28,000 BBY

It was the height of the Rakatan Infinite Empire.

By 30,000 BBY a new power emerged in the galaxy. The Rakatans made their way through the galaxy from their homeworld, Lehon, using Force-based hyperdrives to conquer worlds with strong Force signatures. These worlds were then stripped from all their resources, it's Force-sensitive population turned to slaves, and the planets terraformed.

Humans in the midst of Rakatan occupation used sleeper ships to colonize nearby planets and systems.

In secret they helped Force-sensitives escape from the Rakatans.

The journey of a sleeper ship was a perilous one as many had been lost during their colonization missions.

This is the story of one such ship, the SS-Berk.

Unbeknownst to all, the cargo she carries will change everything.

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"WARNING ANOMALY DETECTED" A computerized voice spoke through the empty ship as it made its way through the vast unknown. The ship shuddered as the computer tried to evade.

"EVASIVE MANEUVERS FAILING" The computer announced again. "CONTACT WITH ANOMALY IS IMMINENT. SECURING PAYLOAD."

The sleeper ship shuddered as it got caught in the anomaly, its dimensional drive engines could not help it escape and so the SS-Berk was flung from its intended course into the deep unknown of space.

The ship's computer had powered down all nonessential equipment as it drifted through space, still caught in the clutches of the anomaly. Its main concern was the safety of the precious cargo it was carrying. Time passed by and the SS-Berk was violently hurled away from its captor. The computer which had been silently monitoring the ship's status and that of its occupants came back to life, or at least tried to.

"INITIALIZING SYSTEMS" The computer announced as it did a systems check.

"ERROR ERROR" read the monitors. "DIMENSIONAL DRIVE INOPERATIVE"

The ship's computer tried to fix the systems but concluded that it must be a mechanical failure. It needed an engineer.

In the belly of the ship a lone terminal came to life. The light from one of the sleeper pods blinked before the message "BEGINNING REANIMATION PROCESS" appeared on the terminal.

Soon the pod opened and out fell a person. The person lay on the floor before coughing up a fit. The lanky shape tried to lift his hand but his muscles were stiff and he felt numb. Ever so slowly the person sporting a mop of unruly auburn hair tried to sit up. He eventually managed to lean against the wall opposite of the pod he came out from.

Glancing around slowly the man saw that his pod was the only one which had activated. He lifted a shaky hand up to his face and felt chapped lips. The terminal across from him beeped. He looked up to see a message flash.

"H.HADDOCK,EMERGENCY,BRIDGE"

The terminal kept flashing the same message and he slowly got up while holding onto the railing on the wall. The hardest part was getting used to his muscles again after such a long time in suspended animation.

"Come on Hiccup you can do this." He mumbled to himself as he caught his breath and pressed onwards. He finally made it to the empty bridge and saw the monitors flashing "ERROR ERROR"

He sat down behind one of the consoles and mumbled. "What happened now?" Hiccup opened up the computer log and saw that the dimensional drive has malfunctioned.

"It should be impossible" He mumbled while a little voice in his head corrected "Not impossible, improbable." He looked at the logs again and then his eyes widened when he saw the date.

"We've already been asleep for 743 years." Hiccup mumbled breathlessly. He couldn't believe it. In his mind it was only yesterday that he stepped into the pod on Notron, hoping for a better life outside of Rakata space. Now more than seven centuries had already passed in what seemed like a blink of an eye.

"Come on Hiccup. You were prepared for this." He mumbled to himself. He shuddered when he thought back to the day of the invasion. His planet lay under siege as the Rakata attacked mercilessly. He and his friend escaped into the woods and hid in the elaborate cave systems until the worst of the invasion was over. They then stowed away on a transport ship heading for Notron, while desperately trying to conceal that they were Force-sensitive.

"Let's see. Where are we?" He asked and pulled up the logs from the nav computer.

"LOCATION UNKNOWN"

"LOCATION UNKNOWN"

Was all the logs read causing Hiccup's eyes to widened.

"Scan surrounding space" Hiccup ordered the computer.

"NO RECOGNIZABLE REGIONS FOUND" The computer answered.

"Approximate location" He then ordered.

"APPROXIMATION OF LOCATION, SECTOR 6G THROUGH 10G"

Hiccup blinked staring at the screen openmouthed. They were completely off course and in uncharted space.

"Scan system"

"SYSTEM SCAN COMPLETE. DISPLAYING PLANETARY BODIES"

This system they had landed themselves in seemed to have but one terrestrial planet which was being orbited by two moons. The rest were gas giants and asteroids.

The screen suddenly flashed red. "WARNING INCOMING GRAVITIC RIPPLE. BRACE FOR IMPACT." The computerized voice stated. The ripple hit the ship soon after causing Hiccup to lurch forward.

"Computer do something!" He shouted as the ship rocked.

"ERROR ERROR DIMENSION DRIVE INOPERATIVE" the computerized voice said. The ship rocked a few more times before the ripple passed.

"SENSORS DETECT MULTIPLE INCOMING GRAVITIC RIPPLES. ETA 10 MINUTES" the computer announced and Hiccup cursed. 'Just our luck to land in the middle of this.' he thought before standing up and heading out the door and straight to the engine room to check on the drive.

The corridors felt spooky even when fully lit as he was the only person awake on the ship. His legs were still wobbly but he tried to waste as little time as possible. Gravitic ripples were known to be able to tear ships apart.

Once Hiccup got to the engine room he immediately pried open the access panel. "Oh this is definitely not good" Hiccup said to himself as he saw the corroded wires.

Hiccup had an engineering background and frowned when he saw the state of those wires. They shouldn't have corroded so easily even with the time that had gone by. Only strong magnetic or electrical surges could have cause damage like this.

"SENSORS DETECT MULTIPLE INCOMING GRAVITIC RIPPLES. ETA 5 MINUTES" The computer stated. "ERROR ERROR DIMENSION DRIVE INOPERATIVE. IMPLEMENTING FINAL PLAN. BEGINNING REANIMATION SEQUENCE FOR ALL CREW"

"What?! Why?" Hiccup asked the computer shocked. Surely it would be safer leaving the other passengers in suspended animation to ride out the coming ripples.

"DIVERTING ALL POWER TO SHIELDS. REANIMATION PROCESS HAS BEGUN. DIVERTING ALL POWER TO SHIELDS."

Hiccup ran to the hold as fast as his legs could carry him. By the time he got there he saw most of the passengers already out of their pods. Many were confused, others lay on the floor as their muscles were most likely numb from the long sleep. He then spotted a familiar face and called out "Fishlegs!!"

A portly man with blond hair looked up when his name was called. He was indeed happy to see his friend. Several others were also staring at Hiccup curiously.

