All characters appearing in Gargoyles and Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles are copyrighted to Buena Vista Television/The Walt Disney Company. I've taken the idea for the Unseelie Court from the TGS. No infringement of these copyrights is intended, and is not authorized by the copyright holder. All original characters are the property of SN.
Note: I'm disregarding the events of the "Goliath Chronicles", with the exception of "The Journey" because I do not wish to use the rest of the "Goliath Chronicles" as canon to my story. This story takes place one day after "Conflicts".
Failed Again
By SN/TVfan
Email: Sam_Nary
Castle Wyvern
It was a quiet evening as the clan finished their breakfast. There was a fair amount of nervousness going around the group as this was the first night since the clan had discovered Dracon's hit on them. It wasn't that any were afraid, but merely an odd expectation of trouble.
"Do you think we'll be able to catch this 'Yuri' tonight?" Sarah asked quietly.
"I don't now," Angela answered her rockery sister, "He had left the rooftop that he was on when he first fired at us by the time Broadway and I got there. I think he'll be hard to track down."
"It's not Yuri we should deal with," Broadway grumbled, "We ought to find Dracon and deal with him. We take out the guy who caused the hit, and there's no hit left."
"I don't think that would end the hit," Lexington commented from across the table, "Maybe officially because none of the other gangs can 'cash' in on it, but they might try to carry it out anyway because they think it is good for business."
"It wouldn't hurt to get this 'Dracon' guy out of the way, would it?" Ian asked.
"I wouldn't be bad," Angela replied, "The problem is finding him. I don't think anyone has seen him since he broke out of jail."
"We can find him," Broadway insisted, "There's only so many places a rat like him can hide."
"Do you think bringing Dracon in would get this hit called off, brother?" Othello asked Goliath curiously.
"It might get Brode's organization and the major crime families in Manhattan to lay off," Goliath sighed, "But experience has shown that many of the smaller organizations and street gangs will use the hit as an opportunity to make a name for themselves."
"The smaller gangs we can handle," Elisa commented, "They don't have the money to either get good guns or hire ex-military snipers to do their hunting. They're gonna be the guys who try to shoot us from the ground with a revolver or if they do use a rifle, they're still not going to be that well trained and will miss."
"I hope you're right," Desdemona commented, "There are still many things about this time that make me nervous and will always worry me. In my time the worst a human could do when we were awake was throw a spear or shot and arrow or slash with a sword or hack with an axe or mace. Now, what they shoot fires projectiles or non-projectiles faster and there are all sorts of things that we weren't raised with. They will always make me nervous."
"Those things make everyone nervous," Elisa answered, "My mom has her fair share of stories about worrying about my dad while he was on the force and then worrying about me while I was human. They probably still worry."
"We'll still be gliding below the rooftops, Goliath?" Hudson asked.
"Until we are sure that at least this sniper is out of the way," Goliath nodded, "Which could take awhile."
Meanwhile, Xanatos were in a lower level lab of the castle. Both were looking at the small disk that Elisa had taken off of Coyote during Thailog's attack. Special scanners had discovered that the disk operated two fold. One it used a magnetic pulse to hold itself to Coyote's metallic body and largely prevent his electronic and computer systems from working. The other was a strange radio code that allowed the device to literally command the robot to shut down. It was a two pronged attack that had worked all too well.
"So do we have any way of counteracting these little disks?" Xanatos asked, "I'm sure that Thailog has more of them."
"Not at the moment, sir," Owen answered, "the technical teams have not fully finished analyzing the device's technology. And even then, I have a feeling that the device has some magic involved in its workings."
"But Coyote should be immune to magic," Xanatos answered back, "We made him out of the previous model, which we built from the cauldron of life."
"Immune to fey magic," Owen corrected, "Mortal magic is a different story. The magic that Demona and red female that is working with Thailog could do Coyote some damage. Probably not much, but still, some damage here and there could have lasting effects."
"That could cause problems," Xanatos sighed, "Have any of our sensors found anything?"
"No sign of Fang during the day, sir," Owen answered.
The black furred wolf mutate tapped his muzzle for a few moments before placing the small cylindrical disk back in his assistant's hands. He then began to walk back to ward the exit.
"Have we been able to get a worm inside Maddox Technologies yet?" Xanatos asked.
"No, sir," Owen answered, "Thailog is being very cautious with his hiring practices."
"I'd wonder how he's able to hire anyone at all," Xanatos commented, "He is a gargoyle after all, and now he doesn't have the advantage of a shapeshifting Demona to do all the interviews for him."
"He probably uses some form of video system," Owen answered, "Impersonal, but effective, and the Unseelies probably had plenty of the necessary equipment laying around."
"Isn't it great when bad guys capitalize of the fall of another bad guy?" Xanatos half chuckled, "We need to get a mole in there so we can figure out what Thailog is up to."
"Of course, sir," Owen answered.
Rooftop
Yuri sat down carefully by the edge of a building at a major intersection. He never got a chance to take a shot the previous night when he saw that the gargoyles had decided to glide below the rooftops. To him, it proved that they were intelligent. They could recognize an enemy's tactics and change theirs accordingly. It made the ex-Russian sniper respect these creatures. It was a real challenge, something he had not faced. He had only been in training during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, and was one of the first soldiers dismissed after the fall of the Soviet Union. The gargoyles allowed him to actually use his training.
"Shouldn't you be further back?" one of his aides asked, "You could fall."
"Or be spotted," another added.
"The gargoyles have decided to glide low," Yuri answered, "If I sit back, they could glide past and neither of us would know we were there. Here I can get a shot at them, if they come this way."
"What about firing from a building directly across from the Eyrie Building?" the first aide asked, "Hit them while they're diving."
"That would be a foolish decision," Yuri answered back.
"How so?" the second aide asked, "You could sit more toward the center of the roof, and you would be able to better conceal yourself."
"Yes, but the shot would be more difficult," Yuri answered, "Despite the fact that I would have a clear line of sight, remember that they will have gravity on their side and will be moving faster then what they would normally glide at."
"You could hit them, couldn't you?" the first aide asked.
"Probably," Yuri answered confidently, "But my shot would give away my position, and no one would be able to make the collection as the entire clan would descend on us immediately after I fired. This is strategically, the best location."
"Can you see them?" the second aide asked.
Yuri checked his binoculars and looked toward the Eyrie Building. For the moment all was quiet. He watched for a few moments and then saw forms appear on the castle's battlements.
