Opening File: Hiccup Horrendous Haddick III
Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III is the son of Stoick the Vast, chief of Berk, and Valka. As such he is the heir to the chiefdom of Berk. Hiccup is also the first Berkian Viking to befriend and train a dragon. Between fourteen and fifteen years before the events of the first film, Hiccup was born prematurely to Stoick the Vast and his wife Valka. Although the new mother was worried that Hiccup would not survive his early birth, Stoick was confident that he would grow strong and Hiccup did indeed prosper.
At his birth, Hiccup was given a small axe by Stoick, so he could start training immediately, much to his mother's chagrin. However, Stoick claimed that Hiccup used the ace as a paperweight. When he was still a baby, Valka sewed Hiccup a dragon toy with his name stitched into the sides. Gobber made the baby diapers.
One night a Stormcutter dragon broke into their house, finding baby Hiccup in the cradle. Valka rushed to his rescue, but found the dragon curiously playing with Hiccup, leaving the baby giggling in delight, proving that everything that Valka believed about dragons was true. The Stormcutter was startled when he noticed Valka's presence, accidentally cutting Hiccup's chin with a wing claw when he turned to look her way. Hearing the baby crying, Stoick rushed to the scene.
He and the dragon started fighting with each other, resulting in the house being burned and Valka being abducted by the dragon, leaving Stoick to raise Hiccup alone. This experience left Hiccup with a deep fear of dragons, so much so that he threw the toy his mother made for him into the ocean one day when he and his father were out fishing. Stoick became overprotective of his son, while Valka decided to spend the rest of her life away from Berk, fearing that her love of dragons might harm those she cared most about, including Hiccup. Everyone believed that she had been eaten by a dragon.
Hiccup grew slowly, remaining much smaller and weaker than other Vikings well into his adolescence. At a young age, Stoick enlisted him as Gobber's smith apprentice in hopes of both bulking him up and teaching him some discipline. By age eleven, Hiccup had become a laughing stock to his peers, resulting in him vowing to get revenge once he became chief. But his father reminded him that a leader doesn't seek revenge, and makes decisions best for the tribe, no matter how painful those decisions might be.
Despite being overprotective of him, Stoick began harboring feelings of shame that his son had the attention span of a sparrow and would rather hunt for trolls than spend quality time with his father. He started referring to him as the worst Viking Berk had ever seen. Stoick even started using Hiccup as a pawn with other villagers, threatening them with watching him if they didn't join their chief in his mission. Such behavior led to a complex rift between the father and son by the time he was fourteen. Hiccup learned a lot being Gobber's apprentice, however, and soon began inventing contraptions of his own.
Too small to wield traditional Viking weapons and therefore unable to kill a dragon like the rest of his village, he worked as an apprentice to Gobber the Belch, the village blacksmith. One night during a dragon raid, once left unsupervised, Hiccup left his indoor work post and, with a bola launcher named "The Mangler", manages to shoot down one of the deadliest and most feared dragons in the skies; the Night Fury. When he tries to tell his father of his feat, Stoick disbelieved him, and was frustrated with the boy at the mess he left in his wake. So Stoick ordered him to go home and stay there.
When Hiccup went to find his kill, after what appeared to be many failed attempts, he found the dragon and discovered that he was still alive. Despite his determination to prove himself to the community as a great dragon killer, Hiccup was unable to kill it after seeing the fear in his eyes, and instead cut him free. The dragon then pinned him to the ground, but instead of killing him, he roared loudly and left. Traumatized by the experience, Hiccup passed out as soon as he leaves.
When he returned home that night, Stoick told him he could join Dragon Training, unknowing that Hiccup had changed his mind about killing dragons. But Stoick hoped that his son would man up and let go of himself. Hiccup was left no choice however, so early the next day, he was enrolled into Dragon Training, where he was expected to learn to fight and kill dragons. At first, he struggled to complete the simplest tasks and hold his own against even the most (relatively) benign dragons, earning the usual mockery of his fellow teenagers.
However, after managing to get close enough to bond with the Night Fury he shot down, whom he named Toothless after finding out about his retractable teeth, he built him a prosthetic tail-fin to replace the one that the crash landing caused by his Mangler tore off. It granted Toothless the ability to fly with Hiccup's assistance, and jump-started their friendship. He gained valuable experience and a deeper insight into the mannerisms of most dragons, such as the fact that it's possible to bring a dragon into submission if it's scratched gently in a certain spot under the chin. He was soon hailed as a Viking prodigy, with the time he spends with Toothless allowing him to ultimately 'defeat' every dragon he encountered during training.
The stress of living this double life is hard on Hiccup, however. The other Vikings, particularly Astrid Hofferson, take notice of his sudden rise in skill, as well as his unexplained absences after Dragon Training sessions, although no one really comments on it. Eventually, after Hiccup placed top in training, Astrid managed to follow him and discovers Toothless. She ran off to tell the other Vikings, but Hiccup and Toothless stop her.
They took her on a romantic flight around the area to calm Astrid down. It's during this ride that Hiccup saw the Red Death in the very Dragons' Nest his father had been trying to find and destroy. When they land, Hiccup managed to convince Astrid not to tell anyone about anything that happened, showing how loyal he was to his dragon. After their conversation, Astrid punched Hiccup in the shoulder for kidnapping her, and then she kissed him on the cheek, seeming to admire his loyalty.
The next day, Hiccup is required to fight and kill a Monstrous Nightmare as part of his final exam during Dragon Training. The task went horribly wrong, however when Stoick swung his hammer against the Dragon Training cage in response to Hiccup's blasphemous claims that dragons 'aren't what we think they are' and that 'we don't have to kill them'. Hiccup's methods of dragon appeasement no longer work and the Nightmare moved in for the kill. Toothless, hearing Hiccup's scream in fear, tries to get out of the cove where he's been safely hidden since befriending Hiccup, and, succeeding for the first time, rushed to the scene and beat the other dragon back while at the same time revealing himself to all the Vikings.
