"Faster, girl!" You cheered as Nightshade happily ran through the forest. Your morning run was one of the best parts of the day. You held on as she jumped a crevasse and you laughed as it quickly disappeared behind you.
Soon, she propelled herself forward as you both jumped over the cliff. She dove down toward the water and the wind whipped past both of you. She opened her wings at the last second and you cheered again. You hand brushed the water before she threw herself into some sharp turns, following the path of the canyon.
You both landed on a small beach beside the river soon enough and she laid down, tucking her legs in and nuzzling you while making a happy churring sound. You smiled at her, petting the top of her head. "We should go on runs like that more often." You chuckled. She nodded in agreement.
After a few moments of peace, you heard a loud sound coming from the beach nearby. You looked at Nightshade and she understood. You mounted her and you both went to see what had made the noise. You landed on the cliff above the beach. You saw ships there with weird markings on the sails.
"I've never seen those colors before. But I have seen that insignia. It was on the Reaper." Nightshade growled as you both thought the same thing. "Dragon Hunters. Come on, let's get closer and see what we can find out." Nightshade stealthily climbed down the cliff and you both ducked behind two big rocks. One of the dragons let out and angered roar.
"Quiet down, ya useless lizard!" One of the men shouted, banging on the cage. Nightshade growled.
"I know, girl. It's not right." He laughed as he taunted the dragon before another man shoved him against the cage.
"Just load'em up!"
"Yes, Ryker. Sorry, Ryker." He apologized. Ryker grinned at the dragon.
"Look at him. Powerful. Perfect. Remember, they're smarter than you." The Nightmare launched at them, but 'Ryker' pulled the man back and the Nightmare only got a bite of the cage. "But not me." He chuckled. Then, he started sniffing. You and Nightshade got back. You held your breath, hoping they wouldn't find you.
"And grab that Armor Blade!"
"Nightshade!" You exclaimed. She took off and roared at the men that were now below you. "No! Back to the Edge, girl!"
"Archers! Loose!" Ryker order. Nightshade dodged them, but there were so many. You were too busy dodging to go anywhere. Nightshade got fed up and blasted them with her fire. A long streak of it went across the beach. Suddenly an arrow hit her neck. She roared and you shrieked as she started flapping desperately as if she had no control over herself. You fell off into the water. You looked around before racing to the surface. Luckily, there was some wood there you could hold on to. You saw her get dragged onto the ship in a net. You gasped.
"Nightshade!!" The ship left and you felt worry overtake you. "Don't worry, I'll get you back." You promised. You looked around, now seeing that you were in open water. "Once I find a way to get back..."
Hiccup's POV
*At sunset*
"Still no sign of 'em?" I turned as I heard Fishlegs. Toothless was beside me and my concerns were growing by the minute. "They're probably out exploring and lost track of time."
"She's never been gone all day like this. Not without telling someone." I replied.
"You remember when everyone thought she was missing because she'd been in her room all day doing artwork?"
"Yeah."
"Or the time she and Nightshade went for a midnight run and scared silent Sven in the woods?"
"Yes, Fishlegs."
"You know, I don't think he recovered from that. And there was that time-"
"Thank you, Fishlegs, for trying to make me feel better but this is different. There is something wrong, I can feel it," I explained.
"You know if anyone is equipped to survive out there, it is (Y/n). Well, (Y/n) or Arrow, I suppose." I nodded.
"No, you're right Fishlegs. But we're gonna find her anyway." I insisted. "Come on, let's get the others." He nodded and I went to get the twins while he got Snotlout. We all headed out as a storm began to roll in. Now, I was even more determined to find her. "We'll all go in different directions. I'll head south." I said.
"No, I should head south!" Snotlout protested.
"And why is that?" I asked.
"Because (Y/n) likes to fly south and she'll be expecting me to rescue her." I wasn't going to put up with this right now.
"Like I said, I'll go south."
"Rain, wind, all of us splitting up? Sounds like the perfect opportunity, for a rogue sea beast, to leap from the depths of the ocean, and pick us off one...by...one." Tuff said. I ignored him.
