"How To Train Your Dragon 3" is reportedly following a major plot point in the original novels. The film will feature an older Hiccup reminiscing on times when dragons used to live with people. So where did Toothless and the other dragons go? Did a war occur? Are they extinct?

With 12 novels in the "How To Train Your Dragon" series and 4 related books published, producers of the movie "How To Train Your Dragon 3" will have no lack of plot points to exploit. The Movie Pilot reports that the writer and director Dean DeBlois has confirmed that the third installment of the film would indeed start with an older Hiccup and no Toothless or other dragons.

So what happened in between? Where did the dragons disappear into? Several explanations are likely. One likely scenario is that a natural cataclysmic event wiped out the dragons. Another possible explanation is that the dragons went into hiding.

However, the most plausible explanation can be found in the novels. In the original series written by Cressida Cowell, a war erupted between human and dragons. With Hiccup being the chief of the Vikings, and Toothless being the Alpha of the dragons, a conflict between humans and dragons would put them on different sides.

After all, no good leader would leave their followers at a disadvantage. A good chief takes care of his own, as Hiccup's father drilled him over and over again before the death of Stoic the Vast. The same can be said with an Alpha. This may be the cause of the split between Hiccup and Toothless.

However, there must be a good reason to cause this breakup. Hence, there must be an antagonist. DeBlois has already hinted that the villain in "How To Train Your Dragon 2," Drago Bludvist will return in the "How To Train Your Dragon 3."

So with Drago back in the fold, the rabble-rouser may be the one who would spark the series of events that cause Hiccup and Toothless to part ways. That split would mean that dragons and humans would follow suit. "How To Train Your Dragon 3" is set to hit the theaters on May 18, 2018.