Clan Vs Magic

by TVfan

It's been three years since the Journey, but the arrival of a new villain sets the stage for some dramatic changes in the Clan's life as Goliath and Elisa's marriage approaches. (These are older stories, so I apologize if they aren't super great in advance. They're file transfers from the Gargoyles Fan Website where my pen-name is SN... I've forgotten my password there... )

4. Getting Used to it All

All the characters appearing in Gargoyles and Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles are copyright Buena Vista Television/The Walt Disney Company. No infringement of these copyrights is intended, and is not authorized by the copyright holder. All original characters are the property of SN.

Note: I'm disregarding the events in the "Goliath Chronicles", with the exception of "The Journey" because I do not wish to use the rest of the "Goliath Chronicles" as canon to my story. This story takes place one week after "War's End".

Getting Used to it All

By SN/TVfan

Email:Sam_Nary

Elisa Maza's Former Apartment

Diane Maza sat on the side of the one bed that Elisa owned. A bed that she would no longer use. Tears were in her eyes. She had been crying ever since Elisa telephoned to say that they found and defeated the Mage, but that there was no counter spell to what happened. She and her husband had tried to be strong and openly supportive when Elisa was first transformed, but now things were different. Now that there was no chance that Elisa could be human again, Diane didn't entirely know what to do anymore. On top of all this, Beth was graduating from college soon. Life seemed to be chasing her from all sides. She either had to run out to Arizona to support Beth or stay in New York to worry about Elisa.

Peter came in from the living room, "Xanatos's packers aren't here yet to take Elisa's things to the castle."

"Peter, were we good parents?" Diane asked.

"Of course we were," Peter answered, "Why do you ask."

"Really?" Diane replied, "Then how come our eldest daughter is right now 'rock solid' and our only son is covered in black fur?"

"What happened to Derek and Elisa was beyond our control," Peter answered, "We've got to get used to what's happened to them. Do you think they'd want us to mope about what can't be changed?"

"No," Diane sighed, "But I just can't do it. I just can't do it."

Flagstaff, Arizona

"So, Beth, what are you going to do, once you graduate?" her roommate asked.

"I don't know," Beth answered, "There's some family stuff going on right now, and I think maybe I should try to help them. I mean there are lots of jobs for someone with medical training."

"Yeah, I can just see it now," the roommate snickered, "Well Ms. Maza, our team normally doesn't hire people like you, but Joey, Phil, and Sally keep falling of the girders and I need you to set their bones every day."

"Very funny," Beth answered.

"Is your family going to come out?"

"My mom and dad will," Beth sighed, "I don't know about my sister or brother though. Work keeps them awfully busy."

"I hope they come," her roommate said in a consoling voice, "I'd like to meet them."

"Sure you would," Beth thought to herself.

Avalon

Titania had erected a statue to Oberon in Avalon Castle's courtyard. After the statue was erected, no one had seen her. Not the gargoyles. Not the fey. Not Princess Catherine or Tom. The fey queen had seen to that. The room that she shared with Oberon was sealed off from the rest of the castle. The door was sealed magically, and the mirror that Titania had brought from the mortal realm was placed outside the door. Titania had also hung heavy black curtains over the windows and entrance to the balcony.

Her voice however could be heard. Passers by could hear her weeping. Coyote heard it as he walked by the door on his way to the main courtroom. Where Titania should be seated on her throne.

"What are you doing?" came three voices in unison as he approached the mirror in the main courtroom.

Coyote turned to see the Weird Sisters floating above Titania's throne.

"Playing Queens are we?" Coyote joked, "You know that Titania will get over her grief soon. You can't play around that throne forever."

"We do not play," said Selene.

"Oberon made his gathering," said Luna.

"Titania wishes we obey it," added Phoebe.

"We will follow her commands," the Sisters then said in unison.

"Good for you," Coyote said, stepping closer to the mirror, "You do that. I have business I must attend to. See ya latter."

Coyote then leaped into the mirror and was gone. The Weird Sisters then looked at each other and sighed.

"Should we bring him back?" asked Luna.

"No, Titania will deal with him when he returns," answered Selene.

"How so?" asked Phoebe.

"We shall console her," Selene answered again.

The sisters then lowered themselves to the ground and walked in the direction of Titania's private room.

Castle Wyvern, Dusk

Elisa and Goliath were the last to fully break free of their stone shells as the new night began. For Elisa, family relations were no easier for her then they were for her parents. Ever since she told them that there was no counter spell for the Mage's transformation spell, they had refused to even call Wyvern to ask Owen or somebody if she was alright. As her eyes dimmed from red to their normal color, she was greeted by a strange meowing sound.

She turned to the source of the noise and said, "Cagney! How did you get here?"

"Your parents brought him with them when the movers brought your things to the castle, detective," came Owen's monotone voice.

"Are they still here?" Elisa asked hopefully.

"I am afraid not," Owen answered, "They said they had other business to attend to."

"Humph, business indeed!" Elisa grumbled, "Mom isn't employed and dad is retired."

Goliath came over and placed an arm on her shoulder, "What is wrong, my love?"

Elisa looked back at her mate, tears in her eyes and cried, "Why won't they talk to me?"

Peter and Diane Maza's Apartment

Peter Maza threw a few frozen TV dinners into the microwave and set the timer. Diane was too upset about everything to cook, and frankly he wasn't in a real cooking mood either. Peter Maza was about to reflect on his own feelings on the current problem, when a blinding flash of light appeared in his living room, closely followed by the sounds of Diane screaming.

"Diane, what is it?" Peter called as he came into the room.

Diane said nothing, and sat on the couch in manner in which suited someone who is startled instead of terrified. Sitting opposite her was a man in blue jeans and a black shirt, with black hair and pointed ears.

"Hello all," the man said, "I'm Coyote in case no one guessed. I'm here to help."

Destine Mansion

Demona sat slumped in a chair looking out one of the mansion's huge windows. She stared in the direction of the Eyrie Building and Castle Wyvern atop it. Her own mind was in turmoil with the Mage's war as well as many others. She, like many of her "enemies", was a victim of his brand of revenge. She stared out at the sky. The night sky. Sky she would never again feel beneath her wings, because she no longer had them. The Mage had cursed her to live forever as a human. On top of all this, the Mage had ruined the only insane purpose she thought she had, humanity's destruction.

"What am I to do now?" Demona questioned to herself.

Castle Wyvern

Goliath found Broadway and Angela in the library. Angela was looking at something that looked like a play from Shakespeare, while Broadway seemed content to simply listen.

"What is it, father?" Angela asked.

"I am taking Elisa to her family," Goliath announced, "Elisa is very upset about her folks not talking to her, and that is upsetting me. Brooklyn will hand out the patrol routes and pairings. I will also remind you that if you see Demona, you are to avoid her."

"Yes, father," Angela answered.

"Sure thing, Goliath," Broadway added, "Will Elisa be okay?"

"I hope so," Goliath sighed, "But emotions are the easiest things to break and the hardest things to heal."

With that Goliath departed. Both Angela and Broadway noted the look of sadness on his face.

"Do you think this has something to do with the fact that the Mage had no spell to turn Elisa back into a human?" Angela asked.

"I think so," Broadway answered, "And, I'm afraid this isn't a problem that can be solved with food."

Peter and Diane Maza's Apartment

"You're here to help us?" Diane asked the fey that had identified himself as Coyote.

"Yup, I promised your daughter, Beth, that I would protect Clan Maza," Coyote answered, "And right now, you need protection."

"We need protection?" Diane cried, "We aren't being attacked by anyone. Our daughter, Elisa, needed protection more than a month ago. Why didn't you help her?"

Coyote sighed, "The Mage had no direct intention of killing her. To some extent also, what happened to Elisa was her destiny."

Peter sat down heavily into the couch next to Diane.

"Our family is meant to lose their humanity?" Diane demanded, her voice sounding half sorrowful and half angry.

"Gargoyles are no more than humans with wings," Coyote grinned, "You see, this is why I am here."

Diane looked to Peter, and all he could do was shrug.

"Because the Mage had no direct intentions of killing Elisa when he transformed her, if I had intervened on her behalf, I would have broken Oberon's Law. Then I'd be in more trouble then a crook who robs the police," Coyote continued, "I promised to protect your family and I am here to do that."

"You have the power to change her back?" Peter asked.

"No," Coyote answered, "The Mage was the most powerful human wizard, ever. His spells were not only powerful, but they were also quite complex. Even if Oberon or Titania had tried to restore Elisa's humanity, she would have gone from gargoyle to human to casket!"

Peter and Diane both looked down.

"Then what are you protecting us from?" Peter asked.

"Sometimes things or people need protecting from themselves," Coyote answered, "Trust me on this."

There was a short pause. Coyote then continued, "I'm sensing two things from you that is endangering your family. One, neither of you have really accepted that Elisa loves Goliath. Two, your accepting of Elisa becoming a gargoyle has been an illusion."

"But she's our eldest daughter!" Diane protested.

"She still is," Coyote answered, "Now hold on you two. I'm going to take you on a little journey. Hopefully it will clear everything up."

Coyote raised his arms and in a flash of light, all three people disappeared.

Shortly afterward, Goliath and Elisa landed on Diane and Peter's fire escape.

"Hello? Anyone here?" Goliath called.

He then growled slightly, "They're not here."

A nervous Elisa went forward and then began to jimmy the window open, trying her best not to break anything.

"We'll go in and wait for them," Elisa said nervously, "They'll come back sometime. Hopefully before dawn. I just want to talk to them."

Goliath nodded.

Avalon

"Go away!" Titania screamed through the door.

"We mean you no harm our Queen," Selene pleaded.

"We wish to help," Phoebe added.

"You are our Queen, Titania, you must still hold court," Luna said.

"We wish to help you regain your former zest," the Weird Sisters said in unison.

"My zest was for Oberon," Titania yelled through the door again, "He is gone now, and I must morn. Why don't you three go pester someone in the mortal realm if you must pester someone? You no longer have to remain on Avalon by law."

The Weird Sisters paused.

"The Queen will not let us help her," Phoebe sighed.

Selene looked to her sisters and looked to the door, "There must be a way to help her get over her grief."

"Maybe Odin or some of the others could help," Luna suggested, "Perhaps even asking the gargoyles or the humans to help. Titania must reclaim the throne of Avalon."

Over Manhattan

Broadway and Angela glided together quietly. They were to patrol south from Wyvern while Brooklyn and Lexington would patrol north.

"Quiet night tonight," Broadway commented.

"Uh-huh," Angela added.

Suddenly a magical lasso flew out of nowhere and caught the two gargoyles. Broadway tried with all his might to at least get Angela free, but it was to no avail. They were pulled down to the roof of a nearby building and let down as lightly as if they had landed. Then the lasso disappeared.

"What was that?" Angela asked startled.

"I don't know," Broadway replied.

Broadway was about to say more when he heard the sound of footfalls. They were too light to be a gargoyle's. But something about the sound of the footfalls indicated that whoever this "attacker" was used to walking the way a gargoyle did.

Broadway's eye's glowed white, and Angela's glowed red as a familiar shadow emerged from behind a series of air vents and said, "Help me!"

Coyote's "Magic Journey"

Coyote flew ahead with Peter and Diane Maza flying behind.

"For the sake of not confusing anyone, I think will start with problem one first," Coyote said, "Okay now, you know Goliath and Elisa are married now. There's no getting past that. But you still feel that she should have chosen someone else."

