Chapter 3: The H-Men
You know those chapters you look forward to writing most when you plan a fanfiction? These next two are just a couple of mine.
Hope you guys enjoy!
Everyone has had a hero they look up to at some point in their lives. Some even have more than one hero.
I'm lucky enough to have a true hero as one of my best friends.
Snivels is always there for those who need him. Most would look at him and think there's nothing special. Like they used to with me.
I was the first to learn that there was more to Snivels than meets the eye. Living among dragons and other creatures who needed help, he would put his life on the line for those who had it harder than he did. He hasn't gone into too much detail of who or what he had to fight off, but it wasn't always easy being a hero everyone needed.
But he didn't ever slow down. Even today, Snivels keeps getting faster, and stronger. Anyone else would brag a little, but not Snivels.
Snivels always puts the needs of others before his own.
Snivels was up bright and early that morning. He was the kind of Pokémon that wanted to be ready for anything in case danger came up at the most unexpected moment. And he knew he had to keep himself in shape in order to make sure his skills and abilities were working to their full extent.
First he checked his running speed. He recruited Blaze and Ninjark to help him train. A race against Lockheed was the first test. The adolescent Speed Stinger took off running, but he was quickly out-sped by his adopted older brother. Lockheed watched with pride as Snivels ran past the line of rocks that was the finish line. "I think I just set a new record," Snivel said to himself.
A moment later, Snivels was standing next to Blaze, who was holding a megaphone. Ninjark was nearby with a list on a piece of wood dubbed "a clipboard" due to the metal clip at the top to keep the paper in place. Snivels got into a position showing he was ready to run, and Blaze nodded her head before lifting the megaphone to her mouth.
"GO!"
Snivels darted ahead, and was miles away in less than a second. A short moment later, Blaze's voice reached the spot where he was now standing.
"GO!"
Then there was a loud booming sound. Snivels's eyes lit up. "Sonic boom!" He zipped back to where Blaze and Ninjark were standing. "Check sound off the list," he said. Ninjark nodded and checked the small box marked "yes" for "sound."
The next test was inside the Ice Caves Meal Room, empty for the time being, with Snivels ready to run while Blaze was holding an unlit torch. At Ninjark's signal, Snivels took off running toward the other side of the Meal Room while Blaze lit the torch with Flamethrower. Snivels looked behind him to see the light quickly catching up to him and tried to run faster, but the light streaked ahead of him, reaching the wall moments before he did. Snivels looked back at his friends.
"Sorry, guys. Light's just too darn fast!"
Ninjark checked off "no" for "light."
Next was the intelligence test. Adhesive hovered in front of Snivels asking him rapid-fire questions.
"What's the square root of 85,849?"
"293. Give me a hard one."
"What are the names of all the Eeveelutions that have been discovered so far?"
"Vaporeon, Jolteon, Flareon, Espeon, Umbreon, Leafeon, Glaceon and Sylveon."
Blaze chuckled. "He's good."
Adhesive rubbed his tiny, digitless hands together in anticipation. "Alright, Snivster. What happens when the unstoppable force meets the immovable object?"
Snivels didn't even hesitate to answer that. "They surrender."
Adhesive promptly looked over his shoulder at Ninjark, who was still holding the clipboard. "Check intelligence off the list."
The Greninja did just that.
Now came the more unusual smelling test. Snivels's nose was more sensitive than most others of his species, and he was proud to treat that as one of his strengths. After making sure he couldn't see through the blindfold he was wearing, Snivels sat down in the middle of the room.
"Bring on the smells."
The burlap sacks containing objects of the foulest stenches were held at a least an arm's length as Blaze and Ninjark brought them in. Adhesive, Ra and Camazotz carried bags that had the more pleasant scents.
Listening carefully, Snivels waited until all the bags were on the floor in front of him until he started sniffing them, one by one. He flawlessly named all of the contents of each bag.
