Previously:
The Warrior
Within
There was a large basket in the corner of a small, isolated room. Cana was in the other end of the room, she was too tired to go in the basket.
"Goliath?" Brooklyn said timidly. "I have to tell you something that you're not going to like."
"What is it, Brooklyn?" Goliath asked.
In another room, the others were getting curious. "What're they talking about?" Broadway asked.
"I don't know, Brooklyn made it sound urgent, though." Elisa answered.
"Then why can't he tell us?" Angela asked.
"Maybe it's about something only Goliath should know, at least for now." Elisa guessed. Goliath came over to them, looking concerned.
"What's the matter?" Elisa asked.
"It's Kyra, Demona's gone much too far this time." Goliath answered.
"Oh no, what did she do now?" Elisa queried.
"See for yourself." Brooklyn replied, "Come on in Kyra." Kyra opened the door and stepped in.
"Not this again!" Elisa exclaimed.
"Hasn't Demona learned by now?" Lexington said, "Humans are supposed to be humans and gargoyles are supposed to be gargoyles."
"Sometimes I think she's trying just a bit too hard to get rid of humans." Brooklyn added.
"You mean Demona turned a human into a gargoyle before?" Angela asked.
"Yes, before we met you, she turned all the humans in the city to gargoyles, and us into humans. And the gargoyles that were really humans never remembered that they were turned to gargoyles." Goliath answered.
"What a mouthful!" Kyra joked, smirking. Goliath was glad to see that her humor wasn't tarnished by what happened.
"But, that didn't work, why did she do it now?" Brooklyn asked.
"Demona's unpredictable. Sometimes what seems perfectly innocent could be a deadly plot of hers." Elisa answered.
"You think the weird sisters put another spell on her?" Angela asked
"No, they wouldn't try that again." Elisa answered. "At least, I don't think they would."
"What are we going to do?" Broadway asked.
"There might be a counter spell to that sort of thing in the Grimorum." Lexington answered.
"But it's gone. Demona and Macbeth stole it a long time ago, and it was destroyed with the Archmage when Elisa and Goliath went to Avalon." Brooklyn reminded him. "Very few of the pages left have strong spells on them."
"Don't worry, we'll find a way to turn you back." Goliath told Kyra.
"We have to get the jewel as well, it made the spell much stronger than anything in the Grimorum could be." Kyra reminded them.
"That reminds me, Kyra, do you still have your magic?" Brooklyn asked.
"I think so, why?" Kyra answered.
"You might need it." Angela replied, "As long as you have it, you'll be safe even in this form."
"Why don't we go look for the jewel now?" Kyra asked.
"You'll need time to adjust to that body Kyra, before you go anywhere." Elisa warned her.
"Why" she asked.
"You have to learn how to use your wings, and you have more strength. You have to learn how to control it." Goliath answered.
"I'll help you." Brooklyn voluntered.
"Thanks, Brook. I hope we find that jewel soon so I can be human again. No offense guys, but I'm used to being that way." Kyra replied.
"We know, remember, we had to be human for three hours. You're used to being human and we're used to being gargoyles." Brooklyn told her.
"It's just that it feels weird, I don't know how to use this body." Kyra said.
"That's why I'm going to teach you." Brooklyn replied and they went outside.
"I hope he doesn't get to used to her being that way." Goliath said, mainly to Elisa. She smiled just for him.
Meanwhile, Micheal and Demona were talking near the gang's base.
"Why did you turn Kyra into a gargoyle?" Micheal asked, he wasn't happy.
"It's part of my plan, Goliath and the others will be so wrapped up in teaching her how to use her wings and control her strength that they won't be ready for an attack. And it will take days at the least for her to learn." Demona answered.
"Yeah, but what do I get out of this?" Micheal asked, his dark eyes narrowed dramatically.
"Relax, if you mean about Kyra, I'll turn her back as soon as I get what I want, and then she's all yours." Demona replied and went off to look for Kyra. She knew that the girl had to be somewhere learning with one of the gargoyles by now.
Unfortunately for Demona, Kyra was a fast learner and was already up in the sky with Brooklyn, she even did better than he did. The fact that she didn't have a fear of falling off buildings helped her get up in the air. Elisa said she could barely even look down when she had been changed, it made things very difficult. Kyras magic helped her when she lost balance, in fact, the only problem she had was landing.
"All right Kyra, let's work on your landing." Brooklyn called.
"Not on your life." Kyra said in a low sarcastic voice.
"Come on, you've got to learn, watch me." he glided down to a building and landed right on his feet. "Your turn."
"No way, I can't do that!" Kyra exclaimed.
"Kyra, as a human you could do anything except glide and land, now just take it slow and you'll do fine." Brooklyn said calmly, "I'll talk you through it."
"All right, I'll try." she called, still a little skepticism in her voice.
"Try to catch a down draft, there's one right over there. Once you hit it, angle your wings down a little and lean towards the rooftop. Just before you get to the rooftop, stick your legs out a little and I'll help you." Brooklyn reassured her.
"Here goes nothing." Kyra said quietly.
She did exactly what Brooklyn told her and landed almost perfectly right beside him. Angela, who had just gotten there, was amazed, even she couldn't do that so well. Neither could Brooklyn, he just looked at Kyra, his jaw was practically locked.
"How was that?" she asked.
"Almost perfect!" Angela told her, "It's like you've been doing this all your life."
At the castle, Goliath was starting to get worried about Brooklyn and Kyra when they came gliding over. Kyra landed first and Brooklyn landed behind her. Angela came soon after.
"I'm impressed, you've learned faster than Brooklyn when he was little." Goliath replied.
"I've always been a fast learner, but never this fast. It was like a part of me knew how to do this already." Kyra said.
"That's probably because you watched these guys do it." Elisa replied from behind Goliath.
"Hi Elisa. Now that I can use my wings and all that other stuff, can we look for the jewel?" Kyra asked.
"I don't see why not, as long as someone goes with you." Goliath answered. "How about you, Brooklyn?"
"No problem." Brooklyn replied.
"Kyra probably doesn't need him going with her, but the extra protection might be needed if Demona and Micheal fight together." Elisa added.
"If?" Kyra asked sarcastically.
Cana came up and whined, she wanted to go with Kyra. She knew she was too heavy (a month pregnant for a wolf was heavy), but she didn't like Kyra going off when she knew there may be danger. Bronx didn't want to go, he didn't like a strange gargoyle in the castle, even if it was Kyra, and he didn't go near her. Lupus came up and whined.
"All right, let's go." Kyra easily picked up the full grown wolf.
Brooklyn and Kyra took off after they received directions from Goliath on how to get to the two places the amulet would be, Demona's lair, and the Nightstone Unlimited building. They went to Nightstone first, since Demona probably wouldn't be there. They thoroughly searched the abandoned penthouse, but found nothing. Then they decided to rest and look for clues to where the jewel might be before they went to Demona's lair.
Finally, they reluctantly left, knowing theyd be expected and Demona had set up a trap for them. Before Kyra took off, Lupus growled. Someone was watching, but Kyra sensed it wasn't Demona. Since she couldn't see anyone, she figured it wasn't important so she glided off and caught up with Brooklyn. (-see bottom of chapter)
When they reached Demona's lair, Kyra tied a rope around Lupus's neck loosely like a leash. He went ahead, sniffing for any traps. Suddenly, he stopped and growled fiercely at a spot on the ground. Kyra checked it out.
Demona was serious about protecting the jewel, right in front of Kyra was a steel bear trap, it would have been impossible for Brooklyn or her to get that off their leg.
"Good boy, Lup." Kyra said softly, scratching Lupus's head, he lifted his head up to Kyra and wagged his tail. He didn't realize that he had just saved his life as well as the two gargoyles. He just smelled Demona on the trap from when it was set and absolutely refused to go near it.
"It's a good thing you're training them not to go near Demona and Micheal's scent, or we would have been in big trouble." Brooklyn said quietly.
"Let's go, before Demona discovers we're out here." Kyra replied and started walking.
"Too late." Brooklyn said, looking up. Lupus growled at the sky, a different growl. Kyra jumped back at a lazer blast that broke the rope leash, Kyra lunged forward and grabbed him before running for cover. He gave a little "Yipe!" at the blast and yelped when Kyra grabbed him. He had no idea what danger he was in, he was too caught up in protecting Kyra to worry about danger. Kyra looked up to see who shot the lazer, still holding Lupus back. It was Micheal.
"Doing Demona's dirty work, Mike?" Kyra asked sarcastically.
"You may have changed form, but your attitude is the same." Micheal said sharply. Lupus growled at Micheal. He was trained to growl at his scent, but the sight of Micheal seemed to upset him as well.
"Tell Demona she's not going to get away with this." Brooklyn told Micheal.
"She already has, and I'm not telling why." Micheal replied.
"Look, you know I could beat you as a human. So as a gargoyle I could kill you if I wanted to." Kyra threatened, "Do you actually want to take that chance?"
"You don't frighten me, I know the weakness given by that spell." Micheal said casually.
"Weakness, what weakness?" Brooklyn asked, "She's almost as strong as Goliath now and a better glider than any of us."
"Maybe, but Demona added something to that spell." Micheal hinted.
"I know I'm going to regret this in about two seconds, but what?" Kyra asked.
"I'm sure Brooklyn's familiar with the spell, Demona pulled it on Goliath right in front of him many years ago." Micheal said.
"Not the mind control spell!" Brooklyn exclaimed. "Impossible, she has free will. She speaks and knows her friends."
"What mind control spell?" Kyra asked him.
"You'll see." Demona said from behind him. Brooklyn and Kyra spun around to see Demona holding a gun to them. Lupus growled like a hell hound.
Back at the castle, Goliath and Elisa were wondering why Brooklyn and Kyra were taking so long. Goliath decided to go look for them, Elisa made him take her as well. Bronx finally gave in and went too, in fact Broadway and Lexington went along. They knew Demona was up to something, and they knew from experience that it wasn't good.