Though Hiccup attempts to explain why he went against the Viking way of life and befriended a dragon, his father refused to listen, and disowned him as his son, and instead took advantage of Toothless, chaining him to a ship and using him to reach the Dragons' Nest. As the adult Vikings left in search of the Nest, Astrid talked to Hiccup about the entire situation, trying to comfort him, showing him that his refusal to kill a dragon was strength and not a weakness as he believed. She finally asked him what he was going to do about it, to which he answered 'something crazy.' He goes off to do his 'crazy' plan, while Astrid gathers the other Viking teenagers.
Hiccup brought out the now docile Monstrous Nightmare, followed by the other dragons kept at the arena, and taught the other teens how to ride on the back of a dragon. While the Vikings tried to fight a losing fight against the Red Death, the teens flew into the scene on the backs of the dragons, with Gobber commenting to Stoick that Hiccup is, 'every bit the boar-headed, stubborn Viking you ever were'. Hiccup went onto the burning ship where Toothless is, and tried to free him, but soon the Red Death caused the ship to sink into the sea, pulling Toothless down with it. Hiccup dove into the water in a desperate attempt to free Toothless, but went limp after a few moments of trying due to lack of air.
He was then saved by his father, who dove back into the sea to free Toothless from his chains. After Toothless surfaced with Stoick in his claws, Hiccup mounted Toothless in preparation to face the Red Death. Stoick apologized to his son for not listening to him. He continues saying he doesn't have to partake in the battle, to which Hiccup replies by quoting his father's catchphrase, 'We're Vikings. It's an occupational hazard.'
In response to the familiar words, Stoick told Hiccup how proud he is to call him his son. Hiccup and Toothless then flew off to confront the Red Death themselves and soon have the enormous dragon pursuing them into the clouds. Hiccup managed to kill the Red Death by having Toothless dive towards the Nest at a high speed, finally blasting a plasma bolt into its mouth, consuming the larger dragon from the inside. As the village approached the site of the explosion and found that Hiccup is nowhere to be found, Stoick soon discovered that, even without his makeshift tail, Toothless has protected the future chief from the fire by folding him in his wings.
Stoick wholeheartedly apologized to Toothless, and was deeply thankful to the dragon for bringing his son back to him alive. When he woke up after three weeks, Hiccup was heralded as a hero in the tribe. Although he lost his left foot and lower shin when he and Toothless fell into the fiery cloud, he was fitted with a prosthetic that Gobber designed and fabricated, 'with a little Hiccup flair thrown in.' This new prosthetic matched Toothless' new left control stirrup which Gobber had also redesigned, and clipped right into place, as if he and Toothless were one.
Astrid then punched Hiccup for scaring her, and then she kissed Hiccup on the lips, as the rest of the village accepts dragons into the island as companions. Five years later Hiccup has made Berk fully involved in riding dragons, during his years on Berk he has made great contributions such as custom stables, all you can eat feeding stations, a full-service dragon wash, top of the line fire prevention methods, even making Dragon Races that now serve as entertainment for Berk, putting the dragon problem fully behind them. Now that his hard work had paid off, Hiccup and Toothless traveled across very distant lands and uncharted territories. He was also uses this as a reason to avoid his father.
Hiccup is also known as The Pride of Berk throughout the village, and Stoick believed he was ready to succeed him as chieftain. This pressures Hiccup, because he doesn't think he's fully ready for such a big responsibility. As Hiccup and Astrid come across the destroyed fort of Eret, Son of Eret, Hiccup discovered that there are other Dragon Riders and heared from Eret, about the tyrannical Drago Bludvist, who was currently assembling a huge dragon army to take over the world. Hiccup and Astrid escaped from Eret's men and head back to Berk.
As they arrive, Hiccup informs his father about Drago Bludvist, and Stoick quickly ordered the villagers to fortify and protect the island from the 'madman', but Hiccup suggests that there must be another way besides war. His father rejected this and ordered the men to close the stalls and keep the other dragons under lock-and-key. But Hiccup refuses this method, and staged a mutiny by escaping from the stalls before the doors close, with Astrid following him. Hiccup headed back to Eret, and told them that he wanted to meet Drago so he could change his mind about dragons, but Stoick, Gobber and the other Riders interfered as they managed to find them.
Stoick didn't want Hiccup to go through with his plan, as he explained that Drago kills people without reason and concluded that he could not be reasoned with. Even so, Hiccup still refused to believe this and rebels against his father's wishes to find him. Toothless became worried for his friend, but Hiccup promised that he'll keep him under protection no matter what. Suddenly, a figure emerged, and Hiccup thought that it's his dad again but discovered a mysterious vigilante Dragon Rider, whom he later discovers was his long lost mother, Valka.
Hiccup wondered why Valka never had the intention to return to Berk after all the years that she survived. Valka responded that when a dragon broke into their house and she quickly rushed to Hiccup's rescue but only discovered that the dragon was not a vicious beast, but a gentle and intelligent creature, whose soul reflected her own. However, Stoick spotted the dragon and interfered; the dragon attacked him nearly burning him alive. Valka told the dragon to spare him; the dragon suddenly looked at Valka while Stoick rescues an infant Hiccup.
But unable to rescue Valka who was abducted by the dragon, putting inside his mind that she was in fact going to get killed. But the dragon did not in fact harm her, and she never had the intention to return because she thought it would be safer for them, because she couldn't kill a dragon. Hiccup and his mom started over again and bond with each other more mutually this time with their dragons and enjoy the time they have. Later, Hiccup discovers also that Valka does not have the intention to reason with Drago and decides to do it himself.
Suddenly, Stoick and Gobber located him and are about to escape the Sanctuary, but Stoick was shocked in silence to see his beautiful wife still alive and they rekindle their once more. Hiccup had never experienced such joy in reuniting with his mother and father. However, their celebration was cut short; they were unaware that Drago had set up their weapons on shore and orders the final attack on the Sanctuary. Later, the Bewilderbeasts engage on one another to determine who was truly the Alpha of all the Dragons.
