Chapter Thirty Two

The Dragon Hangar were already bustling with activity as Hiccup ran after Stoick. Toothless and Cybele easily kept up with them, bounding on ahead until they stopped to watch them curiously. Astrid and Gobber were close behind, all the while wondering what had driven Stoick to the point of panicking this much. It took more than a couple of threats to rile Stoick up the way he was now, which only added to Hiccup's growing confusion. But he struggled to maintain a level head as they watched the chaos unfold.

The Hangar was a network of caves that Hiccup and the Riders designed in the event of an emergency. If anything happened on the island, the dragons would have a place to stay while their human companions were holed up in the Great Hall or an emergency bunker. When Hiccup first came up with the idea, Stoick had jumped at the opportunity to find a place where the dragons could hide during an emergency. Finding the caves hadn't been an easy task, but eventually, they found the perfect location not far from the Great Hall and not far from the docks.

"Ground all the dragons!" Stoick shouted loudly enough for everyone to hear.

Hiccup's frown deepened as everyone scrambled to their feet at the Chief's order. No one dared ignore Stoick as they went to work doing just that. Dragons who were once enjoying themselves were suddenly forced into holding pens, growling in confusion in the process. Only Toothless, Cybele and Stormfly were out of their stables as they watched the scene unfold before them.

"What? Why?" Hiccup asked while struggling to keep up with his father.

"Seal the gates, lower the stall doors!" Stoick continued barking orders.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait, wait! What is happening?" By now, Hiccup was done trying to keep up with his father.

The only thing he wanted now was to know what had led to Stoick panicking so much. He'd never seen Stoick act this way, not even when Alvin and the Outcasts had attacked them, or when Mildew betrayed them. The fact that Stoick the Vast was afraid should have given him second thoughts about this Drago Bludvist character. He wanted nothing more than to bring peace between Drago Bludvist and the people of berk. But if Stoick was worried about the man in question, there had to be a good reason behind his sudden reaction.

"Come on, you heard the man. Lock it down," Gobber said as more and more Vikings did just that.

"No dragon sets foot off this island until I give the word," Stoick added with emphasis.

Hiccup was beginning to wonder if Stoick would ever explain what in Thor's name was going on. He shared an uneasy look with Toothless and Cybele, who were just as clueless. Finally, Hiccup decided to take it upon himself and figure out what the heck was going on through his father's mind.

"Dad, mind sharing why you're doing this because of some guy you knew is stirring up trouble in some far away land?" he asked nervously.

Stoick let out a sigh of frustration and looked at his son warily. As if the situation wasn't confusing enough already, Stoick's expression went from serious to grim within seconds. And Hiccup knew in that moment that whoever Drago Bludvist was, the man couldn't lead to any good for Berk.

"Because Drago Bludvist is a madman," he explained. "Without any conscious or mercy, and if he's built up a Dragon Army… God's help us all. Get them into the pens, quickly!" he added to a couple of stray dragons outside their pens.

His blood ran cold at the mention of a dragon army. The first thought that ran across his mind was Aniu. For someone who was practically raised by dragons, he could only imagine how she would have reacted to that. Anyone with a dragon army needed to be dealt with before they became a problem. Especially if said leader of the army had a name like Drago Bludvist.

"Let's ride back there. We can follow those trappers to Drago and talk some sense into him," Hiccup said in a hopeful tone.

Cybele and Toothless just rolled their eyes at that. Humans were the most stubborn creatures they'd ever come across other than their own species. When it came to talking sense into someone, it was like talking to a rock. Cybele had learned that the hard way. Even so, they tried to see both sides of the situation best as they could. In some ways, they understood why Stoick was so terrified of facing Drago Bludvist. But in another way, both Night Furies wanted to figure out if there was a way to stop the madman without starting an all-out war.

"No, we fortify the island and contact our allies," Stoick replied in a firm voice.

"It's our duty to keep the peace!" Hiccup insisted.

"Peace is over, Hiccup," Stoick told him, then he shook his head and sighed. "I must prepare you for war."

"War?" Hiccup asked, clearly stunned with his father's response. "Dad, if Drago's coming for our dragons, we can't just stick around and wait for him to get here! Let's go find him and change his mind!"

"Some minds won't be changed, Hiccup," Stoick told him. "Berk is what you need to worry about. A chief protects his own." Stoick then turned and looked at the other Vikings gathering their dragons. "Secure the stable! Watch every stall!"

Astrid hadn't missed the look of determination in Hiccup's eyes. He gave one look at Toothless before she understood what he was about to do. She knew Hiccup would more than likely put his life in danger just to prove Stoick wrong. But there were times when his stubbornness had a tendency to get everyone into trouble, herself included.

