000

It all happened in a blur. One second she was staring into his reptilian eyes, and the next she was pressed against the hard timber behind her, his right arm pressed next to her head, obscuring her vision of the street, and focusing her attention on him. Her instincts screamed at her to react. To shove him back. To fight him. To show this Jormung she wasn't just some helpless woman. But that was the problem. He was a Jormung. His dragon blood gave him the strength comparable to that of ten Monstrous Nightmares, the speed of a Speed Stinger, and the agility of Deadly Nadder. He could easily end her life with his fists alone and be leagues away from the island by the time her body would be found. She brought her eyes back to meet his. Despite the relative darkness of the alley, she could see his face underneath that hood. He couldn't have been more than a year older than she was.

"Well now." His voice wasn't what she was expecting it to be either. Dagur didn't elaborate too much on his details, only that he was a cold-blooded, merciless killer. Although, he did say it with a hint of respect laced behind it. Guess it took a maniac to know a maniac. "I've been around the Archipelago, but never in my wildest imagination did I ever come across a flower like you." He leaned in closer, up to the point where she could feel his breath on her face.

She tensed up even further. "Then you should know very well that beautiful things normally end up killing you."

He scoffed. "Reach for the dagger in your waistband. Spoiler alert, it'll wind up in your neck if you're not fast enough."

"Why are you here?"

"Well isn't it obvious? I'm here for the celebrations. It's not every day when a village looks back upon the remarkable feat of capturing a Legendary Class dragon." Every time she tried to get a glimpse of the street, he'd shift his arm, impeding her view. That's when she realized their positions. His face was obscured by his hood. His arm was not only blocking her vision of the street, it was preventing any passer-by from recognizing that it was her. And with the number of people and mead going around the village, no one's going to think twice about a man and a woman in the shadows of an alley, coupled with their close proximity.

"If you're here to do something about the bounty my brother has on you, you're wasting your time."

"Finally, someone who cuts straight to the point. It's hard to believe you're a Berserker."

"Yeah well give me some space and you'll see what I'm capable of."

"I wouldn't recommend that. I wouldn't want to kill someone like you."

"Is that the same line you used before you slaughtered our people?"

The way his eyes turned into slits in a second was unnatural to say the least. "If you're as smart than I give you credit for, then you should know your people came after me first." He snarled, baring his teeth, and she could see certain teeth that resembled those that she's seen in many a jaws' of dragons. "They shouldn't have underestimated me to begin with. And besides, it wasn't like I wanted to be there. I was just tying up a loose end. For good." If she could just keep him talking long enough, she could come up with a plan to escape his presence and warn the guards and her brother.

She steeled herself and looked him square in his draconian eyes, "You still didn't explain as to why you're here."

He smirked. "For insurance."

"Insurance?" She gasped when he slammed the palm of his hand next to her head.

"Your brother has had it out for me ever since I sank his toy fleet." He closed the distance between them, only a hair's length between their faces. "Now, it's not like I'm not up for the challenge. But when innocent dragons are being hunted and slaughtered just because of my bounty, well, that's something I can't ignore. Which is why I'm here to tell him to call it off."

She swallowed. Already not liking where this was going. "He won't listen to you."

"I know. But he will if I have something-" He brushed a strand of her hair from her ear as he leaned in, "-precious to him." He whispered. Her eyes widened at the sudden realization. She was his insurance. He figured Dagur would call off the bounty if he held her hostage. And he assumed right. There weren't a lot of things Dagur held close to his heart. But family was one of them. And she was the only immediate family he had on the island. He wouldn't dare risk her life for his personal vendettas.

Screw talking to him and thinking of a plan. If she could just escape his space, she could stun him for a few seconds. Enough time to make it to the busy street and call for help.

"Don't even think about it."

'H-How did he-' She met his eyes and she could tell he wasn't playing any games. "You think you can make it to the street and warn them?" His laugh sent chills down her spine. "Go ahead. Try it. I'll even give you a ten second head start." He stepped back and extended his arm towards the street, challenging her. "But know this, the moment I start chasing you, I'll take down any man or woman who gets in my way. Are you willing to take that risk? Because all those people I kill, their deaths will be on your conscious, because you just had to be difficult."

