Chapter 195
Hiccups POV:
It's been five weeks since my wedding to Astrid and four weeks since me and Astrid got back from our honeymoon to Hawaii. We left for the honeymoon the day after the wedding since we first had to get all the guests back to their own lands and thank them for coming along with dealing with Kyknos' ships that he used to get him and his army to the island. I had my own ship devour them and place them in the bottles so while their cargo was placed in my ships hold so it could be sorted later and there was a lot of it. On the night of our wedding me and Astrid consummated our wedding after I thanked my dad for allowing us to do it in private instead of in public like tradition dictated. On our honeymoon we enjoyed spending our time together on the beaches with me teaching Astrid how to surf the culture with the locals throwing us a luau to welcome us. At night though we had our own private party in our hut with me ending up with a scratched up back since Astrid is a real wild cat in the bed but I wasn't complaining.
When we got back we were welcomed with open arms and began settling into a new routine with Astrid and Stormfly fully moving onto the island. Astrid spent her days using the various environments for battle training on the ground and dragon riding since it helped her practice difficult maneuvers. Between her training sessions she'd hang out with Blanca, go on dates with me, return to Berk to talk to her parents and other things. I smiled when I saw this since she always seemed so happy and seemed to be settling in well to her new life even after I brought up the new rule of her not being allowed to cook anything new due to her lack of cooking skills when it comes to that sort of thing. I remember trying one of her new creations and ended up in the bathroom throwing it up in there due to the taste being so horrible that my stomach would throw it right back up.
Besides that, not much has happened with the exception of the nightfury egg moving around more as well as the sand phantom eggs showing they were all close to hatching and we were all looking forward to it. Along with this when we first got back I got to work on the stuff I got from Kyknos' ships and I was not disappointed with what I found since there were multiple treasures on the ship, no doubt stolen from victims who were most likely dead now. I also found a small armory holding regular weapons and Kyknos original star sword that had been tossed aside in his room but despite this it was still a powerful weapon so I put it in my god made weapon vault where nobody would be able to use it. As for the weapons we found, they were mostly rusted and dull from lack of use so I gave them to my smothering smoke breaths, Saber and Bandit to use.
Despite all this one thing kept bothering me was Hermes, since he never explained to us what he was doing at the wedding to begin with and I doubt it was because of Kyknos since he seemed genuinely surprised that he was there. This brought up the question as to what brought him there to begin with which is something that's been bothering me and making me worry something was going on in Greece but if there was Leonidas would've told me. Still though this didn't help me in the least though since I wouldn't put it past Leonidas allowing his pride get in the way of asking for help from me if there was trouble.
This leads up to know which is me making my way down the streets of Sparta with Blanca and Astrid at my sides as I made my way to Leonidas's home where I hoped to find him. Before I could reach it though a voice from my side said.
"He's not there." I turned to see none other than Leonidas's wife Queen Gorgo and I smiled before bowing to her.
"It is an honor to see you again Queen Gorgo." I stood back up straight. "I came to ask Leonidas some questions about possible dangers to Greece he did not tell me about." She sighed and pushed her body off the pillar she'd been leaning against before walking up to me.
"He is currently at the training ground helping to train the new warriors." I nodded. "I'm sure he'll be happy to see you and help demonstrate some combat skills in a sparring match." I smiled.
"I'd like that." I then turned to the girls. "That is if you two don't mind." They smiled before Astrid said.
"I am curious to see how skilled Leonidas can be with how highly you talk about him as a warrior." Blanca simply smiled.
"It might help you calm yourself and give you a chance to speak with him." I nodded.
"I think your right."
Nightfall
We were all sitting in the dining room of Leonidas's home enjoying a meal after I spent my afternoon sparring Leonidas and helping the new warriors improve their combat skills. I'd talked to Leonidas about anything going wrong in Greece but he told me nothing had happened in Greece that he knew of other than the usual issues of bandits who were tracked down and captured and those who weren't were being tracked down. I took another bite of the roast chicken before Leonidas said.
"Hiccup is it possible the god Hermes was simply sent there to deliver you a wedding gift to you and Astrid but with Kyknos' actions he forgot to deliver it to you?" I shook my head.
"No, he was surprised to find out about the wedding meaning that's not why he was there." Leonidas took a sip of his drink.
"My friend, I believe you may be looking too much into this." He lowered his goblet. "Perhaps you should try travelling some more." He stroked his beard. "I always enjoyed hearing of your adventures but when was the last time you tried exploring a new land instead of visiting one of the places you've been to already." I ran a hand through my hair.
"To be honest it's been a long time since I did that." Blanca then said.
"Perhaps Leonidas is right." We turned to her. "Maybe you are looking too deeply into this and get back to your explorer roots and try exploring a new land." Astrid then asked.
"Leonidas, is there a nearby lands that aren't Greek lands?" He nodded.
"There is Persia but we have a neutral relationship in which we do our best to not bother each other and it's mostly desert so not much to see." I smiled.
"Leonidas, if there's one thing I've learnt on my travels through deserts it's that they all have secrets in the sands just waiting for me to come and uncover them." I then gave an uneasy smile to Blanca and Astrid. "That is if my two lovely wives are alright if I go on another exploration trip to a new land." They both smiled and shook their heads before Astrid said.
"We knew what we were getting into when we married you." Blanca then said.
"You may go but remember to stay in contact with us and try to avoid getting pulled into anything dangerous." I chuckled.
"I'll try but I make no promises since you know how fate likes to toy with me and throw me into adventures." They both sighed and rolled their eyes before Astrid said.
"Just spend a few days with us here in Greece for a little down time before sending us home while you're exploring a new land." I nodded.
