Detective Elisa Maza peered out the window of the Police Helicopter, staring down at the crowded streets below. She was doing her best to tail David Xanatos, hoping to find some sort of proof as to his criminal behavior. Her brother Derek was piloting the craft, and he wasn't exactly happy with his sister's latest obsession.
"Come on sis." He let out, "How long are we gonna keep doing this?"
"Until I get something on him I can use." She replied. "Xanatos always spots the tail when I do this by car."
"You know, you're really obsessed with this guy." He pointed out "I know you've been close to his daughter ever since the Scarab Corp Arson case, but she's a teenage girl. You can't go tailing him and accusing him of being a criminal just because Willow claims he's evil."
"It's not like that, Derek." Elisa shot back. "I know he's dirty."
"All I'm saying is that Xanatos served his time, and has been staying on the right side of the law ever since." Derek argued. "You can't keep dwelling on somebody's past."
"Trust me Derek, this cleaning up his act routine is a façade." She retorted. "I've just got to prove it."
Derek gave up. His sister was incredibly stubborn and set in her way of thinking.
"Fine." He relented. "But, if we get a real call, this is over."
…
Around that time in the clock tower, Lexington was playing a new helicopter game that Willow had bought for them. He was enjoying himself immensely, much to Willow's delight, but was hogging the controls, much to her chagrin.
"Come on, Lex." Brooklyn grumbled. "It's my turn."
"Just hang on." Lexington mumbled.
"You've been hogging that thing since we woke up." Brooklyn insisted.
"That's because I'm the only one who knows how to work it." Lexington pointed out.
Broadway then walked over, with the biggest sandwich Willow had ever seen.
"Why do you wanna learn how to fly a helicopter anyway?" he asked, mouth full of said sandwich. "You got wings."
"You wouldn't understand." Lexington replied.
Broadway glared at Lexington.
"Oh yeah. I forgot." The large gargoyle snarled. "I'm just a big dumb gargoyle with his brains in his stomach."
"Couldn't have said it better myself." Brooklyn jeered.
"Alright, that's it." Willow declared.
She went over to Lexington and pulled the controls out of his hand.
"Hey!" he exclaimed, reaching for the controller. "I was using-"
Willow glared at him and his protest died on his tongue.
"I bought this game for all of us to share, but if you guys continue to argue like this, I won't hesitate to return it." She threatened. "Honestly… you three are brothers. Start acting like it."
"Sorry…" they all muttered, looking down.
She then gave them soft smiles.
"I know you're all worried about Elisa, but you shouldn't be." She told them, getting to the root of their hostility. "Derek Maza is one of the best pilots in the NYPD. If anyone can keep her safe, it's him."
…
Down on the streets of Manhattan, Xanatos sat in his stretch limo, adjusting the tie of his tuxedo.
"Are they up there?" he asked Owen, who was currently driving the limo.
Owen looked towards the rear view camera to see the helicopter following them from the air.
"It would appear so, sir." Owen replied.
"Excellent." Xanatos said, smirking. "You know what to do Owen. Let's go shopping."
Owen pulled the limo into the parking garage of the Manhattan Diamond Exchange.
…
Inside the exchange, dozens of Manhattan's elite were milling about drinking champagne and participating in small talk. However, there was one couple who wasn't there for the atmosphere. Jackal and Hyena, two of the three Pack members who avoided getting arrested, were dressed in their finest outfits. They were doing their best to look the part of social elites, but Hyena kept picking at her dress.
"I feel like one of those stupid Barbie dolls." She hissed.
"I know, dear sister." Jackal hissed back. "But our target is just up ahead."
He gestured towards the star of the Diamond Exchange, the Coyote diamond. It was the largest diamond currently on the market. Fox had sent them to steal it, so that's what they were gonna do. They approached the case, examining it like a dog does a piece of meat.
"What's to stop us from snatching this thing and shooting our way out of here?" Hyena asked.
"Style, dear sister. That, and the fact that I don't want to join Fox and Wolf in prison. So please, try to restrain your bloodlust."
Hyena groaned, but nodded.
"I should have gone with Dingo to Europe." She muttered. "He knew how to have fun…"
The two then went to try and disable the alarm around the diamond. Unfortunately for them, a worker at the exchange came and opened the case, removing the diamond.
"Excuse me." Jackal called, forcing a fake smile on his face. "I was looking at that."
"Oh, sorry sir." The attendant told him. "But I'm afraid it's just been purchased."
Hyena began to shake in rage, and Jackal quickly grabbed his sister's arms.
"By whom, may I ask?" He inquired.
"By Mr. Xanatos, of course." The attendant replied
The two would-be diamond thieves looked over to see Xanatos standing near the large window, greeting a large group of people. The attendant then brought him the Coyote Diamond, which he examined with an almost predatory gleam in his eye.
