Author's note: Wauw...has it really been three months since the last update? Sorry about that, I've been busy and stressed out. But I promise you all that I'll continue to write until this story is finished.

Anyway...I'm sure you're all eager to get on with the story, considering how I left things with a cliffhanger last time, so...here we go!

CHAPTER WARNINGS: Graphic violence, angst, death.

~~~~ Ivar the Bonesmasher ~~~~

The cave was deep and dark; a maze of long, winding tunnels that none of them knew the end of. Perhaps they led straight to Hel itself where the goddess of the underworld awaited the souls that hadn't gained access to other realms of the afterlife.

There was an ancient air about the cave that demanded respect; like the gods themselves had touched it long ago. The old cave walls standing strong, forming the tall arch ceiling above, their rough surface molded and remolded by the centuries they had witnessed.

His chair squeaked as he leaned back. The noise reverberated among the archaic stone. Every sound left an echo in here; nothing went unheard by the gods.

Finnr was pacing back and forth around the wooden table until he finally had enough and slumped down on a chair.

"We should be going instead of just waiting around!" he said.

"We're waiting for the scouts to come back." Egill said with his feet on the table. He took another bite of the plum in his hand. The juice of the fruit dripped onto his clean-shaven chin and he wiped it off with his sleeve.

How different they were, his two sons. Finnr; the headstrong but impatient one. Eager to prove himself in battle. Egill; the cunning one who could outsmart his enemies, yet sometimes too slow to act because he spent too long weighing the different possibilities.

"They should have been back an hour ago! What's taking them so long?" Finnr said and left his chair to pace back and forth again.

"Don't be an idiot." Egill said and tossed the plum seeds onto the dusty ground.

"You're the idiot. We need to get moving." Finnr told his brother and scratched the back of his head.

"No." Egill said and sat up straight. "We need to wait until we know for sure that Berk's allies are incapacitated."

"And how long are we supposed to wait? We have to move before it gets dark and the dragon riders have all the advantages."

"Yeah, but we can't just go straight to Berk without even knowing if we've taken out their allies or not."

"But we could move now and our scouts can find us on the way. We need to save time."

"We need to be patient." Egill said.

Finnr rolled his eyes. "We need to act!"

"Be quiet." Ivar said from his seat. "I've had enough of your bickering."

His sons became silent. Finnr stopped moving around and decided to lean against one of the cave walls.

He had raised them well. They followed his commands, not only as their father but as their leader.

He looked from Finnr to Egill. "If you think a war can be won using one and forgetting the other, you are fools. A leader without patience can never be two steps ahead of his enemy. He will march his men straight to their deaths. A leader without the will to act is a coward. He doesn't deserve to have anyone follow him into battle and lay down their lives for him."

His sons remained quiet. Judging from their wrinkled foreheads, he had given them something to think about.

Good.

They were competent fighters and good examples for other Vikings but they were new to the ways of war. His sons were in their 20's and still possessed the folly of youths with something to prove; too sure of themselves and the prospect of victory despite their lack of experience.

"You will stay quiet when the others get here." he told them. "I can't have you embarrass me with your bickering."

Finnr and Egill nodded in understanding.

Ivar hoped they would come unharmed out of this battle despite their unwise confidence. He had lost enough in life and a father shouldn't outlive his children.

The faint sounds coming from their men outside was the only thing interrupting the silence. The island they had made a temporary camp on had thick, lush forests that stretched for miles. The large treetops concealed them from the curious eyes of dragon rider scouts and the many caves in the area shielded them from rain and wind. It was forbidden to make fires, practice fighting, sing, yell and anything else that could attract the attention of the hostile scouts. The sorcerers at his disposal had cast some concealment spells that hid them further from enemies but that didn't make him change the rules for the men. They needed to have the element of surprise on their side, so he took no risks. It was vital to their chance of victory.

When the others arrived half an hour later, his sons kept in the background as they had been told.

His two fellow tribe leaders, Harald the Devourer and Sigurðr Ketilsson, as well as their children, entered the dim cave. Since the scouts had not returned yet, they had decided to go over the details of their battle strategies again.

"Now…" Sigurðr began and took a seat by the table. His daughter Álfdís and his son Tjorvi, both in their early 20's, sat down next to him. "Shall we discuss the details once more?" he asked and rubbed his chin underneath his bushy, black beard with streaks of silver. Age was catching up with him. With all of them.

"Yes." he agreed and motioned for the others to sit down too.

Harald's chainmail rustled when he sat down and the table creaked as his large arms rested on the wood. He was in his late 40's, younger than himself and Sigurðr, but no less experienced in battle. Only a fool underestimated Harald in a fight. There was a reason he had gotten the name Harald the Devourer. His three sons were on either side of him. They were all tall, muscular and brave; great examples of Viking sons that made their father proud.

Ivar rolled out the large map of the archipelago on the table. He had marked all the relevant routes and points of attack and he was going to go through them with Harald and Sigurðr one last time, so he was reassured they knew exactly what to do. There was no room for mistakes.

As it turned out, he had no reason to doubt his fellow chiefs. Both of them had remembered the strategies down to the smallest detail and they made sure that their children knew them as well. It was customary in all of their tribes that the oldest child would be a temporary chief until an election could be held, in case a chief died on the battlefield.

"…and in that case, we will redirect this group of men over…here." Sigurðr said and pointed with his dagger on the location on the map. "Is that clear?" he asked Álfdís and Tjorvi who both nodded.

"What if the Berkians use their sorcerers or their beasts to block this area here?" Álfdís asked and placed a slender finger on another place on the map.

Ivar's lips formed a small smile. She may be a girl but Álfdís had more strategic knowledge than Harald's, Sigurðr's and his own sons by a long shot. She would make a fine chief one day.

"Yes. Now that we have time, we need to discuss the sorcerers again." Harald cleared his throat. "Stoick's son. And the Hofferson girl and the fat one."

"Ingerman." Ivar corrected him. "We've already decided how to handle them."

"I know that. I was there." Harald said but there was no humor in his eyes. "Are you certain your own sorcerers are up to the task?"

"Of course they are." he said. "They are older and more experienced. They'll have no trouble handling a couple of kids."

"Kids with magic." Sigurðr said. "Which must never be underestimated."

"Even so." he said. "They have reassured me it's not a problem to deal with Stoick's son and the others."

"You're usually not a man to rely on reassurances." Harald said.

"No." he agreed. "But they know what's at stake and they know the punishment if they fail."

Harald and Sigurðr nodded contently.

"Good." Sigurðr said and leaned back in his chair. "Even one Berkian sorcerer can do too much damage for us to risk."

"I'm well aware of that." he said, the words sharp with an underlying warning.

He and Sigurðr maintained eye contact, silently challenging each other.

The others were quiet but finally Sigurdr looked away.

"Your sorcerers better be as effective as you say they are." Harald said.

"They will protect as many ships as possible against the beasts and their riders. And they know who the Berkian sorcerers are, so their second task will be to take them out."

"I still don't see why you will be leading the ground attack, Chief Ivar." Harald said. "I have as much, if not more, battle experience."

Ivar forced a polite smile. They both knew that leading the ground attack was the most dangerous and therefore prestigious part of the battle. If they won, the chief leading that part of the battle would gain the most honor and respect.

"No one is disputing that, Chief Harald." he said. "We all know of your great exploits in battle. But you have the most sea faring experience of the three of us and your valuable knowledge on that matter is needed on the ships to secure our triumph." he said, despite his desire to tell that dim-wit what he truly thought of him. Chief Harald was a fierce warrior but he wasn't a cunning man; his inflated ego blinded him and he was easily bought with flattery.

"Well, that is certainly true…" Harald said with a self-satisfied gleam in his eyes. "Fine. You will lead the ground attack. I will lead the fleet to victory."

"Well, as long as your sorcerers know how to follow orders..." Sigurðr said. "Sorcerers are not like the rest of us."

"They follow orders." he said. "I know you don't trust sorcerers. But they are loyal to me and one of the most useful tools at my disposal."

The sound of footsteps alerted them to an extra presence in the cave. Stepping into the dimness, one of his best servants, Knútr, came into view.

"My chief, the scouts are here." Knútr said and bowed his bald head where tattoos in dark green and blue decorated each side; a pattern of tree branches, ravens and runes.

"Send them in." he said.

The six leaders of the scout groups joined them in the cave shortly after. They had been overseeing the attempts on sabotaging Berk's allies.

He rose from his seat and the scouts positioned themselves in a row, facing him.

"What's the status on Berk's allies?" he asked Hákon, one of his own men.

"All the ships in their docks have been burnt. They will be unable to sail anywhere or get any messages out." Hákon told him,

"Excellent." he said. "And what about the Berkian scouts? Have they been distracted?"

"Yes, my chief." Hákon replied. "We dispatched ten small groups of men on different islands, as you ordered. They are keeping the scouts occupied far away from their allies' islands. Half of the groups are luring them in with trapped dragons that they will be trying to free, a third is distracting them by setting the islands on fire so they will come and investigate and the rest are pretending to be people in need that the scouts have to rescue."

"Good." he said with a content smile. "They won't be able to warn the other Berkians in time…You did not encounter any problems along the way? Any risk of detection?"

"No, my chief." Hákon said. "As ordered, stealth was the highest priority. We went in, only a few men at a time, using the look out' blind angles. When the ships caught on fire, everyone was too distracted to notice our departure. We weren't seen."

"And you're certain the scouts won't be communicating with each other?"

"Most of them fly in pairs of two or three. They could try to tell the other scouts about where they are going but they use the Terrible Terrors as messengers. Even if some of them do send messages to each other or back to Berk and someone finds the whole thing suspicious, they have no idea what is happening to their allies and they won't be able to put the puzzle pieces together in time. They'll be too busy trying to rescue beasts and people they think need help."

"Good." he said and nodded. "Well done, men." he addressed all of them. "With great Vikings like you, we are certain to win this battle." he told them confidently, despite knowing there was always a risk of losing. This time, it was a small risk but a risk nonetheless. However, you don't motivate your warriors with talks about risks.

The scouts' report and this last meeting with the other chiefs and their children had only increased his confidence. Their tribes were the three biggest tribes in the entire archipelago, outnumbering Berk by far. Their plan to stop Berk's allies and scouts from helping had succeeded without any trouble.

It was a glorious sight when he finally stood before his men and his allies. He had waited for years to deliver this speech to them. To tell them it was finally time to take action against their enemies.

Every warrior had gathered before him and the other chiefs underneath the thick ceiling of treetops. They were clad in leather and metal armor, their hands curled around axes, spears or swords, their heavy boots planted solid on the moist earth. To an outsider, they may have looked ready for battle but they were missing the most important thing.

Fire.

"Brothers! Sisters! Allies!" he exclaimed so even the ones in the back could hear him. "Long have the dragon riders oppressed us! When they first made peace with the beasts, we tried to reason with them! It was never our desire to fight them! But they chose the beasts over us!"

Angry boos came from isolated places in the crowd. The sea of faces stared back at him, their eyes dark with the recollection of how they had been betrayed.

The spark was lit.

"And it wasn't enough for them to let the monsters go unpunished! To let them roam free! The Berkians began to interfere with our right to do what our ancestors have done for hundreds of years before us: kill the beasts that have raided Viking villages, stolen our livestock, killed our loved ones and burned our homes to the ground! They have made themselves the kings of the archipelago! The dragon riders have forgotten the Viking legacy! They have spit on our common ancestors!" he roared and raised his sword into the air.

The outbursts from the crowd grew. They fed on each other's anger; the anger that seemed infused into the very air among them.

The spark became stronger, filling their blood with heat.

"Now, it's time for retribution!" he shouted and placed one hand on the pouch hanging on his belt. It contained bones from his two most important kills; his wife's father, who had beaten her as a girl and refused to let them marry, and the scaly beast who had taken his firstborn child from him so many years ago.

There was a certain peace in knowing that neither of their hearts beat anymore.

"The Berkians have brought this on themselves! Our cause is just and our vengeance will be swift! We will fight for our freedom! We will fight for the right to decide our own fate!"

The crowd roared in response, raising their weapons and fists. "Kill the Berkians!" someone bellowed. "Cut off the beasts' heads!" another screamed. "Death to the traitors!"

The spark had transformed into a flame, burning its way to their hearts.

"Don't underestimate the Berkians!" he warned them. "Even without their allies, they are a fierce enemy. We outnumber them but they have a close alliance with their beasts! This battle will not be easy! The Valkyries will lead many of us to Valhalla today! But we shall not grieve! Those who go will sit by Odin's table among the greatest warriors in history and we will celebrate their courage for decades to come!"

"Which is why…" he continued. "The oldest ones among us will be on the front lines; be the first to greet the Berkians' swords and their dragons! We have lived full lives and it is better that we get our chance to meet our fate in battle and get to dine with Odin in the afterlife than our young ones dying in our stead!"

The men and women with grey in their hair and lines of age on their faces cheered the loudest of all. They were not eager to die but they would rather die in battle than of old age; rather lay down their own lives than to send their grown children first into the enemies' hands.

He held up his arms. "We will spill the blood of the dragon riders until the earth is drenched in red! We won't stop fighting until freedom is ours! WE WILL WIN!"

His men and women stomped their leather boots into the ground over and over until it seemed like the ground itself was shaking. The rage and conviction in their hearts left their bodies and came out as fierce battle cries. Everywhere, Vikings shook their weapons in the air, chainmail rustled and silvery blades reflected the small streams of sunlight that came through the treetops.

It was beautiful.

Their commitment to fighting for the common good was inspiring and he found himself proud of leading such strong, courageous Vikings into battle. Surely, Odin would grant them victory.

"It's time to go! Kill every man and woman you come across! Kill every child old enough to remember this day! Slay every beast!" he shouted.

He pointed his sword towards the ships in the docks, currently concealed by magic. It was time to finally utter the words he had been wanting to roar for so long.

"TO WAR!"

"TO WAR!" his fellow Vikings agreed and ran towards the shore to board the ships.

What started as a spark had grown into a raging wildfire.

A wildfire that could only be put out with blood.

~~~~ Hiccup ~~~~

When Berk came into focus all around him, the noise attacked his mind in one swift wave of sound.

Urgent yelling, clinking armor and weapons, dragons roaring. Everywhere, their fellow Berkians were preparing for battle; grabbing weapons, donning armor, saddling their dragons. Some were reinforcing their defenses; lining up catapults, preparing fire extinguishing, setting traps for their enemies.

He spotted Gobber calling out orders by his forge and he was certain his father wouldn't be far away.

He dismounted Toothless along with Astrid and Fishlegs. The three of them shared a few seconds of silence as they took in the chaos around them. They had never seen anything like it before.

He took a deep breath. "Go get your armor on. Then find your dragons." he told them, trying to sound calm. Without a word, they ran towards their houses.

He and Toothless hurried through the village, trying to find his father. "It's Hiccup!" someone yelled. "Hiccup's here!" another voice sounded. He could feel the eyes on him but he didn't dare to look. He knew what he would see: hope. Hope that broke his heart. His fellow Vikings had faith in him and Toothless. But what if they failed them all?

"Hiccup!" Gobber called out. "Hiccup! Go to Stoick!" he pointed his prosthetic hand towards the Great Hall.

"I will!" he called back.

He made a quick stop at his house, where he put on his armor and flying gear in a hurry, his mind still numb from the realization that he was about to go to war.

When he was ready and had grabbed Inferno, his other sword and his daggers, he headed out into the swarm of people once more, towards the Great Hall.

Young teenagers, much too young to see the horrors of war, were equipped with swords and spears by Gobber's forge. He watched Gobber hand Valdís a sword, with a somber gleam in his eyes.

She hesitantly took it and in that moment, she seemed even younger than her 13 years of age. She looked at the sword with a brief flash of fear in her blue eyes. Moving towards Tryggvi, who was handing out armor to anyone who needed it, she clenched her jaw tight in determination, pushing down the fear.

The sadness and the guilt pressed down on Hiccup's chest. He remembered when she first made friends with her dragon, a Deadly Nadder named Sharpwing. He remembered how she would follow Astrid around a few years ago with eyes full of wonder and adoration. He remembered when she and the other kids her age started training with weapons and she accidentally broke Gobber's most prized shield.

He tore his eyes off the people around him. He couldn't bear the thought that some of them would die today and he would never see them again.

His dad came into view by the long stone staircase to the Great Hall. He was surrounded by several of his best warriors, all of them putting on their armor piece by piece.

"Hiccup!" his dad said when he spotted him and broke away from the small group.

"Dad." he said. "Isn't there any way to stop all of this?"

"I'm afraid not, son." his father said with sorrow in his eyes. "You know I would never lead our people into war if there was a chance of resolving things peacefully. I have no desire for blood."

"I know, dad…" he said with a small nod. "Where are our allies?"

"We've sent scouts out to gather them but they have not come yet." his dad said, deep furrows of concern appearing on his forehead.

