Chapter 26: The Soldier From Nowhere
Arkyn became aware of a certain weight that seemed to envelop him and quickly opened his eyes, finding himself looking into a fireplace where dry logs smoldered passively and lumpy coals glowed with residual heat. With no one stoking the fire, the flames had long been dormant. The boy had woken up to a black sky, the sunrise not starting for some time. It was still the middle of the night.
Looking down, Arkyn noticed the furs he was wrapped in and figured out where he must be: Astrid's house. He'd always known where she lived but had never visited her here before, only finding a reason to after the blizzard had frozen him out of his own home. It looked well kept, but most importantly it was warm. After being so frigid it was nice to thaw out a little, and he smiled appreciating what the girl must have done to get him like this.
Rolling over to try and gauge the rest of his surroundings, Arkyn accidentally bumped into another fur covered mound to his left. What surprised him the most was when this mound moved.
"Hmmm…" The shape groaned, waking up slowly.
Arkyn could recognize that tone anywhere but it was a little hard to make out exactly where it came from with how dark it was. "Astrid?" He whispered, trying to get her attention.
The girl's head finally fully emerged from its place under the furs and she propped herself up on her elbows to face him, squinting in the dim light. "Arkyn? Are you awake?"
"Well I hope I'm not one to talk in my sleep."
"Very funny." Astrid said sarcastically, rubbing her eyes. "How do you feel, Iceman?"
"Oh Thor…that nickname better not stick. I do feel much better though. I, um…I'm guessing you're the one who got me in here?"
"Another win for detective Stryerson. You're getting pretty good at this."
Arkyn put his face in his hands and laid his head back down again, regretting that Astrid remembered what Hiccup called him in the arena all those days ago. "Sorry about that."
"Don't be." The girl sighed. "I hope you know you're worth the effort, although next time don't fly so far without telling anyone where you're going. 3 of us spent half the afternoon looking for you before the blizzard got to us."
"Shit…" Arkyn cursed himself under his breath. "I owe you guys. I didn't mean to be gone all day."
"I think you have that backwards."
"How do you mean?"
"We're the ones who owed you."
"I thought we were even already…you know, after you stopped me from drow-"
"This relationship is never going to work out if you don't stop keeping score." Astrid said flatly, too tired to keep arguing about who owed who. "We help each other. It's what we do."
"Point taken." Arkyn replied quietly.
"What did you need so urgently with a bunch of Screaming Death scales anyway?"
"Ah, so you figured out what was in that bag." The boy sat up and looked around to spot it still by the back door. "You'll find out tomorrow."
"Don't tell me it has something to do with what you've been hiding in the forge."
There was a short hesitation. "It might…"
"You know I just spent my day worrying about you only to have to spend my night making sure you didn't have frostbite, right? I think I deserve just a little something."
"Alright, fine…" Arkyn spent a short moment figuring out a hint he could give Astrid that wouldn't completely reveal what his plans were. "It's not just one thing I'm working on, it's technically four, and they're all related to my old tribe. Let's call the scales a safety precaution."
"Well that just raises more questions than it answers."
"If you'd just give me a day to finish it all then I'd give you the rest of the answers, but if I tell you now then it ruins the fun."
"I'm still going to be the first to know though, right?"
"Of course. Meet me at the forge just before dinner and I should be ready."
There was another long pause as the pair decided what topic to pursue next. Arkyn spoke first.
"Hey Astrid?"
"Hmm?"
"What did your parents say when you told them?"
"Pretty much what I expected. They don't have a problem with us as long as you don't, you know, act like a shithead. That sorta thing. Typical parent stuff." She intentionally left out the part where her father mentioned people had been speculating her involvements to be with Hiccup. Arkyn hadn't learned about their kiss yet, or the second one for that matter, and the last thing Astrid wanted to do was hurt him with the information that she'd been so conflicted with her feelings that close to the beginning of their relationship. Feelings were clearly not something she did well.
Astrid couldn't see it, but Arkyn smiled at this news. "Got it. Don't act like Snotlout."
"So glad you're learning."
"You better tell me when I'm out of line. I wouldn't want your dad knocking on my door uninvited." Arkyn half joked. "Speaking of which, I should…I should probably go." He said softly, giving Astrid a knowing look.
The girl looked disappointed. "How come? I just got you back." Astrid didn't tell him how she'd held him right after she first brought Arkyn inside. It was a moment unlike any other she'd experienced before; a moment just as tense as it was wholesome; a moment she'd rather keep to herself for now. One minute Astrid was fearing for Arkyn's life and the next she sat still, watching him sleep peacefully. She loved how innocent he looked while he was asleep, like nothing bad had ever happened to him and nothing bad ever would happen to him. If only Arkyn looked like that when he was awake. His voice brought her back to earth once more.