"Well, shouldn't a human be with a human?" Diane asked, "I'd be fine with Goliath becoming human."

"Yeah, I can see it now," Coyote joked, "A man between 27 and 35 walking down the streets with no formal education. Of course I'd see Goliath working for minimum wage at Burger King. Mrs. Maza, Goliath has to be who he is. A gargoyle can not live as a human. Even with all of Xanatos's resources, Goliath would never get a decent brake as a human. He must be a gargoyle. It's the only way he can protect this city and live a decent life."

"But why did Elisa have to become a gargoyle?" Diane pleaded.

"We'll get to that, I hope," Coyote answered, "First, I'm going to show you some clips of Goliath and Elisa's times together. Some are good. Some aren't so good. But all of them are important. It shows that they were meant for each other."

Then the three flew into a flash of light and they were suddenly on a rooftop. Below them stood Goliath, Elisa, and Hudson.

"Watch," Coyote said.

They did watch.

"Uh, you guys are paranoid, even for New York. Are you coming on the tour-? Uh, what do I call you, anyway?"

"Must you humans name everything? Nothing's real to you 'til you've named it, given it limits."

"It's not like that. It's just, that, well, uh. Things need names."

"Does the sky need a name? Does the river?"

"The river's called the Hudson."

"Fine, lass, than I will be the Hudson as well."

"Great, Hudson it is. I don't know how I'm gonna keep people from noticing you."

"Simple. We'll stay on the rooftops."

"Uh, easy for you with those wings, but what about me? Well, that answers that question."

"Uh, coming… Hudson?"

"I think not. This new world is too big, too bright, and too loud. Now that I know you're all right, I'll return to guard the castle."

"Well, looks like it's just you and me. What do you want to see?"

"The dangers that threaten me and my kind."

"Lighten up, will you? You're starting to bring me down, and I'm a cop."

They watched Goliath glide off with Elisa in his arms. Coyote kept a cool grin on his face.

"They liked each other from the very beginning!" Diane said in shock.

"I think Hudson knew it too," Peter added.

"Yeah, but right now they don't realize it yet," Coyote sighed, "Come on."

They soon returned the magic tunnel that Coyote was leading them through.

"You gotta admit that Goliath truly loves Elisa," Coyote said to them, "These clips are going to show that."

When they emerged back into "reality" they found themselves in a hospital room. Diane and Peter were both amazed by who was in the room. Elisa lay on the hospital bed, unconscious, barely clinging to life. They saw themselves kneeling at the bed and the then still human Derek Maza standing at the foot of the bed.

"This is when Elisa got shot!" Diane stuttered.

"Yes," Coyote answered, "Just watch."

Peter and Diane Maza's Apartment

"Dawn will be coming soon, Elisa," Goliath sighed, "Shouldn't we go back to the Castle?"

"No," Elisa cried, "They aren't talking to me, and I want to know why. We'll stay here until we see them or until the building is destroyed."

Goliath sighed, and placed a hand on her shoulders, "We will get through this, Elisa. We will get through this."

Castle Wyvern

Brooklyn arrived at his pedestal for the day early. It had been a quiet couple of nights. Demona had been no where to be found since the Mage's attack on the Eyrie Building. The remaining Quarrymen in New York were still disorganized. Matt hadn't come to the clan ranting about the Illuminati's latest scheme. Yet Brooklyn felt uneasy. He couldn't quite place it.

He sighed to himself as Hudson and Lexington come out behind them.

"Any sign of Goliath or Elisa?" Lex asked.

"No, they must still be at her folk's house," Brooklyn answered.

"Any sign of Angela or Broadway?" Hudson asked.

"I haven't seen them either," Brooklyn sighed.

Then, almost as if on cue, Broadway and Angela landed between Brooklyn and Lexington. Broadway held a redheaded woman under one arm. The woman scrambled out of Broadway's grip and stood defiantly in front of them all.

"Demona," Brooklyn growled.

Demona didn't flinch, but simply answered, "Help me!"

Xanatos had just gotten up for his early morning exercises when Brooklyn and Hudson came barging through the hallways.

"Ah, just the billionaire we wanted to see," Brooklyn joked, "I don't suppose you have some sort of prison cell around here, do you?"

Xanatos blinked at the question and then looked at the sight of the captive that they held.

"The clan's been hunting Demona, I see," he said, "The castle's old dungeons have been remade, they should hold her."

Xanatos paused for a second, "Providing she doesn't do any magic."

"I just want help," Demona sighed.

"That's what they all say!" Brooklyn growled, "That'll work, Xanatos. Maybe Owen could do something to prevent her from using magic. We must hurry. It will be dawn soon."

Xanatos nodded.

Coyote's Magic Journey

Peter and Diane watched the images of themselves leave the hospital room. Derek followed behind them. As soon as the door latched they saw the form of Goliath enter through one of the windows. They watched him come and kneel next to the bed, closest to the window.

"Keep fighting, Elisa. Don't give up. Come back to us. Know that I will finish what you started. I will find the man that did this to you, and I will make him pay!"

They then watched Goliath depart and disappear into the night. Coyote then fast forwarded time shortly. Peter and Diane found themselves in a warehouse. On an overhanging gangway, Goliath held Anthony Dracon by an ankle and was on the verge of dropping the gangster to his death.

"You are the one who shot Elisa Maza!"

"Wh-What?"

"Goliath, no! You can't kill him!"

"You think not? Elisa will have her revenge, through me."

Shortly thereafter, the scene returned to Coyote's magic tunnel.

"He was going to kill Dracon because Elisa got shot?" Peter asked.

"Yup, Goliath's you average knight in purple armor," Coyote answered, "They were both 'in love' from the very beginning, but since they didn't really acknowledge it, they were sort of friends. These images I'm showing are, at the present time, only the images that betray how they truly feel about each other."

Peter and Diane looked at each other. They then appeared out of the tunnel and floating in the night sky. Below them glided Goliath and Elisa in her gargoyle form.

"What's this?" Diane asked.

"Coyote, Elisa currently is a gargoyle, and they're already married," Peter said.

"True, but this is still way before that, trust me," Coyote replied, "Just watch."

"I never realized when you were human how beautiful you are."

"You mean you thought I was ugly?"

"Well, uh… careful, updraft!"

Diane sighed, "Of course he starts the romance after some nut turns her into a gargoyle.

"He isn't a nut! He's my brother!" Coyote joked, "Seriously. Demona got her talons on Titania's mirror and summoned my brother Puck through it. Demona made her ill-worded wishes, and Puck acted on them. This is where the ideas of a romance between the two of them begin, but Elisa and Goliath still have a long way to go from here before they're ready to admit it."

"Didn't Demona turn everyone in New York during this time into gargoyles?" Peter asked.

Coyote smiled, "Yes. Hmm, I don't suppose we could take a short sidetrack."

The location changed. The three were now sitting on the fire escape of an apartment. Inside were two gargoyles. One was a tanish colored male, and the other was a dark chocolate brown female.

"Who are they?" Diane asked.

"What? You can't tell?" Coyote asked back, "Look closely."

"Oh my god that's us!" Diane cried again.

"Yep, you were in New York at the time," Coyote replied, "Puck's spell affected every human in Manhattan. Eventually the spell was reversed and you were made human again."

The scene changed. Diane, Peter and Coyote now floated above the clock tower as the gargoyles returned. Elisa was once again in her human form and in Goliath's arms.

"Elisa, I…"

"Yeah, I know. You're as relieved as I am that things are back to normal."

"That's not what I was going to say."

"I know, but that's the way it is."

"They continued to deny their feelings, even after all that?" Diane asked.

"Yeah, come on, there's a lot more to see," Coyote answered.

Avalon

Odin glared for a few minutes at the Weird Sisters.

"You three aren't intending to go against her now are you?" Odin asked.

"No, we don't," Luna answered.

"Even you know that Titania must reclaim the throne of Avalon," Selene added.

"Or Oberon's heroic sacrifice will mean nothing," Phoebe finished.

The Norse god fingered his beard for a few minutes. He, as well as any fey, knew the consequences of an empty Avalon throne. It would risk the renewal of the war between the fey that followed Oberon and Titania and the fey that were considered outcasts among their own people. It would also make it easier for the Mage's followers, the Illuminati Society, to fight their own war against the third race.

"I agree with you," Odin admitted, "But bringing someone out of grief will not be easy, and can not be done by manipulation. We must be helpful to Titania."

"All we wish is that the throne be filled," the Weird Sisters said in unison.

Castle Wyvern

Dawn came and went. By noon, Xanatos and Owen were watching the cell that Demona had been placed in.

"What are we to do with her, sir?" Owen asked.

"According to Brooklyn, she said she wanted help, but wouldn't say anymore," Xanatos answered, "But I've got my own idea."

"I thought you would sir," Owen replied.

"Come with me, we have some work to do," Xanatos smirked, "If I can't be shrewd businessman who fights the gargoyles, I will be a shrewd businessman who helps the gargoyles."

Owen answered with a laugh normally attributed to Puck.

Demona meanwhile lay crumpled up on the floor of her cell. She had laid there since she had been dumped there. Her mind wandered about from thought to thought. Mostly she worried about what to do with her life. She was human and couldn't do anything. Puck had cast a spell that made it impossible for her to use magic on any member of the clan or on Xanatos and his family. Getting revenge was out, and ridding the world of humans was out.

Xanatos and Owen returned half an hour later. Demona watched the billionaire and his assistant affix some sort of gadget to the ceiling.

"Hope this works," Xanatos muttered.

Owen pulled a remote from his pocket and pressed a button, activating the device. A thin red light then came out from the device and struck Demona squarely in the head. It wasn't painful, but Demona did feel a tingling in her head. It was almost as if the device was reading her mind.

"It's working Mr. Xanatos," Owen announced.

"That's good," Xanatos smirked, "Now the gargoyles won't have to risk a fist fight with Demona. They can just look inside her cranium!"

Owen smirked back, "And you can learn all of Nightstone's secrets."

"Only the secrets that were there BEFORE Sevarius took over," Xanatos replied, "But it should make more money for us anyway."

Coyote's Magical Journey

Diane, Peter, and Coyote then reappeared in the room of a rather expensive mansion. Demona, in her gargoyle form, lay unconscious on the floor. Goliath, Elisa, and the man known as Macbeth stood near a fireplace.

"At least now you know you're capable of love, the kind of love that makes life worthwhile. Search for that love, Macbeth," Goliath said to the old Scottish King, and then paused to look at Elisa, "She's out there."

"Is this were they're starting to realize their love for each other?" Peter asked.

"It has to be," Diane stammered, "Did you see the way Goliath looked at Elisa before saying 'she's out there'?"

"It is beginning," Coyote admitted, "But we aren't there yet."

They then returned to Coyote's magical tunnel and continued. When they reappeared they were at the clock tower. Goliath and Elisa were standing together.

"We could not have survived this odyssey without you."

"Hey, it was fun, heh, most of the time. But, there really is no place like home. See? Even Cagney missed it. It was really nice of Broadway and Hudson to take care of him while I was gone."

"The clan will always be there for you. I will always be there for you."

"I know."

"If only we were-"

"Shh, we are what we are. Ehh-heh. You better get going, or you'll be caught in the storm."

Diane looked at the whole scene with a bit of shock, "I don't believe it! He wanted here to be a gargoyle!"

