Land of the Dragons (HTTYD Fanfiction)

Chapter 2

Meanwhile, Tyler and Azure were adding more fish to the feeders, Mango and Christopher were using the training display to add notes to the Book of Dragons, and Shadow and Hiccup were working in the forge.

Hiccup slid into the forge, looking at his designs for a new Inferno, and the various experiments he had worked on in the past few weeks. Then, his eyes landed on the leather, and he gave a cry of joy. It had cooled.

Hiccup picked up the leather, feeling the soft texture. "Shadow," he said, and Shadow fired a plasma blast at it. It was absorbed. "Wow!" Hiccup gasped, "This thing is powerful!"

The leather was clearly very strong, and had a faint scale pattern engraved in it. It wasn't too flexible, but it was movable and soft. It was also still slightly warm. Oh well, Hiccup thought, and he set to work.

As an experiment, Hiccup cut a strip off the side, and wrapped it around his forearm, folding the end onto his middle finger. Then, he took out a needle and thread, and he began to sew.

The leather was heated unevenly, and Hiccup noticed the difference. Where it was warmest, the needle slid through smoothly, but where it was mostly cold, Hiccup had to force the point in. It was then he realized how lucky of a time he had come at. "I have to shape it and sew it before it cools, or else it will be impervious to sharp points!" Hiccup realized. "I need to use the rest of the leather quickly!"

He finished the primitive bracer swiftly, and examined it. It was comfortable, and flexed with his arm. It cooled the rest of the way quickly, and faded to a Night Fury black. "Time for a test." Hiccup muttered, and he headed over to Tyler and Azure.

Tyler and Azure had just finished filling the fifth feeder, and they were taking a short break, when Hiccup came up to them. "Hey guys, can you help me test out this new bracer?" "Sure!" Tyler said, shrugging, "What should we do?" "Simple." Hiccup explained. "Try to decapitate my left arm." "Okay!" Tyler said, and he pulled out an axe, charging.

Hiccup met the axe with his bracer arm, and it notched the blade. Tyler gasped. "What is that thing made of?!!" "I'll explain later." Hiccup said, and blocked another axe swing.

As Hiccup met the axe with his bracer, he felt as if they should have hurt more. I know the bracer absorbs sharp points, but the momentum should be jarring me! he thought. His suspicions were confirmed when Tyler dropped the axe, and brought out a mace. Hiccup's arm shot up, and the mace collided solidly with the bracer. Hiccup winced, expecting pain, but none came. He opened his eyes, and saw that the mace had shattered on the bracer, and he hadn't felt a thing! Shock absorption! Wow! he thought.

"Okay, I got nothing!" Tyler said, holding the handle of the shattered mace. He stepped back, and Azure joined the fight.

Hiccup barely brought his bracer up in time to block the wall of flames, but it was extremely effective. The flames hit with powerful force, but were blocked with ease. Azure looked surprised, and sent another wave of flames at Hiccup, to the same effect. So Hiccup went on the offensive.

Hiccup crouched down to protect his body, and moved forwards, keeping the flames off his body. Finally, he was standing right in front of Azure. Azure doubled the flames, but the bracer was still cold. Then the flames stopped, and Azure stepped back, signifying that he was all out.

Hiccup, Tyler and Azure all stared at the bracer in shock. "So..." Tyler prompted, "What exactly did you make it out of?"

An hour later, Hiccup was in the forge, scribbling madly on a design. The remaining leather was sitting in a cauldron of lava, and idea Hiccup had to keep it mouldable while Hiccup figured out what to make.

Multiple drafts lay scattered around Hiccup, as he slowly designed a new outfit. One that would be impervious to flames, more streamlined, and better for riding. The designs had started out simple, but had become more and more complicated as Hiccup went on, until he finally reached a draft that he liked. A draft that would require some time to make. So Hiccup sealed the forge closed, tied on an apron, and began to work.

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Night came, and Hiccup emerged from the forge, sweaty and exhausted. He had made it halfway through the building process, until he finally decided to break for dinner and sleep.

But as he came out of the forge, he was greeted by the rest of the riders and dragons, waiting for him.

Immediately, he yelled in surprise, and stumbled backwards. "How long have you been out here?" he asked, calming his still-racing heart. "Oh, just about thirty minutes." Annie said casually, attempting to hide a smirk. "30 MINUTES?!!" Hiccup exclaimed, stumbling backwards again. "Well, technically 32 minutes and 57 seconds." Christopher put in. Hiccup groaned. "Why?!"

But as he facepalmed, the afterimage of his outfit appeared on his eyelids, aligning with the group in front of him. Suddenly, he was awake and thinking. "Say..." he said, "I just had a couple ideas..."

Throughout the next three days, Hiccup was only seen when he went to his house late at night, came to the forge early in the morning, and grabbed meals from the Great Hall.

The others were somewhat puzzled by this behavior, but never questioned his motives. Still, it was quiet without their witty, sarcastic leader.

Inside the forge, Hiccup was working overtime, putting his ideas into reality. It had taken quite a bit of work, but the projects were slowly taking shape. By the third day, Hiccup knew that he could probably finish before the battle. So on the fourth morning, as it came time for breakfast, Hiccup was overjoyed that the first of six projects he was working on had finished.

Shadow crooned in excitement, and panted happily as Hiccup picked up the bundle. "Okay Shadow," Hiccup said, "How about we go for a test drive!" For the project, was a jet black riding suit and saddle.