Emma: The Glow Within (Book 2, HTTYD Fanfic)

Chapter 24: Broken Flight

Hiccup's POV:

I sat in the sand on a different shore of the mysterious island. We had been searching for hours and found another beach to rest in. I sat on a rock, a stick in my hand as I delicately carved out a drawing of Toothless in the sand. I could hear Astrid and Tyra chatting behind me; they have similar personalities and they seem to be getting along pretty well.

The twins and Snotloud were fighting over some large boulder, claiming to be "King of the Rock" to my other side, as Fishlegs tried to calm them down.

The waves brushed against the shore, misting my face with salty air. A slight fog curled in, it's wispy fingers dampening my face. I stopped as I felt a slight tug at my head and turned around to see Astrid braiding another small section of my hair. She sat down beside me, waiting to finish her braid before speaking. She placed a soft kiss on my cheek and turned to face me.

"That Tyra girl's not half bad." She smirked.

I snorted in laughter. "That's because she's a lot like you." I dropped my stick on the ground and turned toward Astrid, meeting her frosty-blue gaze. "Do you think we can trust her?" I asked in a low whisper, looking behind me first to make sure she didn't hear.

"She seems pretty honest to me...although you never know..." She answered with a shrug.

"Toothless?" I looked up as my dragon nudged his head against my chest, shoving me back a little before I righted my balance. "What is it, Bud?" Toothless warbled softly, nudging me again with his nose.

Toothless jumped up and jerked his head to signal me to follow as he began sniffing the ground. He scampered a few steps forward, the light fog unveiling its silver curls when he moved only to surround him again in damp vapor. I leapt up and followed behind my dragon. He led me through a patch of thick trees, where water clung to the leaves before dripping onto the top of my head.

Toothless disappeared ahead of me. "Toothless, wait up!" I ran after my dragon, water droplets slapping me in the face as I went by. Then, I heard Toothless roar. "Toothless!" I sped up my running, before stopping suddenly as I saw the edge of a small cliff that led into a cove. My feet skidded over the edge and I shrieked before Toothless leapt up and caught me, landing on the cove's floor.

"Toothless, what in Thor's name are you--Gah, bad dragon, very bad dragon! Wait, what is in your mouth?" I groaned. I hopped off of my dragon and he turned to face me, excitedly dropping something in my palm. A dragon scale gleamed in the sunlight, black as the night sky. It was Identicle to Toothless's scales.

"Toothless, this is yours, Bud." I sighed. But then, the light caught the scale in a different way, sending a purple shimmer to reflect off of the scale. "Wait--" Before I had time to fully process what I was holding in my hand, Toothless ran off ahead of me again.

"Toothless!" I groaned, running after him yet again. I finally caught up with him, where he stood next to a black dragon laying on the ground. A night fury.

I gasped as the dragon looked up at me and growled, but didn't stand up. I pulled out my fire sword and waved it in a tornado pattern to calm the dragon down. I then let out some zippleback gas and ducked before I sparked it, a small ring of fire blowing all around me before extinguishing me.

"It's okay..." I spoke softly, holding my hand out. "I'm not going to hurt you..." I edged closer to the dragon, who growled softly, but didn't move. When I got close, she growled louder, causing Toothless to roar, full of warning.

"It's okay, Bud...I'm fine..." I spoke, inching closer to the night fury. The mysterious night fury snarled again much louder, and Toothless lunged in front of me, acting as a shield between she and I.

The night fury stood up before tackling Toothless. They both began roaring and rolling, each fighting for dominance on the other.

"Toothless stop!" I demanded, but my dragon didn't listen. No matter where he was, he always made sure he was closer to me than the other dragon was, forming a protective wall. Finally, the scales down Toothless's head and back turning blue. He roared, forcing the other night fury to stand up and shamefully back away from him before bowing in defeat.

I placed a hand on my dragon's head, rubbing it softly to show him I was okay. Then, I held my hand out toward the second night fury. Slowly but surely, she put her head against my palm.

That's when I noticed the long tear in her wing...

***

Three Days Ago...

A dragon lay asleep in her cave, her tail wrapped protectively around her raven black dragon egg. Her scales radiated warmth into her egg, feeling the gentle hum vibrating from inside of her baby breathing, listening to the rhythmic sound of her baby's heart beat. She stood up, staring fondly at her egg, her eyes reflecting with loving warmth. She yawned and stretched, before cushioning her egg with soft grass.

She glanced back at her egg before stepping out of the cave to hunt. She prowled stealthily in the tall grass, crouching and creeping forward in complete silence.

She smelled something...

Prey...

She pounced into the air, clamping her teeth down on a bird, setting it aside in a pile. She then crept toward the river, the melodious sound of the river rushing and bubbling echoing in her ears. She watched the fish swarming below the water's rippling surface. She dunked her head into the water, clamping her teeth down on two fish simultaneously, adding it to the pile of food.

But then she smelled something else...

Human...

She saw a grown human male covered in scars and draped in a cloak of dragon skin... He carried no weapons...only some sort of pointed staff... Panic swelled within her as she realized the direction the human was going: toward the cave, the sanctuary where her unborn baby slept. The dragon roared and sped after the viking, just as he approached the cave.

He ducked into the cave, snatching the egg and the mother dragon's heart with it. He exited the cave just as the dragon caught up with him, roaring fiercely, a purple plasma blast forming in her throat.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you..." The man smirked. He held out the egg in one hand, his grip dangling the egg over sharp rocks.

::Don't you touch her!:: The mother snarled, though she knew he didn't understand her.

The man ignored her, stepping past the dragon, this time holding the egg tightly between both hands, ready to squeeze, shattering the egg and strangling the baby. But he didn't...he simply strode passed.

The dragon roared, jumping in front of the man. She shot a plasma blast at him, ready to catch her baby if it fell, but the man instead pulled his cloak infront of his face, shielding himself from the fire. Using the dragon's shock to his advantage, he lunged forward, slicing a long tear through her wing. She roared in pain, pouncing on the man and knocking him to the ground. The egg fell from his grasp, rolling down a hill and out of sight.

The dragon jumped up, ready to chase her egg, but the man stabbed her again in the wing, and she fell to the ground...Shadows ate away at her vision until everything went black.