The Girl with the Changewing Cloak (RTTE Fanfic)

Twenty three

Hiccup's POV

Pacing was helping with nothing. Wet sand squelched with every step as the waves crashed on the shore. Toothless was near invisible in the dark night, his green eyes following me as I moved.

Astrid had recently returned from a short scouting mission. She had informed us that our allies were increasing their defences to protect themselves fron hypnotized 'visitors', but had no other news.

Sighing, I finally stopped pacing. I thought that the fresh air and movement would help me think, but I still couldn't find a solution. The Dragon Hunters were protected by the sea and impenetrable metal. We didn't even know where they were.

Running a hand through my hair, I tried a different approach. Maybe we could bait them out and sneak aboard to rescue the hypnotised people - but Ryker wasn't selfless enough for that. He probably wouldn't even blink if he lost several ships' worth of men, as he could just hypnotise a new set,

No, we needed to get Swiftstrike out of their grasp first. Then we would start freeing each and every hypnotized victim. Dragon Hunter or not, no one deserved to be some kind of puppet.

Suddenly, a purple terrible terror dived towards my face, wrenching me from my thoughts. Screeching in alarm, I stumbled back, falling on the sand. The dragon flapped its wings and bounced on my stomache. Toothless watched the terrible terror, a distinct unimpressed look on his face.

"Ow! Get off me," I yelled between breaths.

Ignoring what I'd said, the terrible terror shot fire in the air. Toothless growled.

"All right, all right, you have my complete and undivided attention!"

Grinning in a way that only dragons can, it turned around, showing me its leg. There was a message tied to its foot.

Still slightly shocked from the commotion, I unravelled the parchment. The writing was messy and uneven, but just about legible in the moonlight.

Dear Hiccup,

I hope this message gets to you on time. I have found at least one of the Dragon Hunter's submarines to the West of Beserker Island. At noon, we were about a kilometre off its coast.

My eyes widened at the information.

I decided to leave, despite not being a scout, in order to try to find Freya. I truly don't believe she's with Ryker. But even if she is, she may know how we can save Fanghook.

I hope Berk is okay. But I need you to send back-up ASAP. Fanghook is struggling from the instinct, and the Dragon Hunters have noticed us. Please send help! I can't manage this mission alone.

Gustav

I didn't move. My mind was racing a mile a minute, but I wasn't able to keep up. It was the evening now, so at least several hours had passed since then. The Dragon Hunters had gone from South-West to West, showing that they were moving North.

If the full team left now, we could catch them before they reached Beserker Island.

I sprung into action. Gustav had given us a chsnce to stop Ryker before his army grew too large. He'd given me another chance to fix this mess. Determined, I leapt onto Toothless and we darted off.

There was no time to waste.

*

One by one, I gathered the Dragon Riders and the A-team. Gobber and Dad were already waiting in the Great Hall, making last-minute preparations.