The 'Dragon Master'

The Time Has Come

Toothless starts playing with Nightshade... well, more like Nightshade practically forced Toothless to play. I swear he's worse than the hatchlings sometimes.

While the pair have fun, Hiccup just watches in wonder. "All this time I thought Night Furies were extinct except for Toothless. But another one was here all along."

"I wanted to tell you, but... you know," I say. "We'd never harm your dragons or share the location of your island," Hiccup tells me for the millionth time, not shifting his gaze from Nightshade.

"I know, I've always known, but precautions are there for a reason," I admit. "It's a little like when you first learned that dragons are scared of eels or love dragon nip. You could've said that you figured that out, but instead you kept it a secret in case people asked questions."

"Yeah," he agrees, nodding. "Can I see the eggs?"

I hesitate for a moment, but now that he knows about Nightshade I don't see the harm in this. "Follow me. I'll take you to the hatchery."

I turn to Nightshade and Toothless. "You boys behave yourselves and no plasma blasts indoors, please," I tell them. They nod to me briefly before going back to their games.

I lead Hiccup to the hatchery. "Keep quiet and don't alert the hatchlings," I instruct. He nods. We creep past the baby dragons, but one still notices us and let's out a playful squawk.

The other hatchlings Head and suddenly we're swarmed with them. They're all especially intrigued by Hiccup as this is one of the first humans they've ever seen other than me. "Everyone down," I tell them in a calm but stern voice. They all fly back into their own obediently, save for two.

"Ow!"

"I see you've met Moon," I remark, prying the little blue Gronkle from Hiccup's arm where he bit him. "He's in the 'biting is the only form of communication' stage," I explain apologetically. "Moon, bad. You know you're not allowed to bite people or dragons, especially our guests."

Moon responds by nipping my finger. With a scowl I place him down in the pen. "When will you learn?" He just gives an adorable grin.

I turn to the other hatchling that refused to leave, who had already curled up around my waist as though she was a belt. "Remember this one?" I ask Hiccup. "How could I forget Valkyrie?" He smiled slightly to the little dragon.

She stuck her tongue out to him. "I guess she's still not your biggest fan," I laugh. "Nope, she hates me," he replies. "Hate is a strong word, too strong for a dragon her age," I reply. "Now let's move quickly."

I take him through to the back cave of the hatchery where only Nightshade is allowed to go apart from me. The lava pools hanging from carved parts of rocks on the wall illuminate the place enough to see. The warm glow gives off the impression of great importance to the room, which fits perfectly with its use.

"Woah..." Hiccup breathes when he sees the pedestals. There are five pedestals, the centre one empty. It was Nightshade's pedestal before he hatched. On the remaining four are midnight black eggs with the faintest shimmer, save for a single one of them which catches the light perfectly from all angles.

"I'm hoping that at least one of them will hatch soon," I say to Hiccup. "And that there will be a female or two. Nightshade hopes the same thing."

"This is amazing!" Hiccup claims. "I always thought Toothless would be the last of his kind forever!" "He's never been the last, he's only been the first to be discovered in years," I say. "Nightshade was the second. Whichever egg hatches next will be the third and so on."

I gently trail my hand down one of the eggs, willing it and its companions to enter the world. It feels smooth and slightly warm beneath my fingertips. "Hiccup, this is our home. If the hunters find their way to the Night Fury eggs, they will be an extinct species. These eggs could be the last hope for any hopes of future Night Fury generations. They can't fall into the wrong hands."

Hiccup places a hand on my shoulder. "They won't. You can count on Berk." I sigh. "I hope so. Now go grab your partner. I'm going to make a few last minute preparations."

I hurry off to get to the things I need done. First is a stop at the clinic, where I grab vials off of shelves in case something goes severely wrong. Monstrous Nightmare gel, Slitherwing venom, dragon root antidotes... everything I can think of.

Once I'm stocked up I move down the stairwell that leads to lower layers of the sanctuary. I stop at the lagoon and whistle to gain the attention of my Tidal class friends.

"Seal off the entrance, nobody gets in or out without my permission," I tell Vanquish. He nods and obeys, diving downwards. The sound of the barrier coming down over the tunnel in is heard before he surfaces again.

"I want you guys ready to defend the sanctuary if necessary," I say. They all roar out to show they understand. After a few more words, I'm gone again, back down into the stairwell.

I move lower and lower until I get to the end of the stairwell. A slight chill cools the air down here, but I don't mind. It's actually pretty comforting right now. Peaceful.

I walk along a ledge and look downwards to the pool filled with cold water and... something else. It starts to rise from the blue, the Class Ten Leviathan that even I see as my superior.

The Bewilderbeast.

The Alpha of my little pack.

"Alpine," I greet him, dipping my head in respect. He rises to reveal his full, large form, a beautiful white that reflects off the ice he's swept throughout his home. I feel his cold breath on my face as he huffs, slight tendrils of snowflakes wisping around me. Even though I can't understand his language, the message is clear.

The time has come.