Rivals, chapter 3
A. L. Balestra (balestra@glasscity.net)
Started:  September, 1996
Finished: (work in process)
comments welcome

Note:  This is part three of an on-going story.  Please read chapters 1 and 2 
        first.

Chapter 3

	On Avalon, nothing ever changed.  It was always Summer, and all of Nature was in her glory.  The nights were always mild in temperature, never fluctuating.  The night sky was always clear and perfect for gliding.  It was the closest thing to Heaven the living could know.  This was the best place for feelings of love to grow in young hearts.
	Gabriel had hatched from this egg twenty years ago, but he appeared to be no more than ten, as Gargoyles age half as fast as Humans.  He sat next to his rookery sister, Angela, who was also his age, but who had hatched just  moments before he did.  They were the first to hatch among their rookery, and in an unofficial way, had become the leaders of their brothers and sisters, who were gathered behind them.  Princess Katherine, the Human woman who was in many ways the Mother of them all, was telling them all a story to settle them before the coming of dawn.
	"... And so, after the handsome Prince saved the fair Princess from her dire peril, they were wed and lived happily ever after", Princess Katherine finished.
	"Princess?"  the young Gabriel asked.  "Princess, Humans who love each other marry.  Do Gargoyles get married also, if they love each other?"
	"I don't think Gargoyles wed, Gabriel", she answered.
	Seeing the disappointment on his face, the Princess added, "... at least not the same way Humans do.  But I believe Gargoyles that love each other share a special bond.  A Bond that holds them together as strongly as any wedding vows".
	But the dawn was soon in coming, and any more questions would have to wait for another night.  Princess Katherine hustled her "eggs" into Oberon's Palace.  There the young Gargoyles took there paces on the palace's walls.  On one wall, Gabriel and Angela took their place, side by side, as that they were the best of friends.
	The young Gabriel turned to the young Angela and asked, "Angela... Will you marry me?"
	Thinking he was playing a game, Angela giggled, "Yes... yes, I will Gabriel.  And we'll live happily ever after!"
	Then suddenly, Angela kissed Gabriel on the cheek.  Gabriel was a bit embraced at first, but then he just smiled at Angela, and she smiled back.
	Rays of light from the rising sun froze their smiles on their faces, and in their young hearts.
	Days and nights on Avalon flowed in and out, like the mystic sea on its enchanted shore.  Time meant nothing on this magical isle.  Yet time eventually changed the young Gargoyles... Turning children into young adults, and to one Gargoyle, young love into mature passion.
	Gabriel, now a Gargoyle in late adolescence, was watching Tom teach Ophelia the finer points of gold smiting.  It was not an easy process, as that gold is beautiful, yet soft.  One misplaced blow with a hammer could ruin an entire nights work.  As such, there were quite a few bits of failed attempts on the forge floor.  After Tom and Ophelia decided to take a break, Gabriel took his chance.  Searching among the remains , he found a thick piece of gold wire.  With his strong fingers, he bent the wire into a crude ring big enough to fit over a finger, then twisting the left over ends around the ring, creating the illusion of two gold rings entwined into one.  With his work finished, and yet just beginning, he gathered his resolve and set off to find her.
	After a few moments of searching, he found her,  She was on the wall where they would rest during the day, looking out over the island.  Keeping the ring hidden in his pouch, he approached the person who was the cause of his silent love.
	"Angela?"  he asked to get her attention.
	"Gabriel!"  she answered, turning to face him.  "Where have you been?  You disappeared shortly after we awoke.  I've missed your company tonight".
	Walking over to him, Angela wrapped her arms around Gabriel's chest under his arms, and hugged him tightly.  Gabriel returned the affection in kind, while resisting the temptation to envelop her with his wings... and kiss her on her soft, red lips, like he had fantasized for so long.  He did not want to scare her, and force her away by coming on too strong.  He wanted to be sure that she loved him the same as he loved her.  Not as rookery siblings, but as lovers and mates,.... like husband and wife.
	Angela sighed as she rested her head on his shoulder.
	If Gabriel could have one wish granted this night, it would be to read Angela's mind... to know her thoughts and secret desires.  When she hugged him and sighed, was it just a sister expressing her relief that her brother was safe,... or was it a clue to her own quiet passion for him?  A deep love for him that she was afraid to admit as well because she was uncertain of his love for her?
	He had to know.