"Hiccup did we make it?" Fishlegs asked.

"Not exactly. We're in trouble."

"What do you mean boy?!" A gruff voice asked and Hiccup looked to the man half leaning against a pod.

"We're in unknown space, the engines aren't working and the computer revived you all to supply full power to the shields to stop gravitic ripples from tearing this ship apart." Hiccup summed up the situation as quickly as he could. "Find something to hold on to. The last ripple was extremely unpleasant."

"SENSORS DETECT MULTIPLE INCOMING GRAVITIC RIPPLES. ETA 30 SECONDS" was now stated in a monotone voice. "SHIELDS AT MAXIMUM. ACTIVATING DOCKING THRUSTERS TO CHANGE DIRECTION TO BEARING 83 DEGREES. BRACE FOR IMPACT."

"Why change bearing?" Fishlegs squeaked.

"LOCATION OF TERRESTRIAL WORLD. DIMENSIONAL DRIVE INOPERABLE. COMPUTER'S MISSION: PROTECT PASSENGERS AT ALL COST. COURSE SET FOR TERRESTRIAL PLANET. PREPARE FOR CRASH LANDING"

"Say what?!" several people shouted hysterically as the ripples hit and rocked the ship hard. Hiccup grabbed onto Fishlegs and both held on for their dear lives.

"H....Hic.... Hiccup. Please wake up!!"

Hiccup groaned as he heard his name being called. He cracked open his eyes to see metal debris above him.

"Thank goodness you're awake! The ship crashed and the ceiling collapsed on us."

He turned and saw Fishlegs next to him using the Force to keep the debris from falling onto them. "I could use some help Hiccup. I don't know how much longer I can keep this up."

"Alright Fish, let's push." Hiccup said as he started helping. The metal groaned but moved after a minute or so. Both Hiccup and Fishlegs carefully moved the beams out of the way as they extricated themselves from the rubble.

Once free they saw several more people helping others. "Come on Fish. We need to help them." He suggested. The moving of the rubble was slow going as not all passengers could utilize the Force. They were exhausted by the time everyone was accounted for.

"Did we actually crash onto the planet?" A black haired girl asked.

"Seems like it." Fishlegs responded as he looked around. They had a lot of injured people, several dead from the crash, and they were stranded on a planet they knew nothing about.

"Looks like the computer is out." Hiccup commented as he checked the terminal.

"We'll need to salvage the supplies." a muscled man with dreadlocks spoke.

"We'll also need to find a safe place to sleep tonight." Fishlegs mumbled.

"What do you mean boy? The ship is good enough." The man growled. Several others were also nodding along.

"Not really." Fishlegs spoke up. "The impact caused this part of the ship to collapse, meaning that the shields aren't working. Neither is the computer. We have no life support and untold structural damage."

"Then what do you suggest boy?"

"If...If we could get the computer running again and assess the damage we'll know if the ship is save or not." Fishlegs squeaked.

"I could give her a look. Who else has engineering experience? Or experience with ships in general?" Hiccup asked. He saw only two or three hands up from the other passengers.

"And you do?" Another in the crowd asked.

"I've repaired ships before, although they were a lot smaller." Hiccup told them. "The mechanics are similar enough. We can also know more about where we crashed from the nav computer if I can restore it. She made a scan of the system before waking you all up."

"Well then see what you can do about that." A young woman said. "Most of us were farmers or merchants. We have little to no technical expertise."

"Alright. Fishlegs, I can use some help." Hiccup asked his friend who nodded.

"Of course Hiccup." he agreed and the two split off from the group who were heading towards the hold to secure the supplies. Fishlegs looked to his friend who was unusually quiet as they walked. "What's wrong Hiccup?"

"Not here Fish." His friend mumbled to him. "I'll show you."

Fishlegs frowned at Hiccup's behavior but followed nevertheless. They had to find another way to the engine room as the corridor they took had collapsed further down. It took a while longer to reach the room but once inside Hiccup immediately went to the access panel he had opened before and pointed to the wires.

"Take a look at this Fish."

Fishlegs' eyes widened upon seeing the state of the wires. "But how?! They're completely corroded."

"Only a strong electrical surge could have corroded these types of wires." Hiccup told his friend who looked at him strangely.

"What are you getting at Hiccup?"

"If it was electrical or magnetic then the computer would have activated her failsafe and released us from hibernation much sooner as electrical surges could overload the system and cause the hibernation pods to crash."

"So the computer didn't see any danger in the surge." Fishlegs pondered.

"No Fish, any powerful surge from an outside source would have triggered the failsafe. The only way the computer wouldn't have noticed this is if it was done with a chemical. I'm thinking somebody sabotaged these."

"S....Sabotage!" Fishlegs nearly shouted. "Why?!"

"Think about it Fish. A lot of sleeper ships go missing. People just chalk that up to the dangers of space, but what if someone was deliberately sabotaging the ships?"

"Isn't that a bit far reaching Hiccup?"

"Think about it Fish. What if the Rakatans suspected that Force-sensitives were being smuggled to other worlds using these ships? You get someone to sabotage these wires and the engines stop working. The ship will just be drifting through space waiting for the Rakatans to pick up." Hiccup theorized. "The fact that it's only the wires from the engine that are damaged is suspicious enough. If there was a surge it would have corroded everything from life support to shielding."

"Hiccup..... You don't think that the saboteur is on board do you?" Fishlegs asked nervously. "We're just 15 year olds. We should tell the others. Maybe they can find out."

"No Fish. It would only start a bloodbath." Hiccup countered. "We don't even know if anyone here is a saboteur, or if he or she did board the ship, then they are either among the dead or stranded like the rest of us. According to the nav computer we somehow landed in unknown space. That is probably a blessing."

"How is that a blessing?"

"Because if we don't know where we are then neither do the Rakatans." Hiccup stated. "I certainly don't fancy being turned into a slave or eaten."

"So what do we do now?" Fishlegs asked as Hiccup took out a set of tools from a compartment.

"Now we salvage the nav computer database and whatever we can. There is no way we will be getting the power back on." Hiccup pointed to the metal beam which smashed part of the power conduit.

When Hiccup and Fishlegs were finally done they carried the salvaged pieces in a metal crate they found. They walked back to the larger group and could hear shouting in the distance. Once they got closer they could see their breath in front of them and they spotted a lot of people shivering while some men were shouting at them.

"Will you stop it!" The red haired man yelled. "Can't you see we are all freezing! We are going as fast as we can! Why don't you help instead of barking out orders?!"

"Why is it so cold?" Hiccup asked as goosebumps started forming along his arms.