Unfortunately, Drago's Bewilderbeast emerged victorious. Hiccup confronted Drago, and tried to reason with him but Drago ignored his claims and ordered his Bewilderbeast to kill Hiccup, which decided to send in Toothless instead. Toothless, now hypnotized, fired a plasma blast at Stoick, who manages to push Hiccup away and was killed instead. Hiccup, Valka, Gobber, Astrid, and the other Riders held a funeral for Stoick where Hiccup said his last wishes to his father.
It seems that all hope is lost, as Drago and his Bewilderbeast freeze Berk, but Hiccup becomes inspired by his mother's words, and was now determined to avenge his father and continue his legacy and get his best friend back. Flying back to Berk on baby dragons, he quickly arrived to face Drago and tried to disenchant Toothless saying he knew Toothless would never hurt him or Stoick willingly, which he amazingly succeeded. Now, Hiccup and Toothless managed to fend off Drago and his Bewilderbeast and concluded that it was over, unaware that the Bewilderbeast had them in its sights and fires at them, encasing them in a huge blast of ice. Drago felt victorious, but the huge ice explodes and discovers that Hiccup and Toothless are unharmed.
Toothless, now glowing with plasma, challenged the Alpha to protect his Rider. Toothless simultaneously fired plasma blast and freed the other dragons, who were touched by the bond between him and Hiccup. Drago is shocked to believe this. Hiccup orders Drago to stand down and let this end, but Drago strongly refuses and orders his Bewilderbeast to attack but unable to as all the dragons fire at it. Toothless fired one last plasma blast which massively explodes, destroying the Bewilderbeast's left horn, and defeating it at the same time.
The Bewilderbeast retreated to the ocean, along with Drago. Finally, the fight was over and Toothless was acknowledged as the new Alpha. Hiccup was then crowned as the new Chief of Berk by Gothi the Elder. The dragons and villagers celebrate, and Hiccup continues his father's legacy by building a statue in his honor.
At the end, he had a dragon race with all his friends and puts the black sheep into Astrid's sheep pile instead of his own as Hiccup proudly announced that they may be a small community but are capable of maintaining peace and can stop those who oppose, and they have something that even the greatest invaders don't have: they may have armies and armadas but Berk had their own dragons.
At least before the Grimm came.
What had started as the beginning of an era of peace quickly turned into a new of war as the Grimm finally reached Berk, attacking the dragons. Hiccup led the dragons and the Vikings against the Grimm, managing to hold them back but the Grimm appeared in many forms, including as dragons. Unlike dragons through the Grimm had no soul, no intellect and no compassion, driven only to kill those they deemed their enemies. The fighting continued for years and Hiccup watched as friends and family died around him. Finally realizing that Berk was no longer safe he sought out a new place for the Vikings to not only live in but to hide them and their dragons from the Grimm.
He eventually found such a place and returned home to begin the exodus. However the Grimm came in greater numbers now, led by Drago who was now encased in stone and a mysterious leader with eyes resembling the eyes of the Grimm. Hiccup stayed behind, rallying his fellow Vikings to protect the tribe as they fled and though Berk was devastated in the battle they managed to escape.
All except for Hiccup.
Hiccup was then sealed in a crystal, never able to move or do anything as he was buried deep within the ruins of Berk for centuries. Throughout the time of being imprisoned, Hiccup learnt to control the earth lava around him, transforming his body through the curse and turning the isle as his fortress with traps and paths for those worthy to defeat him, hoping to grant him a warrior's death to enter Valhalla. Writing down his history so nobody would forget his story, yet became very lonely believing the dragons to be extinct, his family and friends gone, with his morality somewhat eroded as he mostly sleeps and kills warriors who enter with few living to escape. During his existence as a creature of rock guarding his home, he would continue to fight and challenge any who dare come upon the island, but none prevailed to release him of his curse.
While considered dead, in New Berk Hiccup is considered a legend and a great man. The God known as Odin having also sensed Hiccup though would do nothing...for now. During a failed attempt in trying to capture Peridot, a Crystal Gem named Pearl would come across the ruined island of Berk, where she was urged to enter the domain under the gist of a strange voice. In turn though, she fell and almost died to many traps, but survived them thanks to her great skill and heritage as a Gem, eventually passing through them all when finally she met him. Hiccup the lava monster believing her to be a possible candidate for him then challenged her himself, seeing her as a way he could die as she was the first in numerous years of his existence to even survive and make it down here.
They would clash in a fearsome battle, with Hiccup having a good advantage most of the time. Pearl however would soon best him with Hiccup becoming impressed and having hopes that this would be it, this would be his end. However due to her oath she would not, with Hiccup then explaining his history to her. While feeling sorrow for him, Pearl still couldn't do it but asked if there might have been a way to end it.
Hiccup would simply state there was no other way, but would respect her choice and enter his slumber once more as he decided he would wait for another warrior to come. Pearl leaving in regret for the man wishing Rose and Steven could have been there for him. After having lost his way, Dracon would also find himself entering the island a bit after Pearl after learning the truth of Sammael and the future. There he would enter the island finding many traps and at first angered someone would even do this.
Like Pearl before him, he would make his way through and meet Hiccup who had been amazed a second warrior would come so soon after the first. Like Pearl, he challenged Dracon in a fight against him, but with having some difficult due to being a bit weaker compared to before. Yet even then he still managed a good fight, though questioned the lava monsters purpose and this other person that came before him. Hiccup simply stating Dracon will either die, or succeed and maybe do what Pearl couldn't.
In the end while difficult, Dracon won yet like Pearl, wasn't sure if he could do it. Hiccup then re-explaining his history to him, with Dracon feeling awful as he realized that Hiccup truly had no purpose at all, with the former Viking stating Dracon himself had a purpose, as despite what he said still yearned to live. Hiccup then telling Dracon that maybe there was a way he could regain his purpose, by going to the mountain where the man with Grimm eyes lives in. Opening a tunnel for him, Dracon would leave with Hiccup once more entering a great slumber.
