Hiccup woke up in a longship.
It was unexpected for the boy to wake up at a ship early in the morning. No one travels in the middle of cold January, which was notorious for its winter in Barbaric Archipelago.
He was wearing his new outfit, which did well on protecting him against elements. His bow and quiver were on his back, meaning that he slept with them on.
At the very least, he did not wake up shivering from cold.
Looking around the place, Hiccup tried to remember what happened. He remembered telling his father that he would be leaving indefinitely to explore Barbaric Archipelago.
That decision was made after Alexander left. Stoick was supportive of this, including the rest of the village. He remembered gathering all sorts of crystals, dragon moults like shed scales and broken horns, different metals and fossils.
The content of his ship was evidence of this; it was packed full of all sorts of things. Looking ahead, Hiccup noted that he was close to Isle of Berk. The ship was also sailing there.
Realising that he most likely had forgotten it, the boy moved to steer the ship. It would not take long for him to arrive at the harbour.
Docking the ship, Hiccup noticed most of the Vikings were busy with something else. They were hauling some crates from the docks up to the village. There were tensions the air, as if they had heard something terrible before - something they could not unsee. Hiccup was curious to know what was going on.
Regardless, he docked the ship at an empty spot. The boy moored the ship there, before putting down the walkway at the docks. Walking out, he noticed someone familiar. "Spitelout."
Spitelout had been coordinating something when Hiccup called him. The man approached the large boy. "Hiccup. You're back." He glanced at his ship. "Did ye caught any dragon?"
"No, uh... could you help me bring them to the forge?" The large boy requested. "I'll spare you a coin for the trouble."
The man grinned at that. "Sure! I'll get the rest to bring them there for ya." He nodded, before remembering something. "That reminds me. Yer father wants you at the forge. He said it's important."
Hiccup raised his brows. "Did he say why?"
Spitelout grimaced at that. "It probably has to do with what we found yesterday."
That confused the large boy. "Wait, what did I missed?"
"You'll see. Stoick's orders." The man shrugged. "Tell ye what, we'll get everything there for you, while you sort things out with yer dad. Sounds good?"
"Sure. I'll check him out now." Hiccup hesitantly nodded. He pulled out a rigslader coin from his pocket, before throwing them to the man. Spitelout caught it. "Is it Snoggletog yet?"
"It is. Celebration is tomorrow night." The chief second-in-command gave him a smile. "Happy Snoggletog, Hiccup."
"Happy Snoggletog, Spitelout."
The village of Berk was covered in snow! Everyone was busy reinforcing their homes, while also making some sort of fake trees made of green-painted wooden planks and shields.
It was obvious to Hiccup what time it was. Given the current date, it was time for Snoggletog - the winter holiday. Everyone seemed to be heading for celebration.
Regardless, Hiccup had something to do.
Arriving at the forge, Hiccup noticed the window was open. He heard someone arguing inside. Approaching the window, he pulled out his bow and slammed them to the table, making them jump. "Sup."
Gobber and Stoick were inside when he did this. The father was the first one to speak. "Hiccup. You're back."
The large boy entered the forge from the side. "Spitelout told me you want to see me." He remarked as he checked inside. There was a large chest there, with different kinds of paper and scrolls. The table was full of them as well. "Do you... need me with something?"
The two men glanced at each other. Stoick was the first one to explain. "We need your help with this."
Hiccup moved to check what it was all about. Checking the papers, there was a large drawing of an unknown dragon. It looked like a quadruped Deadly Nadder. However, what surprised him was the language some texts were written. "Spanish?" He questioned, before realising something else. "There's some Norse. A Viking tried to write Spanish."
The papers contained detailed instructions of dragon forging - a method to empower dragons by melting humans into their scales. It was not the first time he heard that term; Alexander made sure he learned the difference between rogue and deviant dragons.
It reminded him of his encounter with deviant dragon last year.
The strange Deadly Nadder drawing was an example of a deviant dragon. There was a paper hinting where the deviant dragon was currently at, and where it was heading. The deviant dragon was intended to be a proof of their existence to the Spanish.
Regardless, there sure was plenty of alchemy involved in its creation. They were explained in terms that he had heard in his dreams: Life-Force, mana, and other different things. Such thing surprised him because he felt like he knew about the topic.
Hiccup paused at that thought. Recalling his past, there were bouts of somewhat-amnesia he suffered from time to time. He did not really remember getting out to travel on his own, nor he remembered hunting anything to gather those resources.
However, everyone seemed to react as if he had done those things.
There was also the fact that he remembered so many things as Charcoal. Those dreams felt real, as if they really happened. Hiccup often pass them as something unusual about him - they happened often enough that he did not bother keeping track of them.
However, considering papers were referring to things from his dreams, Hiccup started to wonder.
What was going on?
Gobber decided to speak. "We found them when we pirated a ship coming from north." He explained where it came from. "There's nothing else in it, except for the chest. They're heading to Madrid in Spain."
"The Spanish Empire." Hiccup frowned as he thought of that. "I'm not surprised that they're asking for help. From what I heard; they lost almost all their territories just few months ago. Their colonies in Americas had a massive revolt."
The two men felt dread. They knew the world powers that ruled half of the globe. The British Empire was the first in mind, followed by the French. There was a reason why British Pound was the most used currency in the world. Half of the trade around the world was done with it.
To know that they were allied with warmongering faction - it was terrifying.
Stoick was the first to recover. "The Northern Alliance are allied with Spanish Empire?"
"They're hardly an empire anymore. The invasion and occupation by Napoleonic France; incompetence of their last two kings; excessive corruption - they almost lost everything." The boy explained their situation. "That said, they have something most Europeans don't. Dragons."
"They have dragons on their side too?!"
"Kind of. The dragons in questions are Arabian. Some can speak human language." Hiccup noted their shocked expression. "Reconquista. They kicked out the Muslims at the end of 13th century and tried to kill occupying dragons. They failed, but they did rid of them."
"But you said they have dragons." Gobber pointed out.
"In their desperate attempt to wrestle back control of their colonies in Americas, 500 years after they tried to wipe them out." The boy continued that sentence. "From what I remember, they managed to get thirty Arabian dragons to their side. They shipped them off to Americas to reclaim order."
"And they won?"
"They died." Hiccup stared at the blacksmith. "The revolutionaries have large military armed with cannons. Thirty dragons aren't going to turn the tide when it was obvious that they lost the war."
Stoick stroked his beard. It made sense why they failed. Dragons were not invulnerable; even the biggest one could be slayed. Hiccup was a testament of that. "So, they allied themselves with the Northern Alliance."
"No. Not yet at least." Hiccup remarked. He moved to grab one of the scrolls in the chest. Opening them, the boy frowned. "The Spanish doesn't believe that deviant dragon existed. So, the Northern Alliance is sending one from here to there."
Stoick and Gobber moved closer to see. They were all written in Spanish. "Does it say anything about the offer?"
"The Northern Alliance promised to enforce the Treaty of Tordesillas." The boy described as he read the text. "In exchange, the Spanish Empire promised to help them conquer and rule all of Scandinavia."
"Oh! That explains it!" Gobber exclaimed, focusing on the chief. "It must be the map we found in their cabin."
Hiccup was confused. "What map?"
"Just under the papers, lad."
The boy returned to the table. He moved the papers aside, revealing a large map underneath. It was the world map. At least, an attempt to make one. Half of them were not even plotted.
Given the lines and notes written on the map, the Spanish Empire had made a deal with Portuguese to define which land they own.
As expected, there were only signatures of the two kings. Considering that Hiccup never heard of them, the treaty was most likely done in private. It was even backed by the Catholic church; the stamp was there. Other European powers was never even asked.
"It was a proposal to divide the world for their own." The boy glanced at his father. "The Northern Alliance was the one who made the offer."
Stoick was concerned. They did not need another madman with ambition. "What about other empires? The British?"
"The British will go to war if the Spanish try to enforce this in Europe." Hiccup simply stared at him. He was serious. "They have the same foreign policy for the last 400 years: to create a disunited Europe."
"Disunited..." Stoick glanced at Gobber, before looking back at him. "What do you mean?"
