Hello my lovely readers! I have returned! Updates at the end, enjoy :)

Just a note, this chapter is edited from the original that was posted on AO3 because of concerns related to rating, since has much stricter rules. If you would like to see the original as it was written and intended to be shared, please go to my AO3 page. The edits are all related to violence. This edit does include that violence still but watered down enough that it still makes sense for the story and communicates what it needs to for characterization sake; essentially the worst is removed to try to avoid the story being taken down as a whole by FF.

Also, if at any point during the story it becomes too uncomfortable, you can scroll down to the block of italics at the end of the chapter to skip the trigger warned parts.

TW: Body mutilation, character death

3 weeks earlier

As they stepped into the main throughway of the Northern Markets, Gustav already didn't like what he saw. The stalls still looked as near-bare as they had been on their last trip a month earlier, and even the people were few and far between, save the traders in their stalls.

Gustav looked at Throk. "I mean I expected the Markets to be a little sparse, but I thought they'd have restocked at least a little since last time."

Throk nodded. "It is a bit concerning," he muttered.

That didn't make him feel any better. "Let's just get what we need and get back home."

"Agreed. We will buy out whatever stock the merchants have if we must. But a long stay does not seem prudent."

"Ditto. Alright, let's get this over with."

As they continued down the line, they found more of the same - stalls bare of the essentials and sparse of anything else.

"They really do look just as empty as before," Gustav muttered.

"I feel we will not have much luck here," Throk agreed.

"What do you think is keeping all the stalls so bare?"

Throk thought for a moment. "I wish I knew." He looked around warily before stepping closer to Gustav. "Do not make it obvious who we are or where we hail from. The usual merchants will know us, but I am more concerned about newer faces who may be looking for us."

"Don't tell me Dagur is getting in your head." He turned his head just in time to see two men talking discreetly while watching the two of them walk by. "But, uh… Well, maybe we should stick with people we know anyway, just in case."

Throk turned. He must have seen what Gustav saw as well. "Agreed."

Gustav saw at least one stall that showed some promise. "Alright, what's the absolute minimum we need?"

Throk thought for a moment. "Furs and grains should suffice. Perhaps honey if we wish to avoid riots."

Gustav gestured with his head. "Trader Fenrir is over there. He's pretty reliably for honey and grains. I don't know about furs but it's worth a shot."

Throk nodded. "We will get what we can from him and return to the ship where we can discuss further."

Gustav nodded. "Fine by me."

As they approached Trader Fenrir, Gustav noticed Throk scanning the area. Gustav trusted Throk's eye better than his solely based on his lifetime's worth of experience, so Gustav took the lead. "Trader Fenrir, how ya doing?"

"Ah, if it isn't the great Berserkers!" Trader Fenrir boomed, his arms stretched out wide.

Gustav internally flinched at the enthusiastic response to his question, and noticed Throk jump next to him as well. "Aha, yes, thank you," Gustav nervously replied. "Just out for a quick trip. Hey, you got any honey and grains? Furs, maybe?"

"Oh, I've got plenty of honey and grains for you, always keep a good stock for you this late in the season. I was starting to worry I would lose out! You're much later than usual."

"Just got a little busy with the tribe. We'll take whatever you got. What about furs?"

"Busy with 'the tribe,' eh? That mysterious tribe you buy for, perhaps, hmm?" Fenrir teased. "You do always buy enough for two tribes late in the season, after all."

"For the last time, Fenrir, there's no 'mysterious tribe.' You've been to our island, you know how they get. If we have a surplus, there's no need for infighting." Gustav paused for a moment. "Well, less of a need, at least. Dagur's done it for years and it hasn't failed us yet. Not to mention the fact that our tribe nearly doubled after we absorbed the Defenders of the Wing."

"Sure, sure…" Fenrir gathered up their wares of interest. "Honey and grains I can provide, but I'm afraid I'm out of furs. Truly a shame, I fear it will be quite the cold winter."

Gustav made an effort to avoid rolling his eyes. "Oh yeah, why's that?"

"We traders have our sources," Fenrir smiled.

And your manipulative selling tactics, Gustav thought.

"I have plenty of wool that I can offer, however."