At Demona's lair, Brooklyn and Kyra were locked in a cell with the keys just out of reach and Kyras magic didn't seem to work on metal so she couldn't float the keys over (shed learned this from experience by already trying it). Kyra was mature, but her body was just slender enough to get through the bars. She went over and grabbed the keys, then unlocked the door.
Kyra put the repaired rope leash on Lupus and went with Brooklyn to find a way out before Demona could start the mind control spell.
When they got to a door that led outside, it was locked from the outside. Micheal was probably out there, guarding against any gargoyles that came to save them.
"Well, that cancels escaping from this exit." Kyra said.
"There has to be another way out of here." Brooklyn replied.
"Wait, Goliath and Xanatos came through a passage in the wall, Goliath got me out through the same way, it led right outside on ground level, not up here." Kyra said, feeling the wall for a door.
"The only ways in it must be on ground level, then." Brooklyn reasoned. They went down the stairs and looked for a loose brick or something that might tell them there was an entrance to the passage. Lupus started scratching at the wall, whining just loud enough to arouse curiousity in Kyra. She knelt and looked at the spot where Lupus was scratching, there was an indented brick. Just to see what would happen, Kyra pushed the brick in. She jumped back when the wall moved, revealing a tunnel leading into darkness.
"Very good boy! Let's go, before Demona finds out we escaped." Kyra led Lupus into the dark, forbidding passage. Brooklyn wasn't too sure of the passage, but he went anyway, since it was the only way he could think of to get out safely. Besides, by now Demona had discovered they were missing and was searching the lair to find them before they escaped, but she couldn't search in a place she didn't know about.
Kyra used her near perfect night vision to find the exit. She felt a blast of cold air to the right, it was pretty cold outside even for October. Kyra looked through a crack in the brick and saw stars and grass and a tree off to the left. She looked for the door so they could get out there. Brooklyn helped, he soon found the door. They pushed as hard as they could and just moved the door enough for a mouse to get out.
Wait a minute! I have magic, why am I wasting my strength? she thought and started to concentrate on the wall, it began to glow and move. Finally, it was open enough to get through.
Micheal had just looked over the wall and saw them running away from the building.
How did they get out? he wondered and ran down to catch them, but by the time he was outside they were out of sight, and the only sign of them was a victory call far to the west.
When they returned to the castle, they told Goliath about how Demona had caught them, and how Micheal had shot right at Kyra.
"I thought Micheal at least liked Kyra." Goliath replied.
"Liked? Wrong "L" word." Kyra remarked angrily. She didn't like talking about Micheal's physical attraction of her.
"I guess as long as she's not in human form, she's not as pretty to him." Elisa assumed.
"Then he never really liked her." Lexington replied, "The real Kyra's still in there, she just has a different body. If he really liked her, he would still see the real Kyra."
"That reminds me, how is Chris gonna take this?" Kyra asked.
"If he really likes you, and knows you're still in there, he'll still like you." Elisa told her.
"I'm really worried about Kirsten. I think you figured this out by now, but she's my twin sister, and we aren't exactly twins anymore. It takes the fun out of this." Kyra replied. "Now we can't switch classes and take each other's tests."
"You and Kirsten are twins?" Angela asked, amazed.
"I thought you two looked too much alike to just be a coincidence." Elisa replied.
"Maybe, but we still have our differences, like she's calm and cool around Micheal when he's being a real jerk, and I practically lose my temper when he just talks to me." Kyra replied.
"Kirsten isn't our biggest problem, and neither is Micheal." Hudson interrupted, "Right now we have to worry about Demona and that jewel."
"Hudson's right, as long as Demona has the jewel, we'll never get this spell off Kyra." Elisa agreed.
"Halloween's tomorrow night, it'll be easier to search then, we won't have to worry about people seeing us." Lexington suggested.
"Good idea. Since Micheal's involved, we'll probably run into Demona, and I don't want that to happen in front everyone in the city on a regular night." Elisa replied.
"The sun is rising, we have to rest. Tomorrow night we'll stop this spell, Kyra." Goliath said.
On Halloween night, they all spread out over the city, looking for Demona and the jewel. Brooklyn and Kyra went to the east. Lexington and Broadway went west, and Elisa went north with Goliath. South was unfavorable territory because of violent gang fights.
Brooklyn and Kyra were having no luck at all, but Lexington and Broadway were having a bit too much! Micheal and his gang were waiting for them to land and when they did, refused to let them take to the air again.
Lex and Broadway were in real trouble, but Goliath and Elisa were in even more. Demona had found them before they could see her and intercepted Goliath, forcing him to land on a small roof. There was hardly enough room for a fair fight, which Demona didn't intend on doing anyway. If Elisa fell, Goliath would never get to her in time. Kyra began to get a strange feeling that someone was in trouble, but it was much greater than if just one of the Gargoyles was in a fight.
"Brooklyn." she called.
"What's wrong Kyra?" Brooklyn asked.
"I'm getting a weird feeling, I think the others are in danger." she answered.
"All of them?" he exclaimed.
"Yes, we have to go help." she replied
"But Kyra, Goliath and Elisa are miles away from Lex and Broadway, we'd never get to both of them in time." Brooklyn complained
"Quit whining, we have to help. We'll get to them in time if we split up, you go help Lexington and Broadway, and I'll help Goliath and Elisa." Kyra told him They took separate air currents and split in different directions, Kyra went to the north, Brooklyn to the west.
Meanwhile, Demona refused to give up the jewel without a fight, the rooftop was extremely small and too close to the ground. If Elisa fell, she would be doomed, and Demona knew it. She waited for the perfect chance, it came almost immediately. Elisa stumbled and Demona knocked her all the way off the roof with her tail, one sweep and Elisa went over the edge. Goliath rushed to catch her, but when he got to the edge of the roof, she was too far down, he knew he would never reach her.
Suddenly, Kyra dived straight down out of nowhere and caught Elisa, pulling up just before they almost hit the ground. Kyra put Elisa on another rooftop, away from Demona, who was scowling in anger. When Elisa was safe, Kyra went over to help Goliath.
"You weren't supposed to be able to do that!" Demona exclaimed, "You're not even supposed to know how to use your wings!"
"I'm a fast learner." Kyra replied, smiling.
"Good work, I would have never been able to do that." Goliath told her.
"I'm tempted to turn you back, except that it would ruin my plans." Demona said and glided off.
"What kind of plans would she have?" Kyra wondered sarcastically. She already knew it had something to do with that extra spell that lay dormant in her. "I think she's done enough."
"We'll find out soon enough." Goliath answered.
"Come on, the others may still be in trouble. Brooklyn's with them." Kyra replied.
"If Micheal's involved, you'd better make a pit stop at home first." Elisa called.
Brooklyn had just arrived at Central Park to see Lexington and Broadway hidden behind a tree.
"Why are you guys hiding?" Brooklyn asked.
"They've got guns." Broadway answered.
"So?" Brooklyn asked, a lazer shot right by his wing, "Never mind." he said as he jumped behind a tree.
"We tried to warn you." Lexington answered.
"Mike's aim is getting better." Brooklyn thought aloud.
"You're telling me, he nearly shot my head off a minute ago." Lexington told him.
"I hope Kyra finishes with Demona soon so she and Goliath can help us." Brooklyn replied. Just then, a zap of magic knocked a gun out of Logan's hand. He was the third strongest of the gang, his hair was in a mushroom cut, and he purposely showed off his strength by wearing vests but even he was no match for magic. Above, Kyra stood on a large rock, visibly not pleased. She looked like an avenging demon from hell, or worse.
"Micheal, will you get your head on straight? You aren't going to win this." Kyra said, making it totally obvious she was beyond annoyed. Her eyes flashed lavender and her tail whipped like a mad cat's.
"That's only your opinion." Micheal sneered.
"Not really." Kyra replied and Goliath landed beside her with Elisa, "It's theirs too."
"Not that I really care, but where's Demona?" Brooklyn asked.
"She gave up once there were two opponents that were equal to her." Elisa answered.
"Thank goodness for that, a few more minutes and we'd be toast." Broadway sighed.
"Micheal, you've changed. Before you were just an annoying jerk that I could tolerate, but now, you're a pushy, arrogant, swell headed jerk who's no better than Demona!" Kyra told Micheal, "And if you're going to act like Demona, you deserve the same treatment."
"Now he's going to get it!" Brooklyn said.
"I'm glad she's a friend!" Lexington added. "She looks really mad...."
Kyra hopped off her rock and went right up to Micheal, "I'm giving you one chance to leave before I teach you your lesson, Mikey. Either leave, change your ways, or prepare to be in a lot of pain."
Micheal stormed away, the rest of the gang left behind him, far behind him. Micheal was terrible to be around when he was mad.
"I guess that means he's still going to be a problem." Lexington replied.
"As long as he knows Kyra won't let him get away with things like this, he won't be a big problem." Elisa added.
"I'll make sure of that." a voice said.
"Xanatos! What's he doing here?" Brooklyn asked.
"He said that whenever Micheal went too far that he would help." Kyra answered.
"You're a little late." Lexington told Xanatos.
"I had to boot up the reinforcements." Xanatos replied. "They were a bit... dusty."
"We need them. Demona and Micheal are more like each other than Kirsten and I are." Kyra added.
"Let's go, I'm not giving up tonight until either the sun rises or we get the jewel." Brooklyn said and started walking.
"That could be suicide, Demona would expect that and be ready for you." Xanatos replied.
"You know how much I hate to admit this, but he's got a point guys." Elisa agreed.
"But how do we get the jewel?" Broadway asked, "It's our only way of breaking this spell."
"Demona would expect you coming for the jewel, but she wouldn't be ready for an attack of robots." Xanatos answered.
"You mean send the Steel Clan to get the jewel?" Kyra asked suspiciously. She barely trusted him, for a very good reason.
"No way, Xanatos." Elisa argued, "I don't trust you or your robots coming anywhere near that much power." That was Kyra's reason for being skeptical.
"I'll go too," Kyra volunteered, "After all, I'm stronger now. If one of the robots does something against the plan, I'll turn it to scrap metal."
"I'm a little beyond that." Xanatos said, obviously fighting an urge to scowl at the girl and Elisa.
