The Shadow's Bane

Here Comes Hiccup

Hiccup's POV:

I didn't understand it. But as soon as I showed Jim the Stasis Trap that I had prepared, when I looked back at him, he looked distracted.

"Jim?" I asked. "Is everything okay?" 
There was darkness in his blue eyes. A darkness that I had never seen before.

"Something is not right," he said. Then I saw his hands clench into fists by his sides. What was he thinking right now?

Before I could say anything he suddenly turned around and dashed back up and out of the Cove too fast for me to see how.

"Oh no. Toothless!" I said. When Toothless came to me, I got on and we took off. "Let's find him bud. Something is not right. He's right about that."

As we took off, Toothless gave a low growl of agreement. "Hiccup!" Astrid called from down below.

"Hold your positions, gang! Jim has run off," I said. Then we were prowling through the forest. It wasn't long till Toothless got Jim's scent. After a few minutes of searching, we finally came across a couple of bushes where foreign voices were heard coming from behind it.

"It could smell fear. While the school's Chicken Surprise was bad. This can be worse. Don't trust a thing it says."

With careful trepidation, I edged forward closer enough with Toothless next to me so that I could peak over. 
"What an intimidating chicken. Oh well. It sure did surprise us," the same voice added.

Then before I could say anything a red blur fast as lighting speed itself rushed past us and jumped over the hethers. Causing me to fall back in shock. Wait a second... the red blur. Can it seriously be...?

"Toby!" Another voice then called. 
Toby? I thought when I looked back over to see the red blur now holding Toby down. Next to him, I recognised Claire. Which was also when I realised something else.

"Jim?" I heard Toby ask.

That was my cue to dash out of the bushes after him which was exactly what I did. "No Jim. Don't," I said before he could do something that he would regret. Was this what he meant by the darkness threatening to consume him when he told me about that? "This isn't you," I added.

"Jimbo," Toby said. "It's me. Your partner in crime?" At those words, Jim prepared to throw his fist into Toby's face. "Okay. Normally talking works on TV. So I don't supposed you want to talk about this?"

In answer, Jim gave out the same growl that Toothless usually does when he's disagreeing or upset with me. And it was scary. I won't lie. As I had never seen Jim like this before. "You're my best friend, Jim," Toby tried. "My best friend. The dynamic duo, remember? Whatever Strickler taught you... forget it. We will find another way to catch this red blur. We found that amulet together. We finish this together."

I still don't know exactly how, but then Jim's red armour began to shine and he breathed heavily. Letting Eclipse drop back down without hurting Toby. Toby rolled away and stood back up. Claire helped him.

"Toby?" Jim asked. "Claire?" I moved next to him.

"So this is what you meant by the darkness?" Claire said. Jim looked at her, looking slightly guilty.

"Yes... no. I'm still not sure myself. Whenever it takes controll of me I forget what I do. But most importantly I sometimes forget who I am. I'm sorry, Tobes," he explained.

"Hey. It's okay. We got through Gunmar. We can get through this," Toby said.

Then he turned to me. "I'm sorry, Hiccup. But when you showed me the Stasis Trap I don't know what took over me there for a second. It reminded me of the time when Angor Rot marked me. It must have affected me more than I thought."

"Even though it was scary," I said. "Toby is right. It's okay." At my words, Toothless's jumped over to Jim and rubbed his head on him as a petting gesture. Jim smiled. Even though it was still weird seeing him as troll, he was still my brother. "It's good to see you two again," I said to Toby and Claire.

"You too, Hiccup," Claire said. Her skull shirt reminding me of Astrid's skulls on her skirt. "Jim." Then she rushed over to him and they hugged.

"Claire," Jim said. And when I looked at them it was cute how she was so short compared to him. Hiccup, snap out of it. I told myself as Toothless came back to me.

"Yeah. Even though you're our friend, Jim. Maybe next time we should have like a signal before you turn all dark side? I don't know," Toby said.

Jim laughed. "It's good to have you back, Tobes. You remembered my letter."

"Speaking of. We should also probably go back too. Considering that the twins are out there by themselves... who knows what kind of-"

It was a rustle of bushes that moved past us at the speed of light that made me forget what I was saying and my words falter. "Jim?" I said when I saw his blue eyes narrow and harden for a minute. "Jim!" I said again. Because then just as fast, he was gone.

"Oh no," Toby said.

"Come on. Lets go," I said while getting on Toothless to take us back to the Cove which was where I assumed Jim would have rushed off to.

Toby and Claire got on behind me. We didn't hesitate to take off. "Now bud. We can't lose them."

A few minutes later we reached the Cove where I soon saw that I had been right. Opposite us, a red figure dashed down, his sword held out and at the ready. As we flew over them I saw that he wasn't alone. Below us a battle soon took place between two red blurs. Both battling for dominance. Jim and the Red Blur.

It was a heroic fight from up above. Neither outnumbering the other I soon saw what Jim was trying to do. The Stasis Trap. With the fighting skills they both had, Jim was carefully ambushing his opponent into the Trap. With each move. Each maneuver he finally did.

"Here comes Hiccup!" Tuffnut shouted from down below. "There goes Hiccup," he said when we passed them.

Next thing I knew I gasped as Jim finally got him in the trap where as soon as he did, yellow shards of light burst out from the stones surrounding the Red Blur. Freezing him in place.

When all was done, Jim breathed heavily with his sword held up in front of him. He fell on his knees. Then turned his head up to face me as I neared him. "Jim!" I said. Because there when I looked at his face, some kind of mark had been engraved onto the one side of his face. From what it looked like to me. "Your face," I said.

"But that's impossible," Claire said. "Because Angor Rott is dead. And even if he was alive he wouldn't hurt Jim anymore. There has to be some kind of mistake. Jim, what's going on?"

But when Jim looked at us there was only fear in his blue eyes. "I don't know," he said.