Gold Demona

Chapter VI

The Painful Truth

(Gold Demona)

(The next day…In the afternoon…) (2110 A.D.)

"I hate my job," I thought to myself as I got off the bus on my way home.

Through the entire day I kept my eye open for Jigen's partners, but found no sign. I was beginning to think the news reports were right about them being killed.

I was passing one of the alleyways near my apartment building when I noticed some movement. I stopped and looked down the alley and found a lot of trashcans and a large green dumpster. I then heard some shuffling coming from behind the dumpster.

"What?" I thought to myself as I slowly walked into the alley.

I placed my hand on the dumpster and slowly peeked around it. When I got around to where I could see who was there, I was immediately met with the barrel of a handgun.

"Hold it right there!" yelled the one holding the gun.

I flung my hands up right before realizing that the person holding the gun was a gargoyle. He was a middle-aged male of tannish-light brown skin, jet-black clean-cut hair and short sideburns, and bat-like wings. He wore a tan trench coat over a dark brown suit, all with pieces torn out of them. His horns stuck up through two holes in the fedora he wore that matched his trench. Unlike Jigen's fedora, this one had a much smaller rim and didn't conceal his face at all. He stared at me with his large black eyes, eyes that were wide with terror. His talons shook as he held his gun to me. It was apparent that he'd been in hiding for a long time.

"A gargoyle awake during the day?" I thought.

"Don't make another move," he quivered as he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out an ICPO badge, "I am Inspector Koichi Zenigata of Interpol."

"Interpol?" I repeated, "That explains why you're not stone. So what's a cop doing all the way in New Liberty?"

"Hey! I ask the questions, Missy!" he said, "Where the hell am I and how do I get out of here?!"

"You're in Paradigm City," I answered, hands still raised, "In the country of New Liberty. If I had to guess, I'd say you were one of the gargoyles in the helicopter attack the other night."

"That was my chopper they shot down," he answered, "I was carrying very important cargo, and now I have to track 'em down again."

"But why were you flying over the Black Sea? And so close to New Liberty?"

"I said I'M the one who asks the questions!" he yelled.

"Not so loud," I whispered to him, "Do you want someone to hear you? In fact let's take this inside, where you'll be less likely to be caught by the Hunters."

"Hunters?" he repeated and started sobbing, lowering his gun, "Is that what they are? They've been chasing me since I landed, and this has been the only safe spot I could find."

"That's because this is one of the blind spots of the scanners," I clarified.

"Scanners?" he repeated, "Scanners for what?"

"I'll explain everything when we get to my apartment," I said as I took my cloaker off my wrist. "Cuz right here you're a sitting duck just waiting for someone to find you."

"What are you doing?" he asked and raised his gun again.

"Look, Inspector," I said, "If I was intent on killing you, I would've run away and called the cops, and they would've summoned the Hunters on you by now, and then they'd be out here continuing the chase where you left off. This is a cloaker. Now put it on and press the button so we can get you safely to my apartment. You'll look like me while you're wearing it, so just pretend you're my twin."

Confused, he put his gun back in its holster and took the cloaker from my hand. He placed it on his wrist and turned it on, replacing his image with mine.

"Ah!" He yelled and looked down at himself, "What'd you do to me?!"

"Relax, will you?!" I said as I held my hand out, "Nothing happened! It's an illusion, a holographic image of me. If you don't want to wait here for someone to spot you and have you killed, you can come home with me."

Slowly, he took my hand and got up. Being my image, I looked at the face on the cloak. I knew it had to be lower down than where his face actually was, but I could only see what the cloak was showing.

"Good," I said, "Now keep quiet. It'll look suspicious to hear a gritty male voice coming out of a woman."

He nodded as I turned around and he followed me out of the alley. He followed me all the way to the apartment. I opened the door and stepped aside to allow him to enter first.

"After you, Inspector," I said.

"Much obliged," he said and walked through the door.

"Hey, how was work?" Vaala greeted as the Inspector enter.

"What? Work? Uh…" He replied.

"AAAHHHHH!!!" Vaala screamed. "Who the fucking hell are you, and what've you done with Gold?!"

"Relax, Vaala!" I yelled as I walked in behind him and shut the door. "He's with me. This is Inspector Zenigata and he's from Interpol."

