Winston's associates began work on the special project. A specially designed formula. But Winston himself didn't want to be known that he was associated with it. He was just doing this to give something back.
Brooklyn continued to talk to him at his place at night when he wasn't doing patrols or other missions.
Winston had to ask, "How do you feel about kids? I mean, would you want to have some of your own someday?"
"Sure. But given that I don't have a girl right now, it just seems impossible. I just hope I find one before the next breeding year. We all need to try to bring back numbers to our clan. And we won't be able to bring back the numbers fast enough." Brooklyn explained.
"Can you explain that?" Winston asked, and Brooklyn explained the facts of gargoyle breeding cycles. He knew the man was just curious as being a vet and all. He had posed no threat to him, so he told him.
…..
With such a shortage of females was being a problem for this project for the ones creating this special gift. Winston was supervising it, and he knew they would have to improvise. Come up with a different way of doing it.
The formula was nearing completion though. Now it just needed a host. This was just one part of the project that seemed to be going right.
Winston needed Brooklyn for the next part. He had an idea of how to get what he needed. He hated thoughts of any what seemed like betrayal of trust, but he just wanted to give Brooklyn this special gift he had in mind. He deserved something more than just what he had currently. He needed something more in his life. Winston saw he loved his clan mates, but he saw how sad his red friend was.
…
Brooklyn visited Winston at his apartment one night. They had been friends now for three weeks. He had done his patrol for the night and the others were doing nothing to help with his boredom.
Winston was willing to offer Brooklyn a meal while they watched a movie together.
"Brooklyn, do you want some food? I have this dynamite movie that has some motorcyclists in it. I figured it would interest you since you said you like them." Winston offered. "We can watch it while we eat."
"Sure. Thanks. What is it?" Brooklyn smiled.
"Some cheeseburgers and mashed potatoes."
"Sure, thanks."
Winston got to work on making their dinner. Brooklyn just watched some TV while waiting, then they would watch the movie.
When the food was done, Winston separated his food from Brooklyn's. He got the potatoes he wanted, then added a packet of powder into the rest of the potatoes. Brooklyn came out and grabbed what he wanted too, and put on his burgers ketchup and mustard. He didn't mind onions and pickles on them either.
They both went into the living room and Winston put in the movie finally. From there, they both just enjoyed eating their meal. Brooklyn had taken the rest of the potatoes. Winston eyed him warily, but he went on eating his own food.
Brooklyn ate his two cheeseburgers just fine. It was when he ate the potatoes that Winston was really watching him. He managed to eat all the potatoes.
"Thanks for dinner, Winston." Brooklyn said gratefully.
"You're welcome." the man replied.
Not long after, Brooklyn felt dizzy and his vision began to get blurry. He held his head and moaned. He closed his eyes.
"Something wrong?" Winston asked.
"I just have a headache all of a sudden." Brooklyn replied tiredly.
"I have some medicine."
"I'd like some."
"Just sit tight." Winston said and got up. He knew the drug was affecting his friend. He went to the kitchen to so call get the medicine. Then he saw the gargoyle black out on the couch. At least he had been sitting down before he fell down.
Winston knew was the time to get what he needed. He went over and checked Brooklyn's vitals. He was breathing normally. He quickly went and got out his supplies. The drug would keep Brooklyn out for a few hours, so he needed to work quickly.
He searched for a vein in his right arm and found it, then he took some blood. He had a syringe with the formula ready and he had to inject it where he needed it to be.
The man took off Brooklyn's loincloth. He had to get other and the most vital part of the DNA to get to the final stage. He also had a portable ultrasound machine. He went and got it and turned it on to locate the spot. It was down in the lower abdomen, then picking up the syringe, he injected the needle into the skin on Brooklyn's lower belly.
The special formula would finish on its own, within 24 hours, probably by the next night. But it needed a part of Brooklyn's DNA to finish its job too.
Once the formula was injected, Winston went about collecting the seed that he needed from Brooklyn. He knew it was a personal matter, but needed to be done. He did it carefully and gently.
The rest was all done under a microscope that Winston had. It took a little bit. Brooklyn's seed was forced into the nucleus of an anonymous egg cell. He looked at the size of the gargoyle's waist. Only one would be preferable. But there had been a couple of eggs available to work with, but Winston had decided. Then he got it into another syringe.
From what he had also looked at with the sperm cells, from the mammal part of the gargoyle's DNA, being a male, Brooklyn's side of parentage would decide the gender of the future offspring, like any other mammal. If he had been more on the reptile side, the gender decision might have been more tricky.
When the fully fertilized egg was ready, he went back to Brooklyn and turned on the machine again, and put the wand back on the gelled area of his belly. Winston located where he had injected the formula and he injected the second syringe with the egg in it into the original formula. There was also a tube injected with it, a dab of hormones. Now only time would tell if it would take. This was a tricky new project. Nothing at all may happen, but Winston, being a scientist and doctor was willing to try something new.
He quickly put his stuff away, cleaned the gel off Brooklyn's belly, and put the loincloth back on him so he wouldn't suspect a thing.
