Chapter 23: The Final Test

Valka slowly climbed down the cliff face overlooking the boat graveyard. It had filled quickly in the past few months, resulting in an influx of resources for the only two humans on the island. It was a curse and a blessing―Valka knew that once she got used to the comfort of excess, she'd start to crave it once it was gone. It'd happened when she had first arrived, and she didn't want to go through it again.

It was nearing the eighth month of Hiccup's stay, but in recent weeks, it felt like Hiccup had disappeared from the Haven almost entirely. His effect on the Haven had only grown since, however; even the newest boats in the ravine had been gutted, their materials used across the island's icy shores. Dragons often swarmed the air around it, hoping to catch a glimpse of the elusive boy. His popularity among the dragons had risen quickly, making him some sort of celebrity among the dragons of the Haven, although Valka could hardly guess how.

Reaching the ground near the boats, Valka wandered close to their debilitated corpses, running her hand along the sea-weathered wood. They were bare skeletons of the proud vessels they had once been, torn apart by Hiccup and his mad rush of building machines of war.

Valka was not blind. She had noticed Hiccup's silence after the ambush and assumed the worst. She'd searched the ship prow to quarterdeck, then searched again. She'd sent her dragons to patrol the scene of the ambush, then went to investigate personally. It had been a fruitless search, only proving to confuse her more. The months since, she had watched her son spiraling into madness, unable to do anything to help.

She had even gone to the lady in the mist―the mysterious demigod residing in the Smokebreath Caverns who even Valka had never personally met. The two of them spoke for a short time, but in the end it was a wasted trip. While the demigod refused to reveal the exact nature of her blessing, she had promised that it was nothing that could help Hiccup.

Valka let her hand fall with a sigh, and walked along the lengths of boats, searching for something to point her towards Hiccup's newest hideaway. He'd quickly learned how to escape her watchful eye, and sometimes days or weeks could pass without catching a glimpse of her son. When she put her mind to finding him, however, it was impossible for him to hide.

Hearing a low grumble from the air, Valka turned to see Cloudjumper landing on a piece of one of the torn-apart ships. Perched like a bird on a twig, he steadied himself and stared down at the wreckage around him with a haughty look. Since the day she had arrived, she had loved that stare; the look of a ruler among his citizens.

It reminded her of Stoick.

Hiccup reminded her of Stoick as well, albeit in a different way. Hiccup was everything that Stoick wasn't, and vice versa. From what Hiccup had told her, the two had never seen eye to eye. When she looked at her son, however, she saw something they refused to see in each other: they both had the same passion inside them. They had the same hot blood in their veins, no matter how differently they expressed it.

Valka walked towards Cloudjumper, reaching a hand towards the dragon. In return, he leaned down to meet her, moving past her hand to press his forehead against hers. They both were still for a moment, then Valka lifted her arms to give the great beast a fleeting embrace. "Thank you, Cloudjumper," she whispered with her eyes closed, "my thoughts were running away with me."

The dragon snorted a puff of smoke in return, and while Valka couldn't understand him, she knew he had understood her. She backed away a few steps and smiled up at him. Again, he snorted, this time hopping up to fly around in search of Hiccup. As he flew away, Valka smiled gratefully after him―even with his disdain for Hiccup, the dragon helped her search.

Turning back to the wreckage around her, Valka breathed a deep breath. Using her blessing would cause a migraine to plague her for the next two days at least, but it would be better to find Hiccup soon. With a short spike of pain through her head, Valka's senses sharpened. The air around her seemed to shimmer, and the few dragons flying nearby quieted themselves.

Information began piecing itself together in her mind, connecting puzzle pieces that she hadn't thought to link together. She walked along the boats' sides, investigating the way they'd been taken apart and their positions. She noticed small scratches, caught subtle footprints, and without much issue, spotted a path leading out of the valley. It was open yet secluded, allowing someone to carry wood and metal out of the graveyard without much trouble. Valka had no doubt that it was the path her son had been using.

Following the path and loosening her use of her blessing, she searched for her son. More subtle clues pointed her in the right direction: broken branches, tiny metal scraps or splinters, a half-footprint in soft dirt. She walked slowly, releasing her blessing and rubbing her temples in an attempt to lessen the inevitable headache.

In a moment of pure luck, the slow walk saved her life.

Valka's foot tripped a fine line, and barely three inches from her face an arrow whizzed by, sticking itself into the ground. She froze, then reactivated her blessing with a wince. Looking at the cliff face above her, she saw a small machine cleverly hidden by an overhanging bunch of moss. She recognized it as one Hiccup had shown her previously, calling it a crossbow.

