I briefly watched as Reign shivered in the corner, pulling the blanket closer against her sinewy frame as Azure crawled back and forth on her shoulders, as though that would keep her warm. The dragons were fast asleep around the wall of the old dragon pen, while the others sat attentive, watching me as I attempted to teach for the day. I'd told Reign she shouldn't come, but of course, she didn't listen.

"So as you can see by the chart, proper wind control can be achieved--" Just as I stepped away from the slate, a ball of fire shot out and struck it. I rolled my eyes and groaned, beginning to grow frustrated with the others and their antics. "Okay... okay, who shot that fire ball?"

Snotlout and Hookfang looked away suspiciously, the former whistling as he refused to meet my eyes.

"Why are you looking at me?" Snotlout challenged.

"Come on, guys. I don't want to be here anymore than you do," I sighed. "Can we just get back to training, please?"

"I say we play twenty questions instead. Anyone? Anyone?" Snotlout glanced at the blonde girl huddled against her Nadder. "Astrid, why do you love me so much?"

Astrid placed her hand over her mouth as she gagged at the thought of loving Snotlout.

"Me, me, me!" Tuff shouted, waving his arm around wildly. "Okay, I'll go first. Question number one--" Something, likely Hookfang, suddenly pulled Tuffnut to the ground, but that didn't discourage. "How do you play twenty questions?"

"Uh... can we try to stay focused, please? Even for a second?"

"We've been stuck inside for a week straight because of this crazy weather," Reign whined, pulling the blanket closer against her frame. "We're all starting to go a little nuts."

She flashed her eyes over to Fishlegs, who was holding one of Meatlug's feet, staring affectionately at her claws. The actual dragon herself laid fast asleep, completely unaware of what her rider was doing.

"Ooh, Mr. Pinky," he cooed. "Don't tell the others, but you are my favorite."

Exhausted, I let out a sigh and turned my attention to the twins, who were now laughing at their dragon as it chased its tail.

"Barf and Belch just found out they have tails!" Ruff cried, as though it were some big revelation to them, too. "It looks like they really hate that idea..."

"Yeah... I got the same way when I found out I had a tail." Tuff looked back and began to turn in circles, chasing a tail that didn't really exist. "You can't hide from me forever, invisible tail. I'll get you!" Ruff laughed at her brother as she walked away from him, as though she were any better off.

"I may have told Tuff he has a tail, too," she whispered to me.

The door suddenly flew open, hitting all of us with a large gust of cold air. I flinched and held up my arms in an attempt to shield my face from the snowflakes that came shooting in. My father pushed against the door to get it shut against the elements.

"Odin's ghost, it's cold out there!" he exclaimed. "Worst freeze in the history of Berk." He reached up his hand and touched his facial hair. "My beard is frozen solid!"

"So, Father, what brings you to the Academy?" I asked, trying to get him back on track.

"Trader Johann hasn't reported to port. If he's trapped out in this storm, he won't last overnight. Oh, I wish I could--"

"Oh, yes, I can go!" I interjected, bouncing with anticipation. As much as I loved these guys, they were driving me out of my mind. "Uh, you know Toothless can help find Johann's ship in the darkness. He's the perfect dragon for the job." My dad looked at the two of us with a hesitant expression.

"Uh... I don't know--"

"Please, Dad. If you ever cared for me at all, the way a father cares for a son, then you will let me leave."

I turned my head to the chaos, watching as dragons and riders fought, while Reign pushed herself deeper into the corner, trying her best to not get killed as she warmed herself. As much as I'd love to take her with me, she'd freeze to death out there, and I couldn't risk that.

"Oh... bolt the door behind you when you leave," my father muttered, having seen enough. "Please."

For the first time this week, I felt a rush of joy.

"Yes!" I cried as soon as my dad left.

