The Mysterious Frozen Fire - Chapter 1: A Frosty Feeling

Thank you for all the support on my last fan-fic.  You made me enjoy writing so much, you guys have inspired me to keep writing and thus make a second fan-fic:

The Mysterious Frozen Fire

Chapter 1

A Frosty Feeling

          ‘Twas the night before Snoggletog and all through the house…  Everyone was asleep, except for me.  I could not sleep.  I do not know why.  I should be tired enough because of the party mother had sprang on me several hours ago.  All my friends were there.  Even the new ones I had made while trying to solve my first mystery, “The Clue of the Missing Socks.”  My name is Jarl Brodd Mollerson.  That name has gotten a little popular since my I solved that mystery.

          That mystery had everything.  It had baffling clues that took a while to figure out, leads that did not seem to go anywhere until we found where they connected, excitement in the ground battles that were fought and the successful attempt in escaping while trapped by our enemy on Two Tavern’s main island, to tension from Berk’s villagers wanting answers for their missing items… I could probably go on for a while.  But the main thing that strengthens something I have always believed in is that any friendship that can be made, whether with people or animals, can make both individuals stronger because of it.  If both parties do all they can for each other, you will have a friend for life that can cheer you up when you are sad, help you when you are in trouble, and have fun when you are glad.

          What started me on the trail of the first clues was the clue that Bobber’s socks were missing.  They were disappearing about the same time other seemingly random items around Berk started disappearing.  Most everyone thought the twins were up to their old tricks again.  But when other items started disappearing while the twins were accounted for, that started me thinking there was more to these disappearances then meets the eyes.

          Though after that mystery was solved and people started to hear about it, it seemed like all of Berk was coming to me to solve why their nightmare kept running away when I finally told their owner it was her cooking that did it.  Oh and the one that I had to explain for a week while building the stables.  “The Two Twisted Trade That Went Gone Wrong.”  Which were actually the twins trying to get Snotlout to go “mad” and admit someone was following him.  I had solved that mystery while watching Stoick and Gobber eat in The Great Hall.  If you must know, it was because Stoick was having a conversation about how Stoick was nearly run over by a flock of sheep.  Stoick had said, “If Gobber had not been my shadow while we were walking through the fields, I may be coming sheep out of my bread right now.”

          While trying to think about the mystery my friends and I solved and others since that first one, I still could not fall asleep.  With that I got out of bed and quietly walked down stairs.  There was not much I could do down here other than watch the fire in the fireplace.

          Since it would be daylight in a couple of hours, I decided I would go out and check on my family’s dragons.  I grabbed my winter gear and bundled up for the cold weather of winter.

          I was expecting a brisk, cold winter wind to greet my face, but there was none.  While walking outside, it was completely calm.  Although it was snowing quite heavily, there was little if not no wind at all.  Also, there were zero tracks or footprints to be seen in the snow.

          I walked around to the back of our house to our new dragon stables we had built and completed a few days before the first snow.  I opened the stable door and entered.

          Spiker, Fintan, Meatballs, and Smoky were all fast asleep in their rooms.  Though Smoky was not in his room, he was lying on the third shelf of our flying gear “book” case.  I walked over to my dragon’s room and found that my thunderdrum was just as awake as I was.

          “You alright Fredrick?” I asked in a hushed tone.

          He snorted in reply.

          “Since we’re both awake and it will be daylight soon, how about we go out for a flight, just you and me?” I suggested.

          He immediately got up and walked to the main stable doors.  I then went over the shelf and picked up Fredrick’s saddle.  Smoky was on the saddle, so I picked up the Terrible Terror and put him on the second shelf… on Asvord’s saddle.  After saddling Fredrick, I went back to get my shield.  Smoky was back on the third shelf lying on my shield.  I pushed him off and took my shield.

          I opened and closed the stable doors as quickly as possible so the least amount of warm air would not escape from the stables.  Fredrick walked out with the same haste as I did so we could help keep the warm air in the stables.  I noticed my tracks coming from the front of the house were all nearly covered over by the snowfall.

          I mounted Fredrick and we took off.  We left a giant puff of snow behind as Fredrick had spread his wings a lifted off.  By now the snow was not as heavy as a few minutes ago, but it was still steadily falling down.

          As we were flying over Berk, I spotted something that seemed rather odd over near a house on the outskirts of the main village.  Every house in Berk had smoke coming from their smokestacks, every house that is except one.  This house was near the main pathway to The Cove.  What was strange about this house was that there was no smoke coming from the smokestack.  On a night like this, someone would be crazy not to have a fire going in the fireplace.

          Fredrick and I flew over to the house and landed in front of it.  I noticed before we touched down that there were zero tracks or footprints in the snow.  Although the rate in which the snow has been coming down there could have been tracks but then filled up with new snow after only a few minutes.  I dismounted Fredrick and walked up to the front door.  I was about to knock when I discovered that the door had evidence of forced entry.  The metal door handle was not on the door but lying on the entry step.

          “Fredrick stay here,” I muttered to my dragon.

