Haley and the Dragon Riders

One Hell Of A Birthday

Valka tried calming her down as well while Hiccup and the gang were focused on Stoick. Valka used a staff she made to try and get Rivers' attention and calm her enough for an examination. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned.

Once Valka had gotten Rivers' attention, the staff had little effect.

What happened thereafter, none of us could've anticipated or stopped.

Any dragon or viking who dared to get in her way, River stung and froze on the spot. If we tried diverting her with shots or quills, she'd quickly correct her route. She never lost sight of her target - Valka.

River managed to corner Valka, who tried running in order to save the rest of us, and stung her with the stinger. Once her prey was frozen in place, what followed seemed tragically ironic.

A few months back, Valka taught us how to utilize River's venom so she could shoot it out like the other dragons, maximizing its potency in the process. Now, that same venom trick is what River used to shoot Valka dead on.

We all stopped in our tracks. We were as frozen in place as those who had been stung. Grief and anger overtook everybody who witnessed the event.
We all just stood there and watched as Valka's skin slowly melted from her body. Her screams and cries for help quickly got drowned out by the horrible sound of teeth biting down on bones.

After what felt like an eternity, the first one to react was Stoick, whose paralyzing venom had finally worn off. He had grabbed the nearest object he could, a chair, and ran straight for the feeding dragon.
He smashed the chair into her face, and she got knocked to the ground.
Hiccup ran over to check on his now deceased mother, while I ran to stop Stoick from killing my best friend.

"Stoick, stop!" I screamed and ran in front of him.
"There has to be an explanation for this. She'd never attack anyone unprovoked! Please!"

"Out of my way!" He grunted and shoved me aside. I quickly flew past him and grabbed River. She was unconscious but alive.

"Please. Let me examine her. I can find out why she freaked out." I pleaded.

"Freaked out!? That beast killed my wife! I knew it was a mistake to trust you two!" He yelled.

"Hiccup, please. You know more about dragons than anyone. Take a look at her and tell him she's not dangerous. You know River. She would never do something like this." Hiccup didn't respond. He just sat motionless by Valka's remains.
"Fishlegs. You then. Please. She's my dragon. I can't lose her."

"I'll see what I can do, but I won't promise anything." Fishlegs said quietly. I could tell he was upset about the whole thing as well, but he pushed through.

"You have five minutes to tell me why that dragon attacked, or I'm ending her right now!" Stoick warned us.

"Fishlegs, please hurry up." I begged him, and he inspected River closely.

"I don't see any cuts or bruises, so it wasn't pain related. She hasn't acted strange prior to tonight, so not a head injury. I'm sorry, Haley, but I'm at a loss right now. I can't help you." He admitted and gave up soon after inspecting her.

"Fine. I'll inspect her myself, just like I always have!" I barked and turned away from the others. I looked all over her and examined every scale and claw on her body.

"Alright. Time's up. That beast is done being a part of Berk." Stoick walked towards us with a hammer in hand.

"Stop! Fishlegs, take a look at this." I called him over, and he knelt down to take a look. I pointed to the edge of her mouth, where she still had a bit of miscoloring due to whatever she ate yesterday on Viggos island.
"What do you think it is?"

"I'm not sure." He touched it and got some on his fingertips. He licked it and made an unpleasant face before showing it to his Gronckle, who promptly started growling at him.
"It's just as I feared. Hiccup, this is Nightshade."

Hiccup finally looked up from his mother's corpse and partook in the conversation.

"Fishlegs, are you absolutely sure about that?" He asked, and Fishlegs nodded.

"I'd have to do some more tests to be certain, but the taste and reaction from the various dragons pretty much confirms it."

"What's Nightshade, and why is it so dangerous?" I asked. It was the first time I'd ever heard of such a plant since coming here.

"It has various effects from species to species. Sheep and chickens tend to get sick from it but will survive. Humans and dragons mostly get ill to the point of death, and apparently, it makes Speed Stingers incredibly aggressive. More than they usually are." Fishlegs explained.

"So you're saying she got poisoned? I didn't think that was possible since she made poison herself." I questioned.

"It's possible her venomous insides has made her more tolerant of certain deadly plants." Fishlegs hypothesized.

"Tolerant or not, the dragon still needs to go." Stoick interrupted our discussion, and Hiccup interjected.

"Nightshade only grows on a few islands in the Archipelago, and Viggo is in control of all of them." Hiccup said. The look on his face was unmistakable. If there were ever any doubt, one look at him now, and you'd know he was the son of Stoick the Vast.
"I'm going after Viggo. This ends tonight!"

He pulled out his flaming sword and walked towards Toothless. I managed to get to his side and talk with him.

"Hiccup, you're on a warpath right now. I know that look on your face! A true leader never seeks out war." I pleaded with him, trying to keep both sides from destroying each other.

"But he must always be ready for it. I do not want a war with Viggo, but this has gone too far. He has to be stopped. No matter the cost!" Hiccup answered coldly and took off.