Gargoyles: Pendragon
The Swords and the Sun
December 21rst, 1942
Hildegard Hellstrom had never known what true horror and fear was until this night. Hildy had thought that it was a great honor to be hand chosen by der führer himself to drive his "Angel" to wherever she needed to be.
In this case, Heidelberg, Germany, to cast a spell to summon the Lord of the Hunt to destroy the Allies. That's when it all went to hell. Hitler's angel summoned the creature, but then she cast a second spell to drain the hunter of his power. Before Hildy even realized what was happening, she found herself transformed into a greyhound. Bounding through the village, attacking any human she came across.
If they survived her attack, Hitler's Angel would transform them into a hound as well. Either way, the village was being emptied of humans, one after another.
The worst part was that Hildy's mind remained fully conscious, fully aware of every attack. Everything that she did at the Der Führer's Engel behest, she remembered with crystal clarity.
Just as her hope was all but gone forever, a true Angel descended from the heavens. Ten feet tall, muscular, with a lion's head, but a falcon beak erupting from it's mouth, this strange feathered gargoyle attacked, and killed the horned creature that Hitler's Angel had become.
The Lord of the Hunt's power drained from her, and she fell to the ground dead.
The hounds all transformed back into humans, and the gargoyles vanished. Moments later, the führer's Angel awakened, as though nothing had happened, and started gliding back to the castle.
Hildegard never said anything when the Gestapo made inquiries about the Heidelberg incident, later. She knew that Demona had the führer wrapped around her talon. To speak against her would be to court death itself. She was, fortunately, taken off driving duty for Demona however.
Hidly never let her guard down around the gargoyle again. And…Hildegard began to do research on all German folktales involving gargoyles. She vowed, never to be taken off guard again.
March 10th 2004
Kai, Sora, and Sakura glided over the water towards the small island in the center of the lake.
Ishimura sat along a tributary to the Mogami River. The tributary poured into a small lake with a tiny chain of islands in the center. The islands were uninhabited, and considered sacred to the locals. Small Shinto shrines had been erected upon all four islands.
It was to the centermost of island that the three tengu—gargoyles to westerners—were gliding. They had received a communication to go the island.
Kai was the eldest. Hatched in 1898, he was 106 years old. The equivalent to a 53 year old human. With jade-green skin and two curved back horns atop his head. His tail ended in a dragon-like spade. His wings had far more digits than most gargoyles. Three wing fingers, as well as three wing ribs. He wore a simple blue keikogi.
Sora was the youngest, at 46, the equivalent of a 23 year old human. She had light pink skin and narrow horns in her hair. She wore a pink kimono and had reduced digits on her hind talons and wing-ribs.
Between the two was Sakura. Her age was an oddity. Though she hatched in 1898 along with Kai, physically she appeared to be 47, around 23, like Sora. This was because in 1938, she found herself a prisoner of a Chinese vampire who used sorcery to keep her locked in stone sleep for years at a time. Thus, she had barely aged by the time she was released, 59 years later.
She had pure white skin, a sharp contrast to her black hair. And the lining of her wings was a deep cherry-red, which had earned her name "Cherry Blossom". She had two wing fingers, and two ribs on her wings, giving her four digits on each of her wings over all, less than Kai's six, but more than most other gargoyles.
Reduced or increased limb-digits were a common trait among Ishimuran gargoyles.
She wore a bright red, small, kimono with golden dragons embroidered upon it, and a jade-green obi. Her face and horns looked very similar to Sora's face and horns. Indeed, many of the humans in Ishimura believed that they were biological sisters, though the gargoyles themselves neither knew, nor cared.
All three gargoyles carried a single katana with them.
They landed among the trees upon the island, and quickly darted up the stairway, coming to a large circle of standing stones, believed to have been placed upon the island in the Jomon era.
The two humans sitting among the stones looked up at the three gargoyles.
"Ah, finally," Rory Dugan said, getting up and dusting himself off. He turned towards the large green gargoyle. He was a dusky-red haired man in his mid 20s wearing green and blue clothes.
"You must be Kai," he said. "I'm Sir Rory from New Camelot. This is Dame Parvati."
