Martin Hacker, an FBI agent and Matt Bluestone's old partner leaned against a large tree in the middle of central park, pinching the bridge of his nose. The tree had become a meeting place for him and his former partner ever since Matt's lust for conspiracy got him booted from the bureau. Still, despite this setback, and the number of dead ends that the detective seemed to hit, Matt never gave up on finding the Illuminati. The last tip Martin had given Matt had led him to the Silver Falcon, a misadventure that had also lured in his latest partner, Elisa Maza. Thankfully, Elisa seemed quite content with staying out of Matt's Illuminati hunt. If only Matt would do the same.

Today, Matt was meeting up with Martin in regards to Mace Malone, the missing gangster he'd been after during the Silver Falcon incident. He'd been unwilling to let the missing gangster stay down, even though the guy had to have been pushing 100. He'd insisted on Martin finding Mace's only living relative, his step-son, no matter the cost.

"Why do you insist on doing this?" Martin asked. "Your obsession is what got you bounced from the FBI. Do you want to lose your badge all together?"

Matt gave his partner a withering glare.

"Martin, did you find him, or not?" he asked harshly.

"What difference does it make if I found him?" Martin retorted. "Mace vanished over 70 years ago, and he's most likely dead. Even if you found out why he just up a disappeared, how would that prove the Illuminati even exists?"

"Martin!" Matt exclaimed. "The step-son! Where is he?"

Martin was taken aback by Matt's exclamation, then let out a sigh, fishing into the pocket of his coat.

"Fine." he grumbled. "But you have no idea what I had to do to get this for you."

He pulled out a piece of paper from his coat pocket, handing it to Matt. Matt took the paper, unfolding it and scanning its contents.

"He's in the witness protection program, so he was quite hard to pin down." Martin explained. "Luckily, the bureau still keeps tabs on him, despite the fact that his case was over long ago."

Matt smiled, tucking the paper into his pocket.

"Thanks Martin." He said.

Martin snorted, turning to walk away.

"You wanna thank me, get out of this business before you lose this job too." He replied.

Matt was itching to follow of on this lead, but one thing stopped him. The last time he had decided to branch off alone, he'd ended up the prisoner of Tony Dracon until Elisa had rescued him. Since then, he figured it would be best if he let his partner know where he was going, just in case something went south again. Besides, she might even be willing to help him out again.

Walking through the precinct, Matt finally managed to find his elusive partner. However, it seemed that she was in the middle of a conversation with Willow Xanatos. The two women were sitting on the ground in a hallway, the remains of some fast food take out beside them.

"I don't even know how she found me." Willow told Elisa, seeming upset about something. "But there she was, waiting for me outside the burger joint, just leaning against that convertible with that cocky grin."

"Fox does tend to make an entrance." Elisa agreed.

Matt stepped back around the corner, leaning against the wall and listening in on the conversation.

"She claimed that she just wanted to talk, and then she tells me that she's pregnant!" Willow went on.

Elisa gasped in surprise as Matt raised an eyebrow. The tabloids had mentioned the possibility of Fox being pregnant with Xanatos' child, and now it would seem that the story had been proven true.

"And, what did you say?" Elisa asked.

"What could I say?" Willow replied. "I barely accept that she's my adoptive mother. Now she's telling me I'm going to be a big sister? Elisa, I don't know how to feel. I mean, both Xanatos and Fox are the bad guys, but they do seem to honestly care about me and each other…"

Elisa put her arm around Willow's shoulders to comfort her.

"Just give it time then." She suggested. "I'm sure you'll figure everything out eventually."

Matt walked around the corner, figuring now was a good time to enter.

"Elisa." He called.

Elisa looked up, smiling at Matt. Willow hopped to her feet as well, giving Matt a grin.

"Hey Matt." She said with a wave before turning to Elisa. "I'll see myself out."

As Willow walked down the hallway, Elisa noticed the piece of paper sticking out of Matt's pocket.

"I'm guessing your meeting with Martin went well." She guessed.

"More than well." Matt admitted. "He managed to find Jack Danforth, Mace's step-son. If my hunch pans out-"

"Let me guess," Elisa chuckled, "the Illuminati."

Elisa turned and walked off, leaving Matt feeling more than a bit hurt. He'd hoped after everything she'd witnessed during their last adventure, she'd be more willing to believe him. However, it would seem that like all his ex-partners, she just didn't see what he saw.

Steeling his resolve, Matt decided to head out. However, before he did, he noticed Willow walking down another hallway. He squinted a bit in confusion, wondering where she was going. The exit was in the other direction, and yet, she seemed to be headed deeper into the precinct. Matt decided to follow her, making sure to keep out of sight. Eventually, she rounded a corner, and as Matt followed her, she seemingly disappeared.

Matt blinked in surprise. The hallway was completely empty, and more than that, it was a dead end. The only thing down the hallway was a small broom closet and nothing else. Figuring that was a mystery for another day, Matt turned and left the precinct.

