The Great Beyond

Chapter 55: Something Rotten on Berserker Island (Hiccup)

              Weight against my back provided a sense of comfort as our dragons took the smooth flight path toward an island we'd never set foot on before. Hurt lingered deep in my chest, constantly nagging and biting with every breath and movement. Though Reign and I attempted to look at the positive of this trip, the wounds still felt too fresh to completely enjoy it. Still, it might be nice to let Reign be with her family, even if they had no idea what happened. The two of us were attempting to heal, and although I already was having a hard time coping, I couldn't imagine what this was like for her.

"'The Berserkers cordially invite you to be their honored guests at the inaugural Berserker Apprenticeship Graduation Ceremony,'" Fishlegs read aloud from the letter we'd received. Reign's hands tightened against my own, prompting me to lean back against her. "Guys, Berserker Island. I'm so excited to see where Heather comes from!"

"And Reign," I added, reminding him of the other sister in that equation. "Not to mention Dagur. You know, they say you can learn a lot about people by tracing their place of origin."

"I can't imagine what horrors await us on Berserker Island, then." I chuckled at Reign's joke, a sense of relief wrapping around me.

"Legend has it the old Nut family tree originated with the wild albino snow monkeys of the Northern Territories."

"Look, guys, I'm a monkey." Ruff began to imitate the animal, eliciting varying levels of discomfort and annoyance from the rest of the group.

"Case in point," Astrid groaned.

The rest of the group continued to talk, but I drowned them out for the time being, choosing to focus on the woman behind me instead. Shriek had come along, even though Reign hadn't ridden her in a while, and remained at a pace with us. For the time being, she rode with Toothless and I, but I didn't mind.

"So, are you excited?" I inquired, turning my head back to meet eyes with her.

"I suppose so, yeah." Her tone remained hushed and low on energy. "It'll be nice to see my brother and sister for something that isn't a fight." Reign's head moved into the crook of my neck, instantly relaxing me. "Besides, I've never been home before. I'm kind of excited to see what it's like."

A smile crossed her face, lifting her spirits slightly. Although it wasn't easy, finding little things that helped us move along were slowly helping with getting back to life. It wouldn't be life as it had been before, not ever again, but it was getting back to a point of normalcy.

Reign and I had stayed on Berk for a while after what happened. At first, it had been so Gothi could monitor her and get a better understanding of what happened, but after that point, neither of us were ready to head back and face the rest of the group. Thankfully, my dad was eager to have us stay for a while longer. I'd been worried about what he'd say, given the old expectations of Berk when it came to the more intimate aspects of relationships, but if he'd been any form of disappointed, he completely pushed that down for the sake of attempting to help us. We knew we'd have to return back to the Edge eventually, and when we did, the same old silence felt crippling and stagnant at the same time. Getting to visit Berserker Island might be good for the both of us.

"Now, guys, this is the first time we've been asked to Berserker Island," Reign reminded everyone, sitting up a little straighter.

"So?" Snotlout challenged.

"So, no matter how weird or Berserkey it gets, just try to stay calm." It made sense she wasn't sure what to expect from her home island. The little memories she talked about didn't give many hints to anything outside of her own family.