Hello again! It is I with another HTTYD fanfic but this one will be a multi-chapter. This is going to be an AU set after humans have found a way to genetically engineer dragons but their plan to use them in war backfires horribly as they create a dragon they cannot control. It is most likely to be a sci-fi retelling of HTTYD with some things added in. Also, the title is subject to change. Enjoy! I do not own How To Train Your Dragon or any of its characters.
In the gloom of a building, once occupied now abandoned, a television's screen flickered as it broadcasted the program it had replayed for years one final time. It showed a man at a podium with a banner behind him. It read 'Genetic Engineering Labs' with 'G.E.L.: Now creating weapons for the future' below it.
A crowd of people had gathered below the stage. Cameramen had their cameras ready to shoot live footage as reporters stood nearby anxiously awaiting the moment they could begin asking questions. Photographers snapped quick pictures for the newspaper before being pushed back by the growing crowd.
A clamor arose from the crowd as photographer, reporter, and cameraman then began to push each other as they all tried to claim a spot at the front of the stage. They stomped each other's feet and nearly pushed one another to the ground before they were silenced by the sound of a microphone being gently pat a few times. There was not a pair of eyes in the room that lingered from those belonging to the man onstage.
Realizing he now had everyone's attention he began to speak. "Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen" he said with a smile as he leaned over the podium and scanned the room to view his audience a bit better. "I'm sure you have all come to clarify the information we have released here at G.E.L. and I, Dr. Henry Haddock, assure you, it is no hoax."
Before the crowd could begin asking questions, he raised his hand. The crowd, silenced, could only gaze on with growing anticipation as he continued.
"As you all know, G.E.L. specializes in genetic engineering. It is, after all, in our name. Now, I know all of you are going to ask the question, 'What do you say to those who oppose your research?' and here is my answer. I say, you only oppose because you are afraid and you should be afraid. Genetic engineering, if in the wrong hands, could end with disastrous consequences. However, here and G.E.L. I assure you we take the safety of our employees and experiments very seriously." He watched as journalists jotted his words down in their notebooks before looking at him to continue.
Clearing his throat, Dr. Haddock continued, "Now, what is it we have created you ask? Well, you know it is something that will revolutionize the way we fight wars. Something that could ultimately let us win! What is it you ask? Here is your answer." He leaned in close to the microphone as the crowd leaned in as well to hear his answer. "Here at G.E.L., we have created," he paused, a smile curling on his lips before finally breathing, "dragons."
The people below, hearing the word, began to shout angrily in disbelief.
"Impossible!"
"Liar!"
"How stupid do you think we are?!"
The doctor raised his hand once more to calm the crowd before the clamor died to a murmur. "You have every right to call me a liar at the moment but after I show you evidence of our work, perhaps you will believe my words."
A projector screen lowered behind him as he stepped away from the podium. Projected on the screen were now the words 'Top Secret' and 'Classified' in bright red ink before it continued on with the film. The crowd gasped at what appeared on the screen next. A lizard-like creature, green with red splashed along its spine, licked its yellow reptilian eye with its long tongue before a pair of gloved hands picked it up and placed it on the edge of a lab station. The gloved hand gently grabbed one of the animal's wings before unfolding and revealing it to the audience.
"I present you," Dr. Haddock began from the side, "GE-1 or most commonly known around the labs as Terrible Terrors. Yes, they are small as we believed it would be safer to start small, but that makes them no less equipped for battle. They can breathe fire," The Terrible Terror on screen then shot a blast of fire at the employee, clothed in a fireproof suit, "and appear to take orders quite well." The Terrible Terror perched on the worker's arm was given a piece of paper before being shown a picture of another worker and told to 'Deliver'. The dragon ascended from its perch before flying to the worker across the room and dropping the paper at his feet.
"We believe this dragon will prove to be a good messenger if our troops at any time are unable to communicate with each other. It will be like a pigeon carrying a message only this "pigeon" can better defend itself" the geneticist concluded as he returned to the podium as the film was stopped and the projector screen rolled back up into the rafters. "You can still think this is all a hoax and that the footage from our labs you just saw was fake, but I guarantee that soon you will see dragons by our men and women. There won't be just Terrible Terrors, but new species of the creatures that were once fantasy turned reality will emerge from our labs. DNA experimentation will become more complex as we will unlock all the secrets to creating better dragons!" he announced, arms halfway in the air and voice growing stronger. "Guns and bombs are weapons of the past, dragons are our weapons of the future!"
The crowd could not contain themselves any longer and as they began shouting questions for the man, arms still raised in the air and breathing heavily, before the television screen broadcasting the footage turned to static before the screen finally went dark.
To clear up any confusion, the Dr. Henry Haddock in this prologue is not the Hiccup we all know and love from HTTYD 1. He is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the 2nd while Hiccup from HTTYD 1 is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the 3rd (just to clarify). Yes, Hiccup will appear in the next chapter which is set 70 years after this one. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and thank you for taking your time to read it. Please feel free to review but no flames.