"I think they're getting ready to leave for the night," Yuri answered as he continued watching.
Each form then leaped from the edge of the walls and dove downward, eventually disappearing below the horizon of buildings. Yuri then set his binoculars down and moved to grip his rifle. He would have to be ready for when a gargoyle or gargoyles would glide into is line of sight through the intersection.
Over Manhattan
Broadway, Angela, Sarah, and Ian carefully made their way along their current patrol route for the night. Along with the decision to patrol at a lower altitude to prevent the Russian sniper from shooting them, Goliath had also instructed a change in patrol routes. They couldn't glide up and down every street effectively. Doing so would take more time and leave other people in other parts of a group's patrol area unprotected for far too long. So the group would glide up and down the major streets and glance down the smaller ones and alleys as they passed them.
Each hoped the night would be quiet, and at first it seemed that way, until they got a few blocks away from the Eyrie Building. Then they heard excited screaming coming from below them.
"There's a group of them!" the heard a voice scream from below them, "Come on. You all heard about the hit!"
Broadway looked down to see a group of punks, dressed in tattered clothing and running along the curb, nearly knocking over a few people that were on the street. The aquamarine gargoyle's eyes began to glow when he saw one pull a gun out of the waist band of his pants.
"Great," Broadway grumbled, "street thugs are going after us now."
"As Elisa said at breakfast, it's probably to impress Dracon and get in with the 'big boys'," Angela sighed, "Let's take them down before they hurt someone."
"Like us?" Ian asked one the thugs fired a shot into the air.
The group dove down to deal with the street thugs quickly. A few managed to fire of a shot or two, but all were poorly aimed and the shots flew off into the air. The resulting fist fight was almost shorter then the time it took to dive down on them. Broadway grabbed the ringleader and crushed his gun. The crook was barely able to get his hand out of the gun before Broadway crushed it as well. The other two fainted before Angela, Sarah, and Ian could do anything.
"Well, that was easy," Sarah commented, "Maybe we'll be able to get this Yuri character just as easy, now that we know he's out there."
Angela sighed with a weak, "Maybe" while shrugging. Broadway meanwhile glanced up toward the rooftops and gave a low growl. Guns still made him nervous, and the fact that Dracon had decided to get all the other gangs to start going after gargoyles with guns frustrated him.
"We'd better tie these people up and get going," Broadway sighed, breaking his thoughts and moving the brick wall of a nearby building.
"We'll get him, Broadway," Angela tried to comfort him once they'd gotten airborne, "He can't hide forever."
"I know," Broadway nodded, "It's just that..."
"You don't like guns," Angela finished, "I know. We all know that. We don't like them either."
"Thanks," Broadway gave a weak smile, "But this sniper really has me spooked. It's not just that he's using a gun, it's that he's been able to hit us. No one's ever shot us before, but when we saw Lex take that bullet through the shoulder, I was afraid that we'd truly run into trouble."
"I know," Angela answered, "and you know that Candy will agree with you."
"I don't want to let anyone down," Broadway replied, "I don't want this guy to get them."
"We won't let him," Angela said confidently as the group began gliding again.
Meanwhile on the ground a pair of eyes from an unmarked black car watched them glide off.
"Looks like they know about Mr. Dracon's little plan," a man commented from the passenger seat of the car.
"Yep," the driver answered simply.
"Will that mean trouble?" the passenger asked.
"Don't know," the driver sighed, "Better report this to Dracon."
Maddox Technologies
"I would like to thank you for agreeing to help train my clan," Thailog commented to Jackal as the black skinned clone focused on some business related paperwork.
"Least we could do when we're not working on Dreadnought and Shadow," Jackal replied, "Although your clan needs a lot of work. Unless you expect the Pack, Fang, and that red female..."
"Holly," Thailog commented.
"Holly," Jackal nodded, "Unless you want us to directly deal with Goliath's clan on our own. Your males show promise, but it's clear that they fight like street thugs. If their opponent is physically stronger then them or smarter, they stand no chance. And the only female that has any fighting spirit is that butterfly looking one."
"Liz," Thailog commented.
"Whatever," Jackal shrugged, "Where did you pick up these people?"
"Mostly thugs that Fang and I picked up off the street who didn't want to be 'beat up' by the gargoyles anymore," Thailog answered with a shrug.
"It shows," Jackal snorted.
"Be careful," Thailog said firmly, "You'll be working with them."
"I'm not saying they can't improve," Jackal commented, "I hate admitting it, but Hyena and I weren't much more then common thugs when Xanatos hired us to be part of the Pack. Of course we thought it was Fox who was hiring us, but that's unimportant."
Thailog nodded, "What did you wish to speak to me about?"
"I want to know what you intend to do with Goliath's clan," Jackal commented, "We didn't work that out earlier."
"That should be obvious," Thailog answered, "I intend to destroy them."
"Good to see that we're all still on the same page," Jackal commented, "You will understand that the Pack is to be given a share?"
"That is the basis of a partnership, is it not?" Thailog replied with smile.
Jackal nodded with an equally evil smile, "Glad to see we understand each other. Now I guess I better get back to your basement. See if Wolf has managed to eat one of your recruits yet."
Thailog only gave a sigh, guessing that the male cyborg was being humorous.
"They're going to need a lot of work," Thailog sighed to himself as he turned to the next part of the paperwork he had been working on.
Elsewhere
Caroline, Hudson, Othello, and Desdemona slowly rounded another tight corner to continue their patrol. For them it had been a relatively quiet night. There was the occasional mugging or car jacking, and one burglary that they had to stop, but there was no sign of any of their major foes. This didn't stop Caroline from craning her neck to look up and see if there was anyone on the rooftops.
"If there were someone up there, lass, we'd know by know," Hudson commented.
"You can't be too careful," Caroline commented, "I don't like being this low. I can't see as much. I mean the horizon, instead of being a long way off, is right in front of my face. I don't like that."
Hudson was about to answer when a gunshot rang out from below them. It wasn't well aimed and glanced off the armor on his shoulder and went off into the air.
"I'm fine," Hudson said quickly as the three younger gargoyles looked at him, "But the shooter is getting away!"
They all looked down to see a man in a dark suit running away from them down the street. He was wearing dark sunglasses and seemed to only have a small handgun with him.
"After him!" Othello urged and dove down toward the running felon.
The man screamed and fired a few shots into the air, but all of them missed wildly, as the man seemed to be firing more in desperation than anything else. Desdemona and Caroline followed close behind Othello, dodging and weaving as they did so to avoid being hit. Hudson, meanwhile, moved to head the gangster off and prevent him from getting any farther.
