Chapter 2: Folsom Prison Blues

On the top of Xanatos tower in the old castle the multi billionaire had bought, the Gargoyles awoke as night fell. And Broadway was quick to leave for something he had been itching to do all day.

"Where's he off to in such a hurry?" Goliath wondered.

"Oh there's a movie playing downtown called Showdown." Brooklyn replied. "It's pretty good, we all saw it the other day."

"Showdown?" Their leader asked in confusion.

"Yeah, ya know. Cowboys, guns, high noon stand offs. That kinda thing." Lexington elaborated.

"Movies, video games… It's hard to tell what's real and what's not these days." Hudson sighed as he shook his head.

"Well it must be good, he didn't even have his dinner first." The large gargoyle noted.

(Elsewhere)

Meanwhile at the entrance to the downtown sewers, Alisa was busy talking to Jean Lebeau, New York's resident alligator man.

"And you're sure it was Dracon?" The police woman asked as she crouched next to a manhole where Jean was sticking his head and arms out of.

"Ah swear on my grandpappy's grave. Ah know that idiot's voice anywhere. There's only one person who'd gloat about his steals like that." He nodded.

"Thanks Jean. So how are you settling in?" Alisa questioned, noting the fishing net, crab traps, lobster snares, and sacks of oysters he had next to him.

"Pretty good, thanks for asking, Cher." Jean replied. "It's surprisingly easy to just make my old home's food. Ah'm not complaining about the lack of taxes, either." He added with a chuckle.

"Sewers are pretty much free real estate. Plus since you're not bothering any of the day to day biz, they can't exactly evict you. Even if they found you." The woman nodded.

"Which I'm glad for." The gator man chuckled. "Anyway, you should probably get moving before someone sees us." He said, getting a nod before both of them went their separate ways.

(Elsewhere)

Meanwhile in a different part of town, Broadway was gliding around reenacting the scenes he saw in Showdown, at least until he reached Alisa's house.

Gliding down to the windowed roof of the building, he opened it and dropped in. Thankfully Alisa wasn't the least bit surprised.

"Hey Alisa." The rotund gargoyle greeted with a wave.

"Broadway, is that you?" The woman asked as she turned around with a smile. "I'll throw in a couple of steaks for you." She added.

"Gee Thanks!" Broadway smiled as he made his way around her apartment.

"So what were you doing?" The woman asked as she started cooking.

"I was at the theater watching Showdown." He replied. "Man, what I wouldn't give to know how to use one of those guns." He added wistfully.

"Broadway, those guns aren't toys. They're dangerous." The bluenette told him firmly. "On top of that, I'm not sure we can get you any lessons on how to use one." She added.

"You wouldn't be able to teach me?" The turquoise gargoyle asked. "I mean you seem pretty good at using them. And, well, Demona nearly killed Brooklyn and Goliath with one of those things and I kinda want to know how to use one just in case." He added. "Ya know what I mean?" He continued as he took Alisa's weapon and examined it as carefully as he could.

"I can definitely see where you're coming from." The police woman mused as she looked over the cooking food. "I'll see if I can manage some lessons." She told him.

"Thanks Alisa." Broadway smiled as he attempted to put the fire arm back where it belonged, but fate was cruel to the good hearted creature as it slipped from his hands and went off by mistake.

The bullet exited the barrel and ricocheted off the counter before burying itself into the woman's side, causing her to fall and hit her head. Broadway heard her fall and snapped his head in her direction in alarm, his eyes widening in shock, alarm and regret.

"Alisa!" He said as he ran over to her. "Oh why was I cursed with such slippery claws?" He groaned before slapping himself. "Focus Broadway, you have to get Alisa to the hospital!" He told himself before he did just that.

And it seemed that there was a god watching over him because he was able to leave her on a gurney where two MTs were able to bring her inside.

This allowed Broadway's emotions—which had been clouded by his panic and rush of adrenaline—finally sink in… And he felt horrible. He knew it was an accident, but it didn't make him feel any less stupid.

As he was nearing the point of breaking down, he climbed into the sewers and headed to the one person he knew he'd be able to talk to: Jean.

(Elsewhere)

Meanwhile on Jean Lebeau's small private island in the middle of the Manhattan sewers, he was busy boiling a cache of Dungeness Crabs and a cluster of black mussels in regular crab boil. All while listening to "Folsom Prison Blues" by Johnny Cash.

As the food cooked, he heard footsteps and saw Broadway coming toward him with a downcast expression.