"Alright gang, let's go find her." Everyone but Snotlout flew off.
"She's gonna be so sad when you rescue her instead of me."
"Oh, don't worry I'll tell her it was all you," I said sarcastically. After a moment, he asked,
"You'd do that for me?"
"No, of course I wouldn't," I told him and headed out. Toothless and I scanned the water for her. Lightning flashed and Toothless roared, pulling back to avoid it. "Easy, bud. I know, but we've gotta find (Y/n) and make sure she's safe." I told him. We kept going.
After a while, I was getting slightly frustrated, my worry making it harder to stay calm. "Still nothing. She's got to be somewhere." I refused to give up.
Soon, I spotted a log floating adrift in the waves. I was about to pass over it, but I saw a pair of hands poking out of the water, scrambling to get a grip on it. I gasped. I didn't have time to think. I jumped off of Toothless and dove into the water. I swam deeper and I saw her ahead of me. I grabbed her and pulled her back to the surface. Toothless grabbed us and I got back into the saddle. My heart was racing. "(Y/n)! (Y/n)!!" Nothing. "(Y/N)!!" Her eyes opened slightly. She smiled a little once she saw it was me.
"You always have to make an entrance..." I hugged her.
"Oh, thank Thor." I held her close as we headed back.
Your POV
"Nightshade!" You woke up in a panic. You were surprised to see everyone around you.
"Hey! It's okay, it's okay, just try to relax, (Y/n). You had a tough night." Hiccup hushed you.
"No, Hiccup, you don't understand. They were all trapped in cages and they took Nightshade!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, wait slow down...cages? What are you talking about? What happened out there?" You remembered what happened and looked at him.
"Dragon Hunters." They all looked shocked at this.
"Dragon Hunters?" Hiccup asked.
"A whole fleet of them."
"And they have Nightshade?"
"Yeah, this big, ugly one was leading them." You growled at the thought of him. "I'll throw him in a cage."
"And welcome back," Fishlegs said.
"We have to go! We're wasting time here!" You exclaimed, but then you realized you didn't have a dragon to ride. Hiccup seemed to read your mind.
"You can ride with me." You smiled at him and followed him out. You all made it back to the beach and began to search.
"There have to be some clues here or somewhere, something." You said.
"How many cages were there?" Hiccup asked.
"Remember all the cages we saw on Reaper?"
"Yeah?"
"Double it." You told him. He frowned, but you all kept looking.
"We got nothing," Tuff called.
"Just a bunch of trash, look like these Dragon Hunters were also litterbugs," Ruff added.
"Yeah there should be some kind of penalty or fine for littering, I mean, am I wrong people? What if everyone were this careless and inconsiderate? What then? Huh! Where would we be then?" He said, starting to cry. You ignored him.
"I knew coming here was a bad idea. What do want to find anyway?" Snotlout asked.
"Anything that can help us." He suddenly screamed and fell over.
"Something bit me! I'm allergic to sand crabs, they make my toes fan out! Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" You groaned and walked over to see what he stepped on. "Whoa, oh look at you, rushed right over to help me, didn't you? You know what that means, (Y/n)." He screamed as you pulled the arrow tip out of his foot.
"Yeah, that you stepped on exactly what we needed. It's a Dragon Hunter arrow tip."
"Or...that." He said, somewhat disappointed.
"Nightshade was hit by one of these before she was caught, I've never seen her act so out of control. Plus she's always been immune to poison and venom." Fishlegs looked at it.
"Interesting..." He sniffed it, "...unexpected..." and then he tasted it. "...mmhm...tangy."
"Mind cluing us in on what tangy and unexpected mean?" Hiccup asked, not bothering to question his methods.
"I'm guessing it's refined dragon root, I've heard that in high concentrations, it can overwhelm a dragon's senses completely, making it almost impossible for them to fly."
"That's exactly what happened to Nightshade."
"That's why it affected her. It's not poisonous, it just has a negative effect on dragons." Hiccup exclaimed.
