You glanced at Hiccup, before racing out of the nest on Astra's back. Her spines split, and with a flick of her tail fins she sped off, weaving through swarms of armoured dragons making their way towards the icy mountain. Your eyes took to the skies, and you quickly spotted a very familiar looking Nadder. On her back was—wait, was that Eret? As in that dragon trapper who shot down Toothless? Astrid jumped from Meatlug's back, onto Stormfly, and for the life of you, you couldn't understand why she wasn't trying to beat him to death with her battle axe. The dragon riders began firing at the weapons and traps below, and you had to weave through several dragons to try and approach them. As you drew nearer, a chunk of ice fell from the nest. You whistled, and Astra readied a plasma blast, but the ice was blasted apart just as you drew close enough. Astra dodged the debris, and you looked up through the clearing smoke to see Hiccup, with his mask on. Your heart skipped a beat as he came around, his parents heading forward.

Toothless dove down, Astra quickly matching his actions, and both shot plasma blasts at traps. They flew up and over each other as they ascended back to start another attack. There was no mistaking their whistles as they zoomed around, perfectly synchronised with each other, making you wonder as to why they hadn't gotten together yet. You shook your head, however, and kept your eyes open for any emerging threats whilst Astra continued to follow Tooth's plan of attack. Astra matched pace with Tooth as they flew upwards, to meet with the other dragon riders. "Welcome aboard, dragon rider," Hiccup greeted, lifting his mask. You flew by his side, giving a nod towards Eret and Astrid. Clearly, they were on good terms. "Thanks," Eret looked very unsure of himself, "I think."

"Where have you been?" Astrid asked, looking surprised to see both of you. "Oh, y'know," he paused, glancing at you with a small smile, "catching up with mom." You both looked upward, to see Valka on Cloudjumper, calling out the Bewilderbeast to help defend the nest. The look on Astrid's face said it all. "That's your mother?!" She asked in disbelief.

"Well, now we know where he gets his dramatic flair," You joked, and Hiccup shot you a goofy grin, before knocking down his mask and taking off. Astra was quick to dive after Toothless, both Night Furies readying themselves to release more injured and caught dragons. As Toothless dove for the recently caught Zippleback, Astra flew over and under him, before spiralling towards a nearby trap and blasting it to bits, releasing its prisoner. The two dragons made their way towards each other expertly winding through the air as they made their rounds, saving all they could. Astra halted mid-air, and you froze. You recognised that shouting. You couldn't quite place it, but you knew it so well. Tooth lapped back towards the female Fury but stopped too. Both you and Hiccup watched in a mix of horror and shock as a Bewilderbeast rose from the waters, knocking ships aside as it rose from the depths. It let out a battle cry and crawled towards its master. "Another one?" Hiccup asked in disbelief, having to lift his mask to make sure he wasn't seeing things. It crushed everything in its path, as it made it's way over to the Alpha. You shook your head and whistled to gain Astra's attention. "Alright girl, let's blow shit up." She gave an agreeing croon. "Yes, sia myvish, let's blow shit up."

You and Hiccup exchanged glances, before nodding and taking off. Hopefully, the Alpha could hold out on its own, because there were hundreds of dragons, and so many needed saving. Once again, the Night Furies flew together, weaving around each other as they let all hell loose on the invaders.

It wasn't long before you halted again, gasping as the Alpha fell on its side. Everything fell silent as he was slain by the contender, and all you could hear was a ringing in your ears. Oh no. Oh no oh no. No no no no. Tears welled in your eyes. Not the Alpha. You didn't know you were sobbing until Astra crooned softly, trying to avoid oncoming dragons. "Are you alright, sia itov?" She asked gently as if any other way could break you. You looked up through blurry eyes, to see Hiccup in dismay as well. The grief in his eyes said it all. You sniffed, and rubbed at your eyes, trying to free your vision. You could mourn later—this was war. The contender let out a victorious battle cry, breaking the silence. He was now the Alpha.

His eyes narrowed to slits, and dragons left right and centre started navigating their way towards him. You recognised this as him taking control of his new followers, and whilst Toothless seemed to be fighting it, Astra was completely okay. That's because the Bewilderbeast was not her Alpha. Astra didn't even need to force the invasive Alpha out of her mind, and neither did you. No matter what, he would never be your Alpha, not while Agon and Bolla were still alive. He would never have you.

The dragons clustered at his feet all bowed, accepting him. You spat in disgust and had to weave amongst both enemies and former allies to make sure neither of you was shot down. Astra's eyes narrowed to slits, teeth popping from her gums as she let out a low, throaty growl as a warning. Thank the gods she's a defender, otherwise, her intimidation techniques would have been inefficient. Hiccup landed by a man, and Astra dove down, ready to protect him with everything she had. Perched on her back, you gasped. That hide, you and Astra would recognise it anywhere. Hades. Drago was the name of the man who attacked your nest? Who slaughtered members of your family? Who killed Astra's mate? Not only were you filled with rage, but the Fury whose back you sat upon was about to explode. Never before had she looked so menacing. Drago looked at the both of you and huffed a laugh. "You two again? What was it, seven years ago? Your friend has served me well, don't you think?" The smug look on his face made your vision blur into red. You thought you had been extremely enraged before, but nothing compared to now. Hiccup looked at the both of you, confused. "Hey, it's okay." He tried to soothe, but Astra snarled, and the look on your face didn't shift. "Okay? Okay?! Hiccup, he killed Hades and so many more of my family. We lost so many that day. We never knew his name, and now that I do, I can avenge the deaths of the fallen." His eyes softened, and he approached Astra carefully. "Hades wouldn't want that." Both dragon and rider's gaze snapped towards the one-legged man, and he knew he had crossed a line. He backed off, and headed back over to Drago, trying to go back to his original plan.

