Categories > Books > Harry Potter > Son of the Serpents
Chapter 1: the Death of the Dursleys
5 reviewsThere have been many stories where Harry becomes a Dark Lord. There have been a few where Harry is raised by Superheroes. I think this is one of the first where he is raised to become a supervillian.
5Original
Summary: There have been many stories where Harry becomes a Dark Lord. There have been a few where Harry is raised by Superheroes. I think this is the first where he is raised to become a supervillian.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling
The Serpent Society is owned by Marvel Comics.
Chapter 1: the Death of the Dursleys
(I’ve got to be out of my mind!) thought a magenta-haired woman as she trudged through the rain. I just agreed to join Seth’s little labor union and now here I am pulling off the same kind of job I did before I joined!) As she flagellated her self, mentally, Rachel Leighton noticed that ahead of her, a rail-thin woman and a pudgy boy were walking ahead of her. The woman was holding an umbrella over herself and the pig-like boy. The two of them were being trailed by a scrawny boy in worn out clothes. He was obviously a street urchin, trailing them to steal her purse. But Rachel hadn’t thought such thing had existed outside of Dickens’ books.
“Aunt Petunia, I need to go potty,” said the street urchin, after tugging on the sleeve of the woman.
She turned her horsy face to the boy and snarled: “You should have gone before we left!”
“I have to go potty too, mummy!” said the plump boy she’d been sharing the umbrella with.
“Of course you can, Duddikins,” said the horse-faced woman, her voice suddenly sweetness and light. “Maybe they have one it there?”
(Damn! They’re going in!) thought Rachel.
Ducking into an alley, Rachel pulled off her mackintosh and hat, then, pulled on her mask. After a quick check to make sure all her throwing diamonds were in the special pockets interspersed thought her costume, Rachel, in her alter ego as Diamondback, ran into the jewelry store.
“Nobody, move!” yelled Diamondback. “This is a robbery! And yes, I am the notorious American super-villain, Diamondback. I just want the Star of Kurkst. Let me have the diamond a no one need get hurt!”
She’d just planned a ‘smash and grab’. The huge 150 carat diamond was enclosed in a bullet-proof glass case in the middle of the store. Pulling out one of her throwing diamonds, she began scoring a circle in the glass so she could break it. Unfortunately, the guard, seeing that she was distracted, pulled his gun out. Diamondback had just enough time to register the reflection in the glass of the guard pointing a gun at her. A couple of shots rang out. Diamondback dropped to the floor and rolled. She glanced to see if anyone had been behind her and saw the homeless boy vanish before her eyes with a Pop! Behind him were the fat boy and his mother. The bullet went through them both, splattering their intestines and blood all over the jewelry cases.
Diamondback hurled a throwing Diamond at the guard. This one was coated with a strong narcotic that put the guard out in an instant. She ended her roll on her feet, back by the Star’s case. I well placed punch broke the glass where she’d scored it and she reached in to extract the diamond, before fleeing the scene. When she returned to the alley where she’d left her coat, she found the little orphan boy crying in the rain.
“You!” said Diamondback. “Were those people your relatives?”
The boy nodded.
“Look, I’m sorry to tell you this but they got killed,” said Diamondback as she put on her coat, pulled some sweatpants out of the pocket and put them on over her costume, then, took off her mask and the magenta colored wig, revealing her mousy brown hair. Her rain hat completed her disguise. “I’m Rachel. What’s your name?”
“Freak,” replied the boy. “But sometimes they call me ‘boy’.”
“I couldn’t help noticing that you’re a mutant,” said Rachel. “Would you like to come live with me? I think I could get you training in using your powers.”
“What’s a Mudand?” asked the boy.
“That is people who have special powers, like the way you teleported out of the store,” replied Rachel. “Some of my best friends are mutants. I’ll introduce you when we get home.”
“I never heliportant before,” admitted the boy.
“Yes, you’ll have to learn to control your powers,” said Rachel. “Most kids don’t get their powers until they become teenagers.”
Serpent Citadel, upstate New York
Getting an unrelated boy through customs proved to be difficult. But Sidewinder took care of it for them. When they go off the plane, a couple of women were waiting for them. Both had dark hair and brown eyes.
“Larry, this is Cleo and Tanya,” introduced Rachel. “They’re mutants like you. Can you believe that his relatives told him his name was ‘Freak’, just because he was a Mutant? I’ve decided to adopt this boy. He picked the name Larry.”
