15 The battle on board the LUCKY THIRTEEN

15. THE BATTLE ON BOARD THE LUCKY THIRTEEN Alvin advanced towards Hiccup, with the Stormblade raised above his head. Hiccup closed his eyes, waiting for the blow. But at that moment Toothless finally managed to overturn the barrel he was trapped underneath. He had been throwing his entire body weight at one side for the past five minutes. At last he made an extra-strong he-e-e-eave, the barrel tipped over, and rolled at great speed across the deck with Toothless rumbling round and round inside it… and bowled straight into the legs of Alvin the Treacherous… who lost his footing and fell over…

Alvin gave an ooohh of surprise, the Outcasts were distracted for one vital second, and Stoick turned round and felled Curly Horns with a good old-fashioned upper cut right under the chin. From that moment on, there was chaos aboard the Lucky Thirteen. The Hooligans took advantage of their captors' surprise as the swords against their throats were lowered for a moment. 'THIS IS MORE LIKE IT! I'LL TEACH YOU TO SAY THE HOOLIGANS HAVE GONE SOFT!!!!' Stoick let out the Viking War Cry and launched himself on the enemy completely barehanded. He crashed two Outcasts' heads together, jabbed another in the kidney with his foot, and when that one doubled over in pain, leapfrogged over his back to face another couple of the opposition. All might not have gone well for him, however, unarmed as he was, if Baggybum the Beerbelly had not come to his aid. The two brothers, who had been fighting each other five minutes earlier, now fought the enemy back-to-back for the rest of the battle. The 'Battle on Board the Lucky Thirteen' would be a Saga that the Hooligans would tell their

children and grandchildren for many, many years to come. The military prowess of the Outcast Tribe was legendary throughout the Viking World. But the Hooligans were desperate and angry. They were battling for their FREEDOM itself, and so fought more wildly, more fiercely, than perhaps they had ever done before or since. No fewer than twenty Black Stars* were awarded to Warriors after the battle was over. No wonder, for the Pirate Fighting Skills on display on that occasion were a joy to watch. They were also a tribute to the old soldier, Gobber, who had taught most of the Warriors all that they knew. There, on one corner of the deck, was Nobber Nobrains, performing the highly skilled manoeuvre known as the 'Dance of the Axes', in which the pirate rapidly juggles two twirling axes from one hand to the other, hypnotising and confusing the enemy, before the pirate lunges forward for the fatal blow. Up around the mast were the boys from the Pirate Training Programme, valiantly tackling Outcasts nearly twice their size, putting into practice all that*

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they had learnt during those Swordfighting at Sea lessons. The behaviour of Fishlegs was particularly surprising. As soon as the battle began, he completely lost control, throwing himself at the enemy, shrieking furiously and whirling his sword around his head like a madman. Vikings call this 'going Beserk' and Warriors who do this are revered in Viking society. You could not imagine a more unlikely candidate for being a Beserk than Fishlegs, but there we are, these things are never predictable. The Outcasts stayed out of his way, for a Beserk is always respected, even if he is only four foot ten with a squint and a limp and no swordfighting skills whatsoever. It has to be admitted (reluctantly), that Snotlout fought with spectacular brilliance and bravery. His quick wrist made the Flashcut slip neatly in and out, hither and thither, beautifully performing the Destroyer's Defence, the Grimbeard's Grapple, the Final Cut, and many, many more of the subtlest swordfighting skills. In the space of five minutes no fewer than three Outcasts lay dead around him,