"Of Steel and Stone"
A Gargoyles Adventure by Stephanie Lostimolo
raptorl@usa.pipeline.com

This story takes place after "The Mirror" but before "Avalon." Try not to
confuse it with "A Different Point of View," my other story, which falls
into the same time period. If you read one, try not to think of the other. 
It's less confusing. I've learned a lot more about the Gargoyles universe 
since I wrote that story, so there are a few mistakes in it that I didn't 
make in this story you're about to read. And for legal purposes, everybody 
in this story belongs to Disney and all that other stuff that I don't need
to say 'cuz you guys already know it. And now, on with the show!


	"Are you sure this will work, Xanatos?" hissed Demona as she scrolled through
a Xanacorp Robotics Firm wireframe drawing on his computer. "Last time you
tried this, you failed, miserably."
	David Xanatos glared at her. "You mean, we failed miserably."
	Demona didn't even bother to look at him. "That's what I said, you failed
miserably." She tapped the left mouse button.
	Xanatos smiled with evil satisfaction. "Let's just say...this time I've
made some improvements, my dear."
	Demona's green eyes slowly came into view from behind the monitor with
which she had been transfixed. "Never call me that again, Xanatos."
	The eccentric billionaire felt a chuckle in his throat but stifled it.
"You never said anything bef-"
	"Just never do it again!" Demona snapped. She abruptly stood up from
Xanatos' chair and walked toward him. The chair flew backwards and almost
sailed through the window, but it ran into Owen Burnett first.
	Xanatos looked at him. Owen nodded his head and stood up straight as he
rolled the chair back under the desk. He pushed his glasses back up on his
nose.
	Demona stopped to stare Xanatos in the eye. "No human...especially
you...will claim any sort of possession over me." With that, she turned and
headed for the door. Xanatos reached out and put his hand on her shoulder.
"Hold it."
	Demona ceased to walk any further. She turned her head and looked at him.
"What," she breathed, "is your hand doing on my shoulder?"
	Xanatos took his hand away from her shoulder and stepped back. He folded
his arms, frowning. "Where do you think you're going?"
	Demona turned to face him completely. "You said you needed magic for this
little fiasco, did you not?"
	Xanatos was still frowning. "It's not a fiasco, Demona. It's a-"
	"Did you not?"
	Xanatos narrowed his eyes. "Yes."
	"And you came to me for that magic, did you not?"
	"Yes, Demona. Now just let me say something-"
	"Shut up, human. I speak, and you listen. The magic you need is really not
that powerful. It's sort of a...well, how can I put this for someone like
you...eh...point and click spell. We go out there, simply name our target,
recite the incantation, and the magic will find the target. Easy as pie."
	"That's not the point-"
	"It's rather easy to come by...if you know where to look."
	"All right, then, so why don't-"
	"And I know where to look, Xanatos."
	Xanatos was becoming irritated. "Yes, so why don't you just go get the
spell and come back? It's really not that difficult."
	Demona turned to leave again. "Because I don't take orders from anyone."
	Xanatos tapped his forefinger on the wall. "Whoa, wait a minute. First,
you want to help me...now, you-"
	"I never wanted to help you. I am in this for myself. Just remember that.
When something needs to be done...it will. But on my terms."
	Xanatos glanced back at Owen. The servant's right eyebrow lifted slightly.
	Demona found her chance and began to walk away. This time she made it
halfway down the hall before Xanatos realized she was gone. He caught up
with her and snapped, "Just get me the spell, Demona." He then smiled. "And
you'll be rewarded. Handsomely."
	Demona felt the urge to growl at Xanatos. "My best interests are not in
money, Xanatos. I think I have enough of that." She thought a moment. "What
I want is something that...I must admit...would require your assistance."
	"Finally, the brat admits she needs me," breathed Xanatos.
	Demona heard what he said, shot him a glance, and continued, "The only
reason I'm in this is because I want revenge."
	Xanatos rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to say something, but Demona
quickly put her hand up to his mouth and hissed, "I want the gargoyles
dead, Xanatos."
	Xanatos thought, might as well make the lady happy. He pushed her hand
away and sighed, "Agreed."  
                 


