A/N: Just a quick note to give a big THANK YOU to those of you who have been waiting so very, very patiently for the conclusion of this story! You are all wonderful and I'm so sorry it took me this long to finish it. Hope you enjoy!

-DF

...

Part 5

The fierce blade glanced off the Gronckle iron, leaving it largely unscathed. The weapon and its wielder, on the other hand, came away fairing somewhat worse. The brute looked to have just received the shock of his life, a shock which the axe apparently wasn't strong enough to handle as the blade cracked in two and he went staggering and howling backwards into the mob gathering behind him.

"That ain't fair!" the guard bellowed, struggling to untangle himself from the snarl of men and weapons.

"Gronckle iron." Hiccup shrugged as if it were obvious, giving the shield a fond tap as he stood up.

"What in Odin's name is Gronckle—"

"Who gives a flying dragon's fart what it is?!" shouted another. "GET THAT KID!"

"That's HICCUP!" Grasping the shield's strap in both hands, the young Chief charged and began swinging it madly left and right, hollering at the top of his lungs while clobbering guard after guard and leaving behind an impressive trail of damage. "Hiccup...Horrendous...Haddock...The Third, Son of Stoick the Vast, and this is Gronckle iron!"

His limp victims merely groaned from the floor.

"Ohhh, my bad, I thought you were asking for a demonstration—" his quip was cut short by a commotion about a hundred feet to his left. Glancing up, his stomach froze.

Not to his surprise, Astrid's body count easily topped his, but a knot of burly men was closing in around her fast.

"Astrid!" he hollered. "Head for the table!"

"Right!" she yelled back without a break in her swinging. "Be there in a sec!"

Hiccup hopped onto the back of the nearest felled guard, jumping from one to the next as if they were steppingstones across a pond.

"S'cuse me, pardon me, comin' through!" The young man landed lightly on the wide tabletop at the very center of the room, kicking a few heavy tankards into the crowd for added measure before spotting Astrid in a tight tangle and losing ground—

He yelped as a sneaky rogue swept his legs out from under him and he came down hard on his back. As he was grappling with the newest attacker, he caught sight of the large candelabra hanging from the beams, his previously misguided arrow still stuck in one of the wooden racks. Finally shaking off his ugly opponent, the young chief rolled into a crouch, popped the hidden crossbow out of his shield and took hasty aim.

"HEADS UP!" he shouted, and let the arrow fly. Unlike the last time, it hit its mark exactly, slicing through the frayed rope. Time slowed, faces turned upward, contorted with shock. Hiccup searched between them and, with relief, noted the blur of red and blonde rolling deftly out from under it all in the nick of time.

The candelabra crashed into the horde, causing an uproar of splinters, tangled limbs, shouting and cursing. Astrid sprang to her feet and dashed for the table, bounding over downed guards until Hiccup seized her hand.

"Welcome aboard, M'lady."

"Ha!" she said as he pulled her up beside him. "Nice one!"

"I do try, sometimes. Now what?"

Back-to-back atop their little island, the couple rotated in the face of the shrinking ring of angry, growling guards.

"I'll take out the big guys…" Astrid hissed.

"They're all big!" Slinging the shield over his back, Hiccup grabbed for his sword. This situation called for more fireworks and less iron.

"Listen, I'm gonna break out and find the dragons. See if you can make it to that watch tower we spotted on the way in, the one on the northwest side."

"What? But why don't we both—"

"Divide the group," she panted.

"Whoa, whoa, wait, you're telling me to go corner myself in a tower while you round up all the firepower—"

"Got any other ideas."

Hiccup blinked, then swallowed, coming up blank. "Uh…yes. Yes, good plan."

It was the worst plan he'd ever heard, if he had anything to say about it, but they didn't have very much of a window in which to argue or strategize.

"Just trust me."

"Ok, fine, you've gotten us this far…"

"Aw, thanks, babe!"

"…but which way is northwest? I don't know about you, but waking up in a dungeon tends to be a bit disorienting."

With a grunt, she pointed.

"Right, right, thanks."

"See you on the other side, Dragon Boy."

"The other side of what, exactly?"

Leaving him with a wink, a quick peck on the cheek and nothing more in the way of answers, Astrid screamed and took a flying dive off the table into the hairy mass. Flames erupted from Hiccup's sword and the guards immediately in front of him shouted in surprise at the blast of light and heat and stumbled backwards, which was exactly what Hiccup had been counting on.

With a yell of his own, he jumped at them, landing on the floor in the vacant space he'd created for himself. Swinging the sword back and forth, Hiccup cut a swath through the astounded throng to the other side of the hall where he made it to one of the hulking wooden doors just as the guards collectively regained their senses.

Hiccup whirled around and, at the sight of the oncoming stampede, immediately wished he hadn't.

"Aaagh, nope!" Sliding through the door, he heaved it to. "Nope, nope, nope, not today!"

Hiccup brought down the bolt, flinching as the group smashed into it. The door rattled severely, but held firm, which, fortunately for him, it was designed to do. Quenching the sword, he spun, finding himself facing a stairway much like the one he and Astrid had ascended on the opposite side, only this one spiraled toward the sky.

