Gliding on the Winds of Time, Part 3: The Fine Line Between Love and Loneliness
by Black Blade, a.k.a. Eddie of Clan Winslow, a.k.a. Amy K. Cyrway
blkblade@mailexcite.com

TIME NOTE: This fanfic takes place three months after "...Love and War"

***DISCLAIMER: Gargoyles is a licensed trademark of Disney and Buena Vista. All
characters save for Arin MacDuff, Clan Winslow and the Outklaws, Clan Siuslaw, Kade 
Saeri, and Christopher Highblood are copyrighted by the above fore mentioned 
companies.  Kade and Christopher, however, are truly copyrighted by Amy K. Cyrway, so 
they are my actual legal property and if anyone uses them without my consent, I can 
legally go mediaeval on his/her/its ass.  This is an unofficial fanfic and is not intended for 
infringement of any kind.  As for the content of this piece, it does contain ADULT 
CONTENT, in the form of swearing and violence.
     I would like to extend special thanks to my rookery sister, Mercedes, my rookery 
brother, Sombrero, and my brainwashed buddy ShadowBrook, who I totally corrupted 
with hour after hour of Gargoyle eps and my fanfic.  Because of them (and the fact I was 
getting tired of writing stupid crossovers like South Park Horrors [I hear everyone 
groan]), I was forced to actual archive this fanfic. Also, thanks to all my buds at Station 8 
Chat, including but not limited to: Stoney ("We're slimy, we're squishy, we're all a little 
fishy!"), DemonSpawn, of course Mercedes and Sombrero, Stormy, and, no, I won't 
forget Whitbourne!  Cheers to all of you, blokes!***

PUCK: Was it a dream...or a prophecy? (Show Puck hovering over Goliath in "Future 
Tense")

CHRISTOPHER: Previously, on Gargoyles...

ARIN: "Deflagrate muri tempi et intervalia!"
KADE: Ah, you speaketh the language, you cultured soul.
ARIN: Rather fluently, thank you very much. (Show Arin and Kade disappearing in a ball 
of flame, "Neon Knights")

KADE: Llewellyn, this may be a strange question, but please bare with me, I've been 
gone for quite some time now: what year is it?
LLEWELLYN: Tis the Year of our Lord 957, of course.  (Show Kade talking to 
Llewellyn in "First Breath")

(Show Arin giving Brooklyn CPR, same ep.)

(Show Kade battling the Viking leader, same ep.)

RED FEMALE: Do you think he'll be important one day? (Show younger Hudson holding 
up baby Brooklyn to the clan, same ep.)
ARIN: I wouldn't doubt it if he becomes leader someday.



          She's the one for me
          She's all I really need
          Cause she's the one for me
          Emptiness is loneliness and loneliness is cleanliness
          and cleanliness is godliness, and God is empty just like me
               -- "Zero" by Smashing Pumpkins

***

	Kade and Arin gazed around at their new surroundings, noticing that they were in 
a dank, dark alleyway behind a reeking dumpster of rotting flesh.
	Arin curiously stepped out to the street, keeping in the shadows.
	"We're in Brooklyn Heights," she whispered.  "A few streets down from my da's 
mansion."
	"And you openly admit this?" Kade muttered, holding up a human skull for her 
companion to see.  The gargoyle grimaced.
	"There's no traffic, no people around, either," she mumbled, joining Arin after 
tossing away the skull.
	Arin stared up at the decaying buildings across the street and whistled.
	"I'd say we're sometime in New York's future, as grim as it may seem," Arin 
wrinkled her nose.
	"Ayuh," Kade muttered.  "Quieter than Death."
	Suddenly, the dragon woman unsheathed her sword.
	"Arin, give me the Phoenix Gate," Kade ordered, glancing wildly around.  "Get as 
far away as you can."
	"What?"
	"We've got bogies coming up from all sides.  I can sense em.  I can't use the 
Phoenix Gate.  Anyway, if one of us gets captured, whoever has us can't force us to use it. 
I can't use it, you don't have it."
	"Doesn't work if we both get captured," Arin retorted.  "You don't want me to 
leave without you," Arin reluctantly handed her the Gate.
	"That too.  Go!  We're getting hostile territory!"
	Arin scrambled to a pile of demolished vehicles, hopping onto one roof to 
another, finally launching off the trailer of a Peterbilt rig.  Catching a current, she glided 
steadily to the northeast, toward her father's home.
	When she landed with a unsteady twelve-point hop, she gave a slight moan as she 
saw Macbeth Manor in such a state of disrepair.
	She thought of her father.
	"Da!" She vaulted the gate and ran up to the door.  Punching in her four-digit 
code to the front door, she swung open the ironwood door and raced in on all fours, 
screeching to a halt in the library.
	The room was a total mess.  Books, videos, CDS were strewn everywhere.
	"Da!" She cried again, standing up straight as she searched in one of the 
bookshelves for the secret panel that housed the glass release to the weapon display case 
on the far wall.
	"Well, well, well.  What do we have here?"
	She whirled around, facing something from a dream she tried very hard to forget.
	"Thailog!" She screamed, groping for the switch.
	"You seem to have me at a slight disadvantage, child, for I do not know you," the 
dark blue gargoyle padded toward you, the dim safelight of the hallway glinting off the 
metal headpiece.  "I am Thailog, of the Fifth division Shock Troopers.  You are a rebel, 
correct?"
	"I don't know what you're talking about," she whimpered, finding the switch with 
a click.
	"You must be a rebel." He raised his right arm, revealing a sort of laser arm 
mount.  "You have two choices: surrender, or die."
	"Where's the fun of killing someone of my age and stamina with a gun?" she 
demanded, scared out of her wits but remaining a calm exterior.  She watched as the 
glass retreat into its housing behind the clone, plotting her course.  "I gladly choose death 
over surrender, but if you must kill me, do it with your own hands."
	"You are a strange rebel," he shook his head.  "But very well.  I will honor your 
request."
	And he fired off the laser.
	Arin somewhat expected this and ducked, grabbing a large dictionary from the 
floor, tumbled behind an overturned armchair, and hurled the book at her attacker.
	He dodged it, although it did clip his shoulder.
	"Dammit!" She cried as another laser blast cracked above her.
	"You are only delaying the inevitable," Thailog rumbled.
	Keeping her mind on her goal, she dove behind a chair, a door, and a felled shelf, 
before throwing another book out the open door.  In the darkened room, Thailog caught 
the movement and fired in that direction.
	Instinct that she never knew existed took control as she vaulted onto the top of the 
shelf and leapt, talons extended, teeth bared, and eyes flaring red at the larger gargoyle.
	She managed to rake across his backside, creating long, deep welts and slicing off 
his white ponytail before retrieving the first thing she could get her hands on from the 
weapons case.
	She flipped off the safety of the taze gun and held it point blank at Thailog, her 
nerves unbelievably steady despite what she just encountered.
	Thailog cursed, then chuckled.
	"It seems we have a Mexican stand-off on our hands," she smiled grimly, though 
her gut was ordering her to flee.
	"I would have guessed you trained under Macbeth with a tactic like that, girl," he 
commented, then, with a quick flick of his wrist, he sent a tiny throwing dart aimed for 
her hand.  She managed to get one shot fired before the blade embedded into her palm, 
the point visible out from the other end.  She swore painfully, dropping the gun.  "But 
it'll only work once, and you're out of options."
	The laser was raised once more...
	...but never fired.
	A flash of steel caught her eye as a precision-forged blade whizzed downward, 
severing the arm from shoulder.  Thailog screamed in agony, then turned to face the 
swordsman.
	"You...!" he snarled, reaching for the pistol at his side.
	The dai-katana sliced again, this time decapitating the clone.
	Arin backed into the shadows, staring at the bloody mess while cradling her 
wound.
	"Are you all right--" the voice stopped suddenly.
	That voice...
	Arin dared to steal a look at her savior, and her eyes widened in shock.
	"Shadow?" she whispered.

***

	Kade heard the blasts and swore, praying that Arin wasn't involved.
	She saw out of her peripheral vision one of those cat/bat-man creatures come up 
at her side.  She swung her great claymore, burying it with a thunk into the freak's neck.
	"What in the triple goddess' names are you?" she snarled, fending off another 
creature.  There was no specific answer, only "You are in violation of the Sevarius 
Compact, resisting arrest, trespassing, and owning unlicenced weapons."
	"And what gives you the idea I own any weapons?" she grinned as she swung the 
claymore around her side.
	"You are in violation of the Sevarius Compact, resisting arrest--"
	"Shut up!" she ordered, hacking at the freak in front of her.  "Just shut the hell--
ow!"
	She reached behind her head and pulled a small tranq dart out of her neck.  She 
laughed, shifting to her near-human form.
	"Is that the best you can do?" she chortled, fighting even more ferociously.  She 
slashed at the cat-bat who fired the tranq, taking out his eyes with her razor-sharp talons.
	There was another thunk, this time in her back.  She reached behind once more 
and grabbed hold of another dart, larger than the first.
	And suddenly, she felt drowsy.
	Her claymore began to feel heavy.  Sheathing it, she drew her dirks, but they too 
seemed to gain weight.  Finally, she fell, reverting to her human form.  She felt herself 
bound and carried off before totally losing consciousness.

