Ships neared the Berkian harbor. While flying on Skullcrusher and Grump, it was simple for Stoick and Gobber to see. They flew down to the docks and dismounted. When the first of the ships was anchored, Alvin spotted his allies.

"Got your letter," he said. "I've never run into a Viking called Drago, but if he's as much of a threat as you said, it sounded like you could use our help."

"I'm glad you're here," Stoick said, shaking his hand. "If Drago brings those dragons of his to Berk, we'll need to be ready."

Alvin's eyes widened slightly. "So, Hiccup's not the only dragon conqueror?"

"Drago fits that title much better."

The Outcast glanced around in confusion. "Where is the lad anyway? A Night Fury would be helpful in this battle."

Alvin noticed as concern covered the other man's face.

"We don't know yet," Gobber stated. "The others went to find him."

It was difficult for the chief to focus on that and matters on the island. Gobber saw this and put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"They'll bring him back, Stoick," he said reassuringly.

"I'm sure Drago's heard of him by now." Stoick sighed heavily and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "He's gotten involved in too many matters. It's caused him to make a lot of enemies."

"A lot of allies too," Alvin said, a meaningful look on his face.

The chief had to admit, even if only to himself, that he was also glad to have the other Viking as a friend again. Hiccup did have a certain way about him. Maybe it was possible that if anyone could change Drago…or maybe that was just the trainer's contagious idealism talking.

"When this is over, he and I need to talk," Stoick stated, frowning. "Before he left, he seemed upset about something more than me just not wanting to speak with Drago."

A hopeful look appeared on Gobber's face. "Well, let's finish getting Berk secure so that this can end quickly and you can have that talk."

The blond began heading back over to the rest of the Berkians, getting followed by the two taller Vikings. As they went deeper into the village, their allies were arriving at Valka's base. The dragons they brought with them were quickly approached by some of the others. Although the intention was to be friendly, it made the newcomers initially uncomfortable. What did not help was how dragons of the area moved behind their new neighbors, pushing them towards the fog.

"What are they doing?" Fishlegs asked, fascinated.

"They're making sure that the new dragons are recognized by the king," Valka explained.

The reptiles went close to the Bewilderbeast, but their heads were low. One by one, the king blew a light dusting of snow onto their snouts. Once he did, they left to join the others, figuring out how they would fit in with this group. The Vikings found it interesting to see, but what was significantly less interesting was to hear Eret trying to get free from his restraint. Sleuther unceremoniously dropped him onto a snowy patch of the ground. Throk got off Windshear's back, checking that the rope was still tight. It had gotten a bit loose in all the Trapper's struggling, so the Defender tightened it again. This only made Eret glare at everyone more. Once their friend was done, the twins got close to his face.

"We're the best interrogators in the Archipelago," Tuffnut told him. "You don't want to know what happened to the last guy who didn't answer our questions."

"Even I don't know," Ruffnut said.

Eret squinted at them in confusion, then turned to Hiccup. The Berkian gestured back to his friends.

"Don't look at me."

"Yeah! Don't look at him. We're the ones talking to you," Tuffnut said, crossing his arms.

"So, besides being rude, what does Drago have you Trappers do?" Ruffnut asked.

No sounds came from Eret except a low scoff.

"We will sing," Tuffnut warned him.

"Now, let's not get hasty," Snotlout requested. "The point of the interrogation should be to punish him for staying quiet, not us too."

"Try whatever you'd like. It won't work," Eret stated confidently. "I'll never betray Drago."

"That's a lot of loyalty to have for someone who was about to have you killed," Astrid told him.

"Exactly. Killed, nothing more." Eret's eyes lowered to his chest. "Failing once results in being branded, failing twice is death, and turning into a traitor leads to torture."

"Why would you even work for someone like that in the first place?" Heather asked, appalled.

"He promised wealth and power. I've gained both in his ranks."

"Neither means much if you're living a selfish life," Dagur said. "Trust me."

Eret frowned at him. "Well, I don't. You'll all kill me as soon as I tell you what you'd like to know. Even if you don't, you'll leave me marooned on an abandoned island."

"We won't do that," Hiccup assured him. "We can protect you."

The Trapper almost laughed. "You truly believe you can protect anyone from Drago? You might have bested some of your enemies, but I think you've met your match." His amusement turned to anger. "And don't pretend to be so merciful. Nearly everyone who's gone against you has ended up dead. You're no peaceful Viking. None of you Berkians are. You simply force people to join you if they value their lives. I'm glad you'll finally be stopped."

"We haven't been killing our enemies."

