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. Characters and concepts from Star Trek are property of Paramount and created by Gene Roddenberry. 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. Also, I'm altering large sections of the Star Trek storyline, especially concerning events like WWIII and the Eugenics Wars, which without the Cold War as a backdrop probably wouldn't happen the way Roddenberry wrote them, if at all. This story takes place one week after "Confusing Choices".
Old Friends
By SN/TVfan
Email: Sam_Nary
Midtown High School
Lawrence sighed as he sat down in the library to work on some homework, while he had a free hour. His senior year of high school had promised to be a great year. Between dances and other senior class events, all leading up to graduation he had hoped that he would be able to propose to Caroline shortly after graduation, so the two could go to the same college. Of course, the changes that had occurred in his life weren't all that horrible. He still got to marry Caroline, but she was presently in stone sleep on the towers of Castle Wyvern, and would be shot at by police if she tried to follow him to college.
"Life will never be easy," Lawrence sighed to himself, "Besides, your 'wife' is happy, that should be all."
The he suddenly heard a discussion coming from a reading area on the other side of the bookshelf that his study desk was at.
"Why are we still doing this again?" a girl's voice asked again.
"You saw the interview," another girl spoke, "The gargoyles have been this city's great 'attraction' ever since that clock tower incident. Then they're in that interview on television. They're celebrities."
"Plus the fact that two of them look like a couple of students that used to go here," a third commented.
"Oh, come on, they're probably being home schooled," a fourth spoke, "but I'd agree that the gargoyles have to be celebrities."
"But none of them stop long enough for us to make contact," the first girl spoke again, "We chased one group for five blocks, and by the time we got to the roof of a building we thought they landed on, they were off again, and headed toward the Eyrie Building."
"We need to find some way to fly," the second girl commented, "If we could fly, we could keep up with them."
"None of us have the money to rent a helicopter, and I doubt any of the pilots would want to go 'gargoyle chasing'," the third commented, "Especially since they might think they're being attacked and go after the helicopter."
"How could they take out a helicopter?" the first asked, "The rotor blades would tear them to pieces."
"They could go under it and pull it down," the second spoke, "They're like, superheroes."
"Okay, okay," the first gave a defeated sigh, "I understand, I just wish we could have more success at this. It's almost as if they don't want to be met by anyone."
"No, they met with the PIT people," the second argued, "I just don't think they saw us."
"So where do we meet to finalize our plans?" the fourth asked again.
"At my house, before dusk," the third answered, "We'll be able to watch the castle from there and will know which way they're all going."
"So how will we keep up, since we can't fly?" the first asked again.
"I think the only way would be to grow wings and fly, but that's impossible," the third commented, "So I guess we'll be running along alleys again."
"What if we could use some magic, like that one gargoyle in the interview?" the second asked.
"And how many people do you know that know magic?" the fourth questioned back.
"I'm sure we could find a book somewhere," the third commented.
"Those are all going to be 'show' magic, like on television shows and that guy who made the statue of liberty disappear," the first spoke in a defeated tone.
Lawrence then sighed again as he heard the group apparently left the library. Their conversation had startled him a little bit. It wasn't that he hadn't heard of celebrity fandom or the fact that they were talking about the gargoyles. It was the fact that they combined the two. PIT was trying to argue for basic integration of gargoyles into society, but of the few meetings he attended, non of them were about to call the gargoyles 'celebrities'. And he knew the clan didn't consider themselves celebrities, and there were various things that he was curious about, he wasn't about to go as far as that group went in suggesting that they actually play with magic to get wings.
"I'm sure that will go over well with the clan," Lawrence sighed to himself.
Maddox Technologies
Harold Bainsville sat down quietly in a lone conference room with a few of his board of directors waiting for a high priority meeting with one 'Alexander Thailog' over the possible sale of the company that Thailog had taken an interest in buying. After a few moments a powerfully built man slowly walked in carrying a large briefcase with him.
"I'm sorry to keep you all waiting," the man spoke, "I just got out of a different meeting."
"It is not like we have much to do for the rest of the day, Mr. Thailog," Harold answered, "That is, if you have the funds to buy off a struggling company."
"We have the funds, I can assure you of that," the robotic human 'Thailog' answered, "And it would be preferred if you do no layoff your employees as a result of this buyout."
"We have no intention of laying off our employees, if we can carry out this sale effectively," Harold answered, "We just don't have the funds to be competitive after what happened with our New York facility."
"Yes, I read about that in the paper," Thailog answered, "Any idea as to what they were after?"
"We don't know, all we kept in the building that was blown up were basic house cleaning chemicals that we deliver to other companies," Harold replied, "There was nothing of any financial value that people like the Pack would be interested in."
"I think they're just becoming anarchic terrorists," Thailog responded, "Just causing chaos in the name of chaos."
Harold sighed, that was probably as good a guess as anyone could make in regards to the destruction of his New York facility. His company had always struggled, and now as a result of the Pack's attack, he couldn't afford to replace the building or the products that had been destroyed.
"Now, as we're getting into the business section of this meeting, my I inquire as to what your company has been working on, and what it would do to help Maddox Technologies?" Thailog asked in a business-like fashion.
"Mostly in the research of various chemicals for various purposes, most of which are for cleaning products," Harold answered, "although, our R & D division has come up with something that might work in various fuels."
"What is it?" Thailog asked.
"It's an artificially made chemical, that was designed to react with oxygen with great force," Harold answered, "The idea was to use it as a rocket fuel for the space shuttle and rockets that would 'burn' cleanly and without pollution."
"Amazing," Thailog commented.
"Yes, but it's dangerous," Harold answered, "We had to rent land in Arizona that we could safely test it as, as the reaction to oxygen is still too violent t be trusted in more densely populated areas."
"But this couldn't have been a major part of your company, or the destruction of your cleaning facility wouldn't have put you in this situation," Thailog spoke.
"Well, it is, but it's still a side issue to what our normal crews were working on in terms of producing the perfect cleaning products," Harold answered.
"I see," Thailog responded, "What is the asking price that you have?"
"To cover the cost of everything, and paying for the executive's departures, I would say 500,000 dollars minimum would be the best price," Harold sighed, "Sorry if this sounds too expensive."
"Expensive would be trying to buy out Xanatos Enterprises," Thailog answered, "I'll give you $750,000. That way you have something for yourself."
One of Harold's board of directors then cut in before Harold himself could answer.
"We would like you to answer one question for us," the man spoke, "Why did you make the offer so soon after the destruction of our New York facility?"
"Does that matter?" Thailog answered, "I am to understand that you have received other offers."
"Yes, but all of those companies have been making offers for months," the board director answered, "You made your offer only minutes after the authorities reported the Pack's attack to the people."
"I'm sorry if that sounded offensive, but it was purely coincidental," Thailog answered, "I have had eyes on your business for a while, but it took me a while to convince MY board of directors to accept to my making of the offer. By the time I delivered it, I had not yet known of the attack."
"It's understandable," Harold answered, "We were just concerned as to whether or not you were only making the offer now because we can not afford to continue on our own."
"I'm not, I assure you," Thailog answered.
"Well, thank you," Harold sighed, "And your offer is more then acceptable. We'll take the 750,000 dollars."
