Howling Echoes - A How to Train Your Dragon Story, The Echoes, Book 1

Chapter 68: King of Dragons

   Hiccup gasped.  Toothless and Frostflake both arose with a sleepy complaint. 

      "Come."  Suddenly, she turned and ran down a tunnel.  Hiccup and I chased after her.  "Wait!  Ah, are you kidding me!?"  I yelled after her.  "You can't just SAY something like that, and run off!  You're my MOTHER!?"  Hiccup cried. 

   "Everyone thinks your DEAD!"  I yelled, scrambling over a rock.  "Everyone thinks you were EATEN by dragons!  I mean what - what are you - !?"  I cut off as we emerged in a sunlight dragon sanctuary.  Greenish ice like the ice underneath Berserker Island was fortifying the wall and made up a pillar in the middle of the cave area.  A pool of water, edged by dragons was at the bottom of the cliff.  I was so busy admiring the dragon-filled place I didn't notice what Hiccup and Valka were saying. 

   I became a Fire Wraith and took off of a cliff, joining the swarm of dragons flying around the ice pillar.  "Woah!  Who are you?  Are you new?"  A yellow dragon with white spots asked, bumping up next to me.  It had a small body and a thin, long neck with its tail in a similar form.  It had a frill on its head as well, which looked rather fascinating to me.

   "Er...yeah?  Sort of?"  I roared back.  "Cool, I'm Lemon!"  He called back.  A green version of him started to fly over but he butted her away.  "Hey, Watersmelon, let me talk to someone new for once!"  He roared.  "Expect a LOT of competition for your attention at first - it's just how things go over he - oh, hey, is that a NIGHT Fury!?"  Lemon dove down toward Toothless.

   After a few more conversations I figured out that Lemon and Watersmelon (who was Lemon's sister and NOT named Watersmelon, instead, WaterMELON, Watersmelon was an insult) were Hobblegrunts.  "Hey, Kiara!"  Hiccup called, waving.  I swooped down and landed between him and his mother.

   "This is Valka."  Hiccup said.  I flashed into a human, and Valka's eyes widened with surprise as she scrambled back.  "Oh.  Yeah.  There's that.  What?"  I asked Hiccup.  "We were gonna go...see something?"  Hiccup gestured to his mother, who quickly recovered from her tiny heart attack.  "Right.  Follow me."  Valka said, walking up a hill.  I went back to being a dragon and walked beside Frostflake.

   When we got up the hill, a huge white dragon with massive horns that faded into gray and black lifted its colossal head toward us.  I shrank back slightly, lowering my gaze.  I saw Toothless do similar beside me.  "Every nest has its queen but this is the King of all dragons,"  Valka explained.  My eyes widened, and Hiccup and I exchanged a glance.  Just like underneath Berserker Island.

   "With his icy breath, the great Bewilderbeast built our nest,"  Valka said.  A puff of frost was laid on Hiccup's head, then the huge beast turned its gaze to me.  

   In other words, this thing was bigger than words could describe.  

   "Kiara?"  The King asked, evidently surprised.  I was shocked into meeting his gaze, then quickly dipped my head again.  "Um...yes,"  I said nervously, my voice shaking.  "You...you were the...the One.  The Heart."  He said.  I glanced up again, but this time kept my gaze a few inches lower than his eyes.  "What?"  I asked.

   "Nevermind."  The giant dragon shook his head, making bundles of loose ice shake and fall down to the water below, causing small splashes.  "Are you hungry?"  Valka asked.  "Uh, yeah, I could eat."  Hiccup said.  "Definitely!"  I agreed.  "Chow down!"  Frostflake chimed in.  "Oh yeah, I am!"  Toothless said, excitedly.  "Hey, your name's Cloudjumper, right?"  He went to playing with the Stormcutter.

   

"Good,"  Valka said.  "It's feeding time."