While Hiccup is unaware of this, it would seem that the new God of Thunder Johnny Bravo has a quest given to him by Odin upon being the new Thor. According to Rossweisse, Johnny's quest is to visit the abandoned Isle of Berk to the lonely chief waiting to be sent to Valhalla. Pearl, then explaining her recent adventure there and came across a descendant of his tribe named Erika Ahlberg, decided to face him in a challenge in hopes of giving him the challenge he has long waited for.
Close File
Xxx
Fire…
That was all he could see.
His island…
His village…
His home.
All of it burning away into ash.
He hoped, prayed that his beloved had escaped with the rest of their family.
If they survived, he could pass in peace knowing that his family had survived.
His musings were stopped as a dark figure emerged from the fire, gesturing with his hands for a moment but when he did Grimm came from behind him, rushing past in the directions he had gestured. He looked up and saw the man's eyes…
They were not the eyes of a man.
They were the eyes of Grimm.
He was the one.
He had brought this destruction to his home.
With a roar he and his best friend attacked, lashing out at the man who taken everything from him. The earth itself rose up, stopping his friend from clawing or biting at the man.
"Blast him Toothless!" He shouted, not caring for the loss of life anymore.
Toothless roared, firing a condensed blast of fire at that the man who merely held out his hand, seemingly batting away the fire blast like an annoying bug. Only the man flinched and looked at his hand, seeing it was smoking but was otherwise unharmed thanks to his regenerative abilities.
"Impressive." The man remarked. "The power of dragons…Truly is everything I have heard."
"Why are you doing this?! Why destroy our homes?! Why cause all of this destruction?! What will doing all of this accomplish?!" He shouted, unable to understand why anyone would do this.
And to his utter shock and fury the man simply smirked. "My reasons are the same as your own."
"What?!" He sputtered, speechless for a second. "Our reasons are not the same! I tried to bring peace to the world!"
"You tried to remake the world in your image." The man retorted softly. "As does everyone who ever lives does. Peace, greed, power, happiness, love…"
The way the man said that final world was with a bit of anger in it but he returned to being calm. "All who live seek to make the world in their own image. You believed in a world where man and dragon live in peace despite the fact that your people wanted them gone. So you fought and struggled to change, to exert your will on the world and remake it in your image. That is what makes our goals the same and the same as every living being no matter how different you see them as."
The man then gestured to the surrounding fire. "I seek too to exert my will on the world and change it to reflect my ideals…Only it does not include you standing united with dragons."
Hiccup listened, his widening as the man spoke. "…That's it? That's all you can say?!"
"I do not need to say anymore. As I said, every being exists to exert their will on the world. Men of peace bring peace, warlords bring war and even those in between do so by becoming rich, having a family or simply deciding to do whatever makes them content." The man said simply. "That's all anyone ever needs to justify what they do."
"You are wrong!" Hiccup shouted, his dragon roaring with him. "That can never be enough to justify what you've done!"
"The spoken words of a man who watches the world he sought to create burning to the ground. You may survive Chief of Berk but your dream dies here." The man said before his eyes flared and behind him rose a Grimm resembling a Sea Dragon.
It all happened so fast.
One second he was riding Toothless into battle…
The next he falling to the ground and watching as his best friend fell to the flames. "Toothless!"
He rushed through the fire, frantically looking for his friend but could not find him.
And then the man appeared before him again.
"Your bond with your dragon is strong. That is why your life will remain yours, but that is all you will have."
What happened next sealed his fate.
The man's eyes flashed again, releasing beams of light that hit him…
He thought he was dead.
When he opened his eyes he wished he was dead.
He was now imprisoned in a crystal, unable to move or even breath but he wasn't suffocating.
He still had his sight and he could not look away as the man approached him again.
"Berk is your home. I will not deprive you of it. Instead you will be laid to rest here for all eternity." The man said, raising his hand.
Hiccup wanted to scream as he was buried alive, far below the surface and left in darkness. From that point on he was left alone, unable to move, speak, hear, sleep, or even die for an eternity.
He could not believe it was to be this way for eternity.
He couldn't allow it.
He WOULDN'T allow it!
Ages passed and though he could not break out of the crystal he forced his own mind to help him find a way to escape.
To even move an inch would be a blessing,
And then it happened.
The ground around him started to move and he realized his prison allowed his mind to connect with the rock around him.
This was it!
This was the answer!
He focused…
He focused with all his might.
For his home.
For his family.
For himself!
A hand made of pure rock burst out of the ground, followed by an arm, then a torso with another arm, a head and legs attached to the torso as it rose up.
He could move!
He was free!
And yet…
He was still trapped.
Trapped in this rock body.
Centuries had past and his family was long gone.
What was the point in leaving this place if the world outside was no longer his world?
Did his family even survive to leave behind descendants?
Perhaps he would never know.
He couldn't break the crystal to free himself.
Not only was suicide forbidden by his people but he also didn't believe in taking one's own life.
So he stayed.
He stayed and created a path that only the greatest of warriors could pass.
"Astrid, Mother, Father, Toothless…I know you've waited so long for me…I hope that someone does come and free me of this curse we can be reunited." Hiccup thought as he sank back into the ground. "Just wait for me a little longer."
Xxx
"Will you hurry up? I am growing impatient."
Van Rook rolled his eyes under his mask as he followed Bertha the Barbarian through the cavern. "Someone's been here before."
"And obviously failed." Bertha replied, slashing through several spears. "Come on. I am growing impatient."
'This is why I prefer to work alone.' Van Rook thought, saying nothing as he followed after Bertha.
Xxx
When Steven found Lion and convinced him to take them to Berk it was Pearl who gave the instructions. After all she had been on the island before and she knew that if they went through the same caverns as she did the traps might harm or kill Steven or the non-Gems with them. Lion emerged from the portal, landing on the ground and allowed everyone to dismount him as he sat down.
"Whoa…This is Berk?" Steven looked around, seeing the devastated remains of the island.
"Not much to look at." Amethyst commented.
"It used to be home to the Viking tribe that tamed the dragons." Rossweisse said, summoning her armor to her in a flash of light and looked up. "Speaking off which…"
The team looked up, spotting two dragons circling the mountain.