Gustav stood his ground. He was very used to dealing with Fenrir after all these years. "We have plenty of sheep that provide wool, Fenrir. What we don't have is furs. Any idea where we can get those? Since you don't have any."

"Suit yourself. Actually, I do know where you can find some. You may not recognize him but his fur stores are quite impressive. Many beautiful furs from faraway lands as well. I believe he'll be able to fulfill your large desired quantities as well, and at a good price since he has so many."

Gustav shared a look with Throk. It couldn't hurt. Throk shrugged.

"Alright then, where is this new trader?" Gustav asked Fenrir.

"Back at his ship, I presume. He mentioned he may depart within the day. I'd hurry if I were you."

"Which ship exactly?"

Fenrir scoffed. "Trust me, you can't miss it. By far the biggest ship in the harbor, even moreso than the massive vessel your own crew no doubt came in for all of your wares."

Gustav's interest peaked. He had a hunch which ship Fenrir was talking about. It must be the one they saw docked in the harbor when they sailed into the Northern Markets. A grand and ornate ship towering above the rest of them, boasting two large masts and a stabilizer on its left side. Gustav couldn't remember seeing a ship like that since the Dragon Hunters tried to capture that titanwing Dramilion. "Oh, I know which one you're talking about. What's this new trader's name?"

"Boyra. Nice enough fellow, I'm sure he'll be happy to help for the right price."

"Aren't you all," Gustav muttered under his breath. "Thanks, Fenrir. If you don't mind packing up the grains and honey for us, we'll send some men back with our payment to pick it up. The usual price, I assume? We can offer some extra iron this trip, as a thanks for holding goods for us."

Fenrir smiled. "That'll do quite nicely, yes."

Gustav turned to Throk. "Shall we meet this new trader?"

Throk didn't seem thrilled, but he didn't argue either.

They made their way back down the main through way towards the ship. Throk walked up the gangplank to instruct the crew of what they were picking up and what to exchange it for. Gustav stayed on the dock and stared down the harbor at the massive ship. The more he took it in, the more curious he became. The design on the sails felt familiar to him, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

Throk joined him once more and they set off towards the ship. Gustav's curiosity turned to uncertainty the closer they got.

"This does not look much like a trader's ship," Throk quietly remarked.

Gustav sighed. "I have to agree with you there, Throkster. And those sails... I know I recognize them but I can't figure out why."

"A tribal seal, perhaps?"

"That's what I thought at first but I don't think that's it. It's... Argh, I know it's a Monstrous Nightmare obviously, I just... I can't figure out why that specific design is so familiar." Gustav shook his head.

Throk hesitated at the end of the mysterious ship's dock. "Perhaps we can get by without-"

"Hello, good sirs!" A man stepped off the gangplank towards the end of the dock. "Can I help you? You seem to be searching for something."

Gustav looked at Throk, who had stiffened.

"Apologies, I didn't mean to startle you," the man said with raised hands and a small smile. "I couldn't help but notice you both admiring our ship. My name is Ginnar, and I'd be happy to help if we can. Have you come to this island in search of trades?"

"Um..." Gustav tried to gauge Throk's response, but he remained stiff and stoic. "We have, actually, yeah. We were looking for furs. Trader Fenrir suggested looking for, uh… Boyra, I think?"

"Of course, that would be my captain! He is quite the well known trapper. I'd be happy to introduce you to him," Ginnar offered, stepping to the side and gesturing down the dock towards the gangplank.

Gustav looked again at Throk, who was taking Ginnar in carefully. "Quite an... interesting ship for a trader," Throk prodded.

Ginnar chuckled. "I know, it's not exactly a trading ship. Like I said, my captain is not a trader, but a traveler and trapper. Though he does prefer to trade his own goods when he can, rather than always working through traders. Allows him to collect a larger profit while keeping prices fair."

Throk nodded but said nothing. Gustav took that as his approval. "Great, we'd love to take a look. We have iron to trade with, some silver and minimal gold. Will that work?"

"We have quite a need for iron, so it absolutely will! Right this way, sir…?"

"Gustav. And this is Throk."

"Well then, right this way, Sirs Gustav and Throk."

