The Edge
January 12th, 1995
Liam arrived at the police station with Elisa in her car so that they can deliver the television they bought for the gargoyles up in the clocktower, which will be the final thing they need to fully move in.
They walked up the stairs to the front door and Liam opened the door for Elisa, since her hands were full.
"I was about to ask for help, but I see you got it covered." A voice said from the bottom of the stairs. They turned to see a man with slicked back short brown hair and wore a suit with a coat over it.
"Worried about missing The Late Show tonight?" The man asked Elisa as he reached the pair.
"It's a gift." Elisa chuckled. "We're just stashing it here until I'm off shift."
She and Liam walked in. The man was about to as well, but he noticed that the remote for the television was on the floor and grabbed it, intending to return it to her.
Liam had to wait outside Captain Chavez's office as she needed to talk to Elisa. Due to him coming to the station to enter the clocktower, he got familiar with a lot of the cops that were there, including Chavez, who he got along with.
Based on the heated voice from Elisa in the office, it was clear to him that she was informed something that she didn't appreciate. He guessed that it had to do with her being shot.
Liam was surprised to see the man from earlier arrive, and with the remote in his hand.
"What are you doing here?" He asked.
"The captain told me to visit her office." The man replied right before the door was opened by Chavez.
"This is Detective Matt Bluestone. He worked with me to close the Dracon business." Chavez told Elisa, making Liam realise that she must've been assigned to him as partners. This concerned Liam, considering the fact that keeping her knowledge of the gargoyles a secret may be harder now.
Matt entered and walked right up to Elisa.
"You dropped this." He held the phone out to her.
"Thanks." Elisa said as she took it and walked out of the office with Liam by her side and Matt following them through the police station.
"No offence, I'm sure you're a great cop, but I don't need a partner. And I don't want a partner." Elisa finally told Matt, sounding very bitter about this assignment.
"Hey, I understand. Problem is, you have a partner. Me. Guess we just have to make the best of it." Matt retorted with his arms crossed.
"It would seem that there's a conspiracy trying to make your life more difficult than it already is, Elisa." Liam said, patting her back.
"Wouldn't surprise me." Matt agreed before he paid close attention to Liam, realising who he was. "I remember you. You were also shot when that whole Dracon business happened."
"Yeah, no need to remind me. That hurt like hell." Liam groaned as Elisa looked at the time on her watch.
"Oh, uh, there's something me and Liam have to take care of. By ourselves, of course." She said. "I'll meet you outside in twenty minutes."
Both her and Liam then left Matt as they made their way upstairs and into a closet.
They looked at the ceiling and grabbed a hatch that also worked as a ladder up into the clocktower.
"You guys better appreciate it." Elisa muttered as Liam climbed up the ladder.
"They will, so calm down." He remarked as he reached the top.
Inside the clocktower, it now looked homely and cleaned up. There was now a working kitchen, where Broadway was cooking breakfast. Hudson sat on a torn and ruined armchair found in the garbage. Bronx was laying by the kitchen.
Elisa walked up the ladder with the television in her hands and Liam grabbed it so that she could get up with ease.
"Here, guys, a working television." He said loudly, drawing the attention of Broadway and Hudson.
"Let me take that." Broadway said, walking up to them and held it up with only one hand.
As he walked to set it up, Liam and Elisa jumped as a remote control car sped past their feet.
"Neat toy, huh?" Lexington grinned as he was the one driving it with the controller in his hand. His curiosity of science and technology never ceased to amaze Liam in particular.
"Heh, yeah, slow it down or I'll give you a ticket." Elisa replied back playfully before she looked and noticed that Goliath wasn't present. Liam then noticed that neither was Griff.
"Where's Goliath and Griff?" He asked everyone, most of whom were setting up the television.
"They're down in the library." Broadway told them. "You staying for breakfast?"
"I am." Liam nodded, though he was more concerned with greeting his mate. Everyone congratulated the pair on becoming mates, though it reminded Goliath of Demona.