"This should look nice next to the Star of Arabia." He mused.
Now it was Jackal's turn to shake in rage. The two siblings looked at each other, then nodded. They stalked towards Xanatos, but was intercepted by an older gentleman.
"Excuse me!" he said in an excited tone, "Weren't you on that TV show? The Pack?"
Hyena turned to the man, a grin on her face that resembled her namesake.
"Why yes." She told him. "Would you like an autograph?"
Suddenly, she produced a knife from seemingly out of nowhere.
"How about I write it across your face!" she snapped.
She cut through the man's bowtie, missing his face by centimeters. Jackal smiled in a similar way to his sister.
"So much for style." He said with a shrug. "Might as well get in on the fun."
He leapt into the air, somersaulting across the room until he landed directly behind Xanatos. He roundhouse-kicked the man in the back of the head, then snatched up the diamond as he dropped it. He tossed it deftly over his shoulder, into the waiting hand of his sister. He smiled down at the diamond with a chilling grin. Her brother than ran over to her, placing his hand on her shoulder.
"Time to go, sis." He said through his teeth.
"I don't take orders from anyone!" Hyena snapped. "Not even you brother."
"Let's just go!" Jackal insisted.
Jackal turned on his heels, dashing for the elevator. Hyena followed close behind, her knife still gripped in her hands. As the doors closed behind them, Xanatos stood up and rubbed the back of his head.
"Call the police, Owen." He ordered.
…
Hyena and Jackal made their way to the roof of the building. Up there, they had large duffle bags waiting for them, full of folded up air gliders and large bazookas.
"Thanks to your little stunt, the whole city will be looking for us." Jackal snapped as he put his air glider together.
"Oh, give it a rest!" Hyena snapped back. "We were prepared for something like this, so just shut up."
Their air gliders prepared, the two felons went to jump off the roof, but before they could, Derek and Elisa rose above the roof in the helicopter, blocking their path.
"This is the police!" Elisa called through a megaphone. "Stay where you are!"
The wind caused by the helicopter blades spinning blew the air gliders out of the hands of Jackal and Hyena. The two immediately scrambled back over to their bags, pulling out large bazookas.
"I don't think so." Jackal sneered.
He aimed the Bazooka at the helicopter and Derek quickly went to dodge. Luckily for the Maza siblings, Xanatos arrived on the roof and tackled Jackal to the ground before he could fire. The shot went wild and struck the rear motor of the helicopter rather than the cockpit. It began to spin out of control with Derek wrestling against the controls to try and keep it stable. In a one out of a thousand chance, Derek managed to land the helicopter safely, and not a moment too soon.
"You shoulda stayed down in the party!" Hyena snarled
Xanatos looked to see Hyena and Jackal surrounding him, knives drawn. However, the sound of a gun being cocked drew their attention.
"Drop the knives and put your hands in the air!" Elisa called out. "Do it now!"
The two diamond thieves exchanged glances, then quickly ditched Xanatos. They began running back to their air gliders, righting them and taking off into the sky. Xanatos watched them leave, then shook his head.
"Never a gargoyle around when you need one." He said.
Elisa watched as Xanatos walked across the roof towards the edge, where he found the Coyote Diamond sitting on the ground. He picked it up, dusting it on the lapel of his jacket, then placing it in his pocket. Derek then walked over.
"You alright Mr. Xanatos?" he asked.
"I'm alright." He replied. "To be honest, I was a bit more worried about you and the detective. I was almost sure you were going to crash, but you pulled off a rather impressive landing."
Derek rubbed the back of his head.
"Oh…" he let out, blushing a bit in embarrassment. "It was nothing."
Xanatos smiled, then held out his hand.
"What's your name son?" he asked.
Derek blinked, then took Xanatos' hand, shaking it.
"Derek." He answered.
"Well Derek, I could use someone of your skillset in my company." Xanatos informed him. "Would you be interested in taking a job at Xanatos Enterprises?"
Elisa whipped around in shock. Xanatos was offering her brother a job?!
"I've been looking for a good helicopter pilot for a while, and while I can't promise you the action you'll get as a police officer, I can assure you that the job won't be nearly as dangerous." Xanatos continued. "And odds are, I can probably pay better."
Derek looked over at his sister, who was making very obvious, don't-take-the-job motions.
"Umm…" he muttered, honestly torn. "Well… I-I… Ummm…. You see-"
Xanatos chuckled, then held up a hand to silence him. He pulled out a small card, handing it to Derek.
"Take your time." He insisted. "And when you're ready, give me a call."
Derek took the card as Xanatos walked back towards the stairs. Elisa grabbed his arm as he did.
