After the bunker was opened, Vikings realised something historic was about to happen.
It did not mean that they were afraid. The village had come through countless dragon raids and some deviant incursion. Standing their ground was part of their identity; it was an occupational hazard.
Most Vikings were not concerned, either. Gobber and Hiccup made sure they were equipped to fight what was to come. They were able to forge semi-draconic weapons using wyrmsteel metal.
While nowhere as strong as actual draconic weapons, it was vast improvement compared to regular ones. They did not need dragon moults to make them either, and the crystals required were cheap. This made their production significantly cheaper.
As such, what they feel was tension.
It was the calm before the storm.
That was not to say everyone stayed put. Most doubled their training effort to increase their chance of survival. They had been briefed about the situation; they were preparing for the inevitable confrontation at Helheim's Gate.
However, Astrid was an exception.
After everything that happened yesterday, the petite girl had been following Hiccup since morning. She wanted to get answers directly from the boy himself.
There was also the fact that she wanted to know if he knew anything about taming dragons.
However, it was hard to track down the boy. Hiccup seemed to have tendency to know when someone was following him. Astrid had to chase him several times to avoid missing him. At some point, she lost track of him and had to sweep the area.
While she did not know where he went, she knew he was not that far.
Which was why she was sneaking into a cove.
Hiccup was at the open cave within the cove. Amongst the alchemy things, which were largely empty and clean, there were books around the place. The boy had been busy sorting out some of his ancestor's books.
Specifically, the ones with empty pages. Apparently, there were plenty of similar books in different places of the bunker. There were over five million books in there, half of which looked draconic. Since the Vikings had no use for mostly empty books, Hiccup was allowed to keep them.
Of course, the sheer amount meant Hiccup kept them in a Storage Crystal in his mana. It took a one-eighth of his mana pool, which was hefty for just empty books.
Hiccup knew the books were originally not empty. Some of them had signs of ink 'decay', meaning the ink they used might have dissolved somehow. It was unknown what kind of ink they used, but was definitely not a normal one.
Regardless, the boy wanted to try and restore the books.
That was why Hiccup had been writing all day. The boy had been copying what remained to different papers. He used one with just few pages intact, which was why he was doing this manually.
However, he wondered why the 'Mana: Principles, Techniques and Tools' book and some others were fine. Some of the books were draconic, albeit cheaper looking compared to that. It was unknown why they were like this.
Funny enough, the seventh volume of 'Mana: Principles, Techniques and Tools' book was filled with all sorts of symbols, circles and lines. Hiccup thought someone had conned him, until he realised the content was actually coded.
Until he figured out how to decode the seventh volume book, the content remained unknown. It was nothing but an indestructible, glorified paperweight until it was readable.
But that was not his concern at the moment.
"Hiccup!"
"Gah!" Hiccup yelped as he turned around. He was holding scrolls on his hands. Astrid Hofferson was standing at the open cave entrance, holding an axe. "Astrid?! What are you doing here?!"
"I want to know what's going on." Astrid spoke accusingly. "No one just tried to kill the chief and get away with it. Especially you! Start talking!"
"Er- uh- wuh?" The boy was utterly confused. He did not know what to say. Astrid was not meant to be here!
"Are you conspiring with someone?" The petite girl accused.
"Wa- conspiring?"
"It better not involve this!" Astrid grabbed the scroll from his hand. She threw them away, before gesturing at the giant crate full of books, papers and scrolls. "And this!"
"This is my private study area!" Hiccup was angry. He did not like anyone going through his things, especially her. "You're not even supposed to be here!"
Suddenly, Astrid punched his groin, causing all sorts of pain. Hiccup stumbled down, not expecting that from her. He crashed onto the ground. "Ow!" The boy clutched his below. "Why would you DO that?!"
"That's for keeping secrets." Astrid snarled, before hitting his stomach with her axe handle. "And that's for everything else!"
"Ow..." Hiccup groaned. He did not expect her to punch him under his belt. "You're the one that kept stealing things from me!"
"You're the one that doesn't want to share with anyone!" The petite girl shouted. "You're the heir of Berk. You should be more of this instead of being useless!"
Suddenly, someone grabbed her shoulder. Astrid turned around just enough to see an acidic-green-eyed girl punched her in the face.
Wham!
The petite girl was flung out from the open cave, before landing at the centre of the cove. Her axe clattered not far from her. Toothless was in her human form; she had been reading books when Astrid entered the place. The large girl walked out from the open cave.
"You must be Astrid." Toothless remarked, smirking at the downed petite girl. She cracked her knuckles as she approached. "I'm going to enjoy this."
Astrid rushed to get up and reached for her axe. The large girl moved her hand in pulling motion, and the petite girl was flung backward onto her. Toothless grabbed her collar, smashed her down, and punched her back.
"AAH!" The petite girl screamed. She felt something snapped on her bone. Astrid turned around to kick the offender, only for Toothless to grab her leg, swung her upward, and smashed her at the opposite side of the grass. Astrid could feel her insides crack as blood build up in her throat.
"So, this is the mighty Astrid that everyone talked about." Toothless boasted, before grabbing her neck. She lifted her up without much effort, choking her. "The winner of the dragon ring... you don't stand a chance against a Monstrous Nightmare."
Astrid reached for her dagger, trying to stab the arms. The large girl grabbed her wrist, before squeezing them, forcing her to drop the knife. The petite girl could not scream as Toothless pulled her close. "Want to see the power difference?"
