Disclaimer: I do not own anything from How to train your dragon
Chapter 19: The Zippleback Experience
Six of the eight dragon riders paired up: Hiccup and Fishlegs, Hicca and Raeda and Astrid and Snotlout. Each pair and their dragons were carrying boulders to place on a specific part of the Edge.
Hiccup spotted the place. "Alright guys, let's drop the foundation right about...here." All the dragons dropped the boulders they were carrying. "That should work. Perfect location."
Fishlegs was very excited about their current project. "I, for one, couldn't be happier that we're finally-"
"Setting up the new watch tower." Snotlout finished in annoyance. "We know. We've been hearing about it for the past, oh, I don't know, week, month...What comes next?"
"Come on guys, look, this is important." Hicca insisted. "We've been seeing ships of the northern coast that have absolutely no reason to be there."
"Now with this-" Hiccup continued gesturing to the base of the watch-tower. "We can send up an early warning signal if they come into our waters."
"If you're talking about Dagur and Ryker, and that's who I assume we're talking about-" Snotlout started
"Actually we weren't referring to-"
"How about this?" Snotlout offered. "Whoever's out there that shouldn't be out there, let's just get on these very effective fire-breathing war machines and go off and blast them into oblivion."
"Because that's not who we are!" Hicca objected. "Since when do we go blasting people into oblivion?"
"Don't worry, Hookster. She doesn't speak for us." Snotlout reassured his dragon.
"WOO-HOO!"
That distant shout caused the six dragon riders to look at the source where they saw Ruffnut and Tuffnut Thorston riding down a snowy mountain on Barf and Belch.
"Or them. Definitely not for them." Snotlout added.
"You know that actually looks like fun." Raeda commented. The other five just looked at her. "What? I can't be the only one thinking it."
"Here we gooo!" Ruffnut hollered.
"Oh, I love to cut through the fresh powder. Don't you, sis?!" Tuffnut exclaimed.
"Yeah! Just like a warm knife through yak butter! Woo-hoo!" His sister cheered.
And because they could, the blonde twins decided to add to their fun by having the Zippleback blast at the snow. "Blast! Blast!" Tuff cheered as the explosions continued. "Yeah! Yeah! Again. Zippleback, baby!"
BOOM!
"Those two muttonheads better not bring all that snow up there down on us." Astrid said.
"It's not the snow I'm worried about." That's when the group noticed the avalanche caused by the explosions heading straight for the oblivious twins! "It's the ice!"
Hiccup quickly took off on Toothless towards the twins and the Zippleback. The others were right behind them.
And as if the avalanche wasn't enough, Ruff and Tuff then lost control of Barf and Belch, causing the two headed dragon to start skidding around uncontrollably. They quickly lost their grip on their dragon and fell off head first into the snow with their legs sticking up.
"That hurt." Ruff groaned, her voice muffled through the sand.
Stormfly and Meatlug quickly swooped in, the former grabbing Ruffnut and the latter grabbing Tuffnut and pulled them out of the snow before the avalanche could get them.
They were back with the others in the air, where they could see Barf and Belch below. The poor Zippleback lost its balance and was tumbling through the snow, heading to a cliff with the avalanche right behind them.
"Barf!/Belch!" Ruffnut and Tuffnut screamed.
Hicca and Midnight swooped in between the avalanche and Barf and Belch. They tried to grab the Zippleback before they could reach them before they got the cliff, but the avalanche seems seconds away from burying Hicca and Midnight, causing the dragon to fly up in reflex to protect her human.
That left Barf and Belch to fall off the cliff down to the ocean with the raging snow right behind them. Just when all hope seems lost, Hiccup and Toothless shot out from the side of a cliff, like an arrow fired from a crossbow and grab Barf and Belch just in time.
They brought the larger dragon back to the mountain where the others had landed and as soon as they got their bearings, barf and Belch started licking Hiccup to express their gratitude.
"Okay, okay. I-I get it, yo-you're welcome." Hiccup said to the two headed dragon, trying to shield himself. He unclamped his prosthetic and got off the saddle.
Astrid got a look at the prosthetic and noticed that it got damaged during the rescue. "Uh, Hiccup! I wouldn't do that if I were-"
"Ahh!" Too late, Hiccup already slipped.
"You."
Hiccup grunted and leaned up to inspect his damaged leg when Barf and Belch suddenly grabbed him, one head each clamped on either sides of his shoulders and lifted him in the air.
"Oh. Uh. Can you put me down, guys?" Hiccup asked. Barf and Belch put him down while his sister went to her brothers saddle bag and pulled out an identical prosthetic leg. "Thanks sis. It's for moments like these that I always carry a spare."
He switched out the two prosthetics while Ruff and Tuff began to slowly back away.
"So! If that's all you need from us, then we'll just be going back to..." Tuffnut trailed, before he and his sister decided to make a run for it.
"Why are they even bothering?" Raeda muttered.
