The Fury in the Night

Chapter 28

-The Hunter Becomes the Hunted-

'Damn it all!' Hiccup cursed out loud in his first tongue. 'Toothless, we have to go!'

Toothless didn't bother responding, he was crouched and ready to take off the second that Hiccup was on his back. Salutemea had watched the whole thing from the back of the larger dragon. Her eyes blinking with curiosity as to what was going on.

'We grab Ladon when we go by, and if you see the hunter we left alive, shoot him with extreme prejudice. He just alerted the armada to the fact that we are here. I have no idea where they are but we have to go,' Hiccup urgently informed the pair as he quickly got on. Toothless was in the air milliseconds later.

The vikings looked on in confusion as to why the greatest warrior they had ever seen seemed to be running away. Baltor got up and look at the fleeing figures, Ladon taking off after a short roar from the Night Fury.

"Um, is it just me or did they seem to know something that we didn't?" Razor asked from nowhere. Baltor jumped at the sound of his voice, but glared at his brother and his mother as they appeared from the tree line, seeming to have watched the little confrontation.

"He certainly didn't seem to be looking to stick around and I'm guessing neither should we," Astrid responded seriously as she gently woke her dragon. Horak was thankfully coming around and being filled in by Spitelout.

The group was getting into the air when they hear it. A roar, it wasn't far, and it was a Night Fury's for sure. They all looked at each other.

"What do we do?" Razor asks the question on everyone's mind.

"We go after them. I might not like him all that much, but he is family," Baltor sighs.

"Now hold on a second," Spitelout starts, but a quick glare from Valka cuts that objection off real fast. He sighs and nods in agreement. "Fine, let's go help him out, but after that, we are heading back to Berk, is that clear?"

Everyone, even Razor, agrees to the terms. So they take off.

-Just One of Those Days-

Hiccup was having a really bad day. First Sal's cave was discovered and he had to mount a rescue mission. Then the morons from Berk came snooping around, as if that didn't complicate things enough. Not to mention the discovery of the Fury Hunters in the Archipelago. This day could not get worse right? That would be incorrect.

The net took them by surprise. If it was anyone else, the rider would likely have died on impact. But Hiccup was made of sterner stuff than most. Though, it hurt quite a bit. He cut himself free just as the troops flooded the deck the three had landed on. Ladon came to back them up, but the nets being fired at him forced him to back off a bit.

Six darts hit Toothless in quick succession. The dragon felt the sedative trying to work on his body but it wasn't quite as powerful for someone that had Salutemea's waters flowing through their veins. All it did was make him very dizzy. Salutemea attempted to hide near Toothless who was wobbling a bit.

While Toothless was trying to shake off the sedative, Hiccup took to the offensive. Spears shattered on his armor and his swords met flesh in the twin black flashes. He could hear orders being given to try and stop him. Heavily armored men charged onto the scene. Hiccup spent no time in rushing them. Lethality became his new name as he chopped through guards like butter. The captain of the ship could only watch in horror as the head of his top guard landed next to him.

A heavy hand landed on the captain's shoulder. "Call them all off, I will deal with this."

The captain sighed in some relief and blew the whistle to call a retreat. The men fell back and made way for the man that slow walked towards the Fury in his midst.

"Welcome Fury, I see you have made quick work of some of the ship's men, not to mention the island worth of men you likely slaughtered," the man boomed, his voice carrying with ease across the deck.

Hiccup analyzed this new man. Tall, large, and well-muscled. He was wearing traditional Fury Hunter armor which by default had a thick breast plate, bulky shoulder guards, armored leggings, and steel tipped boots. All of it a dark red. His eyes though, they were chilling, speaking of an unrelenting force held within. This was a man that would not fall because of something as simple as pain.

"I have hunted you for a long time boy. Ever since you slaughtered our Eastern division, I have walked this earth with one objective. To kill you and your dragon. You will fall, one way or another," the man explained, and was quite calm in his explanation, as if he had said something already cemented in history.

"I'd give you a warning, but I doubt you'd head to wisdom, would you?" Hiccup replied. He felt tired, but nothing was getting between him and his goal of getting Sal off this boat. Physical needs came later, for now, survival was more important.

The large man drew his sword and grabbed a shield when one of his men offered it. "Come now Fury of Night, Dragon of the North, let us see how the legends stack up!" The man yelled as he charged across the deck. Hiccup darted away from the charge and attempted a swipe at the man's ankles. It barely nicked the man's boots as he charged by. He turned and charged again, more controlled, but fast none the less.

Hiccup caught the strike on one of his swords before kicking out at the man's stomach. He gave great umph and stumbled back. Black swords followed suit as Hiccup pursed the weakness as much as possible. The man raised his shield but Hiccup had no intention of just letting him recover. He hit the shield once with his left sword and used it to forge the shield to the side, giving Hiccup access to the man's side. Hiccup struck with the right sword, cutting the man's hip and leg. But this left Hiccup wide open for an attack at his side too, something the man saw and capitalized on.

The sword didn't puncture very much, but it did bruise Hiccup quite badly. Hiccup stumbled back a bit. The man covered his side, his leg was hurt and it would slow him down. It was at about this time that Toothless had just about shaken the sedative. Salutemea was watching in fascination as Hiccup fought. It had been a long time since she had seen human fight each other. She couldn't help but feel like it was quite graceful how Hiccup fought, almost inhuman.

