Come Darkness, Come Light

Chapter 24 - Stealth Mode

A/N: Next chapter will be formatted in a similar fashion to chapter 6...I think.

Stardust333 - Absolutely! Most likely even more than that, though.

iam-kiss - Lol, I try to update fast when I can, but it doesn't always work out the way I plan.

CHSHiccstrid - Yep. Hopefully this chapter actually makes sense. I don't actually know how to write a mission. I'm winging it.

AdamantJackal - You know Hiccup too well...

Disclaimer: Can I buy the franchise for a couple bucks? That's about all I can spare.

VALKA'S POV

"Do I need to go over the plan one more time?" I questioned, looking over Hiccup for any sign that he felt insecure or unprepared for this mission. We were nearly there, so this was his last chance to bow out. So far, his confidence had yet to waver. It was starting to feel like I was more nervous than him.

My son was crouched directly beside me, balancing with surprising ease considering he usually rode in a saddle during flight. He was wearing the flight suit he'd made from a mixture of Toothless' scales and a small amount of leather. It was almost completely fireproof, and allowed the same amount of flexibility that he had when he wasn't wearing it. I'd made my own suit right after I started rescuing dragons, and it wasn't nearly as specially crafted as Hiccup's. Its main purpose was to hide my identity from the world. I was fine with its simplicity, though Hiccup had offered more than once to update it.

*Trust me, the plan is burned into my brain at this point.* He replied sarcastically, and I could just barely see him roll his eyes behind the mask of his helmet. This outfit made him appear quite intimidating, even though he was still just a kid. The scale-covered outer protection along with the fact that he had the tendency to move like a dragon coupled together to make him seem like an actual dragon. Plus, these days he almost always used thought-speak. I'd been encouraging Hiccup to practice human behavior since he was a baby, but my efforts hadn't been entirely successful, especially now that he spent most of his time on one island or another with only Toothless as company.

"I'm just saying...once we're down there, there's no room for doubt or hesitation," I pressed. Right on cue, Cloudjumper tucked in his wings just enough to send us into a gentle dive, dipping below the cover of the clouds towards the island. We were flying in from the western side to avoid the two sentry posts set up on the southernmost beach. We'd left the nest just past sunset, so it was pitch black, but Cloudjumper didn't blend into the night like Toothless.

Hiccup nodded curtly, shifting a bit so he could see what was below. It was dark and uninhabited on this side, but torches lit up the areas where the hunters were. I'd already done plenty of reconnaissance last week, so I knew how many hunters would be in each position—roughly twenty in the main camp, a couple in each sentry tower, half a dozen or so guarding the captured dragons, and the rest would be aboard their ships docked on the eastern side of the island. It was still a relatively small operation. I'd faced worse numbers—much worse.

Cloudjumper lowered through the sky until his talons grazed the tops of the trees, heading towards the mountain range that loomed forebodingly in the darkness. He would take us in as far as he dared without being seen, then Hiccup and I were on our own. It would be much easier if I could simply bring an army of dragons, burn everything and everyone, and be done with it. But as much as I hated hunters, taking even a single life was never something I wanted to do. It was the reason I usually opted for my staff. I'd kill when necessary, but massacring dozens of people for the sake of the mission? I refused to fall that far. Stealth had always been my go-to method of dragon rescue. Alpha and the flock had helped a few times in the past, but I'd always made sure the human casualties would be minimal before I brought them along.