Disclaimer: All places and characters belong to JK Rowling and WB and various publishers. No money is being made off of this piece of fiction.
Chapter 9: The Alpha Fight
The Order had set up a rotating watch on Potter twenty-four hours a day. They lingered nearby under disillusionment charms to watch for any change in Potter's condition or possible re-location.
The ministry had arrived 2 days ago. Potter had spent two nights "charging" the Stòr weapons. As far as the Order could tell, Potter spent the days curled in on himself as a low glimmer of faengal powder hung thick in the air.
Watching the repeated drugging and harvesting ritual was sickening. Only Draco and Granger seemed able to really stomach witnessing it. Severus and Lupin had been left out of the rotation. It was unclear how their own creature presence would respond to the magic from the ritual and if their proximity would somehow disrupt the proceedings alerting the MoM to the Order's spying. This was how Draco found himself tired, cold and craving a cigarette, watching over Potter on the third morning of the MoM arrival on the Hogwarts grounds, having just relieved Granger from her shift.
Reports were coming in through the night of Daemons gathering in the forbidden forest's distant edges. The final fight was coming.
This morning the charging stations and Stòr weapons had all been removed from around Potter's cage and the air within the cage was clear. No faengal powder.
Potter, like usual, was curled up on the ground, inky hair plastered thickly to his scalp and face.
The word from the ministry was that Potter would enter the battle once it had begun. Not for the first time Draco wondered, How can this sickly thing fight?
Watching his old school nemesis closely Draco noted that Potter looked different this morning. Oddly he looked bigger, his curved shoulders seemed broader than the previous days.
"Come now ya filthy animal, On your feet!", a reddish haired Unspeakable approached the cage. "I know you can hear me, now get up!"
Potter remained immobile in the centre of the cage. The Unspeakable raised a Stòr staff and sent a string of electric light at the curled form. Potter didn't flinch as the spell struck his side leaving an angry red welt. The Unspeakable sent another stinging jolt. Potter shifted away and Draco watched as his reddened skin began darkening and spreading in an outward circle until the pale skin was altered, darkened and roughened. Like scales, Draco thought in disbelief.
The Unspeakable cursed and set another flashing light onto Potter. Draco watched in astonishment as the light hit leaving a small reddish spot on the darkened skin, but much smaller than before.
"It's defensive." Draco whispered to himself. Another bolt of light struck Potter's back with little to no effect. Potter was effectively growing armour.
The head Unspeakable stepped forward and rapped his staff against the bars, CLANG, CLANG, CLANG!
Potter stirred. The first Unspeakable sent another burst of light to little effect. The head Unspeakable looked pleased and nodded to the red haired Unspeakable who withdrew a set of clankers from his robes. The red head stepped close to the bars and raised the clankers, shaking them gently at first. Potter groaned and shuttered.
"More." The head Unspeakable demanded. The clankers were shaken more forcibly. Potter seemed to push his head into the ground, his hands coming up to cover his ears. The tiny sensory organs on his ears that had been open and exposed during the harvesting were no longer visible.
"Get him up!" The Head Unspeakable commanded.
"It's too soon after a harvesting. He won't be much use, he's only halfway through." It was the woman Unspeakable who had been leaking Draco information, "We need to wait, he needs more time."
The Head Unspeakable turned to her, "He?" he said condescendingly. "It doesn't have that luxury." He stepped forward and removed a set of his own clankers.
Swinging his arm up and down he shook the clankers as hard as he could. "Jackson and Trill." He commanded. Two Unspeakables on opposite sides of the cage stepped forward with wands raised. Both aimed slashing curses.
Potter stood up and reeled away from the front, stepping unsteadily away from the noise, hands still covering his ears. Something looked off, like his limbs were disproportionately long.
It was the first time Draco had seen the creature move with any real awareness or aggression. Two of the Scorpion tails remained wrapped securely around his middle. While 2 uncoiled menacingly to the sides, claws open. The lead stinger that had resided curled protectively between his legs had swung out and re-positioned at the base of his spine, still curled, protected. A deep hissing sound could be heard, emitting from behind the sheet of thick hair that still obscured Potter's face.
Gone was the soft, pale looking body of the night before. Replaced by wiry muscle and thick rough looking skin.
"Well good morning beautiful!" The Unspeakable leered, CLANG, CLANG, CLANG! He continued to shake the clankers. Potter by now had backed up against the far side of the cage. The Unspeakable sneered as he started to walk along the side of the cage, motioning to the first Unspeakable to remain put and continue shaking the clankers.