"Very good," Thailog smiled and pulled out the business check book.
Castle Wyvern, Dusk
Lawrence stood quietly behind Caroline's stone form as the sun slowly set over the western horizon. He thought it would be best to let at least Caroline know what he had overheard. If that group was so willing to meet a gargoyle that they would follow them on their patrols, they were liable to get hurt as a result of the clan's engagements with both the criminal element and against their more dangerous foes.
He was forced to take a step back or two as Caroline's stone form cracked and then practically exploded off of her as she woke up. Caroline gave her roaring yawn as she stretched her wings and turned around to face Lawrence and quickly took him in a strong hug.
"Good evening," Lawrence replied as he returned the hug, "Sleep well?"
"I told you," Caroline answered, "I can't even tell I'm sleeping when the sun rises. I just see blackness when the sun rises, and then 'boom' it's dusk and I'm waking up."
"Well, I couldn't think of any way to great you other then asking if you slept well," Lawrence sighed.
"How was your day?" Caroline asked as she began to lead Lawrence inside while the clan began to head in for their breakfast.
"It was good, although there is something you might want to talk to the others about," Lawrence replied.
That got Caroline's attention.
"You didn't go following gangsters around, did you?" Caroline asked.
"No, it's nothing like that," Lawrence answered, "It's just something you might want to pay attention to. Just a head's up."
"What is it?" Caroline asked, looking a little confused.
"Do you remember Sally Hay and her little click of friends?" Lawrence asked.
"Wasn't she the one who always wanted to be there whenever some superstar singer or actress came to New York?" came Candy's voice from behind them.
Caroline and Lawrence turned to see Lex and Candy following behind them.
"Sorry, but I couldn't help but overhear," Candy answered.
"It'd probably best if you heard, anyway," Lawrence sighed, "but you're right. Unfortunately, the latest celebrities she wants to meet is you guys."
"What's wrong with supporting gargoyles?" Lex asked, sounding borderline annoyed.
"It's not just support," Lawrence answered, "It's borderline obsession. She and her friends have been trying to follow you guys on your patrols trying to meet you."
"Following us?" Caroline answered, "She hasn't managed to recognize at least Candy and me from the interview?"
"The interview is what's caused their looking, I think," Lawrence answered, "but I'm pretty sure that they still believe that you two, and Amy have all decided to finish of the year in home schooling programs."
"That's a relief," Candy commented.
"Unfortunately, you guys apparently aren't staying still long enough and that is only making her more determined to make contact," Lawrence answered, "and given the war stories from the middle ages and the enemies you guys have made nowadays, she's liable to get herself killed as a result of this fandom."
"Unfortunately, having one of us land in front of her and tell her to stop, won't necessarily stop her," Caroline sighed, "Fandom will always bring out strange reactions."
"At least it's a step up from random people hearing about us and deciding we're demons that need to be wiped out," Lex commented, "We might be able to talk this girl out of it."
"Yeah, but groups like PIT are not widely accepted in New York, and barely have any members outside of the city," Lawrence pointed out, "and there are enough people who are on the fence concerning gargoyles and there are enough that don't like gargoyles, that one minor accident could erase all the progress PIT has made since the fall of the Quarrymen. I can't be the only person to have overheard their conversation today, and who knows who might have overheard any other conversations they've had. If she gets hurt following you guys, people are going to blame you, because of her fixation with 'celebrities', not her for following."
"So they've been planning to follow us for autographs, and stuff?" Lex asked.
"Not planning," Lawrence answered, "Have been. Apparently they've been following you guys around for awhile."
"For awhile?" Lex asked.
Lawrence nodded.
"Broadway was right," Lex commented.
"About what?" Candy asked.
"Broadway was convinced that someone was following us the night the Chinese gargoyles arrived," Lex explained, "But he wasn't sure who it was or why they were following us."
"Well, now we do know," Caroline nodded, "We'll be able to make sure that Sally doesn't do something that will get herself hurt."
"Yeah, but it's our turn to watch the Chinese hatchlings tonight," Candy pointed out, "Goliath and the older ones will be patrolling tonight. We'll need to tell them about this."
"How has that been going?" Lawrence asked.
"About as well as can be expected," Caroline sighed, "and it makes me grateful that when we become parents, Lawrence, there will not be so many hatchlings to look after."
"I'd be more then happy to help, if you need it," Lawrence volunteered.
"You don't have to get up early, tomorrow, do you?" Caroline asked.
"Well, I do, but surely I can help out for a little while," Lawrence commented.
"So long as you go to bed on time," Caroline replied.
"Yes, dear," Lawrence answered back.
Maddox Technologies
"The day was a good one," Thailog smiled as he looked over the written reports that his robot 'doppelganger' left on his desk.
"I don't see how buying this business really helps," Fang commented, "Sure it gets you more money, but it isn't going to kill Goliath's clan."
"It is all part of a larger plan," Thailog answered, "You see, defeating Goliath's clan will involve taking over the Eyrie Building and Castle Wyvern. That will require the defeat of the electronic shield that Xanatos uses to protect the building when it's attacked."
"And how will throwing money at it solve the problem?" Fang questioned, "Last I heard, currency isn't a weapon."
"The chemical fuel that they are developing in Arizona," Thailog explained, "The chemical combusts when it comes into contact with oxygen. With the right spell from Holly, and exposure to oxygen, we can trigger an explosion that will take out the shield, and possibly do damage to the buildings that surround the Eyrie building."
"We commit acts of terrorism to defeat Goliath?" Fang asked.
"Terrorism is such a dirty word," Thailog answered, "I'm not seeking to terrorize the masses with this. I'm seeking to destroy Goliath's clan. It will take an explosion of that magnitude to defeat the Eyrie Building's shield. If other people are killed as a result, that is merely collateral damage."
"So what is our next move?" Fang asked.
"I need to build up my own powers to a point where I am not so dependent on the copy of the book that you stole from Demona to cast the spell that will make the fireworks better," Holly answered, "That will take time."
"You can do that?" Fang asked.
"The book is written in languages other then Latin," Holly answered, "I found one spell towards the end that is actually written in the language of the ancient Etruscans. The spell must be cast in Latin, but it was apparently written in the Etruscan language for secrecy."
"What does it do?" Thailog asked, "And how do you know it was in Etruscan?"
"I had to run it through the computers to identify the language, but once it was translated it was easy to figure out what it does," Holly answered, "The spell drains the life force, the thing that connects every living thing, sentient beings like gargoyles and humans, non-sentient beings like animals, and plants to magic and takes it to the spell caster. It is a sort of 'magical vampire' spell. The spell caster takes the life force of its victim."
"Does it work?" Thailog asked curiously.
"I tested it on the mumbling mutate Sevarius," Holly answered, "It worked perfectly. I already feel stronger."
"I didn't want him dead," Thailog answered in firm voice.
"He was next to useless," Holly answered, "He wasn't speaking in any sane manner, and we already have the clone doing the work that he would have been expected to do."
"Maybe, but we could have used him to examine whatever spell the Unseelies placed on him," Thailog pointed out.