Toothless' clothes burned away in purple flame, leaving her wearing pants and undergarments covering her chest. The large girl threw Astrid down, letting her see the massive, sculpted body in all her glory. Toothless enjoyed seeing fear in her eyes. It felt great to punish a bully herself.
Hiccup had just come out from the open cave. "Toothless, don't hurt her too much."
The large girl glanced at him. "Don't hurt her too much?" She was incredulous. "I would've chopped her arms for a decade of bullying!"
Astrid took this as an opportunity. She got up, stumbled, and tried to run. The injured girl went for her axe. She did not get far when something went through her right arm. The petite girl collapsed, before realising that her right arm was gone from her shoulder. "AAAAAAHH!"
Toothless crossed her arms, smirking. She had just used ironwire spell to cut her arm. "Now I'm satisfied."
"AAAAAAAHHHH!" Astrid screamed at her now stump right arm. Blood splattered everywhere as she trashed from the pain. "AAAAAHH!"
"Shite." Hiccup cursed as he rushed to the wounded girl. Astrid had lost her consciousness when the boy arrived there. He rushed to close the wound with his mana. His hands shimmered blue, and the open wound began to burn. It cauterised the wound and stopped the bleeding.
When that was done, Hiccup glared at his mate. "Toothless, we need her intact. Do you have to cut her arm?"
"I was going to stop when you told me to stop." Toothless argued, approaching the boy. She grabbed the arm she severed from the ground. "But she went for the axe."
"Okay, fair." The boy admitted. "But you could've knock her out instead."
"Consider them my take on bullying." The mother dragon turned human dropped the arm next to the unconscious girl. "She'll be fine with one arm. Unless you want to do something to her."
"No, no, she can't lose her arm." Hiccup was frustrated. "Not here. Anywhere but here. The Vikings would blame me for this."
The boy did not expect Astrid to follow him there. Toothless had no-mercy policy when it came to harassment and bullying. While that was fair in Hidden World, such thing was not widely accepted by the Vikings. At least those at Hairy Hooligan tribe.
There was also the fact that Astrid was the winner of the dragon ring. If she had gone missing, Vikings would come looking for her. As much as Hiccup despised her, he needed Astrid alive. He did not want to have any possibility of Stoick actually exiling them, or worse.
Checking the condition, Hiccup noted that Toothless had cut Astrid's arm from the shoulder. The ironwire had cauterised the severed arm, which explained why there was not as much blood.
Of course, he had to figure out how to explain that to the Vikings.
'I wish I know how to alter memories.' Hiccup mentally moaned. 'I could've set something up to cover this up, but that's not an option.'
That gave him a different idea, however. There was something at the second volume dragon book he could try. Hiccup sighed once more. The boy looked back at his mate. "Get me a Nature Shard."
"Oh..."
Astrid slowly woke up from her sleep. Her mind was hazy from what happened before. She clutched her head with her right hand. "Where..."
"Careful now."
The petite girl squinted her eyes. She was laying on the grass near the rocks. Hiccup was sitting next to her, holding a dragon scaled book. He seemed rather concerned about something. "Don't move your arm too much yet. Your body is still adjusting."
"What..." Astrid then remembered what happened. She checked her right arm and see them intact. Checking her shoulder, there was a bit of blue scales where the part was ripped off. When she sat up, she did not feel any pain on her body. "How... how did you..."
Hiccup closed the book. "Yes, I reattached them. The scales will come off on its own." He stood from the ground. "You got your arm back. You're welcome."
Astrid then heard another voice. "We should've dumped her at the village."
The petite girl leaned to see. The large girl was standing there, leaning against the wall. She had worn her clothes back. Toothless continued speaking. "Maybe drop her at height." She smirked as she held Astrid's axe. "That'd make for a good show."
Astrid simply glared at her. Hiccup exhaled his breath. "Astrid, this is Toothless." He began introducing them. "Toothless, this is Astrid."
The petite girl was scared and unsure. "Who is she?"
"She's my-" Hiccup barely said much when Toothless pulled him into a kiss. The large girl pushed him to the wall, before continuing to snog the life out of her mate. The boy simply closed his eyes and enjoyed the affection. Toothless was showing who owned the boy.
Astrid was too shocked to say anything. She slowly stood from the ground, carefully putting some distance between them. When the large girl finally let him go, she looked at the petite girl. There was possessiveness in her eyes. "He is my husband."
Astrid was disgusted. That seemed to be Hiccup's secret. "Okay, I won't say anything." She finally decided, before noticing something. "Can I have my axe back?"
Toothless simply walked to the clearing. She dropped the axe, before her body began to shimmer.
Within a second, the large girl had turned into a rather large Night Fury. After she finished, the mother dragon placed one of her paws on top of the axe. She dared the petite girl to come and pick them up.
Astrid was both shocked and disgusted this time. She turned around and took off running, heading out from the cove. The petite girl was heading back to the village.
Hiccup simply stared as she left the place. Nobody knew Toothless was a dragoness yet. Stoick insisted in keeping her true form a secret. It was going so well until she decided to do that.
Feeling frustrated, the boy threw his hands up. "Da-da-da! We're dead!"
"We'll be fine." Toothless grunted, before heading to the open cave.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!" He stopped her. "Where do you think you're going?"
"I'm going back to read."
Hiccup pocketed the book. He mounted onto her back. "The last thing we need is everyone knowing what you really are." He explained as he adjusted himself. "You should've not transformed. She was going to leave. Now she knows you're a dragon. We have to fix this!"
"Krr..." Toothless growled, before taking off into the sky.
Astrid was running down through the forest. The village was far from the cove. She was unarmed and there was a dragon. She could not believe that Hiccup had a dragon. Was that why he tried to kill his own father?
