Chapter 53: The Hidden World

Hiccup

I waited. I waited and waited for Astrid to arrive to the Great Hall for dinner but she never arrived and I'll admit I was a little disappointed but at the same time I was almost glad because that moment between us on the Cliffside threw me off guard. I didn't know what was happening and why it was happening, it just sort of did. As the pair of us leaned in closer together I could feel her soft breath touch the icy touch of skin and I couldn't help but find myself lost in a moment. Well that was until Snotlout decided to show up, if he didn't I'm not entirely sure what might have happened. Would have our lips made contact with each other? I can imagine the sweet sensation in this moment; would it be just as magical as I think it would be? I don't know why I'm thinking of such a thing because something between Astrid and I can never happened not after everything that's happened. Besides I don't actually believe I'm in the right state for that, everything has just been flooding in so quickly at the moment I haven't had time to process what I'm thinking and how everything has started to take a turn for the better all of a sudden. Okay maybe not everything is turning for the better, I've just escaped from Viggo for what is it now, the third time? And I'm still alive but he'll never stop coming for me and I have no idea why.

I always keep wondering whether or Leia might know the answer but then my mind keeps trailing back to how we never officially met when we were younger so she'd probably have no idea. There was no way anyone on Berk could know why Viggo wants me so bad, nor can the Defender's of the Wing because they haven't been part of my life for the past 14 years so they have no idea what I've endured and been through. So in the end, it all falls down on me the failure who has no idea what's gone on his life because he can't remember half of it. Sighing heavily, I rested my hand on my cheek with my elbow connected to the table picking at the plate of food sat right in front of me with the spoon while everyone else in the Great Hall were enjoying their meals. "What's the matter son?" the hollow whisper of my father's voice pulled me out of my lost trance as I lifted my head up to face him with his big green eyes peering down at me. They weren't at all threatening but instead they bore the heart of kindness and sincerity, something about someone you knew you could always trust and rely on. That has already been proven to me and besides he's my father so it's something that doesn't have to be proven at all to me. "Just thinking," I mumbled back to him, I was surprised to find he heard everything I said due to my lips barely making a movement when I spoke. I sighed heavily again looking back my food which just sat staring just as helplessly at me.

The tap of my father's hand on my back caught me off guard when he stood from his seat and went around me leaning down to whisper in my ear "Come with me, I know something that might cheer you up," I removed my hand away from my cheek just as I watched my father walk away and out of the Great Hall. My head diverted round to look at my mother who was smiling at me gesturing her head to me to go and follow my father. My eyes perked open with interest as I pushed myself away from the table running round to catch up with my father's lead. I found my feet trekking all the way down the stairs before I finally caught up with him halfway down. "What took you so long?" he spoke to me with a joking matter to his voice, we headed up to the house but just as I was about to enter with him he told me to wait outside while he collected something he needed. I did as I was told and waited out in the cold while he went hurrying inside the building. The crisp wind started to take affect and wondered where my father had gotten to as I started getting shivers all the way down my spine. I let my arms cuddle around me hoping to shake some warmth into my bloodstream as I waited for another fifteen minutes for my dad to finally make an appearance. In his hands he held a book and it made me wonder why it took him so long to try and find something so ordinary. He came back over to me wrapping his arm round my shoulder sheltering me away from the cold before the pair of us made our way up to the far cliff side of the village.

I looked down and I could see the whole village lit up with small little lanterns hanging from the village homes and the dragons nestled cosy in their pens next to each individual home. You had the villagers carrying out their ritual fighting games I've learned they do that a lot here just for fun which struck me as kind of odd but I guess whatever makes them happy. "Hiccup. This is Berk, son. It's our home. It was the home of your grandparents, and their grandparents before them. And it's my job as chief to protect us, Hiccup." I looked up at my father as he kept his gaze focused down on the people below us; I let my eyes widen in expansion while listening to what he had to say because I was intrigued to know where this was going. "And it's very important, son, because out there, beyond the sunset, lies the home of the dragons," my head spun out into the open so I could direct my gaze beyond the place my father was identifying. Of course I knew dragons must have come from their own place but I'd always believed it to be fantasy, a thing I made up on my own but now hearing words coming out of my father's lips I couldn't help but stay pin pointed on the story and what could this all mean. If it was just a way to try and cheer me up then it was certainly working; "Legends tell of ships that sailed too close to it, only to drop off the edge of the world. Never to be seen again," I suddenly gasped in surprise without even realising I did it, just as my father focused his gaze down onto me with every facial bone smiling at me, his eyes glistening in delight the most.