"It is what Goliath is probably most comfortable with," Coyote answered, "But remember, he still would admit that he is in love with a human, and doesn't really care if she is a human or a gargoyle."

Coyote then snapped his fingers and they were traveling again. When they reappeared they were outside Elisa's apartment window. They saw Goliath looking in. Inside, they saw Elisa kissing Jason Canmore. The watched Goliath leave.

"He looks like someone just ripped his heart out," Peter noted.

"That's what happens when you're just about to admit your love from somebody, and you think they've fallen for someone else," Coyote answered, "Come on, this part isn't over yet."

Coyote then speed up time again. When time returned to normal they were outside a series of massive waterfalls. Goliath, Elisa, and the clan were facing Jason, Robyn, and Jon Canmore, the Hunters. They watched Elisa and Jason get knocked off the water falls. They heard the clan call Elisa's name. They watched Goliath try to rescue her.

"We heard everything. I-I-I whish I never kept this thing."

"We still need it. Tomorrow night is the Hunter's Moon. It will be the last moon they ever see. Elisa's death will be avenged."

Diane and Peter both blinked.

"But Elisa and Jason both survived, why is Goliath wanting to kill the Hunters for this?" Peter asked.

"He doesn't know that Elisa survived," Coyote answered, "This is just like the incident with Dracon and Elisa getting shot. Something bad happened to Elisa, and Goliath being her knight in purple armor must either save her or make her death worth it."

Before Diane and Peter could answer, Coyote speed up time again. When they emerged they were floating over the tallest tower of Castle Wyvern.

"Here is where Goliath and Elisa finally admit their love," Coyote announced.

"So, things have come full circle."

"Somehow they always do. You know how I feel about you, right?"

"How we both feel. Yes."

"Good."

They watched Elisa kiss the large gargoyle, and then turn to leave as the gargoyle smiled and turned to stone.

"Welcome home, Goliath. Welcome home."

Soon afterward they were floating in a void. Only bright colors of greens and blues broke what was otherwise nothing. Diane and Peter looked at each other and then looked at Coyote. Each sighed heavily.

"Goliath and Elisa certainly have been through a lot together," Peter said.

"And that was just the mushy stuff!" Coyote said.

"Coyote, I can admit that Goliath truly loves my daughter," Diane said, "What I can't get used to is my daughter being a gargoyle. We've already lost Derek's humanity to that Sevarius character. Now the Mage has taken away Elisa's. What about Beth? What about us?"

"You want to be gargoyles too?" Coyote asked.

"NO!" was the unanimous response, "We want to know why does Elisa have to be a gargoyle, why couldn't the Mage have picked out someone else."

"Ah," Coyote answered, "The Mage picked Elisa because Castaway picked her specifically. Castaway picked her because of her association with the gargoyles. There could have been another possibility that would save Elisa from the transformation at this point and time. I can show you the results if you wish."

Diane and Peter looked at each other and then asked in unison, "Will this help us get used to Elisa being a gargoyle?"

"I hope so," Coyote said, "But essentially it's a what if situation to help you see the upside to what happened by showing you how things could have turned out."

Flagstaff, Arizona

Beth slammed her dorm phone back down hard and in an aggravated fashion.

"Trouble?" her roommate asked.

"No," Beth replied, "My folks aren't home. I was going to ask them if they were going to bring my sister and brother out, but they aren't there to answer."

"Didn't you say your sister and brother are always busy with something?" her roommate asked again.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I still hope that they come," Beth sighed.

"They're cops right?" her roommate asked.

"Who?" Beth replied.

"Your brother and sister."

"My sister's a cop yes, and my brother, well…he's more into social services," Beth answered, "You know, helping the homeless. Why do you ask?"

"I saw one of those old debates about those gargoyles in New York, and I thought that they might be involved with them somehow," her roommate admitted, "You know, like the gargoyles task force?"

Beth sighed, "Elisa's involved in that, sorta. Derek, he mostly follows them on the news because of a personal interest. But, you shouldn't believe everything you see on TV. Neither my brother nor my sister are really involved in all that stuff."

"Oh," her roommate answered.

Nightstone Unlimited

Alex Sevarius strolled down to the lab of his creator Anton. He found the mad doctor working on some sort of formula on a computer.

"What is it Alex?" Sevarius asked.

"Nothing, just curious as to what we're secretly doing," Alex replied.

"Ah, this is where it gets fun, Alex," Sevarius answered, "Now you don't have my knowledge in genetics, but you do know about the mutates I created, right?"

"Yes," Alex said, "It was brilliant the way you could alter human DNA on every level with just a short formula."

"I'm about to outdo that brilliance," Sevarius bragged, "When Demona was in charge here she never wanted mutates to help her in her cause. Now that I'm in charge, I'm quite happy with mutate slaves. I still have the original formula that can create a cat-based mutate, but right now I want to try something different. Fang never got along well with taking orders from Xanatos or Talon. The problem with that is that cats are all individualistic. Even lions to a certain extent. Therefore, I need create a formula that uses an animal that is naturally sociable and gets along well with humans."

"Canines," Alex offered.

"You read my mind," Sevarius grinned back, "I don't have the full formula ready yet, but I already have in mind WHO my first test subjects will be. All that matters now is to get the robot Coldsteel back online and hire some extra muscle to capture them."

"Coldsteel is still offline, brother?" Alex asked.

Sevarius growled at his computer, "Yes, but then robotics was always Xanatos's department. I wouldn't worry though. I'm making progress, and the extra muscle will be very easy to obtain."

Alex Sevarius looked at the computer screen, and then looked at Anton Sevarius.

"What is the status on the location of Demona's whereabouts? I don't want her coming back here," Sevarius asked.

"I don't know," Alex answered, "The spies you hired have not reported any sightings."

"Oh well, either way we're too far along to be stopped now," Sevarius sighed, "Keep up the good work."

"Yes sir," Alex answered.

Avalon

Princess Catherine had Gabriel set her down on Titania's balcony with a platter of food. She sighed loudly at the heavy black drapes that Titania had hung over the windows and the entrance to the room. She was somewhat nervous about all this when the Weird Sisters asked her to help. Titania was almost as powerful as Oberon, and anyone mourning the loss of someone they loved is bound to act somewhat irrational.

"Queen Titania," Princess Catherine whispered, "Ye haven't eaten much since returning to Avalon. Yer children wish you to eat something."

"Go away!" Titania yelled, "I know what you're all trying to do! Nothing will help."

"Can we try?" Catherine asked.

"No, it's impossible for you to understand how I feel!" Titania yelled again.

"Ye are wrong Queen Titania," Catherine sighed, "I have lost many a good friend in my life. I've even lost much of my own family."

Titania didn't answer. Catherine poked her head through the drapes. Titania lay across the bed on her stomach. A magically projected image of Oberon hovered just in front of her position on the bed. Catherine set the tray down on an end table.

"I'll leave this food here for you, Queen Titania," Catherine sighed, "I'll come back for it later."

She slowly walked back out and motioned for Gabriel to come down and carry her back to the battlements. Upon reaching the battlements, she was greeted by the Weird Sisters and Odin. Although, Odin seemed to be supervising what the Sisters were doing.

"The Queen is cured now?" Selene asked.

"She will take her throne?" Phoebe added.

Catherine bowed politely, "She has lost someone she loves. This will take time. I'm sorry if that displeases you."

"Then we must plan our next move to console her," Luna said.

"We mustn't treat this as if it's a scheme or battle," Catherine replied, "The only way to truly 'cure' her is to get her to talk to us. The only way she will talk to us is if she sees that we truly care."

"And that will take time," Odin nodded.

"Sadly yes."

Coyote's Magical Journey

When Peter, Diane, and Coyote emerged from his 'magical tunnel' they were once again at Castle Wyvern. The sun was just setting and Xanatos could be seen standing near the statue of Goliath.

"Don't disappoint me," Xanatos warned the statue.

The sun set. Nothing happened. Xanatos stood there for about five minutes, but nothing happened.

"Damn," Xanatos growled, "This was a complete waste of time! Demona was wrong!"

Peter and Diane looked at each other.

"Obviously Goliath doesn't awaken in this story," Diane sighed.

They then tentatively followed Xanatos down the stairs. By the time they had reached the great hall, Owen had met up with Xanatos.

"Demona's idea didn't pay off the gargoyles are asleep still," Xanatos snarled.

"At least you have the castle," Owen said, "And the gargoyle statues will make fascinating art."

"Yes, they well," Xanatos smirked.

They turned to the sound of footsteps. As they turned Peter and Diane froze.

"Don't worry," Coyote assured them, "In these visions I've shown you, no one can see or here you."

Several men in what was considered gear under experimentation for the US Army's Special Forces came storming in.

"I'm sorry boys, the plan failed," Xanatos sighed, "The gargoyles are-"

Xanatos was interrupted by a series of roars.

"- just now awakening!" Xanatos shouted, "Quickly, just go grab the disks and run out. I'll chase you like you've actually stolen something!"

Diane and Peter were suddenly transported to the battlements. They saw Goliath and the gargoyles who would become Hudson, Bronx, Broadway, Lexington, and Brooklyn.

"Why isn't Angela here?" Diane blurted, not really thinking.

"Angela didn't join the clan til after Goliath and Elisa's 'World Tour'," Coyote explained, "Angela is right now on Avalon with Princess Catherine, Guardian Tom, and the Magus."

They were interrupted by Goliath, "We're awake! We're alive! We're together again!"

Suddenly the clouds below them cleared and the gargoyles looked out in amazement at New York City for the first time. They only turned when they heard strange mechanical sounds and a man yelling.

"Stop! Thieves!" Xanatos yelled, "You won't get away that easy!"

"We already have!" one of the 'theives' yelled back, as he leaped into a helicopter.

"What was that thing?" Brooklyn asked.

"A dragon without a doubt!" Hudson answered.

"It wasn't a dragon!" Lexington exclaimed, "It was a machine of some sort."

Goliath sighed, "Come, we must check the man who those men stole from."

Peter and Diane watched Goliath and the others land in front of Xanatos who was kneeling on the ground as if out of breath. Xanatos looked up.

"You're alive!" Xanatos exclaimed with a mixture of surprise and jubilation.

"Aye, lad," Hudson answered, "And who be ye?"

"I am David Xanatos," Xanatos announced, standing up, "I own this castle now. This is utterly fascinating. I've read a story about you from a book in Ussex, but I never thought that gargoyles were real! Who are you?"

Goliath motioned to the others, "My kind have no names, but humans call me Goliath."

"Fascinating," Xanatos smirked, "The rest of you will have to take names eventually. Since the story is true, I must tell you that it's been a thousand years since the spell was cast. The Magus who cursed you wrote the whole story down in that book in Ussex. I currently have it in my possession as a souvenir."

"Souvenir?" Goliath asked.

"Think of like this, you go to England from France, you get something that is unique to England and England alone, and you return to France with it," Xanatos answered.

"We are from Scotland," Goliath corrected.

"True, Scotland is where I bought the castle, but Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and England are all one country now. It's called the United Kingdom," Xanatos answered, "The King and or Queen rule from and the Parliament meets in London."

"How did you break the spell?" Hudson asked.

"I didn't believe the spell was real actually," Xanatos lied, "I liked the castle and thought you were merely carved statues."

"We are more than carved statues," Goliath growled.

"I can see that," Xanatos smirked, "And now that I know that the story was real and that you are real, I want to be your friend. There is much that I can do for you. According to the story, you are the last of your kind."

