*Busts through wall, gasping for air*

I'm alive! Holy Red Death I'm alive! I pretty much died back there!

Sorry for the lack of updates. No excuses this time around, I really want to get the revised Chance Untamed up and going! I've got the third book in this unplanned trilogy started, but it might not be done for a while, so I figured I might as well go back through and rework this first part. Of course, I'm going to try to remove a lot of the terrible teen angst, especially when it doesn't add to the story. I'm going to keep the original posting up, so if you want to go and check that out (though why you would is beyond me) feel free!

There might be some changes to chapter cuts, like how chapters 1 & 2 are now chapter 1. I didn't realize how short some of them were when I was fist writing this!

If I still missed something like bad grammar or spelling, please let me know so I can fix it! I fully understand how much of a turn off that can be to some readers, myself included!

There might be some minor changes to the plotline, but nothing to drastically change the outcome of the story.

To new readers: When I was first writing this, I changed the time line of RTTE and HTTTYD2 so they fit within the same year, with the sequel settling around winter time. I believe seasons 6 and 7 of RTTE were not yet out when I first wrote this, so I went with what I had.

Anyways, I do hope you enjoy!

~Silverleone

Chapter 1

Day: ? Month: Middle of June. Year: Unless I've been asleep a LOT longer than I thought possible, 2017.

I should probably introduce myself before I get ahead of myself. My name is Rai Taiki. I'm your average nerdy guy with blond hair, blue eyes, and lighter-skin. I'm 19 years old standing at about 5'7" with half-rimmed, gun-metal-gray glasses.

My normal attire is a gray v-neck, jeans, and regular tennis shoes. A long brown coat rests on my shoulders. A necklace made of black cord can be seen hanging around my neck. On it is a quartz, tear-drop shaped pendent. Burnt into it is a Zuni Bear. The Bear symbolizes courage, physical strength, and leadership. The Heartline symbol in the bear signifies life force.

When I was around 7, I had realized just how much of a nerd I was, and my parents signed me up for Martial Arts training(after a lot of convincing). Once I had received enough training, I was able to save up and have a native smith forge a katana for myself. It's a bit shorter than the standard length to compensate for my "lack of height".

…Those instructors were harsh…

Now that that's out of the way, let's focus on the present situation…

Waking up with a pounding headache? Not fun. Waking up with a pounding headache and no memory of how you got in an unfamiliar room? Yeah…it's even less fun. The room had a small amount of light coming from a torch on the wall. I let my eyes adjust and looked around.

'Why am I in a cave?!' I jumped up, not even thinking about that sentence, and smacked my head against the ceiling. I dropped into a crouch and rubbed at the spot.

"Ow ow ow ow, okay, bad idea…" I checked for blood on my fingers, only to sigh when I didn't see any. I stood up carefully this time and surveyed my surroundings. The cave was surprisingly clean. Sure, there was some moss and vines hanging from the ceiling and walls, but other than that, it almost looked like someone lived here. There was a thick curtain of what looked like animal skin hanging over the entrance. I looked back to where I was laying before and saw nothing.

'They-whoever they are-took my sword…they're going to regret that…' I decided that there was nothing useful here, and I started walking towards the entrance. Then I heard it. The shrill whine that made my blood run cold. My instincts took over, and I dove towards the back if the cave, shutting my eyes as I waited for the inevitable.

Memories of a lesson from school resurfaced. Hiroshima, one of the most devastating attacks on Japan.

I listened to the thing in the sky, waiting for the inevitable. Nothing. The sound stopped, and then silence. 15 seconds. 45 seconds. Nearly two minutes later I looked up and saw everything was still there, no bomb had gone off, and the cave was in the same condition as it had been a few seconds ago.

'Maybe that wasn't a bomb, but then…what was it?' I slowly got up and walked over to the entrance, my body tense as I pulled the curtain back. I blinked as I stepped up to the small 5 foot ledge and looked down. I stepped back and took a breath.

'Okay, more than 20 feet in the air…I am not jumping that. How did I even get up here?' I felt a spark of panic and shoved it to the back of my mind, I'd panic later. I looked along the cliff-side to see if there was a way for me to get down, when something above me made a sound, and a rope ladder fell from above me. I jumped, instinctively reaching over my shoulder before being reminded of the lack of weight on my shoulder.

'Where did that come from?!' I saw the ladder jerk. Someone was climbing down the ladder! I slowly stepped back away from the curtain.

I heard the person grunting a bit, lowering themselves down the rope ladder. I heard a clank of metal on rock, then the soft thud of a boot. I stepped back and sank into a defensive stance, right foot forward. I didn't have my sword, but I could still fight.

*Clank, thud, clank, thud* Does this person have a metal boot? The curtain was pulled back, and a young man stepped around it. He was obviously distracted, as he didn't see me at first. When he looked up it took him a second to register there was a fist not even five feet from his face. He jerked back and put up both his hands in a show of no harm.

"Whoa! Okay, um…mind, putting the fists down, please?" I hesitated, shooting him a harsh look. I stepped back and slowly lowered my stance, not quite relaxing. The man had to only be a few years older than me, maybe 23 at most. He had brown, shoulder length hair that was tied up in multiple places on the back on his head. He was wearing a mix of leather and metal armor. A bunch of little hidden trinkets and gadgets were scattered all across the outfit. He looked like a warrior.

"Who are you?" I needed answers.