Taking more care to watch where she stepped, and now using the blessing to survey her surroundings, Valka moved on. It was slow going, but with her senses pushed to the max, it was nearly impossible for her to overlook the lethal traps hidden along the path.

Valka knew she was no fighter. Her blessing was minor, and her connection to the deity providing it was superficial at best. Years had passed since she had first received the blessing, and she had barely scratched the surface of its abilities. Even Hiccup had been able to beat her and Cloudjumper: an unblessed teenager taking down two blessed individuals. Even though they had been using physical abilities alone, Hiccup had accomplished an amazing feat.

Seeing him in such pain now made her realize just how helpless she really was.

Turning a sharp corner overlooking the boat graveyard, Valka found herself looking at a natural clump of vines hanging over an opening in the rock. Pushing them aside, she ducked into the cramped opening.

While powerful for gathering and linking information, her blessing had weaknesses. The headache was only a small part of a much greater whole. After testing, Valka had found that the cause was an overload of information; her senses were too sharp, and the resulting input was too much for her to handle. But the input from humans or dragons? It was enough to knock her out.

After making sure there were no more traps, Valka released her blessing once again. Her boosted senses hadn't picked up any movement from inside the cave, so Hiccup must've been out, perhaps building on the beaches again. Valka crawled in, hoping she could find some indication of where he would be, perhaps a map or a journal.

As the tunnel opened, Valka straightened up and brushed a rough cloth hung as a door out of her way. She stepped into the well-lit room and froze.

In front of her stood Hiccup; his eyes were bloodshot and his hands were shaking, holding a knife up to her face. He looked dirty and tired, but more than anything he looked small, like a scared child in an unfamiliar place. She opened her mouth to speak, and Hiccup jerked the knife forward to silence her.

"Don't speak," barked Hiccup, "and show me your eyes. And don't move. Don't try to...anything. Don't try anything." His breath was short and erratic. As he moved closer, staring deep into her eyes, Valka barely breathed, barely allowed herself to move. Hiccup simply stared, unmoving, with the same tired intensity.

Finally, he fell back, dropping the knife, and Valka allowed herself to take a deep breath.

Now that she was safe, she allowed her eyes to wander the room. It was cramped, full of papers and raw materials and half-finished machinery. The room was lit by candles and torches strewn about the floor and hung on the walls, and there were so many that Valka saw spots in her vision after a quick glance. She looked down at her son, and he seemed even wearier than she had first realized; he looked as if he hadn't washed or slept in days.

"Hiccup, what...what's happened to you?"

"Why are you here, Valka." It was spoken flat, toneless, as if it was supposed to answer her question.

"Answer me Hiccup! What's happened to you? Why are you hiding away?"

"Nidhogg happened." The name of the demon seemed to sweep shadow into the corners of the brightly lit room. The quiet, sullen statement was all he would say on the subject, no matter how Valka pried. Hiccup had closed his mind, and with it, his mouth.

After a minute of silently enduring Valka's interrogation on the topic, Hiccup snapped back, "Why are you here? To punish me for hiding? To drag me out? Let me build in peace, Valka. You don't need me out in the Haven regardless."

"Oh?" Valka scowled, "build in peace? I notice you've been taking resources from the new boats I've been dispatching. You wouldn't happen to have any idea about that, would you?" She noticed her son's eye twitch, saw his facial features harden, and decided to press on. I need you, Hiccup, to help me in a fight that I am blind in." She paused, then spoke more softly, "have you ever heard the name Drago Bludvist?"

Hiccup shook his head glumly.

She continued, "He was a dangerous warlord from the southern mainland when I lived on Berk. He had a massive following and, according to Stoick, controlled his armada of humans and dragons through fear. I found papers on the Trapper's recent boat, detailing their mission from Drago, simply to scout out this area. Does that sound like an accident, Hiccup?"

Straining to keep his emotionless facade up, Hiccup growled, "No, that seems odd." The silence between the two stretched, and Valka glared down into her son's eyes harshly. His mask was beginning to crack; his eyes wouldn't meet hers, and his fingers twitched nervously at his sides.

Finally, as the silence drew longer, the mask chipped. It did not shatter, but it was enough to let the truth slip out.

"I…" Hiccup slowly stuttered, "I may be...partially to blame for that." Valka made no reaction, simply waiting for him to continue. "When we ambushed the Trapper's ship, I went to investigate the lower levels, as you had told me to. In the captain's quarters, there was a Trapper who had hidden away from the fighting―he tried to kill me, and I fought him off. He escaped when Nidhogg took over his body, just like...just like he'd done with me. I…" Hiccup trailed off without finishing the story, pale and short of breath, but Valka was satisfied. She felt relieved to finally hear the whole story.

