Guys, I've made my decision. This is going to become a novel. Currently, the title is still Until the End but if it changes, I'll let you guys know. Author name, I'll let you guys now in due time (I'm not comfortable revealing something so personal online). I'll post the first chapter on DA and maybe the chapter after it but nothing else. When it'll show up, I can't say but when it does, feel free to critique.
OK, so, apparently, there was a bit of confusion with one of my guest reviewers as to how Artair had seen Hiccup, Toothless, and Aileen. Hopefully this chapter will clear that confusion but if not, let me know in a review and I will explain in the AN of the next chapter.
Also, someone asked in a PM about a link to the dances from the gathering several chapters back. This link is the one that Merida dances with Hiccup: www DOT YouTube DOT com/watch?v=p_WufkmPUPI A word of warning: a lot of newbie's are dancing in this vid, so it'll probably not look as good. And here is the other dance: www DOT YouTube DOT com/watch?v=WUnXxuaXAVU Another word of warning: both dances can be a bit painful to watch, but trust me, they are so much fun to do.
Nothing to report in this chapter, just a little foreshadowing. Enjoy!
Chapter #21: The Whisperers
Third Person POV
Artair rode swiftly to the north. It was near sunset when he arrived at the stables of MacInroy Castle. He jumped off his horse and left it in the care of the stable boy before entering the castle and roaming the halls to find the private chambers of William, a place where he was quite often.
Artair knocked and entered when William mumbled from the inside. As Artair had expected, William was sitting by the fireplace with a book in his hands, seemingly lost in it. He didn't look up until Artair closed the door,
"Artair!" He exclaimed. He put his book on his desk and came to the other male. The two men embraced each other, "It's good to see you." William said after they separated, "What brings you here?" William walked to a table, "And don't leave out any detail." He joked as he retrieved a pitcher filled with wine and filling two goblets. He gave one to Artair.
"I discovered something about Hendry Gallach." He took a sip of the red liquid. William took a sip too,
"What about him is so important that you rode all the way here to inform me? Couldn't you have sent a messenger?" He took another sip and walked back to his chair behind the desk and sat down,
"I didn't trust a messenger with what I saw."
"What did you see?" William asked, making a sweeping motion with his hand that held the goblet. Artair stared into the liquid again before looking at his friend- lord.
"It seems that the cripple has acquainted himself with a dragon." William stared at Artair for a moment before letting out a chuckle
"Have you gone mad, Artair? A dragon? Viking folklore." He chuckled a little louder. Artair seemed un-amused. He placed his goblet down before slamming his fists hard on William's desk,
"Don't deny that you don't know the existence of dragons, William!" He paused, "I know you've seen them! You were even the one to start the rumor in DunBroch that they didn't exist!" Artair knew that to be the truth. He had seen William once with some Vikings. They had been showing him a dragon they had captured. Granted, it was only the size of a cat but a dragon nonetheless. After the Vikings had been slaughtered, William had purposely started that rumor to make the Scots believe that the Vikings were mad and should be disposed of.
William sighed and put his goblet down
"I really can't hide anything from you, can I?"
"Even your deepest secrets." Artair said with a smirk, standing back up straight,
"If only." William thought, "What else can you tell me about this dragon?" He leaned back in his chair and propped his feet up on an empty part of the desk.
"Hendry has tamed it. It would listen to his every word, obey his every command. It was almost as if the dragon understood and talked to him."
"How do you know all this?"
"I was walking through the woods when I suddenly found a cove. At the very bottom they were. I only needed to see the glimpse of a prosthetic to know that it was Hendry Gallach; in all my life, I have never seen a fake leg like that. I went to the castle, got a horse, and rode back to the cove. I spied for a little while longer before coming here." The men made eye contact, "But that's not all." He refilled his goblet and took a long chug, "He knows Aileen Fletcher." William nearly fell off his chair. He stood up and slowly approached Artair,
"Are you certain?" He inquired,
"There was a figure in a blue cloak with Hendry and the dragon in the cove and moments earlier I had heard a woman laughing. It couldn't have been anyone else but Aileen Fletcher." William walked to the fireplace, his arm leaning on the mantle, still having a difficult time absorbing the information,
"Should we inform His Majesty?" Artair asked. William shook his head.
"No." Artair looked at William confused. Hendry Gallach was committing high treason by consorting with a person as Aileen and William wanted to keep it silent? William rolled his eyes at Artair's confusion
"We can use this to our advantage." He explained with enthusiasm, "Can you imagine how much more powerful my family will be with a dragon by my side?"