They cautiously followed Ginnar onto the boat. They couldn't quite see the deck from the docks, nor could they see much of it from land, but Gustav assumed from the size of the ship alone there would be men all over it.

But when they reached the top of the gangplank, they hardly saw anyone at all.

Gustav shared a confused look with Throk. Suddenly Gustav wasn't so confident in this trade offer.

"You seem to be lacking in your crew. Have you had trouble finding suitable sailors?" Throk prodded.

"Oh, not at all. They're all simply below deck preparing for a long journey. We plan to return to our homeland soon," Ginnar explained nonchalantly. He gestured to a door at the bow of the ship, no doubt the captain's quarters. "You'll find Captain Boyra in his quarters here. I'm sure he will be delighted to hear of your interests." Ginnar smiled and waved before turning, walking across the deck and disappearing below.

Gustav and Throk shared yet another curious look before Gustav slowly pushed the door open.

The man sitting behind the captain's desk was startling to say the least. He had scars covering his body, most likely from head to toe, and more still-healing wounds that disappeared deep into the collar of his tunic. His face was gastly and torn up, and he appeared to be missing his left eye. But the part that struck Gustav as the most disturbing were the burns. Burns that he would recognize anywhere, even after all this time. Burns from the fire of a dragon's breath.

The door closed behind them.

"Gentleman, how may I assist you?" The man's question was almost a sneer.

Gustav's mind was racing. Ginnar said this man was a trapper, and he no doubt had the scars to match the profession. But the burns… Was he a dragon trapper at one point? "We're looking to trade for furs. Trader Fenrir sent us your way, do you know him?"

"Ah, yes, Trader Fenrir. He was one of the first traders we spoke to when we arrived on this island. He is a very good man. We do have a great variety of furs, I trust Ginnar told you I was a trapper."

Is he looking for dragons now? Is that why he's here? Gustav tried to look closer at the burns without tipping off the trapper. "He did, yes. We're looking for quite a bit, we have a decent sized tribe but our island is a bit limited on large wildlife."

"Well, lucky for you, we have a large supply. What can you offer in exchange?"

The borders of the scars were very defined, too defined to be from a lava blast. Fire blast was possible, but they typically left behind welts and uneven heating within the skin, causing discoloration along the length of the scars. This man's scars were far too uniform, which led Gustav to believe it was more likely a near-miss from a plasma or magnesium blast. The concentrated high heat would typically cause massive damage when hitting a target directly, but when grazing the target would quickly leave uniform burns across the surface. "Mostly iron. Would you have use for that?"

Boyra laughed and sarcastically remarked, "Would a trapper have use for iron?" He shook his head as he settled. "I think iron will suffice just fine."

But that blast type combined with the age of the scars on his skin made Gustav's stomach drop. Those scars did not look like they were a decade old. They looked maybe months old, definitely not more than a few years. And there was only one place that still had dragons on the surface in the last five years. "Great! Well, I believe my crewmate and I will head back to our ship to gather some iron. We will be back within the hour to make our trade."

"Nonsense, I would hate for you to make the extra trip without even seeing what I have to offer first. I wouldn't want to waste your time. Let me show you my stores before you go."

"Oh, that's not necessary. Ginnar mentioned your crew was leaving soon, we would hate to delay you. We need to depart soon ourselves."

Boyra looked them over carefully before he shrugged and sat back in his chair. "Suit yourselves. We'll be waiting here for you."

Gustav bowed his head. "Thank you." Throk pushed open the door to find Ginnar still standing outside. He bowed his head to the pair and smiled, letting them pass before entering the captain's quarters behind them and closing the door.

Gustav took another look at the sails. He stared at the Monstrous Nightmare design glaring back at him. And then he broke out in a cold sweat.

Drago. That's why he recognized the sails. They looked like the design of Drago's sails.

Gustav wasted no time making his way across the deck and down the gangplank. Thankfully, Throk matched his urgency. Once they turned towards the Berserker ship, Gustav asked. "Did you see those scars?"

Throk nodded. "I did."

"You thinking what I'm thinking?"

"The Wingmaidens," Throk said darkly. "Too many of those burns appeared to still be in the healing process for my liking."

"Couldn't agree more." Gustav picked up the pace. "We have to get back to warn Dagur. We'll just make do with what we have."

