A/N: First off, I do apologize for the delay on this chapter, I was having some serious connection issues while working on this chapter which prevented me from even working on this chapter, so again I do apologize for the delay, you know how technology can be sometimes. Anyway, the war has begun, and it's going to start with a bang.

(Katerina's pov)

The sounds of war horns sounding off were what pulled me from the deep sleep I had been enjoying. I sighed heavily and snuggled back into Nuffink's toned chest. I was comfortable and very warm; sleep made my body feel heavy and I was more than happy to sink further into the warm furs and Nuffink's loving embrace. His bare skin against my own was a pleasant reminder of what we had been doing before we had fallen asleep, and I made a mental note to pick up where we had left off as soon as I woke up properly.

My Viking lover had been in rare form last night; I was given very little time to even catch my breath from one orgasm before Nuffink had his talented hands, mouth, or hips between my legs endeavoring to give me another explosive climax.

I had almost returned to the warm embrace of slumber when the war horns roused me yet again. I whined in annoyance, and Nuffink's arms tightened around my waist and pulled me closer as he pressed a few sleepy kisses against my ear. Could I just stay like this forever? Comfortable, happy, and pleasantly tired after hours of glorious sex with the man I have fallen in love with and enjoy several more hours of sleep?

Whoever was blowing the war horn clearly did not agree.

Finally, I managed to drag my heavy eyelids open, I gently placed a kiss on Nuffink's lips and gently removed myself from his loving embrace, causing him to groan in displeasure. "Katerina?" He mumbled out. "What is it?" Running a hand through my hair, I grabbed a robe and wrapped it around my naked body, and turned to answer Nuffink. "The war horns are sounding," I then looked towards the horizon and murmured out, "something is wrong." Making my way towards the balcony of our bed chambers, I looked out towards the horizon and gasped in horror at the sight of a vast armada of ships on the horizon.

"No," I murmured out, "they're here."

Coming up from behind me, Nuffink looked out towards the horizon and inhaled sharply at the sight of such an overwhelming force here to take me back to Kiev and suffer under Igor and to destroy Hiccup's empire. The war horns once again sounded, and the sounds of distant yells from the people below told everyone that we are now under attack. People below were scrambling; either to flee the city or to seek refuge elsewhere, but the streets had now descended into chaos.

I did this.

My presence has put Hiccup's entire empire and people in mortal danger.

Nuffink then turned to me and spoke firmly. "Don't be afraid," he then cupped my cheeks and looked into my eyes, my very soul, and continued, "I will fight to my last breath to keep you safe from Igor's grasp. I swear to you." I nodded and embraced Nuffink, pressing my face into his chest, and murmured out apologies for bringing this nightmare to his home.

So many Scandinavian people are going to die.

All because I'm here.

(Hiccup's pov)

I have faced many challenges, fought in numerous campaigns, and seen things most men could only dream of. But what I was witnessing was enough to make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Tens of thousands of Rus' and foreign warships dotted the horizon, these ships held enemies from my past and they were now all hellbent on destroying my legacy and everything I've created.

The warhorns were being sounded; alerting everyone within the capital city that war has once again reached our shores and that every man and woman who can fight needs to prepare themselves for the battle that would ensue. Even in the face of overwhelming odds, I needed to make sure the safety of my people came first. I then threw on my armor and strapped it on my body, grabbing my Gronckle Iron shield, and Inferno blades. Looking at Astrid, I could see she was already ready to get out there and fight; to fight for the future of our people, dragons, home, and empire.

As am I.

Once we're ready to get going, we opened the doors to our chambers, revealing Halfdan and Hava. Both my siblings bowed their heads in greetings and we soon walked together while accompanied by a handful of our bodyguards. "Seeing that the enemy armada is at the doorstep of our capital city, I believe the outer defenses were completed destroyed, we'll send warriors to the beach to repel the enemy for as long as they can, but... the enemy armada is vast," Halfdan said in a grim tone, "I've never seen so many ships before in my life." I turned to my brother and patted his cheek. "Thankfully we have several surprises waiting for the enemy armada," I then inquire, "do our brothers at the beach know when to summon our Submarippers?"

"They will summon them when things are looking most dire," Halfdan reassured me, "but I strongly urge you not to engage in this first battle Hiccup—"

"I am the Blood King," I said in a firm tone, "I do not fear Boleslav and the foreign fools who have allied with him. I will not stand idle here while the enemy attacks us!"

"A fact well known," Hava said, "but Halfdan's words of caution hold wisdom, it would be wise to remain in the capital with the Blood Guard and ensure that our people are safe."

Turning to Astrid, I raise an eyebrow in question to her, she merely sighs and nods at me. "They give us wise counsel," she then continued, "who knows if the enemy intends to lure us away and sack the capital city with us to defend it." Now that was sound reason to remain in the capital and protect my people. "Very well," I said with a sigh, "you two remain by our mother's side, she's in no condition for a fight, now with her deteriorating health." Both Halfdan and Hava bowed their heads in understanding, they then ordered four Blood Guards to follow them to our mother's chambers.