"Okay, well, my name is Hiccup." I swallowed a snort of disbelief and let him continue. "…And right now you're on an island called Dragon's Edge." He stopped to let that sink in.

"'Dragon's Edge?' Not a bad name." I repeated back as I shifted to give myself the appearance of a calmer stance by leaning against the wall. I didn't trust him yet. But something about the way he carried himself wasn't aggressive, belaying his attire. He wouldn't attack unless needed or provoked, I could see.

"Well…I uh…I did name it." This 'Hiccup' rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. I snorted.

"Of course you did. Now, where in Japan is this 'Dragon's Edge?'" I fully turned towards him now.

'I wasn't far off earlier, he's got a fake leg…' I looked up at him and made eye contact. His eyes were glossed over in confusion.

"Um…I'm, I'm sorry, but I don't recognize that name…Where exactly is Japan?"

I'll be honest, I laughed at the ridiculousness of the question. Meanwhile, Hiccup stood there, looking at me in honest confusion. I looked over after chuckling and my mood took a plummeting dive off the cliff outside.

"You-you actually don't know?" I felt that tiny spark of panic again, but I forced it back once again. Hiccup shook his head. He was sincere, I could see the honest confusion in his eyes.

"Sorry, I've never heard of this, Japan, before. Did your boat crash on the island we found you on?" Now it was my turn to look confused.

"Boat? Island? I've never been on any boats. And I haven't been to an island in years." I folded my right arm and set my left arm against it, rubbing my chin with my hand. He stepped closer, rubbing his arm in the uncomfortable silence.

"You know, uh, I never…I never got your name…?" The question hung there in the air for a minute, and I looked up. The next thing Hiccup knew, he was pinned against the wall of the cave, my elbow pushing against his sternum as my other fist was cocked back and ready to swing.

"Who are you, who sent you, and where. Am. I?!" He threw his hands up in surrender.

"Whoa, okay, okay, calm down and let me explai-hn!" I put a little more force behind my elbow. "Okay! Me and my friends found you when we were fl-traveling…We are making a map of the islands!" I narrowed my eyes.

'He stumbled on his words…something's not right…' I stepped back and released him. He rubbed at the very possible bruise on his chest and coughed once.

"Man…you're a lot stronger than you look…heh." I glared at him and his strained smile fell.

"I'm not in the joking mood right now. You tripped up on your words just then, you were going to say something."

"Okay! Okay, just…don't do that again, please." He had his hands up in a calming gesture. "How about we sit down and talk. You can tell me about where you're from, and I'll explain where we are." I slowly nodded and walked back over to the slab of rock I had woken up on and sat down. Hiccup, still rubbing at his chest, sat down on the opposite end. "Okay, now, what do you know about this Japan?" I shot him a raised eyebrow before answering.

"It's its own country. It's just off the coast of China."

"…I've never heard of China before." I frowned. How does someone not know about China?

"Then these islands must be really secluded, China is one of the biggest world powers out there."

"There's a place that powerful?!" We could only stare at each other. I snapped out of it first and shook my head.

"Where am I?" I muttered under my breath, speaking up again to say, "Tell me about these islands."

"We call it the Archipelago. My friends and I have tasked ourselves with mapping it, seeing just how large it is. Hey, um…You said you haven't been on any boats lately, how'd you get to that island we found you on?"

"I told you, I haven't been to an island in years…" We both sat in silence, trying to think of an explanation. He broke the silence after a minute.

"Okay…What do you last remember? Maybe we can find an explanation if we back track." I sat back a bit, and thought about my last memories before waking up here.

"…I was on my way to my school…It was the weekend, but we had a tournament going on."

"What kind of tournament?" He looked genuinely interested.

"Martial Arts." I said shortly.

"Wait…what's…marital arts?" It took a moment to register what he said. Not wanting to take away from the seriousness of the situation, I choked down a laugh to simply correct him.

"Martial…Arts…" I shook my head, "It can be used in both hand to hand and weapons combat." I let Hiccup process that information, deep in thought. Eventually, he looked up at me, eyes hardened with a specific line of thoughts.

"So, you've been trained to fight. Last you remember, you were walking to a tournament…but you don't remember anything else…" I shook my head.

"I didn't finish. I actually made it to the tournament, and I actually placed in the swordsmanship category. I was walking home, passing, I think it was an alley, when something made a loud noise…I remember turning, and everything went dark…GAH! Why can't I remember anything?!" I stood up, turned around and slammed the butt of my right hand against the cave wall. A few particles of dust fell, and I mindlessly swiped at them with my other hand. Hiccup stood up and put his hand on my shoulder. I let my arms fall to my sides and just stood there for a moment, silent and lost in thought.

"We're going to figure this out…together." He said. I looked over at him. I opened my mouth to say something, when the curtain covering the entrance to cave shifted. I spun around and slid into a stance. Hiccup jumped back in surprise.

"Woah! What are you doing?!"

"Were you the only one here?"

"Uuh, yeah?" He hesitated in answering. That set off a few red flags. He could have been a decoy this whole time. I instinctively became defensive. I stalked over to the curtain and ripped it back, a fist raised and ready to swing.

A black void sat in front of me. Two giant, green, cat-like eyes danced in the dim torch light, partially shadowed by my form. The void expanded, forming into wings, legs, and a head. And it was glaring at me.

I'm so glad I passed out when I did.