Travis Marshall stands in front of the police barricade. He had arrived here the moment the explosion at the north tower was reported. For the past hour or so, he had been maintaining his calm even with all the activity going on.
"This is Travis Marshall," he says as a cameraman aims a television camera at him. "If you are just joining us, two airplanes had struck each tower of the World Trade Center. The police has placed a barricade which I am standing in front of. With me here is Fire Captain Stan Cartman."
"We still have no finished our evacuation of the two towers," says Captain Cartman. "The smoke from the flames is preventing us from airlifting those people trapped on the upper floors. Chief Ganci is on the scene directing the rescue efforts. We..."
"Look!" shouts the cameraman.
The TV reporter and the FDNY captain both look towards the World Trade Center. One of the towers seem to be shrinking.
"It's collapsing!" shouts Travis. He, his news crew, and the fiorefighters and police officers at the barricade all see a white cloud of dust flowing in every direction as the north tower collapses. The dust overtakes them and clouds everything, reducing visibility to zero.
"This is Travis Marshall!" shouts the reporter. "One of the Trade Center towers had just collapsed! There's all this dust around here. Switch to our news copter up in the air now!"
It takes a few minutes for the dust to clear. Their initial assessment of the situation is confirmed. Only the south tower of the World Trade Center stands now, with flames erupting from the spot where the commercial airliner struck it.
"Once again!" shouts the reporter, wipiong the dust off his suit. "the North Tower had just collapsed."
There is utter silence at the barricade, except for the sounds of cameras taking pictures. No one, not Travis Marshall, the other TV reporters, or reporters from the New York Times or the New York Post, say a word.
"Is everyone all right?" shouts Captain Maria Chavez as soon as the dust settles down enough that she could see down the block. She knows, even with the dust obscuring her vision, that the north tower of the World Trade Center had just collapsed due to the damge to its structure from the collision.
"I'm here," says Officer Morgan.
"So am I," says Officer O' Malley.
An FDNY sergeant looks at the huge pile of rubble. "Okay, there may be survivors!" he shouts. "Let's go check." Several firefighters go to the rubble to look for anyone who may have survived the tower's collapse.
Captain Chavez looks around. Everything in sight is coated in a fine layer of dust, including herself. Firefighters are speaking into radios and cell phones, probnably asking for heacvy equipment to remove the rubble and recover survivors-or dead bodies. On the ground is pieces of broken glass and concrete. The south tower is still burning, and the fire department is stepping up its rescue efforts now that the risk for the south tower's collapse is greater.
She does not see Detectives Maza or Bluestone anywhere.
"Maza!" she shouts. "Bluestone! Come here at once."
She approaches Officer Morgan. "Have you seen Maza or Bluestone?" she asks.
"No," replies the veteran officer. "Last time I saw them they were heading into....oh my God."
The horror of Morgan's words pierce Captain Chavez into her very soul. She had known both of them for at least eight years. Now she does not even know whether or not either of them are alive under the rubble.
She looks towards the rubble and sees the dust-coated firefighters. She approaches them.
"Any survivors?" she asks.
"The chief and some of us just got out," says one of the firefighters. "We were lucky."
Chavez approaches Fire Chief Peter Ganci. "Did you see two plainclothes detectives while you were inside?" she asks.
"I can't say," replies the fire chief. "But if I could survive under the rubble, maybe they have a chance. I'm going to the other tower to finish the evacuation."
Chavez smiles. Being familiar with Maza and Bluestone, she knows that they can survive a pile of rubble.
But can they survive down there? Air would be running out for them. How deeply buried are they?
All she can do is wait and hope that everyone in the south tower can be evacuated before its collapse. Already, people are being led out by firefighters and police officers. Some of those police officers are assigned to the Twenty-Third Precinct.
Officers Morgan and O'Malley come out with three people-two women and a man.
"any word on Elisa?" asks Morgan.
"No, they still haven't found her," replies Chavez.
"Are you sure she's under that rubble?" asks O'Malley.
Then thunder can be heard. The three of them look, and see that the south tower is shrinking.
the tower is collapsing.
Soon, the whole place is once again clouded in dust.
"The south tower of the World Trade Center has just collapsed," says Travis Marshall. "The Fire Department has now begun rescue operations. Our prayers go to those who were killed in this tragedy."
David Xanatos turns off the huge television in his office. He looks out, and sees smoke coming from where the World Trade Center stood just this morning.
His wife Fox is there, along with his five-year-old son Alexander. No one in the office says anything.
Owen Burnett, the personal aide to Xanatos, breaks the silence. "Sir, it may be wise to get in the helicopter and fly to Xanadu," he says in a monotone voice.
"Why do you think that is necessary?" he asks.
"This is clearly an attack of some kind, sir."
"Alexander is here, Owen. If there is any threat here, you can transform into Puck and deal with it."
"If they choose to fly an airplane into the castle, I would not survive long enough to transform into Puck. None of us would survive."
"What of the gargoyles?"
"They are all somewhat safe on the tower of the castle, looking towards the Trade Center."
"Who did this, Daddy?" asks Alexander.
"I don't know," says David. He contonues to look towards the site of the World Trade Center.
The telephone rings. Fox picks it up. "It's for you," she says to her husband.
David picks it up. "Yes?...Hello, Pop......No, I'm not all right.....I'm not injured, but I can't say that any of us is all right......I wish I knew......The gargoyles? They're all here. They'll want answers when they wake up.....Goodbye, Pop."