"Think of it, just one quiver of these arrows could decimate an entire flock of dragons," Fishlegs said.
"How are we gonna find her? We have no idea where they're going." You said.
"Maybe not, but we do know where they've been." Hiccup concluded. With that, you all headed out to scour the Reaper for more clues.
"Alright, look for anything that might help us track down the dragon hunters. Maps, coordinates, hidden compartments." Fishlegs listed. You and Hiccup went below deck to look around while the others stayed on top. You searched around, but it wasn't looking promising. You frowned and sighed. Then, anger burned through your body.
"There's nothing here!" You shouted.
"Just keep looking. We'll find something." Hiccup assured.
"What if we don't? What if we can't track them down? Hiccup, I'm-"
"I know. I know. But we have to stay positive."
"I'm trying. But you didn't see Ryker. He actually enjoys hunting and caging dragons. And he has mine!" You growled and threw both of your weapons into a shield. Your anger faded as you just felt lost. Hiccup noticed this. He walked over and pulled you in, gently guiding you to look at him.
"We're gonna find her, (Y/n), and the other dragons too. I promise." He told you.
"Hiccup, I don't know what I would do without Nightshade. She needs me and I need her." He nodded and hugged you.
"I know." You both stayed like that for a moment before he pulled back and looked you in the eye again. "But don't worry. We'll get her back. Now let's go see if the other guys found anything." You smiled a bit and nodded. You grabbed your weapons, but as you did, something fell out of the shield. You picked it up, stunned.
"Hiccup..." He looked at it.
"Dragon Eye lens."
"Let's get the others."
"Agreed." You both got the others and tried out the lens. None of your dragons were able to make it work. "Well, none of our dragons work with this new lens."
"If we can't figure out what kind of dragon we need-" Arrow began.
"I know. I'm thinking." Hiccup said. Tuff looked at the shield.
"Hmm....yep. It's either the inside of a yak or a Changewing in a cage." You and Hiccup looked at the shield. Hiccup smiled.
"Tuff! You're a genius!"
"I'm actually a geologenius. That's a geologist who's also a genius."
"It's also not a word, but I'll let it slide since you just found a clue." You said.
"Looks like we're going to Changewing Island!" Hiccup said. You all left once again and hurried to Changewing Island. Once you arrived, you slide off of Toothless and gave him a thankful pet. He purred at you and you smiled at the black dragon.
"Changewing Island. Ah, such a peaceful place. Except for all the Changewings, of course." Fishlegs said.
"Okay, guys, we need some glowing Changewing acid to shine through the Dragon Eye so we can see what's on this lens." Hiccup explained.
"Let me guess. That means we have to somehow find a Changewing, an ambush predator that can blend in perfectly with its environment, and milk its acid before it rips us to shreds? Great idea, Hiccup." Snotlout commented.
"Oh contraire, mon ami. In order to find a Changewing, you must become a Changewing!" Tuff said jumping behind a bush with weird paint on to help him blend in. Then, he jumped off a cliff on accident and yelped. "Thorns! Brambles! Blackberries!" You flinched as he fell.
"Such stealth," Arrow commented.
"They'll never see me coming!" He called. You sighed.
"Let's just hunker down and get to waiting. We can't waste time." You said.
"(Y/n)'s right. Everyone, find a position and no matter what don't give away your location. We've got to remain in stealth, or we'll never get this acid." They nodded and you all hunkered down by the river, waiting for a Changewing to come. After an hour of waiting, you started becoming exasperated.
"Hiccup, this is taking too long."
"Changewings can be a bit skittish. We just gotta be patient."
"How do we know a Changewing isn't standing right there? Or there? They're invisible, remember? Oh, and did I mention, this is a terrible idea?!" Snotlout grumbled. Hookfang suddenly lit a bush on fire, but they were able to put it out. "Hookfang!" He growled.
"I'm bored. Why are we just staring at the water?" Ruff asked.
"All animals need to drink, therefore all animals will visit the watering hole," Fishlegs explained.
"Great. Now I'm bored and thirsty."