At the V-Shape Health Club, Matt flashed his badge, getting him past the front desk and into the main area. Sitting on one of the weight machines was Jack Danforth, much older than the photos Matt had been given, but there was no denying it was him. As Matt walked his direction, Jack paused his workout, wiping his face on a towel.

"Don't the feds clue you guys in?" He asked, a bit out of breath. "Til the day I die, I'm just a retired banker who likes to spend his afternoons in a health club."

"Happy for you, Jack." Matt told him with no small amount of sarcasm. "But I'm not here for you. I'm here about your mother. According to my research, she was Flo Day, the silent film star."

He fished into his pocket for a few photos, showing them to Jack. They were of a funeral, with him in the front row.

"She died 15 years ago, and yet, it doesn't seem like your step-father made an appearance." Matt went on.

Jack's face hardened as he batted the photos away.

"The man was a bum!" He snarled. "Mace Malone walked out on us when I was 5. Nobody ever saw him after that."

Matt switched to a different photograph from the funeral, showing those who were sitting in the back. The picture had needed to be blown up to show the faces, but he'd succeeded in finding what he wanted.

"I said it seemed like he hadn't made an appearance, but look closely." Matt told him.

Jack squinted at the photo, recognition dawning as he saw one of the men in the middle of the row. Sure enough, it was Mace Malone. Significantly older, but present.

"Well, whaddya know." Jack said in surprise. "If it ain't that bum. Guess he wasn't dead after all. But what's that gotta do with me?"

Matt put the photos back in his coat.

"Where is your mother buried?" he asked.

"Pine Lawn." Jack supplied. "She was laid to rest under her real name, Flora Dreidel."

As Matt prepared to walk out, Jack called out to him one last time.

"If you see Malone, tell him I said he's a bum!" he requested.

The sound of the trap door leading into the clock tower opening pulled Willow from her slumber. It was almost sunset, so it was most likely Elisa coming to say good evening. Wrapping a blanket around herself, Willow put her slippers on and went past her bedroom curtain.

"You're early, Elisa." She commented, yawning widely. "Sunset's not for another-"

She suddenly cut off as she realized it was NOT Elisa she was talking to. Instead, it was a very confused, and slightly embarrassed, Matt Bluestone.

"Matt!" Willow exclaimed, suddenly wide awake and pulling the blanket tighter around herself. "What… What are you doing up here?"

"I could ask you the same thing." Matt replied.

Matt scanned the room, his eyes locking onto the TV set up in the make-shift living room.

"Isn't that the TV you and Elisa were 'storing' here the first day we met?" He questioned.

"Well-" Willow tried to explain.

"And look at all this." He continued, not waiting for an answer. "An entire collection of DVDs, shelves of books, and enough food to feed an army. Just what's going on here?"

Willow panicked, a spark of green appearing in her eyes. Still she forced it down, doing her best to remain calm. Thinking fast, she managed to come up with an answer.

"This… is my haven." She quickly supplied.

"Your haven?" Matt repeated.

"Yeah… It was after my parents died." She told him, a story already coming to mind, "Elisa had me in protective custody, but this crazy guy I apparently dated before everything happened managed to find me. Elisa had this place set up so he'd have to go through the entire precinct to get to me."

"Well, last I checked, that boyfriend was history." Matt replied. "A victim of an old fashion prison stabbing."

"True." Willow admitted. "Which is why now, it merely serves as a place for me to lay low when things get hectic in the real world. And with everything going on with my adoptive family…"

There was the sound of the broom closet door opening, and Willow instantly froze. At least, until Elisa came running up the ladder.

"Willow!" she called, then she noticed her partner. "And Matt…"

"Hey Elisa." Willow greeted, doing her best to sound casual. "I was just telling Matt about the haven you helped me set up after the first Ryan incident."

Elisa caught on quickly, thank God.

"Right." She said. "I know it's technically bending a few regulations, but nobody's getting hurt, and she has a place where she can feel safe."

Matt seemed more than a little skeptical, but decided to let it slide. That's when the clock began to chime, signifying it was about 6 o'clock. Looking out through the glass of the clock face, both Elisa and Willow could see how late it was getting, and how soon the sun would set.

"That's our cue to leave partner." Elisa insisted, practically dragging Matt out of the tower. "Besides, I'm sure you're dying to tell me how it went with Danforth today."

Once Elisa and Matt were back in the precinct and the trap door closed behind them, Willow sagged onto the floor in relief. That had been a little too close for comfort. Down in the hall, Matt explained what he'd learned.

"According to Pine Lawn, an old man comes by every Thursday afternoon to lay a rose on Flora Dreidel's crypt." He explained, unable to keep a smile off his face. "I know it's a long shot, but tomorrow is Thursday."

The next afternoon, an old man approached a large columbarium, looking at one of the sections with the name Flora Dreidel engraved on it. On the little shelf attached to it, the man placed a single red rose with a black ribbon tied to it. As he took a moment to stand there in silence, Matt approached him.

