You have two families in your life, the one you're born with and then there's the one that is forged. The one that you didn't even know you were looking for until you were. The family that sees you for you.
Prologue
The Hidden World (Present Day)
A flock of dragons swarms around the underground cavern, creating a swirl of tails and wings, chirping and cooing as they go about their duties and lives. As they pass by, they all bow their heads in respect to a lean figure standing outside on the ledge of his nest. His auburn bangs blow in the wind as the wings of his subjects pass by. The chirping and cooing of his six hatchlings behind him reach his ears, and a pleasant smile appears on his freckled face. A mighty roar echoes from the throne in the middle of the underground cavern, and the figure's smile widens as he looks down toward the source of the roar. Seeing his dominant mate demonstrate authority and the black dragon's toxic eyes lock eyes with his forest green sends excitement and pride throughout the human's slim frame. As he watches his beloved lead the meeting from their den, the figure closes his eyes, sits down on the ledge with his hatchlings nearby, and thinks back to where he was before and how he got to where he is now.
30 years ago
The night sky was calm as the stars twinkled and the moon shined brightly. Two silhouette figures, followed by many more dragons, flew toward a smoking volcano covered in a dense mist. The two figures in front of the group were the King and Queen of the Hidden World, a sacred home for dragons.
"According to our scouts, The Red Death has abandoned her post as guardian of our home and has taken many of our dragons hostage to use for her own selfish desires." The king growled in frustration as his razor-sharp teeth popped out from his gums, his toxic eyes slit into thin lines brimming with anger that made other dragons back down immediately.
The Queen purred as she looked back at her sleeping hatchling, born only 2 months ago, and her own eyes shined with love until they became slit. "Yes, I feel as though we don't know who is an ally or foe, and also we have to keep our world safe for Haaken." She coos.
At the mention of his name, the little black hatchling, a Night Fury, stirred and yawned as his dam flew over a medium-sized island. The little dragon's eyes widened, feeling like something was pulling him to the unknown location. A few whimpers escaped his lips, and the tiny blue glow on his back disappeared.
Hearing her baby's whimpers, Sapphire looks back to comfort her offspring until her green eyes also locate the island. She, too, feels an invisible pull, but she shakes it off and continues her flight. 'It's not possible; I'm just nervous for Hakken, that's all, ' her thoughts say as the dragons near the mist bank.
Drakken turns and addresses his followers once in front of the barrier separating them from their foes. "My warriors, for as long as we can remember, The Hidden World has been at peace where all dragons are safe; despite the ongoing war with humans, we have been grateful for our protectors at our entrances who keep humans away and us safe. But now, one of them has gone astray, and The Red Death has taken a lot of our bravest prisoners. Tonight, I ask you to lend us your strength and come together to save our comrades, defeat this rogue dragon, for our families, our hatchlings, and the future king of our world, Hakken. Let's take back our world!" "He roars, and many other roars accompany him. However, as the army was set to charge, many dragons suddenly flew out of the volcano. A battle ensued in the skies, with the Red Death's army quickly taking control of the fight by either killing the army dragons or taking them hostage."
"MY KING SAVE US!" Some roared as Drakken was chased around the volcano by two death gripper dragons, each with horns glistening with venom ready to plunge into the male Night Fury's skin. Whenever Drakken thought he'd got ahead of the enemy, they would appear out of nowhere and nearly pierce his side or underbelly. Despite firing off plasma blasts multiple times until he reached his limit, Drakken continued to lead the dragons around the volcano until another dragon, a Zippleback, blasted right in front of the male night fury, causing him to falter in his flight. He then felt himself being pounced on and rapidly approaching the ground until the pressure from his back and side stood removed as a bright purple plasma blast connected with the death grippers. Sapphire carried her mate safely to the sandy land of the entrance to their home.
"My love, please wake up." Sapphire pleads as she nuzzles her beloved, noticing a large stab wound in her mate's underside. With a whimpering, Hakken nudged at his sire. She quickly goes to lick the wound, knowing that Night Fury's saliva has healing properties.
Drakken weakly awakens, his green eyes showing how much pain he's in, and gently licks his whimpering offspring. "Don't worry, Hakken, it'll take more than this to defeat me." He cooed, frail, as he winced from the pain of his wounds. He turned to his mate and cooed. "My darling, please take Hakken and leave; I'll only be deadweight to you."
