Two years had passed. Things had returned to normal.
Mostly.
After Hiccup gained his status as an alpha dragon, all his dragons had submitted to him. Nothing changed with the structure of the nest. The alpha dragon let his dragons do their own thing to run the nest. They still need to follow the chain of command. The place was made to run autonomously, and Hiccup preferred to keep it that way.
Being an alpha dragon had its perks. Hiccup did not need to be in his nest to order his dragons. He could command them from afar. He could peek inside their mind to see what they wanted to report to him. His dragons preferred him to do it like that, as it would mean that they have more time to do their duties rather than reporting to him directly.
Direct conversation became rare for him, as it was mostly reserved for important things, such as possible attack from another nest, or arranging events for the dragons. Hiccup would arrange a meeting through his call, and he would meet his sector leaders at given time. It was nice to have more free time for themselves.
It was then they discovered that there was no range limit with his call. They could be extremely far away from him, and they would still carry his call. Hiccup and his dragons discovered this when some of his dragons reached the mainland when roaming. It meant that his dragons could roam further from Secret nest.
Eventually, his dragons went so far, they discovered the all-consuming void. It took them months of travel to discover them. He ordered his dragons not to tell anyone else about it, as well as explaining to them what was going on. Surprisingly, no one else could see them, but those who held his call.
It almost caused a panic in the Secret nest. Thankfully, they understood. The dragons of Secret nest worked and trained twice as hard as before, making sure that they survive long enough to see them disappear someday.
In unrelated note, he could capture dragons from afar with his call. It made dragon immigration much easier to those who wished to join his nest. Because his call was permanent, there was no going back once they joined his nest. He made sure his dragons told them that there was no going back once they joined his nest.
The most impactful one was his new ability to give certain dragon magic abilities to other dragons under his call. Hiccup had given some of his dragons the ability to heal the wounded and regrow their limbs with dragon magic. While it tired the dragons after using them several times, it made his presence at the medical sector unnecessary. That meant he had more free time to do his own thing.
An experiment was made by Obeah to see if the ability would retain after the call was broken off. It did not. However, they did learn that breaking the call after receiving that ability was excruciatingly painful for the dragon.
Hiccup ordered all his dragons to not tell anyone about his status as an alpha dragon. He ordered them through his calls and his dragons could never disobey that order. This order was mainly given because of what comes after the death of Red Death.
Dragons around the world were outraged. An alpha dragon was killed, and nobody know who did it. They did not know who killed her. Everyone discovered this when Red Death's dragons fled and became refugee to various nests around the place.
Alpha dragons were scared to see the death of Red Death. There was a reason why she was imprisoned in that island. She was too strong to be killed by the King of All Dragons. The ruling King had spared her and imprisoned her for the rest of her life until she died of old age.
Green Death congratulated whoever killed her and gave them her eternal gratitude. Red Death had been a menace for her, and she relished the death of the dragon that had killed billions of dragons. She announced to everyone that she wished to meet the dragon who killed her evil, tyrannical sister.
Tree Hugger was saddened by the death of the alpha dragon. However, he understood that it was inevitable. He believed that it was necessary for her to die, as it would keep the peace longer for dragons around the world.
The King of All Dragons were the fairest of them all. While he personally happy of her death, the dragon who killed her must be judged for the murder. They did not know who did it or why. They would like to know more as to why she was killed.
Dragon nests that was loyal with Red Death was furious. They swore that they would hunt the dragon that had killed their alpha. While the second dragon war was over, some dragons still held onto her ideology, taught from generations to generations through to their hatchlings. It was an ideology that seemed hard to get rid of, as it was ingrained to the minds of some dragons around the world.
Hiccup made sure that his dragons were loyal only to him. After all, it would not do well if one of them blabbed and told everyone of his status as an alpha dragon. It was easy to do through his call.
"Hiccup, where are you going?"
Hiccup stopped walking. The 17-year-old teenager was in his human form, carrying an empty wooden bucket with his hands. He was at Berk, heading towards the forest. The forge was not far from there.
The teen looked different than two years ago. He was tall and muscular, almost reaching his father's chin. He was still considered a runt, as his body was leaner than other Vikings of his age. That did not mean he was not strong. He was stronger and agile than most Vikings in the village.
Hiccup was wearing dark grey tunic, pants and shoes, with black belt that had several pouches on them. Over those clothes, he wore a chainmail armour. Over that armour, he wore a leather armour from chest to leg.
The armour shape was simple, but the design was intricate. It looked to be woven with multiple layers of leathers, concealing a certain sheet of scale reinforced metal plate underneath.
The armour pieces consisted of shoulder guards, bracers, fingerless gauntlets and others. Those pieces covered his arms and legs. The major part was his chestplate. It was flat with several buttons at the centre. There was a pair of thin leather pouches attached to the side, which was easily reachable with his hands.
It had a large collar, and underneath that collar was another layer of leather, in which it covered his neck. Hiccup was not wearing any headgear. His auburn hair was unruly, but it became his signature more than anything.
He had made his armour himself. After all, he knew his size more than anyone else. Other Vikings did not care, as his style of clothing would never suit them.
On his left hip was his holstered, scales-reinforced sword. It was something that he had to remake since he had grown the old one. It used the same design, except upscaled to fit himself. On his back was a square, black empty backpack.
The teen turned around to face the newcomer. It was Gobber. "I'm off to gather some clay at the river in the woods. I need them to make bricks."
"You can't go there yet, Hiccup." The blacksmith warned. "Remember what your father told you."
Hiccup grimaced. After his father returned from expedition two years ago, everyone in the village was interrogated. It was revealed that the Dragon Conqueror was living amongst them. The Dragon Conqueror controls dragons, and they were the one that helped them before.
Everyone was under heavy scrutiny, even two years later. Hiccup could not leave the island without anyone following or looking for him. He was glad that he was an alpha dragon, which meant that his presence at the nest was barely necessary. He could do his duties as an alpha dragon at Berk in human form.
Notably, as promised, there was no more dragon raid at all for two years. Everyone was glad that the Dragon Conqueror had kept their words, whoever they might be. It was very peaceful, and dragons were rarely seen around Berk. Other villages and tribes were jealous, as they were still having trouble with dragons raiding them.
"Where am I supposed to get the clay then?" Hiccup asked.
"Get them near the river." Gobber answered, gesturing his thumb to something behind him. "That's where I got them last time too."
Hiccup knew the place Gobber was talking about. "But there wasn't much there at all!" He protested.
"Sorry lad." Gobber shrugged, looking apologetic. "Chief orders."
The teen rolled his eyes. He grumbled as he walked towards where the blacksmith was pointing.
It was annoying. Vikings were accusing each other of being the Dragon Conqueror for the whole week when the news broke out. It ended after the chief calmed everyone down and told them that everyone that it was still under investigation.
Everyone was following each other. They stayed on their backs. Viking often found themselves walking together with other Vikings or found said other Vikings sneaking around them. While it was annoying for everyone, there were times when that helped Vikings from getting injuries or dying from an accident.
For example, there was a time when there was a malfunction during a routine catapult check-up. The Viking maintaining them was crushed underneath the rock munition. He was alone and nobody was around. Had a Viking not following him, he would probably be dead crushed by a rock.
It unintentionally created solidarity. They saw what others experienced and had gone through. They found themselves relating to them. They became friends and drank mead together. It made the village slightly happier than before.
Hiccup almost rolled his eyes when he sensed someone following him. He had reached the place that Gobber had pointed out to him. It was the river near Gothi's house. There was nobody there but him.
