I'll Find You

Chapter 19: The Plan Goes Into Action

"Ready the ships!"

"Come back soon!"

"Men, to me!"

The Berk docks were a hive of activity. Today was the day. The other chiefs had all sent T-mails saying they were ready. By tonight, the Berkian rescue party would be almost outside the Archipelago, on their way to Grimmel's base, along with the other fleets. They were to meet at The Rookery, before setting off for the South-West.

Hiccup had completed everything he had needed to, including final instructions to the remaining Berkian inhabitants. If anything happened to any of the people - from any tribe - who were staying behind, they were to go to the Edge. The Edge defenses had been fortified and supplies were already there, just in case.

Now, all that was left to do, was wait for the men to say their farewells and set off. The gang was ready, as was the A-Team. They were as honed and trained as it was possible to be when you put the twins, Snotlout and Gustave in the same training exercise.

A horn sounded from below, soon joined by another, and another. The ships were ready. Hiccup and Toothless took off, followed by the Riders. Even Stormfly was with them, in her usual place, to Hiccup's right - Hiccup had been training her alongside Toothless with hand signals and voice commands - and they were ready to go.

A long day's traveling later, and they were at the Rookery. They had joined up with the Outcast and Beserker contingents earlier in the day. Now, just as dusk was approaching, they landed on the island. The Defenders of the Wing had arrived first and had made makeshift docks, which made mooring the ships a lot easier. By nightfall, everyone had arrived.

There was now a large combined fleet of well over 75 ships, each carrying armaments and supplies. There was almost the entire Wingmaiden tribe, most of the Defenders of the Wing, all of the Outcasts, a large number of Beserkers and 20 Dragon Riders - including the Beserker ones.

The leaders of each tribe gathered around the map on the table they had brought with them.

"Depending on how far we managed to travel tomorrow, I'd say that we're looking at a trip of around three to four months to get there." Hiccup was running through the calculations in his head, "We'll need to travel by day, rest overnight. Once every other week we'll rest for a day to let the dragons recuperate a little." He looked up from the table, "Anyone got any better suggestions?"

There were none. All who had worked with him before had a lot of respect for the young man, barely over 25 years of age, leading a mission as important as this. And those who hadn't had dealings with him previously were swiftly coming to the conclusion that while he may not look like much, he was an exceptional planner and leader.

That evening, he shocked the chiefs by revealing that he had brought a Maces and Talons board. Having not played the game since the Viggo fiasco, he wanted to brush up on his strategy by playing it again.

"Ah, yes, Maces and Talons!" Chief Hoark commented, walking over to see what Hiccup was doing, "Haven't played that in good few months!"

Hiccup looked at him, "Neither have I, but I want to work on it again. Fancy a game?"

Hoark thought for a moment. Granted, the lad in front of him had come up with a pretty good plan, but he was still barely 25, nearly half of Hoark's age. There was no way he could beat him in a game of strategy - was there?

"Of course. It would be my pleasure."

Hiccup looked at the man slyly, "The pleasure, I can assure you, is all mine."

The others gathered around the table as the game started with Hoark making an attack on one of Hiccup's hunters, which Hiccup countered deftly.

"I'll play the winner!" Was heard from someone, Hiccup didn't know who.

The game lasted only half an hour before Hiccup's hunter held a mace to Hoark's Chief. Hoark had only one hunter left, while Hiccup still had every piece intact.

"But, but, but - how?!" Hoark was left stuttering. He had never been bested at this before, let alone by someone half his age. He looked at Hiccup with a glint in his eye. "When did you last play this?" He asked.

"Six years ago." Was the brief reply, "Anyone else want a game?" There was a hesitation before Heather piped up.

"I'll play!"

That started the evening then, as game after game was played.

The unsuspecting chiefs didn't know what hit them, as the marathon of games continued - sometimes lasting for a couple of hours - many tried their hardest, but at the end of the evening, when they all retired to get some rest, Hiccup was still unbeaten.

The truth of the matter was, Hiccup had grown up a lot since the Edge days. He had commited to memory all of the little tricks that Viggo Grimborn used to use, as well as how he had always been one step ahead of the Riders. That whole episode of his life had revolved around planning and strategy and he was in his element here. He knew how to do this. The only difference this time around was that he was leading about two hundred people, rather than just the six Riders.

There were far too many people for Hiccup to lead on his own - so he and the other chiefs had decided on a way to lead the troops. The way they had sorted it out in the end was like this; Hiccup - the overall leader of the entire fleet and particularly those riding dragons. Then Heather, Mala & Dagur, Alvin, Atali and the other chiefs leading their specific tribes. They would confer with Hiccup and then instruct their part of the people. Hiccup had Valka as his second-in-command. It still felt strange to have her rather than Astrid at his side through everything,  the two weren't as in sync as he and Astrid had been, but they were making it work.

The master plan, had gone into action.

They were on their way.

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Aaaaaaaand... There we go! Hiccup is on his way, and apparently he is still pretty good at Maces and Talons!

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Thank you all soooooooooooooo much for all of the reads, votes and comments - it means a huge amount!

Also, I've had an idea for a Modern HTTYD fanfic - with horses! I've come up with a basic plot, but will probably not start it in earnest until this book is finished :-) Is that something you guys would like to see?