Eret's POV
'Wow...' I gasped, once Ziist had pulled me onto the ship, and I was able to look around.
Weapons were attached to the side of the ship, and there were nets, containing dragon traps, hanging from them.
'She's a nice ship, isn't she?' Ziist said.
'Sure is.' I agreed, trying to say as little as possible; talking had become painful, due to the claw-mark on my face.
Ziist walked up to me, sensing I was in pain, and inspected my wound carefully.
'Come on. Let's go below deck. We'll need to check that out, before it gets infected, gods forbid.'
He led me down a set of rickety old stairs, which had nets filled with dragon traps hanging from the banisters.
We arrived in a room, which had five beds. I noticed that the beds all had animal pelts for covers- except for one, which was dragonskin.
'I'm guessing that's your bed?'
'Yep. That cover was made from the first ever dragon I killed- a Monstrous Nightmare. Nobody else has a cover like mine- it's a sign of my authority, as I'm the leader of the trappers.'
'Wow, Ziist! So, this is were you and the others live?'
'Well...when we're at sea. But we do have a fort, on land, which is where we're sailing to. But, seriously, we need to get that wound checked out.'
'Ziist, I'm fine.'
But he wouldn't hear of it.
'Now, come and lie down on my bed, Eret, so I can have a better look at it.'
I did as he said, realising that he was going to check it out, no matter how much I protested.
'Right. You're lucky, lad. It's on the brink of infection. And if it did get infected, you wouldn't be able to come trapping. And Drago wouldn't like that. Anyway, I'll put some herbs onto it.'
He went over to a cupboard, by his bed, and got some herbs, and a pestle and mortar, and sat beside me on the bed, mashing up the herbs into a paste.
'How do you know all this stuff, Ziist?'
'I was the zuwuth's son.'
'So your father was the village elder, and healer. What was his name?'
'His name was Vahraniik, gods rest his soul.'
Vahraniik. I was sure I recognised that name.
'Did he happen to know anybody called Eret? He was my father. You know, Eret, son of Eret, and all that.'
'Yes, he did, actually. Your father was his best friend.'
'Really?!'
'Yep. So I guess it's more than a coincidence that we're friends too!'
'Yeah!'
'Well, I guess they're happy with the gods now.'
I nodded sadly.
Suddenly, Ziist's tone turned serious.
'Now, listen, lad. I've got something to tell you. I don't know about healing just because I was the zuwuth's son. I know about it from bitter experience too.'
'Tell me more.'
In answer, he held up his hand. In horror, I noticed that he'd lost a few fingers, and had replaced them with Monstrous Nightmare claws.
'These are from the first Monstrous Nightmare that I killed. Do you want to know how I lost them?'
I nodded, intrigued.
'Well, I was testing out a new trap I'd just made in the forge. And this was my first one. So, not knowing how dangerous traps are, I was just putting on the finishing touches, and... SNAP!'
I jumped in surprise.
'I'd lost a few fingers. The jaws of the trap were covered with blood. When I got back, Drago wasn't too pleased. I asked him to help me, but he wouldn't, because in his opinion, I shouldn't have been foolish enough to do it anyway. And for once, he was right. But his other reason was, when he lost his arm, he didn't have anyone to help him with it, so why should I? And I said, "Because you're my boss." Then he went up close to me, and took his dragon hand out of his cape, and said, "I won't help you with your fingers. But I will give you this, boy." and he clawed me around the face.'
Ziist put his face next to mine, and traced the faint marks of the scar.
'That took three years to heal. I hope it doesn't take yours that long. But, at least it'll make you look tough, and make up for your scrawny arms!' he laughed.
'Yeah, I guess so.' I mumbled, not too pleased about his 'scrawny arms' comment.
He glanced down at the mortar.
'Ah! I was so busy talking, I didn't notice that the herbs are already in a paste now.'
Scraping it out with his fingers, he placed the paste onto my wound. I winced, and gasped when he started to rub it in.
'Eret, I have to do it hard, or the paste won't get into the wound. And it'll hurt a lot more than this if it gets infected.'
'Mm.' I gasped.
What seemed like hours later, he'd finished.
'There. Done. You can get up now.'
Once I was standing up, I automatically touched the wound.
'Don't!' Ziist snapped. 'The germs from your fingers will get into the wound, and stop the herbs healing it.'
I immediately jerked my hand away, surprised at his reaction.
Suddenly, heavy footsteps came running down the stairs, and one of the trappers rushed to Ziist.
'What is it, Hir?'
"Land ahoy, sir!'
'Don't call me, sir, lad.'
'Don't call me 'lad'.' Hir muttered.
Ziist raised his eyebrows in mock disbelief.
'Is that any way to talk to your leader, Hir? I could tell Drago about this, you know.'
Hir was clearly stupid, because he didn't understand that Ziist was joking. Although he was a tall man, at Ziist's threat, he looked very small.
'No, sir, please, no.' he begged, whimpering like a puppy in terror.
Ziist's stern face broke into a smile.
'I'm joking, Hir! Of course I wouldn't tell him! That'd be a waste of a good dragon trapper.' he added ominously.
At the news that he was not going to die, Hir's face broke into a smile, too.
'Oh, thank you, sir!'
'Now, don't grovel, Hir. I don't like grovellers. But Drago does. Now, go. We'll follow behind you.'
He saluted Ziist, and headed back up the stairs, but not before looking back at me mockingly, and making a noise which sounded like a sneer.

Eret's POV
I followed Ziist off the ship, and onto a beach. Ahead stood a grim, dark-looking fort. As we got closer, I heard shouts of recognition.
'Hey, Ziist! How're you doing?' one man, presumably a fellow trapper, smiled, and patted him on the back warmly.
'I'm fine.' he said tiredly.
'Tired from the voyage, eh? You got here just in time. Drago wants the dragon quota filled in five days. Luckily, we've been filling it while you were gone. But I'm sure, now that you're here, we'll have no trouble satisfying him, since you're the best dragon trapper alive.'
He'd been so busy talking, he didn't even notice me- or maybe he was just pretending I didn't exist. I've gotten used to that.
'Who's this little runt, then?'
'I'm not a little runt, I'm Eret, son of Eret.'
'Oh, you're a feisty one, aren't you, telling me your official title!' he sneered.
'Listen, Sok, both me and the lad are just tired.'
'I know that, Ziist. Now, come with me, and I'll show Eret, son of Eret, to his room.'
He led us up the wooden ramps around the fort. They had no barriers, worryingly. We passed cages of screaming dragons, and rooms where other trappers were eating, or talking. Ziist waved to them as we walked past, and they did the same.
Finally, we reached the very top of the fort. I swallowed, and tried hard not to look down. There was a house here, bigger than any of the others which were built into the walls of the fort, and dragon heads were attached to spikes on either side of the house.
'I'm guessing these are the first dragons that you killed too?' I asked Ziist.
'Yep.' he replied.
'Right then, Ziist, I guess I'll go now, and show Eret to his room.'
We all said goodnight to each other, and once Ziist had closed his door, a look of cruel delight came into Sok's face, and he twisted my wrist gleefully, dragging me back down the ramps.
'So, Eret, son of Eret, welcome to your room.' he sneered, once we'd arrived at the door. He used me as a battering ram to open it- and the door was metal. Those bruises took weeks to heal.
He pushed me onto the floor.
'Goodnight, Eret, son of Eret.' he snarled, leaving me on the floor.
After I'd heard him walk down the ramps to his room, I got up painfully, and made my way to the bed in the corner of the room. I got in, and drew the animal pelt cover up to my chin, listening to the sounds of screaming dragons, as I went to sleep.