"What's your game, Xanatos?" she hissed.
"There's no game, detective." He promised. "I just have an eye for talent."
He pulled his arm free, then continued on his way.
"Tell Willow 'Hi' for me." He requested as he walked through the roof access door.
Elisa's eyes narrowed as the door closed behind him.
…
Meanwhile, in an old warehouse hidden away in the slums of Manhattan, Hyena was attacking a sandbag with a picture of Xanatos taped to it. She was royally pissed off, not just about the missing diamond, but for the interference of Xanatos, as well as the cops.
"I can't! Believe! We let! That jerk! Get! Away! With! Our! DIAMOND!"
She punctuated each word with a kick to the bag, nearly knocking it off of its chain.
"Well sister," Jackal replied, closing his cellphone, "it seems we'll be able to get back at that pompous rich boy real soon."
Hyena stopped attacking the bag for a minute, a creepy smile on her face.
"Oh?" she questioned, her eyes gleaming with sadistic curiosity. "How so?"
"New orders from Fox." Jackal explained. "We've get to waste Xanatos for interfering."
Hyena busted out into loud laughter.
"Finally!" she proclaimed. "A job I can get behind!"
She leapt into the air, roundhouse kicking the bag. It went flying off the chain, striking the wall hard enough to crack the plaster. The picture of Xanatos fluttered to the ground, where Jackal crushed it under his boot.
…
Elisa sat on the corner of Willow's bed, explaining the situation. The second she mentioned the words 'Derek', 'Xanatos', and 'Job', Willow had immediately sat upright in her bed.
"He did what?!" Willow exclaimed.
"It's just like I said." Elisa told her. "He offered Derek a job at his company, and the worst part is that Derek's actually considering it. He keeps saying he's just considering his options, but I know my brother well enough to know when he's actually thinking about making a change."
"There has to be some sort of scheme behind this." Willow surmised. "There's no doubt about that."
"Scheme or not, he can't work for Xanatos." Elisa muttered. "What am I going to do?"
Goliath, who had been listening to the conversation from the other side of the curtain, stepped into the room.
"Tell him the truth." He said simply.
Elisa scoffed.
"The truth?" she repeated. "The whole truth? Including the part about gargoyles living in New York? That's not my secret to tell."
"It should not be a secret, Elisa." Goliath replied. "He should trust you."
"Not a lot of trust when there isn't honesty." Elisa remarked. "And frankly, I've been lying to him and my family a lot lately. I'm afraid they're starting to catch on. Now whatever I say will just sound like an excuse, especially if I start spouting on about gargoyles."
"He may believe me." Willow suggested. "Derek's my friend too. Maybe I can convince him this is a bad idea. It's worth a shot, right?"
Goliath nodded.
"Take Willow to meet with Derek." The gargoyle told Elisa. "Show us to him if you must. He must be made to believe, no matter what measures are to be taken."
Elisa gave a small nod as Goliath walked out of the room. Willow skootched across her bed until she was right next to Elisa.
"Hey, everything will be alright." She attempted to reassure. "I promise."
"I wish I shared your enthusiasm." Elisa muttered.
…
The next night was Sunday night, meaning that the Maza family got together for a family dinner. This week, it was being held at Elisa's folk's house, where Mr. Maza was in the process of setting the table. He set up four places, since Beth was still studying in Arizona. As he set out the final place, there was a knock on the door.
"Will you get that, Peter?" Mrs. Maza called from the kitchen. "I need to watch the gravy."
"Yes, Diane." Mr. Maza replied, walking towards the door.
He opened the door to Elisa, and he smiled warmly.
"Elisa." He greeted.
"Hey pop." She replied hugging him. "I brought along a friend, if that's okay."
Mr. Maza's smile got a bit bigger.
"So, you finally found yourself a man?" he questioned.
Elisa chuckled good-naturedly, shaking her head.
"No pop, It's Willow." She answered.
Willow stepped out from behind the wall and waved. While disappointed his daughter was still single, he was happy to see Willow again. He went to hug her as well, a gesture Willow gratefully accepted.
"Good to see you again, kiddo." He told her. "Been a while since you've come by for dinner."
"Well, I was in the neighborhood and Elisa offered me a lift and free food." Willow replied with a shrug.
Mr. Maza smiled again, then turned back to the kitchen to gather up another place setting. When Mrs. Maza saw this, she smiled.
"Good thing I always make an extra helping just in case." She remarked.
It was about that time that Derek walked into the house. His face was like a stone statue's, unmoving and expressionless. However, when he saw Willow sitting down at the table, he cracked a small smile.
"Hey there, munchkin." He called, coming over and ruffling her hair.
"Hey Derek." Willow replied. "I crashed your dinner party. Hope that's alright."
