A/N: And now the baddies are gonna have a little get-together and unite forces.

(Steps of Rus'— Kievan kingdom)

A ruthless blizzard was hammering the Kievan kingdom, forcing the inhabitants of the kingdom to retreat indoors or else they'd freeze death from the subzero temperatures. However, the cold temperature and raging storm didn't stop the tread of a small group of people who were draped in heavy winter gear and huddled close together so that they wouldn't lose sight of each other in the blinding storm. This small group then approached the gates of Boleslav's Kievan kingdom, the guards standing watch approached this group and barked out in the Rus' tongue.

"Ukazhite zdes' svoy biznes!"

One of the heavily cloaked figures of the group stepped forward and removed their hood, revealing the Slavic warlord Griselda the Grievous. The guards' eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Griselda, they then welcomed her. "Welcome home Griselda! Please, come with us, so that we may escort you to King Boleslav!" The guards then opened the gates and led Griselda and those accompanying her within the Boleslav kingdom, the group treaded through the snowy ground with haste; temperatures were dropping by the second and the storm had increased in its ferocity.

Finally making it to the Boleslav palace, Griselda let out a sigh of relief as she and her companions were hit with a wave of warmth. "Mother Rus' always did have bitter snowstorms," she said aloud, "now, I wish to speak with King Boleslav at once. One of his allies sent a message of aid to me." The guards turned to Griselda after warming themselves by a nearby fire and nodded at the female Slavic warlord, they then led Griselda and her companions to where King Boleslav was located. Once reaching the throne room of Boleslav's palace, the Kievan king, who was speaking with his Rus' allies looked to see his guards bringing in Griselda the Grievous and many more heavily cloaked figures.

"Griselda, welcome home!" Boleslav said, the female warlord bowed her head in thanks before she scanned Boleslav's allies and found her lifelong friend. "Alina!" Said woman smiled at the sight of Griselda and the two women embraced each other, shared warm sentiments, and then turned back to King Boleslav and Prince Igor. "As many of you know, I left Rus' and joined Drago Bludvist to aid him in his many conquests throughout the world," Griselda stated, "but after he was killed by Hiccup Haddock III, he spared me and allies— Chagatai Khan, Rong the Rock, and our armies from complete annihilation." Two of the hooded figures stepped forward and removed their hoods, revealing Griselda's close companions and allies in the form of Chagatai and Rong.

"As the years passed, and as Hiccup Haddock grew more powerful, we made sure not to provoke the man in any way," Griselda continued, "we have spent all this time further swelling our numbers in both man and dragons, but also meeting a powerful ally who wishes to aid you in destroying Hiccup Haddock and his empire."

Raising an eyebrow in question, King Boleslav then inquired. "And who is this ally you have found out there in the world?" Griselda then turned around and nodded at two of the cloaked figures behind her before turning back to look into King Boleslav's eyes and make introductions. "King Boleslav, Prince Igor, I present to you Nikora and Eir Stormheart of the Mongrel Tribe!" Both women stepped forward and removed their hoods, revealing the leaders of the Mongrel people.

Boleslav took the time to analyze both Stormheart leaders while they removed their heavy winter coats and handing them to nearby Rus' soldiers. Nikora had medium-length black hair, tied up in multiple braids and plaits. She has a bronze-colored skin tone, painted white tribal face paint, and a blue stripe down her mouth. Nikora wore silver shoulder pads similar and a long, simple navy blue robe-like dress, outlined with fringes of pale yellow. She wore heavy winter boots to protect her feet from frostbite. She also wears a stout belt adorned with a large buckle, from which a large strip of tribal blue cloth hangs down between her legs to her feet. Her eyes are brown, and the same shade as her shin guards, which appear to be made from leather.

Turning to the second Stormheart, Boleslav noted that Eir is a short, lithe, and wiry girl. One of her most notable features is her black hair trimmed in a Mohawk style with a blue crest and blue strands in front of her ears. Another notable physical feature is her missing left arm, which she has replaced with a complex, multi-functional prosthesis. Eir also has a blue tattoo or tribal paint on her right arm and around her eyes. Eir wears a grey tunic and trousers with a grey shoulder embroidered with red-brown spirals. She has metal pauldrons on her shoulders and a belt with a distinctive triskele design on the buckle.

Finding that both Stormheart women were ferocious in appearance, Boleslav bowed his head to them in greetings. "Welcome, both of you, to my humble kingdom," he then continued, "allow me to offer you my heartfelt condolences on the loss of your father— Hassan. His prowess as a warrior and leader was most impressive, as was his reputation." Both Nikora and Eir nodded in thanks, the eldest Stormheart then stepped forward and spoke. "King Boleslav, I thank you for your hospitality and granting us an audience," she then continued, "we've heard that one of Hiccup's whelps took your sons' wife and claimed her as his own woman." Igor tensed with rage and Boleslav nodded in confirmation. "This is true," he then turned to Igor who was doing his best to contain his anger, "the offense Prince Nuffink has inflicted upon my son and kingdom is an act of war. We will see to it that Hiccup Haddock and his pagan empire are reduced to ash."

"We would be honored if you allow us to join you," Nikora said, "my sister and I have further swelled the ranks of our Mongrels and our warriors are from every corner of the world, they are all highly intelligent and skilled warriors. We have sworn to avenge the death of Hassan Stormheart, and we will not rest until Hiccup Haddock lies dead at our feet."