"Heyo! Broadway! Over here mon ami!" The Cajun called as he waved the gargoyle over. "Why you look so glum? Somethin' happen?" He asked as Broadway sat down. This caused his friend to start shaking and crying.

"I… I did something unbelievably stupid!" He sobbed into his hands. The gator man quickly put his arm around his friend to try and calm him.

"Easy, big guy. Calm down, and Ah'll get you some food to help you calm your nerves. Then tell me what happened." Jean said. After taking a few minutes to calm himself, the turquoise gargoyle filled the gator man in on what happened.

When he was done, Jean let out a sigh. "Okay, I know for a fact it was an accident. You'd never do something like that to a friend. All the same, though, there's a reason human society doesn't let untrained people hold guns." He stated.

"I know! It's why I was wanting Alisa to teach me how to use it right! Now I really messed up!" Broadway groaned as he ate the crabs he was given.

"We can't change the past, mon ami, but we can tend to the future." His friend told him reassuringly. "Believe me, Ah know how you feel."

"You do?" The creature asked.

"Yes. You see, my grandpappy fought in the Korean War back in the 50s. And his most prized possession was a beautiful Bowie cane knife passed down from his daddy and his daddy before him." He explained. "My daddy always told me never to play with it, cuz knives hurt more than just others when used the wrong way."

"What happened?" His friend questioned, chomping on a crab claw.

"I got careless one day and cut him by mistake, real bad, too. He knew it was an accident and didn't scold me, but he tried to help me see what I did wrong." Jean continued. "But my guild wouldn't let me go. I went weeks without food or water, and it wasn't until the pastor came by and absolved me of my sins, and helped me see that it wasn't my fault, that I was finally able to forgive myself." He finished as he ate a whole crab in one gulp and placed a hand on Broadway's shoulder. "Alisa will forgive you, but it's you, who needs to forgive yourself." He told him.

Broadway looked down in thought at his words. It made sense as he thought about it, and helped him feel better. It was going to take him a while to forgive himself, but he would eventually.

"For now though. Let's try and pray that Alisa will get through this." Jean told him. "And in the meantime, Ah may know just the way we can right this wrong to her." He added.

"How?" The creature of the night asked.

"We catch de scumbag who's sellin' a whole new breed of dangerous guns on the streets. A guy Alisa's been trying to take down for weeks: Tony Dracon." The Gator man said. "We take him down for her while she's recovering as a way of making it up to her." He added.

"Sounds good to me." The chunky gargoyle nodded. Though before they could continue talking, day came and Broadway turned to stone.

Jean sighed as he started cleaning everything up. "Best get moving before the rest of the guys go anything they'll regret. Assuming they already know." He sighed as he walked into his house and looked at the knife he had talked about, which was resting on his vanity. It had a smooth mahogany handle, a large blade and brass pin. "And I need to find a way to get Broadway out of this thunk." He nodded before going outside and diving into the sewers to begin his search.

(Later)

A man was walking through the park in a hurry, trying to avoid potential muggers. Sadly, fate didn't favor him as a man came out from some bushes and stood in his way, forcing him to stop.

As the poor man was being stuck up by the guy with a strange looking gun, a long and large tail swept his feet out from underneath him before Jean stomped his foot on the man's back while Broadway grabbed the gun.

"Careful with that now, cap. Last thing we need is a laser gun going off at either of us." The gator man warned in a slightly jovial tone.

"Mind telling us where ya got this?" The gargoyle questioned as the man that was being stuck up ran off.

"A-A Guy named glasses! He's down by the docks!" The man said in panic as Jean pulled him up and tied him up with a metal bar around a tree.

"Next stop, the docks." Broadway said, though his reptilian companion quickly sniffed the gun.

"You go, Ah'm gonna follow this thing's scent to the source. If you find anything just come find me." He replied.

"Right." Broadway nodded. The two Then went their separate ways.

(Later)

Later on Jean reached the warehouse that matched the scent coming from the gun, and lo and behold, Goliath was already there. And he did not look the least bit happy.

"Aye, Goliath." The cajun gator man said, getting his attention.

"Jean? What are you doing here?" The gargoyle questioned.

"Same reason you are, cher, to catch that arrogant Son o' a bitch Tony Dracon for Alisa." He replied. "Broadway's tying up loose ends as we speak. Poor bloke was hysterical after what happened." He added with a sigh.

"Hm… Good. We don't need these weapons running wild on the streets." The purple gargoyle nodded.

"Why do I get da feeling that's not the only thing you're thinking about?" The Cajun questioned, however his statement was ignored as Goliath entered the building. "Alright, business it is then." He shrugged as he started swimming towards the drainage area.

