Stoick tried to regain control of his car after the grenade exploded.
"It wasn't for the car, I would have been a gonna," he said.
He then soared two thugs jumping onto the road, wielding weapons.
'This is a carjacking; they're out for blood,' he said. 'If that's the case, they're trying to separate me from him.'
"I have already informed Hawks of the situation as well as the attack on you," said Toothless. "I can also confirm that the assassin is Lady Nagant."
"It had to be her," Stoick cursed.
The two thugs then tossed their spears, which suddenly took off, heading straight towards him. They were able to smash through the windscreen and probably would have secured him if he had jumped outside in time. The car skidded across the ground and crashed into a nearby building.
Stoick was able to retrieve a briefcase from the car before jumping out, and he soon got to his feet and faced the thugs.
"Wait, is that Skullcrusher?"
"Don't back down. This doesn't change our job. Look at him; the number one hero we knew and feared died a long time ago."
"Yeah, guess you're right."
Stoick narrowed his eyes at them. "Step aside."
The thugs' confidence suddenly disappeared as Stoick approached them without fear. It was as if his presence was enough to scare them to the bone.
"My son has been carrying a burden far greater than mine," said Stoick in a thunderous voice. "That person fell to him because of my failures, and despite that, he continues to look up to me. If anything happens to my son, then you'll see just how strong I am!"
Meanwhile, Night Fury was flying around the city, zigzagging as he approached Lady Nagant.
'I'll zigzag between the line of fire and keep her from getting my path and then get close,' he said. 'I just need to move fast enough so that she is not able to get the jump on me and prevent her from reacting. I'll make her talk and make her tell me where Krogan and Drago are hiding.'
He then suddenly got an early warning from Sharpshot.
'A bullet, no way,' he said.
He quickly spun around, and the bullet came straight towards him, giving him barely any time to block it with his shield. However, a second bullet then appeared out of nowhere and struck across the side, piercing his armour.
'How did that happen?' Night Fury winced. 'Without any kind of search ability, she shouldn't be able to sneak up behind me. Does she have help? No, Sharpshot would have warned me that was the case.'
He turned and saw his answer. Lady Nagant was skipping across the air.
'Damnit, I see now. I should have figured there was a possibility. She's Drago's hired gun; of course, he gave her extra powers.'
Lady Nagant began thinking back to when Drago gave her this new power.
"The ability to walk across air," he said. "This power will dramatically expand the range and accuracy of your attacks."
She then fired another shot, using it to speed herself along.
'Right, I know she's trying to capture me alive,' said Night Fury. 'But since I dodged her first shot, she shortened the distance between us. The bullet that hit me from the back was fired from my flank with a crazy curve. As she gets close, it's easier to lock on on my location instead of calculating my path, and as the distance shrinks, it's hard for Sharpshot to warn me about consecutive shots.'
He then landed on the ground and grabbed something around his belt. 'This may be only a prototype, but I don't see any other option.'
He dropped something like a grenade, and suddenly, smoke began to gush out. It didn't appear to be affected by the rain at all. The smoke began to spread across all the city blocks, and it was so thick that it was hidden from view.
'Looks like the kid has got a few tricks up his sleeve,' Lady Nagant noted.
"Hiccup, what are you doing?" Toothless asked. "You know full well that stuff hasn't been tested; we don't even know if it's safe for you to be inside."
"We don't have a lot of options, Toothless, not with that new ability of hers," said Night Fury.
"All you have to do is just the layers as long as possible. Hawks and his group are coming as quickly as they can, and they should be here within a few minutes," said Toothless.
"I don't know how long I can play cat and mouse with her; if I don't take the initiative, then I'll lose."
"Okay, but once you exit the smoke, she'll have you on your sites," Toothless pointed out. "And I doubt she'll fall for the whole empty armour routine."
"I don't plan on running; I just needed to buy some time," said Hiccup.
"So you planning to hide in the smoke until Hawks and the others arrived?" Toothless frowned. "But we don't know how long the smoke will last. You only had one grenade."
"I don't plan on waiting either."
"Then what are you planning?"
Lady Nagant was hovering in midair, watching for any movement; she had now attached a scope to her rifle, increasing her accuracy. She saw something flying out of the smoke and immediately shot it, only to discover it was armour.
"A decoy?" she said as she loaded her rifle. "What's he playing at?"
She then saw multiple movements exiting from the smoke and quickly fired all three of them, only to discover that they were more pieces of armour.
"Hiding in a puff of smoke is a waste of time; I'm still going to capture you," she said.