"Do you really think Krogan just gave up? I heard about his work before you got involved."

The Riders' eyes widened slightly.

"I didn't really think about him anymore," Fishlegs admitted, feeling a little ill. "He…died?"

The look in Eret's eyes gave him all the answers he needed.

"And you did mention that Johann was frozen," Snotlout said. "He's probably still like that. There was Ryker too."

The twins glanced at one another, then took a step away from Hiccup.

"Maybe you do get your enemies killed," Tuffnut said.

Their friend frowned at them. "Guys, I'm not getting anyone killed." The expression faded some as he thought over the foes they had faced. "They just died from other causes."

Ruffnut nodded her head. "Yeah, of course. You don't have to worry about us." She lowered her voice and spoke to Tuffnut. "Don't let him think we're turning on him."

She and Tuffnut offered big grins that were not convincing. Hiccup sighed before looking back at Eret.

"If my best option is death," the larger Viking said, "then I'll die as loyally as I've lived."

The Vikings turned away from Eret, facing one another.

"It seems like his loyalty is unshakeable," Atali said.

"It is nearly admirable," Throk admitted, "but it is for the wrong leader."

Dagur had a determined expression on his face. "I want to try a bit more. I think I might be able to get through to him."

"Are you sure?" Hiccup asked, a bit worried.

Dagur grinned. "Now, Brother, you know that I'm great at winning Vikings over. I bet he'll be competing for the best friend title soon."

Still feeling slightly unsure, the other Vikings watched Sleuther pick Eret back up in his tail and move him somewhere so that the duo could speak privately. As they left, the others began to notice how Valka was no longer with them.

"Mom's probably keeping an eye on the new dragons," Hiccup mentioned.

The group became quiet, then Astrid moved towards the other Berkian.

"Did you notice anything different about her?"

"Well, I don't really know what her personality is usually like," he reminded her.

"I know, but doesn't she seem a little…"

"Weird," Snotlout finished.

Astrid sighed at the bluntness. Hiccup looked a little unhappy with the comment, but he understood its reason.

"She's been living with dragons for twenty years," he stated. "I think it's just made her a little rough around the edges. Any of us would be that way."

Minden nodded. "It is possible. Many Wingmaidens go through a learning period where we have to adjust to spending so much time around the young Razorwhips. Even communication changes drastically since we begin picking up on their growls and calls as opposed to human speech. Some more time around other Vikings should help."

"But she would need to be receptive," Mala stated.

Looking slightly hurt, Hiccup turned to her. "You don't think she'd want to be around us."

"I do not think she wants to be around us," she specified, gesturing to their group. "You are different, but recognizing this might help make her transition back into civilization smoother."

Snotlout nodded. "Yeah, so maybe no Berk trips for her just yet."

"I agree," Astrid said. "I don't think she'd be too happy to see so many Vikings at once."

It was clear for the group to see that Hiccup wanted to bring Valka back to Berk as soon as possible, but he did have to consider what the others were saying. He had waited his entire life for his family to be whole again. A little longer was more than manageable. He thought of this while Eret was placed back on the ground. Sleuther decided to be gentler this time, but it was only because of his rider.

"Thanks, Strykie," Dagur said, patting his head. "Bruises don't lead to buddies."

The redhead dismounted and leaned against the Triple Stryke's back. Eret's eyes narrowed at them both.

"You wanted us to be away from the others so that they wouldn't know what kinds of torture you used?"

Dagur laughed. "I doubt anything I could do would surprise them at this point. No, I brought you out here so that it'd be less tense. It didn't seem like we were getting very far when everyone was talking to you."

"Why do you think you'll be any different?"

"I'm the only one out of us who's been in a situation similar to yours."

After a moment, a flicker of recognition flashed in Eret's eyes. "Blue tattoos. Red hair," he commented quietly. "I wasn't paying attention before. You're Dagur the Deranged. I've heard of you."

"You probably haven't heard the best things."

"I heard that you changed from a feared chief into a pitiful ally of Berk."

Dagur felt himself getting irritated and took a breath. "Makes sense that the Trappers would say that."

"It's only natural. You decided to turn on the Hunters, so you wouldn't have to worry about the Dragon Riders."

"That's where you're wrong. I wasn't worried about them winning or anything like that. I changed because I wanted to. I needed to be there for my sister and I could only do that by becoming a better person. It made my life a lot more meaningful. Before that, my life had been empty."

"My life isn't empty."

"I didn't realize mine was at first either."

Eret was still frowning at the Berserker.