Potter hissed further, head shaking more wildly. He stepped away from the approaching Unspeakable, backing himself into the far corner of the cage.
The Unspeakable continued his approach, Clankers flying. Potter began edging away along the edge of the cage. The two Scorpian claws kept aim at the other two Unspeakables using the clankers, poised open and ready.
The head Unspeakable had made his way opposite the first Unspeakable, where he stood grinning, feet planted firmly apart.
"Jackson!" he shouted, his eyes laughing as he watched Potter shake with pain. The Unspeakable closest to Potter raised their wand and shot another slashing curse. The curse struck Potter in his back. No effect.
His mane of hair seemed to shiver and parted to reveal a mouth barred with sharp teeth. He turned his side to the Unspeakable who had cursed him but kept the pincer tails raised to the clankers. Hissing he stepped backwards to the centre of the cage, facing the head Unspeakable.
"There we go! Good weapon!" The Unspeakable shouted, he gave the clankers one last vicious shake before lowering them. The young Unspeakable followed suit and Potter visibly relaxed, although the pincers remained raised and his teeth barred.
The Unspeakable walked back around to the front, Potter rotating slowly to never place his back to the head Unspeakable. Potter's chest was still heaving. He slowly lowered his hands and his hair quickly shielded his ears. The sensory organs on his ears seemed to be gone completely.
Could they be withdrawn? Draco wondered.
"There we go, at attention!" The Unspeakable grinned, eyeing the creature's form. "Stats!" the Unspeakable hollered.
A much smaller Unspeakable stepped forward and cast what must have been a diagnostic spell on Potter. Blue lettering appeared and a hologram of Potter appeared in the air above the main table, behind which three Unspeakables began pointing and analyzing the data. The woman Unspeakable was among them.
"Partial at best, I would say no more than 56% sir." One commented.
"Not good enough!" the head Unspeakable shouted, eyes still on Potter.
"Sir?" the assistant inquired.
"I don't care, bring it up to 85% capacity."
"It would be unstable." the assistant sounded nervous.
"Dose it now! Two and a half every 30 minutes." The head Unspeakable called out ignoring the assistant.
Potter's hair re-covered his entire face, occluding even his mouth. The two tails wound slowly around his middle. He seemed to be folding in on himself.
"Sir, it's too close to the Harvest. It's dangerous." The woman Unspeakable spoke up.
"Dangerous is good, I want it ready to kill."
"I meant dangerous to it's condition." Draco could have sworn the woman Unspeakable looked over at him, despite his disillusionment.
"As long as it fights, I don't much care for its condition. Make it happen!" The head Unspeakable snarled.
"Yes, sir." The other two Unspeakables behind the desk replied.
The head Unspeakable turned away from Potter to face the woman. She eyed him before carefully agreeing, "Yes, sir."
A long moment passes, "Good, glad we agree Unspeakable Knots. Jackson and Trill!" The two stood to attention. "Induction techniques now!" Draco made careful note of the woman Unspeakable's name. Knots.
Without hesitation, Jackson and Trill began throwing curses and hexes at a despondent Potter.
Potter remained standing but hunched in on himself, his tails tightened around his middle and the stinger appendage curled up between his legs.
"Dose!" The head Unspeakable called out.
A glass ball was thrown into the cage and shattered in mid-air upon impact from a slashing curse from Jackson. But unlike the ones Draco had witnessed before this one emitted a white smoke that dispersed throughout the cage. Not faengal powder. Slashing and stinging hexes struck Potter. He didn't even try to evade them. They struck his darkened skin and seemed to be absorbed.
A second ball shattered within the cage, emitting more white smoke. Potter fell to his knees. His form could just be made out through the white smoke, bending to re-adopt his protective curled state on the ground.
"Sir, he's not responding." Trill commented.
"Then push HARDER!" The head Unspeakable roared, directing his fury at the two Unspeakables throwing curses at Potter.
The curses became more sinister. A harsh burning curse, a flaying curse. Still no visible effect on Potter's skin. Although his muscles were pulled taunt, his limbs tensing. Smoke was hovering in the air all around him.
"Use the clankers again if you need to!" The head Unspeakable spat on the ground and walked up to the other Unspeakable, grabbing the clankers from him. He banged the clankers against the cage bars and Potter visibly flinched.
"Get up you animal!" He continued the banging. The clankers rattled.
Potter's hands steadied him on the earth and he turned his face toward the head Unspeakable. His hair had parted to reveal a deranged looking face. Blackened eyes blazing and teeth barred in a mean grimace. His nostrils were flared as he breathed in the heavy white smoke all around him.