Steven went starry-eyed when he saw them. "Dragons?!"
The two dragons seemed to spot them as they flew down and landed in front of them. A blue portal opened up and out stepped Yara, North, Ross, Artemis and Superboy.
"Good. You made it." Erika said, getting off Moonlight. "I thought we'd have to risk going through all the traps and fighting Bertha and Van Rook in the middle of it all."
"So they haven't reached the chief?" Pearl asked.
"Nope. And if what you said about this Lion of yours is right we'll make there before they do." Erika said, gesturing to Lion. "You say he can get you in there?"
Pearl nodded. "Yes. I know the way in and I can guide him but Lion will only follow Steven. That's why we had to bring him along."
"A pink furred lion that can make portals?" Artemis mused quietly. "That's new, even for us."
"And I just realized he and I are not so different." Superboy replied with a small smile.
"Oh? And how's that?"
"He named his lion Lion while I named our wolf Wolf." Superboy answered, causing Artemis to raise an eyebrow when she realized he was right.
"I got my Semblance with me." Yara put in. "I just need to know where we are going and I can get us in there."
"And we better hurry. Bertha…can somehow affect time. I am not sure if it was with her Semblance or not but she's got some kind of time freezing powers." Ross said. "So we better move."
Garnet adjusted her visor and looked up at the mountain. "How is…Impossible!"
"Garnet?" Steven asked, seeing the Gem fusion in what was possibly distress.
"Some sort of time anomaly in there." Garnet gritted her teeth. "I've never seen anything like it."
"We better move then." Erika said, looking to Pearl. "Show us the way in."
Xxx
When they emerged through the other side of the portal Pearl's eyes widened and she stiffened upon seeing the familiar surroundings of the center of the lava golem's lair. They did not have to wait long for the golem to emerge from the center of the island in blast of heat and magma. Garnet shielded Steven from the lava while Rossweisse projected an energy shield to protect everyone else.
"Whoa mama!" Johnny exclaimed.
Steven looked on in awe and slight fear at the hulking mass before them that was completely black before red lines traveled through the ground and into the giant, highlighting the joints, the mouth and the eyes that opened up, revealing the familiar red sclera and white pupils that Pearl had seen before.
It looked down at the group, eyes zeroing in on Pearl. "So, you have returned. Have you come to finish our battle?"
"I have not come to fight, but I could not stand by and let you suffer any further. Which is why I brought someone who can." Pearl answered.
"Who? Who is this warrior to grant me my freedom?" He asked the Gem.
"I am." Erika called out for his attention and stood beside Pearl with her sword out, bearing a shield with her. "I am Erika Ahlberg, and I come to give you what has been denied for centuries. Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III."
To hear that name, unspoken for centuries since his demise…
His eyes locked on to the red haired warrior and the shield she bore... had the crest of the Night Fury.
Memories of his past flashed before him, his love, his friends and...His closest friend.
"Toothless." He whispered and gazed upon her to ask before he would battle the warrior before him. "Tell me, where do you hail from, warrior? And how do you come by that shield?"
She didn't hesitate and eagerly revealed her heritage to the cursed warrior, she pitied him and those who suffered the atrocities made by the Fallen who hold no remorse or regret for what they've done to the world.
"My ancestors hailed from what was once known as the Isle of Berk that we stand now. After the battle against the Grimm and the monster Drago, our people fled with our dragons where no one would find them to recover. With our will to fight and the bond with our dragons that can stand against the Grimm Horde and their masters, our tribes united to protect the Hidden World. Our people lived on because of the sacrifice of a great warrior who brought peace between humans and dragons." Tears ran down her cheeks, remembering the story Pearl told her from how he became like this, to live for centuries in a body of rock, never given the freedom he desired to see his loved ones again.
But now she has come to end it, through a grave sacrifice she must make.
To hear the story from the Viking who stands before him, his people survived and the dragons lived on in secret. The dream he once fought for truly lived on. "My people... and my family? Did they survive? I must know, Erika Alhberg of Berk, did my wife and children live on?"
She looks at him and nods her head. "Yes, we kept their history safe; your children lived on, married and had families of their own. Their blood runs strong, as well as in me."
Hiccup's eyes widened in shock as he gazed upon what was essentially his granddaughter, give or take a thousand years. "They lived?"
"Yes." Erika nodded.
"They lived." Hiccup closed his eyes, his entire body shaking as he processed what he had learned.
They lived!
They lived to have a family!
His people survived!
Looking upon Erika he could see something that reminded him of his beloved wife. 'Astrid…'
If not for the fact his molten form would kill her he would have hugged the young Viking woman in pure relief and happiness.
His family was alive.
He still had a family!
"And not just them." Erika said as another portal appeared and out of it stepped Moonlight and Stryker who stopped and stared at Hiccup for a second, seemingly wondering if he was a threat of not before simply standing next to Erika and Doyle. "This is Moonlight, a descendant of Toothless…"
"A descendant…Toothless…lived?" Hiccup questioned, kneeling down in front of the dragon who looked wary of him.
He held out a simple finger to Moonlight who stared for a moment before pressing her head against it.
"Yes. As soon as the tribe was safe in New Berk Astrid came back to Berk but couldn't find you. She found Toothless who had been left behind. He was injured and living on fish he caught in the ocean. They tried to find you but couldn't and Astrid had to return home and took Toothless with her. He found someone in the Hidden World and Moonlight came from that line."
"Toothless…lived." Hiccup whispered, staring at Moonlight. "She looks…just like him."
"He missed you…They never forgot you." Erika said.
"Just as I never forgot them."
"Chief Hiccup, we don't have much time." Erika said, earning the giant's attention on her again. "There are people coming for you. They want to use you to find the dragons, to hunt them and use them like in the old days. Your traps won't hold them back long."
"And what do you suggest, Erika?" Hiccup asked.
Erika unsheathed her sword Aegir while tossing Ran at Ross who caught it. "I challenge you, warrior to warrior. You seek to enter Valhalla and take your seat at the table of kings, well here's your chance."
"What?!" Steven gasped.