"The book has an enslavement spell in it," Holly dismissed it, "we don't need to know how the fey did it. Besides, mixing magics is dangerous."
"Very well," Thailog sighed, knowing that the dead could not be brought back to life.
"So, how powerful can you get?" Fang asked.
"The book doesn't say, but I'd assume it is possible that the amount of raw magical power that I could wield would be limitless," Holly answered, "After all, people have found ways to increase their output of power in the form of energy many times over the years. The water-wheel, the steam engine, electricity, and now nuclear fission and the possibility of nuclear fusion, all of these are examples."
"Hmm," Thailog spoke while he thought over this report.
"I would think that in time I wouldn't need anything other then the words to the spell in order to cast hem," Holly continued, "It would allow you to expand recruiting and make the ultimate attack all the more spectacular."
"So I suppose you're looking for possible victims right now?" Fang asked.
"For the time being," Holly answered, "Although, I would prefer to handle that on my own."
"Take Fang with you," Thailog answered, "He'll provide cover for you if you run into any members of Goliath's clan. And you are not to drain them. If one dies as a result of the fight that is one thing, but you are not to purposely drain them, understood?"
"Crystal clear," Holly answered and turned to walk out, Fang slowly following.
Apartment building roof
Sally Hay slowly lowered the pair of binoculars that she was holding as she watched a few pairs of gargoyles depart the castle that sat atop the Eyrie Building.
"Do you see them?" one of the three girls behind her asked.
"Yeah," Sally answered, "A grey male and a golden female are headed north. A red male and dark blue female are headed west. A turquoise female and green male are headed east, while we have a lavender male and a tan female headed our way."
"They're headed south?" the second girl asked.
"Yep," Sally answered, "And they're the one's we're going to follow."
"Can you tell where they will be going, exactly?" the third girl questioned, "because half the time on these chases, we lose them when we go to ground level, and by the time we find them again, they're headed back to the Eyrie Building."
"This is the part where we could really use something that could fly and carry us," Sally answered, "None of us can pinpoint exactly where they're going, and since they fly through the air, we're bound to lose them when we go to the ground level."
"Maybe we should just watch them from here," the second girl commented, "If they fly over us we can shout and get their attention."
"That didn't work the last time we tried it," the first girl pointed out, "They never even turned their heads."
"They were flying home and were more then a block away from us," the second argued, "If they go right over us, they'd have to hear us."
"There's no guarantee they'll fly over this building," Sally answered, "We have to follow them and get closer. Now, come on."
Sally then rushed to get the stairwell that they had taken to get to the roof and make her way to the ground level of the building. Her friends quickly followed after her as she was the only one with a pair of binoculars.
Over Manhattan
Goliath and Elisa continued on their way south to patrol the city's southern sectors. They were relatively quiet as they went, and Goliath seemed to be rather concerned about something.
"Why would people do this?" Goliath grumbled aloud after a few moments.
"Do what?" Elisa asked as they continued on their way.
"What Caroline reported these former classmates of hers are doing," Goliath answered, "Putting themselves in possibly dangerous situations because they want to meet a gargoyle."
"Lots of people do rather stupid things at times," Elisa sighed, "We should be grateful that in at least these girls aren't trying to kill gargoyles. If we can find them, maybe a meeting would calm them down and get them to stop."
"That doesn't change the fact that they could be putting themselves in great danger," Goliath rumbled, "Yes it is good that they are supporting gargoyles, but we aren't to be some sort of 'celebrity'. We protect because that is who we are, not because we want attention."
"You're preaching to the choir with me here, big guy," Elisa answered, "but overall, it is progress. Hopefully we can find these girls and tell them that it isn't smart or safe to be following us."
A sudden scream coming from an alley below them caught their attention away from the conversation they were in. They then turned and dove down into the alley to find Thailog's sorceress standing over the body of some man with Fang standing guard over her.
"What luck, we've got some real fun now!" Fang announced as Goliath and Elisa landed in front of them.
The cougar mutate then fired an electric blast that knocked Goliath back, and nearly out of the alley way completely. He then leaped after the male gargoyle in the hopes quickly defeating the Manhattan clan's leader. Elisa and Holly, meanwhile, faced off in the alleyway.
"What have you done?" Elisa growled at the blood red female.
Holly answered by throwing a lightning spell at Elisa, forcing the tan gargoyle to dive away to avoid being hit.
"Be grateful that I am under orders not to give you the same treatment," Holly spoke in a threatening voice.
"You killed that man!" Elisa pointed and dove at Holly trying to knock the book out of Holly's hands.
The attempt failed and Holly hit Elisa in the back with another lightning spell. The blast forced Elisa to skid along the concrete sidewalk that made up the alleyway, her talons and knee spurs leaving a decent sized groove in the concrete. Holly stood triumphantly in place with one hand on her hip.
"Thailog has no qualms with killing you," Holly answered, "But the means by which I will kill you must be different from how I dealt with that person."
"You're an evil witch," Elisa growled in a low voice.
Goliath, meanwhile, scrambled to his feet and caught Fang as the mutate attempted to club the male gargoyle with his fists. Goliath then slammed the mutate against the wall of a nearby building.
"What did you two do to that man?" Goliath demanded.
"Me?" Fang commented, "I actually didn't do a thing. That was all Holly's work. She's found a way to get stronger and is going to light up your clan like a Christmas tree!"
The mutate then hit Goliath with another electric blast, forcing him to stagger back, and continued his gloating.
"It's a shame really that she can't your power," Fang commented as he threw a series of punches at Goliath, "Because you and your little girl friend would do much to help her cause."
The thought of Elisa being harmed in such a manner infuriated Goliath, and with a roar, he unleashed a powerful blow on the mutate, which knocked him across the alley and into the far wall. Fang bounced off the wall and landed face down on the concrete. Goliath then turned to help his mate.
Elisa again tried to swipe the book that Holly was holding out of the sorceress gargoyle's hands. She missed again at that, but managed to land a slashing blow against the red female's shoulder, forcing Holly back. As Holly staggered back she saw Fang laying unconscious on the ground and Goliath moving to help Elisa. She cursed under her breath and cast a spell that lifted Elisa into the air and threw her at Goliath.
The two gargoyles slid backward along the ground, and slowly struggled to get up. Holly, meanwhile, rushed to where Fang was lying.
"You just live to screw up don't you?" Holly growled at Fang and lifted him up into the air.
Elisa and Goliath struggled to get to their feet while Holly slung Fang over her shoulder.
"You got lucky this time," Holly growled, "The time is fast approaching when you will not be so lucky."
Holly then chanted a few words in Latin and began to vanish from sight. As she and Fang faded out of sight, Goliath dove at where Holly was standing, only to land on the ground where Holly had been standing as Holly was now gone. He gave a frustrated growl as he got up and turned to face Elisa.
"Things have become more dangerous," Goliath said in a low voice.
"I don't doubt it," Elisa answered him, "She killed this poor man."
"Fang mentioned something about Holly getting stronger," Goliath commented, "That is what I mean, and I'm sure this man has something to do with it."
"Stronger?" Elisa asked, "I assume he meant in magic. She doesn't strike me as one who would be spending her time working out."
"It would have to be," Goliath answered, "Our real concern is how is she doing it."
