I finally made a shorter chapter. Could I have made it longer? Yes but I wanted it to be shorter for once, and it's only been 6 days since I uploaded the Ninjago chapter, so new record!
Arc:
A Whole World to Explore
Alt-Title:
Personally, I've never seen those before.
"Speech"
'Thought'
————————
(3rd POV)
It's been a few days since Cinder had left the Edge to go explore, and so far he's found nothing of interest or value. It was a little disappointing, but expected.
As of now, he has been resting on a random island for a few hours, refreshing himself with water from a lake as well as catching and eating fish he'd caught from it.
He didn't come across any new types of dragons either. That would have no doubt made Hiccup and Fishlegs exceptionally joyous.
Cinder grabbed the Gronckle Iron shard from his pouch and began using it to sharpen his claws to pass the time. He had much time to spare; he was in no hurry to find Belzium. If he found any at all, let alone the island that's most known for using the magnetic rock in high quantities.
His eyes slightly widened as an idea came to mind. 'Why not make thin armor plates from Belzium, then have the actual Gronckle Iron armor magnetically attach. Theoretically, the Belzium should have a powerful enough magnetic force to prevent the armor from falling off, and it should add more flexibility to the wearer.' He continued to think about the possibilities of such armor and how it could allow him to move and fly unhindered.
But then his ear nubs twitched at the sound of rustling leaves to his left. A wild boar rushed out from the brush, running in his direction, obviously frightened by something or some-dragon, as there were no humans on this island.
His grip on the shard tightened, before he suddenly dropped it and instead slashed the boar across its side with his freshly sharpened claws. The boar squealed out in pain, falling down to the ground, blood streaming from its wounds as it squirmed. All the while Cinderwing stretched his body with a yawn and the sound of his bones popping from sitting for hours.
He gradually laid back down and continued to sharpen his claws when a young juvenile Deadly Nadder slipped out of the brush but stopped its approach once it noticed Cinderwing laying there sharpening his claws.
Moments later, a larger Nadder trotted out of the brush, their tail spines flaring slightly as a warning as Cinderwing noticed them with his dark emerald eyes.
"Hello to you too." Cinder murmured with a soft sigh, placing the shard into his pouch, glancing at the parent and child dragons. "You know, if you're trying to teach your youngling how to properly hunt and kill, then the boar's right there." He said as he stood up, tilting his head in the boar's direction.
Cinder turned and began walking away. "It's still alive and all, just injured." He added.
"Are you a Dark Chaser?" The feminine, but stern voice of the adult Nadder asked, using the dragon equivalent name for his species. Cinder stopped in his tracks, glancing back at the mother-and-youngling duo. "Yes. Yes I am. Though I do prefer the name given to my species by the humans; Night Fury."
The youngling tilted their head with curiosity, their feet bouncing with barely contained childlike enthusiasm. "Mum, is he really a Dark Chaser?" He asked, looking up at his mother with big beady, curious eyes.
The mother's eyes softened. "Yes, sweetheart, he is." She answered with a soft tone that quickly switched back to a stern one as she stared at Cinderwing. "But I thought they were all dead." She admitted, somewhat wanting to get an answer.
An answer that he decided to give. "As far as I know, there's only one other besides me, although he can be a bit naive sometimes." He snorted before flying off.
Yes, Dark Chaser was the original name of his species. Did you really think that humans had conveniently named the known dragon species by the same names the dragons called other species? Because if you did, that's just an illogical assumption.
Cinderwing flew across the vast ocean, passing by Scauldrun and eventually a few daring Sea Shockers who were jumping out of the water before quickly diving back into the ocean. Even with his incredible speed, though he would reluctantly have to admit that Toothless was faster in pure flight speed due to his smaller stature, it took him hours of flight before he got to a large island.
Though he did pass by dozens of smaller ones.
The moment he landed, he noticed a great abundance of flowers that layered the clearing. This included Blue Oleander so it was best for him to go into the nearby forest to avoid them as much as possible. He'd rather not get poisoned a second time.
Even after wandering through the forest there were still an abundance of flowers, though luckily, no more Blue Oleanders.
"Ugh." Cinder grunted with annoyance. "Just how many flowers are on this damn island?" He asked himself, deciding to climb up a large tree to nullify the chances of being brushed by a Blue Oleander. As even the slightest touch could make a dragon sick, and he didn't feel like vomiting for the next few days.
He jumped from tree to tree, sometimes running across the bigger branches that could handle his weight, before he eventually found a clearing with very little flowers, no blue oleander, but most importantly, a watering hole with fresh water for him to drink and fish to eat.