"If two great powers in Europe - empires, that is - were ever united, they would become existential threat to the British." The boy elaborated. "That's why they fought with the Dutch against the Spanish, the Prussians against the French, and so on, so forth."
"So, they're mortal enemy to the Spanish."
"No. The British doesn't have eternal allies or enemies. Only interests." Hiccup responded, before walking back to the chest. "It was their interest to make sure that their existence is not threatened."
The chief stroked his beard. It made sense in certain context, but such thing was difficult to grasp in tribal context. The Hairy Hooligan tribe had been allied with other tribes for hundreds of years; they were practically united together.
"Now that we know Northern Alliance is courting the Spanish, if we were to stop this, we need to hunt the deviant dragon." Hiccup grabbed another scroll. Opening them, it contained addendums for other scrolls. "Not this one. But from here, maybe..." He grabbed a specific one, before unrolling them at the table. "This one."
The scroll had information on where the deviant dragon would arrive, and when it would take off. Hiccup used the map to measure where the deviant dragon might be. He pointed at an island in Barbaric Archipelago. "From Greater Archipelago, the deviant dragon will be resting here for a day. Their next destination is somewhere in... mountains of Norway."
Stoick frowned at that. "I've seen the island before." He commented. "It's empty."
"Which is exactly why they wanted it to stop there." The boy was triumphant. He was happy to figure that out. "The deviant dragon is most likely going with someone. There's a strong chance that the companion is foreign. We need to hunt them before they reach Norway."
There was a brief silence. Stoick looked deep in thought. Gobber caught his expression. "Ye think we should get a deviant dragon hunter?"
"Alex is in mainland." The chief was stroking his beard. "Most that I know is further north."
Hiccup raised his hand. "I can go for a hunt."
"This is a Northern Alliance deviant dragon." Stoick hardened his expression. "You know how dangerous they are."
"I've killed deviant dragons before, and I've killed one from Northern Alliance last year." The boy gave his argument. "I finished my training with Uncle Alex few weeks ago. At least give me a chance."
The chief exhaled his breath. "Alright." He eventually decided. "You can deal with it."
Hiccup fist pumped. "Yes."
"Tomorrow." Stoick interrupted the small celebration. "I need you to put together every information in this chest in a book. We need them in Norse."
"Will do."
It took them hours to put together the documents into one notebook written in Norse. Hiccup used that opportunity to prepare for the hunt whenever possible. It would be his first lone hunt against a deviant dragon.
Previously, he had Alexander Haddock accompanying him. While none of the deviant dragons in the region were as dangerous as last year, Hiccup took that as his training. He was confident that he could take out the deviant dragon.
The next day, Hiccup departed for the hunt.
"All good?"
The boy was in his longship. It was early in the morning, and parts of the ocean still had some ice. Hiccup was tying some ropes connected to the sail, which was still rolled up. There were Vikings watching at the docks.
Stoick and Gobber were at the docks as well. Hiccup glanced at them as they called out. "All good here."
The chief grimly nodded. It was as if he already knew the outcome of that hunt. The boy did not notice, however, as he was busy untying the mooring rope at the docks. Once that was done, he jumped back into his longship and untied another rope. This unfurled the sail.
The ship began its sail into the sea. Hiccup turned to see his father and friend. "I'll be off!" He called out, before focusing on steering the ship. He was sailing away from Berk, heading for the hunt.
After he was gone, Vikings eventually dispersed themselves from the docks. Stoick and Gobber remained where they were. The two still watched the longship sailing away, disappearing into the horizon.
Eventually, Gobber glanced at him. "Ye think he'd survive out there?" He questioned. "It's his first lone hunt. Drago's deviants can't be underestimated."
"He'll be fine." Stoick responded, before heading back to the village. "He won't be facing a deviant."
"Eh?"
It took Hiccup few hours to reach his destination. It was evening when he got there. The boy saw a large, mountainous forest island. Looking around, he noticed the lack of flying dragons in the sky. The deviant dragon must be there.
The boy docked the ship onto the shore. After rolling up the sail, he tied the mooring rope to the nearest tree. It was just a few metres away. While working on that, he mentally noted the size of the forest.
While the ground looked clear and open, the trees were massive. It was possible for large dragons to perch up there. There was fog inside the forest, and light could barely pierce through the dense trees. It was a good idea to be cautious.
After securing his ship at the island, he went to grab his equipment. The boy entered the cabin, which had small crates around the place. He opened one, revealing some silver-purple metal tube thing with short rope sticking from the top. They were explosives of sort.
The idea of bomb was not exactly new. It had been around since 17th century, at least in Europe. Alexander Haddock made his own variations when he come up with the wrist slingshots. The 'slingshot bomb' was his design.
Hiccup made his own original creation. He refined the idea of blast sticks. 'Hand Bomb', he called them. He combined that idea with all sorts of things, including dragon-seal, which led to the invention of different explosives.
Regardless, the boy had work to do. Hiccup grabbed his backpack, before opening the crates. He grabbed some equipment, such as different arrows and hand bombs, before closing them. He strapped his quiver and arrow, gauntlet slingshot, and some other things, before heading out from the cabin.
After making sure he did not miss anything, Hiccup got off from the ship. Feeling prepared, the boy finally walked into the forest.
Hiccup kept on guard as he scoured around the forest. He made sure nothing was sneaking up on him. While this made things slow, it was better than getting ambushed. The last thing he need was getting injured from not paying attention.
As such, it took Hiccup hours until he found something. It was a massive clearing with something at the centre. The boy carefully entered the clearing to see what it was. The now-afternoon sky was not bright, but the shape was obvious.
It was a large dragon corpse.
Specifically, the deviant dragon Hiccup had been looking for. It was a dead, oversized, quadruped deviant Deadly Nadder. The boy knew it was dead because parts of its limbs were gone. They were scattered around the clearing. However, what was strange was the wounds.
Some looked like flash-frostbite, while others looked scorched. It looked like the deviant dragon was overwhelmed by its opponent. Whatever it was, the creature could manipulate ice and fire to its extreme.
Hiccup noted burn marks and water puddle at the clearing. There were some dragon tracks on the ground; it was something he never seen before. It did not look like a native dragon. The boy pulled out his book to search for what dragon it could be.
After flipping some pages, Hiccup got a match.
Name: Alatreon.
Description: There's not much known about this dragon. It's rumoured to control all elements, but most, if not all, records of its existence have been destroyed.
'That was ominous.' Hiccup thought as he double checked the tracks. It was definitely a match. However, what frustrated him was the lack of information about the dragon. There was nothing, not even drawing of this dragon. It only had information about its signs.
This unknown dragon had killed the deviant, and given the signs, the deviant never stood a chance. It was probably a bad idea to search for them. However, that only made Hiccup excited. He would be the first to record this dragon!
The boy made note of the dead deviant dragon in his journal. After documenting them, he packed his things, before continuing his journey. He would be tracking the unknown dragon.
The search went on for quite some time. In that same day, the tracks led him to an enormous valley. It was rather secluded; there was no plant or animal whatsoever. The wind was very strong inside. Because of this, Hiccup ended up setting up camp somewhere there.
For the next few days, Hiccup continued his search. While the valley had massive ground clearing, the boy avoided going down whenever possible. It would be extremely difficult to get back up if he ever went down.
The boy did set up anchors, climbing ropes and others to aid his exploration. He carried plenty of climbing equipment, but they were used just as many. He hoped they would last until he found what he was looking for.
While Hiccup was patient, his equipment reserve was limited.
Thankfully, his patient finally rewarded him. While traversing through tall cliff edge, Hiccup saw massive billowing white threads at the high walls of the valley. The boy paused as he mentally processed what he was seeing.
'Shed dragon scales.' Hiccup widened his eyes. 'Giant shed dragon scales.'
The boy continued his expedition to reach the end of the cliff. Eventually, he reached a large, open and empty clearing. There was a massive spike at the centre, which had those billowing dragon scales stuck on them.
Hiccup carefully checked the shed scales. It was unlike anything he had ever seen before. Each scale was huge, and they felt incredibly powerful. He wondered what kind of dragon shed this kind of scales. They were definitely bigger than an island.