Hiccup's POV
The cove was, as always, lovely. Toothless and I had just gone for another ride and now we were relaxing in the cove. I was sitting in the grass staring at the sky, while Toothless was occasionally splashing his tail in the water. I had removed his prosthetic tail just after we landed; trying to fly with a leather tail that was wet was not a good idea. I closed my eyes but sleep evaded me as a ghastly sound called Toothless singing was heard
"The rock and pool is nice and cool" I let out a groan and sat up as he splashed his tail and snapped at a fish in the water, "Our only wish is to catch a fish-"
"Not even flying?"
"You have fulfilled that wish." I smiled at him and he gave his toothless smile in return. Mine disappeared when a question returned to my mind, one that has been with since I touched his muzzle for the first time,
"Toothless, why can I understand you?" He lifted his head and his ear plates stood up. He looked at me with his large eyes,
"Me don't know. The last Whisperer died twaponder years ago."
"Whisperers?" I asked, "That's what you call people like me?" Toothless nodded his large head, "How did the Whisperers die out?"
"The last one had no children that could speak to greenbloods. He was killed in a battle against the Queen." His eyes became silent and he put his head on his forepaws with equivalent sadness.
"The Queen?"
"On the island you called Dragon Island, lives a dragon that is greater than a mountain and more hunger for blood and power than the most greedy men on this Earth. She captures dragons with the lure of paradise and takes control of their minds. The more dragons she captures, the stronger her control becomes and wider her influence spreads. She forces them to gather food for her and if you didn't bring enough, she'd eat you." In my mind, he sighed, "Me lived there for many years but me managed to escape, though not unnoticed."
Not unnoticed? I suddenly thought back to when I first saw Toothless, the night of the gathering. The storm, the Skrill...
"So that Skrill you were fighting..." I started and he nodded,
"It was trying to push me back into her control."
"How did you even manage to escape her control?" He tore his gaze away from me and stared at the little waterfall at the other end of the lake,
"Me was bonded with a man before. Greenbloods that have been bonded with man are more resistant to her influence."
"What happened to your previous rider?"
"He died and me couldn't save him." He crooned with depression and, if he was human, he probably would be crying right now, "The Queen knocked him away from me and took control of me before me could save him."
"You were bonded with the last rider, weren't you?"
"Yessee." He closed his eyes. I went to him and petted his muzzle. He leaned into my hand, "In me last moment of freedom, me swore to myself that me would never fail my rider again." He placed his head on my lap, "And now, after un twaponder years, me can keep my swear."
"Twaponder?"
"300."
"Toothless," I laid down on his head, hugging him even closer, "If you die trying to save me, I would die anyway."
Third Person POV
William made his way towards the library. The dragon Artair had spoken of fascinated him. It had been years since William had seen a dragon, even though the one he had seen was barely the size of a cat. Questions had pondered William's mind after his talk with Artair. Why would a Scottish man train a dragon, a creature from Viking folklore? How was he able to do it?
William opened the large oak door and stepped into the dimly lit room. It was close to midnight so no one, except the caretaker of the countless books, was in the library. The old caretaker looked up from the old book he was studying and scribbling occasional notes into when he heard the door open. He hastily stood up and gave a bow,
"My Lord William. What brings you here?" His old and shaky voice croaked,
"I need a book." William replied as he ran his fingers over the spines of dust covered book, reading the worn gold letters. The old man slowly approached William, slightly holding up the fabric of his brown robe. He stopped beside William; if his back wasn't hunched, the old man would've been just as tall as William.
"And what book does my Lord require?" William stared down at the old man,
"I need a book about Viking legends or, more specifically, about dragons"
"Why would my Lord-?"
"Don't question me, Roderick. If I say I need a book, I need it. You do not question me why!"
"I meant no offence, my Lord. It just that I'd never imagine that you'd be interested in Viking lore, seeing how serious you take our moral." Roderick paused, "There is a book in this library about Viking legends. I'll go get it for you." The old man walked between two large shelves and quickly disappeared.
William looked around the room, suddenly realizing that he hardly ever came here anymore; he always got someone else to bring books to him. As a child, he would always sneak in here in-between lessons and read. When the teachers found him in here, they would scold him and complain to his father about it but Lord Robert always ignored them, stating that reading was the best way for his second son to learn.
William brushed his fingers along the many books, trying to remember if he ever read them. He stopped when he saw one book. It had no title on the spine, the leather was hard, old, and worn. He pulled it out. It seemed small in his hands and the cover had no letter engraved in it and it was completely covered in dust but he recognized the book. He hadn't seen it since the banishment of the Anglo-Saxons.
It was his favorite book.