He looks out through the window. Not since Oberon tried to kidnap his son five years ago did he feel so vulnerable, so helpless.
A taloned fist hits a wooden table located in a palace in Ishimura, Japan.
"They couldn't have done this!" shouted Yama after viewing the initial reports of the attack on New York City. there are reports of a second attack on the Pentagon, which is the headquarters of the U.S. military.
"Our ancestors battled barbarians inavading this land," says the Ishimura Gargoyle Clan Leader Kai, the anger still boiling his blood. "We may have to do the same."
In a block of flats in London, England, Arthur Pendragon walks up to a ledge where his gargoyle knight Griff sleeps in stone. He holds his sword Excalibur.
"I've seen many tragedies in my life," he says. "But none measure up to the cowardly act that happened across the sea."
He looks at Excalibur. It may have to shed blood again.
"All of our forces have just been mobilized, sir," says the New Olympian guard.
"Very good," says Taurus, the security chief of New Olympus.
He looks at news broadcasts of the events in New York City and Arlington. The broadcasts were replaying images of the burning towers and their collapse. He heard statements from the President of the United States and the Mayor of New York City.
He sits down and places the chin of his bull head on his right hand. For at least ten thiusand years, New Olympus had isolated itself from the rest of the world. But one year ago, a team of diplomats from New Olympus appeared at the United Nations Headquarters in New York to announce their presence in the world and open formal relations with the nations of humanity. At that moment, they became part of the world.
New Olympus, usually bustling with activity, is quieter, except for the heavier-than-usual presence of security forces. There is no telling whom the next target will be.
The images of the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia are now broadcast on television sets all over the world. By now it is clear that this was a terrorist attack on a massive scale. There are also reports of a United Airlines flight which crashed in the Pennsylvania countryside.
Peter and Diane Maza watch the events, like almost everyone else in the world, from their home in Queens, New York. The big-screen television has been on for hours, ever since the first images of the burning towers appeared.
The sound of the news broadcasts are interrupted with the ring of a telephone.
"I'll answer it," says Diane. "Elisa may be calling."
"I hope she's okay," replies Peter.
She and her husband had tried to call Elisa on her cell phone as well as in her home and office, but there is no response. She must be busy with all the stuff happening at the World Trade Center.
"Hello?" she asks.
"Mrs. Maza, this is Captain Chavez," says the voice.
"Is there something wrong?"
"Elisa Maza was assisting in the rescue operations after the planes hit. We couldn't find her after the towers collapsed. We believe she is still buried under the rubble. The firefighters are still trying to look for survivors."
Diane drops the telephone handset, leaving it hanging by the cord.
The sunset cast Manhattan with an orange glow. The shadows on the building lenghtened, until one side was completely in shadow.
On a castle located on top of the tallest building in Manhattan sit some statues. Many buildings on this islands have these statues. But these statues were different.
The statues on the castle start to crack, like an egg about to hatch. Then the stone breaks out, and living creatures with wings roared,m announcing to the people of Manhattan that they are awake.
The lavender-skinned person- for these creatures are certainly people, capable of intelligent thought and choosing between right and wrong- who was named Goliath by some humans over one thousand twenty-five years ago, looks down from the highest parapet of the castle, which is his position as leader of the Wyvern Gargoyle Clan. He looks down upon Manhattan to the south, facing Battery Park, upon the city he has sworn to protect just as he once protected the territory of the Scottish Prince Malcolm over a millenium ago.
Something was wrong, terribly wrong. The usual bustle of Lower Manhattan was met with an eerie silence. The only vehicles he can see are emergency vehicles and military vehicles.
He needs answers. He picks up a Motorola cellular phone he usually carries in his loincloth. He had to speak to Elisa immediately.
The telephone rings, but there is no answer. Goliath tries Elisa's home number.
"Hey, Elisa Maza here," says the voice.
"Elisa, this is Goliath," says the gargoyle clan leader. "I need you to explain..."
"I can't come to the phone right now. If you'll leave your name, number, and a brief message, I'll get to you as soon as I can."
Goliath jumps down to the lower balcony where the rest of the clan is. They too, are looking at the site of the World Trade Center; the towers are gone and there are all sorts of emergency vehicles parked on the adjacent streets.
"What happened?" asks Brooklyn. "Did you talk to Elisa?"
"She is not answering her phone," says Goliath.
"Maybe she's over there," says Boradway, pointing at the World Trade Center site.
"We'll need to know what is going on first," says Goliath. "Let's go."
the entire Wyvern Clan enters through a door in the tower. They walk through the halls of the castle and take an elevator down. They finally reach an office.
"I was expecting you," says David Xanatos as he looks upon the gargoyle clan which had just awakened to chaos.
"What happened?" asks Goliath.
Xanatos looks right into the gargoyle leader's eyes and hesitates for a moment. "Terrorists hijacked three planes. Two of the planes were crashed into the World Trade Center, and a third plane was crashed into the Pentagon. Thousands of people are believed to be dead."
Shock suddenly fills the souls of the gargoyles, followed by sorrow. They watch the television which is inside an alcove in the wall.
"This is Travis Marshall," says the TV reporter. "As you know by now, the World Trade Center collapsed after being hit by hijacked airplanes. I have here one of the survivors who was working in this south tower when the plane hit."
