How to train your vessel - Book one

Knighted

The large door displayed a symbol like that of the talisman the hive queen gave Astrid. Though many other symbols were marked on the door, they were similar to the ones on the darker side of Hornets face, and only the center icon glowed a gentle pale white as she held her own gift from Vespa. The door vanished to reveal black nothingness, a strange air poured out from within the Abyss, sending Astrid to a defensive stance while Stormfly struggled not to run away. The Light Fury, who seemed to think it was okay to take her orange-eyed friend everywhere now, immediately scrambled to the corner of the room with Apidae in her mouth.

After the orange-eyed Night Fury calmed his new childhood bestie and Astrid soothed Stromfly, she took a minute just to take in the dark aura of her destination. It wasn't toxic or disease ridden, but carried something... Alien with it. She could only accept the void was something Astrid would never even be able to comprehend, maybe she couldn't see some void creatures because her human mind couldn't comprehend them. The only ones undisturbed by the Abyss's horror were Apidae and the short-wing Night Fury, this probably even felt natural to them. 

Apidae grabbed Astrids hand and used his wings to gently let her fall to the bottom of the echoing void. Out of the corners of her eyes see caught glimpses of horns and tendrils moving away from her vision while the feeling of being watched happily ditched any kind of subtlety.

She most certainly didn't enjoy the sight of the ground, despite the time she'd spent dangling at her buzzing ally's mercy. The Valkyrie and gliding Night Fury appeared more worried by the ground made of vessel corpses then Apidae was, leaving Stormfly and the Light Fury at the door was clearly an extremely good call now. Staying clam, she stood her ground against the void while the bee nonchalantly landed on the shell of a dead sibling, not nearly as concerned by disturbing the long-gone child spirits as the dragon and human. 

"HOW DID YOU FIND OUT! APIDAE CAN'T SPEAK! THAT'S WHY HE'S THE ONLY ONE I TOLD!"

"His mother has kept her eye on him, she heard through him and told me, Apidae didn't play any part in it."

"...Fine, just don't tell my dad, I was never the son he wanted, at least spare him knowing I couldn't care less about being heir."

THAT made Astrid look frantically through the black. Nobody should've heard that conversation, and absolutely not the void, Astrid was positive not even Snotlout followed her to receive her lightning-ax  and confront Hiccup on Vespa's claims he didn't want to be chief one day. Even Toothless was likely off being seduced by Platinum, the only thing remotely void related in the room was... Hiccups Night Fury-scale armor...

Astrid noticed and at first disregarded the short buzz the vessel made as she finished the joking thought on Toothless and Platinum becoming a couple. But now that he tugged at her hand she turned to gaze at a Night Fury standing on its hind legs. It was covered in a mix of iron and chitin coated in void. The only color was the white of bone and midnight blue, ribs covered the dragons entire torso rather than just its own rib cage while a helmet of melded and warped bones peeked from under the dark blue mantles cloth hood. Shoulder blades being used as more protection poked from behind that same blue shroud that billowed as Astrid realized the void being was levitating and grasping two black scimitars.

Emitting cloud of void smoke, the entity faded into the dark. With no notable landmarks in this part of the Abyss's shores, Astrid pursued the Night Fury, Apidae excitedly zoomed ahead of her and the more cautious short-wing. They walked for a few seconds that bore the weight of hours, except for the happy little bee, of course. Images of the shady dragon popped in and out of existence, the first showing a version wearing only the midnight mantle as it struck a red bug-warrior with bone and metal garments similar to what she just saw, and each vision after depicted with more armor and committing more gruesome acts. 

Soon it seemed to care little about the warriors it cut down, walking with an increasingly more confident and empty air. The killers targets even started to become children and possibly even pregnant women, armor turned into civilians clothes as their murderer donned the final version of its void and bone layered attire, but it seemed the war crimes it casually pulled off were just beginning. Astrid knew she would have to walk with Apidae and the short-wings heads buried into her as the dragon continued presenting its prized felonies, something she also eventually decided it was best to look away from. No matter how loud the sounds kept getting and how heinously her own imagination betrayed her with the information she'd already been given. 

Soon she walked directly into what felt stronger than a Gronkle iron wall. The short-wing let out a yelp as he and Apidae finally lost their nerve and booked it to the exit to the Ancient Basin. On the other hand, Astrid came here for a reason, and stood her ground against the disgusting disgrace of a Night Fury that levitated before her. Crackling her ax's magical power before swinging it at the draconic demon that blocked every blow effortlessly. Realizing the creature wasn't attacking back, Astrid backed down. It outstretched a claw and blasted a bean of white and black void energy into her new weapon, turning the edges of the blades and handle black. The same dark power filled her veins and arteries as she refused to show her pain at the talons of the monster, meanwhile her body was encased in the same armor design that the Pale Wanderer created over its body when the Exiles raided Berk.

Now, Astrid was a knight of the voids power. Still ignoring the sting of the shadows godly force, she only stayed completely still as she gazed at the emerald glow inside of the dragons bone helm.