He nodded as the sinking defeat washed over him. There was no way out. They were on their own and it was time for him to do his part.

"What do you want me to do?" he asked.

"I need you to lead the attack from the air." his father said and pulled his rustling chainmail over his head.

He blinked. "What?"

"Our enemies outnumber us, Hiccup." his dad said and put a large hand on his shoulder. "We need to use every advantage we have. So we'll split up: you will lead the dragons and the riders from the air and I will lead the men and women I choose to stay on the ground." his dad explained with a determination in his eyes that only came from being a seasoned warrior.

"But, I cant-"

"Yes, you can, son." his dad said. "I have faith in you. Deep down, you're a leader, Hiccup. And you know the strategies and the strengths and weaknesses of the dragons and the riders. You can do this. I need you to do this."

He nodded mutely. He would do what was needed, no matter how much the pressure filled him with dread.

"Here, take this." his dad said and handed something to him.

He took it and realized it was the enchanted horn, he had made for his dad a year ago.

His father used it to communicate with the other dragon riders in the air, where it was difficult to be heard. The horn could be heard over all other sounds and every dragon rider had learned a series of codes, so they could decipher the messages his dad gave them.

Now, it was his turn to use it.

He ran his fingers over the polished black and white horn.

"Son." his dad said. "I know you're scared. You would be a fool not to be. We're all scared."

"Even you?"

His dad nodded. There was a vulnerable glaze in his eyes that Hiccup had only seen very few times in his life. "Of course I am. Not for myself but for my people. For you. But I believe we can win as long as we fight with everything we've got."

"I'll do everything I can, dad." he said.

"I know you will." his dad said and went back to the other warriors to finish preparing.

He could only stand there and watch them put on their helmets and equip their weapons.

Fishlegs and Astrid appeared by his side, dressed for battle. Leather armor covered their torsos, metal shoulder pads shone in the sunlight.

"Where are the twins and Snotlout?" he asked.

"They're readying their dragons." Fishlegs said and patted Meatlug solemnly on the head.

"Good."

"What do we do now?" Astrid said and adjusted her belt where two long daggers hung from.

"My dad says I'm going to lead the attack from the air while he leads from the ground."

Astrid nodded. Hiccup didn't miss the brief flicker of worry in her eyes. Even Astrid, strong, confident Astrid, was afraid of what was to come.

"That's a good strategy." she said. "Playing to our own strengths."

"It's what our chief wants." he said. "And I trust him."

"He knows what he's doing." Fishlegs reassured him but his eyes were concerned.

"There you are." he heard Tuffnut's voice say, as he, Ruffnut and Snotlout joined them. They were all wearing armor too and had extra weapons on them.

"Here we are." Astrid agreed flatly.

He and Fishlegs only responded with sad smiles.

"Are you ready?" Snotlout asked them softly. He stood next to Hookfang and held on to one of the reins so tight that his knuckles were pale.

It was strange seeing them like this; on edge and worried. Snotlout's usual arrogance was gone and any hint of mischief had disappeared from the twins' eyes.

"As ready as we can be." he said.

The air was tense between them. All of them knew the seriousness of what was about to occur but no one wanted to speak of it.

"I just want you to know…" Fishlegs said. "In case I haven't said it as often as I should…I love you guys."

"We love you too, Fish." he said and tried to give him an uplifting smile but all he could manage was a sad one.

Astrid put a hand on Fishlegs' shoulder.

"Oh for crying out loud…" Snotlout said but there was no irritation in his eyes.

"Shut up." Astrid said. "This might be the last time we're all together."

"Yeah…You're right." Ruffnut said and wrung her hands.

It was a daunting prospect; that some of them wouldn't make it. That they would never ride and train their dragons together again, never have meals in the Great Hall, never explore new places, never sit by a bonfire late at night and laugh and share a bottle of mead.

Never again.

That could be their new reality after this day.

Nearby in the village, the people of Berk had gathered and were waiting for his dad to give his speech.

"Hiccup!" His dad yelled from the front and motioned for him and the others to come join the crowd. They quickly made their way over to him.

"Brothers and sisters!" his father began addressing all the Berkians. "Our enemies are at our doorstep! They are coming to take away what we hold most dear! Each other! Our dragons! And our freedom!" he shouted and raised his arm into the air. His newly sharpened axe gleamed in the sunlight.

"We can't allow that! We will fight! We will burn their fleet to ashes! We will crumble their bones to dust! We will do what it takes to defeat them!" he roared and Hiccup didn't fail to notice how the other Vikings were affected by his words; their chief's bravery awoke their own courage and fed their conviction. His dad slowly melted their fears and filled them with confidence and anger instead.

"WE WILL SEND THEM TO THE AFTERLIFE BEFORE WE LET THEM TAKE OUR HOME AND OUR LOVED ONES!" his father bellowed with an authority every other chief in the archipelago would envy.

The other Vikings yelled out their agreements. Next to him, Astrid, Fishlegs, Snotlout and the twins roared along with the others and banged their weapons against the wooden house next to them. He added his own voice to the explosion of noise and raised his sword in the air. It felt good to yell; to scream out some of the frustration and fear.

Toothless roared and the other dragons around them joined in. It was an inferno; passionate and primal, fit for a fight between life and death.

"MY FELLOW BERKIANS!" his dad's booming voice cut through the deafening sounds. The crowd calmed down once more and the dragons ceased their roars. "To win this battle we need to be smarter than our enemy! Our defense will be two-fold! From the ground and from the air!" his dad explained. "Everyone who has fought in a battle before will defend our home by my side on the ground, as our ancestors did it! You know the strategies and you have the experience to beat these savage invaders! Everyone else will be in the air and all dragon riders will follow Hiccup's command!" his father shouted and motioned to him.

Hiccup briefly glanced at the crowd but saw and heard no objections. There was nothing but approval in his fellow Vikings' eyes; they had faith in him.

If only he shared that faith.

"You six!" his dad said to some of his warriors. "You will take your dragons and bring the children and the hatchlings into the Great Hall. You will barricade it and guard it with your lives! No one gets in there!" his dad said, his eyes flashing with anger at the mere thought of someone harming the children and the hatchlings.

"Yes, my chief!" they agreed in unison and scurried through the crowd, gathering the small children and the hatchlings onto the backs of their dragons. The tears of the kids and the wails of the hatchlings as they were carried away towards the Great Hall was heartbreaking. They didn't fully understand what was happening but they could pick up on the fear of everyone around them.

He rested a hand on top of Toothless' head. Their eyes met and they shared one of those moments where they could feel each other's emotions without words or sounds. In the depths of Toothless' eyes, he saw concern. Protectiveness. Repressed anger. Determination. A whirlwind of emotions shining in bright green. Emotions they shared. Emotions that spoke of the desperation to keep their home and their loved ones safe. To keep each other safe.

He held his hands under Toothless' chin, dipped his head and bumped their foreheads together softly. "I'll never let anything happen to you, bud." he whispered and Toothless let out a purring noise to tell him he felt the same way.

"OUR ENEMIES APPROACH! IT'S TIME TO SHOW THEM WHAT BERKIANS ARE MADE OF!" his father said when the children and the hatchlings had been carried away. "Sverð! Skjǫldr! Eldr! [Sword! Shield! Fire!]" he chanted and banged his axe on to his plate armor.

"Sverð! Skjǫldr! Eldr!" the crowd roared, stomping their feet and hitting their swords and axes against their shields or nearby walls. "Sverð! Skjǫldr! Eldr! Sverð! Skjǫldr! Eldr!"

The energy in the air from his fellow Berkians was energizing and yet daunting. Their bravery in the face of danger and potential death made his own bravery rise within him. But the gleam in their eyes, and the fierceness of their roars reminded him of the nature of war; everyone believes they're right to resort to violence. Their enemies were yelling battle cries with the same level of conviction. Banging their weapons against shields with the same anger.

People were going to die. Dragons were going to die.

But both sides would be sure that they were the righteous ones.

Hiccup had no doubts about what he was about to do. They were attacking his home and his loved ones. He had to defend everything he held dear. But he was also aware that in the enemies' minds, he and the other Berkians were the threat. The ones in the wrong. The traitors.

"Gobber, the spear!" his dad said and held his hand out.

Gobber handed him the spear and the noise from the crowd died down.

It was a Viking custom to throw a spear at the enemy's army in honor of Odin before a battle began. Odin, being a god of war and the king of the gods, was the one for Viking leaders to honor if they wished to triumph over their enemies. Hiccup wasn't a believer, but if Odin did exist, he hoped with everything he had that he would grant them victory. That he would protect his loved ones.

His dad ran towards the cliffs holding the spear. He hurled it at the fleet coming towards them with impressive speed and strength. It landed in the water not too far from the first line of ships rolling through the stirring waters. Warhorns reverberated through the air from the enemies' ships. Sails were gleaming in the sunlight, cracking and flapping in accordance with the wind.

"Now is the time!" his father told them. "Now is the time to defend everything we hold dear! DRAGON RIDERS; WITH HICCUP! EVERYONE ELSE; WITH ME TO THE SHORE!"

The warriors gathered behind his dad and they ran towards the shore. The dragon riders mounted their dragons and spoke last reassuring words to them.

Hiccup jumped into the saddle, clicked his prosthetic in place and turned to the crowd. A sea of young faces stared back at him, their eyes showing the strange combination of fear and determination that brewed inside all of them.

Now was the time to put away his doubts and do what needed to be done.

"Dragon riders!" he shouted. Everywhere, the last Vikings quickly mounted their dragons and awaited his command. Astrid and Fishlegs nodded at him to show their support. Snotlout and the twins looked at him as if they truly believed he could do this.

"With me!" he yelled and motioned to the skies. Toothless crouched down and shot straight into the air. Behind them, he could hear the sound of a myriad of leathery wings flapping.

As they flew into the skies, they got a proper view of their enemies below. It was true what his father had said; their enemies outnumbered them. Rows upon rows of ships in orderly ranks headed for their shores. Men pulling the oars through the heavy water, working as one. Others; manning the catapults, net trappers and other weapons he could see mounted on the sides of the decks. One was a contraption firing thick metal arrows and worry churned within him, because they looked capable of going through most dragon species' scales.

He pushed his nausea down and focused on crafting a plan. They were facing a mighty enemy but no one was without vulnerable spots. They would fight and they would win. They had their dragons, the most powerful allies and friends anyone could have.

As they approached the enemies' fleet, he grabbed the horn from his belt and blew the needed signal.

The dragons and their riders split into their assigned groups of mixed dragon species. That was one of their defensive strategies because it made it difficult for the enemy to exploit a dragon species' weaknesses since they all had different ones.

He kept one eye on the ground, making sure their attack from the air would be timed properly with the attack on the ground. On the shores, his father and the warriors had lined up in the distance. His dad had given the order for the archers to be ready as soon as the enemy stepped out of their ships and set foot on Berk.

Before he relayed his plans of attack to the other dragon riders, his last thoughts were of Jack.

He did the right thing leaving him behind. To keep him safe. But that didn't make things easier. How he hoped Jack would understand that he only left him, because he loved him too much to lose him.

Especially if he never got a chance to apologize to him.

~~~~ Fishlegs ~~~~

Killing another human being was the hardest thing he had ever had to do.

When one of the invaders screamed in unbearable pain as hot lava coated him from the mouth of Meatlug, Fishlegs could have vomited. His skin was melting off him and he never even made it two steps towards the railing to jump overboard before he died.

Perhaps that was a good thing. At least he was out of his misery then.

Metal arrows hissed through the air, as he and his group attacked one of the ships close to the shore, setting everything and everyone they could ablaze. They quickly learned that their enemies had coated their ships in a fire-resistant substance, making their dragons' fire slower to take hold of the wood and spread.

When Hiccup and Stoick had given orders to attack, everything had turned to chaos in a heartbeat.

He and the other dragon riders' goal was to take out as many ships and men as possible before they reached the shore. It was easier to battle them on the ocean, where they had nowhere to escape.

But no matter how effective they were, their enemies outnumbered them by far and eventually, ships reached their home. Their troops on the ground fired swarms upon swarms of arrows towards the invaders. Enemies held up their shields as they jumped out of their ships and charged through the shallow water. Some of them succeeded, some of them ended up as fodder for the arrows. Dead bodies floated amongst waves and seafoam. Corpses bled on the sand of their shores.

"BEAST!" an invader screamed from the deck of the ship and threw his spear towards him and Meatlug. A burst of adrenaline shot into his veins and he steered Meatlug around the threat.

They hovered just out of reach from the enemy to avoid another attack. "Fire!" he told Meatlug and she opened her giant jaws and unleashed a blast of golden flames. The invader howled in agony and fell to the deck. Meatlug's fire slowly crawled from the dead man's clothes to the mast.

Out of nowhere, something came flying towards them and shoved them to the side. Meatlug screeched in pain and he grabbed the reins tight and looked around for the threat.

A spear fell towards the ocean. It had hit them straight on but hadn't penetrated Meatlug's scales. He thanked the gods that Gronckles had such strong armor.

He had no time for relief though. The enemies on the ship fired arrows and net trappers and hurled spears at an alarming rate and it took constant concentration to avoid getting hit. He kept an eye on the dragons and riders around him and used his wand to stop as many threats to them as he could, while Meatlug attacked invaders on the deck with lava and flames.

Suddenly, a howl came from above. To his horror, he watched Stein, a 15 year old boy, cry out as metal arrows pierced his Deadly Nadder's chest and legs.

The dragon's wings folded in and they dropped from the skies.

"Meatlug! Get them!" he yelled and Meatlug sprung into action.

Astrid and Stormfly came swooping past out of nowhere. They caught Stein and a breath later, he and Meatlug caught his Deadly Nadder. They quickly carried them towards the cliffs to set them down.

"No…no no no…" Stein chanted to himself, as he put his arms around the neck of the unmoving Deadly Nadder. Veins of crimson spilled from the places the arrows were stuck. The dragon's eyes were closed and its chest still.

"No!" Stein's eyes filled with tears and he began sobbing among the sounds of explosions and fire in the distance. He clutched his dragon tighter.

Fishlegs could have cried. Stein's devastation stung in his heart. It was a sorrow he hoped he would never have to feel.

Astrid squeezed Stein's shoulder and then mounted Stormfly. "There's no time." she said but her eyes were full of sorrow.

"I know." Fishlegs agreed.

As he and Astrid headed back into battle, he watched the ship they had been attacking fall to pieces before his eyes; wood cracking and snapping in the roaring flames. It began to sink, disappearing into the depths.

Several other ships quickly followed. Enemies were in the water; both alive and dead ones. Dragons and riders moved on to new ships and more invaders to fight for their home.

"Svana!" Astrid called out to the rider on the Thunderdrum in their group. "Take them out!"

Svana nodded and directed her massive blue Thunderdrum straight into the ocean. It disappeared for a brief moment and then shot up through the water and pulled enemies down to their watery graves.

The rest of them set their fury on the next ship in line, where the invaders were busy attacking another group of dragon riders – including Hiccup, Toothless, Snotlout and Hookfang.

He and Astrid were almost by the ship when he spotted Hiccup and Toothless swooping straight down towards it. Toothless unleashed a plasma blast that blinded everyone around it and blew a massive hole in the ship. Water gushed into the hull. Snotlout and Hookfang attacked some hostiles handling the net trappers on the deck. One of them evaded their attack and sliced Snotlout's arm with his long spear. He tried to defend himself from Hookfang but it was no use. The Monstrous Nightmare grabbed him in his strong jaws. There was a loud crack when the man's spine snapped.

A metal arrow pierced a Deadly Nadder's foot. It cried out and flapped its wings wildly while its rider consoled it. He and Meatlug protected them, working as the close team they were; he deflected arrows and rocks with his wand while Meatlug drowned enemies in lava and tried to set fire to the ship.

The pleas of dying men and the terrifying screams of injured dragons rung in his skull. Everywhere, there was death and fear.

When the rider had gotten her Nadder under control again, he and Meatlug defeated the last enemies at their end of the deck. Their dead faces, disfigured and melted like candlewax, would haunt him in his dreams.

Toothless circled the ship at a fast pace and Hiccup fired spells towards the invaders as quickly as he could, throwing them into the ocean, setting them on fire or smashing them into the mast of the ship. A boulder from a catapult shot towards them. Fishlegs sucked in a breath but Toothless evaded the rock.

Astrid and Stormfly worked together with Snotlout and Hookfang to destroy the catapults, net trappers and arrow launchers. Astrid and Stormfly took out the men operating them before Stormfly used her fire to melt down the contraptions. Deadly Nadders had the hottest fire of all dragons, he reminded himself. Snotlout and Hookfang covered them from arrows, enemies and boulders, making sure they weren't injured.

"AH!" he heard Hiccup yell and by instinct, he located him. He and Toothless had landed on the railing and Hiccup had been hit by something on his right arm. A long gash had ripped open his tunic and some of his leather armguard and blood trickled down the limb.

Toothless roared in unrestrained rage and fired another plasma blast that blew another big hole in the ship. Water was filling the ship so fast, it was like Njórðr himself was helping them bring their enemies down.

He and Meatlug quickly went to their side. "Are you okay!?" he shouted.

"Yeah! I'll be fine!" Hiccup said when they all took off from the ship and into the skies.

The ship was burning and sinking simultaneously, flames slowly trailing through the mast. It creaked and fell onto the deck. From the safety of the sky, he sent a Confringo spell through the air. The blast slung the last invaders straight into the ocean, while the ship let out a splintering scream and broke apart.

"FISHLEGS! ASTRID!" he heard Hiccup's voice call out, barely noticeable above the crashes and screams of battle.

"They have witches and a wizard!" Hiccup told him when he had their attention.

"What?!" Astrid said.

"But how?" he asked.

"Does it matter?" Hiccup said. "They have them! We have to do something, they're stopping too many of our attacks!" he explained and pointed to something.

His eyes followed the direction. On a ship, familiar sparks from spells whirled all around. They blocked and put out dragon fire, shot Killing Curses and helped the men fire catapults with huge boulders and net trappers. A boulder crashed straight into the head of one of the dragon riders and they died on the spot. Fishlegs couldn't see who it was but it didn't matter. He knew everyone here. No matter who had died, it ached inside him. The rider's Monstrous Nightmare screeched in rage and set itself on fire. It circled the ship spewing flames without stopping. Its eyes closed forever when a Killing Curse hit it in the chest.

Floating corpses and body parts, dying men thrashing around trying to make it out, dead dragons who would never flap their wings again. The sea was a realm of death. The water lapping at the shores had turned red.

"What's your plan?" he asked Hiccup. From the looks of it, these sorcerers were more experienced and more powerful than they were.

"We can't defeat them by our magic alone!" Hiccup said, mirroring his own thoughts. "They're more-"

An explosion below them drowned out Hiccup's words. Another ship had met its doom, shooting splinters the size of spoons into everyone around it.

"They're more powerful!" Hiccup repeated.

"So what do you suggest?!" Astrid yelled.

"There's only one way to defeat them." Hiccup said. "We have to take them by surprise."