"I was in my office in the World Trade Center," says the man identified as Brendan Yale. "The fire alarm went on, and I heard the the other tower was hit by an airplane. I was walking down the stairs, and then I felt a jolt, like the building was shaking. When I finally got down, they told me that the tower I was working in was hit, and it was no accident."
The gargoyles look at the broadcast. They have had a few less-than-pleasant encounters with Brendan Yale and his wife Margot. He was touched by this tragedy.
"Hey!" shouts Angela. "I heard about Elisa!"
"What is it?" asks Broadway.
"I called the police station where Elisa works at," she says. "She's missing. She's underneath the rubble."
"Then we know what we must do," Goliath says grimly. He and the clan leave Xanatos's office. Xanatos looks out the window, and see the gargoyles gliding to the World Trade Center site.
"I had never seen anything so horrible," says Angela less than a minute after setting her taloned feet on the roof of the Millenium Hilton just across the street from the World Trade Center.
"I have," says Goliath. The feelings of sorrow, despair, and raw pain that have not surfaced in one thousand seven years now boil with great fury as he looks at the remains of the towers and remembers Xanatos's description of what happened. Not even Xanatos during his worst days would have done such a thing. Then rage boils in his very soul.
He growls as loudly as he did one thousand seven years ago, his eyes blazing white. The firefighters, police officers, and soldiers at the site all hear his inhuman scream.
Goliath and his clan now glide down to the site, startling the humans there. A New York Army National Guard soldier aims his M-16 at the gargoyles.
"Hold it!" shouts Officer Morgan. "They're on our side."
The soldier lowers his M-16.
The gargoyles use their great natural strength to remove the pieces of steel and concrete burying those who were caught in the collapse. Each piece of the tower, which was installed over thirty years ago, is now cast aside in the search for survivors. The resuce workers assist the clan as photgraphers take pictures.
"We found one!" shouts Brooklyn. Goliath looks and sees one of the humans who was buried in the collapse. Paramedics take the man to an ambulance.
The gaegoyles are now focused on their task of uncovering survivors in the rubble. Two more survivors are pulled out. Three people are found dead. Goliath continues to dig through the rubble. He sees a face.
"Elisa," he says. He checks for a pulse. "She's alive."
"What is it?" asks a firefighter.
"She's alive!" shouts the gargoyle leader.
"I'll take her from here."
"Hey!" shouts Broadway. "We found Matt! He's still alive!"
"Do we follow Elisa and Matt?" asks Angela.
"Not yet," replies Goliath. "We stay here and help these humans."
Elisa Maza wakes up and stares right at a white ceiling. She immediately notices that this is not her apartment.
"You're awake," says a man in a white uniform.
"Where am I?" she asks.
"You're at Manhattan General. We took you from the ICU after it looked like you would live. Rescue workers pulled you out of the rubble."
"The rubble?" asks Elisa. This means that the whole thing- seeing the World Trade Center towers on fire, seeing that plane hit the second tower, is not a dream. It was reality. "No, it can't be."
She turns on the Magnavox television in the room. The television shows a news report. Elisa quickly finds out that terrorists hijacked four planes, two of which crashed into the World Trade Center, one that crashed into the Pentagon, and one that crashed in the Pennsylvania countryside. She feels a bandage on her head.
Three people walk into the room; Elisa recognizes them as her parents and Captain Maria Chavez.
"Elisa," says her mother Diane, "I'm glad you're all right."
"Good to see you alive here," says her father Peter.
"You might want to know that Detective Bluestone also made it," says Chavez. "The doctors say you'll need to rest for one more day."
"I remember when those Hunters struck the police station," says Peter. "I remember your mother and I feeling lucky that you weren't in there when it happened."
"Have you heard what happened, Elisa?" asks Diane.
"Yeah, it's on every channel," replies her daughter. "Did you tell Derek and Beth the news?"
"Yes, we have. They're still shocked over what just happened today."
"Well," says Chavez, "I'm glad you are all right. It's been a long night for me. I'll expect to see you Thursday."
"Don't worry, Captain," says Elisa. "I'll be on my feet by sunset tomorrow."
Elisa, Peter, and Diane then see an image of the rescue efforts on the television. They all see the gargoyles at the ruins of the towers, pulling away the rubble.
"I guess your gargoyle friends have decided to pitch in," says Diane.
"It's what they do," says Elisa. She looks to a window and sees a winged figure.
"It's Goliath," she says.
The window opens, and Goliath and Brooklyn step down.
"Elisa," says Goliath, "you're all right."
"As all right as anyone who was retrieved from the rubble of a skyscraper can be," says Elisa. "As all right as anyone who witnessed this terrible attack. I saw the plane crash into the other tower."
"I was assisting with the rescue operations," says Brooklyn. "I found other survivors."
"That's good," says Peter.
"But I also found those who were dead, either from the fire or from the falling debris. Some of them worked in the building, others were firefighters and police who came to help. You were lucky, Elisa. We were all lucky."Tears flowed from his eyes down his beak. His eyes then glowed white. "They didn't deserve this1 They were slaughtered just like my clan!"
"I'd like to speak with Goliath alone," says Elisa.
"Brooklyn, I suggest you check on Matt Bluestone," says Goliath.
Peter, Diane, and Brooklyn all leave the room. Goliath stays with his love.