"You and me, a battle to the end by the warrior's code." Erika stated. "What say you?"
"You challenge me?" Hiccup asked with widened eyes.
"What happened to you was a crime. I am here to set you free and correct that which should have been done centuries ago." Erika declared. "Do you accept?"
"I thought we came to help him!" Steven protested.
"She is helping him, young Steven." North replied to the young hybrid. "Chief Hiccup has spent years trapped here as a prisoner in a rock body. Though Erika is his descendant his family has long since passed, leaving nothing for him here in this time. He cannot simply be set free and find his place here in this new time, not when the crystal is the only thing keeping him alive."
"This is also a personal matter between Hiccup and Erika. Both are from the same tribe of Vikings that lived on this island, a warrior tribe. This is not something that we outsiders can simply protest." Ross said.
"But killing him…" Steven trailed off.
Pearl placed a hand on Steven's shoulders. "I know, Steven. I didn't want it to be this way either and that's why I couldn't finish the fight when I was here. I may not be one of them but I understand them as a Crystal Gem who fought alongside your mother. I learned what it meant to be a knight from Earth's warriors of that time and I know that is something we cannot interfere with."
The ground in front of them cracked, splitting apart from the rest of the island so the rest of the group would not interfere in the battle.
"Erika Alhberg of New Berk…" Hiccup said, summoning a crystal sword made from his body. "I accept your challenge. At last, the gates of Valhalla open to me."
He raised his sword and the battle began.
Xxx
"This too easy. All the so-called warriors who died here must be terribly weak." Bertha the Barbarian muttered, using her time magic to freeze time long enough to avoid being drowned in lava and pelted with crystal shards. "Did you even need me for this?"
"Look, our employer promised to pay us both for this job." Van Rook said as they walked through the room of shooting crystalline shards and stopped at the edge, looking down to see a canyon of spikes. "I'm an expert tracker and you're an expert on the people out here. So let's find this so-called chief, make him tell us where New Berk is and we can go our separate ways."
"Unless he plans on pairing us when he sends me to wipe out New Berk." Bertha replied as she jumped over the edge, landing on the pathway below and avoiding falling to a gruesome death to the spikes below. "I have some scores to settle."
Van Rook chose to rocket down with his jetpack. The time freeze wore off then but neither was concerned as they followed the path. "A score huh?"
"Yes. Berk's tribe exiled my ancestors to that frozen lump called Outcast Island and we had to fight to survive for centuries. They left us to the cold and to the Grimm." Bertha smirked. "They are going to wish they hadn't when they see what they helped create."
Xxx
(Only the Strong Will Survive – Axel Rudi Pell Starts to Play)
He raised his sword and swung it down on Erika who brought Aegir and managed to block, straining by the giant's immense strength. Calling upon her Semblance she coated arms and legs in armor, using them to keep herself standing up and fight against Hiccup's strength. Sparks flew from the struggled and eventually the lock broke. Hiccup swung his sword again, clashing with Erika who parried and then slashed at Hiccup's arm when he left himself open.
Hiccup grunted, seemingly dropping his guard but as Erika tried to attack Hiccup swung his sword again. He lashed out but Erika jumped over the blade, flying at Hiccup's head. The giant ducked under a swing and lashed out with his sword again. Erika jumped back, dodging the strike and then charged back again. Both Vikings slashed at each other, sending sparks flying with each strike. Erika was fast, relying on speed and agility as counter to Hiccup's large size and strength.
"Wow. Look at them go!" Johnny said, pulling out a bag of popcorn.
"Yeah." Amethyst quickly stole a bit from the bag. "And I thought watching Pearl and Peridot's robot fight would be fun."
"Guys! This isn't fun! They're trying to kill each other!" Steven exclaimed.
"To save a soul, little man." Bunny Bravo said to the child. "Vikings are a warrior culture. In order to pass into Valhalla they have to fall in combat to another warrior. Erika is trying to free not only his body but also his soul and it's only through this is can be done."
"Why not just simply let us break it?" Steven asked.
"Like I said, it's the only way into Valhalla. He can't commit suicide to free himself because it goes against what he and his people believe in and simply letting us break it would be seen as surrender, not a defeat." Bunny replied. "It's not perfect but it's their way."
"This is important to Erika, kid." Doyle spoke up. "That chief brought peace between the Vikings and the Dragons centuries ago and he's had to suffer all these years. As the daughter of a chief and his descendant she sees it as her personal mission to free him."
"And our mission is to make sure no one gets in the way." Rossweisse said, looking up. "Like those two."
Looking up, the group watched as Bertha the Barbarian and Van Rook blasted through the spiked tunnel above and landed on a rocky platform not far away. Upon landing the two stood up and spotted the group and the fight.
"What?! How did they get here?! I get breaking free and dealing with guards but getting here before us?!" Van Rook exclaimed.
Bertha narrowed her eyes, seeing Erika fighting Hiccup. "So they want to die together huh? Fine."
"Johnny, quick! Throw Mjolnir at Bertha!" Rossweisse pointed at the Barbarian as the Infinity Symbol flashed on her forehead.
"What?"
"Just do it!"
"Okay!" Johnny yelped as he pulled out Mjolnir, doing a quick pose, spinning it and then threw it right at Bertha the Barbarian.
"Nice try." Bertha smirked as time froze around her. "It's a pity none of you understand the depths of the power I have-GAH!"
To her immense shock Mjolnir did not stop and flew straight at Bertha who failed to realize what had happened as it slammed into her. The magic she used to freeze time broke and Bertha was sent crashing through the cavern walls until she flew out the other side. With one final crash she shot out of the mountain as if she had been propelled by a catapult and plummeted into the ocean below. Back inside the mountain aside from Erika and Hiccup who continued fighting everyone at Johnny as Mjolnir returned to his hand.
"Wow…So uh…What just happened?" Johnny scratched his head.
"Did that hammer just take down the chick who could stop time?" Artemis asked, pointing at Mjolnir.
"Did it do that?" Johnny asked, holding up the enchanted hammer.
