All the characters appearing in Gargoyles and Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles are copyright Buena Vista Television/The Walt Disney Company. No infringement of these copyrights is intended, and is not authorized by the copyright holder. All original characters are the property of Zzilly14.
NOTES: I disregard the happenings of Hunter's Moon and Goliath Chronicles, because I didn't want to have people know about the gargoyles yet, and I still like having them live on the clocktower. So yeah. :) Enjoy.
I: The Return Part One
by Zzilly14
I found myself on the top floor of Xanatos Enterprises in midtown New York, pacing back and forth, waiting. My husband John was missing, and the brief typed note he sent me reeked of foul play. I knew that he couldn't have left voluntarily, and I intended to go as far as the ends of the earth to have John back in my arms again. I decided to investigate his disappearance, starting with where he worked as a security guard.
"Excuse me, Miss. May I help you?" I was startled at the man who suddenly appeared in the room. He was a thin man with blond hair and glasses. In my opinion, he looked like the typical assistant to a bigwig. The odd thing was, his left hand was permanently in the shape of a fist – because it was made of stone.
"Why yes, yes you can. I need to speak to Mr. Xanatos. It concerns an employee of his."
"I'm sorry, but Mr. Xanatos is extremely busy. May I relay a message to him?"
I sighed. "Tell him I need to know where John Ford is."
The man suddenly changed his attitude. "John Ford, you say? Follow me."
I followed him down a hall where we stopped in front of two large doors. He opened them up for me and we both stepped inside.
"Mr. Xanatos, someone is here to see you."
Behind a desk was a man in a chair. He stood up, revealing to be tall as well as attractive. His dark brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail.
"Mia Ford, I presume? David Xanatos." He shook my hand and had a large smile. "This is my assistant and close friend, Owen Burnett."
I faintly returned the smile. "I need to find my husband. I received a note a couple of weeks ago, supposedly from John, but it didn't seem right. I think he's in trouble."
Xanatos nodded. "You're right. Someone kidnapped John. Rather... something. Your husband must have done something to rub this creature in the wrong way."
I couldn't help but snicker. "Creature? What, are you saying a vampire took my husband and drank his blood? You're insane, Mr. Xanatos. No offense."
"None taken... no, there's no such thing as vampires. But there are other things that glide around at night."
"Like bats? I thought you said-"
Xanatos rolled his eyes. "Listen, Mrs. Ford, I'm telling the truth here. I know it's hard to believe, but they exist. I can prove it to you."
I groaned. "What exist? Fairies? Unicorns? What are you talking about?"
He handed me a piece of paper. "Meet me there at quarter till seven. See you then." Owen escorted me outside of the office as I read the paper – it had the address of some place I'd never heard of before.
...
The sun was ten minutes away from setting, and I was at the building Xanatos had requested for me to be at. He was already there, leaning against the side of the building.
"Very punctual," he said as he glanced at his watch. "Very nice."
"What's in here?" I asked.
"Absolutely nothing," he grinned. "But I want to take you to the rooftop, to get a view of the whole city as the sun sets."
I began to get a little irritated. "If you're trying to romance me, it's not going to work, Mr. Xanatos."
"Mrs. Ford, I assure you, I have no interest in you in that way. Anyway, I'm married." I was surprised to hear him say that, since he didn't appear to be the "settle-down" type. As I contemplated what his wife might be like, I followed him inside and up the stairs.
At the top of the building I could see everything. The sky displayed an array of colors, and each minute that passed brought a different but equally amazing beauty.
"It's so gorgeous," I sighed.
Xanatos glanced at me. "That's not what you should be looking at. Look to the building in front of us. See those statues? Watch them."
I gave Xanatos a questionable look, and reluctantly stared at the stone gargoyles. They were done artistically well – and they looked almost real.
The sun got lower and lower, and finally it could be seen no more.
That's when it happened.
The statues cracked open into living creatures – they were ALIVE.
"Wha... what... what the heck?"
"Shh!" Xanatos said. "You don't want them to see you. Here, look at them with these binoculars."
I stared at the creatures with the binoculars. They were all different colored creatures with wings – monsters! It was then I noticed a woman – a human woman – talking with them.
"Who is that?" I asked, turning to Xanatos.
"Elisa Maza."
"Isn't she a police officer? What the heck is she doing with those things?"
"She's one of their friends."
"Friends? Those... things are friendly? I can't believe that... these are the things that took my husband, aren't they?"
"Yes and no."
I shook my head with confusion. "Which one is it? Do they or don't they have John?"