"No, thanks. I gotta get back to work soon." Elisa replied before she and Liam went back down the ladder.
They made their way into the public library that the clocktower was connected to and walked through the moonlit shelves.
"Goliath?" Elisa called out.
"Griff?" Liam called out as well.
"Over here." Griff's voice replied back, coming from around the corner ahead of the pair.
They turned and found both Griff and Goliath with books in their hands. Goliath was sitting on top of a ladder while Griff was standing.
"Hello." Liam greeted Griff and the pair kissed. "What are you reading?"
"Treasure Island. So far, I'm enjoying it." Griff replied.
"And you, Goliath?" Elisa asked.
"Dostoyevsky." Goliath replied.
"Yeah? Who's it by?" Elisa joked, which confused the lavender gargoyle.
"Kidding." She assured him.
Goliath closed the book in his hand as a helicopter flew by, making everyone look out the window, which gave them a clear view of the Eyrie Building.
"What's wrong?" Elisa asked Goliath.
"Xanatos… he stole our ancestral home, drove us into hiding here. And I was unable to prevent it." He said, a dour expression taking over his face.
"I know you're upset about all this, but there is a bright side to all this." Griff told him. "The castle is still there, you and your clan are safe and sound and you've gained a whole library for yourself."
"This is his century, his world. We are outcasts, strangers in a strange land. We have no hope in regaining what is rightfully ours." Goliath went further, bending the book in his hand as he let out his frustrations.
"You're right, it's a lousy deal. But Xanatos won't stay on top forever." Elisa said encouragingly.
"Yeah, what goes around, comes around. I'd hate to have his karma." Liam added.
"If only I could make him feel what I feel now." Goliath then said, something which both Liam and Griff wanted as well, to show Xanatos what it's like to lose so much and be forced to hide.
The four decided to go up to the clocktower and saw that the others had managed to get the television up and running as a news broadcast was being shown, though on mute.
"It may not be a six foot screen, but we hope it'll do for you guys." Liam told everyone.
"It's a grand gift, lad. Thank you. You too, lass." Hudson told them.
The broadcast showed a father and his son looking at a helicopter in a museum before it then cuts to Xanatos looking at a display, which instantly drew everyone's attention.
"Xanatos!" Goliath hissed and spread his wings open as Brooklyn turned the volume on the television as a reporter came on screen.
"This is Travis Marshall at the Museum of Modern Art." He said before a cut was made to show off a piece of jewellery that looked ancient. "Where one of the world's most priceless jewels, the Eye of Odin is being donated by David Xanatos from his private collection."
Liam exchanged a worried glance with Griff. They both knew a lot about the Eye of Odin from reading Norse mythology. Considering how the likes of Oberon and Titania exist, no doubt Odin did, too and therefore, his eye would be very powerful and dangerous in the wrong hands.
The broadcast then cuts to Travis standing with Xanatos by the display for the Eye of Odin.
"This is quite a philanthropic act, Mr. Xanatos. The eye is worth millions. Just to give it away?"
"Well, Travis, I just felt that the eye should be shared with the world instead of locked away in my personal museum." Xanatos replied, which made Liam snort in disbelief, considering Xanatos would want the gargoyles locked up in his personal museum.
"Besides, it's a great tax write off." Xanatos then shrugged.
"A grand gesture from a man known for grand gestures." Travis said, making Goliath's eyes glow and roar, truly mad at Xanatos before he ran out of the clocktower, shocking everyone.
"A few more donations like this, and New York might even forget about your prison record." Travis then said, drawing everyone's attention back to the news broadcast.
"I made a mistake, Mr. Marshall. I paid my debt to society. All I'm trying to do now is give something to benefit others. Would you rather I kept the eye?" Xanatos replied, making Liam change the channel.
"That lying git is only out to benefit himself." He snarled. "No doubt this is all part of a grander scheme."
"I'm just worried about what scheme he has in mind." Griff said.