"All these years, and yet you still have a soft spot for Flora." He commented.

The old man turned as Matt came next to him.

"Must have been tough," Matt remarked. "Becoming dead to the world, abandoning your wife and step-son. But you had no choice. The Illuminati decided you were irreplaceable."

"Excuse me?" The old man asked.

"Nobody understood more about underworld dealings than Mace Malone." Matt explained. "Through you, the Illuminati had been organized crime's silent partner, but that made you a marked man. You had to disappear, but it seems that you couldn't fully let go of your old life.

"Young man," the old fellow asked mildly, "how long have you been plagued by these fanciful delusions?"

Matt seized the man's right hand, revealing a tattoo across the back of it. It depicted the unfinished pyramid with the all-seeing eye, the well-known symbol of the Illuminati.

"Not as long as you've had this tattoo." Matt retorted. "For a man pushing a hundred, you're remarkably well-preserved. How accommodating of the Society to provide its senior members with rejuvenation treatments."

The old man, obviously Mace Malone, took off his sunglasses and flashed Matt a smile loaded with impeccable pearly-whites.

"You should see the dental plan." He joked.

The two began walking through the cemetery, Mace taking over the conversation.

"The Society has been keeping tabs on you for quite some time, Detective Bluestone." Mace explained. "Despite all the roadblocks we've thrown your way, you've managed to persevere."

"I've been told I can be stubborn at times." Matt replied.

"Stubborn or not, the Illuminati could use someone with your tenacity." Mace continued. "And that's why we're willing to offer you a position within our ranks."

Matt stopped walking as he attempted to process what he had just been told. If this was true, then this could be the chance he'd been waiting for. He'd be able to discover all the secrets of the Illuminati, and prove once and for all that they existed.

"Is this for real?" he asked.

"Of course." Mace promised. "But before we can set it in stone, you'll have to pass a loyalty test first."

Matt snorted. Of course there was a catch. There always was when thinks seemed too good to be true. Plus, this could all be some sort of elaborate set up, just like back with Dracon.

"You want me to prove my good faith?" He asked. "Then how about you prove yours first."

Mace chuckled, as if having expected such a request.

"As you wish." Mace told him. "I have some information that you might be interested in, courtesy if David Xanatos, one of our lower-echelon members."

"You've got my attention." Matt remarked.

Elisa's car drove down a dark, winding road that overlooked the ocean. They'd been driving for several hours now, and Matt hadn't said a single word. He kept replaying the conversation he'd had with Mace over and over in his head. With every passing moment, he grew angrier and angrier, something that didn't go unnoticed by Elisa.

"You okay, partner?" she asked. "You haven't said three words to me all night."

"Let. Me. Drive." Matt said deliberately, just barely keeping his rage in check.

Elisa blinked in surprise, actually pulling over.

"Matt, what's going on?" she questioned.

"I insist." He told her, completely ignoring question.

Realizing there was no way of getting through to her partner, Elisa reluctantly unbuckled her seatbelt, getting out of the car. Mat slid into the driver's seat, buckling in.

"Seatbelt." He told her.

Elisa barely had time to click the belt into place before Matt floored the gas pedal, speeding off down the road. Elisa braced herself against the dash board as Matt took turns as a frightening speed, nearly sending them both off the cliff an alarming number of times.

"I saw Mace Malone today." Matt explained. "The old man had a lot to say, and not just about the Illuminati."

"That's great Matt, but easy on the gas, okay?" Elisa requested, still bracing herself.

"He told me I knew someone who could blow the lid off another conspiracy." Matt continued, disregarding Elisa's protests. "One a lot closer to home."

He screeched around a particularly tight turn. Now Elisa was honestly fearing for both of their lives.

"Matt, slow down!" she ordered. "This is nuts!"

"This is the end Elisa!" Matt screamed, looking at his partner with betrayal in his eyes, "The end of all the lies and deception! Only your gargoyles can save us now!"

Elisa gasped in shock, both at Matt's knowledge of the gargoyles, and the sudden realization of what he was planning. Thinking fast, Elisa grabbed the steering wheel, bringing her foot down hard on the brake pedal. The car came to a halt, denting the front bumper on the protective railing surrounding the cliffside. With their lives no longer in danger, Elisa yanked the keys from the ignition.

"Have you lost your mind?!" Elisa shrieked. "You could have gotten us both killed!"

"What, afraid that your gargoyles wouldn't save us?!" Matt demanded. "Why do you keep protecting them?!"

"Because-"

"And don't you dare say they're not real!" Matt interrupted. "I know they're real, and I know that they protect you!"

"MATT!" Elisa screamed.

She grabbed Matt by the shoulders, forcing him to calm down. As he did, Matt let out a deep breath, finally realizing what he had done. There was little doubt in his mind that he'd gone too far this time. Elisa was probably going to tell the chief about his reckless behavior, and then he'd be suspended, or worse, lose his badge.

