BA Season 5: 127 - Ascendant

by The Barracuda

Atlantis has risen and it has a new self-proclaimed king. Sobek has finally accomplished what he's sought and now its power is his. As the clan and world reacts, as Elisa makes a decision that will affect her and her career for the rest of her life, as Sobek sacrifices everything for ultimate power, a new clan will rise.

127 - "Ascendant"

"There is nobody as enslaved as the fanatic, the person in whom one impulse, one value,

has assumed ascendancy over all others." - Milton R. Sapirstein

The last time her parents were afforded an infrequently used escape route, a distraction, an escort and her wily old man behind the wheel of the Fairlane as it blended into traffic.

But Elisa wasn't leaving under the good graces of Abel Sykes. Against his wishes and with a cryptic warning to the fallout of his decision to keep the clan in Police Headquarters, she was on her own to somehow escape 1 Police Plaza without being spotted by one of the now dozens of reporters and cameramen having entrenched themselves just beyond the erected barriers, waiting for the scent of fresh meat to waft their way.

Elisa hoped Atlantis' rising would've supplanted her as the most interesting news story of the day but it seemed she was still on everyone's hitlist. To most people the recently arisen island was an unfocused blob in the middle of the ocean without any information to give the event much context while Elisa Maza, the detective who married a gargoyle and had a couple of daughters by him, was real and flesh and close enough to squeeze the story of a lifetime from. An interview with her, Elisa figured, might get some lucky journalist a front-page byline. Maybe a raise, or a corner office.

Get her to tell her life story and it could mean a Pulitzer.

As the only one of the three who wasn't currently suspended and staring down the possible end to their career, Iliana did what she did best and sauntered down the front steps, yelling as she went, causing a ruckus and trying to keep the attention off her friends as they slipped away into the crowd.

Maria Chavez's small, unassuming import was better camouflaged than the Fairlane and Maria wasn't shy about putting the four-liter engine to the test. She darted out into traffic and both women kept an eye on the mirrors, watching for a tail. As soon as they hit FDR Drive, surrounded by hundreds of other commuters, Elisa relaxed a little and slumped into the passenger seat.

"I love skulking around my own city..." she muttered.

Maria still had her eyes over her left shoulder, accelerating to get past an old Chevy. "Just keep focused on what needs to be done." she advised.

"And not the steady deterioration of my life?"

"Maza," Maria said sternly, "think about your daughters. Let that thought give you courage."

"For what?"

She glanced to her passenger. "For what I think you're about to do..."

Elisa turned her head to meet the deliberate gaze. "And what's that?"

"A jailbreak."

"Heh..." Elisa sighed and smiled through the breath she released. "Well, that would just be crazy, wouldn't it? I mean, a Manhattan detective breaking her oath to commit a possible felony because a psychotic gargoyle raised an ancient island from the sea."

"Yeah," Maria agreed, "crazy."

"Of course, what's more insane is the simple fact you're not trying to talk me out of it."

Her hand gripped the steering wheel a little tighter, her knuckles turning white. "I'm trying to convince myself." Maria said under her breath. "Listen, Elisa, I get Sobek is a nasty piece of work–"

"He was going to eat me and my unborn child." Elisa intervened.

"Granted, but we know absolutely nothing yet. And as your former captain and your friend, I should remind you of the damage you could do to your career and personal life if caught."

A finger pointed out the windshield. "Watch out for the Honda." Elisa warned, and quickly felt the small car shift as Maria dodged the larger sedan trying to switch lanes without so much as a signal. "My career is already over, we both know it. My personal life has been laid bare to the world and none of it makes any difference if Sobek has what he's sought for so long."

Maria guided her car onto the off-ramp and hit East 42nd Street, and in the distance the Eyrie building loomed over the city like a lighthouse in a dark sea. They were almost there. "I just want you to be sure..."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

"Damn..." Elisa sighed.

"What?"

She quickly wagged a few fingers towards the hood. "Keep going..."

Maria didn't disguise her confusion, considering she was about to turn into the Eyrie's property and the safety of the private parking garage. "Care to explain...?"

"We've got a rat problem." Elisa said while looking back over her shoulder. "Reporters."

"Here?"

"Yeah." There were half a dozen reporters, photographers and cameramen loitering just outside the property, making no effort to disguise themselves. Elisa grimaced. "Looks like some of them are chasing rumors."

"Well," Maria's mouth turned sideways, "your living arrangements weren't exactly a secret, Maza. Everything was on paper as legally as possible. Any reporter worth their salt wouldn't have to dig too far."

"Touché." Elisa conceded. "Go around the back. I sometimes use the cargo docks as a backdoor."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

The elevator chimed and the doors split, opening into Wyvern's great hall, the former dining hall of Princess Katharine's court. A sense of familiarity and security washed over Elisa like a warm blanket, something she hadn't felt for a couple of days. If there was ever a refuge from the outside world and everything that was raining down on her it was this old Scottish castle. Elisa sailed through the hall and aimed for the common area, like something was leading her there.

Maria trailing behind, impressed at how easily and purposely Elisa navigated the corridors and rooms. They were in the common room in under a minute and she had to dig her heels into the stone to keep from rear-ending her detective when Elisa stopped short. "Maza, what...?"

But Elisa was too enrapt at the sight of a small pair of wings spotted from over the couch.

Her firstborn had her back to the pair and before Elisa could say anything, Trinity seemed to stiffen. Her head suddenly shot up, a familiar scent wafting across her olfactory, pinging in her gray matter. Too young to understand how and why the scent triggered something deep in the recesses of her brain, Trinity turned to see her mother in the door's threshold. "Mommy?"

"Hey, sweetie."

From sitting to a half-human whirlwind in no time flat, Trinity leapt off the couch and sprinted towards her mother. Elisa kneeled down and allowed her firstborn to jump into her arms. "Mommy!"

Elisa felt her daughter try to squeeze the life out of her. "I missed you..." She pulled back and brushed away a handful of black air obscuring Trinity's smile. "So, have you been taking good care of your little sister?"

"Yuh!" Trinity beamed, and then the smile flattened somewhat. "But is she gonna sleep in my room?"

Her brows rose; the faint memory of a conversation she had with her firstborn months ago suddenly resurfaced. "Oh...yeah, well...about your room, Trin..." Elisa fudged before being rescued.

"Elisa?" a voice called out.

Mother and daughter turned to see grandma and grandpa entering the room, Diane with a bundle in her arms. "Hey, mom." Elisa smiled.

"We didn't think we'd see you for a while." Diane said, surprised. "What happened?"

"The same bureaucratic bullshit you'd expect." Elisa replied, her eyes immediately dropping on the blanketed lump in her mother's arms. She rubbed an affectionate circle through Trinity's hair, stood up and expectantly held out her hands.

Assuming there was a bigger story behind her daughter's reticence Diane let it slide for now and delivered the bundle to her daughter. Elisa took it reverently and shuddered through her next breath when face to face with her little lavender newborn. Her coloring was so vivid now and Elisa's heart ached at the thought of her husband. Liberty blinked and gurgled, reaching her chubby hands towards her mother. Her eyes a little clearer, her wings fluttered as she recognized her mother and her legs kicked under the blanket like an Olympic swimmer.

"Hey, you..." Elisa whispered, nuzzling her daughter's cheek with her lips. "I missed you too."

"She's loud, mommy." Trinity said from below.

Elisa pulled herself from her infant daughter and looked downwards. Hanging at her knee, Trinity didn't look impressed. "Oh?"

"And kinda smelly."

With a knowing smile, Elisa glanced to her parents. "And so it begins."

Peter shrugged. "You knew this was coming, Elisa. Rarely can two Maza siblings co-exist in the same room for long."

Liberty blew a spit bubble and caught her mother's attention; Elisa wiped it away from her lips.

"Elisa, why are you here?" her father asked, noticing the faraway look.

She looked up, brown eyes turned to ice. Elisa hefted her daughter to her shoulder, allowing the long winding river of hair in reach of Liberty's grasping hands. "I assume you all saw the same news reports we did?"

"It can't really be Atlantis..."

"Maybe we should ask the expert...?" Elisa's eyes slid to the side of her parents; something had made a squeak on the stone floor upon entering the room. Jason Canmore's big hands brought his wheelchair to a halt and he figured a discreet entrance was betrayed by a simple squeal coming from a pair of wheels that had been neglected for too long. He looked a little haggard, tie loose around a rumpled collar. Indeed the alpha female, Elisa parted the small crowd like the Red Sea and walked the empty space between them, putting her boots at Jason's chair. "Jason."