"These gargoyles, as they're called, don't have him. They're the good guys. But, a gargoyle did kidnap John."
"How do you know all this? Why did one of those... beasts take him?"
"I can't reveal where I get my information. But those 'beasts' as you call them might be able to help you find John."
"Me? Talk to those monsters? No way am I going near those things!"
Xanatos grabbed my shoulders. "You want to find John? These gargoyles," he said, pointing to them, "are your best chance. I suggest you talk to Elisa at the police station tomorrow, and she'll take you to them."
...
The next morning I walked inside the police station, which was conveniently where the gargoyles lived. Xanatos had told me that the gargoyles were stone during the day, so I decided it was better to approach this "friend of the gargoyles" while her "friends" were unavailable.
"Hello, sir," I said to the man behind the desk at the station. "I need to speak with Elisa Maza."
The man smiled. "Sure, m'am. She'll see you in a minute."
A minute later I was with Elisa in a private room, with no one to interrupt us.
"What can I do for you..."
"I'm Mia Ford, and I need help from your..." I paused, not wanting to sound crazy, "friends."
"I don't know which friends you're talking about, Mia..." Elisa said.
I took a deep breath. "Let's just say, there's some gargoyle statues that I'd like take a look at."
Her eyes widened with surprise before she lowered her voice. "How do you know about them?"
"Mr. Xanatos enlightened me... look, my husband is missing, and Xanatos said that a gargoyle has him. But he said it wasn't one of your friends, but another one, who's apparently kind of evil."
Elisa narrowed her eyes, displaying anger concerning the aforementioned gargoyle. "At sunset we will discuss this with the clan, and see what kind of action we should take. We will find your husband. Somehow."
The following evening, Elisa and I were at the top of the clocktower, awaiting the sunset. I began to get extremely nervous about meeting these creatures. How could they help? They were animals... right?
The sun finally disappeared below the horizon, and I heard roars from the creatures as they broke their stone cocoons. "Elisa," I said in fear.
"Don't worry, Mia. They're just waking up. They don't bite, I promise."
The large lavender one with the black hair came up to us. "Good evening, Elisa. How are you?"
"I'm doing fine, Goliath," she smiled as she kissed him – on the lips! "I've brought someone who needs our help. Her name's Mia."
My fear lessened a little. They weren't the monsters I had envisioned.
"Hi there, Mr. Goliath," I smiled awkwardly, holding out my hand. His huge hand took it and shook, with a firm yet gentle grip.
Goliath smiled. "I'd like you to meet my clan."
He introduced me to the other four gargoyles. The older one looked like a wise grandfatherly type – his name was Hudson. He was petting the dog-like gargoyle, Bronx. The short olive-green gargoyle was named Lexington, and the red gargoyle with the beak called himself Brooklyn.
"There are two more in our clan," said Goliath, "but my daughter Angela and her husband Broadway are on their honeymoon right now."
"You guys get married?" I asked in disbelief. "Wow!"
Elisa tried to keep from laughing. "Well, not many gargoyles 'get married.' Angela grew up with humans, so she embraces our traditions. She persuaded Broadway to have a human wedding ceremony, and he decided it'd be fun. It was really sweet and romantic... right, Goliath?"
"Uh... right, Elisa... it was nice." He tried to keep from blushing.
"Well, it's been nice meeting you all," I said. "I never imagined you'd all be so... friendly. I think I need to sit down," I said before collapsing to the ground.
When I woke up, I realized that only a few minutes had past. I had been moved inside onto a couch, in front of a TV – they watched television?
I noticed Brooklyn was standing over me. "Are you okay?" he asked with worry.
"I think so... it's just so overwhelming. My husband being gone, finding out about you guys... I've been having a stressful couple of weeks."
"Husband?" he asked.
"That's why I came to you..."
Everyone crowded around me as I told them what had happened. After finishing, Goliath got angry.
"Demona..." he spat. After giving him an odd look, he continued. "She and I... a VERY long time ago... were together. After being in stone for a thousand years, we were reunited."
Elisa interrupted when I looked confused about his last statement. "The gargoyles were protectors of the humans during the Middle Ages. Unfortunately some of the humans betrayed the gargoyles. Many were killed. A few from Goliath's clan were put under a spell for a thousand years."
Goliath continued. "But Demona had not been cursed – at least not the same spell. She has been living since the 'Middle Ages,' as Elisa calls it. And during that time she has grown to hate humans, wanting to destroy them. If a gargoyle kidnapped your husband, it must be Demona."