But Winston had another plan in mind from his colleagues. They would wait for a few days though.
…..
Brooklyn soon woke up again. He was still a bit dizzy. "Oh, what happened?" he moaned. He put a hand to his head.
"While we were watching the movie, you suddenly got dizzy and blacked out. Does that happen often?" Winston was sitting beside him. He acted as if nothing was wrong. "I made sure your vitals were okay."
"How close is it to sunrise?"
Winston looked at the time. "It's 3:45. You still have at least another hour and a half."
Brooklyn let out a breath. "I should go."
"Hold on. You should let the dizzy spell pass first. At least wait another half hour. You just woke up. You need to be able to glide straight." Winston stated his concern. He didn't want him going down if he couldn't concentrate on gliding.
"Thanks. Sure."
Winston had stopped the movie when he had to do what he had to do. He put the movie back on.
When Brooklyn moved about to just shift his position on the couch, beneath his belt, he felt his lower belly felt a little tender from the unknown injections. He put a hand over his belt.
Winston glanced out the side of his eye. 'He must be feeling where the injections were. They'll be healed by tomorrow.' Winston thought to himself.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"My belly feels a little sore under my belt." Brooklyn replied. He didn't really feel anything else. What involved collecting his seed had gone back to normal. He shouldn't even know a thing happened until later.
"I'm sure it's nothing." Winston said. "Sometimes our bodies give us minor irritations."
"True."
The movie finished before it was time for Brooklyn to go home. He felt more awake and less dizzy for the moment. Winston let him go. He just hoped everything would be alright, and only time would tell now if something would happen in time.
….
Brooklyn got home in time before he met the others coming up to the parapets to get ready to greet the dawn for their daily sleep. At least Goliath wasn't being pesky about where he had been.
"So, how's the new friendship coming with your new friend?" Lexington asked him.
"It's cool, Lex. We watched a movie on motorcycles tonight and we had some cheeseburgers and mashed potatoes. Winston said I blacked out, but I don't know." Brooklyn explained.
"You never do that unless you're forced to, like being drugged." Lex said.
"I know."
"He better not be doing anything to harm you." Broadway growled.
"He's not. He looked out for me." Brooklyn replied. "I'm fine now."
"Some stone sleep will help." Angela said in concern.
Brooklyn nodded. He was still slightly dizzy from the drug. He had no idea.
Soon, the sun rose and they all changed for the day.
….
Winston was glad he had gotten done what needed to be done for this project. He only hoped something did result from it.
By the next night, Brooklyn was fine.
….
A few days later, the clan was doing patrols and there was a woman in trouble in an alley. She was dealing with five different muggers trying to steal her purse and trying to tease her.
Brooklyn was with Lexington this time. They both flew down and flared their eyes at the muggers. They screamed and ran off in fear. Lex got the purse back from the one who stole it from her.
Lex threw the man over by some trash cans and he got up and ran away like the others. Then he calmly walked over to the woman. "Here's your purse back, Ma'am." he said.
"Uh, thanks. But uh, just keep away." She walked around them warily after taking her purse back. She walked rather fast out of the alley.
"I really wish humans were more understanding of us." Lex said.
"Me too. But I'd say our patrol is sufficient for tonight, Lex. Let's head back." Brooklyn said.
All of a sudden, Lex felt a prick in his left arm. "Aw!" He pulled out a dart.
"Lex, are you alright?" Brook asked in concern.
"I don't think so." the green gargoyle replied. He was getting groggy.
Brooklyn went over to pick him up and get him home, but he too, got darted. He also went under, but he saw some human shapes in his vision before he blacked out.
Winston's colleagues were setting this up. But they did nothing to the two sleeping gargoyles. If something did happen with Brooklyn in the near future, this was the best explanation for it. They had helped with it too, to make it happen, at least with the formula.
They made sure they were moved up to the roof otherwise. These were a few more gargoyle-tolerant citizens and had been glad to help with what Winston was wanting. Now they had met the red one, along with his green companion. They left them there. There was still plenty of night left.
After a half hour, they woke up from their little naps, and they were on a rooftop instead of the alley. They both were dizzy, but they regained their senses fast.
"Where'd those punks go?" Brooklyn demanded. He didn't see anyone.
"I don't know. I didn't see anyone before I blacked out." Lex said.
"I did, before I went under too."
"At least we're not in a cage somewhere." Lex declared.
"Yeah. Let's just get back home." Brooklyn said. They both were still not completely fine yet, but well enough to get their bearings going to glide.
The humans were well hidden as they watched the two of them take off into the night.
Brooklyn ended up telling Goliath what happened when they got home.
"At least you're both safe." Goliath stated. "You look alright."
"Yeah, we're fine. It just felt like a setup." Brooklyn said.
"At least you kept the woman from being mugged. Even if she was wary of you."
Goliath wasn't disappointed in them. They had done what they were sent out to do for the people, but he truly hoped his second in command and his smart brother were alright in the long run. Stone sleep would fully heal the drug out of their system.