Quickly, Toothless and I ducked out before any of the others could notice and took off, trying to search for Trader Johann's ship. Nothing too bad could have happened in this amount of time, the water probably just froze over and was preventing him from sailing any closer to Berk. I shivered against the winds as Toothless and I pushed on, despite having yet to actually spot anything. The sun was now starting to set, which meant the temperature would drop even more.

"It's pretty dark out here, bud. Do your thing." Toothless let out that strange roar that somehow let him see in the dark. I watched and waited for something to appear, when I noticed just how much ice floated on top of the water. "Wow, look at that." Toothless flew closer to the frigid surface. "I've never seen the ocean frozen solid before. No wonder Trader Johann can't get to port. No one could get through this."

Toothless growled as a cloud of smoke passed beneath us, squeaking and flashes of green visible from inside. We came to a halt and watched it move across the water.

"Whoa! I don't know what that was, bud, but I'm glad we're up here and it's down there." Toothless let out that roar again, clearing the fog. Almost immediately, he turned and stared intently off into the distance. "Found something? Let's take a better look."

Toothless followed the path he'd seemingly created for himself as night fell, making it harder for me to see. Thankfully, Toothless never lost sight for a second, and pursued until I spotted a stranded ship. The design on the sails and its appearance overall were familiar.

"There he is!"

Toothless dove closer, and I spotted Trader Johann waving both his arms in the air, distressed.

"Master Hiccup!" he cried, relieved. "You're a welcome sight for these weary eyes."

Toothless and I landed on the deck and allowed Trader Johann to climb up before beginning to head back to Berk. As expected, Johann began to babble on the moment we took to the air.

"In all my years on the briny deep, I have never witnessed a freeze quite like this one. Ice as thick as Thor's hammer! I even considered abandoning my ship and traveling to Berk on foot."

"Well, you won't have to worry about that now, Johann," I assured him. "Just enjoy the ride."

"Excellent! We shall pass the time with stories of my grand adventures." A sense of regret overtook me as I realized what I'd gotten myself into. "They're sure to warm your heart and stoke the fires of your imagination. Did I ever tell you about the time I found myself up against the Man Eating Metal Masons of Manorie Majorie? Oh, it was spring, the smell of fresh jasmine was in the air..."

"...but it was not a yak! It was his daughter!" Johann laughed at his own punchline. "I could not believe! She looked like a yak, and her name was Yakmine. And that, Master Hiccup, is how the king of Enudin made me an honorary member of his royal court."

I shook my head. We'd been flying all night, and somehow, Johann hadn't shut up the entire time. The fog cleared to reveal Berk, standing firm as it had when I left. The snow had mostly melted away, but the angry cold persisted.

"Oh, look! We're here. Thank Odin," I muttered. Toothless shook his head and growled, clearly as relieved as I was.

Things were oddly silent when we landed. Clouds had begun to roll in, giving the abandoned homes an even more eerie feel. Toothless got low to the ground and growled, sensing something was off. The wind blew and slammed open doors on their hinges, further setting in the sense of abandonment.

"Hmm... not the welcome I'm accustomed to, but nonetheless." I couldn't tell whether Johann was attempting to make a joke or not.

"Where is everyone?"

"This reminds me of the time I landed on the island of the Red--"

I raised a finger to get Johann to be quiet. Thankfully, he took to the gesture and halted mid-sentence. Even the torches had been snuffed out. What happened here?

"Hello?" I waited a few moments for some sort of answer, but heard nothing. "Anyone?" Toothless padded over to an abandoned cart of produce and sniffed it a few times, as though trying to pick up a scent. "Dad?"

I pushed open the door to my hut, but nothing moved, save for the fire that continued to crackle in the hearth. My eyes flickered down, and I picked up a cup that had fallen over, spilling out liquid into a puddle on the ground. Toothless gurgled curiously, and we continued through the village, attempting to find any signs of life. But anywhere we searched... nothing. In the Academy, I opened up the pen I'd left the others in, but all that happened was a group of Terrible Terrors flew out at me.