The other human got up on her feet, and regarded the gargoyles with a curt nod. She appeared to be a 19 year old Indian woman, with blue eyes. She wore a sports-bra and white-tiger patterned yoga pants. No shoes or any other coverings. The bare minimum she could get away with.
"An honor," Kai said bowing back to Rory. "We received your message."
"I thought that Griff was going to be among your number?" Sakura asked, interrupting her brother, who looked slightly annoyed.
"He right here," Rory said tapping on Griff's stone form, kneeling next to him.
"What?" Sakura looked panicked. "Stone at night? Sorcery?!"
"Jet lag," Rory explained. "He'll wake up sometime in the next few hours, as will my pet Berghest."
The three Ishimuran gargoyles noted the stone beast next to Griff.
"How did you come to be on this island, anyway?" Sora asked, frowning. "There are no ferries out here."
"That is a good question," Kai asked suspiciously.
"Sorry," Nick said, shaking his head. "I can't tell you."
Kai cocked an eyebrow ridge.
"Our mode of Transportation is not secure," Rory said. "And until Merlin can find a way to make it properly secure, nobody outside of the Knights are allowed to know about it. Even you."
"I thought that your Daimyo Pendragon-sama liked and respected temgu," Sakura asked.
"He does," Rory said. "But Fleur worked for the Illuminati, one of our enemies, for quite some time. They have some gargoyles in their number, and it's better to keep our secrets and play it safe than-."
Rory was interrupted by a crackling sound. A lattice of cracks appeared across Griff and Berghest's stone forms. With triumphant roars, Griff and Berghest broke free. Griff then staggered and clutched his head.
"Ugh," He muttered. "Never get used to bloody jet lag."
Griff looked up.
"Hullo. You must be Kai," Griff said, holding out his talon. Kai took it in the warrior's handshake.
"And you must be Griff," Kai said. "The samurai who serves the Daimyo Pendragon. Sakura has told me much about you."
"Hello, Sakura," Griff said, bowing respectfully at the female gargoyle. "Bloody lovely to see you again."
Sakura flushed, but bowed back.
"I wouldn't call Arthur a Daimyo," Griff said, tapping his beak. "That's a Japanese lord, right? Arthur is a king. The Once and Future King. Isn't shogun the equivalent term?"
"Apologies," Kai said. "Sakura said he commands your knights as did the daimyo once commanded the samurai."
"I doubt he'd object to either term," Rory said, scratching Berghest behind her ears.
"So what brings you to Ishimura, Griff-sama?" Sora asked.
"Perhaps you have come to see our famous mountain hot-springs," Sakura asked, stepping forward an gingerly placing a talon on Griff's arm. Kai and Rory both cocked an eyebrow, but Griff seemed not to notice.
"Or perhaps you came to see someone specific?" Sakura pressed.
"I'm afraid that we're here on business," Griff said. "There's been a rash of sword thefts around the world. And they all have something in common. Each sword was associated with some sort of local legend, and most were reputed to have magical properties."
Kai and Sora exchanged a worried glance.
"After realizing the connection, we started doing research on magic sword legends, so that we could track down the swords first, and prevent the thefts."
"Which brings us to Japan," Rory said. "And the legendary sword Kusanagi."
"We're going to go to Atsusa Shrine, in Nagoya," Griff said. "To guard the sword if we can."
"The sword is not in Nagoya," Kai said quietly.
Griff paused. "What?"
"The Japanese government 'officially' has the sword as being listed there," Kai said, "But it is a lie, to distract any who might try to steal it. Kusanagi is kept here. In Ishimura. In our temple vault."
"You're kidding!" Griff exclaimed.
"It is true, Griff," Sakura said. "What could be a safer place in all of Japan, but in the vault of a clan full of Gargoyles?"
"The sword was last taken out in 1993," Sora said. "For an official state ceremony. When it is called for, one of the clan glides to Nagoya, and delivers the blade to the shrine there. When it is returned to the shrine there, the clan member takes the sword back here to Ishimura."
"You're telling me that the Japanese government knows about you?" Griff demanded.