"Now that is something I can do." They giggled before we continued to enjoy dinner.
Twenty-four days later
It's been twenty days since I arrived in Greece to speak with Leonidas and in that time a lot has happened like for starters I'd spent three more days in Greece with my wives before sending them back and then heading for the sea and setting sail for Persia. I was on the ocean for another three days and when I docked it was on a desert beach so I released my travelling scorpion and took off to find some cities. So far, I hadn't found any but I did find some wondering traders who caught me up on how things are going here in Persia and I was not happy with what I'd found out. Apparently, the kings adopted son, Dastan, had assassinated him and escaped into the desert with a woman by the name of Tamina who was once princess of a holy city that betrayed Persia and was supplying weapons to the enemies. I figured it would be best if I just tried to avoid getting pulled into the mess the royals were in and try to enjoy my trip without getting into any fights.
This led to me asking the traders for advice and one of them telling me that I should go to a place called 'the Valley of the Slaves' that was said to be home to murderous robbers. I was uneasy thinking about it but he told me that it was all made up by a man named Sheik Amar who rules it to keep the Persians away so he could avoid paying taxes and it was really where I could enjoy something called the ostrich races. I decided to take a risk and go there to check it out and I was surprised to find a tiny village with people walking around doing business and it was easy to find where the races were taking place. The races were men riding on large birds around a track while men gambled on who would win with girls serving drinks to them as their hands reached through the wooden fence for a drink. Sadly, the races were ended when someone let all the ostriches out of their pen and sent them running free into the desert before any of their handlers could stop them.
After that I left to continue my journey in the desert on my scorpion but had to stay in my tent for a few hours when a large sand storm formed. When it cleared I continued on my journey only to stumble none other than Prince Dastan and Princess Tamina which brings us to now. I was looking at the of them with Pirus pointed at Dastan and Ventus pointed at Tamina with them both looking at me uneasily as I said.
"Well I was hoping to uncover some of the deserts secrets but instead I find the adopted prince who murdered the man who took him in off the streets and the runaway princess who ruled a city that betrayed its country." I smiled. "I was hoping to be able to keep out of this kind of business but I can't let two criminals go free." Dastan then said.
"I didn't murder my father, I was set up by my uncle Nizam and it was he who framed the city we attacked."
"Why would he do that?" Tamina held up a dagger.
"This is why he had my city attacked." I raised an eyebrow.
"A dagger?"
"This dagger has the sands of time within it allowing one to travel back a few moments but he wishes to use it in order to access the sand within the sand glass below the city and turn back time to when he was a boy and possess the knowledge of the present."
"Why would he want to return to when he was a boy?" Dastan answered.
"When he and my father were young boys out on a hunt, my uncle saved my father from a lion and he wishes to undo it."
"So, he can become king and rule over Persia?" He nodded.
"I know this may sound ridiculous but it's true."
"I believe you." Dastan sighed and looked down.
"I know you don't believe us but-" He paused and looked up at me in shock. "You believe us?" I lowered my swords and shrugged.
"I've had experience in time manipulation and a I know the eyes of a liar when I see one and you are no liar." Tamina then asked.
"You have had experience with time manipulation?" I turned to her.
"Let's just say I live an interesting life." I then sheathed my weapons in my coat and allowed my spiderpack to take them. "My name's Hiccup Haddock of the isle of Berk." They nodded. "May I ask what you two are doing so far in the desert?" Tamina answered.
"We are making our way to a secret guardian temple outside of Alamd where the dagger will be safe and to stop Armageddon." I raised an eyebrow.
"What do you mean by Armageddon?"
"The one that shall come if the dagger is opened while it is within the glass holding the sands breaking the seal which shall destroy the sand glass causing it to crack and shatter freeing the sands of time and they would carry with them the god's wrath destroying all in their path." I nodded as Dastan said.
"Along with all this my uncle has sent the Persian army after us to bring us back along with the dagger."
"If that's the case then we better get going." They looked at me as Dastan asked.
"We?" I nodded.
"I'm not the kind of guy to step aside and let people who are trying save the world go by when I know there are things I can do to help."
"What could help you offer us?"
"I have a way for us to cross the desert safely and with little chance of the army being able to stop us along with multiple supplies."
"What is this way across the desert you're talking about?" I smiled at him.
"You might want to take your horses reins since my way of travelling will definitely spook it since it does do that to a lot of creatures."
They looked at me confused before I turned to one of the sand dunes that had my tent resting on the top of it before I willed my traveling scorpion to come out. It crawled out of the sand making Dastan and Tamina stare in shock as the horse began backing up before it began coming towards us. Then came the screaming and them backing up in fear before I turned to face them and said.
"Calm down, that scorpion is a gift I was given from the gods of Arabia for my service but we'll go over that another time as all you need to know now is it's completely under my control and can get us across the desert faster." They looked uneasy as my scorpion came to stop before us and I willed the cargo hold to open. "You can load your horse and belongings in here while we ride on the top." They still seemed nervous but when I entered the storage hold they seemed to calm down a bit but were still on edge, even after they boarded and we took off.
2 hours later
It's been two hours since I picked up the prince and princess and that time had been filled with questions and answers being given from all of us. Their questions they asked me mostly consisted of who I was, where I got my scorpion and tent, what other magic gear did I have, what weapons did I have, why I came to Persia and other such things. My question for them however were focused more on the dagger and where it came from, how it got its powers, what happened in the city where it came from, how Dastan knew it was his uncle Nizam who was behind his father's murder and other such things. Besides this not much had happened since things had been pretty calm with no problems but I couldn't help but feel that someone was watching us even though we were alone. I just chalked it up to me being paranoid but no matter what I did I couldn't shake the feeling and that is what made me nervous since it could mean trouble.
