This is Berk. It's twelve days north of Hopeless, and a few degrees south of Freezing to Death. It's located solidly on the Meridian of Misery. Perched on the side of a mountain, lies a village of formidable Vikings. They have fishing, hunting and a charming view of the sunsets. The only problems are the pests. You see, most places have mice or mosquitoes. They have... Dragons.
Having settled here for seven generations and after weathering a multitude of dragon raids, the villagers have demonstrated their fortitude against hardships. During the feud between the Vikings and dragons, despite being on Berk for over seven generations, every single building is new because of the continuous war.
Along that, through the never-ending war between the two sides, hundreds of Vikings had fallen in battle throughout the generations, leaving the population small. And with the raids taking away more of their provisions and resources, the village suffers greatly.
As such, it was made clear that they'll all be killed off and their village will be left in ruin.
The Chief of Berk, Toshinori the Vast of the Yagi Tribe and chosen Heir by the late Chieftess, Nana of the Shimura Tribe before dying in battle, had resumed the continuous war between Vikings and dragons for over thirty Winters. From when he'd completed his dragon training and was given the honor on killing his first dragon in front of the village and his successor to this very day, he had fought and killing hundreds, even thousands, of dragons, alongside many of his Shield-Brothers and Shield-Sisters who many had fallen in battle and had rejoined Nana in Valhalla, or could no longer wield a weapon and are reduced to either blacksmithing weapons, foragers, aiding the injured, or training new recruits who are of age to start dragon training.
Here on Berk, killing a dragon is everything to the village. As such, all who prove their worths in fighting and killing dragons, are considered heroes in the village. And one day, Thor shall grant them strength to kill off their enemies and put an end to this never-ending war of bloodshed.
...
...What they never expected to being the answer to ending the feud, would come from two unlikely unfortunate souls, who were cast aside by them for not being like the rest of them.
...
...
...For being born, as Hiccups.
"Katsuki, above you!"
"Yeah, yeah! I see it, Spiky-Hair!"
A violet-colored Deadly Nadder charged down from above, extending their talons to grab both of them... Only to end up having one of the wings sliced off from the whitish-blonde boy's axe and when it struggled to get back to its feet, the red-hair teen finished it off by hitting it in the head with a mace and crushing its skull from the force.
Blood sprayed the two, which the two Shield-Brothers didn't minded in the least and, in fact, relish to be painted in the blood of their enemy they killed.
"Hey, you two!"
Running towards them from behind, Ashido ran in. A spear in her hand, covered in blood and panting from running and fighting.
"Come quick! They found the hidden barn we hid the female sheep and younglings in!" She informed, pointing her spear in the direction she came from.
Both of the boys cursed at the news and quickly took off into sprints, leaving Ashido behind to catch her breath before rejoining them.
When they got there, they see a dark-brown Monsterous Nightmare setting itself on fire, fighting against Satō and Tokoyami, while a few Deadly Nadder try to grab the frightened sheeps from Hagakure, Jirō and Kōda.
"Hey, you burning Bastard!" Bakugō yelled, throwing his axe for its head to stun it, resulting its fire to stop and giving Tokoyami a chance to toss his bullhook to pin one of its horns to the ground keep it still long enough for Satō to cut its head off.
As soon as they saw the Monstrous Nightmare die, the three Nadders decided to save their lives than take the risk on Bakugō and his group and left, leaving the sheep with the human.
The herbivores bleated in fear, trembling from nearly being grabbed and a few attempted to run for the woods, but all seemed unharmed and the group grabbed the runaways before they could escape.
"Thanks for the help, Bakugō." Satō gasped out, a bit out of breath from fighting for hours throughout the night.
The older-boy scoffed at his gratitude, as he went to collect his axe.
"Next time, you won't be lucky and I won't be around to save your sorry asses." He growled, sounding very much a warning and reminder that they're now fighting in a war that they can die.
Still, that didn't prevent the others to glare at his criticism.
Coming up from behind them, Ashido joined in and heard what the oldest of the group just said.
"While we're grateful that you and Eijiro came to our aid, you don't have to be so rude, Katsuki." Ashido argued, picking up a sheep that tried to run off. "You know how dangerous a Monsterous Nightmare is to take down. You would have difficulty taking one down on your own, while trying to protect the sheep."
The older-teen simply glared at the sandy-blonde, tan-skinned viking, but didn't argue with her when she made a valid point.
"Be that as it may, we need to remember all of our dragon training and use them, efficiently. For most taught us to fight, independently, and rarely involve teamwork." Fumikage countered, retrieving his bullhook and wiping the blood off his face and raven-hair. "However, while it has proven to aid us to win on our part, I feel like those Nadders retreated on purpose."
The others turned to the pale teen.
"What do you mean, Tokoyami?" Hagakure asked, holding on to a little sheep and trying to get it from trying to eat her light-blonde, curly hair. "They may be mindless beats, but even they know when to run away when seeing another dragon being killed right before their eyes. We succeeded in saving the sheep!"
The raven-haired teen looked up at the sky, seeing mixture of smoke and stars.
"Perhaps, but even a flock of birds can organize a well thought out plan, when in search for food or when one of their own is targeted by prey." He replied, brushing his large-bang away from his right-eye when the wind blew.
Then, hearing a cry from a raven, he raised his left-arm into the air, where a raven lands and perches gracefully.