He didn't look anything like the vacant child the night before, he didn't look human.
The look in his eyes was one of pure malice and animal rage. A slashing curse hit the side of Potter's face, leaving a thin red mark in its place. A hiss escaped his mouth and two of the tails unwound and raised up like cobras ready to strike.
The head Unspeakable dropped the clankers in the dirt, Potter's eyes followed its fall. Unspeakables Jackson and Trill stopped their barrage of spells.
The head Unspeakable gave Potter a cool smirk, "Bring me the Alpha from pad B."
"Right away sir."
"Dose him again." The Head Unspeakable snarled.
"We're close to exceeding limits, sir." The assistant warned.
"I didn't ask you that now did I?"
The assistant looked down and nodded, "No sir." Another ball of smoke was released into the cage. Potter remained coiled on the ground, breathing the white fumes, eyes trained unblinking on the head Unspeakable.
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A snarling male Scorpian was walked up to the cage, a heavy collar around his neck connected to his stinger by a short chain, tethering the poisonous sac close to his head. The male was tall and muscled like all Scorpians, but he seemed older, grey streaked his black hair and beard. His fists were curled around the chain that linked his wrists together. He held his head and chin high, black eyes staring steadily ahead, refusing to lower. Two Unspeakables trailed behind the dominant male, holding large staffs sizzling with Potter's magic, urging the Scorpian forward. Behind the Unspeakables, also chained was a shorter and younger male Scorpian and 2 females. The pincer claws on the females were banded shut and like the male stinger, chained to the neck collars restricting their motion.
The older male was clearly their Alpha.
The two females were marched towards the end of the cage close to where Draco stood disguised and forced to kneel in the dirt. The two males were directed towards the head Unspeakable.
"Put'em in." The head Unspeakable growled, not bothering to even look at the new arrivals. His eyes were only on Potter, 'Wake up, you've got visitors'.
Potter eyed the two creatures but didn't move from his spot on the ground.
The younger male Scorpian began snarling and straining against his binds as the older male was pushed through an opening that had appeared in the cage bars.
"No, NO!" The two guards pushed the struggling younger male up against the cage, which flared to life, shocking the younger one as Stòr magic rippled across his skin. The guards forced him to his knees. "NO, pick me!"
The older male, now within the cage, looked to the younger one and hissed "Stop."
The younger one immediately went silent, chest heaving, his black eyes darting around the cage.
The binds around the older male fell away, his stinger raised up behind him, a clear signal of aggression and dominance. He immediately adopted a fighting stance, legs bunched and ready, arms raised. This Alpha easily had 100 pounds or more of muscle on Potter, and nearly a foot in height.
The older female near Draco let out a snarling howl, chin held high. Potter's eyes were locked onto the swinging stinger of the larger male. The female must be the highest-ranking mate.
Draco watched in morbid fascination. They could not seriously think Potter could fight this Alpha.
"Come on ya Brute, make nice." The head Unspeakable taunted, "Don't it look sweet with those pinchers." For a moment Draco was confused, until he realized the Unspeakable was taunting the Scorpian. The Alpha didn't move.
Then Draco understood, Potter huddled on the ground, exposing only the female Scorpian appendages was not a worthy fighting opponent.
Draco's stomach twisted, surely, they did not expect the male to attack Potter in another way.
He glanced to the two females, the older one held her back stiff, chin high but the younger one looked scared, head down, glancing between Potter and the male in the cage.
And to make the mate watch?
"Get on with it!" The Head yelled. The Scorpian and Potter didn't move, both starring, the Scorpian's eyes a fathomless black.
The Head grabbed a staff from the table behind him and shocked the young Scorpian male on his knees. The young Scorpian shook in pain, his teeth tearing at his lip as he stifled sounds of pain. That got the older male's attention, without turning his back to Potter he growled low in his throat as the younger male continued to twitch against the ground, energy running over his skin, burning flesh.
The Head lifted the staff, "Now get on with it or I do it again!". The young male Scorpian straightened on his knees, limbs shaking. The Head lowered the staff, holding it level with the young male's face.
The Alpha growled and leaped for Potter, claws out. He grabbed Potter by the shoulders, lifted him off the ground and threw him clear across the cage. Energy flared along the bars where Potter made contact, but he seemed unaffected, landing swiftly on his feet, tail pincers opened and ready.