Astrid placed a hand on my neck and cooed out reassuringly. "This will be a war unlike any we've ever fought before," she then continued, "we will have the opportunity to spill blood in time. But for now, we must ensure those who cannot fight are out of harm's way."

"Agreed," I said, "find Ingrid and Zephyr, you three will command the Blood Guard and ensure the people are safe." Astrid nodded and we shared a deep, passionate kiss before going our separate ways, for the time being, I then sighed heavily and made my way to my mother's chambers to be by her side, for now.

May the gods give us all the strength we need to endure this coming storm.

(Halvor's pov)

As the war horns continued to sound off throughout the city, Red Maw warriors were escorting those among us who cannot fight to safety, dragon riders were taking to the skies and made sure the enemy wasn't at our doors already, and I was making my way to the armory and was met with the sight men and women grabbing weapons and armor. Among the crowds of people, I laid eyes on a very familiar face that was barking out orders to those around him.

"Dagur!"

My uncle turned to me and approached me, we embraced each other and I then gestured around us. "War is upon us once again," I then inquired, "is my personal Blood Guard ready?" Dagur nodded in confirmation. "They are nephew, they await you at the city gates," he then patted my shoulder and added, "I will join you, I would hate to see my sister's son be harmed by our enemy," I smirked at my uncle's teasing tone and nodded at him. I then made my way towards Alvin, the hulking man was passing out shields to nearby warriors.

"Alvin!"

Said man turned to me and blew a strand of hair out of his face and gave me his full attention.

"How long before the army is ready?" I inquired.

"Half of our warriors are still coming in from the countryside," Alvin said, "we have to arm them, we have to—"

"How long?" I repeated.

"Noon," Alvin said.

"Make it sooner," I said before adding, "and, Alvin, I want patrols scouring the countryside. I want every home and pasture checked, every child of Scandinavia brought inside the city walls. If they can't walk, carry them." I pounded my fist against Alvin's chest, causing the hulking man to nod in understanding at my command.

Despite the wolves at our door, our people came first; and those who couldn't fight needed to be kept out of harm's way before the fighting began.

(Zephyr's pov)

As the war horns continued to sound, people were scrambling for safety, the warriors of the Red Maw were thankfully here to help calm those who were panicking and made sure everyone was out of harm's way. I was outside the steps of our tower and could see Ingrid and Avery sharing a quick kiss before going their separate ways, my older sister approached me and we shared a quick hug and we then walked together. "What are we suppose to do?" I inquired, Ingrid turned to me and answered. "We are to remain in the city and command the Blood Guard and ensure the enemy hasn't already landed on our shores," she then continued, "we will check everywhere and make sure the enemy hasn't breached the city." Ingrid grabbed my shoulders and looked into my eyes and spoke firmly. "I know you and Nuffink have not yet had your first real taste of battle, but you're about to truly become a warrior, my sister," she then continued, "I need you to be brave! For all of us! Can you do that?" I nodded firmly at my sister, she smiled and kissed my forehead and murmured 'stay safe' into my ear before taking command of a platoon of Blood Guards as they raced towards the cisterns beneath the city.

I then took command of a dozen Blood Guards and ordered them to follow me as I made my way towards the royal smithy, I laid eyes on Gobber and his apprentices handing out weapons and armor to many more of our warriors who had arrived from the countryside. Among his apprentices was Lief, the man I held affection for, he then laid eyes on me and I quickly approached him.

"Princess Zephyr," he said with respect and with a bow of his head, "do you require a weapon?"

I shook my head and brandished my battle-ax. "I'm already armed," I said with a warm smile, "I just came by to see if you are safe." Lief gave me a light smile and nodded in gratitude. "Thank you," he said, "I am perfectly fine, for the time being anyway." Before I could speak, I felt a hand on my shoulder, I turned around and laid eyes on my mother and her own Blood Guards, we shared a warm embrace and shared quick kisses before my mother looked to Gobber and gave him orders. "See to it that every one of our warriors is armed, my old friend," she said, "the enemy fleet is vast, and harboring gods knows how many warriors to challenge us." Gobber bowed his head in understanding. "Worry not," he said, "our people will be well-armed and prepared to greet our invaders." Astrid nodded at Gobber and then urged me to follow her.

"Where is my father?" I inquired.

"He is with your Uncle Halfdan and Aunt Hava, watching over your grandmother," Astrid said, "she is too weak to go into battle, so they are doing what they can to comfort her." Hearing this made my heart to break, Valka was not only the matriarch of House Haddock, but she is an inspiration to all women within the capital city to become one with their dragons.

To lose my grandmother would be a blow that would impact us all.