"Anytime." He told her.
Soon, the entire Maza family, plus Willow, was sitting down at the table. Mrs. Maza had cooked a beautiful pot roast with gravy, garlic mashed potatoes, and some asparagus. Willow's mouth watered at the meal, her eyes as big as her plate. Mrs. Maza saw this and smiled.
"The way you're eyeing the food, people would think you haven't eaten in a week." She commented.
"Oh, don't worry about that, Mrs. Maza." Willow said, brushing off the remark. "My friends and I have plenty of food. In fact, one of my friends is a fledgling chef himself. Only problem is that he tends to eat almost everything he makes."
"Well, help yourself." Mrs. Maza replied.
Willow didn't have to be told twice. She dug into her meal with much gusto. Elisa smiled at her.
"I guess she was hungry." Elisa smirked.
She then looked over at her brother, who had the serious face on again. Taking a deep breath, she went to say something, but Derek interrupted her.
"Mom, Pop, I have some news for you." He announced.
Willow stopped eating for a moment, looking up at Derek. She swallowed her food, gently replacing her silverware.
"I was offered a job at Xanatos Enterprises." He told them. "And I've decided to accept it."
Both Willow and Elisa exchanged looks of shock. Mr. and Mrs. Maza were also stunned.
"You're quitting the force?" Mr. Maza asked after a moment.
"Yes." Derek replied. "I know that's hard to take in, but it's my decision."
"While I hate to see it happen, you need to do what you feel is best, even if it means New York loses a good cop." Mr. Maza informed him.
Elisa looked over at her father.
"Pop, you can't seriously agree with this!" she exclaimed.
"Elisa." Mrs. Maza interjected. "This is Derek's decision. If quitting the force is what he wants to do, we should let him."
She turned on her mom.
"Mom, I thought you of all people would want him to stay." She practically exclaimed. "What about everything you told us growing up about 'staying in the family business'?!"
Willow quickly interjected.
"Okay, this is getting out of hand real quickly." She declared as she gently grabbed Elisa's arm "Let's all just settle down."
"Thank you, Willow." Derek replied.
Willow then turned to Derek.
"Derek, while I respect your decision, I have to warn you." She began. "Xanatos isn't one of the good guys. He's bad news. That's the whole reason why I left. If you knew half the things he's done to me, to my friend-"
Derek stood up, turning angrily to his sister.
"You brought him here to try and talk me out of this didn't you?" he accused.
Elisa tried to defend herself, but was stopped by a raised hand from her brother.
"You know what, don't answer that." He told her. "You've been lying to me for a while now, and I'm positive anything that comes out of your mouth now will just be more lies."
"Derek, I-"
Derek tossed his napkin on the table, stomping out of the house and slamming the door behind him. Willow watched him go, then put her head in her hands.
"Well, that went well." She muttered.
…
Willow walked outside, spotting Derek leaning against the fence in front of the Maza household. She walked forward, approaching the still fuming cop.
"Hey…" she called.
Derek didn't even turn.
"Look, what happened in there was a mistake." She admitted. "But what I said is true. Xanatos isn't one of the good guys."
Derek sighed.
"Willow, I know you and Xanatos don't exactly see eye to eye, but he saved my life AND Elisa's." He informed her. "That's earned him a chance… one I'm gonna give him."
"Derek, please." Willow pleaded. "I'm begging you to just listen. I can introduce you to my friends, and they can tell you the true story about Xanatos."
"Look Willow, Mom and Pop can't make me change my mind, and neither can Elisa." He informed her, his tone portraying his annoyance with the subject. "What makes you think you can?"
He turned around and walked towards his car. He got in and drove off, leaving Willow standing by the fence.
"This is not going to end well." She groaned.
…
"Hey Brooklyn, can I talk to you?" Willow called when she made her way back up to the clock tower.
Brooklyn looked up from the TV to see her. He saw the worried look on her face and immediately went to her side.
"What is it?" he asked.
"It's Derek." She informed him. "He took the job."
Broadway and Lexington walked over.
"Elisa's brother?" Broadway asked.
"Yep, she's still trying to convince him this is a bad idea, but he's not listening." Willow explained. "Until we can make him see the truth, we need to keep an eye on him."
"Count me in." Brooklyn replied without hesitation.
"Me too." Added Broadway.
"But what about Jackal and Hyena?" Lexington asked. "I mean, I saw on the news they were loose. We should be out hunting them down."
"Lex…" Willow said softly. "I know you still harbor hard feelings towards the Pack after what they did-"
"And why shouldn't I?!" Lex snarled.
"-But, we need to focus on Derek for now, okay?" she continued, ignoring his outburst.
"Willow is right." Goliath interrupted. "Derek is our main priority right now."