Once there, he swam at top speed and burst through the concrete of the floor of the building right as Goliath burst through the roof and Broadway came in by hurling the guy named glasses through a window. This caused Dracon and his men to go into panic mode and start shooting at random.

As Goliath took cover, he noticed he was next to the building's fuse box. Without a second thought, he trashed it and plunged the building into darkness. Dracon and his men were now on edge as they were stalked by predatory beings.

Jean let out a guttural growl that echoed in the darkness, scaring them further. As one of the men started shooting, he was grabbed by the leg and then dragged into the water hole that Jean made. And as his comrades gathered around the sound, Goliath and Broadway jumped them and Jean grabbed Dracon and started to pull him into a death roll!

His eyes were covered by their protective membrane and were not slitted, a sight indicating that his primal instincts had taken over.

The weapons dealer screamed as he was spun around gator style, his abdomen in pain. He tried to get free, but that was about as successful as cutting a hard coconut with a slice of paper.

"Uh, Goliath, we gotta do something!" Broadway said in panic. The leader of the clan nodded as he dove into the water and swam towards Jean, before delivering a hard haymaker to the gator man's face, causing him to become dazed and let go of Dracon.

Bringing the man back to the surface, the two tied them up and left them with the stolen guns before going to the roof, where they saw an unconscious Jean floating down river.

"Think we should…?" The turquoise gargoyle asked before Goliath shook his head as they saw him wake up and dive under, waving goodbye with his tail.

"What I'd like to know is who shot Alisa. If it wasn't Dracon, who was it?" He questioned, which caused Broadway to become guilty all over again.

"... I did." He admitted, causing Goliath to turn to him in shock.

"What…?" He uttered in disbelief.

"It was an accident! I was looking her gun over, trying to figure out how it worked! When I tried to put it back… It went off." He explained, his shoulders slumping at the end. "It slipped out of my hand and went off as soon as it hit the floor. I didn't mean for that to happen." He said in guilt.

Goliath was silent for a moment before he laid a hand on his friend's shoulder. "I am glad that you told me about this, Broadway. Telling the truth when you made a mistake is often more difficult than keeping it from others." He told him. "I'm also glad that you tried your best to right a wrong. But, why were you so curious? About Alisa's gun, I mean?" He asked as they flew off.

"After Demona nearly killed you and Brooklyn with a gun, I wanted to get a better understanding of them so we can be prepared for them more." The turquoise skinned gargoyle replied.

"A fine reason Broadway, but you don't need to take on such burdens to help us. You help your clan as much as we need as you are already." Goliath told him.

"Thanks Goliath." Broadway smiled.

(Later)

In the hospital, Alisa finally woke up and as soon as her family and doctor left, Broadway and Goliath dropped in, wanting to see how she was. And for Broadway to apologize to her for what happened, even if it was an accident.

"It's okay, Broadway. I guess I should've been more careful about where I left it. We all make mistakes." She told her supernatural friend.

"I know. Jean helped me realize that, but my mistake nearly cost you your life." The gargoyle sighed. "I won't touch another gun again. And even if I do, I won't be so careless." He resolves.

"I think that's a good place to start." Goliath smiles as he placed his hand on Alisa's head. "Now rest Alisa. We will watch over you for tonight." He told her as they left, allowing her to sleep.

And meanwhile in the sewers, Jean walked into his house and put the sheath of his grandfather's knife on his belt and slid the blade into it. He even patted the hilt affectionately.

"Ah think it's time Ah took my own advice. And let myself be forgiven for once." He said to himself as he walked outside and started working on a wood carving of some kind. "Everybody's gotta have a first step, right?" He added as he whittled away at the stump in front of him.

Dragon Emperor0: As you guys may be able to tell, Jean tends to listen to records of music that are oddly fitting for the plot of each episode. Makes one wonder if it's just coincidence, or his form of future telling voodoo.

ThermalsniperN7: Let's agree not to think about it too hard. Still, as admirable as it is for Broadway to want to understand guns and how they work, he should learn to not toy around with them.

Dragon Emperor0: Yeah, I mean, has he never seen a Christmas story? Even an accident like that with a BB GUN could turn horrific at any second. And BB guns are essentially harmless unless you hit bare skin or the eye. Then it'll cause injury or just sting a bit. Personal experience here (with the former I mean).

ThermalsniperN7: Ouch. Yeah, I tend to stay away from that stuff. Anyway, see you guys next time.