"Hiccup, don't!" she said frantically.

"I have to," Hiccup told her before rushing over to Toothless and hopping into his saddle.

Cybele wasted no time in following as the hangar door gate began to close, soon followed by Astrid and Stormfly. No one dared look back to see just how angry Stoick was when he realized they'd gone against his orders.

…

Destruction was something Aniu had gotten used to over the last few years. Nina flew low towards the island where the trappers had taken refuge. It was risky going back to the place where the trappers had been. But Aniu was curious about the man she had seen holding his weapon. She let him live along with a few other humans. Valka, on the other hand, was no stranger to making sure there were no survivors. The island beside them had received a vengeful burst of flames from the very dragons they had trapped.

A shiver of unease swept through her as smoke billowed into the sky. The smoke and flames were meant as both a way out for the dragons, and a signal to the humans. Anyone who tried trapping them again would meet the same fate as those caught in the fire. And hopefully the survivors would listen.

"The same humans you met at that island were here earlier."

Aniu felt her blood run cold at the sound of Nina's voice. She had been hovering above the smoke while watching the scene unfold before them. But a familiar scent had caused her to pause and circle around for a moment.

It had been a good five years since she last saw Hiccup. She could still remember how determined he was to prove that dragons were not a threat like his people believed. His sheer determination and his ability to connect with dragons had left her wondering how many other humans shared the same conviction. There was a time in her life when she would have seen Hiccup as more than just a friend. That all came to a screeching halt when she was dragged to Burgus by his father, Stoick the Vast.

She wasn't prepared for the revelation that led to finding out who her real family was. Her own father had disowned her because of what happened to her mother. In some ways, Aniu knew that was part of the reason she left Berk. But she also knew she would never fully belong on Berk. Zena had only proven how true that was when everyone readily accepted her as their own.

"I don't want anything to do with them," Aniu whispered as Nina rounded the corner. She could see just beyond the pillar of ice when Nina suddenly banked left and far from the trappers who were likely struggling to free themselves. "If they try catching more dragons, we won't let them get away this time."

Aniu found it hard to believe that these humans would even think of catching more dragons after their last attack. Yet as Nina flew back towards their fort, she could see that they had set up the traps again. With one roll of her eyes, she had Nina fire several spines at the traps, setting them off before dragons were in any real danger. She saw a group of humans trying to break one of their ships free of the ice, and recognized one of them as the man she had spared just a few days ago.

"Honestly, some humans never learn from their mistakes," Nina growled in annoyance. "If I were him, I would get as far from this place as possible."

With that being said, the pair decided to leave them be once their traps were destroyed. Little did they know that Hiccup, Astrid and their dragons weren't far behind them on their way to confront Eret, Son of Eret.

…

It had taken hours for Eret to break the ship free from the ice. But after chopping away piece by piece, his men eventually broke free from the destructive structure. None of them noticed that their traps had also been destroyed just seconds ago during the ambush. Now, just getting back to Drago was the most important task at hand. The rest of his crew was keeping an eye out for any dragons that might be nearby, in the hopes they didn't return empty-handed. At that point, they would have settled for a pack of Terrible Terrors if they were around.

"Keep your eyes peeled, lads, at this wind we'll reach Drago by daybreak," Eret told his men. "So best we fill this ship up with dragons quick, there's no time to be picky."

"Ah, Eret," one of his men said, looking towards the sky.

Eret had noticed the movement too but had started rambling again.

"Not if we want to keep our…" He stopped after noticing three shapes in the sky heading towards the ship. The two Dragon Riders and that female Night Fury, they were just begging to be captured! "Off the port!" he shouted. One of the trappers tossed him a net launched and he loaded it. "Rush 'em lads, take 'em down." Eret paused when he saw two familiar faces looking back at him as they approached the ship. "You're not getting away this time! Fire!"

One fire of the net should have taken the Riders down with ease, but they dodged without missing a wingbeat and landed on the ship. Astrid pulled out her battle axe and prepared to fight them off, while Cybele narrowed her eyes and bared her teeth, but Hiccup had no intentions of fighting them.

"And here I was worried we might return empty-handed," Eret said with a chuckle, pointing his sword at them.

"Nope, it's your lucky day. We give up," Hiccup replied, rising his hands in the air. Astrid only looked at Hiccup as if he'd lost his mind. Eret looked equally surprised as Astrid and Cybele while she climbed off Stormfly and stood beside Hiccup. "That's two Night Furies, one Deadly Nadder and the finest Dragon Riders west of Luck Tuck," Hiccup added after throwing a net over Astrid and himself and removed her axe. "That'll make the boss happy, right?" He then shoved Astrid's axe into Eret's chest and guided her to the brig. "Excuse us."