The man ran headlong into Hudson as the elderly gargoyle landed. Looking behind him to see where he was shooting, the man was not prepared for the collision and fell to the ground at the gargoyle's feet. Othello grabbed him shortly after he landed.
"Which 'family' do you work for?" Othello questioned in a low voice.
"The Barzonis," the man said in a frightened voice, "Don't kill me! I'm just doing what they told me."
"We don't kill unless our opponent is actually fighting us and is a true enemy," Desdemona answered, "You're merely a common crook. The police will decide what is to be done with you."
The man said 'thank you' very quickly and repeatedly as Othello tied him to lamp post with a piece of a fire escape. The four gargoyles were quickly back in the air, still below rooftop level.
"So who are the 'Barzonis'?" Caroline asked.
"I think Elisa said something about them being a smaller family in New York," Hudson commented, "an old mafia family that Dracon's gang overpowered in the late seventies to early eighties when Dominic Dracon was leading the gang. Knowing who they are isn't entirely important though. Knowing that they've accepted Dracon's hit call is."
The discussion didn't go much further when they saw a single black car drive under their position, headed south. The color of the car and its direction were not entirely as important as whom they saw was driving it. Hudson immediately began following the car.
"Hudson?" Caroline began to ask.
"The driver works for Dracon," Hudson answered, "I've seen him before in some of the clan's previous engagements with Dracon."
"What are you thinking, mentor?" Desdemona asked.
"I'm thinking we can follow him to Dracon's lair," Hudson answered, "Once we know where the gangster is hiding, perhaps we can end this foolish 'hit' of his."
The other three thought for a moment and began to follow Hudson, and all four were careful to avoid being seen by the driver of the car.
Castle Wyvern
Fox stared quietly out one of the windows of the room she was in, looking out over the city. The mob sniper and Thailog's return to the scene had troubled the female red fox mutate and her mind dwelled on the fact. A strong coughing sound finally managed to bring her focus away from the window and back to the other person in the room.
"You seem distracted tonight," Titania commented.
The Seelie Queen had returned for one of Fox's lessons and found that her daughter was barely paying attention. Now if this had been merely a discussion of the weather, politics, some sports team, or life in general, it wouldn't matter or be significant, but it was Fox's magic lessons that Titania was providing. Titania couldn't have Fox distracted and then miss the entirety of the lesson. It could lead to disaster.
"Hmm?" Fox asked back before realizing why her mother made the comment she did, "Oh, I'm sorry. My mind just doesn't seem to be on magic tonight."
"I had gathered that," Titania answered, "What is going on?"
"It's nothing super big," Fox sighed, "but it could be considered serious. Dracon has called a hit on the clan, probably because they've foiled so many of his operations, and every crime family as essentially answered it. Some Russian working for Brode turns out to be an ex-Russian Army sniper and seriously wounded Lex a few days ago. He's fine now, and while I or David weren't directly involved in the incident, I'm still nervous."
"You and your husband are the clan's allies," Titania answered, "Concern for allies and friends is perfectly normal."
Fox sighed again, "It's not that I'm concerned about the clan. They'll find a way to win, as they always do. Especially with Dracon. The man may be good and avoiding legal guilt for the worst of his crimes, but he always seems to lose in the end."
"You're concerned that someone else could do it to you," Titania finished.
Fox nodded, "David and I were never exactly cautious. In fact if it weren't for the fact that I'm currently carrying Alex's younger sibling, I'd probably be out there now. Just for the sake of having some excitement. David's gone out from time to time to check on his warehouses and other sites, making sure that no one's broken in or anything. I'm afraid that someone may decide that we're good targets and fire at us."
Titania was silent, not yet sure how to answer. Fox decided to continue.
"And given that David and I have been mutated, we'd look an awful lot like gargoyles to some guy on a rooftop hundreds of yards away," Fox added.
Titania thought for a moment and once she had decided on how to word her answer, she began speaking, slowly.
"It's natural to worry about one's life from time to time," Titania sighed as she sat down next to her daughter, "Everyone has some weakness that can end their life. For mortals that can be just about anything. For the fey and certain supernatural beings, it's a specific material or item. My race is vulnerable, and can only be killed, through magic or iron. Most weres are vulnerable to silver. Vampires and many demons are vulnerable to the cross and other religious images. There is always something that can kill someone. It's natural to be concerned about them from time to time."
Fox only looked down.
"But I wouldn't worry if I were you right now," Titania continued, "If you concern yourself with this too much, you may end up to be overly cautious. There are many things that are good so long as you don't take them to an extreme. Caution is one of them. There are times to be cautious and times to not be cautious."
Fox nodded weakly in agreement, "Thanks, I guess."
"Now," Titania answered, "I came here to provide you with your magic lesson. I think we should return to it. You'll have to pay attention, but it should get your mind off of what else is going on."
Over Manhattan
Broadway's group had encountered very little since their run in with the small group of gangsters in the initial part of their patrol. There were a few minor street crimes here and there, but they hadn't encountered anything that could be deemed serious.
"Sure has gotten quiet," Ian commented.
"Yeah," Sarah agreed, "Those thugs earlier were the only real danger we had to face tonight."
"He must be active in a different part of the city," Broadway grumbled, "Maybe one of the others will catch him."
"Maybe," Angela nodded, "Our patrol is almost over, and I'm looking forward to going back to the castle."
Meanwhile from his spot on the roof, Yuri watched through the scope of his rifle at the four gargoyles gliding through the intersection. Two he recognized as being part of the group that he had shot at earlier. One of them being the big aquamarine male that he had managed to wound through the wings.
"You got four of them, boss," one of his aides commented, somewhat loudly.
"Thank you," Yuri whispered back in a firm voice, "I can see that. Keep it down. I bet they have good ears."
The two aides backed up quietly, fearful of the sniper's temper. Yuri, meanwhile, aimed at the large male, intending to send a bullet through its skull. He'd only be able to get one before they'd counter-attack, but with one dead, he was sure that one of the surviving gargoyles would move to take the dead body away from the scene.
Unfortunately, for Yuri, fortune seemed to strike him in the same manner it had before. Just as he fired his rifle, the gargoyle turned to head in a different direction going down a different street, and the bullet missed.
"Damn!" Yuri growled before breaking down to saying several curse words in Russian, which none of his aides understood.