Hiccup stood up tall as the man got back into fighting position. The damage to his side was already healing and the man was hurt. He would make this quick, no need to drag this out. Hiccup struck out at his wounded opponent, hoping to end the fight then and there, but the man's shield got in the way. One of the black swords was soon sheathed and the claws of the Fury came out to play. The bladed fists struck the shield with a resounding crunch. Hiccup then snagged the shield and pulled it off the man's arm. He flew to the side, his eyes wide with surprise at the bold and almost physically impossible feat.

"Now!" The man yelled. Hiccup looked at him like he was insane before he saw the bola launcher aimed right at him. Hiccup's eye's widened as the man pulled the trigger and the ropes soon found themselves around a flailing body. Inertia took its effect and Hiccup soon found himself falling off the tall ship. Toothless screeched and dove after his brother, but in the process, left Salutemea alone on the deck full of dragon trappers and hunters. Two darts found themselves in her faster than she could jump ship. This made her very woozy but it took a good blow to her head to knock her out cold.

Hiccup hit the artic water with much unneeded gasp. Toothless tried to get him from the water but the swells from the ship caught him, dragging him down with his brother. Hiccup lost consciousness first, having the smaller lungs, as Toothless tried to get him to the surface. The armor Hiccup wore though pulled him down and Toothless was exhausted. When he broke the surface, his brother barely above the water, Toothless let out a roar for help. He prayed Ladon heard him and was coming to their rescue, but the dragon was nowhere to be seen.

Then as the black dragon began to lose consciousness himself, he felt claws of a dragon grab him. The relief he felt could not be compared to anything. His eyes drifted shut and he too fell into unconsciousness.

-Waterlogged-

Hiccup was drifting in the darkness, unable to pinpoint where he was. It was as if his body couldn't sense anything, like it was numb everywhere. Then like magic, the darkness shook. He could hear something.

"-armor off! He – air and the water is-"

"I know, w – the straps at! Can't we jus-"

"No, the armor i – sturdy, we can't – chest!"

Hiccup mentally remarked how desperate they sounded. Odd, they sound so familiar too. Not exactly the comforting kind either. Feeling began to creep in slowly. His chest felt so heavy, full of something. His brain kick started instantly as it replayed back to him what happened. Suddenly he was sight was blinded by the sun and his gag reflex kicked in.

A small river with no end seemed to pour out of Hiccup, but that need for air had been waiting a bit too long for him to care. The second it stopped air once again filled a piece of his lungs before he started right back up on pushing out the water in his lungs. After what felt like a small eternity, Hiccup felt he could breathe with some ease again.

He immediately leaned back and breathed in deeply.

"No fucking way."

Hiccup snapped up and quickly tried to draw for his closest knife, only to find it not there.

"What, where?" He asked confused. He looked up at his audience that seemed to be gawking at him. "What, exactly, is going on here?"

"We saved you and your dragon from the ocean. But you had been under so long and took water into your lungs. We couldn't get your armor off in order to save you," came a faint answer.

Hiccup nodded. It made sense, he had been under water for a bit longer than he could hold his breath, and his armor would weigh him down. "Where is Toothless?"

"Fine, unconscious, but he's breathing." That tone of bewildered awe still present in the answer. Hiccup was getting a little tired of it.

"I'm fine now. I'll go wake him and we will be on our way."

"What?"

He turned to the source of the question. It was his birth mother. She looked so confused.

"I said I'm fine now and will be on my way. I have a ship to catch and we will do that better with a fresh scent."

"And it will end just the same as last time." Hiccup looked at the speaker, Astrid.

"Unlikely. Next time it will be at night with the full power of three dragons of legendary status amongst you vikings.

"You think that just the three of you can take a ship full of dragon hunters?"

"Without a doubt. Never underestimate the power of a surprise attack. They won't think I'll be back for a bit. Hopefully they think I'm dead. Either way, I'm going to kill them all. No surprises, no bullshit traps."

"And when it ends just the same as last time, who is going to pull your arse out of the fire?" Astrid growled.

Hiccup looked at her and stood at his full height, which was still a little shorter than her own. "I'm known for killing entire armies. Do you think all of those stories about me are just myths? No. I have the blood of hundreds, if not thousands on my hands. One boat won't finish me off that easily."

Astrid huffed in disbelief. "Whatever, your dragon is on the beach. Go get yourself killed this time. It might teach you a lesson." She then turned on her heel and walked away from the highly armored individual, leaving him a bit confused to the intentions of the conversation.

-End Chapter 28-

What's up guys! I live! Yes, I know it took me a bit longer to update than I thought it would, but hey, it's here now! I'd say I hope it doesn't take as long next time, but who knows. I got to find the time to write first. . I am ligit exhausted. Working takes a lot out of you when it's a really busy time. Go figure. Still, I have missed writing and finally got a little free time at…..midnight. Yeah, my sleeping habits need a little work while I'm at it. I hope this is enough to tide you guys over for now and I'll see about having an update ready for you next month, but I wouldn't hold my breath. I got a summer job and a summer class.

See you all later,

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