Rise

Chapter 20: The Final

Chapter 20: The Final

Hiccup woke up, as he felt something wet on his face. He opened his eyes and saw the all too familiar snot.

"Toothless!" he cried pushing the dog off him. "Bud! Come on!"

Great, another morning started all soaked in his dog's saliva. He stretched and grabbed his phone. As he saw the many notifications of the clock, his eyes widened. He overslept! Again! However, this time it was worse. He was late for the final!

Hiccup checked the time. The final race would start from forty minutes. He jumped off his bed and headed towards the bathroom. Wearing his shirt on his way down, Hiccup took his backpack, car keys and left the house.

Driving on insane speeds, he reached the old aviation college in twenty minutes. As he entered the hangar, he opened his backpack and took his suit out. Hiccup cursed as he was strapping the buckles. Why he had to make it so complicated!?

After agonizing five minutes, he got into the plane. He tapped on the screen and the program started.

"Good morning, sir," was heard Ally's robotic voice.

"Ally, do a quick start," Hiccup commanded strapping his seatbelt.

"Before starting the plane, I need to do a checkup," Ally informed.

"We don't have time for that!"

"It will only take 10 minutes, sir."

"Ally, I said to start the plane, without a checkup," Hiccup hissed annoyed. This was the most important of his life and he didn't want to be late, because the AI didn't let him start the plane.

"Starting the plane," Ally finally said. The flight instruments began appearing on the screen and after a minute, Ally informed that the plane was ready.

The plane got out of the hangar and raised to the skies. Hiccup smiled as he saw the familiar building of the company. The bleachers were bustling with many people. There were even twice more than yesterday. After all, it was the final.

He landed the plane and got out.

"And Night Fury is here!" the announcer said. "The final race started!"

Hiccup sheepishly looked around. He was ten minutes late. He saw Astrid standing in the front row, which was designed for pilots and important people. Her arms were crossed and she was looking directly at him. Hiccup couldn't see her expression but he was sure she was looking at him accusingly.

He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck and looked at the screen. He needed to be on the track from two minutes. He got into the plane and took off. Hiccup approached the line and not long after the horn blew, signaling the start.

Hiccup darted forward, the rush of adrenaline filling his veins. He smiled. From a few minutes, his dream would come true.

It all happened in the blink of an eye. The plane was about to cross the finish line as an explosion rang in the left wing. It went crashing down and the moment it hit the ground a loud bang rang, the plane flaming up.

Astrid's hand flew to her mouth as she saw what happened. She didn't lose a second, as she passed under the security line and began running to the plane. It would soon explode and she needed to get Hiccup out of there!

The same was for Gobber, who began hobbling down the stairs.

Astrid reached the flaming plane and pried the door out. Hiccup was unconscious. His suit was torn and scratches littered his skin. His helmet was still on him and she hoped that at least it would have protected his head. She tried unstrapping his seatbelt but it didn't budge. It was stuck! Astrid continued desperately tugging, tears gathering in the corners of her eyes. She had to get him out! She couldn't leave him!