"What brings you here, Dark Shadow?" He asked the bird, stroking its beak and looking all around its body.
Attached to the bird's leg, a note.
Taking the note, he read the letter... And snarled a curse to Loki.
He turned to the others, a bit startled by his curse.
"The Night Fury! It's been spotted!" He hissed, crumpling the note in his fist.
As soon as they heard the name of the dragon, all of the teens forced the sheep back to their hiding place and making sure the door is secured, all took off back to the village.
When they arrived, they found that the large-torches were lit and raised in the air, revealing the flying dragons. Some of the beasts were bound to the ground, either by net or bola that coiled themself around their wings.
A couple were found dead. Killed by the Vikings of Berk... Sadly, a few vikings were found dead. Some of them didn't even have their weapons, but at least they had their shields or even their helmet, a great importance for all warriors to have beside them before they die to ascend to Valhalla.
At one of the watchtowers, they noticed their chief, an axe in hand, fighting off against a lightish-gold Monstrous Nightmare, to prevent it from setting one of their catapults on fire. From the other, they see Hizashi, one of their teachers in Dragon Training, with a few other vikings, shooting down a group of Gronckle that tried to take off with their fishes.
"Hey, you eight!"
Immediately, the eight teens turned and saw their other Dragon Training teacher, Shōta Aizawa, covered in dragon's blood and holding rope-chain around each arm and kunai-like knives connected to his belt, coming their way.
"You got my message. Good. Head for the forge and get ready to assist in fire containment. Higari Maijima and Mei Hatsume have their water transportation devices ready to haul around the village." He instructed. Then, he turned to Kyōka and Kōji. "Jirō, Kōda, we need help at the healing hut. Assist the injured. -Then, to Katsuki.- Bakugō, head for the hidden slingshot Nei invented at the cliff and when you see a chance, shoot down the Night Fury."
They all know not to argue with their teacher, especially if it's to assist their chief and their village.
Besides, Katsuki had been practicing for this very moment to happen. With him being the most skilled Viking in Dragon Slaying and all warriors are needed to fight the dragons, the honor has been giving to him to shoot down the Unholy Offspring of Lightning and Death, itself.
Then, Toshinori will finally avenge his late wife, Inko... And their late son, Izuku.
...
...Plus, her dearest friend: Cindy of the Arashi Tribe, and her unborn child. Both of whom died, the very day his wife and child's clothing were found where the Night Fury left some of its black-scales and found blood on their clothing.
Katsuki faintly remembers the boy his mother tells him to being his little cousin, but only remembered that he was born as a Hiccup and had always teased him whenever he would try to play with him and the other kids.
And while he never regretted treating him like an outsider, he does mourn for his aunt's death and swore to Thor that he would avenge her death... And, yes, Izuku as well.
He, also, remembers glimpses of Cindy, but always thought she was too quiet and weak, even with a round belly. But, she always taught him how to make yummy food and had a kind smile like Inko.
So, he, also, vowed to avenge get death, too. And, her unborn child that would've been his cousin, too.
And so, as his teacher instructed him to do, Katsuki head for the hidden sling to get ready, where said catapult and its supply of bola are waiting for him to shoot down his objective.
As he left, the others left to do their tasks, as well.
Shōta watches his students head for destination, letting out a deep sigh. He was leaving a hefty load on the younger generation, but knew they don't have much of a choice.
And, as Toshinori had told them, all who can wield a weapon, are needed to protect their home.
'Odin, help us.' He prayed, hoping the God of War and Death will hear his plea and let them succeed on bringing down the most dangerous dragon. And, then, find the Nest and destroy it.
At the hidden slingshot, Katsuki loaded up the bola and pulled back the sling, holding it in place to wait on his mark to shoot.
"Come on. Where are you, you nighttime bastard?" He grumbled, searching throughout the darkness to detect any movement in the sky that isn't any of the common dragons attacking Berk.
So far, all he can see are stars, smokes and a few clouds.
But, none gained his attention to alert him for the Night Fury.
...
...
...Until, a few minutes later.
Screeeeeeeee...!
"Night Fury!"
"Get down!"
His body tensed and his eyes zone out in the air when the screeching grew louder.
...Then, he saw a faint light-purple glow in the sky... Followed by a silhouette of a dragon, as the purple shot straight for one of the catapults on Berk and blasted it to pieces.
Fortunately, the Vikings on the catapult jumped off before the blast and landed safely on the ground.
...
...Bakugō watches the figure swoop around the blaze. giving him the perfect angle to let loose the bola.
"Gotcha!" He hissed, and then released the bola.
The force from the recoil impact did make him jump back a bit, but he was quick to pick himself back up to his feet and see if Thor, Odin and the other Gods offered him aid to hit his target.
...
...
Screeeeeeeeee!
He heard the cry of the dragon in the sky, as it echoes closer to their island.
And knowing for certain that he hit the Night Fury, thanks to the rising of the sun but still dark for a few stars to be out, sees a faint dark-brown color item come diving down with a dark figure. Heading for Ravens Point.
At first, the teen thought Loki was playing tricks with his eyes, but the stinging of scrapes on his elbows assured him that he wasn't dreaming or seeing things.
And when his mind reminded him that the dragon he just shot down was the Unholy Offspring of Lightning and Death, itself... He raised both fists in the air and let out the biggest yell he ever made.