Kneeling down and embracing her son, Valka realized how small her son really was―ever since he'd arrived, he'd seemed bigger than he was. His brilliant mind, his well-honed fighting skills, his transcendent mechanical knowledge; only now did Valka feel that she'd seen a piece of the true Hiccup, past all the walls he'd built to keep others out.

Valka held the embrace until she felt Hiccup's shivers fade; even once she pulled back, his face was bloodless and pale. He looked more frightened than she had ever seen a person be. "Thank you, Hiccup." She spoke softly, "for finally telling me. I know that was difficult for you. But now is not the time to be hiding away." Pulling her son to his feet, Valka put her hand on his shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze. "You need to prepare to leave."

Sputtering, Hiccup looked up into her eyes for the first time since his story. "You―you're kicking me out? Banishing me?"

"No, no," Valka chuckled with a stern face, "Although I would if it were anyone else. What's done is done. You've trained to your limits here, there's nothing more for you. You know how to train dragons, you've built impressive machinery, and I've certainly been trounced by your hand-to-hand strength. No, I'm sending you to Fenrir."

"But...doesn't Toothless need to finish his training? It's only been, what, five months?"

"Hiccup, you've been here for almost eight months. You've been hiding away for weeks at a time―it was close to the four-month mark when we made that first ambush. I got word just this morning that Toothless has finished his training, at least enough to satisfy Fenrir. It would only be a waste to train the two of you apart, now."

"But...the Haven?"

"I'll be staying here, Hiccup. Fenrir has more to teach you in terms of blessings, skills, and how to fight against Nidhogg." Valka's gaze grew stern once again. "But if I need you to return to protect the Haven, if it is ever endangered; you must rush back. I need you to promise me. That is how you will redeem your mistake." Hiccup nodded solemnly, staring back into Valka's eyes.

"Good." Valka gave Hiccup a slap on the back. "Go wash up, Hiccup, then we can collect your things. And disarm those traps of yours as well, please."

Hiccup turned to walk out of the cave, and as soon as his back was turned, Valka's eyes narrowed. She let her blessing flow through her for the third time in an hour, attempting to ignore the stab of pain spiking through her head. She stared at the opening that her son was leaving through.

She got no reaction, just like when she had been entering the cave―it was as if he did not exist.

Her blessing had one more weakness. While it overloaded her with information from normal people and dragons, anyone with a blessing slipped through the cracks. It normally wouldn't matter, since demigods could often sense each other's presences. She had discovered this by accident while training with Cloudjumper, but it was a vital ability to be aware of. And the fact that she was aware of it was what made it strange that Hiccup caused no reaction from either her blessing, nor the connection between demigods.

He didn't have a blessing...did he?

Fenrir was not looking forward to training the baggage he had sent away. While yes, he acknowledged that the boy would've no doubt gotten stronger training at the Haven, the boy was still human. When he had first given the Skrill his blessing, they had fought against and killed many of the strongest of humans; even now, as a full god, Fenrir still had a distaste for humans.

Backstabbers, all of them. They reminded him too much of how he'd been locked away in the first place.

Something at the edge of his vision caught his eye, and he turned to find Toothless pacing the brightly lit cavern once again. From his perch, Fenrir barked down, "Sit still and wait, brother. The boy will get here eventually. Hopefully later rather than sooner."

Scowling, Toothless sat at the edge of the opening to the underground waterfall. Instead of replying to the bitter reptile, he began to meditate, hoping to make another step in connecting with his god. Two months had passed since any significant improvement had occurred, and Toothless had begun to feel restless, as if he was missing something important.

Fenrir snorted and laid back down. Human aside, he was interested in how strong the boy had grown in the time away. If what Toothless and Valka had said were true, his mind was developed well beyond his years, and had the combat skills to match. Fenrir hated to admit it, but he would be a good match for Toothless's yet unpolished talent.

A weak presence caught his attention. Two tiny glowing lights in a sea of grey fog, so close they looked like one oddly shaped glow. That would be the woman and Cloudjumper, thought Fenrir, let's see how long it takes for my pupil to notice. Fenrir, airing more on the side of a natural learning environment, eyed Toothless carefully. The more you told someone what to do, the less they learned.

As Fenrir had expected, within a few minutes, Toothless perked up. Acting uninterested, he turned toward the smaller dragon. "What are you doing?"