"Stop!" He shouted, but that's all you heard as the world seemed to fade out.

"Astra!" You shouted, hands covering your ears to try and shield them from the shrieking. Despite the muffled sounds around you, the was no mistaking the distinguishable whistle of Astra as she flew overhead, firing at what you presumed to be a combatant on the enemy's side, before gracefully turning and making her way to you. "What is it, sia myvish?" She asked, concern clouding her bright green eyes. "Where's Hades? He was right here, and then—" The caterwaul that interrupted your sentence, made both of your heads snap towards it. There was no mistaking him; his wide, yellow eyes, and the series of white scales scattered over his body. Hades. He lay on his side, and as on instinct, you slipped onto Astra's back, the two of you trying to make your way over to his side. As you neared, there was no denying the ever-growing pool of crimson around him, or the one-armed man standing proudly over his body, pushing a bullhook further into his side. He let out a whimper, the sound mixing with a whine and the unmistakable sound of gurgling as if he were choking on his blood. His head weakly lifted, eyes locking with Astra's. You knew not of what was said, but Astra's battle cry told you all you needed to know. She was avenging him. Did that mean...? You shook your head, refusing to believe the worst, but even as Astra drew closer, you knew it to be true. That amount of blood loss was critical.

The man looked upwards, the disgustingly smug look growing. "Ah, the lover, and—oh, what's this? A little girl, on the back of a beast? How cute." You grit your teeth at his statement, staring coldly at this murderous man. "Leave my family alone!" You shouted, crouching on Astra's back. The dragon herself was glaring daggers at him, her glance occasionally flicking towards her mate. "Your family? These pathetic beasts are no man's family. They've deceived you, little one." You felt only anger. First, he kills your sister's mate, and now, he insults your family? Not on your watch. You let out a high pitch whistle, so high that not even you could hear it. Defenders and Guardians alike drew close, circling this awful man. At first, he laughed, but noticing that he was quickly growing outnumbered, let out a feral cry, pulling the bullhook from Hades' side and swinging it around. Two large dragons, their body's covered in armour, swooped in, one grabbing the man, the other grasping the lifeless body of Hades. You screamed in protest, Astra wailing and trying to fly after him, but the Furies around you blocked your path. It was not worth it. "Sia itov, no." Astra began to sob, landing nearby the nest. You laid on her back, hugging her from behind as the nest slowly crept forward, encircling her to comfort her loss and grieve the fallen. You couldn't hear their murmurs and soft-spoken words, the ringing in your ears was too loud.

"No, let me show you!" Drago's harsh words broke you out of your flashback. He swung his bullhook and cried his feral cry, attracting the Alpha. Your eyes widened as he stomped over, eyes on Hiccup. "No dragon can resist the Alpha's command. So he who controls the Alpha controls them all." He pointed his bullhook at Toothless. Astra bounded to him, trying to snap him out of it as he lost control, becoming a mindless servant of the wicked Alpha. He then pointed the bullhook at Hiccup, and your heart seemed to stop when you realised what was happening, you slipped off Astra, running in front of Toothless trying to coax him out of it, pleading with your life, but he snarled and shoved you aside, eyes on Hiccup. He pleaded and begged, and Astra held you back as you tried to interfere. "No!" You shouted, sobbing at the inevitable. Was this the dreadful thing you were expecting? Gods, no, please don't be it. Through your blurry vision, you could see something hazy coming your way, and fast. "Son!" You could hear the shout from Stoick, but couldn't register what he was doing. You were so overwhelmed, that it didn't click until you year two screams, one being your own, the sound of a plasma blast, and something thumping to the ground.

The smoke cleared to reveal Stoick, motionless on the ground, and Hiccup who was haphazardly thrown to the side. Drago shrugged and walked off. You could barely register the fact that you had gotten up, or that you were already trying to heave ice chunks off his body. You couldn't hear anything, the ringing in your ears was far too loud. You had tunnel vision, you were so focused on Stoick that you didn't realise that Hiccup had shoved you aside, trying to make sure his father was okay. You didn't realise that Valka had dropped to her knees, and you didn't realise Astra was trying to console a confused Toothless. It wasn't until Astra nudged you that the ringing stopped as you could see clearly. Stoick was dead. Drago manipulated Toothless and killed Stoick. First Hades, and so many family members, and now Stoick. Toothless softly crooned, trying to see if Stoick was okay, but Hiccup shoved him away, screaming that it was his fault. Hurt and confused, Toothless backed up. Astra tried to console him, but he shook his head, trying to figure out why his memories were so cloudy.

Your eyes locked on Stoick, and then Hiccup. You rushed over to his side; he needed you like Astra once did. His sobs only continued to grow worse after Drago took Toothless and flew toward Berk, taking all dragons besides Astra. "Toothless!" Hiccup shouted, rushing to his feet to try and get to him but it was too late. Valka pulled him back, trying to reason with him. You came to his side, after a nudge from Astra which made you stumble and grabbed his face. Tears lined his lids, and he looked like he was trying so hard to hold them back. He looked at you with so much uncertainty, so much pain, that you did the only thing your brain could process—you pressed your lips against his. It was nothing special; it was brief, your noses hit, and he didn't reciprocate, but his wide eyes when you pulled away told you everything.

There was still hope.