The older male stalked toward him, easily twice his size. He reached to grab Potter by the throat, but as he got hold, Potter's pincer claws raised up and grabbed onto the Scorpian cutting deeply into the flesh. Blood welled up and ran down the Scorpian's sides. He grunted, released Potter's throat, and grabbed onto the tails and effortlessly twisted them in his fists. Potter hissed in pain, his back arching, and kicked the Scorpian firmly in the chest. The Alpha however held on, using his vice-like grip on Potter's tails to drag him closer. Potter thrashed and began kneeing the Scorpian in the stomach. Grunting the Scorpian head butted Potter hard in the face. Blood burst from Potter's nose.
The remaining two tails on Potter uncurled from his middle and viscously struck at the Scorpian's face and eyes, tearing, and twisting at his ears. Growling the Scorpian released his death grip on Potter's tails and in a mimic of Potter's previous move raised one foot and kicked Potter squarely in the chest.
Potter hit the ground hard, rolled, and came to a crouch, all 4 tails raised, pincer claws open, slick with blood. His hair had moved off his face and now lay slick against his skull, out of his eyes. The Alpha Scorpian, blood dripping from the gashes on his face and side, slowly circled toward Potter.
A flash of light and moaning brought Draco's attention back to the young male outside the cage, he was being shocked again. The older male reacted immediately, leaping at Potter, stinger drawn back to strike.
Eyes on the drawn stinger, Potter evaded the attack with shocking speed, rolling on the ground, pincers snapping out. One made contact, drawing blood on the Scorpian's arm.
With a roar the Alpha managed to grab onto the retracting pincer and using it flung Potter against the bars again with a loud thump and flash of light. Rolling, Potter crouched on the ground, lips drawn back over sharp teeth, snarling.
With a start Draco realized Potter's eyes had blacked out completely.
Matching Potter's snarls, the Alpha stalked forward. This time Potter didn't wait but leaped at the male, pincers grabbing onto skin and hair and pulling, slicing, pinching. The male grabbed one pincer in his hand and using the other punched Potter in the jaw, then the gut. One pincer managed to grab the Scorpian by the neck and pinched, the skin ripping. The Scorpian twisted Potter around and pushed a knee into Potter's back, slamming his face into the ground and managed to pin 3 of the 4 pincers down using his foot and hands. Twisting, the remaining free pincer continued to attack the back of the Alpha's neck, as he gripped Potter's hair and slammed Potter's face into the ground repeatedly.
The Head Unspeakable shouted a cat call from the sideline. The older female beside Draco was breathing heavily, she looked defeated. Potter and the Alpha were locked in position. The Scorpian's hold on Potter was tight, but the wound on his neck was bleeding profusely.
Potter looked possessed, face covered in blood and dirt, eyes black, he snarled like a trapped animal, bucking to break the Scorpian's hold on his tails and hair. After a particularly vicious pinch to the back of the neck the Scorpian let go and rolled off releasing Potter.
In seconds Potter was up and startling; he was now nearly as tall as the Scorpian, and broader across the chest and shoulders.
He was growing. Draco noticed in blank shock.
Potter circled the Scorpian, his own black hair raised up now in mohawk style spikes and his stinger for the first time, unfurled and raised poised to strike.
The air in the cage shifted. Potter was now a real threat. A dominant threat.
The two creatures snarled and circled. Their stingers struck, testing the space. But Potter had the advantage, he had four additional weapons. The pincers were all poised open, already coated red with the Scorpian's blood.
They locked arms and stingers struck lightning fast on both sides. Despite Potter's rapidly increasing height and mass, the Scorpian was still larger, and used his weight to physically overpower Potter again. Twisting them right and left, striking Potter on the shoulder and side with his stinger. Large grey blistering welts appeared on Potter's darkening skin as the poison was pumped into Potter's body. But Potter struck back with both stinger and pincers. Two pincers were aimed at the Scorpian's stinger, while one continued the attack on his neck and the other his left Achilles.
Potter had managed to get a lock on the stinger tail, a good foot below the stinger itself and pinched. Hard. Poison leaked out of the stinger's tip and hissed as it hit the ground.
The Alpha Scorpian released his hold on Potter's arms and grabbed for the pincers locked on his tail. A lethal mistake in Draco's mind. But loss of a stinger was the ultimate insult and shame to a Scorpian.
