Chapter 14
~ Hiccup's POV ~

Getting the dragons to play the "game" the rider's way was easy, getting them to keep playing was the hard bit.
The dragons had been tortured and abused for a long time and habits are hard to break, they constantly wanted to kill everyone around them.

Ryker, had the toughest Night Fury here. It was just like Toothless except, taller, wider, more muscly, bulkier, had much rougher skin and was missing an eye. He earned the name, Buccaneer.

He was the least trusting of people and Ryker admitted he himself had beaten the life out of this dragon when it was making trouble.

While I was talking to Stumpy about his dragon, Ronan, and its nasty habit of eating ragweed from around the edge of the arena, Ryker edged toward this dragon without my knowledge.

"Easy, Buck." He comforted while kneeling down in front of the Fury and tossing him a fish.
Slowly, he began to close the gap between them, edging nearer and nearer.
"I'm sorry...f-for everything I've done to you."

The dragon curled its lip and growled, but it didn't retreat or attack, it never flinched.
"I've turned my back on the old Ryker...he's gone. Now it's just you and me."

I looked up from Ronan to see Ryker only a few feet from the beast, Buccaneer.

"Ryker! No!" I shouted in fear.
The yell frightened the Night Fury and he leapt at Ryker pinning him to the floor.

It released an almighty roar from his powerful chest bringing all in the arena to silence.
They all waited for Buccaneer to blast the soldier, but he didn't.
He growled, then jumped off him before retreating to a corner with a scowl.

I ran over to Ryker and heaved him to his feet.
"That was too soon, Ryker! You nearly got yourself killed! Do you have any idea of the power of a Night Fury's plasma blast! One blow and you're a dead man, I would know..." I paused for a moment then quickly shook off a rockfall of memories tumbling over me. "Training's over for today, go and put your armour back on before Eddval gets here."

Ryker rubbed the back of his neck then grabbed my shoulders. His hands were bigger than my head and the feeling made me think I was a boy again being gripped in the hands of my father.
Ryker's eyes danced and a large grin flooded his face.

"Hiccup! That was amazing! The way he looked at me! No dragon has ever looked at me that way before! There was something...something in his eyes that reminded me of...myself."

I gasped and stepped back.
"Yes. That's trust. When you look in a dragon's eye, you either see murder or mercy...thank Thor you saw mercy...this time. Buck is messed up, he wants to trust you but he's scared because he made a mistake by trusting you the first time and it ruined everything, for him, for his family, for his friends. Buck is their leader and he is afraid to trust because he is scared you will betray him again!"

I turned and started to march away but the man with the bright blue eyes, Erik, stopped me with a snap of his tongue.
"Is that Buck talking...or is that Hiccup?" He questioned bluntly.

I halted and swallowed hard.
"Pick one and return to your ranks." I hissed back before storming away, angry with myself and my students.
I was even more angry with the fact that Erik was right, I was scared to trust these men. I hoped they wouldn't betray me or home would just be a fantasy lying in the dust of my past as darkness shadowed over my life forever.

~*~*~*~
~ Astrid's POV ~

I packed my things and assembled an army of strong villagers ready to fight for their chief.
Few people were staying behind, only those who had small children and the elderly.
A hundred battle-ready men and women gathered outside the Great Hall. I counted out my best warriors.

"Where's Valka?" I asked, with no reply.
No one seemed to know so I made my way up to the house.

"Valka? Are you in there?" I called inquisitively as I entered.
There was no reply so I jumped up the stairs two at a time and stopped at the top.

Valka was stood looking out the window, she was very still and never took her eyes off the view.

"Valka...Are you alright?" I questioned, coming up behind her and resting my hands on the lady's shoulders.

Valka jumped slightly and turned around with a weak smile. "Oh! Oh it's you...You startled me..."

I smiled sympathetically and took my mother-in-law's hands.
"Sorry. I called you, but you didn't answer, I wasn't sure if you were home. Are you okay?" I asked.

Valka looked down and as she did, the light passed over her and I saw the tear tracks on her cheeks.

"Sorry, Astrid...I-I....I...I haven't even packed! I was with Lucy then I-"
I cut off her worried stammers with a wave of my hand and took a deep breath. "Valka...what's wrong?"

Valka took a step back and huffed, running her hand though her thick auburn hair. "I haven't slept for weeks! I can't close my eyes without seeing Stoick or Hiccup! Every time I see Lucy I just want to cry and every time I see you I can't breathe, I'm scared Astrid. I watched Stoick die, I can't watch Hiccup...it would be unbearable." She cried, her feelings spilling like blood.

I sympathetically tilted my head and smiled, I understood perfectly.

Slowly, I wrapped Valka in a hug and whispered down her ear. "Hiccup's not going anywhere, but you don't have to come. Stay here with Lucy, care for her, and be there for her if we never return. It's okay to be afraid."

Valka let a sigh escape her chest and she tightened her grip on her daughter-in-law's hands. "Thank you Astrid. Be safe. It would be just as heart-breaking to lose my only daughter."

~*~*~*~

"Alright everyone! Let's head out!" I yelled over the talking crowd.