"What in the name of Thor is going on?" Everything had been left undisturbed. Shaking my head, I climbed back up onto Toothless and flew back to Johann in the main part of the village. "Johann, anything?"

"The whole town, Master Hiccup. It's empty."

"I know. It's very weird."

"I don't like this one bit. There was one time I was on a trade run with a man who claimed..."

From behind me, I heard a crashing noise-- the first sign of life in the last thirty minutes. A flash of color moved in a slightly open doorway. Quickly, I hopped up on Toothless, staring down where I'd seen something moving.

"Let's go, Toothless! Johann, stay here."

I threw open the door to find barrels overturned and broken, spilling out their contents out onto the scratched, wooden floor. I could feel some sort of presence looming nearby, but I couldn't quite tell from where. Cautiously, I stepped further inside and looked around, trying to find some sort of sign as to what happened here. I turned my head just as a shadow loomed over me, and something large fell on my head, knocking me to the ground.

I opened my eyes with a throbbing pain on the side of my head, laying on the floor. Toothless hovered over me, sniffing me to make sure I was still alive. My heart suddenly stopped for a second and I let out a scream as something jumped out in front of me. Thankfully, it was just Fishlegs, looking panicked.

"Whoa! Don't ever do that again," I scolded.

"Hiccup! Oh, thank Thor." Fishlegs reached out and pulled me into a bone-crushing hug. "I'm so sorry I fell on you."

"Oh... kay, Fishlegs," I gasped out, trying to catch my breath. He let go of me too quickly, causing me to lose my balance and fall back onto the ground.

"Fast, really fast, too fast," he began to babble. "Speedy. Oh, and their sting! Paralyzing sting!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." I shook my head as I got back up. "Hold on, Fishlegs. What are you talking about?"

He stepped closer, looking around cautiously for whatever he was talking about.

"Speed Stingers."

I hesitated, not really understanding what he was talking about. How was it possible they got to Berk? They weren't native to this area, too far away to be able to get here quickly.

"Speed... Stingers? Here?"

"It all started just after night fall," Fishlegs began to explain. "They don't fly, but they're fast. Faster than any dragon I've ever seen. They hide in the shadows; scavengers looking for anything they could find. One drop of their venom can paralyze a human or dragon in an instant. They move in a pack following a leader." I could start to piece together what happened while I'd been gone. "He directed them like a war chief. By the time Stoick ordered everyone to the cove, the entire village had been overrun."

My panic began to rise as I thought of my friends, my father, Reign, trapped in this. If something bad happened to her-- to all of them-- while I was gone... Not to mention we were out in the open, vulnerable to them.

"Well, where are the Speed Stingers now?" Fishlegs began to hyperventilate.

"I don't know. The sun came up and they disappeared. But they'll be back; they come out at night."

"I-I-I-I don't understand," I stuttered, trying to pull my thoughts together. "Why did you come back here, Fishlegs? Why not just stay with everyone at the cove?"

Fishlegs looked back at me with a sad expression, then began to walk out of his hut. I figured it better to follow him and maybe get some answers than stay here. He only took a couple steps outside before turning around, averting his gaze upward and inviting me to follow. Meatlug stood balanced on his roof, looking as though she were about to attack before struck. There was something chilling about her expression, as though she were completely unaware.

"Just look at her up there-- so majestic."

"How did I miss that?" I thought aloud.

"She tried to draw them away so I could escape. I just couldn't leave her." Trader Johann approached us, looking up at the frozen Meatlug.

"How did we miss that?" Fishlegs and I both looked back at him.

"If I'm going to the cove, I have to get her down."

I glanced at Fishlegs, unamused, but decided to humor him. Johann followed him and began to push, apparently finding her to be staggeringly heavy.

"So, she eats rocks, you say?" Johann managed to ask. "That makes sense." A bit of flatulence slipped out, right by Johann's head, causing him to push back. "Ooh, oh dear. That has quite... an effect." Johann collapsed and fell back onto the ground, hopefully not breaking anything in the process.

