High above the misty forests of DunBroch, Stormfly sliced through the cold morning air with powerful wingbeats. Astrid gripped the reins tightly, Merida seated behind her, and Ariel holding on at the back. They had been searching desperately when they spotted a familiar Night Fury gliding ahead.

"Hey!" Astrid called out, her voice carrying across the wind. "Good to see you joining the party!"

Lucian, riding Nyx with the three cubs, glanced over and smirked. "Couldn’t miss it."

The two dragons descended together toward the ancient ring of standing stones where all hell had broken loose.

The scene below was utter chaos.

Fergus and the lords, along with dozens of soldiers from every clan, were fiercely trying to kill the massive black bear, Mor’du. The Demon Bear roared and swung his powerful paws, flinging warriors and lords backward like they weighed nothing. Despite being outnumbered, Mor’du was overwhelmingly strong.

Stoick, who had joined the chase, helped Fergus back to his feet, offering his hand. The two men nodded at each other with grim resolve.

"Let’s take this monster down!" Fergus shouted.

Stoick raised his axe while Fergus drew his sword. The two of them charged Mor’du together, attacking with coordinated ferocity, blocking his strikes and landing heavy blows whenever they could. Meanwhile, Queen Elinor, still in her brown bear form, remained tied up with thick ropes and was being held down by a group of soldiers.

Lucian and the others landed nearby. The moment Nyx’s and Stormfly feet touched the ground, Merida jumped off and sprinted straight toward the soldiers pulling the ropes on her mother.

"Get away from her!" she shouted.

"Merida! Get back here!" Fergus roared. "Mor’du is here! It’s too dangerous!"

But Merida refused to listen. She fought her way through the soldiers. With a small dagger in hand, she reached the brown bear and began frantically cutting the thick ropes binding her mother’s front paws and legs.

"Mum! Hold on! I’m here!" she cried, tears already streaming down her cheeks.

The first golden rays of sunrise began creeping over the horizon. Desperate and shaking, Merida yanked the torn tapestry from her shoulders and draped it carefully over the bear’s broad back. "Please... please change back... I’m begging you..."

Lucian jumped down the moment they arrived. He quickly told the triplets, "Stay here. Don’t move."

He then pushed through the crowd of soldiers, shoving them aside as he moved closer to the fighting. Seeing Stoick and Fergus fiercely attacking Mor’du with axe and sword, Lucian raised his voice.

"Stop! Everyone, stop fighting!"

His shout cut through the noise, but the battle continued. With no other choice, Lucian took a deep breath and unleashed a powerful dragon fire blast into the middle of the battlefield, creating a wall of flames that forced everyone to separate.

The sudden explosion of fire finally grabbed their full attention. All eyes turned to Lucian.

"STOP!" he shouted again, voice booming with authority. He walked over to Mor’du and placed a hand on the bear’s massive shoulder.

"Come back," he said firmly.

Mor’du turned his head and looked Lucian straight in the eyes. For a long moment, the two stared at each other. Then, the Demon Bear gave a slow, deliberate nod.

Black smoke erupted violently from Mor’du’s body. His form began to shrink rapidly, fur receded, bones shifted. When the smoke finally cleared, a large, muscular, and completely naked man stood in his place.

The entire clearing fell into stunned silence.

"H-How!?" Fishlegs stammered in pure fascination.

Stoick turned sharply toward Lucian. "Lucian... what in Odin’s name is happening here?"

"I’ll explain later," Lucian replied. "For now, please stand down." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Fergus, still breathing heavily from the fight, turned and saw his daughter desperately hugging the brown bear. His face twisted with fear.

"Merida! Get away from it!" he roared, rushing forward to pull her back.

"No!" Merida screamed, clinging even tighter, her voice cracking with raw emotion. "This is Mum! This is my mother! I turned her into this because of my selfishness! I wished for her to change... I wanted to change everything and now... now I don’t know what to do! I’m so sorry!

Fergus froze, his face twisting into utter confusion and disbelief. "What? That cannot be!"

"Mum, I’m so sorry... Please come back to me..." Her voice broke into heavy sobs as she buried her face into the bear’s fur, shoulders shaking violently.

Before Fergus could process these shocking words, a sudden commotion broke out around his legs. Three small, fluffy bear cubs came tumbling and bounding out from the trees, rushing straight toward him. They swarmed his boots and climbed onto his legs, their sudden weight and movement throwing him off balance.

"Whoa!" Fergus grunted, stumbling back, momentarily distracted by the playful, chaotic little creatures clinging to him.

Then, the rays of sunlight broke over the horizon, illuminating the sky in brilliant shades of orange and blue. The second sunrise had arrived.

Merida held her breath, hope fighting with fear in her chest. The spell had rules: it had to be undone before the second sunrise, or the change would last forever. The light washed over the great bear standing before them, touching every inch of fur... yet nothing happened.

The brown bear remained a bear.

Merida’s eyes widened in pure horror. Her whole body trembled as the realization crashed down on her.

"No... no... please... not like this..." she whispered, voice shattering. "Mum... I didn’t mean for this... I was stupid... I was so stupid... Please... I need you... Don’t leave me like this..."

She broke down completely, loud, heart-wrenching sobs escaping her as she clung desperately to the bear.

The bear lowered its head, sniffing the air, catching Merida’s scent. Then, abruptly, its ears flattened, and its eyes glinted with a fierce, predatory light. A low, rumbling growl vibrated in its chest before it roared, a sound that held no memory of the soft voice that used to sing lullabies. It reared up, massive claws raised, ready to strike.

"Mum, wait!" Merida cried out, stepping forward in agony, not out of fear.

But the beast did not stop. It swiped its paw toward her with deadly force.

CLANG!

In a blur of motion, Lucian lunged between them. He raised his arm to shield Merida, and as he did, a shimmering layer of hard, metallic scales erupted across his skin, covering his limb like impenetrable armor.

The bear’s heavy claws struck his arm with a loud clang, the impact sending a shockwave through the air, but Lucian stood firm, blocking the deadly blow completely.

Seeing his wife, even in this form attack his daughter, and seeing the danger she posed, Fergus’ expression hardened into stone.

The loving husband was momentarily buried under the weight of necessity. He drew himself tall and bellowed the command that tore Merida’s heart apart.

"Restrain the beast! Now!"

The soldiers rushed forward, hurling thick, heavy ropes. They expertly tangled the bear’s legs and body, pulling tight with all their strength. The beast roared and thrashed, fighting against the bindings, but the soldiers held fast, dragging the Queen down until she was trapped and helpless, roaring in confusion and rage.

"NO!" Merida shrieked, the sound tearing from her soul. She tried to run toward the struggling, bound bear, her arms reaching out desperately. "No! Please, no! Let her go! Mother!"

But Lucian wrapped his arms tightly around her waist, holding her back with unyielding strength. He pulled her against his chest, trapping her arms so she could not throw herself into danger. Merida collapsed against him, her strength finally gone. She buried her face into his chest, screaming and sobbing, her tears soaking his tunic.

She pounded her fists against his chest, beating against him in her grief and frustration, but he did not let go. He simply held her, offering his strength to carry the pain she could not bear alone.