Suddenly, something swooped in and lifted her off the ground. "AAAAH!" The petite girl screamed as she went off into the sky. "Oh, great Odin's ghost! Oh, this is it!"
She was dropped right on top of a tall pine tree. The girl looked up to see Toothless the Night Fury. Hiccup was sitting on her back. "Hiccup, get me down from here!"
"You have to give me a chance to explain." Hiccup pleaded as he reached his hand towards her.
"I am not listening to ANYTHING you have to say!" Astrid screamed.
"Then I won't speak." Hiccup calmly responded. "Just let me show you. Please, Astrid."
The girl stared at him for some time. She wondered if there was more into this situation. Astrid slowly grabbed his hand. Hiccup pulled her onto Toothless' back. "Now, get me down."
"Toothless, down. Gently." Hiccup spoke to her. Toothless rolled her eyes as she slowly spread her wings. The boy looked back. "See? Nothing to be afraid of."
"Oh, I'm not going down." Toothless nonchalantly spoke. "The only way is UP!"
The dragoness took off high into the sky. Astrid nearly slipped off her back. The petite girl instantly held onto the boy in front of her. "AAAAAAAH!"
"WHOA!" Hiccup shouted as Toothless went higher. "TOOTHLESS! What is wrong with you?!"
The dragoness began flying erratically. "Getting her off me!" She snarled as she flew onto a loop.
"No! Bad dragon!" Hiccup scolded her, which made her snort. "She's not usually like this."
"I'm trying to help and I'm the bad dragon?" Toothless questioned him, before flying higher into the sky. "Maybe this will change your mind!"
"AAAAAAAH!" Astrid screamed, holding onto the boy in front of her.
"Toothless, what are you doing?!" Hiccup hissed as he leaned down to the black dragon. "You already punished her. We need her to like us."
"We don't need her to like us!" The dragoness retorted, before tilting her tailfins, spinning them in place.
"And now we're spinning." Hiccup spoke with sarcastic voice. "Thank you for nothing, you useless reptile."
"OKAY! I'M SORRY!" Astrid begged behind him. "I'M SORRY! Just get me off this thing!"
Toothless suddenly went calm. She slowed down and slowly glide above the clouds. Hiccup noticed what Astrid had said that made her stop. He reached for their circuit connection, before thinking. "Really? That's all you wanted to hear?"
"That won't make up a decade of tormenting you." Toothless thought back, slowly flying around the place. "But it's a start."
They flew around for some time. Toothless went around the clouds and enjoyed the moment. Astrid slowly reached for them. "Wow..." She breathed out, amazed by the experience. The girl pulled her arms back. "Alright, I admit it. This is pretty cool."
Hiccup and Toothless stayed silent. Astrid continued speaking. "It's... amazing." She whispered, staring up into the sky. "She's amazing."
Suddenly, she came to realization. "Oh, gods. Hiccup." She moaned in frustration. "What have you done to me?"
Hiccup was confused. "I didn't do anything."
"Hiccup, my final exam is tomorrow." Astrid pleaded. "You know I'm going to have to kill a dragon."
"You're the one that followed me into the cove." The boy muttered.
"Is this why you became a dragon?" The girl questioned. "Why you went missing all this time?"
"Kind of. We have our own reasons." Hiccup admitted. "We thought about leaving Berk at some point."
"What? No!" Astrid exclaimed, outraged by that implication. "Hiccup, you can't."
"Why not?" The boy questioned. He was surprised to hear her rejection. "Nobody wants me there. All I get is just endless torment with you stealing my things, taking credits whenever I did something right, and just... insist on hurting me!"
Astrid fell silent. Hiccup continued speaking. "Don't think I forget what you did two years ago." He accused the girl. "You and the others stole my gifts that was meant for the chief and heir."
"I didn't do that."
"Yes, you did."
"No, I didn't!" The girl exclaimed.
"Astrid, I was there. You were there." Hiccup spoke with deadpan expression. Did she think he was stupid?
"Well, you never shared anything with us." Astrid reasoned. She crossed her arms. "You should've, I don't know, make more so we can have some of them."
"Gaslighting." Toothless suddenly thought into his mind. "Be careful. It's a manipulation tactic."
Hiccup did not respond but heeded her warning. He focused on the girl sitting behind her. "All I want is just for you, Snotlout and others to leave me alone." He spoke to her. "Now, for several other reasons, I have to leave."
"What are the other reasons?" Astrid challenged. "You could've stayed and tell us about all you know. Like how you tamed your dragon."
Toothless snorted. "Does she think you tamed me?" She sounded incredulous.
"Don't start. I can already hear the sex joke."
"Touché." The dragoness grumbled.
Hiccup took a deep breath. He began explaining things to her. "What I am about to tell you should never be told to anyone else."
Astrid leaned closer. She wanted to hear more of this. The boy continued speaking. "The other reason why we want to leave is because of a large threat." He explained. "There's something behind Helheim's Gate. A massive dragon."
"A massive dragon?"
"It was as big as the Isle of Berk itself." Hiccup nodded. "It's an ancient Night Fury. They said they lived for over 700 years."
"700 years..." The petite girl breathed out, amazed. "It must be incredibly strong."
"Yes. That's why I have to leave Berk." The boy explained further. "I need to hunt them. There's a chance I won't make it out alive."
"At least tell me how you tamed the dragon." Astrid shrugged her shoulder. "You know, before you leave."