Broadway had just turned to head up a street that would lead his team back up to the Eyrie Building, and thus Castle Wyvern, when he suddenly heard a bullet whiz past his ear. He then saw the bullet crater the brickwork of the building near him. The others stopped in surprise and shock behind him.
"It's the sniper!" Broadway growled in anger.
"I saw the flash come from that building," Ian pointed to the building that Yuri was on.
"Let's go," Angela said, "Remember not to move in a straight line. Don't give him an easy target."
"Time to go," Yuri said quickly as the gargoyles began zigging and zagging their way toward the building they were on.
"But you didn't hit him," one of the aides whined.
"That's how it goes," Yuri growled, "I do not wish to be here when four angry gargoyles come charging for us, and I doubt you would either."
Yuri rushed to get to the stairs and escape, but his two aides drew handguns and waited for the gargoyles to appear.
"I'm sorry, but Brode demands that we kill gargoyles," the aides said, "You can run if you want, we will hold them off."
Almost as soon as the aide said that, Angela and Sarah zoomed over the edge of the building knocking the guns from their hands. Both aides soon fell to the ground unconscious. Yuri turned to run when he bumped into Broadway. He bounced off, dropped his rifle and was caught by Ian. Broadway slowly picked up Yuri's rifle.
"So," Broadway said almost causally, but it was clear that he was angry, "You're Brode's sniper."
"You can't prove anything," Yuri growled back.
"We don't have to," Broadway growled, as he broke Yuri's rifle in two with hands, "We know you're guilty and there isn't much you can do to hide."
"Let's tie them up," Angela instructed, "I'll see if I can contact Matt."
Broadway and Ian nodded and tossed Yuri to Sarah and began to look for some pieces of metal that they could use to tie the crooks up with. They ended up setting on what looked like the building's lightning rod. Broadway was nervous in taking it, but he had nothing else to tie the three mobsters up with, so he was forced to take the long straight metal rod. Using great strength he then wrapped it around Yuri and his two aides.
"Hello, Matt?" Angela, meanwhile, spoke into her radio communicator, "Is that you?"
"Yeah, I'm here," Matt answered over the radio, "I'm kinda busy, could this wait?"
Angela then heard someone yell through a loudspeaker 'drop the snake and slowly back away' over the radio.
"Sounds busy where you are," Angela commented.
"Yeah, you could say that," Matt answered over the radio, "Some nut carrying a cobra took up hostages. I got called in to negotiate. So, can this wait?"
"I was just letting you know that we caught Brode's sniper and at least two others," Angela answered, she lowered her communicator and turned to Broadway, "What building are we on?"
"I don't know," Broadway shrugged, "We're on an apartment building on the northwest side. That's all I know."
"We're on the northwest side," Angela said into the radio, "When you're done with the snake, come here. We'll give you better directions when you get close."
Former Quarrymen HQ
A relatively tall man walked into the warehouse that the Quarrymen had operated out of when they were still an official organization and was now used by Dracon and his gang. An obvious scar ran along the side his head and had earned the man the nickname 'Scar'. He didn't like the nickname, but Dracon and many of his associates were keen to keep calling him that. His partner followed close behind. It was Glasses who they ran into first.
"Scar, what are you doin' here?" Glasses demanded, "You're supposed to be making sure that Brode's gang doesn't round up any gargoyles."
"That's actually why I'm here," Scar answered, "I need to talk to Tony."
"You'll talk to me, first," Glasses answered, blocking Scar's way.
"I think the gargoyles know about the boss's hit," Scar said plainly, "Does that satisfy you?"
"What makes you think that?" Glasses asked.
"Watched a bunch of street punks, probably wanting to impress Tony, take on four gargoyles," Scar answered, "the gargoyles took care of them pretty quick, and it just looked like the way that they took them out looks like they knew about the hit."
"You came all this way to say that?" Glasses demanded, "You're not supposed to think. You're supposed to do as you're told. Need I remind you, that we will owe a favor to anyone who kills a gargoyle, and that Brode will have our favor be us leaving New York to him?"
"I know that," Scar answered back, "But I think they know. What do you suppose will happen if they do find out?"
"They'll come looking for us," Glasses sighed, "But you have no reason to believe that they do know and..."
"Hey, what's going on here?" came Dracon's voice from the side.
Both turned to see the lead gangster walking out of the area that led to his office.
"Boss?" Glasses asked.
"Just taking a walk," Dracon answered, "Now what are you two arguing about?"
"I think the gargoyles know about the hit, sir," Scar said quickly.
"Which they can't," Glasses retorted.
"If you saw the way they went after those street thugs, you'd think they know too!" Scar growled back at Dracon's second in command.
"You have nothing to prove they don't know," Glasses answered again.
"I doubt either of you has the evidence to prove either argument," Dracon finished, "We're just going to have to play the game carefully. None of our guys are to actively take part in the hunting. Don't want them getting caught. We are to step up our efforts to make sure that Brode doesn't bring in the most."
"Right boss," Glasses nodded to go make the necessary arrangements.
"And thank you for the word of warning, Scar," Dracon answered, "I hope you're right though."
Outside the building, four pairs of eyes watched carefully through an upper window in the warehouse. Caroline felt somewhat like Spider-Man as she clung to the side of the building with her talons. Of course in the comics, he didn't leave small holes in the walls like her talons did, but that didn't change how she felt.
"He's hiding in a warehouse?" Caroline asked quietly.
"Apparently," Desdemona answered, "Should we go in?"
"Not without the rest of the clan," Hudson answered, "But now that we know where Dracon is hiding, we know where to go."
"Right," Othello nodded, "We'll need to report this to Goliath."
The other four nodded and then leaped off the wall and began to slowly return toward the Eyrie Building.
Castle Wyvern
Broadway's team returned to the castle to find that Brooklyn, Amy, Candy, and Lexington had returned already. Broadway was in a much better mood now that his team had managed to capture the sniper that had shot Lex. Not only because he 'got even' with the gangster, but because he felt that getting rid of the sniper would help get rid of armed crooks in general, which Broadway had a strong dislike of. Especially firearms.
"How did it go?" Brooklyn asked as Broadway's team landed.
"We shouldn't have to worry about that sniper, anymore," Broadway answered with a grin.
"You caught him?" Candy asked.
Angela nodded as she stepped forward, "Yeah. He took a shot a Broadway again as we were beginning to head back. He's currently riding down to the 23rd with Matt and Detective Flariaty."
"I hope he gets life imprisonment," Candy answered.