"Shh! Look." Hiccup said. You spotted one as it cautiously made its way to the water and began to drink. "Come on." You all carefully got closer, but then Tuff jumped out of nowhere.
"Hey! You guys have any luck?" He said loudly. The Changewing looked back, now alerted of you.
"Ugh! Tuffnut! We were just about to-" Arrow began, but the Changewing had a rope around its neck, holding it down.
"Oh, look at that." Hiccup said.
"Like I said, see the Changewing. Be the Changewing." It growled and attacked you all, some of it got on Snotlout's helmet. He screamed, but it was exactly what you needed. Later, you shined it through the Dragon Eye.
"Would you just hold still, Snotlout?" Hiccup told him.
"Easy for you to say! You don't have Changewing acid burning through your skull!"
"If we take off the helmet, we'll spill the acid. Now hold still." You insisted.
"This doesn't help. We've seen this map before." Fishlegs explained.
"It must be a hunter port. And it's the closest to the beach where Nightshade was captured. Odds are, that's where they're headed. After that, who knows where?" Hiccup added.
"Then we have to hurry!" You said.
"Yes, please. Let's hurry!" Snotlout grumbled throwing the helmet.
"Uh, but how are we going to avoid getting shot with those dragon root arrows?" Fishlegs asked.
"Funny you should ask, Fishlegs. For my plan to work, someone's gonna have to get shot." Hiccup said. He didn't look happy about that answer.
"Yeah! Looks like we're up!" Tuff cheered.
"Cool!" Ruff agreed, giving him a high five.
"Actually, Fishlegs is up." Hiccup said.
"What!?" All three of them exclaimed.
"Gronkles are immune to Dragon Root, aren't they?" You asked. Fishlegs nodded. He sighed.
"Alright, we'll do it! After all, it is to save one of our dragons."
"Thanks, Fishlegs." You told him.
"Alright, Gang! Let's mount up!" You and Hiccup got onto Toothless and led the way toward where the ship was headed. Soon enough, you saw it up ahead in the distance. You all rushed over to it. You glared at Ryker as you circled the ship. You all dodged the arrows as he fired at you. One of them almost hit Toothless.
"You sure your plan's gonna work? That was pretty close." You asked Hiccup.
"Fishlegs! You're up!" He called. Fishlegs nodded and they went in. They got hit with an arrow, but that was exactly what you needed. They went below deck and you all tried to stay away from the arrows as they kept firing. Most of them were directed at you and Hiccup. They want Toothless. It was fairly obvious.
"FIRE!" You gasped.
"Hiccup!" He saw them.
"Hang on!" You tried to hang on, but one of the arrows grazed your arm. You shrieked and pulled back. As you let go, you were flung off. "(Y/N)!" They dove after you. He reached out and you tried to grab his hang. You yelped as a chain suddenly curled around your waist. "No!!"
You were dragged onto the ship. Your blood boiled with anger. Your weapons were out in seconds and they all looked surprised at what they were. Still, you didn't care at the moment. You fought and you fought hard. Soon enough, some of them were scared to come close. One of them fired an arrow at you and the others followed his idea. You dodged them with ease, twisting in the air as you jumped. You sliced the final arrow in half. Now all of them looked nervous. All except for Ryker.
Soon enough, Fishlegs came out with Nightshade right behind him and Meatlug. You smiled. Yes! You hurried over to her and she purred at you happily. They others came closer, but more arrows fired and the twins and Arrow were suddenly hit. Two men rushed at you and you didn't have time to react. The plan had failed. Hookfang was hit and Hiccup went to help him. Soon enough, the two of them retreated. You knew they'd be back. You just hoped they'd be back in time.
You and the others were thrown into a cell together as the dragons were all locked up. You suddenly spotted somebody you hadn't expected to see. It was Heather! Arrow tried to warn her to run, but then, Dagur came out and she smirked at you all.
"Surprise! Did ya miss me? Of course you did! Oh! Do you know my sister? Wait a minute, sure you do! You guys were little pals and buddy buddies." He mocked.