	Elisa Maza stood at the edge of the clock tower's balcony, watching the
sun make its descent behind the horizon. She was here at this time every
day.
	The detective looked to her side and smiled at Lexington's frozen form.
She then looked at Bronx, then to Brooklyn. Farther behind Brooklyn stood
Hudson, sword in hand, ready for battle. Then she turned her head to see
Broadway sitting there, a smile frozen on his face.
	Must have just finished eating somethin' good, thought Elisa, and she
smiled.
	Elisa's eyes then fell upon Goliath's powerful form. What a majestic beast
he was.
	But Elisa knew he wasn't a beast at all.
	The sunlight had disappeared. Elisa stepped back as the sound of crumbling
stone filled her ears. She then raised her eyebrow and smiled as each of
the six gargoyles woke from their stone sleep and burst from their frozen
forms, sending little bits of stone skin all over the place.
	Bronx yawned, scratched behind his ear with his hind foot, and jumped to
the balcony floor. He trotted past Elisa and she petted him on the back.
"Good boy, Bronx," she laughed quietly, "good boy."
	Lexington, Brooklyn, and Broadway followed the quadruped gargoyle inside
the clock tower. Lex smiled at Elisa. "Hi Elisa."
	Broadway went inside after him. "Bye Elisa."
	Elisa smiled at Brooklyn. He just shrugged and smiled back. He then folded
his wings over his shoulders and followed the others inside.
	Elisa came up next to Goliath and put her hand on his arm. He looked down
at her and smiled. "Good evening, Elisa."
	Elisa smiled back. "Hey, Goliath."
	She then spotted Hudson on the other end of the balcony by himself,
brooding. "What's wrong, Hudson?" Elisa called out. She and Goliath walked
over to where he was standing.
	Hudson turned and sighed. "I dunno, lass...somethin' about
tanight...there's danger in the air...I can feel it."
	Goliath smiled and put his hand on the old gargoyle's shoulder. "Don't
worry, Hudson...what could possibly go wrong?"
	Elisa tried not to laugh. There were a million things that could go wrong,
and they all started with one word: Demona.
	Goliath just looked at Elisa. She got the message and looked to her side,
clearing her throat. "Really, Hudson, there's nothing to be worried about."
	But nobody could come up with a reason why.
	Hudson looked at them and smiled, the wrinkles in his old face deepening.
"You're right. I suppose it's the old age finally setting in-"
	"Nonsense, Hudson," laughed Goliath.
	The elderly beast folded his wings over his shoulders. He looked up at the
huge clock face and gasped. "Aye....I'm missing my show!" He looked back to
Goliath and Elisa and smiled.  "I'll be seeing you two later."
	Elisa and Goliath exchanged looks and smiled as Hudson waved at them and
hurried inside.
	Now only Elisa and Goliath stood on the balcony, first gazing at each
other, and then at the darkening night sky. The fiery orange had faded, and
now all that was left were streaks of pink clouds set against a purple sky.
Stars were slowly becoming visible.
	The air was still. The only sounds that could be heard were the city's
noises far below. Every now and then, a siren or two would wail by down on
the street, or a car alarm would go off for a few minutes, but other than
that, the night was rather peaceful.
	And Elisa couldn't be happier that she was sharing it with Goliath.
	"I worry about him sometimes," Elisa said softly as she turned to face
Goliath.
	Goliath looked at Elisa and smiled. "As do I, Elisa. Hudson is getting
old, and he's seen many things...but I think we're safer now than we've
ever been. There's no reason for him to worry so much...." his voice
trailed off as he watched something soar by in the distance.
	Elisa squinted, trying to see what Goliath was looking at. "What is it,
Goliath?"
	Goliath raised his horned eyebrow. "Is that not Xanatos' helicopter?"
	Elisa frowned as she saw it, too. "That's his chopper, all right. Great.
Now what is that jerk up to?"
	"Hudson was right!" Goliath put his foot up on the railing and fanned out
his wings, preparing to jump off the balcony. His muscles tensed in anger.
	Elisa put her hand on his shoulder. "Wait, Goliath."
	The lavender gargoyle turned to face her.
	Elisa spoke nervously. "I wouldn't take that guy alone if I were you. Last
time you tried that, you almost got killed."
	Goliath turned to jump again. "I will be more careful this time, Elisa.
Tell the others-"
	Elisa then pulled him down by his arm. "Goliath...let's just wait until he
makes his move, then we'll have a reason to get the creep."
	Goliath sighed. She was right. What was the point in fighting a battle he
couldn't win? "Would you like me to stay, then?"
	Elisa let go of his arm and backed away. She turned to look at the fading
glow of the sunset on the horizon. "Well, it would make me feel a little
better...you know...knowing you're okay."
	Goliath still smiled at her as he settled his wings over his shoulders and
jumped down from the railing. He walked up to Elisa and gingerly ran a
single talon through her hair, pulling the stray hairs away from her eyes.
"Then I shall stay here, if it makes you feel better," he said softly.
	Elisa looked to her side. "You know me..." She then looked back at
Goliath. "...concerned."
	Goliath saw the anxiety in her eyes. He knew that she worried about him
all the time. He tilted his head and said softly in concern, "Elisa, I have
no business with Xanatos." He shot a hateful glance at the distant Castle
Wyvern. "Just as long as he stays away from my clan..." He then looked back
at Elisa. "...and you."
	Brooklyn was standing at the door that led to the inside of the clock
tower. He smiled at the two lovebirds. He cleared his throat.
	Startled, Elisa and Goliath quickly looked away from each other. They saw
Brooklyn standing there with a mischievous look on his face.
	Goliath smiled. "Eh...hello, Brooklyn." He paused a moment. "Why are you
not watching the television with the others? I remember you saying there
was a good movie on tonight."
	Brooklyn laughed. "Nah. It's just another one of those dumb cop movies."
He looked at Elisa and smiled. She raised her eyebrow and did the same.
	Brooklyn hoisted himself up on the railing and seated himself there. "So,
I heard somebody mention Xanatos. He causin' trouble again? Jerk."
	Elisa sighed. "Come on, guys, give the guy a chance. Just because he's
tried to take over the world a couple of times doesn't mean he's a bad
person."
	Brooklyn and Elisa burst out laughing. Goliath shook his head and
chuckled.
	And then, almost out of nowhere, the sound of thunder bellowed down from
overhead, causing everyone to cover their ears. It became excessively
windy, and Brooklyn threw himself to the balcony floor as Goliath quickly
took Elisa into his arms and folded his wings around her, ready to break
the face of anyone who dared to harm her.
	The sky was green.
	Goliath looked up. It was a familiar green. A magical hue that he had seen
before...
	"What's going on?" Brooklyn hollered over the roar of the thunder, trying
to crawl over to Goliath. Another loud crack of thunder screamed down from
the sky and dark clouds began to form around the clock tower.
	Hudson, Broadway, Lexington, and Bronx were outside in a second, and just
as the last of them came running out the door, the thunder cracked for the
last time and a bolt of blazing green lightning struck the balcony floor.
The energy of the bolt lit up the cracks between the stones of the floor
and they all began to glow brighter...and brighter...and then everyone was
blinded and those who were not already on the ground collapsed, shielding
their eyes from the blinding light that was all anyone could see.
	And then it was gone. The light, the wind, the noise, the clouds.
Everything.
	They sky faded to black again.
	Brooklyn and the other gargoyles all watched with anger as the sound of
helicopter blades cutting through the crisp night air zoomed by overhead.
It faded as Xanatos' helicopter flew away, heading for the majestic Castle
Wyvern.
	Broadway blinked a couple of times, checking to make sure he wasn't blind.
"Man, was that weird."
	Hudson shook his head. "I knew it." He then looked around. Gargoyles were
strewn all over the balcony floor. "Is everyone all right?"
	Bronx barked.
	"I'm okay. So's Bronx..." Lexington glanced at Brooklyn, who was dusting
himself off. "...he's okay, too."
	Goliath, suppressing his anger, realized that there was one other to be
accounted for. He gently opened his wings and looked down.
	He gasped, taken aback by the startling vision that lay before him.
	Everyone turned around to face Goliath and they saw it too.
	Hudson gazed on with a look of confusion while the trio stood with their
mouths hanging open.
	Bronx barked, sniffed the air, growled at what he had sensed, and began to
howl.
	There lay Elisa Maza, unconscious, cloaked in a pair of velvety soft
wings. The little hands on them helplessly lay open. A long, smooth tail
ran out from behind her. It twitched.
	Elisa was now a mess of talon and wing.
	She was a gargoyle.
                                          


	Demona paced back and forth in Xanatos' office. "This better have worked,"
she mumbled under her breath.
	Xanatos stood behind Owen, who was punching buttons in front of the huge
monitor on the wall. He was reviewing another wireframe diagram.
	The billionaire turned to face Demona's winged form. He had heard her
mumbling. "Of course it did. We needed to create a distraction for Goliath,
and that's exactly what we did."
	Xanatos pointed to an object on the monitor, asked Owen to zoom in on it,
and it was done. After he looked over the magnified portion of the diagram,
Xanatos sighed and slowly made his way over to where Demona was fuming.
Just to be irritating, he put his hand on the gargoyle's shoulder. He
smiled. "If we killed Maza, then it wouldn't have necessarily distracted
Goliath." Xanatos thought a moment, then laughed. "He and the other
gargoyles would have been here in an instant...and that wouldn't give us
enough time to carry out our little plan." Xanatos raised his eyebrow at
Demona. "Killing Detective Maza would have, if this makes any sense to you,
proven useless."
	Owen pushed his glasses up on his nose and typed something on the keypad
in front of him.
	Demona just stood there and stared out into the void, fangs bared. Xanatos
cleared his throat. "You getting this?"
	"Shut up, Xanatos."
	"Fair enough." Xanatos just stood there, silent.
	A minute had passed. A layer of fog had appeared on the window where
Demona was breathing. Xanatos still stood next to her, his hand still on
her shoulder. Demona slowly turned to face him.
	Owen watched as Xanatos looked at her and smiled.
	"Xanatos." said Demona flatly.
	"Yes, Demona?"
	"Get your hand off my shoulder."
	                                   