She suddenly heard rumbling from below, and then suddenly, shooting out of the building, was Night Fury. He looked so fast that she had no time to react, and seconds later, he grabbed her left arm.
"You might be right if that was my plan," he said.
'He somehow faster than before?' Lady Nagant stared.
'That special smoke developed has no effect in the rain, and using my technopathic powers, I was able to send decoys in all directions,' said Night Fury. 'This allowed me to pinpoint the location and the timing of her attacks. I didn't know her exact position so I could attack head-on, but she never expected me to burst out of the building. Once again, using my technopathic power rose to give my fluster a little extra push, allowing me to catch her off-guard.'
Night Fury then looked at her straight in the eyes. "A sniper's skills are useless at close range. Give up the fight and start talking about who hired you."
"You think you won?" she said, retracting her rifle. "Not a chance!"
She then bent her elbow towards him and then extended her rifle once more, hitting him in the chest.
"The Safety Commission trained me well," she said as she aimed at him.
Night Fury quickly activated his jest just in time to avoid getting hit by one of the bullets.
"Why are you helping a monster like Drago Bludvist?" Night Fury demanded. "He's a tyrant! Look at the chaos that he's brought to the country! He's hellbent on controlling people! You used to be a hero; why work with him?"
"The just world you've been sold is a lie," she said bluntly and began to retreat. "You've been brainwashed. You'll never understand the truth."
Night Fury winced; the wound he received earlier was playing up. 'I had her therefore a second, and I underestimated her training. Such a rookie mistake, of course; she trained to deal with close-range fighters.'
Then, another shot was fired in without his helmet. Night Fury found it difficult to pinpoint it, and it grazed him across his side from behind him.
'From behind?'
"I was exhausted," said Lady Nagant's voice. Night Fury looked around for the source and saw speaking attached to the bullet she had just fired. "I killed so many."
Another bullet was then fired, this time from above.
"All to keep our citizens in the dark." Night Fury began flying around, trying to dodge the bullets, which was not an easy feat as she kept talking. "A group was plotting a terrorist attack against pros or famous hero team worked with a villainous organisation on the sly. When someone is capable of shaking the foundation of this society, they can't be tried. They have to disappear quietly; that's where the Safety Commission comes in."
Night Fury was now starting to understand her motives.
"Back in the day, there were vigilante groups that were seen as heroes; they earned the trust of the public and the country approved of their actions. That's when our leaders discovered that this superhuman society works best if people had faith in heroes. I was a cog in the state-running machine that upheld that trust. To maintain the status quo, the public needed a public place and a secret one, so I obeyed and obeyed and obeyed."
Lady Nagant's main mission was to silence heroes who gave heroes a bad name while also pretending to be a pro. However, that changed one day when she encountered a few kids on the street.
"Lady Nagant! Oh wow, can I shake your hand!"
"Me too!"
"You're the best!"
"Sure," she smiled as she outstretched her hand, "but only if you kids have been good."
However, in her mind's eyes, she could see the blood on her hands, and her eyes fell upon the smiling kids, who had no notion of what her job really entailed. All they could see was a hero, and no doubt naturally assumed that she held the high standards that all you should fall under.
'The fragility of our world made me spiral.'
Later that night, she returned to her penthouse as the thoughts of that day sunk in.
"It's all a sham," she said.
She then returned to headquarters, where the head of the Public Safety Commission gave her her next mission.
"We have two heroes pushing civilians to commit crimes," he said. "Afterwards, they turned them into the police and collected awards for capturing them. It wouldn't do for us to bring any official charges against them, but they must be dealt with."
"You think by killing them, society will improve?" she said.
Her boss looked at her rather startled by this questioning of her orders.
"If we don't show people the bad side of things, that's brainwashing by omission," she said.
"Nagant, wouldn't you agree that the most important thing for us to do is to maintain the hope that public-facing heroes have brought the world?"
"If this is the only way, then what does the future hold for us?"
"Your duty is to follow orders," he said sternly and then reached into his jacket. "This is not a job you can quit."
She then immediately drew her rifle and ended straight at him, surprising him.
"Chairman, you were a strong leader," she said and fired.
"You murdered the previous chairman of the Safety Commission?" Night Fury yelled as he dodged the bullets. "So, I guess the article I read about you killing fellow heroes was just a cover story."
"Not entirely; the Safety Commission just neglected to mention that they ordered me to kill those heroes to maintain the status quo," said Lady Nagant. "Here's the sad truth: they hear a world that everyone admires is a force upon them, which is nothing but an illusion, and if things go back to the way they were, history will repeat itself. The citizens will see the fake public space while someone else gets crushed by the dirty work. Bright-eyed hopefuls will be chewed up and spit out. Drago's future makes a lot more sense than that."