Valka's POV
Cloudjumper and I were preparing to go out on our first night flight. We'd been practising in the daytime, a few weeks since he'd brought me here, but now we thought we were ready to try flying at night, and Cloudjumper asked the King for permission.
A-alpha, he stammered, although I did not know why. The Bewilderbeast was a good King, and the Stormcutter had no reason to be afraid of him.
I- we were wondering if we could perhaps...go out on a night flight?
The King moved his great head slightly, and Cloudjumper jumped back, and whimpered. He didn't understand that the King was inclining his head, to say yes.
After a few seconds, Cloudjumper understood.
Oh, thank you, Alpha! We will be back soon.
The King made a rumbling noise, which could have been good-natured laughter.

---

I couldn't help but let out a whoop of exhilaration, as we were flying across the sea, at Cloudjumper's top speed. He picked up on my emotions, as dragons can do, and roared in happiness.
Suddenly, he stiffened, and growled. I glanced down at his eyes, and noticed worryingly, that his pupils were slits.
'Cloudjumper, what is it?' I asked, laying a hand on his snout, which usually helped to soothe him.
Not this time, though.
He shook my hand off, and snarled, staring straight ahead, like a wolf that has seen a deer.
I decided to stop attempting to calm him down, and instead give him the respect he deserved. Perhaps he was trying to warn me of something.
As it happened, he was.
I copied him, staring straight ahead too, in the hope that if I focused my eyes enough, I could see what he could.
Far away, in the distance, I could see a dark shape, which looked like a building. I could also see that it was located on what looked like a beach. Cloudjumper's eyebeams (which are a bit like streetlights, only they are in dragons' eyes) helped me to see the rest.
Men were walking about, presumably patrolling. I prayed to Thor that one of them did not turn around, because if they looked hard enough, they would see us.
Mistress, Cloudjumper whispered, the King is telling me to return to him.
'I can't hear his call.' I pointed out.
When the King is summoning, his call is only audible to dragons.
I nodded, taking in this fascinating information. I seemed to be learning new things about dragons every day.
Cloudjumper started to fly back to the Sanctuary, on silent wings.
You must tell the King about this, mistress.
'Why must I tell him?'
Because I have a feeling these humans are bad, and it is dishonourable to speak badly of humans to another dragon, for your gods may disapprove.
I had a strange feeling, that, although Cloudjumper had told me two new things about his species, he may have been lying, because the morning after I had had my nightmare, the King had told me everything I needed to know about dragons- because he felt I was 'worthy'- and he hadn't mentioned this. And the King couldn't have been lying, for he was the King, and he was a Bewilderbeast, so he knew everything about dragons- a King must know his subjects, and he must not lie to them, as it is 'disrespectful'. This was the first 'Dragon Lesson' he had told me.
And how could Cloudjumper have known that those humans were bad? And why had he told me that the King was calling him- almost as if he had wanted to get away as fast as possible? True, I had too- but there seemed more to it than that; like Cloudjumper knew those humans. I also felt he was lying about that I had to tell the King- almost as if he was afraid to tell the King himself- because if I didn't, it would be 'dishonourable' to our gods. He had said that he had a feeling that those humans were bad- which made me believe he knew them even more. Otherwise, what reason would he have to believe this?
All these unanswered questions- that could only be answered tomorrow, when I went to see the King. It was so frustrating, but Cloudjumper had told me that, although the Bewilderbeast was a good king, he did not like to be disturbed at night, which I could understand. It was because of this, that I did not think that Cloudjumper was lying about this, too- and I was also too scared to go to the King at night, anyway, because, as I said before, I did not think Cloudjumper was lying, and I was scared of what the Bewilderbeast might do if I disturbed him at night. Although I knew that he was a good king, as I have once again mentioned before, as Cloudjumper was afraid to tell the Bewilderbeast what we had found today, regardless of whether he was lying or not, naturally, I was afraid too.
There was one thing I could do, though, which was hope that dragons could not read thoughts, human or dragon.
Cloudjumper snorted, offended- which made me think that he could read my thoughts, after all.
He seemed to have forgiven me later though, when we had returned to the nest, as if he had not, he would have slept by the other side of the little cave, and not enwrapped me in his wings.
Do not worry, mistress, he reassured me, but it seemed that he was just as unassured by this as I was, as we both stayed awake, thinking; Cloudjumper occasionally grumbling and growling to himself, which served as my lullaby- although this particular one it did not help me get to sleep as much as For the Dancing and the Dreaming did for Hiccup, when I used to sing it to him, before I was taken by Cloudjumper.
Eventually, I finally managed to get to sleep thinking of my son, and Stoick, and wondering how they were coping without me.
I could only hope that they were doing fine. But I knew, deep down, that this was not the case, and this was the reason that I had cried myself to sleep.

---

The Monstrous Nightmare's POV
I was awoken from my cage by an overwhelming urge. But it did not feel like the Alpha's call, or the Queen's. It felt like...food. The urge was hunger.
And I could smell the delicious scent from down on the beach. Mixed in with that smell was metal, but I ignored it. I was desperate to eat- so desperate that I blasted my cage door off with fire, and flew, silently down to the beach.
Humans shouted angrily.
"SHOOT IT! SHOOT IT DOWN! IT'S ESCAPING!"
"No. It's going for the food in the trap..."
There it was. A massive piece of meat. And there was no Queen to steal it from me, and demand more food. I bit into it, savouring the juiciness, the flavour...
SNAP!
Jaws closed on my leg. Was it the Queen's? No. It couldn't be. They felt more cold, more metal, as they ripped into my scales. My dragon-blood started pouring out of the wound, like my ability to fight, to get out of the trap. I remembered when I was free, and then the Alpha changed me. It had felt like this. And, like when the Alpha had changed me, I knew that nobody could save me now...