	Elisa lay peacefully on the couch in the silent clock tower. The gargoyles
just stood there and looked at her.
	Brooklyn was the first to speak. "Uh.....is she...."
	"She is alive," Goliath barked. "I'm sure of it."
	Bronx cautiously meandered over to Elisa's motionless form. He sniffed one
of her wings that was draped over the side of the couch. He began to howl
again.
	Lexington put his hand on Bronx's spiny back. "Easy, boy....easy." The dog
backed away under Lexington's guiding hand.
	Everyone just stood there again, just like they had been for the past
twenty minutes.
	This time, Broadway broke the silence. "Well, we can't just stand here."
	Brooklyn shot him a glance. "What're we supposed to do, genius? Turn on
the TV and go about our business?"
	Broadway glared at him. "Hey...."
	"You two be quiet," snapped Goliath.
	Broadway and Brooklyn lowered their heads. "Sorry."
	Hudson shook his head and smiled.
	And then, a quiet little moan fell from Elisa's lips. "Goliath..."
	Goliath spun around to face her. "Elisa!"
	Elisa tried to sit up, but gravity kicked in and she fell back onto the
couch.. She moaned again.
	Goliath literally threw himself at her, sliding on the floor on his knees
until the couch stopped him and he was kneeling at Elisa's side. He took
her hand. "Elisa...." He didn't know what to say. What were you supposed to
say to a human who's just been turned into a gargoyle? "...uh....how...are
you...how do you feel?"
	Elisa turned to face Goliath and opened her eyes. "Wha...what
happened....I saw lights....that noise...Goliath, what was that noise..."
	Goliath now took both her hands into his. "Shhhhhh......Elisa...." he
looked to the other gargoyles for advice. They just looked at him. A few
shrugged. Bronx whined.
	She obviously didn't know. Yet.
	Elisa tried to sit up again. This time, with a little help from Goliath,
she made it. She slowly shook her head and then yawned. A loud, almost
shrieking sound escaped her throat and she jumped back, startled.
	Goliath wanted to laugh, but knew he shouldn't.
	Elisa's eyes were wide open. "What was that?" she blurted out. "Did that
come out of me?"
	Everyone slowly nodded.
	Elisa held her hand up to her throat and gently squeezed it. She didn't
know what she was looking for. Finding nothing of significance, she lowered
her hand and placed it on her lap.
	She looked down and screamed. Four talons lay on her thigh rather than
five fingers. "What happened to my hand?" she cried. She then saw her
spiked kneecaps. "My knees....what the-"
	Goliath tried to stop her, but Elisa shot up from the couch and glared at
her hands in horror. She then began to make choking sounds as her eyes fell
to her feet. She brought her long smooth tail up to where she could see it.
	She slowly looked up, as if she knew what to expect. Elisa gasped as she
saw a pair of her own wings with little hands on them raised above her
head. One of the fingers on her right wing quivered.
	"I....I...." it took everything Elisa had in her to say it. "I'm a....a
gargoyle." She put her face into her hands, feeling a stress headache
coming on. Without even thinking, she settled her wings over her shoulders.
Elisa slowly peeled her hands off her face and raised her eyebrow as she
shot a glance at her left shoulder, eyeing the wing that had fallen upon
it. "This can't be happening...." she mumbled as she shook her head in
disbelief. "Not to me. Not again." She carefully reached up with a talon to
feel her ear. Her face contorted in confusion as her talon ran over the
long, smooth curves of her pointed ears.
	Goliath slowly walked up to her. He stood behind her and took her hand.
"Are you all right?" he asked with great concern.
	Elisa still faced forward, but her eyes were on Goliath. She laughed.
"Yeah, I'm okay, I guess." She laughed and looked away from him. "Think I'd
be used to this by now."
	On the other side of the room, Brooklyn raised his scaly eyebrow
questioningly. "Whoa....hold it. If Xanatos.....but why would.....that was
his helicopter, right?"
	Lex and Broadway nodded. Bronx growled at the sound of Xanatos' name.
	Brooklyn looked to his side. "But that doesn't mean anything...."
	Elisa, back on the other side of the room, began to wonder the same thing.
"Who did this to me...why would....no....Xanatos? But why would he....wait
a minute...no, no way...he's no that....oh, yes he is...but I just...."
	Goliath didn't even hear Elisa mumbling these broken thoughts under her
breath. He was entranced by her. How beautiful she was.....
	He was ready to actually thank Demona for this.
	Surprisingly, Demona had crossed his mind, and then Xanatos. But Goliath
was so taken back by Elisa's transformation that confronting their evil was
at the back of his mind.
	Elisa didn't seem to notice how Goliath's eyes gazed at her. He thought to
himself, her hair....like a river of ink flowing down her back....it would
feel like silk to touch it....
	Just to touch it....
	Hudson cleared his throat. "Well, I'm off ta watch ma show again. Maybe
I'll...catch the ending." The old gargoyle smiled as he walked over to the
television and sat down, his back to Elisa and Goliath. Bronx followed.
	The trio just stood there, watching Goliath watching Elisa.
	Broadway whispered something into Lexington's ear and they both snickered.
	Hudson cleared his throat once again and the trio looked up and instantly
got the message to join him by the television. The three gargoyles hurried
past Goliath and Elisa and seated themselves around Hudson's chair.
	Meanwhile, Goliath had reached for Elisa's hair, yearning to touch it,
when she turned around to face him. She jumped back and blinked, startled
by his hand being there. Goliath yanked his hand away and looked to his
side.
	Elisa smiled. "What are you doing?"
	"I, ah...well, you had....there was.....nothing." Goliath looked over to
where the trio, Hudson, and Bronx were sitting. When the five gargoyles
realized they had been caught snooping, they all turned around and glued
their eyes to the television.
	Lex tried not to giggle. Brooklyn elbowed him. "Shut up!" he hissed.
	Goliath settled his wings over his shoulders and sighed. He turned back to
Elisa and smiled. "Ah...can we...go outside?"
	"Well, yeah...I don't see why not," laughed Elisa as she turned and headed
for the exit in the glowing yellow clock face.
	Goliath rushed to her side and opened the door for her. Elisa looked up at
him and smiled.
	Hudson, Bronx and the trio watched Elisa and Goliath walk outside.
	Broadway smiled. "She took it well."
	"Yeah. Real well." Brooklyn stuck his finger in his ear and shook it,
trying to stop the ringing that Elisa's scream had caused.
	Lexington was confused. "I don't get it. Why would Xanatos turn Elisa into
one of us?"
	"I've no idea, lad," Hudson replied. "But I doubt it was Xanatos who cast
that spell."
	Brooklyn thought a moment. Magic. Who could wield magic....a sorcerer.....
	Or a sorceress.
	He stood up. "It was Demona!" he snapped.
	Lex was still in the dark. "But that makes even less sense. Why would
Demona, who thinks gargoyles are so perfect....she hates Elisa. Why would
she turn her into a gargoyle?"
	They all looked at each other in silence.
	"She's done it before," grumbled Brooklyn.
	Hudson stroked his beard. "But tha was na her intention, lad. She wanted
ta kill Elisa, but Puck was the one who turned her inta a gargoyle."
	Brooklyn's shoulders sank. "So. Wha...but it....it just doesn't make any
sense."
	Broadway spoke up. "I don't get it either, now that I think about it."
	Brooklyn laughed. "That's a first."
	"Shut up!"
	"You!"
	"Jerk!"
	"Idiot!"
	Hudson paid no attention to the rookery brothers' bickering. "Something's
just not right, lads. And I think....no, I know that Demona is behind it."
	"I wouldn't put it past her," mumbled Brooklyn.
	Lex looked in the direction of the doorway. "We'd better get Goliath and
tell him, 'cause....well....his mind's on.....other things."
	Everyone felt the urge to smile, but this was no time for it. Demona was
causing trouble, and that usually meant someone was going to get hurt.
	Or killed.
	"I'll get him." Brooklyn jumped up and ran out the door. He disappeared
around the corner.
	Hudson stood up and shut off the television. Then Lex and Broadway got up
off the floor. Bronx stretched out on the floor, scratched behind his ear,
and then stood up and barked as he followed the others.
	Hudson, Broadway, Lex, and Bronx and headed for the door, ready to take a
short trip to Castle Wyvern to have a word with David Xanatos.
	About a minute later Brooklyn came back inside, out of breath. A look of
despair had invaded his face.
	 Hudson drew his sword from its sheath. "What is it, lad?"
	Brooklyn settled his wings over his shoulders and looked to his side.
"You're not going to believe this, but...."
	Broadway's wings flew open. "But what?"
	Brooklyn slowly looked up at him, fear and anger in his eyes.
	"They're gone."
                                     