"Freshly baked malasadas, a dead fish, fresh cut grass, pine needles off of the icewood trees, which, I might add, is a species of plant that grow only around the Ice Caves, a bunch of fresh manure, a container of sour milk, that conditioner some of the girls have been using on their hair, fur, and feathers, a shirt reeking of body odor, and that last one is a combination of good and bad smells by placing a bunch of heavenly flowers on top of a large cube of stinky blue cheese."
Blaze and Ninjark stood wide-eyed and impressed.
The multilingual test was next.
"Alright, say something in Spanish," Adhesive politely requested.
Snivels gave him a look. "¿Qué quieres que te diga?"
Knowing what the Servine was asking, Adhesive replied, "Just say the first thing that comes into your head. Now, how about German?"
"Du bist ein großer Nerd," was Snivels's reply.
Adhesive was not amused. "That's not funny. Latin?"
A small smile curled Snivels's lip. "Draco furore noctis et Caeclarum psittacus."
"Nice choice," Adhesive complimented. "What about French?"
Snivels shook his head. "I don't know that one."
"Ironic," Adhesive muttered under his breath. He then asked out loud, "Can you give us some Dragonese?"
The Servine's next response was a series of grunts, growls, warbles, and croons only a dragon would understand. "Maybe now would be a good time to begin the Dragonology test," Ninjark said.
This time, Blaze was the one asking Snivels questions based on the subject. "So, Snivs, what category, or class, is the Night Fury in?"
"Strike Class," Snivels said immediately. "Though it was initially filed in the Mystery Class due to the Vikings not knowing much about the species."
"What special abilities do Sirens have?" Blaze asked, her arms folding across her chest in anticipation.
Snivels listed the Siren skills off of his fingers. "Sings hypnotic lullabies to lure in prey and enemies, fire doesn't require oxygen to burn, shapeshifting in the Monsters of Berk universe, eyes glow red when angry or afraid."
Adhesive jumped in with a genuine question. "How can you tell the difference between male and female dragons?"
Snivels shrugged. "Depends on the species. Female Deadly Nadders are typically more aggressive than the males, while the opposite is true for Monstrous Nightmares. There is one way that applies to all species, but it's much more disturbing. I'm lucky I'm able to identify the gender by scent rather than sight." He quickly added, "Identifying the age of a dragon also varies between species, since they all grow at different rates and have different ways of showing their age."
Blaze's shoulders slumped in defeat. "Alright, that's all I've got. Anyone else have an idea?"
"I can't think of any other tests," Ninjark said, equally defeated.
The looks on their faces got Snivels feeling all guilty. "You know, it's not in my intentions to make you guys feel bad. Besides, everyone's special in their own way, right?"
Blaze and Ninjark looked at each other and nodded. Then the three starters noticed a certain Poipole was mysteriously absent.
"Hey, where'd Adhesive go?"
The four Trainers of Destiny were feeding Ra, Camazotz, and the Pokémon they rescued from Harold a week before when a giddy Adhesive burst into the room.
"Guys, you are not gonna believe what just happened!"
Astrid rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Let me guess, you found another one of those moving pictures you love so much?"
"Moving pictures" was her way of saying "videos." Adhesive slumped his shoulders. "That's still not funny!" Then he bounced right back. "But that would be nice..." Especially a particular video he had watched every single day since it had been uploaded.
"Well, this seems pretty perfect to me."
"Yeah? Yeah, I guess it does."
"Mr. Adhesive?"
Camazotz's voice spoke over the Poipole's reminiscence of one of his favorite videos. "You were lost in Hiccstrid Land again."
"Huh?" Adhesive snapped back to reality. "Oh, right." He chuckled nervously. "So...we gave Snivels a bunch of tests for his skills, and he passed all of them with flying colors!"
As if on cue, Snivels entered the room. "Please, don't go bragging on my account. You know I don't like my friends feeling inferior to one another."
"Who's feeling inferior?" Hiccup asked, a bit off guard from his partner's statement.
Adhesive quickly jumped in to explain. "I think what he's trying to say is that he's afraid you're all jealous of him because of his enhanced abilities."
"Who's jealous?" asked Ra. "Camazotz and I have powers!" He struck a dramatic pose Snivels and Hiccup guessed was supposed to look heroic.
