How to Train Your Dragon Rider

(3.9) A Happening

"A moment Hicy!" Tuffnut's voice startles me from my half asleep state. "Puff out that chest! Move the butt to the left a bit!"

He smacks me ass, leading me to hop forward, I glare at him. He pauses slightly. I've put up with this for the past few days, and it's all good fun, but it's starting to get annoying.

"And loose the limp, no ones going to marry that." He meant it in a good way I guess, but I did not take it at all. I lost my temper, I avoided shouting at him, but I did storm away. I could hear the ground singeing with every step I took but I did not care. I left the circle of huts that were slowly coming together as New Berk.

I reached the cliff on the side of the island and I shouted. I let it all out, blasting fire and smashing my staff into the ground. Everything was coming to a peak. The villagers, the move, the damned Light Fury, having to be the Alpha, to keep every dragon safe, it was all weighing me down, and I snapped.

The blast of fire was blue, and hotter than I had ever done before. I fell to my knees, staring out into the sky. Toothless joined my side.

"Hey bud." My voice cracked as I spoke. "Sorry I lost my temper it's just, it's to much."

Toothless coos, laying his head in my lap. I look up at the sky again, scritching his head and chin and staring at a spot in the sky. The spot grows, and grows. Making me move to my feet. It comes into shape, revealing Cloudjumper, my mother atop her back. She lands with a thump in front of me, and I stand to meet her. Toothless greats Cloudjumper, just as I reach my mother.

"What happened?" She gathers me in her arms.

"I don't know how, but Grimmel is tracking us." Her words startle me. Tracking us. "He has hundreds of ships, maybe more, enough cages for all our dragons."

"If Grimmel is leading the charge then we must meet him first, before the cages reach the rest of the Berk dragons." I nod firmly, walking away from my mother towards 'New Berk.'

I gathered the teens, it would be a stealth mission, which meant only my mother would join us and that was all. My mother led the way to Grimmel, and when we reached his ship night had fallen. I coasted off of Toothless' back landing lightly on the top of the ship. I watch as Toothless landed on a nearby sea-stack, his eyes shone through the night. He would be the backup, I didn't want him anywhere near Grimmel if I could help it.

"I think we should split up, it'll be harder to catch us." Snotlout whispers to the rest of us.

Just to mess with him, Eret repeats it. Causing my mother to jump onto the bandwagon and agree with Eret. The twins and Astrid take the main entrance, and I coast down to the floor, ducking behind a stone. I narrowly avoid being seen by one of Grimmel's Deathgrippers.

I stumble up the stairs, moving as fast as my legs will allow. I reach the room at the top, and anger floods me when I see it empty. The sound of metal grinding forces me to cover my ears as I shout in pain. A net falls, covering the roof, separating the stairs that I stand on from the rest of the room.

"Where is your dragon when you need him? Hmm Chief?" Grimmel mocks me, standing on the ledge across the room. "First rule of the hunt: Separate the prey from the pack. You've just removed yourself from the equation."

"Why are you doing this Grimmel?" There was a sharp edge to my voice, he laughs again.

"Really? I didn't think you cared. Well, unlike you, when I was a boy and I came up on a Night Fury, I killed it where it slept!" He barks a laugh at the face that I give him. Who would have thought that a man could be so cruel. "That simple act of courage made me a hero in my village. So, I decided to kill every last one, bringing real peace to the people of this world. Until you came along preaching that dragons are something other than thieves and murderers. That nonsense dies now. Starting with you."

"But you have dragons of your own! You preach freedom from fear, but you use fear as a tactic!" My voice carries above the fire, this man is just like Drago, a man with a twisted image of freedom.

He laughs again, who knew I was so funny. "These? They're dragon killers. Drugged into obedience with their own venom. Not even your precious Alpha could control them. They serve me." 

Grimmel shoves a needle into the nearest Deathgripper, "Want an example?" He whistles, and the ceiling caves in. They swarm, spitting venom at all of us. The teens scatter, my mother is the fastest. Scrambling to the top of Grimmel's tower, using her staff to call for Cloudjumper. 

The Deathgripper nearest to me spits its venom at the me, it takes everything for me to dodge it's blast. I dive into the air, freefalling. As I near the ground I throw my arms out, flinging my wings out and catching air. I shift directions, instead of barreling towards the ground I shoot towards the sky, slipping out at the last second. The teens are hovering in the air, watching in fear as something happens.

That something just happened to be a Deathgrippers claw snagging my flight suit. It rips me from the air, I come tumbling towards the roof again. I slam into the narrow walkway, wincing in pain but mostly uninjured. I hurry to my feet, just in time to stop Toothless from coming to my rescue. He watches with bated breath.

"And what do you thin Cheif Hic-cup?" He mimics the sound of a hiccup, disrespecting me where I stand.

"An impressive cage, not built for dragon riders." I turn to face him, holding my staff in a defensive position.

"No, for something-" I didn't hear the rest. I threw myself off the side of the building, just as the Crimson Goregutter begins it's destruction. The look on Grimmel's face as I threw myself backwards, comedic.

But I couldn't focus on his face anymore, the ground was fast approaching, and I had just enough time to react. I swoop back up, letting out a holler to Toothless as I go. He glides below me, I lock my prosthetic back into place and we take off.

To Berk.