"Well for starters, right now I'm the one who's uninvited. And besides, if people wake up and see my dragon out behind your house that early in the morning they might get suspicious."
"But what about your door?"
"I've got some ideas on how to deal with that problem."
"I don't think my parents will let you stay here if Stinger burns your house down, but I'm sure Hiccup would be more than willing to take you in again."
"Good to know there's always a backup." Arkyn chuckled and removed his gloves without thinking this time, cupping Astrid's face in his hands and kissing her goodbye before he stood up. Astrid stood up too, following him to her back door so he could retrieve his bag and return to Stinger, who was presently curled up next to Stormfly, both dragons dozing lazily with each other.
Arkyn flashed one last smile ahead of his departure. "I'll see you tomorrow. I'd go and sleep in your real bed now if I were you though. It's probably a little more comfortable than the floor."
"Thanks genius." Astrid replied sarcastically. She watched him trudge through the snow towards his Triplestryke before gently closing the door and facing the sitting room once again.
Despite Arkyn's last advice, Astrid returned to the furs on the floor and laid back down, draping one arm over the place where he'd slept before pulling it in, bunching up his furs next to her as if he was still there. This is how she fell back asleep: secretly wishing he'd never left.
—
The next day, Arkyn had just finished applying the final coat of paint to one of his projects in the forge when Gobber called him up to the front of the shop. "Oy, mister popular! You've got ye' another visiter."
Wondering what he was needed for this time, Arkyn promptly set down the object and walked out of the back room, no time to admire his now completed work. The Viking's soul nearly left his body as he spotted Riftan in the doorway, chatting idly with Gobber as they waited.
"Oh…uh, hello Mr. Hofferson. What can I do for you?" Arkyn stammered at the man, caught off guard by his presence.
Riftan looked up and addressed the boy in a low voice. "I noticed you paid my daughter a visit last night. And by the way, I told you before you can call me Riftan."
"Mist- uhm, Riftan, I assure you there's a perfectly good exp-"
"No need, lad. Astrid already told me everything this morning. Did you manage to fix that door of yours?"
Well now this conversation was just confusing. Is he not mad at me? Arkyn wondered to himself before responding. "Y- yes sir. Got it open pretty early this morning."
The man exhaled and his expression softened ever so slightly. "Good. And listen, Freya and I did some talking, and if you…if you ever need help with anything like that, just ask us, ok?"
Uuuuummmm? Freya must have said some magic words… Arkyn fully expected to get chewed out for spending the night in Astrid's house unannounced, but this was quite the contrary. "Well, thank you sir. Tell Freya I send my regards."
"I will. You should consider being a little more careful in the future though." He hesitated slightly. "With more than just the weather."
"Absolutely." Ah, well there it was. Arkyn mused. Riftan's extra little warning was unspecified verbally but they both knew he was talking about being careful with Astrid.
There was an awkward pause of silence as they looked at each other and Gobber stood weirdly off to the side. Riftan lifted a hand and nodded goodbye, speaking as he made his exit. "I suppose I may see you around, then."
"I- I guess you might, yes." Arkyn finished, turning to go back to his work as the man walked away. He'd almost made it, too, but Gobber reached his hooked hand out and caught him on the collar.
"Not so fast there, lad. Wha' was tha' all abou'?"
Not in the mood for Gobber of all people to find out about his new relationship and bothered by the recent visitor, Arkyn's reply came out a little more coldly than he'd intended. "If I wanted any of it to be your business I would have told you already."
"Did he say somthn' was wrong with yer door?"
"Not now, Gobber." And with that he closed the door to the back shop and continued plugging along with his work, only a few small tasks left to finish. Something told Arkyn the conversation he'd just had was meant to stay between himself and Riftan.
A very suspicious Gobber was left standing up front, pondering for what reasons Arkyn would've been over at Astrid's.
—
Some time later, Arkyn stood outside the front of the forge waiting for Astrid to make their agreed upon appointment. Gobber had gone home for the day, and Arkyn assured him he'd lock up after he was done, although he hadn't specifically mentioned his reason for staying late.
At last, everything was prepared for the big reveal. Several days of hard work- and an even harder flight through a blizzard- had culminated into this moment, and Arkyn couldn't wait for everyone to find out what he'd been doing. He had a feeling it would turn at least a few heads, and it couldn't have been ready at a better time either: he'd recently been informed of the group's plan to start dragon racing. It sounded like the perfect event for this project's public debut.