"Why the hell is he wearing your cloaker?!" She yelled at me.

"It was all I had with me. I found him on the way home and giving him my cloaker was the only way to safely get him here."

"How do I turn this thing off?" he asked, fiddling with the cloaker.

"Just push the button again and give it back to me," I answered.

He did and handed it back to me.

"Well next time, warn me when you're bringing a gargoyle cop into the apartment. You scared the shit out of me just now."

"Sorry about that," said the Inspector as he removed his hat and held it with both talons. "You see, I haven't had any sleep in the past two days, and my mind isn't as clear as it should be."

"The Hunters have been keeping you busy, huh?" she asked.

"Ah-hah," he squealed, "You have no idea. It's been one nightmare after another. I mean what the hell kind of place is this anyway?"

"Welcome to New Liberty, Inspector," I said, "Where being a gargoyle means death."

"Death?" he repeated, "Death?! You get sentenced to death just for being a gargoyle?! They can't do this! It's unconstitutional! I'm an officer of Interpol, dammit! I shouldn't have to go through any of this! I swear if I had my equipment, I'd be sending for reinforcements!"

"They don't care who you are," I said, "Whether you're an officer of Interpol or the King of Spain. If you're a gargoyle, death is the penalty."

"That's just preposterous!" He yelled, "How the hell can that kind of law be passed without the rest of the world finding out about it?"

"Kinda helps to lock the border," Vaala pointed out, "If the Prime Ruler doesn't approve you leaving or coming, you neither leave nor come."

"I knew there was something fishy about that," he said, "From the very beginning. Something didn't seem right about it."

"Well, now you know," I said and headed to the kitchen. "Can I get you anything, Inspector? Some food? A Drink?"

"A bed?" Vaala suggested, pointing to the couch.

He looked over to the couch and started walking to it.

"I could really use some sleep, if you don't mind," he answered.

"Make yourself comfortable," I said and headed to the lien closet. "That couch can turn into a bed, so if you want, we can go ahead and do that for you."

He stood there by the couch, staring at it.

"It looks so comfortable," he said, "I must be dreaming."

"Geez, Inspector," Vaala said as she started removing cushions to take out the bed, "You act like you've never seen a couch before."

"When you've been on the run for two straight days without any hope of sleep or shelter," he said, still staring at the couch, "Even a wooden crate would look comfortable. I still can't believe this is happening. It just has to be a dream."

"Well, it's not a dream," I said as I walked up with a pillow and some blankets.

"I can't thank you enough," he said as he took hold of the items in my hands.

"Sure you can," I said, still holding onto them, "After we get you out of the country, you have to tell the international authorities what's going on here."

"I'll need evidence of it," he said. "I'll stay until we can provide some. After that, I swear I'll get everyone I can to look into this."

"That'll be thanks enough for your stay," I said with a smile and let go of the pillow and blankets.

He smiled back and turned back to the couch just as Vaala was finished unfolding the bed from the couch. He tossed the pillow down on the bed and flopped down after it, dropping the blanket on the floor and landing crooked on the bed. The only thing he managed to get straight was his head on the pillow.

"Uh, Inspector?" Vaala said, pointing to the blanket.

He replied with a loud snore.

"I don't think he cares right now," I said.

"Damn, he wasn't kidding when he said he needed sleep," Vaala replied.

I picked up the blanket and spread it over him.

"Poor guy," I said, "It must've been awful."

"Yeah," Vaala agreed. "So he's from Interpol, huh?"

"Yeah," I said, "He said the helicopter that went down in the sea was his."

"You think he might be one of Jigen's partners?" she asked.

"He might be," I replied, looking down at the sleeping cop. "We'll just have to find out tonight, won't we?"

"Yup," she said. "You want to follow in the Inspector's example? I can tell you didn't get much sleep last night."

"It shows, huh?" I replied.

"The raccoon eyes are kinda hard to miss," she said and the grinned, "Have you been up all night thinking about somebody?"

"What are you talking about?" I asked as I started walking to my room.

"You like him, admit it," she said, poking me in the side.

"Stop it," I said. "Maybe I do. I dunno."

"Oh come on. Fess up. You like Jigen."

"So what if I do?" I said as I got to my bedroom door. "It won't change anything. He's going to leave when he finds his partners."