	Before Gabriel could say a word, Angela gently pulled away from him and returned to looking over the landscape.  But Gabriel did not follow her.  Instead, while Angela had her back turned, he reached into his pouch and pulled out the gold ring he had made for her.  A physical expression of his eternal love for Angela... His Angel.  With it, he would ask her to be with him forever.
	But what words could he use to tell her?
	Holding out the ring between his talons, Gabriel stammered, "Angela, I..."
	As chance would have it, Gabriel glanced over his shoulder out of nervousness.  From behind him, he saw a glow on the horizon.  Dawn was coming.  He had waited too long to tell her.  He hid the ring in his hand.
	Angela turned at the sound of her rookery brother's voice.  "Yes, Gabriel?  What is it?"
	The other Gargoyles began to gather on the walls.  It was time to get ready for their stone sleep.
	"It's nothing, Angela....", he stammered in embarrassment.  "... Nothing that can't wait another night".
	Quickly, Gabriel placed the ring back into his pouch, and assumed his pose on the palace wall.  Angela and all the other Gargoyles did the same, and the rising sun turned them to stone.
	It was nearing dusk as three Humans, the Princess Katherine,  the Magus, and Tom the Guardian, prepared the evening meal.  Their "eggs" would awaken soon.
	As the sun disappeared behind the horizon in the West, cracks began to appear in the stone Gargoyles.  With a roar and flying shards of stone, the young Gargoyles awoke to greet the night and their guardians.
	Angela was the first to glide down from the wall, followed by Gabriel, who carried Boudicca, their gargoylian hound, in his arms.
	*This will be the night*, Gabriel thought to himself.  *This night, I will pledge my love to Angela, in front of the others.  And then we will state our vows and be as husband and wife.  We will be together forever.*
	But before Gabriel could do anything, and explosion destroyed a section of the palace wall.  The blast knocked Gabriel and Angela to the ground.  Gabriel attempted to lift himself enough to see what had happened.  What he saw shocked him to the core of his being.
	The Weird Sisters were attacking the castle!
	But they were not alone.  Three others were with them.  One of the raiders was a gray-bearded man.  Another was a fire-haired she-Gargoyle.  The last of them Gabriel only knew through story, because this man was supposed to have died before the Guardian was even born.  But this man fit the descriptions, although he seemed far more powerful than the stories gave credit.  It was the Archmage!
	The battle was terrible.  So many of them fell that night.  Ophelia, Oseric, Capulet, Montague, Shylock, and other rookery siblings were wounded in the attack.  But the Archmage gave them a reprieve.  He gave the Gargoyles and their guardians until dawn to prepare for death.  Then as quickly as they had come, the attackers disappeared.
	The Princess gasped when she saw all the injured Gargoyles.  "No!  My Eggs!"  she cried out.  Sobbing, she went to Ophelia.  Placing a trembling hand on her, she asked, "Will she... will they live?"
	The Magus came over to Ophelia to examine her wounds.  Tom stood in shock, numb with helplessness.
	The Magus noticed she had suffered from many lacerations, and thus a loss of blood. But it was her wound on her back that sent chills down his spine.  In the center of her back was a large black burn mark, as if she had been stuck by lightening.
	"Sorcery.."  the Magus whispered in astonishment.
	"Magus!  Tell me, will she live?"  Princess Katherine insisted.
	"They will all live, My Princess... if we treat their wounds right away.  Balthasar!  Quickly now!  Get the bandages and the ointments from my laboratory.  Bring them to the main hall".
	The young Gargoyle named Balthasar responded by nodding and hurrying off to do as he was told.
	"Angela!  Gabriel!  Carry Capulet, Montague, and the other wounded inside", the Magus ordered.
	Tom, still badly shaken by all that had happened, finally snapped out of his daze.  He picked up the wounded Ophelia, and carried her inside the palace.  He blamed himself for what had happened, but was determined not to have this butcher of an Archmage slay his "eggs", his family, while they slept.
	"What are we going to do?"  worried Princess Katherine.
	All of the wounded Gargoyles were lying on make-shift cots in the main hall.  The Magus was busy tending to their injuries the best he could, but both he and Tom knew the wizard's efforts would be in vain if these attackers were not stopped soon.  It was only a few hours until dawn, and with the Gargoyles turned to stone, they would be helpless.  Tom, the Magus, and the Princess knew they could stop these dark raiders by themselves....
	"We need help, Katherine", Tom stated.  "We need Goliath".