Later that night, at the Museum of Modern Art, a figure flew overhead towards the museum.
Inside a security guard was making his way through on patrol, checking to make sure the doors were closed and looking at some of the exhibits.
"You and me both, pal." He said to one painting that depicted a man screaming.
Suddenly, glass was heard shattering and the alarm went off.
The guard turned on his flashlight and ran to where the sound came from.
Elsewhere, Elisa was driving her car with her new partner, Matt, listening to him talk about all kinds of stuff.
"They're called the Illuminati. Way I hear it, they run everything. Even the President works for them."
Elisa was thinking this is too much for her, and she knows that gargoyles exist, which says a lot.
"Look, Matt, you need to know something about me. I don't care about UFO's, Loch Ness or secret societies. Believe me, the world's strange enough as it is." She told him before the police radio went off.
"All units, all units., 10-31 at Museum of Modern Art."
Matt pulled out a police light, which he placed on top of the car and turned it on, along with a siren.
Back at the museum, a figure walked right up to the Eye of Odin right as the security guard arrived. He pointed his flashlight at the figure, which made him gasp in shock right before the figure turned and punched him in the face, knocking him out.
Elisa and Matt arrived at the museum and exited the car, Matt pulling out his gun and instantly making his way to enter the museum.
"Wait for backup. We don't know how many there might be." Elisa warned him as she pulled her gun out and chased after him.
But before they could enter, a glass window from above shattered open and the figure, who seemed to have wings, stepped out.
"Police! Freeze!" Matt shouted, pointing his gun at the figure.
The figure instead jumped off and spread its wings to fly in the air. There was a distinct sound of jet propulsion and machinery.
Elisa then noticed that Matt was aiming his gun and was about to fire.
"No!" She shouted, only for Matt to take a shot and yet the bullet bounced off the figure with a metallic ping, showing that the figure wasn't flesh and bone.
Elisa let out a sigh of relief, knowing for sure that it wasn't any of the gargoyles, though she knew what this figure could be.
"Why'd you try to stop me?" Matt questioned her as he put his gun away.
"Hey, uh, who knows what that thing is. It might have blown up when you hit it." Elisa replied.
"Yeah, okay. Maybe you're right. So, any idea what I was shooting at?" Matt asked back.
"Not a clue." Elisa replied, though she actually had an idea.
The following day, she spoke with Chavez, who had a file full of pictures taken from last night of sightings of figures with wings.
"According to sightings all over town, there are at least three of these things. Well, they're not shy about being seen." She said while Elisa was thinking.
"This doesn't make sense." She muttered.
"What's that, Maza?"
Elisa would've replied, but Matt entered the office.
"Check this out." He said, turning on the TV, which played a news broadcast in front of the Museum of Modern Art.
"The station has acquired the security camera coverage of the robbery last night." Travis said before it cuts to footage of the figure approaching the exhibit for the Eye of Odin before smashing the glass and taking the eye and walking away.. "According to witnesses, the gargoyle-like creature attacked a guard and then flew away from the scene."
Matt turned the TV off after that.
"You two saw that… thing. Care to speculate?" Chavez asked.
"All I know is I hit it with a .38 slug and didn't even slow it down." Matt replied.
"Maza, any ideas?" Chavez then asked Elisa.
"Not yet." She replied, knowing that she has to talk to Liam and the gargoyles about this.
After sun set, she and Liam met up with the gargoyles in the clocktower and Elisa explained everything.
"And there you have it. Someone's impersonating you, Goliath." She finished off her explanation.
"Could it be another gargoyle?" Brooklyn suggested.
"You guys are tough, but you're not bulletproof. I heard Matt's slugs bounce off metal." Elisa shook her head.
"Xanatos' robots." Goliath said, knowing exactly what it was.
"The Steel Clan? But I thought we destroyed them all." Broadway said in disbelief.
"It's not surprising that Xanatos would make more." Griff snarled.