***

	"Shadow?" Arin repeated, standing up unsteadily.  The wound was deep, yes, but 
it would heal come sunrise.  "Am I unconscious?"
	"I'm not Shadow," he whispered, wiping his bloodied blade on Thailog's tunic.  
Shoving it back in the scabbard, he gently took Arin's hand.  "Can it be you after all this 
time...?"
	"Brooklyn?" She whispered.  He appeared just like Shadow did when he was 
gargoyle: nearly seven feet tall, his long, cotton-white hair plaited behind him, the armor, 
the dai-katana, everything was exactly like Shadow.
	Save for the fact that she wasn't dreaming.
	"Arin?  Is it truly you?" He cupped her sharp featured face in his hands and stared 
into her eyes.  His hazel eyes brimmed with tears as a smile crept across his face.  "God, 
it's been forty years!  Where've you been?"
	"I went to look for you after you and Chris disappeared.  Kade and I both.  But--
what year is it?  You said, forty years?  How did you get back when we have the Phoenix 
Gate?"
	He ran his fingers through her tri-coloured hair, as if trying to prove to himself 
she was in fact tangible.
	"A mage said he could return Christopher and me home if we could aid a rag tag 
army against an evil force.  We held our part of the bargain, and he held his." Brooklyn 
returned to gaze into her eyes.  "So much has changed, Arin.  Sevarius has overrun all of 
Long Island and parts of the mainland with his clones and mutates.  We have managed to 
secure Manhattan, Ellis, Liberty, and Staten Islands.  Resistance is few and scattered, but 
we're managed."  His eyes closed, then reopened.  "We need to get back to the Pyramid.  
Come on."  He gently scooped her up, holding her close.  With a quick run, he bolted out 
the front door, scaled up the side of the five-story mansion, and, with a slight hop, they 
were airbourne.
	Her head swarmed with thoughts about the two of them.  Some were from the 
past, when they met, their talks, their late-night caresses in some long-forgotten corner of 
the library.  Then there was her favorite fantasy, after she, Brook, Angela, and Broadway 
dared each other to sit through all of Gone With The Wind.  They all heckled and joked 
at it, but Arin kept imagining her as a Southern belle, and Brook, wearing a Confederate 
officer's uniform, carrying her off into the sunset...wait a minute.  Oh well, it was, after 
all, a fantasy.
	But something seemed out of place, Arin realised, as she glanced up at Brooklyn's 
handsome features, she knew something was much more different than when she left.
	She watched him hit a button on one of his arm guards, as they passed over the 
East River.
	"Jamming device for Sevarius' detection grid," he muttered, answering her 
unasked question.  "It works on a random frequency modulation, so whatever frequency 
the detection grid is running on, we can slip through."
	"Mmm-hmm," she hummed, holding her hand over her heart.  She was beginning 
to feel light and buzzy from the numbness of her hand, and she really didn't want to pass 
out again.
	"We'll take care of that when we return," he interjected.  "You mentioned the 
Phoenix Gate.  Where is it?"
	"Kade has it," she whispered.
	"Why?"
	"She didn't trust me with it.  She thought I would take off with it and leave her 
stranded."
	"Where's Kade, then?"
	"Oh, shit!" Arin involuntarily unmantled her wings, the tiny three-taloned 
"hands" accidentally scratching Brooklyn's shoulder.  "She's still back there!"
	"We'll get her later; don't worry," he eased her back. The scratch was noting; it 
barely ripped skin. "We'll find her later."
	"Promise?"
	"On my honour," he smiled, and his arm band beeped.
	"Unidentified aircraft, this is the Eyrie Pyramid.  Please identify yourself and 
your purpose.  Over." The voice was rough, feminine, and full of static.
	"This is Rogue Leader coming in from the Sevarius Alpha scout mission.  I have 
a survivor." A pause, then Brooklyn added, "Eddie, what's wrong with the visual? Over."
	"Three words: Smith, Wesson, Sombrero."  Another pause, this time almost thirty 
seconds.  "You're clear, Rogue Leader.  Eyrie Pyramid, over and out."
	"Who's Sombrero?" Arin demanded.
	"Scattered resistance," Brooklyn smirked as he entered a green force field created 
by four towers jutting from the streets below and reaching nearly a mile up before they 
met in a pyramid fashion.  Smack dab in the middle of the four monoliths was the Eyrie 
Building, the green beam generated from Goliath's parapet and filtered down between 
the towers.
	They touched down in the courtyard, where an aquamarine female with dark 
mulberry shoulder-length hair greeted them.
	"Welcome back, Brook," she smirked.  "Sorry about the visual, but Smith and 
Wes were trying to broadcast their show via video satellite.  Blew out every tube in the 
building.  Eddie, Clay, and Lex are fixing the watch tower as we speak."
	"Thanks, Mercedes," Brooklyn nodded.  "Have Ed call back all troops.  Also, I've 
got a job for Lexington.  Who else is present besides the four of you and the three of--" 
he flipped his thumb toward the eastern tower, which was spray-painted with peace signs, 
John Lennon caricature, hippie flowers, and Volkswagen symbols "--them?"
	"The kids, of course, and Alexander returned early.  Brent, Holl, Claw, and Matt 
checked in five minutes ago and will be returning shortly.  Macbeth is in the gym, giving 
Stiletto a run for her money, the poor girl, but everyone is still out on patrol." She tapped 
her headset. "Eddie, recall all troops.  Brooklyn wants a powwow."
	"I tell ya, those three do something stupid, we all pay," Eddie grumbled, and 
snapped off.
	"Macbeth?" Arin whispered.  "My da's still alive?  He'd be over ninety years old- -"
	"Arin?" Mercedes then interjected.  "Arin MacDuff? I heard you were--cursed--
but...where have you been?"
	"It's a long story, which I will include the Cliff Notes in the meeting when
everyone returns.  As for your father..." Brooklyn sighed.  "Maybe he'd be better to tell 
you." He took her hand, adding to Mercedes, "Call me when the others return."
	She saluted and turned back to her post.
	"Come on, Arin," Brooklyn whispered, taking her inside. "You have forty years 
to catch up."

	He took her to the double doors of the gymnasium and excused himself.
	"I'm going to get Lexington to search the Net for any news on Kade."  And with 
that he left.
	She opened the door slightly and peeked in.
	Her father had not aged a day, nor did he loose any fighting skill, as he humiliated 
bout after bout with the dark green female, her face full of wounded pride.
	"Think, girl!" He yelled, helping her up.  "You keep charging at me!  I'll 
memorise your pattern!  Vary it, confuse your opponent!"
	The female snorted, then nodded.
	"You're just as bull-headed as your father," he chuckled.  "And just as 
predictable.  That's how Sevarius got him.  Those monstrosities of his are stupid, but 
they are programmed to recognise patterns.  Tom!  Stand up!"
	The younger gargoyle, a lavender male with some bulk to his frame and a lock of 
dark brown hair perpetually falling in his eyes, stood.
	"The two of you...!  Hand-to-hand, grapple and throws!  And Stiletto, vary your 
pattern!"
	"Yes sir," the two young ones retorted, getting into stance.
	As he watched them, out of his peripheral vision he noticed a movement at the 
door.  Quicker than lightning, he sidestepped to the distraction, grabbed her arm, and 
threw her on the mats, her arm twisted behind her back.
	"Hullo, Da," the tan gargoyle whimpered, trying to relax to ease the pain.  "Have 
I got a story to tell you."
	"Arin!" He picked her up and stared her deep in her eyes.  "Where the blazes 
have you been?!  You've not aged--"
	"Neither have you, Da, and I have an excuse," she interrupted.  "A friend and I 
got hold of this amulet, the Phoenix Gate.  To me, I've been gone only a night."
	"But to us, it's been forty years! Arin, you had all of us pulling our hair out!  
When Brooklyn came back and found you gone...of, Arin!  Where is the Gate?  Go 
back!"
	"I can't, Da," Arin whispered.  "Kade has it, and she's missing."
	"Then we'll find her."
	"That's what Brooklyn's doing right now."  She bit her lip.  "Da, you should be 
ninety."
	He inhaled, exhaled, and turned to his two students.  Tom had knocked the taller 
gargoyle onto her backside and pinned her with his tail wrapped around her legs.
	"That's enough for tonight, children," he barked, emphasising children.  "Stiletto, 
how many times--?"
	"I'll try, sir--" the girl muttered, shooting a dirty look at her opponent, just as a 
white male gargoyle Arin recognised as Smith from the Outklaws walked by the doors, 
peeked in.
	"‘Do, or do not.  There is no try,'" he quoted to the girl in a raspy voice before he 
went on his way.
	Tom smirked just as Stiletto slapped him.  He hissed, his eyes glowing white.
	"ENOUGH!" Macbeth warned, sending them scampering out in fear.  He shook 
his head, sinking into a chair.  "Where was I?"
	"Why you haven't aged."
	"Oh, yes," he sighed again.  "Arin, I don't know where to begin.  Do you know 
why everyone calls me Macbeth?"
	"Brooklyn told me it was because you used to do vigilante work by that name."
	Her father laughed.
	"God bless him.  No, child, that is my real name.  Lennox MacDuff was only a 
guise I used when I interacted in the ‘normal' world.  I am immortal through a curse by 
the Weird Sisters."
	"Man, our family's full of fae intervention," Arin smirked, mantling her wings.  
"If you told me that when I was human, Da, I would have a hell of a time swallowing 
that.  But now, I can't help but believe you."
	"That's what I was afraid of, and why I didn't tell you before," Macbeth 
shrugged.
	"I don't blame you, Da," she whispered, and hugged him.  He kissed her 
forehead.
	"I'm so glad you've returned, daughter, but it couldn't be at a worse time."
	"I know, Da, but if it's anything like the last place Kade and I've been, we're 
needed."
	"The Phoenix Gate isn't like the Mists of Avalon, Arin."
	"But something guides me," she protested, thinking of Shadow.  Was he guiding 
her?
	Eddie's voice crackled over the intercom.
	"All Rebel Alliance please go to the courtyard immediately--" She was 
interrupted by a breakthrough of kazoos playing "Imperial March."  "Enough, Clay!  You 
too, Lex!  I swear, or I'll really show you the Dark Side of the Force!"
	You're still on the air, Ed," Lexington whispered.
	The transmission was cut.
	Macbeth chuckled.
	"Never a dull moment here," he mumbled as he and his daughter headed out to 
the courtyard.

