"You learned to run from what you feel, and that's why you have nightmares. To deny is to invite madness. To accept is to control."
― Megan Chance, The Spiritualist
The sound of my panting echoed through the long and forsaken corridor as I ran for my life. My heart was pounding in my chest, and I could feel my legs burning with exhaustion. I knew that I couldn't stop, no matter how tempting it was to give in to my fatigue.
The thought of what would happen if I stopped drove me forward. I could hear the thundering footsteps of my pursuers behind me, and their growls and screeches filled my ears. I felt their hot breath on my neck and knew that they were getting closer with every passing second.
I pushed myself to run faster, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't shake the feeling that they were right behind me. I was desperate for a way out, but there was nothing in the corridor that could help me. The beast chasing me seemed to be toying with me, enjoying my suffering rather than ending it.
I felt trapped and alone, with no hope of escape. But I refused to give up. I knew that I had to keep running, no matter what.
I was filled with a newfound sense of determination, but my progress was suddenly halted by an unseen obstacle that sent me crashing to the ground. As I quickly got back on my feet, I threw my shoulder into the invisible barrier with all my might, desperate to break through. But no matter how much I strained and pushed, the barrier remained unyielding.
I felt my legs give out beneath me as I sank to the ground, my knees hitting the hard earth with a resounding thud. My breaths came in ragged gasps, and I struggled to slow them down, to calm the pounding of my heart.
Just when I thought I had regained my composure, a prickling sensation crept up my spine, and I knew I wasn't alone. The air around me grew thick and heavy as if some unseen force was closing in, and I felt trapped, even though I couldn't see a thing. My hands flailed around me, searching for something, anything to hold onto, but I found nothing. Panic began to set in as I struggled to make sense of what was happening.
That is when I notice two pairs of giant slitted eyes coming out of the darkness, watching me as if I were an insect.
My body was completely paralyzed, and the only thing I could perceive was the eerie mixture of growls and giggles that echoed in the space. The sound grew more intense and closer, and I could feel my heart pounding with fear. I was trapped, my eyes scanning for any possible escape route but finding none.
As I stared at it, I noticed its eyes gleaming with malevolent glee. It was reveling in my terror, deliberately prolonging my agony by not making an attack. Instead, it was toying with me, slowly going back and forth never taking its eyes off me, making me feel helpless. My heart raced with fear as I tried to anticipate its next move, but it seemed to be enjoying my squirming. I couldn't help but feel like I was being played with, like a pack of wolves surrounding a deer. It could have easily gone for the kill, but it was dragging this out, perhaps savoring its power over me.
I suddenly caught sight of more pairs of eyes glinting in the shadows. Fear gripped me as I realized that I was not alone - creatures were lurking nearby, and they were closing in fast. I heard their screeches and roars echoing through the night, and my heart pounded in my chest as I tried to muster the courage to face them. The dozens of eyes were fixed on me, unwavering and unblinking, as the creatures launched themselves towards me with terrifying speed.
" STOP! NOOOOO! Leave me alone!".
I woke up abruptly, my body jolting upright as I gasped for air. My heart was pounding so hard in my chest that I could feel it reverberating through my entire body. My breathing was ragged and erratic, and I struggled to slow it down. The edges of my vision started to darken, but I forced myself to take deep, deliberate breaths. Gradually, my heart rate slowed and my breathing became more even. Finally, I was able to calm myself down and my body slowly relaxed.
I woke up in the middle of the night, my body drenched in sweat and the blankets that once covered me were now scattered on the floor. As I sat up in bed, I couldn't help but think to myself, "Every Thor-forsaken time this happens." It had been years since that fateful night, but my dreams were still plagued by the same recurring nightmare. In the dream, I was being chased by demonic creatures, their razor-sharp claws tearing me apart, piece by piece. The vividness of the nightmare made it feel all too real, leaving me with a sense of dread that lingered long after I woke up.
I continue to sit there in the dark with only the sounds of the wind to keep me company. I then decided to go for a late-night walk and started walking toward the entrance of the huge cavern, hidden deep inside the cave where I had made my home. For anyone else, it would be hazardous to maneuver around because of one wrong step and you would fall into the abyss below but I lived in this place for years and knew it with one hand behind my back and my eyes closed.
I made my way up using a man-made staircase that had been carved by the natural rock formations and a man-made hole that I had made to allow a good view of my island. It was a beautiful night sky with the only sounds I could hear were critters that were active in the night and owls hooting towards each other.
There were no signs of dragons since I had made sure that those beasts never set a claw on this island with the numerous skeletal corpses that were around making a deathly warning to those who came across this island to stay far away.
As I continued to take in the view I heard the faint sound of wingbeats and a familiar whistle sound that cut sharp the silence. I knew I should have been afraid but hearing him approaching to check on me did make me feel slightly better I turned my head to the right as I saw him fast approaching and landed on the side of the mountain with a gracefulness that I had always admired for a being his size and I could not see his figure because of the darkness but I saw piercing luminescent red eyes.
As I saw his massive slender head lowered to my level, I should have felt a mix of emotions - sadness, anger, and fear. His presence should be a painful reminder of everything his kind had taken away from me. But as I looked into his eyes, I did not see a demon but someone who understood me. I reached out and gently patted his snout, feeling his warm breath against my hand. A flood of memories came rushing back - memories of a time when things were different when I had a family, a home, and a life that I loved.
But now, all of that was gone, destroyed by the very creatures that he belonged to. I harbor hatred toward his kind, the scars on my body were a constant reminder of the pain and suffering that I had endured. I had lost everything, except for my name and the memories that haunted me every day.
