The young chief glanced at the older, a nonchalant look on his face.
"I'm sorry...what?"
FD answered, "We're going to bring Oswald back."
PD let out a spiteful laugh. "Yeah, right. There are three major things wrong with that. One, I don't know where he is; two, he told me not to tell anyone; and three, I don't want to find him."
The elder Viking's eyes narrowed. "We agreed that I'd call the shots. This is one of those times."
PD made a face. "Why should I go get him? I don't have time to go off on stupid exhibitions. I've got an entire island to keep in check. He's made sure of that." FD opened his mouth to protest, but pD spoke first. "Look. If I start feeling bad or something, I'll try to find him." He flicked his wrist dismissively. "It'll probably be sometime a lot lat-"
"It won't matter later!" the future Dagur yelled. The man took several deep breaths and said one "omm." "It has to be now and you have to trust me on this. I know where he is-or at least where he will end up."
PD looked at fD for a while, then reluctantly nodded. "Fine. We'll go look for dear ol' Dad," he said sarcastically.
The time traveler peeked out the top deck to see the other vessels. "We have to go alone, so once we get back to Berserker Island, we'll set sail again."
PD tilted his head. "Why can't we bring anyone?"
"Because," fD began, "Dad's on an island that the dragons use as a final resting place. It's not meant for any Viking to go there, but we'll need to in order to retrieve him."
It did not take long for the ships to dock at Berserker Island. Once everyone had gotten off, Dagur approached Captain Vorg and Herald.
"You two are in charge until I return. There's a place that I need to go to and hopefully, it won't take long."
Despite looking surprised, they nodded. "Aye, Chief," the two saluted.
The young chief took a medium-sized boat and hoisted the sail, heading off for this new place.
"Oswald didn't even teach us how to sail or navigate...and yet," he added, dramatically, "here we are, looking for him. What's this retirement island called anyway?"
FD kept his eyes on the map. "It's called Vanaheim and we're headed too far East, start turning North."
PD followed the instructions and for a while after this, neither Viking spoke. After almost an hour, the teenaged Dagur interrupted the silence.
"Okay, what's the matter with you? I'm never quiet for this long unless there's something wrong."
The seasoned chief ran a hand over his messy hair. "I can't say all of it, but this doesn't end well in the future. I just hope that there's a happier ending today." He spotted a landmark and pointed to it. "We're almost there. Less than an hour now."
The young Dagur was unsure if it were because of the older Berserker's nerves or due to the spirit of the unknown that surrounded the concept of finding Oswald, but he began to feel worried as well. As fD had said, it took less than an hour for the two to dock at Vanaheim.
"I don't see his ship," pD said.
FD got off the boat. "Don't worry about that. I didn't see it either when I came here."
The smaller Berserker anchored the vessel by the island and descended to the land. He halted, seeing large, gray dragons.
"Those are Sentinels," fD told him.
PD raised a brow. "Sentinels? But they're made of stone. How do they guard anything?"
Chuckling, fD replied, "They're made of stone, but they're not immobile. Usually, they're cool with others until it's time to go, but if we help them ward off some scavengers, they'll let us leave." He snapped his fingers in remembrance. "That's the other thing. There are these dragons, Grim Gnashers, they like to prey on the old dragons. Look out for skinny, curly horned dragons that shoot their fangs. If you see them, shoo them away from the island."
The new chief nodded. "Should we go to Dad's shelter first? Even if he's out and about, he'll have to return."
"No," fD stated, an odd expression in his eyes. "We're already out here, so let's split up and circle the island first. If we don't find him, we can meet back up here and I'll take you to his hut."
The two parted ways with the younger Berserker taking the island's west side and the east for the older. The elder Viking walked around Vanaheim, searching for the second time. Much like the first, his stomach was full of knots but for a different reason than it was originally.
"What if he's already dead? I can't see his corpse again." Dagur's head lowered sadly, though he raised it back and emitted a scornful laugh. "And to think the last time, I was just worried he'd be disappointed in who I'd become." The man walked further, his heartbeat racing. "No, he's probably alive. It hasn't been nearly as long-he practically just left. Little me doesn't even have to feel guilty over never searching for him."
At every turn that the Viking took, he thought that he saw the former Berserker chief. Dagur's eyes widened with hope as he saw a figure, which turned out to be an oddly shaped tree. Letting out a defeated sigh, he pressed onward. As this occurred, the young Dagur stalked around Vanaheim, grumbling all the while. He spotted a Grim Gnasher and pinned it to a tree with a knife.