"I'm coming too, you'll need help in case Demona starts the other spell." Brooklyn said, realizing too late he'd said too much. He hit his forehead in stupidity. "Uh, I mean, to watch your back."
"What other spell?" Elisa demanded, hands on her hips.
"Nothing," Kyra answered, "Let's go." she started walking, pulling at Brooklyn's elbow.
"Kyra." Goliath called sternly.
"I'll talk at home." Kyra called as they kept going.
"I'll send the robots to Demona's lair. Wait for them to show up before you go in, or you might get caught." Xanatos said and went to the castle. Unfortunately, Micheal heard every word they had said and went to see Demona.
Brooklyn and Kyra went to Demona's lair and waited, Goliath and the others went home to the castle. Elisa still didn't trust Xanatos, even if he was helping the Gargoyles hide from the city, and she and Goliath headed off to the lair as soon as they checked on Cana's condition.
Meanwhile, Micheal told Demona what Xanatos had said.
"So, Xanatos has joined Goliath's cause." Demona scowled, "Then I guess I'll have to destroy him with Kyra and Brooklyn when they come."
"No, don't lay one claw on Kyra, Demona. You know fully well that she's mine." Micheal told her.
"Very well, as long as they're all out of my way." Demona replied and left to prepare for the 'surprise' attack.
Brooklyn and Kyra had waited for two minutes before the robots showed up. Xanatos, in the armor robot, was with them.
"Figures, Xanatos probably doesn't trust me alone with those robots." Kyra said. She and Brooklyn took the secret passage in, while Xanatos and two robots went in the door on the roof.
Brooklyn and Kyra found the room where the jewel was kept out in the open. Kyra decided it was NOT a legitimate mistake, especially since Demona hardly ever made mistakes. They were cautious, Demona was probably waiting for something to happen before she attacked, and they wanted to leave before it did happen. Just before they got to the opening in the wall, Micheal came through the door and Demona came in through the opening, she had found the passage. They were trapped!
"Not so fast, Demona." Xanatos called. He was watching from a balcony, and jumped down to protect them, Brooklyn looked surprised and confused, it wasn't like Xanatos to take chances like this, especially for a couple of gargoyles. He'd sent the robots back, realizing they were of no use now that there would be a battle inside. The lazers could hit Kyra or Brooklyn, or hurt Micheal, and that wasn't needed or wanted...
"I beginning to wonder when you'd show up, Xanatos." Demona smirked.
"How did you know he was with us?" Kyra asked.
"Micheal overheard everything, now hand over the jewel." Demona answered. Kyra reluctantly threw the jewel back to Demona and looked at Brooklyn, they were both very scared.
A few minutes later, Brooklyn and Xanatos were in chains. Kyra was tied up in another room, where any rescuers would never look. Elisa and Goliath had just gotten to Demona's lair.
"It's pretty quiet." Elisa said.
"Too quiet." Goliath replied, "There should be at least the sound of a battle or a victory call, but there's nothing."
"Where is everyone?" Elisa asked.
"Let's find out." Goliath answered. They went in cautiously, listening and looking for the slightest thing that would betray Demona or Micheal's presence.
They came into the largest room and saw Brooklyn and Xanatos chained up. "It has to be a trap." Elisa told Goliath.
"It can't be a trap, Demona isn't anywhere near here and they aren't warning us." Goliath said, the chains came off as easily as if they were rusted and crumbling. "Where is Kyra?" he asked.
"Micheal took her somewhere, but I didn't see where." Brooklyn answered, rubbing his wrists.
"We have to find her, Micheal's probably going to kill Kyra himself." Elisa replied.
"Or even worse." Brooklyn mumbled.
"Brooklyn, it's time you told us, why are you always so skittish when Kyra and Demona or Micheal are mentioned in the same sentence?" Elisa asked. "And what is that other spell?"
"There's another spell hiding in Kyra, a mind control spell. Demona can call it to take over anytime." Brooklyn answered.
"That's the worse, isn't it?" Goliath asked.
"Not really, you have to ask Kyra about Micheal's predicament." Brooklyn answered.
"We have to find Kyra before Demona decides to use the spell." Elisa replied. "This one could be stronger than the one she used on Goliath."
"Let's split up, we'll cover more ground in less time." Xanatos suggested.
Meanwhile, Kyra was in more trouble than they thought, her magic had broken through the ropes, and she was unguarded. She could break out of that room anytime she wanted, but something deep in her subconscious told her not to, the spell was beginning to work.
Micheal and Demona were waiting for it to take full effect before they went anywhere near that room. They knew Kyra was still in control of her fighting and would attack at any moments notice.
"How long before the spell completely controls her?" Micheal asked.
"It will take a while at first. Right now it's preventing her from escaping voluntarily, soon she will slowly fall completely in our control and do only what we tell her." Demona answered.
"How about a time frame here? I checked on our other prisoners and they're free. The chains were broken, that means Goliath's somewhere in here, and we don't want him near Kyra until the spell is complete." Micheal said, his hands were on his hips.
"About half an hour from the time the spell started taking effect." Demona replied
"Good, all we have to do is keep them away for about 12 minutes." Micheal smiled.
"Let's go and keep them occupied." Demona ordered.
Elisa was walking down a dark hallway. Ever since she met the Gargoyles she absolutely hated pure darkness, it was Demona's favorite thing to hide in. You could never see her until it was too late. "I sure hope Demona's stalking someone else right now." she said to herself.
"I'm not sorry to disappoint you, Detective." Demona said from behind her. Elisa whirled around, Demona was only three feet from her.
"Demona! Where are you hiding Kyra?" Elisa asked.
"You really think I'm going to tell you just like that?" Demona said in a way that made Elisa fear for her life. She took a step back from Demona. "You don't really know me that well, do you?" Demona asked, coming that one step closer.
"I know you enough never to go to a place unarmed when I know you're waiting." Elisa answered, pulling out her gun quickly.
"That won't work, remember?" Demona told Elisa, reminding of the condition that only Macbeth could kill her. "You know I could overpower you in seconds and take your life in even less time."
"Maybe, but I won't give up that easily when my friends are in danger." Elisa replied bravely. Demona's eyes began to glow deep red in anger, she leaped towards Elisa as the human fired a shot.
Goliath was just a few feet from the room Kyra was locked in. He heard a sound behind him, he turned around, ready to attack. It was only Xanatos, scared out of his wits.
"Never sneak up on a gargoyle." Goliath told him, "It's very foolish."
"Sorry, have you found Kyra?" Xanatos asked, regaining his compsure.
"I have a feeling that she's nearby, but there are three rooms, which one she's in is a mystery." Goliath answered.
"I have an idea." Xanatos said, "Why don't you just call her name, if it's safe, she'll call back."
"It's not that simple Xanatos. If Demona or Micheal is nearby, they'd find us in no time and attack before we got to Kyra." Goliath replied, "Besides, that spell may keep her from replying."
"This is probably a bad time to bring this up, but the only sign I've found of Demona is heading the same way your friend Elisa was going. As I remember, Demona has a grudge towards her in particular."
"Demona must be after Elisa, hurry, we have to stop her." Goliath and Xanatos rushed away to save Elisa.
Brooklyn was starting to get worried, he couldn't let anything happen, he wouldn't let anything happen, but what if it already happened? He saw Goliath and Xanatos and realized that Elisa was probably in trouble, but right now his mind was focused on saving Kyra. Besides, Demona wasn't that hard to beat, as long as you knew what to do...
...And Elisa knew what to do. It was dark in the hallway, but she could tell where Demona was by listening intently to her snarls and ducked or jumped out of the way whenever she heard something move. Demona was beginning to tire of all of Elisa's dodging, it was harder to hit her than it was to hit Kyra. Finally, she gave up and left, by now there was nothing Elisa, or anyone, could do anyway.
Goliath and Xanatos got there just after Demona left. "You're a little late, guys." Elisa told them, she was barely breathing after such an intense battle.
"Where's Demona?" Xanatos asked.
"She just left." Elisa answered, pointing in the direction Demona ran.
"You're getting better at fighting her." Goliath replied, "This time you didn't need any help."
"I think she left for another reason than giving up on the fight." Xanatos said. Goliath and Elisa knew exactly what he meant.
"Come on, let's go find Brooklyn." Elisa said and they went to look for him.
Brooklyn had just gotten to the hallway Goliath was in before he left to help Elisa. He knew Kyra was nearby, and his strong friendship with her told him the exact room she was in. Another feeling told him that Micheal and Demona were in there too. The spell was in control of Kyra now, and he knew there was little that he could do, except wait.
Micheal and Demona were checking Kyra, to make sure the spell was fully in control, and that she was not just faking. Kyra looked totally normal, except for her duller eyes.
"I know the one way to test her." Micheal told Demona.
"What?" Demona asked.
"Send her after her friends, she'll do it without hesitation, if she's under our control."
"And if she isn't she'll go right to them and help them." Demona protested.
"Then we'll kill them and you can turn her back." Micheal replied.
"How do we get them here?" Demona asked.
"We don't, we take Kyra to them." Micheal answered
"But by now they know Kyra's under our control." Demona told him.
"So, that doesn't mean they won't come to break the spell. They actually think this is the same spell you used before, but there is one difference between this and the spell you put on Goliath, this one can never be broken!" Micheal reminded her.
Brooklyn heard everything Micheal said, his ear was to the door. "That's what you think Mike. Every spell has a counterspell, even if it's known to only one person. In this case, that person is me." he went to find Goliath, Elisa, and Xanatos.
They all met in the large room, right where Demona wanted them. She sent Kyra out, telling her to act completely normal, but wait for a command.
"Brooklyn, where were you?" Elisa asked.
"Looking for Kyra, I found her but..."
"But what?" Kyra asked in a normal voice. Her silver eyes were only gray now, and her "moonbeam" hair was dead black, only Brooklyn noticed.
"Kyra!" Goliath exclaimed, "How did you escape?"
"She didn't escape Goliath, she was let out." Brooklyn told him, grabbing him quickly to keep him from Kyra.
"Why?" Xanatos asked.
"Because she's under the spell, don't believe anything she says." Brooklyn answered, his eyes were narrowed in distrust.