"A part of the ship is torn open. The cold is coming inside without proper shielding. If this continues than it will be just as freezing inside as out." The black haired girl told them. "I'm Heather by the way and that is my brother Dagur." She introduced and pointed to the red head who was screaming at some of the men.

"I'm Fishlegs, that's Hiccup." Fishlegs spoke up as his teeth chattered.

"So by the lack of shields I'm guessing that we have no power?" Heather asked.

"No a beam smashed into the power conduit. We've managed to salvage the nav computer database. If we found a powersource we might be able to get it working." Hiccup explained.

Those who stood around Heather had turned their attention from the shouting match to listen to their conversation. Worried whispers spread through the group as they now didn't have a safe place to stay.

"Brother stop fighting!" Heather reprimanded. "We have a lot more problems now!"

Dagur stopped mid rant and turned to his sister. "But...."

"No buts!" Heather stated. "We need a safe place, so do what you normally do!"

"What do you mean Heather?" Fishlegs asked as Dagur grumbled but then sat down cross legged on the floor.

"My brother and I are Force-sensitive." She explained. "I'm just learning how to use it now and can lift simple things but Dagur can somehow use the Force to locate what we need."

"You can do that?" Hiccup asked amazed. The planet Hiccup and Fishlegs had lived on had no place were those who could sense the Force could train. It took Fishlegs and him a while to even figure out how to use it to lift objects.

"Yes, there were some Force wielding monks on our planet and my brother picked it up from them." Heather told them.

"It is a rare skill." Fishlegs mentioned. "Hiccup and I practiced moving objects with the Force but nothing like this."

"I got it!!" Dagur suddenly sprang up with glee. "There is a system of caves not far from here. Grab what you can carry and follow me!"

The passengers, not having any other options, wore the extra layers of clothes available before grabbing their supplies and following in a line behind Dagur. The cold was biting and the wind was harsh as many shivered even with the extra layers. From the outside they could see that the ship was more badly damaged than they had thought. An entire left section was missing leaving a much larger opening than the one they had previously come across.

No one stopped walking as Dagur finally pointed to some icy mountains. They immediately set in that direction and came upon a cave opening. The people piled inside and they used the crates to blockade the entrance from the cold winds.

The cave looked dark and ominous but as Hiccup walked further inside he had a feeling that something amazing lay ahead.

Those who had medical experience began treating the injuries of their group. Dagur opened one of the supply crates and tossed an electric torch at Hiccup who clumsily caught it. "Let's go exploring for a bit." he suggested to Hiccup, Fishlegs and Heather. "There isn't anything better to do."

"Eh.... sure" Hiccup mumbled as he and Fishlegs along with Heather began walking deeper into the cave.

"Where do you think all of you are going?!" A gruff voice asked.

"Exploring. What else?!" Dagur answered snidely. "Might as well see if there's something interesting in here."

"You four aren't going anywhere!"

"Who made you boss?!!" Dagur countered. "You didn't even help with finding supplies! All you did was order us around!"

"It's best if we stick together."

"Listen here Mr. Bossypants...." Dagur now said.

"My name is Drago not BOSSYPANTS!" Was shouted back at Dagur who rolled his eyes.

"As I was saying, we're going exploring. We might as well do something productive. The injuries are being treated and the rest are just sitting there doing nothing." Dagur countered. "So either you shut up and go back to doing nothing or grab a torch and come with us."

The icy cavern walls were sparkling as the group walked through them. Drago had decided to come with them and was walking behind them when they heard Heather say "Can you hear someone singing?"

"No one is singing girl." Drago grumbled.

"No wait just listen." Heather told them as she stopped. "I know what I heard." The group had stopped and looked around curiously. They seemed to be alone in this part of the cave. Hiccup looked up and saw the ceiling twinkling.

"I don't hear anything sis." Dagur said.

"Wait she may be onto something here." Hiccup mumbled as he turned to the group. "Heather were you using the Force by any chance?"

"I don't know. Probably. I'm not very good at controlling it." Heather explained.

"Hiccup why are you asking?" Fishlegs now wondered.

"Because I can now hear something like a low hum." He told them. "I think it's these crystals."

"Now I know you lot are crazy. Singing crystals." Drago huffed as they kept walking. "I hear nothing."

"Are you even Force-sensitive?" Dagur asked skeptically.

"Of course I am boy!" Drago responded. "I was the best Force fighter on my planet. That is until those bastards came and started killing everybody."

"I think we can safely say that we all hate the Rakatan." Fishlegs mumbled.

"They're a scourge that should be wiped from existence." Drago muttered angrily.

The group soon came to a point where the cavern split in two. "So which way now?" Fishlegs asked. "Should we turn back?"

"That way" Both Hiccup and Heather said at the exact same time but they were pointing in different directions.

"I feel I should go this way." Heather mumbled, pointing to the right cavern.

"This way is the one I need to take." Hiccup stated while pointing to the left cavern.

"Oh hell no! We are not splitting up!" Drago ordered but both Hiccup and Heather had begun walking in different directions as if they didn't hear him.

"What in bloody blue blazes is going on with these two?" Drago asked annoyed.

"It...It looks like they're in some sort of trance." Fishlegs commented as he went after Hiccup. "I'm going to make sure he's alright!" Fishlegs shouted as he jogged into the left cavern after his friend.

"I'm going after my sister." Dagur stated as he ran to the other cavern.

"Right..... Just leave me here.... alone" Drago growled not pleased at all by what had just happened. "Wait for me!!" He shouted as he went after the brother and sister.

Hiccup with torch in hand was walking steadily through the cavern. Fishlegs came running and then walked beside him. "Hiccup what is going on?"

"I just feel that I need to go this way Fish." His friend told him. "I don't know how to describe it. It just feels right."

They kept on walking as Fishlegs glanced at Hiccup worriedly. His friend just walked on as if nothing weird was happening and soon they came to a large grotto.

In the middle of the grotto was a spike sticking out. "Do you see that light Fish?"

"What light? It's dark in here." Fishlegs mumbled as Hiccup handed him the torch and confidently moved forward.

"Hiccup what are you doing?!"

"I have to do this part myself Fish." Hiccup said confidently. No sooner that he said that and taken a step when the ice he was walking on cracked. The cracks spread and the surrounding floor fell away leaving only a very narrow path to the spike.

"Oh Thor Oh Thor Oh Thor!" Fishlegs squeaked.

Hiccup gulped as he looked down into the inky blackness below him and then back to the light which was shining on the spike.

"Hiccup come back please?!" Fishlegs begged as he knew his friend was scared of heights. "Whatever that is couldn't possibly be worth it!"