"There's something...moving towards us? I'm not sure how to explain it…" Toothless spoke haltingly, as if he doubted the words coming out of his mouth. He glanced at Fenrir, then looked away with a confused expression on his face.

"Focus on it. See if you can pinpoint where, or what. It's an elementary skill that you'll need to master; it shouldn't take longer than a few weeks of training."

"And you didn't tell me about this?" Toothless glared at his mentor, who snorted derisively and laid back down to rest. As the Night Fury scowled and closed his eyes to focus, Fenrir let a small grin creep over his face. Although Toothless seemed dissatisfied with his own performance, the god was quite impressed with his growth. In their mock fights, he even had to put some effort into beating the young dragon down. Eight months of training had been enough to put Toothless on par with many seasoned demigods

The two of them waited silently, listening to the steady rumble of the waterfall as it washed deeper into the cavern. One looked down, quietly proud of his student's accomplishments; the other looked inward, not allowing a moment to go by without training to his peak.

Within ten or so minutes, the two dragons had left the cavern to greet the approaching guests. The tide was still high, so they had to find their way through the underground tunnels, rather than flying out the waterfall's opening directly. When they eventually crawled out, the sky was a dull grey, punctuated only occasionally by sun poking through holes in the clouds. On the horizon, two small specks were growing larger as they flew closer.

Soon, the approaching dragons flew down to set their loads on the rocky beach. Each one carried a wooden crate of materials, neither abnormally large nor particularly small. They were filled to the brim with metal scraps and tools, and Fenrir scowled at the idea that his peaceful island would become a place of hammering and forging.

Valka slid off Cloudjumper as he landed, and Hiccup did the same from a dully colored Rumblehorn. It snorted and pawed the ground, then lifted into the air again to fly back the way it had come. Hiccup turned to greet his old friend, but by the time he had, Toothless had already happily pounced upon him.

Fenrir watched the two reunite, then turned away, uninterested. Valka, walking towards him, nodded coldly in greeting―they were not on particularly good terms, but at least they both acknowledged each other.

"I hope your son has improved." grunted Fenrir, "I wouldn't want to waste my student's talent pairing him with an unable partner."

Valka hesitated, then responded, "He's grown, but he's gained a weakness as well. Nidhogg drove a thorn far deeper than I can fix, and I noticed only recently. I'm ashamed to say that I'm nowhere near strong enough to train him any better."

Fenrir didn't respond, instead turning to stare at the boy, currently being flattened by the Night Fury and covered in its saliva. He looked thin, had bags under his eyes. He laughed and smiled at Toothless gallivanting around him, but Fenrir could tell that the boy was straining to keep a strong face up.

"I see." said Fenrir quietly. He did not elaborate, and Valka did not push him.

"There is one other thing…" Valka started, then trailed off. Fenrir glanced at her, gestured for her to continue, and looked back to the two reuniting. Valka detailed Hiccup's strange immunity to her blessing, and how she'd found out about it. "If you have any insights, I would be glad to hear them. I'm no expert on blessings, even my own." she finished.

Fenrir grunted in response, staring intensely at the boy. He certainly lacked the telling 'glow' of a demigod, but there was something there. That something was normally an indicator that it was possible for him to receive a blessing, but could Fenrir be missing something?

"I'll test him. And no matter how subtly you plead, I won't teach you, woman." Fenrir mused. Ever since they had met, Valka had been trying to get Fenrir's assistance in connection to her deity. Ever since they had met, Fenrir had refused. He did not plan to change his mind.

Sighing, Valka lifted her hand in the air and called for Cloudjumper; he flew back to her, water dripping off of him and mouth full of fish. "Hiccup!" she shouted as she climbed onto Cloudjumper's back. "Train well. And remember your promise." Hiccup nodded, and Valka smiled, satisfied.

As she flew off, Fenrir spoke sharply to Hiccup for the first time. "So, boy, what's your blessing?"

Hiccup jumped, then turned to the god. "Blessing?"

"It's probably something stealth-based, if even I can't tell that you have one. If I train you, you'll be unstoppable when paired with a good partner." Fenrir nodded towards Toothless, in example. "So I'll ask again. What's your blessing?"

"I...I have one? I thought when I climbed out of the pit that you threw me into," Hiccup shot an angry glare at the god, "that you'd said that I'd failed."

"You had. But I hadn't realized that you were already blessed. It makes sense―eating a living root of the Yggdrasil tree would kill any normal human. The only possibility is that you had a blessing before you met me. Are you trying to tell me that you are unaware?"

"I...guess? What is it supposed to feel like?"

