Hiccup's Journey

Stowaways

A/N:

'Dragons' - Dragonese

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A few hours after Sinbad's trial, the dragon riders decided to follow after Sinbad; to make sure that he'll bring the Book of Peace back to Syracuse. If he refused, they would do whatever it takes to convince him. It was near dawn when the riders had just stepped out of their rooms when Audrey bumped into someone. They looked towards the person and were surprised at who it was: Marina.

"Marina, what are you doing here?" Merida whispered.

"I'm going to make sure that Sinbad gets the Book of Peace. But what are you all doing here?" Marina whispered.

"We want to help." Hiccup replied.

"How?" Marina asked.

"We've helped him before and we would like to help him again." Roana reasoned.

"Are you sure? This might be very dangerous for you all." Marina warned them.

"Don't worry, we've handled situations like this before." Merida assured her.

"We can handle ourselves." Carlos added.

Marina let out a sigh and stared at the riders.

"Alright, follow me." Marina gestured to them to follow her as she quietly ran down the hall with the riders behind her.

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Marina and the riders, except for the dragons who had to stay behind since they wouldn't be able to fit in the ship and had to hide out in the woods until they got back, were able to successfully snuck aboard Sinbad's ship. They were somewhat wondering when Sinbad would finally realize that they were on board. At the moment they were in Sinbad's cabin on the lower deck. They were very intrigued by all of the treasures that Sinbad had.

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At the same time, Sinbad had just announced to his crew that they were going to Fiji. The only crew member who didn't like Sinbad's decision was Kale. Then Sinbad began walking down the stairs he muttered angrily. "Kale...book...uahhh....Proteus..." He opened the door to his room and froze when he saw a group of people in his cabin. It was Proteus's fiance and those dragon riders. With the door closed he shook his head, trying to figure out how they got there. He peaked back in to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. He watched Marina accidentally break off the fingertip of a skeleton. Jerking back again, he made a wide-eyed grimace. Sinbad couldn't believe it. Those kids from before were on board with her. He had to think of a way to get rid of them, quick, or else he'll be stuck with them on the ship. He took in a deep breath and composed himself before walking in with his trademark smirk. The riders spotted him and were about to warn Marina, but Sinbad beat them to it.

"...From Pompeii....And this is from a brothel in Syracuse." Marina muttered holding up a bedazzled bra. Sinbad leaned down to her ear from behind.

"Good guess." She let out a gasp and quickly threw the item aside. "What do you think you're all doing here?" he asked.

"Making sure that you get the book of peace." Roana started.

"Or bring back your dead body if you fail." Marina finished, crossing her arms.

"Really?...and how are you going to pull that off?" Sinbad asked circling them.

"By whatever means necessary." Marina quickly answered she was obviously nervous about being there. He leaned back against a desk and crossed his arms.

"Did you bring a crew?" He asked.

"Kinda of..." she answered trying to remain in control while glancing at the dragon riders.

"You know how to get to Tartarus?"

"Umm...no..." she scrambled for better answers.

"Can you navigate on your own?"

"Yes!" she said triumphantly.

"Well good! Then I'll dump your butts in a rowboat and you can paddle your way back to Syracuse or better yet, you could fly back to Syracuse on those dragons." He told her and the riders. "Cause we're going to Fiji." He plopped down into his hammock and propped his hat over his eyes.

"Fiji?" Marina questioned him.

"Yup." He answered by popping the 'p'.

"Just as I thought..." she slyly told him.

He started to answer but then stopped. Lifting up his hat he looked at her with curious eyes. "What?"

"Sinbad, you're not a very complicated guy. All someone has to do is imagine the most gutless course of action and you're bound to take it." She told him, leaning down.

"Hey, this is not my problem!" he pointed at her. "I did not steal the book." He insisted, crossing his arms.

"You're really not going to lose any sleep over this are you?" she asked.

"Not a wink." He countered and turned over so his back was facing her.

"If it were me I would be tossing and turning knowing I'm alive.....because I let my friend die." She growled at him. He let out an aggravated sound of protest as she walked away.

"I'm not responsible for this mess." He argued, following her as she walked away from him. "And I didn't ask Proteus to put his neck on the line for me!" She abruptly turned back toward him.

"Look clearly I can't appeal to your honor." She sassily stated. She then looked at him alluringly. "But I have other ways of convincing you...."

"Really?..." he asked nervously, looking her up and down. "Uh....just....how do you expect to do that?" he continued, not sure what she had in mind.

"By speaking your language." Marina replied, leaning forward and pulling out a large diamond and held it between them. His eyes widened and he snatched it from her.

"Keep talking." He said, glancing at her. She pulled his hand and held his palm up. Pulling out a bag she dumped the remaining jewels into his hand. She watched him with a smug smile as he tossed them, contemplating his decision. "Yup this will do." He told her. "But not for first class..." he added.

Marina's smile vanished and she looked at him wide eyed. Unexpectedly, he grabbed Marina and tossed her onto his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. He walked out of the room. Hiccup and riders started to follow him until the door was slammed in Hiccup's face. Then he heard Sinbad lock the door on them. Hiccup grabbed the knob and tried to open it. After a few tugs of unsuccessful attempts, he stopped and groaned. He turned to the other riders with a frown.

"Yeah, such great accommodations." Hiccup commented, sarcastically, with his arms up.

"Okay, he's the worst thief we've come across." Carlos commented.

"Well, Flynn was the only thief we've come across so far." Hiccup pointed out.

"True." Carlos realized.

"At least Marina was somewhat able to convince Sinbad." Roana assured them.

"Yeah, as long as her money holds out." Carlos pointed out.

"So now what?" Audrey asked.

"Opening the door would be the first thing to do." Hiccup suggested. Then he took out a knife from his sheath that was attached to his belt, "And I know a way." He grinned as he held the blade which made the other riders grin as well.

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It's often said that there are countries where bribery is a way of life, and that's still the case. - Laurence Urgenson