The Rebirth Of A Dragon

Stoick's Point of View

⸻

The sea was quiet behind us.

Too quiet.

Even with dozens of ships anchored just off the blackened shore, even with the clang of metal and the heavy steps of warriors preparing for war, there was a silence hanging over everything.

It was the kind of silence that came before the world decided to change.

I stood at the edge of the beachhead, hands clasped behind my back, staring at the towering volcanic wall that protected the nest. We had crossed the mist—Helheim's Gate. A place generations of Vikings had entered, but none had ever returned from with their target found.

Until now.

Because of him.

Because of Hiccup.

No. Not because. Through him.

He wasn't our ally—not truly. But he was our only key. Without his dragon... we'd have never made it through the shifting winds and death-thick fog.

And now, here we were. Staring at a mountain that might as well be breathing.

I turned to face the gathered war captains standing by the command table. Bolverk. Halldor. Hegg. Each responsible for one-third of the forward force.

"Are we ready?" I asked.

"Aye," Bolverk answered, giving a firm nod. "Catapults set on the upper ridge. Oil barrels placed behind 'em in case we need fire."

"Spikes laid across the flat," Halldor added. "If they charge us, they die trying."

"And the forward shield wall?"

"Spears, flasks, and forty men behind each line," Hegg confirmed. "We hit hard and fast once the breach is made."

I looked back at the ridge where our siege weapons stood like giants waiting to strike. All was ready. I had nothing more to add. But they needed to hear it.

"Once there's an opening..." I said, my voice hardening, "all Hel breaks loose."

Silence followed.

Then—

"Aye," Gobber cut in from my left, raising his brow. "And my undies. Good thing I brought extras."

Several of the younger warriors chuckled. Even Halldor cracked a smirk.

I didn't smile.

Gobber's humor was welcome, but this wasn't a moment for laughing.

He noticed and nudged my shoulder. "What? You want me dying in shame or clean drawers?"

I didn't answer. Just stared at the wall of ancient stone before us—the edge of a nightmare older than any of us could comprehend.

The dragons lived in there.

The nest.

The core of the war that had devoured fathers and sons for centuries.

We didn't know how many were inside.

Didn't know if Hiccup had lied. Or if he'd left something out.

But it didn't matter anymore.

The line had been crossed the moment we stepped through the veil.

I took a long breath, letting the heat of the scorched earth settle into my lungs. I raised my hand, high and open. Every eye on the shore turned to me—waiting.

I clenched my hand into a fist.

And spoke, not with rage, but with absolute certainty:

"No matter how this ends—it ends today."

The signal was clear.

Release.

The first catapult fired with a heavy CRACK, its rope hissing as the giant boulder launched skyward. The others followed—five, then seven, then more. A wave of rock crashed through the sky, thundering toward the volcanic cliff.

BOOM.

Stone met stone.

The cliff face held, for a moment.

Another volley. Louder.

Cracks spread across the blackened rock, dust billowing out like breath from a wounded god.

Then—

BOOOOOOM.

One final blast.

The mountain screamed. A section of the cliff detonated, shards of volcanic stone flying in every direction.

Smoke poured out of the gaping wound now torn in the nest's outer wall.

An opening.

Dark.

Breathing.

Alive.

I made my way up to the new entrance.

My Boots grinding against black rock, my hammer gripped in one hand, shield on the other arm. Each step carried the weight of years—of a dream I'd been chasing since my first kill. This was it. The nest. The heart of the war. The end of it all.

I reached the breach.

Gobber stood several feet below, his face tilted up, silent for once. The others—dozens of warriors, veterans, and sons of Berk—remained on the beach. Watching. Waiting. They didn't dare climb yet.

Only I stood here.

Only I had to see what lay beyond.

I tightened my grip and stepped to the edge, staring into the dark wound we had opened in the island's skin.

And saw nothing.

No movement. No glowing eyes. Just... black.

As if the island itself was hollow.

I frowned, heart thudding in my chest. This wasn't right. I expected something—anything.

I signaled.

One of the nearby catapults loaded another boulder, this one slick with oil and flame. A Viking beside it hesitated, but Gobber waved him on.

"Fire!"

The flaming stone screamed as it soared through the air, trailing smoke and sparks behind it. It sailed over my head and into the crevice.

Then light filled the darkness.

For a heartbeat, we saw everything.

Dragons.

Dozens—no, hundreds—lining the interior. Clinging to walls, hanging from ledges, nested along the crevices. Their eyes reflected the fire like gems in a cave. Silent. Motionless. Watching.

Then all at once—

They moved.

Like a great, terrible wind breaking loose from within the mountain.

Wings erupted from every crevice, every shadow. The sky filled with scaled bodies as dragons shot into the air, bursting out from the nest like ash from a volcano. Some flew through the breach. Others took hidden exits, winding tunnels leading to the far side of the island. Their wings beat like war drums—except they weren't charging.

They were leaving.

"What the—" Gobber whispered behind me.

The first warriors who had climbed behind us raised their weapons—but struck only air.

The dragons didn't fight.

They didn't roar.

They didn't stay.

They vanished into the sky like smoke.

Gobber's voice cut through the air with a grin. "Well, that was easy."

I didn't answer.

Because I felt it. A stillness behind the motion. A silence beneath the noise.

Something was wrong.

Very wrong.

I gritted my teeth, eyes narrowing. The echo of firelight danced over the stone inside the nest, but the cavern beyond felt... untouched. Not abandoned. Not conquered.

Waiting.

I thought of what Hiccup had said—what he'd shouted three nights ago in the arena, with dragons at his back and murder in his eyes:

"In two days' time, I'll give you what you've always wanted."

"The location of the dragon nest."

"Since I'm leaving this place behind, I might as well give you the one thing you've desired since the day I was born. The only thing you ever truly chased."

"A chance at glory."

"You have three days to prepare for war. And if you manage to do what you've always dreamed... if you manage to win..."

"Then I will be your son once more."

"Is that a deal... Chief?"

I'd taken that deal with blood in my teeth.

But now... now I stood at the edge of the end, and all I could feel was dread.

Why would he offer this so easily?

Why would the dragons leave so quickly?

Unless—

Unless they weren't the real threat.

Unless this was just the beginning.

I gripped the edge of the breach, knuckles white under my gloves, and stared deeper into the nest.

This wasn't a victory.

This was an invitation.

And the door had only just opened.