Howling Echoes - A How to Train Your Dragon Story, The Echoes, Book 1

Kiara Tribute

Prologue

   I was running through the forest. My maroon boots kicked up big lumps of snow that I kept stumbling on. My light brown hair kept whipping into my face, dappled with snow from the cold, snowy, windy storm. My dark brown gloves grasped the snow below me as I stumbled on. But it wasn't the storm I was running from. It was the creature behind it.

   I was stopped by an icy, light blue winged creature. Snow-white frost streaks painted her bat wings. I turned around to run the other way, but the creature quickly interfered, placing her face in front of mine.

   I could feel a cold, icy gaze barrel straight through my soul. Actual crystal shapes frosted white marked the edges of the creature's vision. A long, thin tail with a thin frost layer gently wrapped around me.

   Normally I would've run, escape through the trees to the best of my abilities. But I couldn't. The icy blue gaze was hypnotizing. The dragon gently puffed frost in my face. Small, gleaming white teeth caught the snow. No matter how brilliant this dragon looked, however, I couldn't fight back the only other thought that was running through my head. I'm gonna die.

   But I didn't. The dragon sniffed at me, then pulled her tail back. She started to back away with a piercing light blue gaze. I didn't know dragons well, but this was definitely a dragon of some sort. I turned my head away and reached out my hand, praying that it wouldn't get bitten off.

   A moment later I felt strangely warm, smooth scales brush my hand. I relaxed and tentatively looked at the dragon. The dragon opened her eyes and relaxed as well.

   But everything went downhill from there. Actually, my whole life was downhill, this was one of the few upsides in my life.

   Let me rephrase that: Everything went back to being downhill, but maybe so downhill that I was pretty sure I could bet everything good in the world that I was gonna die.

Chapter 5:  Defending the Edge

  "Um...Hiccup." I interrupted, pointing. "I don't think we're getting to the island anytime soon." "Why not?" He asked. I rolled my eyes and pointed at the ships guarding the front and sides of the edge. Hunters were already in the base. When I glanced back there were ships boxing us in from the back. "Take a wild guess."

Chapter 9:  Midnight Scrum

 "I just feel like we aren't fitting in here, girl, y'know?" I said, rubbing Frost's head. She purred and nodded. "Nobody asks us for help. In plans, we usually have to go off and figure out our own roles. Even when we mess up nobody really cares." I sighed. Frost made a sad noise and rested her head on the grass beside me.

   "Everyone's always talking about Toothless being at the top of the class for everything, but we're next in line - right?" I said. Frost let out a soft growl to show that she agreed. "We do plenty of stuff just as good as he does! Nobody notices. And nobody knew who those people were, but I did, and when I said something, nobody heard." I put my face in my hands. "I feel like we're only here because of that stupid Trial."

Chapter 10:  Best in Show

   Frostflake and I waited for Heather and Astrid to approach each other, ready to jump, run and ride.
We were ready, too.

Heather and Astrid leaped to one another's dragons. Frostflake blasted a thin beam of frost right underneath them. They landed on their own dragons and we swooped where we had blasted. We flew into the air and waited for Ruff and Tuff's Viking explosion. When Fishlegs flew into one of the eyes we spiraled through the other, laughing.

Frostflake roared happily as Hookfang lit the bonfire. "Our turn!" I cheered. Heather had fit us into Hiccup's routine, which I was very happy about. The two of us flew at one another. Toothless blasted three plasmablasts in rapid succession and we did the same, resulting in a chill being swept over the Vikings of Berk. The two of us flew higher into the air, the dragon's claws interlocking with one another's. Then we backflipped and smoothly swept by Toothless. Hiccup and Toothless suddenly went off routine, but we didn't.

We spun and dove at the bonfire. We blasted ice at it and then pulled up at the last second, slicing the ice with Frostflake's sharp silver tail blades. Everyone got in a circle above the bonfire and blasted fire at it, while we flew by and froze the area around it.

"When did you find her?" Stoic asked.

"They didn't find me," I retorted under my breathe.

"...Eeeer that's a long story." Hiccup said.

"We both got captured by the Defenders of the Wing and he offered to let me escape with them," I said directly after.  

    I nodded back and leaped into the air. "So, what are we actually doing?" Frostflake asked me. Yes, I can speak Dragon, did I mention that? Long story, short time.

I leaped off of her and transformed into a Flame Wraith. The flames flickering off my crimson red wings cut through with gold veins, lit up the clouds.

Chapter 11:  Lost Lineage

   I soon was rolled onto a dragon hunter boat. Any hunter that looked at me was given a glare right back. "Viggo wants to speak with her." Someone said, shooting me a look. I glared at him in the eyes.

   I remembered his silky, chocolatey voice from the fight to get the Eruptodon to leave the Edge, but it startled me so close. "They say there are two ways to be fooled. One to believe wasn't isn't true...the other is to refuse to believe what is." I narrowed my eyes at him. He wasn't showing his face, just staring down at a board beneath him.

"But you see, in Maces and Talons, as in life, the line between good and evil is often unclear." Viggo continued. I already wanted to punch him unconscious and throw him overboard. Already he was getting under my skin and poking at my nerves, hitting every angle exactly at what I doubted myself for. "Black and white can become gray so easily. What one soul considers evil, another may consider righteous."

"What are you getting at?" I growled. He finally looked up. "Brother." Viggo ignored me and gave him a hug. The opposite of what I was expecting.

"Well, here she is." Ryker prodded me forward with his green-tinted sword. "No need for the sword, scarface," I muttered. Ryker tensed, but Viggo was quick to intervene. "Forgive my brother, he doesn't understand the concept of savoring victory." Viggo held my arm.

I jerked away. "Oh, I think he gets it. I think he gets it just fine." Hiccup had always recommended to let Viggo speak, but I had no intention to let this...hunter get inside my head.  

   "Get on with it, Viggo. Either finish up with me quickly and toss me in a cell or toss me in a cell now and save me the boredom." I said, annoyed. "Come. Walk with me." Viggo took my arm, but this time when I tried to jerk away, it didn't work.

    "So my choices are die of boredom or die of fall damage," I said. "Great."

   I scoffed and turned away. "You're insane, Viggo. What makes you think I would help you?" I crossed my arms, although my gaze kept trying to flicker back to my supposed father.

   "You know, the night sky is a funny thi -"

"Not in the mood for it, Viggo." I turned and walked away, covering my face with my hood. He didn't stop me.

   Hey guys!  I might update this at some point, but for now, here are some of my favorite Kiara moments!  I'm working on the first chapter of 'Fading Echoes' and a cover at the moment, so I'll let you guys know when that's out.