"It makes no sense. Why would Xanatos donate the jewel to the museum and then have it stolen?" Hudson questioned, which made Liam's brain go into overdrive until he realised what the goal was.
"I think I know. By donating the jewel and then stealing it, not only would he have the city owe him and still keep it for himself, but he would also frame Goliath, making the whole city aware of gargoyles and want to hunt you guys down. And the only way you'd be kept safe is by being under Xanatos' care." He explained to everyone, which made Goliath growl at the very idea of being under Xanatos' care.
"Hudson, you and Bronx guard our new home. The rest of you, including you, Liam, come with me." He ordered, turning to exit outside.
Everyone followed after him, while Elisa ran up to him
"Where are you going?" She asked.
"To deal with Xanatos." Goliath replied.
"Hold on, Goliath. I wouldn't take the chance of being seen if I were you. You're not rating very high in public opinion polls right now." Elisa pointed out.
"No, Elisa. No more hiding. Xanatos will answer to me for this." Goliath shook his head before pushing her aside and continued to head outside.
"Goliath, wait!" Elisa called out, but to no avail.
"I'll keep an eye on him, Elisa." Liam assured him.
Everyone made their way outside and, with Griff holding Liam in his arms, glided their way to the Eyrie Building.
Upon arriving, they found Xanatos waiting for them in one of the courtyards, wearing a trench coat.
While the trio landed on the wall, Griff, Liam and Goliath continued on and landed in front of Xanatos.
"I told you not to coerce the gargoyles and you didn't listen." Liam spat with an accusing finger at Xanatos.
"You have gone too far, Xanatos!" Goliath added with a yell. "First you steal our home and now you steal our very identities!"
"You've got it all wrong. I'm the best friend you have in this world." Xanatos shook his head, making Goliath's glow in rage before he roared. And Liam wanted to shoot Xanatos through the head so much, but he couldn't because of the law.
"You are no one's best friend other than gullible and naive people who believe your every word." Griff stated.
"Soon, everybody in the Big Apple will be hunting gargoyles." Xanatos replied.
"Because of you!" Goliath pointed out, making Xanatos shake his finger at him.
"If you want to be picky, we won't get anywhere. Let's try to focus on the big picture. I've got a research facility upstate where you and your friends could be comfortable and protected." He then proposed.
"What?" Goliath spat.
"Doesn't seem a difficult choice to me. Stay here in the city and be hunted down like animals, or by my guests in a safe haven. What do you say?"
Goliath growled as Liam walked right up to Xanatos and jabbed his chest with an accusing finger.
"You may fool most of the city, you liar, but you can't fool us." He hissed with venom before Goliath ripped a light from the ground and made it crash.
The three then left Xanatos and joined back up with the trio.
"Let's go!" Goliath told them and they all glided away from the castle.
"So what happened?" Brooklyn asked once they were far away from the Eyrie Building. "Did Xanatos admit he was -"
"I don't want to talk about it." Goliath cut him off, making Brooklyn flinch.
Suddenly, a laser was shot and hit him on his wing, making him fall towards a satellite dish.
"Goliath!" Lexington yelled in concern.
Liam looked behind them and saw four gargoyle robots, one of them being in red and black.
"It's the Steel Clan!" He warned the others as the robots descended down on them and started firing at them.
They all broke apart and tried their best to avoid being hit as Goliath got back up and jumped off the satellite dish and onto the roof.
The robot in red fired a shot at Goliath, which he dodged by flipping on one of his hands and stepped aside when it veered right at him.
"We've beaten them before. We can do it again." Goliath told the others.
"I'm sure Xanatos would've upgraded them, Goliath!" Liam replied as he pulled his gun out and fired a couple of shots at one of the robot's heads, but the bullets just bounced off.
One of the other robots got right up to Broadway and tried to grab him, but Broadway moved out of its way. But it then fired at him and managed to hit him in the back, causing him to fall.
"Broadway!" Lexington shouted and tried to get him, but a robot fired at him and hit him as well.