He looked back. Whoever following him immediately hid themselves in the woods. Hiccup could sense who it was. Rather, who they were. It was Snotlout, Tuffnut and Ruffnut. He wondered why they followed him of all people in the village.
He bit back a sigh and moved towards the dry section of the river. There was a shovel there already. He grabbed the shovel and began looking for the clay at the river shore. He found one, but it was partially dug, meaning that Gobber had been there to dig it up.
He approached it and dropped the bucket to the side. Then, he began digging and putting clay into the bucket.
Hiccup knew that revealing the Dragon Conqueror would cause suspicion amongst the villagers. However, he did not expect them to stay for this long. It had been two years since the expedition. Everyone was still eager to find the Dragon Conqueror that stayed in the village!
He thought everyone would have already forgotten about it and moved on.
He should have known that Vikings were stubborn when it comes to things like that.
The teen looked down to the bucket. It was full of dry clay. He dropped the shovel to the side, grabbed the bucket and began walking back towards the forge.
As he did, he saw his father walking towards him from the distance. They met at the middle of the street. Stoick stopped him. "Son, I need to talk to you."
"Can it be later?" Hiccup asked, holding up the bucket of clay. "I need to bring this to the forge."
"Alright." Stoick responded, somewhat hurriedly. "Meet me at the house when you're done."
"Okay." Hiccup nodded, somewhat confused. He wondered what made it so urgent.
After that small interaction, the chief hurriedly took off walking back into the village, leaving a confused Hiccup standing there.
Hiccup arrived at Haddock house. It was night-time when he went back home. He saw his father sitting at the fireplace, arranging the firewood. Looking back, he sensed that the three stalkers were still following him. Letting out a sigh, he entered the house and closed the door behind him. The teen sat at one of the chairs in living room.
They were silent for some time. Then, the chief spoke. "Are you feeling well, son?"
"… A bit annoyed." Hiccup admitted.
Stoick looked at him. He raised his eyebrows. "Why?"
"It's been two years and I had people following me." The teen spoke, exasperated. "Working at the forge is getting harder. Some things are hard to find and you're not letting me search for them?"
"The forest is off limit for most people." Stoick firmly spoke.
"It's been two years, dad." Hiccup responded. "How long are you going to keep this up?"
"Until the Dragon Conqueror is found, we are not safe."
"Sure, whatever." The teen threw his hands up, exasperated. "It's not like we have any dragon raid for two years anyway."
They stayed silent for some time. Stoick looked back to the fireplace. Hiccup was staring at the ceiling, pondering about something. After some time, he asked. "So, what do you need me for?"
That seemed to sober his father up. He suddenly remembered. "Oh! Uh, I want to tell you something important. It's about your future."
He moved to sit at the chair opposite of Hiccup. "Hiccup." He started. "You're going to be an adult soon. Next year, you will start your dragon training. You will also start your chief training."
Hiccup stared at him. "Can I think about this first?" He asked.
"It's your responsibility and right to become the chief of this village." Stoick firmly spoke. "You have done well so far. I'm proud of you for that. But I know you can do better than this!"
"I know that I can." Hiccup slowly spoke. "But it doesn't mean that I should."
"Why?"
"Am I supposed to prove myself to someone?" The teen questioned. "Dad, I'm happy just the way I am. I'm happy working at the forge. I was happy with exploring the forest. I've kept up with my training on my own. I can hold things on my own."
"But you can't always be like this." Stoick insisted. "You will become the chief one day. You will carry all of us with you. I don't want you to have all…" He gestured towards him. "… this."
"You just gestured to all of me."
"You need to change that." The chief firmly spoke.
"I can't change all of me." Hiccup spoke, exasperated.
"You can and you will." Stoick responded. "Which is why I'm arranging a marriage for you."
That instantly made Hiccup froze. He had a mate called Luna. They had been courting for two years now. They agreed to lay their eggs at the Hidden World. They had not gone through with that plan yet.
He would never replace her with anyone else. He was loyal to her, just as she was loyal to him.
Night Fury and Light Fury mate for life.
"Who?" Hiccup whispered. His anger creeping in his voice.
His father ignored it. "Astrid Hofferson is the winner of the dragon training two years ago." He explained. "She was of your age. I plan to arrange a marriage for you and her."
Hiccup forced himself to calm down. It would not do well if he killed his father now. The mere suggestion of him being married with someone else made his blood boil. "Dad, I don't need it." He firmly spoke. "I don't want to be arranged with someone. I know that one day I will meet someone that I love. I don't want to force myself to love someone, or force someone else to love me."
"It's about producing an heir, son." Stoick smiled at him, oblivious at the fact that his son was silently angry at him. "One day, you will thank me for this."
"Can I think about this until next year?" Hiccup asked with small voice. "I'll give you my answer before the chief training. I want to try myself with someone else first before being arranged to marry Astrid."
Stoick looked hesitant. Finally, he nodded. "Alright, son." He softly spoke. "I'm sorry, I know I'm forcing this to you, but-"
"I need to produce an heir, right." Hiccup slowly nodded. He slowly stood up from his seat. "I'm going to sleep. Good night, dad."
Hiccup slowly walked up the stairs. As he did, he heard his father replied to him. "Good night, son."
The teen paused as he sensed certain stalkers running away. Those three had obviously heard the conversation. He continued walking up the stairs, heading towards his room.
He needed to plan a way to run away from Berk and never return.
One week later, Hiccup was walking at the docks.
Trader Johann had arrived that day. He needed some materials and resources for the forge. He had been looking forward to it, as there was something else that he needed to get as well.
Hiccup reached the Trader ship. It was a medium-sized ship with a blank sail on it. There was nothing notable there, except for the fact that it had a lot of crates and barrels around the place. With that thought, he walked into the ship.
Reaching the ship, he noticed that there was only one man there. He recognised the man. It was Johann the Trader. He was a man with dark brown hair and beard tied into a twist knot. He had a long scar under his left eyes. The man was wearing a cream-coloured sack hat, long-sleeved shirt, and pinstriped trousers.
"Johann." Hiccup called.
The man turned around. He smiled upon seeing him. "Master Hiccup!" He greeted him. "How may I serve you today?"
"Do you have the usual? Oh! I also need some wood like before."
"Sure." Johann nodded. "I'll get them on the back." With that said, the man entered the cabin.
While waiting, Hiccup noticed that someone was coming into the ship. He turned to look and saw that it was Astrid. The female teen noticed him as soon as she got up onto the deck. The male teen greeted her. "Hey, Astrid."
"Hiccup." Astrid gave him a slight nod. She approached him. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm buying some stuff for Gobber." Hiccup told her. "Johann is at the back."
"Okay." The female Viking nodded. "My mother told me to buy some wool. She wanted to knit more pillows for the village."
Hiccup chuckled. He crossed his arm. "Looks like everyone is busy then."
"Yeah." Astrid nodded once more.
They stayed silent for some time. Hiccup and Astrid were staring at each other. The boy was staring at her impassively, while Astrid looked curious.
After some time, Hiccup started. "So, uh." He spoke. "Did your parents…"
"Told me that they wanted me to marry you?" Astrid finished.
Hiccup let out a sigh. "Were your parents really serious about it?"
"My parents didn't tell me about it." Astrid shook her head. "Snotlout did. I asked my parents about it, and they told me to keep it a secret."
"It's out of the bag now. Between us, at least." Hiccup frowned. "I told my father to think about it in a year. What do you think?"