Fenrir snorted. Toothless, standing next to Hiccup, felt a shiver run down his spine; he recognized the look on his mentor's face. It was the same look that he had learned to fear. Turning to look at his friend, he hoped the boy would survive Fenrir's spartan training.

"Find a room and put your things in it. Come get me once you're ready for training." Fenrir slunk away, leaving the two on the beach and grinning in anticipation of training the child.

Over the next hour, Hiccup and Toothless brought down the crates into the caverns. Toothless had led them to a dimly lit room with a pillar of stone reaching to the ceiling. There were claw marks and blackened stone all over, and Hiccup could tell it was the Night Fury's home.

It looked like he had a roommate now.

Most of what Hiccup had brought was unimportant, and could be left alone for the time being: clothes, metal scraps, blueprints and bits of machinery that had no certain purpose. He left them in the crate, making a mental note to organize them later. He set up a bed consisting of two rough blankets on the flattest surface he could find, then put his only things of importance next to it: the Yggdrasil root and Mjolnir. The crystal that he had brought to the Haven had eventually been broken down and used to reinforce his metal appendages; now that he had returned to Fenrir's cavern, he idly considered going back down to collect more.

After sharing a half-chewed fish with Toothless, the Hiccup proceeded to go find Fenrir, with the Night Fury following behind him.

The Skrill was lounging in the same spot he always did: the spire lifting into the center of the crystal-lit cavern. Waves of mist floated along the ground, slickening the dark stone around the opening to the waterfall. Hiccup looked up to the backlit god, and in return he looked down on the boy.

"Are you ready to begin?" No greeting, no acknowledgement, only the question.

Hiccup nodded, and Fenrir leaped down to land lightly next to him. He turned to Toothless and quipped, "train on your own for now. See if you can sense me while I'm training him." Without looking at Hiccup, he began walking out of the cavern. "Follow me, boy."

They walked through crystal-encrusted tunnels in silence. At times, they split up to take different paths, some too small for Fenrir, others too high for Hiccup. After a while, however, they stopped in a dead end lit dimly by a few scattered crystals on the floor.

"The most basic trait that a demigod can use is a way to sense other blessed individuals. Even if you do not have an understanding of your own blessing, you will be able to do this." The dragon turned around, facing Hiccup. "Where am I?"

Hiccup narrowed his eyes, trying to tell whether or not this was a joke. "What do you mean?"

Unamused, Fenrir repeated, "Where am I?"

In response, Hiccup pointed at him. "You're right in front of me."

"Good." Fenrir spat a bolt of lightning at the ground near Hiccup's feet. Three of the crystals illuminating the room burst, and Hiccup jumped back in surprise. It was now uncomfortably dim, enough to barely see the outline of their surroundings. "Can you find me without your vision?" Fenrir spat another bright burst at the floor, and the cavern went pitch-black. "Where am I?"

Hiccup smiled. Although he couldn't see, the echoes of Fenrir's voice didn't distract him; he'd heard where the voice had come from. Pointing to the right, slightly behind him, Hiccup said hesitantly, "There."

"Good." After a moment, Fenrir's voice stopped echoing. Suddenly, Hiccup heard his voice inside his head. "Where am I?"

As the voice went silent, Hiccup strained to hear anything. He heard nothing but his own breathing. His eyes were useless as well, with no difference between opening or closing them. He felt like he was at the bottom of the ocean, perfectly still yet crushed by the pressure.

A familiar light seemed to jump out at him in the darkness, although he couldn't place where he knew it from. Hiccup pointed at it and spoke confidently, "There."

"No." The resulting blow knocked Hiccup over, and when he stood back up, he didn't know which way he was standing, or where the middle of the room even was.

"What was that for, asshole?" Another slap blindsided him, this time harder. Hiccup realized that it had to be Fenrir's tail, so powerful yet small and whiplike.

"Blind guesses will not be rewarded, boy. Learn to look with more than your eyes."

"How am I supposed to do that when you haven't taught me?"

"I am teaching you. You simply refuse to learn."

He made no response. Scowling, Hiccup paused again, trying to find something without knowing what it was. He closed his eyes―not to block out any light, but to help him focus. Breathing slowly, he remembered the feeling of the demigods he'd been near. He lowered himself deep into his own mind.

First, there was silence.

But suddenly, he heard a roar echoing in his head. Not from Fenrir; the dragon was staying as silent as ever. No, this was the same roar he'd heard facing down Nidhogg. Icy fear rushed through Hiccup's veins like a waterfall, and he let out a frightened yell. This was not just a memory, it felt like a hand gripping his throat. Shaking and struggling to breathe, Hiccup reached out to grasp at something, anything.