"Toothless." Hiccup said, giving the silent command. Toothless fired a plasma blast at the blonde twins, stopping them in their tracks.
"Hey! Your dragon just shot at us." Tuffnut complained.
"Yes, I know. I told him to." Hiccup said dryly.
"Not cool, T. Not cool at all." Tuff said to Toothless, even though it was Hiccup who gave the command.
"Anyway! Since you two seem so eager to spend some time away from the group, you get to pull the first two shifts of patrol duty." Hiccup ordered.
"Don't even think of skipping. Midnight and I will come by randomly to check on you." Hicca warned.
"They really become a tyrant." Ruffnut muttered to her brother.
"Power will do that to you." Tuffnut agreed, while the others flew off leaving the blonde twins.
(Linebreak)
The Haddock twins reached their joint hut. As they got off the saddle, Hiccup winced at the feel of his spare prosthetic.
"How's your spare?" Hicca asked.
"Ugh, it needs to be filed down. It's pinching me." He answered.
"I think I still have the file I borrowed from Rae. Let me find it." Hicca said, opening her saddle bag.
While she was looking, Hiccup went to the door of his hut and opened it.
Hicca, Toothless and Midnight looked up when they heard the Haddock boy give a surprised yelped and was met with a sight of a large pile of fish where Hiccup was standing a seconds ago.
Said boy emerged from the pile. "Oh, for the love of Thor! Who did this?!" He demanded before pausing for a second. "Wait a minute, why am I even asking? Ruff, Tuff! Oh, I got another shift with your names on it!"
Hicca looked around the hut. "That's strange, this would be their cue to jump out and yell 'Loki' to you."
Toothless and Midnight, on the other hand, couldn't care less about the blonde twins and their antics. What they did care about was the sudden fish buffet in front of them. They started eating the fish.
"Really? You're eating the evidence?" Hiccup asked the two dragons in disbelief.
After Hiccup got out of the pile and Hicca made sure there was no fish in her hut and the two dragons finished their meal the four of them set out to look for the mischievous twins and their dragon.
"All right, where are they?" Hiccup mumbled. "I guess you just look for a fire, or any other catastrophe, they'll be close by."
"It's been eerily quiet since we got back." Hicca noted.
The auburn twins then heard the sounds of wings flapping behind them. They turned, but saw nothing behind them. Suddenly a certain Zippleback came barrelling through Hicca and Midnight, causing the female Night Fury to take a sudden swerve. This didn't slow down Barf and Belch as they flew to Hiccup and snatched the human of the dragon!
Without control of his prosthetic tail fin, the male Night Fury plummeted to the ground.
"No, no, no, no! You drop me! You drop me right now!" Hiccup demanded the Zippleback. The two-headed dragon complied, leaving Hiccup to free-fall after Toothless
Having gone through this experience many times in the past, Hiccup was able to quickly maneuver himself back on to Toothless saddle and tried to get him to fly up, but he was a little too late as the two of them hit a tree and then crash-landed onto the ground.
Hiccup rubbed his head and sat up. "You all there, bud? I think I am." He got up but stumbled due to his prosthetic. He looked down and saw that his prosthetic got damaged during the fall. "Annnd I spoke too soon." He hobbled to Toothless's saddle, as the dragon gave a worried warble. "Oh, don't worry, bud. I always carry a spare for my spare." He said opening the saddle bag.
Hicca and Midnight then landed near them. "You guys okay?" She asked.
"For the most part." Hiccup answered, switching his prosthetic.
Then Barf and Belch showed up, carrying another big pile of fish.
Hiccup was ready to reprimand the blonde twins when he noticed their absence. "Wait a minute, it was you guys? You left me all that fish?" The Zippleback just looked at him with wide eyes. They then started licking him again.
"What is going on with them? I don't think they are this affectionate with Ruffnut and Tuffnut." Hicca wondered.
"And if these guys are here, and the twins are Thor knows where, then who's patrolling the island?" Hiccup asked.
(Linebreak)
That last question was an issue that unfortunately didn't get resolved soon enough. Because what the Haddock twins and the other teens didn't know was there were few Dragon Hunters arriving on their shores on a small boat.
"Dragon sentries!" One of the Dragon Hunters warned, spotting a Night Terror in its perch.
But the other Dragon Hunter wasn't worried. Instead, he grabbed a bow and a dragon root arrow. "Oh, this'll put it to sleep for a bit." He fired the arrow right at the Night Terror and the poor dragon didn't get any warning before its vision turned dark.
(Linebreak)
The Thorston twins have long discovered their dragon had left them and were searching for him in vain.
"This is all your fault." Ruffnut accused her brother.
"My fault? My fault?!" Tuffnut argued, outraged.
"It's your attitude, bro. It's always been your attitude. And it finally drove our beloved dragon away!"
"My attitude? My attitude is fun, carefree, adventurous, and loves to take long walks. And it doesn't matter if it's on a beach or not." He defended.
"You're ridiculous."
