Chapter Eleven: Trapped
Blood quickened in Tanner's veins as consciousness returned to him. He arched his back up stiffening his wings as he broke the outer shell that was trying vainly to hold him in sleep. Pain returned with waking, duller than the previous night, but still firmly present across his chest. He relaxed and lay back down again, feeling the cool floor under him fight the painful sensation and waiting for it to subside long enough for him think again.
When the pulling feeling finally stopped, Tanner drew his arms in propping slowly up on his elbows as his wings fluttered uselessly, then gathered his knees up under him, intent on regaining his feet. He started when a hand lay on one shoulder, turning quickly toward the person. His pain teared eyes found a thin blonde woman kneeling next to him again. He turned away from her pushing himself into a sitting position.
"Why are you still here?" He rasped, "You promised you'd go home…"
Michelle was nodding at him, "I know…But I couldn't do it. I had to make sure that you were OK."
"I'm fine," Tanner assured her.
She stepped closer to him, "No you're not. You're in pain…I can see it in your face," She laid a hand on his chest tracing the still brilliantly painted lines of tissue, "These have just barely healed over."
Tanner laid his larger hand over the top of hers, and that longing feeling coursed through him again, unbidden. Gently he pushed her had free of the scars still there, "I promise I will be fine. Another night and they will be no more."
"You're sure?" Michelle said tilting her head to one side in a dubious expression.
Tanner nodded smiling ruefully, "I have lived with this all my life, Michelle, take my word for it."
"OK," She said and then fell silent.
"Why didn't you stay away?" Tanner said noticing that she was in different clothes than she had been that morning, "I really don't want to see you hurt."
"I went to get us some help," Michelle started, "I went to the Eerie Building to get a hold of Xanatos shortly after you went to sleep. I was scared…especially with the amount of blood that was on the floor…I thought that you might not even wake. I had to come back…To be sure that you would return to the living," She paused again then looked at him sternly, "And if I hadn't come back you would not have awakened Tanner," Michelle finished hotly, "Demona would have smashed you to bits."
Tanner's whole body tensed at the sound of Demona's name, and his muscles retaliated to the movement by protesting painfully, "She was here?"
Michelle nodded.
Tanner looked down running a hand through his hair a moment, "Thank you," He said reluctantly and feeling bad for his harsh words. He looked about them noticing the blocked and reinforced hole that they had entered here through, "So we're trapped?"
Michelle could only nod again.
"And where is Demona?"
"I dragged her as far as I could from the building," She shook her head, "Which wasn't far. And she should recover anytime now. The barricade was all I could think to do."
"I don't know that it is going to be enough when she resumes her Gargoyle form."
"Probably not," Michelle answered and then paused as his words actually sank in, "When she resumes…" not "Now that she has…" and Michelle turned her attention to the sliver of light that was filtering through the window. Her wide eyes were suddenly back on Tanner and she unknowingly took a step back from him, "Wait a minute…"
"It's still daylight," Tanner finished for her, having correctly interpreted her expression and subsequent action, then nodded, "I know."
"But…but…"
"There are things about me that you do not know," Tanner said straightening to his full height, "There are reasons…that…I do not wish to tell you, that explain my inability to heal properly…for waking while still light outside," Tanner took a deep breath, "I am afraid of what you might look on me as…if I reveal my secret."
"Don't you think you can trust me?" Michelle said shaking her head and sounding hurt.
Tanner smiled wanly nodding, "Of course. It's just difficult to explain…"
Michelle was about to rebut his dodge when an inhuman scream rent the air and both of their attentions turned to the hastily built barrier between them and the Gargress hunting them.
Both of them could hear muffled curses as Demona set about tearing aside their meager protections from her wrath.
"Where is he?" Elisa asked loudly, storming into the high vaulted main chamber of Castle Wyvern. Her voice was low and powerful reflecting her concern as much as her body language was. Xanatos had informed her merely a half hour ago about the situation facing the Gargoyles how none of the staff had seen Tanner's sleeping form on even the most remote parapet in the castle for two nights running. She was livid that he had waited so long to tell her what was an imperative piece of news. Then matters at work had held her up, and by the time she had arrived here she was a right terror.
Goliath turned slowly to face her; unable to help thinking that she was beautiful when she was angry.
"We don't know," Goliath answered her softly as she stomped to a halt in front of him, "The last we knew, Tanner had gone to watch the concert in the park."
"That was three nights ago!" Elisa sputtered in exasperation.
"Yes," Goliath confirmed, "And I am worried…He has never been gone so long from the castle without word. Something has gone wrong."
Elisa sat on her hot retort to the obvious statement, seeing the subtle lines in his face that told her that he was as torn with this predicament as she was. There was a fierce pride in him, the same pride that she had seen many times when Angela had come to find trouble, especially during the Avalon Quest so many years ago.
Goliath went on when Elisa said nothing, "We started sending patrols through Manhattan last night when he did not return as expected, but have been unsuccessful in tracking him down."
"Rumor has it that Demona is back from Europe," another voice chimed in and the two of them turned in surprise and shock and watched Brooklyn step over to join their discussion.
"What!" they both said fearfully.
"When?" Goliath added with that air of authority that he still possessed even now.
"There was a confirmed sighting last night," Brooklyn answered turning his head up to meet his leader's eyes, "Another source has reported that she was also seen at the same concert that Tanner had attended three nights ago. In both of her forms," He added in disgust.
"No," Goliath said as the possible connection hit him, "She wouldn't!"
"You know her as well or better than I do," Brooklyn said derisively, "I wouldn't put it past her to take revenge on the boy."
As if on cue, Xanatos joined the three of them and said without invitation, "I have something that all of you may be interested in."