The same familiar light he'd seen before blossomed out of the darkness, and Hiccup reached for it. For the first time, he felt it connect to him―and he pulled.

The light shot towards him, and Hiccup fell forward onto his knees gasping for a breath and retching. Fenrir's stern voice rang out, but the words were barely more than garbled noise in Hiccup's ears. The light was speeding towards him, and he stretched his right arm out towards it. He heard a crunching noise in front of him.

Something broke through the wall and collided with Hiccup; he caught it, and the momentum drove him back onto his feet, nearly knocking him over backwards. The light was still there in Hiccup's eyes, although the object itself let off no light. For a moment, the stillness returned to the cavern.

But the object wasn't done pulling yet.

Across Fenrir's body, (who was now revealed to be right next to Hiccup) lightning began to spark, illuminating the cavern ominously. A second later, the lightning moved as if magnetized to the object in Hiccup's hand, sparking around it and shocking Hiccup. In the newfound light, he could finally see what the object was.

Mjolnir. His mocking version of a god's weapon seemed to have some strange abilities of its own.

Fenrir roared. Hiccup couldn't make out much of what he'd said over the crackling of the electricity, but it seemed closer to an angry yell than any specific words. Without warning, Fenrir upped the output of lightning dancing across his skin, blasting a white-hot bolt towards the hammer.

The resulting blast threw Hiccup backwards like a doll. The last thing Hiccup saw was his hammer, immobile in the air where he'd held it a moment before, withstanding the full strength of Fenrir.

When he woke a few minutes later, the room was dimly lit once again, as it had been when they had first arrived. Fenrir's body was laying next to him, shifting slightly in place with labored breaths. Hiccup tried to speak, but only groaned as pain wracked his body. Fenrir, on the other hand, perked up.

"How do you feel?" Although blunt as ever, Hiccup could hear a different, less surly tone in Fenrir's voice.

"Bad. My head hurts."

"You should take a few days to rest. It will heal with time. More importantly," Fenrir stood up, and Hiccup noticed small, streaking burns along his body. "We need to discuss that hammer of yours."

Fenrir walked slowly over to the opposite side of the cavern, and Hiccup noticed Mjolnir. Somehow, it still stood immoble in the air, a few feet above the ground, exactly where he had last seen it. "What…" he croaked in disbelief.

"What caused such an outburst?"

Hiccup flinched, trying not to think of Nidhogg. Was it possible that the god was still manipulating him, hiding in the recesses of his mind? He stayed silent, and the Skrill seemed to take it as an answer.

"I hadn't realized before, but you used the chains to make this, didn't you?" Fenrir mused with a grudging respect. "The chains that once held a god captive." Hiccup grunted in assent, and Fenrir nodded. "Impressive that you even managed to craft using them. They were painstakingly forged by the Dwarves…" He trailed off, staring at the beautifully crafted weapon.

"Why did it...do that?" asked Hiccup.

"My guess is that after a millenia, the chains were empty of their requisite magic. They needed to feed, and now that they have, your hammer is recharged. It would've suppressed me entirely, but it is no longer pure―you used other metals in the creation of the hammer?

Hiccup nodded, sitting up slowly. Fenrir continued, "you can feel it's glow, can't you? Even more now than before, no doubt. Once you are healed, You'll have to learn to manipulate its inherent magical properties." Fenrir turned to Hiccup. "I cannot move it. Bring it and find a place to rest."

Moving slowly, Hiccup felt all over his body, probing for injuries worse than bruises and scrapes, but to his relief he found none. He pushed himself to his feet and shuffled over to the floating hammer. He reached out with his left hand and lifted it to his side as he walked past it.

Instead of moving, however, the hammer stayed as immobile as ever. Hiccup almost pulled himself off his feet as he moved past, but instead let go and turned to face it. Using both hands to tug, he strained against it with his whole body. It did not move, although Hiccup could've sworn he felt something different that time.

"What are you doing?" Fenrir had paused at the exit of the cave, waiting for him.

"It won't move."

"Why not?"

"How am I supposed to know?" snapped Hiccup. "It's nothing like last time!" Fenrir simply smiled and sat in front of the exit, blocking it almost entirely with his large frame.

"It is exactly the same. We will not be leaving until you can bring the hammer with you."

No matter how much Hiccup groaned and protested, Fenrir was as immovable as the hammer. Hiccup pulled, kicked, and yelled at the hammer, all to no avail. After an hour, he sighed and laid down, closing his eyes and planning to rest his aching body.