"Y-You really are a monster." She nearly spit in his face. How could he care so little for human life?

He ignored her comment. "Well? What's it gonna be?"

She cast her eyes down, to the space between their feet, shuddering as the gravity of the situation finally set in. She had to go with him. Willingly. To avoid any unnecessary loss of life. She had to go with the thing that destroyed her brother's fleet. That killed each and every Berserker that was part of their tribe. Completely ignorant of the fact that those men had families. They were fathers, husbands, sons, brothers. And he had taken them. She couldn't let something like that happen again.

"I-I-I'll go w-with you." She'd be putting her life entirely in his hands. She trembled at the thought of what he might do to her. But there was no time to think about that. Not when her people's lives were at stake. "O-On one condition." She collected herself, staring him in the eye. She must have been crying more than she was because she almost saw a flash of sympathy in his eyes. "You don't harm a single person as we leave this island."

He placed his hand on his chest and locked eyes with her. "I swear."

Like she could believe anything he said. But there was no going back now. If she wanted to have any assurance that her people would be safe, she'd be going with him.

He backed up from her, and gestured to the busy street. "Turn left."

'What? He wants me to head...to the village centre?' Just what was he planning? That was where her brother was!

She took a deep breath, smoothing out her clothes and marched ahead of him onto the busy path while he followed a step behind. The villagers all greeted her, complimenting her on yet another great festival, oblivious to her situation. She chalked that up to how well she hid her emotions, putting on a proud smile at their compliments and thanking them as she walked by. And yet no one ever questioned-

"Miss Heather, who's that behind you?"

'Shit.'

She turned her head to see one of her guards' leaders, with a few of his men resting by a table with tankards in hand.

"Hi Arn. This is just a friend whom I met on my trip to the Northern Markets a few weeks ago. I told him about the festival we'd be having. I'd gone by the docks to welcome him." The hood he was wearing kept his eyes hidden from view. He was impressed by her calmness and quick thinking. Normally people wouldn't be able to hide their fear so well.

"You never mentioned anything about that when you returned."

"It was meant to be a surprise. You see, he wowed me with tales of his travels and dragon trophies." She smirked, patting Ripper on the shoulder, despite being a foot shorter. She felt him tense up at that remark. "Oh yeah, he had the heads of Whispering Deaths, Razorwhips, Changelings and many more. It was quite the collection." She'd make this as uncomfortable for him too.

"Is that so?" Arn gazed at the hooded figure. "That's mighty impressive lad. You're almost on par with our Chief!"

"Thank you." He replied, before nudging Heather.

"Well, I'm just taking him to see my brother, so enjoy the rest of the night guys!" She bid them goodbye.

"That was well done." Ripper said as soon as they were a safe distance away. "Although you were a bit over the top with the dragon trophies."

"Had to make it believable, didn't I? Just be glad they didn't press further. The guards are under strict orders to question any man I associate myself with."

"That's perfect. This'll be even better than I hoped for." He smirked. She didn't like the look on his face. They were in the main square now. Her brother was in the centre, near the statues of the Oswald family. "Don't think of making eye contact." He grabbed her arm and directed her towards a path that led into the forests of Berserker island. However, just as they almost disappeared down the crowded street, she didn't expect that the Jormung wouldn't follow his own advice.

"Stop. Right. There." The sudden stop jerked her back into her captor's chest as they both turned around.

Dagur saw his sister passing through the crowd. His smile turned into a frown when he saw a stranger holding her arm, taking her down another path. His worry turned into downright panic when the figure lifted his hood a little, draconic eyes glaring right back at him, with a shit-eating grin. Dagur had prepared for his next encounter with the Jormung. Be it on some far away land, in the wilderness, where it would be just him, his men and the Jormung and his beasts. Never did he anticipate that that face-off would be in the centre of his village. His island. With his sister in his clutches. He dropped his mug on the table and unsheathed his sword, rage drowning his eyes. The festive atmosphere soon gave way to a tense, hostile showdown. The rest of his men, coming to their senses towards the situation, leaped into action. Anyone with a spear, sword, mace or ax surrounded the two. Archers hurried to the rooftops, at the ready once they were in position. One mistake and they'd let him have one in his skull.