"But those sailors who turned back, told tales of a great waterfall and dragons guarding the entrance to a hidden world. Not just a nest, Hiccup, but a land from which all dragons come," I couldn't contain all the information my father was saying to me because there was this itching feeling at the back of my brain as if I've heard this before and it was screaming inside my head. "All dragons?" I repeated the words my father spoke of as he nodded at me producing the book in front of me which he took from the house. I looked at my father with suspicious eyes as to what he wanted me to do. He nudged the book further towards me eager for me to take it from him. I raised my hands delicately removing the book from his grasp and opening it up just as his face instructed me to do. Inside I found numerous drawing of maps and directions along with numerous sketches of different breeds of dragon species Berk had ever come into contact with throughout each of the book's pages. I scanned through each page gently turning each not wanting to rip a single thread of paper. "I remember this," I whispered either to myself or to my father as I took in the contents of every single page taking in each of the detail directed on its pages. I knew about this as a child, that's why there's this itching feeling at the back of my brain, because I've been told about this before as a child. "Before you were taken, you were obsessed about the hidden world, saying you wished you could see it even though I told you the same story multiple times beforehand. You didn't care, you just wished to see it time and time again but no one has ever been able to find it."

I looked up at my father no longer with loss of hope in my eyes but just hope and light, the feeling transferred all the way through my body as my father smiled down at me. I closed the book and leaned to hand it back over to him but he shook his head "It's yours, you keep it," I smiled brightly towards him holding the book close to my chest before lunging at my father hugging him as tight as possible. Everything I've been feeling beforehand transferred away and I finally felt settled at home. "Come on, it's getting late...and cold, we don't want you catching hypothermia," I laughed a little at his remark while we headed back to the house just as everyone was getting ready for the night. We headed inside and I saw my mom sat by the fire keeping it burning, as we entered her head perked up to look at the pair of us with a wide smile bright on her face "Have fun?" she asked while I nodded at her heading upstairs to my room while my father went and sat with her. I led down on the bed scrolling through each page once again this time looking at each individual section with great detail. I could tell what I did in this book and what my father did because the difference was impeccable, a wide smile spread across my face further than it was already smiling but I couldn't help but look at the book with pride knowing I did have a small life here during the years I had.

As tiredness began to sweep over me, I started getting a little drowsy; I leaned across placing the book on the stand next to the bed before blowing out the candle next to it. I settled down into bed with my head on the pillow and the covers wrapped tightly over me to rid the cold the best I possibly could. It was now I regretted turning out the candle because I needed the warmth back. Just as I wished I felt a weight wrap itself around me with their tail cuddling closely around me. I perked my head up to see these big diluted green eyes blinking at me "Hey bud, where you been?" I placed my hand on his smile while I licked my face lightly before the two of us settled down into sleep just as the moon reached its peak in the sky. It didn't take me long to fall asleep because the drowsiness I was feeling completely took over my system and I felt at ease sleeping peacefully at home. That's when the dream crept back through my mind, taking affect all over my mind.

"How do you know they even exist, Viggo?" I peeked round the corner to see Viggo and Ryker conspiring with each other but about what I was completely unsure but I knew I wanted to keep on watching. I stayed where I was hiding behind the corner, my gut kept yelling at me to not get caught by them so I made sure I was only peeking hiding my shadow away out from the light so the pair couldn't even gain a glimpse of me. "There were markings of it inside the dragon eye I saw it Ryker, that was before dad went and put a lock on it so I can't go snooping anymore," the growl to Viggo's voice was deafening but I was starting to get eager to know further what they were discussing about "Just use a Night Fury, I'm sure dad has one of those lying around otherwise you can at least find one and use it," a Night Fury why would they need one of those? "No it has to her kind, only with the Light Fury we'll be able to find the home of all dragons, only then will we be able to control all of dragon kind," I stumbled backwards suddenly hearing the news of what they've been planning all along. My breath was increasing rapidly as I didn't know what to do; all I knew is that I couldn't let this happen. If they found the home of all the dragons then they would probably destroy it, they would hurt millions of them or possibly worse, I couldn't let that happen I just couldn't. I stumbled back further getting caught up in my thoughts and emotions that I hadn't realised I stumbled over a set of weapons settled across the back wall.