"Movement! This is very good. It means the paralysis is only temporary. Hiccup, come up and help!"

With a sign, Toothless and I made our way up onto the roof and began to help.

"Uh, where's Johann?" I looked around below me, but couldn't find where he'd fallen.

"I'm okay, boys!" I looked down to see a hand protrude out from a wheelbarrow. "I actually landed on me fluffy bits."

"Fishlegs, what's the deal with this paralysis?" I asked, messing with one of Meatlug's eyelids. It moved, surprisingly enough. "How long does it last?"

"I don't know, Hiccup. There's nothing about it in the Book of Dragons or Bork's Papers." Fishlegs looked out toward the water.

"How do you think the Speed Stingers got here? They can't fly." I started to put the pieces together in my mind.

"If I had to guess, I would say it was because the ocean was frozen solid, creating an ice bridge from their island to ours." I took another look and Meatlug, and, unfortunately, realized she wasn't a priority at the moment. "We need to get to the cove, right away."

Fishlegs loosened his grip on his dragon, causing her to tumble down into the wheelbarrow and onto Johann.

"I'm all right," he called up as we made our way over.

Fishlegs managed to get enough of a grip on the cart to pull it along, leading the rest of us to the cove. I pushed through the crack in the rocks, only to find we were too late. Everyone stood frozen in the cove-- a tableau of hope shattered. I quickly slid down with Toothless close behind, briefly stopping at each person.

My eyes widened and my heart sank as I rested my eyes on my father, holding his sword in midair before he'd been struck. I knew he could still hear me, and eventually might snap out of it, but it was jarring just to look at.

"Dad." Thornado refused to leave the rock, as though guarding my dad. Thankfully, Gobber somehow managed to get out all right, and came to stand by my side.

"He gave as good as he got, Hiccup. It took six of those Speed Stingers to freeze the poor bugger." My father grunted, but because he couldn't move his lips, no actual words came out. "You bet'cha, chief."

"What'd he say?"

"No clue. Don't want to make him feel worse than he does." I felt guilt creeping up the longer I looked at him.

"I should have been here. Toothless and I could've helped!"

"Nonsense, boy. There were too many of them. Nothing would have mattered. Tell you one thing: those Stingers would be dining on smoked sturgeon and yak jerky tonight if it weren't for your father." He made noises again, still completely frozen. "Couldn't agree with you more, Stoick." He shrugged at me again.

"Hiccup!"

I whipped around to see Reign running toward me, and I felt immense relief knowing she was okay, too. She wrapped her arms tightly around me, and I quickly returned the gesture, smiling at her despite the grave situation.

"Reign..." Though she pushed away, I kept her at a close distance. "How's everyone else?"

"Everyone's fine. Well, except for--" She gestured her hand over to a frozen Snotlout, currently being slapped around by the twins.

"Whoa, stop hitting yourself!"

"Stop hitting yourself."

"Actually, when you think about it, it's really not so bad," she joked, crossing her arms while I kept a hand on her back.

"Aw, come on! Your face isn't that ugly!" Ruff hit Snotlout a little too hard, causing him to fall. "Oh, wait."

I sighed and took a seat against the rock my father stood on, drawing the outline of a Speed Stinger in the dirt as the sun began to set. My eyes moved from the drawing back up to his frame, still frozen in place.

"It's going to be dark soon." Reign's voice was sharp as she approached me. "The Speed Stingers will be back for the rest of the food. Everyone wants to know what we're gonna do." She looked to me for an answer. I looked up to my dad again, and an idea suddenly came to me.

"Gather the other Dragon Riders. We're heading out." She nodded and got everyone and their dragons together while I wiped away the drawing I'd done in the ground. She came back over a few moments later with the others, in various states of prepared.

"Okay, we're ready."

"Guys, these dragons only come out at night, so we need to find where they sleep during the day. The only problem is we need to find their nest before sundown, or--"

"Can we not think about the 'or', please?" Astrid interjected.

