There's a slight HTTYD book reference in there. Also, I'm sorry I had to do this… Enjoy…

Striker lunged forward at Drago. Her jaws extended, ready to rip his head off.

"You will pay for trying to hurt Pache!" She shouted.

Drago, caught off guard, just barely dodged the large skrill. "No!" He shouted, staring at the dragon. "How? No dragon has ever.."

"Shut up!" She went for another strike, cutting him off.

The skrill could feel the energy surging throughout her body. Every vein and muscle beat in unison with her fast-pumping heart. Her feet which were firmly on the ground, yet stepping lightly, could feel everyone's feet pounding as they ran off. She could feel Pache's heart thumping softly, her slow and steady breathing in the cold, frigid air. It felt nice, like when she slept next to the little girl to give her comfort. The hushed breathing of the child as Striker lulled her to sleep was wonderful. She kept these things in her mind as she tried to get a good bite at her enemy's body. She sprung forward, and the dark man swerved out of the way. But, there was one problem with that.

He left his left side open. It seemed too easy, but she nevertheless took her chance. A voice in her head told her not to, but she was well beyond listening to her conscience. This man tried to hurt her bonded, her little hatchling, and he needed to pay.

"So, what exactly are we going to do?" Stoick asked Valka.

"I thought you knew…"

"We're going to help the giant beast, aye. But, what specifically. I don't want to be a thorn in anyone's side."

"Either way, you'd probably find your way to a fight."

"Occupational hazard."

"Ugh. You and that sorry excuse." Valka rolled her eyes, but once her face was turned away from Stoick, she smiled.

"Hey, it's funny." Stoick said, seeing the shake in his wife's shoulders as she tried not to laugh. "But dear, really. I want to help." He turned her head to face his so their eyes met. "Please."

They looked at each other. Valka swatted his hand away playfully, and said, "Oh, alright. But you're not as young as you used to be."

"Look who's making excuses now."

They both laughed, remembering the past and their old antics. How Valka had missed those days when she and her husband would be near each other every chance. The thrill of having a child that survived only increased their relationship. The chief's protectiveness of his wife was fun to mess with. Gobber and Valka once played a prank on Stoick that she broke her leg. He wouldn't let her move for three months, despite the fact a broken leg only takes about two.

In all, it didn't end up very amusing for Valka, since she couldn't go anywhere. Gobber, however, got a kick out of it, and was the one to eventually spill the beans that she hadn't actually broken her leg. Stoick was surprised to say the least, and after a day or two, he was laughing along with the two. The night he lightened up, he looked at his wife and said, "My dear, you are a wonderful actress." She couldn't sleep due to the energy that was packed up over the months, her giddiness due to the compliment, and the fact that in the morning she'd have a four-month overdue announcement to make to her husband regarding an heir.

When Alvin, who used to be a great friend of theirs, tried to hit on her, she was startled. Not only was she obviously taken, but she was pregnant, and there's no way he couldn't have known about it. Her and Stoick had made the announcement two weeks prior. Over and over she denied his feelings. It was awkward for her, since she didn't want to hurt her friend's feelings. She didn't realize how deep those thoughts about her went until he tried to…

She shivered, not wanting to recall the moment. Stoick, ever the worried man, caught the act immediately. "What's wrong?" He bluntly asked, but she could catch the concern in his voice.

"I was just remembering… Alvin."

Stoick was taken aback. His old friend had turned into his enemy in a matter of days, and it had haunted him for years. Only when Alvin had tried to further injure his son did the chief truly see the man as his enemy.

"Why?" He asked, truly curious as to the sudden topic change.

"I thought that when I left there would be no one to watch over our boy. He was skimpy, and I knew many on Berk disapproved of him. With you working constantly, and him not being looked after, I was afraid that Alvin would try to take him away, like he did that one night."

"Enough."

"What?" She looked up at her husband, the dark expression on his face somewhat scary.

"Alvin was a bad man from the start. We were just too blinded by what little good was in him that we didn't see the darkness sneaking up from behind. He was always the jealous one, the bully, the one making dangerous decisions. That night when he tried to…" He hesitated, as if saying it made it actually happen, "when he tried to force you into a miscarriage, it was the final straw. He showed us who he was, and we shouldn't have been surprised."

"But…"

"But nothing. He's gone, Val. Nobody's in danger."

"We're in danger right now. All of us."

Stoick paused, unsure how to answer at first. This was probably the most dangerous situation they had ever been in. Dragons, outcasts, and pirates were the worse they thought it could possibly get. But, all three combined was almost impossible to think of. But it was happening.

And yet, they now had advantages that they thought couldn't get better. Now they had dragons, his son was back, along with his granddaughter, and they had Ainstatia. It was a battle that he was certain they could win. So far, everything had gone uphill, and with all he had, Stoick was going to keep it that way.

"Just because we're in danger," he started, "doesn't mean we can't win. We have each other now, Val. We're a team. And that alone is good enough to win even if the whole world and all the gods above and below were against us." He then kissed her cheek, and she smiled brightly. "So, are you going to answer my question?"

She giggled. "Oh, fine. I suppose I'll give you an answer." She looked forward and pointed to the grey bewilderbeast. "See him?"

"Yeah."

"We need to get him off of the other Bewilderbeast."

"And how do you plan to do that?" He asked, skeptical it would work. The two dragons were fighting with all their might, crashing into each other with their large tusks, and roaring to show dominance. "Fight back?"

