Heya guys! Here comes Chapter 2! Warning, this chapter will get pretty dark.
Chapter 2: Inhuman Acts
Riley was still in a state of panic, hiding behind Hiccup, scared to even see the dragons in front of the group. The three dragons all tilted their heads in confusion to the situation that is unfolding in front of them. Hiccup then turned around and kneeled to the height of Riley and placed his hands on her shoulders.
"Riley." Hiccup said in a stern, but calm voice. "You can still hide behind us, but I need you to relax. Breath in…and out. In…and out." He said, breathing in a calming way. Soon, Riley followed him and she began to breath normally again, but still keeping her eyes closed, hiding and wrapping her arm around Hiccups leg. Suddenly, the group of 4 heard the familiar sound of a Deadly Nadder squawk and that was enough to send Riley running away and hiding back inside the ship.
"Riley wait!" Valka shouted, but Riley was too scared to listen as she ran below deck. Hiccup, Eret, and Valka then turned to see the other dragon riders land.
"Guys, what was that all about? Who's Riley?" Astrid asked.
"She's a kid that we found below decks in what looked like some sort of torture room." Hiccup replied somberly. "She's only 7 years old." The other riders slightly gasped.
"Those damn hunters…" Snotlout said in an angry tone.
"Who would do such a thing to a child?" Fishlegs added.
"Duh…Drago's hunters. Isin't that obvious?" Tuffnut said, who was met with glares from all the dragon riders, including Valka and Eret.
"So, what's the plan, chief?" Eret asked Hiccup. Hiccup thought it over until he formulated a plan.
"Ok, so first things first, we are not going to be flying home." Hiccup stated.
The younger riders groaned at that statement, which was meant with a glare from Hiccup.
"Why can't we?" Snotlout asked.
"Because I'm pretty sure Riley has Dracophobia. She must've gotten it when she was down there for Thor knows how long. She had dragon scratches all over her body." Hiccup responded. The other dragon riders had solemn looks on their faces and nodded in understanding.
"Ok. Eret, do you think you can sail this ship back to Berk?" Hiccup asked the former dragon trapper.
"It's been a while since I've been aboard these kind of ships, but I'll do my best." Eret said, as he ran off to direct the sails of the ship to lead them back to Berk.
"Mom, can you go and tell the village not to fire on us when we arrive?" Hiccup added. Valka nodded.
"Toothless, come over here." The Night Fury and alpha to the dragons on Berk quickly came over to Hiccups side.
"I need you to tell all the dragons on Berk with riders to stay in their riders' homes or in the hanger if they can't fit, and the ones without riders to hide in the forest. Wait for me in your space in the dragon hanger once that's done. Can you do that bud?" Hiccup asked his Night Fury friend, making sure to lock the tail fin open so Toothless can fly back solo. The dragon gave Hiccup a stern nod. "Can you tell the village about that too mom?"
"Of course, son." Valka responded. Hiccup nodded "Make sure the healer is awake too." He added, and then he turned to face the other riders.
"If any of you want to fly back now…" Hiccup was then interrupted by Astrid.
"I think it'd be best to stay here. For Riley's sake. She looks like she could really use some comfort." Astrid said.
"I'm staying as well." Fishlegs added.
"Us too." The twins said simultaneously.
"Same here." Snotlout stated as well. Hiccup smiled.
"Ok guys. I'm going to go look for Riley. Search the ship for any firewood. We're probably going to need it for the next hour or so." Hiccup finished. The other riders then dispersed in search of said supplies aboard the ship.
"I'm coming too." Astrid said. Hiccup smiled as the two went below deck in search of the Riley. Toothless gave out a roar to the other dragons, letting them know of the plan, while Valka mounted Cloudjumper and took off, following the other dragons back to Berk.
Below Deck
"Riley! Where are you?!" Hiccup shouted as he and Astrid searched below the deck of ship, with still no sign of the 7 year old girl. Soon however, they began to hear sounds of heavy breathing and faint crying. They walked slowly and found the girl, curled against a wall. Hiccup slowly kneeled down on both his knees, sitting in front of her.
"Hey…Ri..." Hiccup began until he was interrupted by Riley quickly hugging him and crying out a few more tears in his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around the girl and slowly rocked her from side to side, in an effort to help calm her down. Astrid watched, trying to contain her own tears from the sight.
'I swear, those hunters are going to pay for what they did to this poor girl.' Astrid thought to herself. Soon, Riley let go and looked at Hiccup.
"A-a-are the d-d-d-dr-dragons g-g-gone?" Riley asked, in a scared tone.
"Yeah. Don't worry. They are gone." Hiccup responded in a calm and collected voice. Riley took a few deep breaths before calming down and then looking up and facing Astrid.
"Who are you?" She asks the blonde Viking.
"My name's Astrid. And If you don't know already, his name is Hiccup." Astrid responded. Riley then giggled and then look at the young man.
"Hiccup?" Riley asked, still giggling while asking. Hiccup smirked and chuckled.
