Chapter 9: Meeting Team Prime

Valka races through the caverns and leads Hiccup through a maze of rock caves. He and Toothless struggle to keep up with her.

"Hold on! Wait just a minute!" Hiccup exclaimed as he tried to keep up.

"This way." Valka said.

"Come back here!" Hiccup exclaimed.

"Come."

"You can't just say something like that and run off! You're my MOTHER?! I mean, what the - do you grasp how INSANE it sounds?!" Hiccup said as he was still shocked by this revelation.

"Come. Quickly!" Valka said as she easily scaled up a small cliff and went ahead.

"I have questions!" Hiccup exclaimed after her as he tried to climb up but was slipping.

Toothless quickly gave his rider a boost and the two continued to chase after her.

"Where have you been all this time? What've you been doing?!" Hiccup questioned her as they neared an opening.

"They said you were dead! Everyone thinks you were eaten by..." Hiccup said as he goes through the opening only for his eyes to widen in awe and shock.

In front of him and Toothless, appears to be a giant sanctuary as hordes of dragons of various species fly around an ice pillar as he stares in awe.

"Dragons..." Hiccup breathed in shock.

He and Toothless walked around while marvelling at the sight. Dragons were flying around and they even saw a few hatchlings playing. Toothless was looking at something as Hiccup looked up and stepped back in shock with a small gasp. It was the Stormcutter and Valka. They were both hanging upside down while looking at the two curiously.

"This is where you've been for twenty years?" Hiccup asked as Valka nodded slowly.

"You've been rescuing them." He said as she nodded again and was smiling this time.

"Unbelievable." Hiccup breathes in awe.

"You're not upset?" She asked softly as Hiccup blinked.

"What? No. I don't know. It's a bit much to get my head around, to be frank. It's not every day you find out your mother is some kind of crazy, feral, vigilante dragon lady." Hiccup said and that caused Valka to chuckle softly at her son.

"At least I am not boring, right?" She said as the Stormcutter helped her back down.

"I suppose there is that... one... specific... thing..." Hiccup said as some dragons started to approach them.

One of them quickly took a liking to Hiccup as he started to stroke its scales gently as Valka approached him slowly.

"Do you... do you like it?" She asked as Hiccup just looked around in wonder. Nothing could explain this. Not even words.

"I... I don't have the words." He admitted.

Toothless is seen surrounded by curious dragons. They didn't attack and were welcoming him. One dragon was a little curious before playfully approaching him and sniffing at him. Toothless was a little annoyed and frustrated by that, so he roars to scare them off while Valka looks at him in wonder. 

"Can-can I...?" She asked as she turned to Hiccup.

He couldn't help but smile and let her. She approaches Toothless while putting her staff down while marvelling at the sight of the Night Fury.

"He's beautiful!" She cooed and Toothless took an immediate liking towards her and nuzzled Valka's face and caused the woman to chuckle.

"Incredible! And he might very well be the last of his kind." She said while Toothless was enjoying the attention.

"And look, he's your age! No wonder you get along so well." Valka said to Hiccup while gesturing to the growing frills under Toothless' jawline.

Hiccup just smiled even wider at the sight. Emily did tell him that he and Toothless were the same age before and hearing it from his mother is still simply amazing. Toothless retracted his teeth to show it to Valka who sticks her head into his mouth.

"And retractable teeth! Ah! How did you manage to-" She began to ask and that got Hiccup a little nervous.

"Me and my friend found him in the woods. He was shot down and wounded." Hiccup admitted sadly.

That made Valka frown solemnly as she looked at her son before introducing him to the dragons that she had rescued.

"This Snafflefang lost his leg to one of Drago Bludvist's iron traps." Valka said as she approached one of the rescued dragons who was missing a leg. 

The sight made Hiccup's heart ache painfully as he gave the dragon a sad look as his mom approached a Raincutter dragon.

"This Raincutter had her wing sliced by razor netting." The sight of the torn wing that was slowly healing was painful to see before Valka approached a blind dragon.

"And poor Hobblegrunt was blinded by a tree snare... then left to die alone and scared." Valka said with a sad tone as the blinded dragon nuzzled its head against her. Hiccup was in shock by how many dragons were injured by Drago and he couldn't help but feel sorry towards the majestic creatures.

She then saw something and approached the fake tailfin that was attached to Toothless' tail.

"And what of this? Did Drago or his trappers do this, too?" Valka asked as Hiccup could feel the anger in her tone of Drago hurting another dragon.

That question made Hiccup awkward as he laughed nervously.

"Heh. Well, the crazy thing is... I'm actually the one who shot him down." Hiccup admitted as Valka looked at him in shock but was curious while the dragons watched in amusement.

It's okay though, he got me back. Right, bud? You couldn't save all of me, could you? You just had to make it even. So… peg leg!" Hiccup said as he showed his mother his peg leg.

Toothless then picks him up with his head as he lands on the saddle. Hiccup gave Toothless affectionate scratches under the chin which the Night Fury loves. Valka chuckles at him and Toothless' antics.