"What of Avery, Atali, and Mala?" I inquired.

"Their warriors and dragon riders are patrolling the outskirts of the capital city to see whether or not the enemy is already on our shores," Astrid continued, "we cannot take any chances my daughter, the enemy has planned this invasion for far too long, they most certainly have a plan to gain a decisive victory."

(Halvor's pov)

Once outside the city gates, I was met by the sight of my personal Blood Guard who was mounted on armored dragons, and my Uncle Dagur who was mounted on his bonded Skrill. I then approached my bonded dragon, Gnash, and mounted him, and gained my bodyguard's attention. "Sons of Scandinavia, hear me!" Once I had the attention of my men, I spoke firmly. "All my life, I've lived by a code. And the code is the simple: honor the gods, love your woman, and defend the empire!" My men let out cheers and I then continued. "Scandinavia is mother to us all. Fight for her!" Once more, my men let out cheers and raised their weapons high above their heads.

"Let's fly!"

I boomed out as I placed my riding helmet over my face and urged Gnash to take off, once my dragon took to the sky, Dagur was quickly by my side and he barked out over the winds. "This is a good day nephew! Today is the day we will bathe in the blood of our enemies!" He then eyed me with pride and said in a proud tone. "If your mother were still of this world? She would be so proud of you and your sister Ingrid!" Although Ingrid and I never met our mother, our father and Dagur told us everything we needed to know about her— she was kind, beautiful, strong, and a warrior in her prime that died alongside our third sibling. I know one day I will meet my mother in Valhalla, and it was a day I longed for. But right now was time to repel the enemy from establishing a beach-head.

(Beyond the capital city— On the water)

The Conqueror sliced through the waters with great speed, they were behind the Rus' fleet because this massive warship held the bulk of the supplies and weapons needed to combat the Viking's weapons. Commanding this ship was Chagatai Khan, Rong the Rock, and a Hunnic warlord Attila II, a descendant of the infamous Attila the Hun. Griselda stood with her Rus' brothers and sisters for the time being, but she was always faithful and loyal to her fellow warlords as well. The three warlords found Attila II and his vast army of Huns invading China for plunder and power, Drago's warlords knew the caliber of the Huns and how they were excellent trackers, horse riders, and deadly warriors; their infamous reputation stretched back to the final days of the Roman Empire. Now, with this Hunnic army merged with Mongols, Chinese, and Rus' under the command of Chagatai, Rong, and Griselda, this cabal was larger than ever before. And unknown to the Vikings, this cabal not only possessed a new dragon army, but also a new alpha that has yet to be revealed.

Onboard the Boleslav warship, the Kievan king and his son Igor stood at the front of their warship and laid eyes on Hiccup's capital city, the Kievan king turned to his son and could see the sheer anger carved into his face, the sight caused Boleslav to grunt in amusement and then inquired. "Eager to spill pagan blood, dear son?" Igor turned to his father and nodded firmly. "Hiccup's whelp spat on my honor, he stole my wife, and insulted the Boleslav name! He will pay for this offense!" Boleslav placed a hand on his son's broad shoulder and squeezed firmly. "And so you shall my son," the Kievan king reassured, "so you shall." The Kievan rulers laid eyes on the Mongrel fleet that had somehow gotten ahead of them.

"What do Nikora and her sister think they're doing?" Igor growled out. "They're going to take the Denmark beach with only thousands of warriors?"

"You forget that those warriors eclipse the Red Maw warriors in every way," Boleslav said with a smirk, "let Nikora and Eir clear a path for us, and once the rest of our ships land on the beach, we will drive the Vikings off the sand and send them back to their master in pieces."

Meanwhile, onboard The Tempest, its crew were ensuring that their ship was reaching its maximum speed, the Mongrel's had gone far too long without spilling blood and they were very eager to spill Viking blood. Nikora and Eir looked to the beach they were approaching and could see pikes embedded in the sand, hundreds of Vikings awaiting them, and the sisters could see a temple of some kind on top of the ridgeline of the beach.

"Queen Nikora, Princess Eir!"

Both Stormheart's turned around and laid eyes on their lieutenants— the two Egyptian siblings Kovu and Vitani, a Numidian Ngbaka named Absko, and an Arabian woman named Alya. These four Mongrels were Nikora and Eir's the deadliest, skilled, and ruthless warriors the Stormheart's had under their command, the oldest being Absko, who stood beside their father ever since he was a boy.

"Should we not wait for the others to catch up with us?" Vitani inquired.

"We have been denied blood for far too long," Nikora said, "because of the loss we have endured, it seems only fair that we are the ones to storm that beach first."

"But that Rus' king and his son will not take this lightly—"

"Do you serve us or the Rus' Vitani?" Eir asked in a deadly tone, Vitani pursed her lips and quickly bowed her head in submission to her princess. "I serve the Stormheart's," she then added, "until I am reduced to dust."