As I stood there, facing this creature that belonged to those who had caused me so much pain... I never once felt hatred toward him despite him belonging with the beast who had tormented me in my dreams and the scars that have taken root in my skin.
The reason was that he was the only one who truly comprehended the depth of my agony and animosity. He had a unique understanding of me that no one else possessed.
He and I were the same and that is why I could never hate him as he also suffered from their hands as well.
As I continued to pet his snout and felt the warm rough scales that I knew were from years of scars. I look at his silhouette being a tag bigger than a monstrous nightmare but with grace and speed, with scales that were stronger than any grockles, and a fire breath that was as strong as a night fury.
He was a flawless creature in every aspect, and both of us were set to begin our hunt tomorrow, just as we always had done for years.
I gave my companion a final pat on the snout and turned to head inside. As I did, I watched him take off into the air and fly towards another opening of the cavern that we both called home. This opening was only accessible by diving into the water and swimming to the deepest depths toward an underwater cave that led toward the cavern. It was a perfect way to ambush intruders who would sometimes walk toward the island.
The night was long and sleep was elusive. With no hope of rest, I began to prepare for the day ahead. I reached for my armor, which I had crafted with care and precision using the scales of my loyal dragon companion and steel purchased from the Northern Market. The gold I had earned from solving dragon-related problems in nearby villages enabled me to purchase the necessary materials.
As I donned the armor, I couldn't help but feel a sense of pride in my workmanship. The armor was sturdy yet flexible made from the scales of my companion that were impervious to damage no matter how much firepower was thrown at my way, it was perfectly designed for the task at hand and I have yet to find a dragon with strong fire power to break this armor. I took care to ensure that each piece fit snugly and securely, leaving no room for error.
Next, I selected the weapons I would need for the day's hunt. I chose carefully, selecting only the most effective tools for taking down the dragons that roamed the land. Nets, arrows, and blades were among the weapons I collected, each one polished to a shine and ready for use. I also grabbed my signature cloak and hood that cover most of my body and what inspired the legends about me being mysterious and dangerous.
Finally, I retrieved my helmet, a dark and foreboding piece that spoke of my fearsome reputation. The helmet was plain and was nothing special but it was my signature mark that hid my identity from my adversaries who wished to take me out and only had two slit holes that allowed me to see and small holes on were my nose would be so that I could breadth better. As I placed the helmet on my head, I felt a sense of power and purpose wash over me. I have been doing this for years but this never got old for me as it always brought satisfaction seeing those beasts get the retribution they deserve. I never will understand why anyone admires those beasts because they only brought pain and suffering. It filled me with disgust to see people helping that beast, these so-called 'dragon riders' filled me with disgust. The last time I had a run with one of them I made sure they watched as I slaughtered their dragons and made sure that they never messed with me ever again.
I had not seen that dragon rider who rode on a Stormcutter for the last 15 years but I knew it would not be the last time that I would see those dragon riders. It was one of the reasons I was going to head toward the northern market as I have not been there for the last 6 years since these so-called 'dragon riders' from Berk have been very active in stopping dragon hunting parties and responsible for all the destruction they have been causing. I have been studying them whenever they would visit the northern market to know what I was up against. I could already tell that these Hiccup and Astrid would be difficult to beat especially the entire group having a variety of dragons from the five classes and especially that night fury.
I mounted on my companion and immediately set sale toward the northern market and I knew I was confident enough to beat them if I ever came across because after all, they had never fought anyone like me before, and I would make those dragon riders pay for all the harm they have ever done. They say that they fight for peace and unity... what a load of rubbish.
Author note:
My readers, I had fun writing this chapter even though I faced a few hiccups and had to rewrite and make some changes to what I originally wanted to write but for now, I am satisfied with how this chapter turned out. I decided to make my OC character mysterious as well as the dragon that he is riding. I think by now all of you have figured that my character is a dragon killer and I wanted to make my character unique in a sense because I have always read stories where the hunters were always the bad guys and the dragon riders the good guys and there has never been a grey area to explore with the hunters.
Other stories depicted dragon hunters as villains and those who sought the power of the dragon for conquest. I wanted to show a side of dragon hunters that not many explored such as the 300-year-old war between Vikings and Dragon, how many loved ones were lost because of that battle, and the mental state that dragons had left Vikings in that would turn into animosity and hatred which I do not blame them for. Also, I have grown tired of Hiccup always saying that Dragons are perfect and peaceful beings but we have seen that is not the case, for example, he keeps forgetting the Red Death which is what caused the 300-year war between Vikings and Dragons and that human beings are only evil but dragons are not perfect either and some are cruel towards their kind as well and are just as flawed as the rest of us if we are going to treat them as sentient as human beings.
This is my greatest motivator to write this story and I hope you all enjoyed it if you have any more tips and mistakes that I have made regarding Viking culture because I am not very knowledgeable about Viking culture but I have started to do my research. The word "hefnd" means revenge in the Norse language and I decided to go this route in labeling my chapters with words of the Norse language that I thought are very fitting to describe each chapter that I will post from now on. Also, I decided to write this chapter out in the first person point of view since I do not want to reveal my OC too much and I wanted him to be kept mysterious and as the story progresses I would be revealing more and more about the character.
I would say in advance that my upload schedule would probably be one chapter every month due to how much work and studying I have to do for my classes, especially towards my major which is medical assisting and helping around in the household.
I want to take my time in writing out chapters and plan for future stories that I have in mind but first I want to focus on this story before I decide to put my attention towards anything else. Which why I decided to delete the story " A Distant Future" to put my entire focus on this story.
I hope all of you have a wonderful day and I will see you all in the next chapter.