The Soul of a Dragon

Chapter 37

Vara

I can't see anything through all this smoke.

I can't hear anything due to all the screaming, grunting, yelling, and the sharp sounds of metal hitting metal.

I can't do anything but stand still like a fool. A comical, cowardly fool.

I don't want to see this. Yet, at the same time, I can't look away.

He has changed. Something...has changed. I don't recognise the man that is brutally fighting his way through an entire army of dragon hunters – easily winning against them. His face, from what I can see, is contorted in concentration. His movements are swift and my eyes find the manner with which his muscles exert them addictive. However, except for his agility and skill, this is not the Hiccup I know and fell in lo-

No. I shake my head. I can't finish that thought.

Instead, I decide to put an end to this. I can't bear the sight of him being this...animal, this brute. It's not like him. For a second, the smoke clears and I gasp at what is revealed. His hair has lost its soft, shiny appearance – a dull brown remains. None of its fluffy, unkempt yet spirited character is left. The purple bags under Hiccup's eyes tell me he hasn't slept in, probably, days. His skin is pale and appears almost sickly see-through. But what shocks me the most are his eyes. Those usually lively, vibrant, sparkly eyes that I tend to drown and get lost in. I can't see the forest on a summer day with every colour possible twinkling and caressing my senses; I can't feel its warm embrace.

As I look at those eyes now, I feel myself getting dragged into a giant, dark pit. Violent vacancy grips my throat like a cold chokehold.

Where have you gone, my love?

My voice is hoarse from the smoke and I need to clear my throat a few times before any sound comes out. "Hiccup?"

Abruptly, he halts with his Inferno still raised in the air. Slowly, he lowers his arm. I can see the disbelief in the hesitation of his movements. Still not turning around, I open my mouth to call out his name again. But the words get stuck in my throat as Hiccup suddenly shifts and those vacant eyes come to life as they meet mine. A warm yet exhilarating shiver runs down my skin. But a split second later, I take in his neglected appearance again. I notice the sadness and loneliness, despair and rage burning in those eyes. And a strange, unexpected emotion takes a hold of me.

Fear.

I am afraid for him. For this wonderful man, that has literally and figuratively turned my life upside down.

Is it possible that I have lost him already? Before I could even call him mine?

Lost in my thoughts, I almost overhear Hiccup calling out to me. Against my own will, my legs twitch to move towards him. I manage one step. But before I can comply completely with the urge to run to him, shock colours Hiccup's features as he looks over my shoulder at something behind me. I frown in confusion and turn to find out the reason.

My heart drops into my stomach and my breathing becomes hitched. At first, surprise freezes my entire body to complete stillness, but not soon after, hot rage melts down any resemblance of that.

There, totally calm and with a disgustingly overexaggerated victorious grin, Grimmel has Toothless backed into a corner of houses. His personal bulldogs keep the poor night fury locked in place with their dangerous, venomous stingers. And even though he is the alpha, there is no chance for him to make the Deathgrippers obey due to Grimmel's ingenious cruelty.

"Toothless!"

Hiccup's shrill scream grabs Toothless' attention and his bright green eyes search frantically for his friend. Though, he doesn't relent against Grimmel and the acid-producing dragons. A small smile tugs at the corner of my lips at this dragon's courage and bravery. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice the rest of the gang rushing forward to help. But with a single growl, Toothless orders the other dragons to stay back.