"Killing can be fun," the chief admitted, a smile crossing his face. "I still think about some of my best kills." He felt a laugh coming on and stopped. "But taking lives and gold doesn't really get you anywhere. It doesn't give you something to be proud of."

"I'm proud of the work I've done with Drago–proud of the respect I've demanded."

The Berserker shook his head. "Demanding it doesn't feel as nice as earning it." He paused, lifting an eyebrow. "You almost died today. I know how near death experiences can make you look at the events in your life in a whole new light. Are you really saying you didn't have that happen to you too?"

Eret hesitated with this answer. It was the first time he had looked anything less than spiteful. A knowing expression covered Dagur's face and he gestured towards the direction from which they had flown.

"If you're not sure about the Berkians, I can tell you they're a lot more merciful than you think. They're even protective of each other."

"That wouldn't extend to me. You all wouldn't help if Drago sent Vikings to bring me back."

"Ret," Dagur said, earning a frown at the nickname, "we're trying to stop Drago from causing chaos everywhere. That sorta includes torturing Vikings. Even if it didn't, it would be pretty messed up to ask you to turn on him and not help you afterwards."

The other Viking clearly did not feel swayed, but his frown faded slightly.

"Our group's loyal too," the chief said. "Unlike Drago, we don't brand or kill each other for messing up. You might get a few sighs, but when that's the alternative, I don't think there's a comparison."

The redhead returned to Sleuther's back and the dragon went over to Eret again.

"That's it?" the Trapper asked.

"Yeah, no one forced me to change. You have to want to do it too. So, just think about your options. One actually ends with you having a real future."

Resisting less this time, Eret was scooped up by Sleuther and flown back to the others. They traveled while the friends were discussing plans.

"Drago will probably go to Berk first if he's figured out that's where we're from," Astrid commented.

Fishlegs nodded. "We're the biggest threats right now to his scheme…whatever it is."

"Maybe if we get to Drago before he gets there, we can stop him or at least figure out what he wants," Snotlout suggested.

"Then let's go," Hiccup encouraged. "If Eret was already about to get killed, then more of them know we got involved. We don't know what Drago could be doing while we're here. The sooner we get to him, the better."

Hiccup's gaze shifted slightly, moving to where he saw his mother watching. There was a frown on her face as she crouched between some shrubs.

"I'll be right back," he said, approaching the other Viking. "I don't think they're upset anymore about the fire blast."

"That's not why I'm here."

"It's not? What is?"

"To observe," she answered, focusing on the group. "You're going to take their advice for your next plans?"

"Yeah, for something like this, we should decide as a team. There's a lot at stake."

"Exactly, which is why I wonder why you would place so much trust in them."

Hiccup's eyebrows lifted in surprise. "They're my friends. Of course I trust them."

"You forget that I was a Berkian too. Viking friendships are self-serving. They don't exist unless someone can view it as valuable."

"I view our friendship as valuable too," the trainer said, a little defensive.

"But when they thought it wouldn't be, I'm sure they didn't want to be around you."

Hiccup's silence gave Valka her confirmation.

"You were such a small baby," she said sadly. "As soon as I saw that, I was devastated, but it was not because I wanted you to be different. It was because I knew what it meant for your treatment on Berk. There would never be anything I could do to ease the pain. For some reason, Berk has a tendency to treat its own Vikings like outcasts even if they're never sent to the island of the same name."

Hiccup began to shake his head. These thoughts were not helpful. Sure, they had crossed his mind once or twice. Actually, in his adolescence, they were nearly impossible to be rid of; however, that was then. Time had passed. If it could heal all wounds, that meant it had healed those as well.

"Things were different before Toothless, but…that's in the past."

"Have they asked to be forgiven for that or have they simply moved on?"

Hiccup hesitated, then began to frown. "Mom, this isn't as important as stopping Drago from hurting anyone else."

"It is because if you enter a battle with Vikings you can't rely on, it could cost you your life. You've never faced anyone like Drago before, Son. You might think you know how the others respond in wars, but you don't know how they will be when they are at war with him."

Hiccup did not really know what to say to Valka. The very thought of his friends betraying him in the upcoming battle was absurd. The battle itself still was not yet guaranteed and if all went well, it never would be. Although they could not hear Hiccup, his friends noticed that something was wrong. They started to approach and Astrid put a hand on his shoulder.

"What's going on?"

"We were discussing how the alliance you all have with my son is entirely reliant on how it can benefit you."

The others stopped in shock.

"That's not true," Astrid told her.

"You didn't mistreat him prior to him befriending Toothless?"

"We–"

"After the two of them made such an impact on the island, that wasn't when you decided to be kinder?"