Said lake was also surrounded by many different dragons from Gronckles, Deadly Nadders, Monstrous Nightmares, a few Rumblehorns, Scuttleclaws, an older Stormcutter who had a female Nadder of similar age nuzzling him.
There were also two "new" species of dragons that looked quite familiar actually. Some looked like a Gronckle only they were purple or blue, a bit smaller and less rock-like bumps on their bodies. Not to mention less childish. A Rockspitter.
For another, he could instantly tell that it was a Fire Fury. While still thin and agile, it was much bulkier than what he could remember from the tv series counterpart. It also had bigger horns, longer tail, neck and arms, a more proportionate head and more vibrant colorings of red, orange and yellow.
Cinderwing chuckled inwardly. 'Their appearance on this island means that I'm going in the right direction. After flying southwest for so long, I am at least close enough to Huttsgalor. Honestly, I thought I would find Caldera Cay first.'
He slowly climbed down the tree as to not draw too much attention, his tail wrapping around the base of the tree trunk to prevent gravity from fully taking its hold over him. The shadows of the trees kept him from being seen until he left them.
It wasn't until he was about halfway to the lakefront when most of the other dragons noticed him and began to stare. He kept his guard up as he took sips of water, his eyes focused on the dragons around him.
After several seconds, he stopped drinking and laid down in the sun. His tail mindlessly waving around and thumping the ground, similar to a cat as he let out a yawn.
Several minutes later, a young, but bold Monstrous Nightmare decided to "playfully" attack Cinderwing by attempting to bite his tail. Only for said tail to wrap around their neck and casually slam their head into the ground multiple times before releasing the Nightmare, who now most likely has a concussion.
The dragons around the lake began murmuring in conversation at the sight, the younger ones questioning each other about what kind of dragon Cinder was. This was when one of the oldest there; the Stormcutter, began walking around the lakefront towards the Night Fury.
"You know, what you did to that young Flame-Starter was unnecessary." He stated with a sort of elderly wisdom type of tone. "But what I'm really interested about, is what a Dark Chaser such as yourself is doing in these parts."
Cinderwing snorted, only lifting his head to look at him. "You make it sound like you've recently seen another of my kind." He trailed his claw across the dirt, before rinsing it off in the water. He honestly couldn't remember most dragons' original names. Was that really what they called Monstrous Nightmares? "Either way, he tried to bite my tail, so I simply reciprocated his actions. So I don't think you have any real right to tell me otherwise, Wind Slicer."
The Stormcutter attempted to place one of its wing claws on Cinderwing's shoulder, only for it to get smacked away as said Night Fury had a defensive reaction and retreated a little distance away with a cat-like hiss.
"Do not touch me." He warned, his eyes thin slits, and his dorsal spines crackling with lightning. He would not allow some-dragon he didn't know to touch him so casually. Such things only happen in battles where a touch of a claw means blood being drawn.
And no, he didn't have any problems you might be thinking about in his human life, not that he could remember much of that anyway.
Soon after, the Deadly Nadder—who Cinder had assumed to be the Stormcutter's mate—had trotted up to the four-winged dragon.
"You have no need to be skittish, Dark Chaser. Most here are friends, family, or at the very least friendly with each other." She said, gesturing to the crowd of dragons with her wings.
Cinderwing fixed his posture, standing up properly, though his eyes remained slits. "I didn't intend to stay for long anyway, and I already have what I need. So if you don't mind, Spike tail, I'll be on my way." He said, turning to leave back into the forest.
The two mated dragons stayed there watching as Cinderwing slipped into the forest. Minutes later, a young to middle-aged dragon landed near the two dragons.
Just by looking at it, both human and dragon could tell that this was a hybrid dragon with the lethal grace of the Deadly Nadder and the broad-winged power of the Stormcutter. Its body was covered in a mosaic of deep purple and warm gray scales, each one speckled with a lighter blue dot. Its head was topped with a striking crown of spiky, orange-tipped crests, and an overbite gave its face a naturally fierce, but determined look. A perpetual snarl.
Just like its father, it had two pairs of wide, membranous wings that would allow it to glide with incredible speed and agility. As well as a long, three-finned tail that was covered in tail spines just like its mother.
"Mother, father, are you two alright?" The respectful, male voice of the hybrid asked as he tilted his head. "Why is that Flame-Starter unconscious?" He added questioningly.
Both of the hybrid's parents nodded in response. "Yes, we're fine, sweetheart, no need to worry." The mother replied with a sweet smile, nuzzling her son's cheek.
"Who was that?" His father chuckled softly. "Just a traveler."