The moment he closed his eyes, a crackling light blinded him. Hiccup almost mistook it for Fenrir's lightning, but it was different, a strange color. He cracked his eyes open, squinting the spots out of his vision, but nothing happened―he was still in the same dimly lit room. He closed his eyes again and hesitantly reached out to it.

A dull clunk shook him out of his stupor. Opening his eyes, he saw that the hammer had finally fallen to the ground. Fenrir said nothing, simply raising one eyebrow (or the dragon's equivalent to one) and stretching out his legs. Hiccup crawled over to the hammer and pulled, but it was once again stuck in place.

Hiccup scowled, unsure how to put the two seemingly separate entities, the light and the hammer, together. Flopping back onto the floor, he mulled over ideas, none of which seemed to make sense. Glancing at Fenrir and seeing nothing but a smug grin on his face, Hiccup finally gave up trying to be rational. None of this magic seemed to make sense―he wouldn't be, either.

With a chuckle, Hiccup stood and stared at the hammer, then slowly closed one eye. Somehow, the light and the hammer seemed to overlap, and Hiccup reached out to grab them. With barely any difficulty (in fact, it seemed lighter than ever), the hammer lifted off the ground. Fenrir snorted, but he stood and began walking, leaving the exit open.

"You'll train with that for now, boy. I hope you're ready for it."

The following few months were hellish for Hiccup. Fenrir gave him either irritatingly vague or impossibly specific tasks to complete, saying they were important for his training. Hiccup had to keep the hammer with him at all times, for one, and that meant keeping the light in his mind's eye constantly. Although he had learned to do so without keeping one eye closed, it was mentally exhausting, like a workout with a muscle he'd never known existed.

At times, the tasks took him days to complete right. Tasks like summoning the hammer from across the caverns without touching a single wall, or keeping the hammer floating next to him for hours on end. At times, the tasks were a joy to complete. Fenrir once challenged Hiccup to climb into the air using only the hammer, and taking advantage of it's immobility, he found himself higher than many small dragons could fly. It was less of a joy when Fenrir challenged him to get back to the ground with nothing but the hammer, but that is a story for another day.

Regardless of how Hiccup felt about the tasks, it was undeniable that he was growing very proficient with Mjolnir, like it was just another body part of his. He'd even managed to shoot out some of the lightning that Fenrir had pumped the hammer full of, although only once, and was unable to replicate it again. They had not trained in how to find Hiccup's elusive deity, and while he caught furtive glances from Fenrir at times, they never returned to the topic.

Hiccup also trained with Toothless at times, although his ability to disappear made it hard to coordinate attacks. They practiced flying together, practiced complex maneuvers and attack patterns. With Toothless's speed and power and Hiccup's unique weaponry (both his dragon suit and the hammer), the two were strong enough to challenge even the strongest demigods, Fenrir had said.

Unfortunately, that hadn't been all he'd said.

"At the end of your fourth month here, or whenever you think you're ready, we'll have your final test. If you haven't learned enough to beat me together, I'm throwing you out, boy." Hiccup had protested, but Fenrir was decidedly unmovable. "Train hard."

That had been three and a half months ago. Insane as it might sound, Hiccup and Toothless were ready.

Hiccup and Toothless stood on the beach as Fenrir took off, steadying himself in the air at the height of two houses. It was twilight and the sun was setting, sending orange streaks across the icy ocean. Fenrir stared down at them and roared in challenge. Toothless roared in response, and Hiccup climbed onto his mount's back.

Today, he wore a thinner version of his dragonsuit, consisting mostly of the basic layer and some secondary padding and armor. Fenrir could punch through his defenses as if they weren't there, so no need to weigh down Toothless more than necessary.

They lifted off the ground and slowly made a wide circle around Fenrir; he turned with them, not giving the slightest opening for the two to exploit. Flying higher, they peaked just under the sparse cloud cover and hovered there for a moment. Fenrir, now directly underneath them, clicked his tongue in annoyance.

The two reacted almost before Fenrir shot his first bolt at them, and they twisted out of the way as it tore a hole through the clouds. More bolts whizzed by as they each missed by a hair, and the two prepared their counterattack. Their circling began again, this time with far tighter movements.

Fenrir narrowed his eyes and ceased his reckless attacks; with a powerful burst, he flew upwards, then dove towards the two. Hiccup moved on Toothless's back, and Fenrir dodged as Mjolnir was flung at his face.

With a concentrated look on his face, Hiccup lifted his hand, and the hammer flew back into it. He grinned, and twisted to fling it at Fenrir's rapidly approaching form once again. This time, when Fenrir dodged, he shot a pillar of lightning down at the two. Toothless, in return shot a blast of his own blue fire, and the two projectiles exploded on impact.