"Such as?" Goliath asked.

"You could help me get those disks back that those thugs stole from me," Xanatos answered, "I can explain them to you inside if you wish."

Coyote then snapped his fingers, and Diane and Peter soon found themselves standing outside the old 23rd Precinct Headquarters.

"Why are we here?" Diane asked.

"This is in the timeframe before the Hunters destroyed the clock tower," Coyote answered, "Elisa's precinct still works here."

Castle Wyvern, Dusk

Xanatos intercepted the gargoyles shortly after they broke free of their stone shells. Goliath and Elisa were missing, but according to Brooklyn and the clan, they were off at Elisa's parent's apartment. Xanatos led them to his office, instead of to the dungeon where Demona was being held prisoner.

"Why are we here, Xanatos?" Brooklyn demanded.

"Well, neither of us have really gotten along entirely well with Demona," Xanatos said, "Even when I was the clan's enemy, Demona and I didn't get along well. I guess you could say, 'this town wasn't big enough fer the both of us!' Now Demona also hates Elisa with a vengeance and would probably kill her and Goliath if she had the chance, and both of them could return at anytime. I don't want Demona getting upset and testing the limits of the Eyrie Buildings generators. Also, Brooklyn, you seem to hate Demona more than any other of the clan, I think it'd be wise if the clan, and you specifically, stayed away from her to prevent the castle from being destroyed."

"Then how are we to figure out what she's up to?" Angela asked.

Xanatos smirked, "Observe."

Xanatos pulled out a small remote from his pocket and pointed it the television screen in his office. The image was that of the human Demona huddled on the floor.

Suddenly over the intercom they heard Demona's voice say, "I've lost all purpose. I've lost all purpose."

"How did she do that? Her lips didn't move!" Broadway stammered.

Lex smacked him in the back of the head, "Ventriloquism."

"Where's the dummy?" Brooklyn asked with a slight grin.

"It's nothing like that, I assure you," Xanatos smirked again, "Before you guys saved Alexander from Oberon I had been working on a device that would allow me to read someone's mind. The prototype was just completed when Oberon arrived, and after we became allies, I saw no need to continue the project."

"You're readin' 'er mind?" Hudson asked.

"Yup, the device keys on her personal brainwave frequency," Xanatos answered, "The device can read everything in her mind and record it onto a disk. I've only figured out how to get her current thoughts to be projected audibly."

"You wouldn't be doing anything illegal with her, are you Xanatos?" Brooklyn demanded, "Although I hate Demona more than anyone, I doubt Goliath and Elisa would approve of such action, and I'd never willingly go against Goliath."

Xanatos smirked, "Well, it isn't illegal what I'm doing, but that's only because there's no law that says I can't. Besides, it's all for the best right. We'll have hard evidence of her wanting to kill all humans and Detective Maza in particular, as well as what she is currently up to. I'll simply get to benefit by capitalizing off of some Nightstone secrets. Nothing no other CEO hasn't done before."

Brooklyn looked over at Broadway who shrugged.

"You can take the business man out of evil and shrewdness," Brooklyn thought, "But you can't take the shrewdness out of the business man."

Brooklyn then glared at Xanatos, "Alright, but keep the disks you want to make more money with hidden. If Goliath or Elisa find out about this part of your plan to help us, I'll wring your neck MYSELF!"

"Scout's honor," Xanatos smirked again, raising the first two fingers of his right hand to his eyebrow.

Coyote's Magic Journey

Peter and Diane stood with Coyote for a few minutes outside the 23rd Precinct Headquarters. Eventually they saw what looked like Morgan coming in from a patrol, and Elisa coming out.

"Another quiet night, Detective?" Morgan asked politely.

"You have no idea," Elisa answered, "You'd even think that David Xanatos would suffer some sort of 'mob attack' or something for moving a medieval castle to the top of Eyrie Building and declaring residency there! Who does he think he is? The King of England?"

"Very funny Detective," Morgan answered.

They followed Elisa back to her apartment. She walked in, ate a quick "dinner", fed Cagney, and went to sleep. They then disappeared and reappeared in Castle Wyvern. They were specifically in Xanatos's office. Goliath and the entire clan are there.

"It is almost dawn, Xanatos. My friends and I must sleep soon," Goliath growled.

"This shouldn't take too long. Remember the disks that were stolen from me?" Xanatos replied.

"Disks?" Goliath asked.

"Think of them as magic talismans, each one containing hundreds of spells. I need your help getting them back," Xanatos answered.

"Isn't there someone else you can go to?" Broadway asked, "I'd like to tour the city tomorrow night."

"I'd advise against that," Xanatos warned, "Remember, you are the last gargoyles on earth according to the Magus. Humans will fear you, and do something that I'm sure they'll regret later. I can't go to the police, because I've actually had problems like this before and the police captain for this part of Manhattan has told me in so many words, that I'm 'crying wolf'. They won't help me, and they will also come snooping around here."

Goliath sighed, "What would you have us do?"

"My sources have indicated that those thieves were hired by a multinational company called Cyberbiotics," Xanatos replied.

Xanatos then placed a video caste into a television VCR in his office. The screen light up with images of Cyberbiotics installations.

"It's like a … a living tapestry!" Hudson exclaimed.

Xanatos chuckled, "The stolen data is being held in three different locations. The first is in a research center on a small island in the bay. The second is deep beneath the city in a heavily fortified base. The third is being kept in a huge air fortress that flies in a holding pattern over the city. All three places must be hit simultaneously so none will be able to notify the others. It seems an absurd amount of protection, I know. But rest assured the information is that important."

"Why do we need to help you?" Brooklyn asked.

"This must be done before their scientists break the encryption codes. Before they translate the spells," Xanatos answered.

"This is much different than protecting the castle," Goliath replied back, "It will endanger the others, and none of us know anything about this city. Nor do we know anything about you!"

Xanatos looked down for a moment, "I can understand that you don't trust me. But do you believe in right from wrong? Do you believe it is right for Cyberbiotics to steal from me? To steal from your home?"

Goliath looked at Xanatos growled, "Fine, but let us learn more about this city first."

"I can provide a televised tour tomorrow night, and I'll have Owen bring a variety of local foods," Xanatos answered with a smirk.

Goliath turned and walked out. As he left a hidden panel opened and the gargoyle form of Demona stepped out.

Xanatos smirked, "Don't worry, we're ahead of schedule."

The day went by quickly. The gargoyles remained stone, and Elisa slept. When the next night began Owen appeared in the courtyard and motioned for the clan to come down. They followed him into the great hall. They spent the next several hours watching a film that showed New York's history. A film that showed New York's current culture, and a film that was essentially a walking tour ofNew York City. Broadway ate from several different food platters during each film.

When they were through, Xanatos came up behind them.

"Enjoy the entertainment?" Xanatos asked.

"Yes very!" Lexington announced, "It was cool!"

Xanatos chuckled, "You know you will have to choose names now?"

"Names!" Hudson growled, "What is with ye humans and names?"

"Things need names, just like the river's named the Hudson," Xanatos replied.

"Fine lad, then I shall be the Hudson as well," Hudson sighed.

"Brooklyn!" Brooklyn announced.

"Broadway!"

"Lexington!"

"Woof!" Bronx barked.

Brooklyn smiled, "I know, we'll call you Bronx!"

Goliath and Hudson chuckled to each other, "Come, we will deal with the thieves who robbed the castle tomorrow night."

"One moment!" Xanatos interrupted, "You won't believe this, but I've found another gargoyle! A female. Actually I've had it as an art piece off at Xandu, but since you woke up once the castle came here, I wondered if a trip here would do the same for her. I believe she knows you, Goliath."

Goliath raised a brow ridge and then gasped in shock as Demona came out from behind a heavy door.

"My love!" Goliath cried, as he scooped up Demona in his arms and wings and then turned to stone as the sun rose.

"Coyote, Goliath loves Elisa, not her!" Diane scolded, "What sort of trick are you playing?"

"No tricks," Coyote said, "This is a what if situation that will free your daughter from her current gargoylehood. Since she was chosen by Castaway to become a gargoyle because of her association with the gargoyles, the only possible to reverse that was simply to never have her meet them."

The next night the gargoyles left in groups to go get "Xanatos's" disks. Goliath and Demona went together. Lexington, Broadway, and Brooklyn went together. Hudson carried Bronx. It was nearly dawn when then all returned, and Xanatos was listening to a radio report.

"I'm here with Detective Maza outside the crash site of the Cyberbiotics airship that was robbed less than ten minutes ago," the announcer said, "Detective, what do you think happened here?"

"I don't know," Elisa answered, "All I can tell you are that Cyberbiotics is reporting robberies from three different instillations, including this one. And I could swear I saw something fly away from the wreck of the airship."

"UFOs in Manhattan," the announcer simplified.

"The gargoyles have returned, sir," Owen announced as Xanatos shut the radio off.

"Good, did you get the disks?" Xanatos smirked.

"Right here sir," Owen replied.

Xanatos smirked again, "Good, start building the Steel Clan. Once Goliath and his friends go to sleep for the day, we'll smash them. Demona is immortal and still our partner for now. Leave her alone."

"Yes Mister Xanatos," Owen answered.

Diane and Peter then watched in horror as time passed, the sun rose and the wine of jet engines was heard over the Manhattan skyline. Goliath and his clan were smashed to rubble by the Steel Clan's lasers. Xanatos laughed maniacally. Only the traitorous Demona survived.

Peter and Diane Maza's Apartment

Goliath and Elisa helped themselves to some dinner, raided from her parent's fridge. She was about to get Goliath to sit down when the phone rang.

"Hello, Maza residence," Elisa answered.

"Elisa?" a voice asked.

"Beth?" Elisa cried back into the phone, "What's up? I haven't heard from you in ages! Have you talked to mom and dad? I miss you, you know."

Elisa could hear Beth giggle through the phone.

"I'm fine Elisa," Beth answered, "I've been trying to get a hold of mom and dad. They haven't been home for like the past several hours. I miss you too Elisa. Are you and Goliath going to come to my graduation?"

"Graduation?" Elisa asked.

"Yeah," Beth snorted, "I'm graduating college in a few days."

"Is it a DAYTIME ceremony?" Elisa questioned, "Because you know that Goliath and I are 'rock solid' during the day."

"Yes it's a daytime ceremony, yes, but there is a night-time graduation party," Beth answered, "Mom and dad should be coming out."

"Yeah, like they'll let a pair of gargoyles come in," Elisa said into the phone.

"You really don't remember college do you?" Beth said, "Please come! I'd like to see you and Derek again, even if it is only at night and in a dark alley."

"I'm sure that Goliath and I would love to come," Elisa replied, "I'm not sure about Derek though. I'll let you know when we can arrange transportation."

"Thanks sis," Beth yelled excitedly, "You're the best! Are mom and dad there?"

"No, no they're not," Elisa sighed, "I'm waiting for them to talk to me."

Avalon

Titania had just finished eating the food that Catherine left, when Princess Catherine returned.

"I'm just here for the tray," Catherine said.

Titania looked at the human princess. She remembered some of the things she heard Catherine said to her earlier.

"You said you've lost people close to you?" Titania asked.

"Yes," Catherine sighed, picking up the tray, "My mother died giving birth to me, and I never knew her. My father died before I could really grow up. The gargoyles died because of my own fear, and the Magus died in the arms trying to keep the Archmage off of Avalon."