"I don't like forced marriage." The female teen slowly spoke. "I just wanted to enjoy my life."
"I don't like forced marriage either." Hiccup confessed. "My father insisted because I meant to produce an heir."
Astrid chuckled. She punched his shoulder. "We're still too young for that!"
"That's what I told my father." The male teen shrugged.
Johann finally exited the cabin, carrying a crate full of wood and metal. He approached Hiccup and placed it on the deck in front of him. "Here you go."
Hiccup pulled out a pouch of money from his pocket and offered it to him. Johann stiffened. Hiccup noticed this but kept himself quiet. The trader picked up the pouch and pocketed it.
It was awkward. After some time, Johann smiled at him. "Anything else you need, master Hiccup?"
"That's all." Hiccup spoke as he grabbed the crate. He looked at Astrid. "I'll see you around."
"You too." Astrid nodded.
With those spoken, Hiccup went down to the docks, leaving Astrid and Johann alone at the ship.
There were many reasons why dragons liked Hiccup.
For most dragons, it was because of his nest. Hiccup had given them haven in the nest. Under his leadership, the nest flourished with a lot of food. They learned the art of medicine and technology. They were taught and trained under him, thus raising their living standard amongst dragons outside his nest.
It was why all dragons under him submitted themselves to his call.
However, for the nest sector leaders, there were other reasons. The first reason was his ingenuity. Hiccup was smart, far smarter than other alpha dragons. He structured the nest in a way that it forced everyone to collaborate with each other.
The second and most important reason was his uncanny ability to correctly insight both humans and dragons from short interaction. They did not know the extent of this ability until he had become an alpha dragon and them holding his call. It was when he could freely share of his plans to them without fear of other nests knowing them.
If there was anything that they would describe their leader, the first thing that came to their mind was his tendency to create long-term plans for everything.
Hiccup was smart. He was ruthless, calculating. He was proactive in his decisions. There was no coincidence to anything that involved him. He knew how humans or dragons would react to certain things and what action they would take. He knew what button to push to ensure the survival of their nest.
Enemy that was reactive to their actions were easy to deal with. Proactive enemies were slightly harder to handle. If they could not directly do anything, they would sabotage or manipulate the opposition to fight other opposition. The Secret nest was heavily trained for intelligence. It was something that everyone must know and learn to live in the nest.
They lived and breathed through information. It was how they know what to avoid. It was how they know what to do in a situation. It was how they know who their friends and enemies in the wild.
Scorpion and Ghost were usually the ones that were proactive with the decisions Hiccup made. They knew Hiccup's ingenuity more than anyone else. They adapted themselves to ensure efficiency in their actions.
When Hiccup ordered them to prepare for a skirmish, they would also increase nest security in case of retaliation. When they received information about possible invasion, they increased security and prepared to retaliate as they informed Hiccup.
It was the reason why Hiccup kept them as the leader of the defence category of the sectors. Indigo was chosen because of her pragmatism. Obeah was chosen because of her adaptability to any given situation.
Scorpion and Ghost were chosen because of their proactive behaviour in decision making. Scorpion was just as vicious as Hiccup in battle, while Ghost was subtle and devious with his actions. They were both great combinations to lead the defence chain of command amongst the dragons when Hiccup was not present.
"Nest Leader."
Scorpion was inside the security sector area. He was staring at a wall with text written onto them. It was a written language of the Secret nest. It helped everyone know what they needed to know at any time.
They had dragons carving and cleaning them with their claws and flames. Having something like that helped dragons to know information without much interaction. They used to have dragons perform daily briefing to everyone. It became unnecessary once they made their own language into text.
Hiccup called them Dragonese. It was the language of dragons.
The Deathgripper looked at the source. It was a Woolly Howl. It was a medium-sized dragon with dark brown scales that look like fur and pale belly. It looked like a Night Fury. He recognised the dragon. "General, what do you have for me today?"
"The Intelligence sector reported a large number of ships bearing Outcast and Berserker tribe flag." The Woolly Howl reported. "They reported 100 ships in the armada."
"Any particular heading?"
"They were heading North." The Woolly Howl reported. "They made no adjustment on their heading for the past 12 hours."
"What's in their North?"
"Isle of Berk. Expected arrival in 3 days."
Scorpion frowned. He knew Hiccup was there. "Summon the others." He commanded. "Get ready for briefing."
"Yes, Nest Leader." The Wolly Howl bowed to him, before taking off elsewhere.
Scorpion turned around to face the wall of text in front of him. He put that information at the back of his head. Hiccup would want to read his mind to know about it. He would need to set up temporary posts around Isle of Berk in the meantime, just in case.
The Secret nest do raid the Outcast and Berserker for their resources from time to time. However, in addition to that, Hiccup specifically ordered to ransack and destroy their naval vessels as well. It was unusual, but they followed anyway. However, last week, he ordered them to stop destroying the vessels. He also ordered them to reduce the number of casualties they inflicted to the humans.
Somehow, he knew Hiccup had planned this to happen a long time ago.
Snotlout was angry.
The burly teen had been trying to date Astrid for years. He had given a lot of things for her. She was someone that he fancied. She never showed any interest in him, but Snotlout was not one to give up. He was sure that Astrid would come around to like him.
However, that dream was crushed when he heard that Hiccup would be married off to Astrid. Snotlout did not like Hiccup. He considered him the village runt and useless to everyone. He had contributed nothing to the village. He did not deserve Astrid.
"Whoa…"
The burly teen moved to glare at the source. It was Tuffnut. Snotlout, Tuffnut and Ruffnut were standing behind the Great Hall building. They were alone there, meaning that nobody should hear them there without them knowing.
"Hiccup and Astrid." Ruffnut whispered. "Never thought they would be together."
Snotlout, Tuffnut and Ruffnut had just came back from the docks. They had watched Hiccup and Astrid interacted with each other at Trader Johann's ship.
Everyone had different reaction. Tuffnut and Ruffnut looked awed, while Snotlout looked angry.
"I wonder what their kids would look like." Tuffnut suggested, elbowing his sister.
"They're not getting married." Snotlout almost snarled. "It should've been me!"
"You and Hiccup?" Tuffnut wondered.
That caught Snotlout off-guard. "What?"
"Wow, Snotlout." Ruffnut coyly spoke. "I never knew you're into that."
The burly teen spluttered. "No! Astrid! I mean Astrid! It should've been me that married Astrid!"
Ruffnut and Tuffnut snickered. They gave each other a high-five. Snotlout glared at them.
"We need to find a way to stop that marriage." The burly teen fumed as he paced around. "Astrid shouldn't marry the useless. There should be a way to get rid of him…"
The twins looked at each other. They did not really hold any malice to Hiccup. He was the most boring and badass Viking they had ever met. They did not really care about him.
"My dad can help." Snotlout smashed his fist into his open palm. Then, he realised something. "Maybe not. I think we can do this ourselves!"
"Uhh…" The twins looked unsure. They looked back to Snotlout. "Do what, exactly?" Tuffnut asked.
The burly teen turned to look at the twins. "We follow Hiccup until he's all by himself." He suggested. "Then, we'll teach him a lesson to get him away from Astrid."
"Not sure if we should do that." Ruffnut pointed out. "You know, him being badass and all that."
"Come on, it's three of us!" Snotlout scoffed. "He wouldn't stand a chance!"
The twins looked at each other once more. They had the same thought; that was a dangerous idea. However, danger was something that they both relished to go through. They both grinned.
"Sounds great, 'lout!" Tuffnut chirped. He rubbed his hands together. "I can think couple of ways to disable him."