“Seth won’t like it,” warned Tanya.
“He already knows,” replied Rachel. “He helped us get through customs.”
Soon they were pulling into a place that looked like a combination of a hospital and a prison.
“Welcome to the Serpent Citadel,” said Rachel. “Let me show you to my room. You’ll have to stay with me until we can shuffle the rooms a bit and give you one next to mine.” She led him into a small efficiency apartment.
“Wow a snake!” said Larry as he ran up to the aquarium that housed her pet diamondback rattlesnake.
“~What’s your name?~” hissed Larry.
“~You speak?~” hissed the snake. “~My name is Sssyrinusss.~”
“Wow! A talking snake!” exclaimed Larry as he reached into the aquarium.
“Larry NO!” screamed Rachel.
“It's okay, ~Sssyrinusss~ wouldn’t hurt me, would ya’, boy?” said Larry as he wrapped the venomous snake around his neck.
“~Of course not,~” hissed ~Sssyrinusss~. “~Speaking humans are so rare, I’ve only heard of them in legends. You are a very special human.~”
“Hey did you hear that?” asked Larry, “~Sssyrinusss~ says I’m special!”
“Of course you are,” said Rachel. “Wait! Did you just talk to my snake?”
“Vas goink on here?” asked a man in a brown costume that included a tail.
“Oh Gustav, I’m been wanting to talk to you,” said Rachel. “Do you think you could change rooms so Larry could have one adjoining mine? I’ve decided to adopt him. He’s a mutant! He can teleport and talk to snakes.”
“Vell, dat’s a strange combination,” replied Gustav. “I vould be glad to accommodate such a talented young man. How old are you?”
“Fiwve,” said Larry as he held up five fingers.
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
“Now remember, when we’re in costume, we’re called by our code names,” admonished Diamondback.
“Diamondback, what can to the Taskmaster do for the Serpent Society?”
“This is my ward, Hiss,” said Diamondback. “He’s a mutant. I know he’s a little young for you, but I was hoping you could train him a couple of times a week.”
“What are his powers?” asked the Taskmaster.
“Teleportation and talking to snakes,” replied Diamondback.
“That’s an odd combination,” mused the Taskmaster. “I wouldn’t be much help in teaching him to use those powers. My own power doesn’t work that way. But I could provide physical training twice a week.”
“I guess we could consider you his P.E. class,” said Diamondback.
“Fine. Why don’t you go to the office and work out the details with my secretary,” said the Taskmaster. “I’ll get started with young Larry. Now, Larry, like you, I am a mutant. My power is photographic reflexes. Any normal physical feat I see, I can duplicate. I’ve studied a great variety of vigilantes and criminals and I can use what I’ve learned to teach you archery, fencing, throwing, marksmanship, and unarmed combat. By the time you’re grown, you’ll be able to shoot like Hawkeye or the Punisher, fence like the Black Knight, and fight like Captain America.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Over the next few months, a discrete romance developed between Diamondback and the Rattler. The adopted child had begun to think of them as his parents. The Taskmaster was well pleased with Larry’s progress and had heaped praise on both him and his adopted parents for the boy’s ability to excel in the physical training the Taskmaster had been giving him.
One day, the Rattler was escorting Larry back from the Taskmaster’s school when there was a strange Popping, as a figure appeared before them in a black robe and a skull mask.
“Larry get behike me!” yelled the Rattler as he began vibrating his tail.
“My name is Hiss!” pouted Larry, as the sonic wave that emanated from the Rattler’s tail knocked the Death Eater from his feet.
“Avada Kendavra!” shouted the Death Eater from a prone position, as a green beam shot from the end of his wand at his attacker.
The Rattler crumpled like a puppet with his strings cut as the beam of green death hit him.
“GUSTAV!” yelled Larry, as he knelt to shake his adopted father. “Wake up Dad! Wake up!”
The Death Eater, seeing his quarry distracted and seemingly helpless, decided to play with the boy-who-lived.
“Crucio!” yelled the Death Eater, after rising to his feet.
Larry screamed, as his nerves seemed to catch on fire. The Death Eater maintained the curse hoping it would drive the boy-who-lived mad as the Longbottoms had been.
