How to Save a Dragon Rider

Nothing But a Battle Strategy

Fear. Anger. Confusion. Worry. All of those feelings were carved into the different colors of blue in her eyes.

"Snotlout is hurt?" Astrid inquired. "Who did this?" She demanded clenching her fists. She stood inside his house near the front door looking tense and ready for a fight.

"I don't know. But we will find out, and we will make them pay." Hiccup said determined.   

"Who found him?" 

"Fishlegs and the search party did this morning."

"What did they do to him?" Her eyebrows began to crease together, like they did when she was furious. "What did they do?!" She demanded again. 

"Astrid, they-" Hiccup could barely speak the words  " they, broke a piece of his back. Gothi said that he could be paralyzed."  The color drained from her face. "He may never ride again."

"Oh gods." She placed a hand over her mouth. She sat down at the wooden table and closed her eyes for a minute. 

"Fish legs told me a someone with a grudge against the Dragon riders did this." He concluded. Thinking out loud he said;  "However,  we have to consider, whoever it was didn't kill Snot."

"Why?" Astrid asked. He shook his head and stood for a minute. Through the open window he noticed a small colorful bird perching on a branch happily chirping in the setting sun's light. Suddenly a thought crashed like thunder in his head.

"This kind of attack wasn't done by some crazy person, no Astrid," He said moving closer then further away."  This assault was precise, it was thought out, they knew what they were doing, this was a battle strategy. They don't want to kill the dragon riders" He paused for a moment shaking his fingers."...yet. They first want to disable us. This is the perfect way to do it. What if someone, someone we know, found a way to stop us from flying?"

Hiccup ran his hands through his hair. Soon he was pacing in front of the large fireplace, his mind raking over every possible enemy they'd come across, that could have had a chance to construct the attack. Astrid joined in the search. 

"What about Drago."

"No. He would've done this to me first and foremost, if it had been him." He replied. 

"Eret?" Hiccup waved his hand.

"Hroar?"

"Viggo?"

Each character had a long list of reasons as to why they would attack,but none had the means of doing such. After a while they ran out of names.

"Ok so we're out of enemies to blame." Hiccup said frustrated. silent thoughts filled the space in the room for a minute as they both searched their memories for an answer.

"What if, we're looking at this the wrong way?" Astrid proposed. "Hiccup, all the people we've considered as the attacker,  are people who would want revenge right?" Hiccup raised an eyebrow. "What if this isn't about revenge. what if the person who did this to Snotlout, doesn't even know him... or us!?" 

"Then why would they do this? It makes no sense." He said confused.  

"What if this new enemy attacked him, simply because he was a dragon rider. "

He pointed with two fingers and shook them. "Thats a good theory. If you're right, then we can catch them easily." 

"How? it's a big ocean Hiccup." 

"By setting bait." He shook his pointer fingers some more. "If its dragon riders they want. Lets give them dragon riders. They can't have gone far, if we send some riders out now maybe-"