Brandyn shook his head. "Maybe, but your powers won't reach their full potential until you've fully evolved, remember?"
Both Cosmog deflated at that.
"Maybe they don't have to wait until then," Adhesive said. He flew out of the room and reappeared not long after, holding a book that was almost as big as he was. He handed the book to Heather, who read the title, which was written on the cover in several different languages.
Alchemy 101: 2018 Multilanguage Edition
Stunned, the aspiring alchemist couldn't help but ask, "Where did you get this?"
"Ultra Megalopolis is set in a very technologically advanced future," Adhesive said, shrugging modestly. "I've got access to objects and events that have yet to happen or be invented in this timeline." He pointed to the alchemy book. "That textbook I used in college holds a recipe that, when consumed, enhances the abilities of any living creature. I call it the Power Potion!"
As interesting as that was, there was one thing about Adhesive's explanation that confused Hiccup. "What's college?"
Adhesive hesitated, mostly because he wasn't exactly sure how to explain the concept. "It's kinda like training, only with classrooms and written homework, and you're learning about stuff that can't get anyone killed. I graduated earlier this year and got right into training for the Ultra Guardians. Then you guys came around, one thing led to another, and I decided to become a Go-Getter instead."
Blaze and Ninjark had chosen that moment to walk into the room. "Did you really have to explain that much?" the Blaziken asked.
"He asked me a question," Adhesive said, pointing at Hiccup. "I might as well give the best answer I can."
As they were talking, Heather opened the alchemy book and started reading. At the end of each chapter within the textbook was a recipe for different mixtures that had different effects on certain creatures. She recognized the recipe for a mixture that protected the consumer from dark magic, which she had made for Team Go-Getters prior to a fight against Sarabeth, back during the Dragon Manual Incident. The recipe for the Power Potion was at the end of the second-to-last chapter of the book, undoubtedly meant for a more advanced alchemist.
Still, it was worth a shot.
Brandyn strained to get a good look at the recipe. The Pidgey from Harold's crates was perched on top his head, but he paid her no mind. "If you need a hand, I can help you mix it up," he offered. "The potion, I mean."
Heather could have sworn she felt her stomach do a flip. "Oh, um...sure, why not?"
"I'll help, too," Ninjark said quickly.
Ra and Camazotz floated around the couple eagerly. "Us, too! Us, too!"
"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Hiccup asked no one in particular.
Snivels and Adhesive were the only ones waiting outside the Ice Caves Lab, where Heather, Ninjark, Brandyn and the two Cosmog were working on the Power Potion. The Poipole couldn't help but poke his head in through the door. "Is it ready yet?"
"We're still working on it," Ninjark replied. No sooner after he said that, Heather asked Brandyn to hand her an ingredient.
"Potassium bicarbonate?"
Brandyn promptly handed her a cup filled with a white powdery substance, which Heather then sprinkled into a large, bubbling cauldron they had found in the lab.
"Ammonium thiosulphate?"
This time, Ra and Camazotz handed her the ingredient, carrying it together with the wisp-like extensions that served as arms.
Snivels peeked in next. "Look, guys, I'm really don't think this is necessary. I don't like my friends being jealous of me, and I don't like them consuming stuff found in alchemy books."
"We're trying to work here," Heather uttered, frustrated that their project was being interrupted. However, much to her chagrin, Toothless came out of nowhere, nosing his way through the door and looking around the room.
The Night Fury warbled at Snivels, who looked at him wide-eyed. "What do you mean, 'where's Hiccup?' I thought you were with him!"
"Alright, that's it!" a very annoyed Heather shouted, her voice almost resembling Astrid's. "Everyone out!"
Snivels, Toothless and Adhesive quickly left the room, the Servine shutting the door behind them.
Now calm, Heather adjusted her safety goggles. "What's the final ingredient?" she asked.
Brandyn scanned the recipe in the book. He found the last ingredient on the list and read it aloud.
"A sample of the intended consumer's deoxyribonucleic acid."