"I'm sorry…" He muttered. "I just-"

"Matt." Elisa repeated, softer this time. "I was only going to say that they don't follow me everywhere."

Matt blinked.

"Wait…" he let out, "You're not-?"

"Nah." Elisa told him. "I know how you get with your conspiracies. I guess that's why I wanted to keep the gargoyles to myself."

"You were afraid I'd blow the whistle." Matt realized.

Elisa nodded.

"That's most of it." She admitted. "If you want, I can introduce you."

Matt smiled at the idea, attempting to take the keys from Elisa. However, she held them out of reach.

"Uh-uh." She chastised. "I'm driving."

By the time the two of them made it back to the precinct, the sun had risen, meaning the gargoyles were now statues once more. Elisa sighed as she realized this.

"Sorry Matt." She apologized. "But it looks like you're going to have to wait until tonight."

"What do you mean?" Matt questioned, becoming suspicious. "This sounds too much like a stall."

"Unfortunately, you can't see them now." Elisa explained. "However, meet me again tonight before sunset. Then, I promise you that you'll meet the gargoyles."

Matt was reluctant, but he gave a nod. He'd have to trust her.

The rest of the day wasn't a total loss. Matt managed to secure a meeting with Mace. They met on a cruise ship floating down the Hudson, sitting at a small table with some drinks.

"I've been promised a meeting with the gargoyles tonight." Matt explained. "Seems your information was accurate."

Mace gave a cunning smile.

"So much for our good faith." He remarked. "Now it's your turn."

"What do I need to do?" Matt asked.

Mace chuckled, then reached into the pocket of his coat, pulling out a keycard, like the ones you get at hotels. It had "Hotel Cabal" printed on it, as well as the number 13. He handed it to Matt, who looked at it curiously.

"Bring us a gargoyle." He replied.

Matt climbed up the ladder into the clock tower, where Elisa and Willow were both waiting for him. Thankfully, Willow was fully dressed this time.

"Evening Matt." Willow greeted. "Elisa told me you're here for the sunset showing of Gargoyles: The Awakening."

Matt raised an eyebrow at that.

"You're in on this too?" he asked.

Willow chuckled.

"In on it?" she repeated with a smirk. "Xanatos and I brought them back to life. I've been by their side since night one."

Matt was genuinely surprised. Mace hadn't mentioned anything about Willow's involvement. Then again, the information had been given to him by Xanatos, and there was a good chance that the man had withheld that particular connection. Any further deductions were cut off as Willow took his arm, dragging him onto the balcony outside the clock face.

"I'll make sure to introduce you." Willow told him. "They've all been eager to get to know you better, or at least the trio has."

That's when Matt saw the six large gargoyle statues adorning the railing. Immediately, he felt like he had been tricked.

"Statues?" he growled, "You brought me all the way up here to show me statues?"

Willow and Elisa exchanged knowing glances, then took a big step back. Matt went to shout some more, then he heard an ominous cracking sound. Turning back towards the statues, he saw telltale cracks traveling up the stone, flaking away to reveal skin. He quickly stepped back as the gargoyles all stretched and growled, coming out of their stone sleep in true monstrous fashion.

"Morning guys!" Willow called happily.

Brooklyn jumped from his perch, hugging Willow and pecking her on the cheek. Both Lexington and Broadway gave playful 'oohs' until Brooklyn threw a chunk of stone skin at them.

"Will you two grow up?" Brooklyn asked jokingly.

That's when Hudson noticed Matt standing there, looking more than a bit shocked.

"Head's up lads." He called out. "We've got a bit more company than usual."

Everyone gathered around Matt as Elisa took her partner's arm.

"Guys, I'd like to officially introduce you all to Matt Bluestone." She told them. "Matt, these are the gargoyles."

"We're the Manhattan clan." Willow explained. "The purple one's Goliath, the blue one's Broadway, the green one's Lexington, the one with the sword is Hudson, and this is Brooklyn."

Bronx let out an indignant growl, barking at Willow. She chuckled and pet his head.

"And this rascal is Bronx." She added.

Goliath turned to Elisa with a smile.

"So, you finally decided it was time." He remarked.

"Better late than never." Elisa replied with a shrug.

As Elisa explained the gargoyles' entire story, Broadway began to cook some breakfast while Willow, Lexington, and Brooklyn played some videogames. Hudson had settled into his chair with a newspaper while Goliath aided Elisa in telling their story.

"-and so they've sworn an oath to protect this city, just as they protected their old castle back in Scotland." Elisa concluded.

"Only these days, the people we watch over have no clue we exist." Willow interjected.

"Aye, and that's fine by us." Hudson added from his seat.

Matt glanced over at Willow in slight confusion.

"You keep using the word 'we'." He pointed out. "Why is that?"

Willow chuckled, then handed her remote to Lexington.

"I'm guessing Elisa didn't tell you about my little secret."