'Is this... Alatreon?' The boy thought as he looked around for tracks. He found a massive one, but it did not look like what he remembered. 'No. This is a different dragon.'
Regardless, Hiccup had to take some samples. He pulled out his knife and began carving the shed scales. He only took some since he did not want to overweight his backpack. He had to return soon. The boy also wanted to know what kind of effect he might get when turning them into draconic weapons.
After that was done, the boy continued his trip. He was about to head back when he saw something massive overhead. It was a bundle of shed scales, presumably from the head. Hiccup realised that whatever dragon it was, the thing could probably crush an island or two.
'We have no record of anything like this.' Hiccup thought as he stared with fear and wonder. 'What is this island?'
The expedition continued for few more days. There were times when Hiccup spotted the weaves of shed scales, and there were times when it was just complete darkness.
The tracks on the mysterious massive dragons were erratic, implying that the whole island was its nest. However, the 'Alatreon' tracks were linear.
Hiccup wondered if this 'Alatreon' dragon was here for something else. The fact that it killed a deviant dragon was irrelevant; most dragons despised them anyway. What sparked his curiosity was the intention of this 'Alatreon' dragon in the nest of the unknown massive dragon.
He did, however, found what the unknown massive dragon might look like. Deep inside the valley, while exploring another massive clearing, Hiccup found a skeleton corpse of the enormous dragon.
It was strangely cold there. But the boy was not deterred. He made his analysis to understand what kind of dragon it was. Its claws matched with the giant tracks from before, meaning it was the original inhabitant of the valley.
'The whole skeleton remains looks big enough for a small village.' Hiccup thought as he looked at the huge skeleton remains. Despite the fogs, there was enough light from the sky for him to see. 'I wonder what killed the dragon.'
Suddenly, the light began to brighten. The clouds had cleared up, making way for sunlight to shine into the place. It shined on the skeletons, further revealing the sheer size of the enormous dragon. The shape of the skull was clear; it was the same dragon that shed those scales.
The walls and ceilings were covered with enormous shed scales. It looked like oversized spider webs. However, amongst the scales, Hiccup noticed something. Most of them were reflecting lights, as if encased in solid ice. That was when he realised.
The 'Alatreon' might be there with him.
Suddenly, strong wind began blowing into the place. It was so strong; Hiccup moved to cover behind one of the skeleton ribs.
CRACK!
BOOM!
"Whoa!" Hiccup yelped as the ground suddenly fell from him. The boy felt himself falling into darkness. He could see the ground underneath coming in fast. Reacting quickly, he strapped something into his wrist slinger, before shooting them to the nearby rocks.
Grappling hook arrow shot out from the wrist slinger. It was connected to a rope, which was connected to a roller in his gauntlet. The arrow pierced into a rock, before expanding and secured itself there. The roller then locked itself, slowing his rapid descent.
The boy used the momentum to swing away from the ground. After he was slow enough, Hiccup detached the rope from his gauntlet, before rolling on the ground. He grunted as he came to a stop. He had finally landed.
Everything fell silent after that. Hiccup paused as he processed what just happened. Standing up, he looked around to see the place around him. There was not that much to see, other than the fact that it was very cold. The place was foggy, and there were ice particles everywhere.
Hiccup heard something in front of him. It sounded like dragon growling and stomping around. It did not take him long to realise what it was. The silhouette made it clear that it was a large quadruped dragon. The sunlight from where he came reflected around the ice clearing.
It was a black-scaled dragon. What made it unique were its sharp reverse black scales and spiked patch on its chest. The dragon had large wings with prismatic membrane, long thick tail and beak-like mouth. Another notable thing was its pair of horns, which were serrated.
However, it was the claws that Hiccup paid more attention to. The boy realised that it matched the tracks of 'Alatreon' dragon.
He had found it.
He had found Alatreon!
Suddenly, Hiccup felt heat radiating from the dragon. The black scales suddenly shimmered red. Flame in maw, the Alatreon reared back, before firing a ball of fire. Hiccup quickly rolled out of the way.
The black dragon was not done yet, however. It breathed intense flame onto the ground, igniting the ice, before sending them into the sky. Alatreon even flew up to ignite the ceilings, burning the frozen shed scales. It looked enraged.
Hiccup simply watched with awe. What was once a very cold place was suddenly becoming warm. Everything - the ground, walls and ceiling were set ablaze by the dragon. Balls and breaths of fire were thrown everywhere; nothing was spared from its wrath. Hiccup had to duck when the dragon breathed fire right above him.
Eventually, the dragon landed. It stood still as everything burned around them. Its red eyes with green pupil stared at its work, before glancing to look at the newcomer. Hiccup stared at the eyes of the black dragon.
The Alatreon turned to face him. Wings folded; the black dragon inspected the boy in front of him. Hiccup was barely as big as its forelegs. Hiccup took a step back; he realised it regarded him as its prey.
The black dragon moved closer. It reared back, before letting out a roar.
"KRAUUUUU!"
"I think that's all of them."
Meanwhile, Stoick and Gobber were at the forge in Berk. They had been counting wooden crates they received from their recent purchases. The Vikings that carried them had left for lunch, leaving them alone to double check the amount.
"Hmm..." Stoick stroked his beard. "12 crates?"
"Aye."
"Good." The chief nodded. "This should last for the month."
"Hopefully. Thor knows how many nails I need to forge." The blacksmith shrugged. "With no Hiccup around, it takes more time to work on those. I wonder when he'll come back."
The two Vikings fell silent. Stoick simply stared at the crates, while Gobber waited for response. It took the chief some time to realise that his friend had indirectly asked him a question. "He'll be back."
"Ye said he won't be facing deviant dragon." Gobber reminded him. That was several days ago. "What were you planning, Stoick?"
Stoick exhaled his breath. He crossed his arms. "Alex wants Hiccup to experience defeat. He wants him to learn how to handle them." The chief admitted. "That's his words. It's supposed to be the last part of his training."
The blacksmith nodded in understanding. "It was all planned then."
"The deviant dragon is real, as well as the documents." Stoick glanced at him. "I gave the summary to Alex. He did his work from there."
"Hopefully that works out." Gobber shrugged. While the blacksmith thought it was unnecessary, considering all the bullying Hiccup received before, he could see their reasoning. "But what did he do, exactly?"
"That's for me and him to know."
"Ah..."
Hiccup cursed every deity up there for his luck.
The Alatreon was not a dragon to be underestimated. Despite only five minutes in, the fight felt long and painful. Based on what Hiccup observed, the dragon could manipulate every element imaginable. From fire, ice, water and even lightning - the dragon could use them all.
There was also an unknown dark-red lightning element. Hiccup suspected that was its own element. Regardless, Hiccup worked his way to avoid getting hit from any of them. Considering he was alone; it would be bad if he got himself wounded.
Which was why Hiccup spent most of his time moving around instead of shooting his arrows. The Alatreon was relentless in its attacks. Hiccup had difficult time finding the right moment to strike.
Even then, his arrows barely did anything.
As such, he had to be creative. From strapping explosive hand bombs to his hook arrows, to spreading smoke hand bombs to shroud his movement; the boy tried them all. However, the black dragon was much smarter than he thought. it could read him after the first time he did the trick.
"KRAUUUU!"
Hiccup panted as he ducked from a giant ice spike. The ground was already full of ice spikes and burning liquid. It was exhausting to keep dodging all sorts of things it was throwing at him. It also frustrated him that nothing he did caused any damage.
It was obvious that the black dragon was far more powerful than the deviant he faced last year. The Alatreon was not a deviant, and the power was far than anything he had ever seen. Hiccup had to search for ways to end the fight, or it would be the end of his life.
'Just a few more.' Hiccup thought as he pulled out a rectangle plate from his pack. There was a circular thing with handle at the centre. The boy put them on the ground, grabbed and spun the handle. There was an audible snap. The plate had fixed itself into the ground.
When that was done, the boy pulled out a smoke hand bomb, pulled the rope, before throwing them over. The metal tube clanged with the ground. It began to hiss as smoke erupted from the hand bomb.
The Alatreon, who was hunting for the boy, saw the smoke around the ice spikes. It fired a ball of fire into the smoke.
BOOM!