"What are you-" Heather was brought face to face with her brother as Ripper pressed his forearm against her neck, keeping her pressed against him and staring maniacally at her brother, with his hood drawn back, showing the entire crowd just who they were facing.

"Been a while, huh Chief?" Heather glanced between him and her brother. In all her life, she had never seen Dagur look that deranged. What was this guy thinking? If Dagur caught him, death would never come. It'd be a continuous hell for him. Fuck it. Even hell would be a welcome sight compared to what her brother was capable of when he was a new level of deranged.

"Let. Her. Go. And I may consider giving you a quick death." He seethed, closing the gap between them, halting his tracks when he saw the Jormung wrap his hand around Heather's neck, making her gasp.

"Any sudden movement, arrow, or stab in my direction, and I'll crush her neck." He warned, tightening his grip around her throat, enough to where she started grasping his fingers to release her. Dagur continued to stare him down with murderous intent, before giving the order for his men to back off. "Well, what do you know? Guess you can learn from your mistakes." Ripper mocked him, reminiscing back to their first encounter. He released his grip on Heather's neck, not before pressing her against his front, making sure she couldn't escape.

"What do you want from me?" He spat through gritted teeth.

"Straight to the point. I like it. I want you to call off your bounty on me...and while we're at it, why don't you stop hunting dragons too?"

"You think you can just march onto my island, hold my sister captive, and make demands?!"

Ripper had a 'really?' expression that annoyed the hell of out of Dagur. "Didn't...didn't I just do that?" Finally gesturing to Heather.

"Don't think you can just waltz right out of here!"

"I intend to. We both know you're not going to risk your only surviving kin's life now, are you?"

Heather knew he was right. He already won, but why was he going through the trouble of putting on a show? Did he really hate her brother that much? He was the one who did all the damage their last meeting. What right did he have to put Dagur through this?

"You don't think I'll kill her? It's not hard for me to crush her throat with my forearm, Dagur. And let me educate on what would happen following your sister's, unfortunate, death." He cleared his throat. "You and the rest of your men will be too stunned, watching her lifeless corpse fall to the ground, and while the whirlwind emotions of shock, sadness, anger, vengeance, and grief unfurl in your mind, I will be making my escape, climbing to the rooftops, kill the archers up there who pose a threat or are in my way, meet up with my dragons and disappear into the night. And you can come after me all you like. Send all the ships, men, mercenaries, bounty and dragon hunters, they won't make a lick of difference. I'll kill them all. I'll take everything from you until you're all that's left. And only then, will I put you out of your misery."

Heather wasn't sure how the hilt of Dagur's sword was still in one piece. The veins in his face and arms were another insult away from bursting. "Sir?" One of his commanders asked, waiting for an order. His men were itching at the chance at swarming the invader. They respected their Chief, but more so loved Heather. She was tough, but she was caring, kind, and would always look after the families of their fallen brethren. They were just as on edge as Dagur as was. Praying to the Gods that they'd be able to get Heather back.

Said girl however saw the fear in everyone's eyes. If his dragons were here, one yell would probably mean the end of all of them. And if that monstrous white nightmare, as Dagur had described, was on the island, they were all dead.

"What's it going to be Dagur? You let me walk with her-" He nuzzled her hair, taking a deep breath of her scent. He felt her tense up, looking anywhere but her brother's eyes, and he caught the look on his face, sending him a not too friendly grin. "Don't worry, Dagur. If you keep your end of the bargain, I'll let her go. And who knows what'll happen by then." Ripper moved his free hand to Heather's stomach, gliding his fingers over her abdomen. Both Heather and Dagur didn't miss the implication. Heather stifled down a sob while Dagur did drove his sword into the ground in front of him. "You might even be an uncle." He licked Heather's cheek. She shook her head, and struggled even harder but her effort wasn't having any effect on his grip.

'Just how strong is he...'

"You touch her and I swear to the All Father, you won't have a moment's peace. I'll slaughter every dragon that comes before me. If you think you have to keep glancing over your shoulder now, you'll have to grow a second head to be on the look out for me!"

