Forty Five.

Hiccup screamed as the ground collapsed under him, the Whispering Death tunnels collapsing the surface over the deeper tunnels in the volcanic landscape. Dagur, Hiccup, Astrid, Toothless and a handful of Berserkers vanished through the gap and Stoick scrambled backwards as the ground fell away...and then a huge hand grasped his. Alvin was hanging onto the edge of the hole with Mildew anchoring them with his staff. Stoick stared up into the face of his enemy...and allowed himself to be pulled up. He nodded curtly...then spun and blocked a stealthy axe-blow at Alvin's head from Savage. A swing of his hammer laid the treacherous second-in-command out.

"Thanks," Alvin wheezed, blinking. The Chief nodded.

"And you," Stoick replied. "Now let's get these Outcasts and Berserkers under control!"

"Just like the good old days!" Alvin chuckled and the two men ran side by side into the fray.

And at that moment, a huge roar reverberated through the entire island and Hiccup, Astrid and Toothless all shuddered: they recognised that sound. Overhead, Meatlug shot past with Fishlegs audibly screaming "OH THOR! OH THOR! OH THOR!" And he was followed by the Screaming Death.

Hiccup was hanging from a strut of rock, dangling over a long drop. Below him, Toothless was staring up with anxiously glowing eyes and he gave a worried roar. Hiccup felt his arms burning and his hands slipping: he had endured too many hard days recently to be able to pull himself up or hang on for much longer. Astrid was maybe fifteen feet below and off to the side, safely landed on a small outcrop and already looking for a way to climb up to him. Dagur was laughing manically and marshalling his men to attack the Night Fury...and then Toothless batted the nearest man aside and leapt. He was unable to fly without Hiccup working his prosthetic tail but he could leap and climb astonishingly well. He roared to his Viking just as Hiccup's hands slipped and he fell.

"Toothless!"

And then the Night Fury slammed up into him, catching the boy on his back. Automatically, his metal leg snapped into the tail assembly and the prosthetic fin opened as the wings flapped furiously. They hovered, mere feet above the ground, facing Dagur and his men.

"SLAVE! I see you've brought my Night Fury!" the Berserker shouted. Hiccup backed up, hearing a whistle from above.

"He's not yours," he replied as he heard a screech and a familiar blue and gold shape arrowed down, collecting her rider on the way. "He's mine and always will be!" Stormfly and Astrid landed at his side as Toothless touched down and he faced the Berserker once more. He heard Stormfly raise her spines in preparation for attack and Hiccup leaned forward.

"Wrong! You-and everything you own-are MINE!" Dagur roared and leapt at them-but Toothless batted the man away and Hiccup leaned forward, feeling the Night Fury bunch his muscles and leap into the air, flapping up through the long drop towards the surface. He heard Astrid launch-and then scream. Toothless was almost at the surface as he craned his neck-and saw Dagur on board the Deadly Nadder, grappling with Astrid. Stormfly was screeching in alarm but fortunately they were still rising, for the hole was really too small to safely turn around and fly down to help. But as they broke the surface, Toothless threw a tight flip and Hiccup threw himself across at the Berserker. Dagur was shocked as Astrid struggled for control. The Nadder hit the ground and all the passengers rolled. Shaking his head, Hiccup looked up, seeing Astrid lying stunned-and then he started in horror.

oOo

The Screaming Death had heard the cries of the Whispering Deaths and recognised one within as the sound he had been searching for. But at that point, the Berserkers had made the spectacularly unwise decision to attack the giant, white, spiny, red-eyed dragon. Snapped from his good mood, the giant dragon had responded with total aggression, demolishing every catapult and Berserker ship and the outcrop overlooking the harbour where the main defences had been sited. The Outcasts-on Alvin's bellowed orders-had withdrawn and left their Berserker allies-to face the stupidity of their decision alone.

Stoick, Spitelout and Gobber had finally reunited as the Outcasts surrendered to the Hooligan Chief in the remains of the village. Alvin watched on, breathing hard and gripping the chained up Savage by the shoulder. This was all part of the deal, the Treaty he had been forced to sign by Hiccup and though he had resented the subjugation of his claim to Stoick, he knew he could not have taken back the Outcasts without the Hooligans. Then Stoick did something totally unexpected: he offered Alvin his hand. Alvin stared in shock.

"Stoick?" he growled.

"There's more than enough blame to go round, Alvin," the Chief said thoughtfully. "But you have kept your part of the bargain. You did everything you said you would." Alvin gave a yellow smile.