Hiccup was shaking as he stood on the narrow icy bridge and looked to his friend before looking to the light shining not so far away. "Fishlegs, I have a gut feeling that it is very much worth it." Hiccup told him as he nervously started inching towards the spike.

Meanwhile Heather, Dagur and Drago had landed themselves in a similar situation. They came to a grotto where Heather pointed to a wall of the cave where she saw a light shine.

"Is she right in the head?" Drago asked as he looked only to see no light.

"Well I've been known to be a bit deranged so..... no idea." Dagur shrugged.

Heather then took a few steps forward and suddenly the cavern was lit with fire. "AAH!" She screamed shocked and tried to take a step back only to find the fire surrounding her.

"Heather!!" Dagur shouted surprised as he tried to get to his sister.

"Stay back!" Heather quickly said. "Stay back." She was breathing hard and tried to keep the flashbacks from being trapped in a burning house from resurfacing.

"Sis are you alright?!" Dagur asked as the fires reached higher now. Sweat was dripping down Heather's face from the heat. "Can you get out of there?!"

"I have to get that light first." she shouted back and looked to the wall which was protected by a wall of fire.

"Forget the light!!" Both Dagur and Drago shouted through the inferno.

"No I have to get it!!" Heather persisted. She did the only thing she could think of. She outstretched her hand and desperately willed the light to come to her.

Heather gasped as she concentrated when suddenly something flew through the wall of flames and smacked into her palm. The inferno surrounding her immediately died down as if it never existed, leaving the three alone in the icy cavern.

Heather looked at what had smacked into her palm. It was a small transparent crystal but deep inside she knew that it was special.

The group had turned back afterwards and they joined up with Hiccup and Fishlegs at the junction before heading back to the cave entrance where the rest of the people had set up camp.

"Hiccup you nearly gave me a heartattack!!" Fishlegs finally got out when he saw both Hiccup and Heather looking curiously at the transparent crystals they found. "I think I have a few more grey hairs now."

"It seemed like a good idea at the time." Hiccup responded sheepishly.

"Right........" His friend muttered, clearly not convinced, as some people looked curiously at the group.

"Am I missing something?" Dagur asked as he handed Heather a protein bar and some water.

"Just Hiccup doing something stupid again." Fishlegs muttered still looking disapprovingly at his friend.

"It wasn't so bad." Hiccup replied causing Fishlegs to smack him on the back of his head.

"What exactly happened?" Heather now asked as she looked at the two curiously.

"Hiccup here was stuck on a narrow ice bridge which began breaking as he walked and he thought it was a good idea to use the Force to levitate himself the rest of the way."

"It worked didn't it." Hiccup countered.

"Just barely." Fishlegs retorted. "Please Hiccup just don't do something like that again. I can't lose my friend too."

"I'm sorry Fishlegs." Hiccup apologized. "I didn't think that you would worry so much."

"Alright Hiccup, but I do have a question. How did you even do it? I didn't think it was possible to levitate yourself."

"I don't actually know. I've been afraid of heights since I nearly fell from a cliff but it was just the feeling that I had to get to that crystal that made me think of trying levitation like that." Hiccup mumbled as he rotated the clear crystal in his hands. "I don't know how to actually describe it."

"The weird thing was that once Hiccup had the crystal, the cave went back to normal. It was like the ice never broke." Fishlegs explained.

"Like an illusion." Heather supplied as she looked at her own crystal. "We saw fire and when I had the crystal it disappeared and the ice wasn't even melted."

"I don't know what happened but I say get rid of those crystals." The gruff voice from Drago muttered as he sat near the group.

"What! No!" Both heather and Hiccup shouted.

"I think these things have something to do with the Force." Hiccup mumbled before closing his eyes and concentrating on the crystal in his palm.

"Hiccup what are you doing?" Dagur asked. "How can a crystal have anything to do with the Force?"

It was Heather who then turned to her brother. "Didn't those monks teach you anything?! The Force lives in everything."

"I'm going to try it also." She said with conviction before crossing her legs in a meditative pose. "I can still hear it humming sometimes."

"Sure, yeah, whatever sis." Dagur mumbled absentmindedly as he leaned against the cave wall trying to get some rest. Fishlegs lay curled up not so far away as he watched his friends who were still concentrating on their crystals. He tried to close his eyes but it was then that he heard a low hum. It sounded sweet and he felt that it was calling him.

"You hear that?" Fishlegs asked as Dagur opened an eye.

"Hear what?"

"It sounds sweet and warm." Fishlegs mumbled as he stood up and looked around.

"Has the cold gotten to you?" Dagur asked as he watched the boy who had just started walking into the caverns.

"Hey! Where are you going?!" Dagur asked and then looked at his sister and Hiccup. It looked like for some reason they couldn't hear him.

"Great just great." Dagur grumbled and set out after Fishlegs after grabbing a torch. "Why now of all times?!"

Meanwhile both Heather and Hiccup were concentrating hard on the crystals that they slipped into some type of trance.

Heather opened her eyes and saw that she was surrounded by a ring of fire. Slowly a white haired woman, wearing a white gown with silver armor covering it and light green reptilian eyes, materialized in front of her.

"Hello" The woman smiled as she greeted Heather. "I've been waiting for a long time for someone to hear me."

Heather stared openmouthed at the woman who was still smiling at her. "My name is Windshear, what is yours?"

When Hiccup opened his eyes he saw that he was falling through the sky. "What is happening?!" He shouted panicked when a black blur streaked across the sky. He was grabbed in midair by the blur before they began flying at high speed through the sky. Hiccup chanced to peek through his fingers which were covering his eyes and he gasped at the beautiful sight around him.

"I see you like it." A voice said from above and Hiccup looked up to see the one holding him was a man with black bat-like wings on his back and whose bare arms were dotted with what seemed to be black scales. If Hiccup had to guess he would have thought 'dragon' by how those black scales gleamed in the sunlight.

"Shall we have a bit of fun?" The man asked looking down as Hiccup saw the smirk he was sporting and the amusement in his acid green eyes.

"WAIT? WHAT?!" Hiccup shouted as they went into a series of loops and flips.

"OH MY GOD!! STOP!!" Hiccup shouted causing the man to let out a laugh before dipping them both in a body of water and then dashing back into the sky.

"THANKS FOR NOTHING YOU USELESS REPTILE!!" Hiccup, now wet, shouted as he hung on for dear life.

Meanwhile back in the caverns Dagur was glaring at Fishlegs who looked sheepish.

"I know this looks bad...." Fishlegs mumbled as he looked up at the hole they had fallen through. It was quite a way back up and Dagur looked ready to kill after Fishlegs landed on his back.