"I'm not an expert by any means, Elisa." he replied. "But if yuir asking if th' island that bobbed t' th' surface of th' ocean is th' lost continent of Atlantis, I'd say that's a pretty good bet."

"And your boss?"

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

It went off like a firework, the scream shrill, ear-shattering and oddly celebratory as the phoenix opened its wings and sent a ring of air in all directions with its ascent. It shot up like a rocket, clearing the buildings and towers of the newly risen Atlantean city and did a loop, before eventually banking and heading out towards the untamed wilderness.

One particular pair of eyes followed the creature until it flew out of sight, lost to the jagged horizon. "Alexander..." Fox whispered, straining her neck to catch that final glimpse.

"We'll get him back," Xanatos told his wife, "I promise."

"Your words are hollow as always, Xanatos." Sobek sneered at him as he stomped towards Infiniti, still lying in a pool of her own blood, still oozing from her stab wound. Most of what had spilled out from her had infused into the seven stones now embedded into the courtyard floor, the symbols still glowing and pointing towards the sunny sky. The mutant tried to reach a flaming hand towards the gargoyle when Xanatos suddenly bodychecked him and caused him to stumble back.

"Haven't you done enough to her?" he growled. "If you're finished with her then just let her die!"

Sobek straightened and immediately swatted at him, the punch like a freight train impacting with the last shreds of armor. Xanatos was thrown back and hit the ground. "Behave yourself, human," Sobek warned, "or I'll kill your wife and eat her emaciated corpse."

He got back up and took another swing, his fist licking flames as Sobek dodged and drove a hand into his gut. Xanatos buckled, bent over and offered Sobek the chance to pound his fist into his spine. He dropped.

"Enough."

Clearing the cobwebs Xanatos shook his head; his blurred vision filled with a massive fiery hand that clenched into his chest piece, tearing it away. Sobek peeled off every large chunk of armor the billionaire had left until all that was left were a few sparking scraps, Xanatos reduced to a mere human again.

Leaving the man on the wet ground Sobek returned his attention to Infiniti. Her grabbed her and shook her, knowing she was harder to kill than she appeared. "Wake up, experiment!" he growled.

She mewled.

"Wake up, I still have need of you." He pressed a palm to her wound and sent fire coursing through her midsection. Her eyes shot open and she screamed; at least, she tried to scream, her voice was a hoarse wheeze without the strength to actually put air through her own lungs. When Sobek released, her stomach had a smoldering patch of cauterized flesh where her stab wound used to be. She staggered and collapsed, shivering hands hovering over her stomach.

"Sobek..." Xanatos muttered in protest.

The mutant gargoyle turned and looked down on the human with the black pinpricks of his eyes. "If you care about her so much, insect," Sobek sneered, "then pick her up and follow me. You are nothing but a slave now. You and your invalid wife."

"Go to hell..." Fox shot back.

The response earned a mouth full of sharp teeth; Sobek bared his fangs at the wheelchair-bound human. "Or perhaps your mate would prefer the sound of your neck being snapped."

Fox sneered but couldn't do much else, knowing full well she was being used as a bargaining chip.

"Serve," Sobek turned his back on them, "or die."

Plucking the last remnants of some of the most technologically-advanced armor ever produced from the titanium-mesh bodysuit he wore, Xanatos got up and delicately scooped the gargoyle from the ground. She felt lighter than she should've been and Infiniti barely acknowledged his presence, so distracted by the pain and groggy from the blood-loss. Their eyes met for a fleeting moment, hers half-lidded and beseeching before she nodded off. He figured she was only alive due to her magical nature. "Come on, Fox," he said, resigned to the few choices he was left with, "let's go see what our new lord and master has in store."

"We have to do something, David." she said quietly, maneuvering her chair alongside him.

"I know. But until we can figure out exactly what, we'll play along."

Fox grimaced, sensing an ulterior motive. "Morbid curiosity might get you killed, David and I can't quite shake the feeling you're just as interested in what this island has to offer as Sobek is."

They headed deeper into the city's core, the humans trailing behind Sobek as he navigated his way by way of some supernatural sense of direction. Even Xanatos could feel something on his skin as they approached a cluster of taller buildings, spires reaching higher than anything in the city; one might mistake it for a church from the intricate detailing to the white-granite spirals climbing to the peak. The architecture was almost organic; it didn't look constructed as much as grown.

"Here..." Sobek whispered, almost reverently. He leaned his head back, staring up at the massive archway holding an equally massive pair of doors. More Atlantean symbols were etched in the doors' smooth surface and as Sobek waved a hand over them, they glowed in response. Suddenly, he palmed a hand against the door either in anger or as an experiment, trying to budge the big gates. They shuddered but didn't open. "Of course..." he said quietly and put all three knuckles into the solid mass, enough force to dent a bus. They shivered and protested his intrusion with a ghostly moan that reverberated through the entire tower, otherworldly sounds rippling through the superstructure.

"Seems the building doesn't like you." Xanatos said offhandedly.

"It is designed to keep intruders out. But fortunately, we have the ultimate key." He turned and eyed Infiniti. "Bring the experiment closer."

Xanatos approached and the symbols started glowing, reacting to Infiniti's presence. They bloomed from blue to white and the doors, once immovable monoliths, simply opened with a whisper.

Sobek stomped inside, followed by David and Fox. The building's main chamber was a circle within circles, the scribed lines in the smooth, polished marble surfaces bleeding light, spreading out in front of them as if to light their way inside. The path of illumination led them to a staircase at the other end, and another pair of doors, smaller but no less impressive. More symbols proved these doors were as sealed as the first but Infiniti's mere proximity was enough to unlock them and allow access to whatever was inside.

A theater with windows and skylights open to the sun, and down the curving stairs, across the marble floor, like a throne in a king's court or a pipe organ in an old church, sat a cradle of sorts, and in the center, a font of crystals surrounding a perfectly elliptical, horizontal mirror.

Sobek approached and soaked in the details like a child staring at the presents under the Christmas tree. His hand hovered over the mirror's perfectly smooth surface; it rippled, and light danced underneath, mimicking the shape of his big hand. It was a pool, the liquid black like the darkest, deepest part of the universe. The crystals hummed in resonance and only someone with a familiarity in magic could understand the song being sung. "Elegant..." he said to himself. "So much power..." He turned and threw a hand towards the humans. "Bring the experiment here."

"Do you plan on sacrificing her to the gods?" Xanatos snarked at him as he neared. "Or just squeezing the last bit of blood from her like an orange?"

"I plan to exploit her creators' bloated conceit." he replied. "They crafted the perfect being from overlapping Atlantean DNA in order to fulfill whatever twisted experiment they devised, but in doing so, allowed me the means to become this island's master."

Xanatos paused, holding himself a few feet away from the monster on fire. He looked down on the gargoyle in his arms and wondered how quickly and how much force he could apply to her neck to end her life and her servitude. And wondered what the consequences would be for both him and Fox.

"If you're thinking of killing her to prevent me from using her," Sobek seemed to read the human's thoughts, "it will not matter. Dead or alive, she's still useful."

"I could end her suffering."

"And I could end yours. And your mate's." He held out a hand, fingers cupped around an imaginary neck, about Fox's size, and then clenched. "Snap."

Xanatos got the point quickly and approached, handing the limp gargoyle to Sobek. He held her in both hands and leaned in, the magical fire keeping him awake during daylight lapping at her skin. "You are a patchwork of Atlantean DNA," he said to her, "used by your creators to craft a false god. You have been the key to Atlantis' revival and will be to my ascendance."

Infiniti opened her mouth, managing the strength to whisper softly, "...your arrogance...will be your undoing...you will burn..."

"I already am." Sobek approached the crystal font, and the ghostly hum swelled to resonance. He forced her towards the reflecting pool between the crystals and it brimmed with light, swirling muted colors like the night skies above the Arctic circle. "You will open a door for me, experiment," Sobek hissed into Infiniti's ear, "you will punch through the strata of eternity and allow me to bathe in the purest magic known to mortals." He clutched her head from behind, talons digging into her skull and pushed her down into the reflecting pool. The light suddenly became erratic, the pattern sharpening, as Sobek continued to push her in, through a portal with a terminus at the end of the world. The crystals were screaming, and a column of light exploded upwards.