"No," Kai said shaking his head. "They know that the blade is kept here in Ishimura, but they do not know that gargoyles watch over it. Long ago, the official who set up this system came from Ishimura. He felt strongly that the blade would be safest here, and set this system in place in secret. The government only knows that it needs to send a message to both Ishimura, and Nagoya when the sword is used for state events. Only the shrine maidens at Atsuta know that a gargoyle will deliver them the blade before the event. A secret passed down generations."
"I see," Griff said. "We don't know where the sword thieves are gathering their intel from. It's possible they have gotten wind of the fact that the sword is here."
"What's the plan then?" Rory asked.
Griff scratched his beak for a moment.
"You and Berghest will head to Nagoya like we originally planned," Griff said. "Parvati and I will remain here with the Ishimura clan to watch over the real sword. Hopefully, between all of us, that will cover all our bases."
"Aye-aye captain," Rory said dryly.
"So you will be staying with us for a few nights then," Sakura asked hopefully.
"Looks that way," Griff said. He gestured towards his back, and Parvati leapt on, wrapping her arms around his neck. He then began lumbering up one of the trees.
Rory shrugged and looked towards Kai, who nodded.
"Sister," Kai said, turning and looking at Sakura. "Are you flirting with the English tengu?"
"Trying to," she admitted. "Do you think he noticed?"
"I do not," Kai said. "And that is what confuses me. Because I have never seen anything like that before."
"Don't take it personal," Rory said, leaping onto Kai's back in the same way Parvati had for Griff. "Griff's a great guy, but he's sort of married to his work."
"I see," Sakura said, looking a little disappointed. The three Ishimuran gargoyles climbed up the tree after Griff. Sakura then scooped up Berghest and they glided back towards the temple.
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"I'm afraid that we can't get you to Nagoya before sunrise, Dugan-sama," Kai said. "You will have to depart tomorrow night."
The gargoyles and knights had gathered around a small table in the garden.
"It's fine with me," Rory said. "Spent the day watching Griff and Berghest. This will give me a chance to catch up on some sleep before I head out."
Kai nodded. "Umi can show you to a guest room."
Kai's aquatic looking mate bowed to Rory and gestured for him to follow. Berghest nipped quietly after him.
"I actually got a bit of sleep, as Sir Dugan was the one keeping watch," Parvati said. "I am hungry however."
"There are several restaurants in the village," Kai said. "I can take you to—"
"I would prefer to hunt my own food," Parvati said quietly. "If that is allowed."
Kai hesitated "There is a forest nearby stocked with game, that the clan sometimes hunts in when fish and rice are scarce. But special permits are required for humans to hunt there, and they take months to procure."
"I am not a human," Parvati said. Her body glowed green and she transformed into a white tiger. Kai stepped back in surprise. Parvati then shifted back into human form.
"Do your laws prevent a tiger from hunting in the forest?" she asked.
"I suppose not," Kai said. "I will take you to the forest, then."
"Don't use up all of your time," Griff instructed.
"Yes, Sir Griff," Parvati said. "If I cannot catch something within my first hour, I will return to the village and eat the old meat from the restaurants. And I thank you for the opportunity to hunt as a tiger is meant to. I so rarely get the opportunity."
Kai glanced over at Sakura, and made a subtle gesture. He then led Parvati out, leaving Griff and Sakura alone in the gardens.
"Griff-sama," Sakura said. "It would be my honor to give you a tour of Ishimura."
"Sounds like a plan," Griff said. "We can start with the sword."
"Actually," Sakura said. "Perhaps you might like to see the Ishimuran hot springs? They are very relaxing."
"Maybe after this Quest has ended," Griff said.
"Or perhaps something to eat? Your hum—Tiger friend might not have wanted to, but there are some amazing restaurants here in Ishimura. We could get some sushi, or yakisoba…"
"Well, I am a bit peckish," Griff said, stroking his beak. "But I think that securing the sword is first priority. So let's scope out the sword vault, and then we can get something to eat."
"Of…of course," Sakura said. "The vault is just at the end of the hall, inside."
"That's the ticket!" Griff said, grinning jovially, and headed inside.
Sakura sighed exasperatedly.
"I did not mean to eavesdrop," Kawa, a blue-skinned female from Sora's generation said, gliding down next to Sakura. "But that was so painful I could feel it from across the temple."