"You think?!" Dagur growled menacingly as he rubbed the sore spot.

"I don't think we can climb up." Fishlegs mumbled as he looked at the steep walls and then he quickly turned his head towards the dark passageway. "Do you hear that?"

"Not you too!!" Dagur grumbled.

"We need to go that way." Fishlegs told him and began walking down the tunnel. Dagur was not happy but he followed Fishlegs nevertheless.

They soon came upon a dead end. The ice wall before them stood tall. "So where to now?" Dagur asked annoyed "Are you going to lead us down to another dead end?!"

"It's supposed to be behind this wall." Fishlegs squeaked. "You don't need to get so scary!"

Suddenly they heard a rumbling sound. Dagur turned and shouted panicked as a rush of water invaded the corridor they were in. The water came to their knees and started rising rapidly.

"AAHH What do we do?!!! What do we do!!" Dagur shouted. "We're going to die here!!"

The water was already to their waists and Fishlegs looked at the ice wall. "We'll need to break it." He told Dagur.

"Are you crazy?! There is no way we can do that. I can barely levitate anything and you want to break a thick wall!!"

"I can do it." Fishlegs told him with more conviction in his voice than even he realized. "I can break that wall."

"How?" Dagur gasped as the water now reached their shoulders.

"Just trust me." Fishlegs mumbled before outstretching his hands and focussing on the wall.

"That's your great idea?!" Dagur growled. "You really think that would help?!"

"Dagur SHUT UP!" Fishlegs now shouted as he tried to keep his head out of the water. "I'M TRYING TO CONCENTRATE!"

Fishlegs furrowed his brow as he tried to use the Force to break the wall. The water had already risen high enough that they were having trouble breathing. Dagur clutched his face as he inhaled water. Suddenly the wall shattered and the water was swept away through the cavern on the other side.

The force of the water had dragged Fishlegs and Dagur with it and they ended up on the floor of the cavern. Fishlegs looked at Dagur and found him unconscious.

"Dagur!" He freaked out and quickly made his way over. Fishlegs shook him but got no response. "There is only one choice." Fishlegs mumbled to himself as he cringed. "Mouth to mouth"

Fishlegs was about to lower his head when Dagur's eyes snapped open. He let out a girlish shriek which echoed through the cavern and Fishlegs stumbled back as he too screamed.

"What did you think you were doing?!" Dagur coughed as he sat up slightly.

"I....I.....I" Fishlegs sputtered.

"How dare you try to steal my first kiss!!" Dagur accused while looking askance.

"W...WH....WHAT?" Fishlegs sputtered. "I was going to give you CPR!!"

"Likely story!!"

"Oh for the love of..." Fishlegs trailed off, he then looked at the ground. He stood up and walked over to where he saw the light shining and picked it up revealing a small transparent crystal.

"Alright one crystal is lucky, two is weird, and now three.... That's down right suspicious." Dagur mumbled as he eyed the crystal with distrust.

"Hiccup and Heather might have been onto something." Fishlegs murmured as they started walking back to camp. Their clothes were surprisingly dry which only confirmed Fishlegs' suspicion that these were illusions created by someone.

"We might not be as alone in these caves as we thought." He told Dagur who let out a sigh as they trudged onwards.

When they finally made their way back to the camp they saw that everyone was asleep save for Hiccup and Heather who looked up when they came back.

"Where were you guys?" Hiccup asked. "Do we have something to show you all."

"Eh... Hiccup, Heather" Fishlegs said as he held up his own crystal. "I have absolutely no idea what is going on anymore."

"Don't worry Fish. I think we can explain it tomorrow. You guys looked like you've just gone through an asteroid field." Hiccup commented.

"Honestly that would have been preferable." Dagur grumbled as he sat back down and yawned. "We might as well discuss this tomorrow when I'm not feeling murderous."

"Right....." Fishlegs trailed off as he sat down near his friends and the heat source. Soon everyone settled down and slept near each other to preserve heat.

Morning came and the group awoke to see several people already giving out some rations. They didn't know what the planet could offer yet so they were limiting the amount of food and drink per day. Heather, Fishlegs, Hiccup and Dagur each took the offered food as they sat near each other.

"So what did you want to show us?" Fishlegs asked curiously as he finished the protein bar.

"Well now that you have a crystal you can see for yourself." Heather smiled. "Just concentrate the Force on it like we did."

"Uh.... sure." Fishlegs said. "But what would that accomplish?"

"You'll see." Heather smiled. "Don't worry. I'll fill my brother in while you're meditating."

Fishlegs took the crystal out of his pocket before closing his eyes and concentrating on it. Drago who walked by watched the group curiously.

"Now what are you lot up too?" He asked as he eyed the teens.

"Remember those crystals?" Hiccup asked. "Well are you in for a surprise."

Fishlegs stared quietly at the group for a few seconds after he was done meditating. He blinked and saw both Dagur and Drago giving Heather and Hiccup gobsmacked looks. They hadn't noticed that he was awake again.

"Are you actually serious?" Drago grumbled. "What you are suggesting is insane."

"But it is possible. The Universe has a lot of mysteries." Fishlegs said causing all eyes to turn to him. "I just had the weirdest yet enlightening conversation." He told them as he held up his crystal which wasn't transparent anymore but now sported an orange luster.

"So did I." Heather said as she held up her crystal which had turned silver.

"Well at least both of you got sane crystals. I think mine was trying to kill me." Hiccup mumbled as he showed them his now violet crystal.

"It couldn't have been so bad." Heather stated as Hiccup had refused to tell her what had happened with his crystal.

"Yes yes of course. I was just holding on to dear life as we zoomed through narrow valleys and above jagged cliffs for fun." Hiccup stated dryly causing the others to furrow their brows in astonishment.

"My head hurts." Dagur complained as he looked at the three and then pointed at the now colored crystals. "Let me get this straight. You're telling us that those things are alive, sentient, and they can communicate between each other and yourselves."

"It would seem that way." Hiccup told Dagur. "Although I don't think Toothless likes being called a thing. He says that they are what the Universe calls Force-beings and these caverns are the remains of their civilization."

"Toothless?!" Drago now asked as he let out a bark of laughter. "That crystal is called Toothless? If they're so sentient then how come they haven't talked to any of the other Force-sensitive people here?" By now the group had gathered an audience who were whispering while pointing to the crystals. Some looked at them fearfully while others just looked at the scene puzzled.

"Windshear! I can't say that!" Heather suddenly admonished as she looked at her crystal.

"What did that thing say?" Drago now asked as he eyed the crystal while Heather looked hesitant. "Just tell me girl."