"Yes, yes. Now, do we have a deal?"

Those seconds felt like an eternity for Dagur, nodding his head slowly in response. His expression changed to one of concern when he looked at his sister, though. "Don't worry Heather. I'll come get you."

"No you won't." Ripper replied for her, as whistled, putting everyone on alert. "Her life is in my hands. But you hold the power of what happens to her. Keep that in mind before you do something you'll regret." Before Dagur could yell otherwise, the ground beneath their feet began to shudder. The tremors growing as the seconds ticked by. That was until a massive sinkhole materialized, swallowing up a few stalls and buildings. Ripper casually led Heather along with him, ignoring his audience, who made way for the two of them to the hole, Heather struggling all the while to escape his grasp.

Dagur and his men didn't move, watching the hole with bated breath. Waiting for whatever dragon that made it to venture out. And even though they knew one would, that didn't stop the majority of them yelling when a massive Whispering Death flew out of the hole above them. A few archers made the error of releasing their arrows at the beast. A knee-jerk reaction. It was their last decision as the dragon singled out those that shot, and ripped them to shreds with its multiple rows of serrated teeth.

"Anyone else fancy having a go at the dragon? It'll be the last thing you do."

'Bladewing really has developed a taste for human flesh.'

No one dared move now. Even Heather had ceased her struggling. She'd seen a Whispering Death before, but never one this big. Ripper glanced down to see her expression, chuckling at it. "Oh, don't look so scared. You haven't seen terrifying yet." With another whistle, a second wave of tremors started; and they were far stronger than the earlier ones. Most of the men had trouble keeping their balance, collapsing to their knees, falling onto each other, with panic starting to settle in. However, through all the confusion, Dagur's eyes widened in realization at the likely source of the new vibrations.

"Everyone! Back away from the hole now!" He screamed, and every soldier followed his suit, backing away as far as they could.

Ripper himself backed up a few yards with Heather, as the hole grew larger in diameter, and a white head rose from it, and Heather had the best seat to witness the massive dragon stare down at her with its blood red eyes.

"Hey Frostbite." Ripper greeted, to which the dragon huffed. "I know, I know. But you know Bladewing can't carry more than one person. I promise I'll make it up to you." While Ripper engaged in jovial conversation with the thing, Heather had gone limp in his arms. She never knew dragons could grow this big. Sure there were Scauldrons, Titanwing Monstrous Nightmares, and the like, but they paled in comparison to the beast in front of her. Now she understood how her brother's fleet was so easily destroyed by this thing. There was no stopping it. She yelped when Ripper forced them closer to it. "Alright, this is Heather. She's going to be staying with us for a while. So memorize her scent. That way you won't mistake her for an enemy and accidentally kill her." He pushed her forwards, hand firmly grasped on her shoulder to make sure she wouldn't bolt. That wasn't necessary though. She could no longer feel her legs. The dragon growled something at him, and despite the fear, she noticed the slight fluster in his next words. "It's nothing like that. Just sniff her already." The dragon's jaws were a mere arm's length from her, it's nostrils probably twenty feet above her as she felt the air above her rise up, and then a massive gust of air shoot downwards, followed by a grumble. "Good. Now let us get on."

'What?'

"I am not getting on that thing!" Now she attempted to make run for it but soon found herself hauled over his shoulder like some sack of grain. "Put me down! You fucking brute!" She desperately landed punches on his back and kicking her legs. Her fists, however, won't having any effect. It was comparable to hitting a rock.

"So I'm guessing you want to climb the rest of the way?"

"What?" Heather just realized they were about twenty feet off the ground, and a white horizon below her. She then turned to her right, seeing the corner of a blood red eye, fear paralyzing her body once again.

"I thought so." Ripper continued his climb. Using one hand to grab onto the natural grooves and footholds of Frostbite's body with the other holding onto Heather. Once he was atop the white behemoth, he faced Dagur again. "Remember Dagur. I'm always watching." And with a whistle, Frostbite flapped his wings, raising the rest of his body out of the hole. With Bladewing leading the way, the four of them left Berserker Island, with only Dagur's threats being the last thing Heather heard.