Elisa looked back at the man that Holly had killed. He looked seriously drained and weak. On closer inspection, he also looked fairly pale as well.
"The guy looks like he's been drained," Elisa commented.
"We'll need to tell this to Owen," Goliath rumbled, "Perhaps he will know what Holly has done."
Elisa nodded and began to follow Goliath in climbing up the side of one of the buildings in the alleyway that they were in.
"Why do you think that Thailog wouldn't allow Holly to do to us what she had done to that guy?" Elisa asked our of curiosity.
"No doubt it is some twisted game in Thailog's mind to see us suffer, himself," Goliath answered.
"We'll find some way to stop him Goliath," Elisa spoke as they leaped into the air and began gliding back toward the Eyrie Building, "We'll stop him."
"It may be more difficult to do so," Goliath grumbled in a low voice, "With us caring for the Chinese hatchlings, all of our clan can not patrol at once. It is where our clan's numbers are a problem. There are too few of us."
"For the time being there is nothing we can do about that," Elisa reminded, "It'd be best not to dwell on it. Right now, let's just focus on defeating Thailog."
Meanwhile Sally and her group had just finished scrambling up a set of fire escape ladders to see Goliath and Elisa glide off. Seeing that they were again too late to catch anything more then a glimpse of the gargoyles, made all of them give a sigh of frustration.
"Hey!" one of the others screamed after the two gargoyles, "Come back!"
Neither gargoyle heard them, and continued gliding away.
"I think we ought to give up on this," a second girl commented, "all the running and watching is wearing me out, and we don't even get the opportunity to meet any of them. We can find something better to do with our nights. We might be able to even call and ask them if we can meet them. I mean there has to be a phone in that castle."
"No, we did much better this time," Sally argued, "We got the right building to go to. They just left it before we could get to the roof."
"But that happens almost every time," the second girl answered, "We never get the opportunity to meet them."
"No, we've usually been off by a building or two," a third girl commented.
"Oh, that's so much better," the second girl argued, "I think we ought to give this up."
"No," Sally argued, "they're popular and the only real famous people that anyone could easily meet."
"If it's so easy to meet them, how come we've never gotten the chance?" the first girl asked, "They leave or are too far away whenever we try to contact them."
"We'll get another shot tomorrow night," Sally argued, "We now know that they will come near this building, so we just have to meet here tomorrow night and wait."
"Fine," the first girl sighed, "But if they do not show, I'm through with all of this."
The group then dispersed and left the rooftop. Unfortunately, they had not been alone, nor had their conversation gone unnoticed. After a few moments, Holly stepped out of the shadows, Fang, still slung over her shoulder.
"This will prove interesting," Holly commented and then leaped into the air to head back to the Maddox Technologies building, carrying Fang as she went.
Castle Wyvern
Brooklyn and Lex slowly walked out of the castle's makeshift rookery as Broadway and Angela took over watching over the youngest of the Chinese clan's hatchlings. Helping the Chinese elders raise the hatchlings wasn't easy, and they were still technically responsible for helping Amy, Caroline, and Candy watch over the older hatchlings for the rest of the night. That, however wasn't on Lex's mind at the moment.
"Do you think we'd qualify as celebrities?" Lex asked after they'd gone a few paces, both headed toward the clan's TV room, where the female trio was.
"Huh?" Brooklyn asked, knowing that he'd missed something.
"It's something that's been on my mind since Lawrence told Caroline about that group of students that had been following us," Lex explained, "He said they think we're celebrities."
"That's what you've been thinking about all night?" Brooklyn asked.
"It's been on my mind," Lex answered, "I just find it strange that someone would think that we're celebrities."
"Some people are weird that way, I guess," Brooklyn replied, "But hey, we are 'popular'. Didn't you say something about us being one of the top internet searches or something?"
"Yeah, but that's a web search," Lex answered, "Half of the sites were about stone gargoyles, as in ones that don't wake up when the sun sets. Those that are about us will vary between PIT sites arguing for toleration to various Quarrymen supporters who have been left to 'blogging' their hatred."
"I guess that makes us infamous, doesn't it?" Brooklyn sighed.
"Maybe," Lex sighed, "Still doesn't explain everything about this to me."
"I don't think anyone can explain these sorts of things," Brooklyn commented, "As I said, some people are just strange that way."
"Maybe, but we try to live average lives," Lex pointed out, "We don't do anything that would normally be done by celebrities."
"But we do live in a castle wit a 'celebrity'," Brooklyn countered, "That might be enough."
"No, because all of this with those classmates of Lawrence's is coming as a result of that TV interview," Lex argued, "Xanatos wasn't in it."
"Maybe it's because this girl saw us on television," Brooklyn shrugged.
"In the sense of it being an interview, which hadn't been done before, you could be right there," Lex sighed, "But there'd have to be something else that would influence her to think we're 'celebrities'."
"Still wrestling with what Lawrence found out about Sally and her friends?" came Amy's voice as the two of them entered the television room.
Brooklyn and Lex entered to see the female trio seated on a couch with the older Chinese hatchlings seated on the floor watching the television, and fairly intently at that. Brooklyn moved in to sit next to Amy, while Lex moved around to sit with Candy.
"That's the major question," Brooklyn answered as he sat down, "Mostly as to why they think we're 'celebrities'."
"There has to be some rational explanation," Lex explained, "I just can't think of what it is."
"Sally's only a freshman, right?" Candy asked.
"Yeah, I believe so," Amy nodded.
"I don't think there will be a 'rational explanation'," Candy the spoke to Lex, "Sally is only a freshman this year and hasn't been exposed much to the 'grown up' world."
"We were much the same way when we first came out of middle school," Caroline added, "It's just a phase. Hopefully though, one of tonight's patrol teams was able to persuade them to have some interest in something other then us, for their own safety."
Lex and Brooklyn both nodded in agreement.
"So what are you watching?" Lex asked.
"Xanatos had a copy of 'Homeward Bound' in his collection of movies for Alex to watch," Candy answered, "So we thought it would be appropriate for these guys."
Meanwhile, Goliath and Elisa landed in the courtyard to find Hudson waiting for them with Bronx and Trixie nearby.
"How did things go?" Hudson asked as the two approached him.
"Not the way we would have preferred," Elisa answered.
"Thailog is up to something, which involves his sorceress gaining more power," Goliath sighed in a low voice.
"That can not be possible," Hudson commented, "Can it?"
"It has to be," Goliath grumbled, "Mortal sorcerers need some sort of conduit, and that would include Demona, but she no longer requires such a conduit or the Grimorum to cast spells."
"The real question is 'how' is Holly doing this and what can we do to stop her," Elisa answered, "Which will require us talking to Owen."
"He's somewhere inside the castle," Hudson answered, "although I think he's been busy with business related work."
"How have things been here?" Goliath asked, "Hopefully better."
"Not too bad," Hudson replied, "Although these two donnae appear to like being used as chairs or pillows. Most of the older hatchlings have been kept busy with the television or some basic board games."
"It's good that things here have been calm," Goliath answered, "Will you inform Brooklyn that I will need to speak with the rest of the clan before dawn."
"Of course lad," Hudson nodded.