Xanatos was pushed back by the sheer force of it and grabbed Fox's wheelchair to steady himself. She used a hand to shield her face, her eyes thinning at the excruciatingly bright light filling the entire chamber. She could barely see Sobek in the maelstrom, arms buried up to the shoulders in the reflecting pool. It was the last thing she saw when the tempest forced her eyes shut lest they burn from her head. David huddled around her until, the wind, the screams, it all suddenly went silent and the noise and light went away.

Blinking his eyes, Xanatos tried to clear his vision. But where once stood two gargoyles now stood one.

The emerald fire had bled away, revealing healed gargoyle hide; no longer mutated, no longer just meat and bone plates, Sobek was whole again. His gold and black-striped skin gleamed under the morning sun and he bathed in the warmth. "I am restored!" he howled, his voice curling around the chamber.

"What did you do to her?" Fox accused him.

He turned and as he did, his loincloth, collar and gauntlets materialized around him, all white with gleaming gold trim. "I sacrificed her as an offering to this island. One cannot take without offering something equally valuable in return."

"So she's dead..."

He looked behind him to the reflecting pool, calm and slowly rippling from the inside out. "She is wherever the source of magic flows into this world. I used her as a knife to cut a hole in the veil for me, and allowed me to drink at its teat. Then I discarded her. Eventually she will be consumed and forgotten. But Atlantis' power is mine, and it flows through my veins."

Fox looked at him with all the disdain she could marshal. "And now you're back to your wonderful psychotic self."

He grinned so wide it showed his molars. "Indeed."

Standing to the side and listening to Sobek gloat, a part of Xanatos hoped once whatever magic used had coalesced Sobek would be at the mercy of gargoyle biology, turning him to stone, but he stayed flesh. Xanatos backtracked and, catching a glint of something in his peripheral vision, turned to see a thin ornamental rod curving up from the crystal font. He crossed his gaze with Fox's and in a moment of understanding, she nodded in agreement. With Sobek marveling at his own refurbished body, he was afforded the opportunity of distraction; Xanatos quickly snapped off the spike with a burst of strength and lunged at Sobek. It impaled through his midsection almost too easily and Sobek jerked, feeling the lance slither through him until the treacherous little human buried it to the hilt.

"Restored and pitifully mortal." Xanatos crowed, twisting the spike and hoping to churn Sobek's guts.

But the gargoyle just grinned at him, bearing his pearly whites. He grabbed the lance and simply pulled himself closer to Xanatos. "You understand so little, human." he hissed. "I have transcended flesh and blood."

"Says the gargoyle with a horrific stomach wound."

A hand clamped around Xanatos' throat and wrenched him close; Sobek merely growled in the human's face. "Watch and learn, insect." His free hand grabbed the spear and yanked it from his midsection with a wet slurp; the wound shriveled and closed.

Xanatos didn't let the sight phase him and used both hands clenched together like a club to try and break the gargoyle's jaw. It cracked and Sobek's head wrenched to the side from the impact. His jaw hung loose from the rest of his skull and Xanatos' hands throbbed from the blow; Sobek ignored it and lifted Xanatos from his feet, putting him into the ground. Holding the human flat into the marble floor with one hand, he used the other to grab his broken jaw and snapped it back into place.

"Still trying to inflict physical harm?" Sobek hissed into the human's face. "My blood is cold magic hewn from the most potent mortal source, my skin the green earth that birthed the eggs of the true alpha species, my eyes the pools that see the past and create the future." He raised the spike that the human dared to run through him. "And you try to impale me...foolish..." Slipping the spike underneath Xanatos' neck, Sobek bent it around his throat and slowly started constricting; Xanatos thrashed as his airway closed but he kept his eyes on Sobek, defiant to the bitter end.

"Stop it!" Fox yelled at him. "Sobek, you bastard...!"

The gargoyle ignored her, continuing to choke the life from her husband.

Fox hoped her father's wheelchair had the same capabilities as the old one and punched the little red button on the left armrest. From a hidden compartment, the seams so perfectly cut it was almost invisible to the naked eye, a small turret shot out on a mechanical arm. She was able to aim it with the control pad and placed the crosshairs right between Sobek's wings. She fired, the turret burped a beam of light and Sobek felt it pierce through him.

He slowly turned with bared teeth, stood up and faced the chair-bound woman, letting Xanatos hang from his right hand.

"Let him go." Fox spit.

Sobek stomped forwards, and with every step the pace grew faster and faster. Fox kept firing, putting half a dozen holes through Sobek before he reached out and grabbed the laser gun with his hand, crushing it, sparks vomiting between his fingers. He leaned in and the wheelchair strained under the extra weight, he and Fox staring at each other.

"You going...to kill a cripple?"

Sobek's wounds, grotesque holes burned straight through his torso, slowly closed and healed. "I've allowed you and your husband to live for one reason; your resources." he seethed. "You will be valuable slaves but my patience runs thin."

"Let him go and we'll behave." she bargained, seeing her husband's eyes start to roll back in his skull as he was deprived of oxygen.

"You will, or I'll reduce you both to ash and spread you across the green fields of my new kingdom. And your son will never see the light of day again, consumed atom by atom." He opened his hand and let the human collapse to the ground. Sobek lifted up and stalked away, got a few feet, stopped and snapped his fingers. The bar around Xanatos' neck molded to a seamless collar, only just allowing enough room to breathe. And then one appeared on Fox's neck as well. "You two will follow. I wish to survey my empire."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

In Jason's office, or as he referred to it sometimes, his war room, the small group he'd led here was surprised at the state of things. It looked like a small tornado had blown through the once impeccably-organized office but Jason Canmore had been managing to keep Xanatos Enterprises running through his employer's secret dalliances with psychotic gargoyles, Fox's illness, Alexander's growing pains and the constant attacks from both inside and out.

Elisa couldn't help but feel grateful and a little sympathetic to the former hunter who'd been run ragged the last few months trying to protect her family and prevent a multinational corporation from tearing apart at the seams.

Having rolled to a workstation behind his desk, Jason quickly powered up the largest screen in his office; it was a world map centered on the Atlantic. A small red dot kept flashing in the middle of the ocean. "Communications are down but the homing beacon installed in Fortress Four is dead center on that island." He tapped a finger on the screen. "If David and Fox are anywhere, it's on Atlantis."

"Their fancy airship is on that island," Elisa rectified, "but there's no guarantee they're still alive."

Jason tilted his head on an angle. "You and I both know those two would've squirmed their way out of death's cold grip, especially with Fox's little squad on their side–"

"Is it Sobek?" Elisa trampled over his last word.

He knew the history between Elisa and the Egyptian gargoyle, her entire tone and posture tightening at the mere mention. "We believe so."

She immediately put a hand to her mouth, breathing the heavy sigh into her clenched fingers. "How?"

"Sobek by himself is formidable. Sobek aided by th' phoenix, with th' power of Alexander Xanatos?"

"A shitstorm." Todd Hawkins said matter-of-factly, leaning on Canmore's big oak desk. "A big one."

"And we're sure it's Atlantis?" Elisa continued. "The Atlantis? Ancient island sunk thousands of years ago. Home of an apparently advanced civilization."

"Seems that way." Jason said.

"We need confirmation, Jason. Can't you send one of your little drones out there?"

He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Damn near all th' hardware we have has been destroyed." Jason explained. "Between th' Guild battles and Goliath and Sobek, we've exhausted almost every drone and Steel Clan robot, especially one that could traverse th' Atlantic." With a flick of one palm, he spun around and started typing something on a keyboard; one of the monitors powered up and showed the locations of Xanatos satellites currently orbiting the planet. "Now I'm trying t' get some of our satellites in geosynchronous orbit t' get a peek but so is every other country. It's getting a little crowded up there..."

"Speaking of, what's the rest of the world have to say?"

His eyes settled at waist level, and everyone else in the room sensed he was trying to encompass a world's worth of reaction into a single answer. "Nothing concrete." he eventually said. "Every public response has been th' usual. No comment or, a very good deflection. But I have t' sympathize, Elisa, they don't have a very good answer considering only a select few could ever imagine th' truth."

Elisa's response to that last word was muted and she cricked her neck, trying not to laugh. "The truth about a dark side to the world that no one ever gets to see." she said glibly. "Magic and faeries and great mythical beings that light the sky on fire. I don't know if it's a good thing that kind of truth ever gets out."