"Hiccup, what are you doing?" Astrid asked in confusion.

Toothless and Cybele were eager to follow. Both Night Furies started circling the brig as they tried figuring out how to squeeze their way inside. But Hiccup held up a hand in time to stop them, only adding to their confusion.

"Ah, Toothless, Cybele, stay," he instructed, earning looks of concern from both dragons. "The dragons don't really care for cramped spaces so they'll just hang out with you, they won't be any trouble."

The trappers only ignored Hiccup's warning and pulled out their weapons. Both Toothless and Cybele let out furious growls when they realized the dangers they were in. After facing so many weapons in the past five years, they were no strangers to the destructive forces that some humans carried with them. They weren't taking any chances with these humans either. The two Night Furies took on a fighting stance while Hiccup just rolled his eyes.

"Unless you do that," he said after poking his head through the metal door. "You know, wooden boat, big ocean. H-How is your swimming?"

"Not good," one of the trappers admitted.

Hiccup then proceeded to close the brig door, but then he stuck out Inferno between the metal bars and ignited it. He stuck his head out again after the trappers eyed the weapon suspiciously.

"Oops, almost forgot, can't have armed prisoners," he added and handed Inferno to the nearest trapper.

"How is this a plan?" Astrid asked in disbelief.

The trapper ignored her and began to fiddle with the strange instrument curiously.

"Just what every Dragon Trapper needs; one end coats the blade with Monstrous Nightmare saliva, the other sprays Hideous Zippleback gas," Hiccup explained as the trapper flipped the switch to release gas. "All it takes is one spark, and…"

Hiccup ducked out of the way just as the trapper ignited the weapon. Next minute there was a huge explosion on the ship. The two trappers were still alive, but their clothes were scorched and their bodies covered in ash and soot. Cybele just narrowed her eyes while Toothless played with one of the sparks flying in the air.

"Oh yeah, there you go," Hiccup said while Toothless tried pawing at a spark. "Once they see you as their own, even the testiest dragon can be trained, right, bud?"

Eret only rolled his eyes and had enough with Hiccup's odd behavior. He grabbed Inferno from the trapper and threw it into the ocean, not even noticing as Stormfly went after the weapon.

"What game are you playing?" he demanded.

Stormfly returned seconds later and dropped Inferno at his feet, eager to see whether he would throw it again or not.

"No game, we just want to meet Drago," Hiccup replied with a shrug as Eret scowled at Stormfly and tossed Inferno again, only for her to chase after it again.

"Why?"

"Because we're going to change his mind about dragons," Hiccup replied, his voice brimming with confidence.

Eret and his men only laughed at his response, and not for the first time, Hiccup wondered what Aniu would have done in a situation like this.

Most likely go for the kill, he thought with mild amusement. She never did entirely trust people, and gaining her trust was a difficult task to begin with. If Drago was creating a dragon army like Eret had said, then it was more than likely she would have hunted them down until there was no one left.

"He can be really persuasive," Astrid added when she poked her head through the brig.

"Once you've earned his loyalty, there's nothing a dragon won't do for you," Hiccup said while rubbing Toothless' head.

Eret only snorted in response.

"You won't be changing any minds around here," he scoffed.

"I can change yours, right here, right now," Hiccup insisted while pulling on Toothless' lever and unlocked his tail. He walked out of the brig and gestured calmly towards Toothless. "Ah, may I?"

Eret didn't get the chance to answer when Hiccup was suddenly snatched by a dragon that looked like a familiar Monstrous Nightmare. The trappers looked up in alarm as they saw more Dragon Riders circling the ship. One of them was even riding a Skrill of all dragons!

"More Dragon Riders!" Eret exclaimed in alarm.

Toothless ignored him and jumped onto the remaining sail and stood on the mast. Once he reached the top his head tilted to one side and he warbled in confusion as Cybele joined him. Meanwhile, Hiccup wasn't too pleased that Snotlout and Hookfang had snatched him from the spot just when he was gaining the trappers' trust.

"Put me down! Snotlout, what are you doing?" he demanded.

Snotlout just ignored him and looked at Ruffnut hopefully.

"See how well I protect and provide?" he asked.

Ruffnut only groaned in response, then noticed the men firing their nets and focused on dodging them.

"What's with all the nets?" Tuffnut asked as one of the nets narrowly missed the twins.

"Hey, watch it!" Ruffnut yelled, then she stopped herself as another net was fired by Eret.

Her eyes widened in awe when she caught sight of Eret's muscular arms, and the way he moved to fire the nets in question. Nothing else mattered as the net wrapped itself around her and Barf.