"What did your father think of your Night Fury friend?" Valka said as she pets Toothless again who practically melts into her touch.

"He didn't take it all that well." Hiccup started with a rub on the back of his neck.

"But then... he changed. They all did. Pretty soon everyone back home had dragons of their own." Hiccup told her as Valka frowned.

"If only it were possible." Valka said sadly as Hiccup was confused and tried to explain.

"No, really, I-" Hiccup said but was cut off.

"Believe me, I tried, as well. But people are not capable of change, Hiccup." Valka said as she stood up and picked up her staff.

"Some of us... were just born different." Valka said as the Stormcutter roared gently towards her and flew off.

Flashback starts: 20 years ago...

There was a dragon war on Berk that day and many houses were on fire with dragons flying around.

"Hoist the torches!"

'Berk was a land of kill or be killed, but I believed peace was possible.'

Valka runs towards a Viking and stops him from killing a downed Monstrous Nightmare.

"Stop! You'll only make it worse!" A younger Valka said while stopping the Viking. 

The dragon was thankful for her and escaped. The Viking scoffed at her and ran off somewhere else while Valka watched helplessly.

'It was a very unpopular opinion.'

Valka heard something and turned and gasped in shock. A Stormcutter breaks into their home. Valka panicked since her defenseless little baby was in there. She quickly runs to the house to protect him from the dragon.

'One night, a dragon broke into our house, finding you in the cradle.'

The Stormcutter was inside but a cooing noise caught his attention and saw a cradle and inside it was a little human baby. The baby giggled and cooed at the sight of the dragon.

'I rushed to protect you, but what I saw... was proof of everything I believed.'

Valka rushed in while grabbing a sword but slowly stopped when she saw something amazing. She watched as the Stormcutter played with little Hiccup who giggled innocently while grabbing the claw that the dragon reached towards him. The Stormcutter soon notices Valka and turns towards her while accidentally cutting little Hiccup's chin and causing the baby to wail out in pain.

'This wasn't a vicious beast, but an intelligent, gentle creature, whose soul reflected my own.'

The Stormcutter and Valka looked at each other and it seemed that something happened as a bond seemed to have formed. And Valka saw the gentlest side of the dragon. But the moment didn't last as an axe came between her and the dragon.

"Valka, run!" Stoick yelled.

The startled Stormcutter got protective towards the woman and fired at Stoick. Valka became worried for her husband and baby and tried to stop the dragon.

"No! Don't!" She pleaded.

The dragon turned towards her and she didn't know what to do.

"Hold on!" Stoick quickly grabbed his son from the cradle before he saw and heard something that broke his heart.

"No! STOICK!" Valka cried out.

The Stormcutter grabs Valka and she was getting farther and farther away from her family.

"VALKA!" Stoick cried out helplessly as his wife was taken away.

"STOICK!" That was the last thing that Stoick heard as his wife was taken by the dragon.

"Valka…" Stoick whispered with a broken look.

Baby Hiccup could only whimper softly as he watched his mother getting taken away from him and knew that she wouldn't be back.

Flashback ends...

Hiccup's eyes widened at this as tears threatened to fall down his eyes. He wore the same expression as he had when he was an infant. His mother looked like she was trying not to cry as she told him this.

"You and your father nearly died that night, all because I couldn't kill a dragon." She finished telling him and Hiccup couldn't stop the small smile.

"Yeah, it runs in the family." Hiccup said softly.

"It broke my heart to stay away, but I believed you'd be safer if I did." Valka said sadly.

Hiccup nodded before asking the most important question ever since he found out she was his mother.

"How did you survive?" He asked her curiously and she couldn't help but smile and look towards the Stormcutter.

"Oh, Cloudjumper never meant to harm me. He must've thought I belonged here." Valka explained as they walked to the ledge.

"In the home of the great Bewilderbeast!" 

Hiccup's eyes widened at the sheer size of the dragon. It was sleeping peacefully as dragons bowed down before the mighty dragon in respect.

"The Alpha species. One of very few that still exist. Every nest has its queen, but this is the king of all dragons." Valka said with pride before she gestured to the ice above them.

"With his icy breath, this graceful giant built our nest. A safe haven for dragons everywhere." Valka said before what she said made Hiccup blink.

"Wait, that's the ice-spitter? He's responsible for all that destruction?" Hiccup asked in shock as he walked beside his mother.

"He protects us. We all live under his care. And his command." Valka explained.

"All but the babies, of course... who listen to no one!" Valka said with a chuckle as she and Hiccup turned to see some baby Scuttleclaws approaching Toothless.

Toothless was a little uncomfortable by the hatchlings being a little too close but Cloudjumper easily scared them off with a roar before giving Toothless a smug look. Toothless gave him an annoyed look before going towards Hiccup.