Now we were making our way over to a small oasis after I pulled my travelling scorpion back into my arm since I didn't want whoever may have been watching us to have an easier time by spotting my scorpion in the oasis. I looked around as Tamina and Dastan cooled off by splashing water into their faces before a familiar sound caught my attention making me turn to it. My eyes widened when they landed on an ostrich with a red bag covering its head but letting its beak out and I knew right then and there we weren't alone. Before we could react though a large group of men rushed in and grabbed us but I immediately recognized them as the ones who ran the ostrich races. A group of his men stood on the other side of the river Shiek in the middle wearing his usual attire of grey and yellow turban covering the top of his head, a grey shirt with and yellow and black stripes, a baggy jacket that had red, yellow, orange and grey stripes on it, a large belt holding a scimitar and a knife, a white stone pendant shaped like the pommel of a blade with pointed ends and his shoulder length hair going down the sides of his face. Shiek smiled at us as he said.
"Persian, we parted under such rushed circumstances, I didn't get the chance to say goodbye." We were forced forward and although I knew I could take these guys, the one leading Dastan had a sword against his neck and I was not going to take that chance. "We've been tracking you for a week." I could hear the anger in his voice as he pointed at Dastan. "That little riot you started, went on for two days." He turned away and said in a sad tone. "My beloved race track" He turned back with the anger returning to his voice. "All washed away like foot prints in sand." He then pointed to the ostrich. "See Anita there?" He looked at the ostrich. "Look at her." He then turned back. "She's all that's left of my gaming empire" He turned back and looked to the sky. "and no matter your skill as a promoter." He paused for a second. "YOU CAN'T ORGANISE AN OSTRICH RACE" He turned back to Dastan. "WITH JUST ONE OSTRICH!" He then punched Dastan in the gut. "AM I RIGHT?" The men cheered in agreement. "Yes sir, come with me." He had us pulled forward to the ostrich before he removed the bag and began stroking the ostrich's neck. "Did you know ostriches have suicidal tendencies?" He shook his head. "Look at this poor thing." He kept stroking her neck. "She used to be a grand champion and now I have to watch her night and day to make sure she doesn't do anything stupid." He kissed its neck and began walking away. "And so, it occurred to me that the only way refutes my tragic losses was to track down the two tragic lovers who cast this dark cloud upon me." He turned back and pointed at Dastan. "Yes, I'm going to need the price on your heads and your brother will be very pleased to see-" He stopped when he noticed Dastan looking at something behind him and turned to only see five sand dervishes before he turned back to Dastan. "Their sand dervishes Persian, as common as camel turd." Dastan then finally spoke.
"Sheik Amar listen to me-" He was cut off when one of the men pulled his hair back and pulled a rolled up cloth in his mouth to gag him.
"I'd rather not." A man who I believed had African origins from his skin color then pulled the dagger of time from his belt and said.
"Nice knife." Tamina then said.
"Noble Sheik we are on a sacred journey to the temple-" She was cut off when she herself was gagged.
"The temple, the temple, there's nothing more sacred then Persian gold." He then turned to me. "Weren't you one of the betters at the race." I nodded.
"I ran into these two while I was travelling and trust me, the journey they're on is more important than any business you have." He glared at me.
"My ostrich race was my livelihood and they destroyed it."
"And if you stop them from succeeding in their journey then you destroy everything." I then smiled knowing how to get through to him. "If you help us however then you'll get enough more than just gold to rebuild your race track." He frowned.
"And why should I listen to you?" I reached into my coat making all the men point their blades at me as I felt one of the bags of gold I had be pushed into my hand before I pulled it out and threw it onto the ground at Sheiks feet spilling the gold coins out.
"There's plenty more where that came from." He kneeled down and picked up a coin examining it before biting it and looking back at me.
"So, there's more?" Tamina then struggled to something getting our attention. "Do you mind, we're trying to talk here." Before the man holding her could pull her away I held up a hand.
"Wait, let's just hear what she has to say." Shiek looked at me before begrudgingly nodding and having his man ungag her.
"This better be good as you're interrupting my business deal." Tamina replied.
"There's gold at the temple we're going to, more than ten horses can carry and it'll all be yours if you help us on our journey." He nodded.
"You better not be lying or you'll all be dead before we hand you over to the king to be dealt with." We nodded before he looked at his men. "Alright boys, set up camp for the night, we begin moving at dawn." I smiled as the men got to work.
Nightfall
I was sitting against at tree with my hands bound like Dastan and Tamina who were both laying on blankets but sleep didn't come as easy to me as it did the others since I had a bad feeling in my gut. I just kept my eyes on the fire burning in the middle of the camp while also keeping my eye out for anything strange or life threatening and thinking about my day. Things had been quiet with me just listening to the men which is how I learnt the man from Africa is named Seso and he's an expert knife thrower along with Shieks second in command. His attire consisted of a sleeveless yellow robe and pants with an arm guard on his right arm that had two spikes on it and a few knives hidden in his robe. It was then I noticed the sands moving around and immediately released my rotating blade cutting the ropes binding my hands and kept the blade out, ready to fight when I saw one of the things beneath the sand coming at me. When it came out of the sand I saw it to be a snake and a venomous one at that which was looking right at me as it would a mouse that was going to become its meal.