A confused Ninjark looked at his trainer. "What does that even mean?"
"I don't know," Heather admitted. "I've never heard of that before."
Brandyn closed the alchemy book before putting on a pair of gloves and lifting the cauldron off of its pedestal. He then grabbed several cups and dipped them into the mixture. When he was sure he had the right number of cups, he pulled out a strand of his blonde hair and dropped it into one of the containers. Heather and Ninjark watched in amazement as the mixture rapidly changed colors until it finally settled on a brownish-gold.
The Cosmog were next. A sample from each of their wisps turned two of the other potions orangish-yellow for Ra and bluish-purple for Camazotz.
Now understanding what the final ingredient was, Heather added one of her own hairs to one of the remaining cups of the incomplete mixtures. Her potion turned bright green.
Following his trainer's example, Ninjark wiped some saliva off of his long tongue and dropped it into one of the other incomplete potions. His mixture changed between different shades of blue before settling on a darker shade.
Brandyn went over to the door that was the only entrance and exit to the lab and opened it. Adhesive was "pacing" back and forth through the air impatiently until he noticed the door was open. Smiling, Brandyn handed the Poipole two of the remaining three cups of the incomplete mixtures. "Take those to Astrid and Blaze," the trainer explained. "They need samples of their DNA to be complete."
Adhesive nodded in understanding before flying off, being careful not to spill any of the potion.
Brandyn then handed the last cup of the incomplete potion to Snivels. "This one's for Hiccup."
"We just have to find him, first," Snivels said, exchanging looks with an anxious Toothless.
The Servine-Night Fury duo ended up finding their friend in the resistance Forge, thanks to Snivels's enhanced sense of smell. The one-legged hero was working with Hephaestus, a Heatran, on what he said was an important project.
Hephaestus noticed the Servine and Night Fury first. "Ah, visitors. Come on in, don't be shy."
Snivels stayed underneath Toothless's wing as they walked in. The heat from the forge was rather comforting compared to the usually biting cold of the Ice Caves, but that didn't mean Snivels was interested in getting burned. "So, what's going on in here?" asked the Prince of Pokémon.
"Well, what do you think?" was Hiccup's only reply. He showed Snivels and Toothless a shield that looked like it was made out of silver, with the image of a Night Fury with a red left tailfin painted on it.
Snivels looked confused. "What was wrong with your old shield?"
Hiccup shook his head and chuckled a little. "This isn't just a shield." As if on cue, the center of the shield opened up, and a retractable grappling rope shot out and wrapped around Snivels. Before the Servine had time to register what had happened, the line reeled him in, pinning him to the shield Hiccup was holding on to.
Both trainer and Pokémon looked at each other awkwardly before Snivels broke the silence. "Well, this is somewhat humiliating."
"Yeah, sorry about that," Hiccup said. He got to work untangling Snivels and retracting the cable back into the shield.
"I should probably be apologizing, too," Snivels uttered.
Having heard his partner's statement, Hiccup couldn't help but ask, "For what?"
"This," Snivels said, lashing out and plucking one of Hiccup's hairs. He ignored his trainer's sudden cry in pain and confusion as he let the single strand of hair fall into the cup he was still holding. The potion bubbled a little, then shifted through every color imaginable before settling at a rather unattractive black. "That's interesting," Snivels muttered to himself before handing the cup to his trainer.
Hiccup eyed the concoction suspiciously. "This wouldn't have anything to do with what Adhesive was talking about earlier, would it?"
"Yes, yes it does," said the always-honest Snivels. "Just think of it as an experiment of sorts."
Hephaestus, who couldn't help overhearing, joined in. "Like the draconium we've been working with."
"Draconium?" Snivels repeated in confusion.
The Heatran gestured to Hiccup's shield with his head. "Got that metal for the shield straight from a Gronckle's mouth. Literally. Hiccup and I came up with a name for the metal together."
Hiccup continued to stare at the liquid in the cup he was holding. Truth was, he had gotten rather thirsty while working in the forge, but he wasn't so sure about going through with whatever "experiment" Snivels and Adhesive were performing. Finally deciding that it was worth a shot, Hiccup lifted the cup to his lips and drank its contents.