As Larry continued to scream, the overhead fluorescent light began exploding, one by one. Two costumed women ran around the corner. Diamondback and Black Mamba had been drawn by the sound of the boy’s screams.
“Leave my son alone, you bastard!” yelled Diamondback as she threw an explosive throwing diamond at the man in the skull mask.
The resultant blast knocked the Death Eater against a wall, stunning him, as well as shattering his wand. When Yaxley regained his senses, his sister was standing naked before him. When she went to hug him, he hugged her back.
(This is how things should have been from the beginning,) thought Yaxley, as he hugged his sister. (I knew, some day, she’d realize I’m the perfect match for her)
Black Mamba continued to crush the man in the skull mask with her Dark Force illusion until he was dead. Then she walked over and kicked him to make certain.
“Larry, are you alright?” asked Diamondback, as she hugged her adopted son.
“Mum! He killed Gustav-
and then he-
and then he-“ sobbed Larry as he tried to catch his breath and sobbed, while hugging Diamondback.
“Larry, you called me Mum!” exclaimed Diamondback as she hugged him even tighter.
“Tanya, did you hear that? He called me Mum!”
Overhead, the lights continued shattering, but more sporadiacallly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Once Diamondback and Black Mamba had assured themselves that the boy was physically unhurt, they called a full meeting of the Serpent Society. The current roster included: Sidewinder, Anaconda, Black Mamba, Asp, Diamondback, Cobra, Cottonmouth, and Bushmaster.
“I examined the body,” began Bushmaster. “His weapon appears to have been nothing more than an ordinary stick. He didn’t have any form of ID on him, not even an A.I.M. Express card. His costume was a mixture of 16th century period dress with a black robe over it. The only identifying mark was a tattoo on his forearm of a skull and snake and his mask."
Bushmaster set the skull mask on the table for all to see.
The Asp gasped when she saw the mask.
“Why would he want to attack us?” asked the Cobra.
“Who knows why he does the things he does, he a loon!” said Anaconda.
“While I may be your leader, this is too big a decision for me to make unilaterally,” said Sidewinder. “He’s attacked our headquarters and killed one of our own! I say we hit him back, hard! Let’s see a show of hands. Who’s with me?”
Instantly, Diamondback, Black Mamba, Asp, and Bushmaster’s hands shot into the air. Anaconda and Cobra were a little slower to raise their hands. When everyone but Cottonmouth had their hand raised. They all gave him a questioning look.
“He’s one tough customer,” said Cottonmouth. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
silence
“Very well, I’ll go along,” said Cottonmouth as he raised his hand. “I just hope I don’t regret this.”
“Then, we’re agreed,” announced Sidewinder. “We’re going to hit the Red Skull back! Everyone get some battle plans on my desk by tomorrow morning.”
Notes
The Serpent Society is a fictional organization of snake-themed supervillains in the Marvel Comics universe. The group was initially formed from the membership of a previous supervillain team, the Serpent Squad. The group, like its predecessor, has been made up of longtime antagonists of Captain America and his fellow Avengers. The Serpent Society first appeared in Captain America #310 (October 1985) and was created by Mark Gruenwald and Paul Neary.
The Serpent Society was the brainchild of Seth Voelker (Sidewinder), and is a descendant of sorts from the original Serpent Squads. The first squad consists of the original Viper, his brother the Eel, and the Cobra. The second squad consists of the second and current Viper (who was also formerly Madame Hydra), the Eel, Princess Python, Cobra, and the Atlantis Warlord Krang. Voelker led the third incarnation of the Squad that included Anaconda, Black Mamba and Death Adder. They were to retrieve the fabled Serpent Crown from its then underwater grave. Voelker used his cloak and abandoned his comrades during an underwater mishap, and proceeded to collect the reward for the Crown.
Anaconda, Mamba and Adder not only survived the mishap but they caught up with Voelker. During that time Voelker had invested the money and started the groundwork for the Serpent Society. The Society was to provide its members with better access to technology, bigger access to jobs, higher pay, comradeship, safe lodging, and a host of other benefits. Most importantly, with Sidewinder's teleportation cloak, members never had to fear imprisonment again. It was, essentially, a supervillain labor union.