	Two gargoyles stood majestically atop one of the shiny gold heads of the
eagle guardians of the Chrysler Building. The first was tall and had a
dark, mysterious magnificence about him. The wind played with his hair as
the powerful beast gazed at the second gargoyle that accompanied him high
above the city. The radiant creature closed her eyes and smiled as the wind
ran through her jet black hair and her sleek velvety wings, which were
laying over her shoulders like a cloak.
	Elisa gracefully opened her wings. She couldn't get over the fact that she
finally had a set of her own.
	Of course, she had them once before, but she was too preoccupied with
Demona and Puck to truly appreciate her gargoyle form.
	The wind suddenly picked up and Elisa's wings caught the unexpected
updraft. A little yelp came out of her as she fell back into Goliath's
arms. She looked up at him and smiled.
	He gazed down at her and did the same.
	Elisa, though she didn't really want to, gently wriggled free of Goliath's
arms and stood up. She quickly folded her wings back down over her
shoulders.
	Goliath smiled. "Still not used to those new wings of yours, Elisa?"
	Elisa sighed. "Hey, leave me alone. This is my first- no, second try at
this, okay?" She couldn't help but smile.
	Goliath looked down at her and smiled. "I think you did rather well,
earlier..."
	"Goliath, I crashed into a satellite dish."
	"Considering that was your first time without holding on to me...."
	"You're making fun of me, aren't you?" demanded Elisa.
	Goliath stepped back and laughed. "No, no, no...." he narrowed his eyes
and smiled. "I'm offering to help you...again."
	Elisa folded her arms and opened her wings. "Again, huh? Well, Goliath, I
really don't need your help..."
	Goliath raised his eyebrow and looked to his side, smiling.
	Elisa went on, "In fact, I can fly-"
	"Glide."
	"I can glide just as good as you can!"
	Goliath laughed. "Oh, really?"
	Elisa was insulted. "Yeah!"
	"You wouldn't dare," Goliath teased.
	"Watch me!" Elisa snapped as she fanned out her wings and threw herself
into the night sky.
	She began to tumble downward, screaming.
	Goliath burst out laughing. He was still laughing as he dove off the
golden eagle head and sailed toward the flailing mass of hair and wings
called Elisa Maza.
	Elisa looked down. The sharp barbs of a row of balcony fencing pointed up
at her.
	So, this is how I'm going to die, she thought as she screamed again.
	Just inches before the razor-sharp barbs turned her into gargoyle
shishkabob, Goliath swooped down and caught Elisa, catching a wind current
that carried them up to the safety of another rooftop.
	Goliath gently laid Elisa down on the cold cement and leaned over her,
running his talons through her long, black hair. He couldn't resist.
	She opened her eyes. "I'm still alive," she breathed.
	Goliath smiled at her. "Of course you are."
	Elisa gazed up at him in adoration. "You...you caught me," she whispered.
	Goliath smiled as he helped her up. "I told you...I'd always be there to
catch you."
	Elisa stood and shook her head. "Thank you......I...ah.....I guess I
learned my lesson."
	Goliath raised his eyebrow. "Lesson?"
	Elisa laughed. "Yeah....well....Goliath?"
	The tall gargoyle smiled at her. "Yes, Elisa?"
	Elisa felt humiliated. "Will you help me.....you know....learn how
to.....well....."
	Goliath cocked his head and leaned over, so his ear was in front of her.
"Hmm?"
	Elisa hated being teased. "Will you teach me how to fly!" she retorted,
looking off to her side.
	Goliath cleared his throat and quietly corrected her, "Glide."
	Elisa just looked at him.
	Goliath got the message. "Ah...yes, of course, Elisa...I will teach you
how to glide." He looked at the irritated gargoyle and smiled nervously. "I
promise."
	Elisa narrowed her eyes. "Okay, then.....so, when's my first lesson?"
	Goliath grinned. "Right now!" With that, he took Elisa's hand and the two
dove from the rooftop.
	Elisa was screaming. "Goliath! What are you doing?" She screamed again.
	Goliath chuckled. "Ah, Elisa..."
	"What?" she hissed.
	"It helps to open your wings."
	Elisa did just that, and something strange dawned on her.
	She was gliding. She was gliding on air.
	"Whoa....." Elisa was amazed. She then realized Goliath was nowhere to be
seen. "Goliath? Goliath, where are you? Goliath!"
	The wind suddenly picked up again, and Elisa found herself sailing
backwards. "Aaaaa! Goliath!"
	He came out of nowhere and laughed, "Ride the currents, Elisa! Don't fight
them!"
	Elisa flapped her wings, trying to get above the current. It wasn't
working.
	She was tumbling around, fighting the wind, trying as hard as she could to
get above it, but every time she got up a little higher, the wind stopped
her and sent her back a couple more feet.
	I must look like such an idiot, she thought. She flapped her wings some
more, but to no avail.
	Elisa then thought of something: When she was human and Goliath carried
her around in the sky....his wings....he'd first go under the current, then
ride up on it....he'd never try and go against it...how stupid was that?
	"This better work..." Elisa pinned her wings up. She began to fall,
fast...the rooftops were quickly coming up to collide with her face-
	She then spread her wings out again, and the current picked her up, up,
and even farther up into the sky. The skyscrapers became smaller and
smaller as she rolled over in mid-air, laughing with joy.
	"I did it!" she giggled. "It worked!" She flew around in wide circles to
stay aloft. "I can do this!"
	All of a sudden, Goliath was there, right in Elisa's face.
	"Aaaa!" Goliath burst out laughing as the startled Elisa Maza flapped her
wings and backed up a few feet in mid-air. She caught her breath and
fluttered back over to him. "Did you see that?" she cried excitedly as she
let the wind take her up another few feet. Goliath glided up to join her.
Elisa grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "I did it! I can fl-"
	Goliath narrowed his eyes and smiled at her.
	"Glide. Goliath, I can glide!" Elisa was so thrilled, she didn't even
think twice as she threw her arms and wings around Goliath and hugged him.
She was still giggling.
	Goliath grunted as he tried to keep the two of them aloft. He flapped his
wings even harder. He laughed. "I know....Elisa....I saw you....that
was...that was really very clever...."
	Elisa, still in Goliath's arms, looked up at him and smiled. "Thank you,"
she said softly as she gently pulled away from him and opened her wings. "I
guess I owe ya one." She pushed herself off of Goliath and fluttered a few
feet away from him.
	She began to glide around on the wind, laughing happily as the wind swept
past her face, through her hair, down her back, over her tail....
	It was such a wonderful feeling....unlike anything she had ever felt
before.....
	Goliath had landed on the nearest rooftop and was watching her dance on
the wind.
	She's so beautiful, he thought.
	It had been so long.....so long since he had felt this way about
anyone....
	Goliath snapped out of it as Elisa swooped past him and landed a few feet
away. She let her wings fall over her shoulders as she slowly turned around
to face him. She began to walk toward him.
	Goliath raised his eyebrow. What was she up to now?
	Elisa began to walk faster. She then began to run. Her wings flew open as
she ran past Goliath, smiling at him. His eyes followed her to the edge of
the building.
	Elisa jumped from the rooftop and took off. "C'mon, Goliath!" she cried
out. "Come and get me, you slow poke!"
	Goliath narrowed his eyes and grinned. He jumped off the edge off the
building and flew off after Elisa into the crisp Manhattan night.