"Oh, yeah?" Tuffnut sniffed her before continuing. "Well, you smell like a barrel of 20-year-old cod livers. That's what drove them away." He countered.
"Hey! This smell is not achieved easily." Ruffnut defended, holding her arms up.
That's when Hiccup, Toothless, Hicca and Midnight landed near them with Barf and Belch in tow.
"Hiccup, Hicca you found 'em!" Tuff exclaimed.
"Where did you two go? You had us worried sick." Ruff scolded the Zippleback.
"Where'd they go? Well, let's start with they filled my hut with fish, crashed me and Toothless out of the sky, and, for their finale, they broke my second spare leg." Hiccup recounted.
"So, if my calculations are correct, and they usually are..." Ruffnut started.
"...that would mean that our dear Hiccup is on his..." Tuffnut continued.
"Last leg!" The blonde twins finished, snickering.
Hicca was trying to hide her amusement. "Get it? See what we did? It's because of your leg. You don't have any more." Tuffnut explained to Hiccup's not-so-amused expression.
"I think he gets it." Ruffnut said with a smirk. "Well, if you wanna flip the script, the new leg is slimming."
"Not that you need to be slimmed. I mean, I think, for your height, you've probably an ideal weight." Tuffnut commented.
Hiccup guided the Zippleback to the blonde twins. "The four of you belong together. Now, please, can you get back on patrol and try to keep these two... well- Oh, just go." He got back on Toothless' saddle. "Last leg." He muttered. Toothless and Midnight gave a dragony laugh and even Hicca started to snicker. "Oh, don't laugh, you guys. You three are above that."
The Night Furies took off leaving the blonde twins to get on their own dragon. Or at least tried to. For some reason, the Zippleback wouldn't let their humans on their saddles and kept trying to shake them off.
"Bad dragon!" Tuff yelled as he and his sister were thrown off.
Barf and Belch then flew into the direction of the two Night Furies, leaving Ruff and Tuff to resume their argument..
"Attitude!"
"Cod livers!"
Hicca was the first to spot the Zippleback following them. "Uh, bro?"
Hiccup looked at her sister and looked back to see the Zippleback. "Oh, for the love of - okay, guys. Let's ditch the Zippleback." The two Night Furies picked up speed to ditch Barf and Belch, but the two headed dragon was relentless in their pursuit.
Hicca got an idea. "Let's split up, Midnight!" The female Night Fury suddenly changed a different direction, but it didn't hinder Barf and Belch as the two-headed dragon was locked on following Hiccup and Toothless.
"Why is he only following them?" Hicca wondered.
Hiccup was not happy with this. "Oh, get away from me, you crazy dragon!" Toothless kept making multiple twists and turns, hoping to shake off Barf and Belch, but no luck. He even went through the tunnel that leads to the Academy, but the results were the same. "Ugh. Are you serious?"
Hiccup and Toothless then flew towards a sea stack and made a quick and sudden turn to hide behind it. That actually threw off Barf and Belch as they started wondering where the duo went.
Hiccup was relieved to see the Zippleback out of sight. "I think we lost 'em." The relief was short lived when he and Toothless heard a familiar growl. "And they're behind me, right?"
(Linebreak)
Hiccup spent the rest of the day trying to get Barf and Belch to stop following him and Toothless, but no luck. Barf and Belch wouldn't even take the night off from their pursuit and went with Hiccup to his hut.
"I think I'm starting to see Zipplebacks in my sleep." He grumbled, before going to bed, exhausted from the days' events.
Toothless went on his own slab, used his plasma blast to warm it up and then went to sleep. The Zippleback watched his sleep ritual with intrigue and unfortunately got an idea from.
Hiccup was woken from his sleep when he heard continuous thuds around his hut. He looked to see Barf and Belch going on the beam of the hut.
Hiccup's eyes widened when he saw Barf letting out some green gas. "Ah! Oh, no, wait. Don't!"
BOOM!
Too little too late.
Hiccup coughed as he rushed out of his hut. Hicca and Midnight, having the explosion, quickly rushed over to see what happened. Toothless, Barf and Belch joined them.
Hiccup was tired and frustrated as he told his sister what happened. But what no one realised, however, was that they were being watched!
"Those hides will fetch a high price at the northern markets." One of the Dragon Hunters said, while looking at Barf and Belch through his spy-glass.
"Focus. That's not what we're here for." The other Dragon Hunter reminded him
"Well, how are we supposed to take them if they're guarded by three dragons?"
"We wait until they're not guarded by three dragons."
(Linebreak)
The next morning, Gobber happened to come by for a visit. While he was there he offered to help repair all of Hiccup's spare legs as they all got damaged by Barf and Belch.
Said Zippleback decided to take some of the spare legs for some reason.
Hiccup immediately noticed that. "Give me those." He snapped, taking the prosthetics. The dragon only replied by giving him their version of a hug.
Hicca, Fishlegs, Ruffnut and Tuffnut were also with them and the blonde twins did not like what they were seeing.