"Then why is she acting normally?" Elisa asked, looking at Kyra.
"Because I told her to." Demona told her, coming into view, she was holding the jewel. Kyra looked up at her immediately. "Kyra, attack them!" Demona ordered. Kyra growled and almost leaped on them when...
"No Kyra, don't!" Brooklyn called, "I know the real you is in there, and the real you wouldn't let Demona control her. Your free will is stronger than that spell, fight it!"
"Kill them, especially him." Demona commanded. Kyra turned to her and spun back, unchanged, except her growl was fiercer and her lavender eyeshine was brighter. He'd have to try harder.
"Kyra, please, listen to your heart, not her. I'm your friend." Brooklyn told Kyra. She remained totally unchanged and went right up to him with her hands balled into fists and ready to slug him into next Tuesday. Goliath was about to restrain her, but Brooklyn stopped him. "No Goliath, let her."
"Are you crazy, Brooklyn?" Elisa asked, "She's going to kill you!"
"I know, Elisa. I know." Brooklyn stayed completely still.
"What are you doing? At least fight back!" Goliath exclaimed. "She's stronger than you right now."
"This is going to be easier than I thought." Demona gloated, "He won't fight his friend!"
Brooklyn looked up at Demona as if that was his point, and turned to Kyra, "Look Kyra you can do whatever she tells you to do, but I'll always be your friend because I know you would never be doing this if you weren't under a spell. This isn't the real you." Her eyeshine began to fade, the spell was breaking!
"That's it Brooklyn!" Elisa called, she noticed the sparkle in Kyra's dark eyes. "Keep going, it's working!"
"Kyra, I know you can hear me. Fight the spell! I know you can do it, I know your spirit is stronger than this." Brooklyn persuaded Kyra, "I'll always care about you, and I'll always think of you as my friend, no matter what you do." That was the final touch, Kyra closed her eyes tightly, fighting inside of herself.
"Kyra, don't listen to him, kill him!" Demona commanded.
Kyra opened her eyes, they were shining pure silver. The silver at the tip of a knife, meaning she was angry. There was no dullness left in her hair, it shone with the strength of moonlight. Kyra turned towards Demona.
"NO!" she called, "I refuse to even hurt my best friend."
"Yeah! It worked!" Brooklyn exclaimed.
"Welcome back, Kyra." Elisa said and turned to Demona, "It looks like you lost again."
"Not quite, Kyra may have her spirit back, but she's still a gargoyle, and will remain that way forever!" Demona ran out of the room, the last thing they heard from her was a victory cry as she glided away.
"She's right, without the jewel, you'll never be human again." Xanatos told Kyra.
"I don't care what I am, as long as I'm with my friends." Kyra replied.
"You mean you don't mind being a gargoyle?" Brooklyn asked.
"Of course not!" Kyra told him, "As long as I have you for my best friend, I'm happy."
"I just wish you could be the way you're supposed to be." Brooklyn sighed.
"She is." a voice familiar to the gargoyles said.
"It's the weird sisters." Goliath replied. Elisa was cautious, she knew what they were capable of.
"What do you mean Kyra's the way she's supposed to be?" Xanatos asked.
"She was supposed to be a gargoyle. Didn't you see even a little bit of your kind in her eyes?" the dark haired sister asked Goliath.
"Yes, a little." Goliath admitted, "But why was she a human when she was supposed to be a gargoyle?" Goliath asked. "That makes no sense."
"It makes less than no sense." Kyra added.
"She descends from a clan of gargoyles that had special powers and lived in the mountains, just a hundred or so miles from the cliffs that once held Wyvern castle. Their powers were stronger than the ones she has now because time has weakened them, they were destroyed before Goliath's clan awoke in Manhattan from the spell. Once, a century before people came to Wyvern," she stopped to look over at Goliath, "an evil member of her clan kidnapped the leader's eldest daughter. He tried to convince her to leave her home with him, but she had a strong loyalty to her father's clan."
"The evil gargoyle had strong powers, hers were stronger, but he knew of one spell he could put on her. One that could never be broken, a terrible curse." the gold haired sister added.
"What was the curse?" Brooklyn asked.
"That she would become a human forever and all of her descendants would be born human, never knowing their true form." the ebony sister answered.
"And that they would stay a human for the rest of their life, unless a gargoyle that was not from their clan cast the counter spell upon the eldest daughter of a generation, destroying the curse and freeing the future generations." the silver-blond sister added, "The girl escaped to Gaul and was adopted by an extremely powerful sorcerer who gave her the Jewel of Strength to compensate for her lost wings."
"Demona was the only one of you that knew enough magic to break the spell." the golden haired sister explained.
"So you had Demona cast the counter spell, thinking she was casting a real spell for revenge?" Elisa said confusedly.
"Yes, it was the only way to do this. We knew Goliath's clan would not be able to do it, because none of them knew how to use magic that was so powerful." the dark haired sister told her.
"And Demona certainly knows how to use magic." Goliath replied.
"She uses too much." Elisa added, "One of these days, magic will be the end of her."
"I wish." Brooklyn said quietly. He never liked Demona, he hated her more than any of the others did.
"This is so weird, I'm definitely not going to forget this Halloween!" Kyra exclaimed.
"One thing's for sure, Demona will be extremely mad if she finds out she did one of Goliath's allies a favor." Xanatos said.
"Then we won't tell her." Elisa replied, thinking it ridiculous that Xanatos hadn't thought of it first.
"But what about the humans that know Kyra?" Brooklyn asked, "They'll get suspicious if they don't see her around during the day."
"You mean Micheal?" Broadway asked.
"No, Kyra has a lot of human friends, they're used to not seeing her at night, but they'll get worried if she's gone during the day too." Elisa said with concern.
"Then we shall take off half of the counter spell, she will be a gargoyle during the night, but when morning comes, she will become a human." the gold-locked sister answered. "Of course if she ever touches the jewel again, she may be allowed to voluntarily become human at night."
"Hold it. I saw Demona transform once, it looked pretty painful." Elisa said. "And one of the third race changed her."
"Demona feels pain during her transformation because she does not deserve a gift like that without a catch. However, Kyra does deserve such a gift and will feel no pain when the sun rises." the ebony sister replied.
"Now we must go before Oberon misses us." the white haired sister said, then all three vanished before any of the clan could ask why they would grant a human or gargoyle such a gift.
"Human by day, gargoyle by night, Micheal's not going to be happy about that!" Elisa said.
"Especially the night thing, I can't wait to see his face if he catches me at sunset!" Kyra exclaimed.
"Sometimes I think you can be a little too cruel towards him." Brooklyn told her, "Then I come to my senses and remember he deserves it!"
"I'd still like to know the little secret you two are hiding." Elisa told him. "It's got something to do with Micheal, but what?" Kyra and Brooklyn gave Elisa deadpan looks and walked away from her whistling innocently.
"Speaking of Micheal, where is he?" Goliath asked.
"I haven't seen him since he and Demona sent me after you guys." Kyra answered.
"You remember that?" Xanatos asked.
"Sure, I could see things, I just couldn't react to them." Kyra answered, "Except when I was told to."
"I'd better find Micheal before he causes any more trouble." Xanatos replied and left.
"Come on Kyra, the sun's rising, let's go home." Brooklyn said.
"Good idea, even though I won't turn to stone, I don't want to be in here during the day. Demona still has most of her gargoyle qualities, especially strength!" Kyra replied.
"So will you." Brooklyn told her.
"Still, I've had enough fighting for the day." Kyra replied and walked out of the room.
"We all have." Elisa added, sighing, and they all left Demona's lair.
Just five minutes later, the sun began to shine brightly over Manhattan, NY.
Curious about who was watching Kyra? Read the add-on chapter: Nekawa- an essential part of the story
"Have you girls seen Kyra around here recently?" Elisa
asked.
"Sorry, we haven't seen Kyra since school ended for the
day." Kirsten answered.
"Yeah, why, is something wrong?" Kiesha asked.
"There will be if we don't find her, someone really bad
is after her." Broadway answered.
"You mean Micheal?" Kirsten asked.
"How did you know about him?" Elisa asked.
"He's been out to get Kyra since she moved here from Montana."
Kiesha explained.
"Hey guys, I've got an idea on how to prevent Demona and
Micheal from being a problem for a while." Kyra said one night,
"And I mean a long while."
"That sounds pretty hard, how do we do it?" Lexington
asked.
"My other friends, Kiesha and Kirsten, know a lot about
fighting Micheal and they could learn how to fight Demona the same way
I did, by watching how she fights." Kyra answered.
"And you want us to help?" Kirsten asked.
"Yes, if you can. I have to warn you though, if we get
in Demona's way, she'll put up a fight, and she was the best warrior in
her clan." Kyra warned.
"Do we get to fight Micheal too?" Kiesha asked. She loved
hitting Micheal, but the school rules wouldn't let her do everything
she wanted to.
"Well, Micheal and Demona work together if her plots involve
me, which they usually do now." Kyra answered.
"Then we're definitely in." Kirsten said.
Suddenly, Kyra felt a presence, she turned around to see Demona holding a gun, ready to fire. Kyra knew there was only one way to escape, she backed up to the building edge and jumped into the river without a splash, she used her magic to make her able to hold her breath underwater longer and waited. What seemed like hours later, Kyra came out of the water and started to walk back. But Demona was still there and cornered her against a wall, she raised the lazer and prepared to fire, smiling wickedly. If shed had the breath, Kyra would have screamed...
Kyra was in the worst predicament of her life, she was
cornered by Demona, and she was about to use her lazer to turn Kyra into
swiss cheese.
If Demona weakened Kyra enough that her powers had diminished,
Kyra would be helpless. Kyra met Demona's fierceness with courage and instead
of strength, used her agility to fight back. She dodged every move that
Demona made with perfection, never tripping or stepping off balance. Kyra
was sure that Demona was beaten, but she had forgotten one thing, the stolen
jewel.
When Kyra stopped jumping around to catch her breath and
wait for Demona's next move, Demona started the real attack, with magic.