"Maybe, but I doubt we can hold it back now. Th' phoenix is just th' start."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

If watching an entire island emerging from the ocean wasn't enough, she had to suffer through one of Harry's infamous landings. With their employers' big airship coming aground due to Sobek's machinations and the phoenix lording over its new domain, she suggested finding a shady little spot to set down. Dingo chose a small grove in order to conceal themselves if there were any more surprises hiding on the ground.

He hit the dirt hard and Robyn felt the jerk of coming to a stop a little too much through her shoulders and knees. Dingo let her go and the Matrix melted into a puddle at their feet.

It was almost idyllic if not slightly soggy, the island still shedding water. It seemed to stretch on for miles all around them; mountains, valleys, remnants of farmlands and pastures, a blanket of forests crawling its way over the island like a clawed hand. The two humans took a silent moment to appreciate the natural splendor before Robyn quickly took stock and checked her weapons and any remaining ammunition.

"Damn..." she muttered, seeing the depleted cache. "Monmouth, I'm low on ammo. How's yuir armor?"

"A little scorched," he said flippantly, "but still working."

"Matrix?"

The silver puddle swirled in response. "Operational."

She nodded, "Good. Good..."

"For what, Rob?" Dingo was glib, if not a little exhausted from the chase that ended on this island. "We just got our asses handed to us and, from where I'm standing, I think the bad guys might've won."

"No one's won a damned thing yet." she snapped back.

He just nodded at the stubbornness, used to it by now. "Uh huh...sure." he muttered, pirouetting on his heel to get a better look at the tree they'd taken refuge under. "Is it just me, Rob," Dingo noticed, snagging a low-hanging branch, "but does this tree seem to be a little leafy for having spent a few thousand years under water?" He brushed his armored boot across a swathe of grass, green and spry. "Hell, the entire island seems to be drying up quickly."

"Magic, probably..." Robyn figured aloud, having noticed the same thing. There was a tinge of it in the breeze. "Maybe those Atlantean stones were a failsafe, in case everything here went t' hell."

"Smart people."

Having inspected every firearm strapped to her armor, Robyn turned slightly, putting Dingo in her peripheral vision. "Yeah, I like a civilization that plans for th' end of th' world."

"Speaking of," Dingo continued, the question having nagged him since the beginning, "what exactly has the power to sink an island in the first place?"

The sarcasm translated through the half-mask. "Ye really want to think about that, Monmouth?" Robyn asked.

He balked. "Well..."

"It doesn't matter what happened eleven thousand years ago, it matters what's happening right now. A psychotic and his pet bird just got their wish. And we've still got a job t' do."

"Then I assume you've got a plan–urkh!" A small hand pressed against his chest and pushed him against the tree trunk; the strength was impressive. He coughed the last lungful of air left in him and tried to protest when the same hand clamped over his mouth.

"Hush." Robyn hissed, her eyes on the sky above.

The small silver puddle at their feet rippled and quickly slid between their legs. "Registering a heat source approaching from the north west." the Matrix reported. "Speed approximately seven hundred meters per second."

In the distance a small green dot appeared from between the light swirl of clouds, steadily growing larger as it skimmed over the island.

"Strewth..." Dingo said under his breath. "That what I think it is?"

Robyn's eyes thinned. The lenses in her mask afforded her a little better vision than the average human and she could just make out the shape of outstretched wings. "Yes."

"Think it's just doing a victory lap or looking for us?"

The trees rustled in the wake of hot wind stirred up by the flaming bird. It crowed as it passed, the scream like a train whistle making the ground shake and the humans underneath wince at the decibel level. Robyn and Dingo pressed as closely against the tree as possible, Dingo wrapping an arm protectively around his lover. What was most surprising is that she let him.

The massive emerald creature flew over them so closely, the humans could practically feel the flames lap at their makeshift hiding spot, some of the leaves wilting. It passed by in seconds and both Dingo and Canmore released the breath they'd been holding.

"Either it didn't see us," Robyn mused, "or it figured we're not much of a threat. Like ants..."

Dingo craned his neck to watch as the phoenix flew out of sight near the eastern edge of the island, vanishing behind a small mountain ridge. "That doesn't sound too bad, love." he said, a little nervous to get in the phoenix's direct path again. "Looks like it's still got the Xanatos kid."

"It's not going to let go of such great leverage so easily."

Wandering from the tree's canopy and back into the sun, Dingo scanned the area, eyes squinting. "So? Now what?"

Robyn couldn't help soaking in the view. "We stay hidden. But we should try to get closer to the city, where the Fortress came ashore. Look for our illustrious employers."

"And then what?"

The Matrix slithered out from its puddle, settling at eye level. "Our current fighting capacity is insufficient." it said matter-of-factly. "Especially against the phoenix. We have no defense against such powerful magic."

Dingo smirked. "Leave it to the cold hand of technology to say it plain."

Matrix held its hand up. "I have endeavored to mimic human body temperature. I am a constant ninety-eight point six degrees–"

"Sarcasm, mate."

"Ah."

"Boys." Robyn cut through the exchange. She saw them both turn towards her, as if expecting an order. "I don't expect us to survive a direct assault but we can always throw a wrench in th' gears like good little guerillas."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

The scream could be heard from half a mile away and Fox winced. That creature had been flying over the island for the last couple of hours, no doubt lording over its territory much like Sobek had been doing, with her and David in tow, forced to accompany him as lowly vassals, their necks collared and throats under threat of being crushed.

They'd walked most of the main city, and it was a sprawling metropolis much like ancient Rome. Fox picked out details she'd noticed in every corner of the globe; if this was one of the cradles of humanity, they'd spread their influence throughout the rest of the world since.

Having looped back to the main square, Fox noticed more of the statues on pillars and high up on the arches and rooftops, all of them cocooned in curled wings. She must have counted hundreds of them and who knows how many more were spread across the island; if Sobek was right, if there was a clan here, if those statues were indeed sleeping gargoyles, they could number in the thousands.

"How many, human?" Sobek suddenly demanded of her. "How many statues have you counted?"

"A lot." Fox said, bringing her chair up to a pillar about six feet from the ground. It was the first statue she saw when Atlantis rose; a slender female in a swirl of wings. Whereas the gargoyles she knew snarled at the coming sun with wings flared, these gargoyles gently mimicked pieces of carved art. "And you're so sure they're alive?"

"As alive as this island is now. They are under the same enchantment Atlantis was," he put a hand to the statue's wing, "only waiting to be reborn."

"Under your rule." Xanatos sneered.

"Yes, insect." Sobek pulled his attention away from the statue and placed it firmly on the human, his shark-black eyes full of contempt. "My rule. My purpose. To return my species to their rightful place."

"And you're so sure they'll wake up and instantly follow your every order and whim?"

He stalked forwards and Xanatos instinctively fingered the collar around his neck, expecting the metal ring to suddenly squeeze on his windpipe. "What do you think their first impression will be of the world they find themselves thrust into? How many of their kind murdered in cold blood?"

Fox lowered her head; she could only imagine how many gargoyles had been killed in eleven thousand years.

"The magic I've taken allows me a perception beyond the shores of this island. I know the fear and confusion and contempt this island's rise has created." Sobek looked up, his eyes piercing the sapphire blue sky and the scattered clouds. "I can see their orbiting spy machines, trying to catch a glimpse of a new world to subjugate. And I know there are humans coming," his gaze dropped to the distant horizon, "setting sail as we speak..."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Pulling half her shirt up and undoing her bra one-handed with a hungry baby in the other, Elisa noticed the new bandages around her midsection were a little tighter than usual; doctor Pierce was a little less sympathetic than her mother in his technique, but he'd seen his scalpel melt and machines explode when trying to deliver Elisa's second born so he wanted to ensure that big red scar running down his patient's abdomen was going to heal no matter what Elisa put her body through. "Gift wrapping's a little tight, Pierce." she said offhandedly, preparing Liberty for her feeding.

Sitting on the couch next to her, doctor Pierce shrugged through his old, ragged labcoat. "All the better to keep your insides on the inside. And speaking of which, I really should get a better look in there." he said. "If the uterine rupture doesn't heal properly, it could seriously compromise another pregnancy–"

"No time." Elisa stubbornly cut him off. "And there's another patient who takes precedence."

Firmly put in his place by the tone he was getting all too familiar with, Pierce simply acquiesced. "Right."

Elisa just held her daughter and allowed Liberty to latch on, and a strange sense of euphoria washed over her. This simple act of nature amongst all the upheavals in her life in the last few days was a little slice of bliss. "So, how is she, Pierce? Really."