	Arin marveled at the sight of all the creatures gathered in the courtyard.  A few 
she recognised: the Trio, of course, and Angela, but there were changes.  Lexington was 
probably the most profound, being maimed heavily during the early battles and was 
almost half machine.  Broadway had lost his eyes; now, the only way he could "see" was 
through a sonic collar.  Angela had a scar running down the right side of her otherwise 
beautiful face.  Most of the Outklaws were there, save Mauser and Magnum, including 
the elusive Colt, a dark blue gargoyle with almost the same build as Chaz.  Eddie and 
Mercedes were the only ones from Clan Winslow who came down to Manhattan, Eddie 
lost her left eye and replaced it with an infrared sensor.  Brentwood, Hollywood, and 
Delilah were there as well, although Burbank had died trying to pull Zen Buddhist/Kung 
Fu logic on an army of clones, which fit him.  No one would even mention Malibu.  
Hudson and Goliath died in battle. The Claw and Fang were still around too, Claw lost 
his wings in a gruesome battle which costed Maggie and Talon their lives and Broadway 
his eyes.  There was Alexander, a tall man much like his father, with his mother's 
flaming hair and piercing green eyes, had also her blue Pack tattoo.  Everyone else were 
either children of her friends or people she had no clue whatsoever who they were.
	Brooklyn called for attention.
	"Thank you for coming so promptly," he began as a tall, lithe, pitch black 
gargoyle wearing a large sombrero scooted in with a can of Very Fine apple juice.  
"We've got some news from Clan Stuart Island--"
	"Who's this?" The black male demanded, pointing his finger over Arin.
	"Do you mind, Sombrero?" Brooklyn crossed his arms over his chest.  
Intimidating to most, the stork-beaked fellow was oblivious.
	"No, I' don't; who is this?" He pointed again.
	"Would you like me to put him out of his misery?" Macbeth opened his trench 
coat, revealing his taze gun and sword hilt.
	The remaining Outklaws chanted, "Do it!  Do it!  Do it!" as everyone cheered 
them on.
	Brooklyn growled, rolled his eyes, then stood to his full height.
	(EVERYONE, SETTLE DOWN AND LISTEN UP!) He mentally ordered.
	Everyone gasped, along with the entire group.  That was going to leave a slight 
headache.
	"Master Yoda, will you show me the ways of the Force?" Smith pleaded to 
Brooklyn.
	"AARRGGHH!!  He's doing the Naked Lunch bit!" Sombrero continued on.
	"That's it; Sombrero, leave!"
	"Fine, oh fearless leader," Sombrero sighed, heading back inside as he pecked at 
the can, mumbling, "‘Homosexuality is the perfect disguise, Billy.'"
	Even Brooklyn cracked a smile on that one.
	"Okay, now that we've rid of all distractions--what, Smith?"
	Smith was waving his hand.  He put it down and asked, "Did you just tell 
Sombrero to leave, Cap'n America?"
	"Damn!  Smith, intercept him!"
	Thank you, Cap'n America!" he saluted and raced after the Burroughs-quoting 
gargoyle.
	"The black fellow's not quite right in the head," Macbeth whispered.
	"Clearly," Arin grinned.
	"Now, is anyone else going to distract, go now or forever shut up--Wes, stay!"
	Wesson turned back around and returned to the crowd.
	"Back to the headline news, the boys--"
	"Ahem!" Eddie coughed.
	"Sorry.  The guys--"
	Mercedes clamped her hand around her sister's beak before she could say 
anything else.
	"--report that there's been no clone activity since our last sweep."
	"And I was hoping to go back to that God-forsaken backwater island!" Fang 
moaned.
	"Australiasia, since then, has been clear for, um, Lex?"
	"At the tone, three years, five months, twenty-six days, eleven hours--"
	Broadway slapped his cyborg brother lightly.
	"Don't you think the sense of humour in this company is getting a little out of 
hand?" he demanded.
	"NEVER!" Almost everyone shouted.
	Brooklyn laughed along with the rest of his clan, both original and adoptive.  It 
was hard to stay serious with this bunch of loonies.  Even Macbeth cracked a joke once 
in a while.  However, there was always one who never smiled.
	"The humans of Staten Island are threatened," Demona began advancing the 
rostrum where Brooklyn stood, her wild red hair flying behind her as she walked.  
"Sevarius' clones, led by Thailog of the Sixth division Shock Troops, have been trying 
the defense parameters for about a week now.  Just tonight, one of them got through.  We 
must strengthen the defenses there."
	"With what?" Macbeth suddenly interjected.  "This is all the manpower--"
	Mercedes covered Eddie's mouth again.
	"--we have right here.  If New Zealand and Japan have no problems, Brooklyn, 
ask them to fortify some of their clan here, where they can help."
	"Agreed," Brooklyn nodded.  "Eddie, patch a connection with Ichimura and 
Stuart Island, informing them of our situation ASAP."
	"I'm on it, amigo!  Brent, Clay, you're with me!" Eddie ordered, breaking into a 
run to the watch tower with the two other gargoyles taking the rear.
	"But what about now?  If they agree, how long will the humans last after sunrise 
tomorrow?  It'll take them several hours to arrive."  Directed her query more toward 
Macbeth with a tint of malice.
	"If you haven't forgotten already, Demona, we have non-gargoyle forces as well," 
Macbeth retorted,  "including you, during the day.  We've managed before, we can do it 
again."
	She growled, but said no more.
	"Now that we got that settled," Brooklyn rolled his eyes, "any other order of 
business?"
	"Speak of the devil..." Lexington swore.  "I got a break in Sevarius' 
communication grid.  Unidentified female, unknown species, quite possibly fae mix.  
Brought to Sevarius' main headquarters in Queens, two hours ago.  Shit!" He closed his 
eyes rapidly.  "Sorry, Brook, I can't get anymore.  He sent a spike out on me."
	"That's Kade!" Arin proclaimed.  "It's got to be!"
	"I don't doubt it," Brooklyn agreed.  "Lexington, is it possible to modify our freq 
jammers to work on radio frequencies as well?"
	"It's be difficult, but I think I could manage something," the cyborg remarked.
	"You aren't seriously considering going into enemy territory for one human, are 
you?" Demona then protested.
	"First off, she isn't human.  In fact," Brooklyn's eyes became dark and moody, "I 
would almost call her the perfect weapon.  Second, she has the Phoenix Gate."
	There was a slight murmur among the remaining crowd.
	"So we have two potentially dangerous goals here," Macbeth stroked his beard.  
"If either one of them was used against us...."
	"That's why we have to strike tonight," Brooklyn stepped down from the rostrum.  "I've got a plan, but I need to work out the bugs.  For now, we'll recess for a half-hour."
	"BREAK!" The remaining Outklaws clapped their hands once and took off to 
various directions of the castle.
	The group followed suit, until only Demona, Macbeth, Arin and Brooklyn 
remained in the courtyard.
	"You aren't planning a full assault?" The azure gargoyle hissed.  "Leave the 
castle naked while we risk our lives for a...creature...and an old artifact?"
	Macbeth laughed shortly, almost cruelly.
	"Since when do you consider the Gate some ‘old artifact'?" He demanded.
	"I have no interest in petty things of the sorts any longer," she crossed her arms 
over her chest.  "What matters is that we win this war, or the humans will be the ones 
who suffer."
	The immortal King of the Scots let loose another chortle.
	"Since when did you care about us humans?" He demanded.  "I've known you the 
longest, Demona, and hearing you say that is a joke.  You care nothing for us humans.  
You would rather rid the world of us than protect it!  You will betray us like you betrayed 
your clan, like you betrayed Goliath, like you betrayed me." Storm clouds gathered in his 
grey eyes.  "You are incapable of change."
	Demona snarled, eyes flaring red, as she prepared to do battle with the human.
	"That's enough, you two," Brooklyn ordered.
	"Go ahead, Demona," Macbeth beckoned, drawing his sword, ignoring the brick 
red gargoyle's warning.  "Let's end this--"
	"ENOUGH!!!" Brooklyn bellowed, his own eyes blazing white-hot.  "I've had 
enough of your petty fighting.  Macbeth, you agreed to allow Demona a chance."
	"A thousand years ago, yes," Macbeth snapped back, turning on his heel before 
storming back inside.  "Arin, let's go."
	Arin, too busy trying to keep facts straight, did not hear her father, as she stared in 
horror at the blue gargoyle.  Demona felt the young woman's gaze and turned to face her.
	"So," she grinned, somewhat menacingly, "this is the famous Arin MacDuff?"
	"What did he mean by you betraying him?" She demanded, her voice small.
	"Macbeth is a paranoid old fool--"
	"Answer the question, Demona," Brooklyn sighed.
	The older woman rolled her eyes.
	"Simple as that, girl; I betrayed him."  Demona flung her flaming red hair from 
her shoulder.  "It doesn't matter what it was now, for he thinks I'm incapable of change.  
At least Brooklyn gave me what I deserve."  The azure gargoyle walked up casually next 
to the leader, looping her arm around his and resting her head on his shoulder.  "And I 
thank you for that, my love."
	Arin suddenly stared wide-eyed at the two, allowing Demona's words to sink in 
long enough to hear their meaning.  Demona glanced at her with a mocking gaze, while 
Brooklyn appeared just plain horrified, but guilty, nevertheless.
	"You bastard...." she whispered, her voice on the verge of both anger and tears.  
"You backstabbing, lying bastard...."
	"Arin, please--" he whispered.
	"I loved you!" She shouted, causing whoever was still in earshot to scurry back 
into the courtyard, curious.  "How could you?"
	"You never said you loved me--"
	"‘And I don't believe you can,'" She quoted, swiping away stray tears.  She was 
obviously hurt by his statement.  "The two of you make an excellent couple," she 
snarled, her eyes glowing red with rage as she pointed to Demona, "you betrayed my 
father and--" her finger moved toward Brooklyn "--you betrayed by love!"  She whirled 
around and headed into the building.
	"How childish," Demona yawned.
	"You couldn't have possibly waited until she found the Phoenix Gate?" he 
demanded.
	"Don't you understand, my love?  If she leaves, our lives are in peril!"
	"I know, but she's young and bruises easily.  She has only been gone a night, 
when the rest of us are forty years older.  You have no clue what's she's feeling."
	"And you do?"
	The tall gargoyle gave her a cold stare, and went after the young woman.
	"You're a fool, Brooklyn," she grabbed his arm.  "You have priorities to your 
clan!"
	"And it's high time I get my priorities straight."  He shook her off and continued 
on his way.
	"Brooklyn!" She called after him.  "Just tell me you no feelings for her anymore."
	"I'd be lying if I told you no.  But it's not love I feel for her any longer."
	He entered the hallway and glanced back at Demona, who jumped from the 
parapets and soared toward Staten Island.
	"It's something deeper," he whispered to no one but himself.