Valka's POV
I opened my eyes, awoken by the sunlight streaming into our little cave, and remembered one thing, immediately: talking with the King.
'Come on, Cloudjumper.' I said cheerily.
Mistress, I will stay here, if it is all the same to you.
'Well,' I said, my good mood disappearing, like the King's ice breath, as I remembered seeing the building, 'your loss. You don't have to come if you don't want to.'
Then I ran out of the cave, and to the grassy platform, that, below, the King was.
I bowed to him.
Two, huge, blue eyes looked at me kindly.
Welcome, little human. What brings you here?
'I have come, King, to tell you some bad news.'
His blue eyes grew misty, as if he had already known I was going to say this, but he still inquired.
Oh? Tell me more.
'Well, you remember, yesterday, Cloudjumper and I went out on a night flight, and, well... we made an unexpected discovery.'
Yes?
'We found a building- a fort of some kind- and...men were patrolling it... at Cloudjumper's insistence, we returned here.'
Little human, I believe that those men were dragon trappers, working for a man known as Drago Bludvist to your kind.
A voice came into my head, as soon as I heard that name.
LET'S JUST SEE HOW WELL YOU DO WITHOUT ME, THEN!
Stoick arriving home, his face charred and scorched with ash and flame, looking as though he had seen a ghost- the ghosts of the other Chieftains. Telling me the story of how this man had murdered them, and he was the only survivor of the massacre.
My eyes blurred with tears, at the mere thought of my husband.
If I am correct, which I believe I am, we will need to take action immediately. We will need to gather my subjects, and send them out to the fort. I will come along later to launch an...ah, surprise attack.
'Very well, King.'
At the King's call, thousands of dragons came flying towards him, Cloudjumper, although reluctantly, included.
Jumper of the Cloud. The King directed this mental message to the trembling Stormcutter.
Y-yes, K-king?
You and your rider will be the leader of our attack on the fort, as your rider is the only human here, and as such, is able to command my subjects, like I can. But she will be the leader for now, until I launch my surprise attack later.
Cloudjumper moved his head slightly, as to agree, and to allow me to climb onto his back.
When the Jumper of the Cloud rises, follow him. he instructed his remaining subjects.
They were more than happy to obey him- the Scuttleclaws were jumping up and down, and squeaking excitedly, in anticipation, only to be gently rebuked by the King, and their mothers.
I patted Cloudjumper- the hand signal for him to rise.
And, taking off after him, streaking into the sky, and to the fort, were a swarm of dragons, the air deafened by their noises, and also the Scuttleclaws' excited chattering.

Valka's POV
As the outline of the fort loomed out of the misty sea, I realised that it still looked creepy, even in daylight. Maybe it was like that to prevent unwanted visitors- like us- from coming.
Once I thought we'd got close enough- but not for anybody to see us- I made a swiping motion with my hand, to tell them to stay back.
"I'm just going to get the lay of the land.' I told Cloudjumper. He snorted nervously, though still in agreement.
Suddenly, I heard a terrible howling noise, which made the dragons spook out, and it took a roar from Cloudjumper to get them to settle down again.
No...my dragon brother... Cloudjumper gasped. He flew down to the beach, and landed.
You must help him, mistress.
'W-what do you mea-'
I answered my own question, as the source of the howling turned out to be a dragon caught in a trap.
I walked over to it slowly, so as not to scare it.
The species was a Monstrous Nightmare- I knew that much, as they were probably the most prolific dragons when they raided back on Berk.
Berk...
Tears blurred my eyes again.
No. I must not think about it. The Sanctuary was my new home now. And I had to concentrate on freeing this dragon.
I looked into the dragon's eyes, to try to calm it down- but I regretted it.
Those eyes...
Slitted pupils, burning with anger, and rage, and misery.
But why? Why was it so furious- no, seething?
I thought desperately for an answer to this question. The King had once told me (Dragon Lesson 5) that, although there were very few of his kind left, there were still some who were bad. Bad Kings, he had said, who abused their ability to bend other dragons to their will.
This dragon may have suffered under one such bad King. This would definitely explain his slitted pupils.
My thoughts were interrupted by a sharp roar from Cloudjumper, warning me I did not have much time.
At last, the lock of the trap sprang open, and the Nightmare was free...
"DRAGON RIDER!" came a shout from behind me.
'Go on! Go! You're free now! Fly!' I told the Nightmare frantically.
But he would not go. He cowered on the sand, waiting for the owner of the voice.
I ran over to Cloudjumper, and tried to climb onto him- but a dart pierced his skin, narrowly missing me, and he fell onto the sand.
'No! Wake up! Wake up!' I shouted.
But he only groaned sleepily in reply.
I instinctively ran over to the only dragon left I could protect- the Sanctuary dragons had been incapacitated by darts attached to bolases.
I placed my hand gently on the Monstrous Nightmare's snout, as men surrounded me, swords, axes, and crossbows drawn and at the ready.
'Aaaand we're all here.' I said, slightly sarcastically.
'Don't hurt the Nightmare!'
"Why would we?' one man sneered. He was standing at the front of the crowd of men, so I guessed he was the leader. 'Drago wouldn't be pleased with us if we did that.'
I breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. This man was not Drago- and he certainly didn't look like he was capable of burning down any buildings- with people still inside- due to his rather skinny arms.
'Yep, I'm not Drago.' he confirmed, as if he could read my mind. 'And you should be thanking your gods that I'm not.' he added onimiously.
'Erm... why?'
'Oh, you're a curious little dragon rider, aren't you. But in case you've forgotten, it's us who's supposed to be asking you the questions, not the other way around.'
He walked towards me slightly, trying to intimidate me- but I could hardly be intimidated by a man who was probably no older than me, with skinny arms. This was not the case for the Nightmare, however. He continued to cower in fear as the man got closer.
'Let me just ask you one question, before you get on with your so-called "interrogation"...what's your name?'
'The less you know, the better. I once had those exact words said to me by Drago, when he first recruited me. And I know them to be true now.'
'Maybe I don't need to know your name. But you all need to know this.' I stood up. The Monstrous Nightmare responded to this, seeming to have found hope again, and did the same.
The man looked nervous, but he still stood his ground.
'What are you going to do-'
'Just let me show you.'
And so, I extended my palm out to the Monstrous Nightmare, the same way my son had done fifteen years later, and said the exact same words he had said, upon discovering what I had.
History repeats itself.
'Everything we know about them...is wrong. They're not what we think they are...'
'Really?! Try telling that to Drago. He lost his arm to the beasts.'
'If you would just let me show you...' I repeated.
'No. Let ME show YOU.' the man said, whacking my hand away from the dragon's snout, hitting the poor reptile, and screaming at it.
The Nightmare's once-docile eyes turned to slits at this cruel treatment, and he went not after me, but after the man.
He screamed in terror, which was understandable.