"I was awake for a few hours under the rubble," says Elisa. "I was completely trapped. I could not move. I didn't know if Matt was alive or dead. I was afraid. I was afraid that I would suffocate to death under all that rubble. I was afraid I'd never see you or anyone I love again. And I was afraid that you would be the next target."
"That is the way it should be," says Goliath, "for humans and gargoyles."
"But then I knew I had to survive. I've even faced off against the king of the fay and those who rebelled against him. I couldn;t let myself die under the rubble, alone. I had to make it. I kept going until I could not go on anymore. Before I woke up in the hospital, I had a vision of you."
"Perhaps because I pulled you out of the rubble," says Goliath.
"You did that?"
"Even though the police and the National Guard might fire upon me and the clan, we could not abandon you. We could not abandon our protectorate. We had to act."
"It has been confirmed that the fire chief is dead," says the TV reporter. His statement catches Goliath and Elisa's attention, and they listen intently. "Chief Peter Ganci was directing rescue operations in the south tower when it collapsed. He was recovered and pronounced dead. Chief Ganci had served the Fire Department for more than thirty years. This day will never be forgotten by any of the firefighters alive today. Our prayers go out to his family."
"How many more perished?" asks Goliath. He looks to the open window. "I'm going to continue with the rescue operations."
At about 5:30 A.M., Elisa is greeted by the clan, who had just finished assisting the FDNY and the New York National Guard in the rescue efforts in southern Manhattan.
"Are you all right, Elisa?" asks Angela.
"I can't say that I am, but I'm not seriously injured," says the detective. "I should be able to return to work tomorrow."
"Aye, lass," says Hudson, "You're lucky to have survived. I've seen too much death in my long life."
"You're lucky that the people behind these attacks didn't target the castle."
"Elisa," says Lexington, "I brought you something." He presents a small model of the helicopter the clan uses to fly to locations too far for gliding. "I worked on this for a week, and I just completed it yesterday, just before the attack. I'd like you to have it."
"Thanks," says Elisa, holding up the helicopter.
"Maybe I could get you something to eat," says Broadway.
"I'm not hungry. You know, my first case as a detective was in the World Trade Center back in 1993. There was an explosion, and I was sent there to investigate. It was also Derek's first assignment as a helicopter pilot. I could still remember the shock I felt when I went there."
"The sun's about to rise," says Goliath. "We should roost on the roof."
The clan leave the room and go on top of the roof of Manhattan General Hospital, They all face towards the World Trade Center site. Then the sun comes up and they all turn to stone.
At about mid-morning, a man enters the Eyrie Building to meet with David Xanatos. After security clears him, he rides an elevator to Castle Wyvern which is the headquarters of Xanatos Enterprises.
"Mr. Duval," says Owen Burnett, "Please come in."
"I'll be speaking to your boss alone," says Duval, "Puck."
Duval enters the office where David Xanatos waits. He presents his Illuminati pin.
"I take it that you are here concerning recent events," says Xanatos.
"That is right, Xanatos. I was meeting with the High Council, as well as members of the NSA, the CIA, and the U.S. House and Senate who are Illuminati."
"Were you behind this attack?" David asks bluntly. "If I find out that you are, I will spare nothing to make you pay."
"This attack is in contradiction with our long term goals, Xanatos. But we know who was behind it. Our contacts in the CIA, Defense Department, and White House will provide proof to the President."
"So tell me, who was behind it?"
"This man," says Duval, presenting a headshot of a man wearing a long beard and a turban. "His name is Osama bin Laden. He leads a terrorist group known as Al Qaeda. Al Qaeda currently has a safe house in Afghanistan, provided by the Taliban regime. They were the ones behind the 1993 bombing, as well as the 1996 Khobar towers bombing, the 1998 American embassy bombings, and the 2000 bombing of the U.S.S. Cole in Yemen."
"How powerful are they?"
"They has access to billions of dollars. They have cells all over the world, and we suspectthey have magical resources."
"So why are you telling me all this?"
"We would ask Owen to turn into Puck and assist us, but we know he had a falling out with his lord and king, and as such is stuck as Owen. I came here to recruit the gargoyle clan."
"You want the gargoyles to fight these terrorists? I mean, they swore to protect Manhattan, they may not be cool with the idea of going to a foreign country and leaving their protectorate behind."
"Convince them, Xanatos. We'll provide you with all the intelligence we have on Al Qaeda and the evidence that they perpetrated yesterday's attack. They have gone too far; they must be wiped out from the face of the Earth."
"Feeling better, Detective?"
Elisa looks and sees Assistant District Attorney Margot Yale. "Yeah," she says. "I'll be on my feet by sunset."
"What is that?" asks Yale, looking at the model helicopter Elisa is holding.
"A friend gave it to me when he visited."
"Well, I just want you to know that the deposition is postponed until the eighteenth. That's next Tuesday. Get well soon, Detective."
Margot Yale leaves, and Elisa's parents come inside.
"Mom. Dad," says Elisa. "So what is new?"
"We have terrible news, Elisa," says Peter.
"Daniel Rabb is dead," says Diane, tears gojng down her cheeks. "He was crushed in the collapse of the second tower. He was pronounced dead upon recovery."
Memories float to the surface. Memories of Rabb playing cop to Elisa's, Derek's, and Beth's robbers. Memories of Rabb congratulating her graduation from high school. Memories of Rabb congratulating her graudating from the Police Academy. Memories of Rabb congratulating he making detective eight years ago. And then her very mind and soul is pierced by her mother's words.