~~~~ Jack ~~~~

He shook with anger and sorrow.

Wrapping his arms around himself, he stared at the wet grass under him. The smothered raindrops bled into the knees of his trousers. His skin was cold and wet but what did it matter?

His screams echoed in his head even after his voice had broken. His throat ached, mercilessly scraped raw by his desperate attempts to stop Hiccup.

Hiccup.

He was gone. What would happen now?

"Jack?" a soft voice said but he couldn't register who it was.

A gentle hand came down and rested on his shoulder. Warm and familiar, yet not enough for any relief from the nauseating despair.

"Jack?" the voice said again.

He rested his palms on the cold, soaked grass.

How could Hiccup do this to him? What if he died? What if he would never see him again?

That prospect was agony. He couldn't lose him. It just wasn't an option.

Every thought was a rock on his back and it seemed impossible to bear the weight of them all. He choked back the tears that stung in his eyes and swallowed. He refused to cry.

He focused on the anger brewing in his chest instead. How betrayed he felt. How much he resented Hiccup for leaving him behind, like he was some helpless child who made a mess of everything.

Someone grabbed his arm and began to pull him up. He let them get his tired body away from the wet ground without resistance.

He vaguely registered red curls bouncing in front of his eyes before he found himself in a tight embrace. He closed his eyes and let the warmth and familiar scent wash over him.

Merida stroked his back slowly. He rested his head on her shoulder and breathed heavily into her hair. From somewhere next to them, he could hear Rapunzel crying quietly.

The nausea threatened to climb from his gut and into his mouth. His heartbeat drummed rapidly; an ominous rhythm that spoke of the heartbreak inside him.

"Jack!" Flynn's panicked voice called out, cutting through his quiet grief.

Merida slowly let go of him. He saw Flynn and Mavis running towards them across the green hills, eyes wide in alarm.

"What's going on?" Mavis asked breathlessly when they reached them. Her eyes darted from one person to the next. "Elsa told us she saw you guys running and screaming in panic!"

Jack tried to speak but the words wouldn't come. He could only look at them with pained eyes while the lump in his throat ached.

"Hiccup…" Rapunzel said, her voice almost breaking. "Hiccup and Fishlegs and Astrid…"

"What?" Flynn said, looking from her to Jack. "What?"

"They…left." she explained, while a few tears glided down her cheeks. "They…Berk is under attack. They went home to defend it."

"What?!" Mavis said, the worries on her face giving way to sheer panic. "No!"

"We have to help them!" Flynn said.

"I tried." Jack croaked, finally getting some words out. His throat hurt with every syllable. "He…left without me."

It stung to admit it out loud and he couldn't look at them.

"But…" Mavis said with disbelief in her voice, like she couldn't imagine that.

"They left all of us behind…" Rapunzel said quietly.

Jack wasn't sure if her words were meant as a comfort to him but they didn't help.

"So…there's no other way?" Mavis asked. "We…we can't just do nothing!"

"No, but we can't fly to Scandinavia, it's going to take way too long!" Merida shouted, flailing her arms around. Jack knew her aggression wasn't directed at any of them but came from the helplessness she felt inside. The same helplessness that made him want to punch something.

"But our friends might be dying!" Flynn raised his voice and there was a desperation in it that Jack hadn't heard since they rushed Hiccup to the hospital wing after the torture.

"I know!" Merida said. "But what do you want me to say?! I have no idea how we can get there in time!" she shouted and balled her hands into tight fists.

"But we have to try!" Mavis yelled.

"I know! But how?!" Merida threw her arms to the sides in frustration.

"I don't know!" Mavis pulled on her hair.

The fear his friends displayed only fed his own anxiety. They weren't easy to frighten but now their nerves were frayed and they were close to panicking.

"I might know a way…" Rapunzel said and silenced all of them.

"What?" Jack said, his heart leaping with sudden hope. He quickly stepped towards her. "What did you say?"

"There might be a way." Rapunzel bit her lip.

"What is it?!" he yelled at her, impatience burning in his gut. There was no time to hesitate. Every second was precious. Every second could mean life or death.

Rapunzel flinched. "I…" she said, her gaze scurrying from one person to the next. "I once heard Hiccup and Fishlegs say that Professor Lunar has a matching portkey, so maybe-"

Jack didn't wait to hear the rest of the sentence.

He spun around and sprinted towards the castle. His heart pumped renewed hope into every vein. Adrenaline sent shots of energy into his being, making him forget how weak he had felt a moment ago.

There was still a chance he could help Hiccup. Protect him. That was the only clear thought in his frantic mind.

His friends called out to him. He heard the sound of their running feet across the ground but he didn't wait for them or slow down. There was no way he was going to be too late if Hiccup was in trouble.

The castle walls came closer and closer in the distance. His sharp breathing echoed in his head. He was almost there. Just a little more.

"Jack!" the different voices of his friends shouted from somewhere behind him.

He finally reached the entrance. He pushed the heavy wooden doors open and raced through the courtyard. The stone pathway clacked under his shoes. The eyes of other students prickled on his skin.

It only took a few moments for him to cross the courtyard and get into one of the corridors. He darted down the hallways, quickly scurrying around any students in his way. His friends were close on his heel.

Corridor after corridor came into view and disappeared again, as he rushed towards Professor Lunar's office. He took three steps at a time when he came to the stairways and ignored his protesting lungs and the comments from the portraits on the walls.

When the gargoyle entrance to the Headmaster's office finally appeared, Jack's belly filled with fiery determination. He didn't care which obstacles would be put in his way. He was going to get to Hiccup and no one was going to stop him. Not even Headmaster Lunar.

He didn't have the password the gargoyle was going to need to let him through. Instead, he banged his fists on the stone wall. "PROFESSOR LUNAR! I NEED TO TALK TO YOU!" he screamed as loud as he could. There was no way Professor Lunar wouldn't have heard that.

He took a few steps back. His friends appeared on each side of him. They all stared at the statue, only their ragged breathing interrupting the silence.

The stone rumbled as the gargoyle swung aside to reveal the moving staircase. Jack wasted no time in climbing the steps and his friends followed without a word.

He pushed open the doors and stepped into the large, circular office with the abundance of tall bookcases, weird contraptions and portraits of former headmasters and headmistresses.

Professor Lunar sat by his massive desk under the shelf where the Sorting Hat and other magical items rested quietly. The headmaster's expression was like a peaceful lake; still and unmoving. He had fixed his calm eyes on them and folded his hands on the table.

"Mr. Overland." he said. "And the rest of you." he added and nodded at his friends. "What can I do for you? It sounded urgent."

"It is urgent!" Jack said and moved towards the desk. "Hiccup and Astrid and Fishlegs have gone back to Berk. It's under attack!"

"I am truly sorry to hear that." Professor Lunar said, his eyes shining with sympathy. "I was hoping this day would never come."

"They left us behind." Jack explained quickly, trying his best not to let his anger show. "And we know you have another portkey." he added and shot Professor Lunar a firm look to tell him that he wouldn't take no for an answer. He was getting to Berk no matter what.

Professor Lunar sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Mr. Overland, I can't send five of my students straight into a Viking battle."

"I don't care! I have to go!" he said. The short time of appearing calm was already over.

"We're all of age, Headmaster. " Rapunzel said hesitantly and went to Jack's side. "We should be allowed to make our own decisions."

"Ms. Corona…" Professor Lunar said with a sad smile. "I have a responsibility as headmaster. I can't send you off to Scandinavia to fight in a war."

"But we can defend ourselves!" Merida interrupted and didn't bother to conceal the annoyance in her tone.

"I'm well aware of that, Ms. DunBroch." Professor Lunar replied. "I don't doubt your abilities."

"Then help us get there." Flynn appealed to the headmaster, doing a much better job at looking calm than the rest of them, even though Jack knew he was a wreck on the inside.

"Don't you have someone in your life that you need to protect?" Jack said, hoping against all hope that their headmaster would change his mind.

"Yes." Professor Lunar said. "All of my students."

Jack lost the battle against his anger. "I have someone who I love more than anything. And right now, he could be dying or getting tortured and I have no way of helping him!" he yelled and slammed his fist into the nearby wall. "I need to go there. I need to protect him! I don't care what happens to me, I don't care if I end up injured or dead! All that matters is that I get to Berk. NOW!"

Headmaster Lunar didn't flinch. He was a blank mask as his eyes drifted over each of them. He leaned back in his chair.

"Mr. Overland. As your headmaster, I can't send you to Berk." he said and rose from his chair. He slowly walked around them towards the door.

The desperation boiled inside Jack. "I won't accept that!" he said and stepped closer.

"But…" Professor Lunar continued calmly while he made his way to the door. "As Ms. Corona said…you may still be students but you are all adults now. You can and have to make your own choices…"

Confused by the words, Jack could only watch the professor in sudden silence.

"I can't send you to Berk. I'm your headmaster and it would go against my responsibilities no matter how much I sympathize with your eagerness to protect your loved ones. But…if you were to somehow…find the portkey and take it while I'm conveniently out of my office, well…I could do nothing to stop you….Good luck." Headmaster Lunar said as he disappeared out of the office and down the moving staircase.

They all looked at each other in silence as the rumbling of the stone stairs ceased.

"Did he really just…?" Flynn said, his face scrunched in confusion.

"Yes." Jack said when the headmaster's words sunk in. "And I'm not going to waste any time. Let's find it." he told them and went to Professor Lunar's desk to rummage through the drawers.

"But we have no idea what it looks like." Merida said.

"There's has to be some kind of clue." Mavis said and looked around the office where many shelves, bookcases and boxes took up most of the space. "Headmaster Lunar wouldn't just say that and leave unless he figured we would know what the portkey is when we see it."

"It has to be something Viking related." Rapunzel said and bit her lip in thought.

"Yeah." he agreed as he looked through the three drawers at lightning speed. He couldn't spot anything that seemed appropriate for a portkey to the archipelago.

The others began searching every inch of the office for anything that could possibly be the portkey.

Flynn went up one of the two stairways leading to the second level of the office, Merida and Mavis searched the bookcases one by one while Rapunzel went through the glass cabinets.

Jack quickly moved on to going through the chests and boxes scattered around the office. There was a twinge in the back of his mind telling him it was wrong to go through Headmaster Lunar's things but he pushed it down. He needed to get to Hiccup and Professor Lunar had basically given them permission.

For a while, no one spoke but searched frantically around the office. The only sounds were drawers and boxes being opened and closed, hands rummaging through items and footsteps around the wooden floors.

He was in the middle of going through yet another chest of various items when he heard Rapunzel's voice.

"That must be it!" she said and looked at him and the others.

He slammed the lid of the chest shut and hurried to her side. The others quickly followed.

"What is?" he asked.

"That one. Up there." she pointed to the top part of the glass cabinet. On one of the shelves, a stone the size of a hand rested on a wooden stand. It was dark grey with black runes on it.

"Are you sure that's it?" he said. They didn't have time for mistakes.

"It has to be." she said. "It's the only thing we've found so far that has anything to do with Vikings."

"Okay…" he said and took a deep breath. "You're the only one of us who's ever used a portkey. How does it work?"

"Well, portkeys can work in different ways but the one I used when I went to Berk just transported us when we touched it. But we had to touch it at the same time."

"Well, what are we waiting for then?" Merida said. She grabbed a nearby wooden stepladder and placed it in front of the tall cabinet.

"Don't touch it with your hands." Rapunzel told her, as Merida climbed up the stepladder to reach the rune stone.

"I know, I know." she confirmed and took off her black cloak. She wrapped the stone in the cloak and joined the rest of them on the floor.

They all watched as she unfolded the black fabric and revealed the stone. It was strange how such a seemingly insignificant item could transport them straight into a war.

"So…" Flynn said. "Are we ready to do this?"

"Does everyone have their wands?" Mavis checked. They all nodded and pulled them out of their pockets, ready to use their magic. Jack didn't fail to notice the uncertainty in all of their eyes, matching his own nervousness.

"Let's go." he said and clutched his wand hard.

"Wait, Jack." Rapunzel said.

Despite his desire to go to Berk as fast as possible, he held himself back. "What?"

"We don't know what we're walking into but we need to be prepared. Be ready for anything and don't hesitate." she said.

They all nodded in understanding. They didn't know where they would appear or if anyone else would be nearby. They could be transported straight into the midst of the battle, for all they knew.

Rapunzel did a quick nod to herself. Merida held out the stone towards them.

"Okay. On three, everyone." Rapunzel said. She tried to sound determined but her anxiety wasn't so easily hidden.

"One…"

They all reached for the stone.

"Two…"

Their fingers almost touched the dark, rough surface.

"Three!"

Everyone grabbed on to the rune stone.

The world spun around rapidly. Shapes and colors blurred. An unpleasant jolt shot through him and the nausea threatened to make him sick.

Nothing could have truly prepared him for what he saw, when he had solid ground underneath his feet again.