"Then serve us," Nikora said, "and worry not about those Rus' curs, they are merely a means to an end."

Their lieutenants bowed their heads and left their leaders alone for the time being, while Nikora and Eir looked at the approaching beach with blatant want; they were now at the very doorsteps of the man who killed their father so many years ago. Finally, they would take the fight to Haddock and his barbaric empire and see the man himself and everything he has created fall to ruin.

"Shall we rouse our warriors before we land on that beach?" Eir inquired.

"By all means, dear sister," Nikora said with a smirk, "go on and rouse our warriors."

Eir grinned at her sister and turned to face the hordes of warriors that were armed and eager to fight. "Mongrels!! Hear me! " The young Mongrel princess boomed out, the Mongrel warriors gave their full attention as their princess continued. "Today, we will rip Haddock's barbaric empire from his dead hands! This is a war that will long be remembered in the history of mankind; there will great sacrifice, there will be death, but in the end, we shall be victorious!!" The Mongrels let out roars of rapture; today was the day they would show the Viking people how feared they truly are. "Let this day be forever remembered! And let us show these Viking animals why the Mongrel Tribe are the world's fiercest warriors!" Eir boomed out while drawing her sword and raising it high in the air, the Mongrels roared in agreement with their princess, raising their own weapons in the air and howling for blood.

The Tempest soon made its landing on the sand, and the Mongrels disembarked from their prized warship and touched down on the sand. Arrows soon rained down on top of the Mongrels; killing many who didn't raise their shields in time. Nikora and Eir led the charge while their lieutenants rallied their warriors together while also evading the storm of sharpened steel raining down on their heads. Quickly forming a shield wall, the Mongrels began letting out grunts as they treaded up the beach and approached the Viking ground forces. Among the archers, were Viking Valkyrie's are among the deadliest of the Red Maw armies, they are strong women who have made a deal with the gods; they will fight and earn glory so that those who can't be counted in the halls of Valhalla. These Valkyrie's hurled spears with an incredible aim in the gaps of the Mongrel shield wall, killing handfuls of the foreign invaders.

"Return fire!"

Nikora barked out, several Mongrels who were archers emerged from the safety of the shield wall and returned arrow fire at the Vikings, killing handfuls of Scandinavians. Once the Mongrels were close enough to their Viking attackers, they broke off from their shield wall and engaged the Vikings in open battle. Nikora, who was armed with a Chinese Kwan Dao hurled her weapon at a Viking archer aiming their bow right at her, the blade of her weapon embedded right between their eyes, killing them instantly. Approaching the downed archer, Nikora retrieved her weapon and twirled it in her hand expertly, and used her weapon to slit a charging Valkyrie's throat wide open; torrents of blood sprayed out of the Viking's throat and soaked the sand beneath their feet.

Eir, although she only had one arm, was by no means a weakling. Turning a switch on her prosthetic arm, a blade emerged from her artificial limb and Eir used that blade to cut down any Viking that stood in her path. In her remaining hand, Eir held a shield and used it to protect herself from incoming arrow fire. A Valkyrie rammed into Eir's shield, knocking the Mongrel princess to the sand, the Viking then brought her shield down on top of Eir, but she quickly raised her shield to protect herself from the lethal weapon. The spear pierced straight through Eir's shield and cut her under her right eye, causing her to snarl out in pain, the Mongrel princess then swept the Valkyrie's legs out from under her and Eir quickly used her artificial blade limb and plunged the blade into the Viking's mouth, killing her in seconds. Quickly looking up, Eir saw a Viking archer raising their bow in her direction and letting their arrow fly, and she closed her eyes expecting to be killed by the incoming projectile, but it never came. Eir opened her eyes and saw Nikora caught the arrow with her shield, the older Stormheart looked to her younger sister and nodded at her.

"Kill them all! Do not spare a single one of them!!"

Nikora roared out to her Mongrel brethren as she helped Eir back on her feet and soon returned to battle, Eir looked behind her and could see dozens of their Mongrel ships now landing on the beach and their warriors touching down on the sand to lend them support. The Mongrel forces soon came in overwhelming force, and the Vikings resisting them were forced to retreat back to the capital city, though many remained behind so that their remaining brothers and sisters in arms would live to see another day.

Whilst the Mongrels were reveling in the heat of battle, Halvor, Dagur, and the Blood Guard accompanying descended down on the beach and could see the raging battle ensuing. Halvor spotted another Mongrel ship landing on the sand and its warriors disembarked from the ship and charged the Vikings repealing the swarms of Mongrel warriors. Among this group of Mongrel's was a man who stood like a giant, he was a dark-skinned Assyrian that looked more like a ferocious beast rather than a man. His head was shaved of all but the small beard on his chin, he was armed with a ferocious war hammer and a large shield and he roared like a ferocious lion; eager to devour anyone who stood in his path.