"I figured that was yours to show him." She replied.

Willow focused, then her form shimmered, transforming her into her gargoyle persona. Matt stepped back in surprise as Willow wrapped her wings around herself.

"Pretty cool, huh?" she asked.

Matt stared at Willow, then looked over at Elisa.

"You can't do that, can you?" he asked.

Everyone busted into laughter at Matt's question, including Hudson. Even Goliath couldn't hold back a chuckle.

"No." Elisa explained. "It's a gift unique to Willow."

"Yep." Willow agreed. "And let me tell you, I don't show off this form to just every John and Jane."

"She's right." Goliath added. "Elisa has spoken of you often, and always in high praises. She tells us that you are a righteous policeman, and an honorable man."

"Right." Elisa interrupted. "Which is why I'm trusting you to keep their secret."

"Oh I will." Matt agreed, the keycard in his coat pocket suddenly feeling a lot heavier.

Goliath smiled at that, then turned to walk out of the tower. Matt saw this and went to stop him, only to be intercepted by Willow.

"Don't." she told him. "He's going out on patrol."

"You don't think we just sit around playing videogames, did you?" Lex quipped.

The trio all chuckled as Elisa took her leave, looking back a bit sadly. Willow then went to walk off as well, but Matt caught her arm.

"Hang on a second." He insisted. "Can I talk to you? In private?"

Willow gave a shrug, then led Matt onto the balcony a second time, perching on the edge, she faced the detective curiously.

"Something bothering you?" she asked.

Matt leaned against the railing, pulling the key card out of his coat.

"I'm sure Elisa's told you about my conspiracy theories." He remarked.

"That she has." Willow replied. "Broadway said that they almost got you killed when you followed a lead by yourself."

"Wait, Broadway?" Matt let out. "How did he-?"

"Unlike you, Elisa brought a partner with her." Willow said with a shrug.

Matt blinked at that, but coughed and got back on topic.

"Well, I've managed to get in contact with one of the members of the Illuminati, and he's promised me a way into their society." He explained. "Unfortunately, I have to pass a loyalty test first."

He held out the card to Willow, letting her take it. She read the name, looking in confusion.

"Hotel Cabal…" she muttered before shaking her head and handing the card back. "Can't say I've heard of this place."

"That's because it's been abandoned for the past 20 years." Matt explained. "I've already scouted it out, and all the street level entrances have been sealed off."

Willow scowled.

"No abandoned building is that well sealed." She rationalized.

"Exactly." Matt agreed. "However, there is a rooftop entrance, and I'm betting that's the only way in."

"But what's that got to do with your loyalty test?" she asked.

Matt hesitated, then took the card back.

"My test is…" he paused, then took a deep breath, "that I have to bring a gargoyle."

Willow raised a non-existent eyebrow.

"The Illuminati know we exist?" she questioned. "But how-"

Her face darkened and her eyes began to glow brightly. She let out an animalistic growl that slightly frightened the detective.

"Xanatos…" she snarled.

Matt tugged on his collar a bit.

"Yeah." he admitted. "Though, if it helps any, he didn't tell them about you."

"That gives me surprisingly little comfort." She snapped.

"However," Matt continued, "that means we can use that to our advantage. Would you be willing to help me?"

Willow looked at Matt, then back at the gargoyles inside. Finally, she sighed.

"Not what I expected my first solo mission to be, but what the heck." She decided.

She hopped down, heading inside.

"Guys, I'm going out with Matt." She called out. "I'll be back later."

As she assured her friends that she'd be fine, Matt felt a twinge of uncertainty go through him. He hoped that he'd be able to help her keep that promise.

Willow landed on the rooftop of the Hotel Cabal, dropping Matt and rotating her shoulders.

"Okay, I don't know how Brooklyn did that to me before I had wings." She remarked. "Human beings are heavy."

"I'll try not to take that as an insult." Matt quipped.

Willow chuckled, then looked at the door. She tried the knob, and wasn't surprised to find it locked. However, she was surprised to see a modern locking system on the door.

"Now why would a Hotel that had been abandoned in the 90s have modern keycard locks?" she wondered.

"When the hotel hasn't been abandoned." Matt surmised, reaching into his pocket. "I'll deal with the lock."

"No need." Willow told him.

She dug her claws into the metal, crumpling the door like it was made of cardboard. She pulled it from its hinges, tossing it aside. Matt whistled at that.

"Glad you're on our side." He remarked. "Now follow me."

The two walked through the door, headed down the stairs. As they were walking, there was the sound of a buzzer as the stairs flattened out beneath them, becoming a rather steep slide. The stairs then split in two, becoming two separate paths. Matt ended up going down the path to the left as Willow went down the right.

"Matt!" Willow screamed, clawing desperately as the slick walls.

"Willow!" Matt called back.

Unfortunately, Willow was soon deposited out of the shoot and into one of the rooms of the Hotel. As she struggled to her feet, Mace Malone's voice called out over a speaker system.