After persuading his former comrades of his true intention to better their lot (and paying their share of the reward plus interest), he had them contact other snake-themed criminals, these included the Asp, Diamondback, Constrictor, Cobra, Princess Python, the Viper, the Rattler, Cottonmouth, and Bushmaster. The Viper refused to attend the first initial gathering. Constrictor, unimpressed with the proceedings, walked out and tried to turn the group over to the Avengers.[1]
Sidewinder, Anaconda, Black Mamba, Death Adder, Asp, Diamondback, Cottonmouth, Cobra, Bushmaster, Rattler, and Princess Python became charter members of the Serpent Society. They headquartered at Serpent Citadel, which was an abandoned mental hospital located in upstate New York. Sidewinder sent them out to contact various criminal organizations including HYDRA, the Maggia, the Kingpin, and A.I.M.. From A.I.M. they received their first paying assignment: the elimination of their former leader MODOK.[2] The Society's success in killing MODOK quickly cemented their reputation as criminal talents of the first caliber. Captain America intervened many times during their early years but was never able to put them out of commission.
Two charter members soon left the Society. Princess Python ran out on them during the MODOK assignment and was expelled from their ranks. Death Adder was killed by Scourge when he was trying to ransom the Princess to her Circus of Crime cohorts.
Membership
The membership of the Serpent Society has included:
Anaconda
Anaconda (Blanche Sitnizki) is a former steelworker from Pittsburgh who has superhumanly strong tentacle-like arms and legs that she uses to constrict her foes. She has gills implanted that allowed her to breathe underwater.
Asp
Asp ("Cleo" Nefertiti) is a mutant who generates a paralytic energy which is fatal to those who remained in close contact with her for prolonged periods of time. She can channel this energy into electrical blasts, which she called her "venom bursts" or "venom bolts" that can stun or paralyze living beings. She was an exotic dancer by profession, and found that physical exertion increased her venom blasts recharge time. The Asp can also move at superhuman speed, although not on par with speedsters such as Black Racer or Quicksilver.
Black Mamba
Black Mamba (Tanya Sealy), a former call-girl, has a limited form of telepathy that enables her to scan the thoughts of nearby individuals, usually to find an image of someone that the person holds dear. She then manifests the Darkforce into the image of that cherished person, which in turn, almost hypnotically seduces its target into embracing it. Once physical contact is established, Mamba then lets the Darkforce constrict her victims to death, or at the very least, to unconsciousness. Often the victim is in too deep a state of ecstasy or euphoria to even notice. One or both of these powers (telepathy and darkforce control) is due to a chip implanted in her forebrain.
Bushmaster
Bushmaster (Quincy McIver) is a quadriplegic who possesses cybernetic limbs: two arms and a tail in the place of the lower half of his body. He lost his arms and legs in a boating accident while trying to evade the police underwater. Shortly later, the Roxxon Oil Company equipped him with bionic arms and a snake-like tail. He took the name "Bushmaster" from his fallen brother, another criminal. Years later, Sidewinder enlisted Bushmaster to join the criminal trade union known as the Serpent Society. Bushmaster was grateful for the unity and the steady employment; he considered himself to be a freak, and the Society was his best chance in life. He made a friend in Diamondback, a fellow Society member who saved him after MODOK severed his artificial appendages.
Cobra
Cobra (Klaus Voorhees) is a longtime Thor foe and partner of Mister Hyde. He possesses superhuman speed and a great degree of flexibility, can contort his body into almost any shape, and is a skilled wrestler. He also supplements these abilities with an array of weaponry, mainly his wrist launchers that fire anything from knockout gas to poisoned darts.
Cottonmouth
Cottonmouth (name unknown) hails from Mobile, Alabama. He has bionic jaws and steel teeth. He can extend his lower jaw up to a foot from his upper jaw. His jaws possess superhuman strength and extremely sharp fangs. Cottonmouth and Death Adder killed M.O.D.O.K. on the Society's first mission. For a while, for reasons never explained, Cottonmouth assumed Bushmaster's real identity of Quincy McIver.
Diamondback
Diamondback (Rachel Leighton) is an acrobat who uses diamond-shaped throwing blades, many of which are equipped with anything from poison, explosives, narcotics, and acid.
Hiss
Hiss (Larry Leighton) is believed to be a 5-year-old mutant with the ability to teleport and talk to snakes. Unknown to him, he is Harry Potter, the boy-who-lived, a young wizard.
Rattler
The Rattler (Gustav Krueger) is a Polish criminal with a bionic tail that can generate vibrations. Perhaps as a result of his powers, he is 85% deaf in both ears and requires a hearing aid. A ruthless villain, he tried to kill Captain America alongside his fellow Serpents.