Chaos.

~~~~ Mavis ~~~~

The vicious assault on her senses was overwhelming.

The spinning from the portkey transportation. The deafening sounds of dragons roaring, metal clanging and wood exploding, splinters flying through the air. The smell of smoke from the flames eating into wooden houses.

The five of them stood still for a few seconds, shocked at what they were exposed to.

Dead bodies with skin and clothes covered in blood; their glassy eyes wide open. In the distance, Vikings roared their battle cries and attacked each other with raised weapons. Scattered and injured, people were writhing and screaming in pain on the ground.

Jack was the first to move.

He took a few steps forward and looked around frantically. She knew he was looking for Hiccup. But he was nowhere to be seen in the chaos.

An angry yell made them snap their heads to the side. A large Viking with a thick, red beard raised his axe towards a young boy who couldn't be more than 14. The young boy held out his sword but it was obvious that he was scared and inexperienced.

Mavis raised her wand to interfere but Jack was already running towards them with his wand out. The rest of them were quick to follow, not willing to let Jack meddle in a Viking fight without any backup.

"STUPEFY!" Jack roared and sparks flew from his wand and hit the Viking. He was thrown straight into a nearby boulder. His head smacked against the stone and he fell to the ground, dropping his axe.

They all watched him to see if he would get up but he was either dead or unconscious.

The boy looked at them with wide eyes. Now that they were close to him, she noticed he had smears of blood on his tunic. "You're…sorcerers?" he asked.

"Yes. We know Hiccup and Fishlegs and Astrid." Jack told him, sounding calmer than Mavis knew he was.

"You shouldn't be here." the boy shook his head and clutched his sword tighter. "It's not-"

Angry battle cries caught their attention.

The boy gasped and Mavis froze in place.

A group of Vikings came running towards them past rows of wooden houses. Their heavy feet stomped across the dusty ground. Their long hair swayed in the wind. Their eyes held nothing but murderous rage.

She had a burst of anxiety in her gut. These people would kill her and her friends if they got the chance.

She took a breath and stepped in front of the boy. She pointed her wand into the middle of the group.

"Confringo!" she yelled, putting all of her focus into the spell.

"Stupefy!", "Everte Statum!", "Confringo!", a blur of spells left her friends' mouths and shot through their wands.

A rainbow of different colored sparks rushed towards their enemies. The spells exploded in a mess of fire and blood. Vikings were flung in all directions, their heavy limbs flailing. Some crashed through the walls of houses. Gravity smashed others back into the ground, sprawled like ragdolls.

The pained screams sent a chill across Mavis' skin. The noise of the explosion left a ringing in her ears. Nausea bubbled inside her as she saw the results of their magic.

Most of the Vikings were dead. Bodies were missing legs or arms that had been ripped straight off by the explosion. Others had had their skulls cracked open or limbs twisted in disgusting angles. Blood seeped from their bodies and onto the ground, slithering like crimson snakes. There was no life in their eyes anymore.

She didn't miss the similar looks of horror on her friends' faces. They all stared at the bodies to the sound of dragons roaring in the skies and Vikings battling on the ground.

They had killed people.

It was in self-defense but nonetheless…they had taken someone's life.

"We need to find Hiccup and Fishlegs." Jack said, bringing them all back to reality.

There was no time to stand here. They had to protect their friends.

"THERE!" they heard someone yell, followed by a bunch of deep roars.

Another group of Vikings came towards them with their weapons out. This one was larger than the first and their battle cries more intimidating. They must have witnessed what they had just done to their brothers in arms.

Her heart beat frantically at the sight of the bloodthirsty Vikings coming towards them.

"Shit!" Merida said and held out her wand.

"Just take down as many as you can!" Jack told her but Mavis noticed the fear in his voice.

"Aim for the middle! You do the most damage that way!" she told them.

With flicks of their wands and the necessary words spoken, another rainbow of sparks shot towards their enemies. A few of them smashed into some nearby stone statues and never got back up. The cracking sounds of bones breaking was disgusting. Some of the others had died on the spot. Their dead bodies were unrecognizably. Big patches of skin had been ripped open and burned and blood was flowing freely from huge open wounds.

One of the Vikings ran around frantically. He had caught on fire and flames were spreading through his clothes and to his hair and skin. His shrill screams of pain drowned out the dragon roars and explosions in the distance.

The smell of burning skin and the man's torturous screams was close to making her vomit. She pointed her wand at him and spoke the words. He went flying over one of the cliffs to his death.

She met her friends' gazes, warm tears burning in the corners of her eyes. The looks on their faces mirrored her own sadness and dread.

Jack nodded slowly, as if trying to reassure her that what she had done was okay.

"It was necessary." he said with a sad smile. "He was in pain."

"I know…" she agreed. "But that doesn't make it better."

"What do we do know?" Merida asked and looked around them.

Sounds of battle came from the other side of the rows of wooden houses. They needed to get closer to find their friends.

"Help whoever you can and take down anyone who's not from Berk. Find Hiccup and Fishlegs and Astrid." Jack said and started moving towards the noises.

"How do we know who's from Berk and who's not?" Flynn asked.

"Look at their armor." Rapunzel said. "If they're from Berk, they have the red Hairy Hooligan sigil on their armor."

"Got it." Flynn nodded.

Four large shadows came swooping across the skies above them. They all looked up with their wands ready but there was no threat. Four Monstrous Nightmares with riders on their backs were hurrying towards something. Their scales were on fire and the riders had their weapons ready.

On the other side of the wooden houses, they could finally understand. Their position on the cliffs, made them able to see everything.

An army of ships dotted the water, flags with foreign sigils on them flapping in the wind. Several ships had already dropped anchor close to Berk's shores and the armed Vikings on board had begun to fight the Berkians that were on land. Vikings from both sides had triumphs or fell to the ground and took their last breaths. In the skies, swarms of dragons with riders on them attacked the ships that were still trying to get closer to the shore. Flames spewed from the dragons' mouths and into the wood, pillars of dark smoke rising into the air. Vikings screamed as they were burned and jumped overboard to put the fire out. Some of the hostiles shot out nets from net trappers before the dragons got to them. Nearby, the hostiles had outnumbered a group of Berkians on land who were fighting bravely.

"Come on! We have to help!" Jack said and pointed to the Vikings fighting off the invaders in the village, among houses, livestock and carts. "The others have the dragons!"

They rushed to the Berkians' sides and began firing spells as fast as they could to get rid of the invaders. Her initial shock of being in a battle had died down but the adrenaline was still raging through her body, making her energized and aware of her surroundings. She was acting on instinct, firing spells towards enemies without thinking, trying her best to keep one eye on her friends.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Flynn yelled and made a Viking stop dead in his tracks and fall over, paralyzed.

While Flynn was busy getting rid of two more hostiles coming towards him, a big Viking with blonde hair came at him from the other side.

She paralyzed him, making him drop to the ground like a board, while Flynn took care of the other two with a well-placed Stupefy spell.

Flynn was surprised by the noise and spun around only to find the Viking on the ground. He looked up and met her eyes. and nodded to say thank you.

"DON'T TURN YOUR BACKS ON ANYONE BUT EACH OTHER!" she heard Jack yell from somewhere.

Merida and Flynn took his advice to heart straight away, standing back-to-back while battling the enemies. They were an efficient team, quickly taking down Vikings without much of a fight.

It was impossible to keep track of her friends all the time but Flynn and Merida stayed in her line of sight.

A weird-looking Berkian with a bucket on his head was surrounded by six hostiles and despite his fighting prowess, he was clearly in trouble. Rapunzel hurried to his side and defended him with some powerful curses. Mavis was about to help them after throwing another enemy off the cliffs, but they managed to defeat the hostiles by themselves.

The invaders slowly dwindled in numbers. Not only did the Berkians fight with all their might and they helped with their magic, some of the enemies had run the other way to warn their allies. "SEIDR!" some of them yelled.

She knew the word. Fishlegs had told her about it. These Vikings were telling their allies that they were witches and wizards.

She took down four invaders in the distance with a powerful Confringo spell that she didn't want to see the result of up close. The explosion and the flames were enough to know they were – or would soon be – dead.

Her heart lurched in her chest when someone grabbed her from behind and pulled her close to the wall of a house. A strong arm wrapped around her throat. Her wand fell to the ground.

"What do we have here? A little witch who thinks she belongs here." a menacing, hoarse voice whispered. The fear in her veins made her heart beat faster. Time slowed down.

"It's time to die, kitten." the voice said.

Her eyes fixed on her friends fighting off enemies further ahead. None of them had seen her. There was no way out.

The hands around her throat tightened, pressing into her windpipe. She tried to gasp for air but nothing came into her lungs. Panic shot into her body. She thrashed and flailed her limbs as wildly as she could to break free but the hands were too strong.

Rapunzel sent a Viking flying off a cliff with a powerful spell and spun around. Their eyes met and Rapunzel froze in place. She lifted her wand and narrowed her eyes in concentration.

Mavis began to feel dizzy, the world blurring around her. A darkness descended, slowly consuming the light around her.

A colorful spark broke through the darkness and filled her vision. The world suddenly shrank around her. She dropped to the ground on four paws and ran for cover behind some nearby barrels.

She greedily breathed in as much air as she could, while the sound of screaming and someone falling to the ground filled her ears.

As her heartbeat slowed down a little and her breathing steadied, the realization of what had happened hit her. She crawled out from the barrels in her small, furry body.

Rapunzel killed another Viking in seconds and came towards her. When another spark hit her, she grew taller, fur gave way to skin and a few seconds after, she was back in her human form.

Rapunzel smiled reassuringly and handed her the wand she had dropped. All she could do was to crush her in a hug and whisper "Thank you."

"Are you hurt?" Rapunzel asked, her green eyes drifting over here, looking for injuries.

"No, I'm fine." Mavis whispered, despite the pain around her throat where the hands had pressed so hard. It hurt to talk.

She caught a glimpse of Jack fighting off two Vikings, quickly taking them out by blasting them straight into a house.

"NIGHT FURY!" a Viking shouted and the last few invaders ran off in the other direction.

There was only one Night Fury on Berk. That meant Hiccup was alive.

While the Berkians followed the invaders to take them down, the five of them searched the skies frantically with their eyes until they landed on a black shape in the distance.

None of them spoke as Toothless and Hiccup came closer at a rapid speed and landed on the ground with a thud. Hiccup's right arm was bleeding from a wound but besides that, they looked unharmed. She heard Jack sigh in relief.

Hiccup wasted no time in jumping off Toothless's back and rushing towards them with panicked eyes.

"No!" Hiccup grabbed Jack's shoulders. "No! What are you doing here!? You need to get out of here now!"

"No!" Jack said. "I'm not going anywhere!"

"You have to go back!" Hiccup insisted and she could hear the desperation in his voice.

"No!" Jack said and forced Hiccup's hands away from his shoulders. "This is my fight as much as it's yours! I'm not leaving!"

Hiccup sighed. "There's no time for this…" he said and then looked at the rest of them. "Stay close to each other. No one leaves the others, got it? The enemy has witches and wizards too. Three of them. Be careful! Use the most damaging spells you know against any enemy and don't hesitate! No matter what, don't hesitate!"

"We won't." Jack told him.

Hiccup nodded slowly. "I can't stay here…" he told Jack with regret in his eyes. "I need to lead the dragon riders."

"I'll come with you." Jack said.

"No!" Hiccup said. "It's even more dangerous up there when you don't have your own dragon. You need to help my dad down here instead."

Mavis could tell that Jack wanted to object but that he also saw the reason in Hiccup's words. None of them had dragons or had enough experience with flying on one. They would be too vulnerable in the air but they could do plenty of damage on the ground.

Jack sighed. "Okay. Do what you have to do. We will help anyone we can here."

"Please be safe." Hiccup said and kissed Jack quickly before he took his place on Toothless' back once more. "If you're in trouble and need help, get to a dragon rider. They can find me or Fishlegs or Astrid."

"Come back alive." Jack told him.

"I will if you do." Hiccup said.

"I will." Jack told him.

Toothless crouched down and he and Hiccup rushed into the air.

~~~~ Ivar the Bonesmasher ~~~~

Weapons and shields collided in brutal clashes of willpower and strength. Dust whirled into the air from the movements of warriors' boots. Blood spattered onto faces and hands. If you were skilled enough, it wasn't your own blood.

He was setting the example any chief should set for his men: fighting bravely in the midst of battle without fear; lunging at the enemies without letting them see even a flicker of doubt.

He launched his sword straight through a tall Berkian woman with a brown braid. Her eyes transformed; the heated determination extinguished by shock. She collapsed on the ground. Blood flowed from the corners of her mouth.

He pulled his sword out, ready to battle the next enemy who was foolish enough to challenge him. The crimson blood glistened beautifully on the blade.

It was a man with brown hair and a peg leg, who came at him. He blocked the attack with his shield and pushed back against the Berkian, who wasn't able to match his strength.

His enemy lunged at him with a sharp axe. He held up his shield and the axe dug into the wood. He ripped the shield to the side, pulling the Berkian along by the axe, and pushed his sword straight into the man's exposed side.

The Berkian cried out and let go of the axe still attached to the shield. Ivar's sword pierced his enemy's chest. He pulled it out again and kicked him backwards. The man fell over without resistance and writhed on the ground, blood spilling out of his wounds.

"No! Mulch!" another man roared and came at him with fury in his eyes. He was too angry to think two steps ahead, so Ivar made quick work of him too.

They had fought effectively and the Berkians in this part of the battlefield had dwindled. Only a few remained close by and his men quickly took care of them, leaving nothing but cracked bones and blood.

"My chief!" Hákon appeared at his side, while he was wiping some of the blood from his face.

"Speak!" he said.

"There are more sorcerers!"

"What!? What are you talking about!?"

"There are five more that came out of the blue!" Hákon explained with uncertainty in his eyes. That wasn't unusual. A lot of Vikings were wary of sorcerers they didn't know.

He was silent as he took in the news.

This was an unexpected and dangerous advantage to the Berkians. Sorcerers, even inexperienced ones, could take down a lot of men with much less effort than a warrior.

"So Stoick's son has more help…" he said. "We'll have to deal with that."

In the distance, he heard the battle cries and heavy boots of more Berkians approaching.

"Gather the sorcerers. Tell them they have a new first priority: killing these new sorcerers. No matter the cost." he told him.

Hákon nodded and quickly ran off.

He pushed some stray locks out of his face, while he waited for the enemies to come. His men gathered behind him and readied themselves for another fight. They were blood soaked and dirty and never had they looked more motivated.

He looked over the ocean where the fleet of ships swayed in the water surface and a myriad of dragons flew through the skies, their roars and fire resembling the anger of a vengeful god.

His men fought bravely against the Berkians and their dragons. Ships were ablaze. Dead bodies washed ashore. Vikings were burnt and ripped apart by the beasts. It didn't make them fight with less conviction.

Another group of enemies came charging around a rock wall but halted when they spotted them. They organized themselves in rows as a huge, red-bearded chief with eyes like lightning came into view.

Stoick the Vast.

His lips formed a small smile.

This was the first time he had seen him so close today. He had caught glimpses of him here and there and tried to get to him, but a battle was unpredictable and often took you places you hadn't planned on.

Even from a distance, he could feel the rage radiating off Stoick. Those large hands gripped so tight around the axe, his knuckles looked ready to burst straight out of the skin. Those burning eyes analyzed the situation and when they landed on him, the spark of angry recognition might have been enough to set a forest ablaze.

"SHIELD WALL!" Stoick's voice boomed.

The Berkians in the front row crouched down and row after row behind them held up their shields a little higher, so they all formed a protective wall of shields together.

So…Stoick had decided to go for the defensive option. Interesting. He must have had his reasons to do so. Stoick the Vast had a fiery temper but he was a clever warrior and chief.

"SPEARS!" Stoick's command rang out. In between the raised shields, long spears shot out like sharp bony fingers, ready to taste flesh.

"Brothers and sisters!" Ivar addressed his warriors and pointed his sword at the Berkians. He made eye contact with his sons. They had done him proud with their bravery. "Odin smiles upon us today! The gods are on our side! KILL THEM!"

He and his men charged with a fury only Odin could bestow on them. The Berkians stood their ground, waiting for them to come.

Warriors and their swords slammed against the Berkians' shields and spears. Wood, flesh and metal came together in a crash of noise.

It was a blur of faces and weapons. He cut down one enemy after another, working his way towards Stoick the Vast.

The warm blood spatter on his face and clothes. The screams of agony from his enemies. The adrenaline coursing through his veins.

It was familiar.

One of his men had an arrow lodged in his stomach. He screamed and ran in the opposite direction, away from the battle.

Ivar ran his sword through another enemy. "Finnr!" he yelled.

"Yes, my chief!" his son replied after kicking down an injured Berkian.

"We have a deserter!"

"Yes, my chief!"

A moment later, the deserter's blood spilled across the dusty ground, three arrows sticking out of his back.

They had done him a favor.

Fleeing from battle; refusing to fight for your cause, for your loved ones, for your chief…that was one of the most shameful things a Viking could ever do. If he had survived, he would have been an outlaw; doomed to roam without any tribe left; judged to be killed by anyone who sees him with the blessing of his former tribe.

Death was a better option for a Viking.

The Berkians' numbers lessened at a rapid pace; effectively slaughtered by him and his men. Stoick the Vast finally ordered his warriors to retreat, as any wise chief would do. The Berkians ran in the other direction around one of the massive boulders.

Ivar ordered his men to follow. Now they had the opportunity to take the chief himself out. That would weaken the Berkians significantly. They chased the Berkians around several rock walls with their weapons ready. They were high on the taste of victory. High on the prospect of finally finishing their enemies.

Until suddenly a wave of roars came from behind them.

A swarm of Berkians descended on them out of nowhere, and the ones on their other side, who had just been fleeing from them, turned around and began to fight.

He cursed as he took on more enemies; splitting faces open, cracking skulls, ramming his sword into their guts and watching their insides fall out.

It had been a trick.

He should have seen that coming. They had pretended to be weakened and on the run, so they could lure them behind the rock walls and come at them at both sides with renewed strength.

Stoick the Vast was on the other end of the battle now; easily killing off anyone who tried to attack him.

What a pity.

He sliced another enemy open and kicked them backwards into the dirt. Then he moved on to the next one.

He had been looking forward to taking Stoick on.

But the battle wasn't over yet.