"Oh yeah." Ruffnut grinned. "I always wanted to know what he looked like under those leathers." She purred as she made rawring noise.
"Wait, we're stripping him naked?" Snotlout spoke, confused. "I'm talking about beating him up."
"Same thing." Tuffnut shrugged. "The point is humiliation anyway."
Snotlout grinned. Humiliating Hiccup would make Astrid avoid him. The chief would dissolve the marriage. Hiccup would become Hiccup the Useless! It was a brilliant plan!
"I'll get my hammer." The burly boy spoke.
"I'll get the crossbow!" Tuffnut cheerfully spoke.
"I'll get the ropes!" Ruffnut shouted.
With those spoken, the three of them run off to different direction, going to grab whatever they needed to get.
Unbeknownst to them, a certain large teen was hiding inside a large crate. The crate began to wobble, before tilting and crashed to the side. The person came out of the crate, revealing Fishlegs in there.
Fishlegs was trapped inside the crate when he tried to grab mutton meat at the bottom. He had stayed quiet and listened to the three teenagers. He was horrified when he learned of what they were about to do.
The large teen pushed the crate right up. He took off running to the forge. He needed to inform Hiccup about this!
Hiccup was finally in the forest!
The teen had been asking for permission to enter the forest. He managed to get one after two years. He really missed the environment around him. It was a very peaceful place where he could spend his own time.
Hiccup would usually transform to his dragon form and fly around. Unfortunately, he could not do that just yet. He could not risk any villagers finding him doing that. While he trusted his senses to tell him, there was a possibility of it failing him.
It was extremely slim, but he did not want to risk it.
The teen was walking down the dirt path. He let out a relieved sigh as he watched the environment around him. He stopped at a three-way dirt path intersection and sat on a tree stump nearby. Hiccup was finally happy to be alone in the forest.
That peace was interrupted when he sensed someone running to him. Hiccup was annoyed. It had only been 30 minutes!
The person came to him. He recognised this person. It was Fishlegs. "Hiccup!"
Fishlegs looked out of breath. Hiccup stood from the tree stump. "Fishlegs, what's wrong?" He asked, concerned.
"I- It's Snotlout!" Fishlegs panickily spoke. "A- And Ruffnut and Tuffnut!"
"What's wrong with-"
Suddenly, Hiccup sensed several people coming. He narrowed his eyes as he gripped his sword. An arrow went flying towards him. He pulled out his sword and slashed the arrow. It knocked off the air and shattered into pieces.
Hiccup's sword was a double-edged, straight broadsword. It had pitch-black blade with dark red colour at the edges. The sword was not reflecting any light and it looked extremely sharp. The guard and grip were his standard sword design, but the colouration suggested that it was from an unknown type of metal.
The teen dashed into the woods. He dodged around the obstacles and spotted the shooter. It was Tuffnut! He was holding a crossbow. The male twin screamed upon seeing him.
Hiccup slashed the crossbow. It easily sliced through them and break them into two. He kicked Tuffnut away, sending him off crashing to a tree. The male twin instantly fell unconscious.
The teen heard a battle cry. He dove under a hammer swing behind him. He moved to slash the weapon, slicing the hammer in half through the handle. Hiccup jumped up high and did a backflip as someone tried to grab him with a rope from behind.
Hiccup noticed that it was Ruffnut and Snotlout. Smirking, he grabbed the rope from Ruffnut's back and pulled. That spun her body around as he pulled the rope. Hiccup used the opportunity to quickly drop the rope onto her feet and pulled. That locked her feet and Ruffnut collapsed to the ground.
The burly boy charged towards him; fist raised. Hiccup moved for high kick and smashed his shoe right into his face. Snotlout stumbled backward and collapsed to the ground, dazed from the impact. Seeing the opportunity, he pulled the rope and tied them to his legs.
After the two of them was restrained, Hiccup threw the other end of the rope over a large tree branch above him. After it went over, he grabbed and pulled the rope. Snotlout and Ruffnut yelped as they suddenly lifted off the ground and floated high into the air. They were hanging upside down by their feet.
Hiccup holstered his sword. He reached for Tuffnut and tied the other end of the rope to his feet. After that, he let go of the rope. Tuffnut immediately flew up and hanged upside down onto the tree. Because the other end had Snotlout and Ruffnut, they both moved and hanged much lower than Tuffnut.
"And that's that." Hiccup spoke as he dusted his hands off.
"Hiccup!" Snotlout yelled. He tried to reach the rope on his feet, but he was not flexible enough to do so. "Ow! Let me go!"
"Whoa." Ruffnut breathed out. She was still hanging there with Snotlout. "Hiccup was fast. I didn't even see him move!"
Fishlegs came to the scene, looking out of breath. "Hiccup, are you okay?"
Hiccup looked at him. "Yeah, I'm fine." He responded. "Not sure about these three." He spoke as he gestured towards the hanging teens.
The large teen looked at the others. His jaw fell as he realised Hiccup had subdued three of them without much effort. "W- What?" He stuttered.
Hiccup chuckled. "Never underestimate someone with a sword!" He happily declared. "They might know couple of tricks to take you out."
"Fight me like a man, you coward!" Snotlout snarled at him.
"Says the guy trying to sneak up on me." Hiccup retorted.
"Hiccup, what are we going to do?" Fishlegs asked, worried.
"What?"
"You just beat them up!" Fishlegs exclaimed.
"As opposed to what, let them beat me up?" Hiccup asked, incredulous.
"Well, I was kind of hoping that we should run…" The large teen looked hesitant.
Suddenly, Hiccup sensed a lot of people coming in. "Over here!"
Hiccup and Fishlegs tensed. Several Vikings came into view, along with Spitelout. The father of Snotlout looked at them. "What's going on here? Why are you in the forest?"
"I have the permission to go to the forest from the chief." Hiccup firmly spoke.
"Alright. I remember him telling me that." Spitelout nodded. He looked at Fishlegs. "But what about you?"
Fishlegs opened his mouth to speak, but then faltered under the gaze. He lowered his head. "I don't have permission." He admitted.
"Dad!"
Spitelout and the other Vikings looked up. They gaped upon seeing the hanging teenagers on the tree. "Boy-o!" Spitelout exclaimed, surprised to see the teens up there.
"Dad, help!" Snotlout shouted. He looked to be in tears. "Hiccup hung me up here! Help me down!"
The chief second-in-command looked at the other Vikings. "Get them down!"
"Aye!"
Spitelout grabbed Hiccup by his collar. "What did you do to them?" He hissed.
"They attacked me first." Hiccup calmly spoke.
"I'll get you exiled for this; you hear?!" Spitelout shouted at him. "You hurt my son!"
"M- Mr. Jorgenson." Fishlegs meekly spoke up, getting their attention. "S- Snotlout and the others were the one that attacked us first."
"You must've collaborated with him!" The chief second-in-command snarled. Fishlegs took a step back. "I'll make two of you regret for hurting my son."
Spitelout let go of him. He looked at the other Vikings. "Get these two in jail!"
"Aye!"
Hiccup and Fishlegs were thrown into the jail that day.
The two rested there. The Vikings did not bother to disarm them, as they were compliant when they brought them into the jail.
It was underground, meaning that there was no ventilation around the place. Everywhere around them was metal and concrete, illuminated by torches outside the jails. There were three jails in total. Hiccup and Fishlegs were in one each.
Suddenly, someone came down into the jail. It was Stoick and someone that looked like an older Fishlegs. The two came down there and looked at the prisoners. After some time, the chief spoke to the man. "Get your son out of here."