Kyra was confused at first, Demona was just standing there, then when she
saw the jewel in Demona's hand, she realized what might happen, but it
was too late, Demona said a few quick words and a beam burst from the jewel
and hit Kyra as she jumped out of the way.
The force of the magic pushed Kyra to the ground, knocking
her unconscious for nearly an hour. When she regained consciousness, she
was afraid to open her eyes, thinking that Demona would still be there.
Strangely, when Kyra finally opened her eyes, Demona was gone.
Everything seemed the same, but Kyra felt different. She
looked around, the alley seemed normal, but she seemed able to see the
dark areas a lot better. That's weird, she thought, I have good
night vision, but it's never been this good. Kyra was getting suspicious,
she decided to look at herself, she had a nagging feeling that told her
to glance at her reflection in the river.
Kyra could barely believe her eyes when she saw what had
happened: shed been turned into a gargoyle! She figured that shed better
take the side streets and alleyways to the castle. She wondered how the
gargoyles would take this, besides the fact that Goliath would be mad at
Demona. She went in the back entrance of Eyrie Tower and was found by a
very shocked Xanatos. He took her up to the castle after hearing her story.
"Brooklyn, come out here please." Kyra said, trying to
hide her anxiousness, "It's important."
"That sounds like Kyra." Angela said.
"I wonder why she's out there." Brooklyn thought aloud
as he went out, "Kyra? Where are you?"
"Over here, please understand that I had nothing to do
with this." Kyra replied.
"Nothing to do with what?" Brooklyn asked, she came out
of the shadows, "Oh, that." he replied calmly, "What happened to you?"
he asked.
"Demona, what else?" Kyra answered, "She used the jewel.
As long as she has it, I'm in for a lot worse than this. Why did you take
it so well?"
"She did the same kind of thing to Elisa. Besides, you're
so strong and agile, you almost look like a gargoyle when you fight." Brooklyn
replied, "But I don't think Goliath's going to take this so well, I'd better
tell him before he sees you."
"Good idea." Kyra said and Brooklyn went in.
"What did Kyra want to talk about?" Elisa asked.
"You don't want to know until Goliath does, believe me."
Brooklyn answered, "Where is he anyway?"
"Checking on Cana." Broadway replied. Brooklyn went over
to talk to Goliath, he didn't say another word to anyone else.
There was a large basket in the corner of a small, isolated room. Cana was in the other end of the room, she was too tired to go in the basket.
"Goliath?" Brooklyn said timidly. "I have to tell you something that you're not going to like."
"What is it, Brooklyn?" Goliath asked.
In another room, the others were getting curious. "What're they talking about?" Broadway asked.
"I don't know, Brooklyn made it sound urgent, though." Elisa answered.
"Then why can't he tell us?" Angela asked.
"Maybe it's about something only Goliath should know, at least for now." Elisa guessed. Goliath came over to them, looking concerned.
"What's the matter?" Elisa asked.
"It's Kyra, Demona's gone much too far this time." Goliath answered.
"Oh no, what did she do now?" Elisa queried.
"See for yourself." Brooklyn replied, "Come on in Kyra." Kyra opened the door and stepped in.
"Not this again!" Elisa exclaimed.
"Hasn't Demona learned by now?" Lexington said, "Humans are supposed to be humans and gargoyles are supposed to be gargoyles."
"Sometimes I think she's trying just a bit too hard to get rid of humans." Brooklyn added.
"You mean Demona turned a human into a gargoyle before?" Angela asked.
"Yes, before we met you, she turned all the humans in the city to gargoyles, and us into humans. And the gargoyles that were really humans never remembered that they were turned to gargoyles." Goliath answered.
"What a mouthful!" Kyra joked, smirking. Goliath was glad to see that her humor wasn't tarnished by what happened.
"But, that didn't work, why did she do it now?" Brooklyn asked.
"Demona's unpredictable. Sometimes what seems perfectly innocent could be a deadly plot of hers." Elisa answered.
"You think the weird sisters put another spell on her?" Angela asked
"No, they wouldn't try that again." Elisa answered. "At least, I don't think they would."
"What are we going to do?" Broadway asked.
"There might be a counter spell to that sort of thing in the Grimorum." Lexington answered.
"But it's gone. Demona and Macbeth stole it a long time ago, and it was destroyed with the Archmage when Elisa and Goliath went to Avalon." Brooklyn reminded him. "Very few of the pages left have strong spells on them."
"Don't worry, we'll find a way to turn you back." Goliath told Kyra.
"We have to get the jewel as well, it made the spell much stronger than anything in the Grimorum could be." Kyra reminded them.
"That reminds me, Kyra, do you still have your magic?" Brooklyn asked.
"I think so, why?" Kyra answered.
"You might need it." Angela replied, "As long as you have it, you'll be safe even in this form."
"Why don't we go look for the jewel now?" Kyra asked.
"You'll need time to adjust to that body Kyra, before you go anywhere." Elisa warned her.
"Why" she asked.
"You have to learn how to use your wings, and you have more strength. You have to learn how to control it." Goliath answered.
"I'll help you." Brooklyn voluntered.
"Thanks, Brook. I hope we find that jewel soon so I can be human again. No offense guys, but I'm used to being that way." Kyra replied.
"We know, remember, we had to be human for three hours. You're used to being human and we're used to being gargoyles." Brooklyn told her.
"It's just that it feels weird, I don't know how to use this body." Kyra said.
"That's why I'm going to teach you." Brooklyn replied and they went outside.
"I hope he doesn't get to used to her being that way." Goliath said, mainly to Elisa. She smiled just for him.
Meanwhile, Micheal and Demona were talking near the gang's base.
"Why did you turn Kyra into a gargoyle?" Micheal asked, he wasn't happy.
"It's part of my plan, Goliath and the others will be so wrapped up in teaching her how to use her wings and control her strength that they won't be ready for an attack. And it will take days at the least for her to learn." Demona answered.
"Yeah, but what do I get out of this?" Micheal asked, his dark eyes narrowed dramatically.
"Relax, if you mean about Kyra, I'll turn her back as soon as I get what I want, and then she's all yours." Demona replied and went off to look for Kyra. She knew that the girl had to be somewhere learning with one of the gargoyles by now.
Unfortunately for Demona, Kyra was a fast learner and was already up in the sky with Brooklyn, she even did better than he did. The fact that she didn't have a fear of falling off buildings helped her get up in the air. Elisa said she could barely even look down when she had been changed, it made things very difficult. Kyras magic helped her when she lost balance, in fact, the only problem she had was landing.
"All right Kyra, let's work on your landing." Brooklyn called.
"Not on your life." Kyra said in a low sarcastic voice.
"Come on, you've got to learn, watch me." he glided down to a building and landed right on his feet. "Your turn."
"No way, I can't do that!" Kyra exclaimed.
"Kyra, as a human you could do anything except glide and land, now just take it slow and you'll do fine." Brooklyn said calmly, "I'll talk you through it."
"All right, I'll try." she called, still a little skepticism in her voice.
"Try to catch a down draft, there's one right over there. Once you hit it, angle your wings down a little and lean towards the rooftop. Just before you get to the rooftop, stick your legs out a little and I'll help you." Brooklyn reassured her.
"Here goes nothing." Kyra said quietly.
She did exactly what Brooklyn told her and landed almost perfectly right beside him. Angela, who had just gotten there, was amazed, even she couldn't do that so well. Neither could Brooklyn, he just looked at Kyra, his jaw was practically locked.
"How was that?" she asked.
"Almost perfect!" Angela told her, "It's like you've been doing this all your life."
At the castle, Goliath was starting to get worried about Brooklyn and Kyra when they came gliding over. Kyra landed first and Brooklyn landed behind her. Angela came soon after.
"I'm impressed, you've learned faster than Brooklyn when he was little." Goliath replied.
"I've always been a fast learner, but never this fast. It was like a part of me knew how to do this already." Kyra said.
"That's probably because you watched these guys do it." Elisa replied from behind Goliath.
"Hi Elisa. Now that I can use my wings and all that other stuff, can we look for the jewel?" Kyra asked.
"I don't see why not, as long as someone goes with you." Goliath answered. "How about you, Brooklyn?"
"No problem." Brooklyn replied.
"Kyra probably doesn't need him going with her, but the extra protection might be needed if Demona and Micheal fight together." Elisa added.
"If?" Kyra asked sarcastically.
Cana came up and whined, she wanted to go with Kyra. She knew she was too heavy (a month pregnant for a wolf was heavy), but she didn't like Kyra going off when she knew there may be danger. Bronx didn't want to go, he didn't like a strange gargoyle in the castle, even if it was Kyra, and he didn't go near her. Lupus came up and whined.
"All right, let's go." Kyra easily picked up the full grown wolf.
Brooklyn and Kyra took off after they received directions from Goliath on how to get to the two places the amulet would be, Demona's lair, and the Nightstone Unlimited building. They went to Nightstone first, since Demona probably wouldn't be there. They thoroughly searched the abandoned penthouse, but found nothing. Then they decided to rest and look for clues to where the jewel might be before they went to Demona's lair.
Finally, they reluctantly left, knowing theyd be expected and Demona had set up a trap for them. Before Kyra took off, Lupus growled. Someone was watching, but Kyra sensed it wasn't Demona. Since she couldn't see anyone, she figured it wasn't important so she glided off and caught up with Brooklyn. (-see bottom of chapter)
When they reached Demona's lair, Kyra tied a rope around Lupus's neck loosely like a leash. He went ahead, sniffing for any traps. Suddenly, he stopped and growled fiercely at a spot on the ground. Kyra checked it out.
Demona was serious about protecting the jewel, right in front of Kyra was a steel bear trap, it would have been impossible for Brooklyn or her to get that off their leg.
"Good boy, Lup." Kyra said softly, scratching Lupus's head, he lifted his head up to Kyra and wagged his tail. He didn't realize that he had just saved his life as well as the two gargoyles. He just smelled Demona on the trap from when it was set and absolutely refused to go near it.
"It's a good thing you're training them not to go near Demona and Micheal's scent, or we would have been in big trouble." Brooklyn said quietly.