"I HIT IT!" He bellowed. "BY THOR'S HAMMER, I HIT YA!"
He cheered and yip in victory, proud that he was able to shoot down the most dangerous dragon in viking history and within the Book of Dragons.
...
...Then, without warning, a blast of purple came out of nowhere and blasted the sling to pieces, pushing the teen backwards and back down to the ground.
His smile was wiped away from his face and his eyes grew wide in horror.
'The fuck?!'
His vision scanned for whatever it was that destroyed the slingshot. Not wanting to believe that he, actually, missed and it was the Night Fury.
...Only to watch the same blast of purple come down out of nowhere and destroy the other catapult. Again, the Vikings got out of the way, but now, with both of their main catapults out of commission, the Vikings can't shoot down any dragons in the air and can only attack the ones already on the ground, and are a severe disadvantage, since the dragons can blast them with fire from a distance, even if they have shields with them.
In his frustration, Katsuki let out a big roar.
"DAMN IT!"
He knew it would be pointless, but still, he pushed himself to sprint back to the village to try and aid his village to fend off their home and food.
Just as he leap to the bottom and proceed to sprint, something caught his attention.
As the sun rose higher, four figures in the sky shot straight for Raven Point.
...The same, exact path the Night Fury fell towards.
And, before they vanished, he could've sworn that one of the figures, the biggest of the group, had a weird lump-like shape on its body... And, he was positive, that it moved!
Katsuki looked over to where the four figures vanished, in case they, somehow, reappeared, for a few seconds, before reminding himself that he must get to his chief and Shield-Brothers and Shield-Sisters. Hoping to help out on killing the stagglers before they try to escape.
...And, regardless that his actions had made a difference to the raid or not, learn that another raid had resulted some loss.
At the Great Hall...
As soon as the last dragon had been killed and all warriors, who aren't seriously injured, had been told to gather, Chief Toshinori stood at the top of the steps and before his throne.
He wore an iron helmet, with four horns embedded, all belonging to two Rumblehorn he took down with his predecessor, Nana, when on a trial-run to prove he can fight deadly dragons, head on... His helmet, was made with the half of his wife's breastplate.
...The other, made for their son, remains at home.
Draped over his shoulders, a pelt of a bear, covering the back of his large, muscular body. Underneath, a dark-blue tunic, with some red in the mixture (Some of it being blood from the dragons he killed.), covers and shows the colors of his family crest. A leather belt can be seen coiled around his waist, keeping his Skjoldehamn Trousers in place. Red-dyed yak covered boots covered his feet.
In his right-hand, he held a large axe. In his left, a white-shield with red and blue markings. Strapped behind his back and poking out from his pelt, a sword... Given to him, by Nana Shimura, herself, when passing the title of Chief to him.
Like many, he is stained within the blood of their enemies, killing dragons and defending his people. Of course, he gained a scratch to the arm by a Monstrous Nightmare, but it wasn't too serious and, when he jumped off the catapult when it was blasted by the Night Fury, he quickly clotted the cut with a nearby fire before he finished off the dragon that nearly chomped his hand off.
His right-hand man and one of his Shield-Brothers, Sir Nighteye, stood to his right. He, too, is covered in blood of the dragons. Though, because of his smaller figure and specialties on gathering herbs, he was in charge on guarding and defending the healing quarters and the injured.
His hewing-spear, held in his right-hand, glistened in blood. The weight in his grip becoming a support, reminding him that he's alive and survived another raid. And when he dies, with his polearm in hand, his grip will die with him... And, it'll be a relief to finally let go.
Nighteye looked over at the Vikings before him and his chief, before he slammed the end of his hewing-spear against the stone floor beneath them, making a big thumping sound that echoed throughout the room.
One loud thump, and the room went silent.
"Berkians!" He began, yelling as loud as he could for all to hear. "Your leader, Chief Toshinori, has news for us to hear!"
Taking it as his signal to take over, Toshinori took a few steps forward, as Nighteye takes a few steps back.
"Thank you, Nighteye." He thanked, nodding towards the smaller viking, before turning to his villagers... His people, he swore to protect.
...And what he and the councils has discussed for many moons, will be the toughest decision they have to make.
But, right now, more important matter must be brought up.
"My people," he start. "Before we begin, let us raise our weapons and give praise to Odin and Thor, for another victorious battle against the dragons!"
To his words to celebrate another raid, almost every viking within the Mess Hall raised their weapon as high as they could in the air and raised their voices as loud as they could. Their voices echoed off the walls, that it almost sound as if they could shatter the very mountain their Mess Hall had been built in.
Their cheers lasted almost a minute, before all went quiet and Toshinori continues his speech.
"Now, my people, as we must remember the joy and gratitude of life and while there may be fewer dragons alive, not all of our warriors are with us to give praise to our gods, for they have been taken away from us by our enemies. And so, as we must do, we shall send them off to Valhalla and ask them to lend us their strength, for the next raid we shall surely face, once more, and avenge their deaths."
Driven by the deaths of their fellow Vikings, most to almost all being Shield-Brothers and Shield-Sisters, many voiced out how their clansmen's death effected them.
"Hear! Hear!"
"Damn those monsters!"
"May they one day cease to exist, within the great destruction of Ragnarök!"
Again, to get them to be quiet, even when he's in an agreement to their response, Nighteye slammed his hewing-spear against the ground multiple times until all went silent, once again.