"What is this?" Ruffnut asked.
"A neck hug? I never got a neck hug." Tuffnut grumbled.
"So, you ruined all your legs, eh? Every single one?" Gobber asked Hiccup as he was learning the events that transpired.
"Well, all but this piece of garbage." Hiccup said, gesturing to the peg leg he was wearing. "Which, let's be honest, can we really call it a leg?"
Hicca suddenly did some fake coughs to get her brother's attention. She subtly pointed to the fake leg Gobber was wearing which was identical to the one Hiccup was complaining about.
And that fact wasn't lost on Gobber, judging from his expression.
"I mean..." Hiccup quickly backtracked. "Oh, right. Of course we can. It's very slimming on you, Gobber."
Barf and Belch then started licking Hiccup and Toothless, much to their annoyance.
"Really? Right in front of our faces?" Tuffnut said to the Zippleback.
"We're here, you know. Right here!" Ruffnut exclaimed to them, but they didn't pay attention.
"That's weird. Zipplebacks are normally fiercely loyal. Why are they doting on Hiccup and ignoring you two?" Fishlegs wondered.
Gobber had a thought. "Well, didn't Hiccup pull them out of the way of a deadly avalanche?"
"Yeah." Hiccup answered,
"Well, there you go. Same thing as my cousin, Bard. He saved a Zippleback from a Changewing. The two-headed beast wouldn't leave him alone, for years." The older man explained.
"So, this could go on for..." Tuff trailed.
"Ever. It's a life-debt. Barf and Belch will now serve Hiccup for the rest of their lives or until the debt is repaid. Whichever comes first." Gobber finished.
"D-Does this mean we could be stuck with Barf and Belch forever?" Hiccup asked.
"Does this mean we could lose Barf and Belch forever?" Tuff asked.
"Yes, and yes." Gobber answered to both boys.
(Linebreak)
Needless to say, Hiccup and the Thorston twins could agree that this life-debt was something that needs to end.
Plan A
Hiccup hid at the side of the Clubhouse waiting for Barf and Belch. Right on cue, the Zippleback arrived, most probably looking for Hiccup. Once Hiccup was sure they spotted him. He quickly ran away with the dragon chasing him.
He ran across the bridge, making sure his leg got caught in a rope and then 'accidentally' fell off the bridge.
"Ah. Oh, no! No! I'm so scared and in need of help! Barf! Belch! Please, help me!" He shouted to Zippleback.
Barf and Belch flew down to where Hiccup was hanging. But the two heads, however, were seeing something different.
'Is this...' Belch wondered.
'It is! Let's go play!' Barf said.
The Zippleback put its heads on either side of Hiccup and started batting him around.
"Wait, no, that's not the sa-" Hiccup was trying to protest as he was being head-butted back and forth.
Hicca and Tuffnut were watching from above the bridge.
"What happened? They were supposed to save you." Tuffnut asked.
"Is this their idea of a rescue?" Hicca wondered.
"Great. You're not- not helping me." Hiccup muttered as he kept getting knocked back and forth.
"Hey, they're playing "Bat the Nut"! Ruff, hurry. "Bat the Nut"." Tuffnut said to his sister.
"I got next!" Ruffnut declared.
"Uh, guys, the whole point of this was for Barf and Belch to think they're saving Hiccup, therefore, repaying the life-debt." Hicca reminded them as the rope holding Hiccup tore, causing the boy to fall to the ground.
"You're right, Hicca. Our dragon is way too smart for this."
"Exactly." Tuffnut agreed. He looked down at Hiccup. "I guess we'll have to put you in some real danger."
"Uh, I don't think that's what my sister meant." The poor boy said below.
Plan B
An hour after the failed plan, both pairs of twins went to the forest for their next plan. They lured Barf and Belch to the area Hiccup was placed on the bottom of a steep slope. Above the slope were Hicca, Ruffnut Tuffnut, Midnight, Toothless and a pile of logs.
Hiccup made sure both heads of the Zippleback could see him before he gave the signal. "Now, guys!"
"This is the best plan to kill Hiccup ever." Tuffnut said to the two girls with him
"Pretend! Pretend to kill. We're not actually killing him." Hicca corrected firmly. "You meant pretend, right?"
"Sure. Tomato, tomahto." Tuffnut dismissed.
"Let's do this!" Ruffnut hollered. She and her brother pulled a lever which pushed the logs to roll right down to Hiccup at a fast speed!
"Come on, Barf and Belch. Let's get moving. Logs rolling. Skinny lives to save." Hiccup muttered, hoping the Zippleback will understand the danger this time.
Luckily, Barf and Belch did and quickly rushed to save Hiccup. Just as it seems that the life debt was going to be paid, an obstacle came in the form of a tree.
The Zippleback got its split neck caught on said tree, stopping the dragon in its path.
"Oh come on!" Hicca exclaimed, witnessing that.
