Trust No One

Chapter 14

Hiccup's POV

As I walked round the BMC western-wing yard, I glimpsed something in the tree high above.
My curiosity taking over, I used my surveillance power to scan the object. It was a camera. From roughly 116.78 metres away, I was fully able to see exactly what the camera was doing:

It was pointed straight at me.

Instinctively, I fired a missile constructed out of dark matter, completely devestating that particular tree with its video companion.
Of course I knew exactly who was using the destroyed piece of equipment.

Astrid's POV

The plan Heather had set up wasn't really a great one. Seriously - putting a camera in a tree pointed at where Hiccup has been seen before?
Of course he's going to find it.
"COMRADE!" Yelled Seargant Mala, staring angrily towards me.

I'd forgotten to pay attention again.

Morning training over, a dozen people (including me and Heather) poured out of Room 10.20 and back into the main corridors.

A hand grabbed my shoulder.
Heather whispered quietly,
"Come on - let's go and check the recording!"
As she and I travelled through the endless corridors, I noticed there was something like a crack in the air.

Next to one of the walls. To the side, in room RLDO'WS-NDE.
Ignoring it, we suspiciously slipped into Tech room 101, to see a destroyed computer and camera operating system.

The door locked behind us.
Heather and I activated her ability, and suddenly cast a powerful green axe spinning towards a shape that had appeared.
I held my axe to my face, in a fighting position.

"So you are spying on me?" The voice was very familiar, and it came from behind us.
Spinning round, I found myself gazing into Hiccup's enchanting emerald eyes.

"No. We were making sure you weren't killing anybody. And now you've destroyed some perfectly good technology, which----"
"There's a crack in the air in room RLDO'WS-NDE" I blurted out suddenly.
Heather, who had been speaking, glanced at me, annoyed.

Hiccup laughed.
It wasn't the terrifying laugh that he normally used, it was a pure one, but there seemed to be an unsureness to it.
"What?" I inquired, confuzzled.
(It's a word now. Says me.)
He immediately ceased his laughter and replied,
"It's just... the name of that room."
"What about the name of that room? It's just a random row of letters and punctuation, right?" Heather asked.

"Well. If you change around the letters, you get 'WORLD'S-END'. That's all."

Now me and Heather were worried.

Omniscient POV

A stranger arrived through the gate and, dazed, walked slowly over to the ferryman, who went by the name of Charon.
The stranger was dark haired, with dull brown eyes. They had passed in the way their kind shouldn't:

Through darkest curruption.

As they approached Charon, they seemed disbelieving at its appearance - an undead figure hidden by a torn cloak, carrying a single oar made out of withering ironwood.

Many people would call this place the forbidden realm; the land of death; or, most commonly, Hell.
It was the place where nothing could grow; it was always 38' Celsius and with no moisture in the air.
There was no night and day, no light or dark.

What was usual was for the dead to pay the remains of their life to Charon, who in return would row them across the abyss.
But this time the curruption had eaten away all of the stranger's life, so there was nothing to pay.

Jessica Bouvreworth was stranded, left with the ravenous shadows in the silent.

Hiccup's POV

As I was pondering over whether or not to investigate World's-End (which was the room with the distortion), there was a low rustle behind me, and someone appeared.
Without looking, I could tell it was Hofferson. Her light steps were unmistakable.

"How are you doing?" She asked sweetly. I wondered whether replying was worth it, but then I mentally kicked myself.
Thinking like that was my normal instinct. This was different.
This... this was Hoffer---Astrid.

"Fine. How are you?" I replied emotionlessly.
As I turned round, I saw her standing there, and I met her beautiful, blue eyes. She walked forwards and placed a cold hand onto my shoulder.

Our faces were milimetres apart, and for once I realised I was smiling with genuine joy; not something like when I'm acting happy.
As we kissed, there was a pleasant spark of electricity inside my heart, and I wondered if she felt the same.
I didn't want this feeling to end.

Eventually however, we parted, and then she hugged me as if I'd just been involved in an accident and was supposed to be dead.
I felt her heart beating, and I know she felt mine, though mine was significantly slower than hers because I had a much higher tier.

She whispered two words into my ear, and then pushed me onto the ground.
We lay together on the lush, fresh grass that was seldom cut.

You're welcome.