Then a second later it struck, jumping right at me but I slashed it with my spinning blade cutting it in two before the sound of an animals shrieking made me look up and see Dastan had knocked another snake into the fire making it scream in pain. Then the screaming started and I looked around to see multiple snakes jumping from the sand and killing the men as Dastan yelled out to Seso to toss him the dagger if he wanted to live. I ignored him though in favor of launching my blade at some of the snakes to stop them from killing any more lives but then it happened. One of the snakes came at me but before I could do anything it went back into the sand as if its time was being reversed and when I looked up I saw Dastan was out of his body and watching as time reversed itself. When time got back to normal I watched as he made short work of the remaining snakes, finishing off the last one that was going for Shiek by throwing the dagger at its head, decapitating it and making the head fall on Shieks lap. Shiek looked at Dastan in both confusion and amazement as he asked.
"Persian, how did you do that?" Dastan just ran up and took the dagger out of the tree it was imbedded in and answered.
"Instinct!" He then cut the ropes binding Tamina's hands as I walked up and said.
"There was definitely someone or something controlling those snakes." Tamina nodded in agreement as Dastan looked into the desert or to be more precise the sand dervishes. "What is it Dastan?" He just stared at them.
"We have to get out of here." His voice was low but I could still hear the seriousness and fear in it and immediately ran to the outside of the clearing before releasing my travelling scorpion shocking Shiek, Seso and the few me who were sadly the only survivors of the group along with their horses and the ostrich with most of the others being killed.
"I'll answer your questions later but for now, just know that this scorpion is under my control and our way out of here." Shiek replied.
"But what about our horses and Anita?" I opened up the way to the storage room.
"Load them up and be quick about it since from what I can tell we're in serious trouble." They nodded before we began loading them up and took off.
Afternoon
We'd spent the whole night travelling across the desert and out of it while Tamina navigated and Dastan explained to us who we were dealing with. He called them the Hassansin's who are a group of seven warriors who along with being mystics, were also the deadliest team of assassins in all of Persia with each being a master of a different weapon. For years they were the covet killing force of the kings until Dastan's father ordered them disbanded but it's clear Nizam disobeyed the king's orders and kept them intact and under his command. Dastan didn't know much else about them meaning I'd need to keep my guard up since even if they were only half as strong as he claimed then we were going to be in trouble.
I'm sad to say the Hassansin's are also fast since they were able to beat us to the village where we were heading to in order to hide the dagger only to find everybody killed by the Hassansin's. Along with this, shortly after we got here Dastan's older brother Garsiv arrived with the Persian army and taken Dastan into the shed with another guard to see the dead bodies after one of the men reported it while Dastan tried to warn him about the Hassansin's and Nizam. This brings us to now, with me sitting on a boulder and looking out at the view while I waited for them to finish talking inside and praying Dastan would be able to convince Garsiv of the truth. I took a breath and turned to see the guard who was with them walk out before I stood up and asked.
"Are they going to be done in there anytime soon?"
He just turned to me with a glare but didn't answer as the sound of whistling began to echo through the area before thick knife sized needles flew into his chest killing him as my eyes widened. I quickly looked up at where the needles came from but only saw fog right before more needles flew down right at me but I quickly turned around, pulling my grootslang coats collar up right before the needles hit me in the back. My coat absorbed the needles before I turned back swinging my arm at the fog launching the absorbed needles into the fog before I heard a scream of pain making me smile since it meant I might have at least wounded one of them. It was then I saw Garsiv running out of the hut only to be hit in the chest by multiple metal needles as Dastan ran out before more spikes fell down at him. Before they could reach him, I used my ox flame boots speed mode to run in front of him and used my coat to block them as he yelled out.
"HASSANSIN'S!"
As soon as the word finished leaving his mouth men wearing black armor and turbans, jumped out of the fog wielding deadly weapons with each holding a different one that I'm sure they were each skilled with. One had a double-bladed halberd, one a giant scimitar, one two whips with blades on the end, one had metal arm guards with three claw blades at the end of one and a single knife on the other, one had metal armguards that was shooting out the metal needles and the final one I saw had bombs which he tossed creating a wall of fire, stopping the army from coming to help. I watched as the men who were in the village began attacking them but were made short work of by the Hassansin's before my eyes landed on the final man who I'm guessing was the leader. He was dressed like the others and wielding a sword in his right hand and a curved dagger in the left but he had a curved blade on his left elbow, ghostly blue eyes and a nasty burn scar on his right cheek. I quickly realized he was going for Tamina who had the dagger and rushed to help her while releasing my star sword just as Tamina picked up a sword and tried to fight him but she was clearly out matched.
Nobodies POV:
The leader of the Hassansin just shoved Tamina's blade down and prepared to stab her but as his blade thrust forward Hiccup jumped down from a rock and blocked the blade with his own as he asked.
"Mind if I cut in?"
Tamina backed up and ran while Hiccup began fighting the Hassansin who blocked, parried or dodged his attacks before Hiccup used his free hand to deliver a punch to his gut knocking the air out of him. Hiccup shoved him to the side before his ninja senses kicked in and he ducked, avoiding a strike from the Hassansin who was using the arm guards with the blades. Hiccup turned to face him and dodged an attempt to stab him before grabbing the outstretched arm and twisting it making the man scream in pain. His screams came to a halt though when Hiccup collapsed his sword back into his arm and used it to slam the man's head into a rock, hearing a sickening cracking sound as he did so. Dastan ran up from above the rock surprising Hiccup as he quickly bent down and took the man's knife out of the wrist guard and threw it behind Hiccup striking the Hassansin who had the bombs in the chest killing him. Hiccup nodded to him in thanks before he said.
"We'll handle things out here, you go help Tamina." He nodded and rushed off while Hiccup ran to the dead Hassansin and grabbed the leather belt holding the bombs before turning to Seso who had his eyes on the Hassansin with the giant scimitar and yelled out. "SESO, THROW THESE!"