And he was a patient man.

~~~~ Hiccup ~~~~

Despite his efforts to protect him, Jack had followed him straight into a war.

That was the thought that stayed in his mind, as he and Toothless hurried through the air to get back among the other dragon riders. Columns of smoke rose from burning houses like dark spirits. Homes of people he cared for; reduced to nourishment for hungry flames.

If something happened to Jack or the others, he would never forgive himself. It would be his fault.

He shook his head and forced himself to push the thoughts out of his mind. He had to give all his attention to his fellow dragon riders.

The tall, watch-towers on the edge of the village were on fire, the wood wailing and creaking from the heat. With a loud crack, one of them fell and smashed into embers and splinters on the ground, trapping three hostile Vikings beneath it.

The other dragon riders were carrying out his orders for attacks on the fleet. He had left Astrid temporarily in command when Fishlegs told him he had seen Jack and the others.

"Where were you!?" Astrid yelled as he flew to her side, far above the battle.

"Jack and the others are here!" he explained.

"What?!" Astrid's eyes were round with surprise.

"They followed us!"

"Shit!"

"That would be a fair description, yes!" he said and looked across the ocean battlefield.

The witches and the wizard were effective in defending several ships at once from the dragons, while simultaneously attacking them.

Their first attack on the sorcerers hadn't worked. He'd called for backup by several of the other dragon riders and they had launched a joint attack. But the sorcerers had been too clever and too powerful; they had foreseen their moves and worked together and as a result, several of their dragons and riders had died before they managed a retreat.

I'm sorry. This is my fault…

The hostile Vikings focused on launching huge boulders from catapults, firing thick metal arrows from homemade launchers and shooting nets from net trappers. Dragons got caught in nets and fell into the water, relying on other dragons and riders to get them out. The witches and wizard hit them with powerful attacks that killed them instantly or injured them enough to be beyond saving. Arrows found their way into dragons with weaker armor and even into the weak spots of the species with the strongest scales. Riders were knocked off their dragons by rocks and arrows hurling through the air.

The three sorcerers worked as a team; one of the witches focusing on ice magic, while another relied on water spells and the last one on wind and fire.

A Monstrous Nightmare landed on the mast and lit itself on fire. Its scales glowed in the light of the dancing flames. It opened its huge jaws and spewed fire onto the mast but one of the witches were too quick; she encased the mast in a layer of ice that quickly spread onto the Nightmare, suffocating its flames and threatening its ability to use its fire more. It took off with an angry roar to get away.

A Hideous Zippleback and its riders tried to spew gas towards them but the wizard managed to whirl the gas away with powerful gusts of wind from his wand before the dragon could light it.

It was bad news for them that Ivar had managed to get witches and a wizard under his command. They were skilled and it was going to take a lot to defeat them.

But the Zippleback's unsuccessful attack put an idea into his mind.

"I'm going to need you and Fishlegs with me!" he told Astrid.

"Of course! Just say the word!"

He nodded and blew the horn again to get Fishlegs to come to him. Then he blew it again to signal the squad of Hideous Zipplebacks.

The six Hideous Zipplebacks and their riders came together from different areas of the battlefield and were soon by him and Astrid awaiting their orders. "We need the witches and the wizard gone!" he told them as a Deadly Nadder and its rider fell from the sky, both instantly killed by a Killing Curse.

Tears stung in the corners of his eyes but he forced them away. "I'll send the Thunderdrums to distract them! When the Thunderdrums use their sonic blasts against the ship, you make a ring of gas around it! As much as you can! Make them inhale it! Then set it on fire and get out of there!"

"We're on it!" Ruffnut agreed and saluted him.

"That should be no problem for the world's deadliest weapon!" Tuffnut said and puffed out his chest.

The dragon riders, led by Ruffnut and Tuffnut, flew towards the ship.

He blew into the magical horn again, using the code that meant the Thunderdrums should report to him.

Fishlegs appeared by their side then. He had a cut on his cheek and Meatlug had a small wound over one eye but other than that, they appeared to be uninjured. Much to his relief.

"Fish!" he said. "I need you to follow me and Astrid soon. We're going to take the witches and the wizard down!"

"But how?!" Fishlegs said. "They're way too powerful for us to deal with alone! We couldn't take them down the last time!"

"I know!" he said. "Which is why we're going to get help from the dragons! We can't defeat them alone and the dragons can't defeat them alone but together we can do it if we're cunning!" he said and patted Toothless on the head.

"What's the plan then?" Fishlegs asked.

"Use the Thunderdrums as a distraction with sonic blasts from underneath the ship, then send the Zipplebacks to spew their gas and light it. While they're distracted and disoriented, we're going to go in there and strike while they're vulnerable."

"I really hope that's going to work!" Fishlegs said, his eyes filled with nervousness.

"Me too!" he said.

The Thunderdrums had appeared and their riders looked to him for instructions. Most of them were unharmed except for minor injuries but one of them had a large gash on his arm that spilled blood all over it.

"We're going to use the Zipplebacks to get rid of the witches and the wizard!" he told them. "You guys need to cause a distraction, so they can release their gas around the ship without getting injured! That means going underwater!" he said, knowing that Thunderdrums were excellent swimmers and divers. "You dive deep enough so they won't see you and then you strike from below the ship, using the sonic blasts! Make that ship rock so much it almost capsizes! Then you get away as fast as possible! Understood?"

"Understood!", "Yes!" and "Yes, Hiccup!" followed.

"Go!" he said.

The squad of five Thunderdrums and their riders gathered and dove through the skies. They continued downwards and disappeared into the ocean with impressive splashes.

"Let's go!" he told Astrid and Fishlegs. They needed to stay close.

They headed towards the ship in question, navigating around the arrows shooting through the skies. Vikings on some of the ships nearby were preparing to launch their catapults.

"ROCKS!" he yelled to Astrid and Fishlegs.

He grabbed the steering rods tighter and put all his concentration into maneuvering, as a swarm of huge boulders came flying towards them.

He breathed a sigh of relief when they all made it through without being hit.

They had almost made it to the ship when the Thunderdrums moved in. Without any warning, the sonic blasts shot through the ocean surface and the ship swayed and shook violently, threatening to capsize.

It took the sorcerers by surprise.

The two witches lost their footing and hit the deck while the wizard grabbed onto the mast and held on. The hostile Vikings on board also struggled to keep their balance, most of them falling over from the sudden movement.

The Zipplebacks and their riders were quick to move in.

They circled the ship rapidly in a row and the dragons let out their thick gas. The green smoke surrounded the ship, making it impossible for those on board to see anything. They would be disoriented by inhaling the gas.

"Stay with me!" he yelled to Astrid and Fishlegs and flew towards the ship.

The Zipplebacks ignited the gas and a fierce explosion filled his vision with golden flames. Burning Vikings jumped into the ocean, desperate to put the flames out.

"Now!" he yelled to Astrid and Fishlegs.

Their dragons landed on the flame-filled deck. The witches and wizard were dizzy by the Zippleback gas and struggled to stay on their feet.

"Expelliarmus!" Fishlegs yelled and the wand of one of the witches flew out of her hand and over board. She stumbled too near the flames to try to catch her wand and her long sleeves caught fire. She screamed, powerless without her magic, and jumped into the sea.

Fishlegs hurried to the railing to see what had become of her.

The other two were not quite as easy; on unsteady feet, they fired spells towards him and Astrid.

They dismounted their dragons, deflected the spells, and attacked as best they could. If it had been a fair fight, he and Astrid would have been killed. But the wizard and the witch had lost both power and control.

Sparks of different colors darted all around them and the flames from Toothless, Meatlug and Stormfly engulfed the railing of the ship.

Hiccup finally managed to get the better of the witch; while she was distracted for a second by the aftermath of a lava attack from Meatlug, he launched a Stupefy spell that hit her in the chest. She flew backwards and hit her head hard on the mast.

Shortly after, they all sent the wizard smashing straight into the railing of the ship, making him drop his wand. The witch and wizard both scrambled to get their wands back, crawling injured and dizzy across the deck.

"STUPEFY!" Astrid yelled and threw them backwards into the air.

Two Hideous Zipplebacks grabbed them mid-flight in their claws.

The dragons wrung their necks with a sickening crack. Then they dropped them and they fell through the skies like limp puppets.

Hiccup had a nauseating jolt in the pit of his stomach.

"We have to go!" Fishlegs yelled and brought him back to reality.

It was time to abandon this ship before it joined the others on the bottom of the ocean. He jumped onto Toothless, grabbed the steering rods and they set off.

Now that they had defeated the sorcerers, he had to find out who might need backup. From above, he tried as best he could to make sense of the bloody, fiery mess that was the battlefield. He sent Astrid and Fishlegs to help Ruffnut and Tuffnut since they, and others, were currently taking on one of the largest ships with the most men. They could use all the help they could get.

The other large groups of mixed dragons were attacking the different ships as planned but one particular group had trouble dodging rows of archers on three other boats. Three of their dragons and riders had died and floated motionless in the water. An arrow hit a Gronckle in the eye and it roared in pain before it crash-landed in the ocean with its rider. Among swarms of arrows, two Monstrous Nightmares and their Vikings came to their aid and fished them out.

He took the magical horn hanging from his belt and blew into it the needed amount of times to summon the Scuttleclaws and their riders. He needed their particular advantage now.

"Forget everything else you were doing! Your main task now is to follow me and help me take those archers out!" he told them when they had gathered in the air around him. Scuttleclaws were smaller than most dragons but still dangerous. Fast, agile and flexible, they were able to dodge arrow attacks easier than larger dragons.

"Okay, bud." he told Toothless and stroked his head. "You may not be as small and flexible as a Scuttleclaw but you're a Night Fury. Faster than anyone. You can do this. We can do this."

Toothless warbled in agreement.

"With me!" he told the other riders.

He and Toothless dove straight through the skies. The ocean came closer and closer. The wind raging in his ears reduced the noises of battle.

On a nearby ship, he spotted some hostiles directing their net trapper towards him and the other riders. "NETS!" he screamed to warn them.

Nets came flying towards them at massive speed. He and Toothless swerved around them with great concentration. One of the nets grazed Toothless' side. It was a close call.

Right as Toothless' claws touched the water, they turned right and then straight upwards. The Scuttleclaws followed without any trouble, their small, lithe bodies making it easy to do sharp changes in direction.

They all shot into the skies. When they were high enough up, he made Toothless dive again.

It was risky to move between ships this much but they needed to do sudden and unpredictable moves, so the archers wouldn't see them coming from a mile away.

As he had hoped, the archers didn't discover right away that they were heading straight for them. When they did, they hurried to the arrow launchers and a rain of arrows hissed through the air. Toothless screeched when an arrow nicked one of his wings. Hiccup put all of his focus into dodging the attacks; even a single arrow could do unbelievable damage if it hit a weak spot.

His heart beat rapidly, as he and Toothless guided each other around arrow after arrow. His mind was quiet, his body working on its own; acting as one with Toothless.

They were almost by the deck of the ship now. "Plasma blast!" he said. Toothless obliged and the purple attack had several Vikings screaming or blasting them unconscious.

They landed on the deck and the sounds of claws scraping against wood were all around him as the Scuttleclaws settled on the railings.

They wasted no time; the small dragons opened their mouths and orange flames engulfed most of the archers. Some tried to launch arrows with their bows and a Scuttleclaw fell into the sea screaming when an arrow pierced the inside of its mouth.

The other Scuttleclaws were enraged and screeched furiously at the invaders on the ship. Three of the dragons jumped onto the deck and grabbed enemies by the throat or the arms. They shook them in their strong jaws, tearing through the flesh, snapping bones in two. The screams intertwined with the sound of crackling flames.

A Viking reached for his spear nearby. "Stupefy!" he shouted and sent him crashing into the arrow launcher. He fell onto the deck, unmoving.

The enemies on board slowly decreased in numbers. The Scuttleclaws and their riders were effective in taking out the Vikings and he and Toothless did everything they could to cover them; he fired spells that broke most of the nets and rocks shooting towards them from two other ships and Toothless incapacitated several enemies on board with plasma blasts or the use of his claws and teeth.

When most of the enemies had been defeated and the ship creaked and swayed, flames taking hold of the wood, it was time to leave. He redirected the Scuttleclaws and their riders to other ships, where they were needed against more enemies with arrow launchers. He would have gone with them again but when he tried to take stock of their situation, he found another place where he had to go.

By two of the ships, the hostiles used some sort of water cannon to render the dragons' fire useless. Four men operated it while the others shot spears, rocks and nets towards the dragons and riders. With the horn, he summoned the Raincutters.

He looked over the battlefield, finding places where dragons and riders needed assistance. He noticed a couple of ships had started firing dragon root from their catapults, rendering the dragons close by aggressive towards each other and vulnerable to attacks. Several dragons fell from the skies, pierced with metal arrows, injured by boulders or trapped in nets. He blew the horn to get the Gronckles and their riders to come to him. Gronckles were slow and therefore not the best at avoiding fast attacks like arrows but they were the only species who weren't affected by dragon root.

The Raincutters and the Gronckles assembled around him in the air. Both riders and dragons were filled with scrapes, bruises and dirt. Fishlegs had a deep cut on his cheek that leaked blood down to his throat and shirt.

"Okay." he said. "Gronckles, we need you to help the other dragons by those two ships down there!" he said and pointed. "They are firing dragon root and you're the only ones who can get near it without turning aggressive! Get rid of it and help the other dragons bring down those ships!"

The riders quickly agreed and directed their Gronckles towards the battlefield.

"Raincutters! We have some other ships who are using water cannons! Follow me and attack on my command!"

He steered Toothless towards the ships in question. The water gushed from the water cannons, splashing onto decks and railings. The dragon riders had pulled their dragons away and were firing arrows with their bows towards the enemies.

He heard the flaps of Raincutter wings behind him. An explosion went off on a nearby ship and he spotted Astrid, Snotlout and the twins flying away on their dragons. Every time he caught a glimpse of them on the battlefield, he could breathe a little easier.

Toothless shot through the air towards the ship below. He clutched the steering rods. "Raincutters! Be ready!...NOW!"

He and Toothless turned to the right, out of Raincutters' way. The five blue and purple dragons bared their sharp teeth and their flames sliced through the sprays of the water cannon.

He and Toothless circled the ship, while he fired spells to get rid of as many enemies as possible. The fight was a blur of water spraying into the air, bright sparks from his wand and the water resistant flames of the Raincutters. With the advantage of the water cannons gone, it didn't take long to overpower the invaders on the two ships.

With only a few enemies left to fight, he and Toothless landed on the deck. A couple of Raincutters followed their lead and working together, they quickly incapacitated the rest.

He breathed a sigh of relief.

Then a bone-chilling screech had him snapping his head around. He jumped off Toothless when he noticed the lifeless body of a girl he knew.

It was Líf.

She was 18 years old and had dimples and lovely white teeth that showed whenever she gave someone that familiar, playful grin of hers.

Now her smile was gone forever.

Her dragon, Longclaw, wailed in sorrow towards the skies. The purple Raincutter curled around her limp body and refused to let go. It spread its large, spotted wings and covered Líf from view, protecting her even in death. The agonizing howls of despair continued to echo through the air.

Hiccup's eyes welled up and his throat felt like there was a rope tightening around it.

The other Raincutters and their riders sat on the railings or the deck, watching with sad eyes. Some of them let their tears fall freely.

Forgive me, Líf. Forgive me, Longclaw.

This was his responsibility.

Toothless came to his side and softly leaned against him as a sign of comfort. Hiccup blinked rapidly to avoid letting the tears fall. Líf had had her whole life before her. Friends, family and a dragon who all loved her fiercely. Now, she was ripped away from the world.

He turned to the dragon riders. "Go. See if there are other ships that are using water cannons and help the other dragon riders out if there is."

The riders dried their eyes and soared into the skies without a word.

He was about to get back on Toothless, when a sudden sob from the other side of the deck drew his attention.

A man was lying with his back to him, shaking and crying in a pool of blood.

Hiccup unsheathed his sword and moved closer, Toothless following.

When he reached him, he understood.

The red-bearded man had had his abdomen sliced right open, a gaping hole with bloody, ripped flesh around it. His intestines spilled out of his gut like a myriad of slimy snakes.

The man sobbed and called out for his mother, clutching parts of his bloody intestines in his shaking hands. A grown man, surely fierce and brave like most Vikings, now broken by the horrors of war.

Their eyes met and the man tried to speak but his lips quivered and all he could manage was more crying.

But Hiccup didn't need words. There was an unspoken plea written on the man's face. Hiccup knew what he wanted him to do.

He took a deep breath and grabbed hold of one of the invader's shoulders. There was a silent thank you in his eyes.

Among the roar and chaos of battle, Hiccup pushed the sword straight through the man's heart. The Viking's eyes went wide and then his whole body relaxed as he died in his arms.

Hiccup gently laid him down and walked away. Toothless bumped his snout against his side and he petted his best friend.

Inside, he was numb. Detached. Like he was floating around in an alternate reality where none of these actions had any bearing in the real world.