The explosion cleared the smoke, but there was nothing there. The impacted ground was glowing red, however. A moment later-
BANG!
It exploded, sending rock shrapnel everywhere. It also blew up some ice spikes. The black dragon did not wait as it charged to search for the boy. Checking the impact and surrounding, it was obvious that the boy was no longer there.
Click!
An audible click alerted the Alatreon. It rushed to see what it was, only to catch something between two ice spikes. It was too late to react. There was a loud bang as a rigged hand bomb suddenly exploded. The black dragon was unfazed. It looked amused by the effort.
However, it was exactly where Hiccup wanted it to be. The boy pulled out the special hook arrow, before coming out from his hiding spot. He had clear view on its spiked patch chest. Hiccup had his bow ready. He pulled the string and fired.
The hook arrow was not connected to anything on him. It went and embedded itself at the chest. The Alatreon looked down, before noticing a small crystal at the arrow. It began to glow with soft blue light.
The rectangle plates around the place suddenly clicked. The circle around the centre sprung up, revealing short cylinder arrow turret. They turned and fired sharp hook arrows at the Alatreon. While not piercing its scales, the arrows wrapped strong cables around the black dragon, immobilising them.
"KRAAUUUU!" The Alatreon roared in surprise. It tried to pull away, but the cables held on. The plates connected were straining, however. It would not be long until the black dragon was free.
Rushing to get things done, the boy pulled out another special arrow. This one had purple tip. When Hiccup prepared himself to fire, the tip began to glow. There was a trace of light when he fired right at its face.
BOOOOOMM!
The boy was knocked back by the explosion. It also destroyed the surrounding ice spikes. Hiccup grunted as he hit an ice spike behind him. He remained steadfast as he waited for the smoke to clear.
Clang! Hiccup nearly jumped when something crashed next to him. It was one of Alatreon's serrated horns. The boy felt relief; he had figured out its actual weak spot. The head might be its weakest point!
When the smoke finally cleared out, it revealed the Alatreon with the missing horn. There was purple glow where the horn was meant to be. The black dragon was clearly not happy. It was glaring at the boy in front of it.
The Alatreon began to crackle with black lightning. It was preparing something. Hiccup widened his eyes, before taking off to run in opposite direction. Not long after, everything around them exploded with that energy.
"KRAUUUU!"
Hiccup was unfortunate enough to get caught in its blast. The impact was not strong enough to injure him. The boy quickly got up and continued running. However, while rushing to find a hiding spot, he noticed something.
His body was sparking with black lightning.
The boy quickly hid behind one of the remaining ice spikes. Assessing the situation, he realised that his draconic outfit was not protecting him anymore. The place felt much colder, which indicated his armour failing. His bow also felt different.
He realised the black dragon had disabled his draconic equipment. Hiccup significantly paled at that. Just as he knew how to use dragon seal, the Alatreon also knew how to harness that power.
The Alatreon was far more powerful than he initially thought.
BOOM! Hiccup grunted as he was suddenly flung out from his hiding spot into the open. The black dragon had found him. However, instead of pursuing him, the dragon did something else. It stomped its claws as it began charging something.
Everything around them suddenly glow red. Hiccup could feel incredible heat coming from the ground. The power was incredibly strong; rocks and debris began to float. The boy realised that was the end.
All that time, the Alatreon had been holding back.
The black dragon leapt up, before expelling its energy all at once. Everything around them suddenly exploded. "KRAAAAUUU!" BOOOOOMMMM!
And then, Hiccup saw no more.
Silence.
That was the first thing Hiccup thought when he felt himself awake. Slowly opening his eyes, the boy noticed he was in a crystal cavern. His body was encased in green crystal from neck to bottom. He was also naked. The only thing he could move was his head.
Confused, the boy tried to remember what happened before. He remembered fighting Alatreon and got himself blasted to kingdom come.
That was when he realised; the black dragon had only knocked him unconscious. It had captured him.
Suddenly, he felt the ground rumbled as something walked closer to him. Hiccup looked up to see the Alatreon entering the cavern. One of the horns were still missing. The black dragon stared at him, before picking him up from the ground.
The Alatreon used its claws to grab the encased boy, before putting him atop of a blue crystal cluster. The cluster suddenly grew and merged with the green crystal, further encasing Hiccup. The boy did not know what was happening, but it was doing something to him.
"Can you hear me?"
Hiccup turned to look at the black dragon. Eyes wide, he responded. "You can talk!"
"Good." The Alatreon responded, before tapping the crystal cluster once with its claws.
Suddenly, Hiccup felt sharp pain all around his body. The crystal was doing something to him as it grew around his head. The boy could feel something foreign inside his mind. He panicked when his body did not respond.
The black dragon saw all that. When it was done, the dragon turned around and left the place. The boy was left to his fate there, confused and fearful. He lost control of his own body.
At least for a moment. Hiccup suddenly felt himself again. He forced himself to calm down as he tried to process what happened. He had to think about how to get out. The boy closed his eyes as he thought about what to do. Rather, what he could do.
Hiccup paused as he felt something clicked. When nothing came out of it, the boy continued to plot. He had to figure something out. He had to get out of there.
The next day, Hiccup woke up. He was still stuck there. The boy tried everything, but nothing budged. Naked and desperate, he was stuck in that crystal. He wondered what the Alatreon was going to do with him.
He felt hungry and thirsty. Right on time, the Alatreon entered the crystal cavern. It seemed the black dragon had regrown its horn. The stump had grown a short one.
The black dragon was not alone, however, as another dragon entered the place. It was an unknown white-blue quadruped dragon that reminded him of Monstrous Nightmare. Hiccup was afraid. The dragon was unlike anything he ever seen before.
The two dragons inspected the boy encased in crystal. They seem to be interacting with each other; they made noises and moved their wings and tails around. Eventually, the white-blue dragon left the cavern, before returning with a large bag in its maw.
The white-blue dragon dropped the bag in front of him, revealing different crystals and what looked like broken Alatreon horns. It began putting those things onto the crystal he was in. Strangely, the crystal simply took in those things, as if it was a blob of water.
After everything was inside, the white-blue dragon punched the crystal encasing him. There was a flash. Hiccup suddenly felt pain all over his body.
"AAAAAAAAAAHHH!" The boy roared when he felt himself pierced by a thousand needles. It felt like being submerged into boiling water.
Few seconds later, it was over. Hiccup limped as he fell into shock. The pain felt like hours, and it was unlike anything he ever went through. It took him a moment to process what happened.
When he did, Hiccup spat on the ground. He felt great anger at his heart. The boy glared at the two dragons. "I..." He whispered. "... hate you!"
The Alatreon and white-blue dragon glanced at each other, before turning around and leave the place. Not long after, they came back carrying more bags with crystals and other different things.
It was obvious what they were going to do next.
Few days later, after countless painful experience and strings of colourful curses, they finally left him alone. Hiccup felt weak; the experience left him mentally scarred. He felt hopeless as he had been trapped for days. The boy felt something ticking in his body.
At least he was not feeling hungry anymore.
The Alatreon was torturing him. There was no other explanation. Why it did that, he did not know. There was no interaction whatsoever after the short talk several days ago. Hiccup wondered if it was hoping to break his mind before questioning him about something.
'I should have known not to go alone.' Hiccup thought as he mulled over the situation. 'I should have retreated when I saw that dead deviant.'
It was a blunder that costed his life. The boy regretted pursuing the Alatreon. He thought he could observe before fighting the dragon, but he realised that things would not always come to that.
Alex had told him before. Sometimes, investigation could turn into confrontation. It was why Hiccup must always be prepared. He thought he was prepared enough for the encounter; he thought he could sneak up and observe the unknown dragon.
He could not be more wrong.
'The Alatreon and its friend did something to me.' Hiccup thought as he reassessed his situation. 'What did they-'
His thoughts were interrupted when the crystal around him had suddenly turned to dust. The boy fell to the ground; he held back a grunt to avoid making noise. The cold air he felt indicated that he was finally free from his prison.
Realising the opportunity, Hiccup rushed to get out from the place. He stumbled himself to the only exit he knew. However, the boy stopped when he saw himself in front of a clear crystal. It took him some time to process what he was looking at.