	"But Tom", the Magus interjected, "We do not know if the spell of eternal sleep I cast on Goliath and the remaining members of  his clan has been broken yet.  The last time you checked they were still stone on the ruins of Castle Wyvern, and only a century  has passed in the outside world since then.  We all have been hoping for a thousand years that the castle would be lifted above the clouds, and the enchantment would be lifted.  I especially.  But we can not wager our lives on the unlikely hope that Goliath is alive and well".
	"And what would ye have us do, Magus?  Who else will aid us?"  Tom asked.  "In truth, the only hope we have now is Goliath, as unlikely as it may be".
	The Magus lowered his eyes.  Tom was right.  He had won.  He always won.
	"So ye should be leaving soon.  The dawn approaches quickly, and we haven't much time", said Katherine, her manner grim.  She placed her arms around Tom's neck and hugged him with all her strength.  "Come back to me", she whispered in his ear, "I don't want... I don't want to be without ye".  She then broke from their embrace and went to attend the wounded.
	Gabriel and Angela had just stood and watched silently as their guardians decided their fate.  A sense of fear and dread that they had never known their entire lives washed over them.  Never before had the specter of death hung so low and near to them.  Gabriel's worry was especially intense.  He feared now he would never get the chance to tell Angela how much he loved her.
	Unless he told her now.
	"Gabriel!  Angela!  Come and follow me", Tom ordered the young pair.
	tom lead the two Gargoyles outside the gate.  When they were just outside, Tom turned to face the young ones.  In their eyes, he saw their fear, but he also saw their trust in his as well.  Tom hoped he was worthy of that trust.
	"What do you want us to do?"  Gabriel asked.  "Do you want us to go with you?"
	Tom looked again as these two, but he did not see the young man and woman Gargoyle.  He saw them as they were many years ago,... as children.  They were his eggs.  It was a tempting thought to take them with him.  If they did not find Goliath of make it back in time, at least Gabriel and Angela would be safe  in the outside world,... as safe as they could be in that world.  I had to be safer then Avalon was now. But that would be admitting defeat, that there was no hope for them, or for their rookery brothers and sisters.  He had to give  them some sense of hope, or all was lost.
	"No.  No, I want you to stay here and be as the Gargoyles you are.  I want you to protect this palace and your clan.  I'm counting on you.  I will return with Goliath soon.  Watch for me".
	"We will defend our home and our clan to our deaths, Guardian.  You can trust us with that", stated Angela with a fierceness.
	Gabriel nodded with confidence.
	Tom smiled at them, just before he lowered the face-mask of his helmet.  The grim face of Goliath stared back at the young pair.  Then Tom turned to find the skiff that would take him where he needed to be this night.
	While Angela turned back to re-enter the castle, Gabriel lingered a moment to watch Tom make his trek to the sea shore.  He then reached into his pouch and pulled out the ring he made the night before.  He looked at it in the palm of his hand, then glanced up to look at Angela as she walked away from him.  Gabriel only smiled then, and stuffed the ring back into his pouch.
	There would be another night.
			*		*		*
	*But that night never came*, Gabriel thought as he glided slowly and carefully over the city of Manhattan.  How different this island was from his home on Avalon.
	Down below he spied a building that he thought would be a good place to rest and think before he continued.  As he landed on the large balcony, he took notice of the clock face.  As he entered under the domed roof where the gears were, an odor of paint and fresh mortar filled his nose.  But he knew from his experience of repairing the Palace that this was not new construction.  Gabriel shuddered at the thought of a force that could have caused this clock tower's initial destruction, but only for a moment.  Behind him, to the South, lied his destination, and his destiny.  But now he would rest.  The sun was soon to rise.
	And he could dream... and remember.
			*		*		*
	Gabriel remembered that night well.  He and Angela had decided the best place to take watch was the high cliff overlooking the sea.  From there, they could see Tom when he returned, or see the movements of the Archmage and his allies should they decide to attack the palace early.  As they waited, several times Gabriel desired to proposed to Angela, but his courage left him each time.  He just didn't know if Angela felt the same.  So the two of them just waited.  They didn't have long to wait, however.  Through the mists, they saw the skiff, and Tom was not alone.
	The Guardian had done as he promised... he brought back Goliath.  Goliath was everything Gabriel had imagined this Gargoyle leader to be - strong, powerful, and imposing, just as the Princess's stories said he was.  Angela was especially impressed with Goliath.  But Tom had brought more than Goliath.  With him also was a watchdog named Bronx, and a Human woman named Elisa Maza.  With these warriors' help, the night would be theirs.