He threw the belt to Seso who caught it before Hiccup turned his attention to the man throwing needles while Seso lit up a bomb and throwing it at the Hassansin barely missing him and starting a fire behind the man. The Hassansin glared at him and began walking toward him while cutting down a man who stood in his way before Seso threw a knife at him but he dodged it and continued walking towards Seso who backed up into a short stone wall. Before he could kill him though Sheik began taunting him to draw his attention by claiming men with big swords have small man hoods angering the Hassansin. The Hassansin raised his scimitar and brought it down on the blade Shiek tried to use only to snap the blade in one single swing before Shiek backed up in fear and readied to bring his weapon down on him. Hiccup saw this and reacted as quickly as he could with the first thing he could think of and did something he'd never done before in any of his adventures. He released his spinning blade and launched it right at the Hassansin's head imbedding it in the back it killing the man instantly.
Hiccup didn't have time to dwell on it though as he was forced to dodge more of the needles launched at him while Dastan came out of the cave, dodging the clawed and bladed ends of the Hassansin. While they did this the leader was crouched down by the cave entrance allowing a black snake that was under his control to slither up his sleeve before turning to his men and ordered.
"ENOUGH, OUT!"
The Hassansin wielding the double-bladed halberd and the one launching the needles began running with their leader joining him as Hiccup turned to the one with the whips who was still attacking Dastan. Hiccup quickly released his snake whip and cracked it right at the man, wrapping around his body so his arms were pinned to his sides before Hiccup channeled a blue crystal electrifying his whip. The man screamed in pain as Hiccup pulled the man forward bringing him flying forward with Hiccup intending to take him down up close but he never got the chance. Garsiv who was still on the ground with his life slowly fading from his wounds took the spear next to him and pulling it forward and holding it upwards towards the Hassansin that came landing right onto it impaling him on it killing him. Hiccup pulled his whip back to him as Dastan ran to his brother just in time to hear his final words apologizing to him and telling him to save the empire before he died with his brother holding him.
Six hours later
Dastan had given his brother a proper burial while Shiek had raided the temple of its treasures and Hiccup had spent an hour of that time sitting on a boulder and staring down at his hands. Nobody could blame him though as his adrenalin had worn off and the gravity of what he'd done had come crashing down on him and he was not taking it well. Never had he ever taken another person's life before as he'd done today to the Hassansin who wielded the giant scimitar by hitting him in the back of the head with a single rotating blade he launched. Hiccup had not been taking it well as whenever he closed his eyes he'd see the dead body of the man he'd killed and to make things worse he blamed himself for the death of the whip man.
Surprisingly comfort came from none other than Seso who sat down next to him and asked him what was on his mind which lead to Hiccup opening up about how he felt about what he'd done. Seso listened to him quietly with a straight face, never interrupting and keeping a straight face as Hiccup poured the pain in his heart out to him. When he finished he was in tears letting them fall down from his eyes and onto his hands like rain as Seso patted his back and told him how he remembered when he killed a man for the first time. It was a thief who stole from Shiek and threatened him and when he did he was in the same state as Hiccup until he heard that the man he killed was wanted for multiple counts of murder. He realized that the world was better off without that man like how the world was better off without the Hassansin's and although it would take time, the pain he was feeling now would come to pass. Along with this came some advice that we could not undo the past but we could help make a better future and the sooner he realized this and accepted his actions the pain would stop.
After that Hiccup thanked him for the advice before Tamina came out informing them that they had to return to the city where she ruled before Nizam could break the glass holding the sands of time using the dagger. After that they began their long journey to the city with Shiek and his men joining since Seso felt he owed them and Shiek decided to come along, not wanting to lose his second in command but everyone could tell he cared about Seso. Hiccup brought out his scorpion and they took off as fast as they could and they arrived on the outskirts of the city in four hours before making their way into the city. They learnt from the people who worked in the palace that Nizam had the people digging a pit to the catacombs where the sand glass was and they'd already broken through the first lair so they'd reach it in hours. Along with this the dagger was being kept in the high temple guarded by the Hassansin who used the needles.
Now they were making their way to the entrance of the temple after Hiccup told them he had a way to get the dagger with none of them needing to risk their lives. It was then they stopped at the corner just behind the entrance where three guards were standing watch before Shiek asked.
"So how do you intend to get past those men?" Hiccup smiled at him and held up his golden arm as it was quickly covered by roots that then took on the form of his hand making Sheik gasp in shock.
"Just watch."
Hiccup held out his hand as a single spore sprouted in the palm before he held his palm in front of his mouth and let out a gentle blow sending the spore slowly flying towards the men. The spore slowly floated through the air towards the men, gliding towards the men on the wind until it flew between their heads which is when they took notice of it. They each looked at it confused until it burst releasing a small cloud of Hiccups knockout gas making them cough and lean down when they inhaled it. A second later they each collapsed to the ground unconscious before Hiccup turned to smile at his comrades who just stared in shock before Dastan said.
"I have got to get me one of those things."
"Not unless you're willing to lose your arm." Shiek then asked.
"So, what's this way you have to get the dagger without any of us needing to risk our lives?" Hiccup just smiled and said in Japanese.
"Wind, Earth!" They looked at him in confusion until my ninja appeared in front of them making them jump back in shock before Hiccup answered their unasked questions. "These ninjas were leaders of two of the six most powerful ninja clans who were killed by the demon lord Akuhei before he imprisoned their souls into these artificial bodies and forcing them alongside the other four ninja leaders to serve him for all eternity." Seso then asked.