"Yes it did." Rossweisse nodded, earning everyone's attention. "That is part of the reason I requested Johnny to be here if he did not end up fighting Hiccup."
"You knew the hammer would be immune?" Ross questioned. "How?"
"Mjolnir was enchanted by All-Father Odin to not only allow those who worthy to wield it but also to be impervious to all forms of change and magic, including time. There is no power in the universe aside from Odin's that can affect Mjolnir and thus it is immune to the time magic that Bertha the Barbarian wields." Rossweisse explained.
"So once Johnny threw the hammer it couldn't be stopped when she tried to freeze time around us." North caught on.
"Exactly." Rossweisse nodded, looking to Van Rook. "Now I believe there was only one."
Van Rook had been caught off guard when Bertha had been shot out of the cavern like a cannon ball and thus barely had time to react as Doyle shot at him, slamming into him and delivered a good punch to the chin. "I've been waiting to do this for a long time!"
"You worthless piece of-" Van Rook was cut off as Doyle slugged him again.
Doyle slammed him down onto a platform and slugged him several more times before Van Rook finally caught Doyle's last punch. Doyle looked down and noticed that Van Rock's body was becoming covered in high tech armor.
"I don't like using this because it costs me a fortune!" Van Rook shouted, now covered head to toe in grey armor, complete with missile launchers, flame throwers and a giant gatling gun attached to the left shoulder. "You made me use my Semblance!"
"That's your Semblance? Making armor appear out of nothing?" Doyle asked, taking a step back.
"If only it was that simple!" Van Rook shouted. "You think I get this for free?! My Semblance allows me to create anything I want out of anything I got available to me such as the metallic components in the cavern surrounding us. The only problem is when I use it…It drains my bank account!"
"Ouch." Doyle commented, knowing how much Van Rook loved money. "So how much did you lose?"
"TOO MUCH! NOT EVEN ENOUGH CASHING YOUR HEAD IN WOULD COVER EVEN A THIRD OF WHAT I LOST!" Van Rook shouted, completely enraged now.
His shoulder gun aimed and fight at Doyle who shot up into the air, using his jet pack to avoid getting riffled with bullets. "Should have just tucked them under your mattress!"
Artemis tested her new bow, firing an arrow at Van Rook. The arrow had Fire Dust in its head and hit Van Rook head on…Only for him to reveal himself unharmed as he stepped through the smoke.
"If there is one good thing about my Semblance is that I can use it to make absolutely anything. From this power armor to the best offensive and defensive equipment." Van Rook muttered.
"Let's see how it fares against me." Superboy said, jumped onto the platform and aiming to deliver a powerful punch to Van Rook's face.
However the mercenary spun out of the way, firing a cable that wrapped around Superboy's legs. With a tug Superboy's legs were pulled out from under him and then Van Rook swung him around, smashing him onto nearby platforms several times before releasing the cable, leaving the half Kryptonian to fall into the magma. Luckily a blue vortex appeared under him and Superboy fell through, landing back at the group, thanks to Yara. North was next, jumping onto the platform and twirling his Ruby Dragon.
Van Rook aimed his shoulder gun and fired at North who quickly spun Ruby Dragon in his hand, successfully blocking the incoming bullets.
"I am starting to get annoyed." Van Rook grunted as he ceased fire.
Just as North moved to try and take Van Rook down, the mercenaries red tinted visor glowed and released twin beams of red light that collided with North and sent him flying off of the platform.
"Yara!" Ross called out.
Yara immediately formed a portal with her Semblance that North fell through instead of landing in the magma.
"This is getting us nowhere. His armor is literally making him a one man army." Ross muttered, watching as Van Rook shot up into the air.
"Then you will need a one man army to stop him." Rossweisse turned to Johnny. "This is your chance, Johnny."
"Me?" Johnny gestured to himself.
"Yes, you." Rossweisse nodded. "Since Erika is facing Hiccup and you've already stopped Bertha you can stop the mercenary as well. You are the new Thunderer, the mightiest of the Aesir!"
"Uhhh…" Johnny looked between her and the ongoing battles. "Yeah, I don't know."
"Johnny Bravo you get up there and fight evil." Bunny Bravo said sternly, hands on her hips.
"Yes mama." Johnny immediately spun Mjolnir by its strap. "Okay so how do I do this ag-AAAAAAH!" He shrieked as the hammer lifted him up into the air after it.
Rossweisse sighed in despair. "…why do I feel like the Nine Realms are doomed?"
Overhead, Van Rook was prepared to launch his next attack when his armor warned him of an incoming object. "What in the-" The cavern echoed with what sounded like a bell ringing as Van Rook was launched into the ceiling where he lay, embedded into the rock for several moments before launching free to confront his attacker…
Who was flying around the edges of the cavern, wailing in terror in a high pitch.
"…this is your next big move?" Van Rook asked, unimpressed at the sight. "Well you've had your lucky hit, so let's end this nice and quick, shall we?" He began to lock onto Johnny while unfolding several racks of missiles.
Before he could fire any of them however, Johnny once again collided with him by mistake and knocked Van Rook from the air.
"Urgh!" The armored fighter grunted as he landed roughly. "You're really beginning to-"
GONG! He stumbled back as Johnny flew by.
"You're really begin-"
GONG!
"You're-"
GONG!
"ENOUGH!" Van Rook snarled. "If I get hit one more- oh come on!"
Above him, Johnny was plummeting at full speed, hanging onto Mjolnir for dear life without any concept of how to control its course. Van Rook groaned and let his arms fall limp at his sides.
"I hate magic-"
Johnny impacted on his position and unleashed a massive discharge of lightning which momentarily filled the chamber with a bright flash.
(Only the Strong Will Survive – Axel Rudi Pell Ends)
When it faded Bunny and Rossweisse approached to see Johnny stumbling out of the cloud of dust.
"Duh…waiter? Check please." He tumbled over, revealing that behind him Van Rook lay in a crater with Mjolnir sitting on his chest, keeping him pinned in place as he groaned in pain.
"Ow…life…is…agony." Van Rook whimpered. "Why didn't you just kill me?"
