Ch.2: Transformation

The next evening, the night began with a chorous of growls as the gargoyles broke out of thier stone shells. Brooklyn yawned as he watched most of the clan head off to breakfast. Tonight was one of nights where Elisa didn't come over to give them any missions. In other words, a free night for the gargoyles to do whatever they want.

Brooklyn in particular, just felt it in his wings to go for a glide. After being in stone sleep all day it felt good to stretch his wings out and glide on the gentle breeze of the night. The sky was still a little bit cloudy and the wind had gained more speed, promising a storm to soon come on it's way.

Spreading his massive wings Brooklyn leaped off the ledge of the clock tower and glided off into the night. As the red gargoyle flew over the park breathing in the night air, he found it strange that he found himself thinking about what had happened the other night when Demona attacked.

What did the silver dart do? And what was wrong with his stomach? One of Brooklyn's hands went imedately to his stomach. A small jolt of pain was coursing through it as if something was wrong.

"Mabye it wasn't so smart of me to skip out on breakfast tonight," thought Brooklyn.

As he turned to go back the pain in stomach increased and Brooklyn found himself holding it with both hands.

"What in the world is wrong with me?" thought Brooklyn screaming through his mind.

In a flash of second the red, beaked gargoyle found himself falling towards the ground below. Three stories, two stories...the ground was getting closer and closer by the second. With a rench of pain Brooklyn forced his hands away from his stomach and pumped his wings out to keep in flight.

For a brief moment everything stood still as Brooklyn gentley floated down to the ground below. Brooklyn looked around his surroundings for a minute to see where he was, and if there were any humans around. Turns out he had landed in the middle of the park.

"Good" Brooklyn thought in relief "very few people come through the park at night so I should get by without being seen,"

As Brooklyn searched for a place to rest before he decided to take flight again he wondered what had happened to him to make him fall like that. It couldn't have been as simple as missing breakfast could it? Or was it something else? Did his sudden fall have to deal with what Demona did to him last night?

Sighing Brooklyn lazily swung one of his claws across the trunk of a tree. His ears twitched when the sound turned out louder than he thought it would. Like the whole tree was almost crying out in pain.

Brooklyn's eyes widened when he saw what he just done to the tree's trunk. Three deep stratches were ecthed in the trunk's surface digging deep, almost reaching the center. Eyeing his claws Brooklyn saw that they appeared sharper than the last time. Sharper that any weapon a human could make.

As if that wasn't freaky enough Brooklyn noticed that his tail had started growing tiny spines reaching up all the way to the back of his neck. Again Brooklyn whispered the same question that had been with him while he was falling from the sky.

"What's happening to me?"

Peering over to a small pond nearby Brooklyn gazed in it's reflective surface so he could better veiw what about him had changed since last night. A silent gasp barely escaped Brooklyn's beak when he saw his reflection. He didn't look like the Brooklyn any of his clan would know anymore. He looked...like a monster.

"So this is what Demona was trying to do to Goliath" thought Brooklyn "turn him into a monster and that way no human would ever accept us. Or worse...,"

Brooklyn didn't want to think about 'or worse', being turned into a monster while people still thought of him as one was about much punishment as he could take. Mabye Xantoas could help him out of this mess.

Long ago Xantoas and Goliath's clan had been enmies, but ever since Lexington had saved Xantoas's son Alex his castle was open to all gargoyles. His lovely wife Fox, and his assiant Owen were who Brooklyn would really need to ask for help.

Fox had an unuasl past. She was descended from the fairy queen Lady Titania. Not a happy first reunion since the fairy queen tried to take away Alex. But Puck a.k.a. Owen had stood up for the Xantoas family as so did many of the gargoyles.

Then Brooklyn remembered something that made him change his mind about asking for Xantoas's help. Fox and Owen/Puck couldn't use magic. Puck could, but only when teaching Alex and not for anything else.

Brooklyn's blood ran cold as he remembered the time Puck had used them during the soul transfer lesson. Compared to Demona, Puck was the second likely target Brooklyn would rather charge on sight than let get by with anything.

Shaking his head to clear away the memories of the past, Brooklyn focused back on the present. Again looking at the water Brooklyn saw that his new monsterous form had grow worse and more bad thoughts were starting to creep into his mind.

The sounds of a mother and a child strolling through the park soon caught Brooklyn's ear as he was looking at the shining pool of moonlit water. Springing into action Brooklyn ran across the park cutting directly in thier path. Not bothering to look back Brooklyn kept running and stepped off into a short glide.

"It won't be long 'till sunrise" thought Brooklyn " I hope the effects of the dart wear off by then,"

Finding a lid leading to a sewer tunnel, Brooklyn lifted the lid and crawled inside.

"Not the best hotel in the world" said Brooklyn to himself "but there was nowhere to hide up there but open space,"

Making himself comfortable Brooklyn spread out his wings taking his normal pose and waited for the sun to rise.

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Meanwhile Goliath was worried about his second in command's absense. Brooklyn had not been seen nearly all night. With dawn so close to rising the clan leader's fears had grown.

"Something must be wrong" thought Goliath "Brooklyn should have been back by now?"

Hudson, the oldest warrior of the gargoyle clan, turned his attention away from his T.V. and looked at Goliath. He could tell Goliath was worried about Brooklyn, and not only because of his absense either. Last night Goliath had taken the liberty of describing the events of what had happened last night when Demona attacked.

The silver dart that Demona had tried to blow into Goliath's side, ended up in Brooklyn's arm. Brooklyn had been brave in defending his leader, but knowing Demona that dart had something to do with magic.

Magic was one of Demona's specialities ever since Brooklyn had made the mistake of trusting her. Luckily Brooklyn realized his mistake and set things right by decieving Demona instead.

Sighing Hudson got up from his chair and approached Goliath saying " Half an hour to sunrise lad. Brooklyn will find a safe place to spend the day,"

"My old friend" said Goliath "it's not just his absense that worries me,"

The air outside grew more humid and the wind blew a fraction harder than before. A storm was close. All the gargoyles could feel it. There had been many tales about storms that had torn down buildings, crushed statues, and destroying many human lives.

"I don't like the looks of that storm coming in," said Lexington.

"Me either," said Angela shivering.

Looking back at what the elements were about to bring Goliath had to agree that Hudson may have been right about Brooklyn taking shelter. No gargoyle in his right mind would go flying in such weather.

"We shall stay inside tonight and wait until the storm passes" said Goliath to his clan "and then we'll search for Brooklyn,"

Before any other gargoyle could speak, they were turned to stone.