~By Heather~
Author's Note[]
This story takes place between DoB and RttE, so Hiccup is about 17 or 18. It's based on How to Speak Dragonese and How to Seize a Dragon's Jewel. I sort of took the ideas from those books and am adapting them for the movie characters. I am not really sure about how it will go, or how long it will be, (though I'm hoping it will be longish) so stay with me here... :S I have some art for it that I will put on here if I ever get the chance. Let me know if you would like me to notify you when I update. ;) Well, here goes... hope you like it...
Dedications[]
To Cressida Cowell, because she was the one who wrote the original books in the first place! Without her, I would never have written this story. And also to anyone who reads and comments on it. :)
Chapter 1 - Missing: Trader Johann[]
"Any sign of his ship yet?" Hiccup asked. "Oh, wait! No, that's a rock." He swooped back up. They were looking for Trader Johann. Again. He was always getting lost. Stoick was getting a bit worried because he was way later than usual. So he had sent the Dragon Riders out to look for Johann. They had been out all day, and now it was getting dark. Snotlout flew up beside him and yawned.
"Hey, Hiccup, don't ya think we should be getting back to Berk? It's sure getting dark quickly, and we're a long ways away, and Hookfang's getting tired, and so am I..."
"Yeah," said Fishlegs. "I have to admit you've got a point, Snotlout. Look at poor Meatlug, she's sleep-flying..." Meatlug's eyes were closed most of the way, and she kept wandering down towards the sea.
"Well, yeah, I guess so." Hiccup said. "It's just that... well, I was hoping we'd find him really soon, because if we don't, then... I don't know, I just hope he's okay. I mean, he's waaay overdue. Maybe we could find an island and camp for the night. I think we can fly at least a little longer. Toothless isn't too tired, are ya, bud?"
He patted his Night Fury. Toothless's eyes popped open and he shook his head vigorously. His eyes started to drift closed again but he forced them open.
"Well, okay, maybe he's a little tired."
They flew on. Then when it was so dark they couldn't see very well, Astrid shouted from up ahead, "Hey, there's something! I think it's a ship!"
They all flew closer. "Yup, it's a ship alright." said Fishlegs. "But it's way too big to be Johann's..."
"Alright, then can we blow it up?" asked Tuffnut.
"Umm, no."
"Awwww..."
"You guys wait here, I'm going to take a closer look." Hiccup said.
"Okay." said Astrid, "But hurry, I don't think our dragons can stay up in the air much longer."
><><
Hiccup and Toothless flew closer, silently. Now that he could see it up closer, Hiccup could tell that it was definitely not Johann's ship. But there was a smaller one in tow. That must be it!
"Down, bud, quietly." Hiccup whispered to his dragon. Toothless landed noiselessly on the deck of the empty smaller ship. They could see figures moving around on the deck of the big ship, even in the dark. Hiccup dismounted and looked around. It was Johann's ship! But where was Johann?
"You stay here, bud. I'll be right back." Toothless sat down with a worried expression on his face. "Oh, don't worry, Toothless, I'm just gonna take a quick peek." Hiccup swung over onto the big ship. He hid behind some boxes and listened.
"Well, I think Ug will be pretty pleased with this lot." said a nasty-sounding voice. "Lotsa treasure!"
"Yeah, but no captives." said another.
"Wotever. It was just one guy, pity he got away though. Ug won't like that, but he should like the loot. We're almost there."
Hiccup stood up to peek over the boxes, but as he did so, his prosthetic leg squeaked. One of the men turned to look in his direction, and he ducked back down again.
"Wot was that?"
"Prob'ly just yer ears playin' tricks."
"No. I 'eard a squeaky noise over there." He got up and began to walk in Hiccup's direction. Hiccup hurriedly snuck to the edge of the ship, made a small dragon sound, and jumped off the edge. The man looked behind the boxes.
"Huh, nothin' there. Coulda sworn I 'eard a squeakin' noise comin' from be'ind these boxes."
><><
The ship's waterline was pretty far below the upper deck, so Hiccup figured there was enough time. He landed on Toothless's back, fitted his foot into the special stirrup, and they swooped upward. He patted Toothless.
"That was great, bud! Good thing we've been practicing that one. They never knew we were there! " Toothless looked back and smiled.
They flew back to the other Riders, whose dragons were nearly asleep in the air. Hiccup told them what he had seen, and Astrid said, "They said they were almost there? Almost where?"
Fishlegs interrupted. "Um, guys, can we figure that out later? I think there's land over there. We really need it."
><><
As soon as they landed, all the dragons fell almost immediately asleep. The Riders built a fire, and Ruffnut got first watch. The others all snuggled down under their dragon's wings and went to sleep too. But Hiccup and Astrid stayed up a little longer.
"So, they said Trader Johann got away?" Astrid said.
"I'm pretty sure. I don't know who else it would be, that's his ship. But I just wonder where he is. And where are we? Seems to be a pretty big island, but it's hard to tell in the dark."
"Yeah, I guess we'll have to wait until the morning to find out... Goodnight, Hiccup."
"Goodnight, Astrid."
Chapter 2 - Ug the Uglithug[]
The ashes of the fire were still smoldering when Snotlout heard a noise. He was on watch now and he was almost asleep, though there was a tiny bit of light now, enough to see by. His head jerked up. He looked around. They seemed to be on a really big island, with some trees on one side. The sound he had heard had come from those trees. Snotlout looked through the trees and saw...