The three gargoyles and Willow turned to Goliath, who looked like he was preparing to fly off.
"I will go and keep a lookout for Xanatos and Derek." He declared. "You four will go to the castle and see what you can find of Xanatos' plan."
Willow quickly ran to her room, grabbing her Gargoyle Gauntlet and slipping it on her arm. As she put on the mental interface, Brooklyn scooped her up and they made their way out into the night. Unfortunately, Lexington still didn't let up about Hyena and Jackal.
"This is a waste of our time!" he exclaimed. "We need to be trying to find those pack members!"
"Look, Goliath said go to the castle, so that's what we're doing." Brooklyn replied.
"Besides, it's more important that we help Elisa." Broadway added.
"You two wouldn't know what's important if it bit you in the-"
"Oh, will you guys knock it off!" Willow exclaimed, cutting off Lex's rant. "Seriously! You've been at each other's throats for nights now, and frankly, I'm getting tired of siblings argue. Now all three of you will get along or I will- LOOK OUT!"
The gargoyles suddenly veered off, narrowly avoiding the large Helicopter making its way towards the Eyrie building. On the side of the helicopter was the symbol for The Pack, which instantly set Lexington off.
"It's those two!" He shouted.
"Not only that, look where they're headed." Brooklyn added.
As the gargoyles looked towards the castle, they could see the Xanatos Enterprises helicopter lifting off. As it began flying into the night, the Pack's copter went after them.
"They're after Derek and Xanatos!" Willow realized.
"They won't get him." Lexington replied, his eyes glowing in rage.
The three gargoyles banked again, going after the two copters. Meanwhile, Hyena and Jackal began open firing on their target, attempting to shoot the other copter out of the sky. Derek saw this and quickly began evasive maneuvers to avoid being hit. However, the two criminals had a few tricks up their sleeves. Hyena hit a button that opened a hatch at the bottom of the copter. Out came a missile, which shot through the air towards Xanatos and Derek.
"Try dodging that!" Hyena cackled.
However, a laser shot through the night, hitting the missile before it got even close to its target. The shockwave did knock the copter off balance, but Derek's skills allowed him to quickly regain control.
"What was that?" he asked. "What stopped that missile?"
Xanatos looked out the window towards the pursuing copter, and the three silhouettes against the moon.
"It seems we have a guardian angel," he declared, "or four."
As he said that, Hyena went to ready a second missile. Before she could press the button though, Broadway landed on the glass above her, attempting to smash through it.
"Whoa!" she screamed, having forgotten about the gargoyles.
After a minute, Broadway succeeded in smashing through the glass, grabbing Hyena and tossing her out. She almost immediately released a parachute, giving Brooklyn no reason not to do the same to Jackal. He set Willow down in Hyena's seat, where she tapped Jackal with her claw.
"Hi" she said when he turned to her. "Look up."
He did just that, and Brooklyn hoisted him into the air and tossed him away. Like his sister, he activated his parachute. Once he succeeded in landing on the same rooftop as his sister, they stared up at Xanatos' copter, which was quickly flying away to safety, as well as their own, which was being hijacked by the gargoyles.
"I had almost forgotten about those freaks." Hyena sneered.
"And that little brat they keep as a pet." Jackal added.
Back up in the Pack's copter, Lexington was in the pilot's seat, trying to figure out how to fly it.
"This isn't anything like the flight simulator game." He muttered nervously.
"Can you fly this thing or not?" Broadway asked.
"I'll do my best." he replied.
"Famous last words." Willow said fearfully.
Lexington took hold of the stick controls, doing his best to steer. Unfortunately, he began throwing the helicopter around the sky in wild patterns. All four of them began shouting in fear as they went up, down, left, right, and directions none of them even knew existed. Willow dug her claw into the metal sides of the copter, holding on for dear life as Broadway and Brooklyn did the same to Lexington's seat. All of a sudden, the copter began a spiraling path downward at alarming speeds.
"Lexington!" Willow shouted. "You need to pull up!"
"How?!" he shouted back.
"Feel the air currents!" Broadway suggested. "Just like you do with your wings!"
"Yeah!" Brooklyn added. "Use the force Lex!"
Pulling hard on the joystick, he finally managed to pull the copter up seconds before it hit the street. He then jerked the stick to the side, narrowly avoiding a large truck. Soon, they were flying almost a few feet above the ground with people running and ducking for cover at the AWOL copter. Finally, the copter turned down a trash strewn alley where it began bouncing across the street like a skipping stone, sending all four passengers flying up and down. Brooklyn grabbed ahold of Willow, wrapping his wings around her seconds before the copter finally crashed into a large brick wall.