Eret's POV
I opened my eyes, and realised with a sick feeling in my stomach that sunlight was already streaming through the window. I should have got up before dawn, and now I was going to have to pay for not doing so...I may as well make it fast.
I opened the door of the room, and walked outside, onto the ramps. Ziist came running up to me, breathless.
"Oh, Eret. Thank gods you're up. We need you.'
'Why?'
He took a spyglass out of his pocket, and handed it to me. I looked into it, and saw thousands of dragons flying towards the fort.
My stomach dropped even further.
'T-those don't look like Drago's dragons. How long before they get here?'
'I'm not sure, but not long enough for us to sail to Drago and tell him- but probably long enough to send airmail.'
I nodded.
He whistled, and a Terrible Terror flew out of the sky, and landed on his arm, similar to a falcon.
He showed me what he had written on a letter, which he produced from his pocket.
Drago,
There's what appears to be another dragon army flying towards the fort, intending to attack us. We will shoot them down, of course, and bring them to you, so we should have surpassed our dragon quota.
From Ziist.
He then put it into the Terror's claws.
'Fly back to your master.' he instructed, and raised his arm. The little dragon flew off as soon as his arm reached its highest point.

---

The Terrible Terror's POV
As I am flying, suddenly I hear a noise. One I know well. It is my Alpha's call...but it is from a different Alpha.
No! Why am I even calling it an Alpha?! It is telling me to call it that. But I will not. Doesn't it know that I will always serve my rightful Alpha, which is not it. Or maybe it is.
No. NO. I must resist. But it is too late.
I look around for my new Alpha, but I do not see it.
I smell underneath the sea, and catch his scent. Perhaps he is hiding.
I turn around, and see those horrible men. I squeak in outrage, and fly towards them.
"FIRE!"
A sharp thing sticks into me. I look back at where I have been shot, and see a red thing, with a sharp point embedded into my green scales. That is the last thing I remember.

---

Eret's POV
'Right, now that's taken care of...' Ziist kicked the Terror, and smiled nastily up at the dragons flying towards us.
'You'll all be joining it soon.' he snarled.
One of the dragons, at the front, cut off from the group, and flew down to the beach where the Monstrous Nightmare was caught in the trap. It looked like a Stormcutter, and... a figure climbed off it.
I drew my sword, and tried to walk over to them, but Ziist blocked my path with his arm.
'Wait.' he whispered. 'When they're distracted, I'll give the signal for the dart-bolases.'
The figure was busy undoing the trap, so I guessed they were distracted now.
Ziist raised his other arm, and prepared to drop it- this was the signal.
As fast and as silent as a Night Fury, the dart-bolases were fired. The dragons hardly knew what had hit them. One second they were flying, the next, they were plummeting down, trapped in the bolases. Those who hadn't been incapacited were, once they hit the ground.

---

Valka's POV
I heard the dragons crashing onto the sand, and my stomach dropped. I had to save them...but I also had to free this Monstrous Nightmare.
I looked into the dragon's eyes, to try to calm it down- but I regretted it.
Those eyes...
Slitted pupils, burning with anger, and rage, and misery.
But why? Why was it so furious- no, seething?
I thought desperately for an answer to this question. The King had once told me (Dragon Lesson 5) that, although there were very few of his kind left, there were still some who were bad. Bad Kings, he had said, who abused their ability to bend other dragons to their will.
This dragon may have suffered under one such bad King. This would definitely explain his slitted pupils.
My thoughts were interrupted by a sharp roar from Cloudjumper, warning me I did not have much time.
At last, the lock of the trap sprang open, and the Nightmare was free...
"DRAGON RIDER!" came a shout from behind me.
'Go on! Go! You're free now! Fly!' I told the Nightmare frantically.
But he would not go. He cowered on the sand, waiting for the owner of the voice.
I ran over to Cloudjumper, and tried to climb onto him- but a dart pierced his skin, narrowly missing me, and he fell onto the sand.
'No! Wake up! Wake up!' I shouted.
But he only groaned sleepily in reply.
I instinctively ran over to the only dragon left I could protect- the Sanctuary dragons had been incapacitated by darts attached to bolases.
I placed my hand gently on the Monstrous Nightmare's snout, as men surrounded me, swords, axes, and crossbows drawn and at the ready.
'Aaaand we're all here.' I said, slightly sarcastically.
'Don't hurt the Nightmare!'
"Why would we?' one man sneered. He was standing at the front of the crowd of men, so I guessed he was the leader. 'Drago wouldn't be pleased with us if we did that.'
I breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. This man was not Drago- and he certainly didn't look like he was capable of burning down any buildings- with people still inside- due to his rather skinny arms.
'Yep, I'm not Drago.' he confirmed, as if he could read my mind. 'And you should be thanking your gods that I'm not.' he added onimiously.
'Erm... why?'
'Oh, you're a curious little dragon rider, aren't you. But in case you've forgotten, it's us who's supposed to be asking you the questions, not the other way around.'
He walked towards me slightly, trying to intimidate me- but I could hardly be intimidated by a man who was probably no older than me, with skinny arms. This was not the case for the Nightmare, however. He continued to cower in fear as the man got closer.
'Let me just ask you one question, before you get on with your so-called "interrogation"...what's your name?'
'The less you know, the better. I once had those exact words said to me by Drago, when he first recruited me. And I know them to be true now.'
'Maybe I don't need to know your name. But you all need to know this.' I stood up. The Monstrous Nightmare responded to this, seeming to have found hope again, and did the same.
The man looked nervous, but he still stood his ground.
'What are you going to do-'
'Just let me show you.'
And so, I extended my palm out to the Monstrous Nightmare, the same way my son had done fifteen years later, and said the exact same words he had said, upon discovering what I had.
History repeats itself.
'Everything we know about them...is wrong. They're not what we think they are...'
'Really?! Try telling that to Drago. He lost his arm to the beasts.'
'If you would just let me show you...' I repeated.
'No. Let ME show YOU.' the man said, whacking my hand away from the dragon's snout, hitting the poor reptile, and screaming at it.
The Nightmare's once-docile eyes turned to slits at this cruel treatment, and he went not after me, but after the man.
He screamed in terror, which was understandable.