Elisa drops the model helicopter, which breaks into pieces upon hitting the white-tiled floor.
"This is Travis Marshall," he says as a cameraman aims a television camera at him. "If you are just joining us, two airplanes had struck each tower of the World Trade Center. The police has placed a barricade which I am standing in front of. With me here is Fire Captain Stan Cartman."
"We still have no finished our evacuation of the two towers," says Captain Cartman. "The smoke from the flames is preventing us from airlifting those people trapped on the upper floors. Chief Ganci is on the scene directing the rescue efforts. We..."
"Look!" shouts the cameraman.
The TV reporter and the FDNY captain both look towards the World Trade Center. One of the towers seem to be shrinking.
"It's collapsing!" shouts Travis. He, his news crew, and the fiorefighters and police officers at the barricade all see a white cloud of dust flowing in every direction as the north tower collapses. The dust overtakes them and clouds everything, reducing visibility to zero.
"This is Travis Marshall!" shouts the reporter. "One of the Trade Center towers had just collapsed! There's all this dust around here. Switch to our news copter up in the air now!"
It takes a few minutes for the dust to clear. Their initial assessment of the situation is confirmed. Only the south tower of the World Trade Center stands now, with flames erupting from the spot where the commercial airliner struck it.
"Once again!" shouts the reporter, wipiong the dust off his suit. "the North Tower had just collapsed."
There is utter silence at the barricade, except for the sounds of cameras taking pictures. No one, not Travis Marshall, the other TV reporters, or reporters from the New York Times or the New York Post, say a word.
"Is everyone all right?" shouts Captain Maria Chavez as soon as the dust settles down enough that she could see down the block. She knows, even with the dust obscuring her vision, that the north tower of the World Trade Center had just collapsed due to the damge to its structure from the collision.
"I'm here," says Officer Morgan.
"So am I," says Officer O' Malley.
An FDNY sergeant looks at the huge pile of rubble. "Okay, there may be survivors!" he shouts. "Let's go check." Several firefighters go to the rubble to look for anyone who may have survived the tower's collapse.
Captain Chavez looks around. Everything in sight is coated in a fine layer of dust, including herself. Firefighters are speaking into radios and cell phones, probnably asking for heacvy equipment to remove the rubble and recover survivors-or dead bodies. On the ground is pieces of broken glass and concrete. The south tower is still burning, and the fire department is stepping up its rescue efforts now that the risk for the south tower's collapse is greater.
She does not see Detectives Maza or Bluestone anywhere.
"Maza!" she shouts. "Bluestone! Come here at once."
She approaches Officer Morgan. "Have you seen Maza or Bluestone?" she asks.
"No," replies the veteran officer. "Last time I saw them they were heading into....oh my God."
The horror of Morgan's words pierce Captain Chavez into her very soul. She had known both of them for at least eight years. Now she does not even know whether or not either of them are alive under the rubble.
She looks towards the rubble and sees the dust-coated firefighters. She approaches them.
"Any survivors?" she asks.
"The chief and some of us just got out," says one of the firefighters. "We were lucky."
Chavez approaches Fire Chief Peter Ganci. "Did you see two plainclothes detectives while you were inside?" she asks.
"I can't say," replies the fire chief. "But if I could survive under the rubble, maybe they have a chance. I'm going to the other tower to finish the evacuation."
Chavez smiles. Being familiar with Maza and Bluestone, she knows that they can survive a pile of rubble.
But can they survive down there? Air would be running out for them. How deeply buried are they?
All she can do is wait and hope that everyone in the south tower can be evacuated before its collapse. Already, people are being led out by firefighters and police officers. Some of those police officers are assigned to the Twenty-Third Precinct.
Officers Morgan and O'Malley come out with three people-two women and a man.
"any word on Elisa?" asks Morgan.
"No, they still haven't found her," replies Chavez.
"Are you sure she's under that rubble?" asks O'Malley.
Then thunder can be heard. The three of them look, and see that the south tower is shrinking.
the tower is collapsing.
Soon, the whole place is once again clouded in dust.
"The south tower of the World Trade Center has just collapsed," says Travis Marshall. "The Fire Department has now begun rescue operations. Our prayers go to those who were killed in this tragedy."
David Xanatos turns off the huge television in his office. He looks out, and sees smoke coming from where the World Trade Center stood just this morning.
His wife Fox is there, along with his five-year-old son Alexander. No one in the office says anything.
Owen Burnett, the personal aide to Xanatos, breaks the silence. "Sir, it may be wise to get in the helicopter and fly to Xanadu," he says in a monotone voice.
"Why do you think that is necessary?" he asks.
"This is clearly an attack of some kind, sir."
"Alexander is here, Owen. If there is any threat here, you can transform into Puck and deal with it."
"If they choose to fly an airplane into the castle, I would not survive long enough to transform into Puck. None of us would survive."
"What of the gargoyles?"
"They are all somewhat safe on the tower of the castle, looking towards the Trade Center."
"Who did this, Daddy?" asks Alexander.
"I don't know," says David. He contonues to look towards the site of the World Trade Center.
The telephone rings. Fox picks it up. "It's for you," she says to her husband.
David picks it up. "Yes?...Hello, Pop......No, I'm not all right.....I'm not injured, but I can't say that any of us is all right......I wish I knew......The gargoyles? They're all here. They'll want answers when they wake up.....Goodbye, Pop."