Goliath and Elisa then made their way through one set of doors that lead to the interior of the castle. They found both Owen and Xanatos talking in his office, and looking intently at a computer screen. It was Owen who looked up first as Goliath and Elisa entered the office.
"Good evening, Goliath, Elisa," Owen spoke, "Is there something you require?"
"We need to speak with you, or more specifically with Puck," Goliath rumbled in a very serious voice.
"I see," Owen answered in the same bland tone he always had, "If you could spare a few moments, there is some business I still have to conclude with Mr. Xanatos."
"It might actually be good that they stay," Xanatos spoke, "I believe we should keep them informed on Thailog's activities."
Elisa and Goliath looked at each other.
"What is this?" Goliath asked for a few moments.
"Thailog bought a chemical company during the past day," Xanatos explained, "Now, they normally only make cleaning products, but one of their known experiments is a powerful fuel they were testing as a rocket fuel."
"And the purpose is?" Goliath asked.
"From what I've read from their research releases, the chemical that is to be the main ingredient in their fuel is highly explosive," Xanatos explained, "If Thailog gets it, he could use it to destroy the Eyrie Building's shield, leaving the castle open to direct attack."
"He doesn't have the numbers to assault the Eyrie Building," Goliath commented, "Even with the Pack as an ally."
"He can still recruit more if he still has that sorceress of his," Owen pointed out.
"That's what we wanted to talk to you about," Goliath rumbled.
"What is this?" Owen asked.
"We've recently had an altercation with Fang and Thailog's sorceress," Goliath rumbled, "Fang boasted of her having the ability to get stronger in regards to her powers as a sorceress."
"It is possible," Owen answered, "Both the Mage and Demona have undertaken the same activities."
"Yes, we know that," Elisa sighed, "But how is this female able to do this? We found them with some guy that had been killed. Looked rather pale, they guy they had killed, I mean."
"The man had been drained of his life force," Owen answered, "That is why he looked pale."
"What?" Goliath asked.
"All beings possess some natural level of magic in them," Owen answered, "In most, it is so low that they do not know it, and in the fey, there is enough natural magic in them that they are able to cast spells completely on their own."
Owen's form then vanished to be replaced by Puck, as the fey thought that his true form would be the most appropriate being to explain what was going on.
"Now, mortal sorcerers have more natural magic then most people, but less then any fey," Puck explained slowly, "But, as the Mage proved, that is not to say that mortals can not increase the amount of natural magic within them."
Puck paused as he saw that Goliath, Elisa, and Xanatos were all listening very closely.
"The Mage did this by largely draining a living being of its life force, which houses all of the magic that a being will possess, regardless of how large or small, and then absorbing the magic that he had drained from the victim," Puck continued, "The process generally kills the victim as well."
"So Thailog's sorceress took that man's life force as her own?" Elisa asked.
"Yes," Puck nodded, "The spell is a form of vampirism, but unlike vampires who feed off of blood, this takes a beings life force directly. When the doctors examine the corpse, they will find no logical cause of death."
"Is there any way to restore a person's life force?" Goliath asked.
"Ms. Holly would have to willingly give it up, but yes it is possible," Puck replied, "I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you, though."
"How powerful can she become?" Goliath questioned.
"I do not know," Puck answered, "What I know is what I learned about the Mage before Oberon banned us from Avalon."
"I hope Demona and Wedrington are able to defeat this Khan character quickly," Xanatos answered with a sigh, "If Thailog's sorceress is able to become as powerful as the Mage, we might be in serious trouble."
"And given her brief alliance with the Mage, she would be a better expert on him then I could," Puck added.
Goliath nodded and then turned to Elisa, "We should still inform the clan as to look out for Thailog's sorceress."
Maddox Technologies
Thailog, meanwhile, was involved in a very different discussion.
"We you successful in absorbing at least one person's life force?" Thailog asked.
"Yes, I was successful in that," Holly answered, "I got one guy, and then Goliath and his mate showed up. Too late to save the guy, but they got even with Fang for that."
"I could see that when you returned," Thailog commented, "How much stronger do you feel?"
"Not much," Holy answered, "The guy that I got didn't have much natural magic in his life force, so I wasn't able to absorb as much."
"Is there an easier way to get more?" Thailog questioned.
"I don't think this is an exact science," Holly replied, "No two people will ever have the exact same level, and most have so little that they can not even cast magic, even with a conduit."
"Then we'll just have to abduct larger numbers of people," Thailog sighed, "Just to make sure that when we're gambling on how much magic a person's life force contains, we're at least drawing from a larger barrel and we'll have a better shot at finding someone who has more."
"That is actually the good news of the night," Holly answered with a smile, "There is apparently a group of four teenaged girls, can't be more then freshmen in high school, who have taken to gargoyle watching."
"Gargoyle watching?" Thailog asked, with some degree of interest.
"Yes," Holly nodded, "They apparently have developed a fan based obsession with Goliath's clan and have taken to following them on their patrols."
"Why would they not just join this PIT group?" Thailog asked, "From the news reports that Fang has gathered, they have met Goliath's clan on occasion."
"As I said before, they're probably high school freshmen, and PIT as an organization is not popular with the majority of New Yorkers," Holly responded, "In actuality, the Quarrymen are probably still more popular with most New Yorkers despite the fact that their organization has been destroyed."
"Do they know about us?" Thailog asked.
"I doubt it," Holly answered.
"Then this is an opportunity," Thailog answered, "We may have to move most of these actions into kidnappings and bringing them here, but these girls should be taken in the open. And if they don't know about us, taking them will be no problem."
Holly nodded.
"The real question will be how to find them," Thailog spoke in a sinister voice.
"I know where they will be," Holly answered, "I do not suppose you would mind accompanying me on the next run? They might respond to you better then to me alone."
"That will do better then Fang, as I think he will need some time to recuperate," Thailog answered.
Elsewhere, the next night
Sally stood quietly on the roof of the building that she and her friends tracked the gargoyles they had been following the night before with her binoculars firmly in her hands. She checked the Eyrie Building again and saw that there was no sign of activity on the castle's battlements. She had seen them wake up and go in, but she hadn't seen them leave yet.
"Anything happen?" came a voice from behind her.
Sally turned to see that it was one of the three other girls that were helping her in the tracking of the gargoyles.
"I think they've gone in for dinner or something," Sally answered.
"Wouldn't it be breakfast for them, as they sleep during the day?" the girl asked.
"We'll have to ask them that when we can flag one down," Sally answered, "That is when they come this way."
"And if they don't show up?" the second girl to arrive asked as she approached the group.
"They were here last night," Sally pointed out.
"Yes, but this is a big city," the second girl argued, "And as far as I know, there aren't all that many gargoyles in the city. They could patrol a different area tonight."
"Still makes me believe we ought to find a way to get some form of flying transportation," the first girl commented, "be it wings of our own or some sort of device."
"Yeah, but that's impossible," Sally sighed, "So we'll just have to flag them down when hey come this way."
"Have they come yet?" came a third girl, who had just finished climbing the fire escape up onto the roof.
"No, I don't think they've even left their castle yet," Sally answered, "But I have a good feeling about tonight. Tonight we'll finally get to meet them."
