The Great Beyond

Chapter 32: A Grim Retreat (Reign)

The afternoon sun shone heavy over our heads, providing very little warmth against the chill of the Nordic summers we so often faced. The only reason I'd managed to work up a sweat was the constant lifting and moving of Gronckle Iron, which, despite its lightweight nature, proved to be a bit of a challenge. Still, Shriek and I remained optimistic and diligent in our work, thankful for Hiccup's help in accomplishing the task.

A few nights ago, Hiccup decided that we needed Gronckle Iron reinforcements for the base, as yet another means of defense against Viggo and the Hunters. I wasn't exactly sure how necessary it was, but at this point, I was beyond the point of wanting to argue with Hiccup about any of our provisions. His obsession with besting Viggo had reached an all-time high since the episode with the Buffalord. I'd actually managed to get him to sleep and eat normally for a while, but now, all of that had been reverted, leaving us at a point where all of us were working on building new defenses and provisions until the last possible sliver of light disappeared.

We could only fight off the exhaustion for so long...

...which was evidenced by the way productivity fizzled out as the sun began to set. My arms were screaming at and begging me to stop, so I landed near Fishlegs, which prompted Astrid to come back and Hiccup to follow. One of my eyebrows flew up the moment I noticed Meatlug was just continually spewing little bits of lava, unable to make herself stop due to the sheer tiredness overtaking her.

"Uh, Hiccup? I think Meatlug might be ready for a break. She's starting to lose her gag reflex." She just barely managed to cut herself off before the mold overflowed.

"Guess the perfect little machine isn't so perfect after all," Snotlout taunted. However, he was in absolutely no position to speak.

"Have you seen your dragon? The giant oven doesn't look too perky, either."

"Huh?"

Hookfang's head swayed and swung, before he couldn't hold it up anymore. It slammed down against the grass, causing him to involuntarily shoot out a stream off fire, dangerously close to Barf and Belch. That set them off, causing them to fire at back. It ended up missing, instead startling Stormfly, who strung the twins up with spine shots. Out of nowhere, Toothless and Shriek started growling at each other, crouching threateningly low to the ground.

"Really? You, too, bud?" Hiccup sighed, clearly not seeing the bigger picture. "All right, that's it! Dragons, to your corners!"

All six dragons shrunk down, the result of being yelled at, but they obeyed, sulking off to separate corners.

"Hey, Hiccup. Did you know that upside-down you actually have a metal arm instead of a metal leg?" Groaning, I buried my face in my hands. There was absolutely no logic behind that.

"What is going on around here?" The fact Hiccup hadn't figured anything out really cemented just how oblivious he was.

"Hiccup, we've been working really hard on these reinforcement walls," I pointed out. "Everyone is just tired. Look at the dragons."

"You know, Hookfang and I could really use a vacay."

"Vacation?" The twins' faces were starting to turn an alarming shade of red. "Count us in. We'll grab our straw helmets and a chilling tale of Viking murder to read on some enchanted beach, laughing as the waves crash against us."

The more the twins talked about the idea of a vacation, the more it started to grow on me.

"Guys, I get that you're all tired, but remember why we're doing this."