	"What da ya mean, they're gone?" barked Hudson as he pushed Brooklyn off to
the side and hurried out the door.
	Brooklyn and the others followed. "What I said. They're gone."
	Broadway jumped up on the balcony railing. "How much ya wanna bet Xanatos'
got 'em?"
	Lexington narrowed his eyes. "Or Demona." He climbed up to where Broadway
was perched.
	Brooklyn hopped up on the balcony railing, as well. "Or both."
	Hudson drew his sword from its sheath and his wings flew open. "Well,
lads..."
	Everyone stood and opened their wings.
	"I say we pay David Xanatos a visit."
	Bronx backed up and howled as the gargoyles threw themselves from the
clock tower balcony and let the wind carry them toward Castle Wyvern.

	Demona was still glaring out the window in the office of David Xanatos, high
above Manhattan. She hadn't spoken a word for the past fifteen minutes.
	Xanatos was on the phone with someone at his desk.
	Owen was nowhere to be seen.
	Fox came in every now and then to visit.
	After Fox left for the third time, Xanatos hung up the phone and began
typing something on his computer. Once again, another robotics drawing
appeared on his monitor.
	"Ah, Demona?" he asked, still focused on the monitor.
	"What." She didn't even turn around.
	"What are you doing?"
	"Brooding, Xanatos. What does it look like?"
	Xanatos just smiled. He saved his file and shut off the computer. He
pulled a disk out of the floppy drive and held it out to Demona. "If you're
interested, it's ready."
	Demona's expression changed. She turned around, eyed the disk, and then
snatched it from Xanatos. She looked at it closely. Her eyes then fell upon
the wealthy human.
	"It's ready, then?"
	"All we need now are the organic prototypes, and we'll be all set."
	"Yes. The loyal 'citizens' willing to devote themselves to science."
Demona grinned.
	Xanatos smiled, too.
	Demona realized something. "Wait...what about Goliath...and that pest...."
	Xanatos leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers. He narrowed his
eyes and looked out the window.
	Four winged creatures caught his eye in the distance. Xanatos smiled.
"Don't worry, Demona....I've got it all under control."

	Elisa's graceful winged form burst through the clouds as she sailed higher
and higher above the city. Goliath was not far behind.
	Elisa looked behind her and watched Goliath. He would flap his wings every
now and then, trying to gain speed. Elisa laughed. "He'll never catch me,"
she giggled as she flapped her wings and took off.
	Goliath chucked. "I'll get you," he growled under his breath. "You think
you can escape!" he cried.
	Elisa laughed out loud. "Come on, Goliath! Look at you! You're so far
behind, it's redicul-aaaaaaaaa!"
	Elisa's arms and wings fell forward as Goliath grabbed her around her
waist and let the wind carry them even higher up into the sky. They both
laughed as Goliath, still holding Elisa, spun around in the air and glided
through the clouds, the cold moisture dampening them for a second, and then
drying off as they soared through the air.
	Elisa gently folded her wings around Goliath's thick neck and nestled
herself in his arms. Even though she had wings of her own, the feeling of
gliding was nothing compared to the warmth inside of her when Goliath held
her, carrying her over the city.
	Goliath looked down at Elisa and smiled. There she lay, eyes closed, wings
folded. A piece of her long, black hair had whipped up on the wind and was
tickling her little nose. She shook her head, trying to get it off her
face.
	Goliath had noticed this and was about to use his talon to move the
invading lock of hair when he realized that if he moved his hand, he would
disturb Elisa, and possibly drop her.
	Which wasn't a problem, really, now that she had a set of her own wings.
	But Goliath had a better idea. He moved his face toward hers and with his
nose nudged the hair off her face.
	Startled, Elisa opened her eyes to find what she thought was Goliath about
to kiss her.
	Taken back by his compassion, she took it as an invitation.
	Goliath's wings flapped violently for a second and he almost dropped Elisa
as she took his face into her hands and kissed him.
	Neither could believe this was happening. Sure, they had thought about
it....
	They both pulled back, surprised. The two stared at each other,
dumbfounded.
	Elisa threw herself from Goliath's arms and opened her wings, letting the
wind catch her as she stammered, "Uh....well...the others...they're
probably wondering what happened to us..."
	Goliath looked to his side. The wind picked up and the two of them went
with it. Goliath flapped his wings, moving closer to Elisa.
"Yes....a...uh...of course...we didn't even tell them we were leaving...."
	Their eyes met, and Elisa swore her heart missed a beat.
	What's happening to me, she thought. Maybe it was just due to her
transformation....
	Goliath looked away from Elisa as they glided over the city. It has been
well over a thousand years...could this finally be happening again, he
asked himself. He looked back at Elisa and smiled.
	Elisa, thinking Goliath was not looking, turned to face him. Once again,
their eyes met and the two turned away from each other in embarrassment.
	Goliath cleared his throat. Elisa looked at him out of the corner of her
eye. "Ah...let's, eh....let's be off," he grumbled.
	Elisa just smiled at him. It was just so amusing to her; she had never
seen this side of him before. It was actually kind of cute...
	Goliath and Elisa caught the wind and took off, heading back to the clock
tower.
                                                   


	Owen Burnett walked into David Xanatos' office, his typical expressionless
look on his face. "There's someone here to see you, Mr. Xanatos."
	Xanatos, facing the window, turned around and smiled. "Well then, Owen,
let's not keep them waiting. Let them in."
	Owen nodded. Before he could tell Xanatos' guests they could enter the
room, Brooklyn came barging through the door, pushing Owen off to the side.
The other gargoyles followed.
	Brooklyn stomped up to Xanatos' desk and slammed his fist down on it.
"Where are they!" he bellowed.
	Xanatos didn't even flinch at the gargoyle's harsh demand. He smiled. "How
did you get past security?"
	Hudson stepped forward. "What security?"
	Xanatos grinned. "Exactly."
	A narrow door opened on the wall on the far right. A swarm of Xanatos'
commando cronies poured out of it. They all smiled as they pointed their
laser guns at the gargoyles.
	Broadway narrowed his eyes. "You wanted us in here!"
	One of the commandos stepped forward. He pointed the barrel of the laser
gun at Broadway's head. "Shut up, you flying lizard."
	Lexington looked around him. Commandos everywhere. Even Owen had a gun. If
they tried to escape, they'd get fried.
	He looked at Brooklyn. The red gargoyle lowered his head in shame. "We
fell for it," he whispered.
	"We knew you would," hissed a familiar voice. The gargoyles spun around.
	There stood Demona clutching yet another laser gun. "That's why we turned
your stupid human friend into a gargoyle. We knew Goliath couldn't resist."
An evil grin spread across her face. "Without Goliath, you four are
pathetically helpless."
	Brooklyn pointed a talon at her. "You! I knew it! You're in this
together!"
	Demona stood and thought a moment. What? No protest to "we turned your
stupid human friend into a gargoyle"?
	Well, no matter.
	They're just idiots, she thought.
	But why didn't they argue?
	Demona turned to the head commando. "Show our guests to their room." With
that, she turned and walked out of Xanatos' office.
	Hudson pulled his sword from its sheath and proceeded to follow, but three
commandos got in the way and pointed their laser guns at him. The elderly
gargoyle lowered his sword and backed away from the door.
	The gargoyles all looked at each other, then to the commandos, and then to
Xanatos. The billionaire smiled. "Don't try anything." He felt an evil
cliché coming on. "Or you'll be sorry you ever hatched." He smiled,
satisfied with his remark.
	"What do ye want with us?" snapped Hudson.
	"Don't worry, Hudson. I'm just going to keep you for a little while."
	"What are you gonna do to us?" growled Lexington.
	Xanatos smiled. "It won't hurt a bit. I promise."
	Brooklyn was enraged. "That's it! I've had it!" With a quick slash of his
talons, the horned gargoyle took a big chunk out of Xanatos' desk.
	The other gargoyles joined in and starting swinging at commandos. The
loud, bellowing roars of the gargoyles and the commandos dodging their
talons filled the air.
	Two commandos tumbled out the door.
	Another commando flew across the room and hit the window behind Xanatos.
The rich man shot up from his seat, dodging the flying henchman. "Owen!"
	The sound of electricity filled the air and the gargoyles hollered and
screamed in agony. Each of them collapsed.
	Owen blew the smoke off the tip of his gun and said nothing. He pushed his
glasses up on his nose.
	"Thank you, Owen."
	"Always a pleasure, Mr. Xanatos."

