Dark Valkyrie

Thirty One: The Dragon Master

Thirty One: The Dragon Master.

The Chiefs and assembled audience all stared in shock at the tall shape of the newcomer, taking in his strange clothes, the calm, stern expression on his face and the pride in his amber eyes. The torchlight gleamed off his pike as he looked across the Vikings facing him. He nodded to Chief Stoick and the man nodded back, having seen Throk when the Defenders of the Wing sent supplies through to Berk after Viggo's blockade.

"Who are you?" Madguts sneered, his hand dropping to his sword and his black leather armour creaking as he moved. Throk gave him a dismissive stare.

"I am Throk, Right Hand of Queen Mala," he said, indicating to the tall woman at his side, her long black gold-embroidered tunic and trousers very unusual, the cool look in her green eyes and page cut strawberry blonde hair unfamiliar to them. "She is the ruler of the Tribe of Defenders of the Wing on Caldera Cay. We are allies of Hiccup Haddock and the Dragon Riders."

"As am I," the third person said. A woman with silver armour and red hair in a ponytail, she wore a headdress that seemed akin to a crown and there seemed to be a young silver dragon clamped to her back. Grabthroat rose to his feet and stabbed an accusing finger.

"No more dragons here!" he yelled as she looked at him with cool contempt in her green eyes as Toothless gave a welcoming warble.

"I am Atali, Chief among the Wingmaidens," she announced. "We do Freya's work in protecting and nurturing the young Razorwhips who are born blind and helpless. Until they are ambulant, they remain paired with a protector. My young charge, Skytoucher, will remain on my back until he is ready to fend for himself." And then she scowled at Madguts. "Resume your seat, foolish man. Unless you threaten me, he is of no danger to you. The dragon stays." Astrid looked at the allies and frowned.

"Why are you here?" she asked. Throk gave a small smile.

"Hiccup Haddock sent a Terror Mail to us both to head here with all haste," he revealed. "He believed that many of the Chiefs would arrive with a closed mind and would need additional testimony to the evil of the Hunters."

"And I believe that he was correct," Queen Mala announced, her cool voice condemnatory. "These fools do not believe our ally-or choose to ignore the evidence presented." She walked forward. "I am fully your equal, a Chief and Queen on an island that has defied those who would harm dragons for centuries," she announced.

"We greet you," Bertha announced before Mogadon could open his mouth. "And you, Chief Atali. It is good to see more women represented." Mogadon scowled.

"Speak, then," he invited ungraciously.

"Our island is unstable, dominated by an active volcano," Mala announced. "Our Tribe is shielded from the caprices of the lava by a dragon called the Eruptodon, whom we call the Great Protector. Viggo knows without it, our Tribe would be destroyed by the ferocious eruptions and lave flows. So he distracted us by misinformation and stole our Eruptodon. He wanted to use it to awaken the volcano on the Edge to destroy the Dragon Riders. He was entirely happy to destroy our Tribe and kill us all by stealing our Protector to use against others."

"The Dragon Riders outwitted him and returned our Great Protector, preventing our destruction," Throk continued. "They became our allies. Since then Viggo has attacked us, damaging homes and injuring our people, our civilians."

"As allies of the Riders, we have observed their movements, revealing the Hunters to be ruthless and cruel, targeting innocents on Berk and Caldera Cay," Atali said clearly. "No one who claims the Hunters and their Tribe are innocent is being truthful. They are armed and fully committed to profiting from the enslavement and destruction of innocent, intelligent dragons. Against a treaty you all signed, I believe. And I saw representative of Tribes with your-your-your and your symbols!" She pointed unerringly at Mogadon, Madguts, Norbert and Grabthroat. They all shared glances.