"Now that's what I call an entrance." He commented.

Willow growled, looking around.

"Who's there?!" she shouted. "What is this?! What's going on here?!"

From a large control room in the middle of the hotel, Mace watched Willow on one of a large series of monitors. He had a cruel smile on his face as he chuckled.

"I love the feisty ones." He said to himself. "They're always the best ones to break."

There was a knock on the door behind Mace. He opened it, revealing a rather disheveled, and quite annoyed Matt.

"Why didn't you use the keycard I gave you?" Mace asked.

"I lost it on those stairs of yours." Matt told him, entering the room. "By the way, thanks for warning me about those."

As Matt straightened himself up, Mace returned to his seat.

"If I had told you they were there, you would have hesitated." Mace explained. "And that may have tipped off the hotel's latest guest. Which reminds me."

He flipped a switch on a large array of buttons and switches before him, activating a set of steel barriers on the windows of the room Willow was in. They fell one by one, blocking off all possible escapes.

"Welcome to the Hotel Cabal." Mace called over the speaker. "Though we've served a large variety of guests over the years, you're our very first gargoyle."

Willow snarled at the loss of her possible exits, opting to throw herself through a wall. The drywall shattered easily, letting her into a small, octagonal shaped room adorned by a single table with a flower vase. She barely had a second to get her bearings before a large steel barrier came down on the newly created hole.

"Gyah!" Willow shrieked. "That nearly took my tail off!"

Mace chuckled, flipping a few more switches.

"My dear, by the time I'm through with you, you're going to lose much more than a tail." He promised.

The ceiling of the room began to move, large metal blades forming a sort of blade, like one you'd find in a blender. It began spinning fast, descending towards Willow. She immediately began looking for a way to escape, spotting a door. She leapt for it, grabbing the handle. The second she did, the room began to tilt. The knob snapped in her hand, and only quick thinking and sharp claws prevented her from plummeting into the blades.

"Clever little beast, aren't you." Mace remarked. "But it's going to take more than that to escape from this place. The Hotel Cabal has never let a single guest walk out of here, at least, not with their sanity."

Willow clawed up the wall, taking hold of the table, which was surprisingly bolted to the ground-turned-ceiling. As Willow continued to desperately avoid the blades, Mace switched off the intercom, resting his chin on his laced fingers.

"What a majestic creature." He remarked.

"Willow is full of surprises, I'll admit." Matt remarked, doing his best to keep his voice even.

"That she is, and the Illuminati will enjoy extracting all of her secrets."

Willow flipped underneath the table, grabbing onto the floor-turned ceiling with her feet as she struggled to pull the table free. It snapped off of its supports, but also pulled Willow from her perch. She held the table out in front of her, closing her eyes.

"Please work!" she begged.

The table's legs were turned to mulch by the blades, but the table itself managed to stop the spinning blades, allowing Willow to slip in between them and land safely on the ground.

"I'm sure by now, you've realized that this is no ordinary hotel." Mace remarked over the speakers. "The Cabal is designed to decimate one's grip on reality."

The room quickly flipped again, forcing Willow to spread her wings and glide safely to the ground.

"Once your defense are down, there will be nothing stopping us from stripping your mind of your most precious memories and darkest secrets." Mace taunted.

Willow snarled, then approached the door she'd tried earlier. Without a knob to turn, Willow opted to kick it down instead. Mace chuckled at that.

"She must be a teenager." He noted. "She certainly has the temperament of one."

Willow stalked down a small hallway, her eyes locking onto an open window across a seemingly empty hallway. Her instincts screamed of a trap, but she had no other path to take. She bolted down the hallway, and sure enough, the traps began to activate.

First, it was a pair of flame throwers, something Willow could easily dodge. However, the second trap, a large electrical coil, nearly knocked her off her feet. Still, her eyes glowing brightly, she pushed through, much to Mace's surprise.

"You're quite resilient, little one." He complimented. "But how long will that last?"

The next trap was a large compactor that tried to squish her flat. Willow struggled, but managed to get her arms in position, pushing against the large compactors until she could squeeze free. She them leapt at the window, only to run face first into it. It was no window, merely a painting made to look like one.

"When are you going to learn?" Mace taunted. "Here at the Hotel Cabal, nothing is as it seems."

Willow got to her feet, reaching into the pocket of her pants and pulling out the keycard.

"Two can play that game." She muttered.

Mace turned his back to the monitor, not noticing Willow clutching the keycard.

"She's even better than I ever imagined." He remarked. "The strength, the ferocity, the beast-like anger, that I expected. But the fortitude and a human-like intelligence? This is by far the truest form of warrior I have ever seen."

Matt snorted.

"If you like her, you should have seen the others." He remarked.

"I will in time." Mace replied confidently. "Once this one breaks, that will be the first thing I take from her."