The man pulled out a key and approached Fishlegs' prison. He unlocked it and opened the gate. "Come, son. Let's go home."
Fishlegs hesitantly approached him. He got out of the prison and hugged his father. After the display of affection, they both went out of the prison. Hiccup and Stoick were all that was left there.
The teenager and the chief stared at each other. Stoick let out a sigh. He scratched his head. "Hiccup, what happened?"
"Snotlout, Ruffnut and Tuffnut came and attacked me." Hiccup confessed. "They came with hammer, crossbow and rope. I had to defend myself."
"That's not the story Spitelout told me." Stoick frowned.
"Fishlegs can be the witness." The teen told him. "He was the one who warned me about it right before we were attacked. I think he knows that it was going to happen."
The chief let out a sigh. "… son." He started. "Why did you have to hurt them that much?"
"That much?" Hiccup reared back, surprised. "I didn't even hurt them!"
"You did." Stoick firmly spoke. "Three of them had to spend the night with Gothi. She said they have their bones broken."
Hiccup stared. He did not really hit them that hard. Were they so weak that their bone could not even deal with his blows?
Maybe he was getting stronger faster than he expected.
"It's not my fault that they can't take my blows." Hiccup threw his hands up. "They decided to attack me. Why should I care if they're alive or not?"
Stoick's eyes hardened. "Because they are your people."
"The chief protects." Hiccup hissed, somewhat angry at what his father just said. "But they are not weak! Letting them be thrown around by their own people are disrespectful and humiliating."
"You're still young, Hiccup." Stoick lectured. "You don't know what it means to be a chief yet. You don't know what is right and wrong."
Hiccup bit back a bitter response. Instead, he let out a sigh. "Save the lecture for next year. Can you let me out?"
"No." The chief shook his head. "The village had decided to put you on trial."
The teen stared at him. "What."
"The Berk Council had decided to put you on trial." Stoick explained to him. "It will be in three days."
"I thought you're in charge of that." Hiccup spoke, incredulous.
"Hiccup." The chief looked somewhat hesitant. "… after some thoughts, I… I decided that it was for the best that I uh… stop trying to…" He gestured towards him.
"Yes?"
"I decided that you can hold on your own." Stoick corrected himself. He sounded firmer than before. "You were right. I was protective of you. I- I never let you experience what it means to be yourself before. I-"
Hiccup raised his hand, stopping him in his speech. "… I understand."
Hiccup did understand. His father finally realised what he had been trying to tell him for years. He could respect that. However, he was annoyed of the timing. He was in jail for defending himself. He hated that feeling.
It reminded him why he despised his village.
"… alright." The chief hesitantly whispered. He straightened himself. "Your trial is in three days. Prepare yourself. Good luck."
With those spoken, Stoick walked out of the prison, leaving Hiccup alone.
Hiccup tilted his head. He used his call to sense his dragons around him. There were few thousands of them loitering around empty islands close to Berk. It was merely quarter of his nest. He was glad that Scorpion had prepared everyone to defend him.
All hell would break loose before trial.
Two days later, Stoick was watching the construction of new houses in the village. It was early in the morning. They were preparing houses for new generation of Vikings to live in. The houses were being built somewhat close to the edge of the cliff, overseeing the docks.
Despite the paranoia of Dragon Conqueror, he was happy that there was no more dragon raid. It was peaceful for them. There were plenty of food and livestock. They did not have much to worry about, except other villages, who seemed to be jealous of them.
"CHIEF! STOICK!"
Stoick turned around. It was a bunch of Vikings running at him. They looked panicked and scared. "What's going on?" He asked, confused.
"Ships!" One villager shouted. "A lot of them coming in!"
Stoick walked towards the cliff. He leaned forward and squinted his eyes. There, he could see a lot of vessels in the sea heading towards them. His eyes widened. He recognised those ships. They were Outcasts and Berserkers' armoured battleships!
If he looked hard enough, he could see a lot of people standing on the deck. They had their weapons raised, looking ready for war. There was only one conclusion that comes into his mind. Berk was getting invaded.
"Sound the horn…" Stoick whispered, taking couple steps back. He turned around and shouted towards the Vikings. "SOUND THE HORN!"
"SOUND THE HORN!"
"OUTCAST AND BERSERKER!"
Hiccup perked up when he heard the horn being sounded. He stood up from the ground and approached the cage. He pulled out two thin metal stick from his pocket. It had its own patterns and shape.
The teen moved closer to the lock. He inserted the sticks into the lock. Hiccup frowned as he began pick-locking it. After seconds of tweaking, it was finally unlocked. He pocketed the sticks and opened the cage.
Hiccup walked out of the cage. He dusted his clothes, before turning himself invisible.
The battle ended before it even began.
The Berkians were completely overwhelmed and subdued by the Outcasts and Berserkers. Battleship catapults pointed at their village, and half of them docked and flooded the island with enemy Vikings. The Hairy Hooligan tribe could do nothing but surrender, as they were overwhelmed by one to hundred.
It was afternoon when things finally calmed down. Alvin and Dagur were standing around the Great Hall. Stoick, Gobber, Spitelout and the teens were there as well, with their hands tied. There were a lot of Outcasts and Berserkers there, staring down at them.
Dagur the Deranged was a skinny teen. He had red hair and dark green eyes, with claw mark tattoo running across his left eye. Another claw mark tattoo was on his upper right arm. He was wearing plain leather outfit with skirts, metal shoulder guard and Viking helmet with two horns going upward.
"So!" Alvin exclaimed. He rubbed his hands together. "It has been a long time, is it Stoick?"
"Alvin." Stoick gritted his teeth.
"So, this is where he lived?" Dagur looked around, looking disappointed. "I was expecting more blood and bones."
"What happened to Oswald?" The Berk chief asked, glaring at Dagur.
The Berserker chief laughed. "My father has been... 'retired'." He drawled. "He lost his taste for blood. I, on the other hand, am starving."
"You killed your own father?" Stoick asked, angry to hear that news. Oswald had been good to everyone. They were one of their greatest allies!
Dagur smirked and looked at him with crazed look in his eyes. "My father was a coward!" He declared. "I intend to return the Berserkers to their former glory. Something he was... incapable of doing."
"Let's cut the chase." Alvin declared as he slammed his fist to his palm. He stretched his neck, making them pop. "Where's the Dragon Conqueror?"
That confused Stoick. "Dragon Conqueror? How did you know we have them?" He asked. They did not even know who the Dragon Conqueror was!
Alvin laughed. "Well, it's hard to not know where he was when he killed a lot of my men!" He cheerfully spoke. Then, he glared at his former best friend. "Now, where is he?"
"… I don't know where he is." Stoick admitted.
Alvin frowned. He would know when his former best friend was lying. Stoick was telling the truth. However, Dagur had a different idea.
The deranged teen pulled out his sword. "The Dragon Conqueror control dragons." He whispered. His eyes glinted with madness. "Imagine that sort of power with us. We've talked with the others. He has Night Fury and Light Fury with him."
'How did he know about Light Fury?' Stoick wondered.
"Tell us." Dagur demanded as he pointed the sword to Stoick. "Where is he?"
"I don't know." Stoick gritted his teeth.
"You don't even know where your son is?" Alvin questioned.
"My son?" Stoick asked. He was utterly confused. "What does he have to do with any of this?"
