-
Simultaneously, they peered over the side of their dragons. To Ska'i, it looked like a bunch of -."
"They're just ships," Ruffnut had a so-what tone.
"No," Hiccup squinted. "Look closer. Those aren't just ships. They're -."
"Dragon Hunter ships," Astrid finished.
Snotlout shrugged it off. "So what? We've seen plenty of Hunters' shipwrecks before."
"Not this heavy-duty," Fishlegs added.
"Ha! 'Doodie,' " Tuff chuckled.
Ska'i observed a tinge of green peeking through the wood of the ship's hull. An alarm rang clear in her voice when she asked, "Are those entire ships made of dragon-proof iron?"
". . . yeah," Fishlegs hesitantly answered.
"It's a thing," Tuff grimly added.
"I haven't seen one in months, though," mused Hiccup while sentiments echoed around.
"What are they doing out here?" Astrid wondered.
"You're right," Hiccup speculated. "Usually, Hunters try to bring these types of ships back with them, to at least be melted down and reused again."
While they debated on how long it's been since they'd last seen one and where, Ska'i felt there was something oddly familiar about this, although she couldn't quite place it. Instead of circling, the dragons hovered, so Ska'i had to resort to tilting her head and squinting. Her brain strained to remember. Was it from some distant childhood memory? A premonition dream was a stretch. It kind of reminded her of a section of the 'Edge, now that she thought about it - wait.
"Can I have that map?" Ska'i interrupted the debate with a gesture of her hand.
"Yeah, sure!" Hiccup nudged Toothless over. "Here you go."
"Why do you see something?" Fishlegs hovered Meatlug closer in anticipation.
Ska'i just pointed to the ship cluster, then at a certain section of the island on the map.
Fishleg's eyes sparkled, comparing the map to the shipwreck. "This has got to be it!"
"Okay, welllll. . . ." Ruffnut drew the word out. "Where's the rest of it?"
Fishlegs barely held his frustration back. "Ska'i's right; these islands match up!"
Hiccup peeked over his shoulder. "Yup. Let's fly down there, and check it out."
Descending, they landed on the broken masts, tilted railings, and jutted rocks.
"Careful, gang," Hiccup cautioned, "We don't know what's here."
"Duh. I thought that was the whole point of exploring," Ruffnut retorted.
"Just stick to teams of two or more," Astrid commanded, as she was joined by Snotlout to poke around some damaged and weathered crates.
Hiccup piggybacked, "Ruffnut and I will check out the cargo hold. Fishlegs, Tuffnut, and Ska'i, you guys go find the captain's quarters."
Fishlegs complied, and Tuff saluted. Ska'i held back a laugh but nodded at Hiccup.
Rough seas, time, and neglect had aged it terribly. While extravagant treasures decorated Nadig's quarters, this instead held simple features. Shabby blankets hung over a distressed wooden bedframe, a single built-in bookcase had one shelf hanging on at a tilt, and a simple desk stood bolted to the floor.
Fishlegs mourned the dusty book remains. "I wonder what was written in them.".
The angle of the sun's rays coming in through the window behind the desk led Ska'i's eyes to the lines of the wooden floor that didn't quite line up. It was so subtle she doubted she'd have noticed it otherwise. Hyper-focusing, she weaved around the rotten pillars, and tentatively stomped a foot on the spot under the desk. A hollowed echo was heard.
She turned back to the guys. "Yeah, you heard that, right?"
"I sure did," and both guys came over to investigate, but not before Tuff shouted out the open door, "Hey guys, Ska'i looks like she might have found something!"
Fishlegs wiggled his way beneath the desk. "This is fascinating."
"What's fascinating?" Tuff and Ska'i asked. Sharing a slight blush, oblivious to Fishlegs, he explained, "There's a faint clicking sound, followed by the deeper base of the hollow thump." Everyone else filed in. "But I can't seem to figure out what this is, or how it works."
"It's obvious, isn't it? Looks like a trapdoor," Ruffnut observed, right as she walked in.
"Okay then, Ruff, how exactly does this one work?"
"Well, I don't know. But what else could it be?"
"Not exactly all that obvious then, is it, Ruffnut?" Astrid smirked, crossing her arms.
"Hey! It's not my fault, I didn't build this one?"
"Wait, have you twins been building trapdoors all around our island?!" Snotlout freaked.
"Gee, thanks for you throwing me under the bus, sis!"
"You just outed yourself, Tuffnut," Astrid pointed out.
"Oh, we are so getting back to that. But this still doesn't explain where the rest of the island is," Hiccup wanted better answers.
Ska'i had been staring at the trapdoor, while Fishlegs kept repeatedly making the repetitive - and borderline annoying - click-and-hollow sound. Then the solution hit her. Nudging everyone else out of the way as gently as she could, she put all her weight on the trapdoor.
Fishlegs protested, "We don't know what it does!" Then he stopped. Ska'i heard it, too.
There was a second click. "Oh, that's new," he admitted. "We need to move this desk."
"We need more weight," Ska'i said at the same time.
Hiccup asked the Night Fury to contain his flame enough to melt the bolts away, then Snotlout and Tuff heaved the desk away with ease. When they both made to jump on the trapdoor, Fishlegs threw up his hands to stop them. "No, wait! Careful, one at a time."
Tuff locked eyes with Ska'i, before both extended hands at the same time, and he stepped on. Click. Snotlout made a sound of disgust and crowded Fishlegs. Another click.
"Uh, not to be a bummer," Ruffnut brought up. "But we are not all going to fit on that."
"Okay," and Tuff squatted, hoisting Ska'i on his shoulders in one movement.
When Ruffnut was next, Fishlegs made to put an arm around her but Snotlout shoved him away and he silently mouthed, "Okay, geez."
That left barely enough room for one more person to stand.
Astrid made to go next, but Hiccup stopped her. He gave her an "in case anything happens" stare, and he stepped on. Click. Still, nothing happened. It wasn't enough. Hiccup crouched down, tapping his fingers on his shoulders. She gave him a curt nod, then placed her shin on his left shoulder. When she shifted her weight to place her right on his other, there was a loud, solid thud. She froze, and everyone seemed to stop breathing at once.
"What was - ?" Ska'i started to ask but was cut off by the trapdoor giving way.
-