He looks out through the window. Not since Oberon tried to kidnap his son five years ago did he feel so vulnerable, so helpless.
A taloned fist hits a wooden table located in a palace in Ishimura, Japan.
"They couldn't have done this!" shouted Yama after viewing the initial reports of the attack on New York City. there are reports of a second attack on the Pentagon, which is the headquarters of the U.S. military.
"Our ancestors battled barbarians inavading this land," says the Ishimura Gargoyle Clan Leader Kai, the anger still boiling his blood. "We may have to do the same."
In a block of flats in London, England, Arthur Pendragon walks up to a ledge where his gargoyle knight Griff sleeps in stone. He holds his sword Excalibur.
"I've seen many tragedies in my life," he says. "But none measure up to the cowardly act that happened across the sea."
He looks at Excalibur. It may have to shed blood again.
"All of our forces have just been mobilized, sir," says the New Olympian guard.
"Very good," says Taurus, the security chief of New Olympus.
He looks at news broadcasts of the events in New York City and Arlington. The broadcasts were replaying images of the burning towers and their collapse. He heard statements from the President of the United States and the Mayor of New York City.
He sits down and places the chin of his bull head on his right hand. For at least ten thiusand years, New Olympus had isolated itself from the rest of the world. But one year ago, a team of diplomats from New Olympus appeared at the United Nations Headquarters in New York to announce their presence in the world and open formal relations with the nations of humanity. At that moment, they became part of the world.
New Olympus, usually bustling with activity, is quieter, except for the heavier-than-usual presence of security forces. There is no telling whom the next target will be.
The images of the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia are now broadcast on television sets all over the world. By now it is clear that this was a terrorist attack on a massive scale. There are also reports of a United Airlines flight which crashed in the Pennsylvania countryside.
Peter and Diane Maza watch the events, like almost everyone else in the world, from their home in Queens, New York. The big-screen television has been on for hours, ever since the first images of the burning towers appeared.
The sound of the news broadcasts are interrupted with the ring of a telephone.
"I'll answer it," says Diane. "Elisa may be calling."
"I hope she's okay," replies Peter.
She and her husband had tried to call Elisa on her cell phone as well as in her home and office, but there is no response. She must be busy with all the stuff happening at the World Trade Center.
"Hello?" she asks.
"Mrs. Maza, this is Captain Chavez," says the voice.
"Is there something wrong?"
"Elisa Maza was assisting in the rescue operations after the planes hit. We couldn't find her after the towers collapsed. We believe she is still buried under the rubble. The firefighters are still trying to look for survivors."
Diane drops the telephone handset, leaving it hanging by the cord.
The sunset cast Manhattan with an orange glow. The shadows on the building lenghtened, until one side was completely in shadow.
On a castle located on top of the tallest building in Manhattan sit some statues. Many buildings on this islands have these statues. But these statues were different.
The statues on the castle start to crack, like an egg about to hatch. Then the stone breaks out, and living creatures with wings roared,m announcing to the people of Manhattan that they are awake.
The lavender-skinned person- for these creatures are certainly people, capable of intelligent thought and choosing between right and wrong- who was named Goliath by some humans over one thousand twenty-five years ago, looks down from the highest parapet of the castle, which is his position as leader of the Wyvern Gargoyle Clan. He looks down upon Manhattan to the south, facing Battery Park, upon the city he has sworn to protect just as he once protected the territory of the Scottish Prince Malcolm over a millenium ago.
Something was wrong, terribly wrong. The usual bustle of Lower Manhattan was met with an eerie silence. The only vehicles he can see are emergency vehicles and military vehicles.
He needs answers. He picks up a Motorola cellular phone he usually carries in his loincloth. He had to speak to Elisa immediately.
The telephone rings, but there is no answer. Goliath tries Elisa's home number.
"Hey, Elisa Maza here," says the voice.
"Elisa, this is Goliath," says the gargoyle clan leader. "I need you to explain..."
"I can't come to the phone right now. If you'll leave your name, number, and a brief message, I'll get to you as soon as I can."
Goliath jumps down to the lower balcony where the rest of the clan is. They too, are looking at the site of the World Trade Center; the towers are gone and there are all sorts of emergency vehicles parked on the adjacent streets.
"What happened?" asks Brooklyn. "Did you talk to Elisa?"
"She is not answering her phone," says Goliath.
"Maybe she's over there," says Boradway, pointing at the World Trade Center site.
"We'll need to know what is going on first," says Goliath. "Let's go."
the entire Wyvern Clan enters through a door in the tower. They walk through the halls of the castle and take an elevator down. They finally reach an office.
"I was expecting you," says David Xanatos as he looks upon the gargoyle clan which had just awakened to chaos.
"What happened?" asks Goliath.
Xanatos looks right into the gargoyle leader's eyes and hesitates for a moment. "Terrorists hijacked three planes. Two of the planes were crashed into the World Trade Center, and a third plane was crashed into the Pentagon. Thousands of people are believed to be dead."
Shock suddenly fills the souls of the gargoyles, followed by sorrow. They watch the television which is inside an alcove in the wall.
"This is Travis Marshall," says the TV reporter. "As you know by now, the World Trade Center collapsed after being hit by hijacked airplanes. I have here one of the survivors who was working in this south tower when the plane hit."