Suddenly, Throk nudged against Gustav's side and began to guide him away from the harbor. "What're you doing?"

"They're following." Throk's voice was low and urgent. "Once we are in the covers of the trees, be prepared to run. Hopefully our knowledge of this island will allow us to lose them in the forest. They can't know which ship is ours if they don't already."

Gustav trusted Throk's judgment, so he did what he was told without turning around and wasting time or tipping off their shadows. He kept his eyes on the trees and stuck close to Throk's side, waiting for his orders as they wove through the trading stalls of the Market. "How many?'

"I believe three." Throk began to pick up his pace as he pushed through the small groups of people that passed them. "The one, Ginnar, he followed us off the ship immediately, but I saw two more looking over the deck. I'm sure they followed as well."

"Throk, those sails, I said I recognized them earlier, right?"

"There is no time to discuss that now," Throk interrupted as they neared the tree line. "Right now… Run!"

So he did. Gustav took off through the trees, splitting away from Throk when he began to run in a different direction. He heard a man shout behind them, yelling at the other two to "follow him." Gustav wondered which "him" drew the short straw, but didn't want to risk a glance over his shoulder slowing him down to find out. He had his order. His order was to run.

Unfortunately, this wasn't a large island, which meant if Gustav wanted to lose the goons, he would have to be smart about it. He would have to find some way to create enough distance between him and the persecutors that he could double back unnoticed and get back to the ship. He just hoped Throk had a similar plan.

His lungs burned as his mind raced faster than his legs. These bastards were fast, he could hear their footfalls behind him. Two pairs, to be exact.

Dammit.

Okay, he could do this, he just had to be extra smart about it. Two goons, two brains, try to use them against each other. If they're dragon hunters, maybe they're just as useless as the originals from back in the days of Dragon's Edge. He began to weave around trees, pulling on loose bushes as he passed them to pull the brush into the pathways. He heard sticks cracking and leaves crunching behind him as the hunters crashed through them, but they didn't seem to slow down. He tried taking last minute turns and unexpected jumps in front of trees to switch paths, but even the few times he heard the hunters behind him falter they quickly caught back up. Whoever these guys were, they were not the bumbling buffoons of the dragon hunters' past. He needed a new tactic.

He saw a small ridge cutting into the land to his right. He knew that ridge. It was a sharp drop to the forest below it, but it had plenty of roots sticking out the ground on the way down. It looked like a farther fall than it was from back here, and would definitely make someone pause if they didn't know about it.

He started to curve towards the ridge. It was risky, the drop was still long enough that if he dropped and couldn't catch a sturdy root to slow his fall, he would definitely break a leg at the very least. Which meant he had to be careful where along the ridge he dropped, but he couldn't take too much time or else the hunters would catch on to what he was doing. And these hunters seemed like they wouldn't take long to figure out how to follow Gustav down the ridge if they watched him do it first. It had to be sudden, he was relying on the shock factor to make them pause and give Gustav enough time to pull away.

An educated guess, then.

He looked ahead along the ridge, searching for a large tree that would have large roots to match right along the edge of the drop off. He found his target, calculated his launch point a few feet back from it, pushed his legs to run even faster, took a sharp turn towards the ridge's edge and leveled out along it just long enough to get the right angle, and jumped.

"What the fuck?! Shit!" He heard the shout behind him as the men skidded to a halt. Haha! It worked!

But he hadn't timed his jump well enough, and flew directly over the large roots that were supposed to break up his fall. Without anything to swing on within his reach, his only option was to slow his fall as much as he could before he crashed into the ground. So he reached out desperately, grabbing onto anything and everything within reach. The smaller roots shredded the skin of his hands as he grasped them and then either pulled them from the dirt and rock or stripped them as he fell. He broke through the treetops below and tried to grab the branches, but was falling so fast he couldn't get a good grasp on them. So he braced his body for impact.

When he came to, he found Throk standing over him.

"Praise the Ancients," Throk sighed. "What were you thinking?!"

Gustav groaned. "Yeah… Not my best plan."

They heard a shout off in the trees. Throk looked towards the sound, fists clenched. "Forgive me, Gustav Larson, for this will surely be painful for you."