"Really?" he echoed, moving the unkempt strands of salt-and-pepper hair from his eyes. "Right now she's healthy, except for a bit of dehydration and a vitamin deficiency, but considering what your body went through, it's not surprising."

"And in the future?"

"We'll just have to wait and see. There will be more tests to come." he said warningly, knowing pediatrics was a double-edged sword when forced to submit young children to invasive and painful tests. "I put her on a newborn supplement while you were gone but it's probably best to get some of the real thing in her." He slapped his hands on his knees and burst into a smile. "Milk does a body good. Especially right from the spigot."

Turning her head, Elisa raised an eyebrow and the corner of her mouth at him.

"Ah, well," he fumbled, suddenly flustered, the faux-pas having dropped like an atom bomb, "I'll, uh, let the two of you enjoy your meal in peace." Pierce backed away, mouth a wavy line and hands up, as if he didn't know what to do with them. "...and go hang myself in my office..."

"Nice one, doc." Todd mentioned to the doctor as he fled the room, most likely returning back to his cave in the infirmary. "Great guy, but he's getting a little twitchy."

"Well, it's nice to have someone you can trust. It's getting rare these days."

"Too true."

"Speaking of," Elisa couldn't help the segue, "I'm sorry about your father."

A sound skidded through the young man's throat and he cleared it. "Yeah, well, at least I know where he stands." Todd said. "And ironically, I did get a little sister out of it."

"And does he know about Annika's condition?"

"I may have spilled the beans." he admitted, gnawing on his bottom lip. "And I don't think he was too happy."

"Well, I am." Elisa said. "I thought my miracles were going to be the only ones. It's good to know they won't be alone."

"Yeah..." was all he could say to that. So involved in his own hopes, fears, doubts and family drama, he didn't quite give how Elisa would feel about the impending egg about to drop sometime in the next few months much thought. "Me too, I guess..."

"It might not mean much, Hawkins," she continued, "but knowing there's another interspecies couple baking some buns together makes all of this a little more worth it. Goliath and I aren't just a singular spectacle, or a curiosity or, like others I've heard on the news, an affront to nature and God. You and Annika give us and our children validation."

His brows kneading together, Todd mulled for a moment as the weight of Elisa's words pressed down on him like a ten-ton weight . He cleared his throat and changed the subject, "So, rumor around the castle is, you're planning something naughty."

Elisa didn't even need to look to know Hawkins was grinning his trademarked lopsided grin, maybe topping it all off with a suggestively cocked eyebrow. "I don't know what you're talking about."

He nodded. "Of course, plausible deniability. You're such a cop."

"For now..." she amended. "I'd ask you not to get involved, Hawkins, but I do need your help with one thing."

"What?"

"Teach me how to use the Epsilon armor."

"What?"

"Did I stutter?"

Momentarily stunned, Todd slurped the rest of his drink, crushed the can and let an exasperated expression articulate better than any drawn out tirade he could muster. "The old girl isn't up to spec yet, thanks to Macbeth. Maybe you should use one of Xanatos' armors?"

She quickly shook her head, trying not to dislodge her daughter during her meal. "The last thing I need is Goliath's metal face plastered all over the getaway vehicle." Elisa explained. "And I don't want anything linked back to Xanatos, and by extension, the clan."

His brows fell; up to this point there was a part of him that didn't think the strait-laced cop was serious about staging a prison break. "Maybe I should do this..." Todd offered. "I am the impulsive one, after all. You know, crazy, irrational Hawkins. I mean, I've already stolen an ambulance, staging a prison break is just a logical step-up."

"No, this is my operation and any and all consequences are going to fall on me alone."

Standing to the side, Peter couldn't hold back any longer. It started with a sound, then he cleared his throat, and then, he said, "You're still serious about this..."

Having noticed he'd slipped into the room earlier Elisa was waiting for her old man to chime in; she was just surprised it took this long. "As a heart-attack, dad." she replied.

"You're about to commit a felony, Elisa." he reminded her as he pulled off the far wall and approached.

Her lips curled imperceptibly; Elisa had predicted exactly what he'd say. "I'm well aware."

"Figured." he nodded, leaning against the back of the couch his daughter was sitting on. "Just thought I'd point it out."

"I'm left with little choice. My family is under police guard and who knows when they'll ever be freed."

"Maybe tomorrow."

"Maybe never."

The stubborn streak was prescient as ever and Peter knew this argument was either going to go in circles or clash like hot and cold fronts in a thunderstorm. "Point is, Elisa, you don't know." he rebutted. "And I need you to be absolutely sure about this before you storm the castle. This could end your career and land you in federal prison." Then, as much as he knew it would hurt the both of them, he had to twist the proverbial knife. "And if Goliath is never coming back, then your daughters will need you more than ever."

Elisa didn't react at first, the skin just tightening around her eyes. But the barb had landed dead-center.

Her father heard her breathing change. "I'm sorry, kiddo." Peter sighed. "That...wasn't meant to be hurtful."

"Just truthful..." she amended. "And who says I'm going to get caught?"

"Famous last words. Listen, we're both cops, and we both know how easily things can go pear-shaped." "And with the amount of security around there, Police Headquarters might as well be Fort Knox."

"And I'm trying to free seven gargoyles and a beast from what might as well be a jail cell without anyone getting captured or worse, shot."

"You'd have to fly in, punch your way through the SWAT teams outside, navigate your way through several corridors and break out half a dozen gargoyles without anyone getting a shot off." He rubbed the stubble on his chin. "Maybe if you went in through the third-floor windows, you could avoid the guards on the ground..."

She turned her a little to meet her father's eyes. "Sounds like you've put a little thought into this yourself."

He laughed a little, rubbing his brow at the absurdity of helping his daughter plan a raid on a building full of cops and FBI agents. "Just...trying to guide an Elisa-shaped missile as best I can."

Liberty started kicking under her blanket and Elisa knew lunch was over when the baby started fussing. She shifted Liberty deeper into the crook of her elbow while she repositioned and redressed, then put the newborn to her shoulder, gently patting between her wings until, eventually, Liberty let loose a little belch that made her tail snap. Peter smiled at the sight. "That's my girl..." Elisa whispered. She stood up and turned to face the rest of the men having kept themselves at a polite distance. "Listen, if you think I'm suddenly unaware of the ramifications..."

Todd hopped off the couch, landing on both feet. "Which is why I should be doing the illegal stuff." he argued, and then pointed to the swaddled lump in Elisa's arms. "Especially since you're a mother of two."

"You're a soon-to-be father as well, Hawkins."

He shrugged. "Yeah, well, that egg may not hatch for ten years and I figure I should be out of prison by then, at least for good behavior."

Elisa shot an accusing finger at him and snarked, "You've never been on good behavior." Tenderly switching Liberty to her other shoulder, she put out her dominant hand, the same one she used for her firearm or manhandling offenders if they got a little rowdy. "I appreciate the concern, gentlemen, either in your misplaced gallantry in trying to talk me out of this or dogpiling on the grenade for me but I assure you, it's quite pointless."

"Mind if I at least offer some advice?" a new voice intruded. Jason had wheeled in, rolling towards the small group. "I think yuir plan's missing one important piece, Elisa, what happens after ye break th' clan out?"

Elisa lifted her chin to, what she thought, was an accusation of her not having thought this through. In reality, every single outcome and the repercussions of such had ran through her frontal lobe a hundred times over. "They'll be free." she said simply.

"They'll be fugitives."

"Not if we take them by force." she countered. "Make it look like it wasn't their choice to leave."

"Could work..." Peter agreed, and mentally chastised himself for feeding into his daughter's plan.

"Aye," Jason intervened before Elisa's father could encourage her any further, "but it's also getting a little morally ambiguous. You take th' gargoyles out of there and ye could erase any goodwill they've built up with th' public."

"Have you heard the news reports, Jason?" Elisa argued, grabbing the remote and turning on the television. All it took was a few flips through the channels to grab some commentary on the clan, between stories of her tattered professional and personal life and the freshly risen Atlantis. "That goodwill is a little feeble even with their innocence on film. Same old song and dance they've suffered since waking up in Manhattan."

He sighed, blowing smoke through his nostrils. "Fine then, ye weaken their positions and embolden th' Guild's." Jason argued. "And my brother's..."

Her mouth went crooked. "No offense, Jason," she started quickly, "but your brother's a psycho and his act is wearing thin; even if he told everyone who'd listen about Goliath and I, the secret's already out and I don't think anyone would ever find him mentally competent to be a credible witness. He can rant and rave all he wants and the Guild's already on film shooting up Times Square. What I'm doing is necessary if Sobek is in control of that island."