	Goliath swooped down and landed on the clock tower balcony to find Bronx
sitting there waiting for him. Goliath patted Bronx on the head. "Good boy,
Bronx."
	He folded his wings over his shoulders and turned to watch Elisa make a
clumsy landing. She landed on her bottom and slid across the floor.
	Goliath burst out laughing. "Maybe...huh....maybe you should work on that
landing of yours," he chuckled as he held his hand out to Elisa.
	She took his hand. "Thanks. I'll remember that."
	With a powerful yank, Goliath pulled Elisa up off the floor. He was
holding her up in the air, smiling at her.
	Elisa, dangling from his grip, had both of her hands wrapped around his
powerful fist. "Hey, lemme go," she giggled. She tried to wriggle free, but
Goliath's grip was too strong.
	Goliath laughed. "Why should I?"
	"Come on, Goliath...." Elisa playfully hit him in the back of the head
with the little hand on her wing. "Let me go, you big jerk!"
	Bronx barked.
	Goliath just looked at Elisa and smiled.
	She then got an idea. I can play that game too, she thought. She sighed
and began to gaze at him, putting on her prettiest face. She stroked the
side of his face with one of the little hands on her wings.
	She's so beautiful, thought Goliath for the hundredth time that evening.
	Elisa's other set of little wing talons found Goliath's side and lingered
there for a moment.
	She smiled at him again. He smiled back.
	"Ow!" Goliath hollered as Elisa pinched him. He let go of Elisa. This time
she landed on her feet.
	"Ha," she laughed, "gotcha."
	Bronx was whining. No one paid any attention.
	Goliath narrowed his eyes at Elisa as he rubbed his side. "That hurt."
	Elisa laughed. "Come on, you sissy."
	Goliath was not laughing. He was glaring at her.
	Elisa's expression changed from playful to concerned. "Did I really hurt
you?" She folded her wings over her shoulders as she leaned over to look at
Goliath's side. "I'm sorry." She looked up at him with a look of guilt on
her face. "I didn't mean to-aaaaaaa!"
	Goliath scooped her up in his arms and spun her around, laughing. "How
does it feel?" He hadn't laughed this hard in ages. "To be tricked into
vulnerability?"
	"Okay, okay! I give up!" Elisa cried with laughter. "You win!" she giggled
as she threw her arms around him and hugged him.
	Bronx barked again.
	Goliath hadn't felt like this for over a millennium. He had forgotten what
it was like to have fun, to be so happy...
	He gently put Elisa down. She reached up to fix her hair, but Goliath held
out his hands and she let her own talon-tipped fingers fall to her sides.
	There stood the two gargoyles, gazing at each other as Goliath tenderly
ran his fingers through Elisa's hair, letting the silky black river of ink
flow through his fingers. Elisa closed her eyes as he moved closer to her
and pulled her hair forward, letting it fall over her shoulders. Goliath
cocked his head and smiled sweetly at her.
	Elisa looked up at him in adoration. One word fell from her lips:
"Goliath..."
	The god-like gargoyle gazed down at her. "Hm?"
	Elisa opened her mouth to say something, but she just sighed instead.
"...it's...uh....it's not important...eh, never mind."
	Goliath smiled at her. He knew what she wanted to say, because he knew
exactly what she was feeling.
	He put his hand on her shoulder. "Come. The others are probably worried."
He looked down at Bronx. "Come on, boy."
	Goliath opened the door in the clock face that led inside the tower. Elisa
followed. Bronx stood outside and barked at them.
	Inside the tower, Hudson, Lexington, Broadway, and Brooklyn were nowhere
to be seen. Goliath and Elisa exchanged looks.
	"Hudson?" Goliath called out. "Brooklyn...Lexington?"
	"Hey, Broadway, you in here?" called Elisa. She turned to Goliath and
shrugged. "Nobody home."
	"It makes no sense," whispered Goliath.
	Elisa laughed. "Does any of this make sense?"
	Goliath looked at Elisa and smiled. He put his arm around her and the two
turned around and headed out the door to find Bronx barking at a skyscraper
in the distance.
	Goliath and Elisa hurried over to him. "What is it, boy," Elisa coaxed.
	Bronx's eyes glowed in Goliath's shadow as he stared at the distant Castle
Wyvern. He barked and growled viciously.
	Goliath narrowed his eyes. "Xanatos!" he bellowed. "Xanatos has them!"
	Goliath, proceeding to take off, turned around and looked at Elisa, who
hopped up on the balcony railing and opened her wings. "Come on, Goliath,"
she spewed the words hurriedly, "how do you know Xanatos has them?"
	Goliath took Elisa's hand. "Perhaps it's...gargoyle's intuition."
	Elisa smiled. "I guess I gotta trust it, then."
	Goliath's muscles tensed as he prepared to jump from the tower.
	"Let's go."
                                                               


	Brooklyn, Hudson, Lexington, and Broadway all lay unconscious in a huge
electrified cage in the highest tower of Castle Wyvern.
	Seven commandos were on guard as Owen hurried back and forth between
computers located all over the room. He stopped and looked up at a huge
monitor screen on the far wall. As usual, there was another robot drawing
displayed on the screen.
	A door opened behind Owen. Xanatos and Demona strolled out of it. "How's
everything going?"
	"Everything's right on track, sir. The gargoyles will most likely not be
awake before dawn. We will then have that time to put them through the
specified equipment so we can analyze their body structure."
	"Even while they're in stone?" asked Demona flatly as she observed
Brooklyn's motionless form. She grinned.
	Owen pushed his glasses up on his nose. "Yes. The next step is to transfer
the data from the scanner's computer to the robotics manufacturing database
and we will be well on our way to your...new clan, sir."
	Xanatos looked at Demona and smiled. "Excellent."

