"Let the River Run"
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Gargoyles. They are © Disney and Greg Weisman. Original characters are my property.
August 1, 1996
The Diary of Miles Gench, Ph.D.
Private. If you aren't me, I won't be held responsible for the consequences of reading. (This means you, Snoops!)
It's been such a long time since I've had a diary. I haven't kept one since I was a kid, and even then I wrote seldom. But I saw this little book in the Clearance bin at a store and I couldn't resist.
The origin of the gargoyle species is unknown. Far as I know, there have been no fossilized gargoyles found. They're an ancient race who live in clans. The clans are more or less autonomous, with a chosen leader to make decisions. This particular clan dates to the Roman Empire, though exact times have been lost. Originally, the gargoyles had only minimal contact with humans. But that changed with the fall of the Roman Empire.
Without Roman armies to protect the towns and cities, fierce tribes overran Europe, leaving trails of destruction. One village, Haidasburg, knew they were defenseless against the barbarians. Desperate, they approached a gargoyle clan in the nearby mountains and begged for help. The gargoyles knew they'd be vulnerable during the day – they didn't call the barbarians Vandals for nothing – so they appealed to the villagers for shelter. The humans agreed. That pact is the basis for this family – two separate species coming together in a mutual bid for survival. A beautiful symbiosis.
Both sides kept their promises. The bodies of slain Visigoths and Vandals littered the streets of Haidasburg. A few years passed, then a famine came. Rather than starve, the villagers decided to leave en masse. They traveled at night, so their gargoyle guardians could accompany them to their new home. So began the nomadic tradition. Whenever a land became bare or other inhabitants hostile, the Haidas learned to pack up and leave. This distinguishes them from other gargoyle clans: most stay in one place.
I was not born into this mixed clan of gargoyles and humans. I am simple Miles Gench, former calculus professor. I taught ungrateful kids in Ithaca. My last year of teaching, I had to do an introductory calculus– everytime I said 'pi', they'd throw a pie at me –usually in my face. I let that slide. Then when I got to Riemann sums, my students threw bits of flaming paper at me! That was the last straw. I turned in my resignation that very day.
I don't know why my students didn't respect me. I tried to be fair in my grading, and I tried to be interesting in class. And granted, not all my students were horrible. Some were eager to learn. That was what made my career worthwhile. I imagine those curious inquirers became doctors, mathematicians, and computer programmers. Anyway, a few of my fellow professors thought it'd be cool to take a hike in Canada – in the middle of March. They invited me in hopes of convincing me to return to the school. So off we went, making snowmen and throwing snowballs. Basically having a good time. I thought I saw a wolf in the snow got my camera to try to take a picture. I followed the tracks in the snow at a far enough distance. But it began to snow again. Hard. The tracks were covered, so I couldn't retrace my steps. I got hopelessly lost, trying to find my way back to the lodge. I finally blacked out.
When I woke up, I was in a living room. I remember it so well– hardwood floors, tapestries hanging on the stone walls, a fire roaring in the fireplace. I don't know why they didn't just kill me. I had awoken shortly before sunset, and they did try to hide the fact that gargoyles lived there. Long story short, I observed the humans of the complex. I knew it was no ordinary place immediately. I could tell they were a close-knit family. I wanted to join more than anything else. It took a lot of wheedling and coaxing on my part, but they finally agreed. I found out about the gargoyles, but I don't know why they expected me to be afraid. I was a little startled, but I guess it's the natural response.
Do I regret abandoning human civilization? No. My parents had died, and I had no family. I was single, and I'm rather plain in appearance. I'm balding, for one, so there was no wife and kids forthcoming. My colleagues probably think I'm dead or am dancing with Amelia Earhart on the face of the moon. I don't care. The Haidas are my family now. I'll describe some of them later. There's something I have to get down first.
Every family has a black sheep. I have some New York mobsters on my mother's side. Really. With the gargoyle species, likewise, the Haida clan is their black sheep. Historically, since it's been centuries since the Haida gargoyles encountered any more of their species, other clans scorned the Haidas. Probably thought they were too violent and barbaric, or that their adoption of human traditions was corrupting them. Yet, gargoyles dwindled during the Middle Ages. Clans fell apart or were killed off by humans. I ask, why are the Haidas alive while the other clans crumbled to dust?
The human Haidas relate to their gargoyle 'brothers and sisters' more than they relate to other humans. Even though they accept new technology, they prefer to live in the past. We have a couple of TVs and radios, but they're rarely on. Though Chinook, the second-in-command, believes that he and the rest of the humans should learn diplomacy in case they ever have to interact with the rest of the human race, they're simply more comfortable hiding from the rest of the world in these underdeveloped woods. What will ever happen to us if we are "discovered"? Luckily, not many people have reason to come by these woods at night, but fifty-some gargoyles and another fifty-some humans to six billion humans? I don't like the odds.
I'll write more later.