The Other-worldly Protector

66. Her fault

Without its predator to keep it at bay, the lava ran rampant, eating up the island. The hunters had succeeded in capturing the Eruptodon and left the island to burn in its absence. Smoke swirled and within it, the defenders were in a frenzy trying to cover for their lost Protector. Piles of boulders were being stacked as a blockade only for the lava to swallow them whole. Try again. Repeat. And hope the village isn't engulfed before the riders return with the Eruptadon—if they do at all.

Sweat shone on Kiara's forehead as she tossed yet another boulder. Everyone around her seemed to work at twice her speed but she was juggling more than them. Breathing deeply, she struggled to hold back red-hot emotions that were just as eager to burst forth as the lava.

She's gone... They took her.

Kiara grunted as she rolled a particularly large boulder towards the new pile. The pain in her joints was a welcome distraction, but no longer enough.

They have her at their mercy... I should have been there.

The boulder caught on a lump of earth and Kiara growled, shoving harder. She and the twins were tasked with helping the defenders save their home—she couldn't lose focus.

I could have stopped it. I should have been there. I shouldn't have listened.

Kiara wrenched a branch off a tree and jammed it into the ground to use it as a lever and move the damned rock. No use.

I'll never see her again.

The branch snapped and Kiara collapsed against the boulder. As she pushed to get up, a tear slipped down her cheek, mixing with the sweat. She choked on a sob as her chest flooded with a fresh tide of despair.

My Whiplash... I couldn't protect you. I'm so sorry.

There was no reply. Kiara only felt a void where she would have felt the words "it's okay" or "I'm fine" or "it will be alright soon". Her dragon was too far away. Kiara sunk deeper into the ground. As she curled into herself, a hand rested on her shoulder. She roughly wiped her face and turned to see Ruffnut.

"You need a break," Ruffnut said.

"No," Kiara replied, forcing her voice into monotone. The boulder she was moving came back into focus. "But I do need your help wi—"

"Come along," Tuffnut and Ruffnut said as they hooked an arm around each of hers and pulled her to her feet.

"Hey!" she complained, but couldn't summon the energy to fight back. They lead her to where Robbie was keeping an eye on his restless son, looking more tired than ever. When he spotted Kiara, he padded over with Gem held firmly in his mouth.

"How' you doing?" he asked with a tilt of his head. Kiara looked at him, seeing the way he slumped as he stood. He was weighed down by the same sorrow as her. "Alright. I'll take care of Gem for you."

"Talk to me, Kiara."

Not responding, she took Gem. "It's time to swap, go help the defenders."

Gem was still agitated but had cooled down since he saw the hunters take away the Eruptodon. Both he and Robbie were there, but Robbie took Gem far away for safety while Whiplash stayed behind to help the eruptadon.

Why wasn't I there to help her?

Before Kiara could get caught up in her thoughts again she ordered Robbie to go again. With a parting sigh, he trailed away. "You two should go too," she told the twins. "I'll catch up after I put Gem to sleep."

"We don't take orders from you," Tuffnut playfully declared.

"We don't take orders from anyone," said Ruffnut.

"You take orders from Hiccup," Kiara deadpanned.

"Who's that?" Tuff asked.

"Tuff!"

"Sorry."

There was quiet.

"I really am sorry," he said in a quieter voice. "But you know our gang and Mala will do everything to get your dragon back."

"And Mala," Kiara scoffed hatefully. She ran a hand through her hair. "Whiplash shouldn't have been taken in the first place!"

"Yeah," Ruffnut agreed. "But don't go blaming yourself—"

"I'm not!" she retorted, then added in a small voice: "for once." She paused, vibrating with the effort of holding back her frustration. "This is all her fault!" she finally screamed. "Queen Mala and her glorious stupid traditions!"

"Agreed," said Tuff.

"If we could have flown there we would have made it!" she continued.

"Totally could have," agreed Ruff.

"We could have stopped the hunters! But NOO! And—and when her precious Eruptodon goes missing, she hops on a dragon, no problem."

"That is so true!"

"But she just had to be an idiotic oaf before—wait, you guys are supposed to be calming me down!" Kiara yelled.

"Nah, this is better," Tuff said.

"Let the truth be spoken," his sister dramatically proclaimed.

"Amen to that, sis! So tell us, Kiara," Tuffnut said as he led Kiara to have a seat on a log and sat down beside her. "What could we have done better?"

Kiara was taken back and felt all the anger drain out of her as she stared into his eyes. "We could have ignored Mala," she said. "We could have flown there and made it in time. I could have let my shoulder heal faster by not staining it so and flown with Toothless and Hiccup. I could have been carrying a dagger, like I always should. We could have stopped the hunters completely. We could have saved Whiplash and the Protector and foiled Viggo's plan before it even started."

Ruffnut sat beside her. "Well said," she agreed while her brother nodded. They shared a look, their thoughts in sync. "Now... what can we do better from here?" she asked.

"I don't know..." Kiara mumbled, shrugging. "Stay level-headed?"

"Yes. And know that there is no way we are letting the king of sunken eye bags have her. We'll snatch her back sooner or later no matter what, AND make them pay!" Ruffnut vehemently slammed her fist onto the log.

"There's no version of this where you and Whiplash stay apart," Tuffnut said, gripping Kiara's shoulder in reassurance. "The hunters have made a baaad move, 'cause there is literally no way they can win this."

"Yeah. They can't," Kiara said quietly. Looking between the two, she found that the light they carried was contagious and felt a small glow of hope amid her worry for Whiplash. "You guys are awesome, ya know?" she breathed.

"Us? Awesome?" Tuffnut exclaimed incredulously. "You're the one who just committed third-degree blasphemy by calling the queen an idiotic oaf."

"Brutal, by the way," Ruffnut added with a grin.

"Epic indeed. But don't worry," Tuff said, "your criminal identity is safe with us."

The corners of Kiara's mouth lifted into a smile. Robbie appeared through the bushes just in time to see it.

He grumbled, "Looks like someone stole my therapist job..."

"You're back?" Kiara asked him, raising a brow in question. "How come?"

"Barf and Belch are smarter than they look. They stopped the lava with the giant Eruptodon statue."

She raised her eyebrows, impressed. "Wow. The Great Protector's protection remains."