Given the chance to continue his announcement, Toshinori resumed.
"Yes. To all of those. We shall one day be rid of these vile creatures, and make our ancestors and loved ones proud." He swore, raising his axe in the air. "And our stories shall be written in stones, songs of our noble deed shall rise in the wind and give younger generations the strength and bravery to face future conflicts, head on."
Clasps echoed within the Mess Hall, touched by their chief's comforting words and great vision of such a future.
When the clapping ceased on its own, Toshinori chose that moment to move on to the next announcement.
"With that said, In happy to inform you that such a future will come to pass, for today, one of our newest and most experienced viking have done the impossible. That while we'd trained to one day accomplish, but never believe to actually take place, has finally occurred."
Katsuki, standing off to the side with his fellow vikings and Shield-Brothers and Shield-Sisters, took his cue from Nighteye beckoning him to come up, slowly walked up the steps to stand beside Toshinori.
"Here before you, Katsuki Bakugō, has shot down the very dragon, the Unholy Offspring of Lightning and Death, itself. The Night Fury!"
To such a claim, all Vikings raised their weapons in the air, once more, and all cried out, louder than before.
"Well done, Lad!"
"Praise Thor, for giving you strength!"
"YOU'VE SAVED US FROM THAT MONSTER!"
Down at the bottom steps, he sees his few friends and the other teen Vikings, most smiling and beaming at him.
He sees his two parents, Masaru and Mitsuki, wailing and jumping from where they stood, obviously proud and ecstatic that their son was the one to take down the Night Fury.
"NICE JOB, YOU BRAT! WE KNEW YOU HAD IT IN YA!"
"We're do proud of you, Son! Inko and Cindy would be so proud of you, too!"
The mentioning of his two aunts did made his heart quivered, both of pride that they would be proud of him... And, guilt... For he knew that he didn't saved them, when he saw the silhouettes of dragons that appear to be Night Furies, themselves.
...Along with that weird object riding one of them, that doesn't seem to be part of the dragon's body.
Hopefully, they were different, weaker dragons and that fighting all night against the dragons was messing with his head. And, regardless, if they were weak dragons or, the slightest chance that they are Night Furies, they will all die by the end of his axe.
Looking on ahead, he let out a deep sigh, as his chief patted him on the back.
"You've made us all proud, Katsuki." He praised, rubbing the to of his head and grinning big from ear-to-ear. "As such, as soon as its body is found, you shall be given the honor to do whatever you see fit to do with the body. And all shall know you as 'Katsuki, the Night Killer'!"
To such a title, many Vikings chanted out his given name.
"Night Killer! Night Killer! Night Killer! Night Killer!"
Bakugō grinned at the chanting, as he raised his weapon in the air.
"Damn right, I'm the Night Killer!" He replied, his ego getting bigger. "And when I find it, I'll mount its skull on a spear, skin the scales and bones to become my new set of armor, and cut its heart out for the chief to have, as payment for the death of the late Chieftess, Nana Shimura, his wife, Inko, and their son, Izuku!"
All those before him went wild, no doubt wanting to witness such an event and in agreement to what he plans to do with the Night Fury.
Toshinori patted him on the shoulder, nodding once to show his thanks to such a gift that'll restore his strength and honor to Nana Shimura... And, as revenge to the death of his wife and son.
Taking it as his sign to leave, Bakugō placed his weapon back to his back and walked off to rejoin his friends.
But, instead of stopping, he walked passed them.
"Let's go, you wannabes!" He growled, heading for the giant doors.
Kirishima, Ashido and the others were confused to his orders.
"Where are we going, Bro?" Kirishima asked, catching up to the older-teen.
...The whitish-blonde teen grinned darkly at his Shield-Brother.
"We got a Night Fury to find."
Watching his students leave, from the back of the Mess Hall and leaning against the wall, Aizawa let out a tiring sigh.
...And within the sigh, relief could almost be detected.
'At last, your deaths will finally be avenged, Cici... Sierra.' He thought
"Looks like some of our Little Listeners are going off to find that beast, Shō." To his left, Hizashi poked out, grinning big at his Shield-Brother.
To his comment, Shōta let out a big yawn, indicating his drowsiness.
"Looks like it." He grumbled underneath his breath, rubbing the back of his neck from how sore and exhausted he is for fighting another raid multiple days on end.
"Well, I'm off to bed." He told his friend, waving him off. "Tell me how the rest of the meeting goes, later."
The blonde-male wasn't surprised that his friend is leaving before their chief finishes his speech, though was a bit taken back that he didn't seem concerned for their students' well-being on going after the Night Fury, on their own.
"Shouldn't we go with them? You know, in case the beast tries to fry them and give them a glimmer of a chance to escape?"
Shōta turned his head to his Shield-Brother.
His blank stare, alone, is all the answer he was going to get. Then, he continued on for home and sleep.
Hizashi let out an irritated groan, running his hand through his hair.
"Beard of Thor, Shō, you have just as much right as the chief to seek justice for Cici and your little one." He muttered, as he turned his attention back to the chief and the meeting, knowing it'll be the damage report the dragons caused and some to go check on their livestocks and hunts they tried to defend and/or hid.
Though, none would know how severe the damage was, when some of their livestocks had been found. And by the time they learn of this discovery, a secret decision amongst the Councils and Chief Toshinori may come to l take place... Knowing many to nearly all will be against the decision.