"You had better be right on this," the second girl commented, "I don't want to waste any more nights on wild goose chases. My folk are already wondering what I'm doing at night."
"What have you told them?" Sally asked.
"That we've been out stargazing on long island," the second girl answered, "but I don't know how much longer my folks will buy that."
"We all ought to think of something to tell them then," the third girl commented, "it won't be long before they start calling each other to collaborate our stories."
Castle Wyvern
"Remember you are to keep an eye out for Thailog's sorceress," Goliath reminded the patrol team for the night, "It is imperative that you get that book of hers away from her if you find her."
"Right, Goliath," Brooklyn nodded as he, Lex, and Broadway began gliding toward the northern end of New York City.
"She will not win if we find her, father," Angela spoke as she lead Ian, Ethan, Sarah, and Eve out to patrol the central part of the city.
"What about Sally and her friends?" Caroline asked as Goliath turned to the last remaining patrol team for the night, "They could easily become targets."
"If you happen to run into them, tell them that they need to stop and join PIT if they wish to have the possibility of meeting the clan," Goliath rumbled, "I'm sorry, but Thailog's recent actions make it impossible for us to do anything more then that."
"We know that," Amy commented, "But, if Holly goes after them, we might not even have time to tell them to leave. It'd be going straight into the fight."
"Just do what you can," Elisa offered, "with recent events, this thing that Thailog has cooked up has really thrown us a curveball. We're just going to have to wing it and do the best we can."
"We'll try," Caroline answered, "hopefully everything goes well."
The female trio then leaped from the castle battlements and began to head south for their patrol. This left Goliath and Elisa to watch all three groups glide off into the night sky.
"I don't like this," Goliath rumbled after a few moments, "There should be more of us out there."
"But the Chinese elders can't raise all these hatchlings alone," Elisa sighed, "Even if gargoyles raised their children individually, parent to child, there are more hatchlings here then there are adults. We agreed to give them a home while their parents return to Tibet. We can't just abandon them."
Goliath nodded, "You're right, and that's partially why Thailog's actions are so frustrating. We can't do much because of our responsibilities to watch over the Chinese hatchlings. It does not make things easy."
"Yeah, but things would be much less exciting if things were easy," Elisa commented, "There always has to be something interesting going on, if you just have a dull routine, you'll end up in a rut."
Caroline, Amy, and Candy meanwhile slowly glided south.
"This whole thing has him pretty worried," Candy commented, "You could see it on his face while was giving the assignments."
"It's not surprising," Caroline replied, "First we find out a group of freshmen from school have been following us, and then we learn Thailog's sorceress is draining people of their life force. All in the same night. And with the Chinese hatchlings to look after, we can't do everything as effectively as we would like."
"Well, hopefully, we get lucky and we're able to stop all the bad guys," Amy commented.
"Um, what do we do if we run into Sally and her friends?" Candy asked, "I mean not that I don't know what to say, but for us, meeting them might be a bit more complicated then telling them not to follow us around."
"What do you mean?" Amy asked.
"Well, they know us, or at least the human forms that we had," Candy pointed out, "and Caroline and I still have fairly similar faces to the ones we had before we were transformed…"
"And our voices haven't changed at all," Caroline finished, "They'll identify us almost immediately."
"Oh crud," Amy sighed, "Maybe she'll miss something."
"If not, we're going to need a really good explanation," Caroline sighed.
Rooftop
"Can you see them?" one of the other three girls asked.
"Yeah, this group is larger then last night's group," Sally answered, "there's three of them in this group."
"Which ones are they?" the second girl asked.
"It's that trio of females," Sally replied, "Two sorta look like those senior girls that showed us around school at the beginning of the year."
"I still say that can't be them," the second girl commented, "But they do look similar."
"This is going to be so cool!" the third girl commented.
They were then interrupted by a new voice that came from the side, which startled them immensely. They all in fact jumped several inches into the air when they heard the voice speak.
"Excuse me," came a deep voice, "but what are you four doing?"
They all jumped and turned to see two gargoyles approaching them. One was a large male gargoyle with black skin, wearing stylized armor. The other was a blood red female in black leather pants and a black leather vest. She was also wearing a white tee-shirt under the vest, but the sleeves had been torn off.
"Wow, real gargoyles," the first girl spoke.
Sally nodded in amazement and then took a closer look at the male.
"You look an awful lot like one we saw around here last night, except he was purple," Sally commented.
"That would be my twin brother," Thailog answered with a sly smile, "Who are you people, and what are you doing on a roof? Spying on people?"
"No, we were just watching for gargoyles," Sally answered.
"Watching for gargoyles?" Thailog asked back, "You are certainly a strange one. Who are you?"
"My name is Sally Hay and these are my friends, Lorie, Megan, and Marie," Sally answered, "Man this is so cool."
"Yes," Thailog answered, "Why are you four watching for gargoyles?"
"Didn't you see the television interview?" Sally asked back, "They're like celebrities."
"Interesting," Thailog commented, "I've never met gargoyle fans before."
Sally and her friends looked at the two with some amazement in their faces.
"Do you want to see something?" Thailog asked after a few moments.
"See something?" Lorie asked, "You just met us."
"Yes, but it is something of a test to see if you are truly trustworthy to be a friend of the gargoyle race," Thailog explained.
"Oh, sure," Sally spoke, "We'd love to. What is it?"
"It isn't here," Thailog answered, "But we can take you there."
"Take us there?" Megan asked.
"We can carry you," Thailog answered, "Gargoyles are very strong creatures. Holly here is strong enough to flip a car over if she wanted to."
"The motorists have no reason to worry, however," Holly spoke, "I have no intention of flipping any cars."
"You won't drop us will you?" Marie asked.
"Of course not," Thailog answered with a smile.
"So, where is this thing you want to show us?" Sally asked.
"It's in a warehouse on the southwest side of the city," Thailog answered, "It is something you just need to see."
Not that far away, Caroline's patrol team continued on with the patrol and was nearing the rooftop that Sally and her friends were meeting with Thailog. The night had gone fairly quietly, with only one mugging broken up. That was until Candy spotted something.
"Uh, we got some problems ahead," Candy spoke in a voice that was half mixed with fear and nervousness.
Caroline looked to where Candy was motioning and saw Thailog and Holly take to the air with at least two passengers with them. One was in their arms, and the other was on their back, hanging on their neck.
"It's Thailog!" Caroline exclaimed, "It looks like he's kidnapped four people."
"Two of them are hanging onto their back," Amy commented, "kidnapped might not be the right word, although I wouldn't say those people know what is probably going to happen to them."
"Not if we have anything to say about it," Caroline growled, her eyes glowing, "After them!"
The three females then began following Thailog and Holly to a warehouse on the southwest side of Manhattan. They landed on the roof of a nearby building to plan how they were going to get Thailog's intended victims away from the black skinned clone.
Thailog, meanwhile, quietly opened the skylight window to the warehouse and slid it open, allowing for easy access.
"Who owns this warehouse?" Sally asked.
"Maddox Technologies," Thailog answered, "They are another friend of my clan."
"I thought you guys were friends with David Xanatos?" Lorie questioned.