"Windshear said that they didn't want to talk with you because they didn't like the feel of the Force around you and also because she finds you rude."

"Why I oughta!!!" Drago grumbled angrily.

"You know acting like that isn't going to get us off of this planet." Hiccup told them causing everyone's attention to turn to him.

"You got a way off of this rock?" A woman in her late twenties asked.

"Well they do." Hiccup told the group. "But they need our help as well."

"I don't think we have much of a choice here." Fishlegs mumbled. "We have what they need, they have what we need and we'll run out of supplies eventually."

"How do we even know if we can trust them?" Dagur asked. "Except for being Force-beings, we know next to nothing about them." This caused many to nod.

"Well Toothless has just suggested we go talk with their leaders." Hiccup told them. "They are willing to share their history with us."

"And how will we understand them?" Drago asked.

"Just because they don't like talking to particular Force-sensitives doesn't mean that they can't or won't. Meatlug, my crystal, said that it would also be explained why." Fishlegs told them. "They are willing to guide us to their leaders."

"Alright fine" Drago muttered. "But everyone goes. That way no one can be accused of withholding information."

"Fine by us." Heather stated as she stood up. "We'll set out once everyone has finished eating."

The people made their way through the caverns later on with Heather, Hiccup and Fishlegs leading the way. They descended much further into the cave system and after a few hours of traveling they saw a sight that made many gasp.

The cave corridors did not seem natural anymore, they looked much more rectangular in the lower sections and had pillars supporting the ceiling. Crystals grew along the walls and gave off a soft glow, lighting the way.

"I wonder how far these stretch?" Fishlegs asked as he looked down the corridor and then lifted a brow while looking at his crystal. "You're actually serious aren't you?"

"What did it tell you?" Dagur asked as he walked behind the trio.

"It's not an it Dagur. It's a she...... I think." Fishlegs corrected. "And Meatlug says that the cave systems extend all around the planet."

"That's....."

"Amazing?" Heather finished the sentence for her brother.

Soon they came upon a giant bright cavern which held three large white crystals. The people all stared in awe at the sight of the crystals and the light they were giving off.

"Greetings" Suddenly came into the minds of all. Several people exclaimed as others looked around wildly for the speaker. "Do not fear. We mean no harm."

"Don't tell me that that was the crystals." Drago muttered as he crossed his arms.

"We are indeed what you call crystals now, but we are known by another name throughout this galaxy." The voice spoke up. "We are what you would call Celestials."

"Celestials......." Hiccup said slowly. He had heard stories about the all-powerful Celestials. "I thought you were but myths." He mumbled while staring at the large crystals.

"Myths..... I would guess that so much time has passed that we are mostly forgotten." The crystal to the left stated.

"Enough of this." Drago said as he stepped forward. "We were promised answers."

"Yes, that you were." The crystal to the right said in a female voice. "We shall tell you of our history."

The people stepped back when a burst of light appeared in the middle of the cavern. The light formed a cluster of stars.

"This is your galaxy." The crystal in the middle stated in a deep voice. "We the Celestials, then known as the Draconians, left our world behind and traveled to this galaxy. This all occurred when sentient life was still in its infancy here. We set about shaping this galaxy in our image. It took millions of years and nearly 70000 years ago our race dominated the galaxy."

"Then how come we have only heard whispers of you?" Fishlegs asked. "There was a scholar who came to our planet and told us his theory about your race. But those who listened merely chalked it up to fairytales."

"Yes, we were the dominant race in the galaxy at that time but we also became overconfident. There had arisen some problems."

"What type of problems?" Someone asked.

"Sentient species evolved and became spacefaring. We came into contact with these beings and established relationships. However some decided to betray us. We were being attacked and our resources were being spread thin because of this planet's condition."

"I'm not sure I follow." Heather spoke up.

"This planet was not covered in ice when we colonized it. It was a luscious tropical paradise."

"So what happened?" Hiccup asked as his curiosity peaked.

"This system's sun." The crystal to the left answered. "We had spread to the stars but this planet was our new home where we had built up our civilization. Millions of years past and this planet's sun began to die. It turned into the miniscule source of light you see now. The warmth this planet received diminished and it was plunged in eternal winter."

"The other species were attacking us, coveting the territory we controlled, they stole technology we had gifted several races and used it to slaughter us by the millions. They were expanding into the stars and we had to decide between retaining control of this galaxy and letting our homeworld die or saving our people and giving up the galaxy to the other races." The female voice spoke up. "We had been through so much on our previous home planet that we did not wish to relinquish this world. As a collective we decided to join with the Force and we became these crystals you now see."

"Alright, I think we get your history." Fishlegs spoke up. "But you still haven't explained why Hiccup, Heather and I can understand you guys and why you won't talk to the other Force-sensitives."

"First you will need to understand the Force." The crystal to the left spoke. "It has several aspects, namely, the light side, the dark side, the physical Force, the Unifying Force, the Cosmic Force, and the Living Force. It is the light and dark side of the Force that matter most here. We, as Celestials, have achieved a balance between the light and dark side. The Force lives in all, but balance does not."

"The crystals we became are Force attuned. The more balanced a lifeform is between the light and dark sides, the easier communication will be. We were fortunate to find three such individuals among your group. It requires great amounts of energy to communicate with those not balanced. The small crystals you hold cannot expend such energy. Those who are more attuned to the light side could hear the crystals hum if they focused enough. Communication with those who lean towards the dark side is not possible at all. The negative emotions that drive that side injure our crystal bodies."

"So we heard that you have a way off of this planet." Dagur now asked. "I still don't see how you as crystals could have that."

"We do have a way for you all to leave this planet." The middle crystal now chimed in. "Before we took these forms we were humanoids just like you. Our cities extended well within this planet. There is still a usable starship on this planet and we can guide you to it."

This caused many excited murmurs from the people. They quieted down once the crystals spoke again.

"Your starship which crashed, while primitive, has more recent data on planetary positions than what we have on our ship. If you could salvage and install these into our systems it would make navigation much more accurate."

"Wait a minute." Drago interjected now. "We are talking about a ship which is millennia old. How do we know that it even works?"

"Our technology which we used to shape this galaxy is still scattered in space. We have no doubt that those are still functioning. This ship that we have is not even nearly as old as those." The female crystal huffed.

"It really shouldn't be a problem." Hiccup stated. "Fishlegs and I salvaged the nav computer. It's back at the camp."

"How would we even pilot a strange alien ship?" Fishlegs now asked. "We don't know their language."

"The ship itself has a Force-based control system. We are more than willing to teach all those sensitive the means to pilot the ship as well as the secrets the Force holds. If more are able to find balance than we can communicate much more freely with you."