The pattern of attacks, dodges, and parries shifted and reversed, but neither side had a distinct advantage after a few minutes. Hiccup leaned down to Toothless's ears and said under his breath, "We have to try that one. It'll work this time, I promise." With a nervous snort, Toothless slowed his flight, then boosted forward, circling Fenrir once again.

"Give up, you two!" Fenrir roared with glee. The only time he seemed to show emotions outside of annoyance was when he was fighting. Hiccup ignored him.

As Fenrir breathed in to blast another bolt at the two, they turned straight towards him. Hiccup threw Mjolnir, then cut his connection to it, freezing it in the air just like it had been when he'd first summoned it in the cave with Fenrir. And just like then, the hammer absorbed the bolt with no small explosion of sparks. The two shot towards Fenrir, and Hiccup grabbed the hammer out of the air.

That's where it went terribly wrong.

Toothless shot a bolt of his own at the Skrill, and the dragon didn't move. Instead, cloaked by a myriad of sparks, he howled. Around the three of them, lightning and thunder burst from the clouds like spears. Hiccup hadn't noticed until now, but as their fighting had gotten more chaotic, clouds had begun to gather above them One bolt vaporized Toothless's attack, another singed his wing. He spiraled downwards, but Hiccup had caught himself.

In a single fluid moment as Toothless had fallen, Hiccup had cut connection with Mjolnir, then used it as a springboard to leap towards Fenrir, luckily missing any errant strikes of lightning from the sky. As he landed on the god's back, he grabbed the spines protruding from the dragon's skull and summoned the hammer back to him. Ignoring the electricity webbing across Fenrir (and now Hiccup as well), he used the hammer's momentum to swing heavily into the god's back.

Lightning struck. Hiccup was unsure whether it was Fenrir's doing or Mjolnir's unique properties, but as he struck, lightning blasted down upon the two of them. Hiccup yelled in agony, but he was dwarfed by the massive thunderclap that erupted from above him. If he hadn't been blinded, he would've seen Fenrir roaring as well, both in pain and in exhilaration.

They began to fall towards the icy sea, Hiccup holding on for dear life. Streaking electricity in their wake, they landed hard on water that felt far more solid than it should've. Before he had much of a chance to regain his bearings, Hiccup was tackled by a hulking beast, enraged and undefeatable. The two of them landed on the edge of their island, and Hiccup was pressed down against the rocky shore.

"Good try, boy." Fenrir gasped, standing over Hiccup, "But you lose."

Hiccup said nothing. He smiled.

Suddenly, Fenrir was thrown back by what seemed to just be a slight discoloration in the air, but a moment later, the camouflage faded away, revealing stark black scales. It was Toothless's newest trick―while he couldn't disappear completely in the light, he was able to change his color to match his surroundings. It wasn't infallible, but to someone unfocused or simply glancing, it was hard to notice.

Fenrir growled, but standing knee-deep in water and facing the two down showed him in quite the disadvantageous position.

And Hiccup still had one last card to play.

A heavy splash rang out behind Fenrir, and before the beast could turn to look, lightning exploded around him. It was Mjolnir―Hiccup had left it hanging in the air when they'd fallen, and let it drop only now. Something about being struck by lightning had made the right gears in his brain click, and he'd figured out how to release the electricity it had absorbed. Paired with the water to amplify it, the lightning raged outwards. Even Fenrir, a powerful god in an electric-harnessing dragon's body, couldn't withstand it.

In a last-ditch effort, Fenrir shot a terrifying bolt of lightning at Hiccup. In retaliation, Hiccup did possibly the stupidest thing yet―he simply stood in place, holding out his right arm as if to catch the bolt. Fenrir's eyes widened as he watched what would be certain death for the boy.

Toothless roared in surprise, but Hiccup stood as the blast hit him. It sparked around his arm, but it...seemed to stop there? Gritting his teeth, Hiccup stood still until the lightning around him faded. Breathing heavily, he stood tall against both of their amazed stares. As an added flair, he let some excess electricity spark around his arm.

"Good try, Fenrir." Hiccup smiled, "but you're the one who lost."

Silence. None of them spoke, and only the crackling of electricity could be heard. Even the ocean around seemed silent for once.

"Fine. I yield."

Hope everyone is still doing well. No new mythology this chapter (well, kind of, but nothing explicit). This chapter's come out way quicker than most of my other recent chapters, and ironically thats because I didn't have a specific plan of what I needed in this chapter. I'm very happy how it turned out, and we'll be wrapping up this training arc soon. Let me know how you liked this chapter! Thanks for reading!