Meanwhile, at Raven's Point...
Staring down at the drawing of a map Momo drew from copying the village's map of Raven's Point, Katsuki added in another cross mark on the map when finding no traces of the Night Fury.
He growled lowly, before, in his frustration, scribbled more charcoal marking all over the area of the map.
"Damn it! Where is it?!" He snarled, crumpling the makeshift map into a ball and tossing it to the ground.
A few feet from the seething teen, Kirishima and the Ashido looked over their shoulders after looking behind a large boulder to see if the Night Fury chose to hide after landing roughly and was able to escape the bola. Both had concern looks on their faces at the angry look on his face.
They knew, along with Kaminari and Sero, how important this was for him to find the monster and kill it.
Even if the other teen Vikings heard from Katsuki's speech on how he would finally avenge the chief's wife and son, they didn't know that he wanted to avenge the two aunts he loved as much as his own mother, even if he'll never admit it out loud. And, his two little cousins, whom he picked on one and never gotten the chance to meet the other.
And, yes, they knew that he teased the son of the chief... Even, once or twice, bullied the boy to prove how weak he was and that a Hiccup can never be a great Viking. Let alone, a Chief.
But, they knew he changed. Not his belief that Hiccups will never be true Vikings, like so many of them believe, but saw that his actions aren't acceptable to many of the Gods they worship or what a warrior is supposed to do to their own villager that have done no kind of evil.
As such, finding the Unholy Offspring will not only avenge his fallen family members, but also absolve him of his past sins and actions, towards an innocent.
Kaminari, joined by the shortest male of their class, Mineta, ran up the hill. Both looked awestruck.
"Yo, Bakugō!" Kaminari called out, panting a bit. "We found a trail!"
Katsuki, Mina, Eijirō and Sero, who came running up from behind to report not finding any sign of the dragon on his end near the cliff, turned to the two males.
The whitish-blonde teen immediately stomped towards Denki and Minoru, pulling his ax from behind his back with his right-hand.
"Did you see the dragon?!" He growled, grabbing for the younger-blonde's black tunic with his left.
Kaminari raised both hands up, looking a bit nervous.
"Settle down, Bro." He replied, wanting the older-teen to calm down. "We didn't see it, but it definitely looks like something came crashing down from the sky, recently."
"Yeah, and the fact that the book explicitly said to 'Never to engage the Night Fury', wounded or not, we're not taking any chances with the Unholy Offspring!" Mineta added in, looking as if he was going to piss his trousers from the mentioning of the Night Fury.
Katsuki's red-eyes glared down at the shorter-male, but didn't say anything but grunted in irritation and released Denki from his grasp.
"Show me," he growled. "And after that, you can go squabble back to the village. I got a Night Fury to kill."
As expected, Mineta hid behind Ashido... Resulting him to be kicked towards a tree, when he grabbed for her backside.
Nobody bothered to check up on the unconscious perverted teen of Berk, knowing he'll be fine by himself and will head back to the village the moment he wakes up, and followed Kaminari to where said trail was.
When they got there, they were surprised by some of the damage trees and disheveled dirt before them. It looks as though a boulder from a catapult could cause this, instead of a dragon that's been shot right out of the sky. And because of the thick fog before them, it was hard to tell how far the trail was.
And with Katsuki's guidance, the five teens slowly and silently entered the fog and proceed to follow the dirt trail. All going by stealth, thanks to Aizawa's training.
"Haaaauuuwww!"
As soon as they heard that sound, they immediately stopped and Bakugō signaled them to lay down.
"You hear that?" Kirishima whispered, eyes wide and adrenaline kicking in.
"That's got to be the beast." Sero replied, swallowing a lump that's lodged in his throat.
"Haa! Uaah! Hawuu!"
Katsuki's eyes narrowed, as they slowly crawled on the ground, using the rocks and trees as coverage, as they continue to follow the sound of the dragon.
Though, he noticed that, compared to the cries he heard during the raid, these cry were the same as the Night Fury's... But, they were almost similar to wailing dogs and the volume of its voice was higher.
Like, it was a hatchling.
"Bro, up ahead." Kirishima whispered, pointing to where the fog seemed to grew a bit thinner.
...
...
...And, there, tangled up in the ropes of the bola, dangling on a tree-branch and hanging over the ground, a black-body of a dragon hangs in the air.
The dragon appeared to be twenty-six feet in length and, from the way one of its bat-like wings is wrapped in one of the ropes and hangs in the air, a forty-five foot wingspan on average.
It seems to resemble a large black-cat, but a little over three times the size and length of a horse. And where it lacks horns, four ear-like appendages are seem protruded out of its head. Two pairs of tail-fins, one at the base of the tail and the other at the tip, are slightly folded and curled up from the lack of room of the net it gave them.
...
...
... There was no doubt about it. This dragon is the Unholy Offspring of Lightning and Death, itself. The Night Fury.
...
...
...But, that wasn't all there was before them that caught their attention.
Underneath the dangling dragon, a small-figure stood.
...A human girl, to be precise.
"Who's that?" Sero whispered, pulling out his bola from his belt. "I don't recognize her from our Dragon Training Class."
"I don't think I've seen her in the village, at all." Ashido replied, watching the girl run for the trunk of the tree, before running back down beneath the dragon. "Is she even a Berkian?"