***

	Kade groaned, sat up, and swore.
	She was in some sort of laboratory, inside a cage of laser-generated bars.
	Her weapons were gone, of course, hanging up on the far side of the wall.
	She tapped on one of the bars, testing its strength.  Yelping in pain, she sucked 
her wounded finger.
	"I demand to talk to whoever's in charge!" She shouted, her voice echoing off the 
metal walls.
	"I don't think you have the position to demand anything, my friend."  A dark blue 
female with shortly-cropped white hair appeared out of a sliding doorway.  She appeared 
to be gargoyle, but had no wings.  "Though I would like to ask you a few questions 
myself.  Are you fae?"
	"I am a Khhithsig dragon," Kade stated flatly.
	"So, in other words, you aren't even of this realm," the wingless gargoyle 
mumbled, taking something out of her belt pouch and holding it up to the dim light.
	The Phoenix Gate.
	"Will you tell me how to operate this?" She questioned sweetly.
	"I am not a mage," Kade retorted.
	"But my mother is," she smiled, pocketing the amulet once more.  "Making my 
blood mage-rich in this technologically-advanced system.  It is warm to my touch, 
dragon.  Do you know the incantation?"
	"No."
	"Suit yourself.  Mauser, come in her."
	A tall, thin gargoyle marched in.  He was handsome, dark green, with a brown 
goatee and moustache as well as the short hair covering the left side of his head.  The 
other half, however, was shaved and had some sort of electronic apparatus running along 
the longitude of his head.  His eyes glowed an eerie dull green.  The wingless woman 
touched his arm.
	"He was one of the Resistance, up until ten years ago.  A formidable tactician, 
almost equal to the Rebel leader himself.  The problem was, even with his brilliant 
strategies, he was a poor fighter on the field.  He was apprehended quickly and 
reprogrammed to the good doctor's likings.  In fact, he obeys only three people: Sevarius, 
myself, and his field commander.  Sit with us, Mauser."
	The green male sat on a stool next to the wingless woman.
	"His will is almost gone, the poor thing, but it has not totally broke yet.  Mauser, 
how is you mate and daughter?"
	Mauser said nothing, but his eyes changed to brown irises, wet with sadness.  A 
single tear rolled down his thin cheek, and the green glow engulfed the brown once more.
	"Why are you showing me this?" Kade demanded.
	"Sevarius has never seen a dragon's before.  Your shape-shifting abilities would 
come in handy.  He has already tried to duplicate your DNA, but your triple helixes are 
far too complex.  In this world, you're one of a kind--"
	"‘Often imitated, never duplicated,'" Kade chuckled humourlessly.
	"--and you fascinate Sevarius.  If you do not cooperate with him, you may end up 
like poor Mauser."  She patted his arm, then handed him the pouch containing the Gate.  
"Take this to my apartment.  Do not stop for anything."
	Mauser stood, nodded, then left.
	"What a good boy," the wingless woman shook her head.
	"So what do you want from me?"
	"I just want the incantation.  Give it to me, and I'll tell Sevarius you are of no use 
to us.  We will give me authority to terminate your existence, and, on my way to the 
incinerator, you shapeshift, knock me unconscious, and escape.  Simple."  She shrugged.
	"I do not know the incantation."  Kade stared deep into the gargoyle's colorless eyes.
	"Your loss, my friend," the woman shrugged again, and exited the room.
	Kade sighed, sinking to her knees.  Her jacket, unfortunately, was on the other 
side of the room, along with her sword.  No deus ex machina through those this time.
	She closed her eyes.
	She needed to think.

***
	"Telephones ready?"
	A busy signal alerted.
	"Angela Lansbury blow-up doll ready?"
	Someone blowing air into a balloon sounded.
	"Black monolith that serves no purpose ready?"
	The theme from "2001" played shortly.
	"Collection of tasteless Sevarius jokes ready?"
	"‘How many clones does it take to screw in a lightbulb?'"
	"Inflatable Cthulhu pool toy ready?"
	"‘You make bath-time lots of fun!'"
	"Lightsabres ready?"
	The flare of lightsabres powering up buzzed.
	"Tear gas ready?"
	"‘Suck gas, evil-doers!'"
	"Then it's time for the Smith and Wesson Show, only on WVRN, 107.1 FM, 
WNRK, 660 AM!  With your heavily-coveted hosts, Smith and Wesson!"
	Kazoos playing "Imperial March" hummed.
	"And their not-so-special guest star, Sombrero!"
	"‘Invisible Robot Fish.'"
	The music died.
	"Good morning, Vietnam!" Smith greeted.  "It's a balmy sixty degrees here on 
Manhattan Island, and, by the looks of it, most of that heats's been generated by Eddie's 
ion cannon!"
	"Ow!  Those poor clones!" Wes winced.
	"Tonight's topic: ‘Is there too much homour in the clan?'"
	"Hell, no!" Sombrero shouted, pecking at his ever-present apple juice can.
	"Of course we did promise last night we'd be interviewing the clans here in New 
York City--"
	"New York City?!" Sombrero and Wes cried.
	"--on the question: "What is it like to be pregnant?', but the station manager a.k.a. 
our fearless leader threatened us with his five-foot dai-katana--"
	"Yes, friends, the new Turbo-Ginsu!" Wes chortled.
	"--and we then we decided ourselves it was a stupid idea anyway."
	"Inquiring spleens what to know," Sombrero interrupted, then began singing, 
"‘Who's that girl?'"
	"Yes, who was that mystery gargoyle babe--"
	"Down, boy," Wes interjected.
	"--who was seen along side the armsmaster at assembly tonight?"
	"The beautiful brunette with an attitude who almost took on not only our own 
Luke Skywalker but the Wicked Bitch of the East as well?" Wes added.
	"Invisible robot fish," Sombrero retorted.
	"The green-eyed lady, the long cool woman in a black dress, the black magic 
woman no one has seen in forty years?"  Smith replied as if commentating a sports event.
	"‘She's such a kinky kind of girl, the kind you don't bring home to mother,'" Wes 
sang.
	"I really don't think we should say that about her," Sombrero whimpered.  "I 
mean, what if she's Macbecky's daughter?"
	Hysterical laughter.
	"Sombrero, think," Smith knocked on the table.  "She's a gargoyle, he's human."
	"‘Homosexuality is the perfect disguise, Billy.'"
	"Something Q never told James Bond," Wes laughed.
	"I'm not going to touch on that one," Smith snorted.
	"Invisible robot fish."
	"Okay, back to tonight's topic: Is our big kahuna too lenient on humour amongst 
the clans?  For instance, Sombrero."
	"Invisible robot fish."
	"I rest my case."

	Arin listened half-heartedly at the three fools on the air.  They were actually 
rather funny.  But that really wasn't the point now.
	She leaned against the corner of the long-forgotten shelves in the library.  This 
was where she and Brooklyn would spend some quiet nights just talking, reading, 
caressing....
	She held back a wail as tears streamed down her cheeks.  Absently, she began 
dusting off the volumes on the shelf nearest to her.  Some were paperbacks, moth-ridden 
and cobweb-entangled and long ago turned to worthless paper.  There were some more 
durable hardcover books, one catching her eyes.  The jacket had fallen off decades ago.  
Only two words were written in gold along the spine.
	Hawkmoon.  Moorcock.
	She had gotten the hardcover edition for Brooklyn after his paperback fell apart a 
month after they had met.  She pulled it out, blew away the dust, and opened the cover.
	Inscribed with fading red ink in Brooklyn's small, neat handwriting, he had 
written, "I cannot help but to love her/I cannot dream life without her/I cannot wish not 
to please her/She has become part of me; I need her."  Arin sniffed, running her hand 
over the ink, then thumbed through the volume.
	"You never said anything, Arin," the seven-foot gargoyle shook his head, his 
plaited hair falling over his shoulder.  "I loved you from the night we met, and told you 
many times that I did, but you never said anything back.  When I returned home, you 
were missing.  I grieved heavily, and did what was in my power to find you, holding 
strong the belief that you would return to me someday.  After the Clone Wars began, I 
really had no time to think about love.  Then Demona came back to us, begging for 
forgiveness and pledging to help in our cause."
	"You fell in love with her," Arin whispered, deadpan.
	He sighed, sinking into an ancient armchair.  Dust flew up around him, filtering 
the soft light of the table lamp next to him.  As the silence progressed, she watched him 
move his talon through the dust swirling in the air.  As though magically, the dust moved 
and parted with the quick and fluid motions of the talon, forming shaped and then letters.  Arin attempted to make out the words they formed, at first fuzzy and illegible, but soon becoming clear.
	His finger hovered, and his rich hazel eyes locked onto hers through the smoky 
grey phrase "Brooklyn loves Arin forever".  And, abruptly, he took the knife edge of his 
hand and severed the words, sending the dust scattering.
	"Loneliness is often confused for love," he whimpered, leaning forward.  "I tasted 
love and lost it.  The same with Demona.  We found loneliness in each other and mistook 
it for love.  I realised this a while ago, but never admitted it.  I couldn't.  I didn't think it 
mattered then.  That is, until you showed up."  He slid off the chair, landing on his knees 
in front of the tan gargoyle.  He clasped his hands over hers, still holding the book.  "This 
is the first time in thirty years I dared venture back into this corner.  This was our special 
place.  I dared not desecrate it further."  He shook his head.  "Arin, I still love you, now 
and forever."
	"As I love my own Brooklyn," she whispered.  "If I can go home..."
	"...This timeline will never happen," Brooklyn nodded.  "We must get Kade and 
the Phoenix Gate back."
	He stood, helping her to her feet.  Putting onto the table, they left the library.

	"Personally, I think humour is needed in times like this," Wes commented.  "You 
know, like how they supplied the troops in World War II girlie magazines to keep them 
entertained."
	"I believe that was Vietnam," Smith corrected.  "The government gave WWII 
troops hard liquor."
	"Either way...!" Wes laughed.
	"Speaking of which, the swimsuit calender shoot will be held a week from 
tomorrow night.  So far, we only have one person signed up--"
	"Lemme guess: Sombrero," Wes joked.
	"Actually, no," Smith sounded surprised.
	"I knew I forgot something.  Give me that clipboard!" Sombrero grabbed for the 
clipboard.
	"Monika, as much as I would love to look your gorgeous body 365 days a year, I 
need a little variety."
	"Give me the clipboard!"
	"Sombrero, no!  Dear-Mary-Mother-of-God, NO!!"
	"Hey, of wonderful brother-dearest," Wes gushed.  "We're getting waved by 
Control Room!"
	"What is it, Fang?  Timmy fell down the well again?  He broke his leg--?  Now, 
Fang, you can't say that on radio, at least not before ten--oh, it's midnight already.  Then, 
swear away, oh wonderful Control Room...!  What's that?"
	Fang flipped him the bird from behind the soundproof glass, then scribbled 
something on a piece of paper, holding it up for Smith to read.  He squinted, reading 
aloud.
	"‘Boss is coming--you're fucked!'  Dammit, Fang, you made me say a swear 
word!"
	The door suddenly flung open.
	There was a silence, then....
	"When was the last time you Howard Stern wannabes bowed down to my 
greatness?" Brooklyn demanded.
	"Um, last week, Doctor Forrester," Smith whimpered.
	"No, I think that was more of a curtsy."
	"Then how about this."  Smith and Wes said simultaneously.  "We're not worthy!  We're not worthy!  We're scum!  We suck!"
	"Invisible robot fish," Sombrero muttered.
	"So what brings you to our little love-in with Angela?" Smith demanded, then 
quickly revised, "Lansbury, Broadway, I'm so sorry, dude...."
	"Because your little family quality public programming is jamming our intercom 
system."  Brooklyn snorted.
	"FANG!" Smith and Wes shouted.
	The cougar mutate poked his head into the room.
	"I had no part in this," he denied, and disappeared back behind the glass.
	"Go to music, freaks!" Brooklyn snickered.
	"We have been commanded by the almighty Brooklyn!" We grinned.
	"So let it be written, so let it be done," Smith interjected, then the two Outklaws 
sang together, "‘To kill the first born pharaoh son!  I'm Creeping Death!'"
	"All right, you cut-ups--"
	"We're going!" Smith protested.  "And now, as the oppression of the evil Doctor 
Frank-N-Futer--"
	"Anton Sevarius, bro."
	"Invisible robot fish."
	"--closes his tendrils of dread around our throats--"
	"There's something closing around your throats, boys, and it isn't Sevarius."
	"--we will temporarily sign off with music from all over the world!"
	"About frigging time," Brooklyn grumbled.
	Fang flipped a switch, and the "On Air" light blinked off.
	Brooklyn flicked the "Intercom" button and cleared his throat.
	"Everyone, courtyard in five minutes!  It's mandatory!  Folks, we're going to war 
and I'm not planning on taking any prisoners."