Her brother was more focused on the logs still rolling after him. He had no time to move out of the way. "Oh, Thor!" Thankfully help came from Toothless, Midnight and their plasma blasts. "Thanks, guys." He said, sighing in relief. Barf and Belch then came to lick the two Night Furies.
"So close, yet again." Tuffnut complained. "We need to account for the topography next time."
Ruffnut agreed. "True that. Stupid tree."
"Seriously guys, has Barf and Belch ever flown through a forest without hitting a tree?" Hicca demanded.
"Hey, it's not their fault. It's the trees! One minute it's all clear then BAM a tree appears. How do you prepare for that?" Tuffnut defended.
Hicca just rested her forehead on her hand. Hiccup looked up to glare at the blonde twins. The twins noticing this, quickly gave him a smile and four thumbs up.
(Linebreak)
The Haddock twins decided that there were enough attempts on Hiccups life for the day and retired to Hicca's hut (since Hiccup still needs to have his fixed from the blast). The Thorston twins, however, weren't ready to call it a night with their dragon still not with them.
They stayed up planning many different ways to endanger Hiccup that could potentially impress their enemies.
"Too dumb. Not dangerous enough. That can't work." Tuffnut listed looking though their plans. One plan caught his attention as he inspected the paper. "Wait. Wow! That is awesome." He thought about pitching this idea to the Haddock twins. "Hiccup would never go for it. Would he? No. Hicca would definitely say no. That's way too destructive. Even for us."
Suddenly Ruffnut's pencil snapped while she was drawing the plans and she suddenly threw it away in anger. "What is it, sis? I haven't seen you this sad since Bjorn Boar lost in the inter-archipelago sectionals."
"Oh, Bjorn Boar. That was a sad day." Ruffnut reminisce. "But this is worse! Do you realize we have nothing? Nothing, I tell you. If we don't think of something, we may never get Barf and Belch back from that tyrant. Why, Tuff? Why?! Why do they love him more than us?!" She slammed her head on the table.
"It's the forbidden fruit. You always want what you can't have. The dragon's always hotter on the other side." Tuffnut tried to come up with a new plan. "We need help. We need someone diabolical. Someone completely devoid of any continence or human emotion whatsoever."
Ruffnut raised her head. "I can only think of one man that soulless."
(Linebreak)
Snotlout was standing outside Hicca's hut with a smirk. Hicca was already awake and off to start her usual routine. Hiccup left the hut with a yawn.
"Hey." Snotlout suddenly greeted.
Hiccup was caught off guard with this. "He-Hey?" Before he could ask what Snotlout was doing here, he got punched in the face!
"Ugh!" Hiccup fell to the ground, his hand covering where he was punched. "What is wrong with you?"
"Hiccup Haddock, I'm calling you out! Defend yourself!" Snotlout announced, punching his palm.
"D-D-Defend my-" Poor Hiccup didn't even get time to try to think about what the Jorgenson boy was doing, because suddenly the shorter boy had produced an axe and was swinging it at him.
"Yaaaaaa!" He struck the axe on the ground next to Hiccup and ended up getting it stuck there. "Fight me." He whispered to Hiccup.
"What, what? What are you doing!?" Hiccup demanded.
"I said, fight me." Snotlout whispered, still trying to get the axe out. He then raised his voice. "What's that, Hiccup? You want to fight to the death?!"
Hiccup still didn't understand what Snotlout was trying to do. "What? Who said that? Nobody said that!"
"You did." Snotlout finally got the axe out and started swinging again, while Hiccup continued to dodge.
At a distance Ruffnut and Tuffnut were watching their plan be set in motion. Tuffnut spotted Barf and Belch flying towards the two boys. "Here they come. Life-debt no more!"
"You think Snotlout will get barbecued?" Ruffnut asked with a smirk.
"Sis, I'm afraid to tell you, I always knew Snotlout would end up as collateral damage." Her brother answered.
Back to Hiccup and Snotlout, the two moved to an area where Raeda was painting a shield-portrait. She noticed the two and paused in her work. "What are you two doing?"
"Ask him because I really don't know." Hiccup answered, as he continued to dodge Snotlout swings.
The shorter boy just seemed to be swinging around crazily, hoping to somehow strike at Hiccup.
Raeda noticed Snotlout getting closer to her shield-portrait and that was unacceptable. She kicked him in the stomach, causing him to drop his axe. She then picked up the axe and held it out to Snotlout in a threatening manner. Snotlout put his hands up in surrender.
Hiccup, still unaware of the plan, decided to take this opportunity to walk away. Snotlout noticed this and left Raeda to flick his cousin by the ear.
"Ow! I'm not gonna fight you, Snotlout!" Hiccup said, continuing to walk away.
"You see that? The future chief is a coward!" Snotlout announced.
"You're seriously going to call him a coward." Raeda asked, her eyebrows raised.
Snotlout's comment made Hiccup stop and turn to him. "You heard me. Come on, hit me! You know you want to." He invited.
