Home-Bound: The Beginnings (HTTYD)

22 - The War

The swords clipped onto the loops in their armor easily. Hiccup pulled his helmet on, hooking himself onto the saddle as Luneah mirrored him. With a nod, Luneah took off first and Hiccup soon followed. With a dive, they approached their highest speeds.

The village was silent when they landed in the main square, as all the citizens were either in formation on the mountains or coast, or hidden in the stone bunkers.

Luneah whistled a special combination of notes for Allen, and a Stormcutter descended upon them from the mountains. Allen then whistled for Elise and Jeysannia, who came with their respective dragons, their battle spears clipped to their backs.

Luneah looked around. "You guys ready?"

Everyone nodded.

"Alright." Luneah continued. "We are in charge. As future Elites, it is our job to care for the city, now that the real Elites aren't here. Mark has been sent a message via Terrible Terror. I doubt he'll be here in time since they're halfway to the Jin Empire by now by now, but it's good to always have a backup."

She turned to Allen. "Allen, report."

Allen nodded, and stepped closer to the center. "The armada is coming from the south side, and probably into the harbor. From what we've seen, the flags and ships appear to be of the Roman Empire. Luckily," he said, pointing to the sky. "It's a little foggy today, and we know this island by heart. There is no hiding for them."

"Jeysannia."

"The main forge is working full-time," the smithy reported, pointing to one of the only buildings down the hill that was glowing with light. "I have my two apprentices supervising another crew of three more. We will be supplying weapons and arrows throughout the entire battle. Athena will be the one bringing the tools and arrows back and forth."

"Elise."

"I have a team of doctors scattered throughout the ranks. The town squares will be used as hospitals for the soldiers. I will be back here with the doctors, waiting to assist the injured. Some of the women have agreed to stay out of the bunkers and nurse."

"Hiccup."

"Andreas and Ava are already safe inside the bunker. There are soldiers waiting by the bunker doors and we've moved all ships to the north side by the escape route. All of the boats are stocked with food, water, and other provisions. I've also sent a Terror to give my mom the message, but the dragon came back with the message still tied to it. I fear she may have been already attacked."

"Hiccup," Luneah placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sure your mom is fine. She has a dragon army. She probably heard of the incoming threat and moved the King and its nest farther away."

The young Elite sighed and looked down at the floor. "Without the dragons, this will be a close fight. But no matter. We will just have to fight harder."

"Your orders, Luneah?"

"Hiccup, Allen, prepare the archers. Allen, you'll stay with them for this battle; Hiccup report back to me afterwards. The two of us will be on our dragons for the majority of the fight. We'll strike the ships with our blasts and fight on foot while we wait for the Furies to regain enough energy to strike again.

"Elise, gather up your nurses. Have Lavender run back to the treehouse for any supplies you need. Set up tents for the surgeries. Should the time come, you will assist in the evacuation of the villagers in the bunkers.

"Jeysannia, you will be fighting on the ground today with the first shield legion. Athena will still be delivering. Make sure your apprentices know what to do in your absence."

Luneah took a deep breath. She looked around at the team of mini-elites. It was ironic how this group of teens, none older than 20, would be commanding an entire military force. There were almost 3,000 fighters combined under their jurisdiction. These five teens would make or break the future of Isunder.

"Let's get started."

All was silent.

The Isunder Navy stood tall and proud at their stations although they were not in their ships for this battle. The archers stood silently, waiting in the mountains, fire pits in front of them to light up any flaming torches at Allen's command. The soldiers used the rough and steep terrain of Isunder to their advantage, hiding behind cliffs and in the houses right on the edge of hills. Some soldiers were assigned to protect those in the bunkers. The horn blew three more times, signalling that the armada was closer to Isunder.

The wind was eerily silent today.

The horn blew but this time, it was one single, long blow.

Hiccup flew down on Toothless and landed next to Luneah, who had Midnight by her side. Toothless and Midnight sat sniffing the air, ears perked up, listening for the slightest of movements.

The flagship of the armada emerged through the fog and landed on the shore with a crunch to the sand and small pebbles. A small wave came after, crashing softly down upon the beach.

Hiccup stood next to Luneah, and heard her take in a single, sharp breath. He grabbed her hand and their fingers secretly intertwined, Hiccup rubbing soothing circles onto Luneah's hand.

A few silent moments passed.

And the army jumped off the ship, confidently landing on the sand, not even holding up their shields.

A loud "FIRE!" Was heard throughout the island, and the archers released a hailstorm of flaming and non-flaming arrows, killing off most of the army to come out of the first ship. The few stragglers decided to retreat for a moment, hiding in the ship until the rest of the ships came. Two loud drum beats were heard from the dense fog, and two chants from a crowd of people in Latin came after.

"Caedes! Caedes!"

Another beat.

"Caedes!"

Another five ships came through the fog, followed by another six, in a formation. No one on Isunder would admit it, but they were all petrified. The Roman Military was the best in the known world, and Isunder was just a mere slave refugee camp.

Although many of the Isunderians were exceptional fighters, they were still no match for an entire fleet of Romans. Three beats were heard, and a deafening chant was heard from the boats, as the Roman weapons were thrust into the air, completely in sync with one another.

"Pro patria!"

Then the army came pouring out.

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