"Wha-" Throk threw Gustav over his shoulder before he had a chance to finish his question. Gustav yelped as searing white pain shot down his back and right leg. Deep down somewhere he knew that the fact he could feel his body was a good thing, but right now he kind of wished he couldn't feel anything anyway. Still, with each step Throk took, Gustav felt closer to losing consciousness again. He tried to listen for the hunters following them, but he couldn't see or think or hear through the pain that continuously surged down his spine.

But he definitely felt when Throk stuttered to a sudden halt.

He blinked his bleary eyes, trying to determine why Throk stopped. It didn't take long for him to see one of the hunters staring at Throk's back. And judging by the smile plastered on the hunter's face, the other two must have them surrounded as well.

"Put the boy down," one of them sneered.

"I don't think I will," Throk replied.

"I'm a man, asshole," Gustav spat. Though it didn't sound near as threatening as he intended through his weak, cracking voice.

One of the other hunters chuckled. "Oh, this'll be too easy."

Throk sighed. "Have it your way." He set Gustav on the ground as gently as he could, and Gustav bit his lip to try to hide the pain.

Gustav fully trusted Throk's ability to handle himself in a fight. In fact, Throk was one of the best trainers on Berserker Island. He'd proven himself time and time again long before the Defenders of the Wing merged with the Berserkers. Gustav looked up to him, and had always hoped to be half the warrior Throk was. Which made things feel all the more bleak as Gustav could hear Throk slowly losing his ground.

The pain was starting to wear Gustav down, and as much as he wanted to, he struggled to keep his eyes open. He found that while he could still feel most of his body, he couldn't move anything but his head, and that was so incredibly painful that he didn't want to risk it. So he lay helpless on the ground while Throk fought for both of their lives. He knew he saw Throk land some good hits, but it was three against one. Once one of them managed to get the upper hand, it went downhill pretty quickly for Throk. The next time Gustav managed to open his eyes, they had Throk pinned and forced him to his knees. Some time passed, though Gustav wasn't sure how much, before Boyra approached them.

"Tell me, why did you feel the need to run?" He inquired sarcastically. "Innocent men never run."

"You're right. Unless they are suspiciously followed." Gustav could hear the exhaustion in Throk's voice.

Boyra chuckled darkly and took a step closer. "I'll ask again: Why did you feel the need to run?"

"And I'll say again: Your men followed us unprompted."

"Oh, they were prompted. I ordered them to. You see, Sir Fenrir told me about you and your tribe, and as I understand it, you know about something that I want."

"Yes, iron. You mentioned that," Throk said with a sarcastic air.

Boyra chuckled again. It was a sound that was growing increasingly grating to Gustav. "I admire your sense of humor in the face of danger. You must be a great warrior." He heard slow footsteps circling until Boyra stepped into his field of view. He was seemingly taking in the forest around them. "You have information I want. And I will have it."

"So you think."

"Oh, I will. I always find ways of getting what I want."

"I highly doubt I have any information that will be of use to you. Take our iron and leave us be."

"I believe you do. You see, I was given some… Bad information by someone I had graciously brought into my ranks. Some very bad information. Not that dealing with that tribe of outcasts was very difficult, but it was such a waste of time, a waste of precious resources. And I don't appreciate that. So I took matters into my own hands."

Throk and Gustav instantly shared withering looks as soon as the word "Outcasts'' passed Boyra's lips. If Boyra noticed, it didn't phase him.

"And then I found Trader Fenrir. Now, he is a man of compelling tales. Tales of the days where dragons outnumbered men in this corner of the world. And one tribe who protected them all.

"Of course, I already knew about the dragons. That's why I came here in the first place, to join an old friend who unfortunately didn't live to see his dream unfold." Boyra laughed. "Lucky for him. The dragons gave him a kinder end than I would have for sure.

"But this tribe… Now, that was new information that I learned upon entering these waters. Something that my initial confidant mentioned but apparently confused with this other tribe we conquered. But Fenrir had the stories to back his claims. And named your tribe specifically as the gatekeeper of this so-called long lost tribe of dragon tamers.

"Which brings me to the information I will have from you: tell me where the dragon tamers are. Tell me where the dragons are hiding."