It wasn't long before Stormfly brought Astrid down at the building, the sun beginning to set slowly over the sea behind them. The girl quickly dismounted her dragon, smiling in excitement. She immediately noticed Arkyn wasn't wearing his gloves, which was rather puzzling to her. "Where'd those gloves of yours go?" She asked, cocking her head to one side.
"We'll get to that." Arkyn smirked, offering her a hand to lead the girl inside, much to Astrid's delight.
They stopped in the back shop, with Arkyn positioning Astrid on one side of a desk before walking around the opposite to face her. Its surface was empty, and a panel on one side blocked Astrid's view of what lay on the shelves, something only Arkyn had access to.
"So. Here we are." Said the boy, just teasing Astrid at this point.
"This better be good, Stryerson."
"Oh I believe it will be, but before I start I think I should thank you."
Astrid squinted, confused. "For what?"
"For telling me to occupy myself while I was out of the flying game. Um, I'm sure almost no one here is familiar with the traditions of the Nomanisan tribe, so I think I'd better add some context first. When new warriors are trained to fight in the island's ranks, they start when they're six and they graduate when they're sixteen. Upon graduation, the new warrior's mentor is to bestow upon them their weapon, in my case a sword. It was one of the highest honors in our tribe to receive such a piece."
He exhaled forlornly before continuing. "When you told me to find something to be passionate about, I realized that the only way I would ever receive such a weapon is if I made one myself, which is a little untraditional, but, uh, my mentor was my father. Nomanisan was blessed to remain at peace for most of my life as we had our last war when I was four, so I spent very little time ever worrying if my dad would be around to give me a gift like this. You know the rest, though. Which brings me to this:"
He bent down and picked something off of the desk's shelf, laying it out on top for Astrid to see.
The girl had been listening intently to his story, but made her first sound when she gasped at what she saw.
"The Nomanisan ceremonial longsword." Arkyn asserted, resting his hands on the table and watching Astrid's reaction, amused.
It was a sword unlike any other she'd seen before. The blade was long and sleek, and by the looks of it Arkyn had spent a significant length of time both sharpening and polishing it as it was clear enough to be used as a mirror. The guard was in the shape of two shallow 'V's stacked on top of each other, each with decisive lines and sharp corners creating a uniquely geometric look. The grip was wrapped with shiny black leather and was secured tightly with a spiral of gold thread. The hilt was capped off with a smaller representation of the guard, making it appear as though they could be nested together. Both the guard and the lower portion of the hilt were done in a dull iron, providing contrast to the pristine blade they supported. Berkian swords were few and far between as most of the Hooligan tribe preferred axes or maces, but even the ones that existed on the island looked nothing like this one. It was quite possibly the most immaculate weapon Astrid had ever laid eyes on, aside from her mother's axe that she now carried, of course.
"A- Arkyn…it's beautiful." Astrid gushed, admiring the sword's form on the desk.
"Thank you." Arkyn smiled sheepishly, clearly proud of his work as he tried his best to be humble about it. "I had some help from Gobber."
"Your attempts at modesty aren't going to save you from my compliments." The girl laughed.
"The swords of the Nomanisan tribe all looked like this, and they're as symbolic as they are unique to us. The fact they were all the same was supposed to represent that our army would always fight as one if that day ever came. The blade, which should remain religiously polished, represents the good times and the triumph of victory, while the dull iron of the guard and hilt represent the bad times and the stain of defeat. Both must exist with the other as one's life can neither be free of trouble or bad enough that all hope is lost." As Arkyn said this he also produced a matching black sheath from beneath the desk and slid the sword into it before attaching it to his belt so that he appeared combat ready.
It hung faithfully at his side as Astrid spoke again. "You know it's obvious how much this means to you. Your father may not have been here for it, but he'd be proud. It really is something…"
Arkyn smiled at her. She always seemed to have the right words. "I really appreciate it, Astrid. Don't say too much though, we're not done yet."
The next two items were certainly not as cool as the sword, but they were just as necessary. From beneath the desk, Arkyn brought up not only his trademark pair of gloves but also a handsome dagger that matched the sword.
"So that's where those went…" Astrid remarked, eyeing the objects.
"The dagger is pretty self explanatory. Every Nomanisan soldier had to carry one. They slide into a pocket on the outside of our right boot and because the handles are far smaller than the sword's and also painted black, they blend in almost perfectly. People who don't know our traditions will never spot them, making them the perfect tools of surprise." Arkyn demonstrated this by lifting up his right leg and depositing the dagger in the aforementioned pouch. He was right, too. If Astrid hadn't been told that's where it was going she never would have noticed the difference.
He then handed his gloves to Astrid. "Put those on." Arkyn instructed smugly, a trick up his sleeve.
"Are- are you sure?" Astrid asked tentatively, knowing their immeasurable value to him.