It used to be. A friend had given it to him as a birthday present. William remembered that he had rejected it because he knew that that book was his friend's most prized possession.
William sighed and put it back as he remembered that the last time he had seen that friend was 15 years ago and that he probably was dead.
William walked to the book the Roderick had been studying. When William looked closer, he saw that it was his family tree, going back more than 12 generations. At the very bottom of the tree was Seòras. A line went from him to Christine and her dead husband. Lines from her husband then led to his family tree of Gilmore while the lines from Christine led to William, Graham, and Boyd. The four of them were then connect to their parents, Lord Robert and Lady Caitrìona.
Each of their names had a date of birth and some had a date of death. William fought down a twinge of sadness when he saw the day of birth and day of death for Boyd. William remembered the day Boyd was born. William was 13, Christine 11, and Graham was 17. He remembered that Christine was disappointed that she had another brother; she'd been hoping for a sister but she couldn't help but love Boyd at first sight, remarking that he looked like marble. The thought brought a smile to William's face.
The shuffling sound behind the bookcases meant that Roderick had returned. William looked up as the old man appeared with a fairly small but thick book.
"Here you are, my Lord." He croaked, holding the book to William. The young lord took it and brushed his hand on the cover.
Knowing that he shouldn't expect a reply, Roderick went back to the book but he hadn't even picked up the quill when William spoke,
"Roderick, how long have you worked here?" If he had been expecting anything, it hadn't been that. Sitting back down to relief that small ache in his back, Roderick answered the question,
"A very long time, my Lord. Since your father was a little boy."
"And you've always worked in the library?"
"No. I grew up in a monastery. One day, your grandfather hired me to educate his only son, your father." The old caretaker smiled, "I taught your father almost everything he knew. After several years, I wasn't just his mentor. I was his best friend." When Roderick looked at William, the young lord was staring at the floor, his face display the rare emotion of sadness,
"You've known my father longer than I have. And you knew him better too."
"William," the said man looked up, "I understand that you must've felt left out as the second son but you must understand that your father loved you just as much as he loved Graham, Boyd, and Christine."
"Father never loved Christine!" William snapped, "You know that!" He turned on his heel, walked briskly out the door and slammed it loudly shut.
Roderick stood quietly in his spot, knowing that there was an ounce of truth in William's words. If Robert had any love or compassion for his daughter, the old man had never seen it. Roderick sometimes wondered if Christine ever realized that she's lucky that she wasn't the first born? That her first born child wasn't a daughter?
The prior at Roderick's monastery had once said: In a clan that worships men as if they were God Himself, what good were women? Roderick shook his head and returned to the book once more, disagreeing with William silently as he had many, many times.
Third Person POV
Though he would never admit it out loud, William though that the book was a very interesting read. It did take a while for him to regain his old skill of reading runes but once he did, he couldn't help but be fascinated. He mostly ignored all the myths and legends about the Viking gods but stopped as soon as he reached the section he was looking for: dragons. The book spoke a lot about a man named Bork the Bold, the writer of the infamous Book of Dragons. As he turned the pages, he read about the demon dragon, the Red Death, a dragon as large as a mountain and more bloodthirsty than the Outcasts. He kept turning and read about great battles and the many types of dragons. Deadly Nadders, Timberjacks, Monstrous Nightmares, Polar Serpents, and countless other dragons had a page dedicated to them. The exception was the Night Fury; it contained nothing more than a title and a single sentence at the bottom, the words condemning the rare breed as nothing more than a bringer of death and destruction.
After searching for nearly hour, William still hadn't found what he was looking for. He turned another page with a single paragraph titled "Dragon Whisperers" and two pictures. One of a man riding a Whispering Death and the other of a woman with her hand on the snout of a Deadly Nadder. Curious, William read the paragraph.
These mythical people possessed the rare gift of telepathic communication with dragons. Because of this gift, they were the only ones that were capable of taming and training the rare creatures. How the gift is granted is unknown but many believe that the Gods choose ones that are Viking in blood and heart
William's breath stopped as he read the last sentence. Slumping back into his chair, he processed the information he just read. The Gods chose the ones to the inherit the gift. They chose someone that is Viking in blood and heart.
"If that were true," William thought, "Is it possible that Hendry Gallach, the Scottish blacksmith, is really a Viking?"
*Play Beethoven's 5th symphony* William knows Hiccup's deepest secret. I was actually listening to the 5th symphony when I was writing chapter, not that it helped a lot. Some sections in this chapter I had saved in my files for weeks, months even.
For any of you that have seen Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, you will recognize the song Toothless was singing.
Anyway, I'm looking forward to next chapter. Review, favourite, follow