The next night, the clan shattered their stone skins and quickly got to work trying to track down their missing Second in Command, starting with going to where Lexington was near Central Park. They brought Bronx along to see if he could pick up a scent trail.

Bronx barked as he did pick up a trail. The clan followed him to a road in the park and that was sadly where the trail ended. It was too dangerous for Bronx to follow the trail in the streets and be seen by humans.

"We tried everyone. But we won't give up. We'll have to do this the hard way." Goliath declared. They all nodded.

They got back to the rooftops and took to the air again. Bronx went with Broadway. Hudson and Angela were together, and Goliath and Lex searched together. They would find Brooklyn, dead or alive. But they hoped alive.

…

Brooklyn roared awake like he always did at sunset. But something was different this time. He remembered standing up before, but now he was laying on his back. Then his cuffs tightened up, pinning his arms, wings, tail, and feet to the table.

"Ah!" He yelped as they were tightened, making his limbs feel like they were outstretched. His wings were spread out, but his wing hands were cuffed. He also noticed his stomach felt better. Stone sleep healed the pain.

Brooklyn remembered the blow to his belly last night and what he had been told. He struggled to get loose. He didn't want to be tortured.

"Good evening, Monster." Lyle greeted him snidely, coming out of a corner. "Don't bother struggling. We made sure you're tied down good and tight as you came to."

"Let me go." Brooklyn said.

Lyle noticed the gargoyle's chest heaving. "You're not getting away before I have my revenge on you."

"What exactly did I do to you?" Brooklyn asked.

"That's a story for later. But let's say, how's the stomach?" Lyle asked sarcastically.

Brooklyn glared and bared his side teeth. He wasn't going to show his fear to this lunatic.

"Well, it's time to get to work on your punishment." Lyle stated. Some of his men came forward with a stand. On it were cutting tools. "Let's see what we got here." Lyle said. He picked up a scalpel.

Brooklyn's eyes widened, gulping silently. A shiver went down his spine and a chill went through his stomach. It made him try to get free again. Lyle looked over at him moving about. He smirked evilly.

"To see you squirm is delicious, Monster. It makes it all the better to do it." Lyle held the scalpel in his hand and made his way to the bound gargoyle. "I wonder what your blood looks like compared to your skin."

Then, Lyle made a quick slashing motion and Brooklyn yelled out in pain. His right arm had been cut. Blood began to appear from the cut. Brook could feel the wound stinging. Lyle examined the blood.

"Hm. Your blood is definitely darker than your skin." He stated.

Brooklyn opened his eyes in an angry glare. "When I get loose, I'll make sure to do far worse than what I did before!" He growled at Lyle.

"You don't even know what you did yet, but you'll soon know. For now, the fun REALLY begins!" Lyle proclaimed in a cheery mode. His men cheered too, laughing.

It made Brooklyn pull at his cuffs again. It was taking all his strength to try to get loose and he wasn't able to budge them at all. It would take one of his clan to release them. But what was this maniac planning to do to him?

The red male ignored the pain on his arm to try to free himself as he struggled. Then Lyle said, "You aren't leaving before the fun begins."

"I don't… want it!" Brook replied.

"First, what was started last night. Riley, if you would do the honors." Lyle stepped back as another man stepped forward with that same crowbar.

Brook's eyes softened. "No, don't do it!" His middle heaved heavily in fear.

"Heh heh! Makes it all the more sense to do it, Monster!" Riley laughed.

The red gargoyle could do nothing as the bar was raised once again and it was brought down onto Brooklyn's stomach, hard. "OOH! AHHHH!" He screamed. He felt that more lying down than standing up. Pain flared in his belly once again.

Brook bared his teeth on the side, eyes closed, and panted. The blow had made him try to bring his limbs in close, but he couldn't.

"How does that feel, Monster?" Riley asked sarcastically.

Brooklyn couldn't answer. The air was gone from his lungs, and nausea was flaring in his guts.

Lyle whispered something to Skit and the man left the room for a bit. He would return. Lyle continued to observe the reaction of his prisoner. But he wasn't satisfied yet. He wanted him to really suffer.