The pit in Gustav's stomach surely reached Hel herself by now. He had no idea what to make of this man, but any friend of Drago's was an enemy to the Archipelago and beyond. And his claims of conquering the "tribe of outcasts" taunted the back of his mind. He prayed to the gods it wasn't true.

They had to get back to Berserker Island, to tell Dagur what was no doubt coming for them, for New Berk, for the dragons. They had to tell Dagur that the Outcasts were in trouble. But they had to get away from Boyra and his bloodhounds first.

And most of all, they had to keep their mouths shut.

Gustav met Throk's eyes. He saw nothing but resolve in them. He knew what they had to do, too.

Throk looked Boyra dead in his eyes. A challenge.

Boyra smiled a sickening sneer. "So be it." He looked around for a moment before his eyes found what they were looking for. He gestured in that general direction with his head. "Lay him out on that rock."

The hunters sneered excitedly and dragged Throk out of Gustav's field of vision. Gustav couldn't turn his head around to see what exactly they did to Throk after that, but what he heard was enough to make his stomach churn.

Boyra simply said, "Crush it." There was a whooshing, a crackling, and Throk's cry of pain.

Then Boyra asked again, "Where are the dragons?"

And Throk said nothing.

Gustav's eyes stung with tears. He begged them not to fall. He refused to give these sick bastards that satisfaction.

Gustav heard the distinct sound of iron against its sheath. "Where are the dragons?" Boyra yelled.

And Throk said nothing.

Boyra was not satisfied, and made sure to make that known. Gustav couldn't see what happened, but he could hear. And he desperately wished he couldn't. This strong and stoic man that Gustav had always looked up to, Gustav never wanted to hear sounds coming from him like the ones he heard now. He couldn't hold back his tears any longer. He watched helplessly as Boyra stepped back into view, spattered and breathing in heavy sighs.

They all sat in an eerie silence bathed in the whimpers of a broken man far too long for Gustav's sanity.

And then Boyra looked at Gustav.

And he smiled.

He turned back to Throk. "Perhaps you'll talk for him?"

Boyra pulled a bow from behind his back, reached for an arrow with his free hand, and notched the end in place. He heard Throk's pleading "no's" repeated over and over again as Boyra drew back.

"Tell me where the dragons are hiding," he calmly ordered.

And it was that calm order that sent a painful shiver down Gustav's broken spine. Because he realized in that moment that whether they told their secrets and lived, or shut up and let Boyra kill them, Boyra didn't care. He didn't care because either way he gets what he wants. He gets information, or he gets to enjoy the rush of the kill.

And in that case, the least Gustav and Throk could do was buy the others time.

Gustav swallowed. "Don't say anything, Throk."

"Don't hurt him!"

"Throk, don't give in! Let it happen!"

"Gustav, don't be a hero!"

"Then tell me where they are!" Boyra yelled. Gustav saw the hunger in his eyes as he stared down Throk. He thought he was close. He thought he was getting answers.

"Let it happen," Gustav repeated with all the force he could muster.

Boyra's eyes flicked towards Gustav, but flicked back to Throk just as quickly. "Well?"

Don't say anything, don't say anything…

Throk whimpered. Gustav heard him take a breath, and Gustav held his.

But Throk only let out a quiet sob.

Anger washed over Boyra's face. "So be it," he spit through his teeth.

And then he loosed the arrow.

"I told you, I don't appreciate people who waste my time." Boyra looked at his men. "Leave the other one. I want his master to know what's coming for him."

Gustav heard a thud, and then the four hunters walked away.

It was funny, Gustav hardly felt the arrow at all.

"Throk?" He called out. His throat felt wet. "Are you okay?"

He heard leaves shifting underneath a heavy body. Slowly but surely, he listened as Throk dragged himself closer. Tears flowed down his face when he saw Throk's missing arm, now packed with dirt to minimize blood loss, and broken remaining hand. Throk chuckled darkly, voice strained as he tried to be strong for Gustav. "The man… With an arrow in his chest… Asks if I'm okay."

"Your arm…"

"It will heal, Gustav."

Gustav felt so tired.

Tears flowed from Throk's eyes. Gustav had never seen Throk cry before.

Gustav smiled at Throk. "Tell Eydis I'm sorry."