As soon as Potter was released, he struck the Scorpian in the face and neck repeatedly with his own stinger, leaving angry red welts. The remaining two pincers coming up to latch onto the Scorpian's neck. The death grip on the Scorpian's tail held. In one last flailing attempt the Scorpian kicked out hard with both feet against Potter's chest, dislodging him from the Scorpian's neck, but the death hold on his tail held. Both Potter and the Scorpian hit the ground. The venom from multiple stings was making its effect known on the Scorpian as his movements slowed. Potter however seemed only to move faster, rolling, and pinning the Scorpian down by the shoulders with both hands, as two pincers clamped around the neck. His own stinger lanced out striking the Scorpian's legs and side.
The fight was over.
"FREAK! STOP! NO PRIDE!" The young male scorpion hollered, pulling at his restraints. The younger female Scorpian beside Draco gasped and sobbed, unable to look.
Potter barely looked humanoid now as he continued his attack, either unaware of the younger male or uncaring. The Scorpian's stinger was twisted and almost sawn right off, the ultimate shame to a Scorpian, but not a deadly wound.
The pincers on the Alpha's neck pulled upward and in a great burst of blood, Potter ripped the Scorpian's throat right out. The Alpha's struggles ceased. He was dead.
Still Potter didn't stop. Pincers slashed and gouged. The younger male howled in impotent rage.
Draco didn't turn away from the gruesome sight until Potter had torn the Scorpian's head right off.
The young male continued screaming at Potter, who seemed oblivious as he stood snarling in the blood and carnage of the fight.
The older female watched on as Potter paced the cage, spitting and hissing, disgracing the Alpha. Her face was expressionless.
Motion near the front of the cage drew Draco's attention, unbelievably they were pushing the young male into the cage. The young male hissing, face contorted in rage, charged the moment his bindings fell away. Potter turned immediately to the new threat, 4 tails and stinger raised.
"NOOOOOOO", Draco flinched as the older female shrieked, "MERCY!"
The young male reached Potter, stinger whipping up to strike, only to be caught in two pincers and thrown across into the far side of the cage, landing in front of the females. Electric magic seared across the young male's flesh.
"STOP" She stood ignoring the Unspeakables behind her, at full height she now only came to Potter's neck as he stalked forward.
"KIAALL" She screamed. The young male leaped up and charged, Potter's pincers easily grabbed his arms and twisted, the bones snapping sharply. Potter kicked the young male in the chest, his pincers continued twisting the young males' arms, tearing at the muscle. The young male snarled in pain and rage his stinger a blur as it lanced forward mercilessly, but Potter's skin had darkened and thickened to a point where the Scorpian blows that would normally have felled a troll weren't even landing.
Potter's free pincer gripped the males throat and lifted him off the ground, his arms pulled taut aside. His stinger, unused so far, reared back to strike.
"KIAAL" the female raged, grabbing onto the cage. She seemed oblivious to the magic searing her hands. The younger female had turned away from the gruesome scene, moaning.
"HARRY!" Draco didn't know why but the name sprung from his lips, ringing in the clearing like a bell. Potter faltered, pausing his attack, as the young male continued to choke and flail in Potter's grip.
It was strange, Draco didn't even think he had called Potter by his first name out loud before.
His disillusionment had dropped. The older female gripped Draco's arm tightly and turning he looked into her black eyes. There was a hysterical edge to them.
This was her son. The bloody mess on the ground her mate.
'HARRY!' Draco called again. This time Potter caulked his head to the left. From the front, the Head Unspeakable was shouting. Staffs were raised on each side of the cage.
'Harry, you're at Hogwarts!' The word seemed to have more effect than Potter's name. He dropped the younger male, who was nearly unconscious and turned toward Draco. Solid black eyes bored into him. There was no humanity in them.
The female Scorpian's grip tightened impossibly. Draco forced himself to maintain eye contact with this beast that used to be his school rival.
Almost whispering, "You're at Hogwarts, Harry." Something seemed to move within the depths of those demon-like eyes. A shudder ran through Potter, and he took another step forward.
"Look!" The female suddenly urged, breaking the spell the creatures gaze had on Draco. She was pointing beyond the cage towards the castle that loomed in the background.
"Look where you are! Look at what they've made you!" her voice was hoarse and bitter.
Potter's attention snapped to her, his pincers raising in threat.
"Hogwarts!" She threw the word at him like a weapon.
Potter seemed to ripple, his hair slackening, his skin vibrating. He turned abruptly towards the castle. The building he was always able to see if he had just looked.
Draco didn't know who he said it for, himself or Potter, "Harry, you're home."
The eyes that pierced Draco the second time were green, emerald green.
A moment later Potter folded in on himself. Tails curled up protectively around his middle, hair flattening across his face.
There had been recognition in those eyes, but also fear and shame.
END CHAPTER