"It's not–" Snotlout started to say, frowning.

"If not for Toothless in his life, would you consider yourselves his friends right now?"

The Berkians looked astonished by this line of questioning.

"Where did all that come from?" Tuffnut asked, shocked.

"We are about to be in a battle," Valka stated. "It's vital to have a full understanding of our allies."

Astrid began feeling herself becoming frustrated. "We're all allies. Things might have been different back then, but we were also different."

Fishlegs nodded, relieved to have an explanation to latch onto. "We were kids. It doesn't make everything okay, but some of us were just doing what we thought we had to."

"Yeah," Snotlout agreed. "It's not like it's easy to just ignore everything your family's telling you to do."

Valka regarded them coldly. "Your first response to being confronted with this is to defend yourselves and blame others. You all were complacent and cruel. At your core, you're still selfish children, valuing your own feelings more than his." She turned to her son, a concerned look on her face. "How can you expect Drago to change? Even these Berkians haven't."

Ruffnut started to glare at the mother. Tuffnut saw her and tried to catch her arm, but he was not able to stop her.

"That's a lot of big talk for someone who hasn't even been here. Were we jerks sometimes? Absolutely! But we were able to change. Now, we all know each other better than the backs of our axes including how we'd never turn into traitors. When Hiccup and Toothless are in trouble, we're the ones who help get them out of it. Can you say that?"

The two Vikings glared at one another as silence fell over the group. It seemed like even the dragons had stopped making noises. None of the Berkians knew what to say, so Mala stepped forward and addressed them.

"There are many issues which must be resolved," she admitted, "but placing blame and using insults is not an efficient way to do that. Perhaps sharing perspectives without judgment will offer more clarity than assumptions."

Ever so slightly, this began to calm down matters on the Riders' side.

"Drago's caused everyone to become anxious," Minden continued, placing a hand on Snotlout's shoulder. "Maybe talking this out will help before we enter the battle."

Heather nodded sympathetically. "Fighting while you're upset leaves you off your game. Someone could get hurt."

Astrid took a deep breath. "You three are right. Let's just calm down and start over."

Valka's eyes stayed locked on Ruffnut's. The blonde reluctantly stopped frowning. Her expression changed to one of surprise when she heard a warble come from the taller Viking. She tried to mimic the noise to offer a response, but it did not sound the same.

"She does that too," Hiccup informed the others, still feeling a little numb from the conversation.

The trainer was not necessarily looking at any of the others, eyes on the ground. Snapping him back into the moment, he felt as Valka grabbed his hand and began pulling him away with her. She got on Cloudjumper. The Viking made another dragon grumble, but the reptile she was standing on was not the one to respond. Then spoke aloud for her son to understand.

"Follow us," she requested.

Unsurely, Hiccup and Toothless glanced back at the others.

"We really need to talk," Valka said, tone sounding more worried.

Slowly, Hiccup turned from the Vikings and got onto Toothless's saddle before taking flight. The friends were uncertain on what to do. Astrid and Stormfly attempted to go after them, but the Deadly Nadder was affected by the invisible barrier. It allowed Hiccup and Valka to travel alone.

"You're too forgiving," she stated. "In battles, that could be deadly."

Hiccup was quiet as she said this. If he had believed the Bewilderbeast would have been so permitting, he would have gone for a flight with just him and Toothless. Luckily, Valka did not seem to have much more to say. They flew in silence until finding some more ships.

"I don't see any dragons," the trainer commented.

"They're still Trappers."

"We don't know for sure. These might just be sailors."

"They're too close to the nest."

Hiccup tensed slightly as he felt a gust of wind from Cloudjumper diving down towards the vessels. The dragon's jaws opened wide for a stream of fire to shoot out at the Vikings. Fire spread over the decks and sails. It caught the people, blistering their skin as they screamed out. Toothless quickly flew down to stop the other dragon. He blocked Cloudjumper's path.

"What are you doing?!" Hiccup asked in horror.

"What's necessary to protect our dragons," Valka told him, eyes locked onto the Vikings below.

"We don't have to do it this way."

"It is the most efficient way. I will always do what I must to keep my family safe." Valka's expression hardened. "Unfortunately, in times like these, it's at the cost of other dragons, but their sacrifices are never in vain."

Hiccup's frown began to turn into one of confusion.

"Times like these?" he echoed.

Suddenly, his eyes widened as his face went pale. Toothless came to the same realization and hurried back to the base. The Rider's heart raced while they flew.

"The others are in danger," he said, gritting his teeth. "They came to find us and now, they're trapped and outnumbered!"