	He had forgotten what every gargoyle, mutate, and human became when 
strapping on the war gear.
	They were all ready for this moment.
	"We've pussyfooted long enough with this bastard."  Brooklyn strode out 
amongst his clan, his troops.  "Tonight is the night we strike Sevarius.  We will hit him 
hard enough to send him back to whatever maggot-infested hell he came from for good!"
	"Right on, brother!" Eddie hooted, her shotgun raised high above her head.
	"He has two highly dangerous objects that will, depending on who holds them, 
either end the war or the world.  The first item is the Phoenix Gate.  For those who are 
unaware of its power, upon a certain incantation, it will transport the possessor 
anywhere, anywhen.  The second is a shapeshifting dragon that if Sevarius gains control 
of her like he did Mauser, we're screwed."
	"What's the plan, fearless leader?" Smith shouted.
	Brooklyn met the eyes of all the clan, both adopted and what was left of the 
original.  When he saw the black voids of where Broadway's eyes should have been, he 
took a deep intake of air.
	"A full-blown frontal assault with a stealth team going into the back," he replied 
finally.
	There was a rash of conversation.
	"That's suicide!" Fang shouted.
	"And maybe that's what we've got to sacrifice!" Eddie snapped.  "Our lives for 
the countless humans out there who deserve a chance to live.  I'm not afraid to die for a 
just cause, and we can't wait much longer.  Sevarius' clones just get stronger.  Hit them 
now while we still have a chance.  I'm with you, Brook!"
	"Same here!" Macbeth added.  "I'll be damned if I can't squeeze one more fight 
out of these old bones of mine!"
	"For the right!" Mercedes shouted.
	Clay, Chaz, and Colt all yelled in excitement, Colt firing his Derringer nine-mm 
in the air a couple of times.
	"Let's kick some ass, brothers and sisters!" Chaz shouted.
	One by one, each of the rebels voiced their choice.
	"Sevarius' terror will end tonight!" Brooklyn shouted, raising his arms above his 
head.  The clan roared with his conclusion.
	"I want heavy hitters up front, coming in at ground level," Brooklyn pointed at 
Eddie.  "Ed, you're field commander.  Stealth leader's Renet."  He indicated to a woman 
who appeared human save for her green cat eyes and fine orange and black fur, striped 
like a tiger.  "Lex, how's the jammer coming?"
	"Brent's touching up on it even as we speak," Lexington retorted.
	Brooklyn nodded.
	"Eddie, Renet, call your teams."
	"Bluestone, Monika, Angela, Lexington, Alexander, and Broadway, with me!" 
Renet shouted.
	"I'm with Stealth!" Macbeth spoke up.
	"The rest of you, with me," Eddie pointed to Chaz.  "Take the transport rig with 
three-quarters of the troop.  The remaining quarter will take the bikes."  She then 
sheathed her shotgun and headed down to the garage.
	"Um, Cap'n America?" Smith waved his hand.  "Does that include the media?"
	"That includes everyone who can draw a sword and fire a laser, including the 
three of--where's Sombrero?"  Brooklyn did a quick head count.
	"And, for that matter, where's the Wicked Bitch of the East?" Wes muttered.
	Arin, watching from the shadows with the children, noted the brooding look on 
Brooklyn's face.
	Stiletto chewed on her lip and glanced up at Arin.
	"I've never trusted Grandmother," she whispered.
	"Same here," Tom agreed.
	"But both her and Sombrero missing?" Renet's ten-year-old daughter, Bastet, 
muttered.  "Do you think she...killed him?"
	"Enough, you guys," Arin warned.  "The lot of you stay put.  I'm going with 
them."
	"Arin," Tom whined, attaching himself to her arm, "Uncle Brooklyn said for you 
to stay here with us."
	"I abandoned her when she needed me; it's the least I can do to atone for 
that,"she muttered.  "And we need to get the bloody Gate back...or else..." she trailed off, 
her eyes wide in horrific realisation.
	"Arin," Stiletto touched her arm.  "We were raised with the war.  We're been told 
it could be anytime we could lose one or both of our parents.  I lost my father ten years 
ago.  But we were to look at the entire clan as our parents in case that happens."
	"Everyone is leaving, though."  Bastet clutched her hand.  "If they all die...."
	"They won't die, that I promise you," Arin gathered them into a group hug.  
"When we come back with Kade and the Phoenix Gate, no one will have to die."
	She turned to Stiletto.
	"I need a weapon, flak jacket, and a jammer," she ordered.
	The dark green female went to protest, then nodded.
	"Arin, please!" Tom and Bastet both clung onto her wrists.  "What about what 
Uncle Brooklyn--"
	"Brooklyn knows I don't follow orders," the tan gargoyle smirked as Stiletto 
opened the armory doors.  Grabbing a gargoyle-tailored flak jacket, a taze gun, a short 
sword, and a wrist guard with radio transmitter and frequency jammer, Arin suited up, 
touching it off by pulling her long tri-coloured hair into a tight bun.  "Stiletto, you're in 
charge until Brook and the others come back."
	"But what about you?"
	"Kade and I will be long gone."
	The four marched out to the courtyard; they watched the Stealth team--flyers and 
non-flyers wearing jet-packs--heading out across the East River to Long Island.  Waiting 
until they were only specks in the distance, she leapt off the wall.  As she did, a song 
blared from the radio speakers near the WVRN station door, a song from her speed metal 
punk days before going to London.
		"Just how far you gonna go
		Somebody should let you know
		Once you're in you ain't gettin' out
		Put aside your foolish pride
		So you take just one more ride
		I don't think you know
		What it's about
		When it comes.

		"Ridin' on a livin' hell
		Got another soul to sell
		Right is right and wrong is wrong
		Life's a dream
		On this machine
		And lasts just about as long."

	"Ain't that the truth," she muttered, following the Stealth team, although she felt 
in her gut that she really should have tailed Brooklyn in the frontal assault.
	But, if her mind was thinking correctly, she had to remain alive for Kade and her 
to escape.
	And, what chilled her more than the icy northern wind blowing above the East 
River, sending cold mist in her face, was the fact that she knew Brooklyn knew it.
	She needed to remain alive.  Why else would her mother make Brooklyn her 
Champion and Arin's protector?
	If she was able to get back home, this living hell wouldn't exist, would it?
	She hoped as she hit the jammer button and slipped through the detection grid.
	That was why Brook told her to stay at the Pyramid.
	But, even if she wasn't much on violence, she was known for putting up a fight.
	Must be that Scot blood in her veins.

***

	"Lilith!"
	The wingless gargoyle did not give the other woman much of an 
acknowledgment, but the other continued anyway.
	"Where's Sevarius?"
	"Studying the freak," Lilith retorted with a shrug.  "He put me in charge until he 
finishes up."
	"The Rebel Alliance is attacking with two waves.  One will hit the front, while 
another will sneak in the back."
	"I'll inform him."  Lilith nodded, then gave her informer a wary look.  "Why the 
sudden change, Mother?"
	Demona snorted, throwing her flaming red hair over her shoulder.
	"That lovesick bastard's gone suicidal.  A girl he was once in love with had 
resurfaced, and has a connection with the shapeshifter.  Apparently, she had the Phoenix 
Gate."
	"And the Rebel Leader will take on all of the clones and mutates just to help his 
love.  How romantic," Lilith laughed.  "And how nauseating."
	"How much you remind me of your father," Demona snarled.
	"I'll recall the hordes from Staten Island," Lilith changed the topic.  "Are you 
going to be a part of this?"
	"Hell yes," Demona chortled.  "I'm going to kill Brooklyn in front of that little 
hussy of his's, and then I'm going to do the same to her in front of Macbeth."
	"Sounds perfect, Mother," the wingless gargoyle smiled, then turned on her heel 
to the control room.
	Demona snorted and headed to the main corridor.

	Lilith fiddled with the gold and blue amulet.
	"Mauser," she beckoned, and the mindless gargoyle advanced to her.  "Go to 
Sevarius.  Tell him I have reason to believe Demona is no longer trustworthy.  All her 
passcodes should be nullified.  As for the rumor of the attack, inform him I've sent a 
horde to intercept."
	Mauser nodded and exited.
	She leaned back in her chair.
	"As for you, my friend," she directed to the large shadow behind her, "I want you 
to do what you can to jam all frequencies.  I want total radio silence."
	"Not a problem, oh beautiful one," the shadow dove under the frequency 
transmitter.  He pulled out wires and stuck them into sockets that weren't supposed to 
house wires.  "‘Sir, the radar...it seems to be...jammed!'
	"‘Jammed?'" There was a pause.  "‘Raspberry?!  There's only one person who 
dares give me the raspberry!  Lone Star!'" He suddenly sat up, hitting his head on the low 
clearance.  "‘Duck...!  I'm always forgetting that!'"
	"Do you ever say anything original?"
	"Only when I'm sleeping."