Gradually, the Vikings started moving toward the docks or mounting dragons to set off on this perilous journey to possible death.

"Mummy! Where are you going!" Lucy shouted, throwing her arms tightly around my leg.

I spun around and lifted up my little girl in my arms.
The child's green eyes glistened behind her golden bangs with worried tears.

"I'm going to save Daddy, remember? I'll be back before you can say Great Odin's Ghost!" I grinned, brushing Lucy's fringe behind her ear.

Lucy tightly squeezed her mother's tunic in her tiny fingers and nervously chewed her lip. "That's what Daddy said...What if you don't come back with Daddy?"

I took a deep breath and kissed my daughter's forehead. "At least we tried our best. That's what Daddy always says, isn't it?"

Lucy clung to my neck and snuggled close to my chest. "Yeah. Look after Toothie and Storm. I'll make them some nipnog for when they come home!" Lucy instructed happily.

"Nipnog?" I questioned, confusion bouncing off my tone of voice.

"Yeah! Yaknog for dragons made out of nip stalks! I made it myself and Toothie loves it best!" giggled Lucy, very proud of her invention.

I laughed with her before planting one more last goodbye kiss on my daughter's cheek before reluctantly resting Lucy's feet on the floor again.
My eyes stayed trained upon her when I mounted my dragon.

"Be good, I'll be back soon. I promise to bring Daddy home,-" I lowered my voice to a mumble. "I plan on it."

I was last to leave the island and join the others in the sky, waving to the remaining villagers.
I watched until my family faded from view then turned to blue ocean ahead that seemed empty and calm, yet somehow a destructive trap.

"Next stop, the Robin's Crest."

~*~*~*~
~ Hiccup's POV ~

With diligent hours of training, I grew to know and like all the warriors I was working with. I learned to work with their talents and avoid their weaknesses, especially Stumpy's short temper.

I also became very attached to the dragons, Erik and Ryker's dragons, Buccaneer and Killer, then Stumpy's dragon, the smallest of the bunch, Ronan, then Luca had one that was like Toothless but a lighter black, more like a dark grey, unless they were stood together, you couldn't tell them apart. His beast had not yet been christened with a name.
Then last of all was Regal, Mackenzie's dragon, the only female Night Fury and white as snow at that.
It seemed fitting for Mackenzie to train her. She was stubborn as a mule and if Regal didn't want to do it, she didn't. This challenged Mackenzie's short fuse for frustration and she quickly gave up.

One afternoon, I saw Mackenzie sat about ten feet from the Night Fury just observing her mysterious dragon.
I slowly wandered over and slumped down on the floor beside her.

The girl had never taken her hood off since I had met her and I couldn't help but imagine what she looked like underneath.
I truly wanted to know.

"Any progress?" I asked, not expecting a positive answer.

"What do you think, Dragon Master? She hasn't moved all day! She just lies there watching the hours go by and if I get too close, she attacks. I don't get it!"

I frowned at the dragon, but I wasn't really thinking about the beast, I was thinking about Mackenzie.
There was something annoyingly familiar about her and I couldn't put my finger on what it was.

I wanted to keep her talking; maybe she would spill something to trigger the memory.

"Has she eaten anything?"

Miss Kirk shrugged then she sighed. "I don't know what I'm gonna do with her, she doesn't listen to anyone! I know Night Furies are the most intelligent, the fastest, the strongest and brightest of the dragons, being the last in the book and all but, I never expected her to be this ignorant!"

The memory crawled over me like night over a dusty summer sky.

That voice.

I knew that voice and only this peculiar and strange voice would know about "The Book".

I knew instantly she was talking about the Book of Dragons, it was like she was reading her words off the pages and only one person apart from any Berkians knew about the Book of Dragons.

I moved quickly, I yanked the hood from her head and pointed a dagger at her.

"Long time no see...Heather."

The girl sighed with a gasp and blew a piece of rebel hair out of her face, completely calm and collected.

"I see you're no more nifty with a blade. It's Mackenzie...I left Heather behind..." She snapped, whipping the dagger from my hand before I could blink.

My hands fell to my side but my eyes never left her contact. "What are you doing here?"

She looked away and fondled the dagger in her nimble fingers. "No reason...Eddval was recruiting Vikings for training and I joined his forces at his invite but, they were lies. I was deceived, we all were. I am to blame...Erik and I...we left everything, our duties, our lives, all of it behind...and for what? To join a savage hunt for one person. You.
You are a rare specimen Hiccup, a specimen who is to blame for the death of Drago Bludvist...Eddval is going to kill you."

I gulped.

Why did everyone think I killed the man?! Did they just believe everything that Eddval told them?!

I felt a wave of nausea wash over my sorry, and starved form.
Time was running out.

"What does he want with me? I have nothing to give him, I gave him nothing, he has nothing! What does he expect to gain from my blood slipping through his fingers?" I demanded in anger, taking it out on the wrong person.

Mackenzie shook her head as if she were confused with this puzzle also. "Satisfaction. People like Eddval gain temporary satisfaction from revenge, but even if you sacrifice yourself it will never be enough to repay for Drago's life...This bloodshed will not end here, he will seek more revenge, more vengeance. Eddval will not be satisfied and there is nothing you can do to stop him."