Sidewinder
Sidewinder (Seth Voelker), who possessed a cloak that allowed him to teleport himself and a companion.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling
The Serpent Society is owned by Marvel Comics.
Chapter 1: the Death of the Dursleys
(I’ve got to be out of my mind!) thought a magenta-haired woman as she trudged through the rain. I just agreed to join Seth’s little labor union and now here I am pulling off the same kind of job I did before I joined!) As she flagellated her self, mentally, Rachel Leighton noticed that ahead of her, a rail-thin woman and a pudgy boy were walking ahead of her. The woman was holding an umbrella over herself and the pig-like boy. The two of them were being trailed by a scrawny boy in worn out clothes. He was obviously a street urchin, trailing them to steal her purse. But Rachel hadn’t thought such thing had existed outside of Dickens’ books.
“Aunt Petunia, I need to go potty,” said the street urchin, after tugging on the sleeve of the woman.
She turned her horsy face to the boy and snarled: “You should have gone before we left!”
“I have to go potty too, mummy!” said the plump boy she’d been sharing the umbrella with.
“Of course you can, Duddikins,” said the horse-faced woman, her voice suddenly sweetness and light. “Maybe they have one it there?”
(Damn! They’re going in!) thought Rachel.
Ducking into an alley, Rachel pulled off her mackintosh and hat, then, pulled on her mask. After a quick check to make sure all her throwing diamonds were in the special pockets interspersed thought her costume, Rachel, in her alter ego as Diamondback, ran into the jewelry store.
“Nobody, move!” yelled Diamondback. “This is a robbery! And yes, I am the notorious American super-villain, Diamondback. I just want the Star of Kurkst. Let me have the diamond a no one need get hurt!”
She’d just planned a ‘smash and grab’. The huge 150 carat diamond was enclosed in a bullet-proof glass case in the middle of the store. Pulling out one of her throwing diamonds, she began scoring a circle in the glass so she could break it. Unfortunately, the guard, seeing that she was distracted, pulled his gun out. Diamondback had just enough time to register the reflection in the glass of the guard pointing a gun at her. A couple of shots rang out. Diamondback dropped to the floor and rolled. She glanced to see if anyone had been behind her and saw the homeless boy vanish before her eyes with a Pop! Behind him were the fat boy and his mother. The bullet went through them both, splattering their intestines and blood all over the jewelry cases.
Diamondback hurled a throwing Diamond at the guard. This one was coated with a strong narcotic that put the guard out in an instant. She ended her roll on her feet, back by the Star’s case. I well placed punch broke the glass where she’d scored it and she reached in to extract the diamond, before fleeing the scene. When she returned to the alley where she’d left her coat, she found the little orphan boy crying in the rain.
“You!” said Diamondback. “Were those people your relatives?”
The boy nodded.
“Look, I’m sorry to tell you this but they got killed,” said Diamondback as she put on her coat, pulled some sweatpants out of the pocket and put them on over her costume, then, took off her mask and the magenta colored wig, revealing her mousy brown hair. Her rain hat completed her disguise. “I’m Rachel. What’s your name?”
“Freak,” replied the boy. “But sometimes they call me ‘boy’.”
“I couldn’t help noticing that you’re a mutant,” said Rachel. “Would you like to come live with me? I think I could get you training in using your powers.”
“What’s a Mudand?” asked the boy.
“That is people who have special powers, like the way you teleported out of the store,” replied Rachel. “Some of my best friends are mutants. I’ll introduce you when we get home.”
“I never heliportant before,” admitted the boy.
“Yes, you’ll have to learn to control your powers,” said Rachel. “Most kids don’t get their powers until they become teenagers.”
Serpent Citadel, upstate New York
Getting an unrelated boy through customs proved to be difficult. But Sidewinder took care of it for them. When they go off the plane, a couple of women were waiting for them. Both had dark hair and brown eyes.
“Larry, this is Cleo and Tanya,” introduced Rachel. “They’re mutants like you. Can you believe that his relatives told him his name was ‘Freak’, just because he was a Mutant? I’ve decided to adopt this boy. He picked the name Larry.”
“Seth won’t like it,” warned Tanya.
“He already knows,” replied Rachel. “He helped us get through customs.”