"You're the only one I'll ever ask this of. I'd be insulted if you didn't humor me." He replied playfully, insisting she tried them out.
Astrid blushed and did as she was told, slipping one on and then the other. Rather than the feeling of the leather, a smooth and slightly cold sensation met her fingers as well as the palm of her hands. "Whoah, what's in here?"
"I plated over every internal surface with specifically sized Screaming Death scales. Those gloves are now effectively slash proof, and believe me, I tested them thoroughly. They're strong enough to catch any blade."
"Holy shit…" the girl breathed, flexing her hands. Luckily the scales were thin enough to fit inside while still allowing the gloves to be wearable, and Arkyn had ground each one down to separate at the knuckle so dexterity also remained uninhibited. "These are incredible."
"I told you those scales were a safety precaution." Arkyn winked as Astrid removed the gloves and handed them back. The boy then put them on himself once again. "So…that's three improvements to my suit so far, all relating to my old tribe. However, I did tell you yesterday that I've been working on four. The last thing is likely my favorite."
Astrid snickered to herself as she watched him brim with childlike excitement. It was the first time she could remember the boy ever looking this happy. "It'll be hard to top that sword, but let's see what you got." She teased, waiting expectantly.
"Ask and you shall receive."
The girl's eyes went wide as she watched the object come into view. A full, jet black helmet landed on top of the desk with a heavy thud. It possessed a sharp face guard that could be raised and lowered at will to either provide maximum protection or allow Arkyn to communicate more clearly. The surface was completely smooth aside for a raised pattern outlining the upper face portion and a line of small bolts splitting the cutouts for the eyes from the guard to the lower forehead. They held down a connector plate, at the top of which jutted out a centered fin that led from the forehead to the top of the head. A second fin protruded protruded near the back of the head and followed its contour, coming to a point on a downward angle. Both fins shared a low profile and were split into 3 equal sections, making them appear jagged. It could only be described as a work of art, and its overall shape combined with the dark color made it extremely intimidating.
Arkyn chuckled at Astrid's hung open mouth and decided to take advantage of his opportunity. "You look like a fish." He teased, throwing her own joke back her face. "In case you were wondering, this is a Nomanisan Soldier's helmet, except mine happens to be the toughest in existence. The entire thing is made out of Screaming Death scales. It's virtually indestructible."
Astrid was so lost admiring the helmet that she didn't even register the next words that came out of her mouth. "Put it on…" she trailed off, a subconscious need to see Arkyn's suit finally completed rising within her. "Please?"
The boy smiled warmly but said nothing as he slowly picked up the helmet, locking eyes with Astrid as he placed it over his head. Once it settled into place, Arkyn's eyes remained the only part of him visible beneath the apparatus.
"Your army must have been scary as all hell…" Astrid whispered, taking in the look of her new partner's full ensemble. Arkyn was now covered from head to toe in the most menacing combination of flight suit and battle armor Astrid's imagination could dream up, and he looked incredible. He truly was the soldier from nowhere.
"I take it you approve, then?" Arkyn asked, his voice coming out deeper than normal due to its conflict with the helmet's guard.
Astrid nodded. "This certainly isn't what I was expecting."
"You haven't even seen the best part yet." Arkyn informed her, and he quickly reached up to rotate a hidden dial on the left side of the helmet. Instantly an extra visor appeared from the inside and covered the boy's eyes with plates that were almost solid, but thin lines of open space crossed them horizontally at certain intervals to make sure he could still see, if only slightly. "And tada! Now it's fire proof. Unfortunately it does come at the cost of a good amount of visibility, but if I'm ever staring down the snout of an angry Monstrous Nightmare then all I have to do is throw that down and I'll walk away with nothing more than a hot sweat."
"Always full of surprises, aren't you?"
"Aren't you glad I didn't spoil this one too soon?"
"I might be a little more appreciative now, yes. This is pretty cool."
"The first dragon races are in two days, right? I think that's when everyone else will see this."
"Well that reaction should be fun. It'll be even better now that the Chief wants to make the events public, so the arena will be packed when the time comes. Apparently he was just as bored as the rest of us and agreed this place needs a little entertainment rather quickly."
"Oh boy…it'll be a mad house."
"Don't even worry about it if I beat you. All those style points will make you the real winner anyway."
"I see someone's getting competitive." Arkyn laughed, beginning to remove each item one by one, save for the gloves. "Why don't I race you to the Great Hall as a warm up? All this work has me starving."
"Oh you are so on."
AN: Even though I am a terrible artist, I've sketched what I think Arkyn's helmet would look like and have updated the cover photo to this fic. Hopefully this helps you visualize it a bit better as verbal descriptions are not my strong suit. This change is probably temporary.