All four of them were thrown from the copter and onto the street. Lexington landed first, rubbing his head in pain. Next was Broadway, who landed right on top of Lex. Finally, Brooklyn landed on top of both of them, his wings unwrapping from around Willow, who was clinging to Brooklyn for dear life.
"Is it over?" she asked, opening a single eye.
"Yeah…" Brooklyn replied, gently sliding her onto the ground. "Nice flying Lex."
Broadway pulled the smaller gargoyle out from under him, and Lexington began dusting himself off.
"Hey…" he replied weakly, "And landing you can walk away from…"
The four of them looked at the wrecked plane and sighed.
"Well, what are we gonna do with this hunk of junk?" Broadway asked.
"I might be able to get it working again…" Lexington suggested.
"Yeah, just promise me one thing." Willow insisted.
"What is it?" Lex asked.
"Learn to fly it before we use it." She insisted.
…
The trio and Willow returned to the clock tower after hiding the wrecked helicopter. When Elisa saw the state they were all in, she quickly ran to their sides.
"What happened out there?" she asked.
"Don't ask." Willow muttered.
The trio made their way to the balcony to prepare for sunset as Willow stumbled over to her room. She fished around for the first aid kit she kept in her dresser, which Elisa quickly took from her.
"You guys went to keep an eye on Derek, I know that." Elisa announced. "So please, tell me what happened."
Willow sighed as Elisa began pulling out bandages and antiseptic spray.
"Hyena and Jackal happened." She explained. "They tried to shoot Xanatos and Derek out of the sky."
Elisa looked up from the med kit, her eyes widening.
"What?!" she exclaimed.
Willow quickly held up her hands.
"Don't worry, we stopped them and took their helicopter." She quickly clarified. "But Lexington crashed it in an alley not long after."
Elisa sighed in relief, then got back to work wrapping Willow's wounds.
"I'm surprised you managed to get away from a helicopter crash with just a few scratches and bruises." She commented.
Willow shrugged.
"Brooklyn took the brunt of the damage for me." She explained. "Whenever we're in trouble, he always grabs me and wraps his wings around me so I'll be safe."
Elisa chuckled.
"Sounds like how Derek and I use to protect my sister Beth from bullies back when we were kids." She said. "He cares about you a lot."
"Who, Brooklyn?" Willow questioned. "Sure, we're good friends."
"Just good friends?" Elisa asked knowingly.
Willow suddenly blushed and turned away, coughing slightly.
"Umm… Let's get back to Hyena and Jackal." Willow's face was almost redder than Brooklyn.
"What about them?" she asked. "Odds are, they're after Xanatos after he interfered with their diamond heist a few nights back."
"I don't think so." Willow countered. "Remember, the Pack use to belong to Xanatos. He brought them together. He may have ordered Hyena and Jackal to attack him… or Derek."
Elisa's eyes widened at the possibility.
"You think that's possible?" she wondered.
"I wouldn't put is past Xanatos to try something like that." Willow admitted. "Maybe you should ask Fox. She was the leader of the Pack, and who knows, she might still be."
Elisa nodded as she tied off the last of Willow's bandages.
"Good idea." Elisa replied. "I'll go visit her and see what I can learn. In the meantime, you try and get some sleep. You may not regenerate as quickly as the gargoyles, but some sleep may do you some good."
Willow gave a salute, then promptly leaned back onto her bed. She was asleep before her head even hit the pillow. Elisa closed the curtain behind her, then went to talk to Goliath.
"Hey big guy." She called.
Goliath turned to her from his roost.
"Willow told me about the helicopter those three managed to steal." She commented. "Do you think you could take over guarding Derek so they can get it fixed?"
Goliath nodded as Broadway let out a groan.
"Why do you want us to fix that death trap anyways?" he asked.
"Because as long as he's flying Xanatos' copter, we'll need one of our own just to keep up." Elisa pointed out. "You guys are fast, but those things are faster."
Lexington smiled at his brother, putting a claw on his shoulder.
"Don't worry." He said smugly. "I'll tell you what needs to be done."
Both Brooklyn and Broadway glared at Lexington as the sun rose, turning them all into stone. Elisa's face hardened as she turned away, making her way out of the clock tower.
…
Elisa walked into the visiting room of Riker's Island, surprised that Fox had willingly allowed her to come. As she took her seat, the red haired vixen took hers, a smug smile on her face.
"Welcome, detective." She greeted. "David told me you'd come to see me eventually."
Elisa raised an eyebrow at Fox's casual use of Xanatos' real name. However, she kept that particular train of thought subdued
"He knew I would come?" she asked instead.
"Of course." Fox replied, leaning back in her chair with a smile. "He suspected you would try to find out his 'secret plan' for your brother by any means necessary. Lucky for you, I'm in a giving mood."