"If they served him then how do you control them?" Hiccup turned to him.
"I took Akuhei on and beat him, freeing them from his control and as thanks their loyalty now belongs to me." Dastan then asked.
"Are you can do this?" I nodded.
"They're ninja's Dastan, they were trained from infancy in the arts of stealth and combat." Hiccup smiled. "They can do it." Hiccup then turned to Wind and Earth. "There's a dagger held in the tower, being guarded by a highly skilled knife thrower." They nodded. "We'll be waiting in the small clearing in town by the tree and I don't have time to explain no but know that it is important that you get the dagger to us at any cost." Everyone could hear the seriousness in his voice before Wind and Earth gave one nod each and took off up the stairs.
10 minutes later
Wind and Earth pushed the door that lead to the room at the top of the tower where the dagger was being held before they took a moment to examine the room. On either side of them were large candle holders holding multiple candles while around the room were tall, highly decorated pillars that looked as if they were made of gold with small elephants at the bottom of them. At the back of the room was a half circle shaped platform with four steps leading up to it, two pillars on either side at the back and on the steps were gold tea pots and small gold candle pots all letting out smoke. What drew the most attention was at the top of the platform which was a large platform with a giant pillar that had a decorated cage wall at the bottom surrounding it. In the center was a single pedestal that held the dagger they were sent to collect shining in the light of the sun shining through the decorated bars.
They slowly made their way into the room before they quickly dived in different directions with Wind going to the left and Earth to the right avoiding the needles launched at them. The Hassansin jumped from his place on top of one of the pillars as Wind ran out from his place behind the pillar throwing six kunai at him. The Hassansin dodged them before launching more of his needles at him but Wind evaded all but one which he caught in his hand as Earth came out from his hiding place quickly spinning the blade of his kyoketsu-shoge by the chain. Sadly, he was noticed by the Hassansin who launched the needles left in his wrist guard but Earth extended his chain that he was still spinning and used it to block all the needles.
The Hassansin's eyes widened at this allowing Wind an opportunity to throw the needle he caught and struck him right in the shoulder making the Hassansin grunt in pain and dive behind a pillar, dodging the blade of Earths weapon that was thrust at him. The injured man took a few seconds to catch his breath and reload his wrist launchers while wondering who in the world these men were as they were clearly skilled in combat. He took a breath and dived out from behind the pillar and held out both arms launching them at Wind who was standing there and dodged every needle by dropping to the floor. When the needles hit the wall the Hassansin realized Earth was not with Wind but just as realization hit him and before he could react the blade and chain of Earths kyoketsu-shoge came down from his side and onto his wrists quickly binding them together.
He turned to see Earth standing there with his weapons chain in hands before he turned back to Wind just in time to see the ninja rushing at him kunai in hand. The last thing he saw was Wind stabbing him in the chest with the kunai killing him and destroying the one guard watching the dagger. Earth pulled his weapon back to his body and holstered it while Wind pulled his kunai free allowing the body to drop to the ground. Then thanks to their enhanced hearing they could hear the sound of men running down the hall so Earth readied his weapon at the door while Wind ran and grabbed the dagger. Wind then ran to the balcony and throwing the dagger towards the tree in the clearing where Hiccups group was just as the guards rushed in. Before the men could do anything though Wind rushed up next to Earth and they both threw their smoke bombs to the ground filling the room and when it cleared they were gone.
Down below Hiccup pulled the dagger out of the tree and looked around at everyone who were now wearing cloaks to hide their identities. Hiccup held up the dagger and said.
"This is why I have so much faith in my forces." Dastan and Tamina smiled. "So now that we have the dagger back, what do we do?" Dastan answered.
"I need to speak to my brother Tus."
"That's not going to be easy since with the dagger stolen their going to be looking for us and are going to seal of the city."
"We have to find a way to warn him about Nizam." Hiccup rubbed his chin in thought before an idea came to him and he snapped his fingers.
"I have an idea." He then turned to Shiek and Seso. "The problem is you two aren't going to like it." They each raised an eyebrow before Hiccup smiled. "But I'll pay you each double what you made, raiding the cave." They both nodded before Shiek replied.
"Alright, I'm in but will we get hurt?" Hiccup smirked and summoned all five ninjas who appeared behind him and gestured to them
"That's why my ninja will be on standby, ready to get you out of there." He then turned to Wind and Earth. "By the way, good work on getting the dagger you two."
They just nodded before Hiccup turned back to the others and began explaining the plan in which Dastan and Seso would pose as Dastan and Tamina using their cloaks and run for the gate acting as if they were trying to escape the palace. They would no doubt be intercepted by the guards who would want to interrogate them which is when the ninja would make their appearance and get them out of there. This would cause trouble that would result in the guards spreading out leaving the palace vulnerable so Dastan could get in and talk to his brother Tus with me and Tamina there to back him up.
1 hour later
Everything had gone according to Hiccups plan nearly perfectly with the guards being spread out all over the city looking for Shiek and Seso after that ninjas helped them escape at the gate when the guards caught them. It was during this time Hiccup, Dastan and Tamina broke into the palace where Dastan confronted Tus and proved the power of the dagger by telling his brother how to use it before using the dagger to kill himself. Hiccup was tempted to stop him but remembered Dastan told him to have faith in Tus like he did but it didn't make it any easier for him to watch before Nizam walked in. After that he was grateful when Tus used the power of the dagger and turned time back to when Dastan was about to stab himself and stopped him while Hiccup watched everything and remembered it all thanks to the protection of the Cronos stone in his star swords pommel.
