift the blade up, he didn't see the small crack in the centre so when it shattered in front of him his expression mirrored his surprise, the cut that opened on his chest was shallow, barley more than stinging scratch, he shoved his shield forward and it slammed against Alvin's chest, forcing the man a step back.
Alvin grunted but was otherwise undeterred by the blow, Hiccup could have sword he saw something blue in the sky, but he dismissed the thought, stars weren't blue, neither was the moon, something exploded in front of him and he was showered in dirt, he heard Alvin shout something that sounded a lot like retreat, but the voices were getting further and further away, he staggered forward a few steps, he heard a shriek that sounded a lot like Toothless before he fell forward, he hit something, he wasn't sure what it was, but it's softness was familiar he remembered the smell but couldn't place it, whatever it was it was warm, his vision finally faded out and he slumped, the last thing he recognized was his name being screamed, who was screaming it he wasn't sure, he didn't know why they sounded so worried either, all he could think about was the warmth he was leaning against as he fell into the void of unconsciousness.
Astrid's glanced at the ground around her, she had just left Ruff and Fishlegs in the village square when the sound of something being launched met her ears, Ghost rolled to the side to avoid the large rock and Astrid's head snapped to the ground catapults? They had been here long enough to set them up?!
She angled Ghost down and the pair dropped below the tree's "Girl, you do your thing, I'm going to make a little noise." Astrid whispered as she dropped onto a thick branch, Ghost almost grinned as he took to the sky, Astrid scrambled down the tree quickly, if she could clear the sky the others could get to Hiccup quicker, the faster they all got together the faster they could force the Outcasts off of Berk.
The moment her feet touched the ground she was forced to move as a crossbow shot flew at her, she tossed her axe as she darted to her feet, the trained accuracy she had honed over many years kicked in and the axe thudded against the Outcasts chest, she darted forward wrenching the axe free of the corpse as she darted forward, her eyes scanned the sky as Ghost turned around a rock and dived, a powerful blast showered the clearing around Astrid with dust as the first catapult was annihilated.
Astrid rushed through the dust cloud quickly, her axe slicing through any Outcast that spotted her, she didn't have time to think about much as she moved, don't get killed, dodge, block, dive, roll, slash, her mind revolved in an endless circle, another blast registered in her head, two catapults down, she wasn't sure how many men she'd killed, she shifted and jumped out of the way, her axe thudded against a shield and a hand closed around her neck and lifted her into the air, she gritted her teeth her feet pressed against the man's chest as he began to squeeze, Astrid pulled her dagger from her boot and slashed at his hand he dropped her and she coughed once and drew a quick breath before she darted forward, the small knife dragged across his throat and she yanked the axe free of his shield before tossing the dagger the iron glinted in a single flash as it moved towards another man, it thudded against his chest as he staggered and let out a sharp cry of pain before Astrid finished him off.
Another blast shook the ground and the final catapult splintered around her.
"Leave the girl! We've bought enough time, the dragon boys already trapped!" The Outcasts shouted loudly, trying to reach their own as they ran from her, Ghost landed beside her with a loud thud and Astrid's eyes widened as he body numbed, Hiccup! Hiccup was trapped?!
She dived onto Ghosts back and urged the dragon into the sky, the dove and hovered above the tree tops like a sleek grey knife, cutting through the air, the tree's groaned underneath them as their speed pulled at their branches.
Night had completely fallen when she arrived, even at their speed it had apparently taken much longer to get rid of those catapults than she thought, the rest of the teens had already arrived and were attempting to fight through a line of Outcasts while Hiccup fought off Savage and Alvin.
Astrid's eyes widened as Hiccup moved, it was clear to her he was injured, his movements were sluggish and he left way too many openings, he managed to get himself some room and attempted to recollect himself before he moved to attack. From her vantage point she could see the trap, the moment Hiccup moved forward a crossbow belt flew from the trees, even if he knew it was coming it would have been difficult to avoid, it embedded into his side and Astrid growled as she moved Ghost into a dive before another net flew out of the trees, followed closely by a catapult round, they blasted the net and rolled out of the way of the rock before blowing the catapult to pieces, Ghost pulled upwards into a loop before dropping down, Toothless whistled passed them and blew a large second of forest apart, clearly taking out what they were using to fire nets at them.
Astrid lowered against Ghost's back as the dragon's fire hummed in its throat, the shot blew dirt into the air and forced Alvin and Savage back, Toothless blew another large whole in Alvin's forces and Ghost landed, Astrid demounted and darted towards Hiccups as he toppled forward his head landed against her shoulder limply.
Ghost and Toothless snarled angrily at Alvin and the man backed away quickly "Retreat!"
Astrid didn't even here the order from the Outcasts as she held Hiccup tightly before bringing her hands to where she could see them in the burning forest, blood coated them thickly, she could feel more of it seeping into her clothing as she shook Hiccup lightly "Hiccup!"
He let a breath that almost sounded like a chuckle as he grew heavier against her chest "HICCUP! GODS, NO HICCUP!" She screamed as he fell against her completely.
His breathing had stopped, she couldn't feel his heartbeat against her.
"DON'T DIE HICCUP!" Astrid screamed "GODS YOU HAD BETTER NOT TAKE HIM!"
A/N: Oh Cliffhanger time! I think I've let you guys safely not worry about things long enough, I'm not even a little bit ashamed of this, I hope it wasn't predictable at the very least and I fully expect an onslaught for this chapter, regardless I hope you enjoyed this chapter, if you did, feel free to check out my other stories and the poll on my profile if you're interested and I will see you next time, peace!