Sapphire whimpers and shakes her head, her green eyes becoming large and sad. "No, I refuse to abandon you. Hakken needs you; he needs both of us. I need you. Just because he's loved by all our subjects doesn't mean I want him to grow up without his sire. Please, I can help you. Let us gather the rest of our group and retreat."
Drakken shook his head and smiled, but it was sad and didn't meet his eyes. "Sapphire, if we retreat now, it's only a matter of time before she takes over more territory and challenges the other guardians as well, and all of her servants take over all of our home. I have to defend my home, the home of my son, and my subjects. It's my duty as King of the Hidden World and as a father to ensure that my son has a bright, safe future."
Sapphire tries to protest, but before she can, two nightmares come and scoop up the two adult night furies, and a nadder picks up a squirming Hakken. The three-night furies stand then brought inside the volcano, where once inside, they see a large pit shrouded in smoke and many dragons hovering over the pit, dropping livestock; thousands of rock ledges contain dragons on each one, from one to five at a time and some with clusters of hatchlings. As Drakken and Sapphire look at each of their fellow dragons, they see looks of sadness and defeat, and some look like they're in a trance, as most dragons look nervously at their leaders and the heir. They also notice many dragons with torn ligaments and deep talon marks on their extremities. As the nightmare hovers over the middle of the smoke bank, the nadder takes Hakken to a ledge as it looks at the fury parents, and a silent message passes between them: 'I'll look after him.'
A loud thunderous roar that shakes the entire nest comes from the smoke as a figure begins to emerge from it. The night fury mates see a large head emerge from the smoke first with six eyes on each side of its grayish-red head, each one glistening with smugness and victory. Its head rises until she's right before the mates, and her hot breath washes over their entire body. The smell of death lingers in the air as she burps up bones and spits them directly onto the King and Queen. "Welcome, your majesties. Please forgive me about the bones, but I thought you would want the remains of your subjects." She mocks, but the fury's faces remain neutral.
"Why are you doing this, Red? You used to be our greatest ally and protector; why have you betrayed us like this?" Sapphire growled through gritted teeth.
The Red Death chuckles darkly. "We have been at peace for so long that you seem to have lost the meaning of how to rule. It would help if you ruled with an iron fist; make the dragons work for you instead of working together. And suppose they fall out of line like what you've allowed all these years. In that case, you punish them harshly." She explains that a nadder comes in with a lamb in its talons, but the Red Death, after forcing the nadder to feed her the lamb, the enormous dragon swiftly grabs the nadder and devours it; the night furies horror.
"You didn't notice that I've been doing this for years; every time a dragon would come near the volcano, I would lure them in with mind control, and by the time they realized what had occurred, it was too late. I then use my minions to raid the humans for food, and if they disappoint me or step out of line, I feast on them. This all started when the guardian from the west died, and the guardian from the east lost their unborn egg when it stood stolen from its nest." She explains as she notices the little black hatchling and notices that the older dragons, including the other night furies that came with the King and Queen protecting the little heir, "I see the little heir has come as well, and his full power has yet to come to fruition."
Drakken and Sapphire struggle to get to their hatchling, but the nightmares tighten their claws into the night furies' skin, piercing the wound on Drakken's side and earning a growl of pain from the male dragon. "And now it's time for a new ruler to come to power!" The Red Death roared as she ordered the death grippers and nightmares to bring the night furies to her. Both Drakken and Sapphire struggled and fired off multiple blasts, even swinging their tails to try to smack their captors away, but it was no use as claws pierced the skin and more blood oozed out of Drakken's body as he howled in agony. The other dragons try to save their leaders, but the Red Death's subjects intercept and prevent them from interfering. The night furies who fly past them also try, but the Red Death suddenly takes control of them and forces them to land by Hakken. A nadder with a yellow and blue hatchling shields Hakken and her baby from the scene.
"Sapphire, my love, I have loved you since we were hatchlings, and I will always love you, my beautiful mate." Drakken declares as the largemouth hovers over the mates—the smell of death covering the night furies.
"Drakken, my dear, you are my forever love, and I thank you for this amazing life we have had and for giving us a beautiful son. May he live and save all dragons someday." Sapphire replied as both dragons, as well as the nightmares and death grippers, were enveloped and devoured by The Red Death.