Hiccup glanced back at her. He could sense greed through her eyes. She wanted to take the credit of taming a dragon. 'Let's see if she would actually follow the instruction.'
"Everything we know about dragons are wrong." The boy explained to him. "You can be friends with them. One way to do this is showing them that you can be trusted."
"... how would someone do that?"
"Hold your palm forward and wait for the dragon to touch you." Hiccup gave her the instruction. "Don't force them. Don't carry any weapon, not even hidden. Show them that you really trust them, and they will trust you. The most important part is not to force them. Be patient."
"... that sounds easy enough." Astrid shrugged.
"Wait, Charcoal, that's not how you tame a dragon." Toothless pointed out. "That's how you make friend with one."
"I know. I wanted to see if she would actually do it." Hiccup admitted. "If she got herself hurt, that's on her."
The dragoness did not respond. She suddenly swerved to another direction. The boy was surprised. "Toothless, what is it?"
Suddenly, they appeared right in the middle of a dragon flock. Hiccup noticed that they were carrying food. The boy recognised them. Those were Furious' dragons. "Uh... Toothless?" Hiccup nervously thought into her mind. "What are you doing?"
There was no response. Hiccup realised that they were heading through the Helheim's Gate. Toothless began dodging rock obstacles as she manoeuvred around the fog. The boy hissed to the passenger behind him. "Get down."
Astrid was nervous. "What's going on?"
They went through Helheim's Gate and into the Dragon Island. Toothless entered through the volcano and landed at the rock balcony.
There was no dragon around them. Hiccup and Astrid watched as the dragons from before swooped in and dumped the food into the lava volcano below. The boy was confused. "What are they doing?"
"Maybe they're hauling their kill?" Astrid nervously asked.
The boy remained silent. He was deep in thought. The petite girl continued watching. "... they're not eating any of it." She realised.
"Toothless?" Hiccup called out as he entered her mind through their circuit connection. "Toothless, we need to get out of here."
The boy looked down. Her pupils were fully slitted. It meant that she was under mind control. Through circuit bond, Hiccup moved into her mind. Toothless' consciousness was off. He found Furious' presence there. "Furious!"
Furious did not respond. Hiccup focused his mind to kick him out, but the greater alpha dragon was too strong. While that was happening, Toothless jumped down into the volcano. She glid down at the balcony and landed in front of Furious' lair.
It was a massive, pitch-black cave entrance. Hiccup felt dread as he knew that Furious would be there to meet them. He felt Furious leaving her mind. Toothless regained her senses and consciousness. She shook her head, trying to make sense what just happened. "Wha..."
They heard something wet and fleshy moving in the darkness. Black tendrils slowly crawled out from the hole, before stopping just at the end of it. The mother dragon took a step back as she realised what just happened.
Her mind had been controlled.
Then, a dragon walked out from the darkness. Furious the Night Fury looked at the newcomers in front of his lair. They could see disappointment in his expression. The greater alpha dragon stared at Hiccup, who was terrified to see him.
Then, Furious began to speak in Norse. "I should've known." He sounded disappointed. "... I'm sorry. I hope you understand."
In a quarter of a second, Hiccup suddenly felt pain in his head. It disappeared as it come. Furious had pushed a false memory into his mind. "What-"
Suddenly, the tendrils suddenly shot forward to them. However, Toothless was faster. She leaped and flew out from the nest as fast as possible. The mother dragon kept flying up, until she reached the main chamber.
While flying out from the place, dragons around the balcony shot fires towards them. Toothless gracefully dodged the flames. She kept flying upward through the chamber, before finally reaching the open sky above.
Toothless kept flying; their lives depended on it. She even boosted her speed with jet pulse.
Thankfully, Furious' dragons did not fly to follow them. It meant that they were safe for now. They reached Helheim's Gate, before finally flying out from the fog, heading back to the Isle of Berk.
"No, it totally makes sense!"
Toothless landed at the cove. She was exhausted for flying consistently at her peak. The dragoness looked utterly terrified. Astrid jumped off from the dragoness. She continued speaking. "It's like a giant beehive. They're workers, and that's their queen. It controls them."
"That's..." Hiccup did not bother correcting her. He was mentally exhausted. He was rubbing his temple as he processed what Furious just did.
It was obvious in his mind that Furious had put a fake memory. However, given the content, that seemed to be intentional. The memory was just some sort of mental text. Furious was trying to communicate with him.
Astrid motioned to leave the cove. "We need to tell everyone. Let's find your dad."
That alarmed him. "Wait, Astrid!" Hiccup called out, stopping her. "No, no! Don't tell everyone! Not yet."
That made Astrid angry. "Why?!" She demanded. "Hiccup, we just discovered the dragons' nest. The thing we've been after since Vikings first sailed here!"
"Technically, our tribe is far older than that." Hiccup commented as he moved down from Toothless' back. "Astrid, we're not ready! This is much more complicated than you think!"
"And you want to keep it a secret?! Are you serious?!" Astrid exclaimed, angry at the boy. Suddenly, she paused, as if realising something. "You just want all the glory for yourself, didn't you?"
That confused Hiccup. "What?"
"Oh, I see how it is." Astrid crossed her arm. "You just want to deal with it yourself! You want to kill the dragon yourself, so you get all the- the glory and prestige when you killed that dragon. You just want everyone to praise you."
"Astrid, that's not what I'm saying!"
"Then tell the others about this!" The petite girl shouted. She scratched her head. "Gods. Hiccup, this is your chance! This is our chance! You'll get famous if you kill it! We'll stand behind you and help you! You don't have to run away if you kill it!"