Nodding in understanding, Boleslav rose from his throne and slowly approached Nikora and Eir. "Before we continue any further conversation, satisfy my curiosity. Who exactly would lead this great army? You?" He inquired in a challenging tone, Eir growled lightly, but Nikora held her sister back and answered King Boleslav. "Rest assured, we will not usurp you of your authority, King Boleslav," she then continued, "all we want is to see Hiccup Haddock pay for striking down our father." Narrowing his eyes at Nikora, Boleslav then grunted in acknowledgment. "Very well," he then warned her, "I know you and your people are born warriors and that you've been trained to be in the service of those who stand as your superiors. Swear an oath to me and my kingdom, and together, we will see to that our lust of vengeance is sated." Nikora did not want to be sworn to Boleslav or his son, but she knew that she and Eir needed to do whatever it takes to make Haddock pay for the wound of loss he inflicted upon them.

With a heavy sigh, Nikora kneeled before Boleslav and swore to him. "I, Nikora Stormheart, pledge my sword and people to aid you in destroying Hiccup Haddock and his Viking empire," she licked her lips and continued, "I swear to you." Nodding, Boleslav then spoke. "Rise," once Nikora was on her feet, Boleslav and placed a hand on her shoulder and nodded, "Haddock and his pagan dogs are a blight upon this world and promise to further plague us all with death, violence, and bloodshed. But now that you have sworn to me, we will bring peace to the world once Haddock's head is on a pike."

Eir then stepped forward and spoke. "If I may be so bold, when do you plan on invading Haddock's Viking empire?" Boleslav chuckled at Eir's youthful enthusiasm but answered her nonetheless. "All of Rus' stands with me, we have united as one and formed the largest Christian army that has ever been assembled," he then continued, "once the storms ease up and once we can load all our supplies and war machines into our ships, we plan to set sail in three days."

Nikora and Eir shared a look before turning back to Boleslav and his allies. "Have you formulated a plan of attack?" Eir inquired, Igor then stepped forward and answered the younger Stormheart. "Upon landing on Viking shores, we'll destroy any resistance the Vikings throw our way and make camp upon the beach," he then raised a questioning eyebrow at Eir, "do you have a better plan?" Eir then turned around to one of the cloaked figures behind her and gestured for them to step forward. This figure removed his hood, revealing a Viking male with blond hair, pulled back into a banded ponytail and a thin, pointed beard. After removing his heavy winter jacket and passing it to one of the nearby Rus' soldiers, Boleslav and Igor analyzed this Viking who stood before them. He wore a brown tunic with a red sash and brown belt over it, and a yellow long sleeve shirt. His gloves have fur lacing on them, as well as on his boots and tunic. This man also wore a decorated, metal guard on his left shoulder and forearm. He also carried a sword over his shoulder.

"This is Harald Forkbeard," Eir said to both Igor and his father, "he stands as the last of his tribe after Hiccup purged many of the Vikings who branded him as a heretic and saw his empire as an abomination. His father, Erik Forkbeard led a sizeable Viking army that attempted to overthrow Hiccup and destroy his empire shortly after defeating his own father Stoick the Vast, and his allies. Not only did Erik and his allies fail in defeating Haddock, but they were all butchered and made an example of to all of Norway that Hiccup's empire cannot be destroyed and that the man himself is tactically superior above all other Vikings."

"Harald was the only survivor of Hiccup's barbarity and fled into the world to avoid Haddock's wrath," Nikora said, "we then found him wandering in a marketplace of Cilicia and took him under our wing after he told us he was fleeing from Haddock. Since then, Harald has risen quickly through the ranks of the Mongrels and stands as our second in command." A sinister grin then crept across Nikora's face and she continued. "Harald will serve as our inside man, he will infiltrate Hiccup's empire and do what he can to lower the enemy's defenses so that our invasion could go more smoothly."

"Hiccup is no fool," Boleslav stated, "his intelligence alone is sharper than any blade a man can wield if your pet Viking behaves suspiciously, Hiccup will take notice and keep a close eye on him, robbing us of any form of advantage of having an inside man within his empire."

"You needn't worry," Nikora reassured, "Harald has been trained on how to disappear into thin air, he will not be discovered by Haddock or any of his followers."

"By the time Hiccup learns of Harald's true nature, it'll be far too late to stop him," Eir added, "we will move like the serpent, fast and sure. And if the gods favor us, our venom will cripple Haddock and allow us to deliver the killing blow."

Boleslav hummed and then made his way towards a balcony outside and took in the view of millions of Rus' soldiers on the march, they were divided into legions, separating each army for each Rus' kingdom. Nikora and Eir joined the Kievan king and took in the breathtaking view of such an army, all of the Rus' rulers had pledged their allegiance to Boleslav and Igor; merging their armies with Boleslav's own soldiers and by doing so, they had created an army of colossal proportions. Soon enough, everyone present in Boleslav's throne room gathered to join King Boleslav and the Stormheart sisters.

"With our Rus' forces allied with the remnants of Drago's army as well as the Mongrel Tribe, we will have an army large enough to challenge Hiccup Haddock and his pagan empire," Boleslav boomed out while grinning to himself, "this my friends marks the beginning of the end for the Viking people; the end of their culture, beliefs, ways, and false gods!" Bolesalv's words caused Harald's jaw to clench, but he quickly released the tension there and could see his allies, Nikora and Eir expressing their excitement.

A storm of blood, fire, and death would soon make its way to Hiccup's Viking empire. And while all was quiet for the moment, there was only one question pulling at Harald's mind.

Who would win this conflict?

A/N: What a cozy gathering of villains, huh? This combined force is going to give Hiccup and his empire a great challenge and there'll be moments where Hiccup expresses doubts towards himself for the first time in a long time. But anyway, that's it for this chapter! Hope you guys are enjoying the story so far, and I'll see you in the next update.