***

	Kade sensed a presence.
	It seemed human.
	She glanced around, seeing nothing.
	Senses tended to betray, however.
	"Who are you?" she demanded.
	"I am Sevarius.  I'm surprised you haven't heard of me, my dear."  The 
disembodied voice sounded a little shocked.
	"Not until I came here.  Where are you?"
	"I am here, don't worry about that."
	"Show yourself, coward, and reveal what you are."
	"A little forward, aren't you?"
	"Show yourself, coward!"
	"Have it your way."  The voice silenced, and she witnessed a wavering distortion 
in the air.  It took the form of a rather middle-aged man with short brown hair and 
sinister brown eyes.
	Dealing with undead before, she figured he was some sort of spectre, or maybe an 
intangible lich.
	"You're...undead...." she whispered.
	He shook his translucent head.
	"I am a pure and concentrated entity of psionic thought," he explained.
	"You're a poltergeist."
	"I didn't say that."
	"You are an unliving entity with malignant intentions who can alter the physical 
world around you.  You are a poltergeist."
	"Have it you way," the spectre repeated as Mauser entered the room, his dull 
green eyes the only illumination on his face.  "What is it?"
	"Lilith has reason to believe Demona is no longer trustworthy.  She is too 
wrapped up in the Alliance to be on any use to you.  There is a rumor of an attack, but 
Lilith has sent a horde to intercept."
	"Very good, my boy.  You may leave."
	Mauser nodded and left.
	"Good help is so hard to find; it's so much easier to create it," Sevarius chuckled.  
"Lilith and Mauser are the only brains I can trust.  Computer, lock out all codes for 
Demona."
	"Done," a female mechanical voice sounding a lot like Majel Barret complied.
	"Good."  The spectre returned his attention back to Kade.  "Now, my dear, if you 
don't mind, I would like to...examine...you."
	"Over my dead carcass!"
	"But you're so much valuable alive."  Sevarius protested as he passed through the 
laser bars.
	Out of fury--or fear, for she despised the undead--she shifted into mid-dragon 
form.
	"Interesting..." he mumbled.  "Computer, seal off lab.  Air, concentration, 
Cyanide, fifty percent."
	Kade knew it was inevitable.  As she blacked out, she barely heard the evil entity 
order, "Computer, remove bars."

***

	Arin crouched behind a vent, holding the taze gun in the ready position.  She 
checked her options.
	She had arrived shortly before the Stealth team, who were just landing.  They 
were obviously going through the roof access door.  It was the only way in.
	Arin scanned the roof.  Surely there would be some clones around.  She saw some 
off in the distance, but they were more or less milling around, paying no attention to the 
main building.
	A trap?
	She watched Renet point to Lexington.  He nodded and, with a sound of a quick 
buzz, he slowly began scanning the proximity.
	She swore silently to herself, remaining as still as she would is she was in stone 
hibernation.  If he was using infrared, she was screwed.
	She didn't dare move.
	Her hand touched the vent as she pondered her plan.  She almost had to yelp as 
she pulled away, the metal was so hot.
	Good, that blocked a thermal scan.
	She then saw Lex nod to Alexander.
	And abruptly she felt her mind probed.
	:Arin?: he magically whispered.
	She took a breath.
	:You shouldn't be here.: He continued.
	I know, Alexander, but I have too, she projected back, not knowing how the mind 
speech was properly done.  Please don't say anything.  I need to go along.  I just have 
a...feeling.
	He projected nothing more, but aloud he replied, "All clear."
	Atta boy, she smiled.
	"Take out the alarms on this door," Renet hissed.  The red-headed man nodded 
again.
	"‘Locks and bolts and alarms to this door/Rust and corrode; become no more!'" 
He chanted, touching the metal door with a hand surrounded by a blue/green glow.  
Instantaneously, the metal rusted away as if a million years of oxidation hit it at once.
	Macbeth took a step inside and, taze gun in the ready position.  He took another 
step.  He waved at the others an okay.
	Arin waited another five minutes before she actually went in after the group.
	For some reason, her wristband began singing very softly Statler Brothers' 
Greatest Hits.

***

	"‘Counting flowers on the wall, that don't bother me at all.  Playing solitaire till 
dawn, with a pack of fifty-one!'" The Dark man sang along with the frequency used to 
jam.
	Lilith laughed slightly and pecked him on the cheek.  "I've got to go to the front, 
kiddo," she whispered.  "I recommend you to stay here in the meantime."
	"No problem, foxy lady.  ‘Smoking cigarettes and watching Captain Kangaroo, 
now don't tell me I've nothing to do!'"

***

	The rig was the first to arrive, about four blocks from the Gen-U-Tech 
headquarters.
	Chaz and the others piled out, running militantly toward the rendezvous two 
blocks away.
	The motorcycles met them there, Eddie on her Suzuki Katana taking the point, 
Brooklyn and his Harley Sportster at shotgun, and another fellow, a humanoid named 
Blitz on a Kawasaki Ninja, went on ahead directly to the building.  The rest abandoned 
their bikes and followed on foot, weapons drawn and ready.
	Eddie split down an side street, clearing the path of any clones and mutates that 
would pose a problem to their rescue mission.  After a quick sweep of the area, she gave 
a thumbs-up to Brooklyn.  He nodded, brodying to a stop and snapping off the ignition.  
Dismounting, he drew his sword.
	He studied the exterior of the otherwise normal-appearing building and beckoned 
Blitz over toward him.
	"Scan the area," he whispered simply.
	"No problem," Blitz complied with a awkward grin and, with an alien word 
uttered from his lips, his Ninja transformed and became an armor suit around the 
humanoid's lank body.  A few seconds later, he retorted, "Brook, I'm only picking up 
roughly fifty clones in the building."
	"Only fifty?" Brooklyn raised an eyeridge.  "Any others in the area?"
	Eddie cut her engine and joined the two.
	"Visual scan's zip, bro," she whispered, her infared sensor dilated, then relaxed.  
"There's a horde along the Jersey coast line, and they have no intentions of moving.  All 
others are further inland."
	"Confirming with Ed's speculations...confirmed," Blitz agreed.
	"Three times a charm, bro," Eddie then stated.  "You can pick up anything out of 
the ordinary better than our equipment."
	Brooklyn said nothing, just closed his eyes and opened the floodgates of his mind.
	(confirmed, blitz, eddie, only fifty at present...sense stealth team in the rear...other 
entities milling around...no indication of a trap...sense large psionic fluxes in main 
laboratory...one sevarius, the other...it's kade...oh, god, arin's here!)
	He broke the telepathic link between the other two and opened his eyes.
	"Dammit!" He swore as the rest of the squad joined up with the three.
	"What's the plan?" Chaz demanded.
	Brooklyn shook his head clear, then beckoned Chaz and Eddie to come to his 
side.
	"Chaz, take Colt, Beavis, and Butt-head, and flank us.  Eddie, make as much 
noise as possible taking out that door.  We need to attract all the attention we can get to 
keep them off Stealth's asses."
	Eddie grinned evilly as she held up her ion cannon, a large piece of technological 
warfare only a gargoyle could possibly hoist.
	"Just give me the go, amigo," she snarled, heading up to the front.
	"Everyone," he raised his dai-katana, "On my mark..."
	"It's too quiet," Mercedes whispered.  "I don't like this."  With a flick of her 
wrists, her knife spikes slid out of their sheathes noiselessly and locked into place.
	"I know," Brooklyn agreed.  "But Eddie, Blitz, and I all did separate scans of the 
place.  No indications of a trap whatsoever."
	"Dumb, dumb dumb dumb," Smith muttered, unsure of the laser rifle he held.
	"Then let's attack fast and furious," Eddie snapped.
	The Leader growled, knowing Eddie was right.  Raising his sword, he bellowed, 
"ATTACK!"
	Eddie stood straight and, with an intangible battle cry, she pulled the trigger.  The 
cannon charged with a high-pitched whine, progressively louder, then let loose a burst of 
ion particles, disintegrating the doors and shattering all the windows within a quarter-
mile radius.  Two clones behind the doors also received the charge, sharing the same 
demise as the doors with bloodcurdling screams.  Eddie advanced into the darkened 
corridor, with Brooklyn at her side.
	"It's gotta be a trap, good buddy," she commented, sharing her rookery sister's 
earlier suspicion.
	"Lex's jammer must be working," Colt put his wristguard up to his ear.  Everyone 
did the same.
	"‘So be it, threaten no more.  To secure peace is to prepare for war.  So be it, 
settle the score.  Touch me again for the words you will here evermore--'"
	"‘Don't Tread On Me!'" all who were familiar with Metallica called out with 
new enthusiasm.
	"Unfortunately, Cap'n America," Smith tapped his armband, "this doesn't seem 
like something Lex would do.  I mean, he wouldn't take the time to tap into our own 
WVRN tower, or stupid enough, by that rationale."
	"Are you saying, my fraternal twin in spirit," Wes interjected, "that--"
	"--That this is the work of Sombrero?" Smith smirked.  "Hell yeah."

***

	Lilith heard an explosion further down the corridor, ducking into a doorway.  The 
ozone smell of ion discharge mingled with a chemical fire.
	"Lilith!"
	She faced her mother, who appeared suddenly behind her.
	"Where are the hordes, like you said?"
	"Frequencies have been jammed.  I can't get in contact with anything," she 
answered bluntly.
	"Damn!" Demona swore, readying her plasma rifle.  "How many clones remain 
here?"
	"Fifty at the most."
	"We may have enough."
	"Not so, Mother."  Lilith raised her own rifle.  "We have reason to believe there 
is a traitor in our midst.  You are the only suspect."
	"What?" The azure gargoyle laughed.  "You're out of your mind, child."
	"Am I?" And the wingless gargoyle shot her mother.

***

	"AARRGGHH!"
	Arin's emerald eyes widened in horror.
	"Da," she whispered, slipping behind a trash bin and stared toward the fallen 
Scotsman.  She saw nor heard no gunshot, though....
	"Demona must be nearby," Lexington whispered.  "She must have been shot.  
Technically, he's dead."
	"No," she whimpered, tears welling in her eyes.
	"Then what are we going to do with him until he wakes up?" Monika demanded.
	What?
	"Broadway," Lex nodded to his blind brother.  "Stay with him until he comes to."
	"Gotcha," the larger gargoyle agreed, grabbing his mate as a last minute decision 
and gave her a quick but passionate kiss.
	"No matter what happens, Angela," he whispered, caressing her scarred cheek, 
"I'll always love you, now and forever.  You remember that, all right?"
	Although he could not physically see it, Angela nodded, fighting tears.
	"Atta girl," he smiled, patting her arm.
	"I will always love you," she nodded again, and left to rejoin the rest of the group.
	Arin also fought tears, thinking about Brooklyn.  She watched Broadway sit with 
his back to the wall next to her fallen father.  She waited a minute, then crawled out from 
her hiding place.  She padded as silently as possible to them, then looked down at 
Macbeth.  He was breathing.  Good thing.  Walking quietly past the two, she thought of 
where to go next.
	And a turquoise hand clasped her mouth, pulling her down.
	"What are you doing here?" he hissed, relaxing his grip.  His sightless sockets 
seemed to study her face, and it chilled her.
	"I couldn't just sit around twiddling my thumbs," she retorted.  "How did you 
know it was me, anyway?"
	"Your irregular footsteps," he answered truthfully, tapping the devise around his 
neck.  "You're still a little off-balance.  You use your tail for balance rather than your 
knees.  I know it's you, Arin."  He smirked somewhat.  "I can hear the determination in 
your breath.  Your's sounds like Macbeth's."
	She smiled as well, patting his arm.
	"I've got to go, old friend," she whispered, standing up.
	"Be careful, and good luck, Arin," Broadway nodded.
	"Thank you, Broadway," she headed to tail the others.