"And what if she escapes?" matt asked offhandedly, doing his best to sound nonchalant. "She's managed to destroy or escape most of the traps you've thrown at her."

Mace gave a nod.

"She has, I will admit." He told him. "But eventually, she will tire down."

"And yet you let me just walk in here, knowing all these traps were in place." Matt growled. "What if I had gone down the wrong path?"

Mace pulled out a small keycard from his pocket. It was almost identical to the one he'd given Matt, only it had the number 23 on it instead of 13.

"Why do you think I gave this to you?" Mace asked. "With this, the automatic mechanisms in each room will deactivate, allowing easy entry or exit. Without it, the victim would be bouncing off the walls forever."

Mace then returned his attention to the monitor, only to see that Willow was no longer on screen. Squinting in confusion, Mace began searching for her on the screen, unable to locate her.

"Now where did she go?" He wondered. "She must be in one of the adjoining rooms, and yet-"

A buzzer went off and Mace began to sweat. He brought up a set of screens, depicting the interior of the building, not too far from where Mace and Matt were. It showed Willow slipping through the rooms at a record pace.

"How is she doing that?!" Mace exclaimed. "Nobody could navigate the hotel that quickly. Not without-"

Realization dawned as Mace got to his feet.

"Your keycard!" he shouted. "The gargoyle must have it!"

Sure enough, Willow produced the card, sliding it into a slot on a door and running across the room. Mace walked towards a large cabinet in the room as Matt watched, a bit worried.

"What are you doing?" he questioned.

"At the rate she's traveling, she'll be free in minutes." He explained, grabbing the biggest gun Matt had ever seen from the cabinet. "That is something I can't allow."

Now Matt was panicking. He ran after Mace, who used his keycard to enter a small hallway hidden behind a mirror.

"W-whoa there!" he exclaimed, "Think about this for a moment! What would the Illuminati say?"

"I am sure that I will be reprimanded for ending the gargoyle." Mace admitted, "It will be a black-mark on my mostly spotless record. However, if that gargoyle manages to escape from the Cabal, that flushing sound you hear will be me and my 75-year pension plan going down the drain."

Willow had managed to find her way into an elevator shaft, scaling the wall on a ladder that had been provided. She kept her eyes peeled for any traps, but so far had yet to find any.

Unbeknownst to her, both Mace and Matt approached a pair of elevators. Mace slid his keycard into an opening above the arrow pad, revealing a secret room right next to them. There was another terminal, only much smaller and with not as many buttons and switches. However, Matt found his eyes drawn to a wall made entirely of glass, allowing for an unobstructed view of the shaft.

"What's with the glass wall?" Matt asked.

"It's a one-way mirror." Mace explained, hitting a few buttons until a Willow appeared on the screen of this new terminal. "Now, watch closely."

In the shaft, Willow kept climbing until the elevator above her began to descend at an uncomfortably rapid pace. Thinking fast, Willow launched herself off of the ladder and onto an adjacent elevator car, narrowly avoiding being crushed to death. That's when that can began moving upwards, right up towards a set of spinning, spiked rollers. Once again, Willow jumped off, grabbing the ladder once more and watching as the elevator car was ground into scrap by the rollers. With a smirk, she looked around as she resumed climbing.

"You're going to have to try harder than that, you psycho!" she taunted.

Back in the secret room, Mace prepared the gun he'd brought, leveling it with the mirror. As Willow came into view, Mace couldn't help but smile.

"As you wish." He said.

"Oh no you don't!" Matt exclaimed.

He tackled the mobster, causing the shot to go wide and miss Willow. She turned towards where the shot had come from, locking onto the now broken one-sided glass. Two more shots pierced the glass, then the gun itself, followed closely afterwards by Mace and Matt. While the gun, and Mace's key, disappeared into the darkness of the shaft, Willow dove after her friend.

"Hang on Matt!" she called.

Mace managed to stop his descent by grabbing onto the elevator cables. As he hung there, Matt plummeted past him, followed closely by Willow. She managed to catch him around the waist with one claw, her other one grabbing onto that ladder for the third time. They both caught their breath as they looked at each other.

"Going up?" Matt asked.

Willow chuckled, then maneuvered Matt onto her back.

"As a matter of fact, I am." She replied. "Now hold on."

She began scaling the ladder again as Mace did the same, pulling himself up the cables and back through the broken mirror. As he looked back, he spotted Matt and Willow, scowling and shaking his fist at them.

"You played me for a fool, Bluestone!" He shrieked. "You and the gargoyle were in this together!"

Willow paused as both she and Matt faced the gangster.

"Got that right." She replied. "Though this wasn't exactly our plan, I think it still went pretty well."

"Agreed." Matt added. "And we didn't even need to play our trump card."

They continued their ascent, Mace cursing them with every step.

"I'll see to it that you both pay for this!" he screamed. "Nobody double crosses Mace Malone!"

As he stormed off down out of the room, Willow and Matt both chuckled

"I wonder how long it'll take Mace to realize he dropped his key." Willow asked.