Katsuki glared at the clothing the girl wore. At least, whatever he could see from underneath her black-hooded cape... That looks exactly like the Night Fury's scales.
Though, to his dismay and irritation, her tunic and pants are, also, black. Her hands are covered with black-gloves, but they don't look like the usual wrapped-up gloves or the finger-less gloves that some of the Vikings wore... They look like bird talons or paws of a feline or canine, because of what looks to be claws on each of the fingers of the gloves.
She shown to wear the dark-brown boots, but in the of the legs, black-wrappings covered the middle of both boots... And, on the back of the legs through the bindings, small rows of claw-like spikes, probably from Terrible Terrors, ran down.
Clearly, she's not from Berk... And, from how scrawny and small she is... She's a hiccup.
"Wherever she's from, she's a fool, for getting near the Night Fury. Doesn't she know never to engage this dragon? She doesn't even have a weapon, even a shield to protect herself." Denki stated, thinking the girl was going to get herself killed, regardless if the dragon is trapped or barely conscious.
They then watch, as the girl went back to the tree... Then, like a cat, crouched on all-four before launching herself to the tree and proceed to climb. Heading for the rope snagged in the branch.
She opened her mouth and, to their shock, made the very sounds they heard, earlier.
"Haa! Hurrah! Haau...!" She barked, as she slightly pushed her hands against the branch to jostle the dragon.
"Wait a sec. She's been making those cry?" Kirishima whispered, taken back by her cries sounding like the Night Fury, as he turned to Bakugō. "You don't think she can talk to them? Do you?"
The older-teen growled low.
"I don't really care if she can, or not." He replied, clenching his axe. "If she's associated with those beasts, she's just as much our enemy as those fire-breathing lizards."
And when they watch the Night Fury, seeming to regain consciousness from the shaking and let out a few bark, and the mystery girl letting out more dragon-like sounds and slashing at the rope, that was all Katsuki needed to blow his cover and jump out from hiding.
"Hey, you!" He yelled, startling the girl from her attempt to cut the rope and a bark of a roar from the dragon, gaining their attention.
Instantly, the dragon growled at the teen, which the girl joined in.
Bakugō wasn't scared in the slightest, as he pointed his axe at the girl.
"What in the name of Thor are you doing?!" He yelled, as the others slowly came out of hiding and brought out their weapons. "Back away from the Night Fury; he's my prize to claim and kill! I'm Katsuki, the Night Killer! And I'm gonna cut out its heart, and take it to my chief!"
That earned him a hiss from the girl, before turning back to the rope and cutting more of its strands.
"Hey! Knock it off!" Sero yelled, tossing his bola towards the girl.
...Though, to their shock, the girl allowed herself to fall to her right and hang upside-down on the branch, having her legs crossed tightly, to dodge the bola.
She flashed her teeth at them, imitating the Night Fury's actions, as a glow of bright-purple shined behind its fangs and the high-pitch screech grew.
Immediately, the five teens scattered to avoid the attack.
A hole formed in the ground, leaving nothing but dirt and ember.
However, from its blast, some of the rope released its hold on its body and the dragon, barely unfolding its wings to start flapping, landed roughly on the ground and on one of its wings.
A yelp of a whimper left the beast, slowly getting to its feet, before the net of the bola dropped down and, in its panic, got retangle in its grasp.
Seeing the beast had injured itself and trap in the bola, Katsuki charged for the dragon.
"Die, dragon!" He bellowed, raising his axe in the air.
...Then, without warning, something slammed at him to the ground. And through the struggle, it was the girl that came from the tree and interfered his attack on the Night Fury.
She was able to get on top of him, kick his axe out of his hand in the process, and snarled down at the whitish-blonde teenager.
Katsuki sneered back at the girl.
"Get the fuck off me!" He yelled, pushing her to the side to get his weapon back. Only, the girl landed on all-four and launched herself back on the boy.
And, this time, she let out a shockingly scream of a Night Fury's roar.
"Ouaaah!"
...
*Drip*
Something red landed on Bakugō's face... Blood.
And when he found the source of where it came from, he sees a neck-wound on the girl.
This sudden realization told Katsuki that she was with the Night Fury, during the raid. That she was the weird lump on the dragon's back, with her cape being more evidence on how she blended with the dragon.
And when he shot down the dragon, she clearly got caught in the trap with the beast and must've gotten hurt from either the slamming against the trees, or when breaking free from the trap and ended up landing roughly on the ground when the momentum left the Night Fury caught in a tree.
And if the injury to her throat left her unable to talk, then the next best thing is to make dragon-like sounds.
And the way she glares down at him... There was something from the way she stares at him that made him a bit unease... Almost familiar.
Before he could make a comeback to her incoherent yelling, Kirishima came and pulled her off of Katsuki, locking her in a nelson hold.
"Stop it!" Eijiro yelled, having to shift one of his arms to wrap around her neck and drag the both of them to kneel on the ground.
She let out a yelp of a bark, grabbing at the arm around her neck with one hand to try and bite him.
Soon, Denki and Ashido came and each grabbed for her leg to assist Kirishima to keep her pinned to the ground and allow him to keep both arms on place.
The girl hissed and snarled, unable to break free from the three teenagers keeping her pinned down.
Sero came and offered Katsuki his axe, who got to his feet and went towards her.
From behind, the Night Fury bark and roared at the teens, eyes slit and fangs bared.