"I could be leading my people right now if it weren't for Oswald."
The chief continued fighting Gnashers and complaining to himself about Oswald until he had scoured the entire west side of the island. He returned to the meet up spot and waited for the older Dagur to arrive. When the more anxious Viking showed up, he saw the lack of Oswald's presence and began walking.
"The hut's this way," he divulged.
The pair went through the center of the island, including in between the ribs of a giant dragon skeleton.
"I can't tell you everything, but this dragon is a Bewilderbeast and remember it for later. It's a very important species that you'll need to be familiar with in the future," fD told the other Viking.
PD nodded and stared at how large the reptile had been. When they finally got past it, they saw a hut with a wooden door. PD went closer to it and examined the entrance.
"Hm, Berserker ship wood. Guess he was shipwrecked?"
He received a nod in response from an ashen-faced fD. The elder viking stood a fair distance from the door while pD knocked. No voice sounded from the inside of the hut, so the teenager opened the door and entered. As he did, fD's chest tightened.
"Not again," he thought.
For a moment, he closed his eyes, wishing to see neither the body nor his younger self's reaction. When he heard no reaction either, the chief reopened his eyes and walked nearer. To his amazement, there was no body sprawled on the floor. Dagur's face lit up and he released a breath that he had been holding. The two Dagurs walked around the hut and saw a couple of drawings on the cave wall. They were of Dagur and his little sister, Heather. PD sensed someone by them and turned to see a muscular Viking with a graying, black beard pointing a crossbow at his head. Quickly, the boy raised his hands peacefully.
"Dad, it's me, Dagur," he said, speedily.
Oswald kept the weapon pointed. "'Dagger?' Why has a knife come to see me? You've come here to kill me and get my lenses."
Confused, pD turned to fD. "What's wrong with him? Did he get poisoned or something?" he questioned.
FD squinted at their father. "He shouldn't be poisoned...maybe he has a kind of cabin fever. See if you can reason with him."
Dagur looked at his dad. "Why would I try to kill you? Also, I don't know what you're talking about with the lenses."
Oswald scowled at him, "Don't play coy with me. No one would come here unless they were looking for something."
"Exactly!" Dagur agreed. "I came here looking for you. Not a lens or lenses."
The older Viking stared into the eyes of the other and grunted. Just in time to avoid being shot, Dagur slid out of the way. Oswald continued to shoot, though also continued to miss. Still, the onslaught of arrows forced the young Berserker out of the hut. Once he was there, he had to jump backwards to maneuver around Grim Gnasher fangs that were being shot at him.
"Give me a break!" he yelled at the dragon.
The reptile turned his attention to the wild Viking that was pursuing Dagur, flinging teeth at him as well. PD tackled Oswald to the ground, unbeknownst to the former chief, saving him from the attack. For his efforts, Dagur was punched in the face and kicked in the stomach, knocking him off of Oswald. He let out a roar of rage.
"That's it!"
The Viking ran past the Gnasher, slashing its throat, and used the speed to take Oswald off guard. Grabbing him by the back of his neck, the Berserker slammed the older Berserker's head to the ground. PD glared at the unconscious man before putting him over one shoulder. On the ship, Dagur tossed Oswald into a lower compartment.
"Can't have him trying to shoot me on our way back," he reasoned, locking the door from the outside. Hopping back on land, the Viking went over to the hut again. "I'm guessing that those lenses are important in the future?"
"Yep."
The smaller Berserker looked through the objects in the hut and found a lens and a lot of fruit recipes. "Never pegged him for much of a chef. Always made me make everything," pD commented, annoyed. "Is there anything else good in here?"
When the answer was no, the two returned back to the shore.
Hoisting the sails, Dagur paused. "Wait, aren't the Sentinels going to prevent us from leaving?" His eyes drifted to the stone creatures.
"We might be fine since we don't have any dragons with us," fD realized.
Taking no chance, pD let a brisk wind carry them away from the island. An hour later, the two heard Oswald shuffling around. It was not until the vessel reached Berserker Island that the man was released from his holding pin. He was inordinately drowsy and had to be half dragged to his home. It was late enough in the day, though, that none of the other Berserkers were out to see him. If Oswald had been with more of his wits about him, Dagur might have given him some food; however, since that was not the case, the father was plopped onto a chair and allowed to rest. The current chief regarded him almost sadly.
"Do you think he'll be back to normal tomorrow?"
FD breathed heavily. "I honestly don't know."