"Our brothers and sister's down on the beach need our help. Now!" Halvor barked out, he turned to Dagur and nodded at him. "Uncle, with me! The rest of you, kill as many of the invaders as you can!" The Blood Guards let out battle cries and their dragons unleashed thunderous roars and they once again took to the sky and kill the invaders from above.

While the Vikings engaged the Mongrels now making their landing on the beach, this Assyrian giant used his Warhammer to bash the Viking's skulls in. While engaging a Valkyrie, this giant raised his shield to block her spear and then swung his war hammer across her face, with enough force that broke her jaw and caused her to plummet down on the sand. Placing his large foot on the downed Valkyrie's back, the Syrian giant used his war hammer to cave in her skull; blood, skull, and brains thick upon the sand.

"I am Dagan! Wrath of Assyria! Look upon me with despair!!"

The giant roared out while pounding his fist against his chest, Dagan then turned around to see one of the royal Blood Guards and their armored dragon charging him. With a snarl, Dagan bashed his shield against the dragon's face; causing blood and saliva to fly out of the dragon's mouth and cause it to crash into the sand. Another Blood Guard and their dragon advanced upon Dagan, but the giant used his war hammer to rip the Viking's head clean off his body with one blow; blood and gore splattering across Dagan's armored chest, and the giant then used his shield to protect himself from the dragon fire. Once the dragon's fire ran out, Dagan then used his war hammer to break the dragon's jaw open; causing the dragon to roar out in agony. The giant then placed his heel into the dragon's throat and brought his war hammer down on the dragon's skull, killing the poor dragon in seconds.

Nikora and Eir worked together in unison to slaughter any Viking who stood in their path, they were just too fast and too skilled for the Vikings to deal with. Nikora used her Kwan Dao to hack a Viking's leg clean off and then used the blade to spill another Viking's guts open, she then backflipped over a Valkyrie who thrust their spear in her direction, but Nikora drove her weapon into the female Viking's back. Eir used the blade attached to her artificial limb to slice and dice any Viking that stood in her way; she drove her blade in the heart of a charging Valkyrie and then slit her chest open. Another Viking who discarded their bow then drew out a sword and charged Eir, the Mongrel princess blocked the strike with her shield, but the blow of the strike knocked Eir's shield out of her hand.  Attempting to stab the Mongrel princess, the Viking gasped in horror as Eir then used her free hand to grab their wrist and then use their blade against their allies by cutting off a Valkyrie's hand. Eir then caught the Valkyrie's spear and killed the female Viking warrior and then used the blade attached to her prosthetic arm to slit her other opponent's throat open. Once more, several more Vikings advanced on Eir and the Mongrel princess sidestepped a Valkyrie's spear and then wrapped her arms around the female's neck in a ferocious chokehold. Eir struck down a charging Viking and then snapped the Valkyrie's neck with horrifying ease, she then slashed her final challenger across the leg and then grabbed one of the Viking's discarded swords and hurled the blade at the wounded Viking. The blade embedded itself right into the Viking's face; blood flying out of their mouth and face and their corpse hitting the sand.

Surrounded by Viking corpses, Nikora and Eir were sleeked in sweat and blood as they watched in rapture at the sight of their Mongrel brothers and sister's easily slaughtering the Vikings around them, even killing their dragons without compassion or mercy.

"Tilbake til byen! Tilbake til byen!!"

One of the Vikings roared out, and those that were left ran for their lives. But the Mongrel warriors grabbed discarded Viking bows and arrows off the sand and struck down the fleeing Vikings.

As the Mongrels continued to strike down every Viking in their path, within the temple on that same beach, several seers resided in it; offering sacrifices to Odin and the gods of the Æsir and begged them to give their warriors the strength they needed to defeat the invaders. Among these seers was Dahlia, the Dark One, the very same seer who told Hiccup's late wife Heather that she would give birth to triplets. This seer was praying in old Norse, not even bothering to react to the sounds of foreign tongues entering the temple and the dying gurgles of her fellow countrymen. Finishing her prayer, Dahlia rose to her feet and was surrounded by several Mongrel warriors, the woman eyed the foreigners and sneered at them before snarling out.

"Du tør urene dette hellige tempelet med ditt nærvær?!"

The Mongrel's within the temple cleared a path as Nikora, Eir, and their lieutenants soon entered. Once the Stormheart rulers were arm's length of Dahlia, they eyed the sorceress from head to toe, and then Nikora spoke in perfect Norse. "I do dare to defile this temple," she then continued, "I dare because your Blood King killed our father, Hassan Stormheart! The greatest warrior this world has ever produced!" The Mongrel's around them grunted in agreement and then fell silent as Nikora continued speaking. "You and your fellow sorcerers and sorceresses will meet a most gruesome fate."