"That is Goliath's clan," Thailog answered, "There is more then one clan in New York. My clan is affiliated with Maddox Technologies."
"Ah-ha, so what's in here?" Sally asked.
"Your death," Holly said in a very evil voice and used magic to summon chains to throw the four girls inside the warehouse.
The landing for them wasn't hard, but they all quickly found themselves chained to various support girders.
"What? Why are you doing this?" Sally asked in surprise, "We've done nothing to you."
"You've done nothing," Thailog answered, "However, I have plans for this world that involve Holly increasing her powers as a sorceress. To do so, you have the honor of sacrificing yourselves to the cause."
"But the gargoyles on TV said gargoyles were protectors," Lorie said.
"We are," Thailog answered, "But we can define what we protect, which means that we are not bound to keep humans safe. Goliath's clan is the only clan in New York that believes that nonsense."
"You're evil," Megan accused.
"Thank you," Thailog answered with a smile, "You may proceed, Holly."
"With pleasure," Holly smiled.
Holly slowly approached and raised her hand to cast the spell that would drain all four girls of their life force, but couldn't do any more as she was interrupted by a roar and something crashing into her back. This surprised Thailog somewhat as he looked over to see a pink web winged female gargoyle clinging to Holly's back and trying to get her book away from her.
He then turned back to see a yellow beaked female and a blue female gargoyle land between him and his intended victim. Both gargoyles had glowing red eyes.
"Your evil has gone far enough," Amy growled in an angry voice, "Surrender now!"
"I wondered when Goliath would send some of his clan to try and stop me," Thailog smiled.
He didn't get much more then taking Caroline's fist off of his chin.
"We will stop you," Caroline growled.
Candy meanwhile managed to grab a hold on Holly's book and threw it across the warehouse. The move, however left her open to being thrown into a nearby crate by Holly.
"You may have gotten rid of my book, but I have more then enough to take care of you," Holly growled at Candy, irritated that the web winged gargoyle had taken her book from her.
"Prove it!" Candy roared back and dove at Holly's midsection, taking the blood red female to the ground.
Candy then managed to land one cross on Holly's check, before she was kicked off again. Candy was forced to roll behind another series of crates as Holly quickly tried to knock her unconscious with a strong kick. Candy then scampered on all fours through the maze of crates that were in the warehouse while Holly slowly followed after her. She eventually made it far enough ahead that she was able to duck behind one crate without Holly knowing where she had gone.
"Come out and fight!" Holly challenged as she walked by the crate Candy was hiding behind.
Candy peaked out from a thin space between the crate she was hiding behind and another nearby crate to see that Holly had stopped and was looking rather frustrated that Candy was no longer directly in front of her. Candy gave a triumphant grin and then pushed the crate she was hiding behind over and onto Holly. The crashed on to her and knocked her over. Candy meanwhile scampered over the fallen crates and crouched next to were Holly had been buried by the crates.
"Never fight harder when you can fight smarter," Candy spoke to the furious Holly and elbowed the red female in the face, knocking Holly out.
Thailog paused when he heard crates crash somewhere in the warehouse. When he heard Candy speak he was certain that the pink female had managed to knock out his sorceress somehow. He decided to ignore that for now, and delivered a powerful blow that sent Amy skidding back into Caroline.
"You can't win," Thailog spoke calmly, "Even if Holly has been knocked out, you still can not beat me."
"There are three of us and one of you," Caroline answered in a growling voice as she and Amy got up and took positions to flank Thailog.
"Even still, you can not beat me," Thailog pointed out.
"But we will attract plenty of police attention," Amy counted, "It would be bad for you to get shot at, arrested, and all on private property."
"Ah, yes, but I OWN this property," Thailog answered with a smile, "This warehouse belongs to Maddox Technologies."
"Yes, but you're still a gargoyle, and your witch is unavailable at the moment to keep you disguised," came Candy's voice from another side as the web winged gargoyle hoped on top of another crate near Thailog's position.
"Fine then," Thailog commented, and knocked Candy off of the crate with his tail.
Thailog then vaulted the crates and fled the area, leaving Candy, Amy, and Caroline alone in the warehouse, with the clone's intended victims. Caroline and Amy quickly moved to get Candy back on her feet. They then turned to see Sally and her friends still secured in place, with the greatest possible looks of surprise on their face. The two groups stared at each other uncomfortably for a few moments before Sally finally spoke.
"You're… you're… you're really gargoyles?!" she spoke is shock and surprise.
"Yes," Caroline sighed after a few moments more as she began to free the four girls.
"How is this possible?" Lorie asked as she rubbed her wrists, "How could you be gargoyles?"
"Through magic," Caroline answered, "A sorcerer was trying to turn himself into a gargoyle, and the consequences left us like this."
"When are you going to change back?" Sally asked curiously.
"We can't," Caroline answered in a soft voice, "The spell was permanent. This is who we are for the rest of our lives."
"I didn't think that was possible," Megan commented, "You didn't mention that in the interview."
"We didn't want to create a panic," Amy replied, "There are a lot of people who's answer to this would be to try and kill us."
"Why did that guy do what he was doing?" Marie asked.
"Thailog is like that," Caroline answered, "He's evil."
"But that one that looks like him said gargoyles are protectors," Sally argued, "We saw the interview."
"Gargoyles are protectors," Candy answered, "Every gargoyle has an instinctive urge to protect something. But, we are sentient creatures, like humans, and therefore we can define what we protect. Goliath's clan, of which Amy, Caroline, and I are now members, has chosen to protect the city. The gargoyle sorceress in the interview, Demona, protects the gargoyle race. I don't know what Thailog protects though, probably himself or his profit margin."
"So how do you tell which ones are good protectors and which ones aren't?" Sally asked.
"Our clan knows who the bad ones are and who the good ones are," Amy answered, "but you shouldn't try to go around and figure that out. Tonight's incident should be enough to prove that you shouldn't be following us around."
Megan and Lorie gave sharp glances at Sally.
"I'm sorry," Sally answered both their glances and Amy's comment, "It's just that… I thought you guys were rather cool."
"We ARE rather cool," Candy answered, "But you shouldn't be following us around. It's too dangerous. Being attacked by our clan's enemies wasn't the only thing that could have happened."
"If you really want to meet 'us', PIT would be a better option," Caroline added, "Amy's parents are part of the organization."
"And that was before we were transformed," Amy nodded, "They'll accept anyone as members who is truly a 'gargoyle supporter'. It doesn't truly matter how old they are."
"Is the sorcerer that changed you still out there? Megan asked.
"Thankfully, no," Caroline told a slight lie, as while Demona was still out there, she wouldn't cast the spell that had transformed her and her friends again.
"And I suppose you'll want us to continue the story that you're all in home schooling programs?" Sally asked.
All three of them nodded.
"May I ask a question?" Sally asked towards the three in general, "What's it like? Being a gargoyle?"
"It has its perks and it's downsides," Caroline shrugged, "It takes a lot of getting used to."
"So other then the figure, what would be some of the perks?" Lorie asked.
"What?" came a chorus from the three females.
"Oh come on, surely you've seen yourselves in a mirror," Lorie gave a slight smile.