I cried. "I miss John so much... why would she want him?"
"I do not know. But John must know something or have something that Demona wants."
"I have to find him," I said, getting up from the chair. "If she hates us humans so much, I have to get John away from her. I've got to find him before it's too late!"
Elisa came to me and brushed my hair back. "Mia, as hard as it is to hear, it might in fact be too late. He's been gone for a while now, right?"
"No..." I denied it. "He has to be alive. He can't be gone. Not yet, not now." I looked around at all the beings in the room. All of them had a look of sympathy on their faces. "I appreciate your kindness. But I have to go find John. Where does Demona usually hide out?"
Brooklyn spoke up. "There's some places we can look. I'll take you."
"You mean, fly there?"
"Glide there. Don't worry, I won't drop you," he laughed. "Come on."
"Should we come too?" asked Lexington.
I thought for a moment, then said, "Well, if there's more than one place she could be, how about we split up. Some go to one place, some go to another."
So we all went different ways, except for Bronx – he had to stay behind.
It was weird the first time gliding with Brooklyn. He held me close to his chest, and I had my arms wrapped around him, facing him.
"You doing okay, Mia?" he asked.
"Yeah... could be better though. This is kind of freaky."
Well, freak no more," he laughed. "We're here."
We landed on the top of a deserted-looking castle. "Nice place," I said, looking around. "Now, to find Demona."
"You won't find her here," said a sinister voice behind us. We turned and saw a man pointing a gun at us.
"Macbeth..." spat Brooklyn. "What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same thing, seeing as this is my home. I see you've brought a friend. Who's the little lady?"
I spoke up. "The name's Mia. Now, I get the feeling you know Demona. Where is she?"
"Not a clue," he replied.
"Tell me the truth, Macbeth. Where is Demona?"
"What do you want with that beast? Don't go looking for her, or else you're looking for trouble."
Brooklyn whispered to me. "He hates Demona – if he knew where she was, he'd tell us."
I nodded. "Maybe you can help us anyway... do you know anything about John Ford?"
Macbeth lowered his gun. "John Ford was a great man that I had the pleasure of working with."
"You're a security guard with him?" I asked.
He laughed hysterically. "Security guard? Far from it! We robbed banks together."
I laughed. "You must be kidding me, Mr. Macbeth. My husband isn't a criminal."
"He used to be," he replied seriously. "He told me he was quitting and going to settle down. That was years ago – and I haven't seen him since."
"So you have no idea where he is now?" Brooklyn stepped in. "No information that may help us?"
Macbeth had a look of concern. "I'm sorry, but I have nothing."
"Let's go," said Brooklyn with frustration. "Maybe the others found Demona."
"Wait," yelled Macbeth. "They're not going to find her."
I turned around. "Why not?"
He sighed. "I don't know where Demona is, but I know where she's not. She left Manhattan and hasn't been around for a couple of weeks."
"When did you last see her?"
"I haven't seen her for quite some time. But I've heard from her colleagues that she hasn't showed up at work."
"What do you mean, colleagues? There are more gargoyles?" I wondered.
"She doesn't turn into stone during the day," he said. "Instead, she becomes a human when the sun rises."
"How is that possible?" I asked in shock.
Brooklyn shook his head. "Sorcery. From the infamous Puck."
I thought for a moment. "So Demona's been gone for as long as John has. She must have him..." I smiled at Macbeth. "Thanks for all your help."
"Don't mention it," he responded. "Anything to help an old friend."
...
Brooklyn flew me back to the clocktower as we waited for everyone else to return.
"You're a good boy," I told Bronx as I petted him. "As scary as you look, you're just like a sweet little puppy!"
"Woof!" said a happy Bronx.
"He likes you," Brooklyn smiled. "That means we can trust you."
"You didn't before?" I spoke in surprise.
"I knew you were telling the truth. It's just, we have to be careful. Anyway, Bronx is a good judge of character," he said as he took Bronx's face in his hands, petting him. "He knows who he can and can't trust."
I smiled. "He's a smart dog."
"Yep," he replied, smiling back at me. "Hey Mia, I..."
Then we heard the sound of wings gliding through the air. I looked up and saw Hudson and Lex.
"Any luck with you guys?" I asked.
"Not a trace of Demona, anywhere," Hudson said.
Lex shook his head. "She's definitely hiding pretty well."
I smiled. "Well, we got some information - from Macbeth. Apparently he used to rob banks with John, before I even knew him. And it seems Demona skipped town. She's been gone as long as John has."
