Wings of Gold

Ch. 12 - The Talons

          "What could that mean?" Fishlegs asked, having showed up as Hiccup and I walked hurriedly to the clubhouse to call a meeting. "We don't know yet Fishlegs." I said, turning the mace over in my hands. 

          The meeting horn blows, and Hiccup, Fishlegs, and I wait for the others to show up. Fishlegs continues thinking out loud, which boils my already vengeful blood. "Y/N, can I see that for a minute?" Hiccup asks, and I obliging hand over the mace.

          The other riders walk into the clubhouse and immediately begin talking, Snotlout and the twins complaining about all the meetings and Astrid asking Hiccup about the mace. "Who's is that? Is that was the meeting is about?" Says she. Tuffnut slouches, waving a dismissive hand towards Hiccup and the mace. "Seriously? A meeting about a mace? I mean don't get me wrong, I love maces, but a whole meeting for one?" He shakes his head. "This isn't just any mace, Tuffnut." Hiccup says.

          Hiccup raises the mace up for everyone to see. "Viggo left this mace in Y/N's hut before he left," he began, "and as you all remember, he left a Maces and Talons game board on the abandoned ship we searched this afternoon." By now the sun was barely visible over the horizon, the club house darkening quickly. I put a thoughtful hand on my chin, then waved a quick finger at the firepit in the middle of the room. Goldedge, who'd been lurking on the outer edges of the room, blasted the pit on my command, lighting the room with a warm flickering flame. "So, what's a mace got to do with him leaving?" Snotlout crosses his arms, leaning back against the wall.

          "It's not just the mace, Snotlout." I say, coming forwards to stand with Astrid and Hiccup. I pulled out the three figurines that are used to play Maces and Talons, approaching the table that surrounded the firepit.

          "Viggo meant something with the set up of the game." I say, arranging the pawns on the table, from left to right it was the leader of the marauders, the traitor, and then the viking king. "You see," I begin, "the traitor cannot win in Maces and Talons." I flick over the viking king pawn, it rolls back and forth slowly before settling. Fishlegs peaks over my shoulder, "But in the game, the traitor was standing and the viking king was dead, and the marauders leader was..." I cut him off, plucking the marauder leader pawn from the table, "Gone." I say. "The marauder leader was missing, just like Viggo is right now. " My voice gains volume and aggression. "But what about the mace?" Astrid asks, grabbing it from Hiccup. "I don't know." I say, sighing and tossing the pawn back onto the table.

          "Hiccup?" Astrid turns towards him, "You've been pretty quiet, any ideas?" She asks him quietly, and he breathes deeply before stepping forward and placing a hand on my shoulder. "Y/N, I know you know Viggo, but you know him from his good side. I've played his game before, while you were simply observing his strategies, I was outthinking them." He says, and I clench my teeth to contain my frustration. "But this is irrelevant...Y/N?" I finally tear my eyes away from the fire and look him in the eye. I can feel tears clawing at the back of my eyes, desperate to escape.

"Viggo doesn't want to play against me again..." Hiccup says, his voice catching as his eyes fill with concern. "Viggo want's to play you."