"Has it ever gotten easier for you?" Titania asked, "Everywhere I look I see his face."

Catherine smiled, "Death is always hard, it is hardest when it strikes those we are close too. If it hadn't been for Tom, I wouldn't have been able to get over the Magus's death. If it hadn't been for the eggs, I wouldn't have been able to get over the destruction of Goliath's clan. Each death that I know off has hurt me, but yet I've survived them all, because there is someone there to help me."

Titania stood up, "I should apologize to you and to my children. I have taken Oberon's death too hard."

"Ye've done nothing wrong, Queen Titania," Catherine replied, moving onto the balcony and motioning for Gabriel, "All you need to do is find someone or something that makes ye feel better."

Coyote's Magical Journey

Time speed forward. Demona partnered with Xanatos helped spread Xanatos's Enterprises technical know-how. Cyberbiotics was the fist company to bit the dust. Xanatos bought the company three months after destroying Goliath and his clan. Old major companies including McDonald Douglas, Boeing, Lockheed-Martin, Northrop-Grumman, Ford, General Motors, and Microsoft were forced to merge in order to keep a competitive edge with Xanatos Enterprises and its thousands of sub companies. Five months after the destruction of Goliath and his clan, there were no major companies left in the United States, save for Xanatos Enterprises.

Elisa continued to work the police force, but was greatly upset by the pace in which Xanatos built his monopoly. But as Diane, Peter and Coyote watched, they could see that more and more that she was alone, and lonely. Working the nightshift put her on duty during the peek activities of local gangs and many of Xanatos's more secret projects, although no one knew it was Xanatos. She worked from dusk till dawn, and was too tired to do anything but sleep, work, and eat. She made friends with fellow detective Matthew Bluestone, but he was moved to the dayshift in order to pursue some secret society.

Xanatos sat in a large and luxurious office. Mounted on the wall were the decapitated stone heads of Goliath, Hudson, Brooklyn, Broadway, Lexington, and Bronx. Owen came into office, and looked somewhat uncomfortable.

"Owen! I didn't send for you?" Xanatos asked.

"We have a –," Owen started, but was interrupted by a powerful electric shock.

"Ye will forgive me fer that," the man behind Owen said.

"Who are you?" Xanatos demanded.

The man looked at the mounted stone heads, "I see ye've had trouble with gargoyles, Mister Xanatos."

Xanatos smirked, "Not for six months."

The man chuckled, "But there is ONE left. Their queen."

"Gargoyles have no queens," Xanatos answered, and then pointed at the unconscious Owen, "He told me that."

"What about Demona?" the man asked.

"You know Demona?" Xanatos asked.

The man laughed, "Know her? I NAMED her! You can call me Macbeth!"

Macbeth then in one punch that caught Xanatos off guard and knocked the tyrannical billionaire out. Macbeth left Xanatos and Owen where they were. He proceeded up the castle's battlements where Demona's stone form stood. Macbeth looked at the evil gargoyle female and smiled.

"Now BOTH our sufferings shall end!" Macbeth yelled and he then tipped Demona's stone form off the castle's walls.

When Demona's body hit the pavement, Macbeth himself screamed with pain before his own body shattered into thousands of small pieces.

Diane and Peter watched Owen and Xanatos return the battlements to see Macbeth's shattered body.

"Where's Demona?" Xanatos asked.

"She is dead sir," Owen answered.

"That's impossible," Xanatos said, "She told us she was immortal."

"Only so long as she didn't kill Macbeth or Macbeth didn't kill her," Owen answered, "This was Macbeth, and in away the Scottish King has done two great deeds. He's removed an evil gargoyle bent on destroying humanity, and he's now made it possible for a new King to rise over the world."

Xanatos grinned evilly. He continued his own evil plots. The mutates were created and manipulated to he his own private bodyguards. He couldn't have every old immortal European noble knocking him out. He also had Sevarius implant a gene in the mutates that made it impossible for them to disobey him. Then came Halloween.

"This 'werewolf' has been attacking people left and right!" Chavez growled at the paper, "They've found twelve half chewed bodies in the last week!"

Elisa, looking much older than she actually was, turned and headed out, "I'll find it! Call animal control too, I might need back up!"

Diane and Peter watched as Elisa maneuvered her way through Manhattan's back alleys and discarded streets. Then suddenly came a growling sound behind her. She turned to see a large red wolf like creature, wearing a glowing medallion around its neck. It growled at her, but was only stopped by flying electricity. Suddenly a large black furred panther with bat wings landed between Elisa and the wolf.

"There's more than one of you!" Elisa yelled.

The mutate turned, "What?"

BLAM!

Elisa fired a single shot. The shot went directly through the mutate's skull killing it instantly. The wolf ran off. The sound of jet engines and more electricity filled the air half a block down, and Elisa ran in that direction. By the time she got there all she could see was a series of black shapes taking off into the sky. When she returned to the scene where she shot the black animal with wings, it was gone.

"She shot Derek!" Diane exclaimed in horror.

"She didn't know it was him," Coyote answered, "Remember is this timeline, because Elisa didn't meet the gargoyles and learn that Xanatos was manipulating them, she had no reason to suspect him of any wrong doing. When Derek joined Xanatos's employ, Elisa didn't become concerned and didn't try to warn him."

"I can't watch anymore," Diane cried, "This story seems to be worse than what really happened."

"It is," Coyote answered, "Because, with Goliath dead, the Archmage will conquer Avalon. The Gathering will never take place. The Mage's war would continue for centuries more, claiming progressively more and more lives. Xanatos would continue to build his own power. He would rise to lead the Illuminati, and he would also disband the entire organization in order to preserve his own power. With the Illuminati gone, the Mage would be Xanatos's last real obstacle to world domination. After a brief alliance, Xanatos and Oberon would be successful in defeating the Mage, much the way it really happened. However, as the Mage dies, Xanatos took the harpoon and killed Titania as well. The third race would join the gargoyles in extinction three millennia later after massive internal wars and attacks by Xanatos."

"What happens to Elisa?" Peter asked.

"Unfortunately, she is killed by Fang less than a week after she killed Talon," Coyote sighed, "Xanatos sent him to kill her, since she killed the best of his mutates."

"How can we avoid all this?" Diane pleaded.

"Accept that Elisa's relationship with the gargoyles has lead to her becoming a gargoyle, and that in the end, everything is much better," Coyote said fading away.

Once Coyote was gone, Diane and Peter found themselves back in their apartment. Each were sitting on the couch. They looked at each other, and then looked over to see Elisa and Goliath eating the dinner they planned to eat the night before.

"Elisa!" Diane exclaimed, "My baby!"

"Mom!" Elisa cried.

Nightstone Unlimited

Anton Sevarius watched the metal form of Coldsteel begin to move. He had finally got the robot back online. The controlling device indicated that it was working perfectly.

"Where- Where am I?" Coldsteel asked, his voice sounding more mechanical than it ever did before.

"You are at Nightstone Unlimited, Coldsteel," Sevarius answered, "Don't you remember?"

"No," Coldsteel replied, "All I remember is a blue light and Coldstone punching me in the face."

Sevarius snickered to himself, "Yeah, like your metal face was really damaged by that!"

"Do you know who I am?" Sevarius asked.

Coldsteel turned his head and looked at him, "You are Anton Sevarius, my creator, my master."

Sevarius smiled, "Good, I have a little job for you."

Devils Den Prison, Upstate New York

Castaway relished the few moments he was out in the prison's yard. The only side that he hated was that Dracon persistently followed him wherever he went.

"Go away!" Castaway growled at the gangster, "I don't like you."

"You're stuck with me!" Dracon taunted, "Might as well get to know each other."

Castaway looked at the strange look on Dracon's face, "I don't lean that way Dracon."

"I don't either," Dracon answered back, "I was thinking more along the lines of a putting our heads together."

"To do what?" Castaway demanded, "Half the guards here don't exactly play by the rules prison guards are supposed to. They're also much more vigilant than other prison guards. It would be idiotic to risk an escape. Especially when our laundry is taken while they let us shower. If we don't shower then we get no clean laundry."

"Who said anything about escape?" Dracon replied, "I ran my gang from jail before Brode came to America. I'm betting that you can run the Quarrymen from jail. All we need is to figure out a way to bribe the guards for phone privileges and visitation rights."

"Bribe the guards?" Castaway asked.

"Yep," Dracon answered, "So, got any money?"

Peter and Diane Maza's Apartment

Peter and Diane were both a little shocked by what they saw on Coyote's magical journey. They were almost as shocked to see Elisa and Goliath waiting for them when they returned.

"Elisa! What are you doing here?" Diane cried out, "Are you alright?"

Elisa didn't answer, and seemed to be on the verge of tears. Goliath stepped forward.

"We are here because Elisa is afraid you no longer care for her," he explained, and then his voice shifted to something that sounded like a growl, "And I would tend to agree. Just because she is a gargoyle now does not mean that she doesn't wish to lose you. And you have not talked to her."

Diane then broke down, grabbing Elisa in her arms she cried, "I'm sorry Elisa, I'm sorry. We didn't mean to hurt you. We just we're really prepared for you to be a gargoyle forever. We didn't mean to hurt you."

Elisa wrapped her wings around her mother, "Do you still love me?"

"Of course we do," Diane answered, "You're still our daughter. We just – took your announcement about you being unable to be human again too hard. I'm sorry."

Peter walked up to Goliath, "I'm sorry about all this. I guess we tried to be strong when we thought there was a possibility of a cure for her, but I don't think we were ready for how it turned out."

"You mustn't think of Elisa's gargoyle form as a disease that can be cured," Goliath answered, "That sort of thinking is what makes it so dangerous for my kind. People think we're a frightening disease, and they become all too willing to join groups like the Quarrymen."

"I'm sorry," Peter sighed.

Diane stared into Elisa's dark eyes, "Can you forgive me?"

"You're forgiven already," Elisa answered, "You're my mom."

"You and Goliath can have children now?" Diane asked.

"Yes, but I won't be able to become pregnant till 2008," Elisa answered with a week smile.

Diane hugged Elisa again, "We'll try to come visit more."

"Thanks mom," Elisa replied, then looking at the food that she and Goliath had been eating, "Care for dinner?"

Avalon

Catherine was walking through Avalon Castle's hallways for some exercise and to ponder on her own thoughts. Suddenly a voice came from behind her.

"You needn't worry. You've helped me in more ways than you could image."

Catherine turned to see Queen Titania in Avalon's throne room; she was sitting on her throne. A mirror sat in front of Titania. Catherine couldn't see what Titania was looking at because of the mirror's angle, but the presence of Titania on her throne was slightly surprising.

"Have ye overcome yer grief, Queen Titania?" Catherine asked.

Titania sighed, "Not entirely, I don't think I ever will. Would you if you were to lose the Guardian?"

"No," Catherine answered.

Titania looked to the mirror, "You were right though. I just need to find someone who can give me some measure of comfort."

"May I ask who?" Catherine asked curiously.

Titania smiled, and turned the mirror so that Catherine could look in, "My grandson."

Peter and Diane Maza's Apartment

"So what brought about your change of mind?" Elisa asked, "Why are you now willing to admit that I am a gargoyle now? Not that I don't like it, but it is something that won't go away and something that you don't normally expect."

"We had a visit from a certain Coyote," Peter answered, "He showed us some stuff that you and Goliath have done together and a scenario that would try to show what would have happened in order to keep you from being a gargoyle."