"Well then, what do you know?" Elisa questioned.
"I know that you think Hyena and Jackal attacking David is a plot, and you're half right." Fox began. "You see, I'm the only one who knows he's the boss. He ordered me to have them hit the diamond exchange, then make him the next target."
"But why?" Elisa wondered.
"Why else?" Fox retorted. "To get your brother of course. David wanted him, so he took him without him being any the wiser."
"Why does he want Derek?" Elisa questioned, still confused.
"To get to you." Fox answered simply. "He may not be able to control the gargoyles, but through Derek, he has a way to get to one of their only human friends. Just imagine, the Gargoyles attempting to thwart David's plans, and you wanting so desperately to help, but you can't get involved out of fear for your brother's safety."
"If this is Xanatos' plan, then why are you just telling me all this." Elisa inquired skeptically.
Fox laughed.
"Because, sweetie, you're so far behind him it's pathetic." She taunted. "He told me to tell you his plan. He doesn't need to hide his plans from you, because there's nothing you can do to stop him."
She suddenly got this dreamy look on her face, like a love sick girl reading a poem from her crush.
"He's the most brilliant man on the face of the Earth."
Elisa stood up and stalked out of the room, Fox waving at her back.
"Tell Willow I said 'Hi'!" she called as the door slammed shut behind Elisa.
Elisa made her way out of the prison, and once she was clear of the door, she fished out the pocket recorder she had hidden in her jacket pocket. Hitting the replay button, she smiled when her conversation with Fox began to play back for her.
"Nothing I can do to stop him, huh?" she repeated, a smug look on her face. "Well we'll just see about that."
…
That night, Elisa, Willow, and the rest of the gargoyles waited for Goliath to return. He landed on the balcony, a look of frustration on his face.
"Derek and Xanatos left the castle in the helicopter." He reported. "They were too fast for me to follow, but they were headed north."
"Xanadune." Willow spoke up. "It's his private retreat out in the forests. He used to take me there during summer vacation. No doubt he went there as a 'safe haven' from Jackal and Hyena."
"Well, how do we get there?" Elisa asked.
"With the new Gargoyle Helicopter." Lexington announced. "I finished the repairs earlier tonight."
"You mean 'we' finished the repairs." Brooklyn told him.
Willow sighed.
"Give it a rest." She told them. "Let's just go. We've no time to lose."
The group flew over to the roof of a nearby building where Lexington had stashed the copter. He pulled the large tarp off of it, revealing a now matt black hull with enough room for all seven people plus Bronx. There were armored sides that resembled gargoyle wings, and the rear motor had a spiked edge similar to a gargoyle's tail.
"It looks like a hunk of junk!" Broadway replied.
"I'm sure you designed it, it would be covered in food." Lexington retorted.
"Both of you!" Willow exclaimed. "Shut up and get in the chopper."
Everyone climbed in and they took off towards Xanadune.
…
In the rustic retreat, Xanatos and Derek were walking through the dense forest, trying to enjoy the open air.
"I was quite impressed with the flying you did last night." Xanatos commented off hand. "It cemented my opinion that hiring you was the best decision I've made in a while."
"I just hope being attacked isn't a nightly occurrence." Derek replied.
Xanatos just chuckled.
"Let's just say that my life is anything but dull." He commented.
As if to prove his point, Jackal and Hyena began sneaking through the bushes, highly powerful automatic weapons in their hands. They slunk closer to the two unwitting victims, then took aim at the many lamps that lit the forest path. When the lamp closest to Derek blew out, he quickly grabbed Xanatos and dragged him to the ground.
"I thought you said this place was secure!" Derek exclaimed, drawing his weapon.
"I thought it was." Xanatos replied.
Utilizing night vision goggles, Hyena took aim at the two figures crouched in the darkness.
"This is too easy." She said with a cruel chuckle.
However, before she could pull the trigger, the sound of a helicopter drew everyone's attention. They all looked up to see the large, monstrous figure of the gargoyles' helicopter rising above the trees, making a bee line towards Xanadune. Panicking, Hyena and Jackal began open firing on the chopper, only for the lasers to rebound off the hull.
"Still think the armor looks dumb?" Lex called out amid the noise.
He flipped on the spotlights, blinding the two would be assassins, who immediately screamed in pain and ripped their night vision goggles off their faces. As they did, Goliath snarled.
"It's Jackal and Hyena." He called. "Take them down! Now!"
Lexington just smiled, then hit the missile button. Said missile was immediately dropped and it went straight for the two blinded attackers. Fearing for their lives, the two began running for cover. Luckily for them, instead of the missile killing them, it released a net trap that quickly snared them both.
"Damnit!" Jackal yelled in anger, fighting against the net.