To their greatest shock, the dragon looked deeply concern for the girl they held in their grasp. As if she was its hatchling. And knew that they have it in its mercy, by threatening its human.
And in response to its cry, the girl let out a few coos and wobble crones to the dragon. As if to comfort the beast.
Katsuki glared down at the girl, who still tried to fight to break free from their hold.
She turned to Kirishima, Ashido and Kaminari.
"Make her sit up," he ordered.
To his command, the three kept a firm grip on the girl and forced her to sit up, kneeled down before the whitish-blonde teenager.
He glared at the dragon... Then, held one of the side of his axe near the girl's neck.
"Listen here, Devil." He growled. "You try to blast us, and she dies. Got it? -Then to prove his point, he grabs for some of her hair to make lift her head up and rested the blade against the left-side of her throat, that wasn't bleeding.- I don't know why you care for her, but make no mistake, she'll die if you even charge up your fire. Behave, and we might let her walk away, unharmed."
The Night Fury snarled at the boy, but didn't show to either charge up its plasma blast. Let alone, move from its spot.
Clearly, it was cooperating with Katsuki.
Seeing the beast is listening to him, the teen turned back to the girl. He removed his hand from her dark-brown hair, which had some scales and feathers entwined in her hair, and pulled his axe away from her neck.
"Girl. Can you understand us?" He growled.
Said girl kept her head down, growling lowly.
Katsuki scoffed, pulling her head back up to look him in the eyes.
"Can. You. Understand. Us? Yes, or no?" He hissed, his patience wearing thin. "Your voice may be messed up, but you can still nod or shake your head. Now, answer my question! Can you understand what we're saying?!"
This time, the girl raised her head and snapped her teeth at him, nearly getting his face if he hadn't pulled away, letting out a bark of a snarl.
Kirishima, Ashido, Kaminari and Sero were surprised by her response; none were ever to defy Bakugō's threat, especially when he threatens to kill them.
The whitish-blonde teen did look a bit surprised, even a little stunned... Then, he flashed her an evil sneer and stomped back to her.
"You got spunk, I'll give you that." He commented, which was a bit of a surprise to the other teens. "But, don't think I'm stupid to not know when somebody's playing dumb. Let alone, you and that beast didn't come to Berk, alone."
To that revealing, the others looked at their Shield-Brother in shock.
"What? Are you saying there are more Night Furies, here?" Mina asked, getting nervous and looking all around her.
The older-teen kept his hard gaze down at the glaring girl.
"The way their bodies silhouetted looked to be Night Furies, but I have a gut feeling that they aren't. Otherwise, there would've been more than one purple-blast of fire whenever it attack and multiple high-screech sounds, since dragons of their own flock and kind always attack, together. That, and like many dragons, they have a limit on how many times they could keep using their fire before they run out of gas and/or spark*. -He, again, raised his weapon to her neck, which she hissed when the steel pressed against the left-side of her neck.- You can mimic their cries. Which means, you can call for them... They listen to you, don't they?"
The girl narrowed her eyes up at the older-teen, but had stopped growling.
Kirishima was a bit nervous by what his friend is getting at.
"What are you trying to say, Bro?" He asked, looking down at their hostage. "Are you suggesting that she's been causing the raids? Cause, there's no way she can lead a nest of dragons and have them listen to her, on her own!"
"Plus, she looks to be around our age. A year or two younger than us, at least. There's no way she's doing this." Denki added in, looking back at the Night Fury and seeing its eyes glaring entirely at Bakugō's axe to the girl's neck. "But then, not much is said about the Night Fury in the Book of Dragons and, so far, it hadn't blasted us to smithereens, yet."
"I'm not saying she's the one behind the raids; the Night Fury shows up around the time our catapults have been repaired." Katsuki clarified, kneeling down to be close to eye-level with their hostage. "But, I do believe she'd been joining the dragons on destroying our watchtowers and catapults, whenever the Night Fury is involved. And, judging by her tunic and cape, she's not completely feral as she's leading us to believe. Which means, she came from a tribe, who live amongst dragons. Control them."
He then turned to his friends and flashed them with his shark-like smile.
"Meaning, she can be of use to us to putting an end to these raids and finding the nest. And, since she's with the Night Fury and it clearly shows to care for her, we can make that beast do whatever we want, so long as we have leverage over it. And, the way I see it: An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth. A life for a life. -He then looked out towards the trees, yelling as loud as he could for his voice to echo within the fog.- AND IF THERE ANY MORE OF YOU OUTSIDERS, NIGHT FURIES OR WHATEVER KIND OF DRAGONS THERE ARE, IF YOU CARE FOR THEIR LIVES, YOU STAY THE FUCK OUT OF BERK AND CALL OFF THE DRAGONS THAT RAID US! OTHERWISE, I'LL ALLOW OUR CHIEF TO KILL THEM BOTH, AS PAYMENT FOR THE DEATH OF OUR FAMILY!"
He then removed his weapon from her neck, smirking at the glaring girl.
"You get what I'm saying, Girl? You want the Night Fury alive, you comply to our demands." He informed, as he motioned for Sero to come to him. "Which means, as of this moment, you're going to be our temporary guest. -He turned to the black-haired teen.- Get the bola."
Just as he was instructed, Sero handed him one of his bolas, leading to him to wrap and tie around the now hissing and growling girl, with the others keeping her in place to let their leader tie her up.