The tower. It didn't offer a whole lot of solace, but there was nowhere to go except…well, up.

Keeping that sliver of positivity in mind, he dashed for the stairs, taking them three at a time until a welcome splash of daylight greeted him from an arched doorway at the top landing.

His relief manifested in a triumphant shout he simply couldn't hold back.

"YES! Yes, yes, y—"

A broadsword came to rest longways across his chest, stopping him dead one step across the threshold.

"No," sneered the double-crossing chief. "No, I really don't think so."

For a moment, the two stood glaring at each other; one young and out of breath (and ideas, for the time being), the other middle-aged and looking quite pleased with himself.

"And what makes you think that?" Hiccup hoped desperately that he sounded more like the fearless leader he wished he could be instead of the cornered rodent he felt like.

The other man replied with a snide question of his own. "You didn't approve of our accommodations, I take it?"

Forcing cool nonchalance, Hiccup shrugged. "Eh…we've had better, but we appreciate the gesture—"

Metal whooshed through the air as the elder chieftain performed a fantastic spin, ending the act with the sword's point digging into the middle of Hiccup's chest. He gave the sword a good jab, sending the young man staggering backwards into a wall.

"It's very rude to walk out on a host so abruptly. I thought everyone knew that, but perhaps Berk isn't as civilized as the rest of us?"

"Ok," Hiccup grunted, "now that was just uncalled for." Inferno clenched in both hands, he took on a fighting stance.

To his surprise, his opponent gave a snicker. "You're going to fight me…with a sword-hilt? Shame, I was looking forward to a lengthy duel."

Hiccup returned with a sly quirk of his head. "Well, maybe not just the hilt." Clickclickclick! Out came the glinting, hollow blade. "How about I fight you with the whole thing?"

The opposing chief raised an eyebrow. "Very impressive, young Haddock, but I don't for a moment believe that pretty piece of decorated wire can do anything against the weapon of a real man…"

A miniature firestorm spiraled through the blade before Hiccup executed a spin of his own, compelling the startled man to jump away from him.

"This real enough for you?"

Immediately, he took another swing, but in spite of the shock, the other chief was more prepared this time and easily blocked the oncoming blow. The two weapons clashed in a shower of sparks and flaming Nightmare saliva.

The pair spun, twisted and lunged in a dangerous dance across the tower's top. Though he'd had intensive combat training from Astrid, Hiccup would always be more confident engaging an enemy from dragon-back in tandem with Toothless than solo on the ground. This wasn't his style and without the wings and wit of his best friend, his chances of overcoming a seasoned Viking warrior were slim. If Astrid didn't get there quickly, he would soon be beyond the use of any form of combat training whatsoever.

In a surprise move, the older man whirled around the younger, wrenching one arm behind his back and catching him in a tight headlock.

"By the way," the chief hissed in his ear as Inferno was pried out of his grip and thrown aside, "where is that charming lady of yours? I would hate for her to miss your untimely but undoubtedly satisfying death."

Normally, Hiccup would be fairly worried for his life at this point, as would any other sane person. However, he had the distinct advantage of being able to hear something the other man's untrained ears couldn't: the squawk of an incoming Deadly Nadder.

"Looks like our game is at an end."

"Says who? I'm still playing." With renewed strength and assurance, Hiccup wrapped his left leg around his adversary's while heaving his upper half backwards, bringing them both to the ground. The young man rolled off his stunned opponent, swiping up Inferno before vaulting onto a battlement.

Coming in fast, Stormfly gave a terrifying shriek, teeth bared and talons spread wide.

"Well, that's my ride," said Hiccup, smiling as the other chief cringed in terror. "It's been fun and I'd love to stay and chat, but I've got an island to defend."

The other chief let out a very unmanly scream as Stormfly and Astrid came swooping down from the heavens, the dragon plucking Hiccup from the tower.

"There you are!" he shouted up to his wife. "I was getting worried!"

"You're welcome." She pointed below them as the dragon dipped lower, skimming the grass. There, running underneath them, was Toothless.

"Hey, bud!" The talons retracted and Hiccup landed right in the saddle.

The Night Fury spread his wings as his companion clicked the prosthetic tailfin into place, and they were off, leaving behind a scattering of guards and a now enraged and cursing chief behind them.

"Let's get out of here," Astrid shouted over the breeze.

Hiccup spiraled around her. "Hold on…"

"Are you crazy? C'mon, let's go!"

"I just thought it might be nice to leave our hosts with a generous parting gift." He watched her eyes spark with that lethal mischievousness he knew so well as she followed his gaze to the armada floating in the island's harbor. "You know, to thank them for their hospitality."

Astrid feigned contemplation, one finger on her chin. "Oh, gee, I don't know…"

"Right this way, M'lady," Hiccup said, gesturing toward the doomed fleet. "Allow me to offer you the first shot."

There was no hesitation. "Well, if you insist."

The End