Ziist's POV
"Eret!’ I yell, and run after him.
"Sir, no!”
"You’ll get yourself killed!” the other trappers shout. I ignore them.
'RUN!' I scream to Eret.
'But, sir-'
'RUN! I’ll take care of the Nightmare!'
The dragon notices us speaking, and runs straight for me. I notice with relief that Eret has got out of the way. The Nightmare notices this too, and a clawed paw swats me aside, in its frenzy to get to him.
But I don't remember any more.

---

Cloudjumper's POV
A piercing scream entered my head, waking me up. I looked around, and I saw the Monstrous Nightmare.
So, you've woken up, he snarled.
Apparently, you are not as stupid as you seem, I replied.
With a roar of rage, he walked towards me, but before he reached me, I got up, and we circled each other.
The people crowding around us gasped. My mistress was among them.
You don't have to do this, Nightmare.
Alpha's orders.
I could not tell if he was lying or not, but if I listened hard, into his thoughts, I could hear a voice.
BRING THE TRAITOR TO ME.
A-alpha, he is too strong-willed...
WE WILL SEE ABOUT THAT.
The voice was not in the Nightmare's thoughts, but in mine, now.
GIVE UP. I AM YOUR ALPHA NOW.
No. Not again…Listen to me, Nightmare, please, you can be free from the Queen, from the Alpha, from any of those that try to control you, if you just join us.
That is what the Alpha said to me. And I am free.
You are not. He is just making you believe that. You are in a trance. Wake up! WAKE UP!
For a second, the Nightmare’s eyes turned docile, but even then, they were miserable. And then his eyes turned to slits again.
I can see you, Nightmare. I can see who you are inside. You are miserable. Your Alpha is not a good King. He is using you. But my King, however, is good.
YOU HAVE A KING, STORMCUTTER?!
Yes. And you can meet him, if you wish.
VERY WELL. I WILL CRUSH YOUR PATHETIC “KING”, GORE HIM WITH MY TUSKS!
Mistress, can you call the Alpha?
‘Yes, Cloudjumper.’
She turned to the other people.
‘You might want to run.’
They all did.
Except for one.
A young man, sitting next to the body of another, which had blood running down its face.
He was too busy trying to find any signs of life in his companion, to notice what was going on.
IF I HAD A HEART, I MIGHT FIND THIS TOUCHING. BUT MY MASTER BROKE MINE LONG AGO.
You... I hissed at the voice. You killed him.
I DID NOT KILL HIM. HE DID.
By 'him', I knew that the voice was referring to the Monstrous Nightmare.
I snarled at him, and prepared to fight again.
This time, a different voice entered my head- a calm, kinder one- my Alpha's voice.
No, Jumper of the Cloud. Do not murder him out of anger. Then you would be no better than him.
The sound of his voice calmed me, enough to obey him.
Yes, Alpha.
Then the voice entered my head again.
THERE IS...ANOTHER ONE?! it roared.
Yes. There is. And he is a better King than you will ever be.
The voice roared in fury.
NIGHTMARE, TO ME!
The dragon prepared to take to the sky, and obey the voice. An urge tugged inside me to do the same.
Follow. Follow.
No, the Alpha said firmly, you will not. Now, let us get on with the matter at hand...
The mighty beast turned his head towards the fort, and inhaled.

---

Eret's POV
'No...' I whimpered, doing everything I could to shield Ziist. 'No.'
I had one last look at him, and gently removed his metal Stormcutter disc. At least I'd have something to remember him by.
Then the ice-spitter blasted him out of the world, and my world faded into freezing, cold, white

---

Valka's POV
'King,' I whispered, 'look.'
The Bewilderbeast did so, and made his equivalent of a gasp.
A young man was lying on the ground, another man next to him. The first one was clearly dead, but the other was not.
'I-it's okay,' I gasped, although it was not. 'You just c-couldn't see him, before you aimed...'

Eret's POV
I opened my eyes, and realised with a sick feeling in my stomach that sunlight was already streaming through the window. I should have got up before dawn, and now I was going to have to pay for not doing so...I may as well make it fast.
I opened the door of the room, and walked outside, onto the ramps. Ziist came running up to me, breathless.
"Oh, Eret. Thank gods you're up. We need you.'
'Why?'
He took a spyglass out of his pocket, and handed it to me. I looked into it, and saw thousands of dragons flying towards the fort.
My stomach dropped even further.
'T-those don't look like Drago's dragons. How long before they get here?'
'I'm not sure, but not long enough for us to sail to Drago and tell him- but probably long enough to send airmail.'
I nodded.
He whistled, and a Terrible Terror flew out of the sky, and landed on his arm, similar to a falcon.
He showed me what he had written on a letter, which he produced from his pocket.
Drago,
There's what appears to be another dragon army flying towards the fort, intending to attack us. We will shoot them down, of course, and bring them to you, so we should have surpassed our dragon quota.
From Ziist.
He then put it into the Terror's claws.
'Fly back to your master.' he instructed, and raised his arm. The little dragon flew off as soon as his arm reached its highest point.

---

The Terrible Terror's POV
As I am flying, suddenly I hear a noise. One I know well. It is my Alpha's call...but it is from a different Alpha.
No! Why am I even calling it an Alpha?! It is telling me to call it that. But I will not. Doesn't it know that I will always serve my rightful Alpha, which is not it. Or maybe it is.
No. NO. I must resist. But it is too late.
I look around for my new Alpha, but I do not see it.
I smell underneath the sea, and catch his scent. Perhaps he is hiding.
I turn around, and see those horrible men. I squeak in outrage, and fly towards them.
"FIRE!"
A sharp thing sticks into me. I look back at where I have been shot, and see a red thing, with a sharp point embedded into my green scales. That is the last thing I remember.

---

Eret's POV
'Right, now that's taken care of...' Ziist kicked the Terror, and smiled nastily up at the dragons flying towards us.
'You'll all be joining it soon.' he snarled.
One of the dragons, at the front, cut off from the group, and flew down to the beach where the Monstrous Nightmare was caught in the trap. It looked like a Stormcutter, and... a figure climbed off it.
I drew my sword, and tried to walk over to them, but Ziist blocked my path with his arm.
'Wait.' he whispered. 'When they're distracted, I'll give the signal for the dart-bolases.'
The figure was busy undoing the trap, so I guessed they were distracted now.
Ziist raised his other arm, and prepared to drop it- this was the signal.
As fast and as silent as a Night Fury, the dart-bolases were fired. The dragons hardly knew what had hit them. One second they were flying, the next, they were plummeting down, trapped in the bolases. Those who hadn't been incapacited were, once they hit the ground.