"Astrid, you don't understand." Hiccup was frustrated. He gestured to everything around him. "All this- this is not about pride, or glory, or prestige. This is about survival! There's a lot of other important things involving the village and the dragon nest!"
"What's more important than the glory of killing that queen dragon?" Astrid crossed her arms.
Hiccup simply stared at her. The middle part of that phrase caught him off guard. "Glory?" He asked. "You think all this is for glory?"
"Of course! That's what Vikings are all about." Astrid patiently explained. "You wouldn't be Hiccup the Useless. It would change your life! You'll have everyone on your back. Isn't that what you want?"
It was then Hiccup realised how the girl thinks. Astrid was not a bully for the sake of seeing others suffer. She was a bully that took pleasure on others praising and validating her action.
She was a narcissist from the start.
The petite girl continued speaking, looking around the place. "You teach us how to tame dragons, and then we use them to kill that monster in the nest." She suggested. "What do you think?"
"... is that why you steal from me?" Hiccup asked, finally realising the significance of that statement. "Pride? Glory? Prestige?"
"Aren't you?" Astrid challenged.
Hiccup wanted to snap at her. "I spent all my life being thrown around like a yak and you're telling me it's all about glory?!" He snarled at her. "Astrid, you're crazy!"
"You're the one making those crazy contraptions." The petite girl accused him. "You're the crazy one!"
"I did it because I want to be noticed." Hiccup angrily admitted. "You never have my problem because you have friends and a complete family. I don't have anyone but my own father!"
"So? You don't have anything to lose."
"And why do you think that is?!" The boy finally snapped. "You spent the last 12 years to make sure I never have any friend. You turned the only people in my age group against me. You never even apologised!"
"Why should I apologise?" Astrid was outraged to hear that. "We've been fighting our lives since we were 8. It was your fault for being so different than everyone!"
Hiccup reminded himself that he still need the village. Astrid must live if he was to stay. "You are a coward to fight someone you know you can't fight back." He approached and glared down at her. "You and your lackeys are the biggest cowards I've ever seen so far."
"You're the coward that keeps running away from us." The petite girl seemed to smirk. "You could've fight back, but you didn't. You're always a weak, cowardly pushover."
The brawny boy finally snapped. He grabbed her throat with his right hand, and lifted her up to his eye level. Astrid was much shorter, meaning she was lifted about two feet off the ground.
Astrid was gasping for air. She grasped his hand to let go, but his grip was too strong. Hiccup slowly squeezed her throat. This made her desperate for release. She tried kicking, clawing and pushing, to no avail.
"Hiccup!"
Stoick and Gobber had entered the place. They were shocked to see Hiccup choking Astrid like that. The chief quickly moved to pull her away. "Let her go!"
Hiccup grabbed her lower neck with his other hand. "No." He hissed, before pulling her head from the throat. "I'm going to kill her."
Seeing no other choice, the chief tackled the large boy to the ground. Astrid slipped away from them. She coughed as she crawled away from the boy. After regaining some strength, the girl ran off to the cove exit.
Gobber saw this and cursed under his breath. "Thor's left balls." He ran to find the girl before she reached the village.
While that was happening, Hiccup had turned to fight his human father. The brawny boy threw powerful punches against the chief. Stoick put his arms together to block the strikes. Each blow shook the air around them. Hiccup was not holding back.
Stoick grunted as he endured the impact. He slid his leg to trip the boy, but Hiccup was faster. He used his leg momentum to trip the man. The chief fell to the ground. The boy took advantage and tried to pin him down.
At some point, Amber the Light Fury landed at the cove. There were six Night Fury hatchlings on her back. "I'm back." She called, before noticing everything about them. "What's going on?"
The father and son were wrestling on the ground. Toothless was having a headache; she was trying to clear her mind. The Light Fury focused on her best friend. "Toothless, are you okay?"
"Headache." The mother dragon grunted. "Furious. Mind control."
The Light Fury almost cursed. She quickly reached for the mother dragon, before pushing her to rest. "Lay down." She ordered. "I will check your mind."
Stoick and Hiccup were rolling on the ground. They pushed their strength to overpower the other. Eventually, the boy came out victorious. He stopped the roll and pushed his father's arms open.
Blue ironwire sprung from the ground, wrapped itself around the man, and pulled. Stoick grunted as his arms were forced wide open. He was eventually pinned in supine position. Hiccup was sitting above him.
The father and son finally stared at each other. Stoick struggled against the wires, while Hiccup looked disappointed. The boy had finally calmed down. "Ever since I was little, whenever I come crying to you, you told me to man up and deal with it."
Stoick finally stopped struggling. He stared at the boy above him. Hiccup continued speaking. "But when I try to deal with it, you come to stop me from doing it."
"You can't kill anyone in this island." The father finally spoke up. "It's the law of the village."
"It may be the law, but it's not the justice I deserve." Hiccup moved away from him. He stood from the ground, before ending the spell. "Her group tried to sabotage my draconic cannon. You saw how powerful it is against deviants. Had they succeed, you wouldn't be here."
"It was a deviant incursion." Stoick got up from the ground as well. "They said they were there for weapons."
Hiccup shook his head. "It doesn't matter now." He decided, before telling what happened. "Furious took control of Toothless and brought us to his lair. He put something in my mind before letting us go."
The chief was catching his breath. "What did he do?"
The boy thought of the fake memory. "He apologised that things had come to this." He explained. "He took responsibility of what I did; two weeks ago, he accidentally showed me a memory that led me to make that decision to try and kill you."
Stoick took a deep breath, before finally calmed down. "Was did he say?"