"Yeah. They came out of nowhere, like a pack of wild badgers! Scavenging, and, uh-- and--"

"And badge-ging." Everyone glared at Tuff. "What? That's what a badger does: it 'badges'." Reign shook her head.

"Well, thanks for that. Uh, let's go." I turned to walk away.

"Hold on." I grimaced and turned back around to see Snotlout leaned against some rock. The paralysis had worn off on his head, but the rest of his body remained immobile. "You're not going on a Stinger hunt without me." Somehow, using his head, he managed to push himself forward and stand up straight.

"Whoa. That is seriously creepy."

"His paralysis is wearing off. Lucky us," Fishlegs deadpanned.

"Snotlout, unless you plan on flying Hookfang with your teeth, you're not going anywhere." I knew Reign was just looking out for his wellbeing, but it wasn't necessarily a bad thing she'd told him to stay here. Usually, he listened to her.

"What do you mean? I'm fine!" He tried to move again, but just ended up falling on his face. "Stupid paralysis."

Everyone began to get together their weapons, only planning to use them in self-defense. For as dangerous as these dragons were, I knew none of us wanted to genuinely hurt a dragon... or worse.

"Snotlout Jorgenson, reporting for duty." Somehow, he managed to salute.

"What the...?" Reign stepped closer, squinting at him. Knowing something was up, I bent down and saw a second pair of smaller legs behind Snotlout. Gustav peered out from behind him, a wide smile on his face.

"I'm Snotlout's arms and leg, Hiccup! And together we are--" He jumped back behind Snotlout and began shaking his hands, giving them a little pizazz. "--Guslout."

"Stop with the hands," Snotlout barked. "Hiccup, you need as much dragon power as you can get."

"I can't believe I'm actually about to say this, but he's right." I widened my eyes at Reign and looked at her. Did she seriously just renege her warning, right after she uttered it?

"You're kidding, right?"

"You heard what Gobber said: there are hundreds of them." I stared her in the eyes for a moment, but knew I wouldn't win this, and there was no way I'd be able to intimidate her. Sighing, I rolled my eyes and caved.

"Oh, all right. Fine."

"Yes!" He glanced down at Gustav. "Move my arm," he whispered. Gustav moved his arm up to have Snotlout give us a thumbs-up. "Yes!"

"Let's split up and search Berk for possible Speed Stinger hiding spots," I ordered.

"Okie dokie, Hiccup." Gustav started to push Snotlout over to Hookfang.

"Fishlegs, how's Meatlug doing?"

"She is rearing to go, Hiccup! Look at her!"

Meatlug managed to drag herself over to where we were, her lower half clearly still paralyzed.

"So, what's the actual plan?" Astrid asked, clearly not quite on boar with what was happening here. And I couldn't blame her. The odds weren't looking great in our favor.

"Fishlegs, you said they follow their leader in a giant pack, right?"

"Exactly. That's what I saw."

"So the plan is: find the Speed Stingers, capture their leader, use it to lure them away." Astrid and Fishlegs kept up brief, skeptical glances, but ultimately nodded and decided to go along with the plan.

We all took off in seven different directions, and I hoped to the gods no one would get stung, and those already paralyzed wouldn't somehow make things worse for themselves. Toothless and I searched along the shorelines, double and triple checking every square inch before admitting defeat and heading back to join the others. Nightfall was getting closer, and we needed to find those Speed Stingers before they got the rest of us and overran Berk.

"So, anything?" I asked, despite already knowing the answer.

"Not a single Stinger," Reign sighed, her shoulders slumping.

"Us, neither."

"I got stung." We all looked at Tuffnut, shaking our heads. If he were actually stung, he wouldn't be as capable as he was at the moment.

"No, you didn't!" his sister shot back.

"Have we checked every cave?" I tried to bring us back to the point. I watched as Snotlout diverted his eyes, looking around but refusing to meet my gaze. "Snotlout-- did you check your caves?"