"So sure are you?" Dahlia challenged. "You would be a fool to underestimate a seer like me!" Before the Mongrels within the temple could even react, arrows struck several of their warriors from behind. Quickly turning around the Mongrels within laid eyes on Hiccup's Blood Guards and their dragons entering the temple and killing any Mongrel in their path. A ghastly roar filled everyone's ears as Dagur's Skrill landed between Nikora and Dahlia, the Skrill then fired torrents of white-hot lightning at the Mongrels, burning handfuls of them to an unrecognizable crisp. Dismounting his dragon, Dagur pulled out several throwing knives and hurled them at charging Mongrels with deadly precision. The Berserker then drew out a sword strapped to his hips and a battle-ax strapped to his back and began engaging the nearest Mongrel.

Dahlia then turned to her fellow seers and helped them flee the temple, and before Nikora and Eir could stop them, a stream of violet fire cut them off. They looked up to see a Night Fury of some kind, and on this dragon's back was Prince Halvor, eldest son of Hiccup Haddock. Both Stormheart's shared a look and then turned back to the Viking prince as he dismounted his dragon and drew out a sword strapped to his hips and removed his shield strapped around his shoulders. He then assumed a battle position and eyed the Mongrel leaders with disgust and hatred. "There is only one punishment for defiling this holy temple," he twirled his sword in his hand with ease and spoke in an intimidating tone, "your deaths." Nikora and Eir noticed the Viking prince's pupils were now thin slits and that his veins burned with crimson fire.

"You are either very brave or very stupid to face us alone, boy," Eir said in a taunting tone, "you are no match for us both."

"Would you like to prove that theory?" Halvor challenged.

"Oh, it would be my pleasure!" Eir said before letting out a battle cry and charging Halvor. Quickly jumping out of the way as Eir brought her blade down where he was previously standing, Eir lashed out at Halvor with incredible speeds, but Halvor was able to keep up with her and keep her at bay. As she thrust her blade at Halvor's stomach, the Viking prince sidestepped the attack and grabbed Eir's prosthetic arm and snapped it in two, causing the Mongrel princess to roar out in pain. Halvor punched her across the face and kicked her in the chest, causing her to crash into a nearby pillar and knock her out.

Witnessing Halvor's impressive display of strength, Nikora then whirled her Guandao and nodded at the Viking prince. "Impressive, for a savage," she then continued, "but I suspect without your... unnatural powers, you are no match for me." Inhaling sharply, Halvor's thin slits returned to normal pupils and the crimson fire pulsing through his veins died down. "Hubris is a deadly trait for a warrior to possess," Halvor said, "you will be surprised by my capability as a warrior."

Having enough, Nikora thrusts her Guandao at Halvor's head, but the Viking prince backs away from the attack and uses his sword to sever the pole in two. Snarling in annoyance, Nikora charges Halvor and runs up his body, and leaps into the air, reclaiming the severed half of her weapon and also drawing a sword that was strapped to her curvy hips. Halvor kicked a bowl of burning embers at Nikora's face, causing her to cry out in surprise and pain, she was then met with the sight of Halvor's shield making contact with her face; causing blood and saliva to fly out of her mouth and for her to crash into a nearby statue of Odin. Nikora quickly moved out of the way as Halvor drove his sword straight through the stone statue, pulling his blade out of the image of Odin, Halvor blocked a series of deadly strikes from Nikora. Her attacks were ferocious, ruthless, and filled with strength, but Halvor was not rattled in the slightest; he stood firm even in the face of superior skill.

Nikora managed to cut Halvor's leg with her Guandao, causing him to snarl out in pain, but he then left himself vulnerable for a fatal blow, one Nikora could've taken, but refused. Noticing this, Halvor gave his opponent a confused look and for a moment, both Viking and Mongrel royalty eyed each other for what felt like a lifetime, while also drowning out the fighting around them.

"Why did you not kill me?" Halvor inquired.

With a heavy sigh, Nikora sheathed her sword and then smirked at Halvor while turning her back to him. "Why kill you now, Prince of Scandinavia, with nobody here to see you fall?" As Nikora made her way out the back entrance of the temple, Halvor slowly followed her outside. Once outside, Nikora could see the Rus' warships making their landing, and the remnants of Drago's army right behind them. Turning back around, Nikora laid eyes on Halvor and saw his face twist with curiosity. "You're not here for Boleslav and Igor," he then continued, "you're here to avenge the death of your father, Hassan Stormheart, am I right?" Nikora nodded in confirmation.

"Your father robbed us of our leader and my father," Nikora said, "since then, Mongrels have grown in numbers and sought out those who hate the Viking people as allies— the remnants of Drago Bludvist's army and then the Boleslav's who just so happened to unite all of Rus' to fight for him. With this colossal force, we will finally lay waste to the Scandinavian people once and for all!" Halvor could see the anger in Nikora's eyes, it was an inferno that threatened to consume her like a ravenous predator.

