Chapter Ninety-Nine: Battle ready
"That is your plan? Don't you think it lacks a bit of tact?" Kate asked as they marched through the heather.
"The time for tact is over. The time of actions is at hand." Hiccup just replied before crouching down and examining the forest floor. "He's made things personal."
"Wow, I hadn't noticed that." Kate said dryly.
"I want all of us battle-ready. That's why we're doing this now."
Behind him Conner nervously eyed their surroundings.
"I still don't understand why we have to do this now. Don't we have more pressing matters at hand?" he asked.
Kate and Hiccup ignored him.
"Wow…a great answer…for a book! Hiccup, you can't just march into Berk and declare that the world is at war with an ancient force and that their only hope for survival lies within reuniting the Seven Nations and that Berk is the only place our victory can happen." Kate barked and pushed a branch out of her way as she followed the ex-Viking.
Sadly she had forgotten Conner who was walking behind her and the branch snapped back and right into the archers face.
Conner yowled and held his cheek.
"Quiet, you'll disturb the dragons." Hiccup whispered.
Kate sighed. "You do know that this is precisely what Darkness wants you to do, right? Having you near the portal so he can use your blood to open it and take form in this world?"
"Funnily enough I know that, thank you." He replied irritated.
"Then why take the risk?" Kate asked.
"Because you know that that portal is at the same time the only way of banishing Darkness forever. He has already taken foot in the world, so to speak. If we manage to ban all of him once again from here, we can seal the doors shut for good. The magic over then has grown weak over the eons and only by reactivating and strengthening them we can win."
"And you're father will just accept your return and help us?" Kate asked sarcastically. "His dead-thought son that ran away."
Hiccup stopped and turned around to shot her a dirty look. "We can deal with that problem when we cross that bridge. Let's focus on our task at hand."
"You know, spontaneity is what got us in most messes."
"So you say about my plans as well. Yet we are not dead."
"Yeah but not for the lack of trying on the bad guys side."
"Ahm…guys?" Conner interrupted. "Hate to interrupt your argument but…"
"We weren't arguing." Hiccup said, just as Kate said: "What is it Conner?"
Conner wasn't looking at them, he was looking past them.
"Remember that comment about disturbing the dragons? I think your arguing just disturbed that one." Conner said meekly.
They all turned.
From under the shadow of half a dozen fallen trees, forming a small cave, crawled a hissing dragon.
It was enormous. Although its body was lithe and agile it's wings were of unimaginable size and looked far too big for its body.
But what really stood out about them were the crescent shaped, razor sharp ends along the wings!
Like a Monstrous Nightmare it crawled using the claws on its wings as front legs. It was red with orange stripes on its legs and a black streak running from its forehead to the tip of its tail.
Its snout was elongated. Its eyes sat at the sides of its head and, as Hiccup knew, gave it a perfect 180 degree view.
It snarled and made another step forward.
"Well, you wanted dragons, here you have one." Kate said nervously.
Hiccup swallowed. "Not quiet what I had in mind to be honest. This one is pretty enraged, I think we stepped into his territory. Back away slowly, don't make eye-contact and don't move too quickly." He instructed them silently.
Kate immediately followed suit but Conner was standing there, still gapping at the dragon.
"Conner" Hiccup hissed "Move it."
"What is he?" Conner asked fascinated.
"A Razor-Wing if I'm not mistaken. Those razors on his wings can cut through full grown trees. So imagine what they can do to you, if you don't back off right now!" Hiccup hissed urgently.
"He's gorgeous." Conner said dreamily.
Hiccup didn't have the chance to reply because just then Kate stepped on a dry branch and it made a really loud cracking noise.
Everyone froze.
The dragon's pupils narrowed to slits and it charged towards them.
Hiccup wiped out his bow and arrow he had was ready to let an arrow fly. He wasn't as good as Conner but he knew he could land a hit to slow the Dragon down. He wasn't one to engage a beats like this in one-on-one-combat. But then all of a sudden Conner stepped in front of him, blocking his aim and placing himself between them and the advancing dragon.