Soon they were pulling into a place that looked like a combination of a hospital and a prison.
“Welcome to the Serpent Citadel,” said Rachel. “Let me show you to my room. You’ll have to stay with me until we can shuffle the rooms a bit and give you one next to mine.” She led him into a small efficiency apartment.
“Wow a snake!” said Larry as he ran up to the aquarium that housed her pet diamondback rattlesnake.
“~What’s your name?~” hissed Larry.
“~You speak?~” hissed the snake. “~My name is Sssyrinusss.~”
“Wow! A talking snake!” exclaimed Larry as he reached into the aquarium.
“Larry NO!” screamed Rachel.
“It's okay, ~Sssyrinusss~ wouldn’t hurt me, would ya’, boy?” said Larry as he wrapped the venomous snake around his neck.
“~Of course not,~” hissed ~Sssyrinusss~. “~Speaking humans are so rare, I’ve only heard of them in legends. You are a very special human.~”
“Hey did you hear that?” asked Larry, “~Sssyrinusss~ says I’m special!”
“Of course you are,” said Rachel. “Wait! Did you just talk to my snake?”
“Vas goink on here?” asked a man in a brown costume that included a tail.
“Oh Gustav, I’m been wanting to talk to you,” said Rachel. “Do you think you could change rooms so Larry could have one adjoining mine? I’ve decided to adopt him. He’s a mutant! He can teleport and talk to snakes.”
“Vell, dat’s a strange combination,” replied Gustav. “I vould be glad to accommodate such a talented young man. How old are you?”
“Fiwve,” said Larry as he held up five fingers.
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
“Now remember, when we’re in costume, we’re called by our code names,” admonished Diamondback.
“Diamondback, what can to the Taskmaster do for the Serpent Society?”
“This is my ward, Hiss,” said Diamondback. “He’s a mutant. I know he’s a little young for you, but I was hoping you could train him a couple of times a week.”
“What are his powers?” asked the Taskmaster.
“Teleportation and talking to snakes,” replied Diamondback.
“That’s an odd combination,” mused the Taskmaster. “I wouldn’t be much help in teaching him to use those powers. My own power doesn’t work that way. But I could provide physical training twice a week.”
“I guess we could consider you his P.E. class,” said Diamondback.
“Fine. Why don’t you go to the office and work out the details with my secretary,” said the Taskmaster. “I’ll get started with young Larry. Now, Larry, like you, I am a mutant. My power is photographic reflexes. Any normal physical feat I see, I can duplicate. I’ve studied a great variety of vigilantes and criminals and I can use what I’ve learned to teach you archery, fencing, throwing, marksmanship, and unarmed combat. By the time you’re grown, you’ll be able to shoot like Hawkeye or the Punisher, fence like the Black Knight, and fight like Captain America.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Over the next few months, a discrete romance developed between Diamondback and the Rattler. The adopted child had begun to think of them as his parents. The Taskmaster was well pleased with Larry’s progress and had heaped praise on both him and his adopted parents for the boy’s ability to excel in the physical training the Taskmaster had been giving him.
One day, the Rattler was escorting Larry back from the Taskmaster’s school when there was a strange Popping, as a figure appeared before them in a black robe and a skull mask.
“Larry get behike me!” yelled the Rattler as he began vibrating his tail.
“My name is Hiss!” pouted Larry, as the sonic wave that emanated from the Rattler’s tail knocked the Death Eater from his feet.
“Avada Kendavra!” shouted the Death Eater from a prone position, as a green beam shot from the end of his wand at his attacker.
The Rattler crumpled like a puppet with his strings cut as the beam of green death hit him.
“GUSTAV!” yelled Larry, as he knelt to shake his adopted father. “Wake up Dad! Wake up!”
The Death Eater, seeing his quarry distracted and seemingly helpless, decided to play with the boy-who-lived.
“Crucio!” yelled the Death Eater, after rising to his feet.
Larry screamed, as his nerves seemed to catch on fire. The Death Eater maintained the curse hoping it would drive the boy-who-lived mad as the Longbottoms had been.
As Larry continued to scream, the overhead fluorescent light began exploding, one by one. Two costumed women ran around the corner. Diamondback and Black Mamba had been drawn by the sound of the boy’s screams.
“Leave my son alone, you bastard!” yelled Diamondback as she threw an explosive throwing diamond at the man in the skull mask.