Hiccup was slightly bigger. While that alone was fine, it was the black patches of scales around his body that made him pause. Those were never there before. There was none on his face or arms, at least. He wondered what kind of sick experiment they were doing to him.
'They're not deviants.' The boy thought as he touched the scales. Those looked like Night Fury scales. The ticking feeling was also gone. 'What are they doing to me?'
Regardless, he needed to get out from there. He could worry about covering himself later. Naked as the day he was born, the boy went through the only cave path there was. Hiccup carefully walked his way there, trying his best to make no sound.
Eventually, he reached a cave clearing. There was nobody there, but there was a bright orange, prismatic-shaped crystal at the centre. Hiccup was curious, but the whole thing felt like a trap.
'Fuck this.' Hiccup thought as he rushed to the crystal. The boy put his hand onto the crystal and mentally willed it to do something. Suddenly, his purple-obsidian furred outfit were worn on his body. Everything was intact. His backpack was also worn on his back.
The draconic dagger was on him, but his bow and quiver came out broken in his pack. His combat equipment was missing. Hiccup just had to deal with it. With everything set, Hiccup turned to leave, only to realise something important.
He had just accessed the crystal.
Hiccup was so caught up in trying to escape, he did something by instinct. The boy wondered what that was, but try as he might, he could not make the connection. Something was missing. It felt like barrier stopping that thought.
Regardless, he had to get out from the place. He could think about it later. The next problem was finding the way out. The feeling of weakness was still there. With the lack of equipment, he had to be more careful.
After stumbling around the cave network, Hiccup eventually found the exit.
The boy walked out to see a beach with giant mushrooms. In fact, the whole place was some sort of giant mushroom cavern inside a hollow caldera. The sky was bright, meaning it was evening. There were hundreds of dragons coming in and out from the place.
Realising he was in a lair of dragons, Hiccup opted to be cautious. He was still feeling weak; there was not much he could do. The boy walked a bit further to see the exit above. It looked extremely far up there.
Given the water pouring through the hole above, and how humid it was inside, it was best to assume that it was in the middle of the ocean. The only way to get out was with a dragon-
"Kah!"
Hiccup grunted when something suddenly pinned him down. Looking up, it was a silver dragon with strange-shaped wings- Valstrax! The dragon looked angry, and it- no, she had her claws on top of him. The boy had no choice but to remain there.
Couple seconds later, the silver dragoness was still staring at him. There was a hint of curiosity in the dragon's expression. It was here that Hiccup noticed something. For one, she was just as big as him, if not slightly bigger, hinting the fact that she was probably young.
Considering he had no other choice; the boy outstretched his hand. He moved them as close as possible to the snout, before turning away. The young Valstrax became curious. She sniffed his palm, before pressing the snout to it.
Their mind was suddenly connected. Thoughts and memories were shared; Hiccup realised that she was actually a hatchling from a giant egg. The Valstrax had just hatched an hour ago not far from there, and he was the first creature it encountered.
He could even sense what the Valstrax was doing. The young dragoness mind was somehow processing his mind, integrating knowledge into her own. Because the dragoness was incredibly young, and she was willing to connect, their mind was quick to forge some sort of mental bond.
It was a very strange feeling.
After it was over, they could hear each other's thoughts. The Valstrax hatchling let go of him, allowing Hiccup to stand up. The boy almost fell, but the young silver dragoness helped him up. He was grateful to find at least one friendly dragon.
Kraaaauuuu...
The boy and the young silver dragoness perked up. It sounded like an Alatreon roar, and it came from the cave entrance. Realising it had discovered his escape, Hiccup quickly got to work.
The boy mounted onto the Valstrax hatchling, which was large enough to carry him. The young silver dragoness aligned her wings, before thrusting up into the sky. With red trail from the jet wings, they were finally getting out from the place.
The travel outside was easy enough. They came from a caldera in the middle of the ocean. Further sky travel led to a mountainous landmass covered in snow. There were signs of abandoned settlement near the shore.
Given how tired and exhausted they were, the young Valstrax decided to land at the settlement. Once they were safe on the ground, she laid down on the ground. The boy carefully jumped down from her.
Observing the settlement, the place was obviously abandoned. Everything was covered in snow. There were wooden houses and warehouses, along with some metal underground hatches there and there. Looking at the shores, there were concrete docks with broken wooden pillars.
It took Hiccup a moment to realise where they were. The place was an abandoned whaling station. Checking one of the metal hatches, it looked easy to open. Opening them revealed a huge empty space.
The smell was unmistakable; those were whale oil reservoir. It was where they kept the oils. Given the rusting on the metal, it must have been abandoned for years.
The young Valstrax, curious as she was, sniffed each one of the hatches. One had much stronger oil smell than the other. She began scratching the hatch, getting Hiccup's attention.
The boy carefully approached and opened the hatch. It revealed a half-full tank of whale oil. The Valstrax was excited. She licked her lips as she tried to jump down there. Hiccup quickly stopped her. "Wait, wait, no, stop!"
Thankfully, her wings could not fit through the open hatch. The Valstrax was clearly frustrated. It was obvious that it smelled delicious for her. Hiccup looked around to see some stairs heading underground. He noticed a large wooden door there, but it was covered in snow. There were some tools next to it.
Taking that as a sign, Hiccup grabbed a shovel next to it, before digging the pile of snow away with it. The Valstrax saw this and went to help; she used her claws to dig the snow. The boy moved aside when the silver dragoness dug her way to the large doorway. She was doing it faster than him.
When it was clear, the Valstrax went back up to him. Hiccup patted her head. "Good girl."
"Mrr..." The silver dragoness purred at the affection.
The boy went downstairs to check on the large door. It took him a moment to realise that it was a large double door; the snow made them indistinguishable for him. Regardless, opening them revealed a complete darkness. However, Hiccup could see inside in black and white.
'Another side effect of what the Alatreon did to me.' The boy thought as he prepared the shovel. He carefully entered the underground place.
It was a long room with broken furniture and a lot of dusts. There were rusted iron tankers below, which was large enough to reach the surface above. It must be connected to the hatches.
The Valstrax also noticed this. She quickly sniffed each one to find the ones with whale oil. When she did, the silver dragoness climbed up to find an opening. Finding none, the Valstrax punctured the metal with her claws.
Hiccup was searching for a map when he heard water gushing out. Checking his new dragon friend, the Valstrax was gulping down whale oil from the leaking tanker. There was whale oil everywhere. "Whoa, stop!"
The silver dragoness did not care. She was hungry. When the pressure died down, she ripped the metal upward and poked her head inside. The young Valstrax began drinking the large pool of whale oil. It was very delicious for her.
Hiccup left the hatchling on her own. Checking the largest intact table at the corner, he found what he was looking for.
It was a map of Europe, or at least part of it. The eastern section was missing, presumably from decay. It was written in Danish. The boy leaned the shovel at the table, before checking for details on the map.
'From the country borders, this map is from the Napoleonic era.' Hiccup thought as he checked for markers. He noticed that places like Spain was missing, meaning it was further up. As expected, the place meant for Barbaric and Greater archipelagos were blank. 'Denmark-Norway... this place is further up north. Maybe Svalbard?'
"Hrmm..."
Glancing to the side, Hiccup noted the young Valstrax staring at the map. She looked contemplating. The boy patted her head. "We're heading south tomorrow, alright?"
"Kerr..." The silver dragoness hatchling nudged his shoulder, as if asking for something.
Hiccup was quick to interpret the gesture. "You want a name?"
"Ka!"
"A name..." The boy pondered a name. He was not great at naming things. That reminded him of the time when he named his Night Fury friend Toothless. "What about... Gryphon?"
The young Valstrax tilted her head. Hiccup elaborated. "You reminded me of a gryphon." He explained. "It's a part lion and part eagle creature. I've read about it, and I've seen what it looks like."
"Hrr..." The newly named Valstrax nuzzled her friend. She had accepted the name. Gryphon would be her name.
"Gryphon." Hiccup smiled as he patted her head. "Thank you..."
"Hrmm..."
Hiccup and Gryphon spent their night at the abandoned settlement. After barricading the doors, it was the safest place they could rest. It even had a fireplace to warm themselves up. The two huddled themselves together around the fireplace, enjoying the warmth.