"Let's go, before Demona discovers we're out here." Kyra replied and started walking.
"Too late." Brooklyn said, looking up. Lupus growled at the sky, a different growl. Kyra jumped back at a lazer blast that broke the rope leash, Kyra lunged forward and grabbed him before running for cover. He gave a little "Yipe!" at the blast and yelped when Kyra grabbed him. He had no idea what danger he was in, he was too caught up in protecting Kyra to worry about danger. Kyra looked up to see who shot the lazer, still holding Lupus back. It was Micheal.
"Doing Demona's dirty work, Mike?" Kyra asked sarcastically.
"You may have changed form, but your attitude is the same." Micheal said sharply. Lupus growled at Micheal. He was trained to growl at his scent, but the sight of Micheal seemed to upset him as well.
"Tell Demona she's not going to get away with this." Brooklyn told Micheal.
"She already has, and I'm not telling why." Micheal replied.
"Look, you know I could beat you as a human. So as a gargoyle I could kill you if I wanted to." Kyra threatened, "Do you actually want to take that chance?"
"You don't frighten me, I know the weakness given by that spell." Micheal said casually.
"Weakness, what weakness?" Brooklyn asked, "She's almost as strong as Goliath now and a better glider than any of us."
"Maybe, but Demona added something to that spell." Micheal hinted.
"I know I'm going to regret this in about two seconds, but what?" Kyra asked.
"I'm sure Brooklyn's familiar with the spell, Demona pulled it on Goliath right in front of him many years ago." Micheal said.
"Not the mind control spell!" Brooklyn exclaimed. "Impossible, she has free will. She speaks and knows her friends."
"What mind control spell?" Kyra asked him.
"You'll see." Demona said from behind him. Brooklyn and Kyra spun around to see Demona holding a gun to them. Lupus growled like a hell hound.
Back at the castle, Goliath and Elisa were wondering why Brooklyn and Kyra were taking so long. Goliath decided to go look for them, Elisa made him take her as well. Bronx finally gave in and went too, in fact Broadway and Lexington went along. They knew Demona was up to something, and they knew from experience that it wasn't good.
At Demona's lair, Brooklyn and Kyra were locked in a cell with the keys just out of reach and Kyras magic didn't seem to work on metal so she couldn't float the keys over (shed learned this from experience by already trying it). Kyra was mature, but her body was just slender enough to get through the bars. She went over and grabbed the keys, then unlocked the door.
Kyra put the repaired rope leash on Lupus and went with Brooklyn to find a way out before Demona could start the mind control spell.
When they got to a door that led outside, it was locked from the outside. Micheal was probably out there, guarding against any gargoyles that came to save them.
"Well, that cancels escaping from this exit." Kyra said.
"There has to be another way out of here." Brooklyn replied.
"Wait, Goliath and Xanatos came through a passage in the wall, Goliath got me out through the same way, it led right outside on ground level, not up here." Kyra said, feeling the wall for a door.
"The only ways in it must be on ground level, then." Brooklyn reasoned. They went down the stairs and looked for a loose brick or something that might tell them there was an entrance to the passage. Lupus started scratching at the wall, whining just loud enough to arouse curiousity in Kyra. She knelt and looked at the spot where Lupus was scratching, there was an indented brick. Just to see what would happen, Kyra pushed the brick in. She jumped back when the wall moved, revealing a tunnel leading into darkness.
"Very good boy! Let's go, before Demona finds out we escaped." Kyra led Lupus into the dark, forbidding passage. Brooklyn wasn't too sure of the passage, but he went anyway, since it was the only way he could think of to get out safely. Besides, by now Demona had discovered they were missing and was searching the lair to find them before they escaped, but she couldn't search in a place she didn't know about.
Kyra used her near perfect night vision to find the exit. She felt a blast of cold air to the right, it was pretty cold outside even for October. Kyra looked through a crack in the brick and saw stars and grass and a tree off to the left. She looked for the door so they could get out there. Brooklyn helped, he soon found the door. They pushed as hard as they could and just moved the door enough for a mouse to get out.
Wait a minute! I have magic, why am I wasting my strength? she thought and started to concentrate on the wall, it began to glow and move. Finally, it was open enough to get through.
Micheal had just looked over the wall and saw them running away from the building.
How did they get out? he wondered and ran down to catch them, but by the time he was outside they were out of sight, and the only sign of them was a victory call far to the west.
When they returned to the castle, they told Goliath about how Demona had caught them, and how Micheal had shot right at Kyra.
"I thought Micheal at least liked Kyra." Goliath replied.
"Liked? Wrong "L" word." Kyra remarked angrily. She didn't like talking about Micheal's physical attraction of her.
"I guess as long as she's not in human form, she's not as pretty to him." Elisa assumed.
"Then he never really liked her." Lexington replied, "The real Kyra's still in there, she just has a different body. If he really liked her, he would still see the real Kyra."
"That reminds me, how is Chris gonna take this?" Kyra asked.
"If he really likes you, and knows you're still in there, he'll still like you." Elisa told her.
"I'm really worried about Kirsten. I think you figured this out by now, but she's my twin sister, and we aren't exactly twins anymore. It takes the fun out of this." Kyra replied. "Now we can't switch classes and take each other's tests."
"You and Kirsten are twins?" Angela asked, amazed.
"I thought you two looked too much alike to just be a coincidence." Elisa replied.
"Maybe, but we still have our differences, like she's calm and cool around Micheal when he's being a real jerk, and I practically lose my temper when he just talks to me." Kyra replied.
"Kirsten isn't our biggest problem, and neither is Micheal." Hudson interrupted, "Right now we have to worry about Demona and that jewel."
"Hudson's right, as long as Demona has the jewel, we'll never get this spell off Kyra." Elisa agreed.
"Halloween's tomorrow night, it'll be easier to search then, we won't have to worry about people seeing us." Lexington suggested.
"Good idea. Since Micheal's involved, we'll probably run into Demona, and I don't want that to happen in front everyone in the city on a regular night." Elisa replied.
"The sun is rising, we have to rest. Tomorrow night we'll stop this spell, Kyra." Goliath said.
On Halloween night, they all spread out over the city, looking for Demona and the jewel. Brooklyn and Kyra went to the east. Lexington and Broadway went west, and Elisa went north with Goliath. South was unfavorable territory because of violent gang fights.
Brooklyn and Kyra were having no luck at all, but Lexington and Broadway were having a bit too much! Micheal and his gang were waiting for them to land and when they did, refused to let them take to the air again.
Lex and Broadway were in real trouble, but Goliath and Elisa were in even more. Demona had found them before they could see her and intercepted Goliath, forcing him to land on a small roof. There was hardly enough room for a fair fight, which Demona didn't intend on doing anyway. If Elisa fell, Goliath would never get to her in time. Kyra began to get a strange feeling that someone was in trouble, but it was much greater than if just one of the Gargoyles was in a fight.
"Brooklyn." she called.
"What's wrong Kyra?" Brooklyn asked.
"I'm getting a weird feeling, I think the others are in danger." she answered.
"All of them?" he exclaimed.
"Yes, we have to go help." she replied
"But Kyra, Goliath and Elisa are miles away from Lex and Broadway, we'd never get to both of them in time." Brooklyn complained
"Quit whining, we have to help. We'll get to them in time if we split up, you go help Lexington and Broadway, and I'll help Goliath and Elisa." Kyra told him They took separate air currents and split in different directions, Kyra went to the north, Brooklyn to the west.
Meanwhile, Demona refused to give up the jewel without a fight, the rooftop was extremely small and too close to the ground. If Elisa fell, she would be doomed, and Demona knew it. She waited for the perfect chance, it came almost immediately. Elisa stumbled and Demona knocked her all the way off the roof with her tail, one sweep and Elisa went over the edge. Goliath rushed to catch her, but when he got to the edge of the roof, she was too far down, he knew he would never reach her.
Suddenly, Kyra dived straight down out of nowhere and caught Elisa, pulling up just before they almost hit the ground. Kyra put Elisa on another rooftop, away from Demona, who was scowling in anger. When Elisa was safe, Kyra went over to help Goliath.
"You weren't supposed to be able to do that!" Demona exclaimed, "You're not even supposed to know how to use your wings!"
"I'm a fast learner." Kyra replied, smiling.
"Good work, I would have never been able to do that." Goliath told her.
"I'm tempted to turn you back, except that it would ruin my plans." Demona said and glided off.
"What kind of plans would she have?" Kyra wondered sarcastically. She already knew it had something to do with that extra spell that lay dormant in her. "I think she's done enough."
"We'll find out soon enough." Goliath answered.
"Come on, the others may still be in trouble. Brooklyn's with them." Kyra replied.
"If Micheal's involved, you'd better make a pit stop at home first." Elisa called.
Brooklyn had just arrived at Central Park to see Lexington and Broadway hidden behind a tree.
"Why are you guys hiding?" Brooklyn asked.
"They've got guns." Broadway answered.
"So?" Brooklyn asked, a lazer shot right by his wing, "Never mind." he said as he jumped behind a tree.
"We tried to warn you." Lexington answered.
"Mike's aim is getting better." Brooklyn thought aloud.
"You're telling me, he nearly shot my head off a minute ago." Lexington told him.
"I hope Kyra finishes with Demona soon so she and Goliath can help us." Brooklyn replied. Just then, a zap of magic knocked a gun out of Logan's hand. He was the third strongest of the gang, his hair was in a mushroom cut, and he purposely showed off his strength by wearing vests but even he was no match for magic. Above, Kyra stood on a large rock, visibly not pleased. She looked like an avenging demon from hell, or worse.
"Micheal, will you get your head on straight? You aren't going to win this." Kyra said, making it totally obvious she was beyond annoyed. Her eyes flashed lavender and her tail whipped like a mad cat's.
"That's only your opinion." Micheal sneered.
"Not really." Kyra replied and Goliath landed beside her with Elisa, "It's theirs too."
"Not that I really care, but where's Demona?" Brooklyn asked.
"She gave up once there were two opponents that were equal to her." Elisa answered.
"Thank goodness for that, a few more minutes and we'd be toast." Broadway sighed.
