Escaping to You -Book I of the Journey Series

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

===Hiccup===

As the two of us flew into the night, I felt something I never felt before; Freedom. I did a couple of tricks with Toothless, but enough so that my stuff wouldn't fall off the saddle. The time was close to midnight, and I can see the fog bank up ahead. "Toothless, let's get above the clouds." And the two of us soared up high, above the clouds. And what I saw was absolutely breathtaking.

The stars so clear and they were shinning bright. And the moon looking even more divine than ever. By the time we made it out of the fog bank, it was almost dawn. All of a sudden I felt tired and worn out from the long flight. "What do you say, bud? Do you wanna catch a few winks before exploring?" And he seemed to purr, both in delight and exhaustion. We landed on a nearby island and just fell asleep on the spot on the beach.

The next day, we woke up right before noon feeling refreshed and relaxed. I built a campfire and the two of us ate a quick meal before we got up in the air again. We went from island to island searching for the perfect spot to settle down. And each island that we've encountered, I drew it on my now expanded map. A few of them didn't cut out the way I wanted, so we kept on searching until nightfall.

We decided to stop on the next one, and rest up for the night. The island was serene, beautiful and it has a bountiful supply of food and freshwater. It was perfect. The two of us landed on a nearby cliff. "What do you say bud? You think this island should be our new home for a while?" He seemed to agree because he started wallowing around the soft, freshness of the grass. "I'll take that as a yes, then." I said as I scratched his head.

By the time of nightfall, I've already set up camp and managed to catch a few trouts from the nearby pond. I cooked mine by the fire and fed Toothless the rest of our catch. Its not much, but it can satisfy our hunger for now. And the two of us fell asleep under the stars, dreaming of what our life could be like out here.

The following day, I woke up right before sunrise and saw that Toothless was still asleep. I decided to let him sleep and just walk on the beach for a while. I took of my boot and felt the soft sand beneath by toes as I walked along the shoreline. When I got tired, I sat down on the sand and just stared at the horizon. I could occassionally feel the gentle crashing of the waves against my foot. It was the most relaxing scene I could have ever experienced.

The sun was already up in the sky and I headed back to camp. I saw Toothless still asleep, and as he heard my footsteps approaching, he was wide awake. He bolted right up and nuzzled me as a greeting. "Good Morning to you, too bud." I greeted him as I gave him a quick hug. I rekindled the campfire and the two of us ate a hearty breakfast. Me some fruit and bread, while Toothless a pile of salmon that we caught yesterday.

I cleaned up the place and strapped all of our luggage back to Toothless' saddle. He looked at me like he didn't want to leave. "Don't worry bud, we'll be back here. Its just for safety purposes we are bringing all our stuff." I reassured him and he seem to relax. And the two of us took of.

All throughout the day, we explore every single we island encounter. And every island is like a new mystery waiting to be solved. The feeling was amazing! The adrenaline coursing through my veins every time we near a new island. And every island looked even more beautiful than the last. Each island has its own unique aspect that makes it special, and separates it from the other islands.

By high noon, my stomach started growling. Then I spotted a nearby island to rest up. "Hey bud. How's about we take a quick break?" He seemed to agree because he just nose-dived towards the island, taking me completely by surprise. As we approached the island, I spotted an abandoned campsite near one of the cliffs on the island. "Toothless, land there by the campsite. " I said to him as I pointed to the abandoned campsite. He obeyed and brought us there.

The whole site was filled with barrels and crates, mostly contained food and clothes. The fire has been put out, not much time has past though. I looked around the area, in attempt to find who is the owner of the campsite and its goods.

The rocks surrounding the area appeared to have gashes. They look like they were made by a Timberjack, but at the same time, it didn't. It was deeper and larger than that of a Timberjack. Then, I noticed the grass was stained with footprints, from a dragon no doubt, but nothing I've ever seen before. I got down on my knees to examine the print more closely. It was still fresh.

Beside it was footprints made by a viking. But, what's odd is that the footprints show no sign of struggle or any other movement for that matter. If my premonitions are correct, the owner of the campsite could be a dragon rider. The very thought of it sent my senses on overdrive. "Toothless, let's take a look around. I have a feeling we aren't alone on this island." I said to him as I mounted him and we took off in the air.

The two of us flew at low speed as we searched for this rogue rider and his/her dragon. The weird thing though, everytime I turn my head back to the front, I could see a flash of silver escaping to the shadows. Like someone was watching me.... and it made me feel uneasy.

"Toothless, hang back for a sec.." I told him and he hovered quietly by the cliffside. I looked around the area, until I saw the flash of silver again. Only this time, I see a dragon with scales that look like it is made of metal and on its back is a hooded-viking with armour that appears to be made from its shedded skin. The both of them stood of a ledge, looking like they were searching for something. Probably- no definitely searching for us. 

The metal-skinned dragon spotted us and it roared a loud sound that I've never heard from before. It looked at us, both fearfully and menacingly, as it flew away from us in a flash. "Toothless, let's get after them." I said as the two of us chased down the dragon and its rider.

The first thing I noticed about the dragon is that its speed almost reaches Toothless'. Its agility and endurance is nothing I've ever seen before. And that it makes use of its surroundings as an attempt to evade us, but not potentially harm us. Its entire body is able to slice through any material, even solid rock. It was incredible, at the same time terrifying.

The dragon evaded every obstacle it faced. All throughout the chase, they evaded us without exerting any effort. It almost seems like they do this kind of thing every single day. They maybe hard to keep up with, but not impossible. Since Toothless' agility and speed rank the highest in the book of dragons, we're able to keep up with them. Then, the weirdest thing happened.

They circled a nearby sapling and headed the opposite direction. As they passed us, I saw a pair of familiar emerald green eyes, I just don't know where I've seen them. Then, as I looked to the front, I saw a tree sapling coming right towards us. I reacted right away and screamed to my dragon. "Look Out!!!" And he did a barrel roll-multiple blast that destroyed the sapling.

Now, I was pissed! And it seems that Toothless was too. Angrily, I said to him, "Toothless, give it all you got!" And he went at full speed towards the rider and his/her dragon while shooting plasma blasts to bring them down. As I was beginning to think that it was somehow pointless, I saw a ledge that can be used to our advantage, since that its next to the path they would take to escape. "Now, Toothless, Now!" I told my best friend as I pointed to the very spot he should shoot, and as predicted, they both crashed down into the shallow canyon.

They quickly recovered from the fall, but I landed next to them and saw that the dragon put a wing protectively around its rider. "I wouldn't do that if I were you!" I yelled as the rider was about to mount up. Toothless was ready to fire, when the rider spoke up, "I wouldn't either...." That voice, it is so familiar. It almost sounded just like......

The rider turned around to face me and removed his/her hood and mask. And it revealed a raven-haired, green-eyed beauty that has been on my mind for that past three years...

"Heather.............? I said, overcomed with shock.  The next thing I know, I blacked out.