Broadway landed on the rooftop and rolled up against a wall, where a loose brick landed on his head. Lexington crashed and bounced into a metal railing, which bent and had him hanging over the edge.
Broadway grabbed him and pulled him away from the edge.
Liam and Griff were being chased by one of the robots, who kept firing at them.
"If you have any ideas, I'm all ears." Griff said as he barrel rolled to avoid some laser blasts.
"I have none yet." Liam said before he looked up and gasped as he saw the red robot descending sharply at them. "Look out!
But Griff didn't have time to react as the robot struck him in the back and then kicked him, sending him and Liam down at the rooftop, sliding next to Goliath.
Brooklyn flew in from above one of the robots and landed on its back. He tried to rip its head off, but it electrocuted him and spun to throw him off, making him land in front of Goliath, who caught him as Liam and Griff stood and Broadway carried Lexington over.
One of the Steel Clan robots suddenly burst through the brick wall behind them, making it fall on top of them. Griff had to cover Liam.
They all tried climbing out of the bricks just as the red robot flew in and aimed, yet it and the other three robots stopped and hovered above them.
Lexington groaned as he woke back up and noticed what was going up.
"Hey, we're still alive. How come?" He asked.
"It's-it's like they're waiting for something." Brooklyn said.
"They want us to lead them back to your new home." Griff theorised, making Goliath growl as he broke through the bricks and helped Griff get Liam out.
"But why? Why not just kill us?" Broadway asked as he and the others broke through the bricks.
"Because Xanatos doesn't want to destroy us. He wants to dominate us." Goliath replied.
"He's probably controlling them by radio like that toy car I have." Lexington theorised.
Liam looked back up at the robots, mainly the red one. The way it moved and how it attacked him and Griff, he was thinking that it wasn't a robot.
"Yeah, so what do we do now?" Brooklyn asked as sirens were heard from down below.
"We can't lead them back to the clock tower and we can't stay here. It's not long till sunrise." Goliath pointed out.
"We could tackle them again." Broadway suggested.
"Yeah, I'm really looking forward to that. They're a lot tougher than the last batch we fought." Brooklyn said sarcastically.
"Especially that one, though I'm sure Xanatoas is the one underneath all that metal." Liam pointed at the red one.
"We must continue the fight someplace isolated." Goliath stated as he stood. Everyone else did with Liam getting into Griff's arms. "Come!"
They all jumped off and glided with the robots and potentially Xanatos chasing after them. Liam looked down at the street to see that there were news vans and police cars.
"It seems we've garnered a lot of attention." He told Griff.
"Mainly thanks to those tin cans." Griff replied.
They continued gliding, heading towards the bay.
"Where are we going, Goliath?" Lexington asked.
"There." Goliath pointed at the Statue of Liberty.
Once they reached the statue, they all landed on the head.
"Liam, you stay here and provide cover fire for us." Griff told Liam, who nodded as Goliath looked and saw the Steel Clan approaching.
"You take the others. I'll handle the leader." Goliath instructed the trio and Griff.
The leader of the Steel Clan unleashed its laser cannon and fired, though missing everyone as they all jumped out of the way.
The gargoyles all glided off and around the statue while Liam took cover and shot at the robots when they were close enough.
Broadway led one of the robots up in the air, missing some laser blasts.
"Okay, tin man, let's play follow the leader." He said as his eyes glowed white.
He made a sharp descent right to the Statue of Liberty, in particular the tablet and as he neared it, he pulled up and the robot smashed right into the tablet, exploding on impact.
Broadway flew away with a satisfied grin and licked a talon.
Griff glided all over Liberty Island, trying to shake the robot chasing him off, but it was able to keep up with him. As he glided around the head, he made eye contact with Liam, nodding to the robot. Liam nodded back, understanding what he's telling him.
Getting on his knees, Liam aimed his gun and after lining his shot up, he pulled the trigger and hit one of the robot's eyes. This drew its attention and decided to attack him instead.