~~~~ Jack ~~~~

Wave after wave of aggressive Vikings came at them and the Berkians. It seemed like an endless fight, new enemies appearing as soon as others had been taken out.

The pandemonium never ceased. Among burning homes, dragons flying overhead and dying people writhing on the ground, they fought for their survival.

He and his friends kept close to each other and they found a rhythm that worked in defeating enemies and protecting each other at the same time. They had learned from the mistakes they had made in the beginning; now they only turned their backs on each other and they worked together instead of fighting next to each other but individually.

He and Flynn had just defeated a group of six Vikings together when a green spark came flying past him, only missing him by inches. He shot to the side and used the wall of a house for cover.

That was a killing curse. That meant hostile magic users. But who here knew how to use magic?

He looked around the wall and quickly located the source in the distance. The witch was a young woman, no older than 25, dressed in black robes and with a long, blonde braid. She radiated confidence with her strong strides and posture.

"KILLING CURSES! WATCH OUT!" he screamed to his friends but they were too busy fighting off hostile Vikings to evade anything else.

There was only one thing to do. He'd have to cover them as best he could.

He saw the witch look at his friends and raise her wand.

He jumped to the side, leaving his protected position, and sent a Stupefy spell her way.

She saw it in her peripheral vision and shielded herself with a blocking spell. Before he knew it, a Killing Curse flew his way and he shot behind the wall once again.

This was a powerful witch. He wasn't going to beat her on sheer magical ability. He'd have to find some way to outsmart her. And protect his friends at the same time.

He peeked around the wall and shot another Stupefy spell her way before retreating again.

When he looked again, a spark flew right past his head. He sent a paralyzing spell towards her but she countered it and he had to act quickly to block her magic with a shielding spell.

When another Killing Curse flew past his head, he sought refuge behind the wooden wall again to think up a plan. He had to take her down somehow but she was more powerful and experienced than he was.

A bright light filled his eyes.

A deafening boom clawed its way through his ears. He flew through the air and landed hard on the ground. He struggled to breathe again, his lungs squashed. Pieces of wood and metal rained down on him like arrows.

The world turned silent. The inside of his skull ached. Everything he saw melted together like watercolors.

He groaned and rolled onto his side. A sharp pain from his leg made him cry out. He quickly turned onto his back and black spots filled his eyes.

When his vision came back into focus, he looked down his body. A sharp piece of wood was lodged in the upper part of his left leg. Crimson lines flowed from the gash the ripped wood had left in him.

He looked around him. Where was the witch? Was she the one who did this?

He spotted her moving towards his friends and the battle. Apparently, she thought her explosion had taken care of him.

He groaned and clenched his jaw as he rolled to the side again. The wood dug deeper into his skin. He took his wand from the ground. An infernal ringing began to echo in his head.

The witch strode past wooden houses and overhanging cliffs. His friends were fighting off hostile Vikings surrounding them. They knew the witch was there but in the chaos, there was no time to stop defending themselves.

The witch had her eye on Flynn, when she raised her wand again. He was the only one she could hit from her position without taking down people from her own side.

He screamed in anger. Without thinking, he fired a Confringo spell.

His aim was off.

But the power was unlike anything he had done before.

The spell hit a house next to the witch. It was leveled to the ground; consumed in an uncontrollable blur of roaring flames and wood torn to pieces. The force of the explosion swept the witch off her feet and threw her backwards. She landed on the ground, the impact knocking her wand out of her hand.

As fast as he could, he shot a blasting curse at the overhanging cliffs.

There was a loud rumble when the strong spell hit. The grey cliffs cracked open in an instant, the ancient stone torn apart like a napkin, huge boulders falling to the earth, burying the witch underneath them in a crashing inferno.

For a moment, he heard nothing but his own heartbeat and the terrible ringing.

She was dead. There was no doubt about that. His chest felt hollow at that thought.

"Jack!" Flynn appeared by his side. His voice was almost drowned out by the ringing in his head. "Jack! Are you okay?"

"Yeah…yeah." he said, while Flynn pulled him to his feet.

"You're bleeding!" Flynn said and looked at the piece of wood sticking out of his upper leg.

"It's nothing." he said and watched Merida, Mavis and Rapunzel fight off enemies, making sure they were okay.

"We need to get it out." Flynn told him and grabbed the end of the wood. "On the count of three."

"Okay." he agreed and mentally prepared himself.

"One…two…three!" Flynn said and ripped the piece of wood straight out of him, tearing through more flesh and skin.

"AH!" he yelled, the sharp, burning pain overwhelming.

Flynn tossed the blood soaked wood onto the ground. Jack took a moment to handle the pain; his breaths short and sharp.

"Good, it's out." he said when he was able to speak. "Now we need to go back there." he said and motioned to the battle.

"Jack, are you sure you're able to do that?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Come on."

His leg throbbed, the pain crawling up and down, as they approached their friends. His black school trousers clung to his skin, sticky with blood. The ringing in his head grew softer but stayed.

He had only fired one spell when a deep voice roared nearby.

"SKULLCRUSHER!"

A huge red-haired man with a long beard took out enemies at a fast pace. He was even bigger than most Vikings.

It was Stoick, Hiccup's dad. Jack recognized him from Hiccup's drawings.

It was like seeing a natural force; a furious hurricane in the midst of a forest, ripping branches straight off brittle trees. He fought with a strength and determination unlike anything Jack had seen before.

A loud roar had several hostile Vikings flinch. Out of nowhere, a massive green and red dragon came charging through the enemies. It shoved them to the side with its front horn, like an angry rhino determined to eliminate an annoying flock of birds.

He got his head back in the game and focused on protecting his friends; keeping an eye out for any enemies that came near them while they were fighting off others.

"The guards are dead!" a Viking with blonde hair, that Jack knew was Gobber, said and destroyed a hostile Viking's face with his axe. The man fell to the ground like a boneless heap. His face was split right open, skin ripped to shreds, blood flowing like red paint.

"WHAT?!" he heard Stoick bellow. The Viking chief rammed his sword straight through an invader and cut his gut open. Blood and intestines spilled from the man's body as he dropped to his knees and fell onto his side with pained screams.

"THE CHILDREN!" Stoick shouted to his men while another enemy attacked him. "MEN! OUR GUARDS HAVE BEEN KILLED! WE NEED SOMEONE TO PROTECT THE CHILDREN AND THE HATCHLINGS!"

Pictures of scared children and young baby dragons appeared before Jack's eyes, as he kept fighting off hostile Vikings with the others.

"WE'LL GO!" he yelled and motioned to himself and the others. "We'll keep them safe!"

"GO!" Stoick yelled back. "PROTECT THEM AT ALL COSTS!"

The run to the Great Hall was panicked. Jack's leg was giving him trouble but he pushed it down. They all ignored the pain and fatigue in their bodies to get there as fast as possible. The children could be in danger.

He had a small head start and came to the top of the long stone staircase leading to the Great Hall, before his friends did. When he opened the massive doors, they creaked in protest.

Inside, it was dark and quiet. Only one small fire was lit in one of the corners, giving off just enough light so he didn't stumble into anything.

He came to a sudden halt when a small body came into his line of sight. It was lying close to one of the walls, partly hidden behind a table. After a moments hesitation, he slowly stepped closer.

It was a dead child. He almost fell to his knees.

A young girl, about 8 or 9 years old, with two brown braids. Her eyes were open but unseeing; wide and blue with no light remaining. Only cold death that would haunt him forever. Her lips were pale and her brown tunic had dried blood on it; a small pool around a wound, like a crimson flower sprouting from dark soil. In one of her small hands lay a tiny dagger. She had tried to defend herself.

The sorrow filled his eyes and the world swam around him. How could anyone kill a child?

"Jack!" Mavis called out. "Jack! Where are you?!"

The fury overtook him and pushed away the sadness. "THEY ARE KILLING THE CHILDREN!" he screamed into the quiet hall, his voice echoing over and over.

"What?!" Flynn yelled back.

"Those bastards!" Merida said.

"We need to find the rest and defend them!" he shouted to the others. He blinked and took a depth breath before moving on through the hall to find out how deep this tragedy went.

In their search through the Great Hall, they found the corpses of three more children; two small girls about ten years old and a boy who seemed to have been no older than six. All of them had defensive wounds but had been overpowered and slaughtered. When they couldn't find any others, they agreed that they had escaped somehow.

They were almost out of the hall again, when Jack heard a floorboard creak.

He spun around as fast as he could.

The Viking wasn't quick enough to hide. There he was, standing close to the fire.

Jack raised his wand and hurried towards him. The others followed.

"Don't touch that sword!" Jack said when the Viking moved to unsheathe his weapon. He pressed his wand into the guy's throat. "Where are the children?"

The Viking's jaw clenched. He was not speaking.

"You think I'm kidding?" Jack told him in a low tone. "I swear, I'll make you suffer if you don't tell me where they are." he said and poked him harder with the wand. "Magic can cause pain you can't even imagine."

The Viking's eyes widened for a second before he got himself under control. "They scattered before we could get to them all."

"Where did they go?"

"I don't know. Some of them ran out a back door."

"A back door?"

"That's what I said isn't it?"

"Don't get fucking cocky with me." he said and with a flick of his wrist, he threw the Viking into the stone wall. He didn't get back up.

"Okay, so the kids are still out there somewhere." Rapunzel said. "We have to find them!"

"They couldn't have gone far." Mavis said. "The ones in here haven't been dead for very long…"

"Let's go find them." Jack told them.

Their search did not take very long. When they found the children, it was a horrifying sight.

The children were trapped in a corner. There were about ten of them, their backs pressed against the stone. In their skinny arms, they clutched dragon eggs and tiny hatchlings against their chests.

The invaders had found them and ran towards the children with their axes raised, no different than when they attacked grown men. There was no mistaking this; they were going for the kill.

"HEY!" Jack screamed and ran towards them, jolts of pain shooting into his leg whenever his foot touched the ground.

"Get away from them, you bastards!" he heard Rapunzel yell.

"Seidr!" one of the Vikings told the others with fear in his eyes before he took off, running in the other direction.

Merida made quick work of him with her wand; smashing him straight into a wooden pillar.

They fired spells at the Vikings and managed to take several of them down although the distance made it difficult.

The ground rumbled with the heavy boots of the invaders slamming down on it. Furious battle cries made the children hold the hatchlings tighter against their small bodies and move closer together.

The glassy eyes of the dead little girl flashed in Jack's mind.

"NO!" he screamed. "NO!"

Blue sparks shimmered from his wand. The wood hummed with magic, vibrating against his fingers. Running as fast as he could, he acted on pure instinct and swung it. "HIEMSFUROR!"*

Long ropes of gleaming frost shot out like lightning. They formed a huge glistening wave that rose towards the enemies. In a second, it collapsed on top of them and whirled around them like a sandstorm.

He couldn't see what was happening. But the screams of terror were nauseating.

He stopped in his tracks when the explosion hit. Frost grew in all directions, engulfing everything nearby. A display of powerful, frozen fireworks spreading through the air.

The force of the explosion shoved him to the ground. He landed on his back and cried out from the pain of his leg and a rock digging into his skin. The ringing in his ears returned; louder and more shrill than before. When he came to his senses, he glanced at his friends. They all looked disoriented but unharmed.

His first thoughts when he managed to get up again were about the children. He scrambled towards the rock wall, ignoring the pain in his body. The kids were slowly getting back on their feet.

"Is everyone all right?" he asked, looking over each of the children for injuries.

"I think so…" a girl about 10 years old with red curls said and picked up a Deadly Nadder hatchling from the ground.

"I…" a small voice said from the left. "My arm hurts."

The voice belonged to a small boy, whose arm was definitely broken. "Sorry kid." he said. "I had to stop them from getting to you."

"I know." the boy said. "It's not your fault."

Jack gave him a sad smile.

"Jack…" Rapunzel said from behind him. "How…how did you do that?"

"I…didn't know I could." he said honestly.

His friends' eyes were full of confusion and rightly so. He was one of the best in Defense against the Dark Arts but this was a whole new level. He had no idea he had that sort of power inside him.

"Look…we have to find someone who can take care of you guys." he told the children.

"Red and I will find someone." Flynn's voice said.

When he looked at them, he noticed how worn down they looked. Dust and dirt darkening their hair and skin, rips in their clothes, cuts and scrapes on hands and faces, blood spatter from enemies.

Jack wasn't religious. But his friends had gone through Hell with him. He had a burst of gratitude that all of them were still alive.

"No." he told Flynn. "I'll go. I need you guys to protect them." he said and motioned to the children and the hatchlings. "Another bunch of those bastards could come around here any minute. It's easier for one person to go find help than to keep all of these guys safe."

Flynn nodded but it was obvious that he wasn't happy about it.

"Jack, you really shouldn't go anywhere alone." Mavis said.

"I'll be all right, Mav. Don't worry. I'll sneak my way through until I find someone who can help us. You know how good I am at sneaking around." he said and smiled at them to lighten the mood just a little. There was enough darkness looming over them.

"Be safe." Merida said.