"Really? I'm insulted, Hiccup," he scoffed. "Of course I did! You think I fell off my dragon and spent hours trying to get out of the sand?" That was too specific not to be true. "Ha! I didn't."

"He fell off his dragon and we spent hours trying to get him out of the sand," Gustav piped up.

"Gustav, make me punch you!" Gustav reached around and made Snotlout slap his own face, causing the twins to laugh at him.

"Never gets old."

"Well then. We know where to look. Let's go!"

We made a quick stop at the Academy to pick up a cage to trap the leader, then headed toward Snotlout's area to look in cages. The sky glowed a brilliant orange, but we couldn't stop to enjoy it. It was a sign we didn't have much time left before we'd be forced to hide, and who knows if we'd make it out of that.

Most of the caves were empty, leaving us with one left to check. If we didn't find them in here, we were out of options.

"Thanks, Gustav." I jumped off Toothless and removed my shield from my back, ready to defend myself against the aggressive dragons. "You stay here with Snotlout and Hookfang."

"Right." Snotlout's eyes lit up as he extended a hand out to give a thumbs up. "Hey! I did that all by myself." Tuff immediately ruined the moment by reaching out and slapping Snotlout's arm, causing his thumb to jam into his nose.

"Okay, gang. We have to move fast. It will be sundown soon, and we need to get the lead Stinger out of there. Without him, the pack is useless."

Fishlegs and I headed into the cave, leaving Astrid ready with the cage outside and the others armed to defend and get us out of there quickly if necessary.

"Hiccup, there he is," Fishlegs whispered, pointing up right in front of us. The lead Stinger clung onto a stalactite, hanging upside down as he slept. Red stripes darted across his body, along with a red fin on the top of his head. Not to mention that he was much larger than all the other Stingers.

I shot out the string from my shield and it wrapped around him, somehow not waking him up.

"Got him."

Toothless immediately jumped forward and took the lead Stinger down carefully, making sure not to wake him. He gingerly set him down on the ground, growled at the lead Stinger to make sure he knew who was in charge, then looked at me with big eyes. I nodded at him, and we began to drag it out of the cave. For a moment, it stirred, and Fishlegs and I froze, but nothing else happened.

Then, behind us, a chorus of low growls echoed.

"Uh... Hiccup?"

I looked down to see the lead Stinger's eyes wide open now, pupils narrowed and emitting a guttural growl from his throat. The others Speed Stingers were awake now, staring at us curiously and beginning to move forward, taking in the situation. They growled and chittered as they processed what was going on, causing my heart to begin beating faster.

"Get this Stinger into the cage right away."

I yanked on the rope one more time, and the lead Stinger cut itself free, shooting up and roaring loudly. I jumped out of the way as it flicked its tail out and attempted to sting me, then Toothless fired a couple plasma blasts at it, trying to scare it off. The other Stingers began to close in, eyes dead set on Fishlegs and I.

A blast of fire shot down from above, and I looked up to see Snotlout and Gustav hovering not too far above us.

"Yeah! Snotlout, Snotlout, oi, oi, oi!"

Unfortunately, he was low enough for the Speed Stingers to be able to reach him, and the leader darted out his tail, swiping Snotlout's leg and paralyzing him once again. Hookfang shot out another line of fire to create a wall, trapping the other Stingers inside the cave so we couldn't be overwhelmed.

"He's too fast, Hiccup!" Fishlegs cried.

"Not for a Night Fury." Every time the lead Stinger tried to puncture Toothless, the latter simply moved out of the way before firing at the smaller dragon. It grew frustrated and attempted to strike me. I threw my shield up to block the attack, but it ended up getting knocked out of my hands. Thankfully, Toothless jumped up and hit it right back to me. "Thanks, bud."

The lead Stinger jumped and darted around, while the others shot out through the wall of fire and joined their superior. It roared at the others still trapped inside, summoning them out, and they began to stampede. Thinking fast, I jumped up on Toothless and took off.

"Astrid, follow us!" She did as told, staying close behind.