The resultant blast knocked the Death Eater against a wall, stunning him, as well as shattering his wand. When Yaxley regained his senses, his sister was standing naked before him. When she went to hug him, he hugged her back.
(This is how things should have been from the beginning,) thought Yaxley, as he hugged his sister. (I knew, some day, she’d realize I’m the perfect match for her)
Black Mamba continued to crush the man in the skull mask with her Dark Force illusion until he was dead. Then she walked over and kicked him to make certain.
“Larry, are you alright?” asked Diamondback, as she hugged her adopted son.
“Mum! He killed Gustav-
and then he-
and then he-“ sobbed Larry as he tried to catch his breath and sobbed, while hugging Diamondback.
“Larry, you called me Mum!” exclaimed Diamondback as she hugged him even tighter.
“Tanya, did you hear that? He called me Mum!”
Overhead, the lights continued shattering, but more sporadiacallly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Once Diamondback and Black Mamba had assured themselves that the boy was physically unhurt, they called a full meeting of the Serpent Society. The current roster included: Sidewinder, Anaconda, Black Mamba, Asp, Diamondback, Cobra, Cottonmouth, and Bushmaster.
“I examined the body,” began Bushmaster. “His weapon appears to have been nothing more than an ordinary stick. He didn’t have any form of ID on him, not even an A.I.M. Express card. His costume was a mixture of 16th century period dress with a black robe over it. The only identifying mark was a tattoo on his forearm of a skull and snake and his mask."
Bushmaster set the skull mask on the table for all to see.
The Asp gasped when she saw the mask.
“Why would he want to attack us?” asked the Cobra.
“Who knows why he does the things he does, he a loon!” said Anaconda.
“While I may be your leader, this is too big a decision for me to make unilaterally,” said Sidewinder. “He’s attacked our headquarters and killed one of our own! I say we hit him back, hard! Let’s see a show of hands. Who’s with me?”
Instantly, Diamondback, Black Mamba, Asp, and Bushmaster’s hands shot into the air. Anaconda and Cobra were a little slower to raise their hands. When everyone but Cottonmouth had their hand raised. They all gave him a questioning look.
“He’s one tough customer,” said Cottonmouth. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
silence
“Very well, I’ll go along,” said Cottonmouth as he raised his hand. “I just hope I don’t regret this.”
“Then, we’re agreed,” announced Sidewinder. “We’re going to hit the Red Skull back! Everyone get some battle plans on my desk by tomorrow morning.”
Notes
The Serpent Society is a fictional organization of snake-themed supervillains in the Marvel Comics universe. The group was initially formed from the membership of a previous supervillain team, the Serpent Squad. The group, like its predecessor, has been made up of longtime antagonists of Captain America and his fellow Avengers. The Serpent Society first appeared in Captain America #310 (October 1985) and was created by Mark Gruenwald and Paul Neary.
The Serpent Society was the brainchild of Seth Voelker (Sidewinder), and is a descendant of sorts from the original Serpent Squads. The first squad consists of the original Viper, his brother the Eel, and the Cobra. The second squad consists of the second and current Viper (who was also formerly Madame Hydra), the Eel, Princess Python, Cobra, and the Atlantis Warlord Krang. Voelker led the third incarnation of the Squad that included Anaconda, Black Mamba and Death Adder. They were to retrieve the fabled Serpent Crown from its then underwater grave. Voelker used his cloak and abandoned his comrades during an underwater mishap, and proceeded to collect the reward for the Crown.
Anaconda, Mamba and Adder not only survived the mishap but they caught up with Voelker. During that time Voelker had invested the money and started the groundwork for the Serpent Society. The Society was to provide its members with better access to technology, bigger access to jobs, higher pay, comradeship, safe lodging, and a host of other benefits. Most importantly, with Sidewinder's teleportation cloak, members never had to fear imprisonment again. It was, essentially, a supervillain labor union.