(Scene break)
Cinderwing continued trotting through the woods, before almost immediately moving to traverse using the trees.
"Stupid fucking Stormcutter, trying to fucking touch me. I barely let Hiccup and Astrid touch me, let alone the other riders." He angrily muttered, leaping to another large tree branch before repeating the process until he reached another lake that was smaller than the last.
Jumping from the tree, Cinderwing dived straight into the water with a splash. He swam deeper into the lake before swimming back up, only surfacing enough for his eyes and nose to stick out of the water to allow him to breathe.
His body began to relax as he calmed down and cooled off. He despised casual physical contact, with the exception being physical combat such as training. Then again, that's not casual whatsoever.
He swam around the lake for an hour before swimming to shore. As he walked out of the water and onto the lakeshore, he heard rustling from the bushes nearby.
Cinder's eyes narrowed. From the way the bushes moved, he could tell that it was not from an animal like a boar or a snake but rather a dragon.
Channeling his predatory instincts, he stalked closer toward the bushes, slowly lowering himself to a crawl as he snuck into the brush. Using his echolocation, he could "see" the outline of a four-headed dragon with triple-split jaws that had a flower-like appendage as its tongue. Each of the four heads were also opened, and when they finally came into view, they looked like flowers.
Something that Cinderwing would have brushed off if he hadn't used echolocation.
The mysterious dragon also had plant-like features covering its body such as leaf-shaped spines for camouflage, and it was only then that Cinder noticed a scent that smelled almost exactly like chocolate. Something he hadn't had in a long time.
'Is this what I think it is?' He thought, getting closer to the false flowers but still more than ready to launch himself backward to avoid being potentially poisoned by this dragon.
The last time he was poisoned was when he'd eaten the boar which had consumed a Blue Oleander, and now that he thought about it more, he might also have an allergy to the poisonous flower, because there wouldn't have been enough blue oleander left in the pig's digestive system to truly harm him. At most, he should have had stomach pain, but instead, he'd basically died.
So being poisoned again is definitely off the menu.
Just as he expected, the dragon snapped its jaws toward him, but not before he launched himself backward, shooting a stunning plasma at the same time.
"Uggh!" Two voices grunted at once as the two dragon's heads were knocked into the tree behind them, knocking them out, while the other two heads growled at him.
Cinderwing was grinning. It was a Snaptrapper, a dragon he'd never personally seen before. They were mainly known for their four heads, and that chocolate smell that comes from their flowery tongue. Another thing they were known for was being very aggressive and territorial with the addition of being poisonous. Their poison was only outclassed by the Slitherwing.
"Who are you?"
"And what are you doing on our turf?" The two conscious heads asked and demanded, yet confused at Cinderwing's grin. Their voices were feminine.
"I was just passing by, taking a small stop at the watering hole when I heard you rustling through the bushes." Cinder shortly paused to let out a chuckle. "So don't blame me for being curious. Especially when I've never seen a Snaptrapper before." He added, not bothering to use the dragon name for he barely remembered it.
The Snaptrapper's two heads gained a confused expression, just as their other two heads regained consciousness. "Snaptrapper? Don't you mean, Leaf Snapper? That's what all the other dragons call our species." The two heads that were unconscious were left confused on why they were holding a conversation instead of removing the invader.
"What are you two doing?" A more mature tone came from one of the two middle heads. "Yeah. Why haven't we blasted this guy? Or spit acid on him and watch him wriggle in pain." The head on the right said maniacally.
The other three heads stared at the fourth strangely, this included Cinderwing, who had a raised brow.
The most left head turned to him with a surprisingly kind, yet apologetic expression. "I'm sorry about her. We're not used to unexpected guests, usually that means we have to fight for our territory." Cinderwing nodded in acceptance of the apology.
"It's fine, I've seen stranger." He replied, slightly relaxing his stance. "As I've said before, I'm just passing by." The other two heads relaxed slightly at this.
"Oh, you were just passing through? He was just passing through?" The middle-right head asked the head to her left sheepishly, to which the left head nodded, whilst the more aggressive one calmed down by a small margin.
"You four are surprisingly talkative." Cinderwing noticed, his wings shifting into a more comfortable position.
The middle-left head turned to face him. "Yes, um. We don't really get guests that have... good intentions." The right-most head scowled at her sister's casualness. "Why are you being nice to him, Coco?"
"You don't always have to be so snappy, Snaps." Coco rebutted in response to her sister's aggression.
The left-most head nodded in agreement. "Yeah, he hasn't really done anything other than take a drink and swim in the watering hole. He only defended himself when we struck first."