"STOP!" Conner said forcefully, holding out one hand in front of him and looking the dragon dead in the eyes.
Hiccup didn't know who was more surprised and shocked. Him or the dragon.
The dragons, taken totally by surprised, stopped mid-charge, a startled expression on its face, as it slithered a few meters more, trying to regain its balance and stop properly.
It sat there for a moment, on its rear, looking perplex and surprised that a puny little human like Conner just commanded him to stop.
And that it had worked.
Conner used eth stunned silence to step closer to the dragon, showing that he was unarmed and meant no harm.
"I'm sorry for my friends. They tend to get carried away when arguing. I'm also sorry for passing into you territory. But we are looking for a companion for me. We are Dragon-Riders and off to fight Darkness" at the mention of that evil the dragon snarled "And we need all the help we can get."
The dragon eyed them all warily before sniffing the air.
It got back on all fours and approached Conner. But it wasn't with malicious intentions.
It seemed curious now.
It circled him three times before stopping in front of him.
It made deep rattling noises in its chest and its gaze held Conners firmly.
Hesitantly Conner held out his palm once again.
"Will…you help me?" he asked.
He got a purr and a warm snout in his palm as an answer.
He couldn't suppress an excited laugh as he patted and scratched the dragon's long head.
He turned around and looked at Hiccup and Kate with shining eyes.
"This is amazing! It feels as if I found a long lost friend." He said.
Slowly the other two approached but held a respectful distance.
"What will you call her?" Hiccup asked.
"Her?" Conner asked.
"She has curled horns. A sign that she's female." Hiccup explained. "I didn't see it at first because I was rather occupied but now…" he trailed off.
Conner seemed to think about his words.
"Hm…what about Sharp-Claw?"
Hiccup raised an eyebrow. "Kinda…obvious…"
Kate rolled with her eyes. "You named your dragon Toothless. And the other one Cone because you met playing with Pine-Cones. Not much better."
"But Toothless still has teeth." Hiccup argued.
"Ignore him Conner Sharp-Claw is nice. I think she likes it too." Kate told Conner.
Sharp-Claw was purling louder and nudging her new rider.
"Alright, I think it's time for your first flight:" Hiccup said and gleefully rubbed his hands.
Conner paled.
Before he could protest Kate and hiccup had hoisted him onto the back of the Razor-Wing. In front of him grew a row of long curved spiked, perfect for holding on and where he sat the back sloped down so he couldn't directly slid off the back.
"Take him up Sharp-Claw. Form a bond with each other." Hiccup said steadily.
"And Conner…try not to scream like a little girl." Kate said with a wink.
Then she smacked Sharp-Claws flanks and the dragoness bounded forward before flapping her wings and shooting straight up through the trees, cutting several on her way up.
Kate and Hiccup had to jump under a boulder for shelter as it rained tree-tops.
They peaked upwards at the smaller growing figure of Conner and Sharp-Claw.
Conners horrified shrieks turned to whoops of joy.
Hiccup, still looking up and smiling held up his fist and Kate, also still looking into the sky where Sharp-Claw stared to dive and somersault and turn, and she bumped her fist against his.
"We're good." Hiccup said with a satisfied grin.
"You hadn't panned this, right?" she asked.
"Not a bit." He agreed.
"Then we probably shouldn't tell Conner."
"It would be better." He agreed.
As they walked back to where they were anchored, Kate asked: "So it's decided then? We'll head for Berk immediately and without delay anymore? To battle?"
Hiccup didn't say anything for a few steps; he just jumped over a fallen tree-trunk and pushed through the heather.
"Yes." He finally said.
They emerged onto the beach they had used for eth night as a resting place.
He stopped and she watched together with him. The dragons had returned from their hunt and were tearing into the carcass of several deer's and boars, whereas Conner, who had also arrived, gushed about his new companion with Illiona and Hope while Will stirred the flames to live.
"After all, we're battle ready."
He marched off and Kate remained.
She looked behind him.
"No…we're not. You just wish we were. Because we're out of time."