She fired another bullet, but Night Fury was able to dodge it and then fired a plasma blast directly at her. Lady Nagant quickly moved out of the way, but only just.
'What the hell?' she stared. 'He's mapping my movement from the trajectory of the bullets?'
Night Fury then flew straight at her. "So you're saying that you want a world where people cower in fear, where people brutalise just because of how they look."
'He's fast,' she noted.
"The hero work that my father did was not a sham; he generally wanted to protect people and inspire them. He tried to protect me from the dark corners of our society because he knew more than anyone that it's not black and white. Our world exists in the grey area, and while I want the chaos to end more than anyone, I know we cannot ignore the dark parts that we try to keep hidden. If we hide them, how can we become better than the heroes before us? I will help out anyone who might need it, even if they believe otherwise."
Lady Nagant clenched her teeth and retreated backwards. "You're the product of their indoctrination!"
She fired another bullet, but Night Fury was able to dodge it.
'Even in midair, he is managing to avoid major damage to his joints,' Lady Nagant observed. 'He's focused on predicting and evading my attacks.' She then aims her rifle at a nearby rooftop. 'Fine then, I'll give him more to think about.'
Night Fury followed the gaze of her rifle and saw someone on a nearby rooftop. There was none other than Grimmel, who appeared to be yelling at her.
"Is that Grimmel?" he gasped.
Lady Nagant's rival then suddenly began to expand. "Now I have you!"
When Lady Nagant got out of Helheim, she took Grimmel with her and immediately began reading a department store for a new set of clothes.
"I've met your target before," he said.
"Huh?" she said.
"Kid, stopped me from reacting my plan. He has a bad case of heroes syndrome."
"It was like this was fated," she said. "I knew you might come in handy. I'll bring you along so you can confirm it's the same boy."
"I've got one condition," he said.
"I don't care about your grudge."
"It's not that. I'm not looking for revenge. I've lost everything there is only one thing that's left for me to do. I just want to talk to the old man."
Lady Nagant looked at him indifferently, though she was surprised by this request.
"Pops, I'm sorry… I really am."
Back in the present, Grimmel had got outside again and was now yelling at Lady Nagany.
"I already fulfilled my part of the agreement!" Grimmel yelled loudly. "Hurry up and take me to the boss, damnit."
"What's he doing here?" Night Fury stared.
'I'm increasing the velocity of my bullet even if I do risk jamming as a result,' she said as she looked directly at Night Fury. 'I'll make you face the worst outcome a hero can imagine. It doesn't matter who the person is; when you can't save somebody, your conscience is destroyed.'
She fired directly at Grimmel and quickly turned her rifle at Night Fury, who looked generally stunned.
'Give you too much to think about, and it'll slow you down, and that's when you're mine,' she said and fired.
However, Night Fury suddenly took off without a moment's hesitation, surprising her. He was now moving even faster than before and appeared to be breaking the sound barrier.
'I can use my technopathic powers to augment my thrusters, giving them enough power to make me go even faster. There's something everyone my age has seen at least once, and that's my father, Skullcrusher, moving faster than a speeding bullet!'
He moved so fast that he outpaced the bullet and quickly shoved Grimmel to the side.
'Impossible! He caught up with the bullet?!' said Lady Nagant, shocked. 'No… he's even faster. While I'm here, muzzling for another shot? He's already shifting directions. This kid…'
Night Fury then fired his cables, which attached themselves to the roof, using them as air brakes to position himself at Lady Nagant.
"I'll be back for you, Grimmel," he said.
"We're not finished," said Lagy Nagant as she fell back and fired another shot.
However, Night Fury repeated the same move and shot straight at her with unbelievable speed. He moved so fast that the velocity caused Lady Nagant's rifle barrel to bend and break.
"Your barrel is broken!" Night Fury yelled as he spun around. "It's over, Lady Nagant."
'I don't hesitate; once I recognise someone is the enemy, whatever happens next plays out like it was inevitable,' she said.
She then found herself falling as she lost control of her new power.
'When did that start? When did empty sentiments start making me sick?'
Night Fury then grabbed her hand, and she looked up directly at him.
"You shot towards Grimmel, but you weren't aiming at him," he said. "And if you truly believed in Drago's future, your first bullet would have hit my spine and paralysed me. You've seen the darkness in this world, so you know what needs to be brought into the light. It's not too late to fight on our side; I know that the heart of the hero still beats inside you."
Lady Nagant and Night Fury's words from earlier finally hit home, and she could see just by looking into his eyes that he was a true hero. He hadn't been indoctrinated by society, and he truly believed everything he said.