Sadly, once time was back to normal and Tus stopped Dastan, proving he knew what the dagger could do and believed him about Nizam being the one responsible for everything Nizam walked in and when Tus tried to confront him Nizam used a sword to cut his throat killing him. While Tus died the Hassansin wielding double-bladed halberd came up behind Dastan and struck him with the flat side of his weapon when he turned around knocking him down before pinning him. Nizam took the dagger which is when Hiccup made his move launching his golden fist into the side of the Hassansin's side pushing him off Dastan and surprising Nizam as he and Tamina walked into the room from the balcony. Nizam made a run for it while we handled the Hassansin who quickly recovered and charged at Hiccup but before he could reach him Hiccup released his spinning blade and launched it right at him, hitting the man in the chest, killing him by piercing the heart.
After that Tamina discovered the tattoo on his hand showing a tattoo that was worn by the priests at the temple where we tried to hide the dagger. This explained how Nizam knew about the dagger, it's ability and everything else including the sands of time in the glass container which Nizam was on his way to now. All this brings us to now with Hiccup and Dastan being led down into the tunnels below the temple by Tamina who explained that there were secret passages that lead to the sand glass and how they could make it there before Nizam.
Hiccup and Dastan watched as she reached behind a statue and put a hand through the hole behind it, hitting a switch before the sound of cranks echoed through the cave. They turned to the wall on the right as it opened up revealing a stairway leading hidden room that was bigger than Hiccups library and had a large opening in the ceiling letting the sun shine on the center. The entire floor was covered in sand making it look like a desert and in the center was a stone gazebo which Tamina pointed at before she said.
"That will lead us down to the sand glass chamber." Hiccup walked up next to her.
"Let me guess, there's some major trap that we'll have to deal with if we don't walk to it in a certain way." She nodded.
"Follow in my footsteps."
She then began walking down the path with Dastan following behind her and Hiccup behind him, both careful not to take one step out of line. It was then a stone that was once a section of the wall fell from the ceiling making all their eyes widen in fear but Dastan was quicker and held out his hand catching it. Everyone let out a sigh of relief until a single pebble fell from the ceiling, bounced off the stone and landed on the ground outside of the safe path. The effects were almost immediate with the hard sand sinking open to reveal soft sand beneath that was quickly pulling all around it in, making the hole grow right before Tamina yelled.
"RUN!"
That was all she needed to say before all three rushed towards the gazebo but Hiccup realized he and Dastan were too close to it and needed a boost in speed. He quickly activated his ox flame boots speed mode and rushed forward, grabbing both Dastan and Tamina as he rushed by but along the way he tripped on a part of the path that was buried in the sand. Dastan and Tamina when flying landing on the gazebo while Hiccup was pulled into the sand that was dragging him down the slope as the temple crumbled behind him bringing rubble down towards him. It was then he noticed a door on the other end of the large cliff he was being dragged towards right before a large section of a wall fell down behind him creating a shockwave throwing him up into the air making him smile. He quickly released his wings and glided above the cliff before flying through the door and landing safely on the floor before taking a breath.
Hiccup smiled as he took a breath and began walking down the hall only for the floor to flip open making him fall down a narrow hole but he held his hands out against the wall, slowing his decent. When he landed he found himself in front of a passage way and made his way down it and walked right into a giant cavern with the sand glass in the middle. Hiccup walked forward while staring at the glass in pure awe as it looked as if it had been made out of pure golden glass with shining light from within that looked as if it had absorbed the sun with white light rushing up it. Down below him was a huge pit that seemed bottomless and ran all the way to the sand glass with large walls on the side taking the form of steps that made up a path to it.
Unfortunately, he didn't get the chance to stare at it for long though as his examination was cut short when the leader of the Hassansin's made an appearance from behind a pillar, swinging his sword at Hiccups head. Hiccup ducked beneath the blade but the Hassansin who quickly recovered and swung at him again but Hiccup leaned back avoiding the strike and released his star sword. The Hassansin jumped back over to the pit with his arms spread out landing on the edge of it and falling back while Hiccup quickly made his way over to him swinging his sword down on him. The Hassansin was quick to swing his sword up knocking Hiccups swing to the side before he used his free hand to punch Hiccup in the face making him stumble back before the Hassansin tried to stab him in the stomach. With the limited space to move Hiccup turned to his side and leaned back into the before he swung his sword at the head of the Hassansin who quickly spun his sword making it face up, blocking it.
The Hassansin then quickly punched him in the neck before shoving him to the side as he swung his sword to the side into Hiccups sword and thanks to Hiccups daze from the hit his sword went flying out of his hand. The Hassansin then quickly brought out a curved dagger before he pinned Hiccup to the wall with his sword by stabbing it right through his upper right arm which was exposed as his grootslang was in vest form, making Hiccup scream in pain. He then pinned the lower part of Hiccups arm down and then tried to stab Hiccup in the neck with the knife but Hiccup raised his prosthetic arm holding the weapon back by grabbing his foes wrist just as Dastan and Tamina rushed down the stairs across from them. They immediately saw Hiccup who was holding the knife making Dastan cry out.
"HICCUP!" Hiccup turned to him.
"I'LL BE FINE, STOP NIZAM FROM BREAKING THE SAND GLASS!" Hiccup could see their hesitation. "JUST GO!"