However, as it flew towards LIam, Griff came in from behind and rammed into the robot and forced it through one of the spikes on the statue's throne and then ripped the arm with the laser off and aimed it at the robot's head, blasting it off.
"Nice." Liam grinned and the two mates gave each other a thumb's up.
Both Goliath and the leader of the Steel Clan were neck and neck for a bit until Goliath made a sharp and sudden u-turn and they flew around the torch until they flew out.
The Steel Clan leader tried to swipe at Goliath with its talons, but Goliath moved away in time and ascended higher before descending and rammed into the leader, making it fall until it fired its rocket on the back and lifted off with Goliath still holding on.
Both Brooklyn and Lexington were being chased by the last remaining robot, excluding the leader, and Lexington decided to part from Brooklyn, the robot chasing him still.
Broadway watched and looked down at the remains of the robot he took down. He landed on the tablet and grabbed the arm with the cannon and looked up to see Griff had one as well.
"Griff!" He called and pointed at the robot chasing Brooklyn. Griff nodded and the pair glided off to join in.
Brooklyn kept his eyes on the robot as Lexington jumped onto its back. He grabbed its neck before it decided to try and make some manoeuvers to get him off until it decided to electrify the khaki gargoyle, who still clung onto it.
Both Griff and Broadway glided to both sides of the robot and threw the arms at it, digging into its interior, causing it to malfunction, inadvertently throwing Lexington off.
The four landed on the balcony on the torch and watched it shut off completely and fall to the ground and explode.
Goliath was still fighting against the leader of the currently crushed Steel Clan, which was trying to throw Goliath off.
"No. You'll not get rid of me that easily." He said before he pulled at the wires that connect to what must be a power source on the chest, making the two crash on the statue's head and roll until they stood.
The leader opened up its laser cannon, only for Goliath to rip it off. The leader then swung its fist to hit him, but Goliath dodged and punched its head until his wrist was grabbed and was thrown over the robot's shoulder. It then jumped to knee Goliath's head, but he rolled away and swiped his tail at its feet, knocking it off its feet.
He then swung his fist, which was deflected and the leader spin kicked him in the face.
At that moment, all the gargoyles and Liam surrounded the leader, Liam pointing his gun at it.
"Face it, Xanatos, you're outnumbered." Liam warned the leader, now more sure that it was him, considering how he moved.
Everyone then closed in on him, making him stop at the edge, where he saw the other robots, seeing that they were destroyed.
He then took off as he fired his rocket and left them there.
Liam then heard helicopter blades and saw that one was heading right to them.
"Guys, we need to get out of here." He told the gargoyles before he jumped into Griff's arms and holstered his gun.
They all took off and headed towards one of the many bridges to make some distance before they headed back to the clocktower.
Once they made it back, dawn was about to occur and all the gargoyles got onto their perches, ready for Stone Sleep as Elisa arrived.
"The public's been reassured that the gargoyles were robots. Who created them is still under investigation." Elisa informed them all.
"Which is unfortunate, since we all know who created them." Liam groaned.
"Xanatos tried to force us to reveal our new home. We defeated him. And if we did it once, we can do it again." Goliath said with a satisfied and hopeful smile.
"And we will… together." Elisa nodded back just as the sun rose and the gargoyles all entered Stone Sleep.
"So… how were your first few nights with your new partner?" Liam asked as he and Elisa entered the clocktower.
"He's very determined, that's for sure. And he's a real conspiracy nut." Elisa revealed.
"Just great. At this rate, he may know of the gargoyles and probably blab about it to everyone." Liam shook his head.
"Let's hope that's not the case." Elisa said as they walked down the ladder and out of the clocktower.
If you've seen the episode, you'll know how Xanatos said that he still has the edge. I'd argue he doesn't. This is because he had to use resources to even fight against Goliath. The reason for him to think he may be losing his edge was when Owen beat him in martial arts. That was a fair and even fight. Either way, he's such a great character and voiced to perfection by Jonathan Frakes.