Revenge is a powerful motivator, but it could also lead you to ruin.

"Mankind will be speaking of this war for a thousand years," Nikora said with a smirk, "how the world united together to remove the Viking blight for good."

"In a thousand years, the dust from our bones will be gone," Halvor said.

"Yes, prince," Nikora said, "but our names will become immortalized in history, whereas yours and those who follow your father will be forever lost."

Soon enough, Dagur and what remained of the Blood Guard and their dragons removed themselves from the temple and stood beside Halvor and the high-ranking Mongrels and the warriors present soon surrounded the small group of Vikings and their dragons. Nikora knew it would be easy to kill these Vikings, but instead of striking them down, she decided to spare them.

"Go home, prince," she said firmly, "drink some wine, make love to your wife. Tomorrow, we will have our war."

Halvor glared at Nikora and shook his head. "You speak of war as if it's a game," he said with disgust, "but how many our people await at our city gates only to see their loved ones will never return to their arms?" Nikora then smirked at Halvor's words and replied back. "You have your brother to thank for that," she then continued, "we have heard of his... infamous reputation." The Mongrels gathered laughed, and Halvor's blood boiled with rage, but Dagur grabbed his nephew's bicep and hissed out. "Not yet," he then continued, "live to fight another day." Turning to his uncle, Halvor nodded in agreement and he then turned to Nikora and pointed his sword at her.

"I will be seeing you again upon the field of battle," he promised, "of that, I am certain."

"I look forward to facing you again, Prince Halvor," Nikora said with a smile, "until we meet again."

With that said, Halvor turned to Dagur and nodded at him, the two Vikings and their Blood Guards mounted their respective dragons and flew back to the capital city. Eir nudged her older sister's arm and hissed out. "Why let him go?" Nikora was silent for a full minute and then turned to look her sister in the eyes and gave her answer. "Sweep the area for any more of Hiccup's followers and rob them of their lives," she then continued, "meet me back when it's done." Eir bowed her head and took Vitani and Alya with her, along with a handful of their warriors. Kovu and Absko remained with their queen, for the time being, the Numidian Ngbaka then spoke with humility. "Was it wise to let them go?" Nikora turned to the Numidian and replied. "Let them have this moment to mourn their fallen and to lick their wounds," she then looked to the beach to see millions of warriors touching down on the sand, "and at dawn tomorrow, we will avenge those who fell this day, and we will avenge Hassan Stormheart, this I promise you." Both Absko and Kovu bowed their heads in understanding and left their queen alone.

Nikora then looked towards the heavens and closed her eyes; basking in this triumph of their campaign. But she was no fool, they may have won this battle with relative ease, but this war was far from over.

It's only just begun.

(Fishleg's pov)

Fire rained down upon us; devouring everything in our path, whether it be children of Scandinavia or the village around us. Either way, the fire was spreading too fast, and the rising smoke was making it very difficult to breathe. The warriors stationed here loaded wagons full of seers and sent them running before they were consumed by the flames consuming everything around us. Gothi was in my arms, she was coughing violently from the smoke around us and I quickly called for Meatlug, my faithful dragon emerged from the smoke and descended to my feet, I quickly climbed on top of my dragon and settled into my saddle, once secured, I urged my dragon to take off and Meatlug took the sky just as a burning tree collapsed down right where we were previously standing.

Once we were above the now smoldering village below us, I looked out towards the horizon and laid eyes on dozens of ships that flew Rus' colors were firing volley after volley of flaming catapults and arrows; burning it to the ground and desecrating the temples of our gods by reducing them to ash.

How did the enemy know to attack here? Without our seers, our connection to the gods would be lost and it would be a catastrophic blow to our kind.

This was a question that would need to be answered soon, but now was not the time to lose my focus, now was the time to focus on surviving this and getting as many seers to safety.

Steering Meatlug to the outskirts of the village, I could see the warriors stationed here were loading countless seers into wagons and sending them to the capital city. One of the dragon riders who accompanied me steered their dragon in my direction and spoke up over the mayhem. "The enemy is approaching! We must go now!" Before I could respond they were shot out of the sky by a volley of arrows; killing both rider and dragon, the sight caused Meatlug to roar out in fear and anger. Looking down at the smoldering village, I could see Rus' warriors emerging from the flames, armed with crossbows, and they had just now finished reloading their weapons and were now aiming their weapons directly at me.

"Move Meatlug!"

I cried out just as the arrows whistled by my head, Gothi clung onto my leather armor and buried her face into my chest; hanging on for dear life as Meatlug continued to evade the arrows fired in our direction. Having enough, my dragon unleashed a ferocious roar and fired a blast of molten lava at our attackers which sent them flying back and landing into the fires around us. With the current threat now taken care of, I urge Meatlug to land to where the remaining warriors and dragon riders were located, they were now loading the last of the seers out of here, and as I dismounted Meatlug with Gothi still in my arms, I spoke up. "Worry not Gothi, you will live and continue to serve our Blood King," I then continued in a sympathetic tone, "there will be no more living in isolation, we must all come together if we are to defeat this enemy."