	Goliath flapped his wings to stay above the current. Elisa did the same.
They had been gliding toward the castle for about five minutes now, and
neither had said a word since they left. Goliath was too angry to even
speak, and Elisa was so confused she just decided to be quiet before she
said something stupid.
	I'm going to get myself killed, she thought.
	Goliath closed his eyes and let out a long sigh, almost like a growl.
"First, he steals our home. Then, he steals my very identity. He then makes
a clone of me and corrupts it! And now, he's taken all I have left!"
	Elisa was silent. She knew better than to contort the truth to try to
comfort him. He was right. There was no changing that.
	Goliath looked at her. "Never mind what he's done to you."
	Elisa tried to laugh. "Eh, it's not that bad. I kinda like it, actually."
She smiled as the wind picked up and she went with it like a kite.
	Goliath caught up with her. "I don't understand something. Why did Xanatos
do this to you?"
	"You're asking me?"
	The purple beast smiled, but quickly let it fade. "If he wanted to take us
captive...but...why didn't he just do it during the day...?"
	"Maybe he likes the challenge."
	Goliath looked at the gargoyle next to him. "Perhaps." He then looked
forward and peered through the fog that had fallen over the city during the
past hour. The tiny lights of Castle Wyvern and the skyscraper it rested on
were slowly becoming visible.
	Goliath's eyes glowed with anger. "Will we find out soon enough."
                                                                 


	Sitting in front of a large radar screen on the other side of the
laboratory, one of Xanatos' cronies spotted two flying objects heading
right for them. "Sir," he called out.
	Xanatos, Demona, and Owen looked up from what they were doing. Xanatos
smiled. "Is it them?"
	The commando squinted at the monitor. "Yes, sir."
	Xanatos opened his mouth to say something, but Demona snapped, "You know
what to do."
	The commando nodded and as he spoke into a tiny microphone, Xanatos and
the redheaded gargoyle exchanged dirty looks and went back to what they
were doing. Owen pushed a series of buttons on the large piece of equipment
inside which they had just placed Lexington.
	Owen placed his finger over a large green rectangular button labeled,
"ACTIVATE." He looked at Xanatos and raised his eyebrow.
	Demona stood back and said nothing. Xanatos nodded.
	Owen pushed the button.
                                     


	Goliath and his gargoyle companion were quickly approaching Castle Wyvern.
The wind had picked up, but Elisa was doing fine.
	"You know, Goliath..."
	Goliath stared forward into the night. The white glow of his eyes faded as
he looked to Elisa. "Hm?"
	"...being a gargoyle isn't so bad, once you get used to it."
	Goliath looked at the horizon. The night was fading. Only a few hours
until sunrise.
	Turning to stone might be something that would take a little getting used
to, especially if you've never done it before.
	"I can't say I know how you feel," he said flatly. He wasn't in the mood
to talk.
	Elisa looked to her side. She could tell that Goliath didn't want to
converse with anyone. She faced forward and the two glided onward.
	No one had said anything for at least three minutes when Elisa whispered,
"Do you hear that?"
	Goliath's ears pricked up. A low rumbling was echoing close by. "Yes...it
sounds like..." Goliath gasped as he spotted three glowing balls of fire
ahead of them. "The Steel Clan!"
	One of the robots raised its arm to eye level and a laser gun rose up from
the top of its steel wrist. Elisa's eyes widened. The robot had its sights
set on Goliath.
	Her eyes burst into a white-hot glow of rage and she roared, throwing
herself at the metal beast.
	The robot turned and Goliath's expression of anger changed to one of
complete terror as the sound of laser fire crackling through the air was
followed by Elisa's sharp scream.
	She was hit in the right wing and falling fast.
	"Elisa!" Goliath cried as he dove down to catch her.
	The three robots followed, firing at them all the way down. Goliath dodged
the laser beams left and right, cutting through the air like an archer's
arrow, until he finally reached Elisa and scooped her up in his arms in
midair. The powerful gargoyle opened his wings and swooped up and over the
heads of the robots. Confused, two of the machines were shooting their
lasers out of control, firing at anything that moved. Goliath swooped up
between both of them, and just as his winged form spiraled out of the way,
the two robots fired their lasers and shot each other out of the sky.
	The explosion lit up the fog, and Goliath couldn't see. He kept on gliding
until he was out of the glowing white cloud mass and found a place to land.
	He landed on a small rooftop and folded his wings over his shoulders as he
gently rolled Elisa out of his arms and onto her feet. "Are you...are you
all right?" he asked, his voice rather shaky. His eyes were hard to follow
and he was breathing heavily.
	Elisa flapped her right wing. "Just a little burn, that's all. Luckily, it
didn't go through." She looked up at Goliath. His shoulders sagged with
relief as he realized that she was all right. Elisa smiled at him.
"Thanks....you know...for saving me."
	Goliath took her hand. "Gargoyles," he whispered, "never leave each
others' sides."
	Elisa reached up and took a piece of Goliath's dark hair and pulled it
forward. She playfully tugged on it and smiled at him.
	Suddenly, her smile faded and melted into a contortion of horror as the
last of the Steel Clan robots appeared behind Goliath.
	Goliath cocked his head. "What is it?"
	Elisa's eyes glowed as she began to growl.
	The robot lifted its arm. The laser gun came out.
	Goliath spun around just as the laser gun fired, and Elisa knocked him out
of the way as she dove for the robot's midsection, the laser beam just
missing her head. She hit the robot and they both flew off the edge of the
building and began to fall to the street below.
	Elisa dug her talons into its metal armor, peeling the steel back, curling
it and then ripping it off as she screamed and roared like a wild animal.
The robot began malfunction as she reached its circuit board and smashed
the computer chip to pieces. The machine began to smoke as sparks fizzled
out from where Elisa had torn it apart.
	The street was coming up fast.
	With one final blow, Elisa ripped the robot's head clean off, and it burst
into flames. She opened her wings and soared back up into the sky as what
was left of the robot fell to the street below.
	Goliath was waiting for Elisa on the rooftop where the robot had last
assaulted them. Elisa landed gracefully on the edge of the building and
looked down at Goliath as the sound of cars swerving and horns honking
echoed up from down below.
	"Still think I'm inexperienced?" she laughed.
	Goliath just stood there, dumbfounded. "Eh..." She's amazing, he thought.
	Elisa held out her hand to him. "Come on." She motioned toward Castle
Wyvern.
"We better get going."
	Goliath smiled mischievously as he took Elisa's hand and hopped up onto
the building's edge next to her. The two gargoyles then took to the air.
	With Elisa at his side, Goliath was ready to take on more than just
Demona, Xanatos and the entire Steel Clan.
	He was ready to take on the world.
                                                                  


