Defenders of Central City, Book 1: Journey to Icestorm Island

Chapter 2 The Coldest Island in the Archipelago

They flew for a hour or so when they reached an island covered in ice and snow. The Groncicle seemed to like it there. And he was looking a lot better. "Our chilly little friend is looking a lot better now." Hiccup remarked looking at the Groncicle. Shannon wasn't listening. She was looking around at the strange new environment surrounding her. Because of her powers, Shannon doesn't feel cold easily. That's how she could tell that this island was probably the coldest island in the archipelago. She was wondering what species of dragons lived there if there were any at all. Whether or not there was a Viking tribe living on this island. If there was any wild animals. "Shannon?"

Hiccup cut off her train of thought. "Are you even listening to me?" He asked looking at her. "Not really." Hiccup sighed. "We need to make this little guy a nest somewhere on the island." Shannon said looking at the Groncicle. "I think the best place for a nest would be...." She trailed off as she looked around the island. "Up there," She pointed at a small grove of trees up on a cliff. "It looks like it will provide shelter from the weather and from predators." Hiccup looked up where she was pointing and nodded. "It might work. Let's go check it out."

They mounted their dragons and flew to the cliff. The Groncicle followed them. He was a much faster swimmer than flyer. Hiccup and Shannon landed on the cliff. "Yeah this will work perfectly" Hiccup said looking around. Shannon nodded. "Lets get to work." She said, packing some snow together on the ground and Hiccup started to help her. After a few minutes they had made a small nest made of snow and ice. The Groncicle climbed into the nest and closed his eyes. He seemed comfortable. "He needs a name." Hiccup said quietly. Shannon, who was zoned out jumped. "What?" She asked him. "The Groncicle, he needs a name." "Right." Shannon thought for a moment. "How about Arctic?" Hiccup nodded, "That's a good name."

Hiccup and Shannon started to walk back to the camp, "We still need to keep tabs on him to make sure he's okay." Hiccup said as they walked. Shannon nodded. Hiccup looked at her. "Shannon? Are you okay. You've been pretty quiet." Shannon sighed, "it's just, what if Arctic is the last of his species? What if he doesn't have a family?" Hiccup looked at her. "Then we'll be his family." Shannon smiled. Suddenly a cold wind came from out towards the sea. Shannon looked up at the sky. Dark clouds were heading their way. "Looks like there's a storm coming our way. We might need to find shelter." Hiccup squinted up at the sky. "You're right. We should build a lean-to shelter. Start collecting wood and I'll do the same." Hiccup walked away while Shannon gazed up at the sky. She can tell how close a storm was and how big it was.

Shannon gathered an armload of large branches and made her way back to the camp where Hiccup had already started to build the shelter. She placed the branches on the pile that Hiccup had started. "What else do you need me to do chief?" Shannon said, looking at Hiccup. "I need you to gather some fire wood so we can stay warm when the storm hits." Hiccup said as he placed another branch on the shelter. Shannon nodded and ran off to gather some firewood. When she got back Hiccup was staring at the lean-to shelter with concern. "What's wrong?" Shannon asked. "I don't think a lean-to shelter is gonna give us much protection from this storm. We need to try something else." Shannon looked at the clouds. They didn't have much time before the storm was upon them. Then she got an idea.

"What about an igloo?" Hiccup looked at her. "You know what? That could work! Start gathering snow. I'll do the same." Five minutes later they had collected a bunch of snow "Perfect. I'll start working on building this igloo. You should get some fish. We have no idea how long we'll trapped inside." Shannon ran to the fishing hole and reeled in a few fish. She made her way back towards Hiccup. As she walked she was hit with a huge gust of wind. The storm was upon them. She ran back to Hiccup. He had finished building the igloo. "What do you think, Shannon? Not to shabby if you ask me. I made a small fire inside so we can keep warm and cook the fish. Plus the warmth of the fire will melt the snow a bit and when it refreezes and strengthen the walls." Hiccup said over the roaring wind. Shannon nodded. "Lets go inside before we freeze." Shannon exclaimed, climbing into the igloo. Hiccup looked around. The snow was falling fast. He could barely see five feet in front of him. He climbed into the igloo with Shannon just as the storm escalated.