"IF he finds them," Vaala clarified, "We're still not sure what he'll do if he DOESN'T find 'em. And I'll bet you're hoping he'll stay."

"Yeah, but then so is Boober," I pointed out, "If he won't stay for his own brother, what makes you think he'll stay for me?"

"You never know," she said. "Maybe he likes you too."

"I highly doubt it," I said, "He seems to like his job more than anything else. I'm thinking that's the reason he left his clan."

"Did you find out what that job is?" she asked.

"No, he never said," I answered, "All I know is that it takes him all over the world and that there's a lot of money involved. I could tell that just by looking at his gun. It's a really old model, I'd say mid twentieth century, but it looks like brand new. You have to have a lot of money to be able to keep a gun that old in such good shape."

"You got to see his gun?" She replied.

"Yesterday when everyone was sleeping," I clarified. "While his stuff was piled on a table in the lab. I picked it up and looked at it."

"Must be a dangerous job," she said, "Maybe that's why the Inspector was with them."

"Maybe," I replied and then continued into my room. "Like I said, we'll find out tonight."

"Yeah," Vaala replied, "I'll see you later."

"Later," I said as I shut the door behind me.

I climbed into bed, and like the Inspector, I fell asleep immediately.

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(That night…)

(Jigen)

I stretched as stone shards exploded away from me. Markl and Krypto immediately started running around the room like a couple of maniacs. I kept my distance to make sure Krypto didn't go nuts on me again. The last thing I wanted to happen was a repeat of the freak-out he had the night before.

"We're gonna go up and watch TV, okay?" Markl said as he and his dog ran out of the room.

I breathed a sigh of relief as soon as they were gone.

"Are you okay, Jigen?" Boober asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I answered.

"We need to find that boy more activities to do," Silverbolt said, "Before he becomes what the Americans refer to as a couch potato."

"When he starts growing a beer gut, then we can worry about him being a couch potato," Red replied, "Until then he can spend all the time he wants in front of that TV."

"We should at least give him some magical exercises," he said, "So that his talents won't go to waste."

"You have a point there," Red agreed. "There isn't really a lot he can do here to practice his magic."

"He could lose his ability if he doesn't practice," Boober added.

"This is truly a concern," Silver said, "Perhaps we should talk to Gold and Vaala about investing in a magic book for the boy to study."

Then Markl came running back into the doorway.

"Hey, the couch is a bed!" he said.

"What?" We all replied.

"The couch turns into a bed for guests to sleep on," he explained. "If the bed's out of the couch that means they had a guest over."

"And chances are they may still be here," Silver added. "Did you see Vaala or Gold while you were up there?"

"No, they're not in the apartment at all," he answered.

"Go back up and watch television, Markl," Silver said. "We're going to get some breakfast. If we see Gold or Vaala, we will ask them about this."

"Okay," Markl replied and disappeared back into the hallway, "Come on, Krypto."

"Arf!" Krypto answered as he followed behind.

We all started our way to the door. Silver and Red kept going as I was stopped by a talon on my shoulder.

"Jigen," Boober said as he pulled me back.

"What is it, Boober?" I asked as I saw Silverbolt and Red disappear into the hallway.

"Do you think this guest might be one of your partners?" he asked.

"I don't think so," I answered, "None of 'em are awake during the day, so they wouldn't be sleeping in a bed."

We continued to the door and walked into the hallway.

"Unless it's…" I thought and hesitated.

"What's wrong, Jigen?"

I shook it off.

"No way," I thought, "There's no way he could wind up here."

"Jigen?"

"Nothing," I said and continued forward, "Let's just get some breakfast."

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(Gold Demona)

Vaala and I sat in the dining room of the penthouse with our new guest, Inspector Zenigata. He sat facing away from the door and I sat opposite from him. We were pretty much having the same discussion over and over again. Vaala was enjoying every word of it, because he was driving me insane.

"So when the sun is up, you're a human?" he started.

"Yes," I groaned.

"And when the sun's down, you're a gargoyle?" he continued.

"Yes," I groaned again, rolling my eyes.

"Then which one are you?" he asked, "Human or gargoyle?"

"Both and neither, if that satisfies you," I answered, annoyed that I had to answer that question five times already, "Look, I don't know which one I am, I just am."

"So you're not one or the other, but rather you're neither. Because you can't be both. Cuz that'd just be silly."