They did as they were told and began running towards the glass while Hiccup continued to struggle as the Hassansin smiled before a black snake slithered out of his sleeve and onto Hiccups prosthetic and began slithering up his arm. Thinking fast Hiccup channeled a red crystal igniting his fore arm with the snake still on it making the snake screech in pain along with the Hassansin who pulled his arm off. Hiccup then quickly slammed his prosthetic into the swords handle breaking it off right before Hiccup pulled his arm off the blade freeing him. He then turned to the Hassansin who growled just as he tackled Hiccup to the ground and tried to stab him in the head again but Hiccup quickly held up his hand in front of his opponents face right before he let out a blast of his acidic gas. The Hassansin screamed in face as it burned and the skin began to dissolve or melt but before things could get too bad Hiccup pushed his legs up against his foes stomach sending him over the edge and down into the darkness.
Hiccup breathed and turned to back to the glass just in time to see Dastan let go of Tamina who was dangling from his arm allowing her to fall into the darkness. Hiccup could see the pain in his eyes before he turned to Nizam, who was responsible for all this just as he stabbed the dagger into the glass before Dastan grabbed him from behind. Before Hiccup could rush over to help however Nizam opened the top of the dagger, releasing the sand that came flying out like a river making the entire cavern begin to crumble. Hiccup didn't get the chance to react before the cliffside he was on joined the rest of the cavern and began to crumble with Hiccup falling into the darkness below.
As Hiccup fell, Dastan continued to fight his uncle to keep his hand on the dagger while the crack in the glass grew upwards and images of the past played out in the glass as sand continued to pour out of the dagger while any rubble that stuck to the glass was blasted off and the sand circled it. On the surface things weren't much better as a tornado began to form outside of the city while a huge sandstorm was created and heading right for it. This was the wrath of the gods that was sealed away so long ago and would wipe humanity off the face of the land for all eternity and it was released all because of Nizams thirst for power.
Nizam continued to fight Dastan to try and make him let go of the dagger but Dastan held on tight and fight, despite the amount of pain he was in from pushing his muscles to the limit. As the entire cavern crumbled around them while the sands circled Dastan was able to close the top of the dagger stopping the sand from coming out. The crack immediately began to close up as if it were never there from the top as the sands continued to circle rapidly around the glass while the sand storm on the surface began to pull back. Dastan and Nizam held onto the dagger for dear life as the wind had picked up their bodies so they were floating in the air as the dagger finally came out sending them screaming as they were spun around in the wind.
Next thing Dastan knew is he was standing back in the city clearing looking down at the dagger before he looked up and realized he was back in the city during the day of the invasion when he first found the dagger. He looked around but was brought out of his thoughts when someone behind him crying out his name making Dastan turn to him and his eyes widen as the man was his friend Bis who died helping him escape when he was first framed. When Bis ran up he asked.
"Bis?" He pointed at his childhood friend. "You're here?" Bis looked at him confused.
"Of course, I'm here." Dastan lowered his hand as Bis breathed heavily. "Our men have surrounded Alamut's palace; the battle is over." Dastan looked at him.
"Not yet." As soon as he said that Dastan begun running to the palace to make things right.
Nightfall
Night had fallen over the city of Alamut coating the city in darkness with the lights littering it being made by the torch lights used to light people's way and show the roads. The palace was more heavily guarded than before with guards of not just Alamut but also Persia as earlier today King Sharaman arrived to speak with his sons and find out what had happened after hearing what happened to his brother. This brings us to now with King Sharaman in a large, decorated room at a table with Garsiv and Tus on his right while Dastan and Tamina were at his left. The room he was in was decorated with statues, drapes and cushions all around with a window looking out into the city and was the perfect place for the meeting to discuss all that had happened. Earlier today the city had been searched to confirm what Dastan had claimed about there being no weapon forges in the city and was proven true but it made all at the table curious to know how he knew it was Nizam behind it all. Right now, the room was so silent not a sound was heard before King Sharaman broke it by turning to Dastan and saying.
"Alright Dastan, we're all here to find out how you found out about my brother being behind the fake weapons to set up Alamut and what makes you believe he intended to kill me." Dastan sighed.
"Forgive me father but I don't know how to tell you how I know all this." A voice from the window across the room behind King Sharaman said.
"I believe the truth would be the best thing to tell everyone here Dastan." All eyes immediately turned to the window only for everyone to see Hiccup sitting on it in his desert armor and smiling at Dastan who immediately stood up and asked.
"Hiccup?" Hiccup smiled.
"Since you know my name I assume like me you remember everything." Dastan smiled and walked up to him.
"That I do my friend and I am happy to see you my friend" He then gestured to the window. "but you could've used the door." Hiccup just smiled.
"Now where's the fun in that." Hiccup climbed through the window. "I believe it best we explain to everyone here what happened before we turned back the sands of time." He nodded before they walked to the table and began the tale.
AN: Hey guys sorry for the late post but work picked up this week and I had lunch with the grandparents today which took up five hours since we spoke and went back to their place for coffee. Anyway, I cut out a lot of parts of the film to make it so I could get this done before next week and if you want to know what happened then see the movie, it's a good film. If you think this is where his time in Persia ends here, rest assured it's not over yet and for those of you wondering why I had him kill the Hassansins it's because I felt it was time he realized there will be times he will have no choice but to kill. It was sort of like a chance for him to grow up a bit as both a human being and a hero but also so he could learn what it's like to take a life. Now onto the questions.
To all those curious about Chapter 200:
There is something big planned for that one but you will have to wait and see.
Rpglady76:
Hiccup talked to his dad about it and allowed them to consummate their marriage in private.
Guest:
The last chapter was not the 200th chapter as the first six are merely lists so it was the 194th and this is the 195th so five more chapters to go.
Guest:
We'll see
Gabekaykwok:
Hermes was not there for the wedding, he came to deliver something to Hiccup that is the result from something that happened on his last visit.
Anyway I hope you will review kindly and have a nice day and until next time stay safe.