Finally having enough of Snotlout's antics. Hiccup briskly walked back to him. "Fine. But remember. You wanted this."
Snotlout just held his arms outstretched, not even worried about what Hiccup could do.
WHAM!
The sudden punch actually made the Thorston twins wince from where they were watching.
The punch was actually so strong that it sent Snotlout stumbling back. "Ow! What'd you do that for?! Oh, hold on. I gotta take a-" He suddenly fell to the ground.
Shocked by the sudden punch, Raeda walked to Snotlout. "You actually knocked him out cold." She knew Hiccup is talented but hand-to-hand combat was not one of his talents. But it looks like it could be as well. She held up her hand to Hiccup for a hi-five.
That's when Barf and Belch arrived with the fish supplies. The dragon didn't even think to question why Snotlout was on the ground and flew away. As Hiccup watched the Zippleback fly away, he spotted Ruffnut and Tuffnut nearby.
The blonde twins were in awe of what happened.
"That was incredible." Ruffnut said.
"Who knew that that scrawny, little one-legged viking had that in him." Tuffnut commented.
Ruffnut then sighed, feeling defeated. "Oh, brother. That's it. There's nothing left."
"Guess Gobber was right. We've lost our dragon for good." Tuffnut agreed, feeling depressed.
"But on the bright side, Snotlout did just get punched in the face." Ruff noted.
That only lightened Tuffnut's mood for a second. "Yeah. If only I could enjoy it."
Hiccup helped Snotlout sit up, the latter was still dazed from the punch. "Mom, Dad, Hiccup punched me. I'm really thirsty." He falls unconscious again.
The auburn boy was finally starting to catch on. "Clubhouse, now. Call Hicca, and get him some ice."
(Linebreak)
Snotlout, Ruffnut, Tuffnut and Hiccup convened in the Clubhouse where the Thorston twins explained their plan as Hiccup paced in front of the other three while Snotlout iced the right side of his face, which was now swollen.
"Well, a little warning would've been nice." Hiccup said, after the twins were finished with their explanation.
"Well, to be honest, Hiccup, we figured out what was ruining our plans." Tuffnut explained.
"It was you." Ruffnut stated.
"Me?" Hiccup asked in disbelief, pointing to himself.
"You, my friend, are a terrible actor." Tuffnut said to him
"So you made Snotlout attack me?"
"'Surprise' is the word we prefer to use." Ruff corrected.
"We needed a real reaction from you." Tuff explained.
"And, boy did we get one. Eh, Snotlout?" Ruff jeered at Snotlout.
Snotlout whimpered and, to his shock, a tooth fell out of his mouth. "That's my tooth!"
"Unfortunately, we weren't expecting Thor's mighty hammer to meet Snotlout's paper jaw." Tuff concluded. That caused Snotlout to give an indignant snarl.
"So, okay, you do realize if Barf and Belch had actually tried to save me, Snotlout would've been roasted alive?" Hiccup pointed out. The gasp from Snotlout said that the Jorgenson boy definitely didn't think of that.
"Yeah. We took that into account in our risk assessment." Ruff answered.
Hiccup sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Oh, this situation has gotten way out of hand."
"Please, Hiccup, you've gotta help us. We're completely lost without our dragon. We have nothing to live for. Don't you understand?" Tuffnut pleaded.
"We will get you your dragon back." Hiccup reassured him. "But, you two have to stop. Stop your plans, stop your schemes. Okay? I'm gonna figure this out. I just need time alone." He started walking out of the Clubhouse. Toothless started to follow him until Hiccup spoke up. "You too, bud."
Hiccup turned to Snotlout. "I'll send a Terror Mail to Hicca to give you some medicine for the pain."
Snotlout didn't pay attention as another tooth fell out. "Two!?"
(Linebreak)
After sending Sharpshot to Hicca, Hiccup walked all the way to the forest. Things have definitely gone out of hand and he still hasn't figured out how to get Barf and Belch to stop following him. Speaking of the Zippleback, Hiccup hasn't really seen Barf and Belch since he punched Snotlout.
'Probably off getting more fish for me.' He thought to himself. 'At least Toothless is set for dinner.'
Unbeknownst to him, the two-headed dragon was actually right behind him. They were being quiet for a change, because they knew Hiccup wanted some alone time.
However, they were being quiet enough as they accidentally stepped on a twig, making Hiccup's head snap up. He looked behind him, but Barf and Belch hid just in time.
Hiccup was still suspicious but before he could investigate further, a bag was suddenly placed on his head and he was knocked on the ground and tied up. "Really, guys? What did I say? I said Come on, I'm serious! Would you let me go?" He protested, thinking it was the blonde twins at it again.
He was then lifted from the ground and carried off. "No, seriously, just put me down!"
What Hiccup didn't know was that it was actually the Dragon Hunters from earlier who were kidnapping him!
Luckily Barf and Belch knew and neither heads were happy
(Linebreak)
The day descended into night as Hiccup was thrown on a wooden surface, bag still over his head. "Hey! What are you doing? Okay, this is the single worst plan you have ever come up with."