The small young Valstrax was curled next to Hiccup. She had already fallen asleep. The boy was resting on his large backpack. He was facing the fireplace, staring at the crackling flame from the woods inside.
There were a lot of things in his mind. From fighting Alatreon, escaping from capture, and befriending a new dragon - Hiccup felt embarrassed to get back home.
He was supposed to hunt the deviant dragon. Instead, he went to search for the unknown dragon that killed it. Hiccup felt himself to blame for the failure of that hunt, if it could be called that. He should have known when to retreat.
Hiccup thought he was ready. He had done many practices and training; even Alex called him a prodigy. He had hunted deviant dragons on his own before. He thought he had fulfilled his own promise of becoming stronger than ever.
The Alatreon proved him wrong.
Try as he might, the feeling of despair could not be ignored. He was a 14-year-old boy that tried to do something nobody never done before. It was by sheer chance and luck that he even survived.
It was evidence that there would always be something far stronger out there. Even if Hiccup defeated Alatreon, there would always be a stronger dragon capable of taking them out. It was the reality of life; something he was forced to face.
If anything, Hiccup realised just how incredibly blessed he was. There were hundreds of thousands of people that strived to become stronger. For most people, it took a lifetime to reach where he was. Alexander Haddock got there after centuries of studies.
Hiccup achieved them within few years.
It made him realise how privileged he was. Not every Viking could read, let alone multilingual, and he was all of that and more. Hiccup realised just how different he was compared to the Vikings of Berk. Things he took for granted had far more value than he thought.
'There is always a bigger dragon.' Hiccup thought. Some things started to make sense; village Vikings disliking him, children bullying him, and so on. 'I have yet figured out that lesson.'
The small part of him blamed his father for not teaching him about it. However, it felt more impactful when he found them through introspection. Everything suddenly made sense.
The worst part was not knowing what to do about it.
'Get back home and figure something out.' The boy decided, before closing his eyes to sleep. 'I can think about it later.'
The next morning, when they woke up, Hiccup and Gryphon spent their morning hunting for fishes to eat. The boy was still feeling weak, which meant the Valstrax did most of the hunting. After they were well fed, the two continued their journey to find their way home.
In the first day of that journey, they managed to reach the mainland. Norwegian shores looked pretty from above. From there, Hiccup determined where Barbaric Archipelago was located. The boy even took opportunity to buy a compass from a Norwegian village.
The next day, armed with a compass, they continued their travel to Barbaric Archipelago. It did not take long for them to reach the region. Hiccup wanted to get home as soon as possible, but remembering what his father said, he could not return at the back of Gryphon the young Valstrax.
Instead, they went to the island where Hiccup fought the Alatreon. It was also where he parked his ship. When they reached the place, they found the ship capsized and half-way submerged into the ocean.
"You have got to be kidding me..."
Hiccup was standing where he left the ship over a week ago. Gryphon the young Valstrax was there with him. They were staring at the capsized ship not far from the island. The boy felt despair because most of his stuff was there.
Parts of the mooring rope was still on the tree. It was a clean cut from the tree. The Alatreon was most likely the culprit, along with capsizing his ship. Hiccup took a deep breath as he tempered his anger.
They had not checked the camps at the island yet. Hiccup remembered making two for resting checkpoint. There might be something they could salvage there before heading back home.
"Well then..." Hiccup exhaled his breath, before turning to face Gryphon. The young Valstrax was grooming her inverted jet-like wings. He was about to get on her back when he noticed something.
Her eyes had red and blue pupils before, but now, it was green and black. The reddish colouration around her body, including the openings on her wings, had a tint of blue to them. They were not like that before.
Hiccup was concerned that Gryphon might be sick. From what he observed, she looked just fine. It might be something common for dragons of her species. The boy had no idea on how to care for a Valstrax, other than feeding them.
Regardless, they must continue their journey. Hiccup mounted onto her back. "Let's go, Gryphon." He started. "Let's find our stuff."
"Ka!"
As Hiccup found out, it was much easier traversing around giant, oversized valleys with a flying dragon.
The shed scales from unknown giant dragon were all gone. The massive bones were gone as well. There were burn marks everywhere, indicating that the Alatreon had gotten rid of them. The black dragon must be incredibly powerful to destroy something like that.
They did find a palm-sized fragment of the Alatreon horn. It would be the proof that such dragon existed.
Out of two camps he made in the valley, only one remained intact. Thankfully, it was the one where he put a large bundle of those shed scales. There were some supplies for his wrist slinger, such as exploding rocks.
'At least I know that Alatreon exists.' Hiccup thought as he focused on the islands around them. The boy was riding the young Valstrax. It was afternoon, and they were getting close to Berk. 'The expedition isn't fruitless, after all.'
They were far above when they finally reached Berk. Hiccup looked down to search for a place to land. The certain cove was the best secret place tor Gryphon to stay. The next problem would be explaining how he came back.
'Maybe I can lie about being inside a merchant ship?' Hiccup wondered as he checked the docks. There was no merchant ship anywhere, but he noted one sailing away from the island. It was Johann the Merchant's ship. 'That could work.'
The boy directed Gryphon to land in the forest. "There. Try to stay hidden."
"Kaa..." Gryphon the young Valstrax was annoyed. It would be difficult to stay hidden in the afternoon sky, especially with bluish red trail behind her.
Regardless, she wanted to give it a try. The dragoness hatchling flew away as she searched for better angle of approach. After finding the best angle, Gryphon carefully approached the forest. She flew at ground level, before entering the certain cove.
The young Valstrax landed herself there. After it was clear, Hiccup jumped off from her back. "Thanks, bud."
They were finally home.
Hiccup returned to the village by himself. Gryphon the young Valstrax would be staying at the cove. Carrying what he gathered, the boy decided to get to the forge first. He wanted to drop his things there.
When he entered the forge, Gobber was inside. The blacksmith was busy hammering something at the anvil. Dropping his backpack, the boy called out. "Hey, Gobber."
The blacksmith turned around so fast; his hammer was still flying. It struck the thumb of his finger. "YEOW!"
The boy winced at that. "Sorry."
Gobber dropped everything and focused on him. "Hiccup!" He exclaimed, surprised to see him there. "You're back!"
"I did." Hiccup nodded as he dumped his backpack into his room. "My ship got sunk by a dragon. I snuck through a merchant ship to get back home."
"Ah." The blacksmith nodded in understanding. "That explains it."
"I lost my bow, my ship, and my stuff." The boy sounded frustrated. After putting everything into his room, Hiccup turned to face his former mentor. "At least the deviant is dead."
Gobber shrugged as he grabbed a firewood from the side. "It could've been worse." He commented, before throwing the firewood into the furnace. "We found a deviant dragon pretending to be one of us."
Hiccup stared with wide eyed expression. "Deviant dragon? Here?"
"Aye. The thing's been pretending as Ascal for some time." The blacksmith explained. He turned to face the boy. "Yer father found out when he saw 'em talking to a deviant in the forest. It's trying to send a message, until yer father killed it."
"I- I guess I'll talk to my dad." Hiccup decided, before heading out from the place. "Thanks Gobber!"
Heading to the plaza, Hiccup found his father talking to Spitelout in front of the Mead Hall. There was a cart next to them. He could not make out what it was. He noted Spitelout saw him approaching, but he did not say anything.
Upon reaching them, the boy tapped his father's shoulder. "Dad."
Stoick turned around. Realising that was his son, he quickly hugged him. "Hiccup." The man whispered. "You're back here..."
Hiccup wrapped his arms around him. "I'm home."
They stayed like that for a moment. Eventually, the father let go of him. "How-" He paused, before correcting himself. "We didn't see your ship."
"My ship got sunk by a dragon." The boy gave his answer. He was careful not to tell a lie. "I lost my stuff, but the deviant is dead."
"I'm glad you're safe." Stoick expressed his relief. "The past few weeks have been tense."
"What happened?"
"Deviant dragon pretending as one of us." The chief explained the situation. There was hidden anger in his voice. "It was Northern Alliance. They were spying on us."