"Yeah-'oo would have thought it would come ter this?" he admitted. "Yer boy made this 'appen. Neither of us would've 'ad the reason ter move beyond our past. It took yer little 'Iccup of a son ter see the way forward." Both man paused thoughtfully as the screams of the fleeing Berserkers sounded. Alvin looked up. "I think yer should take their surrender now, Stoick!" And he gasped the other man's hand.

"Let's take the surrender together!" Stoick said.

oOo

Dagur rolled and saw the old Whispering Death female, her scarred and thin flanks heaving with the effort of flying up towards the giant dragon. And he caught the look that the Screaming Death gave her and his deranged brain saw the advantage. He whipped a bola from his belt and threw it with fierce accuracy, bringing the scarred dragon down. Hiccup saw it and his heart almost stopped in horror.

"NO!" he shouted. "What are you doing? If you don't let her go, you'll destroy us all!" Dagur grabbed the stunned Astrid round the neck, a knife-the one that had nearly cut his own throat?-pressed viciously against her swan-like neck and hauled her to the downed dragon. His double headed axe rested against the whimpering Whispering Death as the shattering roar of the Screaming Death shook through them all. Hiccup scrambled to his feet.

"Hello? Deranged?" the Berserker taunted him. "Okay, Hiccup-time for the choice. You can give me the Night Fury and I will free one of them-your choice." Hiccup's forest green eyes met the furious azure gaze of Astrid's as she fought ferociously against the unbreakable grasp. They both knew the correct choice and his heart shuddered in misery at the dilemma. "Or...you could hand yourself and the dragon over to me and I will free both!"

Hiccup stared at him and hatred welled in his heart. He had played this game before, when he had given himself up for his Dad. He knew that Dagur would never keep his word and at least Astrid would be slain even if he handed himself over. He knew Dagur would always do whatever he could to turn Hiccup's life into Hel. He laid his hand on Toothless's muzzle and said quietly:

"Be ready on my mark, bud." He felt rather than heard the tiny croon the dragon gave in response. Then Hiccup looked Dagur straight in the eye. "Promise me you'll let them both go alive!" he said. The Berserker gave a nasty grin.

"You know you can trust me," Dagur sneered.

Hiccup sprinted at him and hit him at chest level, ripping his hand away from Astrid's throat and bearing the Berserker to the ground.

"LIAR!" he shouted and punched the astonished Dagur straight in the nose, breaking it again. Dagur bellowed like a wounded dragon and wrestled at the boy but Hiccup allowed his rage at the other man's treatment of him to churn in his stomach and awaken the blind fury he had only ever felt twice before. He punched again at the man's face, over and over and Dagur bellowed, then threw Hiccup off, rolling over to try to pin the younger Viking, his meaty hands closing tight around Hiccup's bruised neck.

"Did you think you could do this again?" Dagur roared in his face, spittle spraying Hiccup's suffused features and blood dripping from his broken nose. The boy's forest green eyes were wide with fear as the grip tightened around his neck. "Isn't there a little piece of you that craves this, Hiccup? The closeness of our bodies..." And he ground himself over the pinned boy. Hiccup fought against the grip but the terror in his eyes was obvious. "Tell me you didn't love the way you writhed under me? The way you felt as I touched you? The way your body responded when I fucked you?" Hiccup shook, desperately trying to shake him off as Dagur arched over him, the bulge in his pants obvious.

"...n...." he exhaled.

"If you surrender to me, Hiccup," Dagur breathed in his ear, "I will let your girlfriend go. I will even give up on your precious dragon-and the other one. Come back to me and promise to stay with me and I will fuck you every single day of your life...but I will treat you like my consort, my lover, not my slave. Just surrender!" He licked Hiccup's neck. "Come back to Master Dagur..."

Tears slid from the corner of Hiccup's eyes. He could hear Astrid moving from where she had been thrown, the scrape of her axe as she grabbed the weapon, hear the huff of Toothless's breath and he remembered that he wasn't alone. He was never alone. His prosthetic leg slammed up, as hard as he could and Dagur have a cross between a scream and a groan as Hiccup connected directly between Dagur's legs. The pressure on his neck eased and he was able to shove Dagur away, rolling sideway and coughing hoarsely, sucking in air desperately. Dagur screamed and writhed, clutching his abused assets.

"I'll make you scream for that, bitch!" he howled through his pain, his eyes locking on the hacking Hiccup. He rolled to his hands and knees abruptly, lunging for the struggling boy.

"...t-toothless..." Hiccup breathed.

But Astrid hit the Berserker full in the head with the flat of her axe and slammed him, stunned, away from the coughing Hiccup. She stood tall between the enemy and her husband, her eyes flashing with anger and the thin red line of the dagger-slice visible against the white skin of her neck. Dagur stirred, his arms reaching for a weapon, but a huge black paw slammed him down, claws prickling against the neck. Dagur grinned insanely. "So you want to fight me, Night Fury?" he laughed. "Then let us have this out, man to dragon..."