***

	Demona held her head, cursing to find herself in the control room's confinement 
area.
	"So, Mr. Bond, you are awake."
	That voice....
	Her eyes penetrated the back of the chair she faced.  On either side of the high 
back chair, she saw the wide brim of a hat, or more specifically, a--
	"Sombrero," she growled, rushing the bars, only to be thrown back by the laser 
discharge.
	"I'm sorry, ma'am, but you forgot to put the answer in the form of a question," 
Sombrero swiveled in the chair and grinned broadly.
	"Why are you here?" she demanded, rubbing her burned shoulder.
	"Simple: I'm in love with your youngest daughter.  Since we were on opposing 
sides, one of us had to sacrifice, either Lilith from Sevarius, or myself from Brooklyn."
	"And you chose to separate from Brooklyn."
	"No; actually, we both not claim neutrality.  We collect information, but do not 
participate in actual battle."
	"You are not Sombrero," Demona snarled.  "You are too intelligent to be that 
simple-minded peon.  Who are you?"
	"Oh, you wouldn't want to--"
	"Who are you?!"
	"Well, since you asked so nicely," Sombrero shrugged, removing his hat.  His 
form suddenly spun around, tornado-fashion.
	Demona recognised the entrance and groaned.
	"Puck," she snarled.
	"Correctomundo, Miss Permanent-PMS-Case!" The white haired fae winked.
	"What are your true intentions?" she demanded.
	"Oh, now, why should I tell you that?" Puck stroked his chin.
	"Lilith is the traitor.  That's why the hordes haven't returned.  She never recalled 
the troops."
	"Over a thousand years old, and you're finally catching on," he smiled.
	"You're as annoying as ever."
	"Thank you."  Puck glanced out the door.  She shouted at the clones who walked 
by, but Puck only laughed.
	"Magic shield.  Gotta love it," he muttered.
	She snarled, then suddenly heard a burst of conventional fire and laser discharge 
filling the corridor.  An explosion of body parts splattered on the walls.  Watching as 
Eddie walked militantly past, followed by Brooklyn, who stopped dead in front of the 
doorway, she was struck by an idea.
	"My love!" She shouted.  "Please, help me!  Sevarius has me...help!"
	She knew Puck's screen would mask them from eyes and ears, but could not 
block clairvoyance and telepathy.
	He barred his teeth, spun around, and slammed into the magical barrier, his sword 
millimetres from Puck's nose.
	"You?!" he roared.
	"I bring a message from Titania," the fae bowed formally. "Not everything's as it 
seems, my Lady's Champion.  Use your abilities she has granted you, and trust your 
heart."  And, with that, he vanished.
	"My love, let me out!" Demona cried.
	"Where were you when I called meeting?" He demanded as he studied the control 
panel.
	"Scouting Staten Island, like I said I would," she protested.
	He swiped a couple of switches downward, powering down the cage.  She threw 
her arms around his neck.
	"Thank you for listening to me, my love," she whispered, pulling away as if she 
was reluctant to.
	"Yeah, well, we've got to get going," Brooklyn retorted, turning away.
	There was a loud pop after Demona snatched up a conventional nine-millemetre 
from the table with silencer and fired it point blank in one fluid motion, catching 
Brooklyn through the neck.
	He had no time to scream in pain as he fell forward.
	"A waste," she snarled, shooting Colt as well as he passed, bolting through the 
rest of the resistance.
	"Shit!" Eddie unsheathed her shotgun with her free hand, rolling to avoid 
Demona's fire.  If the bitch wanted to get conventional....
	"Forgive me, Macbeth, for this splitting migraine," she whispered, aimed, and 
fired.
	Demona went down, the double Remington buckshot embedding a hole just 
above her eyes but below her headband.
	"That'll keep her down for now.  Delilah, throw her in that cage back there!  
Mercedes, check on Brook!"
	"Eddie," Chaz whispered, bringing up the still form of Colt, with Smith, Wes, and 
Clay following solemnly.  "The bitch...she killed...." He choked.
	She stared at the wound, a puncture through the left temple of the dark blue 
gargoyle.
	"Mauser, Magnum, now Colt," she shook her head.  "We're losing too many of 
your brothers to this war...."
	"Edwidge," Mercedes beckoned softly.  "It's...Brooklyn...he's...dead...."
	Eddie blinked, stormed into the control room, roared, and, bolting out with a 
running start, kicked the unconscious woman's ribs, feeling them break under her talons.
	"Eddie," Chaz whispered.  "You're in charge now."

***

	Arin felt a sudden pang of...emptiness?...as she walked the shadows.
	A hand touched her shoulder.  Spinning around, she buried the taze gun in the 
chin of her attacker.
	Who wasn't an attacker at all.  She relaxed.
	"Sorry, bloke," she whispered.  "A little jumpy."
	"It's okay, Arin," Broadway nodded, walking along with her.
	"What about my da?"
	"Someone's doing a number on Demona.  Don't worry; he'll live, unless he and 
Demona kill one another.  Even that I doubt."
	Arin seemed somewhat relieved, although she really hadn't a clue what he meant.  Her throat abruptly began bothering her.
	And a flash of remembrance struck her.
	"It's Brooklyn,"she hissed, seeing herself through Brooklyn's eyes as she casted 
the involuntary spell that--
	--that she gave a piece of her own lifeforce for him to live!
	"Broadway!  He's been shot!" She panicked, breaking into a run.  "He's dying!  
I've got to--"
	"Arin!" Alexander caught her as she rushed past.  "He's...gone...."
	Angela took her hand and pulled the shocked woman over for a sisterly hug.
	"I'm sorry," she whimpered, tears flooding her eyes and down her scarred cheek.
	"This can't be happening..." Arin mumbled.  "This can't be fucking happening!"
	"What now?" Monika whispered.
	Renet stared at Arin, then to Broadway, then back to Monika.
	"We go on, I suppose," she sighed, shocked.

***

	After the excitement was over, he nudged the dead gargoyle with his toe.
	Yep.  Definitely dead.
	With a snap of his fingers, Puck levitated the three-hundred pound piece of meat 
right-side-up so that its sightless lipid hazel eyes stared at the metal ceiling.
	"As much as I hate your taste in music, Brook," he quipped, "‘So much blood for 
such a tiny little hole.'"
	No response, as was expected.
	"Now didn't I tell you to use those abilities of yours?  Titania didn't give them to 
you so you could file them away for occasional parlor tricks.  And what's with you 
falling for Superbitch again, you poor lovefool?  She isn't who Titania told you to watch, 
was she?  I wasn't banished from Avalon to babysit the Resistance leader.  However," 
Puck raised a finger, "Titania and Oberon are ready to cut a deal with you, my Lady's 
Champion.  Since you haven't forfilled your roll as Arin's protector, Titania will grant 
you tonight--and tonight only--to get the Phoenix Gate and return Arin, and the Khhithsig 
Kade, back home.  After that, it's sort of the flip side of the deal: if they return back to 
their appropriate timelines, you are a possibility will cease to exist.  Deal?"
	Silence.
	"Good.  ‘Avenging angel, from death shall rise/Bring forth your wrath for thy 
enemy's demise!'"
	Puck's eyes flared green, channeling Avalon's power through him into the 
cadaver.
	The lipid hazel eyes blazed white hot, and the corpse drew a breath.
	"ARIN!" Brooklyn roared, leaping to his feet.
	"Bravo!" Puck clapped.  "Bravo!  The Puck brings forth Her Majesty's 
Champion!"
	"Where is she?" The white-eyed avenger demanded.
	"Listen, Brook, I've chalked this up with Big Daddy as aiding Alexander.  As for 
Titania, you were supposed to be watching out for her daughter and make sure she's safe.  You only have--" the fae checked his Timex "--two hours before sunrise.  Your mission 
from the Lord and Lady themselves is to destroy Sevarius' evil, since he threatens Avalon 
herself.  Remember, Protect Arin, Destroy Sevarius.  Say it with me: Protect Arin, 
Destroy Sev--"
	"I get the idea," he mumbled.
	"Just remember, you're no longer mortal, though you're not immortal neither.  
Just remember, you have the power, use it!  Plus a couple of nifty extras Titania threw in 
at no extra cost, save that at sunrise, you'll turn to dust."
	"Depressing," he rubbed his throat.
	"Sorry, but it's the only thing I'm allowed to do.  You're got so much to do in so 
little time, big guy.  Kick some ass for the old Puckster!  Go get ‘em, Tiger!"
	"I get the idea," he repeated, reaching for his dai-katana.  With a sub-conscious 
burst of telekinesis, it flew to his hand as he saluted the fae just before racing out of the 
control room.
	Puck grinned, satisfied.
	"Now to go wake up the real Sombrero," he chuckled.  "He's going to hate it 
when I disturb his invisible robot fish dream, though."

***

	By the expression Arin wore on her face, she was, in a nutshell, pissed.
	Her taze gun at hip level, she marched with the rest of them, her Scottish blood 
pumping through her veins, as powerful and venomous as dragon ichor.
	She was a warrior, a daughter of kings.
	Lexington was scanning the walls of the darkened corridor, searching for any 
indication of a door or hidden access, for the entire hall seemed to be made of metal.
	"Nothing here," he sighed occasionally, continuing.
	"Kade, please," Arin mumbled under her breath.  "Please give me a sign."
	"I'm picking up clone activity!" Lex suddenly switched to battle mode, his arm 
and shoulder laser mounts rising to the occasion.
	"How many?" Bluestone demanded, his voice strong.
	"I've got twenty, at least!"
	Arin unsheathed her sword as well.
	And then the clone horde came into visual range.
	"For Brooklyn!" Angela shrieked, discharging her laser rifle.