The blood on Brook's arm was clotting. He had stopped worrying about that when his belly had gotten hit. Oh, it hurt!

"What next, Boss?" Pat asked.

"Let's find the spot." Lyle directed.

"Gladly." Pat smirked. He came forward next. Brook opened his eyes. He was still trying to catch his breath and this one was going to try something else. He might have been a bit shorter than the last man known as Riley, but he was going to do this part.

Pat laid his hands on Brooklyn's stomach. Brook tensed up and held still. "How does this feel?" Pat demanded as he put all the weight onto his hands and pushed down, hard.

It instantly got a reaction from the gargoyle. "AHHH! Get… your… hands… off me!" Brooklyn rasped out.

"Not so tough now, are ya, Monster?" Pat mocked him. Then he went on pressing some more. He pushed all around Brook's belly, making Brook wince. The man was using his fingers now and he was feeling for what it felt like on the inside.

Brooklyn cringed and kept on trying hard to breathe as he felt the pressure on his belly. Then he heard, "Right here's the perfect spot, Boss." Pat had said.

"Good." Lyle replied.

Brooklyn opened his eyes and raised his head to see what he was talking about. Pat had his hand on the direct middle of his belly.

"Ugh… what are… you going… to do?" Brook asked in pain.

"The best punishment of all." Lyle grinned evilly at his prey.

Skit soon returned with the prize in his pocket he had been told to retrieve.

"Now that Skit is back, we can truly begin." Lyle said. Winzer then picked up a cloth in his hands and came forward next. Brook looked at him warily. Now what?

Winzer came to him and grabbed his left horn and then forced the cloth over his face, covering his nose with it. Brooklyn instantly tried to fight. He grunted and pulled against his restraints. He shut his eyes to protect them. But all his struggling did was accomplish nothing. Then his head felt woozy. He had been drugged, again.

It didn't take long for the red male to go unconscious. He had breathed in enough of the chloroform. "He's out, Boss."

"Good." Lyle said. "Begin, Pat."

Pat took the scalpel, and he began to cut across Brooklyn's middle stomach. Blood arose from the wound. He cut deep through the tissue and muscle in the belly. He cut all the way to the abdominal cavity itself.

There had been scientific curiosity about what a gargoyle's internal system looked like. Now was the chance to see. "I'm down to his organs, Boss." Pat declared.

"Let's see before proceeding." Lyle stated. He and the other men got a look at the organs as Pat held the skin apart. "Doesn't look much different than a mammal's." Pat said.

"Now, get it inside him." Lyle ordered.

"Yes, Sir." Pat replied. He then proceeded to cut into the top of Brooklyn's smaller intestine. Then Skit stepped forward. He took the tech piece out of his pocket. It was pretty good-sized.

"I'm ready for it now." Pat said as he took it from Skit's hands.

"Won't it be fun to see him get sick every time he eats? Pretty soon, he won't want to eat at all!" Lyle laughed maniacally. His comrades did the same.

Pat cut into Brook's small intestine at the top and got the piece in place by hooking it to the wall of his small intestine, then he proceeded to sew it up. Then he sewed up the tissues as Winzer also made sure to keep excess blood sucked up.

"He should be in a lot of pain when he wakes up from this." Pat stated.

"Good. I want him to feel it too." Lyle grinned maliciously. "For now, leave him be."

They all watched the unconscious gargoyle for one moment more before they stepped out of the room. They would watch on the camera. They had their precious jewel to think about too. They also got to watch it.

…..

As the hours passed further into the night with no sign of Brooklyn, the clan was getting really worried about him. The clan hoped they would find Brooklyn soon.

Goliath knew that he was often the target of enemies given he was the leader. But his Second in Command could also be targeted too to make the clan even more vulnerable. But why had Brooklyn been targeted this time? He had never seriously been solely targeted before. He hoped Brooklyn could last until he was found or made his way home. Maybe he had gotten away by now and made his way home?

They would find out when they got home.