Curious, Hiccup moved to check the cart. Opening them revealed a fresh corpse of a Viking- no, partial Deathgripper dragon.
The top half of the chest had black carapaces, running along to its neck. The arms were some sort of black jagged pincers. On its back were red wings and sharp stinger tail. Even the head was strange; it was part dragon.
The dragon parts were oversized compared to the human parts, looking like something out of a horrible nightmare. It was still wearing its clothes. Hiccup paled upon seeing them. "At least it doesn't smell."
"Yet." Spitelout added, getting their attention. "We're burning them soon."
"There's Northern Alliance mark on its horn." Stoick told what they discovered.
Careful not to touch anything, Hiccup moved to check them. There was that small, familiar insignia right at its horn. However, while checking that, he noticed something else. The boy pulled out his knife to poke on the clothes.
The Vikings stayed silent. They watched as the boy used his knife to pull something out of its pocket. It looked like a draconic knife. "A weapon."
"That wasn't there before." Spitelout the second-in-command was alarmed.
Hiccup holstered his knife, before checking what he found.
The knife handle and holster were made of dragon scales. Opening them, the blade looked normal. However, something strange happened. They could feel the cursed nature of the knife, which made them uneasy. "Oh, I think I know."
Stoick was aghast. "Is that what I think it is?"
"Yes." Hiccup closed them, before placing the cursed draconic weapon at the cart. "A cursed knife."
The second-in-command looked at the chief. "He never pulled out a knife during the fight, did he?"
"No. He used a sword." The chief answered. He was confused to see it there. "The sword isn't draconic."
"No." The boy spoke up, getting their attention. He looked deep in thought. "I think I understand. There is a method in their madness."
"What do you think?"
"It's possible that Northern Alliance killed their own dragons to make cursed draconic weapons." Hiccup told his theory. "Have their slaves and prisoners willingly use or wear them. Within days, the dragons would possess and completely claim the wearer."
Stoick widened his eyes. "They become dragon in human skin."
"Yes. They used existing legends for their benefit." The boy pondered. Gesturing at the weapon in the cart, he continued speaking. "This is the cursed weapon."
"How do we get rid of it?" Spitelout asked.
"You can't. Draconic weapons are indestructible. Your best bet is throwing them into the Atlantic Ocean and hope no one found it." Hiccup mentally calculated the effort in making such weapon. "To think... they went through all that effort just for this scheme..."
The chief shook his head. "We'll burn the body and dispose the knife in the sea." He decided, before closing the cart with thick cloth. "Spitelout, get me Gobber. Tell him to bring the tongs."
"Aye, chief."
Later that night, Hiccup stayed at the Mead Hall. He was slowly drinking a tankard of hot mead. There was barely anyone there, since most Vikings were outside celebrating Snoggletog. They were also celebrating their victory on exposing the Northern Alliance spy.
The boy had something else in mind. It always came back to that time when he was captured and tortured by the Alatreon. He shuddered at the thought of facing that dragon again. Hiccup was incredibly lucky to made it out alive.
Regardless, he had achieved so far, and yet, he was eventually defeated. Hiccup had put a lot of effort, only to realise he barely scratched the surface. There was still plenty of things he did not know.
And that... felt depressing.
"Hiccup?"
The boy looked up to see the newcomer. Stoick was sitting in front of him. "Dad."
"How do you feel?" The father asked.
Hiccup had no answer to that. "Just tired." He admitted. "I have a lot of things to think about."
Stoick softened his expression. He knew what Hiccup was thinking; he was utterly defeated by a dragon. While the chief knew it was part of his training, he could not help but feel bad about it.
The father could at least soften the blow. "Do you want to talk about it?"
The boy lowered his voice. "I went to the island and found what we're looking for." He began telling the tale. "The deviant dragon is dead. It was killed by an Alatreon."
Another pause. Stoick gestured him to continue. Hiccup did so. "I searched for the Alatreon to see what it looks like." He told the tale. "When I found it, I was trapped in the cavern with it. The dragon is very aggressive, and I..."
Hiccup did not know how to describe it. "It caught me off guard. It captured me and took me Thor-knows where." He confessed. "I was lucky to escape."
That felt like an understatement. Hiccup never stood a chance. The dragon could control elements, including one previously unknown. The dragon element looked like dragon seal, which he discovered just few years ago.
It was the most powerful dragon he had ever encountered.
The father exhaled his breath. "Do you remember how you escaped?"
The boy was about to speak, before stopping himself. When it came to his capture, for whatever reason, he could not remember. Hiccup found this strange. "I don't remember." He confessed, before lowering his voice to whisper. "But I did make friend with a dragon to escape."
Stoick gave a slight smile. "At least you're back here."
Hiccup simply shrugged. "I lost my equipment." He admitted. "It'll take some time to make new ones."
"Hmm..." The father stroked his beard. He had an idea. "I think I can help you with that."
After Hiccup finished his mead, the father and son headed to the Great Hall. They climbed up the stairs, entered them, before closing the door behind them. There was nobody else there, and the place was incredibly dark.
"Right. Hiccup." The chief was at the door. "Could you grab the lantern and turn them on?"
"Okay." The boy nodded, before heading to the table at the other end of the room. He grabbed the lantern, opened the glass, pulled his dagger and grazed the edge against the metal. It sent a spark that ignited the fuse. When that was done, he holstered his dagger and closed the glass.
When Hiccup returned, the chief grabbed the lantern. He began walking down into the hallway on his left. "Follow me."
Hiccup moved to follow, and they walked down the path. They walked to the end of the hallway, which had a large stone double door.
"Hmm..." Stoick hummed as he inspected it. "This hasn't been opened for over a century."
The boy was confused and surprised. "What?"
"The Great Hall was built over one thousand years ago." The chief explained to his son. He was staring at the stone double door. "After the death of Hiccup the Second, this door has remained close to this day. Nobody could open them."
Hiccup was further confused. He stared at his father. "Why?"
Stoick did not answer. He merely raised the lantern to reveal more of the double door. The boy looked to inspect the stone doors. It was when he realised why.
Unlike most stone doors around the Great Hall, it was mechanical in some way. There were different sizes of gears mounted on different spots. The handles were made of dull white crystals, implying presence of draconic contraption. They both looked connected in some way.
It took Hiccup some time to realise what it might be. "Dragon doors?"
The father raised his brows, as if challenging. "Can you solve them?"
The boy frowned at that. He grabbed the handles to try opening them. The white crystals shimmered a bit, and the two gears at the top side of the door began to wiggle. Those gears were connected to other gears almost hidden inside the walls.
Realising what they were, Hiccup checked for other hidden gears. He found another two at the bottom.
Stoick watched as Hiccup worked on the puzzle. He began switching the stone gears around, taking them off and putting them in different spots. The boy did test them as he went, making sure that the gears were moving when he tried to push the door.
Eventually, when he inserted the last gear. Everything was finally connected.
Hiccup tried to push the door. However, that did not work. "What..." The boy paused, before realising his mistake. He grabbed the handles and then pushed open the door. The gears began to move as the double door slowly swung open.
Musty and earthly odour assaulted their senses. It was obvious that the doors had not been opened for a very long time. When the double door was fully opened, Hiccup and Stoick carefully entered the room. It was surprisingly large, since the lit lantern could not illuminate the whole place.
Fwoosh!
Suddenly, the wall oil lamps turned on by itself. That illuminated the room for them to see. The walls were decorated with woods and long, empty shelves. What remained was a long wooden dusty box at the corner, which was covered with dust and spider webs.
There was also a large table at the centre, along with chairs on opposite sides. It was obvious for Hiccup that the place was once a large study room. Stoick placed the lantern onto the table. He looked around to check the place. "Empty..."
"Dad." Hiccup turned to face his father. "What is this place?"
Stoick leaned at the table. "This was once Hiccup the Second's study room." He answered the question. "They said Chucklehead cleared the place at the request of our ancestor's dragon-brother; Furious."
"So, it was true then." The boy realised, having heard of the story before. "The Legend of Haddocks."
"Yes. They are true."
"Then..." Hiccup looked around the place once more. "What are we doing here?"
Stoick did not answer. He gestured at the wooden dusty box at the corner. Realising the gesture, the boy went to grab them. Hiccup moved the box to the top of the table.