"I don't think he'll get that, but I'm sure he'll face some time for firing a high powered rifle inside the city limits," Brooklyn answered, "Come on. Let's go inside. Goliath's group hasn't returned yet, we can wait in comfort and share how our nights went. Yours obviously went well."
The others nodded and followed Brooklyn in. About ten minutes later, Goliath and Hudson's groups returned and found the groups that had returned already in the clan's 'TV room'. Broadway and Angela repeated their story about capturing the Russian sniper, which caused many of the others to sigh with relief.
"Does this mean we can glide above the rooftops again?" Ethan asked.
"Not until the bullet proof vests that Xanatos is obtaining arrive," Goliath answered, "Broadway's team may have captured the Russian sniper, but until the hit is called off, we can not take the risk that no one else will try the same tactic."
"And unless he's wounded an innocent," Elisa added, "the only crime that the Russian can officially be charged with is the possession and firing of firearms within the city limits. This means he may not be in jail long enough to prevent him from trying again in the future."
Broadway gave a heavy sigh.
"But if we get Dracon's hit called off, he wouldn't have reason to try again," Othello commented, "Is that right, brother?"
"I would think so," Goliath rumbled, "I doubt his organization would be able to do much without its leader. Why do you ask?"
"We believe we've found the gangster's hideout," Hudson commented moving to stand with Othello.
"Where are they hiding?" Broadway asked quickly.
"Apparently in an old warehouse on the south side of Manhattan," Hudson answered, "We tailed one of Dracon's lackeys back there, and the boss was there."
"Let's go," Broadway insisted, "We can't let anyone get hurt by this guy's scheme."
"I agree with you, pal," Brooklyn commented, putting a hand on the aquamarine gargoyle's shoulder, "But it's getting fairly close to dawn and only Hudson's group knows the exact location."
Goliath nodded, "We will not go tonight. We will need time to plan our actions and figure out how we are going to handle this."
"We'll lead ye there once ye've figured out everything," Hudson said to Goliath.
Goliath nodded, "Thank you, old friend."
"So, how do you plan to go after this warehouse?" Amy asked from behind Brooklyn.
"It would probably be best to go in from all sides," Goliath answered, "Make sure that Dracon can not escape. I will need to look the building over when we arrive tomorrow night."
The others nodded and quickly began to depart from the room and go about the business. As those that left the room, they passed Demona and Wedrington as the two were walking along the hallways in the clan's wing of the castle. The various clan members gave the sky blue female a polite wave or nod and carried on. The two then heard the television inside the room turn on.
"Don't you think we should volunteer to help them?" Wedrington asked, "It'd certainly make it easier for them."
"Easier in the sense that they do not need to do as much work to subdue Dracon," Demona answered, "The clan's battles with an insignificant mobster is none of my concern."
"He has called a hit on all gargoyles," Wedrington pointed out.
"And to this date, how many gargoyles have Dracon's mobsters killed?" Demona asked back, "Dracon is moron. He knows the arts of his 'trade' in avoiding any real guilt for his crimes, but when the clan has battled him, he has failed miserably. When the police have had sufficient evidence against him to at least charge him with a crime, he has failed miserably."
"That sounds like you're speaking from experience," Wedrington commented.
"Back when the clan had first awakened in Manhattan," Demona explained, "I made a point of observing all of the clan's reported enemies. Of course I was usually a day behind with some of them, since it took a while for news to circulate and for me to wake up. I was largely looking for someone who I could use to play off against the clan to accomplish my own goals."
"You did this with all the clan's enemies?" Wedrington asked, almost curiously.
"Everyone but Xanatos and Macbeth," Demona answered, "But, I found the Pack to be too wild and to closely connected to Xanatos and Dracon proved to be an idiot."
"Hm," Wedrington shrugged, "So what have you been studying in those books of Xanatos's?"
"I'm mostly trying to see if I can get a spell that will work as a shield for any gargoyle," Demona answered, "I can do that for myself, or anyone near me, but that is only because of my own powers. The rest of the clan, and you, do not have magical 'talent', unfortunately, and can not provide a similar system. I'm trying to see if I can generate a spell that will allow those without magic to shield themselves."
"Couldn't technology do the same thing?" Wedrington asked.
"In theory, but you have to carry something roughly the same size as you around for the rest of your life," Demona answered, "and you'd need access to some electrical power source from time to time."
"Just curious," Wedrington commented.
Demona only nodded and the two kept walking.
Central Manhattan Hotel
Brode's second in command scowled at the man who had come before him and gave his latest report on the effort to hunt down the gargoyle clan and capitalize on Dracon's hit. The man looked tired and exhausted, as if he'd just faced something that made him extremely nervous.
"Yuri's been arrested?" Brode's second asked in a firm tone.
"Yes," the man answered simply in a very nervous manner.
"You and your partner were to make sure that didn't happen," Brode's second growled at him.
"We can't beat four gargoyles that charge up to our position and take our guns away," the man whined.
"What?" Brode's second asked, "Yuri said his plans were to deal with the gargoyles at long ranges. You should have had plenty of time to deal with the others."
"They've recently started gliding below the rooftops," the man told him, "This forced Yuri to move closer to the edge of the building and to fire from a much closer range."
"Did he at least get the gargoyle?" Brode's second sighed.
"No, the thing turned just as he fired and he missed its ear by a few millimeters," the man answered, "Then all four of them attacked us."
Brode's second only sighed again, "Where is Yuri now?"
"The police have him," the man answered, "Some detective and his partner took all three of us back to their station. Frank and I were able to get out by saying that we never fired any shots and they couldn't hold us. They took finger prints and then let Frank and me go..."
'What about Yuri?" Brode's second asked, emphasizing the Russian's name.
"He's still at the station," the man answered nervously, "From what I could overhear as I was lead out of the station, they were somewhat suspicious about his identity."
Brode's second only sighed, "Regardless of his identity, at least he can only be charged with the firing of a fire arm within the city limits."
"What about the other hits Brode has sent Yuri on?" the man then asked.
"Most were done in Europe, and he was not connected to any of them," Brode's second answered, "All the police know in those cases was that enemy of Brode's was dead and the type of weapon used."
"They do have Yuri's rifle," the man commented, "Or at least the remains of it."
"Many Russians have the same brand of rifle," Brode's second dismissed it, "There are probably some armies that still use it officially as a sniper rifle. Not every country is as rich or technologically advanced as the United States or the various countries of Western Europe."
"What do we do now, sir?" the man asked.