"I was in my office in the World Trade Center," says the man identified as Brendan Yale. "The fire alarm went on, and I heard the the other tower was hit by an airplane. I was walking down the stairs, and then I felt a jolt, like the building was shaking. When I finally got down, they told me that the tower I was working in was hit, and it was no accident."
The gargoyles look at the broadcast. They have had a few less-than-pleasant encounters with Brendan Yale and his wife Margot. He was touched by this tragedy.
"Hey!" shouts Angela. "I heard about Elisa!"
"What is it?" asks Broadway.
"I called the police station where Elisa works at," she says. "She's missing. She's underneath the rubble."
"Then we know what we must do," Goliath says grimly. He and the clan leave Xanatos's office. Xanatos looks out the window, and see the gargoyles gliding to the World Trade Center site.
"I had never seen anything so horrible," says Angela less than a minute after setting her taloned feet on the roof of the Millenium Hilton just across the street from the World Trade Center.
"I have," says Goliath. The feelings of sorrow, despair, and raw pain that have not surfaced in one thousand seven years now boil with great fury as he looks at the remains of the towers and remembers Xanatos's description of what happened. Not even Xanatos during his worst days would have done such a thing. Then rage boils in his very soul.
He growls as loudly as he did one thousand seven years ago, his eyes blazing white. The firefighters, police officers, and soldiers at the site all hear his inhuman scream.
Goliath and his clan now glide down to the site, startling the humans there. A New York Army National Guard soldier aims his M-16 at the gargoyles.
"Hold it!" shouts Officer Morgan. "They're on our side."
The soldier lowers his M-16.
The gargoyles use their great natural strength to remove the pieces of steel and concrete burying those who were caught in the collapse. Each piece of the tower, which was installed over thirty years ago, is now cast aside in the search for survivors. The resuce workers assist the clan as photgraphers take pictures.
"We found one!" shouts Brooklyn. Goliath looks and sees one of the humans who was buried in the collapse. Paramedics take the man to an ambulance.
The gaegoyles are now focused on their task of uncovering survivors in the rubble. Two more survivors are pulled out. Three people are found dead. Goliath continues to dig through the rubble. He sees a face.
"Elisa," he says. He checks for a pulse. "She's alive."
"What is it?" asks a firefighter.
"She's alive!" shouts the gargoyle leader.
"I'll take her from here."
"Hey!" shouts Broadway. "We found Matt! He's still alive!"
"Do we follow Elisa and Matt?" asks Angela.
"Not yet," replies Goliath. "We stay here and help these humans."
Elisa Maza wakes up and stares right at a white ceiling. She immediately notices that this is not her apartment.
"You're awake," says a man in a white uniform.
"Where am I?" she asks.
"You're at Manhattan General. We took you from the ICU after it looked like you would live. Rescue workers pulled you out of the rubble."
"The rubble?" asks Elisa. This means that the whole thing- seeing the World Trade Center towers on fire, seeing that plane hit the second tower, is not a dream. It was reality. "No, it can't be."
She turns on the Magnavox television in the room. The television shows a news report. Elisa quickly finds out that terrorists hijacked four planes, two of which crashed into the World Trade Center, one that crashed into the Pentagon, and one that crashed in the Pennsylvania countryside. She feels a bandage on her head.
Three people walk into the room; Elisa recognizes them as her parents and Captain Maria Chavez.
"Elisa," says her mother Diane, "I'm glad you're all right."
"Good to see you alive here," says her father Peter.
"You might want to know that Detective Bluestone also made it," says Chavez. "The doctors say you'll need to rest for one more day."
"I remember when those Hunters struck the police station," says Peter. "I remember your mother and I feeling lucky that you weren't in there when it happened."
"Have you heard what happened, Elisa?" asks Diane.
"Yeah, it's on every channel," replies her daughter. "Did you tell Derek and Beth the news?"
"Yes, we have. They're still shocked over what just happened today."
"Well," says Chavez, "I'm glad you are all right. It's been a long night for me. I'll expect to see you Thursday."
"Don't worry, Captain," says Elisa. "I'll be on my feet by sunset tomorrow."
Elisa, Peter, and Diane then see an image of the rescue efforts on the television. They all see the gargoyles at the ruins of the towers, pulling away the rubble.
"I guess your gargoyle friends have decided to pitch in," says Diane.
"It's what they do," says Elisa. She looks to a window and sees a winged figure.
"It's Goliath," she says.
The window opens, and Goliath and Brooklyn step down.
"Elisa," says Goliath, "you're all right."
"As all right as anyone who was retrieved from the rubble of a skyscraper can be," says Elisa. "As all right as anyone who witnessed this terrible attack. I saw the plane crash into the other tower."
"I was assisting with the rescue operations," says Brooklyn. "I found other survivors."
"That's good," says Peter.
"But I also found those who were dead, either from the fire or from the falling debris. Some of them worked in the building, others were firefighters and police who came to help. You were lucky, Elisa. We were all lucky."Tears flowed from his eyes down his beak. His eyes then glowed white. "They didn't deserve this1 They were slaughtered just like my clan!"
"I'd like to speak with Goliath alone," says Elisa.
"Brooklyn, I suggest you check on Matt Bluestone," says Goliath.
Peter, Diane, and Brooklyn all leave the room. Goliath stays with his love.
"I was awake for a few hours under the rubble," says Elisa. "I was completely trapped. I could not move. I didn't know if Matt was alive or dead. I was afraid. I was afraid that I would suffocate to death under all that rubble. I was afraid I'd never see you or anyone I love again. And I was afraid that you would be the next target."