I stopped for a breath before clenching my jaw and pressing my lips.
"I could kill him."

"That's not your way Hiccup, what would your father say?" persisted Mackenzie.

"How do you know about my father?"

A short pause drew between us like the calm before a storm. "There were thousands of people upon the shores of the Sanctuary." was her short and blunt reply.

I stood to my feet furiously, my action bringing Mackenzie to her feet also. "You were there! You watched my father die and did nothing!" I hissed, clenching my fists so hard my knuckles had turned white.

"What could I have done! What could have any of us on that shore have done? You avenged your father's life, your revenge has taken place...but Eddval, he wants his."

"He has already had his turn...Drago killed my father with my own dragon. He used Toothless to take my Dad's life! No. Eddval has had his vengeance."

She sighed and shrugged her shoulders plainly, a little too plainly for my liking. "Well then it's your move. But, people like Eddval, they don't play the game. They cheat, they skip, they play it their way. If you don't take your move while you've got it, Eddval will take it for you."

I squinted suspiciously at her. I didn't trust her.
I didn't trust anybody.
"If you are so intent on helping me, why do you stride from place to place with the crest of the Skullhunters plastered upon your back?"

Mackenzie hesitated before breaking her voice to a low whisper. "Maybe some of us have red in our ledger. I don't choose sides. Here it's every man for himself."

I leant towards her and replied in the same low voice. "Wipe your ledger then choose a side. I have friends. You could do with some. Standing alone in No man's land, it's an empty world out there, Heather. Pick a side before it's too late to choose."

We held a glare for a brief moment.
A moment where I saw no feeling in her eyes.

They were empty and cold.

So, we dropped the conversation like it had never happened.
Besides, there were ears everywhere, too many ears.

"Now...Regal is showing signs of depression, try something fun, if you know what fun is?"

She smirked and gave me a shove.
"Shut up and get back to work, dragon master."

I walked away and Mackenzie, in turn, edged closer to the dragon. "Hey girl...Are you sad? Do you wanna play a game? How about tag?"

Heather hopped from one foot to the other and jumped in different directions but all she received was a twitch of the ears from Regal.
The dragons eyes continuously followed her every move, though no other part of the reptile's body squirmed an inch.

A few minutes later, Buccaneer came hobbling over, tired from a day of training with Ryker. He lay beside Regal and nuzzled her gently. It was this affection that formed an idea in Mackenzie's mind. Buccaneer trusted the six people for the most part now and allowed the girl to come near, that was until she reached for Regal. Buccaneer jumped between them and growled defiantly at her, halting Mackenzie in her tracks.
"Easy Buck! I'm not gonna hurt her!" Mackenzie assured him.

Still, she didn't want to take her chances when coming between the two dragons so called upon me again.

I returned and watched, my mouth gaped open and my eyes wide.
"I know what's up..." I breathed, a smile creeping up my face.

Mackenzie frowned, she didn't work with the dragons and didn't understand them like I did, she was maybe even slightly afraid of them. It was strange because last I had seen of her, she had Windsheer at her side. Maybe something happened to Windsheer and she thought she could never pick up where she left off again.

"What? I don't see anything strange, except these dragons are 'in love'."

I pointed to Regal's folded wing and smiled, possibly a little breathless with excitement. "See that?"

Mackenzie looked intently, then she saw it too.
A small tail was sticking out from under Regal's wing, it resembled Regal's own tail.

"She has a baby!...." Mackenzie sighed with relief, a small smile coming to her face.

I nodded with a quiet laugh.
This explained everything. "It must be only a few days old to have a tail that small!," I measured the tail from a distance with my hands concluding it could only be about a foot long from joint to tip. "Wow! This is...Amazing! I have never seen a baby Night Fury before..."

Mackenzie looked to me then back to the dragons. "Me neither. Well that explains Buccaneer's protective instinct, Regal's tiredness and everything! My dragon training has turned into dragon raising!" she giggled, waving her arms for effect.

"Yeah! What should we name the fifteenth member of our company? She's a girl so...What's something you miss from back home?" I asked, drifting in and out of thought as I spoke.

Mackenzie envisioned her home and what it would look like now. "I miss the flowers..." she almost whispered, far away in her memories yet still standing in the dark arena under thick storm clouds that thundered overhead, threatening rain.
I looked down at her as she swayed, that smile never leaving her face.
I turned back and tried to remember what Berk would look like now. The flowers beginning to sprout through the thick snow and ice defiantly defeating all the wind, rain and frozen flakes.

"How about Primrose? The first flowers of spring?" I asked, glancing at Heather.

She nodded mutely in agreement.
"Perfect."

~*~*~*~
I hope you enjoyed chapter 14! What did you think? What about Hiccup teaching the Warriors? Which dragon is your favourite? What about Astrid and Valka's conversation and Astrid saying goodbye to Lucy? What about Mackenzie's admittance to who she really is? What about the baby Nightfury, little Primrose?

Thanks for reading!

~ Httyd_2014