The bag was then taken off, allowing Hiccup to realise that it was the Thorston twins who kidnapped him. And that he wasn't anywhere on the island. He was at the Dragon Hunters ship with Dagur, Ryker and plenty of Dragon Hunters around him.
"Oh, I don't know, brother. You're our prisoner. Seems like a brilliant plan to me." Dagur said smugly.
"So, looks like your little island stronghold isn't so strong after all. It's completely unguarded from the North. You know, it doesn't take much to put in a watchtower." He continued. Hiccup didn't say anything, quickly recovering from his shock to glare at the Berserker chief. "No watchtower. What do you do without a watchtower? It's... It's preposterous."
(Linebreak)
Unaware of the intruders, Astrid, Raeda, Snotlout and Fishlegs were at the Clubhouse. Toothless was still there as well.
"What's Toothless doing here?" Astrid wondered as she, Raeda and Fishlegs carried in crates.
"The Thorston twins came up with another plan to get back Barf and Belch without telling Hiccup and then he wanted some time to himself." Raeda said. "He can't still be upset though."
"He could still be trying out another plan with Ruffnut and Tuffnut." Fishlegs guessed.
Then the Thorston twins joined them.
"Have any of you seen Hiccup?!" Ruffnut asked.
"I thought he was with you two." Fishlegs answered.
"No, he bailed on us! And guess who's gone, too?" She was referring to Barf and Belch. "Can't trust anybody."
"They're probably out there having the time of their lives, blasting everything in sight. Remember when random destruction was our thing?" Tuffnut asked his twin.
"Seems like yesterday." Ruffnut sighed.
"It was. It actually was. Now, here we are. No dragon, no destruction. No fun." Tuff lamented.
That's when Midnight joined Toothless. The two Night Furies seemed to be conversing.
"I thought Midnight was gathering herbs with Hicca? What is she doing back here?" Raeda wondered.
"Figures Hicca would also join her brother in the fun. They're now taking over our title as the destructive twins." Tuffnut complained.
But Astrid was feeling suspicious. "Something's wrong. If Toothless and Midnight are here, and Hiccup and Hicca are not..."
(Linebreak)
Back to the Dragon Hunters ship.
"We are gonna extract every little piece of dragon knowledge from that tiny coconut-shaped noggin. We're gonna use you to take us to every island that Dragon Eye has led you to." Dagur said to Hiccup.
"And if I don't?" Hiccup challenged.
"I hope you don't." Ryker smirked. He then brought out a satchel that was very familiar to Hiccup.
He immediately realised what that meant and he narrowed his eyes. "Where is she?" He demanded.
"Your sister is on the other ship." Dagur informed him, pointing to the ship that's following them. "And her well-being all depends on the information you give us."
Suddenly there were loud explosions, surprising everyone on board as they watched the other ship start to sink.
"What?! What is happening?!" Dagur demanded, but it was hard for him to see due to the sudden emergence of smoke.
Suddenly Barf and Belch flew in and started surrounding the ship with green smoke.
Hiccup saw that they weren't alone. "Hicca! You're alright!"
"Hey Hiccup!" Hicca called, riding on the back of Barf and Belch as they continued to circle the ship in green smoke.
The Dragon Hunters were starting to recover when Belch ignited the smoke causing another explosion to rock the ship.
As the smoke cleared, Barf and Belch landed on the ship and Hiccup ran to them, still tied up.
"First time in a good long while that I've been happy to see you guys." Hiccup said to Barf and Belch. He turned to his sister. "Are you okay, sis?"
"Yeah. I think so." Hicca breathed out.
Belch bit the ropes off Hiccup, setting him free. Just in time as the hunters started charging at them. Hiccup was able to block them long enough for Barf and Belch to use their heads to knock them back, making them drop their weapons.
Hiccup picked an axe for himself and gave the shield to his twin. Now armed the two humans were ready to take on the rest of the Hunters.
Barf and Belch then blasted in the sky above.
(Linebreak)
The last blast was noticed by the Thorston twins.
"That's Barf and Belch!" Tuffnut alerted the others
"That's their distress signal." Ruffnut added.
The others quickly sprang into action as they got on their dragons and flew straight to the source of the smoke.
"Hey, wait! That's our dragon out there." Tuff called to his friends.
"What do we do?" His twin wondered.
They then realised they have their answer in the form of two Night Furies who were right next to them. Toothless was ground bound due to his prosthetic and Midnight was struggling between flying to Hicca or trying to figure out a way to get her mate over there.
"Hey, T, M, how you guys been?" Tuff greeted with a smirk that matched his twins.
(Linebreak)
Back on the ship Hiccup, Hicca Barf and Belch continued to fend off the hunters knocking them back as they charged at them.
Ryker was getting impatient and pushed one of the hunters aside. "I've had enough of this." He joined in the fight and shoved Hiccup to the ground. He drew out his sword but Barf and Belch used their tails to knock him back.