"I'll slap you silly if we keep this up," I thought.

Then I saw Red and Silverbolt come in.

"Hey Silver!" I greeted, waving to him. "Hey Red!"

"Hey Gold," Red greeted back. "Hey Vaala."

"Good evening, ladies," Silverbolt greeted back, "Who is our new friend?"

"This is Inspector Zenigata of Interpol," I introduced.

He turned around in his seat and waved at them.

"Hiya!" he said.

"He's a cop from Interpol," Vaala added.

"Damn, he's a mess," Red pointed out, picking at his tattered trench. "I think we need to have Boober fix these up."

"I was thinking the same thing," I said.

"You are a police officer?" Silverbolt asked.

"Yessir, I am," he answered, "As a detective of the ICPO, I live in pursuit of a notorious gargoyle master thief."

"A thief, huh?" I replied, "What exactly did he steal?"

"He's a career thief," he said, "He specializes in rare artifacts. Anything that can be sold at a huge price. Sometimes he even goes on wild treasure hunts to find artifacts lost to time. But most of the time, the items he takes already belong to somebody, and usually very important somebodies. So I've made it my life's mission to catch him and his accomplices and bring them to justice."

"Well, I hope you someday catch them," Silverbolt said.

"Well, it hasn't been easy," said the Inspector, "You see he's a master of disguise. He's so good, he can even disguise himself as a human. And that's with stage make-up and costumes. Imagine what he could do with one o' them cloak watches you all got."

Then I saw Boober and Jigen walk in.

"Hey Boober," I greeted, "Hey--"

"JIGEN!" Yelled the inspector as he jumped from his chair and reached into his trench.

"Pops!" Jigen replied with a laugh. "Holy crap! How the hell did YOU survive?"

"I get to ask the questions here, Jigen!" he yelled as he pulled a pair of handcuffs from his trench coat. "You're under arrest!"

"What?!" We all replied.

"On what charges?" I yelled.

"I told you, I'm in pursuit of a criminal mastermind. A gargoyle known as Lupin the Third. Jigen here is one of his accomplices. In fact, I should arrest all of you for harboring him!"

"There must be some kind of mistake!" Boober yelled. "There's no way!"

"Alright Jigen, I'm only gonna ask you once," the Inspector said as used his free talon to grab Jigen by his black tie. "Where the hell is Lupin?!"

"How the hell should I know?" he answered.

"Yeah!" Boober said, "Why would he be associated with such a notorious criminal?"

"Shut up for a minute, Boober, so the grown-ups can talk," Jigen said, not removing his gaze from the Inspector.

"What?" Boober replied.

"You heard me, stay out of this!" Jigen demanded.

"And who's that, Jigen?" asked the Inspector, "Yer stunt double?"

"He's my brother, Jackass," Jigen growled, "He's not involved in this. As I was saying, I don't know where the hell Lupin is. We were all separated when the Hunters attacked your chopper. For all I know, he and Goemon are in a pile of gravel somewhere."

"And what about Fujiko?" asked the Inspector. "I saw her flying away from the chopper, too."

"I didn't see her at all, so I couldn't tell you."

"Well, if you're telling me the truth, then I guess I'll just have to arrest you now and get Lupin when I see him."

"Fine, cuff me, but just from looking at you I can tell you know how frickin' dangerous it is out there. You know you can't take two steps out of this apartment building without getting yer ass shot at."

The Inspector's face suddenly went blank after he said that.

"Oh yeah," he said as he let go of Jigen's tie, "I forgot about that."

"I think you can wait 'till after we're out of here to arrest me," Jigen said.

"You're right," the Inspector agreed and put the handcuffs away, "The crap going on here in this country is a lot bigger than you or me, or even Lupin."

"Nice to know we can come to a frickin' agreement on something," Jigen said and then looked to Boober.

"So..." Boober sobbed, "It's true?"

Jigen lowered his head and then looked up at Boober.

"Sorry you had to find out this way," he said, "Now you know."

"No," Boober quivered, shaking his head in disbelief. "No. I refuse to believe that. It's not true. It's not."

"Look, it's an ugly truth, I know" Jigen said, "That's why the clan never told you anything about it."

"No," Boober replied as he leapt into Jigen, grabbing the edges of his jacket and sobbing into his shirt. "It's not—I can't—How can--?"