The father simply watched as the boy checked the latch. It looked old and rusty. Hiccup tried to unlatch them, but the screws detached from the latch.
Hiccup blinked at that. "Oh." He placed the latch aside, before carefully swinging the box open. There was a sheathed long sword in there, along with some books. Curious, the boy grabbed the weapon first.
The moment he did it, Hiccup froze. He felt the sword expressing its intent - a sign of cursed weapon. It was happy to find the ancestor of its wielder.
The boy quickly let go of the sword, but that feeling was there. Hiccup quickly shut the box, breaking his sight from the sword. But the connection was still there.
"Dad." Hiccup almost panicked. "The sword-!"
"Once belonged to Hiccup the Second." Stoick interrupted. He sounded reassuring. "It's not cursed. He forged it himself."
The boy reluctantly trusted his father. He carefully opened the box once more.
There was no feeling of wrongness that any cursed weapons usually had. Hiccup had not heard any voices in his head either. The feeling had disappeared when he shut the box. Taking a deep breath, he moved to grab the sword.
The feeling was slow this time. The sword was hesitant, as if it knew Hiccup was reluctant to wield it. The boy lifted the sheathed sword, allowing light to illuminate them. Curiosity overwhelmed his fear; he moved to inspect the appearance.
The sheathe was obviously made of dragon scales of some kind. The chape - pointed edge, that is - was held together with black bone of something, while the locket - base of the sheathe - had some sort of white furs on its sides. The middle parts had some leathers wrapped around them, presumably where the strap was supposed to be.
Hiccup slowly unsheathed the sword. The moment he did, red flame-like thing ignited from the blade. The boy almost dropped the thing. Careful not to damage them, he inspected what kind of draconic weapon he was dealing with.
It was a double handle long sword; something he had never seen before. The size alone meant that it could only be used with two hands. The grip was mostly black and purple, with pommel being made of small dragon teeth. The sword guard looked like horns; short and almost circular.
The blade itself was rather interesting. The starting point had some sort of arrow-like gold decoration on them, which made them look serrated. The middle and end section were simply black. The edge of the blade was blood red in colour. Considering that it was pulsing with red flame-like thing, that was the least of his concern.
"Dad..." Hiccup whispered, staring at his father. "Is this... really Hiccup the Second's sword?"
"Yes. Its name is Brimstone." Stoick answered the question. There was a glint of reminiscence in his eyes. "It was said that Brimstone could stop dragons from breathing fire. It was until you named them that we finally understood the phenomenon."
"Hiccup the Second invented dragon seal." Hiccup whispered, amazed by the discovery. "He was the first to use them."
That discovery showed how much- how miniscule Hiccup understood about draconic things. He realised he had just been reinventing them. Hiccup was not the first to find out.
The Brimstone was evidence of that.
Stoick stood from the table. "This room will be the second place to store our books and scrolls." He declared, getting his attention. The chief wandered around, before stopping at the centre. "We don't have many Vikings that can read, let alone understand what they are reading. This is the safest place to store new village books."
Hiccup knew about the village books. They were usually scattered around the forge, Mead Hall and Great Hall. It was mostly about their history, tales and dragon knowledge. That was how they knew how to fight dragons.
The boy sheathed the long sword. "I can't take this." He placed the sword back into the box. "It doesn't belong to me."
"The moment you touched the sword, it belongs to you." The father responded. "It's your right."
"But-"
"Hiccup, when a deviant hunter went for a hunt, they don't win a hunt. They survive them." Stoick placed his hand on his shoulder. "You survived. You lost your things, but you survived. It's all that matters."
The boy stared at him. The father smiled. "And I'm proud of you."
Hiccup did not know what to feel. While it was nice to have that validation, it felt rather unscrupulous.
The village disliked him until he grew bigger; his father used to express frustration about his physique. The boy remembered feeling disappointed when he realised that they never accepted him before until he became large.
Regardless, it was not the time to be depressed. The boy moved to check the books in the box. They were three massive books written by Hiccup the Second.
The first one being 'A Hero's Guide to Deadly Dragons'; the second one titled 'Dragonsmithing'; and the third one was titled 'Gemstone and Alchemy'. They looked like tomes with over two thousand pages on them.
Checking the rest, there were massive, thick blank books. Those were the size of his chest. Hiccup wondered why they stored those empty books there; he could use those for his sketches. Regardless, he had gotten books written by his ancestor. The boy wondered what kind of knowledge written inside those three books.
Eventually, Hiccup relented. He grabbed the sheathed sword and the two large books. Turning around to face his father, he gave him a smile. "Thanks, dad."
"Consider them my gifts to you." Stoick decided, before pulling him into a hug. "Happy Snoggletog, Hiccup."
"... Happy Snoggletog, dad."
Author Note
This part was rewritten at least a few times. Initially, I wanted to focus on the dark side of draconic weapons. But then, I realised that this is a good place for Hiccup's character development. It's also a good opportunity to introduce another character, since Toothless would be occupied with six hatchlings.
Do note that this also established how dragon riders actually bond with their dragons. The process is usually slow, but since Hiccup is not exactly human, it doesn't behave like it should.
How did Toothless not found his human part despite being connected to him? The same reason why Gryphon didn't find his dragon part. Furious is really good at his job, terrifyingly so. It's unlikely for Hiccup to realise he was Charcoal and vice versa, even after Toothless found out and confronted him about it.
However, considering what the Alatreon and others did to him, whatever that was, the mental barrier Furious set on him was weakening. It was shown in this chapter, where Hiccup accessed the crystal, despite never knowing it as a human. He just used dragon knowledge.
There comes the question of who the Alatreon was working with, and why Alexander was willing to bring him out to challenge Hiccup.
Now, why Alatreon? There are many candidates for dragons out there that Stoick can pick from. Alexander Haddock is old enough to know different mythical dragons. Out of all dragons from Monster Hunter franchise, why this one?
In Monster Hunter World: Iceborne, you need to attack Alatreon with certain element, and you need to do enough damage to pass the check. Fail to do this, you'll get a face full of Escaton Judgment, like what happened to Hiccup in this chapter. If you pass, you can survive by out-healing the damage. There's no other way.
Also, if you don't break the horn, it'll change element after that attack. If you bring fire weapon to counter ice Alatreon, it would turn into fire Alatreon after the nova, making it immune to fire. You'll fail the check, and the next Escaton Judgment would be a full powered one. Not to mention that there's only two horns, which means it's a race against time.
With everything combined, Alatreon represents metaphorical wall for end-game players. You can't simply smack your way through Alatreon without proper planning and knowing the dragon. You will die. A lot. That's just how it is. But the more you fight them, the more you learn them, and after countless failure, you will eventually defeat it. The feeling of victory is very much worth it.
I will admit. This is basically from my personal experience, which is why I picked this one.
The situation is similar with Hiccup. He had learned everything from his uncle. What he can't do; he'll analyse them and figure it out. It sort of became his pride that he was capable of killing deviants for safety, or capturing dragons and giving them spa for dragon moult.
As such, there's not really anything Barbaric Archipelago dragons have to really challenge him. He has to get out to find stronger dragons, which he can't really do.
Alatreon was chosen because it's not native in Barbaric Archipelago. It's an unknown dragon; nobody knows about it. Hiccup can't do his usual tricks, because the dragon is smart. Every time he did his tricks, he had to come up with a new one. He was forced to be unpredictable. The Alatreon was unforgiving, and it was toying with him. Breaking the horn was luck in on itself.
It's a bit overkill bringing Alatreon of all things to defeat him. Then again, when it came to Hiccup, they wanted to make sure that the lesson of defeat sticks.
Now, in early parts of the chapter. I've revealed (or insinuated) the whole "what about Europe/rest of the world?" question. It was unclear as of this chapter. I did mentioned Egyptian dragons in previous chapter. In this one, I mentioned Arabian dragons. I also mentioned a bit of 1830s geopolitic situation in Europe. There's nothing beyond that as of yet.
And lastly, the dark side of dragonsmith emerged. While most people avoid cursed weapons, some decided to weaponize them. Northern Alliance is a legitimate threat, and I think it's best to start describing what they could do.