I'm Leaving Forever (a HTTYD Runaway Fanfic ~ Book 1)

32 - The First Trial: Part 2

Dagur didn't hesitate to start the fight once the horn sounded through the arena. He was better skilled on the offensive than defensive, so it was simply in his nature to make the first move. To his surprise though, it seemed like his opponent was having similar thoughts, because as soon as it was declared that they could start fighting, both Vikings charged. Dagur has his axe raised in the air, ready to bring it down for a devastating blow when he was close enough, while his opponent had his mace out to one side and his shield out to the other, creating a big open space where anyone could be able to attack with ease. It had Dagur confused. They clearly weren't inexperienced enough to expose and leave themselves vulnerable like that were they? Nevertheless, his body wasn't obeying his mind at this very moment, so he and the warrior continued to advance, and that was when they both made their move. And Dagur was the one to be caught off guard.

When they were less than a metre away, Dagur had brought down as axe. A traditional move that anyone could see coming. But what he didn't expect was his opponent to shield himself at that specific moment and divert the attack away. The warrior had rammed the edge of his shield into the axe Dagur had, forcing it off to the side and immediately held up his mace to bring it down. So that was this guy's plan. Dagur couldn't really say he expected it before he started running, but it wasn't like he was unprepared for something unexpected. No one would run up to their opponent while exposing their body like that without a plan.

After his advance had been deflected, Dagur followed the momentum taking him towards his left, rolling along the stone, putting some distance between himself and the warrior, before swiftly standing up. That was when he felt a painful chill almost completely immobilise his entire right arm. He couldn't see what his upper arm looked like, but this feeling coupled with the force he felt on his arm when he rolled to the side, Dagur seemed it safe to assume that the mace managed to get to him, and left his right arm injured. Despite this though, this wasn't something he could dwell on at the moment and he knew that very well. Not when his enemy was making another run towards him, this time, his mace and shield closer together. Dagur didn't think he would try the same move again, nor did he think his opponent could anyway, but subconsciously, his eyes were more fixated on the mace than before.

The Berserker Chief wasn't a big fan of those who could pull off a stunt he didn't expect. Contrary to what his sister thought - that he should've gotten used to it by now - it just irked him. Hiccup is a sort of exception to that seeing as him being smart and somewhat unexpected is expected, but this guy was a stranger. Dagur would not let himself get beaten around my some lowly human with a shield and a mace. So, when his opponent was only less than a couple of meters from him, Dagur ducked and kicked the warrior's  feet and quickly rolled out of the way so that he wouldn't be trapped underneath. In seconds, the Berserker was standing over his opponent, one foot placed forcefully on his back, holding him down as he tried to get up again. The shield was pinned under him and inaccessible, and while he tried to use the mace, the aim and swings were completely sloppy. Just to get him to stop moving, Dagur pressed the blade of his axe against the back of his opponent's neck; it did the job well considering that he stopped squirming around, even though he became even more tense than before. However, this was when Dagur found himself at crossroads.

What was he supposed to do now? If he was the only one fighting, then he guessed that this would be where the trial ended, but that wasn't the case. Dagur briefly lifted his head away form the warrior and survey the others around him. Most were still fighting, although Zilpah looked like she was about to get into a in a similar position to him. This trial most likely wasn't over yet. Not until the Riders defeated these warriors or vice versa. But then what was he meant to do? Was he supposed to stay here and make sure this guy couldn't continue fighting, or was he supposed to leave and help everyone else?