"Tell us about it," Goliath said.

"Coyote told us that the Mage was told transform Elisa because she was the person who associated the closest with the gargoyles," Peter answered, "The only way to prevent that would have the gargoyles reawaken more than ten minutes after they did in the actual timeline. Therefore there was no battle at Castle Wyvern to attract the police and Elisa. Xanatos was able to get his Steel Clan online without opposition. Goliath and the clan were destroyed. Then without the clan, there was no one to really keep Macbeth and Demona apart, and they killed each other. Since Elisa never met the gargoyles and then discovered Xanatos's secret plans to manipulate and destroy them, she never suspected him of anything, and when Derek joined Xanatos's employ, Elisa never suspected anything wrong. Derek was mutated into Talon, and then while Elisa was tracking down some werewolf, Talon on a mission from Xanatos landed in front of her. Elisa accused Talon of being another monster attacking people and killed him on the spot. Xanatos later sent Fang to kill Elisa for killing Talon. After that he proceeded to conquer the world."

Elisa blinked and then looked over to Goliath, "It seems that we'd both have met very unhappy ends if we hadn't met."

"It was destiny my love," Goliath said, and then taking one of Elisa's hands in his, "You and I are one. Now and forever."

Elisa only smiled.

"Were we ever like that?" Peter asked leaning over toward Diane.

"Probably, but don't get any ideas," Diane answered with a smile, "Oh, by the way, Beth will be graduating from college soon. We'll be going out there to Flagstaff to watch."

"Yeah, she called while Coyote was taking you through time and space," Elisa interrupted, "She asked if Derek and I were coming. I told her Goliath and I would love to come if we could arrange transportation, even if we could only see her after the ceremony. I don't know about Derek and Maggie."

Diane smiled, "I guess it could be a family reunion. We'll give Derek a call, and you can dangle Xanatos off of a cliff till he gives you a two way ticket."

Goliath and Elisa chuckled.

Nightstone Unlimited

Anton Sevarius walked casually into Nightstone's main office. The office formerly used by Demona and now by Anton's clone Alex.

"Have you called Cyberbiotics?" Anton asked.

"Yes," Alex answered with a grin, "Spoke with Renard himself. Jackal is still in his employ in Guatemala."

"That means the local gargoyle clan doesn't like Jackal there," Anton Sevarius chuckled.

"There are gargoyles in Guatemala! How do you know that?" Alex asked.

"I helped upgrade the Pack back when both I and they worked for Xanatos," Anton smiled, "I had a special chip put into Jackal and Hyena, and a special gene into Wolf. They allow me to keep tabs on the Pack, should I ever need them again. When Renard's assistant, Preston Vogel sent Jackal and Hyena to Guatemala, I was able to follow their movements."

"Genius," Alex said.

"Yes," Anton replied, "The only two Pack members I can't keep tabs on are Fox and Dingo. Fox never escaped to participate in the upgrading process, and Dingo took power armor, much like Xanatos's Steel Clan exo-frame, but resembling a wild dog than a gargoyle."

Alex Sevarius nodded.

"Coldsteel should be arriving there in a few hours," Anton said, "I want you to rearrange the payroll system here at Nightstone. We will be having some guests here soon."

Castle Wyvern

Angela stood quietly on the battlements as Goliath and Elisa returned to Castle Wyvern.

"Hello, Father, Elisa," Angela greeted, "Did everything go okay?"

They landed and smiled.

"Yes, things have gone quite well," Goliath answered.

"Goliath and I have been invited to go see Beth graduate from college," Elisa added, "Or at least be at her post graduation party. We'll be leaving in a few days if Xanatos is cooperative."

"And your parents?" Angela asked.

"They were just trying to get over the fact that I'm a gargoyle now," Elisa sighed, "They had no intention of upsetting me. They were even upset that they did so."

"How have things been here?" Goliath inquired.

"Well, I know you told us not to make contact with Demona," Angela began, "But you didn't tell her not to contact us! She found me and Broadway on patrol and had us bring her here. Broadway, Bronx, and Hudson are guarding her. Brooklyn and Lexington are on patrol."

Goliath's eyes flashed white for a second, but said nothing.

"Demona is also acting weird father," Angela added, "She keeps saying 'I have no purpose'. What does that mean?"

Goliath and Elisa looked at each other. Elisa shrugged.

"I don't know," Goliath sighed heavily, "But I guess I should find out."

"I'll need to talk to Xanatos," Elisa said.

Eyrie Building, Xanatos's Office

Xanatos was busy watching a computer screen, on which the data his device had read from Demona's mind had been stored.

"Damn," Xanatos growled, "Almost half of her ideas are ideas that she stole from me! And the other half we can't use!"

"We never patented those projects sir," Owen said, "There was nothing we could do to stop her from steeling them."

"I know," Xanatos sighed, "But it gets sort of depressing when you breakout an untested mind reading device to make a little extra money and find out you were better off not using the device. Especially since I won't be using it on the gargoyles. That wouldn't exactly be good since the clan and I are allies."

"Perhaps you could still keep the device for interrogations, sir," Owen offered, "Both you and the gargoyles have some notable enemies."

Xanatos nodded, when suddenly he heard the doors to his office opened. He watched Elisa walk in.

"Good evening Detective," Xanatos greeted her, "How are you? No trouble I hope?"

"No trouble," Elisa replied, "I just have a favor that I'd like you to do for me."

Castle Wyvern's Dungeon

Demona was still huddled on the floor of her cell when Goliath came into the dungeon. He watched the human form of his former mate huddle there. Both Hudson and Broadway asked about Elisa. Goliath assured them that everything on that front was now fine.

"How long has she been like this?" Goliath asked, pointing at Demona.

"Well, she's been a human since the Mage got his hands on her, and she hasn't moved from that spot since she arrived," Broadway answered.

"She also repeats the same phrase over and over again," Hudson added, "It's 'I have no purpose'."

Goliath sighed, "That's what Angela said. You two may leave, I will talk to her."

"If ye say so, lad," Hudson said, and then motioning to Bronx, "Come boy."

Goliath watched them leave, and then turned his eyes to Demona. He sighed heavily. He could hear Demona repeat her depressed phrase over and over again through the force field Xanatos had erected to keep her in her cell.

"Demona?" Goliath asked.

Demona finally stopped repeating the phrase and looked up. Goliath stood outside her cell, looking in.

"Goliath! You'll help me!" Demona cried, as she got up and came up to the force field, "I've lost my life! I'm a gargoyle! I'm not a human!"

"And the Mage has cursed you to be one forever," Goliath finished, he then sighed, "The clan has told me what you've been repeating. Your only purpose in life before the Mage was the destruction of all humanity and Elisa in particular! I have no sympathy for you."

"I have done nothing!" Demona yelled back, "The humans did everything! This "Elisa" you refer to has corrupted you and the entire clan! I want to help you, but I need your help to become a gargoyle again! My love together we can get rid of the humans that threaten our kind and that human masquerading as a gargoyle. It is the only way to gain a purpose for me."

"Demona, you yourself told me that you made the deal with the Captain of the Guards to betray the castle to the Vikings," Goliath growled, "Your ranting for vengeance against humanity is no different then the Mage's rants for vengeance against the third race. He offered you power to strike at humanity, and you took him up on his offer. My 'love' for you died when you betrayed our clan and left me to sleep for a thousand years. I have no sympathy for you."

"No! He tricked me," Demona yelled.

"Forgive the cliché, Demona, but 'it takes two to tango'," Goliath replied, "You didn't have to listen to the Mage. You didn't have to partner with him. You didn't have to betray the clan. Everything you've done has been out of hatred. You betrayed the clan to the Vikings because you hated the way we were 'treated'."

"Didn't you see?" Demona yelled, "Humans should always bow to us!"

"It is that same sort of thinking that got six million innocent humans killed between 1933 and 1945," Goliath answered, "It is that sort of thinking that kept blacks slaves from the beginning ofAmerica to 1865 and separate from whites in "equal" facilities from 1890 to the 1960s. Feeling superior to someone else doesn't make you superior or right!"

"Human matters are none of my concern!" Demona yelled back, "We are a species superior to humans! It is our destiny to rule them! And because of a wizard's trickery, I'm cursed to be inferior! I have no purpose."

"Perhaps you should join the Klu Klux Klan then," Goliath growled, "I here they like hate people for no apparent reason."

"How dare you!" Demona yelled, "After all the Vikings and humans of done to gargoyles! You have the nerve to accuse ME of being racist?"

"Who betrayed our clan?" Goliath growled.

"The Captain of the Guard!" Demona snarled.

"AND YOU!" Goliath replied slowly.

"The Hunters nearly killed your daughter AND this precious Elisa you love so much," Demona yelled back.

"Who created the legacy of the Hunters?" Goliath questioned, "And you do realize that Jason Canmore and his sister repented and confessed. They are in jail, and Castaway, or Jon Canmore, is also now in jail."

Demona said nothing.

"Everything you've done has been out of hatred and has only brought more hatred in return," Goliath said, "I understand that you have no purpose, but your purpose was not honorable or just. I have no sympathy for you."

Demona snarled incoherently. Goliath turned to leave.

"You must look deep inside yourself Demona," Goliath warned her, as he left, "You must look deep inside yourself and decide if your great quest for revenge was truly worth it. Because the Mage told Elisa that there is no possible way for you to become a gargoyle again!"

Demona only screamed as Goliath left.

As he returned to the tower, where the rest of the clan was preparing to spend the day, Hudson approached him.

"What's wrong with her?" Hudson asked, "Demona isn't normally like this."

"She is depressed because she thought the Mage was worth listening to," Goliath answered, "He turned her into a human and she partnered with him. She knows that now that she is human that any attempt to destroy humanity will destroy her. She has lost the one insane purpose she had in her lonely life."

"I am sorry, lad," Hudson sighed.

"Don't be, Old Friend," Goliath answered, then looking up at Elisa, as she hopped up onto her pedestal next to his on the top of the tower, "Elisa is far more beautiful than Demona ever was, and more importantly Elisa's heart and mind is purer and keener that Demona's ever was."

Hudson smiled, "Ye 'traded up' then?"

Goliath only chuckled.

Flagstaff, Arizona

"Hello?"

"Is Beth Maza there?" came Diane's voice through the phone.

"Yeah, hold on," her roommate answered, and then walked out and screamed down the hall, "HEY BETH! YOUR MOM'S CALLING YOU!"

Beth walked around a corner of in hall that was barely three feet away.

"Jeez, the whole dorm must have heard you!" Beth complained, "I was just getting some water."

"You wanna talk to your mom or not?" her roommate asked.

"Gimme that," Beth growled, grabbing the phone, "Mom?"

"Beth what was all the yelling about?" Diane asked.

"Sorry mom, that was my roommate," Beth whispered, "She can't tell five feet from five inches."

"Ah-ha," was Diane's reply, "We've talked with Derek and your sister. They should be coming out, depending on whether or not they can talk Xanatos into giving them a lift."

"That's great!" Beth answered, "Is that all?"

"Yeah, oh, and I love you," Diane said.

"I love you too, mom," Beth said as she hung up.

After hanging up the phone, she was hit in face by a flying pillow.

"You're precisely three point six feet away from me," her roommate said in 'a matter a fact' tone.

Beth shrugged and picked up the pillow, "Serves me right for rooming with a girl wanting to be a surveyor," she thought.