"Come on!" Hyena shouted, her metal claws ripping through the net. "Let's do our job and get outta here!"
Once again, the siblings began running, pausing only to try and shoot down the chopper. As they did, the side hatch opened and Broadway, Brooklyn, and Willow all leapt out, the latter wearing a parachute.
The two gargoyles went after Jackal, cornering him quickly. He attempted to shoot his weapon, but Broadway quickly snatched it out of his hands, crushing it to bits.
"I hate guns." He told him. "And people who use them to try and kill other people!"
Brooklyn then grabbed Jackal by his legs, hoisting him into the air. He brought him down hard on the ground, where he remained out like a light. Hyena continued to run through the woods until Willow landed in front of her, slicing through the ropes of her parachute with her metal claw.
"Hello Hyena." She greeted.
"Well, just what we needed." Hyena snarled. "Those stupid gargoyles and their little pet!"
Hyena tossed the gun to the side, extending the knife like claws of her gauntlets. Willow readied her own, much to Hyenas immense pleasure.
"Looks like the little kitten's got some claws." She remarked, grinning "Let's see if you can use them."
Hyena launched herself at Willow, her claws going to rake at her face. Willow brought hers up, using it to block the attacks. With every attack, Willow simply moved her metal arm to block it. This continuous pattern seemed to irritate Hyena, who was somehow unable to get a hit on the girl. Attempting a kick to the stomach, she was even more surprised when Willow jumped back, avoiding the blow entirely.
"Is that all you and your little claw can do?" Hyena taunted. "Block and avoid?"
Willow brought out the laser gun extension of the gauntlet and fired once, striking Hyena right in the chest. The woman fell like a sack of potatoes, unconscious like her brother. Willow blew smoke from the gun and smirked.
"Nope."
…
Not long after that, Hyena and Jackal were safely restrained and the group landed the copter to speak to Xanatos.
"Detective." Xanatos greeted Elisa. "I'm sure your brother was more than capable of handling the situation, but thank you anyway. You as well Willow."
Willow resisted the urge to blast her adoptive father in the face, but just barely. She turned away from him and looked at Derek, who was staring at the gargoyles. However, the look on his face didn't have the same amount of shock that Elisa's had when she'd first met them. It was almost as if he already knew.
"Perhaps I should leave you three alone." Xanatos added after a moment. "It seems you have much to discuss."
The second Xanatos walked off, Derek began to speak.
"So they are real…" he said softly
"What do you mean?" Elisa asked.
"Xanatos probably told him about Goliath and the others." Willow explained.
"You're right Willow." Derek told her, his eyes never leaving the gargoyles. "He even showed me a video of you fighting alongside them on multiple occasions. I didn't believe it at first, but now…"
"What did he tell you about us?" Goliath asked.
"Only that you were real, that you were taking care of Willow, and that he'd made mistakes in dealing with all of you in the past." Derek answered.
"A few mistakes?!" Elisa exclaimed.
"Look, I don't care what you say, I'm not gonna quit!" Derek snapped, turning towards Elisa/
"You have to quit!" Elisa insisted. "He's using you!"
"It my life!" Derek snapped. "Butt out!"
"That's IT!" Willow suddenly screamed.
Everyone froze, turning towards Willow.
"All week, I've been listening to you three bicker over the smallest thing!" she yelled, pointing at the trio before turning to Elisa and Derek. "And you two are even worse! You guys are siblings! Family! You don't realize how lucky you are to have a family! I don't even remember mine! So stop all this fighting before you do or say something that you'll regret!"
She then stalked off, leaving the stunned gargoyles as well as the two stunned humans to think about her words. After a moment, Elisa sighed.
"She's right Derek." She admitted. "There is nothing more important than family. I let my fear of losing you take me over, and I tried to make you do what I wanted. I know Xanatos is one of the bad guys, but if this is what you want, I won't try to stop you."
She fished into her pocket, pulling out the pocket recorder.
"This recording is proof that Xanatos isn't the stand-up guy you want him to be." She explained as she held it out for him. "Listen to it, throw it in the trash, or do whatever you want with it. It's up to you."
Derek took the recorder as Elisa walked off, the gargoyles not far behind. He was left there in the falling snow, staring at the recording.
…
Back at the clock tower, Elisa and Willow watched as the gargoyles prepared for sunrise. Once on their perches, Broadway turned to Lexington.
"Hey, uh- Good job on that helicopter." He said after a minute.
"Yeah." Brooklyn replied. "That armor really helped."
"I couldn't have done it without you two." Lexington replied.
Willow smiled happily, glad to see everybody getting along again. As the sun came up, she gladly walked inside and curled up for her own sleep, Elisa tucking her in.
"Goodnight Willow." She said softly. "And thank you."