"Hey, family is family," Heather added.
"I can't believe this, Heather," Arrow said.
"I know it's not Dragon's Edge, but it'll have to do. Enjoy your new home, Arrow. You're gonna be here a while." You gave her a cold and deadly look.
"You know us, Heather. We won't be here long. And when I get out, I'm going to get the blood you owe my family." You warned. She looked confused.
"Blood?"
"Ask him." You growled, glaring death itself at Dagur. He rolled his eyes.
"Oh, get over it." You wanted to kill him right there, but you restrained yourself, going silent and going numb. They left and you rested on the floor in the corner. Everybody knew that you didn't want to be talked to. You need to think. You needed to be alone.
"Dagur is here and Heather is with him? I don't believe it." Fishlegs said.
"Trusting her turned out to be a big mistake." Arrow agreed.
"Yeah, who puts loyalty to their brother ahead of loyalty to their friends?" Ruff asked.
"I heard that, sister!" Tuff snapped.
"The bigger question is who are these Dragon Hunters and what do they want with us?" Arrow asked.
"You're about to find out." And Heather was back. One of Ryker's men opened the door.
"Ryker wants to have a little chat with you." She said, shoving Arrow out of the cell. They left and you stayed in your corner. You thought about Hiccup. You hoped he was okay. You wished he was there to help you. Still, all you could do now was wait.
Hiccup's POV
*In the morning the next day*
I'd stayed up all night trying to figure out where the hunters would be. Everyone except Snotlout and I had been taken. I felt my gut twist as I thought of (Y/n). Why couldn't I have been faster? Why hadn't I guessed that they would've known about Meatlug's immunity? No, get a grip, Hiccup. You can't focus on that now. You've got to think of something to get them out of there...and fast. Toothless woke up next to me. I smiled a little.
"Morning, bud." I turned to Snotlout. "Hey, Snotlout, you up?"
"Yes. Somebody snores." Hookfang tried to breathe fire on him. "Hookfang!" Toothless came back with three fish. "Great. I am starving. We'll cook these up and-" Hookfang snatched one. "Okay. Okay, all right." He grabbed another one. "Okay. No. Stop it." And he grabbed the last one. "Hey! Hey! Gimme that!"
"Looks like somebody's feeling better," I commented before looking at my map again.
"Stop that! Stop!" Snotlout paused. "What are you doing?"
"Trying to figure out where the Dragon Hunters are headed."
"That's a bad idea. Even if we find them, they have those one shot and you drop poison arrows. What do we do then?"
"Well, I...have no idea." I couldn't think of anything.
"I gotta be honest. That's...not the answer I was hoping for." Hookfang smacked him with the fish. "Hookfang! Okay, we always knew this could happen. The day has come. Hiccup's gone dry. It's up to Snotfang to come up with a plan. Just squeeze some brilliance out of this thick beautiful skull." I ignored him as I got an idea.
"I've got it!"
"I would've come up with something. I was so close."
"Come on, Snotlout, we've got some hard riding to do," I told him and off we went. I thought of (Y/n) again. I'll get you back. I promise.
After we'd been flying for a while, Snotlout started getting impatient.
"Is that the island we're going to?"
"No."
"How about that one?"
"Also no."
"That one?"
"For the last time- Oh, yeah, that's exactly the one. My bad." We landed and I looked around. He hadn't shown himself yet.
"Hiccup, I recognize these holes. Why didn't you tell me we were going to an island full of Whispering Deaths?"
"Because I knew you would react exactly like this. Besides, this isn't an island full of Whispering Deaths. Somebody else lives here, too." As if on cue, the Screaming Death come out and roared at us.
"Oh, the Screaming Death? Why don't we wave him over and have him kill us?"
"Would you just relax? When he gets closer, he'll recognize us and calm down...I hope."
"Come on out to Screaming Death Island. We'll have a few laughs, get killed!" Snotlout grumbled. "Worst plan ever. This guy hates us. Let's get out of here."
"Have you forgotten? We reunited him with his mother."