"He gave me a choice. You or him." The boy answered. "If I return to him, he promised not to erase my memory. He promised to let me and my family fly out from the region."
Stoick raised his brows. "You believed him?"
"What do you think?" Hiccup sounded sarcastic, before turning to move to the two dragoness.
The chief moved to stop him, but he faltered when he remembered what Hiccup said. Deciding it was not worth the trouble, the man turned around and left the cove.
He had a war to plan.
The boy went to check on Toothless. The mother dragon was laying on the ground, with the hatchlings curled up under her wings. Amber was also there, tending to her needs. Toothless looked in pain.
The boy moved to pat her head. "Hey..." He whispered. "How do you feel?"
"Headache." Toothless mumbled, staring up at him. "I don't know how it happened. It was so sudden, I thought... I thought I passed out."
Amber was the one to answer. "You watched Charcoal's memories. You saw Furious' true form." The white dragon explained. "That's how he entered your mind."
"He breached my mind and put a fake memory into me." Hiccup described his situation. "I don't feel as affected as her."
"It's probably not as severe for you." The Light Fury responded. "We need to cleanse every mind that saw them. Who else was there?"
"There was Astrid Hofferson." Hiccup answered. "But she's a human."
The Light Fury was incredulous. "I don't know where to start diagnosing humans!" She exclaimed. "What was she doing there?"
"I don't know." The boy was frustrated. "She just followed me."
"No. Leave her alone." Toothless glared at her mate. "That's her problem to deal with."
"Toothless-"
"Charcoal. No." The mother dragon interrupted. She carefully moved and sat on her hindlegs. "Amber got paid because we're veterans. She won't get paid for treating Astrid, because that human is a nobody. I'm not spending any crystals, especially for her."
Hiccup did not want to pay for anything either, but there was a risk of Furious spying through her mind. He looked at Amber. "What's the risk of leaving her untreated?"
"I don't know. I've never treated humans before." Amber shrugged her wings. She looked apologetic. "They are known to be highly resilient against mind affecting techniques. Seeing parts of his true form is probably okay for her."
"... she's probably fine then."
"Probably. But like Toothless said, I'm not getting paid treating a human." The Light Fury gave her explanation. "Why don't you turn back into dragon so I can treat you?"
Hiccup exhaled his breath. He hoped their decision to ignore them did not backfire. "Alright. Give me a minute."
Stoick was heading back to the village when he found Gobber and Astrid walking the other way. It was in the middle of a forest path. "What is it?"
"She wanted to tell ye about the dragon behind the Helheim's Gate." Gobber explained. "She also saw Toothless as a dragon."
"We're still getting ready to fight the dragon behind Helheim's Gate. The village knew what they need to know." The chief responded. He looked at the girl, before speaking. "Don't tell anyone about this. Hiccup's business is his and his alone."
Astrid wanted to argue. "But-"
"That is an order." Stoick hardened his expression.
The petite girl gaped for a bit. Finally, she slumped her shoulders in defeat, before turning around to leave the place. The two Vikings watched as she walked down the forest path.
After she was far enough, Stoick turned to face his best friend. "Furious brought him there to send a message." He began. "He wants Hiccup to choose."
Gobber could guess that the options were. "He's not going to pick him, Stoick."
"We don't know what he'll do." The chief admitted, before slowly walked down the forest path. The blacksmith moved to follow. "Hiccup lived half his life as a dragon. We barely knew the whole story."
"Eh..." The blacksmith shrugged. "Given what they're planning, I reckon they don't like him very much. Ye don't just leave yer father when things went bad."
Stoick mulled that sentence. He was still concerned about what Hiccup would do. The choice was the true test to see if he was a good father.
Stoick knew he was not a very good one.
However, something Hiccup said before made him pause. He said that, initially, he wanted to stay and protect him until Northern Alliance had been eradicated. Given that they seemed to be desperate, it was possible that their days were numbered.
He realised Hiccup never had intention to stay for long.
Gobber noticed his best friend stopping. He stopped and turned around. "Stoick, ye okay?"
"He's not planning to choose." Stoick realised, staring at the blacksmith. "He doesn't like either of us, but he still care."
The blacksmith raised his brows. "Eh?"
The chief hardened his expression. There was that feeling of guilt in his heart; his best was not enough for his son. Despite doing everything he could, he had no idea how to mend the relationship.
"I'm off to bring Alex back." Stoick decided, before continuing his walk. "He'll know how to deal with all this."
Gobber stared as his best friend walked away. Something at the cove had emotionally shook him. Feeling sympathy, the blacksmith followed in silence.
One of the great things about living in Barbaric Archipelago was how fast Vikings could build a house. Within two weeks after deviant incursion, the village had been cleaned up, and most structures were already rebuilt.
The skills were there because dragon attack tend to burn down buildings. Since it often winters for nine months and hails the other three, Vikings had to build their houses to avoid freezing to death. Everyone had to work together if they were to survive.
That was not to say Vikings avoid innovation in constructions. In fact, building new houses allowed them to make new arrangements for their interior. The latest housing trend at Berk was wooden tile patterns. The square bracket pattern was the most popular one this season.
The largest reconstruction was the smeltery. Since there was a high demand for iron goods, such as cannon, they tried something different. Instead of the usual wooden forge workshop, they opted to make a large smeltery facing the plaza.
The new smeltery was made of concrete reinforced with iron frame. It was three-floor high and about quarter-acre in size. The flat dome rooftop had many exhausts on the side, implying large furnaces burning inside.