"For now, we wait," Brode's second answered, "The charges that can be brought against Yuri are not as serious as others that could be brought about, and our lawyers can surely find a loophole in the laws that will get Yuri back to us sooner. But for now, all we can do is wait."
23rd Precinct
Matt stood quietly outside the interrogation room looking quietly through the window at the man sitting quietly in his assigned chair. Flariaty was still inside, keeping an eye on the man.
"So, what's going on with this guy?" Captain Chavez asked from beside him.
"Remember how I told you about the supposed sniper that was going after the clan?" Matt asked back and waited for Chavez to nod, "well, that's him, or at least the clan believes it's him"
"You said the clan got the name 'Yuri' out one of the gangsters they apprehended?" Chavez asked.
"Yeah," Matt answered, "that's where this starts to get confusing. This guy says his name is Boris Iric and was born in Boston."
"We can check for a birth certificate," Chavez answered, "Boston's hospitals should have a copy to prove that a 'Boris Iric was born there."
"Flariaty called Boston about an hour ago to ask for the information," Matt answered, "We should be getting a call back in a few hours."
"We can't hold him that long," Chavez pointed out.
"Holding him, isn't the problem," Matt sighed, "We got what's left his gun. It's... or was clearly a high powered sniper rifle, and has his prints all over it, including the trigger. And last I checked, you're not allowed to fire a rifle inside the city limits."
"I'm sure he has an alibi for it though," Chavez answered.
"Yeah, but where we found him would lead to question it by the fact of common sense," Matt answered, "His alibi wouldn't work."
"Why did he say he had the rifle, anyway?" Chavez asked.
"He said he was walking home from a hunting trip when the gargoyles grabbed him off the street," Matt sighed, "but it's not hunting season, so even if that alibi is true, we can arrest him for hunting out of season."
"I'll go in and try and get something out of him," Chavez commented, "Perhaps I can get something out of him."
Matt nodded and stepped aside letting his superior into the room. He then followed Chavez inside. Yuri looked up as he watched both officers enter.
"So, I am to be freed now, yes?" Yuri asked.
"I'm afraid not," Chavez said firmly, "I'd like to run a few questions by you if you don't mind."
"I do not mind," Yuri answered, "I will answer all questions you have."
"Good, Mr. ...," Chavez began.
"Iric," Yuri answered, repeating his alibi, "Boris Iric."
"Now, Mr. Iric, you were apprehended armed with a high powered rifle," Chavez said plainly, "And your fingerprints were all over the weapon, and forensics has confirmed that the weapon had been fired recently. Would you care to explain this?"
"As I told the others, I was on my way back from a hunting trip when these gargoyles came out of nowhere and grabbed me," Yuri answered, "You should deal with them, when they are going after innocent citizens."
"It has been our experience that people claiming gargoyle attacks have usually had some outstanding warrant for some crime," Chavez answered.
"I am innocent though," Yuri said.
"May I see your license?" Chavez asked.
"Hmm?" Yuri asked back.
"Your hunting license," Chavez clarified, "You need a hunting license in order to hunt any animal. It insures that no one is drastically hurting the local population. Which would hurt other hunters."
"I'm afraid it was lost when the gargoyles attacked me," Yuri answered.
Chavez sighed, "Can you explain why the gun was recently fired? Or more accurately, why where you hunting at night? It's kind of hard to hit an animal in a dark forest in upstate New York. And you said you were walking so you couldn't have had any equipment needed to see in the dark."
"The gargoyles took my equipment," Yuri said quickly.
"Why would they take night vision goggles or specially made spotlights?" Chavez asked, "From what it looks like, they can already see in the dark."
"Perhaps they are involved in more things then you know," Yuri replied.
"Maybe," Chavez shrugged, "But since it is not hunting season, you shouldn't have been hunting, day or not, period. And since you do not have a license with you, we can either charge you with firing a weapon inside the city limits or with poaching."
"Poaching?" Yuri asked.
"Hunting without a license," Chavez explained, "We will be holding you here for a few days."
Yuri sighed as Flariaty and Matt began to lead him out and toward the cells. Chavez chuckled to herself as she watched he man growl silently to himself.
"You can think about which charge you want," Chavez commented as the two detectives lead him out.
Mid-Morning, Castle Wyvern
"I have a report for you, sir," Owen reported as Xanatos moved into his office inside the castle.
The blonde haired assistant waited for Xanatos to sit down and nod before he continued.
"It comes in two parts, actually, sir," Owen continued, "One is that the gargoyles apprehended their illusive sniper last night."
"That's good for them," Xanatos commented, "They may not need those bullet proof vests after all."
"When Goliath informed me, after I had told him that you had gone to bed, he said that they would still require the vests until Dracon's hit has been dealt with."
Xanatos nodded, "What's the other part of the report?"
"We've managed to get a spy into Maddox Technologies," Owen answered, "However, she reports that she was able to obtain a minor janitorial job and is required to leave before sunset."
"We'll get a report on some of the daytime activities that Fang's been up to for Thailog then," Xanatos sighed, "She should know how to use her position to her advantage."
"We'll probably gain only some information about Thailog's business deals," Owen pointed out.
"Profit is profit," Xanatos smiled, "If we can get Thailog out of the CEO business the easier it will be to deal with him."
Owen gave a slight nod.
"If you can, tell our spy to try and advance her position," Xanatos ordered, "If she can find out anything about Thailog's 'secret' plans, that would be perfect. We'll need that information to deal with whatever plan that that clone comes up with."
Owen nodded.
"Remind her that she is not to risk life or limb," Xanatos answered, "If she doesn't think she can get the information without risking death or discovery, we shouldn't do it. Getting her in the first place was hard enough; we don't want to have to start all over again."
"I will see to it, sir," Owen nodded again.
Former Quarrymen HQ
Dracon was lying back on a couch in his 'office' inside the warehouse that his gang had taken as its base of operations. Using the Quarrymen's old base was not to his tastes, especially since any major operation that his organization carried out could be directly connected to this building. Thankfully everything had been kept hidden so far. He was about to fall asleep when Glasses and a low ranking member of his organization stepped into the room.
"Sorry to interrupt your rest boss, but Dimitri here has some news," Glasses reported.
Dracon sat up to look at the man. He was of Slavic descent, but Dracon could never remember which country specifically, and he didn't really care. He hired the man to be a double agent within Brode's organization shortly after Brode arrived and continued to use him as a spy. Largely, Dimitri was only able to get small pieces of information from here and there, but it did help Dracon with his plans.