"I think I know where you're going with this!" We hovered just high enough that we couldn't be touched and fired relentlessly at the lead Stinger. Stormfly created a line of spikes that trapped it, and with a final blast, we forced it into the cage and the door slammed shut.

"Yes! Got him!"

The two of us landed, and just as Stormfly got her claws around the top of the cage, the other Speed Stingers came darting out, circling our group.

"Hiccup, there's just too many of them!" Reign shouted over the madness. "We're surrounded!"

Suddenly, a loud, booming roar came from above, and my dad descended on Thornado, landing by us. Relief forced a smile onto my face as I looked at him.

"Dad, you're okay."

"Well, you didn't think I'd let you have all the fun, did you?" My dad crouched in front of the lead Stinger's cage and glared at the dragon. "Remember me?" It squawked in response. "Now, get him off my island." I nodded and looked up at Astrid.

"You heard the chief!"

"With pleasure." She flew Stormfly and the cage with the leader out toward the water, and Toothless and I followed, occasionally blasting a few Stingers back in line as Astrid led them to the ice bridge. They managed to get far across, before one Stinger jumped up and pierced Stormfly, paralyzing her lower half and sending all three of them tumbling onto the thin ice.

"I'll get the cage! Ruff, Tuff, cover Astrid!" I pushed Toothless down to pick up the cage while the twins created a ring of fire around Astrid and Stormfly, causing the Speed Stingers to go right around them. I pushed away a few with my shield, and the others had the misfortune of attempting to sting my peg leg. "Weren't expecting the old metal leg, were ya?" I spotted a solid part of the ice bridge where I could hopefully direct them. "There! The ice bridge!"

Just before we reached the spot, a Stinger jumped high up and ripped Toothless' artificial tail, causing him to wobble as we descended.

"Toothless, we're going down!" The cage dropped and shattered before we skidded the rest of the way. I jumped up and held out my shield, trying to shoot out another rope but finding I'd run out. "No, no, no! Out of bolas. Toothless!" He tried to fire, but he'd reached his shot limit. "And no plasma blast! Great!" The lead Stinger roared at us. "Ready, Toothless?"

"Hookfang, fire!"

Fire shot down from above and created a barrier between us and the Speed Stingers, and I looked up to see the other riders coming toward us. Just to make sure the Stingers wouldn't come back, Shriek roared at them, and with a final cry, the Speed Stingers turned around and headed back toward the vast unknown.

"Nice shooting, you two!" They landed and smiled.

"Ha. No problem, Hiccup." Snotlout was suddenly pushed from the saddle, revealing Gustav still behind him.

"Yeah. No problem, Hiccup." With that, they took off again.

"Hey, put me down! Repercussions! Repercussions!" Reign shook her head and patted the back of her dragon, inviting me to hop up.

"Thanks for not getting stung," she joked, reached back and squeezing my hand.

"Thanks for saving me." She nodded, and after Shriek managed to pick up Toothless, we flew back to Berk. People were finally able to move around again, and the life was starting to come back to the island.

I made a quick dash to fix Toothless' tail, then flew to see Trader Johann off. Reign refused to come, still not trusting him, for whatever reason. I brought him back to his ship and landed on the deck, allowing him to safely climb off.

"Thank you again for the rescue, Master Hiccup."

"No problem, Johann. I'm just glad everything's back to normal."

"Oh! Before you go, I have something for you." He reached into his inventory and pulled out a white jar. "A little token of my appreciation: your squid ink! Wrestled from the Colossal Squid of the Northern Waters." I took the jar from his hands, awed.

"Wow. Thanks, Johann."

"Yes. There is actually a wonderful story that goes along with that bottle."

And with that, I knew I needed to get out of there.

"Ten summers ago, deep under the currents of the Northern Waters, I was staring directly into the black eye of the..." I leaned down and patted Toothless on his head.

"What do you say we get out of here?" Toothless roared loudly in response before taking to the sky, heading back toward home.