---

Valka's POV
I heard the dragons crashing onto the sand, and my stomach dropped. I had to save them...but I also had to free this Monstrous Nightmare.
I looked into the dragon's eyes, to try to calm it down- but I regretted it.
Those eyes...
Slitted pupils, burning with anger, and rage, and misery.
But why? Why was it so furious- no, seething?
I thought desperately for an answer to this question. The King had once told me (Dragon Lesson 5) that, although there were very few of his kind left, there were still some who were bad. Bad Kings, he had said, who abused their ability to bend other dragons to their will.
This dragon may have suffered under one such bad King. This would definitely explain his slitted pupils.
My thoughts were interrupted by a sharp roar from Cloudjumper, warning me I did not have much time.
At last, the lock of the trap sprang open, and the Nightmare was free...
"DRAGON RIDER!" came a shout from behind me.
'Go on! Go! You're free now! Fly!' I told the Nightmare frantically.
But he would not go. He cowered on the sand, waiting for the owner of the voice.
I ran over to Cloudjumper, and tried to climb onto him- but a dart pierced his skin, narrowly missing me, and he fell onto the sand.
'No! Wake up! Wake up!' I shouted.
But he only groaned sleepily in reply.
I instinctively ran over to the only dragon left I could protect- the Sanctuary dragons had been incapacitated by darts attached to bolases.
I placed my hand gently on the Monstrous Nightmare's snout, as men surrounded me, swords, axes, and crossbows drawn and at the ready.
'Aaaand we're all here.' I said, slightly sarcastically.
'Don't hurt the Nightmare!'
"Why would we?' one man sneered. He was standing at the front of the crowd of men, so I guessed he was the leader. 'Drago wouldn't be pleased with us if we did that.'
I breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. This man was not Drago- and he certainly didn't look like he was capable of burning down any buildings- with people still inside- due to his rather skinny arms.
'Yep, I'm not Drago.' he confirmed, as if he could read my mind. 'And you should be thanking your gods that I'm not.' he added onimiously.
'Erm... why?'
'Oh, you're a curious little dragon rider, aren't you. But in case you've forgotten, it's us who's supposed to be asking you the questions, not the other way around.'
He walked towards me slightly, trying to intimidate me- but I could hardly be intimidated by a man who was probably no older than me, with skinny arms. This was not the case for the Nightmare, however. He continued to cower in fear as the man got closer.
'Let me just ask you one question, before you get on with your so-called "interrogation"...what's your name?'
'The less you know, the better. I once had those exact words said to me by Drago, when he first recruited me. And I know them to be true now.'
'Maybe I don't need to know your name. But you all need to know this.' I stood up. The Monstrous Nightmare responded to this, seeming to have found hope again, and did the same.
The man looked nervous, but he still stood his ground.
'What are you going to do-'
'Just let me show you.'
And so, I extended my palm out to the Monstrous Nightmare, the same way my son had done fifteen years later, and said the exact same words he had said, upon discovering what I had.
History repeats itself.
'Everything we know about them...is wrong. They're not what we think they are...'
'Really?! Try telling that to Drago. He lost his arm to the beasts.'
'If you would just let me show you...' I repeated.
'No. Let ME show YOU.' the man said, whacking my hand away from the dragon's snout, hitting the poor reptile, and screaming at it.
The Nightmare's once-docile eyes turned to slits at this cruel treatment, and he went not after me, but after the man.
He screamed in terror, which was understandable.

---

Ziist's POV
"Eret!’ I yell, and run after him.
"Sir, no!”
"You’ll get yourself killed!” the other trappers shout. I ignore them.
'RUN!' I scream to Eret.
'But, sir-'
'RUN! I’ll take care of the Nightmare!'
The dragon notices us speaking, and runs straight for me. I notice with relief that Eret has got out of the way. The Nightmare notices this too, and a clawed paw swats me aside, in its frenzy to get to him.
But I don't remember any more.

---

Cloudjumper's POV
A piercing scream entered my head, waking me up. I looked around, and I saw the Monstrous Nightmare.
So, you've woken up, he snarled.
Apparently, you are not as stupid as you seem, I replied.
With a roar of rage, he walked towards me, but before he reached me, I got up, and we circled each other.
The people crowding around us gasped. My mistress was among them.
You don't have to do this, Nightmare.
Alpha's orders.
I could not tell if he was lying or not, but if I listened hard, into his thoughts, I could hear a voice.
BRING THE TRAITOR TO ME.
A-alpha, he is too strong-willed...
WE WILL SEE ABOUT THAT.
The voice was not in the Nightmare's thoughts, but in mine, now.
GIVE UP. I AM YOUR ALPHA NOW.
No. Not again…Listen to me, Nightmare, please, you can be free from the Queen, from the Alpha, from any of those that try to control you, if you just join us.
That is what the Alpha said to me. And I am free.
You are not. He is just making you believe that. You are in a trance. Wake up! WAKE UP!
For a second, the Nightmare’s eyes turned docile, but even then, they were miserable. And then his eyes turned to slits again.
I can see you, Nightmare. I can see who you are inside. You are miserable. Your Alpha is not a good King. He is using you. But my King, however, is good.
YOU HAVE A KING, STORMCUTTER?!
Yes. And you can meet him, if you wish.
VERY WELL. I WILL CRUSH YOUR PATHETIC “KING”, GORE HIM WITH MY TUSKS!
Mistress, can you call the Alpha?
‘Yes, Cloudjumper.’
She turned to the other people.
‘You might want to run.’
They all did.
Except for one.
A young man, sitting next to the body of another, which had blood running down its face.
He was too busy trying to find any signs of life in his companion, to notice what was going on.
IF I HAD A HEART, I MIGHT FIND THIS TOUCHING. BUT MY MASTER BROKE MINE LONG AGO.
You... I hissed at the voice. You killed him.
I DID NOT KILL HIM. HE DID.
By 'him', I knew that the voice was referring to the Monstrous Nightmare.
I snarled at him, and prepared to fight again.
This time, a different voice entered my head- a calm, kinder one- my Alpha's voice.
No, Jumper of the Cloud. Do not murder him out of anger. Then you would be no better than him.
The sound of his voice calmed me, enough to obey him.
Yes, Alpha.
Then the voice entered my head again.
THERE IS...ANOTHER ONE?! it roared.
Yes. There is. And he is a better King than you will ever be.
The voice roared in fury.
NIGHTMARE, TO ME!
The dragon prepared to take to the sky, and obey the voice. An urge tugged inside me to do the same.
Follow. Follow.
No, the Alpha said firmly, you will not. Now, let us get on with the matter at hand...
The mighty beast turned his head towards the fort, and inhaled.

