Soul of the Sky (HTTYD Runaway Fic)

Survivors

Hiccup

The words resounded over and over as I stared into space, the final death knell of my feeble attempts to protect my family. "They can't be..." I whispered, reverting unconsciously to Dragonese. "The Hunters must be wrong, they can't be dead!"  

Toothless' only response was a low moan of pained grief. He was pacing the confines of the cave we were stuck in, tail lashing in distress. "Nonononononononononononono..." The short syllable was repeated over and over in what would have sounded to the humans like a keen of anguish. In a way, it was. We had unknowingly sent the survivors to their deaths.

Toothless had towed Astrid back to the cave after the encounter with the Hunters, confirming my fears. Our island - my island - was taken. Viggo's men infested the forests on the west side and the bombardment continued, white-blue fireballs screeching overhead to shake the island. The tremors had become more frequent, no longer just accompanying an impact.

And the refuge caves had been smashed in. 

All it had taken was a single obsessive man and everything we had worked so hard to build was gone. The dragons I'd vowed my life to protect. The home we'd built up for years to make a paradise for everyone. The little oasis I'd carved out for myself where I could pretend that, despite my unclawed hands and wingless body, I had always been a dragon. Even my secrecy was gone - Berk knew now, Dad knew. And even my desperate attempt to save them at the price of my own secrets hadn't been enough. 

"I'm going out there." I whispered. "Viggo's won, there's no point in hiding. The Hunters will find us sooner or later."
"So that's it?" Astrid questioned, her voice rising sharply. "You're just gonna give up and die? We can fight them!" She snapped to her feet in the lightning-quick way she'd always moved, reaching for her axe. "There are thousands of them and six of us. I can't walk, neither Hookfang or Toothless can fly and Snotlout's arm is broken." I answered wearily. "There's nothing left here to fight for. Viggo will smash the island to smithereens to get what he wants and we can't stop him anymore."

"The Hunters could be lying!" Toothless added, tone manic. "They'll still be out there!"
Oh, how I wanted to believe it. Wished I could agree. But I'd seen the blast, felt it rock the island. Even if the refuge caves hadn't collapsed, the wreckage the volcano might wreak could still kill them. And that was a strong if.

Suddenly Astrid's sharp pacing stilled. She turned around, grabbing me by the shoulders and looking me in the eyes. "Hiccup. Listen to me. Didn't you say you'd sworn an oath to protect these dragons? You and Toothless may be all they have left. You can't give up." She sighed. "I won't let you give up. And we won't give up on you. Right, Snotlout?"

"Huh?" Snotlout looked dubious. Astrid glared at him, the promise of pain in her stare. "I said 'right, Snotlout?' " 
"Yes, no giving up, death or glory!" He hurriedly rushed to answer before Astrid gave him a face to match his arm. "Jorgensons always win!" She rolled her eyes and turned away. "We have to get out there.:

I exchanged glances with Toothless, seeing the same steely determination in my best friend's stare. We would do what we had to, save who we could (if there was anyone left to save). 
The pieces are moving, Viggo. You haven't got us yet.

A/N:
Well, first chapter in eight months. And it's short and crappy. I get it if you hate me for that hiatus - I hate me too. But hey, I'm getting stuff done now. So for those of you that don't follow me or read my announcements, I posted an explanation there. I'll just quickly recap it here so you know I didn't just disappear for no good reason.

I have been struggling a lot with my anxiety recently - at the beginning of this year I started suffering from tinnitus (for those who don't know it's a condition where you have a constant ringing in your ears, it's chronic and there's no cure). At that point my mental health really took a turn for the worse. Stacking an absolute nightmarish lineup of teachers and a dragon's worth of schoolwork with an ongoing mental health condition, tinnitus and a pandemic...well, I've been wrecked.

I'm now seeing quite a few specialists but the fight is still ongoing and I just haven't had the energy to do anything, let alone write. But coming off a long rewatch of HTTYD and a sudden burst of inspiration, I decided I was gonna get this done.

You can expect another chapter after this, somewhere between tomorrow and the end of the week ( the next will be longer). Aside from that I can't make any promises aside from the promise to try. Hopefully I can finish this and give all of you wonderful Toothlets the happy ending you deserve.

Watch this space.

- Isarn