"I will." he agreed. "Stay here. I'll be quick as a bunny."

~~~~ Flynn ~~~~

Jack had only been gone for a short while before another group of Vikings came by. He and Rapunzel had been preparing to do some concealment spells on the kids, when an angry yell in the distance caught their attention.

Before they knew it, they were emerged in the cruel reality of battle. His mind was blank while the adrenaline bubbled non-stop in his blood. He sent one enemy after the other to their death, acting on nothing but impulse.

They shielded the children behind them and told them to crouch down and keep close to the wall. Even among the noise of spells and weapons, he heard some of them crying.

A spear and a shield came flying through the air. "REDUCTO!" Rapunzel screamed and turned them to ashes before they could come near the children.

The enemies pushed them to their limits. They were greatly outnumbered and despite their magic, it was difficult to take the Vikings out while still defending themselves and the children and hatchlings. They spent every ounce of energy and focus they had on using spells that did the most damage.

He and the others worked together without needing many words. He and Rapunzel were to the left and Mavis and Merida to the right. Not standing too close together gave them more room to maneuver their magic and properly see their enemies, while still being able to protect the children.

"Ahh!" Merida cried out when they failed to stop a spear coming towards them and it nicked her arm. It seemed to only make her angry and even more effective; incapacitating a greater number of enemies than before.

They were battle weary but they kept going, fueled by the adrenaline in their veins and the core instinct of survival. When the last enemy closed his eyes forever, Flynn could finally breathe again.

They had kept the children and each other safe. They had done their job.

But it never got easier to take someone's life.

When they stood alone among the piles of lifeless, mutilated bodies and broken weapons in crimson lakes of blood, he was certain he would never be the same.

After checking that the children and hatchlings hadn't been injured by a misdirected spell or something else they might have missed, they cast concealment charms over them. At least now, they wouldn't be spotted right away if someone came by.

Mavis wandered around nearby on the empty battlefield, wringing her hands.

He knew she was worried about Jack. They all were. What was taking him so long?

She stopped by a boulder, gliding one hand over the surface.

None of them saw the Viking coming from behind.

Flynn stopped breathing when the axe cut straight through Mavis' arm.

The severed limb fell to the ground, like it was nothing but a broken child's toy. Blood gushed out of the remaining stump, a waterfall coloring the ground in death.

"NO!" he screamed and rushed towards them with his wand out. "STUPEFY!"

The Viking didn't have the chance to strike again. His spine broke with a crack when the spell shoved him through the air and straight into a rock wall.

Mavis fell to her knees in the puddle of blood. Her face was paralyzed in shock. Sharp breaths left her mouth.

He got to her side right as she fell onto her back. Rapunzel and Merida were right behind him.

In Mavis' eyes, he saw the fear of dying and the will to fight for her life all at once. Her body trembled and her lips quivered. Her entire system was shutting down from the shock of losing a body part.

They huddled down around her and Rapunzel was the first to try different spells. He and Merida didn't interfere no matter how much they wanted to help. Rapunzel was the best of them at healing spells.

Merida held each side of Mavis' head. "Stop the bleeding!" she told Rapunzel.

"I'm trying!" Rapunzel said, as she kept on uttering different spells and brightly colored sparks flew from her wand and onto Mavis.

But none of them had any effect.

He clutched Mavis' hand tight, like it would prevent her from leaving the world if he just held on to her physically.

Mavis' eyelids slid down, her shock replaced by the exhaustion of the blood loss.

"Mavis!" he yelled, crushing her hand. "No! Stay with me! You have to stay awake!"

Mavis forced her eyes open but they were narrow slits, dancing on the edge of consciousness. He knew she wanted to keep going but her body was working against her.

"Mavis!" Merida yelled, her eyes filling with tears.

"Mavis, just listen to my voice, okay?" he said, desperate to keep her awake. "Just listen…"

The warm blood kept flowing from Mavis' ripped veins. He chose not to look.

"Okay, okay." he said, trying to calm himself down. "Uh, oh remember that time in our second year when Merida was really down about school and her family, so we decided to treat every day, like it was her birthday, but we accidentally dropped one of the birthday cakes on Professor Keller?" he said to her. "Or the night we snuck into the restricted part of the library and got into a lot of trouble, just because Jack was certain there had to be some books about Jack Frost somewhere in Hogwarts…but the caretaker caught us, so we ran back to the dormitories as fast as we could while he chased us?"

Mavis simply stared weakly at him, her usually bright eyes dull and tired. She looked ready to give up now and that thought was enough to send a chill through him.

"Keep talking, keep talking!" Merida said. She stroked Mavis' blood stained hair. Whether it was meant as a comfort to herself or Mavis, he didn't know.

Rapunzel waved her wand over the wound repeatedly, muttering spells. Mavis' blood had soaked through the black sleeves of Rapunzel's cloak.

"Uh, and what about that time you and Jack and Merida convinced me that Professor Bunnymund was getting married to Professor Cherry and I actually congratulated him and ended up getting detention? Or the time where you and Merida scared me and Jack to death by dressing up as serial killers? Or the time when Jack saw Astrid kiss Hiccup and you were the only one who was allowed to comfort him? See? We need you, Mav. We need you to be okay. Please, be okay."

"I've stopped the bleeding." Rapunzel said and tainted her hair with blood, as she pulled some locks away from her face. "But we need to get her to a house so I can bandage her up."

"Where?" Merida said and looked around frantically.

"That's probably our best shot." Rapunzel pointed to a nearby house that was still in one piece.

"Okay…we'll have to lift her there but we need to be really careful." he said.

"Okay…" Merida said and grabbed hold under Mavis' armpits.

Flynn wrapped his hands around the ankles and together they lifted her as gently as they could.

"You need to cover us!" he told Rapunzel who nodded and looked in all directions with her wand ready as they crossed the path towards the house.

The sounds of dragons, explosions and screams in the distance told them that the battle was far from over. Death still lured around every corner and there was no telling where another enemy could come from.

A Viking came towards them but turned around and ran in the other direction when he saw their wands. Rapunzel sent him crashing into a boulder.

He held on to one of Mavis' ankles as tight as he could, while kicking open the door to the small house. They quickly carried her inside and put her down on a long table.

"What do we do now?" he asked.

"I…I don't know." Rapunzel said. "Maybe there are some healing potions or something around here or in one of the other houses? Fishlegs and Hiccup bring that stuff back here sometimes."

"Shit…" he said. "That's going to be difficult. There are enemies everywhere."

"Two of us should go. And one of us should stay here and protect Mavis." Merida said.

"Yeah…we have to find something that can help…" he agreed.

"But we need to hurry." Rapunzel said. "Flynn and I will go and you'll stay here and guard her, okay?"

Merida nodded and sat down on the long table next to Mavis, with her wand ready.

Out of the safety of the house, he and Rapunzel went for the healer's hut. It was a small house that had suffered from the battle; someone had smashed several big holes in the wooden walls and the furniture inside was in complete disarray.

"Over here!" Rapunzel said, after they had searched the house for a few moments. She was standing by a large closet filled with shelves with different containers on them.

"I don't know what half of this stuff is." he said as he took in the many different bottles and jars with colored liquids and creams in them.

"I don't know either. A lot of it probably isn't magical." she said. "But this is!" she grabbed two different containers from a shelf. "Oh and this!" she said and took a few more from another shelf.

"Do you think it'll be enough?"

"I don't know. But these are the only things I recognize and we can't give her something we don't know what is. We could hurt her even more."

"I know." he agreed. "Let's go back. She doesn't have much time."

They hurried towards Mavis and Merida, snapping their heads to the sides regularly to keep an eye out for enemies. The containers clinked in Rapunzel's pockets as they ran along the cliffs. The sea angrily whipped against the stone walls below. Over the ocean, the Berkians and their dragons fought as best they could against the large numbers of their enemies.

When the house came into view, the worry of potentially finding Mavis dead settled in his gut. What if they were too late?

Suddenly, Rapunzel let out a pained noise and disappeared from his peripheral vision.

He didn't expect what he was seeing when he turned around.

A Viking with black hair and a wild beard was standing on a ledge of the cliffs, his entire body except his arms and head concealed behind the stone. He had grabbed onto Rapunzel's long hair and tied it onto his armguard.

Rapunzel struggled against the much stronger man. She cried out in pain as he pulled her closer.

He ran to her side to protect her but he wasn't sure what to do. He only had a few moments to act.

He couldn't hit the Viking with his magic, he had tied himself to Rapunzel, but he needed to get her away from him.

He only saw one solution.

He uttered the spell for heating up his wand. It quickly glowed red and small swirls of smoke rose from it.

Without thinking twice, he took hold of Rapunzel's hair and burned the long golden locks off in one quick move.

The charred tresses fell to the ground, wisps of smoke rising from them.

The Viking swore and Flynn wasted no time in making him lose his balance and fall off the ledge and straight into the ocean. The Viking screamed all the way down.

"Hey…are you okay? Are you hurt?" he asked Rapunzel.

"I…no." she said, staring into the sea where the Viking had just been. "I'm okay. Thank you..." she said, the shock slowly fading from her eyes.

"Come on." he said and grabbed her hand. They ran the short distance to the house.

"What happened!?" Merida said when she saw Rapunzel's short, burnt hair.

"We were attacked." he said. "But we got to the healer's house. We found some things that might help!"

"Quick, quick! Get them open then!" Merida said and glanced at Mavis.

She was even paler than before; her lips and cheeks drained of any color. Her eyes were closed but she was still breathing.

Rapunzel pulled the containers out of her pockets and Merida unscrewed the lids and poured the contents into Mavis' mouth.

"We also found this salve." Rapunzel said and got a small tub out of her pocket. "It should take the risk of infection away." she said and opened it. She took a handful of the creamy substance and gently smeared it on the small stump Mavis' had left of her arm.

He almost couldn't bear looking at it.

The torn skin and dried blood, the red muscles and white bone. It was something he had only ever expected to see in horror movies but now it was happening in front of him. One of his best friends had had a limb cut straight off and was on the verge of death.

Rapunzel bandaged the wound to the sounds of battle coming from outside. "What do we do now?" she asked them. "We can't just leave her here, someone might kill her."

"I know. We have to protect her." he agreed.

"There's no way in Hell I'm leaving her, that's for sure." Merida said.

"We'll stay here and guard her." he said and shared a pained look with Merida. They had both grown up with Mavis. Stuck by each other through the years. They would never leave her when she was vulnerable.

"But…what do we do about Hiccup and Fishlegs and Astrid?" Rapunzel said, the confliction between helping them and helping the others evident in her eyes.

"At least they're conscious and able to defend themselves." he said, despite also wanting to go out there and help them fight. "And they have their dragons and the other Vikings. Mavis has no one. We need to be here."

Rapunzel nodded. "I know…You're right. It's just difficult…but we'll make sure she gets through this."

"She has to." he said. "She has to!"

Rapunzel opened her mouth to speak but in that moment, the door burst open.

They flinched from the sudden intrusion.

He spun around. The words "PETRIFICUS TOTALUS" were screamed and wild red curls filled his vision as someone jumped in front of him.

A hostile Viking froze in place and fell backwards onto the ground with the sound of clattering metal.

He caught Merida right before she collapsed on the floor.

Only then did he see the damage.

Blood streamed out of a large, gaping wound, wetting her white school shirt and black skirt. The Viking had hit her in the stomach with his axe. Gurgling sounds left her mouth and she stared at him with round eyes.

"No no no! Why did you do that?! No!" he said before looking at Rapunzel. "Do we have anymore potions!?"

"No!" she said and looked around without results.

"We need to do something!" he said.

"I'll try to stop the bleeding like I did with Mavis!" Rapunzel said and kneeled by Merida's side.

"It'll be okay, Red. I promise. I promise, you'll be okay…you're not done, all right?" he said to her with the most soothing voice he could muster despite the unrestrained panic creating chaos inside him. "You still have so many insults to throw at me. Who else is going to take me down a peg when I need it? And we still have to resolve all that sexual tension, right? You can't leave…Merida…Merida, stay with me, stay with me."

Rapunzel worked on Merida's terrifying wound where crimson kept pouring out in worrying amounts. The warm blood stained his hands as he held her in a sitting position and clung to her, not willing to let go.

Merida kept her eyes open but it was clear that she was getting tired. Her body felt more and more fragile in his arms and he was beginning to panic again, when Rapunzel spoke.

"Okay…I think I've stopped it now…" she said.

"Good. Good…" he said, mostly to himself.

"I still have some bandages." she said and pulled them out of her pockets. "Hold her up a little so I can reach around her."

He did as she said and Rapunzel got to work on wrapping bandages around Merida's whole midsection. It was a relief that the bleeding had stopped but he knew she wasn't out of the woods yet. Neither of them were. Both Mavis and Merida could still die and that thought was devastating.

He couldn't let that happen. They were his sisters and he had a duty to keep them safe.

"We need to find more potions or salves or whatever else might help." he said. "We need to go back to the healer's house and if there are no more left, we'll go to Hiccup's and Fishlegs' houses. Maybe they have some stuff stored."

Rapunzel nodded solemnly. "But we can't both leave." she said. "I'll go. You stay here and guard them."

"No, I'll go." he said without hesitation. He'd rather put himself in harm's way than Rapunzel.

"No. Flynn, you need to stay here and protect them." she said. "They're your sisters…I'll be fine."

"It's dangerous out there."

"I know, I know, but I'll be quick, okay?" she said. "If I see any enemies at all, I'll come right back."

That appeased the uneasiness inside of him. "Okay…be careful."

"I will." she said and took two steps towards the door. She looked at him and opened her mouth to say something but closed it again without a word.

He thought about telling her how he felt about her. This wasn't the time or the place but who knew if they were even going to make it out of this alive? This could be the last chance he had.

A moment later, she had disappeared out the door and it was too late.

~~~~ Rapunzel ~~~~

It turned out, they had already taken all they could from the healer's house. After a quick trip to Fishlegs' house nearby without any results, she carefully made her way to Hiccup's home.

Every time she passed a house and there was a clear view of the ocean, she looked for Hiccup, Fishlegs and Astrid. A few times on her way between houses, she saw Toothless and Hiccup and her heart felt lighter from knowing they were still alive. But there were too many Gronckles and Deadly Nadders to know which ones were Meatlug and Stormfly.

Remaining unseen to enemies was easier said than done. She had to be hyper-aware at all times because an enemy could appear from around every corner. She hid behind some barrels when she heard someone approach. It was a large group of hostile Vikings running past, bloodied and angry.

Her heart sank when she found herself in Hiccup's house and was unable to find anything useful for Merida. Someone had been in there and destroyed everything; furniture was broken, chests emptied, food spilled all over. She saw glass shards by the fireplace and differently colored liquids resting on the floorboards. Maybe those things had been potions that could have helped Merida survive but now they were wasted.

Outside, she considered what to do now. She had told Flynn she would be careful and go back if she saw any enemies.

But what could she do if she went back now? Nothing. There was nothing to be done for Merida except watch over her.

She bit her lip.

Then she jumped behind a boulder, when she heard the sound of heavy boots slapping down on the ground.

A Viking ran past without seeing her. He had a large wound on his lower back that leaked red all over his shirt.

But that wasn't what caught her attention first.

He was carrying a young boy over his shoulder. He couldn't be more than 14.

She left her hiding place and chased after the Viking as fast as she could. Her heart beat frantically. It was a foolish risk to take but she couldn't just do nothing. She had to help that boy.

The enemy heard her and stopped dead in his tracks. When they stared each other down, she noticed that there was fear hidden behind the aggression in his eyes.

They observed each other in silence. The Viking tightened his grip around the boy's chest and pulled him off the ground with one arm, shielding himself.

The boy's eyes begged her for help.

"Let him go." she said with her wand raised.

"You wouldn't dare do anything, sorcerer." the Viking said. "You could hurt the kid."

He had her there. As long as he used the boy as a human shield, she was powerless to stop him.

She racked her brain, trying to come up with a solution.

"Look…" she said and held her hands up. She slowly stepped towards them. "I'm sure we can resolve this, just you and me. There's no need to hurt him."

"Stop right there, witch." the Viking said, spitting out the last word as if it tasted bitter. He clutched his dagger and poked it at the boy's throat.

A single red drop glided down the child's skin.

Rapunzel halted her steps. "Just calm down, okay? Calm down."

"I am calm, girl." the Viking said. "But unless you throw that wand away, I'll slice this kid right open."

"Fine. Fine." she said. "You win, okay?"

The Viking slowly nodded. "Drop it, then."

She stared into the teary eyes of the boy. Something unspoken passed between them.

She held the hand with the wand to the side and prepared to drop it. The Viking followed her with his eyes.

With the speed of a viper, she did the smallest flick of her wrist.

The Viking froze, his body petrified. The boy wrenched himself out of the huge arms, before the man fell backwards and landed on the ground, his limbs completely stiff.

The boy looked at the hostile Viking with round eyes. Despite Rapunzel's efforts, the Viking had scratched the boy with his dagger. A thin red line marred the young skin.

"Come here." she told him.

The boy obeyed and stepped towards her.

She pointed his wand at him. The boy's eyes reflected the fear within him.

"I won't hurt you, okay? I would never hurt you." she told him.

The boy nodded.

She closed the small wound with a quick spell. The boy put his hand on his throat and smiled when he could feel the wound being gone.

Something hard hit her in the back, shoving her off her feet.

She groaned from the sharp pain spreading through her lower back. Grit stung on her skin. Her wand had been knocked out of her hand and was lying a few feet ahead.

She moved to crawl towards it but a heavy foot pressed down on her back. She groaned again from the pain.

"Well well well…what do we have here? A witch." a deep, gruff voice said.

Rapunzel sucked in a breath. She was trapped. Without her wand.

Two strong arms pulled her to her feet, like she weighed nothing.

Seven big Vikings with their weapons unsheathed watched her with contempt in their eyes. Their faces and armor were marred by dirt, the darkness only broken by streaks of dried blood.

She knew right away who the leader was.

He gave out a vibe of authority and power that the others didn't.

Tall and muscular, he towered over her. His wild black beard and long black hair were sweaty and uncombed. The many scars and age lines on his face spoke of a long life as a fierce warrior. He wore impressive looking armor with an intricate pattern of tree-roots and bones engraved on it.

But what gave away his identity was the red pouch on his belt.

This was Ivar the Bonesmasher himself. Hiccup had told her the stories about him.

Ivar tilted his head. "Not speaking? There are ways to fix that."

"What do you want me to say?" she said. She tried her best to appear confident despite the nervousness churning in her stomach. It would be a mistake to show them anxiety.

Ivar's blue eyes cut into her skin; like he could sense her feelings. "You could tell me your name."

"I'd rather not." she said.

Much to her surprise, Ivar wasn't angered by the refusal. He merely shrugged before a small smile played on his lips. "You came to Stoick's son's aid. You are important to him. That much is clear." he said. "And we can use that."

"What?" she said.

That wasn't what she had expected. They were going to use her as a bargaining chip to get to Hiccup.

No.

No!

If she was the reason for Hiccup getting hurt or killed…no.