It was then the Outcast chief realised what was going on. "Y- You don't…" He could not hold himself. Alvin laughed. He roared a booming laugh. The laugh confused Dagur and the others. It echoed throughout the Great Hall.
After some time, Alvin wiped the tears from his eyes. "You don't know?!" He asked, incredulous. "He didn't tell you?! All this time, you never got raided by dragons. We thought you knew. You don't even know who the Dragon Conqueror was?!"
Stoick gritted his teeth. "We know they are among us!" He shouted back. "But we don't know who they are. We don't know where they are. We have been looking for them for years!"
Alvin laughed once more. "Oh, Stoick." He chuckled. The man wrapped his arms around him, infuriating him. "Let me tell you how the Dragon Conqueror slaughtered my men."
"It started when we kidnapped him from Berk." Alvin told the tale. "He killed over 200 of my men. Then, he escaped with two other prisoners on a ship. When he did, he set dragons loose in our village and killed hundreds more of my men. All by himself."
Stoick's eyes widened. He knew of that tale. It was five years ago. "No…" He whispered.
"Yes, Stoick!" Alvin laughed. He let go of him and boomed a loud voice. "Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III is the Dragon Conqueror!"
The Berk villagers present gasped at that declaration. Hiccup was the Dragon Conqueror? The teen barely did anything else around the village besides going to the forge and forest! How could he be the Dragon Conqueror?
Stoick wanted to deny it. He wanted to deny that. However, deep inside, all the clues snapped into place. The Night Fury had saved him twice – once from a dragon raid ten years ago, and the second was during a terrible winter. It did not make sense why a dragon – the same dragon, twice! – would save him.
The Night Fury had also brought food to their village years ago, along with a large flock of dragons. It killed a monstrous dragon and declared that there would never be a dragon raid at Berk. It could even talk to them!
The Night Fury had raided them once. There were no casualties, but their food was stolen. He still remembered that day. The dragons were smart, coordinated. The raid was something that they had never seen before.
The amount of food left was enough to feed themselves through winter. They could've taken everything if they wanted to. It was as if they intentionally left them that much without wiping the whole storage!
Those were no normal dragon behaviour. No dragons would ever do that. For 35 years, he had been fighting against dragons and it was the first time he had ever experienced something like that. Not to mention that they never had any dragon raid for two years!
It made sense if they have Dragon Conqueror amongst them.
It even made more sense that Hiccup was the Dragon Conqueror.
Hiccup cared for him. Underneath the stubbornness, Stoick recognised gestures and actions that people do. Hiccup refusing food during starvation, often going to the forest to hunt to feed himself.
Hiccup was always in the forest whenever there was something happening involving the Night Fury. He was at the forest during that dragon raid. He was at the forest when the Night Fury and its dragons brought them food.
It was then Stoick realised that Hiccup must be meeting with his dragons in the forest. If he was the Dragon Conqueror, surely, he would use them to take care of himself. Of all Vikings at Berk, Hiccup was the only one that often went to the forest. He liked going there since…
It was then Stoick realised Hiccup had been the Dragon Conqueror for 10 years!
The Berkian chief slumped his shoulder. His head was lowered, eyes wide with shock. He had come to realisation that his son was the Dragon Conqueror.
Alvin and Dagur relaxed themselves upon seeing the Berkian chief like that. The Berserker chief snorted. "You're the chief of the village and you don't even know?" He scoffed. "Weak."
"That kid should never be underestimated." Alvin grumbled. He looked down at Stoick. "Now, where's Hiccup?"
Stoick snapped out of his shock. He looked up and hatefully glared at Alvin. He did not answer.
"He's at the village prison."
Everyone turned to look at Snotlout. He was restrained not far from there. He looked somewhat smug on his expression. Stoick looked at him in horror. He had told where Hiccup was. Hiccup was in danger!
"There's only one prison in this village." Alvin replied. He looked at the army behind him. "Bring them along with us. Let's go see the Dragon Conqueror."
The prison was located at the edge of the thick, dense forest. It was a small concrete building. Berk rarely had prisoners, so it was expected for them to not have a big one. It was meant for a resting place for those who were about to be judged in front of the village.
Alvin and Dagur were there, along with the restrained Berkians. The whole place was extremely dark. There was not even moonlight around. There were torches held up by the Vikings to illuminate the place. The invading Vikings were checking out the prison for their chief.
While waiting, Stoick decided to ask. "What do you want from Hiccup?"
Alvin and Dagur looked at him. The Outcast chief chuckled. "Isn't it obvious, Stoick?" He responded. "We want him to control the dragons for us."
"The power behind those dragons." Dagur cackled as he rubbed his hands together. "Nothing would stand against us. Not even the Bog-Burglars. Not even the Lava-Louts. Even the Murderous tribe would fall on our feet."
Stoick looked down and glared at the dirt. He felt betrayed by his son. Hiccup never told him any of this. Why did he do this without telling anyone?
The Berkian chief was suddenly reminded of something that happened ten years ago. Hiccup had found the Freyr Lake. Was it possible that there was something else that his son did not tell him? It must be. After all, how could it explain his ability to control dragons?
Suddenly, he heard a shout. "Chief, it's empty!"
"What?" Alvin was surprised. The Outcast chief and Dagur looked at each other, before rushing to enter the prison themselves.
Stoick felt relieved. He admitted, Hiccup was resourceful. He most likely had escaped the island with his dragons. It would not do well if Alvin and Dagur got their hands on him.
He hoped Hiccup was safe.
Alvin and Dagur came out of the prison moments later. The Berserker chief looked at his men. "Have you checked the forest?"
"The search parties in the forest haven't returned yet." One of the Vikings answered.
The two approached Stoick. Alvin glared at him. "Why was he in the jail?"
Stoick looked hesitant. "He-"
Whatever he was about to say was cut off by a chilling, inhuman screech. Everyone froze and turned to look at the forest. It was pitch black and they could not see anything.
"Did you hear that?" One of the Vikings asked.
Moments later, they heard a loud, Viking scream. Birds scattered and flew away from the forest. The scream came directly from the forest straight towards them. Everyone drew their weapons, ready to fight whatever it was in the forest.
"Form ranks." Alvin ordered, clutching his sword.
The Vikings retreated and readied themselves. They stood in front of their chiefs. They heard loud footsteps coming from the forest. It sounded dirty, as if they had been walking through a swamp.
After some time, the person revealed itself. It was Hiccup. He had his sword on his right hand. The Vikings relaxed themselves a bit. The teen stopped next to the torch. The light illuminated him, but everything on his right side was completely pitch black.
"The Dragon Conqueror showed himself." Alvin drawled.
"I heard you're looking for me." Hiccup replied. His eyes bored to him. "It would be rude if I didn't show up."
"Dragon Conqueror." Dagur shouted as he pulled out his sword. He pointed it at him. "You're coming with us."
Hiccup tilted his head. "Why should I come with you?"
"You have the power to control the dragons." Alvin ruffed a response. He was smirking at him. "We have your people. If you come along with us, nothing will happen to them."
"I am exactly where I need to be." The teen replied to him.
Alvin frowned. Dagur laughed. "You're throwing your life away just like that?" He taunted. "You're weak. You don't have anything. We have everything. We're in control!"
Hiccup gave him a sly smile. "Since when you're in control?"
That confused Dagur. "We have your village. We can destroy them!" The deranged teen shouted.
"Remember dragon raids in your village?" Hiccup reminded them. "Remember how a lot of your ships were always destroyed?"
Alvin's frowns deepen. Suddenly, his eyes widened. He took a step back.