Before Gothi could speak to me through sign language, the sounds of rumbling filled my ears, followed by blood-curdling screams in the direction of the seers who had fled to safety, and then those screams were utterly silenced. And from the light fog, emerged Rus' warriors on horseback, their swords drenched in blood, and their stained blades were now pointed in our direction as they urged their horses to charge. What was left of the Red Maw warriors stationed here quickly formed a shield wall, but the Rus' horses broke the wall and our warriors were either trampled to death or died fighting liking Vikings. The remaining dragon riders who accompanied me all managed to flee with some seers, as long as one of those seers lives, we stand a chance.

Meatlug was crouched low on all fours, her pupils turned into thin slits, and her maw glowed with molten lava; prepared to fire at any Rus' warrior who attempted to attack me and Gothi. "Easy girl," I said to Meatlug, "at the moment, we're at their mercy." As the enemy cavalry surrounded us, I could hear footsteps behind me, causing me to turn around and lay eyes on more Rus' soldiers and... a Viking man accompanying them. This man had blond hair, pulled back into a banded ponytail, and a thin, pointed beard. 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. He also wore a decorated, metal guard on his left shoulder and forearm.

"Poisk vyzhivshikh!"

The Rus' soldiers nodded their heads and searched the smoldering village for anyone that survived this brutal attack. Looking into the eyes of this Viking, I then inquired. "Who are you?" The man snorted and answered. "I am a child of Scandinavia like yourself," he then continued, "but the Scandinavia I knew as a boy is nothing but a distant memory, it has become an abomination under the rule of your... Blood King."

"I say again, who are you?" I inquired in a firm tone, the Rus' warriors that were armed with crossbows raised them at me, but this Viking held his hand up at them, and they lowered their weapons. Licking his dried lips, this man then gave me his name. "Harald," he then repeated, "my name is Harald Forkbeard." My eyes widened in recognition of that name, my reaction caused Harald to smirk and nod. "Yes, my father and people fought alongside Stoick and those who attacked Hiccup's capital city twenty years ago," Harald's smirk disappeared and his face twisted into one of bloodlust, "after losing everyone I cared about, I fled Scandinavia and was found by a band of warriors called the Mongrel Tribe. They, like me, lost loved ones thanks to that... devil Hiccup Haddock. And that is why I have returned here, to see Hiccup fall and his empire reduced to ash."

"That will never happen!" I growled out. "You no longer stand as a Viking or child of Scandinavia, but you stand as a traitor and an outsider!"

"You speak of traitors? Yet you and everyone who follows Haddock is a traitor!" Harald snarled out. "Abandoning the ways of old and the ways of our forefathers and making peace with dragons!"

"The world changes Forkbeard, and we must either adapt to change or fade from existence," I said with a shrug, "Hiccup has opened our eyes and helped us adapt and make peace with the dragons."

Drawing a sword strapped behind his back, Harald then pointed his weapon at me, causing Meatlug to snarl out in warning, but the Rus' warriors armed with crossbows aimed their weapons at my dragon, causing me to hold a hand back towards my dragon.

"With the majority of the seers from this village now dead, your people will be unable to look for guidance from the gods," Harald said, "they cannot rely completely on Haddock, sooner or later, even Hiccup Haddock will make a decision that will cause those within his empire to challenge his rule and turn on him." Twirling his sword around in his hand expertly, Harald continued. "I'd kill you, the old woman, and your dragon right now, but I'm not without mercy," he then gestured to my dragon, "leave this place and tell your Blood King of me."

The Rus' warriors gathered looked at each other in confusion and spoke in a cautious tone at Harald, but the man snarled at them in warning, the Rus' gathered submitted to Harald and they too were allowing me to leave with Gothi and Meatlug. Once I climbed on top of my dragon, made sure Gothi was secured, and settled in my saddle, I looked to Harald spoke in a cautious tone. "This desecration will not go unpunished," shrugging, I continued, "Hiccup will not take this attack lightly."

"I know," Harald said while sheathing his sword, "we won't just destroy Hiccup himself, but we'll destroy everything he holds dear to him; the more unstable his mind, the more unstable his choices will be, and that will lead to his demise." He then urged me to leave while I still can, with this knowledge now known, I urged Meatlug to take off and fly as fast as she can.

Hiccup needed to hear of how the enemy wished to destroy him.

May the gods help us all!

A/N: Again, I do apologize for the delay, I hope this long chapter makes up for the delay. I still can't believe Christmas is this Friday, I can't wait! Hope you guys have a happy, and safe holiday season and I'll see you in the next update!