***

	A fleeting memory of the Underwear Open crossed Mauser's normally blanked 
mind as he walked aimlessly down the halls.
	"Mauser, come here."
	That voice...it was not authorised under Sevarius' programming.  But something 
about it forced him to obey as he turned and faced the seven-foot avenger, calm and 
placid with the exception of the blazing white eyes.
	"Mauser, do you know where the Phoenix Gate is?"
	The dark green gargoyle nodded.
	"Retrieve it for me, old friend, and I will free you of your binds."
	Mauser nodded again and vanished to an adjacent corridor.  Not much time 
passed, and he returned, presenting the pouch to the avenger, bright white orbs glaring 
into dull green.
	"Thank you. And now for my part...." He hovered his hand over the right side of 
Mauser's head, telekinetically shorting the neurochips within Mauser's brain, causing the 
rigid male to scream.  He crumbled to the ground, panting.
	And then he stared back up at his old friend with brown eyes the color of 
mahogany.
	"Thank you, Brooklyn," he gasped, standing unsteadily.
	"Go home, Mauser.  You deserve a rest."
	"And my daughter...?"
	"She awaits you there.  You've done all you can.  Go home."
	The green male laughed shortly.
	"Has it truly been ten years?" he demanded.  The copper red gargoyle nodded, 
continuing on his way.
	Stared after the Leader, swore, scratched his head, then decided to not look a gift 
horse in the mouth and bolted out the hole Eddie had blasted earlier.  Stealing Mercedes' 
Honda motorcycle from the rest of the vehicles, he kickstarted it and rode across the 
Brooklyn Bridge, slipping through the flickering detection grid.
	And, for the first time in his life, he cried.

***

	Kade hurt something fierce, her hands talons, her wings fully outstretched, yet the 
rest of her was human.
	"For the love of Mother Cerridwen," she whispered, "please stop this torture."
	"But we've only just begun!" The voice whined mockingly, as another jolt of 
binary commands shot through the electrodes attached to the sides of her temples, 
forcing her wings to shrivel into her back and her legs becoming those for perching.
	Please, all aspects of the triple goddess, she pleaded mentally, allow me to pass out.
	"Fascinating," the poltergeist grinned evilly.  "This is so much more beyond my 
expectations."
	"Let her go, Sevarius."
	Sevarius willed himself to turn and face the defiler.
	"Question: how did you get in here, gargoyle?" he demanded, noticing the steel 
door still locked in place.
	"Answer: the same way you did," the avenger leaned against the wall, staring 
down the geneticist.
	Kade stared wide-eyed, half in pain, the rest in shock, as she sprawled the 
quartering rack.
	"Brooklyn?" She hissed, though she remembered him a slouching lank fellow, not 
this towering powerhouse.
	"You cannot harm me, creature, anymore than you can hurt your own shadow," 
Sevarius chuckled, returning his attention to Kade.
	"Can't I?" Brooklyn crossed his arms over his chest and chuckled back.
	"You're bluffing.  Your mortal body has boundaries my ethereal body has 
overcome."
	"Oh, really?" the avenger shot his arm out, grabbing the intangible lab coat.  "So 
what about the dead?  Do they hold a threat to you?"
	"What?!" Both the spectre and the tortured dragon demanded.
	He tapped his throat.
	"Demona killed me about a half-hour ago, point blank.  Technically, I'm dead." 
The avenger yanked the other spectre close, his burning eyes blinding, his mouth curled 
into a malicious grin.  "I had to complete my mission, thought.  I am to destroy your evil 
before you destroy the world."
	"And how do you expect to pull that off?" Sevarius questioned sardonically. "You 
cannot kill a spirit."
	"Have you ever heard of Oblivion?"  With that rhetoric statement, he spread his 
wings their full span.  The dark red membrane darkened until it was she same colour as 
the outer side, and blackened even still, into the absence of colour.
	Sevarius stared within the fathomless depths and screamed as the avenger drew 
his wings closer around his body, around the poltergeist, until the wings met.
	"You are an ugly stain on history, evil one," the avenger commented, mantling his 
wings once more.  "One that deserves erasure."
	"You...you condemned him to a fate worse than Hell, Brook," Kade whispered.
	"Can you revert, Kade?" he demanded, ignoring her observation.
	Kade closed her eyes, her long legs returning to normal.
	"I think he was trying to figure me out first," she muttered, yanking at the chains.  
"Reinforced titanium.  If I wasn't so damn weak--"
	He raised a hand, the chains falling away from her wrists and ankles.
	"I bet I look like hell," she smirked, trotting weakly next to him.
	"I've seen worse."

***

	The eight fought the best they could, but three-to-one odds were not looking 
good.
	But the ring of the double-barrel shotgun retorted the tide was about to turn.
	Eddie holstered the shotgun and drew her nine-millemetre, for she ran out of 
shells and had lost her ion cannon somewhere among the battles between when they lost 
Brooklyn and now, and fired expertly at a clone jumping at her.  Her right arm hung 
limply at her side, and only half the frontal assault team still remained standing, and then 
in various stages of wounded.
	Any more crossfire ceased.  In close quarters, this was difficult.  A marksman like 
Eddie would have risked it if the clones didn't fire.
	Which they were.
	Raising the short sword, Arin shrieked a battle cry and charged before anyone 
could protest.
	"STOP!!!"
	The deafening effect of the enclosed corridor was not needed to get the full effect 
of the order.
	What remained of the clan gawked in shock, relief, and fear.
	Arin's sword fell to the ground with a loud clang as she staggered toward 
Brooklyn.  Kade, ragged as she was, stood at his right, claymore drawn.
	A clone grabbed Arin's hair as she passed, yanking her head back and pushing a 
talon to her throat.
	And, silently, it imploded with a mental shove from the avenger.
	"Your master now resides in Oblivion, freaks," Brooklyn remarked coldly.  
"Unless you wish to join him, surrender."
	Another swung at Brooklyn.  Arin rolled to her shoulder and fired the taze gun 
into its gut, frying it.
	"I will not give any more prompts."
	"The remaining clones threw down their weapons and collectively engaged 
autodestruct mechanisms.
	"SHIELD!" Brooklyn shouted, as all able gargoyles formed a wall of wings 
toward the suicidal clones, Brooklyn shielding Kade and Arin.
	A click, an explosion, and a rain of entrails, body parts, and blood coursed down 
on the victorious rebels.
	"It's over," the avenger whispered.

***

	"Arin?"
	"One moment, Kade," Arin climbed up the stairway to the courtyard.  "Hey, 
Brooklyn!"
	The white-eyed avenger nodded toward her and trotted over.  Everyone was 
conversing with one another excitedly, especially Monika, Mauser, and Stiletto, although 
none one dared brave to talk to Brooklyn, nor about him.
	"This is good-bye, eh?" he whispered, his gentle hands running through her tri-
coloured hair.
	"Never," she smiled sadly.  "I figured it out.  You're not Brooklyn.  You're 
Shadow."
	Shadow grinned, his white eyes at once became rich hazel.
	"How did you figure me out, bright sun?" he demanded softly.
	"Because only you knew about the extent of Mother's curse.  You had to serve 
out as Titania's Champion until no longer needed."
	"And, in this story, my bright sun, I'm no longer needed," Shadow nodded.  "It is 
my unspoken agreement with your mother.  To love you, I must protect you and serve 
her.  And I would gladly do so until the end of time."  He bent down and kissed her 
cheek, moist with tears. "Shadow and Brooklyn are one, Arin; however, they cannot 
become one unless he learns to master his powers, not hide them.  Work with him, Arin.  
Help him understand.  Now, get going.  It'll be sunrise in a few minutes."
	See you then, Shadow."
	"Godspeed, my bright sun."
	Arin did not glance back as she rejoined Kade.

	Shadow heard Arin's melodious voice chant the incantation, and the burst of 
flame.
	Puck stood next to him, smiling at the lightening sky.  He stood almost two feet 
shorter than the gargoyle.
	"So she figured you out," the fae chuckled.
	"She had always figured me out," Shadow retorted.
	"Titania brings you a small token of gratitude, my friend."
	"Which is...?"
	"Do you know how Arin feels when she cannot see the sunrise?"
	"No...."
	"Look."  Puck directed Shadow's gaze to the eastern sky.
	His hazel eyes widened as his gargoyle kin froze in stone hibernation.
	The warm, gentle rays of the sun caressed his flesh, not unlike...
	...not unlike Arin's touch.
	Tears of joy streamed his cheeks.
	It was beautiful.  Day was beautiful.
	He soaked the warmth up, crying a shout of triumph, as his body disintegrated, 
gliding on the winds of a stream of time, to follow Arin with new hope.
	Maybe some day, Arin and Brooklyn would share the sunrise together.


NEXT TIME IN THE SICK AND TWISTED MIND OF AMY K. CYRWAY (C'EST 
MOI!): "Gliding on the Winds of Time, Part 4: Megalomania" comes to be when Kade 
and Arin are transported to Avalon...and Avalon has a new ruler.  An interesting twist on 
"Eye of the Storm".  Also, be watching out for "‘If I Leave Here Tomorrow, Will You 
Still Remember Me?'", a Christmas story that doesn't necessarily turn out the way it 
should...although we get to see Hudson in a Santa Claus (Claws?) suit, and "Ohayoo 
Nippon!: Half a World Away" dealing with Clan Ishimura and Clan Winslow, and a 
strange connection between the two clans....  And another thing, my rookery sis, 
Mercedes, is working on her first fanfic, "A Moment of Rage".  It's a strange piece, 
involving the Black Sword, an ancient Greek clan, and two souls who share a common 
past...and a runaway gargoyle who finds herself at Castle Wyvern.

This piece was fun to write, just a note.  Therefore, we (Sombrero, Mercedes, and 
myself) have created the Clone Wars universe, starting with the basics and eventually 
coming up with an entire story line.  See the page on 
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Corridor/7900/clonewar.htm where I've even created a 
Clone Wars logo!  This is where any of my Clone Wars fanfic will be posted until I get 
cleared with my other fanfic plans.

And who said it was only a dream?

Also, Blitz, a character created by ShadowBrook, was a last-minute addition to the 
Resistance family.  More on him later.  Thanx, dude, for being so patient.  I would give 
him pieces of Part Three, stopping the first time at when Brooklyn tells everyone they 
were going to war and were not taking any prisoners, I was sitting at the desk in the 
library and I hear from the computer lab, "WHAT THE HELL?!"  The second time was 
just after Brooklyn gets shot, and I hear, "NOOOOO!!!  WHAT THE HELL?!  
CYRWAY!!!  WHERE'S THE REST?!"

--Black Blade "My Cosmic Song Goes On For Eternity"

SOUNDTRACK:

"Zero" by Smashing Pumpkins, from "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness"

"The Imperial March" is from "The Empire Strikes Back".  Just to let you know.

"Creeping Death" by Metallica, from "Ride the Lightning"

"Playing With Spiders/Skullkrusher" by Overkill, from "The Years of Decay"

"Flowers on the Wall" by the Statler Brothers, from "Greatest Hits"

"Don't Tread On Me" by Metallica, from "Metallica"

The quotes Sombrero/Puck recites is from Mel Brooks' "Spaceballs" and "Robin 
Hood:Men in Tights"