"I think this might be our cue to leave." Hicca said, helping her brother get up.
"Thanks, sis. Nice job, guys." Hiccup said to Barf and Belch. "Get us out of here."
Just as they were getting on the dragon, Dagur calls out to them "Oh, boys and girls!" He laughed evilly, bringing their attention to a ballista he had aimed at them. Barf quickly covered the deck with green gas that reached Dagur. The Berserker chief eyes widened as he realised what was coming. "Oh, no."
BOOM!
That blast caused the arrows on the ballista to fly in different directions. One of the arrows cut through the rope hanging on the mast, which ended up hanging Ryker upside down before he could take off the side of the rope that got caught around his ankle.
"And now I owe you one." Hiccup said.
"Same here." Hicca agreed.
That's when more soldiers started charging at them.
"Let's go!" Hiccup urged.
Barf and Belch gave one more blast as cover fire allowing the two humans to get on the dragon and escape the ship.
As they flew in the air, they suddenly passed through Astrid and Stormfly, Raeda and Sparkfire, Fishlegs and Meatlug and Snotlout and Hookfang as they flew above. "Hey!" Hiccup tried to call for them.
"Look out!" Hicca suddenly shrieked.
Hiccup looked to see Tuffnut erratically flying Toothless with Ruffnut and Midnight right behind them. And Barf and Belch were flying right towards them!
"Oh, no, no no, no, no." It was too late as the Zippleback and Night Furies all collided, knocking everyone off their saddles.
Midnight was quick to recover and rescue Hicca. Hiccup dove down to Toothless quickly attached his prosthetic back into the stirrup allowing Toothless to fly again.
Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Barf and Belch ended up falling into the sea, with the Zippleback getting caught in a net trap by the Dragon Hunters ship nearby.
Underwater, the blonde twins pull at the net to free their dragon before they get pulled back to the ship. When that didn't work, they silently agreed to go further down below the net.
That strategy ended up paying off and soon, the Zippleback flew out of the ocean with the twins back where they belong.
"Yes!" Ruffnut exclaimed.
"Back in the saddle, baby." Tuffnut exclaimed.
All the teens and dragons gathered together with one final mission.
"Let's get these hunters away from Dragon's Edge!" Hiccup commanded.
They all flew to fire at the ship, no dragon holding back.
The Thorston twins relished the familiarity of Barf and Belch's gas-spark attack.
"I missed this!" Ruffnut said.
"You can say that again, sister." Her brother agreed.
The Hunters tried to fight back using catapults to fire boulders at the dragons.
"Take out the catapults!" Astrid exclaimed.
The dragon immediately fired at the catapults, destroying them and wrecking the ship in the process.
At this point, Dagur realised that the hunters were once again out-matched by the dragon riders. He didn't even care that a pair of his hair caught fire.
"Get us out of here!" He ordered, right before getting hit on the head by a part of the catapult that was sent flying from a blast, knocking him out cold.
The ship immediately retreated with the dragons blasting behind it.
(Linebreak)
"Midnight and I just got back from a flight when I got Hiccup's message that Snotlout needed some medicine. I decided to go to my hut myself to get it and let Midnight rest for a bit. On my way there, my vision went dark and before I knew it, I was on the ship as a prisoner. They were going to take me to the cells below the deck when suddenly the ship was blasted and I got lifted out of there." Hicca recounted to Hiccup, Astrid and Raeda as they walked on the shores of the Edge.
"I am so glad Barf and Belch rescued you first, sis. I was so worried." Hiccup said.
"Yeah, I'm glad that Barf and Belch didn't decide to focus on only rescuing Hiccup because of the life-debt." Raeda added.
"Yeah..." Hicca said with a smile, but there was uncertainty in her eyes.
Her brother noticed it. "You alright? The hunters didn't hurt you did they."
Hicca's eyes snapped to her brothers. "What? Oh no, I'm fine. It's just that the whole kidnap and rescue thing happened so fast, I couldn't even process it properly."
"Speaking of Barf and Belch, looks like the old life-debt has been repaid." Astrid spoke up.
"Barf and Belch saved me from the Dragon Hunters, and Ruff and Tuff saved their dragon from drowning." Hiccup agreed. "Thank Thor, everything's back to normal."
At a distance from the group of four were Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Barf and Belch who seemed to be playing 'Bat the Nut' with both Ruff and Tuff hanging upside-down.
"Yeah! Hit me again." Tuffnut cheered.
"Me next! Me next!" Ruffnut exclaimed.
"Well. Normal for us, anyway." Astrid said, rolling her eyes at the blonde twins antics.
"One thing we can secretly thank the hunters for." Raeda commented.
Suddenly Snotlout came out of nowhere and suddenly tackled Hiccup to the ground. "Ah! Will someone please tell this lunatic it's over?" Hiccup groaned.
"Snotlout!" The Jorgenson boy exclaimed.