'Incredible,' she said as a small smile appeared on her face. Night Fury's eyes widened when he saw her face beginning to crack. "Hiccup Haddock, you are a hero."
She then exploded.
Within his lair, Drago was completely aware of Lady Nagant's change of heart in heat set plans in case such a thing would happen.
"The heart is a fickle, unruly beast," he said with a vicious smile. "Knowing this fact, I made a few preparations in the event of an unfortunate breach of contract. Such a pity you are used by others until the very end. Though perhaps the power you were blessed with is to blame. What a pathetic life you lived, dear Lady Nagant."
The explosion was massive, and Night Fury was able to pull away just in time, but Lady Nagant was now falling, and her body was badly burnt. It was a miracle that her body was still very much intact, but that wasn't Night Fury's concern right now.
"Nagant, no?!" he screamed.
There was no way he'd be able to feature in time, but just before she struck the pavement, Hawks flew out of nowhere and caught her.
"I won't let you die!" he said. "You hear me?"
"Hawks, you're here!" said Nigh Fury relieved.
"Night Fury!" said Hellfire as he flew up to him. "Your AI sent word of an assassin; I'm sorry we're late. I'm not good in this weather. What's going on? Are there any other enemies?"
"Grimmel is on the roof of the building over there," said Hiccup, turning his eyes towards Grimmel.
"I've got him," he said, flying towards Grimmel.
"Hellfire!" Hawks yelled as he was finding it difficult to fly with his tiny wings. "My wings can't handle this! It's too soon for me to fly!"
Night Fury then quickly fired a cable, wrapping it around his waist and stopping them from falling, but he struggled.
'I'm all out of strength; I can't lift them up,' he said, and they found themselves falling again. "Hold on, Hawks! I can't be sure, but I don't think she meant to do that. She got at least one extra power from Drago; he probably added some kind of booby-trap to it."
'This boy,' said Hawks and then turned his sights back onto Lady Nagant. "My name is Hawks; I sort of replaced you. We're in this mess because of Drago's manipulation. If you fought against that kid, then you should understand that now, too. It's not too late for you, okay? You don't have to throw everything away. Please tell me you realise that. Help us create a future that you can be proud of. Take control of your own life! You're Lady Nagant, and you are a hero!"
Lady Nagant was still alive but barely conscious, yet she was able to get everything Hawks had said.
'My replacement, huh?' she said. 'They probably made you do terrible things, too, for the greater good. So, how is it that you still have so much hope in your eyes? In all this chaos, with no control over the future, how can you people keep fighting?'
She then opened her eyes and looked at them. "Here's what I know. In two months, at a mansion deep within Raven's Point, I was supposed to bring the boy there."
It took some effort, but they were able to land on the pavement, though both of them stumbled. Hawks then laid Lady Nagant on the road.
"And it's not just me," she said. "He sent the other hunters after the target, too. The same job."
Her eyes then turned to Hawks. "Hey, replacement. I fell apart; I just couldn't take it anymore, but you… How do you still keep going?"
Hawks merely smiled. "Because there was someone who helped me out. Also, I'm an optimistic guy."
"Oh, is that so?" Lady Nagant smiled before losing consciousness.
"Night Fury!" Hellfire yelled as he flew in with Grimmel. "Was he the only one?"
"No!" Grimmel roared as he looked down at Lady Nagant. "This is what we agreed on. Why did you get caught? You said you were going to take me to him! I need to visit Pops, he's all I've got left. I have to see him to tell him that I'm sorry."
Night Fury looked at Grimmel. "Grimmel…"
"Not a word, you sick freak!" Grimmel snarled. "I was talking to the woman."
"You remember Ariel, right? What you did to her?" Night Fury asked.
"Ariel?" said Grimmel, confused. "Oh yeah, the girl. If I had her, she could rewind the old man."
"You want forgiveness from somebody?" said Night Fury, clenching his wrist. "Then apologise to Ariel, and in return, I will fulfil Lady Nagant's promise. You have my word on that front. How does that sound to you?"
Grimmel just stood there speechless.
They then heard the sound of a car as Stoick arrived.
"Hiccup, you okay?" Stoick asked, jumping out of the car.
"Yeah, I'm all right," he said.
"We've captured Lady Nagant and Grimmel," said Hellfire. "Contact the police! Nagant needs medical attention."
"Hiccup's been wrapped up pretty bad as well," Hawks added and then noticed the damaged car, "you too, by the looks of it."
Night Fury just stood there looking at Lady Nagant, and he was furious with Drago. "Drago Bldvist…"