Chapter Text
In the dead of the night, a single large ship was seen sailing upon the vast ocean. A guard held a torch, slowly making his way through rows and rows of cages. Low growls could be heard from many of them as the human passed, the creatures inside agitated but helpless.
Whoosh. The guard spun around, wide-eyed, lifting his torch to his surroundings, but all was normal, nothing out of place.
‘Must’ve been the wind.’ The guard thought to himself.He turned, about to continue his rounds when movement caught his eye.
Crack. A flame ignited, illuminating a figure covered from head to toe in onyx armor, the fire apparently stemming from the sword the person held.
"What... are you?" the guard stammered,stepping back in fear.
The figure raised a hand and pressed a finger to where their lips would be on his face guard, slowly moving to point behind the now terrified guard. The man spared a glance backwards, and nearly peed himself in fear.
A pair of luminous green eyes stared at him in the darkness. He could make out more of what they belonged to as a patch of shadow slinked down the bars of a cage, a bright blue glow running up the creature's spines as it touched the ship's deck. The guard let out a mortified scream, dropping his torch onto the deck and causing the wood to burn. The figure and their midnight companion paid the flames no mind, stepping through the roaring inferno with ease. The guard screeched again. “Agrhhhhhh you’re a demon!” The creature launched, moving across the deck at lightning speed. It arrived beside the guard, and with a powerful swipe of his tail, knocked him clean off his feet. It grabbed the guard with a claw, and flung him overboard before he could make a single sound. Hiccup let out a satisfied chuckle, patting the dragon next to him fondly. “Great job, bud.” The Night Fury purred in response, and the pair signalled for the rest of their crew to land.
Several light thumps sounded, as the Dragon Riders descended from their respective dragons and silently started going from cage to cage, unlocking the doors and bindings of each of them.
Toothless sniffed the air curiously. He was picking up on a unique scent, one he couldn’t quite put his paw on. “[Hiccup.]” he growled, keeping his voice low. His rider spared him a side glance, , a silent understanding passing through them, and nodded, extinguishing Inferno and following his dragon.
Toothless sniffed at the cages with enexpected enthusiasm, rushing past each one with growing agitation, sniffing desperately for that scent's owner. Hiccup followed, trying to keep up with him while unlocking the cages they pass.
Eventually they reached a dead end, the row of cages ending with a smaller, seemingly empty cell that was quite secluded from the others.
Toothless inhaled deeply, pawing at the cage as Hiccup finally reached him panting slightly.
"What'chu got here, Toothless?" the young chief questioned his dragon, peering inside the dark cage. "[l smelled something... It was familiar. I can't put my paw on it but something was calling out to me in this cage.]"
Just as he finished his sentence, Toothless snapped his head back towards the cage. A tiny dark shape moved to the bars. They stared in wonder as a pair of small, luminous purple eyes blinked open, staring right back at them.
Hiccup worked quickly, picking the lock and sliding open the cage door. He then stepped back and ignited Inferno to get a better look at its occupant.
"...oh Thor."
Tiny bat-like wings, three adorable tiny ear flaps on each side of their head, black as the night around them, intelligent poisonous purple eyes surveying their surroundings.
“That’s a Night Fury…”
~~~
The poor thing was shivering, not from the cold, but from fear. Hiccup held Inferno up, and they could see scars all over its body. Its ribs were clearly visible, and patches of scales have fallen out, scattered across the bottom of the cage. It was curled up, wings hugging its own body tightly, peering at the two larger creatures apprehensively, poised to strike and bolt at the slightest sign of danger.
“Hi…” Hiccup extinguished Inferno once more, placing the handle back in its holster as he knelt down, facing the cowering fury. He extended his arm, reaching for the little dragon, but it hissed, opening its maw, building up a blast. Hiccup quickly took his hand from the cage, raising both arms as a sign of “I mean no harm.” Toothless, upon seeing the younger Night Fury threatening the safety of his rider, stepped forward and snarled, raising his wing to cover Hiccup from the possible danger.
At the sight of Toothless, the young Fury abruptly swallowed its flame, sniffing at the older Night Fury curiously. Toothless growled at the small dragon, and it cowered back, lowering its head in submission. Hiccup immediately placed a soothing hand on Toothless’ scales, stepping out from behind him crouching to the hatchling’s level. Toothless ceased his growl, but his gaze remained cautious as he posed to pull his rider away at the slightest hint of danger.
“Hello…” the little Fury perked up. It locked eyes with Hiccup, who took it as a sign to continue. “Hi there… My name's Hiccup. This is Toothless. We mean no harm. We are simply here to help you. Are you hurt?” The young dragon mewled lightly. It slowly stood up, advancing towards the human, who offered his hand, and turned his head away. It felt like hours, but Hiccup kept his head turned. Toothless could see the hatchling sniffing Hiccup’s hand, stepping closer but ever so cautiously. When Hiccup finally felt a small muzzle press against his palm, he turned back to find the little dragon nuzzling him, half climbing onto his lap.
Hiccup giggled lightly as he picked up the small dragon. It was light, way too light for its age. He examined it carefully, finding out “it” was a “she”, and aside from a few small scratches, she was mostly unharmed, just malnourished. He climbed back onto Toothless’ back, clicked his prosthesis into place and they took off. From the sky, Hiccup noted that every caged dragon was freed and the rest of the riders were already heading back to Berk. This left him to continue to fuss over the small Night Fury, and completely missing the extremely annoyed look on Toothless’ face.
They left without double checking, which was usually the job of the Rider who leaves the ship last. If they hadn’t, they would have noticed a pair of luminous blue eyes opening, following their every move.
~~~
A few minutes later, a second guard appeared. He called out into the darkness, searching for the first guard, who did not return after his shift ended.
But then, he stopped. It was eerily quiet onboard… too quiet. No quiet roars, no growls of anger, not even the laboured breathing of sleep. He lit his torch, raising it high above his head to find the cages empty, their occupants all but vanished.
The guard gasped, panic rising in his chest. This was their biggest shipment yet, and in a flash, they were all gone. Bonk. Something hit the side of the ship. The guard shakily made his way towards the sound, and held his torch to illuminate the ocean below. What he saw made him suck in a breath. The first guard, floating a few inches away from the ship, his form immobile. He had drowned after being thrown overboard.
The second guard returned to the center of the deck, staring helplessly at all the empty cages around him, mentally calculating his chance of survival when they returned empty-handed. But then, he noticed something. A shimmering white, flashing just a moment before a blast of plasma engulfed it, rendering it invisible once more. The guard stepped closer. The shimmer came from a locked cage.
Maybe they were not doomed just yet.