"What do you have?" Dracon asked.
"Brode's gang seems to be coming apart at the seams," Dimitri answered, "They believe the clan already knows about the hit you called on them. They are concerned with the fact that several members of their organization have been ambushed by your operatives. On top of it all, their sniper has been arrested and that is causing some major arguments within the organization."
"How'd he get arrested?" Dracon asked.
"All I know is that he was arrested," Dimitri answered, "The police have him right now on poaching charges."
"The gargoyles got him," Dracon chuckled, "They seem to come in handy every now and then. Perhaps Brode's gang will fall apart and we'll be able to return to our true dominance."
"You calling off the hit, boss?" Glasses asked.
"No," Dracon said firmly, "Just musing to myself. The gargoyles have cost me a lot of money and nearly all of my freedom. Getting them out of the way is the first step in getting the city back to the way it was before. Mine."
23rd Precinct
Captain Chavez was incredibly tired. Normally her shift for the night would have been over, but Bluestone's arrest of 'Boris Iric' during the night had changed things. The suspicion about his identity lead to an extensive background check, which required that one of the officers involved stay until the authorities in Boston could finish checking. Since she had already sent Bluestone and Flariaty home, that left her. Finally, as she drained what had to have been her fifteenth cup of coffee, the phone to her office rang.
"Chavez," Chavez answered as she picked up the phone.
"This is Detective Ubank with the Boston PD," a man answered over the phone, "We received a request to check the birth certificates on the identification of a suspect."
"Yes," Chavez answered, "We've arrested a suspect on poaching charges claiming to be a 'Boris Iric', but my detectives believed he was using an alias."
"Any reason why?" Ubank asked over the phone.
"Outside sources claim to have seen the same man use a different name," Chavez answered, "Although they can not come forward at this time."
"Well, however they got their information or their hunch, it was right," Ubank answered, "We just finished checking about an hour ago. No 'Boris Iric' was born in Boston, ever, let alone on the date that was given to you."
"Thank you, Detective," Chavez answered into the phone, "You've been most helpful."
"Not a problem," Ubank answered, "Just remember, you guys owe us one."
"Of course," Chavez sighed in response, "If some crook flees Boston and comes here, we'll do everything we can to help."
Chavez then hung up and left her office. She found the closest uniformed officer and began to give him instructions.
"Get Mr. Iric from his cell and bring him down to the interrogation room," Chavez ordered, "Quickly."
The officer ran off quickly while Chavez moved to sit in the officer's seat in the interrogation room. She sat there quietly for a few minutes until the officer she had ordered earlier, brought in Yuri. Yuri sat quietly in the other chair opposite her. The uniformed officer stood nearby.
"I had an interesting conversation with a detective from the Boston PD," Chavez commented.
"Really?" Yuri asked, "What does that have to do with me? I've committed no crime."
Yuri then thought for a moment and decided to keep playing the 'dumb' card.
"The only thing I've been accused of is poaching because I don't have license with me and that it's not hunting season," Yuri answered, "And I honestly didn't know..."
"There is no birth certificate for a Boris Iric in Boston," Chavez interrupted him, "Would you mind telling me your real name?"
Yuri looked at the woman with a strange look on his face.
"You can't just..." Yuri protested.
"There's a lot we can do if we have reason to suspect something," Chavez answered, "Now we've received some reports that various members of organized crime taking pot shots at gargoyles."
"The law doesn't protect gargoyles," Yuri commented.
"True," Chavez answered, "But you don't suppose you might have shot someone while shooting at these gargoyles?"
"I never shot at any gargoyle," Yuri answered.
"You still didn't give us your real name, which several members of the 'mob' have done to keep themselves or their bosses from being punished," Chavez answered, "That makes us suspicious."
"If you're going to accuse me of being in the mob, I want my lawyer," Yuri answered, "I may be ignorant of your hunting laws, but I am not a criminal."
"Very well," Chavez sighed, "You're still here under poaching charges. And I only asked for your name."
Castle Wyvern, Dusk
Breakfast for the clan was actually quite short as the various members of the clan were busy preparing to go after Dracon's lair in the hopes of finally capture the mobster. The commotion had even attracted the attention of the Guatemalan clan who had largely restricted themselves to guarding the castle once the news of the 'hit' had been discovered.
"You're going after this Dracon?" Zafiro asked as Goliath and Elisa ate.
Goliath nodded before speaking, "Yes. If we can catch him, it might get the hit that he has called to end."
"Not to mention that he still has time to serve in jail," Elisa added, "And that will help the city."
"Will you require help?" Obsidiana asked.
"We would appreciate any help you want offer," Goliath answered.
The four Guatemalans looked at each other before Zafiro moved forward to address Goliath for his clan.
"We will help you apprehend this criminal," Zafiro said clearly.
Once the clan had eaten they had gathered in the courtyard before heading out.
"Our objective for tonight is to capture Dracon in his lair," Goliath explained slowly, "Once he is captured, we will take the rest of the night off."
He then waited a few moments before continuing.
"I also want everyone to be careful," Goliath continued, "If his men are calling a hit on us, it probably means that they will be utterly ruthless in trying to shoot us. No one is to take unnecessary risks."
"Right Goliath," many members of the clan answered.
With that they departed for Dracon's lair. After diving below the rooftops, Caroline, Hudson, Othello, and Desdemona lead the way. It took nearly an hour to negotiate the maze of skyscrapers to land on the roof of a warehouse across the street from where the old Quarrymen HQ was.
"That is where the criminal has been hiding," Othello pointed at the building.
Goliath looked carefully at the building. He could only see one door to enter through and a few windows on what could be the second floor.
"Does the building have floors?" Goliath asked.
"There is a raised catwalk above the main central storage area," Othello answered, "Although it appears that several small 'offices' have been set up in one section."
"Is there another door to the outside?" Goliath asked.
"We didn't look," Caroline answered.
"Lexington, can you get a closer look?" Goliath rumbled, "See if there are any other doors."
"On it," Lex answered and leapt from the roof and began to slowly glide around the building.
The others watched as Lex glided slowly and at a low altitude to return to a crouching position on the edge of the building.
"There are three more windows on the other side, probably leading to the catwalk," Lex reported, "And there is only one other door on the other side."
Goliath nodded and then began to give his basic instructions.
"Elisa, Hudson, Caroline, and I will go through the front door," Goliath explained and then turned to Brooklyn.