          I slid my shield off of my shoulders and put it in front of me.  I entered the house to find that no one was home.  I checked the up and downstairs, no one was there.  But because of the forced entry I quickly glossed over the scene in the downstairs rooms and upstairs rooms.  I saw that all looked like normal.  The beds upstairs looked like they were slept in, the living room looked like someone had tidied up some before they went to bed, and the kitchen looked like a kitchen.  I checked the place where whoever lives here washes up for the evening meal.  The bowl’s inside was still damp.  This to me means that whoever lives here was here at least until supper.  I walked back to the front door and rechecked the entryway.  I look down at the floor just in front of the door.  There was snow inside the house near the entryway.  I know I did not track in that snow because I knocked the snow off my boots before entering the house.  Someone was absolutely here, but I would not be able to tell because of no footprints coming or going from this house.

          I exited the house and examined the exterior of the house.  I found nothing out of the ordinary.  No footprints, no damage to the exterior, and no burn marks of dragon flame.  At that moment I felt the wind suddenly pick up dramatically and it was a cold northeast wind.  Those are the worst.

          “Well maybe whoever lives here is sleeping in The Great Hall tonight.  Because we have had the rest of the villagers come back earlier this evening from hunting trips in the forest.  I know some of these viking stayed in The Great Hall for the night because they did not want to go back out into the cold and though more importantly they were exhausted from their trip and didn’t want to make the trip out to their houses.  The vikings who did this were the ones that lived quite a bit a ways from The Great Hall.  But how does that account for the fact the front door has been forced open?”  I thought to myself while returning to my dragon.  “Well I guess I will find out in a few hours when it’s time for the morning meal”

          “Come one Fredrick, let’s go back home.  With this wind, we better not stay out too much longer,” I said mounting my dragon.

          When I returned to the stables, the wind was starting to blow the snow and make drifts alongside the buildings.  I led my thunderdrum back to his room.  It looked like he was going to be able to sleep for a little bit.  I then took the saddle of Fredrick and then put it up.  I found Smoky had moved up to the fourth shelf on mother’s saddle for Fintan.

          “Oh so we’re moving up in the world Smoky.  Asvord’s saddle ain’t good enough for ya?” I spoke under my breath to the Terror.

          Just as I opening the door to my house, I heard something door the across the way on the other side near one of our neighboring houses.  I closed the door and carefully walked over to investigate.  I had not noticed this before, but there were a second pair of footprints leading to a house that was in the direction I heard the noise.  As of right now the snow had stopped falling and the moon was starting to peek in between the clouds.

          I heard the noise again, but it was much clearer this time.  It sounded like a musical chime on maybe some metal.  I did not want to enter the house and disturb our neighbors, although I did look into the side window.  The front room was a mess.  Books were strewn about, tables and chairs were knocked over some were broken, and…

          Wham!

          I was hit in the face by someone or something and knocked against the house next to me.  I stumbled back and tripped over some crates.  An empty crate landed on my head and then I must have stepped into a bucket.  I took me several minutes to get my foot out of the bucket after getting the crate off my head.  I then quickly remembered what had just occurred, and I started to follow the tracks of whatever leapt out the window at me.  Whatever it was, it was fast.  I ran after, following the tracks to the edge of the village back near where I had previously been.

          The tracks continued on into the forest, so I followed them.  I started running so I could catch up to whatever I am following.  It was a little tough going because of the fresh snowfall, but the snow was the fluffy, light kind.  Though I wondered, “Do I want to catch up with whatever I am following?”

          Even though it was still dark out, the moon was setting at the right angle so I could fairly see where I was going.  I saw a light up ahead and slowed my pace down to a walk.  There was a campfire in a small clearing in front of me.  I crept up and took cover behind a large boulder.  I peeked around the corner and saw that no one was around.  By taking a quick survey of the camp, it looked like one that some of the villagers had used sometime earlier today.  I had also just realized I had run a considerable distance into the woods.

          The reason I believe this campfire was used by some of Berk’s hunters that were sent out was because there were many tracks of footprints besides the tracks that I was following on top of the other footprints.  This led me to deduct that a large group was gathered here. 

          One other thing, this fire had nearly died out, either because it was made several hours ago or the wind had started to blow it out.  I was leaning towards the first because most of the trees were blocking out the wind.

          “I might as well go back to Berk,” I thought.  “I think I’ve lost the thing I was tracking by now.”

          I do not know why but I was starting to sweat.  I guess from my running but I am pretty well conditioned so I should not sweat this fast from running so little time that I had.  I felt my head.

          “Ooo!  Ow!” I replied to myself out loud.  “Not now.  Not now!  I am starting to feel.. lit heeded.. headed.  I blonder if it was the vlow.. my… head…. I…. took….. earleeeier…..”

          I knew I was starting to now pass out.  I tried to shake it off, but it was no use.  I staggered and fell face first next to the fire, but used my arms to brake my fall.  I felt my eyes starting to close.  The last thing I saw was the fire going out.

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