Deception (A Dragons Race to the Edge Fanfic)

Chapter 4

You sat in the corner of the cage Ryker had locked you up in. You had to act quickly, before they figured out what you were up to. Most of the guards would be patrolling the western side of the island, where you had told Viggo that Hiccup and the riders would supposedly be attacking from. You had found a Deadly Nadder's tail spine at the back of the cage. It looked old and dusty, but it would work for the escape scheme you had planned. Using a small knife, that had luckily evaded the Dragon Hunters' notice, you carved the Nadder's spine, paying careful attention to the shape of the lock of the cage door. When you had finished, your placed the Nadder's spike into the lock and tried turning it. Your heart leaped, when you heard it click open.

'I can't believe that actually worked!' you thought to yourself, a sense of triumph washing over you. But you couldn't start congratulating yourself yet; you still had to somehow get off this island before they realized that Hiccup's supposed attack was merely a trick. Pushing the door of the cage open slowly, you scanned the corridor for guards. You couldn't see any. Creeping gingerly out of the cage, you proceeded towards the door. Your sword was leaning against the wall. You picked it up smoothly in your left hand, whilst edging towards the door, which stood ajar. You decided you would head to the eastern edge of the island, where there should be fewer hunters on guard, and where you had hidden the plans for project Shellfire. You could only hope Ember would be waiting for you there. If he wasn't, you weren't quite sure what you were going to do.

You reached the exit. Two hunters guarded it, axes clasped in their hands as they stared blankly out across the clearing outside. You gave them both a swift kick, sending them onto the ground, unconscious, before they had a chance to react. Sure enough, the area ahead seemed unguarded. Your plan had worked!

'Most of the hunters must still be on the western side of the island, waiting for Hiccup.' You told yourself. But that still didn't stop your heart from racing at the speed of light, at the thought of Viggo piecing together your plan at any moment. You nimbly darted across the clearing and into the cover of the trees. It was pretty dark in the forest, but you managed to find your way back to the oak tree where you had hidden the plans. Now that some of the adrenaline had worn off, you began to realize the intense aching in your shoulder. The wound had stopped bleeding, which was a relief, but it would be vulnerable to infection if it wasn't tended to soon. But, you had no time to worry about that now. Folding the plans and placing them in your pocket, you started searching for Ember. Back to this again, trying to track down one of the stealthiest and most elusive dragon species...

You had been searching methodically for the last ten minutes. You didn't dare whistle to the dragon, for fear of attracting attention. Panic rose in your stomach. Perhaps he really had gone without you. Being let down wasn't exactly new to you, but you really felt that you had bonded with this dragon, despite the short time you'd known each other.

Panic had made you clumsy. You hadn't seen the trap in the dark. You must have stepped on some kind of mechanism or tripwire, because the next thing you knew, a dragon proof cage had come crashing down on you, leaving you no time to dodge it. You gritted your teeth at how careless and foolish you had been, gripping the bars with your raw hands. Then, Viggo came strolling out of the bushes, a triumphant look keenly displayed across his face.

"You tried, you really did." He said artfully. "I must to say, your escape from that cage was admirable, as was the decoy you attempted to use to your advantage." His words stung. "But, unfortunately, that wasn't enough to deceive me. Though, I daresay you have been more entertaining a challenge than most." He admitted.

"How did you know I was here?" you spat. You really hated this guy - the way he constantly made you feel inferior to him.

"You're a clever girl. I knew you would try to pull a trick like this. You're a skillful liar too; Ryker certainly believed what you said." he answered, the calmness of his voice only adding to your frustration. "Then again, he always has been gullible." Was this guy kidding? He was your nemesis, and he was talking as of he was having some sort of leisurely chat with you. It was beyond infuriating.

'What now?' you thought to yourself. He had you, he knew your tactics and there was no way he would trust you after the way you had tried to outwit him. Something told you that he wouldn't reward your attempted lies kindly either, however much he seemed to be complimenting you about them now.

From out of nowhere, a spurt of green acid was fired towards the cage. Viggo narrowly ducked it, and turned, scanning the trees for its source. The acid hit the cage, burning a hole in the metal. Of course! Changewing acid could break through dragon proof metal! Another spurt came from the bushes, enlarging the hole in the cage enough for you to squeeze out, and run towards the direction the acid had come from. Viggo was no doubt in close pursuit. You looked frantically for the Ember. There he was! You raced forwards, and the dragon ran to meet you. As you were about to jump on Ember's back, you felt Viggo grip your arm from behind. You tried to use your momentum to pull away, before realizing he had grabbed your wounded arm. Pain shot through your shoulder and showered all through your body, as you were forced to the ground. Then, your arm was suddenly released – Ember had sprung at Viggo, knocking him backwards, and dazing him temporarily. As he got to his feet, you jumped on the Changewing's back, ignoring the still raw pain, and soared into the air. Only when you had reached a height of at least ten meters did you look back, but Viggo was gone. You checked that the Shellfire plans were still in your pocket. You smiled to yourself. You had succeeded. Yes, the mission could have been smoother, but you had succeeded nonetheless.

"Come on boy," you encouraged, patting Ember's flank affectionately,  "let's get back to Dragon's Edge." Ember gave a squawk of approval, and soared into the night.

A/N: Hi Guys! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I can't believe season 6 of Race to the Edge is finally here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I know this book is set quite a while back in the series, but I enjoy writing it and hopefully you enjoy reading it!