Hiccup, in the meantime, had had enough and started kicking furiously at a startled Hookfang. The Monstrous Nightmare let out a growl of annoyance and released his grip on Hiccup. Then he suddenly pulled open his flight suit and glided back towards the ship. Eret only narrowed his eyes as he saw his moment to rush in until someone slammed into him.

"Hold your fire!" she yelled, shoving Eret to the side.

The net was fired anyways, but luckily Hiccup was able to dodge it just as Cybele caught him, tearing a hole through the sail in the process.

"Ah, what are you guys doing here?" he demanded after she let him go.

"We're here to rescue you," Gobber replied confidently as he flew in with Grump.

"I don't need to be rescued," Hiccup insisted, earning a look from Cybele that told him otherwise.

She shook her head and flew down to join Toothless as he watched the humans squabble once again.

"Enough!" Stoick shouted after landing on the ship.

The dragon Stoick was riding happened to be a Rumblethorn, a tracker class dragon that had a massive thorn and wings that resembled a beetle. It had seemed like a fitting match at the time, especially since both were stubborn personality-wise. The Rumblethorn was known as Skullcrusher, and for a good reason.

Stoick had chosen a new dragon after releasing Thornado to a pack of baby Thunderdrums. He now rode a Rumblethorn, a tracker class dragon that had a massive thorn and wings that resembled a beetle. The Rumblethorn was known as Skullcrusher, and for a good reason.

"Well, didn't you just pick the wrong ship, eh?" Eret asked as he began to introduce himself. So far, this had been a really bad week. And things were only getting worse from here. "I am Eret, son of—"

Eret didn't get the chance to finish his sentence when Stoick suddenly shoved him out of the way. He was shoved back into Gobber after that, and said blacksmith clubbed him over the head. Eret fell, face-first on the deck before Grump put his head on Eret's back to keep him from running.

"Get this thing off me," Eret managed to wheeze out.

"Anyone else?" Gobber asked while looking at the other trappers. None of them were eager to help Eret after noticing how heavy and defensive Grump was. "Hm, that's what I figured."

Stoick then turned and glared at Hiccup. Hiccup grimaced at the look written across his father's face. He knew he was in for an earful after disobeying yet another order. In his defense, he didn't know enough about Drago Bludvist to understand why Stoick was so angry in the first place.

"You, saddle up and go home," he ordered.

"No," Hiccup said in a firm tone.

"Of all the irresponsible—" Stoick was ready to rant when Hiccup stopped him once again.

"Look, I'm just trying to protect our dragons and prevent a war!" Hiccup yelled back, not even realizing that there was actual truth in his words. He was doing this for more than just that. "How is that irresponsible?"

"Because war is what he wants!" Stoick shouted. He paused before letting out a sigh of frustration. From what it sounded like, Stoick really didn't want Hiccup to hear this story, but now he had no choice. "Years ago, before you were born, there was a great gathering of chieftains on Berk to discuss the dragon scourge we all faced. Into our midst came a stranger from a strange land. He was covered in scars and draped in a cloak of dragon scales. He carried no weapon and spoke softly, saying that he, Drago Bludvist, was a man of the people. Devoted to freeing mankind from the tyranny of dragons. He claimed that he and he alone could control the dragons, and that he alone could keep us safe if we chose to bow down and follow him."

The Dragon Riders only laughed at that, but Cybele and Toothless narrowed their eyes. Astrid looked serious as she considered this new information Stoick trusted them with. Clearly Drago posed a bigger threat than she imagined.

"Men who kill without reason cannot be reasoned with, Hiccup," Stoick told his son.

"Maybe," Hiccup began while walking over to Toothless, and Cybele already understood what Hiccup was about to do.

By now, she had gotten used to him disobeying orders. Hiccup was a lot like Aniu in that aspect, always finding new ways of getting herself into trouble. Because of that, she had begun protecting him just as Toothless did. Just as she would have protected Aniu if her Rider was around.

"Hiccup!" Stoick yelled.

"I'm going to try," Hiccup said in a voice full of determination. "This is what I'm good at. And if I can change your mind, then maybe I can change his."

With those last words sinking in, Hiccup had Toothless take off along with Cybele. Astrid was ready to follow them on Stormfly when Stoick stopped her, scowling at where his son had left in annoyance.

AN: Hi everyone! I'm so sorry it's taken as long as it has for me to update... It's not that I've lost interest in writing this story, it's just that I've been busy with other things, and usually I will try to make sure I'm a few chapters ahead before posting a new one. But, surprise surprise, this time I'm behind schedule. So it may take a while for me to post the next chapter, though hopefully not too long. Again, I'm really sorry for the long wait, and hopefully everyone enjoyed this chapter! Thanks again for reading and reviewing as always :)