Seeing his reaction, Hiccup smirked. "You didn't lose much of your men during dragon raids recently." He spoke. "You stopped losing your ships since last week. Who do you think made it possible?"
Dagur seemed to realise it as well. He took a step back. Alvin and Dagur looked at him with fear. They finally realised what he was implying.
Stoick seemed to realise it as well. His eyes widened. He had never seen that side of Hiccup before. He looked cold, calculating. He was calm and composed. He acted as if he had everything under his control.
Alvin and Dagur realised that Hiccup truly have control over dragons. He had let them build their troops to attack Berk to go after him. He somehow knew that they had banded together to hunt him down.
After some time, Alvin finally mustered something to ask him. "Why?"
"When my father forced me into a marriage contract." Hiccup drawled, staring at his father. "I had begun looking for a way to stop them. Seeing that there's no way to get out of it, I decided to do something drastic."
Stoick had enough. "You let the Outcasts and Berserkers attack us so you can run from that marriage?!" He roared, angry.
"There's nothing I can do that can change your mind." Hiccup simply spoke. "You're just as stubborn as I am. It runs on the family."
"Does that mean you're coming with us?" Dagur asked, giddy at the fact that the Dragon Conqueror might willingly come and ally with them.
"Oh no, that's where you're wrong." Hiccup replied, staring at the Berserker chief. "I didn't let you invade Berk to ally myself with you. No, no. I let you invade Berk so I can kill you myself."
Alvin and Dagur stayed silent, but their expression speaks for itself. Hiccup continued speaking. "After all, what better way to leave by slaughtering the Hooligan's enemies?"
Dagur laughed at him. "You and what army?" He taunted. "There's no dragons anywhere. We have thousands of men in the island. You're trapped in this island."
"That's where you're wrong, Dagur the Deranged." Hiccup drawled.
Stoick's eyes widened. The way Hiccup spoke reminded him of the Night Fury.
Hiccup flicked his sword. Suddenly, the blade lit up with blue fiery flame. It did not burn the blade, but it illuminated the area around him. The Vikings took a step back as they saw what was behind him on the right.
It was a Light Fury. It had its teeth bared and it looked angry. The dragon had a saddle on its back. It hissed at them, daring them to make a move. The dragon had been there the whole time.
"I'm not trapped here with you." Hiccup drawled. He raised his left hand, ready to snap his finger. "You're trapped here with me."
Hiccup snapped his finger.
Suddenly, several large explosions popped behind them. Most of them turned back to see what it was. The Vikings at the back saw what happened. They shouted to the front. "THE SHIPS! THEY'RE BEING ATTACKED!"
Alvin and Dagur turned back to look at Hiccup. He was expressionless. His eyes bored towards him.
"Kill them."
The Light Fury screeched and took off up high into the sky. Suddenly, fireballs and flames went flying all over the place. Dragons of all shapes and sizes appeared out of nowhere and began attacking the invading Vikings.
They were completely unprepared for it. The attack was coordinated and precise. It was as if they had been there the whole time. In one minute, half of the invading Viking forces were killed by the dragons.
The whole place became chaotic all sudden. Invading Vikings immediately retreated. However, for majority of the group, they were flanked and attacked by the dragons. The invading Vikings were immediately killed on sight.
Dagur and Alvin immediately fled back, leaving the hostages there. "Kill him!"
Remaining invading Vikings heard the command amongst the chaos. They rushed towards Hiccup, but dragons got to them first. They instantly burned into ashes, as Deadly Nadders had swooped in and burned their body.
Hiccup began walking forward. He looked calm, as if nothing was happening around him. Some dragons landed next to him. "Block the Great Hall and move the hostages there."
The dragons bowed to him. They grabbed the hostages and lifted them into the sky. However, when the Monstrous Nightmare was about to grab Stoick, he kicked the dragon and fled into the woods.
The dragon was about to follow before Hiccup stopped it. The Monstrous Nightmare obeyed. It flew up into the sky, heading to do the other part of its mission.
The Isle of Berk became a war zone that night.
Dragons flying everywhere. They fly in formation. They dove in and set fire onto the path. In some narrow area, Death Songs had flown and barricaded certain path with solidified amber. Slitherwings came and coated the amber with poison, rendering them impenetrable unless they wanted to be poisoned.
Sword Stealers would fly over the Vikings. They used their magnetic skins to take away their weapons. Deadly Nadders, Rumblehorns and other tracker dragons roamed and killed any lone roaming Vikings.
Brawling dragons, such as Monstrous Nightmares and Gronckles, moved to engage the Vikings directly. Woolly Howl and other strike dragons made sure that the invading Vikings did not stay together for too long.
The dragons were coordinated to trap and kill. They made sure that none of the invading Vikings run anywhere where they might miss them. House doors were barricaded with rocks and amber to prevent anyone from entering them. It also minimized collateral damage that they made.
The dragons did everything right and the invading Vikings were running around like headless chicken.
It was a complete slaughter for the opposition.
The Berkians were lifted off the ground by the dragons and placed into the Great Hall. Dragons guarded the building to ensure that they were not harmed in any way. They had stripped the place of weapons, blocked the door with wall of ambers and put a hole on the rooftop.
It ensured that the hostages could not run away, while dragons could dump them from there.
Dagur and Alvin were running away to the docks. Their men were getting slaughtered left and right. The tide of the battle had turned. They needed to get away from the place.
Upon reaching the docks, they gaped at what they see. All the ships they came with were burning. From the distance, the roaming ships were burning and sinking as well. They were being attacked by the dragons.
The place was filled with screams of terror. Vikings running out from the burning battleships, their body engulfed in flame. Most of them died before they touched the water. Vikings that tried to retaliate were swiftly killed, while those who were running away were killed much later.
Alvin realised the true extent of what happened. He gritted his teeth. "He's playing with us!" He snarled.
"He controlled all these dragons!" Dagur shouted, amazed at the sheer amount of destruction around him. "I had never seen anything like it!"
"I'm flattered hearing that."
Alvin and Dagur quickly turned around, swords raised. Hiccup stood not far from them. He was holding his sword. It no longer lit with blue fire. The two took a step back upon seeing him.
"I really do." Hiccup blandly spoke.
"You're insane!" Alvin roared. "You used your whole village as a bait against us!"
"I consider it tying loose ends with me and the village." Hiccup replied to him. "The whole idea was to break their trust on me. It makes it easier for me to just forget about them."
Dagur laughed. "I like you!" He cheerfully spoke. "I'll make your death quick."
Hiccup readied his stance. "You can try." He spoke to him. "It's not like any of you were going to make it out of here alive anyway."
The Berserker chief yelled a battle cry. He charged towards Hiccup.
The teens clashed their swords. Hiccup dodged a kick to the side and moved to punch Dagur in the face. He ducked a sword swing from behind and slashed the opposition behind him. Alvin barely moved out of the way before Hiccup gave him a high kick to the face – sending him stumbling back.
Hiccup focused back to Dagur. He clashed his sword with him once more. He blocked and parried attacks coming from the Berserker chief. Dagur was laughing all the way there. "How do you like that?"
Suddenly, Hiccup dodged a sword swing and moved to punch his chest. Dagur stumbled back and quickly recovered. However, the boy was not fast enough. Hiccup moved to slash at him. However, he had to dodge away because someone had thrown a hatchet at him.
Hiccup grabbed the hatchet from the air and threw it at the offender. Alvin moved to block the hatchet with his sword. It clanged with the sword and fell onto the ground.
