Another Nightmare book 2: To rescue a nightmare

Chapter 22

Hello, we just had several days of ~30C temperatures so this seems good time to share with you the middle of the summer bonus chapter (or I got stuck editing my original work and ended up writing AN to the point I'm almost 2 months ahead of schedule without bonus chapters, bonus chapter). The normal end of the month chapter is still coming soon.  

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The darkness, how could it be so empty...? So cold, so very cold. He usually liked darkness, but that was warm darkness, safe darkness. Something was missing. Hiccup opened his eyes half-way but squeezed them closed again. His head hurt like it was being hit with a blacksmith's hammer. He needed a long time just to control his erratic breathing before he tried to open his eyes again, praying to Thor that they would see dark scales. It was not to be. He was alone.

Was this how it felt? He could barely remember how it was to be alone, not just physically, but in his mind. Did he always feel so... cold, vulnerable?

When his blurry vision cleared he saw wood, a roof, walls. He was on a ship and could feel it tilting with the waves. When he opened his mouth only a rough whine got out. His throat was just too dry. He was feeling sick, a blob in his throat felt like something wanted to come up. Hiccup pushed himself trying to get up to a sitting position, or at least to be face-down in case something came up. The little movement was all it took. A wave of nausea made his entire body tense as he twisted around and emptied what little was in his stomach straight on the deck. Some spilled on his hands. Hiccup could barely hold himself up as not to fall face-first onto the disgusting puddle. There was nothing he could do for the taste it left in his mouth. For a while he stayed like that over his own vomit, breathing heavily.

He crawled away as soon as he felt like he could. The room was still wavy, but Hiccup wasn't sure how much was due to his condition and how much was from the ship's movements. There was a large door of metal bars in front of him. He grabbed onto the bars to pull himself up, but didn't dare to step away from the support of the door. He was already sweaty from the effort of getting there. Beyond was a very familiar looking corridor lined with similar doors. At least no one was around, no human that was.

With Hiccup's headache it was already hard enough to think straight while his thoughts remained inside his head, but he could hear the dragons' movements in other cells like his. A Nadder peaked behind the bars of the opposing cell. For a brief instance Hiccup saw two of them. The dragon puffed, looking at him. Hiccup leaned more on the door and closed his eyes. His breath was finally calming down a bit.

'Hey, the Viking is awake. Looks pretty harmless.'

'Too bad it can't tell us why it's here,' another dragon said from the next cell. It felt like a... Hiccup didn't know. He hadn't encountered this species after meeting Toothless.

'Does it matter? It won't get us out of here.'

'Can you be sure? They locked it here. It's clearly not one of them and it smells like a dragon. There is one dragon's scent in particular laced into this Viking. I don't recognise the species.'

'It's still a Viking, regardless of its scent.'

'Maybe', Hiccup struggled to reach out with his thoughts. He could barely open his eyes while talking to the two dragons, 'but I'm not like most... and that dragon scent you can't place is of a Night Fury.'

Neither dragon answered right away. The Nadder looked around and ended up staring at Hiccup with wide eyes.

'Yes, it was me. My name is Hiccup.' He held his forehead with one hand.