"I'm fine," Sakura snapped, her eyes flickering red.
"You practically threw yourself at him," Kawa commented. "An invitation to the hot-springs? I would kill for an invitation from the hot-springs from a female like you. Are you certain he doesn't just prefer the company of males?"
"I don't know," Sakura said, looking away. "We spoke often on the phone after I returned to Ishimura. His advice helped me to adjust to this…Time shift. I thought that there was something there. And now he's finally come to Ishimura…and I can't get him to take his mind off his mission."
"He's clearly a fool," Kawa said rolling her eyes.
"It's not his fault," Rory's voice said. Sakura and Kawa looked up.
"Didn't mean to eavesdrop either," Rory said holding up his hands. "Just left my phone out here."
"How is it not his fault that he completely ignores a beautiful female like Sakura throwing herself at him?" Kawa demanded.
"You already know that Griff was time-shifted forward from the Battle of Britain in 1940," Rory said, actually picking up his phone.
"Much like Sakura," Kawa said. Sakura nodded.
"What you probably don't know," Rory said. "Because Griff doesn't like to talk about it; is that in 1940 Griff was quite close with a gargoyle named Una. They probably would have become mates if not for Goliath showing up. And th' war. In the 60 year interim while Griff was gone though…Una chose Leo, Griff's best mate. They had two eggs."
Kawa fell silent.
"So Griff didn't just lose his time," Sakura said. "He lost what he thought might be the love of his life. He never told me that."
"Like I said," Rory said. "He doesn't talk about it much. He spent a couple of months adjusting to his clan in the modern era…but it made him very uncomfortable. His best mate and former girl were a happily married—mated I mean—there's a new rookery generation that looked like the children of his rookery siblings. He just felt out of place."
"A feeling I know quite well," Sakura said. "No offense, Kawa-san."
"None taken," Kawa said.
"Then King Arthur showed up," Rory said. "Gave Griff a chance to slip away from the clan. And do good work. Serving King Arthur was a dream come true for Griff. He'd heard stories about him as a hatchling, and now he was serving as Arthur's First Knight."
"Serving King Arthur is a worthy cause," Rory said. "I know because that's why I—And Parvati—And quite a few others, have all pledged our service to him, because he's doing good work, and making a real difference. And it's an incredible honor to be a part of that."
Sakura perked up as Rory said this. Her interest was piqued.
"But that doesn't mean that Griff isn't throwing himself fully into the work," Rory continued. "He doesn't do it halfway. And I think that part of that is that he's bottling up the pain of losing Una."
"How can you be sure?" Sakura asked curiously.
"I return to Ireland every three weeks," Rory said. "And do my Hero of Ulster thing on my own. My buddy Nick goes back to Queen Florence Island at least once or twice a month to check on things there. Rabbi Loew is back in Prague every week. Fara Maku and Tea take turns going back to Nigeria. Even Parvati returns to India every other month or so. We all have our own protectorates and responsibilities beyond what Arthur gives us, and we all honor those responsibilities."
"But I can't remember the last time Griff went back to London," Rory said. "It's been at least a year. Maybe more."
"He avoids his own clan," Sakura said.
"That's…Awful," Kawa said.
"What's going on out here?"
The trio turned around to see Griff walk back outside.
"Sakura, I thought you were going to show me the sword?" Griff asked. "I found the vault, but it's locked. I can't get in."
"Good," Kawa said. "Then the vault is in fact, doing its job. And you don't need to check on the sword. What you do need to do, is get something to eat. Can't serve your daimyo on an empty stomach."
"Well," Griff said. "That is true."
"Good," Kawa grabbed Sakura and shoved him into Griff's arms. Both gargoyles looked surprised, and then blushed.
"You are going to take this one," Kawa said. "You are going to glide down to the sushi-place in the village, and you are going to eat a big hearty meal. And you are going to do it now. Go. Why are you still standing here? GO. EAT."
"Bossy isn't she?" Griff commented.
"I'm just looking out for Sakura's best interests," Kawa said. "Now go. Before I make you go at swordpoint."
The two gargoyles climbed up the wall and glided off towards the village.