"Micheal, you've changed. Before you were just an annoying jerk that I could tolerate, but now, you're a pushy, arrogant, swell headed jerk who's no better than Demona!" Kyra told Micheal, "And if you're going to act like Demona, you deserve the same treatment."
"Now he's going to get it!" Brooklyn said.
"I'm glad she's a friend!" Lexington added. "She looks really mad...."
Kyra hopped off her rock and went right up to Micheal, "I'm giving you one chance to leave before I teach you your lesson, Mikey. Either leave, change your ways, or prepare to be in a lot of pain."
Micheal stormed away, the rest of the gang left behind him, far behind him. Micheal was terrible to be around when he was mad.
"I guess that means he's still going to be a problem." Lexington replied.
"As long as he knows Kyra won't let him get away with things like this, he won't be a big problem." Elisa added.
"I'll make sure of that." a voice said.
"Xanatos! What's he doing here?" Brooklyn asked.
"He said that whenever Micheal went too far that he would help." Kyra answered.
"You're a little late." Lexington told Xanatos.
"I had to boot up the reinforcements." Xanatos replied. "They were a bit... dusty."
"We need them. Demona and Micheal are more like each other than Kirsten and I are." Kyra added.
"Let's go, I'm not giving up tonight until either the sun rises or we get the jewel." Brooklyn said and started walking.
"That could be suicide, Demona would expect that and be ready for you." Xanatos replied.
"You know how much I hate to admit this, but he's got a point guys." Elisa agreed.
"But how do we get the jewel?" Broadway asked, "It's our only way of breaking this spell."
"Demona would expect you coming for the jewel, but she wouldn't be ready for an attack of robots." Xanatos answered.
"You mean send the Steel Clan to get the jewel?" Kyra asked suspiciously. She barely trusted him, for a very good reason.
"No way, Xanatos." Elisa argued, "I don't trust you or your robots coming anywhere near that much power." That was Kyra's reason for being skeptical.
"I'll go too," Kyra volunteered, "After all, I'm stronger now. If one of the robots does something against the plan, I'll turn it to scrap metal."
"I'm a little beyond that." Xanatos said, obviously fighting an urge to scowl at the girl and Elisa.
"I'm coming too, you'll need help in case Demona starts the other spell." Brooklyn said, realizing too late he'd said too much. He hit his forehead in stupidity. "Uh, I mean, to watch your back."
"What other spell?" Elisa demanded, hands on her hips.
"Nothing," Kyra answered, "Let's go." she started walking, pulling at Brooklyn's elbow.
"Kyra." Goliath called sternly.
"I'll talk at home." Kyra called as they kept going.
"I'll send the robots to Demona's lair. Wait for them to show up before you go in, or you might get caught." Xanatos said and went to the castle. Unfortunately, Micheal heard every word they had said and went to see Demona.
Brooklyn and Kyra went to Demona's lair and waited, Goliath and the others went home to the castle. Elisa still didn't trust Xanatos, even if he was helping the Gargoyles hide from the city, and she and Goliath headed off to the lair as soon as they checked on Cana's condition.
Meanwhile, Micheal told Demona what Xanatos had said.
"So, Xanatos has joined Goliath's cause." Demona scowled, "Then I guess I'll have to destroy him with Kyra and Brooklyn when they come."
"No, don't lay one claw on Kyra, Demona. You know fully well that she's mine." Micheal told her.
"Very well, as long as they're all out of my way." Demona replied and left to prepare for the 'surprise' attack.
Brooklyn and Kyra had waited for two minutes before the robots showed up. Xanatos, in the armor robot, was with them.
"Figures, Xanatos probably doesn't trust me alone with those robots." Kyra said. She and Brooklyn took the secret passage in, while Xanatos and two robots went in the door on the roof.
Brooklyn and Kyra found the room where the jewel was kept out in the open. Kyra decided it was NOT a legitimate mistake, especially since Demona hardly ever made mistakes. They were cautious, Demona was probably waiting for something to happen before she attacked, and they wanted to leave before it did happen. Just before they got to the opening in the wall, Micheal came through the door and Demona came in through the opening, she had found the passage. They were trapped!
"Not so fast, Demona." Xanatos called. He was watching from a balcony, and jumped down to protect them, Brooklyn looked surprised and confused, it wasn't like Xanatos to take chances like this, especially for a couple of gargoyles. He'd sent the robots back, realizing they were of no use now that there would be a battle inside. The lazers could hit Kyra or Brooklyn, or hurt Micheal, and that wasn't needed or wanted...
"I beginning to wonder when you'd show up, Xanatos." Demona smirked.
"How did you know he was with us?" Kyra asked.
"Micheal overheard everything, now hand over the jewel." Demona answered. Kyra reluctantly threw the jewel back to Demona and looked at Brooklyn, they were both very scared.
A few minutes later, Brooklyn and Xanatos were in chains. Kyra was tied up in another room, where any rescuers would never look. Elisa and Goliath had just gotten to Demona's lair.
"It's pretty quiet." Elisa said.
"Too quiet." Goliath replied, "There should be at least the sound of a battle or a victory call, but there's nothing."
"Where is everyone?" Elisa asked.
"Let's find out." Goliath answered. They went in cautiously, listening and looking for the slightest thing that would betray Demona or Micheal's presence.
They came into the largest room and saw Brooklyn and Xanatos chained up. "It has to be a trap." Elisa told Goliath.
"It can't be a trap, Demona isn't anywhere near here and they aren't warning us." Goliath said, the chains came off as easily as if they were rusted and crumbling. "Where is Kyra?" he asked.
"Micheal took her somewhere, but I didn't see where." Brooklyn answered, rubbing his wrists.
"We have to find her, Micheal's probably going to kill Kyra himself." Elisa replied.
"Or even worse." Brooklyn mumbled.
"Brooklyn, it's time you told us, why are you always so skittish when Kyra and Demona or Micheal are mentioned in the same sentence?" Elisa asked. "And what is that other spell?"
"There's another spell hiding in Kyra, a mind control spell. Demona can call it to take over anytime." Brooklyn answered.
"That's the worse, isn't it?" Goliath asked.
"Not really, you have to ask Kyra about Micheal's predicament." Brooklyn answered.
"We have to find Kyra before Demona decides to use the spell." Elisa replied. "This one could be stronger than the one she used on Goliath."
"Let's split up, we'll cover more ground in less time." Xanatos suggested.
Meanwhile, Kyra was in more trouble than they thought, her magic had broken through the ropes, and she was unguarded. She could break out of that room anytime she wanted, but something deep in her subconscious told her not to, the spell was beginning to work.
Micheal and Demona were waiting for it to take full effect before they went anywhere near that room. They knew Kyra was still in control of her fighting and would attack at any moments notice.
"How long before the spell completely controls her?" Micheal asked.
"It will take a while at first. Right now it's preventing her from escaping voluntarily, soon she will slowly fall completely in our control and do only what we tell her." Demona answered.
"How about a time frame here? I checked on our other prisoners and they're free. The chains were broken, that means Goliath's somewhere in here, and we don't want him near Kyra until the spell is complete." Micheal said, his hands were on his hips.
"About half an hour from the time the spell started taking effect." Demona replied
"Good, all we have to do is keep them away for about 12 minutes." Micheal smiled.
"Let's go and keep them occupied." Demona ordered.
Elisa was walking down a dark hallway. Ever since she met the Gargoyles she absolutely hated pure darkness, it was Demona's favorite thing to hide in. You could never see her until it was too late. "I sure hope Demona's stalking someone else right now." she said to herself.
"I'm not sorry to disappoint you, Detective." Demona said from behind her. Elisa whirled around, Demona was only three feet from her.
"Demona! Where are you hiding Kyra?" Elisa asked.
"You really think I'm going to tell you just like that?" Demona said in a way that made Elisa fear for her life. She took a step back from Demona. "You don't really know me that well, do you?" Demona asked, coming that one step closer.
"I know you enough never to go to a place unarmed when I know you're waiting." Elisa answered, pulling out her gun quickly.
"That won't work, remember?" Demona told Elisa, reminding of the condition that only Macbeth could kill her. "You know I could overpower you in seconds and take your life in even less time."
"Maybe, but I won't give up that easily when my friends are in danger." Elisa replied bravely. Demona's eyes began to glow deep red in anger, she leaped towards Elisa as the human fired a shot.
Goliath was just a few feet from the room Kyra was locked in. He heard a sound behind him, he turned around, ready to attack. It was only Xanatos, scared out of his wits.
"Never sneak up on a gargoyle." Goliath told him, "It's very foolish."
"Sorry, have you found Kyra?" Xanatos asked, regaining his compsure.
"I have a feeling that she's nearby, but there are three rooms, which one she's in is a mystery." Goliath answered.
"I have an idea." Xanatos said, "Why don't you just call her name, if it's safe, she'll call back."
"It's not that simple Xanatos. If Demona or Micheal is nearby, they'd find us in no time and attack before we got to Kyra." Goliath replied, "Besides, that spell may keep her from replying."
"This is probably a bad time to bring this up, but the only sign I've found of Demona is heading the same way your friend Elisa was going. As I remember, Demona has a grudge towards her in particular."
"Demona must be after Elisa, hurry, we have to stop her." Goliath and Xanatos rushed away to save Elisa.
Brooklyn was starting to get worried, he couldn't let anything happen, he wouldn't let anything happen, but what if it already happened? He saw Goliath and Xanatos and realized that Elisa was probably in trouble, but right now his mind was focused on saving Kyra. Besides, Demona wasn't that hard to beat, as long as you knew what to do...
...And Elisa knew what to do. It was dark in the hallway, but she could tell where Demona was by listening intently to her snarls and ducked or jumped out of the way whenever she heard something move. Demona was beginning to tire of all of Elisa's dodging, it was harder to hit her than it was to hit Kyra. Finally, she gave up and left, by now there was nothing Elisa, or anyone, could do anyway.
Goliath and Xanatos got there just after Demona left. "You're a little late, guys." Elisa told them, she was barely breathing after such an intense battle.
"Where's Demona?" Xanatos asked.
