Heart of a Berserker: Faith (School of Dragons)

Chapter 14

"Tell me when I'll finally see your shallow heart
For what it is
'Cause I don't wanna keep on believin' in illusions

'Cause I've seen your act, and I know all the facts
I'm still in love with who I wish you were
And it ain't hard to see who you are underneath
I'm still in love with who I wish you were
I wish you were here" 

- "Wish You Were" by Kate Voegele

Chapter 14

I spent much of the following day explore the caverns below the School. When I emerged late in the afternoon, I encountered Astrid. "Brennda!" she exclaimed. "I'm glad I caught you. We've got a problem."

I immediately became alert. "What's going on?"

"The warlords have been really busy while we were trying to relocate to New Berk. Mala's warning came at the right time. Eret went to spy on them and thinks he's found something. Can you talk to him at the training grounds? Be careful out there."

I nodded. "I'm on it." I had a bad feeling this warlords were up to no good. I scrambled on Bolt, and we hurriedly flew to the training grounds where Eret and Skullcrusher awaited us. "Hey, Eret! Astrid said you've been watching the warlords?"

Eret nodded. "Listen mate, I'm not proud of it, but I worked a long time in the dragon trade. I know what it looks like when an organization is stopping by for a brief hunting trip or settling in for the long haul. These warlords... they mean to stay."

An uneasy feeling hit the pit of my stomach. "Great. Just what we need."

"Our chief doesn't want a war, but we're going to have to defend ourselves. More importantly, we need to protect the dragons of this archipelago. We need more information on what they plan to do."

"And I suppose we're going to get it?"

Eret grinned. "You got it, mate. Let's go to Glacier Island!"

And so, we were off. Even though it was still winter, the cold from Glacier Island seemed to hit a whole new level. We landed our dragons on a hill overlooking the bay, which was a good distance away from the large camp.

"Don't worry," Eret said when he saw my look of apprehension. "From what I've seen, their patrols don't come out this far. I don't think they feel safe when they venture out. Too scared of the angry, feral wild dragons, hm? Ha!"

I smirked. "Yeah, they can be quite ferocious. So, what's the plan?"

Eret's expression turned serious. "I watched them for two days and two nights with nary a moment of rest to figure out how to defeat these invaders. And lucky for us, my eagle eyes spotted a certain scroll all those fellows were consulting! I'm sure we'll know what they're planning if we nab that scroll."

"And I suppose you want me to sneak into their camp and steal it."

Eret grinned. "You are the sneakiest among us. You just have to evade a hundred angry armed guards, locate the scroll in the middle of the camp, and get out safe. Easy, right?"

"Oh, no problem!" It did sound kind of fun, actually. I pushed the thought away when I realized it was too close to something Harald might think.

"Joking aside, my friend, you are stealthier than me. Scrullcrusher and I will make sure that you're safe if any trouble comes along. Bolt can wait here with me, too."

I nodded. "Sounds good to me."

"To get closest to the set of plans, you'll have to start north of camp. Stay close to the edge of the cliff at the start. When you find an opening, go into the heart of the camp." He gave me an encouraging smile. "You can do it, Brennda!"