Chapter 9

Hiccup and Keila ran outside to find the entire village trying to put out the fire that was engulfing two of the storage buildings. They could see dragon riders carrying tarps full of water to drop on the ever rising flames.

Hiccup ran up to one of the villagers, "What happened?"

The viking turned and looked at Hiccup, he looked angry, "Ask that Night Fury of yours!" With that the man ran off to help.

Hiccup looked over at Keila, "Toothless?"

Keila looked back over at the house as Toothless peeked out the front door sleepily. He had been sleeping with his head in Keila's lap for the last hour.

Stoick saw them and came running over, "Hiccup everyone is saying Toothless did this!"

"Well he must be a lot faster than I thought because he's been with us all night." Keila retorted. Stoick looked at Hiccup for conformation, confused. Hiccup nodded.

Stoick scratched his head and looked at the sky as the last flames were being put out."Then what in Thor's-"

Stoick was cut off by a loud screeching noise followed by a high pitched roar. A blast of fire hit the ground and blew some of the villagers back.

"That's no Night Fury!" Hiccup shouted. There was another blast that knocked them off of their feet. Astrid ran over to help them and Toothless and Stormfly growled and sent blasts right back. The sky was illuminated for a moment and the could see the silhouette of the dragon.

"Uh, Hiccup you sure about that?" Keila shouted.

They all stared at the sky. Despite a few obvious differences the dragon's form was almost identical to Toothless's. The wings and tail seemed slightly larger and more angular, but otherwise it did look a lot like a Night Fury.

"Hiccup is it...?" Astrid stopped mid sentence cut off by their dragons' growls.

Hiccup put a hand on Toothless's snout, and looked up squinting trying to see the dark shape of the dragon, "No, it's not a Night Fury, but I don't recognize it."

Keila watched they sky carefully for the dragon to reappear, behind them the villagers groaned and rumbled about having to restock everything that was ruined.

They heard a rumble from their left.

"He's coming back!"

"C'mon bud." Hiccup said as he quickly mounted Toothless.

"Let's go Stormfly." Astrid bolted past Keila to meet her dragon. The other dragon riders were mounting up as well, Keila looked around as the all took off, feeling useless. Stoick was shouting orders to every on the ground as they watched for the dragon to show himself in the night sky.

Keila ran back and forth, but no one seemed to pay her any attention. Keila groaned in frustration and ran over to where the island dropped off into the ocean. She searched the skies, she could just make out Hiccup and the others. Hiccup was trying to rally the riders' and make a strategy, but that was proving difficult as usual. Keila rolled her eyes, C'mon Hic hurry it up, she thought.

She looked over and saw a tree at the edge of the cliff. She chuckled to herself, "I wanna see the dragons, Hic."

Hiccup groaned and nodded at Astrid, obviously the twins and Snotlout weren't going to be helpful as they kept trying to set each other on fire, saying that they "thought it was the dragon." They would use Fishlegs as bait and he and Astrid would corner the dragon and trap it.

Hookfang, Barf and Belch were roaring in Hiccup's ear, "Guys do you mind? Oh... come on!" Toothless suddenly growled and perked up. "Ugh...let's go bud."

"They've got him on the run!"

Keila heard the shout and squinted into the black. The saw the glint of Hiccup's saddle in the light from Hookfang's fire, those three really weren't doing any good at all. She could see the dragon in front of Hiccup by about a yard. The dragon was fast, they had surpassed Fishlegs almost immediately. The dragon was very fast almost equal with Toothless, of course that was with Hiccup and all that gear on his back, plus Hiccup was holding Toothless back a little trying to stay behind the dragon, but still the dragon was fast. Toothless roared at the dragon and the dragon twisted its head around and shot a blast of flame right at Hiccup and Toothless.

"Hiccup!" Keila leaned a bit too far and almost lost her grip on the branch she was clinging to. She grasped the tree tight and strained to see if Hiccup was okay. He burst through the blast of flame, and Keila cheered in relief.

"No stop!" she heard Hiccup yell. She couldn't see what was wrong until she saw the twins and Snotlout barreling towards the dragon.

The dragon screamed in pain as the two dragons rammed into its side. In a blast of flame the dragon broke free, but it looked hurt. It looked like it was falling, spiraling out of the sky it's wing flopping awkwardly, and it was headed right for her.

"Are you insane?" Astrid yelled from in front of Hiccup. Hiccup groaned and started looking for the dragon, he had become disoriented in the blast that Hookfang and the other dragon had created. He frantically searched for the dragon, but he heard it first, well not it, but her. He heard a scream and a crunch of wood.

The dragon was falling out of the sky and it rammed into a tree at the edge of the cliff. Someone screamed from inside the tree's branches. He caught a flash of a blue shirt, and another terrified yell. Keila.

The tree's trunk snapped and and Keila and the dragon started to tumble into the sea below. "No!" Hiccup put Toothless into a dive. I have to get there. I have to get there. Hiccup pressed into Toothless trying to make him go faster. "C'mon, c'mon!"

The other dragon cried out as they spiraled toward the water. Toothless pumped his wings against the wind. They were too far ahead of him, not even with Toothless's speed...

Things seemed to go silent, it was like time was standing still. The dragon, tree, and Keila slammed into the water. Hiccup almost forgot to pull up. He searched the black water, nothing.

Keila was gone.