There was a large stone double doors at the front, which could fit a longship without its sail. The left and right side had doors, in case the large one was fully occupied. Additionally, there were some stone doors at the back as well.
It was one of the largest structure in the village.
Of course, the construction was not easy. They had to import plenty of things from the mainland. The cement recipe was imported from England; machinery ideas from France and German states; and many others from different parts of Europe.
The only thing Berkians innovate was the iron frame to reinforce the concrete. It was intended to prevent dragons from collapsing the roofs and walls when crashing onto them. That was the main threat of the building, since concretes were already fire resistant.
Given the complexity, it was a miracle that the smeltery was finished within a week.
Since Gobber was just one man, considering the size of the smeltery, he had to bring some Vikings to help. They had to learn how to use the smeltery. The new machines definitely helped in easing all sorts of process. The blacksmith just had to be the foreman to coordinate them.
However, constructing the smeltery was definitely worth the effort. It allowed them to use more effective methods of steelmaking. They could pump out steel products, such as nails and cannons, at higher quantity and quality than before.
That was the sight Toothless and Hiccup saw when they arrive at the smeltery.
The two dragons in human form were standing in front of the large stone doors. There were Vikings busy moving cannons and steel frames out from the smeltery. They were heading to the docks, where they would be assembled with wood to create new warships.
After the doorway was clear enough, Hiccup and Toothless moved to enter the building.
The main room of the smeltery was spacious. At the far corner was a large concrete foundry smelter, which was connected to a large casting basin next to it. The smelter had stairs and balconies, allowing access to the molten iron inside.
Other than that, there were all sorts of things around the place. From anvils and grinders to small smelters and casts; there was no shortage of equipment. There were some new equipment, such as pedal lathe and drill.
The smeltery had other sections divided by stone were two large double doors at the left and right side from the main room. They were both open; Vikings were moving things in an out through them. Hiccup led the dragoness in human form to the left doors.
It was the dragonsmith section.
Since they were not making actual draconic weapons there, most of the equipment was similar to the other room. There were smelters, casts, anvils and some others, such as pedal drill. There was a large stack of wyrmsteel ingot around the corner.
What set the room apart was the large molten metal reservoir at the centre of the room. It was where they melt broken equipment from the bunker. It took a long time for them to melt, because its melting point was much higher than iron.
They had to use draconic buckets to scoop them out.
There were wooden doors leading somewhere, as well as a stone double door leading outside. The stone doors were open, but barely any Vikings were around. Almost everyone was busy building warships at the dock.
Another notable thing in the room was a small pile of green crystals in a wooden cart at the corner. Those were Nature Shards; they were used to make semi-draconic equipment. Without them, the equipment would be nothing more than its lighter counterpart.
"Morning, Hiccup."
The boy looked at the entrance double door. Gobber the Belch was standing there, observing Vikings moving crate out from the place. "Good morning, Gobber."
"I moved yer cannon to your room." The blacksmith informed, gesturing at a wooden double door. "I saw some folks want'd to play with 'em. I reckon it's safer there than here."
Hiccup thought that must be Snotlout and his lackeys. "Thanks, Gobber."
Gobber waved him off, before focusing back on the crates needed to be moved. The two dragons in human form moved to enter the next room. They closed the door behind them.
Hiccup's room was a large place. It was where his dragonsmithing equipment was stored. There were all sorts of things, including a strange-looking furnace and other draconic contraptions.
Notably, there was a small library corner at the far end. There were shelves filled with all sorts of books; chairs and large table where Hiccup could do his work. It was currently messy with drawing papers.
The certain draconic cannon was there. Hiccup noted that it was mounted on a wooden cart, which was typical for catapults. It must be how Gobber moved them with the Vikings. "At least they didn't tamper with it."
Toothless was looking around the place. "From your memory, I thought your place would be smaller." She commented. "This place doesn't even have a window."
"I'm not the one who made this place." Hiccup remarked. Checking the cannon, he grabbed the lever and pulled them back, opening the breech. It was empty. "Gobber told me it's where they decided to keep my stuff, in case I actually died."
"They made a whole room just for you?" The mother dragon in human form was surprised.
"They made a whole room for a dragonsmith." The boy emphasised. "That's me, for now. If I ever pass my knowledge to anyone else, this is the room they'll inherit."
"Oh." Toothless was disappointed. She moved to check the draconic cannon. "Is this the cannon you used to kill that deviant?"
"Yup. This is the one." Hiccup nodded as he pat the barrel. "It destroyed everything 50 meters around it too."
The girl was curious. She could sense something within. "This cannon feels alive." Toothless muttered. She pressed her palm on the breech and cast Identify. Her eyes widened when it pinged back. "It is alive. It has its own mana circuit."
"All draconic weapons have mana circuit." The boy pointed out.
"But not like these." Toothless looked deep in thought. "I think it's sentient in some way."
"Well... my sword is sentient." Hiccup shrugged. "I assume that's normal for draconic equipment."
The girl was doubtful. "I guess." She decided, before turning to face her mate. "What are you going to do next?"
"I'm thinking about redesigning the cannon to fire something else." The boy explained the plan. "I couldn't make a projectile that won't shatter inside the barrel. After the deviant incursion, I realised the cannon is powerful enough to simulate dragon fire."
"What kind of dragon fire?"
"I'm thinking about our plasma blast." Hiccup elaborated. "The point of Alatreon horn inside was to create gas inside the breech. I can alter that to fire plasma blast instead; the barrel can double as accelerator."
Toothless was concerned to hear that. "You know this is already enough to destroy an island, right?"