"This isn't Berk, Stoick. We don't use the viking way here."

"Then what way do you use?"

She smiled, and accelerated Cloudjumper forward.

"The dragon rider way." she said simply, and before they knew it, they were next to the two alphas, battling to the death for all or nothing.

Striker dove at Drago's left side, aiming for his arm. If he was unable to keep balance, and with the constant pain that could surge through with Striker's bite and venom, it would definitely give her the advantage. As soon as she was near the limb, she bit down as hard as she could, ready to take it off if she could. But, the feeling of his arm was odd, metallic almost. It was cold against her tongue, and it was difficult to sink her teeth into it.

He has a fake arm. She realized, a little too late. He laughed, and grinned devilishly as she struggled to get her teeth out of the limb. But, her jaw was stuck. She shook her head, and pulled to try and escape, but Drago pulled too, not wanting the dragon to escape. He laughed the whole time, and Striker was scared again. Her nerves pulsed with wild energy, and it freaked her out.

She made a fatal mistake, and Striker knew this time, there was no getting out of it. The world is a terrible place of fate. Once you're born, your destiny is set. Yes, you can change it, but we are all mortal beings that can't help but make mistakes.

Some people would re-write their past if they could, to make the present better. Sadly, we can't. No matter the power we have, or the strength of our bodies, we can't change what has already happened.

And sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you can't change the future.

Drago, with his spear, lunged his body forward, and struck the skrill straight through the heart. He had a golden scale to help his aim, after all.

The dragon's eyes widened, and her legs shook. Trying to fight, she used her wings to prop her up, but they only dropped down with the rest of her body a few moments later. Her head was still stuck, and so in a snarky manner, he unstrapped his prosthetic, and threw it to the ground, where the dying dragon now lay.

Striker had a destiny since she was born to die young. Her kind abandoned her, and when she thought she found a home it turned out to be corrupt. That took up most of her life.

But, as she looked across from her at the little hatchling laying peacefully, she decided she wouldn't have changed any of it. So, with one last smile, and the words, "Treacherous little girl," Striker took her last breath.

The moment her heart stopped beating, Pache woke up, horrified at the sight that befell her.

Hiccup, who was flying toward them, heard a scream, loud and terrible. It was one of sorrow, and pure despair. And worst of all, he knew it was his daughter.

"C'mon Toothless." He shouted desperately, afraid that Pache would be gone.

"You don't have to tell me twice." The Night Fury roared in agreement as he accelerated.

Almost as soon as he saw a tall, dark figure in the crowd, he landed, knowing it was Drago. Hopping off of Toothless, the two ran, pushing away anyone who stood in their path. When he saw Pache, hunched over and crying, he sprinted to her, and cradled her.

"Shhhh. Sh. What's wrong, Pache? What's the matter." Hiccup asked, as he took his daughter's hands off her face. He wanted to avoid her crying as much as he could. But, when her blotchy, tear-stained cheeks were revealed, his mouth gaped. Because, instead of the normal burning that would occur due to the green solution that was her crying, he saw normal, salt-water tears. "Pache?" He didn't know what to say.

Pache obviously didn't know what to say either. All she could do was roar out, and point to what was making her so sad. But, she didn't need to show him, because he saw Toothless's distraught face before he looked in the direction her finger was pointing. He couldn't believe it. Neither could Toothless. But, Pache could, and the effect was hitting her hard.

"NOOO!" She cried out, and collapsed in her father's arms. He picked her up, like he would when she fell asleep on the floor and needed to be taken back to bed, and walked in the direction of the dead dragon. At first, he could feel his daughter wiggle in protest, but Hiccup knew that she needed to see it close up. To know that despite what it looks like, Striker died happily.

Toothless walked forward with them, and nudged the skrill, despite knowing it was pointless. Hiccup knelt down next to Striker's head, and shook Pache lightly, so she could open her red, crying eyes. Hesitantly, they opened, and she reached out to touch her best friend's snout. She knew, by the remnants of the smile that used to be on the dragon's face, that Striker did, indeed, die the way she wanted.

The scales felt cold, and as it began to snow, the wet feeling on her hands only made her want to bawl more. It was difficult to see the blood-stained snow right where there used to be a golden symbol of their bond. She sniffed, knowing it was time to stop her sadness. This wasn't the right moment to be showing weakness, not on the battlefield.

"I can't feel it." She said.

"Feel what?" Hiccup softly asked into her ear.

"I can't feel the energy that I used to. I don't have lightning anymore."

That's not necessarily a bad thing. Hiccup wanted to say, but knew if he did it would be the wrong moment. This was a delicate situation.

"She was like a daughter to me." Toothless whined, and the two humans turned to him. Pache especially payed attention, since she was the only one who understood. "The first time I met her, I thought she was just another moody skrill, wanting to be alone and cause chaos. But, obviously I was wrong." He turned his head toward his niece, and smiled. "She must have really loved you, to sacrifice everything to save you." She could feel the waterworks ready to pour back out. "When you met her for the first time, I didn't trust her. Over time though, I saw a change in her behavior. Her attitude was more cheerful, and she respected us a lot more."

"I didn't have time to say goodbye. I have nothing."

"If you listen closely, I'm sure you'll still hear her thunder roaring through the wind." He said, and nudged Pache lovingly.

Those words repeated through her mind, over and over, and she could in deed feel the thunder in her heart.