"Yup. That's my name. Not as impressive as Astrid, is it?" Hiccup said.
"But more funny!" Riley added, her giggles slowing down until they were no more, all the while Hiccup was smiling.
"What do you say we head on back to the top of the ship, huh?" Astrid asked the little girl. Riley nodded and soon the 3 were walking together, heading back above deck. Once they left the bottom of the ship, the sky was now dark, and filled with stars, with a cool breeze as the ship is sailing back to the riders' home. The other riders, besides Eret, who was busy controlling the ship, were all gathered around a small campfire made of a few pieces of firewood. They turned and noticed Hiccup and Astrid approaching with Riley, and so they quickly made room around the fire for the three. They all sat down around the fire for a few awkward seconds of silence until Hiccup broke said silence.
"Riley." Hiccup started, the girl turning her head towards him. "I'd like you to meet my friends, Fishlegs, Snotlout, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut." The riders all waved at Riley's direction and after Hiccup finished stating the names of the other riders, Riley went into a fit of giggles.
"You all have funny names!" Riley commented, the riders, surprisingly not offended, but instead, small smirks formed on their faces, watching the child laugh. Fishlegs then approached the girl, who immediately tensed up.
"It's ok." Fishlegs said. "I just want to check the scratches on your arms and legs. I won't hurt you. I promise." Riley slowly nodded and then let Fishlegs look over the various cuts on the girl.
"There are some pretty bad dragon cuts here, Hiccup." Fishlegs told the chief. "Monsterous Nightmare, Razordwhip, and…." Fishlegs then trailed off.
"And what, Fishlegs?" Astrid asked.
"Skrill." Fishlegs responded. The riders' eyes widened after he spoke that name. Hiccup then looked over at Riley.
"Ok, Riley." Hiccup started, the little girl turning to face the young chief. "I need you to tell us how you ended up on this ship…We only want to help you, you can trust us." He then smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder. Astrid did the same and nodded when Riley faced her. The little girl took a deep breath before beginning her story.
"It all started when my village was attacked by those bad people you saved me from 2 weeks ago. They came to our village looking for dragons. Our village defend, but don't ride dragons. The bad people wanted to capture the dragons and sell them, but our chief and chieftess, my dad and mom, refused to let the dragons go. They fought, but lost. The bad people did not kill my parents, but they took all the dragons and other villagers as prisoners, including me." Riley's voice slowly began to crack, but she fought through and kept going. "The villagers were forced to work, but once they realized I was the chief's daughter, they wanted to do something 'special' about me." Her voice is becoming more and more sad, but in an effort to be brave in front of her rescuers, she continued. "They brought me…to this dark room…and…chained me to the wall. They'd leave me alone in there and once a day, they'd bring in an upset dragon…and…and…" At that point she could not fight it anymore. She hugged Hiccup once again and began crying hard into his night fury armor. He hugged her back, the other riders watching with somber faces. Riley then tried to continue. "They'd…ch-chain the dragon agai-nst the wall, b-but not tight enough to ke-keep it out of reach of m-me. They'd cha-charge at me and…" she stopped trying to explain as she cried harder and harder.
"Shhhhh. You don't to tell us anymore. We understand." Hiccup said, as he held onto the crying girl tightly. Soon, Astrid joined in and wrapped her arms around her to help give the traumatized girl some much needed comfort. Then Fishlegs. Then the twins and eventually, Snotlout, joined in the embrace. Eret, finally able to catch a break from controlling the ship, looked and watched as the riders all huddled around Riley. He smiled.
'I am so glad I changed sides. I would never want to be a part of a group of people who would think that torturing children is ok.' Eret thought to himself, as he looked onto the horizon, spotting a familiar island.
Meanwhile, the riders continued to hug Riley until they eventually, broke the embrace, when Riley finally stopped crying.
"We promise you Riley." Astrid said, looking right into the eyes of the little girl. "Those dragons you saw, are not going to hurt you anymore. We will protect you until we can find your mommy and daddy and bring you back to your home."
Riley looked at Astrid. "Promise?" She asks.
"I promise." Astrid responded.
"We promise." Hiccup added, the other riders nodding in agreement.
"Aye!" Eret shouted, getting the attention of the riders. "We should be arriving back in Berk really soon!" The riders looked ahead of them and spotted their home island ahead, with no sign of dragons in the sky.
'Good job you guys.' Hiccup thought to himself, making a mental note for himself to get Toothless a huge basket of fish once they get home.
"I'm going to your home island?" Riley asked openly.
"Yeah." Hiccup responded. "Until we find your parents, you can stay in my hut with my mom. Is that ok with you?" Riley nodded. Hiccup smiled as he and the other dragon riders looked onto the horizon, staring at their island home.
Chapter 2 done! Told you it was going to be dark! Now, the story will only get more lighthearted from here on out! Already have an outline for the chapter names for this story to help make the chapter writing easier and thus, updates more frequent! Reviews would be greatly appreciated! Until next time, fellow Dragonites!