---

Eret's POV
'No...' I whimpered, doing everything I could to shield Ziist. 'No.'
I had one last look at him, and gently removed his metal Stormcutter disc. At least I'd have something to remember him by.
Then the ice-spitter blasted him out of the world, and my world faded into freezing, cold, white.

---

Valka's POV
'King,' I whispered, 'look.'
The Bewilderbeast did so, and made his equivalent of a gasp.
A young man was lying on the ground, another man next to him. The first one was clearly dead, but the other was not.
'I-it's okay,' I gasped, although it was not. 'You just c-couldn't see him, before you aimed...'
Why did I have to always be so forgiving?! The King had just killed someone, regardless if Bewilderbeasts have poor eyesight and hearing!
'No, it's not okay!' I yelled. 'I HATE you! You're no better than...them!'
Suddenly, I heard something walking up to me. Instinctively, I panicked- but the footsteps sounded like dragons' claws, so I knew it was Cloudjumper. His presence calmed me.
I am sorry, Mistress. It was my fault. I asked you to call the Alpha. Anyway, the least we can do is give this man's companion a proper burial.
He sniffed the air suddenly, and his pupils turned to slits.
And we'd better do it quickly, for I smell...bad dragons...and ships...
The King inhaled again, and covered the dead man's body with a thick layer of ice. Thankfully, his eyes were closed.
'It'll be just like Hel in there for him...where he belongs.' I snarled. Although he had died, he was still a dragon trapper.
Little human, do not judge him too harshly. He had to trap dragons...he was following his boss's orders. If he did not, he would have had a far earlier death. Even if I had not killed him, we would have still taken the dragons back to the Sanctuary, and his boss would have killed him, as a punishment for his failure. Think of it like that.
'Great boss.' I muttered.
I glanced down at the other man. After looking closer, I realised it was the man with the skinny arms- the leader.
'What about him?'
He will have a lot of explaining to do to his boss, for the destroyed fort, his dead companion, and his lack of dragons.
Well said, King. But we will be the ones doing the explaining, if we do not get out of here! The smell is getting stronger!
You are right, Jumper of the Cloud. We should go.
At the King's call, the dragons of the Sanctuary woke up, and started to fly towards him. I climbed onto Cloudjumper quickly, as he started to fly too, back to the Sanctuary.

Eret's POV
I woke up, shivering. I was so cold... Looking down at my arms, legs, and body gave me the answer- they were covered in what looked like ice.
But why?
Suddenly, I remembered. The ice-spitter... Ziist...dead...
No. It couldn't be true.
But it was. His body was encased in ice.
I looked around the beach, hoping to find the shapes of sleeping dragons.
They weren't there.
I rubbed my eyes, hoping that this was yet another thing that couldn't be true.
But, like with Ziist's death, it was.
There were absolutely no dragons on the beach.
And I was going to have to pay for that...
Well, Drago couldn't punish me, if he couldn't find me, I decided, and got up, and ran.
The familiar sound of chains clanking, shouting, and dragons screaming entered my ears.
How did he know I was here?
Of course. The dragons.
I ran into a cave inside the rocks. Just in time, too, because I heard footsteps.
And the feet of which had made those steps, had stepped onto many dragons' snouts. While doing this, the owner of those feet had said, 'You belong to me now.'
The footsteps stopped. I dared to peek out of the cave.
Drago, and one of his soldiers were standing next to Ziist's body.
'...Sir, why can't we just leave the trapper here?'
Drago took a while before answering. The soldier gulped- when he didn't answer, it meant that he was very, very, angry with you.
'Do you know how important he is to me?'
'Um, yes.'
'Do you know that he is one of the best, if not the best, trappers I have?'
'Yes.'
'Why did you question me, then?'
'I'm sorry, sir, I-'
'Do you know what happens to people who question me?'
'Yes, sir.'
The nearby dragons' pupils were still docile. That was strange. Why weren't they slavering and snarling?
'Go on,' Drago said quietly. 'Go over to them. They won't hurt you.'
The soldier obligingly did as he was ordered, although he was shaking. Nervously, he put his foot lightly on a dragon's snout. The dragon didn't panic- he was used to this.
A smile came over the soldier's face.
'I'm controlling it, sir! I- I'm a dragon master too!' He was immediately silent after he'd realised what he'd said.
What he didn't notice, was the cruel smile of evil intent that was on his boss's face. But I did.
Drago walked over to the nearby sea, and waited. Eventually, the waves broke, and his Bewilderbeast came out.
The soldier definitely noticed this. He stood, frozen in fear, as Drago pointed his staff to the huge dragon, and then to the smaller ones, the smile still on his face.
The dragons' pupils immediately snapped to slits. The soldier just managed to get his foot off the dragon's snout before its jaws snapped onto the limb.
They started to move towards him slowly, growling menacingly. The soldier backed away, pleading frantically.
'N-nice dragons...n-nice dragons...please don't kill me...please...y-you wouldn't hurt me, would you...?'
'They will...' Drago snarled, '...if it is the command of the Alpha. And no dragon can resist its command.'
'Oh, no. Drago, please. You wouldn't feed your best soldier to the dragons, would you?'
'The trapper is the best, and he is important to me. But you are not. And how would you be an example to those who question me, human...'
'...And dragon?' he smiled in pure hatred at the beasts, who whimpered, understandably.
The soldier continued pleading for his life.
'SILENCE!' Drago screamed. The soldier stopped gabbling immediately. That was the usual effect.
'This is for questioning me, and daring to think that you are a dragon master too. There is only one- and that is me- I alone, control them all. Goodbye.'
'Destroy him.' he whispered to the dragons.
The dragons immediately ran after the soldier, saliva hanging from their mouths. He didn't realise, that by running, he was triggering the dragons' predatory instincts- to chase, to hunt, to tear apart- which had been built into them before they had been changed by the Alpha's control- and the Alpha's control only magnified these instincts.
You wouldn't want me to describe what happened to the soldier, believe me.
Drago watched the dragons tear apart the soldier, and smiled- if you could even call it a smile- proudly at his killing machines.
'Apology accepted.' he sneered to the pile of bones. He raised his head to the sky, as if he was going to speak to the gods- which he was.
'Tell him I said that, would you?'
'Yep,' I muttered, from the cave. 'He's definitely gone crazy- trying to speak to the gods.'
But Drago had better hearing than I thought.
'WHAT?!' he screamed, looking around to see where my voice was coming from. 'WHERE ARE YOU?!'
'I'm right here!' I called out, showing my face.
He made a noise, something between a growl, and a scream, strangled in fury.
It echoed across the beach, sounding like a dragon call.
As it happened, it was a dragon call- a Monstrous Nightmare's.
So, he had accidently screamed a Nightmare call...
The only Nightmare in the group of Drago's dragons took to the sky.
'NO! NO! NO!' he roared. 'CONTROL IT! MAKE IT COME BACK!' he screamed at his Bewilderbeast, which was the closest thing that he could yell at.
Of course, the next thing he would yell at would probably be me. I prepared for my eardrums to explode.
Stupidly, I guaranteed the explosion of my eardrums (and, probably, also my death), by interjecting helpfully,
'You're going to hurt your throat, or give yourself a headache if you carry on screaming like that.'
He stopped in the middle of roaring, in the absolute height of his fury, 'GET AFTER IT!' to his dragons, with terrifying abruptness.
'Were you trying to tell me what to do, boy?' he snarled, finally seeing me, and picking me up by my shirt.
'Um, no, sir...'
He growled again, and put the claws of his dragon hand to my throat. I looked up into his scarred face- which was all I could do, because he'd grabbed me by the neck, and forced me to- and saw his eyes, burning with fury.
I had a terrible feeling that he really was going to rip my throat out- but then, the fury in his eyes faded. Drago had controlled his anger.
'I will deal with you later.' he growled, dropping me onto the sand. 'You have a dragon to find for me. And if you fail this...' he trailed off threateningly, putting emphasis on 'fail', as if it was the worst thing I could do.
Which, knowing- or not knowing, which was probably worse- what Drago would do to me if I did indeed fail, was more than correct.
And he'd already come close to killing me, just a few seconds ago, although he'd controlled his anger. But I didn't think he would be so merciful again, especially if I failed.
'What's my reward?' I asked.
Drago seemed surprised at my daring to ask for a reward.
'Your life.' he snarled. 'You're lucky you still have it.'
Not wanting to anger him further, I climbed onto one of the waiting dragons, a warning glare from Drago forcing me to do so. The beasts were eager to hunt the Nightmare, to tear it from the sky, in the bloodthirsty frenzy of the Alpha's control, so they took to the sky, instinctively knowing what their master wanted them to do, before he even screamed the command at them.