Snaps rolled her eyes, which naturally appeared as if she had a single sharp eyelash. "Well, sorry for being paranoid, Flowie. But I'm trying to keep us safe!"
"Enough!" The middle-right head snapped at Snaps. "Stop arguing with each other while we have company." She turned to Cinderwing. "I must apologize for her behavior, she just gets overprotective after what happened with our last... guest." She said with a wry smile at her sister's appalled expression.
He snorted. "It's fine, I've dealt with... anger issues before."
"Oh, where are my manners. I'm sure you already heard the other three's names, but mine is, Latte. I believe I took it from something I heard humans made once." Latte said. "But what other dragons call us as a whole—like the ones at the bigger watering hole—they, call us, Snap-trap."
Cinderwing smiled at their change in attitude toward him. "Well then, Snap-trap. It was nice meeting you, even if our first impressions were as possible enemies, it was still nice." He said. "Especially since you're the first Leaf Snapper I've ever seen or met."
Snap-trap looked surprised, and most tilted their heads with Snaps being the exception, who instead rolled her eyes. "Really?" Flowie questioned. Cinder nodded. "It makes sense, we usually prefer keeping to ourselves." Coco added.
"Actually before I go, do you happen to know of an island that the humans call; Huttsgalor?" He asked. "More specifically, if you know of any dragons mentioning of humans speaking our dragon language."
All four of Snap-trap's heads pondered over the question, murmuring among themselves about it. Before turning to face him, with Latte answering his question.
"If I'm correct, I believe that I heard two fire dragons talking about it. Two young humans, a boy and a girl."
"No one really believed them, but if you're asking about it I can only assume that there's some truth to it." Flowie added on.
"Do you happen to know what direction the island is in, if they even mentioned it at all?" Cinder replied with another question, with the hopes of getting a probable direction.
Snaps, still scowling, pointed her head in a direction with her scowl transforming into a sickly smile. "Yeah. They said it was that way." Coco, however, headbutted her sister. "Don't lie about that, we're not sending him towards HIM." She enforced, before turning back to Cinder.
"It's just about in that direction." She said, her head pointing towards the southeast. "But I'm not completely sure." Cinderwing nodded thankfully. "Even if it's not exactly in that direction, I do appreciate your willingness to assist me."
Latte nodded. "Of course. It is nice when we do get someone else to talk to other than ourselves." She replied with a smile. "But if you don't mind me asking, what are you?"
He shook his head. "I don't mind at all. I'm a Dark Chaser." Snaps' head perked up with intrigue. "Really?" Cinderwing's brow raised at her sudden interest. "Yes. There is only one other that I know of."
Snaps' eyes shined with a shy curiosity. "Is it true that your kind can accurately destroy something from miles away?" Her tone was eager, obviously more comfortable with talking about the destruction of things than normal conversation.
He pondered over it for a moment before nodding. "Yes, though it would be very difficult when flying at high speeds." Snaps was now grinning, before she shook her head and turned away with a false scowl.
"I guess you're alright and whatever." She mumbled.
Cinderwing smiled as both of them walked back towards the lake, with Snap-trap having a hop in their stride.
"Well, it's about time I get going. There's a reason why I'm searching for the island." Latte nodded. "Good luck on your journey. And we do hope that you come back to visit, it's nice to talk to someone without them being so nervous."
"Even though our kind is usually super aggressive, we're a bit calmer than others. Except Snaps, of course, she's just naturally bitchy." Coco adds, causing her sister to snap back. "Fuck you!"
Cinderwing burst into laughter. His laughter was contagious as all four of Snap-trap's heads burst into laughing as well.
His laughter slowly came to a halt before he said. "I'll try to visit on my way back home. That's if you consider me a friend?" Latte nodded. "We all do, surprisingly enough. There's something about you that makes us feel more comfortable with expressing ourselves."
"It might be certain similarities between us, or something else." He replied with a barely visible smile. He trotted over to a clearer area of the lake, spreading his wings in preparation for takeoff.
"Well, see you later." Cinderwing flew off in the direction that Coco had mentioned as Snap-trap waved their wings in goodbye.
"He was nice." Flowie said, and Coco nodded in agreement. "Yeah."
"I guess he's fine." Snaps muttered. Latte smiled at her sisters, she knew that they all liked the prospect of having a friend. Unlike what happened with that hybrid of the Spike-Tail and Wind-Slicer. 'He's more aggressive than Snaps, he just knows to hide it from his parents and friends.'
Latte's neck shuddered with a grimace on her lips.
"Well let's go our hunting grounds for those large spiders, they should be out and about around this time." Latte suggested, as they walked into a deeper part of the forest.
(End)