"I KNEW IT!" Red screamed, pointing her fist at Jigen, eyes glowing red, "I knew it had to be something illegal!"

"Boober," Jigen said, ignoring Red's ranting.

"Tell me it's not true," Boober sobbed, "Tell me my brother's not a wanted criminal."

"Wanted on the international level," Jigen said, "Enough to be chased around by Interpol. Lupin's been my best friend for years. Even before I left. A long time ago, he wanted to follow in his grandfather's footsteps and become a master thief. He needed a marksman, and so I joined him. It's the only thing I've ever been good at, and this was the only way I could really use it. My first job with him was right in our hometown. And then we got caught and had to run. That's why I had to disappear so quickly without saying good-bye. I'm sorry, Boober. But that's how it is."

"I can't accept that," he sobbed, "I just can't."

Jigen took a big breath and let out a long sigh.

"Sometimes, Boober, I really do wonder if you're gay."

"Would you stop that?!" Boober yelled and backed away from him, "This is NOT the time to be talking like that! You left the clan so you could be a thief?! And you've been looking for your partners in crime just so you can leave the country and continue stealing?!"

"That's exactly how it is," Jigen replied. "I told you you wouldn't like the truth."

"How could you do this to me?!" Boober yelled, "It wasn't enough that you left without saying a word, but then you come back just so I could find out that you've been living the life of a criminal!"

"If I could turn things around, Boober, I would," Jigen said, "But I can't. And that's why I can't stay."

"Well, that's fine," Boober growled as his nose wrinkled, his beak went into a snarl, and his eyes started to glow white, "Because I never want to see your face again."

"Well, unless you plan on breaking every mirror in existence," Jigen growled, pointing to his own face, "You're going to need one hell of a plastic surgeon to make that wish come true. Because minus the beard and the ridiculous red hair, our faces are frickin' identical, remember?"

"Don't remind me!" Boober retorted, "I hope you find your 'friends' and leave so I never have to look at you again."

He then turned to the rest of us, making us all back up.

"I'll be in the statue room if anyone needs me," he grumbled and then slowly turned back to Jigen. After a long awkward moment of staring, Boober clenched his fist and slugged it into Jigen's gut, making him hunch down.

"Red was right," he said, teeth clenched. "She was right to hate you."

He stepped back and out to the hallway and was out of sight. Jigen slowly regained his strength and stood back up, clutching at his gut as we all stared in awe at what had just happened. Even Red was taken aback. Inspector Zenigata just stood there, wide-eyed with confusion.

"What the hell just happened?" asked the baffled Inspector.

"I think we're all as confused as you," Vaala said.

"Jigen, are you okay?" I asked, getting up from my seat.

"I'll be fine," he groaned in pain, "Goddamn, I didn't know he could swing like that. I never thought anything could piss him off that much."

"I think it would be best to have Mac examine you to make sure your injuries are not serious," Silverbolt said.

"I'll take him," I volunteered as I stepped around the table and over to Jigen. I put my talon on his back. "Come on."

"Stop that, I'm fine," he said, still clutching his belly, "I need some time alone."

"But I really think you should--" I said.

"I said leave me alone!" he interrupted me and shoved me off him.

I looked up at him, and for a moment I caught a glimpse of his eyes in the dark void under the rim of his hat. They were eyes filled with anger, sorrow, and confusion all in the same place. He looked at me with those eyes before turning away to the door.

"I'll be on the roof if anyone else wants to chew me out," he said as he walked out of the room and through the hall.

I started to follow, but Silverbolt raised his talon to stop me. I looked up at him, unable to say anything else. He looked back down at me.

"He needs his space," he said, "We must not refuse it."

"But what if he's bleeding from the inside?" I asked.

"Do you honestly think Boober would purposely inflict that kind of a wound to his own brother? Even out of extreme anger?"

"I never thought I'd feel like I'd done something wrong by doing my job," the Inspector said. "I always considered myself a good cop. Now I don't know. I feel like I opened some kind of Pandora's box."

"No, Inspector, you did the right thing," Silverbolt said, "Jigen's choices in life were not your doing. He chose the life of a criminal of his own free will, and therefore must suffer the consequences for it. Even if it means losing the love of his twin brother."