Eret's POV
The group of dragons I was flying with picked up speed, as they saw the Monstrous Nightmare, and the dragon that I was riding on wanted to as well, but it couldn't, because I was holding onto it tightly. So, it tried to buck me off instead- unsuccessfully.
'If you don't stop, I'll tell your master about this.' I threatened.
Instantly, the dragon stopped. It looked up at me apolegetically, and through its slitted pupils, though burning with the anger and misery of the Alpha's control, I could still see one emotion- which was what kept it obedient to Drago.
Fear.
It whimpered, and I met its terrified gaze sternly.
Then it looked back and saw its fellow dragons, and continued the chase as much as it could, with me still holding onto its neck.
Eventually, once we'd passed the mist, I saw a small island, the sounds of bleating sheep echoing in the night air.
Wait, none of the islands around here had sheep. Where was I?
In my mind's eye, I pictured the huge map that Drago had of the known world. Every time he recruited some new soldiers, he added their island onto the map. He'd told me that he had discovered most of the world by doing this, and, of course, his conquests.
The location of one of his most important (if not the most important) conquests he'd ever done, was labelled 'The Bewilderbeast's Nesting Site'. He'd proceeded to tell me how he'd found his Bewilderbeast there as an egg, in fake sympathy for the miserable dragon.
There was a compass in the corner of the map, and these lands were east. To the north, was labelled 'The Viking Lands', which included the burnt ruins of the Chieftains' Meeting building, which Drago had scribbled out.
There was also an island, right at the bottom of the north parts, labelled 'The Isle of Berk'.
It seemed to match the picture well enough.
So, this was Berk. But how had we flown this far north?
This thought was interrupted by something flying past me, very fast, but despite this, I managed to see a shadowy figure on the winged creature.
A dragon rider...?
Hiccup's POV
Suddenly, Toothless slowed down, and started looking around, growling uncertainly.
'Whoa, bud, what is it?' I asked him.
As if in answer, a dragon came out of the mist- and it had a rider. The dragon was a Nadder, so I immediately thought it was Astrid. Well, only one way to find out.
I got Toothless to fly above the dragon, and he grabbed the rider in his claws.
'PUT ME DOWN!' they screamed.
'Not until you tell us who you are.' Astrid said, and I saw her flying beside us on Stormfly.
'I'M NOT TELLING YOU!'
She shrugged her shoulders innocently.
'Well, if you won't tell us...Chief Stoick will get it out of you.'
The rider stopped screaming.
'Wait- Chief Stoick? You're Vikings, right?'
'You're not telling us who you are, so why should we tell you who we are?'
'Because- because- these dragons will tear you apart if you don't.' The rider took one arm off Toothless's leg, and gestured to the dragons that were following behind us, anger in their eyes.
'Oh, please,' Tuff sneered. 'We're dragon masters.'
Astrid glared at Tuff.
'Haven't you learnt anything about telling people our dragon secrets, since Heather?'
'But she turned out good in the end.'
'Yes, but before that, she was working for the Outcasts. And I have a feeling this guy might be too.'
'You!' she snapped at the rider. 'Know anybody called Alvin the Treacherous? From the Outcast tribe, tall, brown beard, scar on one cheek?'
'Nope.' the rider denied.
'Maybe this will help you remember him...' Astrid snarled, putting the blade of her axe to his throat.
'Astrid!' I scolded, shocked. 'Leave him alone.'
'Sorry, Hiccup.' she apologized.
'It's okay, Astrid. I'm just worried that you might kill someone by doing that.'
'Stop talking! Look, I swear to the gods, I don't know anybody called Alvin!' the rider interrupted.
'If you're not working for him, who are you working for?' I asked.
'Hey, guys!' Tuff shouted. 'We're supposed to be taking this guy to Stoick, remember?'
'Oh. You're right, Tuff. Let's go, guys.'
'Yeah, I know. I'm always right.' Tuff retorted, but I couldn't be bothered to reply.
'I still don't trust him.' Astrid protested, as we were flying off, the rider still in Toothless's claws.