"No, but it looks like he has." He charged us and I realized that he didn't seem to remember us. I mounted Toothless.
"Come on, bud. Faster!" It chased us into the air.
"Or maybe he does remember what we did and he just has a lousy relationship with his mom?"
"Head for those clouds. As soon as we enter, bank right!" Snotlout followed my order and the Screaming Death lost us.
"The plan is, wait till he tires himself out then head home, right?"
"Nope. We're going back down there. There's something in those tunnels we need." I replied, diving back down.
"Why can't you ever say yes?" I rolled my eyes as we began to search the tunnels. We made it into the tunnels soon enough. "Did the Screaming Death look even bigger to you?"
"That's what I was counting on."
"Oh, really? Thanks for letting me know."
"Because if he grew that means he had to molt. And if he shed his skin, there should be old scales around here somewhere. Like those!" We landed and I began to collect some.
"If you're thinking what I think you're thinking, I think your thinking is the worst plan ever."
"Well, I disagree."
"I stand corrected. There was that whole 'let Meatlug get captured' idea. That was genius. Really brilliant. A work of art." I ignored him.
"Come on. Let's get to work. We probably have an hour or two before the Screaming Death-" We heard a roar and he sounded close.
"Hiccup, stop acting like you're friends. You don't know this dragon and he clearly doesn't know you."
"Toothless and I will draw his fire. You try to make it outta here with as many scales as you can carry." We turned and he was already there.
"Hiccup?"
"No, don't even say it." He roared at us again.
"We're gonna die." Then, his mother came out of nowhere and stopped him from attacking us. "What just happened? Did we die?"
"No. The Screaming Death didn't remember us, but it looks like his mother did. Okay, we're good. Now get those scales together, fast!" Snotlout got to work as I kept the dragon calm. Soon, we had enough scales for what I was planning. I could only hope my plan was going to work. We have a lot of stitching to do.
Your POV
The first attempted escape hadn't worked and now you were all working in different places. You were with Nightshade. You were being forced to groom her. She was thankful for it, but she made sure to keep the guards away from you. Soon, there was a loud smashing sound. You knew what it was. Hiccup! You and Nightshade took down the guards together and you freed her.
"Let's get out of here, girl." Soon enough, the others had gotten free as well. Arrow rushed out with Stormfly first. Meatlug and Fishlegs followed him. Then the twins. You rushed out last. You made it into the air and you grinned. "Nightshade! Light em' up!" She blasted them, her blue flames joining the other ones. You took off after the others. You smiled as you and Nightshade went over to Hiccup and Toothless.
"Surprise!" He laughed, happy to see you.
"You always have to make an entrance!" You teased, laughing as well as you all hurried away. You flew next to Hiccup as you all headed back to Dragon's Edge.
"Did I see Dagur on that ship? Is he with the Dragon Hunters?" He asked.
"Not just Dagur!" Ruff replied.
"Hiccup, we have a lot to talk about," Arrow told him.
"Screaming Death armor? Yeah, makes sense. Thickest scales of any dragon." Fishlegs admired.
"Woo! Excellent workmanship." Ruff praised.
"Ugh, I don't know. I'm surprised you didn't use a lockstitch." Tuff countered.
"I'll use it right now on your mouth." Snotlout snapped.
"Hey, it did the trick." Hiccup chuckled.
"It looks heavy. Maybe we should try a set made out of Gronckle iron, now that I have the formula." Fishlegs offered.
"Well, we might need to do just that. I'm pretty sure we've not seen the last of the Dragon Hunters." Hiccup agreed. Once you made it back, Hiccup and Snotlout took off the armor. You rushed up to him and hugged him.
"Thank you." He hugged back.
"I'd never leave any of you guys behind." He assured you. You smiled.
"You really are more than we deserve for a leader." He blushed.
"H-heh...thanks, (Y/n). But I couldn't have done it without you to motivate me." Now it was your turn to blush.
"I guess we both have our effects on each other." He nodded as he held you.
"Yeah...I-I guess we do."