"Red, are you okay?" Vaala asked.

We all looked over and saw Red with her back to the wall, eyes wide and jaw hanging open.

"Red?" I said and walked over to her.

"I've known Boober my whole life," she said, "And I've never seen him get like that. Never. Sure he'd get mad about something stupid, like when something gets dirty and covered in germs or something crazy shit like that. But just now he was on the verge of pure hatred."

"He feels betrayed," Silverbolt replied, "After losing his entire clan, he finds his long-lost brother, only to learn that he had been living his life on the run from the law. I can't imagine that being an easy thing to go through. The truth can sometimes be extremely painful."

"Yeah, and Jigen literally got hurt for it," Vaala replied.

"Red, did you know about this?" I asked. "About Jigen?"

"No," she said, shaking her head, "I didn't."

"But you've been hating on him since he got here," Vaala pointed out.

"I'm mad at him for a different reason, which I STILL don't wanna talk about. And after hearing all that, it just adds a whole 'nother dimension to the reason I had. Don't get me wrong. I still wanna clobber him for what he did, but that's not what I'm worried about right now."

"Well, right now I don't believe either of them want any company," Silverbolt said, looking around to everyone in the room, "I think it would be best if we left them alone to think for the time being."

We all nodded in agreement.

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(Markl)

I was watching some music videos on a channel called MTV12 when the TV suddenly swung open. Jigen stepped out from behind it.

"Hey Jigen," I said and waved.

"Hey kid," he said back.

"I wonder what happened?" I thought, "He looks really bummed, and he's clutching his stomach."

"Stomach hurt?" I asked.

"Yeah," he answered, "It's not serious, though. It'll pass."

"Oh ok," I said, though I didn't quite believe him, "Going to the roof?"

"Yeah," he said and pushed the TV back where it was.

"I'll be out there as long as I can," he said as he turned his cloaker on, "So don't expect me back in the next five hours."

"Okay," I said as he walked out the door.

"Something major must've happened," I thought.

Krypto suddenly perked up and jumped off the bed.

"What's up, Krypto?" I asked as he walked over to the TV and started pawing at it where the TV touched the wall.

I turned the TV off and jumped off the bed.

"What's wrong, boy?" I asked as I walked over to the TV and put my talons on it.

"Arr rarr! Rar!" He barked and pawed at the TV some more.

"Ok, I'll let you in," I said and pulled the TV back with both talons.

We both walked into the penthouse, and I shut the door behind us. Krypto immediately started running down the hall and around the corner to the statue room. I followed him there and saw Boober sitting on the floor, slouched over his laundry tub, clutching to his scrubbing board. Krypto ran over to him.

"I'm all alone," he said to himself, "I've lost everyone. My brother, my clan, my brother again. Everyone I love always leaves me."

When I got closer, I realized that he was crying. Krypto nudged his nose on Boober's arm.

"Boober?" I said softly.

"Go away," he said, "Leave me alone."

I walked over to where I was in front of him.

"What happened?" I asked. "I saw Jigen walking out holding his stomach."

"Probably to go smoke," he said, "He's always smoking. Those cigarettes will kill him, if he doesn't get himself killed or arrested first."

"Arrested?" I said, "What do you mean?"

"I don't want to talk about it," he said, "I can't stand this feeling. This feeling of always being alone."

Krypto nudged at his arm again, this time pushing himself down under it so Boober's talon rested on Krypto's head. Krypto then climbed his way into Boober's lap. Krypto then looked up at Boober and made a whining noise. Boober then rubbed Krypto's head, and let out a half smile, even though he was still crying.

"But you're not alone, Boober," I said.

He looked up at me.

"You got all of us," I said. "And not just me and Krypto. You have Gold, and Vaala, and Silver, and Mac, and Red. We're a clan now, right?"

Krypto stood up on Boober's lap and started licking his face. Boober sneered and used one talon to push Krypto back down and the other to wipe his face where he was licked. Krypto lowered his head and whined, knowing that Boober didn't like what he'd just done. Boober then went back to rubbing his head. He stopped crying and let out a loud sigh. He looked back up at me and smiled.

"I suppose you're right," he said, "We are kind of a clan now aren't we?"

"Yeah," I said, "And you know what? If you want, I'll be your brother instead."

He chuckled and gave me another half smile.