Rory and Kawa looked at each other and smirked.
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Rocamadour, France
Arthur and Fleur quietly sat at the Nightstone's coffee shop, just across the way from the wall where a supposed fragment of Durendal—the fabled sword of Roland—Lay embedded.
They remained silent as they each sipped their coffee, watching the wall intently.
"Do we even know if this is the true sword?" Arthur wondered.
Fleur shook her head. "I have no idea."
"The Illuminati has never been able to confirm that this was the true sword," she said. "Which is likely why it remains where it is."
"They do have a nasty habit of collecting magical talismans," Arthur said, looking annoyed. "Are we sure that they are not responsible for these thefts?"
"Oui," Fleur said. "It is possible. But it doesn't feel like them. It's too bold. Too open. The Illuminati prefers to act in secret, and move from the shadows."
"Fair enough, I suppose," Arthur said shaking his head. Fleur's LexPad began beeping.
Fleur placed her LexPad propped up against the napkin dispenser. She opened the Dalriada Broadcasting App, and immediately Kate Reed's face appeared on the screen.
"This is Kate Reed," the Irish Newscaster declared. "Coming at you from the DBC Newsroom. We've just received word of yet another in these rash of strange sword thefts from around the world. The sword Hrunting has been taken from the New York Metropolitan Museum in broad daylight. Witnesses reported that the thieves were dressed in heavy armor, and escaped in an unmarked hovercraft. No word yet from-."
Fleur muted the DBC broadcast.
"Another one," Fleur said, scratching her chin. "Hrunting. I didn't even consider that one might be a target. It's magically sealed in its sheath. Supposedly only the pure of heart can unsheathe it. S'why Duval never tried to claim it. He knew full well it would reject him."
"We only have so many knights under our command," Arthur said.
"Your command Arthur. Zey do not follow me. And I would not want zem too."
"Nevertheless," Arthur said. "Rory, Parvati, and Griff are in Ishimura, Nick and Max are in Germany, Tea and Fara are in Italy. I refuse to send any of my retainers anywhere without backup, and there are far too many blades of legend in this world for us to protect them all."
"Nay, Arthur," Fleur said, quietly. "You have made the right call. The thieves are taking every sword from myth and legend. But the four you have chosen to protect, are among the most prominent blades from myths around the globe—save your own—You cannot protect all the swords. But sooner or later, these thieves will attempt to take these four, springing our trap."
Arthur suddenly stood up.
"Sooner than it might seem, milady," Arthur said, pointing. A large black hovercraft had appeared over the town. Four oddly shaped figures leapt from the back of the craft. One landed atop the wall, and reached down, attempting to loose the wedge of Durendal from the wall. The other three landed on the ground at the base of the wall, and looked up.
Arthur and Fleur gasped in surprise upon seeing them. The first figure was some sort of horrific looking insectoid creature, with four arms and feelers waving wildly from his head. The second figure was a gigantic armadillo standing on his hind legs. The Armadillo wore thick jeans and appeared to have a pair of handguns strapped to his chest. To complete the look, he wore a cowboy hat with a confederate flag buckle on the brim.
The third figure was the largest. At eight and a half feet tall, he'd have given Goliath a run for his money in the size department. He had thick gray skin and huge gorilla like arms. He wore a set of camo-pants and a bandolier. A set of goggles were strapped to his eyes, and his head was that of a rhinoceros, complete with horns.
Only the man struggling to wrest the sword from the wall appeared to be human.
"What manner of Magic is this?" Arthur demanded upon seeing the would-be-thieves. "Even Morgana's sorcery brewed no creatures such as these."
"Not sorcery," Fleur spat. "Science. These half-human beasts are the work of Anton Sevarius. I'd stake my life on it."
"That sword does not belong to you, curs," Arthur said, drawing his own blade from beneath his leather duster.
The Rhino-Mutate looked surprised.
"Seems we have double prizes today," He said smirking. "Doodle-Bug, Tex, let's bring the boss lady two swords."
The other two mutates curled up into balls, and suddenly began rolling towards Arthur and Fleur like a pair of demonic bowling balls.
The timeless royals braced themselves.
To be continued…