"Who knows?" Matt replied with a shrug.

The two eventually reached the top of the shaft, which led them to a trap door. Willow punched it open, revealing that they were back on the roof. She pulled them through the door, depositing Matt onto the ground. As Matt breathed a sigh of relief at their successful escape, he couldn't help but feel a bit saddened. To save Willow, he'd forfeited his chance to infiltrate the Illuminati and bust them open. Months of investigation and sleepless nights had been for naught.

"Hey Matt." Willow called.

Matt was pulled from his internal grievances as Willow tossed the keycard at him.

"Thanks for letting me borrow that." She told him. "You were right in your assumption that I would need it more than you."

Matt looked at the card, then at Willow. A smile played on his face as Willow picked him up, taking off into the sky. While he may have lost the Illuminati, he'd still come out ahead, and with allies that he wouldn't trade for anything.

Back in the Hotel, Mace wandered down the many hallways, sweating profusely and twitching like a madman.

"I'm close." He muttered. "So close… One more door."

He tried a door, only for it to open onto a brick wall. Behind him were a seemingly endless expanse of similar doors, each of them opening to a brick wall. He continued to repeat the words 'one more door' as he ran deeper and deeper down the hall, his voice becoming laced with the onset of madness.

Sunrise came to the clock tower as the gargoyles took their positions. Willow had long since called it a day, going to bed a few minutes before the sun came into view. Matt and Elisa watched as the gargoyles all took on fierce expression, howling and growling at the rising sun as they were turned to stone. Matt watched in amazement, then looked over at Elisa.

"Do you ever get used to it?" he asked.

Elisa giggled.

"I'll let you know." She replied.

They entered the clock tower, Elisa checking in on Willow and pulling her blanket over her. Matt watched this, then spoke up again.

"Why?" he asked.

Elisa looked over at her partner.

"Why what?" she questioned.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he clarified. "Why keep me in the dark for so long? I know it can't just be because of how I am with my conspiracies."

Elisa let out a sigh, then straightened up.

"Honestly, that was never the problem." Elisa admitted. "It's just the excuse I used to justify… well… not wanting to share them. I was the only human they could confide in, and that made me feel special."

"But what about Willow?" Matt pointed out.

"She's always been more than just a human to them." She replied. "Even before she became part gargoyle. I guess, I've always been a bit jealous of that, and that's why I clung to what I had."

Matt gave her a knowing smile, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"I know what you mean." He told her. "It might be why I've chased the Illuminati for so long. People may have thought I was crazy, but at least I stood out. I was special."

Elisa smiled, then they both headed out, leaving the gargoyles and Willow to their rest.

Matt emerged from the station, yawning widely. He was looking forward to catching up on some much needed sleep. However, he was surprised to find Martin Hacker waiting for him at the base of the precinct.

"Hacker!" he called happily. "What are you doing in this neck of the woods?"

"Oh, I'm just passing through." He replied with a shrug. "Man, you look like you've been through the ringer."

Matt chuckled.

"I certainly feel like it." He explained. "You have no idea the night I've had."

That's when Martin took Matt's arm, his tone becoming serious.

"I think I have a pretty good idea." He said, turning Matt to face him. "A very good idea."

He began fiddling with the lapel of Matt's coat, attaching a golden pin to it. Matt looked at the pin in confusion, which quickly became shock. It was a pin depicting the unfinished pyramid and the all-seeing eye, a symbol identical to the tattoo on Mace's hand.

"You…" Matt began, backing away from his former partner in anger. "You've been one of them all along?! Oh, I outta knock you into next week!"

Martin held up his hands in an attempt to pacify his angry ex-partner.

"Calm down, Matt." He told him. "And to answer your question, yes. I've been Illuminatus since before I was assigned to be your partner."

"By the bureau?!" Matt exclaimed.

"By the Society." Martin corrected. "They wanted me to make sure you didn't catch on to their activities. I provided you with dead ends, cold cases, and basically sent you on a wild goose chase all these years."

Matt raised his fist to deck Martin, but the man calmed him down.

"However, none of us ever expected you to find Mace." He explained. "I figured Jack was another dead end, and yet, you managed to find Mace, gain his trust, and even deliver on your end of the loyalty test."

"If this is some kind of joke, I'm not laughing." Matt cursed.

"And neither are we." Martin replied. "You've impressed us."

"Even though Willow escaped?" Matt questioned.

Martin shrugged.

"You were only supposed to deliver a gargoyle. It was Mace's job to keep her contained, and he failed. So, he'll get to spend the rest of his life in his precious Hotel Cabal. Meanwhile, you finally get your wish, Matt. You've finally found the Illuminati."

Matt let that sink is as Martin walked off.

"See you again soon, Matthew," He called over his shoulder

"Yes you will!" Matt called in reply.

He then looked down at his lapel, fiddling with the pin.

"And that's a promise." He added under his breath.