18 Freeing the Dragons

18. FREEING THE DRAGONS This was one of the most important speeches of his life, he knew it. 'Friends and fellow Vikings,' said Hiccup, 'I know that I am probably not quite the King that you expected, but destiny has decreed that I should become your King, in troubled times, facing a Dragon Rebellion. If we allow ourselves to be drawn into a war with the dragons, disaster will follow. Do we want this war? I say no.' The Vikings murmured to each other. They did not really want an all-out war with the dragons. Why would they? They had grown up with dragons. Their dragons slept at their firesides, they hunted fish for them, they fought by their sides in battle. 'I do not want a war with the dragons. In fact, I will do everything in my power to prevent it. I speak Dragonese. I will go to the Dragon Furious, myself, alone, and speak to him to stop this rebellion. War is not necessary! Dragons and humans can live together, I know it! 'But in order for us to stop this war, we have

to change some things about the way we live,' continued Hiccup. He took a deep breath. 'The dragons need to be freed.' Uproar in the castle. Cries of 'That's just ridiculous!' and 'We depend on dragons for our livelihoods!' Hiccup shouted above the hubbub: 'But if the war goes ahead we will have no livelihoods left! We may not even have our lives!' The Tribes quieted again, although there were still furious mutterings and whisperings. 'Think carefully,' pleaded Hiccup. 'We are proud independent island peoples. Would we want to be chained and enslaved, forced to bow down to others as our Masters? Slavery should be banned in all its forms, for both dragons and humans.' The Vikings were silent. 'We do not have to depend on slave and dragon labour. We are Vikings. We can stand on our own two feet. We don't have to stand by and let history just happen to us. We can take charge of our own fortune, we can improve our own futures, and stop this war before it starts. Free the dragons!'

All around the Battle Arena, the hunting- dragons were still as statues, ears back, cats' eyes watchful. Those that understood Norse were whispering in Dragonese to those that did not. One Eye the revolutionary Sabre-Tooth Driver Dragon looked cynically down from the Second to the Left Tower. 'HA! Nice try, Hiccup my boy, but trust me, humans are incapable of change. They were pigs with whips in the past, and they'll be pigs with whips for ever.' All around the edges of the castle, the Outcasts were prowling, like a pack of hungry wolves, ready to prove that One Eye the Sabre-Tooth was right. But maybe One Eye was wrong. For some reason, Hiccup's speech was striking a chord with the exhausted battle-weary Vikings. Maybe it was the long months of poor harvests and food. Maybe they were impressed by Hiccup seeming to have the will of the gods behind him. Maybe it was the thought of more fighting, and they hadn't got the heart for it. Or maybe, just maybe, they saw that he had a point. Who knows.

A miracle happened that day on the mountain- top. A small miracle, perhaps just the beginning of one. Slowly, around the arena, people began to clap. Camicazi and Fishlegs began the applause. Closely followed by the whole of the Bog- Burglar and Meathead Tribes, for Hiccup had done them favours in the past. And then the Hooligans, for he was one of them, and the nicer Tribes, such as the Grim-bods, and the Bashem-Oiks, and the Glums and— Suddenly you realize that the nicer Tribes outweighed the not-so-nice. Not the Outcasts, of course. They didn't clap. Nor the Visithugs or the Murderous. They still stood with folded arms, sullen, silent. Although, wonder of wonders, little oily Gumboil got carried away with the moment and put his black-gloved hands together (his mother was a Wanderer) until Madguts the Murderous brought him to his senses with a cuff around the ear. 'Well, shiver my wings, and bless my one

good eye!' wondered One Eye the old Sabre-Tooth. 'What a wonder to be wrong! Two hundred years I've served these humans, two hundred years… and I never thought they'd surprise me…' Close by, Stoick lifted his drooping head. 'I knew it!' whispered Camicazi, eyes shining. 'He is the King after all! I knew it!'