In The Archipelago's Secret Service

21: Shifting Allegiances

Chapter Twenty-One: Shifting Allegiances

Hiccup had given up struggling as Hookfang dragged him along another mirror-smooth stone corridor deeper into the mountain and was marshalling all his energies to finding a way to escape-or at least, a way to resist whatever they had planned. He had already run through everything he knew about resisting torture and hypnosis-twice-and nothing had sounded especially promising. He tilted his head and grimaced: there were red cuts in his skin from where the Red Queen's claws had bitten into his neck...and one deeper puncture where one had jabbed deep into his flesh. The puncture burned and his vision was beginning to spin: he guessed he had been drugged.

"What did she give me?" he asked blearily, blinking. Hookfang growled in his throat as they rounded another corner.

"The Red Queen's sting can be anything," he warned the young agent. "Each of her claws contains a different venom...but I guess she gave you one that potentiates the effects of the conditioning."

"Oh," Hiccup murmured, casting a look at Toothless. The man had only spoken to the young agent once since he had abandoned Hiccup for the Queen to explain his fate and he almost refused to look at him. The jet-haired man was walking ahead, his steps stiff and brisk. Hookfang leaned close.

"Look, kid-try not to resist the conditioning," he advised the prisoner. "They say it hurts a lot less if you just let it happen..."

"And y'know this for sure?" Hiccup slurred. There was an awkward pause as Hookfang shrugged.

"Sure's pretty strong, kid. Call it more of a hunch..."

"So you want me to surrender on a hunch it won't hurt so much when doing that will wipe my memory of everything since the explosion?" he asked sarcastically. "And allow her to use me to assassinate the President, my Dad and Alvin? How-how did you think I was going to take that?" The big dragon gave a grin.

"Like that, kid," he admitted. "Good luck." And he pulled Hiccup into a neat chamber the walls smooth and the light harsh and brilliant. What looked like an especially unpleasant dentist's chair was waiting with what appeared to be a headset with goggles hanging limp and ready. Two men in the deep red suits of Changewings, golden eyes tattooed on their foreheads, stood professionally by a computer console but they looked up when the prisoner was brought in and one walked forward.

"She has explained her requirements," he said and decorously gestured to the chair. "Please secure him." Before he could resist, Hiccup was dragged to the chair, the ties around his wrists were sliced free and he was slammed into the chair, his arms forced onto the arm-rests and wide restraints fastened tight.

"Wow. You could have just asked," he replied, tugging at his bonds. A restraint was fastened across his legs and another across his neck-not so tight that it threatened to strangle him but enough to stop him moving his head away as the headset was forced down on his head, his eyes covered by the visor. "Um hello? Claustrophobic?"

"Open your eyes, boy and it won't hurt," the smooth voice said as a fierce light seemed to sear through his eyelids-which were firmly screwed closed.

"Promise?"

"Of course, my dear," the voice said and Hiccup took a shuddering breath.

"Um...can't actually believe you," he replied as the light brightened and he grimaced. Unwillingly, he opened his eyes for a moment-and the swirling light began to overtake his senses, even as the words began to echo in his head.

"You belong to the Queen. You are her subject. Nothing else matters. Not family. Not friends. Not Berk. Only the Queen..."

But if that's the case, then I lose everything that matters, he thought desperately. Sure, most of my life sucks and my father actively hates me and has disowned me totally. But I have done some things that I would never have imagined I could do. I got out of the collapsed AI6 building. I was in a shoot-out with an assassin. We jumped out off a bus. I was kidnapped and tortured and then rescued by Astrid. And Astrid was...is...kind of nice to me...