"Considering what we're fighting, I'm not taking any chances." The boy answered the question. He moved to sit at a chair on the library corner. "It's better to overestimate than underestimate."
Knock! Knock!
Someone was knocking on the door. A moment later, it was opened. Gobber entered the place. "Hiccup." He started. "Someone's ordering more wyrmsteel swords and axes. We need ye working on the crystals."
Hiccup was incredulous. "Didn't we just finished a batch yesterday?"
"Aye. That's not enough."
"I'll check back in an hour." The boy eventually decided. He was rubbing his temple, trying to relax. "I'm still working on the draconic cannon."
Gobber closed the door behind him. He approached the draconic cannon. "What's wrong with it?"
"I'm trying to find the right balance between effective and dangerous. It needs to be effective against Furious." Hiccup pondered. "I know what he can do, but I feel like he's much stronger than that."
"It worked against Ascal, innit?"
"Yes, along with everything 50 metres around the cannon." The boy explained the problem. "It needs to be effective, but it also needs to be safe to shoot."
The blacksmith stroked his beard. "That is a big problem." He commented, staring at the breech. "Ye can't put that on a ship if it'll break the whole thing."
Hiccup did not answer. They fell silent. Gobber was inspecting the breech; Toothless had moved on to check the books; and the boy was pinching his bridge nose. Hiccup was trying to find the right balance between safety and lethality.
However, regardless of preparation, he knew they would never be ready.
They were not prepared to fight against an ancient Night Fury, especially one that ruled over hundreds of thousands of dragons. Not to mention the eldritch abilities. Hiccup knew what Furious was capable of.
Even with their equipment, they had no chance to defeat him.
"I have an idea." Hiccup spoke up, getting their attention. "I'll put something to control the lethality. The less lethal the projectile, the faster it goes."
Gobber was confused. "Why would ye want them less lethal?" He questioned. "We're used with catapults. Slower isn't a problem."
"Furious knows Psychic-Force. He can move physical things with his mind." The boy explained, before making demonstration. He used telekinesis to lift the draconic cannon one metre off the ground. After getting the reaction, Hiccup lowered it back. "He taught me how to do it."
"Well, that's gonna be a problem for the ships." The blacksmith stroked his beard. He was deep in thought. "But I can't see why the projectile should be slower."
"Let's do another demonstration." Hiccup stood from the chair. He moved couple metres away from him. "Throw me that book, will you?"
Gobber grabbed a book from the table. He tossed the book to the boy. Hiccup used telekinesis to move the book around him, before tossing it back to the blacksmith. Gobber fumbled as he grabbed the book from the air.
The blacksmith paused as he processed what happened. He did not see him touch the book at all. "... wait." Gobber realised the problem. "Furious can do that?"
"He can do that many times stronger and faster than me." Hiccup explained. He moved and sat back at the table. "It really depends on how fast he can react, and how fast the projectile is going. The faster it move, the harder for him to redirect them."
Toothless sat at the opposite side. "We need to find the right spot between speed and lethality."
"I can add a dial to make that adjustable, but it can throw off your aim if you're not careful." The boy pondered the solution. "... it should depend on the range. The most ideal spot is the range from shore and mountains in Dragon Island. That's approximately 3 kilometres."
Gobber leaned on the draconic cannon. "Is that enough to kill him?"
"It's probably enough to knock him off, but not outright kill him." Hiccup answered as he mentally calculated the damage. "It's more reliable as a support. We need someone that can actually fight him."
They fell silent once more. Gobber moved and sat near the cannon. The two dragons in human form and the blacksmith pondered for ways to deal with the dragon.
It would not be easy to fight a dragon so incredibly powerful.
Hiccup exhaled his breath. "Gobber." He started, getting his attention. "What do you think about Furious?"
"He's a threat we've never seen before." Gobber gave his answer. He glanced at the boy. "After what happened, I ove' heard Spitelout considering him a god."
'Skies above...' Hiccup thought, exasperated. He could see why Spitelout thought of that. "At that point, what is a god, but the most powerful being in the world?"
"My dad is the arch alpha." Toothless pointed out. "He sank a small continent in northern Greater Archipelago and turned Buffalord species docile in one day, 13 years ago."
Gobber stared with wide-eyed expression. "He what?"
Hiccup ignored him. "But he's not here." The boy pointed out. "Unless you want to involve him, we're the ones who have to fight Furious."
The dragoness in human form looked uncomfortable. The boy shook his head. "I don't even want to fight him." Hiccup confessed. "I don't want to risk my life over a lie made with..."
The boy made some gestures, trying to find the word. "... it doesn't matter." He decided. Hiccup leaned back and stared up the ceiling. "We just need to distract Furious long enough for us to flee."
Knock! Knock!
"Gobber, you in there?" Someone called out from the wooden double door. "The Meatheads are looking for you!"
"That's my cue." The blacksmith stood from the chair. He rushed to leave the room. Gobber opened the door, pushed the Vikings back, before closing them behind him.
After some time, Toothless continued the conversation. "Furious will chase us to Europe."
"No. We're going through Greater Archipelago." Hiccup made the decision. "I'll negotiate something with Merciless through Gryphon. Best case scenario, he'll let you and the hatchlings through to Hidden World."
Toothless softened her expression. "What about you?"
"... I'll probably work for him until Northern Alliance is gone." The boy answered, resigned to his fate. "Hopefully, he'll let me see you. I'm fast enough to fly in and out of Hidden World, so commute shouldn't be a problem."
The dragoness in human form thought that was unacceptable. She hardened her expression. "No."