"I still find it suspicious." Drago muttered. "You're willing to give us your ship and teach us how to use the Force. What is the catch? You have yet to state what you want from us."

Everyone looked at the crystals now. "We simply have one wish." The middle crystal stated. "That once you leave, you take some of us with you."

"That's it?" Heather asked cocking her head to the side. "You want us to take some of you Celestials with us?"

"Yes, it has been millennia since our people have been amongst the stars. Living in harmony with the Force like we do now is a great thing, but you have to admit, spending millennia as a crystal on a cave wall can get a tad bit........ boring." The middle crystal mumbled as the group heard the other two huff.

The people had easily agreed, eager to get off of this planet. They were being guided down further because many wanted to see the ship that the Celestials had. Soon they came to a giant cavern which was bathed in darkness.

"This is it Toothless?" Hiccup asked not seeing much in front of him except an empty abyss.

"Yes it is." Toothless said and Hiccup had the distinct feeling that the crystal was being smug.

"I see no ship." Drago stated. "I knew we shouldn't have tru-"

He stopped mid-rant as the crystals on the walls lit up one by one revealing a giant silvery white egg shaped object. The cavern seemed to be much bigger than expected as the ship was at least more than twice the size of the one they crashed in. Everyone looked up, yet they could not see the top of the ship. The cavern it seemed was hollow as the ship extended downwards.

"See the ship now?" Hiccup asked.

"Don't be a smartass." Drago grumbled.

"How can something so big exist inside a cave?" Fishlegs mumbled to himself.

"This wasn't always a cave you know." Meatlug chipped in. "This was once the hanger for experimental ship research. This one even featured an all new type of drive rumored to be able to cross galaxies within days instead of years."

"Did they finish it?" Fishlegs asked as he still looked in awe at the ship.

"No, the wars got worse and all research was abandoned as resources were needed for other purposes." Meatlug answered. "Windshear was one of the researchers who was transferred to the front lines for her medical knowledge."

"So Windshear was a researcher. What were you and Toothless?" Fishlegs asked as Hiccup and Heather listened in while they all made their way back to the camp.

"Oh I was one of the many record keepers." Meatlug told them. "It was a tedious job as there were literally millennia of records to sort. Not at all like the thrill seeking occupation Toothless held. He gave quite a few people heart attacks, or so I heard."

"Sounds about right." Hiccup mumbled as Toothless laughed.

"One of the best, if not craziest, pilots in our military." Meatlug told them.

"I can believe the crazy part." Hiccup mumbled.

"Hey!! You like me!!" Toothless butted in. "Just admit it!!"

Toothless kept bugging Hiccup for most of the journey back much to the amusement of Heather and Fishlegs and confusion of the rest. Hiccup even threatened to put Toothless back where he found him which caused Toothless to huff 'meanie' under his breath.

It was unanimously decided to head back to the ship the next morning to see if the nav computer could be installed. The Council, as the giant crystals called themselves, had agreed to start teaching those who were Force-sensitive the means to control it and become more balanced.

Hiccup hummed to himself the next day as he was busy trying to figure out the means to interface the nav computer with that of the Celestial ship. He was humming to himself and didn't see Dagur approach.

"I was wondering." Dagur said absentmindedly causing Hiccup to jump in shock.

"Will you not do that!!"

"Oh you'll live." Dagur said. "As I was saying, you think my sister and your friend are getting close?" He asked.

"That is what you wanted to know??"

"Well yes." Dagur grumbled. "I have to look out for my sis. If Fishlegs hurt her feeling I'll be stepping in."

"You do know this is Fishlegs we are talking about right." Hiccup mumbled. "He's the sweetest guy I know."

"I'm still keeping an eye on them." Dagur muttered. "How's it going with that computer?"

"The interface should be easy, I just have to figure out what all these nodes are for." Hiccup explained as he pointed to the panel. "There also seems to be a power problem but one of the giant crystals said that they would supply it."

"So what? We have a crystal for a battery?" Dagur asked. "I really don't understand all this techno mumbo jumbo. Are you coming to the Force training those crystals are giving?"

"Probably" Hiccup said. "I want to finish studying this but Toothless keeps nagging me because he wants to fly."

"How can a crystal nag?"

"Oh you'd be surprised." Hiccup murmured while trying another connection.

Hiccup spent the almost the rest of the day working on interfacing the nav computer that he nearly missed practice as well as food if not for the urging of Toothless.

Hiccup had just finished munching on a protein bar when he walked into the cavern housing The Council. Toothless was extremely giddy at this time as Hiccup sat cross legged next to Heather and Fishlegs waiting for the crystals to teach them. Those who were not Force-sensitive decided to help move the camp closer to the starship.

This was how the weeks progressed. Waking up, working on the ship, food, meditating, practicing the force, another food break followed by sleep.

They were strenuous days as The Council tried to give them a crash course in using the Force and what they needed to do to pilot the ship. Two other people had managed to make a connection with the crystals during their weeks of training but the food supply was beginning to run out and people were losing hope.

Hiccup had finally managed to install the nav computer and the bridge finally projected a holographic image of the planet they were on. The people cheered and clapped Hiccup on the back as some of their hope was restored.

The apparently giant female crystal was taken from The Council's room and placed on the ship as a powersource. Several people were also gathering up the smaller crystals, who glowed brightly which indicated that they wished to go on the journey into space.

The lessons themselves were proving to bear fruit as Hiccup and several others saw quite an improvement in their abilities. Heather under the guidance of Windshear was beginning to master various Force-healing techniques while Hiccup concentrated mostly on levitation and to his surprise lightning. It was quite a shock, pun not intended, when Hiccup first conjured up a spark from his hands. So far he had tried to develop it more but with very little success.

Toothless seemed to give Hiccup a knowing look and told him not to force it.

Things however turned sour one day when Hiccup was done practicing. One of the women who had recently bonded with a crystal, Camicazi, he thought her name was, ran past him and straight up to the remaining two giant crystals in the room. He could sense the anger emanating from her in waves and he had no doubt that the others who had just finished practice could to. Fishlegs came running after her and was out of breath when he reached the room.

Everyone looked at her curiously when she marched up to the two remaining giant crystals and shouted "IT WAS ALL YOUR FAULT!! YOU'RE THE REASON FOR EVERYTHING!!"

People looked curiously at the woman who was red faced and glared at the crystals. "Cami, what's going on?" Heather asked as she approached.

"What's going on!!!" Camicazi shouted. "We've been tricked that's what's going on!!!"

"What do you mean by-" Someone else asked but was cut off by the furious woman.

"Didn't you hear me!!" Camicazi shouted again. "These things are responsible for everything that happened to us and our families!!"