All was silent within the nest as the dragons processed what they just witnessed; their king and Queen were dead; all that remained of them was their hatchling, who was whimpering, feeling like he had just lost something. "Now then, bring me the heir!" The Red Death declared as she locked eyes with a male nadder who took the hatchling from his mate, who was protecting the heir, and reluctantly hovered over the head of his new Queen. All of the Queen's eyes lock on the black dragon, and a sound that sounds like chirping and whistling stands heard, and the little dragon's ears perk up, and his eyes slit. "Your name is Hakken; you will not remember your life before; you exist to serve me." Her voice commands as she locks away Hakken's memories of who he is, with only his name intact. After a few more moments, the little dragon's ears droop, his eyes return to normal before closing, and he passes out. "Get him out of my sight; if anyone speaks a chirp or coo to him of his origins, your hatchlings will be the ones to pay the price, or maybe I'll kill the heir myself." She threatens as she retreats into the smoke-filled ground. The adult dragons look at the now sleeping Hakken, mourn for their King and Queen, and vow to protect their prince.
Isle Of Berk
A light mist drifts through the air toward an island known as the Isle of Berk. Everything appears peaceful until a gut-wrenching wail of sorrow pierces the silence, reaching even the gods. The villagers leave their homes and hurry to the Chief's house on the hill. An older woman with a staff and a one-armed man rush into the house, shutting the door behind them. Inside, a woman screams in anguish as she cradles her baby son, who has just passed away. Her husband cradles his wife in his arms, his eyes shining with tears threatening to fall. "Oh, Stoick, how could this happen? He was perfect; yes, he was born early, but my baby, how come he didn't survive?" The browned-haired woman wailed, bringing the bundle in her arms close to her face and nuzzling it as she lay into a tall, heavy figure's giant arms.
Stoick gently brushes the strands of Auburn hair on his son's head. "I don't know, Val; I believed this was our chance; perhaps he shall name him before we." He trailed off, unable to process the thought of having a funeral for his newborn son, as a few tears made their way down his face.
The older woman comes close to the grieving parents, having gone through the many miscarriages Valka and Stoick had gone through over the years. As she gently takes the deceased infant into her arms, she looks up and notices a slight mist entering the room and hovering over the infant. "You must live; he needs you, young one." The mist whispers as it enters the body of the infant. Suddenly, a whimper escapes his lips, and color returns to his skin.
Both Stoick and Valka's heads snap up at the sound of the baby's whimpers, and Gothi gently hands the now-alive infant to his mother as his eyes slowly open to reveal forest green eyes. "Oh Stoick, he's alive, he's alive!" Valka yells, tears rolling down her face like droplets.
Stoick takes the boy from his wife and rocks him back and forth, his red beard brushing against the baby's face, earning a laugh from the infant. "My boy, the gods have returned you to us, Thor Almighty!" He shouts with a twinkle of pride in his green eyes as Gothi taps him on the shoulder, signaling him to lower the baby to her level. The Chief of Berk obliges, and the Elder places her hand on the baby's head when a voice speaks to her, "We speak to you, Elder, allow us to use you as a vessel to bestow this child with our power." Eir spoke softly as Gothi slowly nodded, small enough that Stoick couldn't see. She felt a power enter her and then move in the baby's small form.
"So what are you going to name him? He's small, but I suppose being born two months earlier than expected and then dying will do that to you." Gobber shrugged, looking at the tiny bundle in his best friend's arms.
Valka stands beside her husband, looks at her child, and sees that he's indeed small; even his cries are tiny. "Hiccup, " she announces. That's his name."
"Hiccup Horrendous Haddock lll." Stoick beams. "It's perfect."
While the new parents celebrate the revival of their child and the extended family comes to share in the celebration, all of Berk commemorate the healing of their heir. Gothi goes to the cliffside and scribbles down what the gods had told her and what the mist had spoken before disappearing into Hiccup. "A boy shall die only to be revived by the soul of a dragon, and together with the 'True Alpha shall peace come." Gothi finishes the writing, and two balls of light appear before the Elder. One ball forms into a human female: Eir.
"I have bestowed the young one with my power to heal and protect. I task you with teaching him the ways of healing. His life will be trying, full of trials and hardships, but the one shall come, and together they will bring peace." She explains as Gothi nods in understanding. Eir then holds the second ball of light in her palm as it changes color until it reaches blue. "When he ages, this spell keeps his powers from overwhelming him until he's old enough to control them." The goddess explains as the power enters Gothi. Once satisfied, the goddess of healing disappears, leaving the Elder alone. As she turns back towards her village, her thoughts wander. 'So it has begun.' She thinks with a small smile as her eyes look up towards the snow-topped mountain of Berk.