The teen focused back to Dagur. He blocked a swing of the sword with his own. He slid the sword to the side and kicked his leg. He backflipped as a sword went right through where he was. He landed behind the offender, which was Alvin the Treacherous.
Hiccup moved to slash. Alvin spun around and clashed his sword with his own. They moved in a dance of death, as they swing their sword to clash and parry. They were relatively equal in terms of swordsmanship, with varying advantages and disadvantages.
However, unlike years ago, Hiccup was much faster and stronger. Alvin was forced to always be on defence, as he could not get any opportunity to retaliate. Hiccup kept moving to attack. The Outcast chief was getting fatigued, but Hiccup showed no signs of stopping or exhaustion at all!
At some point, Alvin pulled out a hammer. He swung the hammer to him. Hiccup backed off. Right when it passed him, he moved forward, rolled over and slammed his back onto him. Alvin stumbled back. He was surprised by that counter move.
Hiccup swung his sword to block an arrow. He looked at the offender and noticed that it was Dagur. He was not far from there. He had a crossbow and a sword on his hands. Seeing the more dangerous target, the teen dashed towards Dagur.
Alvin quickly recovered and moved to attack. However, before he could do that, he heard a battle cry from the side. He turned to look at the offender, only to raise his sword to block an incoming sword. It was Stoick the Vast!
"Stoick!" Alvin roared. He briefly looked at Dagur, who was engaged with Hiccup.
"You're not touching my son!" Stoick roared back at him.
"Even after your village is destroyed?!"
"There's one thing that I know about my son. He would never attack people that never harmed him." The Berkian chief smirked at him. "My Vikings are safe. Your men are all dead."
Alvin narrowed his eyes. He gritted his teeth. Their swords began clashing with each other. They were much more equal in terms of combat, strength and prowess. They were formerly best friends. They knew of each other's tricks.
"Your village is the bait!" The Outcast chief shouted as their swords clashed with each other. "He let us attack you!"
"You think I didn't know?" Stoick shouted back. He parried the sword and moved to dodge another swing. "I knew you'd come for us after he got back YEARS AGO!"
Alvin dodged a swing. "His dragons raided us!" He roared as he swung his sword to Stoick. It was parried. "He could've killed us long ago! He was playing with us!"
"Like what you did with Lava-Louts and Murderous?" Stoick huffed under his breath. "Like what you did with Mildew!"
Suddenly, during one of the sword parries, Alvin decided to kick Stoick. It was sudden and surprising, the Berk chief stumbled back. The Outcast chief swung his sword. Stoick blocked it with his own, but that knocked his own sword away.
Alvin moved to kick him. Stoick blocked it with his gauntlets. It worked, but he was off-balance. He fell to the ground on his rear.
The Outcast chief shouted at him. "Your son will kill you the moment you give him the chance." He hissed.
"No." Stoick bitterly chuckled. He glared at Alvin. "He cared too much to kill me."
Alvin raised his sword, intending to finish Stoick. He gasped upon seeing a loud, piercing noise. He looked up, but it was too late. A plasma blast came down and fired to him. The attack hit him square in the chest. It sent him tumbling somewhat far from where he was.
The Light Fury landed between them. She bared her teeth to Alvin, as she stood close to Stoick. The Berk chief stared up to the dragon in awe. He looked at Alvin, who was slowly getting up from the ground. His chest was charred and bloodied.
He had just been saved by a dragon for the third time.
"ALVIN!"
Stoick looked at the source. It was Dagur the Deranged. He was standing on the entrance of a Berk merchant ship, with several other Outcasts and Berserkers there. He had a large gash on his chest, meaning that Hiccup managed to wound him before he got away.
The Berk chief turned to look at where Hiccup was. He was engaged with multiple invading Vikings at once. His sword blade was flaming with blue fire. It tore through their weapons, easily cutting through them. Those Vikings stood no chance against him, as his movement was fast and precise.
"COME ON!" Dagur shouted. He coughed for a bit. "LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!"
Alvin took off towards the ship. He entered it. The wounded teen kicked the ramp off. The ship lowered its sail. Then, it began to sail into the sea.
Hiccup had just finished a Viking when he noticed a ship sailing. He still saw more Outcasts and Berserkers coming in. He let out a whistle to signal his dragons. A squadron of Gronckles swooped in and fired fireballs towards the enemy Vikings. It exploded, killing them.
Hiccup flicked his sword. The flame instantly vanished. "Luna!" He shouted as he holstered the sword. He took off running towards the direction where the ship was sailing to.
Luna the Light Fury took off running after him. She reached him and Hiccup mounted onto the saddle. The dragon flew up into the sky. They disappeared into the night sky.
The wind was blowing hard that day. The ship was sailing fast.
Alvin and Dagur had just finished bandaging themselves. The Outcasts and Berserkers were resting around the ship. There were no dragons harassing them. They assumed the dragons identified the ship and thought it was friendly.
Both chiefs were resting at the cabin. It was a small space with two chairs and a table. Alvin let out a sigh. "That went bad."
"He's good." Dagur nodded. "I'll give him that."
Alvin threw his hands onto the air. "That was everyone at the Outcast Island." He hissed. "His dragons killed them all."
"It was all my men and fleet." The Berserker chief sobered up for a moment. "My armada. Gone."
They stayed silent for some time. Then, Alvin spoke up. "We need help."
He shifted on his seat. "I have a friend that could help." He started. "He might be interested in that Night Fury the Dragon Conqueror has."
Dagur groaned. "Save it." He snapped at him. "I need some rest. I don't want to talk about it now."
Alvin let out a sigh. He understood. It was a horrifying loss from them. They fell silent once more.
Suddenly, they heard a shriek outside. Moments later, a massive explosion rocked the whole ship. Dagur and Alvin fell from their chair. They went out from the cabin to see what was going on.
There was a large hole on the hull. It went straight from the deck down to the hull below. The ship was sinking fast. "What the-"
Another explosion rocked the place. This time, it came from the side. Alvin rushed to look what happened and caught a glimpse of a dragon flying by. It looked like a Light Fury with someone on its back. It was difficult to tell in the pitch-black darkness.
"He's not letting us get away!" Dagur shouted, panicking.
"Get your weapons ready!" Alvin shouted to the men at the deck.
The Vikings rushed for crossbow. However, another explosion rocked the place once more. This time, the explosion literally sheared the whole ship into two. Everyone was knocked off their feet.
The sail pole creaked and crashed down into the ocean. Another explosion rocked the already sinking ship. It shattered one half of the ship into pieces. Alvin was panicking. They were dead as a duck on the ocean against a dragon. They could not even see the dragon!
Suddenly, an explosion rocked the other half of the ship. It was the place where Alvin and Dagur was. It exploded into pieces. Both fell into the ocean. They swim upward and moved to grab onto the floating plank.
Dagur coughed for some time. "Great. Now what?"
Slowly, they heard a piercing shriek. A plasma blast fired right onto them. It hit their planks and burned their arms. They fell into the ocean once more.
Both swam up to the surface. They were terrified. "He's insane!" Alvin shouted. "He's trying to kill us!"
Dagur looked around. He saw an upturned boat floating not far from them. "There!"
Alvin saw it. The two swam towards the boat and hid themselves under it. There was some air under the boat, meaning that they were out of sight.
They heard the piercing shriek once more. Dagur and Alvin held their breath. They heard an explosion somewhere close, but they were not blown into pieces. The two let out a sigh. They were glad that it was not directed towards them.
After some time, everything was silent. They stayed in that position, as they feared for the dragon roaming above them.