A plan

Tongue between his teeth, Rylan wedged the wood slab under the door and pushed with all his strength. There was a loud crack, and the wood spilt. 

Groaning exasperatedly, he turned to look over at Hiccup, who was also trying to push open the door. His ribs were practically back to normal, though still a bit bruised. 

But the fact remained that neither of them had the brute strength of most Outcasts, and simply didn't have the strength to break out by force. He'd considered using Jolt to blast the door, but decided that hitting a highly conductive metal with lightning probably wasn't a great idea. Especially because Hiccup and Toothless, with their metal prosthetics, were so close. 

Toothless couldn't keep up a concentrated stream of fire going for long either, so his fire was out. And as for using teeth or claws? Out of the question. These cells were specifically designed so that there was a small tunnel leading from the door into the cell, making it impossible for the dragons to fit. 

He really had to hand it to the Outcasts. They'd covered every base here. Except one. 

He looked over at Hiccup questioningly. He gave a grim nod, and Rylan said, very loudly,

"Hiccup! Hiccup are you okay?"

Trying not to laugh, Hiccup sprawled on the floor and shouted, "Ow! My ribs!! They hurt so much!" 

To add to the din, Jolt and Toothless both began roaring and snorting and knocking around the cells. Now barely containing himself, Hiccup yelled dramatically, "I think this might be it...."

"No! It's much too soon!" Rylan yelled back to him. Hiccup shook with suppressed laughter and said, "I wish... we'd had more time to know each other...tell Astrid.... I love her!" 

Under cover of their dragon's roars, Rylan bursted out laughing. Heavy foot falls were drawing nearer, and he pulled himself back together, faking a look of intense fear and concern. 

Hiccup was writhing and panting most convincingly. Toothless was being a perfect little actor too, nudging him anxiously. 

There was a scraping, rasping sound of the door being forced open and a large Outcast came in to see what was happening. Hiccup continued to thrash on the floor. 

Torn between concern and routine, the man hesitated. He never noticed that he was standing too close to Rylan's cell. And he definitely never noticed the vicious whack he recieved on the back of his head a moment later. 

For a moment the massive man swayed dreamily, cross eyed. Then he fell with a heavy thud, flat on his face. Rylan grimaced sympathetically, tossing aside the thick wooden plank he had used to knock him out. 

Hiccup raised his head a second later, beaming. They high fived through the cell wall, Hiccup grinning ear to ear. "Brilliant. I think we're got a real career as actors!"

He then then turned and ran out his open cell door. 

Rylan met him outside his own cell door, and with their combined strength, they were able to force it open. Rylan rushed out, and then turned back. 

Jolt was staring at him with wide, pleading eyes, trying to fit through the little tunnel. Smiling sadly, Rylan called, "It's going to be okay! We're going to find a way to get you out," 

"You too bud!" Hiccup called to Toothless, who was scratching sadly at the walls. 

With a quick look at each other, a brief nod, and a slap on the shoulder, Hiccup and Rylan both went seperate ways. 

They had been through this plan so many times, Rylan could recite it in his sleep (which he had occasionally woken up to find himself doing.)

He was to search for a way out of the labyrinth, having a better knowledge of the island than Hiccup, and Hiccup would search the surrounding area for the lever that would release their dragons. There was a tightly sealed metal hatch through which their dragons had entered, but they had no power to open it from inside their cells. 

He raced down the dark halls, keeping a steady, even rhythm. Apparently all those training exercises HAD done him some good after all. 

The tunnel began sloping upwards, which he took to be a good sign. Up meant fresh air, something he hadn't felt for weeks. Turns and cell door flashed by his vision, but he continued following the tunnel he was in. It had to go somewhere. 

He hurtled around a tight turn and almost ran face first into a cell wall. Skidding to a stop and falling hard, he lay still. Had anyone heard that? 

There was a moment of silence, and then he heard a deep, heavy snuffle. A scraping, slithering noise came from right beside his head. 

Slowly, terrified of what he might see, Rylan turned his head. 

A huge Whispering Death was uncoiling itself from the floor. For a moment, Rylan was overwhelmed by how close he was to this dangerous dragon... but then he saw something. 

There were huge gashes on the wide snout, and the milky eyes were wide and fearful. Its wings shook and the spiky tail twitched in fear. 

And in a sudden instant of understanding, his heart broke.

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