"She just left." Elisa answered, pointing in the direction Demona ran.
"You're getting better at fighting her." Goliath replied, "This time you didn't need any help."
"I think she left for another reason than giving up on the fight." Xanatos said. Goliath and Elisa knew exactly what he meant.
"Come on, let's go find Brooklyn." Elisa said and they went to look for him.
Brooklyn had just gotten to the hallway Goliath was in before he left to help Elisa. He knew Kyra was nearby, and his strong friendship with her told him the exact room she was in. Another feeling told him that Micheal and Demona were in there too. The spell was in control of Kyra now, and he knew there was little that he could do, except wait.
Micheal and Demona were checking Kyra, to make sure the spell was fully in control, and that she was not just faking. Kyra looked totally normal, except for her duller eyes.
"I know the one way to test her." Micheal told Demona.
"What?" Demona asked.
"Send her after her friends, she'll do it without hesitation, if she's under our control."
"And if she isn't she'll go right to them and help them." Demona protested.
"Then we'll kill them and you can turn her back." Micheal replied.
"How do we get them here?" Demona asked.
"We don't, we take Kyra to them." Micheal answered
"But by now they know Kyra's under our control." Demona told him.
"So, that doesn't mean they won't come to break the spell. They actually think this is the same spell you used before, but there is one difference between this and the spell you put on Goliath, this one can never be broken!" Micheal reminded her.
Brooklyn heard everything Micheal said, his ear was to the door. "That's what you think Mike. Every spell has a counterspell, even if it's known to only one person. In this case, that person is me." he went to find Goliath, Elisa, and Xanatos.
They all met in the large room, right where Demona wanted them. She sent Kyra out, telling her to act completely normal, but wait for a command.
"Brooklyn, where were you?" Elisa asked.
"Looking for Kyra, I found her but..."
"But what?" Kyra asked in a normal voice. Her silver eyes were only gray now, and her "moonbeam" hair was dead black, only Brooklyn noticed.
"Kyra!" Goliath exclaimed, "How did you escape?"
"She didn't escape Goliath, she was let out." Brooklyn told him, grabbing him quickly to keep him from Kyra.
"Why?" Xanatos asked.
"Because she's under the spell, don't believe anything she says." Brooklyn answered, his eyes were narrowed in distrust.
"Then why is she acting normally?" Elisa asked, looking at Kyra.
"Because I told her to." Demona told her, coming into view, she was holding the jewel. Kyra looked up at her immediately. "Kyra, attack them!" Demona ordered. Kyra growled and almost leaped on them when...
"No Kyra, don't!" Brooklyn called, "I know the real you is in there, and the real you wouldn't let Demona control her. Your free will is stronger than that spell, fight it!"
"Kill them, especially him." Demona commanded. Kyra turned to her and spun back, unchanged, except her growl was fiercer and her lavender eyeshine was brighter. He'd have to try harder.
"Kyra, please, listen to your heart, not her. I'm your friend." Brooklyn told Kyra. She remained totally unchanged and went right up to him with her hands balled into fists and ready to slug him into next Tuesday. Goliath was about to restrain her, but Brooklyn stopped him. "No Goliath, let her."
"Are you crazy, Brooklyn?" Elisa asked, "She's going to kill you!"
"I know, Elisa. I know." Brooklyn stayed completely still.
"What are you doing? At least fight back!" Goliath exclaimed. "She's stronger than you right now."
"This is going to be easier than I thought." Demona gloated, "He won't fight his friend!"
Brooklyn looked up at Demona as if that was his point, and turned to Kyra, "Look Kyra you can do whatever she tells you to do, but I'll always be your friend because I know you would never be doing this if you weren't under a spell. This isn't the real you." Her eyeshine began to fade, the spell was breaking!
"That's it Brooklyn!" Elisa called, she noticed the sparkle in Kyra's dark eyes. "Keep going, it's working!"
"Kyra, I know you can hear me. Fight the spell! I know you can do it, I know your spirit is stronger than this." Brooklyn persuaded Kyra, "I'll always care about you, and I'll always think of you as my friend, no matter what you do." That was the final touch, Kyra closed her eyes tightly, fighting inside of herself.
"Kyra, don't listen to him, kill him!" Demona commanded.
Kyra opened her eyes, they were shining pure silver. The silver at the tip of a knife, meaning she was angry. There was no dullness left in her hair, it shone with the strength of moonlight. Kyra turned towards Demona.
"NO!" she called, "I refuse to even hurt my best friend."
"Yeah! It worked!" Brooklyn exclaimed.
"Welcome back, Kyra." Elisa said and turned to Demona, "It looks like you lost again."
"Not quite, Kyra may have her spirit back, but she's still a gargoyle, and will remain that way forever!" Demona ran out of the room, the last thing they heard from her was a victory cry as she glided away.
"She's right, without the jewel, you'll never be human again." Xanatos told Kyra.
"I don't care what I am, as long as I'm with my friends." Kyra replied.
"You mean you don't mind being a gargoyle?" Brooklyn asked.
"Of course not!" Kyra told him, "As long as I have you for my best friend, I'm happy."
"I just wish you could be the way you're supposed to be." Brooklyn sighed.
"She is." a voice familiar to the gargoyles said.
"It's the weird sisters." Goliath replied. Elisa was cautious, she knew what they were capable of.
"What do you mean Kyra's the way she's supposed to be?" Xanatos asked.
"She was supposed to be a gargoyle. Didn't you see even a little bit of your kind in her eyes?" the dark haired sister asked Goliath.
"Yes, a little." Goliath admitted, "But why was she a human when she was supposed to be a gargoyle?" Goliath asked. "That makes no sense."
"It makes less than no sense." Kyra added.
"She descends from a clan of gargoyles that had special powers and lived in the mountains, just a hundred or so miles from the cliffs that once held Wyvern castle. Their powers were stronger than the ones she has now because time has weakened them, they were destroyed before Goliath's clan awoke in Manhattan from the spell. Once, a century before people came to Wyvern," she stopped to look over at Goliath, "an evil member of her clan kidnapped the leader's eldest daughter. He tried to convince her to leave her home with him, but she had a strong loyalty to her father's clan."
"The evil gargoyle had strong powers, hers were stronger, but he knew of one spell he could put on her. One that could never be broken, a terrible curse." the gold haired sister added.
"What was the curse?" Brooklyn asked.
"That she would become a human forever and all of her descendants would be born human, never knowing their true form." the ebony sister answered.
"And that they would stay a human for the rest of their life, unless a gargoyle that was not from their clan cast the counter spell upon the eldest daughter of a generation, destroying the curse and freeing the future generations." the silver-blond sister added, "The girl escaped to Gaul and was adopted by an extremely powerful sorcerer who gave her the Jewel of Strength to compensate for her lost wings."
"Demona was the only one of you that knew enough magic to break the spell." the golden haired sister explained.
"So you had Demona cast the counter spell, thinking she was casting a real spell for revenge?" Elisa said confusedly.
"Yes, it was the only way to do this. We knew Goliath's clan would not be able to do it, because none of them knew how to use magic that was so powerful." the dark haired sister told her.
"And Demona certainly knows how to use magic." Goliath replied.
"She uses too much." Elisa added, "One of these days, magic will be the end of her."
"I wish." Brooklyn said quietly. He never liked Demona, he hated her more than any of the others did.
"This is so weird, I'm definitely not going to forget this Halloween!" Kyra exclaimed.
"One thing's for sure, Demona will be extremely mad if she finds out she did one of Goliath's allies a favor." Xanatos said.
"Then we won't tell her." Elisa replied, thinking it ridiculous that Xanatos hadn't thought of it first.
"But what about the humans that know Kyra?" Brooklyn asked, "They'll get suspicious if they don't see her around during the day."
"You mean Micheal?" Broadway asked.
"No, Kyra has a lot of human friends, they're used to not seeing her at night, but they'll get worried if she's gone during the day too." Elisa said with concern.
"Then we shall take off half of the counter spell, she will be a gargoyle during the night, but when morning comes, she will become a human." the gold-locked sister answered. "Of course if she ever touches the jewel again, she may be allowed to voluntarily become human at night."
"Hold it. I saw Demona transform once, it looked pretty painful." Elisa said. "And one of the third race changed her."
"Demona feels pain during her transformation because she does not deserve a gift like that without a catch. However, Kyra does deserve such a gift and will feel no pain when the sun rises." the ebony sister replied.
"Now we must go before Oberon misses us." the white haired sister said, then all three vanished before any of the clan could ask why they would grant a human or gargoyle such a gift.
"Human by day, gargoyle by night, Micheal's not going to be happy about that!" Elisa said.
"Especially the night thing, I can't wait to see his face if he catches me at sunset!" Kyra exclaimed.
"Sometimes I think you can be a little too cruel towards him." Brooklyn told her, "Then I come to my senses and remember he deserves it!"
"I'd still like to know the little secret you two are hiding." Elisa told him. "It's got something to do with Micheal, but what?" Kyra and Brooklyn gave Elisa deadpan looks and walked away from her whistling innocently.
"Speaking of Micheal, where is he?" Goliath asked.
"I haven't seen him since he and Demona sent me after you guys." Kyra answered.
"You remember that?" Xanatos asked.
"Sure, I could see things, I just couldn't react to them." Kyra answered, "Except when I was told to."
"I'd better find Micheal before he causes any more trouble." Xanatos replied and left.
"Come on Kyra, the sun's rising, let's go home." Brooklyn said.
"Good idea, even though I won't turn to stone, I don't want to be in here during the day. Demona still has most of her gargoyle qualities, especially strength!" Kyra replied.
"So will you." Brooklyn told her.
"Still, I've had enough fighting for the day." Kyra replied and walked out of the room.
"We all have." Elisa added, sighing, and they all left Demona's lair.
Just five minutes later, the sun began to shine brightly over Manhattan, NY.
Curious about who was watching Kyra? Read the add-on chapter: Nekawa- an essential part of the story
I have yet to run out of good ideas, there is an entire season ready.... but if you have good ideas too, I'll be glad to incorporate them into a new chapter. Just e-mail the idea to me and I'll give you credit for it.