"Brooklyn," Goliath instructed, "I want you to take Amy, Sarah, and Ian through the back door."
"Will do, Goliath," Brooklyn answered.
Goliath meanwhile turned to Othello.
"Othello," Goliath continued, "I want you to take Desdemona, Ethan and Eve and go through one of the windows on the top floor on this side of the building of the building"
Othello nodded, "Of course, brother."
Goliath then turned to Broadway, "Broadway, I want you to take Angela, Lexington, and Candy and go through one of the windows on the other side."
"We will take the window on the far right," Zafiro spoke up pointing to the window that he meant.
"Right," Goliath nodded, "let's go!"
Inside the warehouse, Dracon and Glasses were just sitting down to go over the plans for the night.
"Well," Glasses began, "I got all the people who need to be out keeping an eye on Brode's people out. Although, considering what Dimitri reported, I doubt that Brode's gang will be doing much." "Remember the boyscout motto," Dracon smirked, "Always be prepared."
Glasses nodded.
"Hopefully someone brings in a gargoyle tonight," Dracon commented off hand, "It's been somewhat boring sitting around with nothing to do."
A few seconds later, the two men heard crashing sounds come from outside their office.
"What the devil?" Dracon growled as he got up, pulling out his gun.
Glasses drew his weapon and the two prepared to exit their office area to see what was going on.
Goliath found that there was no welcoming party as he plowed through the front door to the warehouse. There were several packing boxes piled up in various stacks in front of him, but he couldn't see anyone.
"It's like this place is abandoned," Elisa commented as she caped her wings and followed Goliath in.
"They must be hiding somewhere," Hudson commented, "There were a lot more people here last night."
"Maybe they're on the second floor?" Caroline wondered, "Or on the catwalk, whatever it is."
At that moment two men appeared from behind a stack of boxes. Their eyes literally bulged out of the heads when they saw Goliath.
"The gargoyles are attacking us!" one screamed only to have Goliath and Hudson pounce on them before they could do anything.
"Sure take all the fun, why don't you," Elisa chuckled as Goliath dropped the unconscious goon at his feet.
Goliath then heard the sounds of small fist fights breaking out throughout various parts of the warehouse. One gunshot did ring out but, it obviously went wide Goliath heard it ricochet off the rafters shortly after the shot was fired. The clan quickly regrouped outside the section of the warehouse that had been converted into offices.
"I think Dracon's mob has gone off somewhere," Brooklyn commented as his group approached, "We ran into a couple of guys guarding the door, but that was it."
"There were more guarding the windows," Othello commented, "But all were poorly trained."
"Their better goons must be off trying to capitalize on Dracon's hit," Elisa answered.
The door that led to the office area opened, and Pal Joey and two of Dracon's main lieutenants came out to investigate the sounds that they had heard from inside. Both were shocked to see the gargoyles already inside the warehouse, but had no time to do anything but scream as Elisa punched one, sending him flying back through the door. Candy tripped another with her tail and Broadway grabbed the other two and threw them into the boxes that they had just passed.
Broadway and Othello then advanced down the hallway as the rest of the clan followed, checking doors as they went. Most of the rooms were empty, those that were full, were full of weapons or of other illegal paraphernalia.
"Matt's really going to love getting two calls from us in two nights," Elisa commented as she shut the door to a closet full of packets of illegal drugs.
"But much of this stuff you said is illegal for people to have or use," Ian pointed out.
"Yeah," Elisa nodded, "But he has to do a lot of paperwork to deal with it all. One of the better things about being a gargoyle. No paperwork."
There was a brief chuckle until Glasses and Dracon both appeared in the hallway ahead of them.
"Damn," Glasses growled, "They came here, boss!"
"Shoot 'em!" Dracon yelled and aimed his gun.
Broadway's eyes light up with a bright glow as Dracon aimed his gun and charged headlong into the gangster. The aquamarine gargoyle tackled Dracon, forcing his shot to go up into the ceiling. Glasses fired a shot at Othello, but the bullet bounced off his armor. The grey male then grabbed Glasses by he hand and pulled the gun away from him.
"You won't be needing that anymore," Othello said to him in a low voice.
The others then looked back to see that Broadway had knocked Dracon out.
"You've failed again, Dracon," Broadway growled at the unconscious gangster.
"Well," Brooklyn commented, "That was anti-climactic."
"You haven't gotten the hit called off," Glasses said defiantly.
"Yeah, but with you and your boss in jail, you can't pay your favor back," Amy growled back, "It's as good as over."
Glasses glared at her, but said nothing. Goliath meanwhile turned to Elisa.
"Contact Matt and let him know we have Dracon apprehended and give him the address," Goliath instructed, "The sooner this scum is in jail, the better."
"Right," Elisa nodded and pulled her communicator out from her belt pouch.
23rd, Two Hours Later
"First they capture the sniper and then Dracon," Matt commented as he poured himself a cup of coffee from one of the stations various coffee machines, "Life certainly has been exciting for the clan in the last couple of days."
"Yeah, while we do the real work," Flariaty grumbled, "Yuri's figured out that we know who he is and is lawyering up and we have paperwork to fill out to deal with the recapturing of Dracon."
"Life isn't perfect," Matt shrugged, "But it certainly has to be looking good."
Riker's Island, After Dawn
"Yuri's been arrested?" Brode asked from his side of the visitor's booth.
"Yes, sir," Brode's second sighed, "It appears that the gargoyles got to him."
Brode cursed inwardly. Yuri had been a key part of his organization's activities.
"Any chance to get him out?" Brode asked.
"He's facing poaching charges for hunting without a license," Brode's second answered, "Nothing our lawyers can't cut down, and nothing that implicates us."
"Good," Brode smiled.
"That isn't all, sir," Brode's second said quickly as he saw Brode rising to leave.
"What is it?" Brode asked quickly.
"Dracon's been recaptured, along with most of his leadership," Brode's second answered.
"The hit is off then," Brode sighed, "Dracon's 'Glasses' won't accept favors with his boss's consent and they've already learned that Dracon will keep running his empire from jail, so he won't have visitation rights."
"We could still go after the gargoyles, sir," Brode's second commented, "They have had the habit of breaking up various operations that both Dracon and you have undertaken."
"Only if we run into them," Brode instructed, "It's always better to avoid the law enforcers then challenge them outright. Besides, we have a new target. With Dracon gone, the real prize in this grand play is open for us. Begin preparations for wiping Dracon's gang from the face of the Earth!"
The End...