Chapter 10

It had been several hours since Hiccup, Astrid and the Sisters had defeated the infamous Dagur the Deranged and his mighty Skrill, leaving them afloat in the north sea. Elsa knew they could have easily eliminated his entire fleet as well, but a more pressing concern overruled. Astrid had been struck by Skrill lightning during the fight, and though awake, was babbling senselessly. Hiccup had told her it would pass. But she and Anna both knew the possible cost of being struck by incredible power, and chose instead to return to Berk to get Astrid medical attention. Elsa breathed a sigh of relief as Berk came into view.

They touched down in the center of the village, attracting a lot of attention. Anna rushed over to help Astrid down off Toothless. Astrid offered little resistance. Then Anna and Elsa stood back as Hiccup helped her to Stoick and The Elder.

"Dad! Astrid took a lightning strike from a Skrill!" he called out.

The Elder waved her hand, summoning 2 women to escort Astrid to her house, where she could be treated.

"Now Hiccup," Stoick asked, "How exactly was Astrid hit by a Skrill?"

Hiccup stammered slightly. "That's a bit of a long story. Perhaps some introductions are in order first." He turned. "Chief Stoick, may I prese...Oh."

Stormfly and Toothless had hunkered down on the ground. Elsa was sitting down, leaning up against Toothless and Anna had her head on Elsas lap. All 4 were fast asleep.

Hiccup continued, with a slightly sarcastic tone. "Queen Elsa and Princess Anna of Arendelle."

Stoick called over 2 more women. "Bunk them down at my house. We can't have royal guests sleeping in the middle of town. Make sure they're comfortable."

The 2 women gently picked up the Sisters and did as Stoick ordered. Then Stoick turned back to Hiccup.

"Now son. I sent your team to Arendelle on a diplomatic mission. You were supposed to tell them anything they needed to know to help with their crisis. Did I not make my instructions clear?"

"You were very clear, Dad."

Stoick continued. "Then why is one of your team now under the Elders care, and why do I have unexpected royal guests dressed like vikings and 2 dragons falling asleep in my village square."

Hiccup stammered. "Um..It had been a busy day."

"Tell me about it!", Stoick scowled.

Hiccup began his previously mentioned long story

Elsas eyes fluttered, slowly opening. For a moment she just stared. The last thing she remembered was sitting on the ground beside Toothless. Now she was in a bed, in what appeared to be a house. But who's bed? Who's house? Propping herself up she looked around. It was a modest home, made mainly of raw wood. Intricate carvings adorned the walls. And across the room Anna lay on another bed, snoring loudly. Trying not to wake her sister, Elsa quietly got out of bed and made her way to the door. The heavy door creaked as she opened it, but thankfully Anna didn't notice. Opening it as little as possible, Elsa ducked outside.

She scanned around. The Hooligan village was not as she had imagined it would be. The buildings all looked like sail ships half buried upright in the ground. Intricate carvings of dragons adorned every house, and many homes had their own gardens full of growing vegetables. Other houses had pens containing sheep or chickens. A clanging sound caught her attention. To her left appeared to be a blacksmith shop. In it, a burly character with a hammer attached where his hand should be was pounding on a glowing orange iron bar. To her right she could see the docks, with ships offloading baskets full of fresh caught fish. These people clearly lived a simple life. Simple, but appealing, Elsa thought.

A voice called to her. "G'mornin! I was wonderin when you'd wake up."

Elsa watched as a very large man with a thick beard and even thicker arms approached.

"I'm Stoick the Vast," he stated, "Chief of the Hooligan Tribe."

Elsa bowed her head. "It's a pleasure to meet you, chief. I'm Queen Elsa of Arendelle."

Stoick bowed in respect. "The pleasure, however unexpected, is entirely mine your majesty."

"Please," Elsa asked, "Just Elsa will be fine."

"As you wish, Elsa. I assume you slept well. He he! You certainly slept hard."

Elsa blushed slightly. "Quite well. I guess yesterday was more taxing than I realized. I must thank you for the splendid accommodations on such short notice."

"Think nothing of it." Stoick replied. "We've never had royal guests on Berk before, and since you were asleep before we could be properly introduced, I wanted to give a good first impression when you woke. Though from what I've been told, you may be wishing to stay with us for more than a visit."