"Then wait, Elisa. Wait until we get some kind of proof."

Elisa quickly sucked in a breath and shook her head. "Famous last words, Jason." she warned him. "Usually, the kind of proof we get is lethal or world-shattering and I've been through too many battles and come close to dying too many times to simply wait and see."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Across the ocean, the tidal waves and tremors had subsided and now the entire continent had to suddenly contend with a new neighbor. Atlantis was less than a thousand miles from the European coast, out of any country's jurisdiction but close enough to make a few prime ministers and legislators nervous.

Of all the oceanside countries on the Eastern side of the North Atlantic, it would be a Spanish ship that would investigate and breach Atlantis' borders first, a large frigate flanked by two smaller corvettes. Expecting a barren island vomited up from the ocean floor by an earthquake or an underwater volcano, the frigate dared to encroach.

Several more boats lagged behind at a safe distance, as ordered by the Spanish navy. But the news crews aboard still had cameras trained on the military boats sailing towards the newly risen island, stretching the zoom functions on their cameras as far as they could go.

Sobek watched the three ships from the Eastern cliffs, overlooking a small bay that opened out into the blue expanse of the Atlantic. "Ah," he whispered, "didn't I tell you? Already the humans come to try and claim what isn't theirs..."

"They're curious." Xanatos tried to explain, seeing the malicious glint in Sobek's newly restored eyes. "They have no idea what this island is and are simply investigating."

"Of course. They come as friends, and stay as conquerors." He languidly raised his hand towards the sea. "They demonize us, kill us, shatter us in our sleep. Entire clans obliterated." A crackle of energy bloomed in his palm. "But the food chain has now been reordered."

Whereas Xanatos expected some kind of observable, overly-grandiose exhibition of the power at his command, Sobek simply curled his hand into a fist.

But the lead ship suddenly slowed like the water turned to molasses. A horrific noise echoed across the ocean surface; the entire ship started to crumple, the steel plates screeching in protest as they twisted and buckled. The gun turrets, the bridge and funnel, the communications antennae, every piece of metal corkscrewed and tore, ripping in half. Small explosions popped along the length of the hull as the superstructure pulled itself apart.

Sobek lifted his arm and the entire ship was pulled from the water, some of the crew tumbling over the twisted railing and plummeting into the ocean. His hand clenched and the ship broke in half in a shower of flame and black smoke. The torpedoes in the hull exploded, debris raining into the water. And with a final gesture Sobek let the ship drop. It hit the water and immediately started sinking.

David scowled at the arrogant display of power and the loss of life.

The smaller corvettes escorting their now-destroyed flagship immediately started firing. With no target visible from their distance, they blindly peppered the coast with heavy caliber rounds. Xanatos immediately dropped to the ground while Sobek simply allowed the humans to empty their ammunition stores, deflecting every three-inch shell with a shield of magical energy.

As one ship continued firing the other turned sharply and a plume of smoke from the midsection signaled a missile launch. Xanatos scrambled from the edge of the precipice and flung himself as far away as possible before the missile impacted. He felt the heat and fire and the ground underneath him shake as it came apart from the explosion. Turning his head, he found a small crater where he'd once been standing and wondered what'd become of Sobek.

Once the flames died out and the smoke cleared, Sobek was revealed, with not a scratch or a hair out of place. Strands of black smoke curled away from his extremities; his hands were raised, his eyes closed, like he'd taken pleasure from the missile strike. He jerked and opened his eyes, seeing the two little vessels steam straight towards them. "They're curious, you say." he mimicked Xanatos' earlier plea. "Curious about the new land they see, the new opportunities to pillage and destroy. Tell me, worm, would they willingly turn away if a gargoyle asked them to? If they knew the power here?"

Xanatos picked himself from the dirt. "Depends on the human."

His hand outstretched, Sobek smiled. The ship that fired the missile suddenly lurched; the bow folded over, the entire hull rolling over itself and crushing every sailor aboard. It imploded and blew itself into shrapnel when the missiles detonated.

The last ship tried to turn from whatever invisible force had attacked their small fleet, but before it could even get halfway it suddenly cleaved in two from bow to stern and exploded, putting an end to the threat.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

The live feed only took a few minutes to reach the rest of the world. At Police Headquarters in New York, several FBI agents looked on in horror.

"Good lord..." agent Neville said, twisting his ferret face. "What the hell happened to those ships? Was that an attack from the island?"

Abel Sykes rubbed his permanent five-o-clock shadow. "A supposedly uninhabited island. Now we know someone's definitely inhabiting there."

The smaller, skinnier agent whirled on his companion; the mutual dislike between them often blossomed into something a little less than professional. "This isn't funny, Abel." he sneered. "Those were allied ships that were destroyed. And innocent men killed."

"I'm well aware, Phillip." Abel replied. "The question is by who and why. But it's a little out of our jurisdiction considering this just became a military response."

Neville scrubbed his face with his hands and turned away from the television. "What the hell is going on?" he muttered.

Abel had to agree. And suddenly, Elisa Maza's prophetic warning just galloped to the front of his thoughts. Her warning about this Sobek, and a veiled threat about the gargoyles currently in custody. "Shit..."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

"Damn..." Jason said quietly. He figured over a hundred men had just been sent to their deaths, littering the ocean floor. He turned away from the screen, the footage now just smoking flotsam drifting on the water's surface. "Seems th' legends were true."

"He just wrecked three battleships like they were toys." Peter said quietly.

While everyone else kept staring at the screen, Elisa's expression had become resolute; Jason had wanted proof, and it was just delivered in the most horrifyingly way possible. "We're breaking out the clan."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

"Interesting..." Peredur whispered. The footage from their drone circling high above the island had caught the slaughter on its powerful camera, relaying the footage back to castle Carbonek.

"I wouldn't agree..." Fleur argued, standing by his side. "This could be a fraction of the power at his disposal."

"Yes, wonderful, isn't it?"

"And in his hands." she reminded him. He was being cavalier again.

"For the time being..." Peredur replied absentmindedly. "We've seen would-be conquerors before. We've seen hell unleashed and we're still here to tell the tale of a failed despot who became too big for his own twisted ambitions."

Fleur straightened, her eyes thinning and her expression melting into that all-too-familiar contrary set. An argument was coming and the queen of castle Carbonek wasn't about to pull her punches. "That psychotic could be wielding the most potent of mortal magic ever to be seen and you intend to sit back and let it happen?"

"I don't intend to do nothing, my dear." Peredur calmed her, coming around the table to move a single platinum tendril from her forehead, returning it to the rest of the impeccably kempt hair. "The upper echelons are meeting and we will continue to observe. If Sobek decides to tip the scales of global supremacy we will respond thusly. But he just might start what the Illuminati has planned for, for centuries. A rebirth. Through fire and ash, we will emerge to rebuild."

If he was being cavalier, at least there was still some kind of purpose to it; maddening, but reassuring. "Using him as your blunt instrument, husband?"

He languidly turned and stepped away, filling his eyes with the wreckage on the screen. "So many tools, so many uses."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

The ocean was littered with torn chunks of steel and burning slicks of petroleum. The aftermath was surprisingly silent for the amount of destruction just witnessed; just the sound of wreckage on fire before ultimately sinking, releasing one last burp of black smoke before vanishing under the water's surface.

The civilian ships with the news crews quickly turned and retreated to the safety of the European coast before whatever destroyed the military ships mercilessly snatched them from under the waves as well.

Xanatos got to his feet and found Sobek staring out over the result of his wrath. "You realize you've painted a target on this island?"

Sobek could see several bodies floating in amongst the debris and he knew the humans from whatever country had sent these ships would want blood for blood. "Let them come." he bellowed. "Let the humans swarm. The oceans will run red with their innards."

"You're starting a war, Sobek. One that will kill gargoyles as well as humans."

"Some sacrifices are necessary, insect, if one wants to build a new world." he said proudly, turning to face the human. "And if the other clans will not follow me, then the gargoyles of this island will, once they find what the world has become."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Her baby girls in the care of her parents, Elisa stood on Goliath's tower staring out at the horizon. The horrific images still fresh in her mind, every doubt she'd had earlier had evaporated, drifting on the Manhattan breeze. She was surprised no one else in her immediate family had tried to talk her out of what she'd planned but she figured seeing three warships obliterated and their crews shredded helped to make them see, at least marginally, her side of the argument.