I shook my head whispering to myself 'no' as each weapon toppled over in a domino effect each one crashing the floor. As my head would shake, I placed my hands against my mouth in shock my eyes squinting; I looked round slowly behind me to see Viggo and Ryker's head point up and look in my direction "Uh-oh," I whispered to myself and automatically split into a run just as they started coming after me. I knew the place like the back of my hand so I was on the run in every direction I could think of hoping they wouldn't catch up with me. I was running out of air, I knew that but I also knew I had to stop to catch it but if I did that then I would get caught by the two brothers and who knows what would happen if I landed in their clutches. A corner fluttered into view and I found my small secret hiding place I always used to hide when I used to play with Aryan and Viggo's father. I squeezed in quickly and sat down in the dark as far as I could and waited for the returning footsteps to hurry on by past me. They shouldn't know where I am, they never knew about this place it was my own secret refuge when I wanted to be alone so right now this was the best place for me to catch my breath. The rush of footsteps scurried on by blocking the light through the gap and there they stood muttering to one another on my whereabouts. My breath was increasing as they stood there, my heart beating rapidly outside of my chest right in front of my very eyes, my palms were sweating considerably but I had to place my hand against my mouth so they couldn't hear the increase of my fright.

"He must have gone this way," the growl to Viggo's tone was unsettling as he must have pointed in a direction away from my whereabouts as I heard the pair of them strut into a run once again. The light crept back into my hiding space once again letting me feel at ease. I stayed put for a while longer just so I knew that they were as far away as possible and there was no way for me to get caught before I slowly slid out back into the light. Thinking it was safe I carried on crawling out of my space but the sudden thrust to my neck and my weight colliding against the wall I choked in fright grabbing hold of the hand straining my breath supply. Right in front of me I was staring deep into the dark and desolate eyes of Ryker Grimborn with his brother at his side glaring fully at me. "Whatever you think you saw, whatever you think you heard forget it because if you speak any word of this to anyone then I will kill you myself," Viggo placed his words right next to my skin sending a chill down my spine before letting Ryker drop my weight down to the ground. My head crashed against the frozen concrete fixing my vision into an intense blur as I watched them walk away. My hands lightly touched the pain coursing through my neck before I faded out completely leaving me feeling helpless and alone.

I didn't wake abruptly from the dream this time, not as if I did last time but this time I felt myself fade into another one. It focused on Alastair, Viggo and Ryker's father, and I in this wide forest at the edge of island in the middle of nowhere.

I found myself placed on Monolithic Island with Alastair. We found ourselves down at one of the beaches on the island and I couldn't believe what was right in front of me. A dragon with glistening white, crystal scales, a tail fin almost identical to a dolphin, its ears small and delicate just everything about the beast was beautiful. It was only small, a baby or at least just a child you could tell but she was alone at the water's edge looking out for something or possibly someone, could it be a mother or father? My look lifted up to meet Alastair looking down at me with delight nodding his head over to the dragon, I carefully dragged my weight down the sandy hill towards the dragon but in doing so I found myself tripping up and rolling down harshly through the sand landing right in front of the dragon. I perked its attention as it freaked and flew away from me hiding behind a huge rock in the distance. Alastair soon made his way next to my sound wrapping his callused hand around my waist pulling me up as my focus was still pressed on the baby dragon hidden behind the rock. "It's okay...I'm sorry I scared you," I gradually made my way towards it; it casually moved itself out from behind the rock to stare and sniff at me calculating whether or not I was any danger. I placed my hands up in surrender so it knew I wasn't a threat before it decided to move away from the rock entirely coming out into the open to stand in front of me. As it came closer to me, I locked eye contact with the beast looking into its gleaming blue eyes; it slowly came closer to me as I held my hand out to touch and sure enough it placed it's snout up against my hand cooing in the process. I let off a little laugh as it pulled away and started circling me, analysing every detail about me. As I looked at it doing the same thing I found the dragon to be a girl with a serious attitude about her.

She moved closer to me I knelt down in the sand to face her; she came over and sat on my lap nuzzling her head against my chest before just sitting there letting me rub her stomach. "I never thought in all my years I would come this close to such a creature. But Hiccup, you've tamed one of the wildest beasts in the world. A Light Fury, one of the protectors of the Hidden World."

Immediately, my eyes opened and I sprung up out of my bed. Heart pounding; skin sweating I looked down at the book on the nightstand before looking at Toothless gazing at me worriedly "I know why Viggo wants me."