Snivels watched with interest as his trainer downed the last of the potion. Hiccup shuddered a little at the taste, but nothing else seemed to happen. "Do you feel any different?" Snivels asked.
Hiccup waited a moment before providing his answer. "Surprisingly, no." He lowered the cup. "But it's not really a drink I like the taste of. Reminds me of raw fish." He shuddered again, this time at the memory of having to eat raw fish back when he and Toothless were still getting acquainted.
A loud noise from somewhere in the Ice Caves made them all jump. It was the sound of objects crashing and breaking.
"Something tells me the other guys drank their potions, too," Snivels said to himself.
The Servine couldn't have been more right. Hiccup, Snivels and Toothless walked into one of the large training rooms in the Ice Caves to find what was pretty close to utter chaos.
One of the Cosmog, which Hiccup guessed was Ra, had honest-to-Arceus lasers coming out of his eyes. The beams were a mix of red and yellow, hot as the sun, and cutting through everything Ra looked at. Luckily, he was only able to keep the lasers going for as long as he wanted them to, as he quickly shut them off when he came close to hitting Stormfly, who was watching from the side along with Windshear and Buck.
Camazotz's powers were more calm. She was creating energy constructs, or solid objects that shone like the moon which she could control telekinetically. It was mostly simple tools like forks and spoons, but Hiccup spotted a few shields of different form among the objects.
Ninjark, meanwhile, was spontaneously teleporting any and everywhere possible. Every now and then, he'd end up on the wall, but didn't slip down. He stuck there like his hands and feet were glued to the wall.
Blaze, Astrid and Brandyn seemed to have more control over their powers. The Blaziken was tossing around balls of fire that materialized in her hands, occasionally calling them back so she could catch them. Brandyn's powers were less spontaneous, he was more agile with a bit of enhanced strength, but his main ability was his precision with projectile weapons. Knives, axes, bow and arrow, every weapon he used hit its target, even when he threw it while standing backwards.
Compared to the rest, however, Astrid was making the absolute most of her new powers. In addition to super strength, she now had the ability to psychically control her axe. Anywhere she wanted it to go, it would obey her without hesitation. Hiccup had to duck to avoid being hit with the double-bladed weapon.
Snivels marveled in what was transpiring before noticing that someone was missing. "Where's Heather?"
"I'm right here," said a voice.
Everyone looked around in confusion until Heather suddenly appeared out of nowhere. "I was invisible! Cool, right?"
"Cool is an understatement," Adhesive said as he floated down. He'd been watching from above. "I mean, you guys were already cool enough, and now you've all got superpowers!"
Hiccup looked nervous. "Well, most of us, anyway."
The Poipole flew over to Snivels, confusion etched on his facial features. "You gave him the potion, right?"
"Yes," Snivels answered. "I grabbed one of his hairs and put it in the mixture, but it turned black, and, when he drank it, nothing happened."
Heather looked thoughtful. "Odd. Maybe that color means it doesn't have an effect on him."
Toothless didn't seem so sure about that. One quick whiff of Hiccup's scent got him snorting with discomfort. Curious, Snivels also sniffed his trainer. "He does have an incredibly complex, yet familiar, aroma..."
"Where have you all been?"
Everyone in the room turned to see Kickin' Hawk standing in the doorway, his arms folded across his chest. "Fjord called us all for a meeting an hour ago. Word's been sent that the Outcasts are planning to attack Berk and who knows what else."
"We'll be right there," Hiccup said quickly. "We just need to...make a few adjustments, and then we'll be on our way." He chuckled as the Hawlucha eyed him suspiciously before leaving the room. As soon as Kickin' Hawk was out of hearing distance, Hiccup turned to Heather. "Please tell me the Power Potion comes with some sort of emergency antidote."
"He has a point," Brandyn said. "Who knows what'll happen if the wrong people, like the Outcasts, find out we have powers."