"Oh yes." Ivar said and closed one large hand around the red pouch on his belt. "You will be a valuable chess piece."

~~~~ Hiccup ~~~~

Their men on land needed help. That much was clear, when he took stock of the situation from the air.

Gods, how he hoped Jack and the others were still alive. He looked for them every time he glanced towards land but hadn't seen them in a while. The worry broiling inside him was sickening.

He saw his dad and Gobber among the warriors fighting their enemies. Even from this distance, they were recognizable. The enemies had surrounded them from both sides and despite their skill, they were hard pressed to keep up.

"They're struggling!" Fishlegs said and Snotlout made a noise of agreement.

"We should help!" Astrid told him but she waited for him to give the order.

"Yeah, let's go kick their hostile asses!" Ruffnut said.

"Can an ass even be hostile?" Tuffnut asked.

"Look." he said and turned to all of them. "You're coming with me. We're going to lend some backup."

"Yeah!" Tuffnut cheered.

"Wait. Listen up." he said. "Right now they're surrounded. We need to drive off the invaders from one of the sides, so my dad and the others can fight the rest."

"And how do we do that?" Snotlout said.

Hiccup took a moment to think about that. "We have to separate from our dragons."

"What?!" Fishlegs said.

"Look…" he said. "We're already stretched to the limits in taking down this fleet." he said and pointed towards the swarm of ships below where dragons and riders fought bravely to defeat their enemies. "We can't take more dragon riders with us to do this, so we have to be creative if we're going to succeed."

The others nodded silently but he could see the concern in their eyes.

"Okay. Follow me." he said and steered Toothless towards the ground, a long distance away from the battle, so they wouldn't be noticed.

After telling the others what to do, they hurried back towards the battle, while the dragons went in the other direction. They had to sneak up behind both sides of the enemies to take them by surprise.

They snuck along houses and rock walls, as the sounds of battle intensified. When the enemies came into view in the distance, he stopped behind the corner of a house and told the others to wait for his signal.

Now they just needed their dragons to show up.

As if they could hear his thoughts, their dragons approached from the air on the other side of the battle.

"DRAGONS! DRAGONS!" he heard people shout. He watched their dragons fly closer and closer and their presence worked perfectly as a distraction for the enemies. Several of them became unfocused and made mistakes that ended up costing them their lives against his dad and the other warriors.

When the dragons were almost on the ground, he gave the others the signal.

They jumped out of hiding simultaneously. He, Fishlegs and Astrid began firing spell after spell at the enemies, knocking them into each other or into boulders and setting them on fire. At the same time, the dragons attacked from the other side, blasting the enemies with their fire and mangling them with their teeth and claws.

The plan worked.

By launching attacks on both sides, the enemies were now fighting three different groups of attackers instead of one. They had broken the invaders' united assault on his dad and the others.

He heard roars of encouragement and approval from their own warriors, as they all fought to end this battle. When the enemies discovered them, they focused particularly on him, Astrid and Fishlegs since they were the biggest threat. Snotlout and the twins worked together on defeating nearby invaders with their weapons. Ruffnut and Tuffnut were a force with their sharp axes, one attacking the front of an enemy while the other took the back. Snotlout covered them, cutting down any threat nearby.

He glanced towards the dragons whenever he could. If something happened to Toothless, it would break him. The dragons were working together, protecting each other from enemies and attacking together as well. Meatlug had jumped in front of Barf and Belch just as a couple of Vikings fired arrows at them. Her strong scales were too thick for normal arrows to break though. Stormfly flicked her tail, sending a row of spikes flying into the crowd. Vikings fell to the ground screaming, long spikes impaling them. Hookfang and Toothless were working together on taking out as many enemies at once as possible, Toothless fighting with teeth and claws while Hookfang covered him by spewing long, roaring flames. The amount of enemies grew smaller and smaller.

He sent two Vikings crashing through a barn to the left, while Astrid and Fishlegs knocked a group of four unconscious.

Then his world changed.

His heartbeat froze when someone rammed a spear through Tuffnut. "NO!" Ruffnut screamed. Another grabbed her from behind and sliced her throat open.

Blood poured down Ruffnut's throat and onto her armor. She fell to the ground, coughing and gasping for air through her torn windpipe. Tuffnut clutched his chest, where crimson seeped through his fingers. He dropped to his knees.

"NO!" the words left Hiccup's mouth without a thought. He barely registered Astrid's, Fishlegs' and Snotlout's cries around him. The wave of shock had washed everything from his mind.

Tuffnut crawled towards his twin, every movement filled with pain. He collapsed next to Ruffnut and his eyes slowly closed. A heartbeat later, Ruffnut's coughs and gargling ended.

The pointy claws of grief curled around his chest.

They were dead. His friends were dead.

A hot flash of rage shot through his bones. Tears turned the world into an ocean but he wiped his eyes.

He needed to mourn later. He couldn't risk more people dying.

He heard Fishlegs' say "no no no" to himself over and over.

"YOU BACRAUTS!" Astrid screamed. She levitated a box filled with nails and tools by a nearby house and fired it all straight into the crowd. Enemies screamed as nails dug into their skin and flesh. One was hit in the eyes and blood came trickling down his face. Tools knocked enemies unconscious, broke their bones or cut them open.

"I'LL KILL YOU!" Snotlout bellowed and charged towards the Vikings responsible for their friends' deaths. Hiccup was right behind him.

Snotlout swung his axe and a Viking held up his shield and blocked the hit. The other enemy saw Hiccup coming and held his spear up to throw it. But he never got the chance. With a flick of his wand, he smashed the invader's skull against a nearby statue.

Snotlout ran his sword straight through the man's abdomen, as soon as there was an opening. He kicked him onto his back and withdrew his sword. Then he finished him by ramming the sword into his chest again. When the man was still, Snotlout spat on him.

They were all fueled by Ruffnut's and Tuffnut's deaths. The anger gave them renewed energy and purpose; Snotlout killed enemy after enemy, never growing tired and not even sensing the pain when a spear grazed him or he was kicked. He, Astrid and Fishlegs fired spells faster and more powerful than ever before, spark after spark flying through the crowd, delivering death and injury.

When Snotlout got in too deep and were surrounded by six enemies, Astrid and Fishlegs backed him up and kept him safe. He was about to do the same but a Viking approached him, walking casually towards him like he didn't have a care in the world.

Hiccup didn't use his wand. Something was off about this. The man had a relaxed smile on his face when they stood in front of each other.

"We have your little friend." he said.

"What?"

"The pretty one with the blonde hair." he said and Hiccup didn't fail to notice the satisfied gleam in his eyes.

"What have you done to her?" he said, dread seeping into his stomach. If Rapunzel was hurt…

"Oh, nothing yet." he said. "But if you want her to live you better follow me. Without signaling to anyone else. I'm watching you."

He glanced towards his friends who were all occupied fighting off enemies. Toothless, his dad and Gobber were also engulfed in the battle; not able to keep an eye on him right now.

That was good. If anyone saw this, they would interfere. And he couldn't gamble with Rapunzel's life.

The walk towards their destination couldn't have taken more than a few minutes. But it seemed like much longer. His mind raced in all directions, trying to come up with a solution to this while worrying about Rapunzel.

When he saw her, her arm in the tight grip of Ivar the Bonesmasher, it felt like he couldn't breathe.

"So…we finally meet face to face, Dragon Conqueror." Ivar said with no hint of malice, as if this was just a meeting between long distance pen pals or business associates.

"Can't say that it's a pleasure." he said.

"Likewise." Ivar said. "Nonetheless…dislike doesn't stop a wise man from bargaining."

"Bargaining?" he asked without showing much emotion, despite the anxiety wriggling inside of him. He knew where this was going.

"Yes, bargaining." Ivar said. "After all…I assume you would rather your little friend here lives than dies, so…I'm certain we can come to some kind of…compromise."

Hiccup stayed silent. With her eyes, Rapunzel urged him not to bargain with Ivar. To get out of here.

But he couldn't do that. He would never leave her in the hands of his enemies.

"So, Dragon Conqueror…what will it be?" Ivar said.

Hiccup knew what he had to do. There was no other way to ensure Rapunzel's safety.

He glanced towards the skies. There was no sign of Toothless or his friends and their dragons.

That was for the best. He needed his best friend and everyone else to be distracted for what he was about to do.

He pulled out a piece of parchment and quickly scribbled some runes on it. He enchanted it and made it fly towards Ivar. How he wished he could just destroy him with a spell but the risk of Rapunzel getting maimed or killed was too big.

One of Ivar's men grabbed the paper, unfolded it and showed it to him. A malicious smile spread across Ivar's lips. "Drop your wand and we have a deal, Dragon Conqueror!"

Hiccup filled his lungs with air and slowly exhaled. He thought of Jack.

His wand slipped out of his fingers and landed on the stony ground with a clack.

It was done.

~~~~ Ivar the Bonesmasher ~~~~

"Get him out of sight!" he told three of his men. "Get him to my ship, tie him up and keep him hidden!"

If they could keep Stoick's son's capture a secret for now, it would be an important advantage. If the Berkians knew he had been taken prisoner, it would only spur them on to fight harder.

The men hurried towards the ships with their new prisoner wrapped in their cloaks. Ivar turned to Alfarinn, one of his most loyal warriors. He had given him the responsibility of handling the girl, while Stoick's son was brought onto the ship.

"Alfarinn." he said.

"Yes, my chief?" came the swift reply. Alfarinn's hand was curled tight around the girl's arm. She wasn't going anywhere unless Ivar gave his permission.

"Tie her up somewhere, injure her and make sure she can't scream."

"Perhaps it would be better to kill her, my chief?" Alfarinn asked him.

"Don't be foolish." he said. "I struck a deal with the Dragon Conqueror. Only cowards break deals, even ones made between enemies."

"Yes, my chief." Alfarinn said and bowed his head as a silent apology.

"Go." Ivar told him and Alfarinn walked off, dragging the girl with him. She put up a fight but her skinny frame was no match for him.

"My chief!" Hákon came running. "We have a problem!"

"What is it?"

"The Berkians…some of their allies are coming."

"What?!" he said, enraged by what he was hearing. "How? We burned their ships!"

"Chief Harald and his sons were killed, and while our men found someone to put in charge of the fleet, some of the beasts managed to pull some of the Berkians' ships to their allies' islands. Now they're transporting them back here."

He banged his fist against a boulder and didn't show any sign of pain. Of course, Harald, Harald the Devourer, Harald, who had never lost a battle in his life, had to die now, take his sons with him and mess up their strategies. Now, they had lost their most important advantage.

"What is our status against Stoick?" he asked, pushing the fury down.

"The Berkians that Stoick is leading have help from their sorcerers and some of the beasts. I don't know how much longer our men can put up a fight against all of them."

Ivar observed the ocean where the beasts ruled the skies and many of their ships were either burning or had been sunk. His men still outnumbered the Berkians but now their allies were on their way. His own men had fought for a long time and wouldn't hold up against fresh warriors arriving.

"My chief?" Hákon asked. "What are your orders?"

Every action made in battle is a gamble. You try to be two steps ahead of your enemy but you never know for sure what they will do. That's how battles are lost; when you fail to predict your enemy's moves and prepare accordingly.

That was happening now. It was time to retreat or lose his men in the fiery maws of the beasts and the angry hands of Berk's allies.

The decision was clear.

"RETREAT!" he bellowed. "RETREAT!"

The word spread through the men like the virus it was. "Retreat!" they passed the message along and ran in different directions to tell their brothers and sisters in arms.

The clammy hand of defeat held on to him, as he watched Berk disappear in the distance from his ship. Some dragon riders and their beasts chased after several ships and managed to kill more men but the men put up a brave fight. In the end, the Berkians retreated, not wanting to lose more of their brothers in arms and being too scattered without a leader.

The mighty growls and roars of dragons faded in the horizon. But the bitterness clung to his lungs with every breath.

He had failed his tribe. His mission. His ancestors. All of his planning and cunning hadn't been enough to triumph.

He could have kept pushing his men and refused to retreat. But only a fool sacrifices his tribesmen in a vain attempt to secure his own pride.

A good chief and a clever warrior knows when he is beaten.

But that doesn't make it easier to accept.

"We can use him to get Stoick to surrender." his son Finnr said to him when they were back in the shelter of the large, ancient caves.

Outside, their men and women were treating their injured, cooking food or resting. The low morale among them made the camp one of the most quiet he had ever witnessed; no one was in the mood to talk unless necessary. Everyone was exhausted, in pain and had had their pride damaged.

The air was dull and dusty inside the dim cave; as if the dark mood among them infused itself into every breath he took. Four of his men stood around Stoick's son, who was blindfolded and whose hands were still bound. Chief Sigurðr and his daughter Álfdís, the only living child of the three chiefs except his own two sons, had taken their seats around the table but remained quiet for now.

"How about you keep your mouth shut instead of confirming what an idiot you are?" he snarled. "Stoick is wiser than that. He may love his son like all fathers do but he knows the burdens of a true chief; he would never condemn his entire tribe to death to save him."

"Then why don't we just kill him and get it over with?" Egill asked and scratched a wound on his cheek. His sons had come out of the battle with only minor injuries. That was a comfort to him. "At least that would give our brothers and sisters something to celebrate."

"What did Chief Ivar just say?" Chief Sigurðr said, bandaging his left arm. He spat onto the ground. "Stoick may not give up the lives of everyone on Berk to save his son but that doesn't mean we should throw away our only leverage at this point."

"Keep him guarded at all times." Ivar told the men surrounding Stoick's son. "Do not take your eyes off him. If he escapes…"

He didn't have to finish that sentence. The brief flicker of fear in his mens' eyes told him that they knew the punishment.

They may have lost this battle but the conflict wasn't over.

His gaze rested on Stoick's son, as his men escorted him out into the light of the forest.

Yes.

This wasn't over yet.

~~~~ Jack ~~~~

When the war horns blared and the enemy retreated, the Berkians all around him cheered and embraced.

Jack took a deep breath and felt the chains of fear slowly melt off him. Some of the Berkians patted him on the back – recognition of his efforts in the battle.

He was quick to leave behind the warriors around him. The battle might be over but he needed to see Hiccup and his friends himself before he could truly let the relief wash over him. They were probably all worried about him; he had gone for back up but ended up in yet another fight.

The walk through the village was surreal; smiling, hugging Vikings among bloodied, mutilated corpses and debris. People hurried to gather their wounded and get them treatment. Almost all the houses had either been burnt to the ground, hit with explosions or had people crashing through them. He tried to ignore the pain in his leg but it had grown worse from the strain of fighting.

The destruction was everywhere. In the middle of the path, a stuffed blue dragon toy lay between broken pieces of wood and the corpse of a Scuttleclaw. It was partly charred and had lost an eye. He picked it up and put it in one of the large pockets in his robes.

Fishlegs and Astrid were the first familiar people he spotted. Judging from their faces, something was very wrong.

After telling her something, Astrid ran in the opposite direction, while Fishlegs limped towards a barrel and sat down. He was bleeding in several places from cuts and scrapes.

"What happened? Where's Hiccup? Where are the others? What-" he fired questions at him as soon as he was within earshot.

"Jack…" a soft voice said. Rapunzel came to stand next to Fishlegs.

Jack had to take a breath when he saw her. She had been beaten; her right eyelid was swollen, her nose was bleeding and she had more scrapes and cuts on her face and arms than when he left.

"What happened?" he asked. He wanted answers. Now.

"I…" Rapunzel said. Her eyes were dark. "Hiccup, he…"

"What?" he whispered, the worry tearing its way inside his heart.

"He gave himself up, Jack…" she said. "He went with them voluntarily…to protect me."

"What?! I need to go after him!" he said and looked around him.

"I know. We're all going to do that." Rapunzel said softly.

How could she be so calm right now?

"Where's Toothless?" he asked.

"He left as soon as he discovered Hiccup was gone." Fishlegs told him.

"Good. Maybe he can find him quickly." Jack said. He knew Toothless would never stop until he found him. Him and Hiccup, their bond was unbreakable.

Rapunzel nodded but there was no reassurance in her eyes.

The question was…if Hiccup would already be dead when Toothless reached him. The thought had him struggling for breath.

No. He couldn't lose hope. There was always hope, right?

"What about the others?" he asked. He couldn't see Flynn, Mavis or Merida anywhere and the dread was brewing inside him. Hiccup was gone. What about his best friends?

"Mavis and Merida…" Fishlegs said with sad eyes. He looked like he didn't want to speak the words.

"What about them?"

"We're not sure they're going to make it." Rapunzel told him and squeezed his shoulder.

"What!? Why?! What happened? What-"

"Mavis got her arm cut off, Jack…she lost a lot of blood…and Merida...she jumped in front of Flynn to save him…and got an axe in her stomach."

"We'll bring them back to Hogwarts, so Madam Whitley can take care of them!" he said.

"We can't do that." Rapunzel said, her eyes shining with unshed tears. "The portkey is lost and even if it wasn't, they're too fragile to be moved."

"Fuck!" he said and glared at the ground like it was to blame for his sorrow and fear. "Where are they?"

"Inside the Great Hall. Stoick has ordered that all wounded will be treated in there." Fishlegs told him.

"What can we do to help them?" he asked.

"Nothing." Rapunzel said. "We've already bandaged them and used all the potions we could find. Berk's healers are working on them now. There's nothing we can do but wait."

Jack dug his nails into his hair. "We need to go after Hiccup. Now."

"We will." Fishlegs said. "Stoick is gathering the warriors and dragons who are still able to fight, right now."

"We will find him." Rapunzel told him softly.

Jack nodded, unable to speak from the sudden lump in his throat.

Hiccup was in the hands of their enemies; people who wouldn't hesitate to torture and murder anyone who got in their way. What were they doing to him right now? Was he in pain?

He swallowed and balled his hands into tight fists.

Hiccup had given himself up to keep Rapunzel safe. Now, it was his turn to keep Hiccup safe.

He would find him and he would bring him home. He would stop at nothing to protect the love of his life; even Ivar the Bonesmasher himself couldn't stand in his way.

Hiccup was in danger.

And as long as Jack was alive, he would fight for him.

Author's note:

So...this chapter was quite difficult to write and I'm tired now. Reviews/messages would be a lovely late Christmas present for me :)

*Hiemsfuror: The spell that Jack casts. It's meant to be like the attack he launches on Pitch in ROTG just on the ground, of course. The name is Latin for "Winter rage" or "Winter fury". I thought that was a quite appropriate name.

The name of the chapter is, alas, not my own invention. It's from a Trivium song called Villainy Thrives.