Throk opened his mouth, maybe to argue, but thought better of his words. He nodded instead. "I will."

"And Kara too."

Throk nodded with a sad smile.

"Tell them I love them."

Throk's eyes spilled more tears. "They would be proud of what you've done. I swear to you I will protect them, care for them."

Gustav smiled. "They're in good hands, then." He coughed, spraying blood on the forest floor.

Throk took a deep breath. "I'm sorry I could not do the same for you."

"You did everything you could. We had to protect Hiccup… And the dragons… Fanghook…" His eyes were growing heavy.

"You upheld your mission well." Throk laid his hand over Gustav's chest. "Rest now, warrior. Close your eyes. Be with your wife and daughter one last time."

Eydis… Kara…

Gustav carried the last of the trading boxes onto the ship, working down his mental checklist to make sure they hadn't missed anything. When he was satisfied, he walked back down the gangplank and off the dock.

Eydis smiled at Gustav as he approached her. Gustav sighed, admiring the radiant beauty of his wife as the sun graced her skin and the wind danced through the few loose strands of hair framing her face. He hated leaving her, but there was business that had to be done.

The young girl in Eydis's arms giggled and reached out her arms. "Daddy!"

Gustav's heart melted, and he quickly closed the distance between him and his two favorite women. "Ah, come here, baby girl." He scooped her up in his arms and held her tightly to his chest. She locked her arms around his neck and happily snuggled in. "I love you so much, Kara."

Kara giggled again. "Love you, Daddy."

Gustav held out an arm for Eydis. She wrapped an arm around his back as he pulled her into his side and rubbed Kara's back with her other arm. Gustav leaned over and kissed his wife. "I'll be back in a few days."

"Daddy, do you has to go?" Kara asked.

"I do, sweetheart, I'm sorry. But I'll be back soon, okay?" He kissed her hair. "And then you can go to work with me after I get back, how does that sound?"

Kara smiled. "Okay, Daddy."

"Please be careful," Eydis said. "I know the Northern Markets are better than they used to be, but I still worry."

"I know, I'll be careful. Always am." He smiled to reassure her. "Especially for you, my love."

Eydis smiled. "I know." Her smile faltered for just a moment before she composed herself with a small sigh. She held her arms out to Kara. "Come here, sweetheart, Daddy has to go."

Kara grew sad. "Okay, Mama." She gave her father one more tight squeeze. "Love you, Daddy."

"I love you so much, Kara," Gustav sighed. He kissed her head and set her on her feet. Turning to Eydis, he wrapped his arm tightly around her. "I love you. I'll be back soon."

"I love you, too," Eydis sadly replied, and pulled back to give him a strong, passionate kiss. Gustav smiled as he reluctantly stepped back. He picked up his bag at Eydis' feet and waved to the loves of his life, walking away down the dock. Eydis scooped Kara up in her arms and they waved back.

Gustav sighed as he stepped onto the boat. It was a routine trip, the same one they took every year for a final restock before winter truly set in. They'd be back in two days and the next boat would be prepared to take the portion of the new stock Hiccup would need to New Berk. Heather would be making that trip, to give Gustav and Throk a break and to see Zephyr since she couldn't go to Zephyr's birthday. But routine or not, Gustav would miss his family.

I'm so sorry, Eydis. Take care of our sweet Kara. I'll see you again in Valhalla. I love you both, more than you'll ever know.

Randi here! So currently over on AO3 this work is updated through Chapter 27 and I am currently in the process of writing Chapter 28. I will be posting all current chapters here tonight through Chapter 27 to get back on track here. Truthfully a big reason for the delay was this chapter's mature content and trying to decide how to handle it with 's policies, and then there was an issue with account access for a while, so the updates should happen concurrently now. Past that I will update more as I can, but due to a lot of personal things it has just been hard to write consistently. Please know that I have no intention of abandoning this fic though! It will be finished, and that I can promise! It just may take me some time. My discord is still live if anyone would like to join that for more direct updates and some fun discussions, there is a great group of people on it currently. Thank you all so much for your support, it really means the world to me, and a massive thanks to my two awesome betas for all the work they put in to making this fic the best it can be. You guys are the best! Updates soon :)