She knew she was doing the right thing for the right reasons but had to wonder, as her hand drifted to the sun-warmed stone finial where Goliath would roost, if her husband would think the same.

Her sixth sense started ringing an alarm in her head; the sun was about to set and the mandarin streaks of color were being pulled towards the bay. More attuned to nightfall than most humans Elisa pulled herself from her thoughts, brushed the big black river of hair from her shoulder and skipped down the spiral staircase. She emptied out from the tower just in time to feel a bit of stone shrapnel tumble against her boots. The clan was stretching the kinks out of a good day's sleep, including a stranger she thought she might not see again.

Isis caught Elisa's scent and whirled on the human. The bare hint of a smile was purposely squelched in order to preserve the carefully-crafted cynical facade. "Elisa."

"It's good to see you, Isis." Elisa greeted her as she approached.

"And you, Elisa, it seems I'm still being dragged into your world whether I have a choice or not."

The sideways smirk bloomed on red lips. "Glad to know you haven't changed." Elisa harrumphed. "And you being here gives me hope I'll see Goliath again."

Pursing her mouth and rethinking the earlier sarcasm, Isis merely nodded. If there was an apology going to be voiced to the air, it was lost to Isis dodging the khaki-colored freight train as Hudson plucked his own mate from the small crowd and made his way towards her.

"Maria..." Hudson breathed.

She turned, chin demurely tucked into her shoulder; her fiancé was quickly approaching, a spring in his step the others immediately noticed. "Hi, honey." she said, smiling.

He caught her in his big arms and Maria quickly reciprocated with a kiss, oozing against him in an uncharacteristic PDA. Coming up for air and ignoring the stares he could feel on the back of his neck, especially Todd Hawkins ogling them with raised eyebrows and an unabashed smile, Hudson used his thumb to brush away an errant strand of hair. "Are ye all right?"

Maria nodded. "Yes, considering..."

"What happened?" He turned, catching Elisa in his field of view. "T' both of ye."

"We're both still indefinitely suspended," Elisa replied, "which is bureaucratic slang for 'about to be fired when we get around to it'."

Hudson slid his eyes to his mate for confirmation; she nodded. Maria could've lied or deflected and saved herself from the guillotine but he knew her to be too principled and stubborn for her own good. "Did ye...?" he prompted with an open, clawed hand.

"Spill my guts like a cheap drunk?" Maria finished his thought. "Yes." she revealed, and watched the frayed edges of his wings like old pirate ship sails flitter and shake with the unconscious jerk. "And I did it proudly. And before you say anything, love, I feel really good about it."

A proud smirk wormed its way through leathery flesh, Hudson unable to hide it despite his best effort. He squashed it and craggy brows settled on pensive eyes. There was a guttural lungful as the only noise to voice his displeasure in the outcome of her meeting. "I'm sorry, Maria," he said quietly, "ye shouldn't have been forced t' choose between me and yuir duty. Neither of ye."

"What's done is done, old soldier." Elisa said, patting his shoulder as she passed by. "The genie's not going back into the bottle anytime soon. But there's more pressing matters than our careers now. I need everyone inside."

"What's happened?"

"Something very bad."

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

The curtain of darkness drew closed over the Atlantic, and the sky above Atlantis dimmed. That small pink dot on the distant horizon finally sunk into the sea, sucking the rest of the color from the sky along with it.

As dusk fell over the island, the strange flower-stalk pillars bloomed with light at the ends of their stalks, like organic lampposts, illuminating the streets and roads, both in the city and stretching for miles beyond. The entire landmass peppered with ethereal light along paths, shorelines and distant buildings; some trees even blossomed with a glow from inside their branches.

Sobek could feel the change in his chest, still synced to the Earth's rhythm. "It is time." he said quietly, standing in the city square, flanked by his slaves and ready to be crowned king.

The first statue they saw when the land pierced the sea, the one like an angel, shivered on its pedestal.

The statue spider-webbed with cracks and the stone shook and trembled as something underneath yearned for freedom. The shards fell away, exposing pale buttery flesh and a slender crown of spurs. As her wings unfurled, the female staggered and mewled; she seemed disoriented and held her head in her hands, her legs unsteady. Her back arched as her spine curled and she filled her lungs with a cold mouthful of air. She screamed a panther scream.

The other statues in the courtyard crumbled, each revealing a gargoyle in muted pastel colors. Their brow spurs were ornate and multi-horned, their hair long and light, the gargoyles themselves lean and svelte.

The closest gargoyle lowered her head from the sea of stars above and turned to the gathered crowd. She climbed from the column and blinked her eyes several times, her nose wrinkling. "{...what...?}" she managed, the language indecipherable.

Sobek neared, his smile feral. "You have risen."

The gargoyle cocked her head; she obviously didn't understand English. "{...who are you?}"

Unable to comprehend a tongue that hadn't been spoken in ten millennia, Sobek could only interpret her confusion. He waved a hand across the square, centering on the stones drudged from the ocean floor. "I found the stones." he boasted. "You are alive because of me. I pulled your island and your clan from the depths."

She reacted to the sight of the stones with passive interest. But the female was still wary; there was something wrong with this stranger, cloaked in the stench of magic. Her brows lowered over watchful eyes. "{Is the war over? Have the gods spared us?}" Her gaze darted back and forth, seeing more of her clan gather. They seemed just as disoriented. "{Where are our human allies?}" Her attention fell on David and Fox; their garb was strange and Fox's wheelchair caught her eye. "{Are you survivors from the southern glen? How many were able to flee?}"

The language was a little stilted, missing a few letters of the English alphabet and Fox looked to her husband as David composed a reply. "I'm sorry, I don't know what you're saying but none of you are safe. Your island has been stolen–"

He didn't finish; the last thing David Xanatos remembered was blinding pain and the taste of blood in his mouth as Sobek backhanded him.

"Enough, dog!" Sobek hissed. "You are alive by my whim alone!"

The female gargoyle watched as the human was knocked to the ground. The chair-bound woman rolled towards him and quickly reached an arm out. The wounded male assured her he was okay and wiped the blood from his lip. "{Why did you strike him?}" she demanded.

"Humans are a disease." Sobek explained, even though he didn't know the question being asked. "They have infested our world and murdered our kind! You've slept for millennia while gargoyles are shattered and slaughtered."

"{We will not allow such violence on our land.}"

Seeing he wasn't getting through to her, Sobek merely held out his hand, palm open, fingers splayed. A small burst of magical energy unfurled from his golden flesh, expanding in size until it became a mirror, and then a window. He had the power to pull images from every part of the globe in every timeframe. Every gargoyle shattered or slain appeared in the looking glass he conjured in his palm, the images heartrending and overwhelming, especially to a group of gargoyles having just woken up from an ages-old slumber. Clans were slaughtered or pulverized; the Wyvern massacre, the Canadian attack, the Irish horror, the Norse betrayal.

There were almost three dozen gargoyles now clustered together, all gazing into the portal. The lead female though, despite the gruesome imagery, quickly recognized the magic being used. "{What have you done?}"

Sobek just turned his head on the treetrunk of a neck.

"{You...have stolen our power? Our very source of life?}"

His fingers suddenly curled in, extinguishing the portal. A pink wisp of something leaked through his fingers. He noticed the throng of gargoyles becoming agitated, murmurs passing through the crowd.

"{I demand you tell us what you have done!}" she growled at him. "{What has happened?!}"

Sobek's sneer nearly peeled the skin from his newly-restored face. "This screeching is unbecoming of your kind. You are the master race, the true inheritors and you wail like a hatchling in a dead language. Perhaps expediency is of the essence." He grabbed both sides of her face and wrenched her close; before anyone could react Sobek opened his mouth. A trail of energy snaked out from his mouth and into hers; both their eyes burned hot and a flash of light blinded the entire group, carrying beyond the city's walls. Once the glow faded, Sobek merely let the female collapse to the ground, clutching her temple. "Now perhaps you'll understand better..."

A tall male put himself between Sobek and the stricken female. "What have you done?" he demanded, in English.

"Educated her." Sobek sneered. "Educated all of you. I've cast a spell so we can communicate properly."

"I can understand you..." the male said surprised. The language was unmistakably English, if not strangely accented.

"Yes, I do not have the time or patience to teach an entire island twenty-six symbols and how they coalesce to form a rudimentary language. You need to know what's happened while you've slept." Sobek leaned over. "Death has come, in the form of apes. They've whittled our kind to nothing through fear and ignorance."