"I never told this to anyone," I said, "But I lost two clans before I found this one."

"Two?" he replied.

"Uh-huh," I said, "I don't remember a whole lot about my first clan because I was really little when they died, but I do remember after that feeling all alone. Then Master Howl's clan found me."

"Master Howl?"

"He was a sorcerer," I said, "He and his clan were living in the suburbs of Paradigm City, and I guess I happened to wander into where their clan was staying. Master Howl and his wife Sofie adopted me and became my new parents. That's where I met Krypto. He was their dog beast."

"So I guess this Master Howl was the one who taught you magic."

"Yeah," I said, "He decided that he never wanted me to feel alone again. So he did two things. The first thing he did was to give Krypto to me. So I'd always have someone with me in case something happens. The second thing he did was make me his apprentice."

"So then what?"

"Well, after a while we were really starting to feel like a family. Master Howl and Sofie and Krypto and me, and the rest of the clan, too. But then the Hunters came and took everything away."

"For the second time," Boober replied.

"Yeah, except this time I wasn't alone. All this time, I've had Krypto with me. And we've been able to survive with all that Master Howl was able to teach me."

"And you're so sure that this clan won't end up the same?" Boober asked.

"Well, with everything that goes on here, you can never be completely sure. But I have faith that everything will eventually turn out fine."

He smiled at me and then looked down at Krypto, who had his head rested on Boober's lap as he rubbed it.

"He brought you down here, didn't he?" he asked.

"Yeah," I said, "He did."

"He's a good dog," he said.

"Yeah," I agreed. "He's the best."

------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Jigen)

I walked up the hall, with my talon on my still aching gut. I considered stopping at the lab to have Mac look at it, but I really didn't feel like seeing anyone else tonight, least of all someone that can barely speak English. I got to the door to the apartment and paused a moment. I looked over to the other corner of the hall that led to the statue room and let out a long sigh.

"I didn't want it to go like this," I thought. "But then I guess this is what I get for not being straight with him from the beginning."

I pushed the door open and walked into the living room. Markl and Krypto were sitting on the couch, which was folded out into a bed.

"Hey Jigen," he greeted.

"Hey kid," I greeted back as I entered and shut the door again so he could watch TV.

"Stomach hurt?" he asked, noticing that I still had my talon on my gut.

"Yeah," I answered, "It's not serious, though. It'll pass."

"Oh ok," he replied, "Going to the roof?"

"Yeah," I answered as I walked past the TV and over to the front door.

I turned on my cloaker and opened the door.

"I'll be out there as long as I can, so don't expect me back in the next five hours."

"Okay," he said as he and his dog watched me leave.

I walked out of the apartment and up the hall to the stairway.

"So this is what it feels like to lose your brother?" I asked in thought, "Was this what it was like for you, Boober? For all these years? Is this what I put you through? Man, it sucks. I'd hate me too."

I walked up the steps and opened the door at the end. I was surprised to find Gold standing out there, seemingly waiting for me.

"What the hell?" I reacted, confused, pointing to the door, "Didn't I leave you in the dining room downstairs?"

She turned around and started walking to me.

"Look, I told you I need to be alone," I said to her.

She didn't say a word to me, but instead kept walking towards me.

"Hey, didn't you hear me?" I asked as she made her way closer, "I said--"

I couldn't continue that sentence because she held my beak shut and locked her lips to it. I would've been lying if I said I didn't like it. But with what had just happened downstairs, it was not the most appropriate thing she could've done. I shoved her away after like a second.

"What the fickin' hell's gotten into you?" I yelled.

She giggled and turned away. She started running to the edge of the roof.

"Hey, where're you going?" I asked and ran after her.

Before I could catch her, she jumped over the edge and into the alley below.

"Hey!" I yelled and ran faster.

I looked down and saw her reach her hands out and slow her fall by clinging to the wall.

"What the hell is she doing?" I wondered in thought. "Is she TRYING to get herself caught?"

I looked around to see if there was anyone coming. I saw nobody, so I jumped down after her, wings wide open to act as a parachute. Because I still had my cloaker on, any human dumb enough to look down the alley would see a man drifting down from the roof. I landed next to Gold, who just giggled and ran away some more.

"What the hell?" I thought and started running after her, but then I felt a sudden pain in the back of my head. After that, everything went black.