After persuading his former comrades of his true intention to better their lot (and paying their share of the reward plus interest), he had them contact other snake-themed criminals, these included the Asp, Diamondback, Constrictor, Cobra, Princess Python, the Viper, the Rattler, Cottonmouth, and Bushmaster. The Viper refused to attend the first initial gathering. Constrictor, unimpressed with the proceedings, walked out and tried to turn the group over to the Avengers.[1]
Sidewinder, Anaconda, Black Mamba, Death Adder, Asp, Diamondback, Cottonmouth, Cobra, Bushmaster, Rattler, and Princess Python became charter members of the Serpent Society. They headquartered at Serpent Citadel, which was an abandoned mental hospital located in upstate New York. Sidewinder sent them out to contact various criminal organizations including HYDRA, the Maggia, the Kingpin, and A.I.M.. From A.I.M. they received their first paying assignment: the elimination of their former leader MODOK.[2] The Society's success in killing MODOK quickly cemented their reputation as criminal talents of the first caliber. Captain America intervened many times during their early years but was never able to put them out of commission.
Two charter members soon left the Society. Princess Python ran out on them during the MODOK assignment and was expelled from their ranks. Death Adder was killed by Scourge when he was trying to ransom the Princess to her Circus of Crime cohorts.
Membership
The membership of the Serpent Society has included:
Anaconda
Anaconda (Blanche Sitnizki) is a former steelworker from Pittsburgh who has superhumanly strong tentacle-like arms and legs that she uses to constrict her foes. She has gills implanted that allowed her to breathe underwater.
Asp
Asp ("Cleo" Nefertiti) is a mutant who generates a paralytic energy which is fatal to those who remained in close contact with her for prolonged periods of time. She can channel this energy into electrical blasts, which she called her "venom bursts" or "venom bolts" that can stun or paralyze living beings. She was an exotic dancer by profession, and found that physical exertion increased her venom blasts recharge time. The Asp can also move at superhuman speed, although not on par with speedsters such as Black Racer or Quicksilver.
Black Mamba
Black Mamba (Tanya Sealy), a former call-girl, has a limited form of telepathy that enables her to scan the thoughts of nearby individuals, usually to find an image of someone that the person holds dear. She then manifests the Darkforce into the image of that cherished person, which in turn, almost hypnotically seduces its target into embracing it. Once physical contact is established, Mamba then lets the Darkforce constrict her victims to death, or at the very least, to unconsciousness. Often the victim is in too deep a state of ecstasy or euphoria to even notice. One or both of these powers (telepathy and darkforce control) is due to a chip implanted in her forebrain.
Bushmaster
Bushmaster (Quincy McIver) is a quadriplegic who possesses cybernetic limbs: two arms and a tail in the place of the lower half of his body. He lost his arms and legs in a boating accident while trying to evade the police underwater. Shortly later, the Roxxon Oil Company equipped him with bionic arms and a snake-like tail. He took the name "Bushmaster" from his fallen brother, another criminal. Years later, Sidewinder enlisted Bushmaster to join the criminal trade union known as the Serpent Society. Bushmaster was grateful for the unity and the steady employment; he considered himself to be a freak, and the Society was his best chance in life. He made a friend in Diamondback, a fellow Society member who saved him after MODOK severed his artificial appendages.
Cobra
Cobra (Klaus Voorhees) is a longtime Thor foe and partner of Mister Hyde. He possesses superhuman speed and a great degree of flexibility, can contort his body into almost any shape, and is a skilled wrestler. He also supplements these abilities with an array of weaponry, mainly his wrist launchers that fire anything from knockout gas to poisoned darts.
Cottonmouth
Cottonmouth (name unknown) hails from Mobile, Alabama. He has bionic jaws and steel teeth. He can extend his lower jaw up to a foot from his upper jaw. His jaws possess superhuman strength and extremely sharp fangs. Cottonmouth and Death Adder killed M.O.D.O.K. on the Society's first mission. For a while, for reasons never explained, Cottonmouth assumed Bushmaster's real identity of Quincy McIver.
Diamondback
Diamondback (Rachel Leighton) is an acrobat who uses diamond-shaped throwing blades, many of which are equipped with anything from poison, explosives, narcotics, and acid.
Hiss
Hiss (Larry Leighton) is believed to be a 5-year-old mutant with the ability to teleport and talk to snakes. Unknown to him, he is Harry Potter, the boy-who-lived, a young wizard.
Rattler
The Rattler (Gustav Krueger) is a Polish criminal with a bionic tail that can generate vibrations. Perhaps as a result of his powers, he is 85% deaf in both ears and requires a hearing aid. A ruthless villain, he tried to kill Captain America alongside his fellow Serpents.
Sidewinder
Sidewinder (Seth Voelker), who possessed a cloak that allowed him to teleport himself and a companion.
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