The female on the ground was helped to her feet by a couple on either side. She motioned them away and burrowed glinting, black eyes at Sobek. "Who are you?"

"I am Sobek." he boasted. "I am the wind of change for our kind."

"And you have usurped our land's very lifeblood for your goals?"

"I have been left with little choice." he explained. "Our extinction is at hand."

Her eyes dropped to his hand; the images he conjured earlier had stuck with her. "How long...?"

"Tell her, human." Sobek told Xanatos. "Tell her the truth. Tell her how long they've slept under the ocean."

Put on the spot by three dozen staring gargoyles, Xanatos had to answer, "We figure about eleven thousand years."

The lead female took the news like a punch to the chest and sunk inwards, her wings drooping. She turned and digested the revelation with a few shuddered breaths while the others traded glances and spoke in hushed, astonished whispers.

"And tell them about the gargoyle species." Sobek kept prodding.

"There's about a dozen clans we know of, maybe more we don't, with a population just shy of two thousand."

"That cannot be." the female protested. "Our kind numbered in the millions, spread over all continents. What has happened?"

"Humans." Sobek hissed. "They have been systematically killing our kind for millennia, obliterating entire clans and emptying entire countries of us. As their technology progressed, so did their malice, their evil."

"Don't listen to him." Fox interrupted, wheeling towards the female. "He's responsible for more death and destruction than you could imagine."

Sobek merely grinned. "More lies." he said. "These two tried to stop me from liberating you from the cold depths, using their machine," he pointed to the damaged, smoldering Fortress Four left beached in the middle of the square and listing to one side, "and their technology. The human ability to create machines of death has become unsurpassed."

"It's an aircraft, nothing more." Fox protested, and elaborated. "A means of travel. We were trying to escape Sobek with the key to raising this island and stealing its magic when our engines were torn off–"

"Enough!" Sobek bellowed, and Fox's collar suddenly constricted just by his words alone. She clutched at her slender neck while her husband dropped to her side, trying to dig his fingers under the metal band. "You wish confirmation? Fine." Sobek threw a hand towards the sky, grasping at every star beyond his reach. It started as a small burst of energy and ended with a pillar of light rising into the star-flecked darkness; it was a beacon. And it didn't take long for a disembodied scream to answer back. As eyes turned to peer beyond the city walls, something green and glowing rode the ridge of mountains to the east, barreling in. Within seconds, the phoenix had returned. It landed, forcing down a wave of hot air.

"The firebird." the female whispered, basking in its glow. The rest of the gathered gargoyles seemed to gaze up in reverence. "You have been reborn as well and honor us with your presence once more."

The phoenix dipped its head, mantling its wings to its side. I HAVE WAITED AGES. WAITED FOR ATLANTIS TO RETURN.

As Fox nodded that she was all right, the collar loosening, Xanatos stood and whirled on his foot. "You're familiar with this thing?" he charged, pointing an accusing finger at it.

The female whirled on her foot. "This thing," she said calmly, "is a protector. It has watched over this land since the beginning."

"It took our son." he spit. "Our son! Took him as insurance. It feeds off of him as we speak."

She turned her head over her shoulder; she'd have to have been blind to miss the phoenix's new striking emerald color. Her hand hovering close enough to the flame-feathers to feel the heat, she felt a tingle of something strange passing through her talons. "Is this true...?"

THE HUMAN SPEAKS THE TRUTH. the phoenix admitted, though there was no shame or remorse.

"Why have you done this?"

I HAVE BEEN HUNTED AND CAGED BY HUMANS. MY PLUMAGE PLUCKED FOR GREED AND MALICE. I WILL NOT BE A SLAVE ANY LONGER.

Her brows furrowed, clenching together in a knot. "And this child...?"

THE CHILD IS BOUND TO ME FOR AS LONG AS I AM THREATENED.

"Show me. Please, firebird."

It languidly pulled its wings away from its breast, each feather splayed in sequence until its wingspan reached its zenith. A hollow spot appeared in the middle of its chest and the prone form of Alexander Xanatos appeared. He was curled in a fetal position, his skin pallid, his ginger hair faded to gray.

"Alex...!" Fox gasped, leaning forward.

Just as the female gargoyle tried to reach for the boy the flames closed back in and she pulled her hand back for fear of being burned. The human child became a shadow and then a wisp and then vanished. "You must release him." she implored.

NO.

Her eyes trickled upwards, brows sinking on her steady gaze. "Surely the protector we revered would not endanger a child."

THAT WAS THEN. THIS IS NOW. THE WORLD YOU KNEW HAS CHANGED.

"And it seems it has changed you as well, great firebird."

The phoenix didn't answer her allegation; it simply lowered its head, staring at her.

"Even your great protector knows how dangerous humans have become." Sobek crowed, having watched the entire exchange. "Even it has suffered at their hands, torn apart piece by piece for their own gains, only to die and be reborn and repeat the entire cycle over again."

"This island was a fusion of human and gargoyle," a male gargoyle argued, quickly coming to the female's side, "united in principle and peace. We were the pinnacle of civilization, before the gods came, before the war."

"And now the humans have blood on their hands and rubble at their feet. There are less than two thousand of us, a species close to extinction."

"Two thousand..." the female whispered, still in shock over the revelation of a dwindled population. "I still cannot believe it..."

"Believe it!" He held up his hand, using his newly acquired magic to send tendrils out into the world. His eyes closed and he grimaced, his jaw grinding. "I can feel them, feel every one of us now, feel their fear and anger and isolation. Those clans who survived have been forced to conceal themselves for fear of death, entire countries wiped clean of our kind while the humans continue to kill us and each other! And this island will be next. The humans will swarm this place and you'll be nothing but an impediment to their conquest."

"We've always welcomed humans to this island. There were thousands living here before the war."

"Your naiveté will get your clan slaughtered." Sobek warned her, his tone chilling. He was having trouble keeping himself composed; the urge to snap this female's neck was setting his blood to boil but she was more useful alive than a broken corpse on the ground. "I've already shown you ten millennia of butchery and blood, must you witness it for yourself to believe the threat is real?"

Her jaw ground until it audibly clicked; obviously Sobek's words had gotten under her skin

"Then we will ask the humans!" Sobek roared and leaned down towards Xanatos, his eyes burning molten gold. "Tell them, human, tell them your pitiful kind will welcome these gargoyles with open arms!"

Face to face with the psychotic, they matched sneers, but Xanatos knew any vessel sailing here could well be coming for revenge rather than exploration. "You know exactly what they'll do, Sobek, thanks to your earlier spectacle. They'll be coming for payback."

"Yes, they will."

The snap of wings alerted the group to a gargoyle gliding in over the wall; he hit the ground quickly and jogged towards the female. He was young, lean like the rest and wearing a white single-shoulder tunic, carrying a golden spear. "Leader!" he cried, pointing out beyond the city walls to the eastern shore. "There are ships on the horizon, approaching quickly. But they have no sails."

"Human technology has surpassed such simplicity." Sobek explained.

"Show us, young sentinel." the female told the younger male. He led them through the city, through an ornamental arch that led from the city proper and towards the shoreline. The night sky was littered with stars and they seemed to burn brighter over the island than anywhere else, easily illuminating the shoreline and the calm waters beyond.

"There!" the lookout threw an arm out towards the ocean's horizon. "Look!"

On the distant line where water met glassy night sky, distinctive shapes stood out, lit up by their running lights. Those born or hatched in the twentieth century knew they were military warships steaming straight for the island, either allied countries coming to investigate or more of the Spanish navy coming to avenge their fallen brethren.

"More of their ships." Sobek whispered into the female's ear. "Death machines, loaded with more armament than an entire Atlantean fleet. They will raze this place and plant their flag, raping this island of its treasures and resources."

The tall male sidled up to what seemed to be the leader of this clan, gently putting a hand to her bare shoulder. "Until we know for sure, we cannot act on anyone's word without truth or trust behind it." he said.

The female nodded, grasping his fingers. "I agree, but if the humans on those ships are set to attack, set to plunder our home, then we may have no choice..."

"No choice to what, my love?"

"Fight back." Sobek answered for her. "Don't let the insects swarm this island. You were sent to the bottom of the ocean after a war with the gods, don't let the humans repeat history." He slinked around her like a coiled snake, switching from shoulder to shoulder and seeing the indecision play out in her eyes. "A war is coming. Which side will you choose?"

The lead female simply stared into the ocean.