Six years later
A massive flock of dragons flies in the sky; some of the group break off and head towards an island known as Outcast. Another breaks off and heads to other islands, such as Bog Burglar, Shivering Shore, and neighboring islands. The group that went to Berserker Island often never successfully raided much due to an invisible force driving them back—a force the Queen plans to deal with in due time. A large group of dragons also heads to the Isle of Berk with a now-six-year-old Hakken on a nightmare's back.
The Queen decided that Hakken was old enough to begin raiding; despite the paternal instincts within most of the dragons to protect the prince and keep him in the nest, they couldn't refuse their Queen. Over the last six years, Hakken grew and stood protected by all the dragons, including the fellow night fury that stood captured with him. Those night furies have since been killed by one of the Red Death's special servants.' Hakken, for his part, only knows his name and has to serve his Queen; he defends his fellow hatchlings and is kind and caring despite the Queen's treatment of him.
The night fury hatchling wakes up and feels the Queen's ever-present voice in his mind. "Observe and learn, young dragon, should any human come for you, kill on sight." She commands, and Hakken's little eyes become slits, and his little teeth barely unstealthy from his tiny gums as the dragons descend upon Berk and begin the raid. As Vikings spring out of their homes, battle axes in hand and roars of anger come from their throats as they engage the dragons, who begin snatching up livestock from yaks to sheep, even a horse or two.
Hakken observes the adult dragons with his slitted eyes as he sees the blue and yellow Nader's sire pinned down by nets. He tries to go and help, but the nadder shoos him back. "No, Hakken, you mustn't get captured!" He screeches as a large man with a red beard and angry green eyes spots the little hatchling.
"You men come and get this Nadder!" Stoick orders his men as he begins to chase the little black dragon.
Hakken flies away and quickly hides in the shadow of a tree as Stoick looks to and fro for the little dragon. The Night Fury suddenly feels a pull that breaks through the control of the Queen. Hakken feels the pull and senses the Red Death's mind control gradually slipping away. His little wings carry him through the night sky until he reaches a house on a hill. The pull becomes more assertive, and Hakken enters the home through a grating in the door. It leads him to a giant wooden chair with a little boy hiding behind it.
The boy sees the little black dragon and trembles in fear, even though it's just a baby dragon. "Hi, please don't kill me." He stutters as he clings to the chair for dear life, his voice trembling with fright at the idea that a dragon is in his home.
The night fury hatchling looks at the human, whose eyes are bright green like the forest and whose hair is as Auburn as a leaf in autumn but is as lean as a twig on a branch and trembling like a lamb in the cold. The pull tugs the baby towards the human, and Hakken lowers to the ground as a sign of 'no threat,' figuring that this little hatchling couldn't be much older than himself as his tiny black nose crinkles up, practically smelling the fear and confusion of this human hatchling.
The Auburn boy slowly clenches his hands from the chair and comes into view. He sees the dragon isn't that big, about his age, perhaps. "My name is Hiccup." He introduces himself as he kneels before the lowered dragon. "You're a dragon, but yet you're a baby." He adds, as he, too, feels a tug towards Hakken. He slowly lifts his tiny hand and lowers it to the dragon's snout.
Hakken sees the human's hand and growls with teeth bared in warning. He immediately feels a little guilty, seeing forest green eyes turn from curious to panic in an instant. He does a quick sweep over the human's small form for any weapons and coos when he doesn't see anything harmful. Hakken decides to press his snout into the human's tiny paw slowly, and a shock quickly rushes through his entire being, and he jumps back.
Hiccup also feels the shock and quickly retreats to the chair, away from the hatchling. Both stare at each other, wondering what these feelings are surfacing. Both unknowingly, it's not friendship that sparked between them but something more. "So, um, do you want to play with some toys since I hope you're not going back out there to raid?" He asked while biting his lip, terrified of the hatchling raiding and getting hurt by his fellow Viking, but he tried to hide it.