"Camicazi isn't that a little farfetched?" Fishlegs asked now that he got his breathing under control.

"How dare you even say that!!" Camicazi now yelled. "You saw the archives!! You know what they did!! They are the reason the Rakatan are enslaving our worlds!"

That last statement sent a flurry of shocked gasps through the crowd. No one knew what to believe so they all turned to the two giant crystals waiting for an explanation.

"Is what she said true?" Drago asked in a menacing growl.

"First we like to ask what you've learned from our archives?" One of the crystals asked.

"You taught the Rakatan how to use the Force." Camicazi muttered angrily. "You are the reason that they set out to make slaves out of Force-sensitives!! They see us as nothing more than batteries for powering their technology!!"

"Then listen to our side before judging us." The crystal spoke. Camicazi still looked angry while others were now curiously watching the scene unfold. "When our empire was strong we came into contact with other races. One of those races was the Kwa and they came to work under us. We gifted them with the technology to build the infinity gates."

"What are those?" Drago asked now.

"The gates enabled near-instant interstellar travel between two points." The crystals explained. "That was how the Kwa came into contact with the Rakatan race during one of their exploration missions. The Rakatan were a Force-sensitive race and together with the Kwa we taught them how to harness it."

"So you are responsible for the Rakatan." Someone in the crowd spoke up.

"We did not know what they were capable of at that time." The crystal told them. "It only became apparent after some time that the Rakatan ignored our teachings and focussed solely on the dark side of the Force, turning them into a race of merciless aggressive warriors bent on attaining more power."

"They were the ones who started the war with us." The other crystal supplied. "They aimed to posses the infinity gate system that the Kwa possessed and stole other technology from species which we had treaties with. They killed us mercilessly as we tried to stop their expansion. In the end the only thing we could do to try and stop them was cordon off this side of the galaxy. We used the last of our resources to create hyperspace anomalies to form a barrier to keep the Rakatan in the western part of this galaxy and away from where most civilizations were advancing."

"It seems however that our countermeasures were only effective in holding them off for a few millennia." The crystal spoke sadly. "We have never wished for any other race to encounter the Rakatan, nor to suffer at their hand."

Murmuring broke through the crowd as the people began whispering. "But it's still your fault trillions are suffering in the galaxy now." Dagur spoke up.

"Tell us, why you couldn't have simply eliminated the Rakatan when you saw they started posing a threat?" Drago now asked as hostilities climbed. "You could have saved many worlds from slavery!!"

"What you're suggesting is planet wide genocide!!" The crystal said aghast. "We could never!!"

"Which is why you sealed the Rakatan when you should have destroyed them!!! You were the mighty Celestials!! Such a feat should have been no problem!!"

"We couldn't simply destroy a race no matter how dangerous they turned out to be!!"

"Drago please wait." Hiccup butted in. "They didn't know that the Rakatan would turn out like that. I don't really think you can blame them for what someone else could have possibly done in the future."

Drago whirled his head and glared at Hiccup. "You're defending them!!! After what the Rakatan have done to our homes and families!! How dare you!!"

"Wait Drago" Heather now spoke up. "Hiccup is right. The Rakatan chose to enslave us of their own volition. The Celestials had nothing to do with that."

"Heather how can you defend them?!!" Her brother now spoke up. "Don't you remember what happened to mom and dad?!!"

"If these things hadn't thought them about the Force then we wouldn't have had to flee our worlds!" Someone shouted.

"If the Rakatan didn't know about the Force then our families would still be alive!!" Another angrily shouted.

"It's all their fault!!"

"Can't believe we trusted them!!"

"I say we get rid of them!!"

"Wait please!!" Fishlegs shouted. "Maybe we can talk this out. There is no need for violen-"

"You're sympathizing with them!!" Camicazi shrieked. "It's those crystals you have isn't it!!"

"They're on the crystals' side!!" Another shouted. "After all that has happened."

"Traitors!!"

"I say we leave this place and don't look back!" Drago announced as people agreed with him.

"Drago please stop!" Heather begged.

"Don't you dare girl!!" Drago shouted and sent her flying back against the wall. "I lost everything because of the Rakatan!!"

Fishlegs quickly went to check on Heather who let out a painful groan.

"Sis come on snap out of it." Dagur shouted. "Those crystals have probably messed with your mind."

"I say we get rid of them!!" Camicazi suggested as the threw her crystal away. She and the rest then looked expectantly at Hiccup, Heather and Fishlegs. "Well?!"

Hiccup closed his eyes and let ot a breath. "No"

"Excuse me?!" Camicazi growled.

"You heard me!!" Hiccup defended. "I'm not getting rid of Toothless! I don't think that the Celestials are to blame. They did try to stop the Rakatan."

"Filthy traitors!!" Someone in the crowd shouted.

"Well then...." Drago said as he stepped towards Hiccup who was keeping his head held high. "Then you can die in here." When that was said Drago used the Force to send Hiccup flying against the cavern ceiling. Hiccup landed with a thud on the ground as Drago called the people together.

Hiccup's vision turned blurry and the last thing he saw was Fishlegs and Heather standing in front of him while shouting something he couldn't understand at Drago. Darkness consumed him and when he awoke again he saw that both Heather and Fishlegs had gotten injuries that they didn't have before.

Pain shot through Hiccup's head as he held the crude bandage which was wrapped around his head to stop the bleeding.

"We're sorry Hiccup." Fishlegs mumbled sadly as he sat near his friend.

What happened?" Hiccup rasped as Heather tried to use the Force to heal more of his injuries.

"They collapsed the tunnels while we tried to stop them." Fishlegs mumbled. "Neither Dagur nor Drago would listen. We're the only ones left Hiccup."

"W...What do you mean?" Hiccup mumbled hoping that it wasn't what he thought.

"They took the ship Hiccup. They left us stranded here." Heather explained. "They told us to die with the mongrels." She whispered but Hiccup still heard her. "What do we do now? They took all the remaining rations."

"We'll find a way." Hiccup told them. "There has to be a way. It can't end like this."

"We might have a way for you three to survive." One of the crystals spoke up causing the trio to look up at them curiously.

"I'm guessing it won't be easy." Heather mumbled while trying to hold back a sob over losing her brother.

"It would entail you three becoming Guardians."

"Just what are Guardians?" Hiccup, Heather and Fishlegs asked curiously.

-----To be continued in Arc 2: Omnious Twilight------

This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the How to train your dragon world, which is trademarked by DreamWorks Animation L.L.C. and originally written by Cressida Cowell, and I do not claim any ownership over them or make any money from them. This story is for entertainment only and is not part of the official storyline.