	But it would be a long night.
	After barely surviving an attack my the Archmage on the beach, they decided to bring the battle to the aggressors.  Angela and he had joined Goliath on the first Attack on the Archmage, while the Magus and Elisa went to wake the Sleeping King.  Gabriel's group had failed, and nearly lost their lives.  But Elisa and the Magus had been successful, and they then had a new ally - King Arthur himself!
	The final battle was even more terrible.  While the Magus set off to face the Weird Sisters, he the Guardian, the Princess, and Elisa, under the command of King Arthur stayed to guard the Palace.  Goliath took the most dangerous duty - to face the Archmage himself.  To Gabriel's silent dismay, Angela volunteered to go with Goliath.  Gabriel feared for her safety, but he knew he would not be able to talk her out of going.  He knew all to well that when Angela set her mind to something, it was impossible to talk her out of it.  Her courage and determination was why he admired her.
	And why he loved her.
	They were victorious that night.  The Archmage was destroyed, his minions were defeated in battle and captured, and the Eye of Odin, and the Pheonix Gate were recovered.  The won would have been perfect but for one thing, the death of the Magus.
	But there would be another loss before the night was over.  Angela wanted to return to Manhattan with Golaith.  She wanted to see the world.  Gabriel was disappointed.  Avalon had always been his home... his only home, and he had no desire to leave it.  He could not believe that Angela wanted to leave her home, her clan, and him.  He wanted to tell her then how much he loved her... to get her to stay.  But he knew he could not hold her if he truly loved her.
	"...I will miss you, my rookery sister", Gabriel said softly to Angela, taking her in one last embrace.
	As she sailed away with Goliath, Gabriel stood on the shore and watched them disappear into the mist.  Princess Katherine, Tom, and Boudicca walked back up the shore line to the Palace, while Gabriel stayed by the sea.  Reaching into his pouch, he pulled out the band of gold.  He was tempted to throw the ring into the sea.  Had Angela sailed out of his life forever?
	*No!  She has to come back!*  Gabriel thought, tightening a fist around the ring.  *She will come back... she'll come back to me.*
	She did return to Avalon, Gabriel remembered, but only for a short time.  Oberon had returned to reclaim his lost kingdom.  Goliath, Angela, and he stepped forward to protect their home from this invader.  He remembered the chase across Avalon, with the Master of the Isle on their heels.  He remembered failed traps and narrow escapes.  Gabriel also remembered how a bolt of energy from Lord Oberon's hands caused Angela and himself to go into a spin and lose their lift.  In desperation, they both groped the air with their talons, and found each others' hands.  But they did not let go right away.  He held her hand for just a moment as they glided for their lives.  Then, she smiled at him, and he smiled back.  Her simple touch and beautiful smile made Gabriel's heart race even faster than the fleeing for his life.  Her touch felt warm and loving and strong, and yet had a feeling of longing as well.  Even if he did die this night, he felt he would with the knowledge that Angela did love him.
	Thankfully, they triumphed once again.  Oberon was defeated with the ringing of an iron bell, as Titana's rhyme alluded to.  The Gargoyles had won the right to stay, and Oberon declared that they would become the Honor Guard of Avalon, and that his magics would no longer harm them.  It was then, Titana consented to be Oberon's wife once more, and the Lord of Avalon took her hand.  
	Gabriel, seeing the love between Lord Oberon and his wife, reminded him of his desire to marry Angela.  He wanted to declare his love for His Angel, but Angela still wanted to help Goliath and Elisa find their way home.  Gabriel loved her too much to hold her back and keep her here... to force her  to stay.
	So, he let her go...
			*		*		*
	*I should have gone with her...*, Gabriel regretted.
	He had awakened from his stone sleep nearly an hour ago.  Now he crouched on the ledge of the balcony of the clock tower.  He took the gold ring out of his pouch to look at it.  As he held it between his fingers, he could see his destination though it - Castle Wyvern.
	"There I'll find her... and we will never be separated again", he said aloud.
	*I have to*, he thought, hanging his head. *Ophelia has already given her life for Angela*.            	Ophelia had only come with him to save their rookery sister, but now she was gone - lost to the waves of the sea forever.  Gripping the ring tightly, he vowed to make sure Ophelia's sacrifice would not be a vain one. 
	He then returned the ring to his pouch.  The ring settled right next to a computer diskette.  
	Gabriel opened his wings and let an updraft carry him aloft to the castle on the tallest building in the world.
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