The midnight hatchling shook his head yes and bolted over to the toy box Hiccup gestured to, and the two began to play with Hiccup, pretending to tackle the dragon with a little shield and sword and missing. At one point, he got hurt by a loose nail on the floorboard, and he began to bleed. Hakken worried, but Hiccup calmed him. "It's ok, I can heal." He said as his hand glowed blue. He spoke a spell, and the cut healed up. Hakken was amazed. The two resumed playing, the feeling buzzing with life between them. After about a couple hours of playing, the two look at each other directly while lying on the fur-covered floor, with Hiccup panting slightly from all the playing as he lifts his hand to pet the onyx-colored baby dragon, and Hakken leans into the touch. It's just the two of them until a loud thud stands heard, and Stoick quickly grabs Hiccup and begins to shout at the black hatchling.
"Dad, no stop; he won't hurt me; please stop!" Hiccup yelled as he struggled to get back to the black dragon. Hakken tried to get back to Hiccup. But his father pays him no mind as he grabs the little dragon and throws him out of the house.
Hakken scratches at the door and whimpers, worried for the little human as he hears the older human yelling loudly through the door. "Hakken, let's go." Sparkle, a female Nightmare, urges as she leans down and grabs the hatchling in her maw, ignoring his protest. "I have to save him." He screeches as he begins to feel the pull disappearing and cries as substituted with the Queen's voice. 'Please, Hiccup, please be ok.' He thinks despairingly as the flock regroups and enters Helium's Gate.
Berk
Stoick drags his son through the village as Hiccup frantically shoves at his father's giant hands. Looking up at the sky through tear-filled eyes, he wonders what became of his new friend. "Daddy, please stop, " he begs as they near Gothi's hut. Upon entering the hut, Stoick roughly sits Hiccup on a bed and holds him there until the Elder comes up, and her old eyes widen at the sight of her soon-to-be apprentice.
"A Night Fury came into my house and attacked my son. I want you to seal his memories of this ordeal." Stoick orders as Hiccup gasps and tears collect in his eyes.
No, Daddy, please. He wasn't attacking me; we were playing. They're not wrong. Please don't do this, " the weeping child begged.
Gothi looked between father and son, and she wrote in the dirt as Stoick looked on. "You know this will have severe repercussions in the future; I don't have to remind you of what I saw that day." The writing read as Stoick growled.
"It's better this way. I don't want him to become like Val, and don't you ever bring up that incident or anything about that ever again." He snarled.
Gothi glared hard at her Chief for a long while before sighing, nodding, and noticing that Hiccup had curled into himself and cried himself to sleep; the whimpers escaping his quivering lips showed he didn't want this. Gothi then moved towards the whimpering child, gently uncurled his body, and laid him flat on his back. She then placed her hand on his forehead and another on his heart. 'Eir, please forgive me for this.' She thinks as her hands glow green. Hiccup's forehead also glows green as his whimpers become softer until they stop, and he rests peacefully. After a few minutes, Gothi's hand stops shining, and she turns to Stoick and nods, indicating it stands finished.
Stoick nods as well and gently picks up his offspring. "Hiccup will be better off this way, and I'll make sure that Night Fury never sets foot in Berk again. Hiccup's destiny is Berk, not dragons or anything related to 'that world.' Stoick declares as he starts walking down the steps of the hut but stands stopped by Gothi. She quickly writes on the ground, "Beware, chief, this will not end well for Hiccup, and you cannot stop his destiny; perhaps delay it but not stop it."
The Chief nods in acknowledgment and walks back to his home, past his brother Spitlout. "Stoick, we captured only seven dragons, and almost half of our livestock was taken. I've already got the ship up and packed for fishing, and a trader from the north named Johann is coming within the week; surely he'll have livestock." He says as he walks with his older brother.
"Yes, we can only hope he does." Stoick replies as he meets up with Gobber, his right-hand man. "Hiccup is to begin being your apprentice in blacksmithing beginning tomorrow."
Gobber's eyes widened at the statement. "Ye sure Stoick?" He questions.
"Yes, I am; it'll keep him out of trouble, and it's the last place a dragon would find him." Stoick counters as he walks up the hill, moves into his house, and closes the door. He lays his unconscious son on the fur-covered bed that Stoick and Valka slept on and covers him up. "I won't lose any more of my family to dragons, especially a night fury." Stoick declares, looking out towards the night sky, unaware that his offspring clenched a small black scale in his hand, and a few tears trickled down his face.