How did he know? She hadn't told anyone. Had Anna let it slip?

"Forgive me, but how did you know that?" she asked

Stoick replied, "Astrid told me when she recovered. Seems she had overheard a conversation between you and your sister the night before."

Elsa looked annoyed. She was grateful Astrid was better, but that had been a private conversation.

"Oh, don't be upset with her." Stoick continued, "She was worried that you might be making a rash decision. Those of us in command often wish for a simpler life, away from the burdens of duty. If you'd like, we can head over to the great hall and discuss what you've discovered in the north sea. And anything else you may wish to talk about."

Elsa couldn't deny his logic." I think that's a great idea, Stoick. Thank you."

With that Stoick and Elsa headed to the great hall.

An hour later Anna finally awoke. Far less interested in the architecture than her sister was, she immediately went outside. The sun was high, blinding her for a moment. Then she heard a familiar voice.

"Anna!" Astrid called. Anna ran to her.

"Astrid! You're talking normal again!"

"Yep. All back to normal. And nice work with Stormfly yesterday. How'd you figure out how to control her?"

"I just told her you had fallen off and I couldn't drive. She taught me from there."

"Wow! It usually takes time for a rider and dragon to bond like that. She must really like you, Anna."

Anna held her arms out, grinning. "Hey. What's not to like?" Both girls laughed out loud.

Then Anna asked, "So where is everyone?"

"Elsa and Stoick are in the great hall."Astrid replied. "Hiccup and the other Riders, except Fishlegs, are there too. I was just coming over to see if you were awake yet."

"Then I guess that's where I should be now, eh?"

Astrid nodded. "Come on. It's this way."

On arriving at the great hall, they spotted Elsa and Stoick, Hiccup, Snotlout and the Twins at the far end of the room and made their way over.

"Anna!" Elsa chimed. "I'm glad you made it. We were just discussing Dagurs fleet. And what we'll need to defeat him once and for all."

"Um.." Tuffnutt commented, "couldn't you 2 just freeze and burn the whole fleet yourselves?"

Tuffnut had a fair point. Elsa and Anna could probably eradicate the entire fleet with no trouble at all. But Stoick had an answer.

"Because it would be better to get everyone around the North Sea to stand against Dagur together. To show him that not just one people, but all of them, will not tolerate his behavior."

"Exactly!" Elsa commented. "Such an endeavor would also strengthen the bonds between the allied kingdoms, making others who would threaten them think twice about it. The benefits to peace in the region would be immeasurable."

Tuff gave a dull expression. "I didn't get any of that."

"That's ok, Tuff." Hiccup said. "Just do what we do and you'll be fine."

Anna spoke up. "So what's our plan?"

"It's a 6 hour flight to Arendelle." Hiccup answered. "We can leave in an hour and still be there by nightfall."

Elsa added, "Then we'll inform Kristoff and anyone else involved of the situation. Tomorrow we'll start making preparations for battle. Chief Stoick has given us the Riders to help in the fight. Officially this time. Hopefully Kristoff got the word out to the allied kingdoms of our mission. We'll need them to make this operation a success."

"I am so stoked right now!" Snotlout cheered

"We'll see if you still feel that way when you see just how big Dagurs fleet is for yourself." Astrid responded.

"Then let's get going. We have a lot to do and not much time to do it." Hiccup ordered.

The group headed out, but Stoick called Elsa aside.

"About our earlier chat." He said, "As one leader to another, can I offer a little advice?"

"From you, always."

"Keep your head in this fight. Don't think about anything else. It could mean the difference between success and defeat."

Elsa nodded, then Stoick added,

"And when this is all done, if you decide you really want to let go of your royal life, then know there will be a place for you and your sister in the Hooligan tribe."

Elsa smiled. "Thank you Stoick. I promise I'll give it very careful thought. After this battle is won."

Stoick smiled brightly through his thick beard and waved Elsa on. She ran over to Toothless, where Hiccup was already waiting. She climbed on, then Hiccup gave the command. 4 dragons leaped into the air, and they were on their way back to Arendelle.

Stoick watched as they flew off. He raised his hand high.

"Good Luck, Riders"