"Our measurements are not part of what we consider to be the perks of being a gargoyle," Amy answered, "They just happen to be our measurements."
"The biggest perk is the ability to glide," Caroline explained, hopping to get the conversation away from where it appeared to be headed, "The slightest breeze can hold even the heaviest gargoyle up for a while, which is a thrilling thing to see, or experience."
"That's all?" Sally asked.
"That's not all, but it is the biggest perk," Candy sighed, "and it shouldn't be enough to make people want to be gargoyles, before you go there."
"Huh? Why?" Megan asked.
"We spend the day in stone," Caroline answered, "We'll never see the light of day again without the further aide of magic."
"The various instincts that gargoyles have are also fairly difficult to get used to, and if you're really stuck with a specific set of beliefs, many instincts that gargoyles have will directly conflict with them," Amy added, "All of us struggled with the idea that we now have an instinct that urges us to protect something."
"But you got used to it, obviously," Lorie commented.
"In time," Candy answered, "And it took a lot of help for us to get used to it. And the time that it took varied. Amy and I adjusted fairly quickly."
"But it took me a fair bit longer," Caroline finished, "A lot of it all hit me pretty hard, and all I wanted was to be human again, but I knew that wasn't possible, and that depressed me a lot."
Sally and her friends stood quietly for a moment.
"Say, who were those two that you were so close to in the interview?" Sally then asked toward Candy and Amy.
Candy and Amy looked at each other for a moment and then sighed.
"The brick red gargoyle that I was close to is named Brooklyn," Amy spoke after a few minutes, "The olive green web-winged gargoyle that Candy was close to is named Lexington. They are our 'mates'."
"Mates?" Megan asked, looking very startled.
"It's the gargoyle equivalent of a husband or wife," Candy answered, "Because so many people are so against gargoyles, it would be too dangerous for us to go before a priest or government representative."
"So you've married these gargoyles?" Lorie asked, "We they born gargoyles or were they transformed?"
"They were hatched," Amy corrected, "Gargoyles lay eggs, at least that's what they told us. And yes, we married them."
"Why?" Marie asked, "Couldn't you have just told someone that you were transformed?"
"And expect them to believe us?" Amy asked back, "We've been attacked by Quarrymen in a few of our first patrols after our transformation. People won't believe us, and even if they did, there's no guarantee that many would want to date a gargoyle."
"And what is wrong with Lex and Brooklyn anyway?" Candy asked back, a obviously challenging tone to her voice, "They're strong, they're smart, they were of great help to us while we were adjusting to being gargoyles, and they're very nice."
"But they're gargoyles," Marie protested, "And all this apparently happened just before last Christmas."
"We were transformed before Christmas last year, the marriage didn't happen until much more recently," Amy answered, "Besides, the three of us are at least 18. Legally old enough to get married, and free to choose WHO we marry."
"They didn't force themselves on you?" Marie asked.
"No," Candy answered, "Each was a perfect gentleman."
The sound of sirens soon echoed through the air nearby.
"I'm sure you have more questions," Caroline spoke, "But we need to get out of here. The police won't treat us any better then Thailog, and with you hear alone, you could be in danger of getting arrested as well."
Sally and her friends nodded and quickly followed them out of a back entrance. Once outside Caroline urged Amy and Candy to begin scaling the wall. The blue female then turned back to face Sally and her friends.
"Remember what we told you," Caroline said firmly, "It is too dangerous for you to be following us or any other members of the clan on our patrols. Join PIT if you want to be gargoyle supporters, and keep the fact that Candy, Amy, and I are gargoyles a secret. Do you understand?"
"Yeah," Sally answered, "Can we visit?"
"You can visit to see Candy, Amy, and I," Caroline answered, "But don't try anything that would seem like an obsessed fan trying to get autographs. We aren't celebrities, and if the clan was able to be part of New York society without the risk of being assaulted by various Quarrymen type people, we'd probably living rather normal lives. Now, head home for tonight. We'll be gliding behind you to make sure you get home safe, but I think we've all had all we can deal with for tonight."
"Okay," Megan spoke, "And thanks, for, uh, telling us everything. But while you guys may not be celebrities, I'd still think you're cool, and that will go for you three even while you were human seniors in high school."
Caroline gave a sort of embarrassed smile, "Thanks, get going now."
Maddox Technologies, Hours later
Holly was greatly aggravated as she woke up to find herself in Thailog's clan's sleeping room.
"Beaten by a runt with webbed wings," Holly growled, "And of a disturbingly cheerful coloring."
"From what I can remember, I would not describe the female that attacked you as a runt," came Thailog's voice, "Both Lexington of Goliath's clan and Granite of my clan are of similar size. I think most webwings are around that size."
"It's still embarrassing," Holly growled in a voice that indicated that she was not willing to accept much comfort.
"They won't be able to for long," Thailog answered, "I did manage to recover the book after they left. Apparently they never made an attempt to look for it, but that is good for us. You will continue your efforts, although, this will have to be an undercover effort. We can not afford any more encounters with Goliath's clan for the time being."
"Of course," Holly nodded.
Castle Wyvern
"Do you think she listened?" Candy asked as they returned to the castle.
"I don't know," Amy commented, "I think she and her group freaked out when they found out WHO we are and the fact that we 'married' two gargoyles."
"Maybe, but she won't be following our patrols anymore," Caroline commented, "I think Thailog's little plot scared her more then we did."
"Too bad we couldn't get that book that Holly had," Amy sighed.
"I'm sorry I didn't see where it landed, and besides, I don't think I could have managed to beat her without removing the book from her hands and quickly," Candy answered defensively.
"Thailog probably wouldn't be able to find it either," Caroline shrugged, "We can at least report that as good news to Goliath."
Elsewhere
Sally sighed as she made her way into her parents apartment after all of the mess that had gone on that night. She was tired from all the activity and still had a lot of things going through her head concerning Caroline, Amy, Candy and the other gargoyles. Things were certainly more complex then she ever imagined. She also found her mother waiting for her.
"Uh, hi, mom," Sally said weakly.
"You were supposed to be back three hours ago," her mother said firmly.
"I'm sorry, we lost track of time," Sally said weakly, "and some of the problems were harder then we thought."
"I know you're trying to do well in school, but the city is dangerous at night," her mother continued, "You never know what will grab you and carry you off."
"I'm sorry," Sally answered, looking off at the window.
"You had better be," her mother answered, "Do you know what I would do if I was to hear that you had been mugged or worse?"
Remembering that she had nearly had her life force drained out of her, she sighed, "I don't know. I'm sure you'd be heartbroken though."
"That's right!" her mother answered, "I'm glad you're finally… Sally, what are you doing?"
Sally blinked, realizing she was now absent mindedly staring out the window.
"Just thinking," Sally sighed, "Can we discuss my punishment tomorrow morning? I'm really tired right now."
"Fine," her mother replied as Sally began to walk toward her room, "What were you thinking about?"
Sally turned back and looked at her mother and saw that she was wearing her favorite nightshirt, colored deep blue with a gold circle in the center. That circle also had a hammer crossing through it so it looked like a capital letter 'q'.
"Just about old friends," Sally sighed and went into her bedroom.
The End…