Illuminati Headquarters

The eight chairs each with a number carved into them were filled with surprised and in awe members of the top Illuminati Council. Floating above the table was the ghostly spectral image of the Mage himself.

"Mage, you have returned," said Eight.

"Only in spirit my followers," replied the Mage, "It will be a thousand years before I can take a physical form again. This form is currently that of a ghost."

"The gargoyle Maza killed you," Said One, "We shall make her pay for her crime."

"That is not necessary," the ghost of the Mage answered, "She killed me by my hand! I am a human wizard with powers equal to any member of the third race. I had to die to bring about my greatest glory, so I magically taped into her brain and shut off everything that was human about Elisa Maza and left only an angry gargoyle. Of course the spell left her as I died, but it went as I foresaw it! That's why my 'last words' were 'But I won. But I won.' Get the picture."

"What do you wish of us master?" asked Two.

Castle Wyvern's Dungeon

Demona looked up when she heard footsteps approach.

"What do you want, Puck?" Demona growled.

"Mr. Xanatos instructed me to bring you food," Owen answered.

Owen deactivated part of the force field, and passed the tray to Demona. Demona only growled at him.

"Strange how a being with no 'purpose' in life can be so ungrateful," Owen said in a Puckish tone.

"What?" Demona snarled.

Outside the cell, Owen shifted into Puck and he floated just outside the force field smiling at her.

"Well you say you have no purpose and yet you come here and proceed to make Goliath mad," Puck teased.

"What would you know about losing anything," Demona growled, "I've lost my gargoyle hood, partially to you and what was left to the Mage."

Puck smiled back, "You told me to make so you wouldn't turn to stone anymore, and I gave you what you wanted. Now I'm sure the Mage transformed you into a human on his own, but I'm also sure that you listened to him."

Demona only growled, "I didn't want to turn to human during the day! And least you could have done was make the transformations painless."

"I never had the power to make a gargoyle remain in gargoyle form, but not turn to stone," Puck said, "I even doubt that Oberon had that ability. The only way I could give you the sun was to transform you into a gargoyle that changes between human and gargoyle forms. As for the pain issue, everything has its price. Yours simply happened to be the pain of transformation."

"I can't even have that anymore," Demona sighed.

"Yep, you screwed yourself twice over!" Puck laughed.

"Go away, I didn't allow myself to be imprisoned to be insulted," Demona yelled.

"Well what you usually do?" Puck laughed again, and then took a more serious look, "Perhaps, Demona, that if you have no current purpose, you need to find a new one."

"What?" Demona asked.

"A new purpose in life," Puck mused, "You know, now that you are human, maybe you could, I don't know, protect humans."

"Humans are weak," Demona snarled, "I would never protect them."

"Well you can't kill them anymore," Puck pointed out.

"I just want to be a gargoyle again," Demona sighed.

Puck smiled, "If I had the power to safely do that over the Mage's spell I would, but I can't. You've dug your own grave, Demona. You must look inside yourself and decide if what you've done in the past thousand years has truly been worthwhile. The alliances you forged and then betrayed. The clans you lead the various Hunters to. The clans you abandoned once the Hunter found them. The clans, which you never met, that were destroyed by the Hunters in their quest to find you. The fact that you've lost your own clan. Goliath will never chose you over Elisa. Their hatchlings will never follow you. Brooklyn hates your guts and his hatchlings will never follow you. Angela and Broadway might be willing to listen if you prove yourself capable of looking in the mirror and saying 'ya know, it was really me all along, and I should really be trying to kick my own butt, and not be chasing after the obliteration of mankind'. It's a matter of choices Demona. You are facing that now. You can choose to remain the clan's enemy, and rot in this prison, or you could reform, and I might be able to persuade Goliath and Xanatos to let you out."

With that Puck vanished. Demona only paused to look at the cell she was in. She looked at the food Owen had offered her.

Cemetery on Long Island

Brendan Yale stood quietly before the grave where Margot was buried. He was starting to get over all that had happened to him, but there were things that would stay with him forever. One was this robotic form. The other was the fact that Margot was gone.

"You're keeping tabs on me," Brendan sighed.

"How did you know I was here?" Matt Bluestone asked walking up beside him.

"My sensors indicated someone was behind me," Brendan answered, "You are probably the only human that would come up quietly and not scream."

"Well, I'm sort of into weird stuff," Matt chuckled, "And yes, I'm keeping tabs on you."

"I haven't attacked anyone recently," Brendan answered.

"I know," Matt sighed, "I just thought you might like some company, since you don't want to live in the Labyrinth with the mutates and you can't exactly stay in the castle till night falls and the gargoyles awaken."

"True, but over the past week I've been wondering, how come Goliath and the others didn't turn out like this Demona character?" Brendan asked, "A few people have seen me in this form, and they screamed Bloody Mary! It then clicked in my mind that that is exactly what Margot and I did the instant we saw any one of the gargoyles. How can they live with being rejected by everybody and everything?"

"Everyone doesn't hate them," Matt answered, "Not everyone will hate you."

Brendan sighed, looked down, and then asked, "How's the arm?"

"Still broken," Matt answered, "I'll be seeing the Eyrie Building's medical teams for the next eight weeks. Maybe longer."

"If Margot was still alive, she would probably be willing to sue Xanatos for faulty craftsmanship in construction," Brendan chuckled.

Matt chuckled.

Castle Wyvern's Dungeon, After Dusk

Elisa slowly walked into the dungeon. Owen had told the clan of his discussion with Demona. Goliath had told her specifically of his conversation with Demona. Both Owen and Goliath were strongly opposed to her coming down here to guard her, but Elisa told them that perhaps a "person" in the same boat as Demona could help her.

"I suppose you're here to torment me too?" Demona growled.

"I'm here to talk," Elisa sighed, "You need to talk to somebody."

"I don't want to talk to you," Demona growled.

Elisa sighed, "Come on. We're both in the same boat. I'm-"

"We are not in 'the same boat'," Demona growled angrily, "You stole my mate from me and was given the gift of being a gargoyle. Neither of which you deserve. I am cursed to be a pathetic human for the rest of my IMMORTAL life."

"A gift? The Mage jumped out of nowhere and changed me," Elisa answered, "I didn't ask him to turn me into a gargoyle. As for steeling Goliath from you, I'm sorry, but I think you drove him away the instant you admitted your own betrayal."

Demona paused.

"Also Demona, this is no real cakewalk for me either," Elisa added, "I'll admit it's nice to be a gargoyle and to be with Goliath every night, but have you looked past the nose of your own face to see what I've lost? I've lost my humanity, which means I can't just walk into a shop and buy anything. I've lost my family in a certain sense, because now I can only see my folks and Derek at night. Not because it's easier for them to hide from others, but because that's the only time when I'm awake. I hardly ever saw my sister even when I was human. Do you think it's going to be easier now that I'm a gargoyle? I've lost my job because every gargoyle in the US isn't considered a citizen, and therefore can't hold a job."

Demona only stared.

"From what Goliath and Owen have told me, you've only looked at what's happened to you," Elisa continued, "Life has its consequences. I can live with it all. You say you have no purpose. Was it a purpose really worth living for? Is it so important to hate me for loving Goliath? Is it so important to hate him for loving me in return?"

"He was my mate long before you were born," Demona answered.

"And therefore, I'm supposed to let you have him to yourself, even though he's rejected you?" Elisa asked.

"YES!" Demona snarled, "Gargoyles mate for life! Even though Goliath and I have our differences, we are mates for life!"

"The clan considers their great one thousand year sleep to be a sort of death," Elisa retorted, "The clan you betrayed. You made a series of bad choices, Demona. On top of all this, you made them all in a row. You will never get Goliath back, but if you made different choices, you might not ever have lost him."

Demona only looked down; she growled angrily, "How can you do this? How can you make me think that that this is my fault? What magic are you using?"

"It never is your fault is it? Maybe I can make you feel guilty because I was there to make your decisions for you," Elisa answered, "I was never there to betray the clan to the Vikings. I was never there to scratch some kid across his face when he caught me in his family's barn. I was never there to betray Macbeth after he made me his chief advisor. I was never there to kill someone in front of his three children."

Demona didn't answer.

"Also Demona, I'm not doing any magic," Elisa continued, "I can't do magic. I know as much about magic as a rock knows about anything. The guilt you feel is your own."

"You don't know what it's like to be there," Demona snarled weakly, "You didn't see the worst of humanity."

"Do you know my ancestry Demona?" Elisa asked.

"What?"

"Do you know my ancestry?" Elisa repeated.

"No."

"I'm half African American and half Native American," Elisa answered, "I'm descended from two peoples who have suffered greatly at the hands of those in power. I never saw it, but you can believe me I heard stories. My mom is descended from SLAVES, Demona. There is a long history that goes back to the 1700s were my mother's ancestor was taken from Africa and brought here in chains. That ancestor and others from the same tribe fought silently for centuries to keep their tribal traditions alive. Then after years of being whipped, tortured, starved, diseased, and shot at, the slaves were free. But free from only slavery. Whites still lynched and murdered in the south. Whites created the "Jim Crowe" laws of "separate but equal". And you know what Demona; blacks are still struggling today for full fledged equality in many places."

Demona starred at her.

"Native Americans haven't had it any better," Elisa continued, "They were here before the Whites came, and quite sadly the first thing many whites did when they saw an "Indian" was to shoot him. Native Americans live in small reservations today, and their culture struggles to survive. There's no land to hunt traditionally. The land they're on isn't the best land to live on."

"Mankind has done far worse," Demona answered, "Gargoyles have practically been hunted into extinction. I've seen what they do in the name of racial purity!"

"Did you ever go to Auschwitz-Birkenau, Chelmno, Treblinka, Dachau, and Buchenwald when they were in service?" Elisa asked.

"I was in Sweden during the entire Second World War," Demona answered, "There was rumored to be a clan of gargoyles there that would support me."

"I had a history teacher in high school who was a holocaust survivor," Elisa answered, "The holocaust was a big subject with him, not because he liked it, but because he said that 'if we don't listen to the ghosts of the past, we won't here the ghosts of the present'. He had us focus on the holocaust because he was determined that we would never allow that to happen again. He's told stories of the Nazis gassing his friends, burning their bodies, infecting them with typhus, experimenting on them. He even had a friend who reported to War Crimes tribunals that the Nazis skinned human beings and used the skin to make book covers! And you know what else, he can't forget that. The number the Nazis burned into his arm is still there. From what I've learned, the worst things humanity has done, he has done to his own kind."

"What Hitler did is nothing compared to what humans have done to gargoyles," Demona replied, "And the Spanish Inquisition killed a large number of gargoyles because we were either 'demons' or 'heretics'."

"Death is death, Demona," Elisa said, "We were told that we don't know the worst of humanity until we've seen it. I know you've seen evil Demona. I know you are evil. But you look for everyone else's evil and never look at the evil you cause! From what the clan has told me from what they've heard from you is that humans never went as far as to set up 'death camps' for gargoyles, or use our skin to make books, or intentionally infect us with deadly diseases. Clans have been destroyed, yes. But not in the fashion that Hitler attacked the Jews. Not with the racist attitudes of the 'Jim Crowe' era. Gargoyle clans were destroyed out of fear. Your revenge will never bring the dead gargoyles back just as my teacher can never get his friends back. Can't you see someone's suffering besides your own?"

"You say death is death," Demona snarled, "Are six million Jews more important than all the dead gargoyles in the world?"