"That is the way it should be," says Goliath, "for humans and gargoyles."
"But then I knew I had to survive. I've even faced off against the king of the fay and those who rebelled against him. I couldn;t let myself die under the rubble, alone. I had to make it. I kept going until I could not go on anymore. Before I woke up in the hospital, I had a vision of you."
"Perhaps because I pulled you out of the rubble," says Goliath.
"You did that?"
"Even though the police and the National Guard might fire upon me and the clan, we could not abandon you. We could not abandon our protectorate. We had to act."
"It has been confirmed that the fire chief is dead," says the TV reporter. His statement catches Goliath and Elisa's attention, and they listen intently. "Chief Peter Ganci was directing rescue operations in the south tower when it collapsed. He was recovered and pronounced dead. Chief Ganci had served the Fire Department for more than thirty years. This day will never be forgotten by any of the firefighters alive today. Our prayers go out to his family."
"How many more perished?" asks Goliath. He looks to the open window. "I'm going to continue with the rescue operations."
At about 5:30 A.M., Elisa is greeted by the clan, who had just finished assisting the FDNY and the New York National Guard in the rescue efforts in southern Manhattan.
"Are you all right, Elisa?" asks Angela.
"I can't say that I am, but I'm not seriously injured," says the detective. "I should be able to return to work tomorrow."
"Aye, lass," says Hudson, "You're lucky to have survived. I've seen too much death in my long life."
"You're lucky that the people behind these attacks didn't target the castle."
"Elisa," says Lexington, "I brought you something." He presents a small model of the helicopter the clan uses to fly to locations too far for gliding. "I worked on this for a week, and I just completed it yesterday, just before the attack. I'd like you to have it."
"Thanks," says Elisa, holding up the helicopter.
"Maybe I could get you something to eat," says Broadway.
"I'm not hungry. You know, my first case as a detective was in the World Trade Center back in 1993. There was an explosion, and I was sent there to investigate. It was also Derek's first assignment as a helicopter pilot. I could still remember the shock I felt when I went there."
"The sun's about to rise," says Goliath. "We should roost on the roof."
The clan leave the room and go on top of the roof of Manhattan General Hospital, They all face towards the World Trade Center site. Then the sun comes up and they all turn to stone.
At about mid-morning, a man enters the Eyrie Building to meet with David Xanatos. After security clears him, he rides an elevator to Castle Wyvern which is the headquarters of Xanatos Enterprises.
"Mr. Duval," says Owen Burnett, "Please come in."
"I'll be speaking to your boss alone," says Duval, "Puck."
Duval enters the office where David Xanatos waits. He presents his Illuminati pin.
"I take it that you are here concerning recent events," says Xanatos.
"That is right, Xanatos. I was meeting with the High Council, as well as members of the NSA, the CIA, and the U.S. House and Senate who are Illuminati."
"Were you behind this attack?" David asks bluntly. "If I find out that you are, I will spare nothing to make you pay."
"This attack is in contradiction with our long term goals, Xanatos. But we know who was behind it. Our contacts in the CIA, Defense Department, and White House will provide proof to the President."
"So tell me, who was behind it?"
"This man," says Duval, presenting a headshot of a man wearing a long beard and a turban. "His name is Osama bin Laden. He leads a terrorist group known as Al Qaeda. Al Qaeda currently has a safe house in Afghanistan, provided by the Taliban regime. They were the ones behind the 1993 bombing, as well as the 1996 Khobar towers bombing, the 1998 American embassy bombings, and the 2000 bombing of the U.S.S. Cole in Yemen."
"How powerful are they?"
"They has access to billions of dollars. They have cells all over the world, and we suspectthey have magical resources."
"So why are you telling me all this?"
"We would ask Owen to turn into Puck and assist us, but we know he had a falling out with his lord and king, and as such is stuck as Owen. I came here to recruit the gargoyle clan."
"You want the gargoyles to fight these terrorists? I mean, they swore to protect Manhattan, they may not be cool with the idea of going to a foreign country and leaving their protectorate behind."
"Convince them, Xanatos. We'll provide you with all the intelligence we have on Al Qaeda and the evidence that they perpetrated yesterday's attack. They have gone too far; they must be wiped out from the face of the Earth."
"Feeling better, Detective?"
Elisa looks and sees Assistant District Attorney Margot Yale. "Yeah," she says. "I'll be on my feet by sunset."
"What is that?" asks Yale, looking at the model helicopter Elisa is holding.
"A friend gave it to me when he visited."
"Well, I just want you to know that the deposition is postponed until the eighteenth. That's next Tuesday. Get well soon, Detective."
Margot Yale leaves, and Elisa's parents come inside.
"Mom. Dad," says Elisa. "So what is new?"
"We have terrible news, Elisa," says Peter.
"Daniel Rabb is dead," says Diane, tears gojng down her cheeks. "He was crushed in the collapse of the second tower. He was pronounced dead upon recovery."
Memories float to the surface. Memories of Rabb playing cop to Elisa's, Derek's, and Beth's robbers. Memories of Rabb congratulating her graduation from high school. Memories of Rabb congratulating her graudating from the Police Academy. Memories of Rabb congratulating he making detective eight years ago. And then her very mind and soul is pierced by her mother's words.
Elisa drops the model helicopter, which breaks into pieces upon hitting the white-tiled floor.