"No." Hiccup's voice was barely a rasp but his grip was firm as he dug Astrid's axe hard into Dagur's neck. Toothless slammed a second paw down on the arm questing for a weapon and his mouth began to glow with plasma. Dagur suddenly widened his eyes as two huge shapes appeared behind the two teens. Stoick and Alvin had their weapons raised as they glared at the Berserker Chief. The pinned man lay still.

"We can work this out, can't we...brother?" he pleaded, suddenly seeing himself without a way out. "Hiccup-you know I love and treasure you. I will make love to you for..."

"No," Hiccup repeated. "I am not a slave. I am not a thing. I am not a possession. I am not your toy or your lover or your friend. I am not your brother. I am a Viking of Berk, the son of Stoick the Vast, Rider of Toothless the Night Fury and the Heir to the Throne of Berk and I declare Blood Feud with you. Surrender or I will kill you."

For a long moment, Dagur stared up into the cold forest green eyes and saw no hesitation, no fear, no surrender...and then he pouted.

"I give in," he said sulkily as Alvin lurched forward, grabbing the man's arms and dragging him up. Stoick helped the Outcast chain him tightly. Dagur swivelled his eyes at the Outcast Leader who had the most unpleasant and menacing expression Hiccup had ever seen.

"I'll keep 'im safe," Alvin promised. Stoick gave a curt nod and Hiccup stared at them for a long moment. Dagur was insane, deranged and very dangerous: part of him wanted the man safe on Berk but a larger part of him wanted the psychopath nowhere near him ever again. He knew Alvin would treat Dagur harshly but was it any more than he deserved.

"Hiccup? Brother? No..." The plea was pathetic now.

"He is not to be maimed, tortured or killed," he rasped in a hoarse whisper. Stoick stared at him: he was denying Alvin the chance of inflict pretty much every ordeal Hiccup himself had endured on the man who had cost him so much.

"e'll still be punished, 'Iccup," Alvin warned him and the boy nodded with a sigh.

"Do not maim or kill him," he repeated. Then he turned to the Whispering Death which was still hovering by Toothless. The boy walked forward, a thin smile on his white lips and he dipped his head and held his hand out. The scarred dragon eagerly pressed her muzzle into his hand and he caressed the hideous face once more, sighing. He was aware of the looming presence overhead of the Screaming Death and smiled.

"I guess this is goodbye," he said quietly. "I think your son has been waiting for you for a long time." The Whispering Death gave a little roar which Toothless replied to and then she flapped achingly up, flanked by the younger Whispering Deaths to greet her once-in-a-century son. The Screaming Death gently nuzzled his much smaller mother and they both crooned softly.

Hiccup felt a lump thicken his abused throat at witnessing the reunion he could never share. He blinked once and sighed before the Whispering Deaths flew up into the low grey banks of clouds. Snotlout, Fishlegs and the twins had landed behind Astrid, Hiccup and Toothless as the enormous white dragon turned its baleful scarlet glare on them. Hiccup could hear Fishlegs whimpering and the twins both admiringly whispering "Whoaaaaa!" Snotlout leaned forward and Hiccup could hear him breathe:

"We're all here, cuz. They're all defeated. The plan went perfectly..."

Well, except this bit, Hiccup added silently.

The Screaming Death faced them for a long moment, recognising the dragons that opposed him so many times...but which had helped him complete his quest. Hiccup laid his hand on Toothless's head and laced his other with Astrid's. They were on the ground and vulnerable. The scarlet glare bored into the Riders of Berk.

Then the Screaming Death opened his mouth-and ROARED! The blast almost knocked Hiccup off his feet and he could feel Astrid's grip tighten around his in shock. The boy felt his ears would burst and he would be completely crushed by the blast of sound. He turned his head and closed his eyes...and then, abruptly, it stopped. Toothless gave a little growl. Hiccup opened his eyes and saw something he wasn't expecting in them: gratitude.

"Um...you're welcome..." he rasped as the Screaming Death with a flick of his enormously long spiny tail and soared up into the grey sky after his family. Astrid pressed herself against his side and pulled his hand into both of hers.

"You okay?" she murmured.

"I may never hear again," he groaned, shaking his head then managed a wan smile. Toothless gave a relieved croon and he sighed. "Yeah, bud-I thought we were eaten, too." He squeezed Astrid's hand. "But I feel...better..." he admitted. He tilted his head and ghosted a small kiss on her lips.

"Home?" she suggested. He nodded.

"Let's go home to Berk," he said as he mounted his dragon and took off on his best friend, with his wife and his friends at his side.