"Are all the dead gargoyles more important than the six million Jews?" Elisa answered back, "Because that's the way you've treated it. You see suffering, but since it's not gargoyles it's not wrong. Both the dead gargoyles and the six million Jews need to mourned together."

"So what am I to do, wise one?" Demona cried back, "If suffering is universal and everyone's suffering is worth paying attention to, how am I to live? How am I to make humans feel sorry for destroying my clan? How am I to make them feel sorry for everything they've done to my kind?"

"First of all, you can't 'make them feel sorry'," Elisa answered, "Hitler wanted to make the Jews feel sorry, and all he caused was suffering. Humanity today will also never assume guilt for something done a thousand years ago!"

Demona remained still.

"Second, you need to admit your own guilt," Elisa continued, "If not to the world, than at least to yourself. You can't blame others for things you did."

Demona said nothing.

"Third, you must admit that gargoyles can never and will never rule the world," Elisa finished, "There are just too few gargoyles world wide for us to ever gain the image of a respectable leader to everyone. Any world rule by a gargoyle would have to be a tyranny in order for the gargoyle to remain a leader. And that is something that I don't want, and I'm pretty sure Goliath doesn't want it either!"

"Gargoyles must rule!" Demona protested, "It is the only way that we can gain the rights we need. Even if it means killing every human on the planet!"

"Demona, you're complaining about having no purpose now because you're human and anything you do to destroy humanity will destroy you," Elisa countered, "What will be different if you were successful? What if all the humans were gone? You'd have no purpose because now there are no humans to kill, and our clan would shun you. Is that really what you want?"

"No," Demona sighed looking down, and suddenly began sobbing, "I just want my old body back. I want to be a gargoyle again. I want a purpose. I'll do anything to become a gargoyle again, even if it means allying with the humans."

"It's a start," Elisa answered.

Elisa remained on guard till well after midnight, when Lexington came to take his shift. Demona strangely remained quiet. However, that wasn't Elisa's concern. Guarding Demona was a job that came with being a gargoyle. Being Goliath's mate. Being part of his clan. What Elisa was concerned about was her sister's graduation. She still had to call her folks.

Peter and Diane Maza's Apartment

The phone rang six times before Peter answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hey dad, it's me," came Elisa's voice, "I talked it over with Xanatos. He is willing to fly Goliath, Derek, Maggie, and I out there and back. If you want to join us that'd be fine too. Beth graduates on the weekend right?"

"Yes, in two days actually," Peter answered.

"Good, Xanatos's flight leaves tomorrow morning at ten AM," Elisa announced, "Goliath and I will already be on the plane."

"Thanks Elisa," Peter said, "I'll call Derek and Maggie. They'll probably meet you there."

JFK International Airport, Next Day

Diane and Peter Maza were greeted by Owen Burnett as they arrived at the gate.

"Good morning Mr. Maza, Mrs. Maza," Owen said, "Goliath and the others are waiting for you. If you'll follow me."

Owen led them through the standard safety check points. They soon arrived outside gate. It was a relatively small airline, and Owen preceded them onboard. The inside of the plane was quite different from anything Peter and Diane had ever been on. There were wide couches on the sides of the plane and a large open central space. Strapped in place and covered in protective padding stood the two stone statues of Goliath and Elisa. Talon and Maggie sat on one of the two couches. Peter and Diane sat on the one opposite them.

"They look like they're Beth's graduation gifts," Talon chuckled.

"Mister Xanatos took the utmost precautions to make sure that neither of them are damaged between takeoff and landing," Owen said dryly.

Owen motioned Peter and Diane to strap themselves in, and prepare for take off. Once they were, Owen disappeared into the plane's cockpit.

"He's coming with us?" Peter asked.

"Owen will be supervising the flight out and the flight back," Talon answered, "Nothing serious. I hope."

Flagstaff, Arizona

Beth stuffed the last stack of books into a box as someone knocked at her door. She looked up as someone knocked again. The knocking became persistent as Beth began to walk to the door.

"Hold your horses, I'm coming," Beth yelled at the door.

She didn't even reach the door; Coyote suddenly stepped through the door and grabbed her in a hug.

"Hey how's it going?" Coyote asked.

"Coyote? What are you doing here?" Beth stammered.

"You were expecting the robot?" Coyote asked, "I heard you were graduating soon, and I decided to congratulate you."

"Uh, thanks," Beth sighed, "I was actually expecting my mom and dad. Their flight from New York will be arriving sooner or later."

"Ahh, I haven't seen them for a few days," Coyote mused, "I wonder if they've changed?"

"You saw them recently?" Beth asked.

"Yeah, had to help them get over what happened to Elisa," Coyote sighed, "You want anything while I'm here?"

Coyote waved his arms and the boxes began to fly around the room.

"I can help you pack," Coyote said.

"Put those down! My roommate will be back any minute," Beth yelled, "If you want to hang out that's fine! Nothing weird."

"You're no fun," Coyote complained in a fake hurt tone.

"We can have fun later," Beth answered, "If I don't get to the airport in time to meet mom and dad, I'm in big trouble."

Coyote snapped his fingers, and said, "Teleport."

There was a flash of light, and suddenly Beth found herself at the gate in which she'd been told to meet her folks. No one else was there.

"Where is everybody?" Beth asked.

"Your folks, your brother and sister, and your 'in-laws' are the only passengers on the plane," Coyote said, "Why would anyone else be here?"

"Do you get tired of doing that?" Beth asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Doing what?" Coyote asked back.

"What you do? That fey stuff," Beth answered.

"Oh that," Coyote replied, faking ignorance, "No. It's actually quite fun to be able to leave Avalon now. Not that Avalon is bad, but this are is like home to me."

The plane arrived more than an hour latter, and Beth was beginning to get board with Coyote's jokes. Everyone seemed happy to see her, although both Talon and Maggie remained nervous. Peter took a quick glance at Coyote, who lounged in a nearby chair.

"Thanks for helping us with Elisa," Peter said.

Coyote looked up, "What? She's still on the plane?"

"Thanks for helping us begin accept what happened to Elisa," Peter said more clearly.

"Ah, no problem there Peter," Coyote said, "I promised to look out for you, and that's what I did."

"Who are you?" Maggie asked.

"Didn't Peter or Elisa tell you about me?" Coyote exclaimed, "I'm Kachina Coyote. You're Talon's wife, yes? Then by the laws of marriage, I guess I gotta guard you too!"

"He's a fey isn't he?" Talon demanded to Peter.

"That I am," Coyote answered, "But I'm on your side."

Coyote then smiled, "Now I believe someone is graduating tomorrow, and you are all tired from your flight. Well, except for Goliath and Elisa who slept the whole way!"

The day passed slowly. It took forever to get Talon and Maggie out of the airport without being noticed and to a safe location. Coyote merely transported Goliath and Elisa with them. Settling into a hotel was nervous for Peter and Diane. Especially since Coyote left Goliath and Elisa's stone statues with them.

"I hope the walls are thick," Peter commented, "When they awake, they'll roar, and I'm pretty sure it would scare anyone else here."

"I'm more worried about where Coyote went with our daughter," Diane grumbled, "Grandchildren are grandchildren, but I don't want anymore with wings."

"He hasn't gone that far, yet," Peter sighed.

"What if he does?" Diane demanded.

"We'll have to get used to it if Beth decides she likes Coyote," Peter answered, "Or else he take on another trip to show how right it was for them to be together. Besides it's not like we can stop him."

"I need to lie down," Diane muttered.

Night went a bit easier. Goliath and Elisa awakened to give Beth their congratulations and catch up on things. Beth seemed to be greatly interested in the battles with the Mage. Coyote remained absent largely, but around ten Peter and Diane went to bed. Elisa and Goliath went to patrol for crime. Talon and Maggie returned to their hiding place to get some rest as well.

The next morning Beth found herself walking amongst thousands of other college students awaiting their diploma. The ceremony was being held on the campus's football field. As with most graduation ceremonies, it went longer than expected. Beth saw her parents in the stands and she smiled. As she took her diploma, she looked out to the far wall of the stadium, she noticed five figures. Perched there for the day were the stone statues of Goliath and Elisa. Standing beside them, and were Talon and Maggie. Then standing between Goliath and Elisa, and actually leaning casually on Elisa's statue, was Coyote. Beth smiled again.

"Well," she thought to herself, "I guess it's time for me to make something for myself."

The post graduation party that night wasn't really a big thing. Beth's roommate was there to share in the festivities.

"So where's your family?" her roommate asked.

"Um, um," Beth started.

"They're right over there," came Coyote's voice.

"Who are you?" asked the roommate.

"I'm Coyote," Coyote answered, "I like to think of myself as Beth's friend."

Beth looked over in the direction at which Coyote had pointed. There she saw Goliath, Elisa, Talon, and Maggie, all standing quietly in a corner. Diane and Peter weren't far away from them.

"It's an illusion spell," Coyote said, "Every human that enters the room but you and your parents will see Goliath's human form, and the forms that Maggie Reed and your brother and sister had when they were human. That's why they're in that corner. The people here see humans, but the two gargoyles and mutates are still there."

"Someone could bump into their wings?" Beth asked.

"Or trip on Goliath or Elisa's tail," Coyote added.

"Why are you still here?" Beth asked.

"Well, uh, I, uh," Coyote stuttered.

"Are you trying to ask me out?" Beth questioned with a skeptically raised eyebrow.

"Sure why not?" Coyote asked.

"Why?"

"You guessed who I was before anyone else did," Coyote answered, "Plus I think you're kind of cute. Another thing is that every Child of Oberon is in fact a CHILD of Oberon. Puck, Raven, Grandmother, the Weird Sisters, Odin, and Anubis are all my brothers and sisters. There are no fey that I'm not related to that I can date."

"The trickster is lonely," Beth sighed.

"The trickster is asking for dinner, a movie, and maybe I could show you my favorite prank telephone calls," Coyote offered.

"It's a date, tomorrow at six then maybe?" Beth answered.

"Tomorrow at six," Coyote affirmed.

Across the room Peter sighed heavily. He sighed even harder when he heard a slight chuckle come from Diane.

"What?" Peter asked.

"Two things actually," Diane answered, "One, at least Coyote asked permission to date Beth."

"What's the other thing?" Peter asked.

"When he asked he reminded me about how often I've said that they need to get back to their roots," Diane replied, "I find it somewhat ironic though that all of our children are going back to someone's roots. Derek, except for his wings, looks like the werepanthers I met in Africa. Elisa's been living the way Goliath and his clan lives. Maybe by dating Coyote, Beth is getting back to your roots."

"Life is just getting too weird, Diane," Peter sighed again, "Life is getting too weird."

"Cheer up, dad," Elisa offered from Goliath's side, "Coyote doesn't have wings!"

"I'm going to visit my father," Peter sighed.

The End

Epilogue

Peter, Diane, Goliath, Elisa, Talon and Maggie departed the next day. Beth and Coyote waved goodbye from the terminal, and then left for her new home on the outskirts of the city. It was a quiet ranch house that wasn't too far away from where the nearby reservation was. Days past peacefully for Beth. Coyote never seemed to be far away, but Beth assumed that he either went to and fro from Avalon to Flagstaff or just ran with the real coyotes in the desert. Beth also found something useful to do with her life. She found employment as a medical assistant at the reservation's local family practice. Life was good. Despite having a mutate brother, gargoyle sister, fey boyfriend and two stressed out parents!