"He…won." Rossweisse stated, looking on in disbelief.
"That's my baby boy!" Bunny gushed, picking Johnny up in a hug. "Fighting evil and kicking butt just like his mom!"
"Thanks…mama." Johnny shook his head.
"Now you might want to get your hammer off of him before it caves is chest in." Rossweise advised.
"Oh, right!" Johnny held out his hand and summoned Mjolnir back to his hand…with Van Rook still stuck to it due to the hammer having buried itself halfway through his chest plate. "Oh, sorry about that. Hang on. Maybe if I just put my leg up on-" Johnny lifted one leg only to quickly lower it. "Oh no, sorry that's your goin. How about your knee right…here? And you know I can just-"
"No…!" Van Rook groaned and shook his head before Johnny pushed with his leg, dislodging him…but leaving his chest piece still firmly stuck to Mjolnir's head while its owner crashed to the ground in a heap. "Okay, please. Just take me to jail or something! Please! Keep this maniac away from me!"
Johnny beamed and held up his hammer in a pose. "Hey mama, I caught my first bad guy!"
"I can't wait to show Pops!" Bunny clasped her hands together. "He's going to be so proud of you, Johnny."
Xxx
Far away, Pops was polishing a glass behind the counter of his diner, care free as could be…until he felt a shiver race up his spine.
"Huh…" He looked around slowly. "Why did I just feel myself die a little inside?"
Xxx
"AAAH!"
Everyone turned around, looking back to the fight between Hiccup and Erika just in time to see Erika stab the lava monster in the chest. Erika had channeled her Aura into her sword, actually breaking through and stabbing the crystal.
The warrior's rock body starts to break down as Hiccup spoke in a relieved voice "After all these years, my freedom has arrived."
He knelt down, but raised his head up. "Accursed monster, your spell is broken!"
Xxx
Sammael looked out the glass window of his throne room, sensing and hearing a familiar presence. "So it has finally happened…"
Xxx
Hiccup screamed in victory as his rocky body exploded, finally releasing him. When everyone opened their eyes they did not see a rock giant.
They saw a young man with brown hair, a beard and wore a fur cloak over a basic green tunic, leather pants, and padding, all covered by a type of leather armor plating along his shoulders and upper chest, along with arm brackets. His left leg was an old and primitive prosthetic but even then he stood tall and proud.
"I am FREE!" He shouted, expressing his joy. "At last my flesh is restored and the curse is lifted..."
But his freedom came at a cost. Having been locked away in the crystal for millennia, the curse kept him displaced from the natural effects time would have taken on his body. No longer imprisoned, the dark magic which prevented him from aging was removed, and his vitality rapidly faded away until he reverted into a severely frail and decrepit old man. Barely able to move he collapsed, on the verge of dying.
"Hiccup!" Erika rushed over to him as the others gathered around them. "I…I…"
"Do not worry my granddaughter." The aged Hiccup said, his smile still as bright as ever. "Look after our tribe, young chief."
"I will." Erika vowed.
"Thank you." He said and finally passed away.
Everyone watched in sadness, Steven unable to look away and believing he could have helped. Rossweisse looked up and watched as the sky lit up. Everyone looked up, seeing the light and watched as two Valkyries clad in golden armor on horses arrived.
"Whoa…" Johnny whispered.
"Who are they?" Amethyst asked.
"Valkyries." Rossweisse said as the two women dismounted, coming up to the deceased Hiccup. "They have come for the chief."
They picked his body up and mounted their horses again before taking off back to the sky to take Hiccup to Valhalla. While initially saddened the group saw Hiccup awake from death to commence an afterlife of eternal paradise and gave them a smile before going up to the heavens.
"It's over." Erika sighed in relief. "It's finally over."
"That was…" Steven trailed off, almost completely speechless by what he had seen.
Garnet placed a hand on Steven's shoulder. "Yes it was, Steven. Yes it was."
"We better head back." Ross suggested.
"Wait. There is one last thing to do." Erika said, turning to Hiccup's monolith.
As a testament to his life, Erika ensures her ancestor's final fate was recorded by carving the image of the chief in a triumphant pose above the word 'FREE' on the monolith so that anyone who discovers it one day will know he received his salvation at last.
"So what do we do with him?" Yara asked, pointing to the down Van Rook.
Doyle smirked. "I got an idea."
Xxx
A blue vortex appeared and out of it came Van Rook who let out a scream as he fell onto the ground. When Van Rook managed to look up he saw men in guard uniforms surrounding him…in the middle of a prison yard.
"Ah phooey."
Xxx
"Now we can head back." Erika said as Team REYN along with Artemis and Superboy boarded the Stormfly while Steven and the Crystal Gems returned to GrimmFall on Lion.
As the groups left Berk, something streak around the mountain of the island. It was a golden axe that spun through the air, circling around the mountain for a moment before taking off to parts unknown…
'Must find the Harvester of Riches…Hail Crom.'
Xxx
"You want to spend time with the kids in the Hall of Heroes?"
Abby nodded. "Ed's the Slime Elemental. I think as long as he's here in GrimmFall I figure we might as well…Hang out for bit. At least we can swap contact information when he goes home. Is that okay?"
"Actually." Major Glory produced cards for the two Elementals along with Monty and Jennifer. "These will allow you to come and go as you please. I believe you've earned them. I know the boy and his friends will be staying with us until their friend awakens. Perhaps spending time with you and others here will be good for them."
Xxx
"This is insane!" Eddy stretched his arms and legs all around the room, watching in shock and horror as they easily stretched out like they were elastic. "What is going on?!"
Xxx
In the meantime Ed was in his room, opening his jacket and out came a little Terrible Terror that fell out onto the bed.
"Don't worry, Nester. It's safe to come out now." Ed said with a dopey smile.
Name: Leonidas Van Rook
Aura: Yellow
Semblance: Hoarder's Vault
Description: Van Rook is able to create anything he wants from surrounding material as long as he has enough money in his personal bank account. The more he uses it the more his account is drained. As long as he has the funding he can create almost anything, including high powered armor and weapons.