Guys, I am SO SORRY for taking so long to update. I started my senior year of high school, and got accepted to my top university! I've been very busy with school, so I haven't really had time to write. I think my schedule's going to clear up though. I hope you guys still like the story!

Chapter Fourteen

Dagur let out a whoop of glee and lowered the spyglass. Astrid jumped and glared at him. "What?" she grumbled.

"Land!" Dagur cried. "It's the island!"

Astrid straightened, some of the fire returning to her eyes. "Let me see."

Dagur tossed the spyglass to her and watched as she peered through the lens. Suddenly a grin spread across her face. "Oh, thank Thor," she sighed. "We're almost there." She passed the glass back to Dagur and twisted around in the saddle. "Guys!" she shouted. "We see the island!"

The twins, Fishlegs, and Snotlout straightened up in their saddles, exhaustion melting away. Ruff and Tuff let out twin whoops of delight. Fishlegs looked like he might burst with joy, and Snotlout just grinned.

"It looks about seven hours' flight, maybe less than six if we hurry," Dagur informed them. He looked through the spyglass again and, if it was even possible, his grin widened. "They're definitely there," he called. "There's wreckage on shore. A ship is there."

The riders, their spirits lifted by the promise of progress, pressed onwards. Astrid couldn't deny it was good to have some reassurance that their efforts weren't for nothing, but worry gnawed at the back of her mind. It had been a week since Hiccup had been kidnapped. He had suffered torture nd probably still was. Of course, he had gone through similar things before. He was a magnet for trouble after all. But Johann was different than Dagur or Alvin or Savage, or even Viggo. Not only was he smart, but he had no conscience. And he didn't care how much he had to sacrifice to get what he wanted.

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Viggo forced himself to ignore the way the fight seemed to completely leave Hiccup. The boy sagged in his arms, a shaky breath escaping him.

Johann gaped for a solid three seconds, then broke into a smile. "Bravo," he sneered, clapping slowly. "You don't disappoint, Viggo. I must say, I'm a bit surprised, but I suppose I always knew you weren't capable of change."

Viggo glared coldly at the man. "Let me go or I'll snap his neck where he stands. You need him, don't you? You can't afford to let him die."

Hiccup stiffened slightly but Viggo ignored him. He couldn't get distracted, not now.

"Let me live or I'll snap his neck where he stands. You can't afford to let him die, can you?" Viggo hissed.

Johann chuckled. "That's true, my friend. You really are much smarter than you look."

Viggo didn't reply, biting back a retort.

"Now tell me. Why on earth should I believe that someone as intelligent as yourself would be willing to sacrifice his only lifeline to gain the word of a man who has lied to him countless times? It makes no sense. Clearly you're leading me into some sort of trap."

Viggo felt his heart skip a beat. Would he have to take this further in order to convince Johann? As much as he had disliked it, he had thought ahead to more extreme ways of making Johann believe his ploy. None of them were very pleasant.

'Please trust me, Hiccup,' he thought, knowing that this wouldn't be easy.

"Give me a blade, Johann," he ordered. "Give me a weapon and I'll be out of your hair."

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Hiccup's heart leapt into his throat and stuck there. He swallowed hard and wondered how it had come to this. Was Viggo really betraying him? Was this just a ploy to get Johann to let him go?

Or had their alliance been a ploy itself?

He remembered what Viggo had told him just seconds before.

"I'm terribly sorry about this, dear Hiccup." In that moment, he had sounded exactly like the old Viggo, the one whom Hiccup had sworn to hunt down and defeat. The Viggo that had held him hostage aboard a dragon-proof ship while his friends were on an island searching for gold, completely oblivious to his absence. The Viggo who had placed a bounty on his head and sent his bloodthirst brother to collect him.

The only question was, was it real? Was that Viggo really back? Or was it just another trick designed to somehow get them out of this place alive?

Viggo stared hard into Johann's eyes and held out a hand. "Give me a blade," he repeated.

Krogan glanced at Johann, clearly unprepared for a situation like this. The tall foreigner looked even more uneasy when his leader gave a hesitant nod. "You'll give us the boy?" Johann repeated, a deep frown creasing his face.

Viggo nodded. "You have my word."

Johann turned to one of his men. "Give him your knife."

The man nodded, lowered his sword and drew his knife. Stepping forward, he flipped the knife around and held the handle out towards Viggo, his knuckles white. Viggo's eyes darted from Johann to Krogan, then finally to the soldier with the knife. He reached out to take it, but the man swiftly yanked it back and threw it-

Straight at Krogan's chest.

The tall foreigner's eyes widened in shock as all eyes turned to him. He stared at the knife handle sticking out of his chest, and then looked back up at Viggo. "You tricky little bastard." Then his legs crumpled beneath him and he fell to the ground. He didn't move again.

The man who had thrown the knife drew his sword and thrust it into the air. "Dragon Hunters!" he bellowed, and the soldiers around him roared with approval, shaking their weapons and roaring in approval. The tension broken, Viggo relaxed and released Hiccup, catching him smoothly again as the boy nearly fell. Hiccup's face was pale, his skin clammy. His eyes were open, but he didn't respond as Viggo lowered him carefully to the ground and shook him gently.

The man turned to Viggo, extending the sword's hilt towards him. "Nigel Gilsson, at your service."

Viggo offered Nigel a grateful nod and glanced down at Hiccup. "Can you…?"

Nigel nodded. "Let's get him back to camp and we'll see what we can do."

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Well... plot twist... I guess...? It almost seems as though this ordeal is over...