"People?! Uh-oh, I'd better wake up Hiccup!" he said to himself. He went over to Hiccup and started shaking him. "Hey, Hiccup! Wake up!" he whispered.
"Huh? Wha?" Hiccup said sleepily.
"There's somebody coming! You said to wake you up if I heard or saw anything suspicious."
Hiccup sat up. "Huh? People coming? Oh my Thor..." he yawned, then got up. "Alright, you stay here quietly, I'll go see if they look friendly or not. Hide the dragons in the bushes, just for safety. But if I give the signal that they don't look friendly, hide yourself and the other Riders too."
"What? How come you get to do the spying?"
Hiccup stopped. "Would you like to do it?"
Snotlout crossed his arms. "Well, um, I would, but... I just don't... feel like it right now..."
"Thought so." Hiccup rolled his eyes and started towards where the sound had come from. He crept to a rock outcropping and looked over cautiously.
><><
Snotlout woke everyone else up quietly, and they all told each of their dragons to hide in the bushes. But Toothless would not.
"Go on, Toothless, it'll be fine," Astrid whispered to him. "Just hide. It's for the best. It's for Hiccup." Toothless made a worried sound, looked at where Hiccup had gone off, and hid in the bushes reluctantly.
Hiccup looked at the men below him. Who are they? he wondered. Oh Thor... are they Uglithugs? He had heard of the Uglithugs, but never actually seen any. They captured and enslaved pretty much any people they could find and loved to kill dragons. Uh-oh, he thought. I'd better tell the gang to hide.
As he turned to go back to the camp, though, he accidentally kicked some rocks off of the ledge he was on. The Uglithugs looked up. Hiccup held his breath. They grunted and kept moving. He laid there for a while, waiting for them to be gone around the corner. A moment later he heard shouting back at the spot where he had left the other Riders. Oh no! he thought. I didn't give them a signal and now... He scrambled to his feet and ran to the camp.
The other Riders were fighting the Uglithugs, and the dragons, even though they had been told to stay hidden, were firing too. Toothless ran to Hiccup, and he hopped on. "There you are, bud, come on!" He tried to take off, but a bola got Toothless's wings. As Hiccup reached to cut it, a large Uglithug grabbed him, and shoved Toothless. Toothless lost his footing and went plunging over the edge of the cliff towards the ocean.
"Noooooo! Toothless!" Hiccup yelled, struggling. "He can't fly on his own! He'll be killed!" But the Uglithug was too strong for him, and there were so many of them that the other Riders and their dragons were soon captured as well.
Hiccup had tried loosening his ropes, but they were much too tight, cutting into him, and anyway, the Uglithugs wouldn't let him try it. There was a guard behind each Rider, and they kept poking them if they so much as wiggled their arms. Astrid turned and growled at the man behind her. He started, but kept prodding her along, though a bit more cautiously than before.
Soon they came in sight of a large castle. The Uglithugs took their prisoners inside, closing the portcullis behind them. They were brought to the main building, a large, ornately decorated hall. Hiccup figured this was probably where their Chief was. He was right. The huge doors opened with a rather sinister creak, and the Riders were led in.
"Prisoners, your Ugliness." announced one of the guards, shoving the Riders forward. They were confronted by a large, typical looking Viking Chief, with a big beard and a helmet that had what appeared to be deer antlers attached. He looked grand, but intimidating at the same time. This was Ug, High Chief of the Uglithugs.
Before he could say a word, Hiccup spoke first. "What do you want with us? We were just passing through, and you have no right to do this to us."
Ug's voice was low and deep, but calm. "Oh, but I do. Uglithug law says no stranger can pass through our land or waters, without permission. And you did not have permission, did you?" He answered his own question before Hiccup could. "No, you did not. And do you know what the penalty for trespassing is here?"
"Well, we didn't know it was your land, and we sure didn't know your rules." Hiccup protested. "So just let us go."
Ug appeared not to hear him. "The penalty is slavery. Take them away." He motioned to the guards.
"Slavery?!" Astrid gasped. "You can't do that to us! Let us go!" She charged at Ug, but the guard behind her held her firmly. She turned and kicked him hard in the knee, but still he held on to her with one hand, and his now bruised leg with the other, muttering about not getting paid enough.
"Yeah, you can't do that!" yelled Ruffnut.
"'Specially cause Hiccup's the son of Stoick the Vast!" chimed in Tuffnut.
"Oh, really?" Ug's eyebrows soared, and he suddenly looked very interested in Hiccup, who wanted to kick the twins right now. "Isn't that the great Dragon Conquerer I've heard about?" He smiled nastily. This was getting better and better.
The twins, seeing Hiccup's lightning-bolt glares directed at them, decided maybe they should have kept their mouths shut. They did so now.
"Well, then, I have other uses for you, Dragon Conquerer." smirked Ug. He turned to another guard. "Take this boy to the arena. The others can go to the prison." The guard nodded and grabbed Hiccup.
"No!" yelled Hiccup. "Let them go!" But the guard dragged him struggling out of the throne room. Other guards tried to get the rest of the Riders, but Astrid kicked at them and Snotlout headbutted them. They weren't going down without a fight. They couldn't do much tied up though, and the guards soon got them under control enough to take them away, a completely different direction than that which Hiccup had been taken.
~TBC
Heather the Berserker 01:42, November 27, 2016 (UTC)