"They'll try to find a way to use them for their own evil purposes," Adhesive drawled. "Happens all the time. Luckily for you guys, the effects of the potions in the alchemy textbook are all temporary, so your powers will eventually wear off all by themselves." Then he brightened up a little. "But, you know, if you guys are actually planning to use these powers at any time, you need superhero names." He pointed to Ra and Camazotz. "Like, you two could be Solarizer and Lunarizer!"
"Why not let them choose what their hero names are going to be?" Snivels suggested. "I'm thinking of something along the lines of Leafstrike."
"I thought Serpent was your superhero name," Blaze said skeptically.
Adhesive shook his head. "That's only for when he was wearing the Snake Miraculous."
"Well, if Snivels can pick out his own name, then that's what I'm doing," Blaze said with a smile. "I don't know about you guys, but I like the name Heatwave."
Astrid liked where her partner was going. "I wanted to be a Valkyrie when I was little, so that's what my name's going to be."
"I kinda like the sound of Marksman," Brandyn said, twirling a knife in his hand before throwing it over his shoulder. The weapon hit the center of a painted wooden target dead-on.
Heather smiled slyly as she faded from view. "Just call me Invisi-Girl."
Ninjark's superhero name came with a sort of backstory. "There's a culture I know that associates frogs with ninjas in a story known as 'The Tale of the Gallant Jiraiya.' I think I'll call myself Jiraiya."
Hiccup just stayed silent. Why bother coming up with a superhero name for someone who had no powers?
Adhesive laughed joyfully. "Alright, now that's what I'm talking about! You guys are like...like..." He thought for a few seconds before having a brainstorm. "The H-Men!"
That earned him skeptical looks from all who were present in the room.
"The H is for Haddock," the Poipole explained. "You know, since Hiccup's kinda like the de facto leader and all?"
Hiccup shrugged. "It's a start..." He headed for the hallway, with Toothless following. "Let's get going before Fjord and Kickin' Hawk get any angrier than they probably are already."
Seeing as there was nothing else to do, the H-Men did just that.
Snivels didn't really pay much attention to what Fjord was saying to the rest of Team Go-Getters. He had gotten rather concerned about his friends consuming the Power Potion.
Amber noticed her mate standing off to the side and went to comfort him. "You okay, Snivsie?"
"I think I may have made a mistake," Snivels replied sadly. "I never liked showing off much, and I was afraid of my friends being jealous of me, so I helped orchestrate something kinda stupid."
Adhesive joined the Servine-Charmeleon couple. "It's not that stupid, it was an experiment. Besides, the whole thing was my idea, anyway. Plus, the effects of the Power Potion are only temporary, so their powers will eventually wear off on their own."
"See?" Amber said. "This isn't your fault, Snivels. We all know you were trying to help." As she spoke, all the other Pokémon Hiccup had befriended approached the couple. Verne and Spike nuzzled Snivels, Tito patted the Servine's shoulders, Crackers offered him a cracker he'd been planning to eat himself, Kickin' Hawk gave him a gentle noogie, Chomper nibbled at his tail, Mawnan perched on top of his head (with difficulty since his glasses were still yet to be fixed), and Buddy lay down next to him while making a sound reminiscent of purring.
Snivels cheered up a little at all that. "I guess I was trying to help them see what it's like for me to have these abilities." He shifted his gaze to Hiccup, who was leaning against the wall and trying to hide a look of disappointment in himself. "I just this all doesn't blow up in our faces."
Any of you who need translations for what Snivels said, they're listed below.
¿Qué quieres que te diga? - What do you want me to say?
Du bist ein großer Nerd - You are a big nerd.
Draco furore noctis et Caeclarum psittacus - Night Fury and Deadly Nadder (roughly translated, the Deadly Nadder's Latin name belongs to Cottonmouth25)
So yes, Adhesive is technically from the future by Viking Age standards. You can expect him to be making references not only to stuff from other worlds, but also to things that have yet to happen in the HtBaT timeline.
Which name do you guys think is better: Gronckle Iron or draconium?
Anyway, Happy Halloween!