The Night Fury let out barks of snarls and roars, but winced when it jostled its injured wing and could only watch as the humans tied up its youngling.
Katsuki then went towards the Night Fury, snatching up one of Sero's bolas he had around his belt.
"Alright, you overgrown lizard. I'm gonna muzzle your trap, so you don't get any ideas on attacking us from behind." He informed the dragon, who slightly jumped on its hind legs to make itself look bigger but unable to flap its wings due to the rope and injury to its wing. "If you truly care for her, you won't resist and let us shut your mouth. Got it?"
To that, the dragon opened its muzzle, fangs bare, as if ready to fire a blast of fire.
...
...
...Only for it to screech at the top of its lungs at him, who stood still in his spot. Somehow, as if he knew that the dragon wouldn't attack him.
The dragon stomped its paws against the ground... Then, with great reluctance, lowered its snout down, hissing lowly that held great hostility towards the boy.
Seeing it was going to listen, Katsuki wrapped the rope around its snout, along with some of the rope that atill coil itself around the beast.
Then, he raised his axe in the air, prompting the girl to screech scream and try to charge at him only for Mina and Kaminari to hold her in place by holding the ends of the bolas and pulling her back.
Before Kirishima or Sero said anything, they watch their friend bring down his weapon and cut at the rope bound at its feet, allowing it to be able to walk.
As soon as he cut the rope, he grabbed for the ends of the ropes wrapped around its muzzle, using it as a makeshift halter.
"Kirishima, Sero, grab part of the ropes that's collected to its wings and tail." He ordered, keeping his eyes on the dragon so it won't try to attack his Shield-Brothers.
Both hesitated to take a single to the dragon, but not wanting to get on Katsuki's bad side and that they have it under control, for now, they slowly went towards the beast and grabbed for the rope that has its wings and tail ensnared.
With both having a good hold on the dragon, Katsuki turned to the girl.
"It may be listening, but I'm not going to trust it to not attack our chief, Girl. Tell it to not attack anybody in the village, and we'll make certain to keep it safe in the Death Arena."
The girl glared at him. More specifically, at his axe. And when he looked down at his weapon, she grunted a hiss.
As if telling him to put away his weapon, or to move it away from the dragon.
Normally, he wouldn't care what others would say or ask of him to do... But, the way her eyes gave him a bit of an uncomfortable feeling, again, made him want to scream at her to stop making him feel unease.
...As if to pull her out from the rope and pull her to him, so to protect her from everything and everybody.
...
...
...Like he wished he'd done for his cousin.
He bit his tongue... Then, grumbling out a swear, placed his axe to his back. A big surprise to the four teens.
"Just tell him to behave, and I'll keep my weapon put away." He growled, folding his arms over his chest, with his right-hand keeping a firm hold on the ropes. "But, don't expect the village to be cooperative with their weapons as I do. Got it?!"
...The girl, while still glaring at him, cocked her head to the side. Most likely curious if he were serious, or was going to pull a prank on her and go back on his words.
...
...Then, to their shock, she growled out non-verbal words... Like a dragon would make.
"Urrr, aah haw aaa! Ruah ah aawo haar!"
The dragon let out a low growl, ears slightly lifted to show its uncertainty, followed by a croon when its eyes turned to the girl and mouth slightly opened. A sound that didn't sound as aggressive as its growls and/or snarls.
It was the first time any of the teens heard such a sound is made from a dragon, before.
"I think that means it'll listen." Mina guessed, though not certain.
Kirishima, holding the ropes around its wings, curious on what gender the dragon was, looked between its hind-legs.
"It's a he. He will listen." He corrected, earning a tail slam against the ground by the beast for checking his private area.
"Male. Female. Doesn't matter what the beast is." Katsuki stated, then pulled at the ropes to get the dragon to start moving. "Let's get back to the village, and show the Chief what we found."
"Do you think Mineta woke up, already, and is back at the village?" Kaminari asked, as they pulled at the ropes to get the girl to follow.
"Does it really matter?" Ashido replied, not concern in the slightest if their 'friend' had woken up and went back to the village or is still left unconscious where they left him.
Sero shrugged at the response.
"Eh. Not really." He answered, making certain that the fins at the base of the tail are still caught in the rope. They may be small, but they can cause as much damage as the tail can. And even if the wings are freed, they're needed for the dragon to fly just like the tail-fins.
As they followed the dirt-trail to lead them out of the fog, none of them took notice of five pair of eyes glaring at them, taking their loved ones away from them.
Four of them, being dragons... And one, riding on the back of a pure-white dragon, a human-male.
TBC
*:...Yep. I'm going with the likelihood that Mina, if she didn't have a Quirk, would be dark-skinned. Tan, most likely. For her hair, I feel she would have a sort of dark-blonde, sand-like hair-color.
*: While the DreamWorks Dragon Series stated that Toothless has six shot limit, if we remember in the first movie, when fighting the Red Death, he did more than six (He did ten shots, that we saw on screen, against the Red Death; eleven shots, if you want to count the one when he went to save Hiccup from Hook Fang in the Death Arena and total how many shots he made in a day.). Because of this, I'm gonna say a dragon's shot limit is how much of their gas and/or sparks they used up and, judging by their size and/or age, how long it'll take for them to replenish their gas and/or spark.
Also, forgive me for not getting viking saying and/or ways right.
R&R