He then stepped over to a nearby video board, out of place in such medieval settings, and pressed several codes in, "I was going through the security tapes for the day when one of them caught my eye."
They all turned to the screen as a view of the lobby and the security desk flickered to life on the screen. They watched with rapt and horrified attention as a young blond woman came up to the desk and her mid range carrying voice filled the room, "…It's about Tanner…There's been trouble in the park…Xanatos will know what I am talking about."
"Who is she?" Elisa asked, "I don't think I have seen her before…is she one of the P.F.I.T members?"
"No," Brooklyn said narrowing his eyes at the paused image on their screen, "Unless she is really new, and Tanner wasn't at the last local meeting."
"I do not recognize her," Goliath added shaking his head and frowning.
"Nor do I," Xanatos said, "But she seems to either know or suspect something about you…and my connection to you."
"You haven't exactly kept that connection private," Brooklyn said bracingly.
"True," Xanatos conceded, "But she still shouldn't know Tanner by name."
"When was this recorded," Elisa asked changing gears.
"About seven this morning," Xanatos answered.
"But…we searched the park last night," Brooklyn said irritated at the suggestion that they might not have been thorough enough.
"It is possible," Elisa said distantly, "I mean if Demona is involved, and the evidence is pretty strongly supporting that hypothesis, then it is possible Tanner is hurt, and that he has gone to ground to stay out of her way."
Elisa and Goliath exchanged knowing and scared looks as they were reminded suddenly of their own flight through that very park only a night after their first meeting.
"Then how are we going to find them?" Brooklyn posed to them.
"He should be fine by now," Xanatos shrugged, "He may even be on his way back by now."
But Goliath and Elisa were now shaking their heads in the negative, and Elisa responded by saying, "He doesn't heal in just one night, especially if it is a bad injury. He is not going to be up to another round with Demona, if this girl is to be believed."
"That's right," Xanatos said as if it was a minor detail, "Slipped my mind."
Elisa's hackles rose Goliath could see it in her, but he interjected before tempers flared, "We need to find him, before Demona does, hurt or not."
Brooklyn sighed, "Well at least now we know to concentrate our search on the park."
"If the woman can be believed," Xanatos added.
"Do we want to take the chance that she may be telling the truth?" Elisa quipped at him.
"Of course not."
Tanner and Michelle watched the barricade before them as if it was going to turn into a viewscreen and give them a front row seat at watching Demona come after them. The sound of rocks clicking against each other was punctuated on occasion with howls of pain as Demona came into contact with the large splinters interspersed densely amongst the rocks. Those were mixed with the more frequent and steadily louder curses and promises of a slow painful and bloody death once she had broken through to them.
All of this and there was no place for them to go. The door despite their best efforts was still firmly warped into its frame, the windows too small for Tanner to get through, even if Michelle could squeeze herself through. Though her escape was possible, Tanner forbade it, knowing that Demona would tear her limb from limb for shooting and "Killing" her twice in as many nights.
There was a long pause in her tearing cursing progress as night fell, and Tanner felt gooseflesh of nerves wash over his skin as her scream of torment rent the night. He slowly moved Michelle in behind him readying himself for her inevitable breakthrough to their cramped hiding place. He hoped that it would not end up their tomb.
"Stay behind me," He whispered urgently, "Do not get involved, whatever happens to me, you must escape. Go back to the Eerie Building, straight to the elevators to the left in the lobby and punch in this code…4-9-5-7-6-9-8-9-1. You go that?" He said sparing her a glance only long enough for her to assure him with a nod, "Find Xanatos, or Goliath or Brooklyn and tell them precisely where we are and what is happening."
"O…OK," She answered.
"Promise me!" Tanner urged.
"I promise!" Michelle said urgently.
Their attention turned momentarily back to the now tumbling wall of rock that had gave them brief respite. Michelle watched as Tanner crouched on all fours in front of the hole, tucking his wings close to his body. She could feel the tension mount as one stone came loose revealing moving blue flesh beyond the building. Tanner didn't wait for Demona to widen the hole, but instead, he rushed it. The barrier broke outward, showering Demona in the remaining stones and stunning her a moment while Tanner wrapped her up in his powerful arms.
She was now draped over one shoulder as Tanner's momentum carried them out into the surrounding forest. She was quick to recover pushing her self into a more upright position and preparing to lay her poisoned claws into his skin again.
Before she could Tanner flung Demona away and her body smashed heavily against a tree. He rushed in again and Michelle jumped, appalled as he thrust his whole hand into her gut and ripped up and then out spilling her entrails over the ground.
Demona looked shocked for only a moment, but then smiled saying, "I knew you had a killer's instinct boy…I told you I could teach you something!"
She lashed out not seeming to notice the ropes of intestine looping around her ankles and dragging behind her as she persued Tanner's retreating form. Tanner watched in horror as her injury began to repair itself, her guts retracting into her belly like a stretched Bungee cord relaxing. Shortly there was no injury at all.
"You've only taught me how to hate you, woman," Tanner panted, and Michelle could see that his pain was hampering him.
Demona smiled again, "Hate will keep you strong…it will make you powerful."
"I don't want power!" Tanner spit. He sidestepped her charge, raking long claws through one wing from inner joint to edge of leather. Demona cried out indignantly as the tatters lashed in the stiff summer breeze that was blowing now that he sun had retired.
Demona drew her wings close to her body, and started for him again. But she paused again as something other than Tanner caught her attention. Her eyes narrowed and she smiled wickedly as she saw easier prey. Tanner turned his head seeing Michelle standing frozen not thirty feet from where they were fighting. He understood immediately Demona's intentions and leapt after her. He lashed his arms about her dragging her heavily to the ground.
"Michelle…Get out of here!" He admonished her watching as she jumped from her daze, nodded and then turned to run.
Michelle didn't get far.