"Where could we find them, then?"
Brooklyn shrugged his shoulders. "Not a clue."
We then went inside to watch TV, while waiting for Goliath and Elisa to return. There wasn't too much on, so Lex hooked up the video game console. The two of us played a racing game while the others watched, all of us laughing and having a good time.
I beat Lex, making him pout.
"That's the first time anyone's beat me!" he exclaimed. "I say, we do a rematch."
I grinned. "And I accept!"
Finally we finished the race.
"Hey, you won!" I smiled.
"Because you let me!" he replied. "But thanks Mia, it was nice of you to do that."
I looked outside and saw that it was getting lighter.
"Hey, it's getting close to sunrise... and they're still not back," I worried.
"Wherever they are, I'm sure they're fine," Hudson said. "Come on, lads. We better get going."
I grabbed Hudson. "What should I do?"
"If you're worried, go downstairs to the station and find Elisa. She'll be there. You lasses can figure out what to do next."
"Thank you... and good morning."
"You too, lass."
I went outside with the gargoyles as they took their positions on the ledge. The sun rose, and their bodies hardened into stone.
"Is this really happening to me?" I wondered. So much had happened to me in the past couple of weeks. Who would've imagined – living gargoyles?
I quickly ran downstairs and asked to see Elisa.
"She hasn't been in yet this morning," the officer said. "She usually doesn't come in for another half-hour."
"Well... where does she live?" After giving me a strange look, I added, "I need to speak with her. And it can't wait."
"Can someone else-"
"I need to speak to Elisa Maza. Not anyone else."
Reluctantly he gave me her address, and I thanked the man as I left the station.
...
When I got to her apartment, I saw an envelope stuck partially in the crack of the door. I pulled it out, and surprisingly my name was on it. Inside was a letter: "Looking for Goliath and Elisa? I know where they are. But I'm going to need your help. Meet me in Central Park as soon as you get this." It wasn't signed.
"Perhaps Macbeth wrote it..." I thought. I headed to the park, not knowing where to go. After walking around for a little while, I sat down on a bench next to another young woman, who was reading a newspaper.
"Excuse me," she said after staring at me, "are you looking for someone? I saw you walking around like you were."
I glanced over at the redhead. "Yeah, I am. I just have no idea who I'm trying to find."
"Perhaps I can help... My name is Dominique Destine," she smiled, reaching out her hand.
Taking it, I replied, "I'm Mia."
"I thought so... I know where to find your friends, but it'll be difficult and dangerous."
"How do you know Goliath and Elisa?"
"We have a history together – especially Goliath and I."
I had a suspicious feeling about Dominique. "Is John Ford with them?"
"Possibly. Macbeth is keeping a lot of prisoners, I've heard."
"Macbeth?" I screamed as I stood up from the bench. "He told me Demona had John!"
"Well... she doesn't," she replied.
I stared Dominique in the eyes, realizing who I was speaking with. "But I don't trust Demona. How can I believe what she says?"
She began to laugh hysterically. "You're a smart human, Mia Ford. You shouldn't trust me. But I don't think trusting Macbeth is a good idea either."
I glared at the human form of Demona. "Where is my husband, Demona? And what do you want with him?"
Demona sighed. "You remind me SO much of that annoying human Elisa. Are you two related?"
"Answer me."
"Fine, fine. But you better sit down." Hesitantly I did.
"Now, John used to be a criminal, I'm sure Macbeth told you that story, am I right?"
I nodded.
"But then John stopped robbing banks, and he met you, romance bloomed, blah blah. However, he wasn't the good boy he portrayed to you."
"He went back to robbing banks while we were married?"
"Quiet. Let me finish. He didn't 'go back' to stealing money. He met me. As a human, of course."
"You had an affair with him?" I shrieked.
"No, foolish human! I employed him – when he wasn't working for Xanatos as a guard, he was working for me."
"Doing what?"
"Helping me translate some spells."
What spells?" I demanded.
"Ones for my personal use... John started to catch on, though, and didn't want to help me anymore. He was going to destroy the book! That fool had it coming!"
I grabbed Demona's shirt and got in her face. "What the hell did you do to him, beast?"
Her eyes began to glow red and she growled. "If you let go of me, I'll bring you to him."
I pushed her away from me. "You better, or else I'll kill you."
She laughed as she got up. "I'd like to see you try. Meet me at the abandoned factory, after sunset. And don't bring any of your new friends either. Or else your husband is dead."
TO BE CONTINUED...