The hatchlings land on the Bewilderbeast, who wakes up, gently blows them off. The mighty dragon then gets up and turns to face Valka and Hiccup. Valka kneels down before the great king even Toothless who became a little nervous around the big dragon but showed his respect towards the kind giant. Hiccup and the Bewilderbeast look at each other. The dragon looks at the teen gently with a warm gaze while Hiccup just looks at him in awe.

"I've lived among them for twenty years, Hiccup, learning their ways, discovering their secrets." Valka said before the Bewilderbeast blew a puff of snow gently onto Hiccup's hair and made  him look almost like Jack Frost.

"He likes you." Valka laughed softly as Hiccup brushed the snow off his hair.

"Wow." He breathed in awe.

They soon heard rustling in the bushes and the dragons all snarled and growled towards it in a defensive stance. Valka and Hiccup got their weapons ready to attack with the dragons while they slowly went towards the bush. As they got closer to it, something popped and exploded out of the bushes.

"BOO!" It was Miko!

Hiccup screamed and the dragons roared on the top of their lungs from the slight scare. Miko burst out laughing and was squealing out her native language while Toothless and Cloudjumper gave her an unamused look.

"Oh man! You should have seen your faces! It was priceless!" Miko continued to laugh. 

Hiccup was the first one to recover from shock and look at her in shock.

"Miko?! What are you doing here and how did you find me and Toothless?" Hiccup asked in confusion.

Miko calmed down as Bulkhead came out of the bushes and nudged her gently.

"Well, we went after Emily when she was flying to clear her mind and are about to go home but we decided to go after you and Toothless before you two could get yourselves killed. So Silvia was able to track you down before you left on Eret's ship and here we are." Miko explained with a grin.

Hiccup just groaned and facepalm while Valka walked beside him while looking at Miko curiously and was really amazed at how bigger the Gronkle is than the average Gronkles.

"Hiccup, who is she?" Valka asked curiously.

Miko turned towards her and smiled widely.

"Hi, I'm Miko Purity and this is my best buddy, Bulkhead!" Miko said as Bulkhead nudged her gently and caused her to giggle.

"My, your Gronkle friend is bigger than the average ones." Valka said as she pets Bulkhead who leaned towards her touch with a purr.

"Wait, Miko. You said that Silvia tracked me down? Would that mean that..." Hiccup then trailed off as the other members of Team Prime finally caught up to the girl.

"Miko, I told you not to run off!" Jack scolded her as she sticks her tongue out at him.

Valka's eyes widened. In front of her are different types of dragons with their size a little more bigger like the Gronkle. She was even more surprised to see another Stormcutter and another Night Fury.

"Oh my! Another Stormcutter and another Night Fury!" Valka said excitedly in awe as she approached them.

Optimus looks at her curiosity as everyone becomes aware they have eyes on them.

"Um, hi." Sierra said nervously while eyeing the dragons.

Emily walked towards him and punched his shoulders a little.

"Ow! Emily, what did you do that for?!" Hiccup asked her with a wince.

"For making me worry, you knucklehead. You could have gotten yourself killed." Emily said before pulling into a hug.

"Ems, I'm fine. You shouldn't worry yourself too much." Hiccup whispered while he hugged back before they pulled apart and Hiccup started to introduce his friends to his mom

"Oh, mom. These are the friends that I made during my adventures. Emily Winters and her Stormcutter, Optimus. Jack Dragonheart and his Deadly Nadder, Arcee. Rafael Firefist and his Grapple Grounder, Bumblebee. Sierra Firelily and her Beezelord, Cliffjumper. You already met Miko Purity and Bulkhead. Silvia Scarlet and her Razorwhip, Wheeljack. Katie Silverheart and her Rumblehorn, Ratchet. Tai Fireheart and his Changewing, Drift. Vince Burnscar and his Monstrous Nightmare, Hot Rod. Tailgate the Beezelord, Smokescreen the Dramilion and Ultra Magnus the Night Fury." Hiccup introduced his friends to his mother who all nodded.

"May we know your name, ma'am?" Tai asked as he was curious.

"Oh, where are my manners? My name is Valka. Valka Haddock." She introduced herself and the others felt their jaws drop.

"Wait. As in The Valka Haddock? The wife of the chief that was taken 20 years ago?" Katie asked in astonishment.

Valka nodded with a smile. She was glad to meet friends of his son and their amazing dragons. Cloudjumper's eyes widened in astonishment to see Optimus. He has never seen another one of his kind before in years and he seemed bigger. The dragons in the sanctuary saw his reaction and snickered only to get a glare from him. Optimus just tilts his head at the other Stormcutter as Emily leaned against him. Valka then got up and approached them.

"You all must be hungry." She said with a smile.

"Starving actually." Miko said as they started to follow Valka.

"Uh, yeah. We could eat." Hiccup said.

"Good. It's feeding time." Valka said as Emily and Optimus didn't miss the mischievous glint in her eyes.

Toothless runs over to Cloudjumper and tries to play with him, who is not amused by his antics before he followed the others outside of the sanctuary.