	Broadway opened his eyes and looked around him. The low hum of electricity
was all around as he spotted his three other gargoyle friends, who were all
starting to wake up.
	Lexington yawned. His eyes then widened in rage. "Where are we?" he
yelled.
	Demona's wicked chuckle echoed from behind them. "Fools. What does it look
like? You're in a cage."
	Hudson reached for his sword, but it wasn't there. "What's all this?
Where's me sword?" the old gargoyle snapped.
	Xanatos smiled as he came out of the shadows holding Hudson's sword.
"Looking for th- hey, Demona..." He made a face as Demona took the sword
from him.
	She walked over to the cage and smiled at Hudson. Demona placed the sword
on the floor, just out of Hudson's reach. "There you go. There's your
sword."
	Hudson's eyes glowed with rage. "What a we doin' here?" he growled.
	Everyone was silent.
	Brooklyn stood up. "Answer him."
	Demona slid over to where Lexington was standing and frowned. "We brought
you here to tell you something."
	Broadway raised his eyebrow. "Like what."
	"Goliath is dead."
	"You lie!" cried Lexington as he threw himself at Demona. He hit the bars
of the electrified cage and screamed as the electricity surged through his
body. He fell backwards and Broadway helped him stand.
	Brooklyn made a face. "Oh, yeah, that was real effective."
	Demona put her face right up to the cage and smiled. "I do not lie.
Goliath is dead. Sadly, he was murdered about fifteen minutes ago."
	The gargoyles said nothing. Though they didn't want to, they believed what
Demona said.
	"An whatta 'bout Elisa?" asked Hudson. He knew Elisa wouldn't let Goliath
get killed.
	Demona's eyes glowed red. What about Elisa?
	The blue gargoyle shook her head and sighed. "She's the one who killed
him."
	Brooklyn shook his head. "Liar." He made a fist. "You're nothin' but a
liar, Demona!"
	Demona laughed. This was fun. Of course none of it was true!
	Xanatos tapped her on the shoulder. "That's enough," he whispered.
	"Shut up, Xanatos," Demona hissed.
	"Demona, the robots we sent after Goliath and Maza have been destroyed.
They're coming this way-"
	"What!"
	Broadway narrowed his eyes. "What's going on?"
	Xanatos gestured. "Let's tell them the truth, shall we?"
	Demona rolled her eyes. "Fine. But you do it."
	Xanatos looked to the other gargoyles and smiled. "The real reason we
brought you here was so we could...analyze you."
	"Analyze us? What for?" Lexington got as close to the edge of the cage as
he could without getting fried.
	Xanatos smiled and turned around. "Owen."
	The servant nodded as he pulled a small remote control out of his inside
coat pocket. He pushed six red buttons, entering some sort of access code,
and then pushed a green button to initialize whatever he had entered.
	A loud buzzer went off as a red light flashed on the wall straight ahead
of them.
	Demona smiled. Xanatos folded his arms and did the same.
	The wall opened up and the four imprisoned gargoyles gasped in horror.
	There stood four new Steel Clan robots with the exact likenesses of each
of the gargoyles in the cage.
	Xanatos smiled. "Excellent."
	Owen pushed his glasses up on his nose. "Yes, sir. They are quite
exquisite."
	Brooklyn's wings flew open. "Exquisite? Exquisite! You call that
exquisite? Xanatos, you're insane!"
	Hudson put his hand on Brooklyn's shoulder. "What do ya mean to be doin'
with those robots, Xanatos?"
	"Well," Xanatos began, "I figured my 'Steel Clan' wasn't really a...clan,
so to speak. The robots were all modeled after Goliath. I wanted a
little...diversity."
	"And so ya had ta kidnap us ta do that?"
	"That's not why we put you in here," Demona said flatly. "While we go out
and test these robots, you will be kept in this cage. We don't need your
interference."
	Hudson folded his arms. "And what are ya plannin' to do with Goliath an'
Elisa?"
	Xanatos looked at Demona and smiled. "Target practice."
	Demona became uneasy. Why did they keep mentioning Elisa as if she were
still alive? Was it possible that the spell had not yet run its course?
	Suddenly, Demona was ripped from her thoughts as the door on the far wall
was yanked from its hinges and thrown to the floor. There stood Goliath,
eyes aglow with rage. The powerful gargoyle stepped forward.
	"I think there's going to be a change of plans, Xanatos."     



	Demona's eyes burst into a red fire of hatred as Elisa Maza strolled in
behind Goliath. She looked at Demona and smiled. "Hi."
	"You!" cried Demona as her wings burst open. "You're....you're a
gargoyle?! And you're ALIVE!?!"
	"Since when am I dead?"
	"Since I cast that spell on you!"
	Goliath bellowed, "You did this to her?!"
	Demona pointed at Elisa. "I didn't do that! You were supposed to be dead!"
	Xanatos grabbed Demona by the shoulder. "Dead? You call that a diversion?"
	Demona turned to face Xanatos. "You fell right into this, Xanatos. Go
blame yourself!"
	"That was the wrong spell you cast!"
	"Not according to me, it wasn't!"
	Elisa clenched her fist. "Shut up, Demona!"
	Demona slashed out at Elisa, but she ducked and Goliath grabbed Demona's
wrist. He yanked her up to eye level and let out an ear-piercing roar right
into her face. Demona flinched and squirmed for freedom.
	Meanwhile, Xanatos stood back and thought, if Demona didn't turn Elisa
into a gargoyle, then who did?
	Goliath pointed to the cage where Lexington, Brooklyn, Broadway, and
Hudson all gazed on in anticipation. "Let them go."
	Demona glared at him. "Let me go first."
	Goliath began to growl.
	Elisa's fangs were bared.
	Xanatos looked at Owen. The servant nodded and pulled the remote from his
pocket. Lexington tapped Broadway on the shoulder and the big gargoyle
turned his head to see Owen quietly punch in another code. Brooklyn saw it,
too.
	Goliath and Elisa did not.
	Owen pushed the green button.
	The eyes of the four new Steel Clan robots flickered on.
	Goliath heard something and turned away from Demona.
	Big mistake. With a quick swipe of her tail, Demona whipped Goliath in the
face and her let go of her wrist. She had Goliath on the ground in a
second.
	Demona pulled a laser gun off the table next to her and pointed it at
Goliath's nose.
	"Xanatos," she laughed, "You shouldn't leave things like this lying
around."
	"Demona," Xanatos warned.
	Goliath tried to move, but the laser gun made a little clicking sound as
Demona pulled the trigger slightly. "Don't be a fool," she hissed.
	"Demona, put the gun down," ordered Xanatos.
	Goliath's eyes fell on Elisa. He raised his eyebrow at her.
	Elisa got the message. She recoiled, ready to pounce. Her eyes glowed.
	"You don't know how long I've been waiting for this, Goliath." With that,
Demona pulled the trigger.
	Elisa, fangs bared, jumped for Demona and knocked her to the side.
	The sound of laser cutting through stone filled the room as Goliath threw
himself out of the path of the laser beam. He got up and ran over to the
gargoyles' cage as Demona and Elisa duked it out on the floor.
	Lexington ran up to the bars, but was careful not to touch them. "The
control box is over by the door, Goliath!"
	Goliath turned and looked at the wall next to what was left of the door.
	"They have some kinda code-"
	Goliath's massive fist crushed the control box like a wad of paper and
sparks flew from both the box and the cage. The lights dimmed for a moment
and then came back on as the cage lost its power and the gargoyles burst
free.
	Lex smiled. "Okay...never mind."
	Hudson picked his sword up off the floor as Brooklyn pointed a talon at a
scuffle going on a few feet ahead of them. "Ooo....girl fight!"
	Elisa had Demona pinned. "You give up?"
	"I will never give up until you're dead!" Demona kicked Elisa in the
belly, sending her backwards under the table.
	Demona stood and looked down. Elisa's tail was sticking out from under the
table. "Now I have you," she hissed in delight.
	Elisa's talons then scraped across Demona's leg, catching on her gold
anklet. With a good yank, Elisa pulled Demona back to the ground.
	Elisa was on top of the desk before Demona even hit the floor. She
laughed. "You know what, Demona.....this is really getting nowhere." Her
smile faded. "You're pathetic."
	Demona looked up at her and hissed, "You'll pay for that remark!" She dove
for Elisa. The two were on the ground again, punching each other. As usual,
Elisa had the upper hand.
	Goliath's eyes had found the new Steel Clan robots. "We have to destroy
them!"
	"I don't think so." Xanatos pulled the remote out of Owen's hand and
punched a triangular blue button.
	Elisa and Demona both looked up from their little skirmish as a loud roar
filled the room.
	Everyone watched as the Steel Clan's rockets ignited, propelling them up
toward the ceiling.
	"They're gonna break through!" cried Brooklyn. Everyone dove for cover.
	Bricks fell all around them as the robots burst through the ceiling and
into the night sky. They disappeared.
	Goliath pushed piles of debris out of his way, trying to get out of the
mess of bricks and wood. Sheet-rock dust filled the air. Everyone was
coughing.
	Brooklyn then appeared from under the pile. Hudson broke free, and then
Broadway, dragging Lexington out by his arms.
	"I'm okay," snapped Lex. "Lemme go."
	Goliath looked around him. "Elisa...where's Elisa?"
	The gargoyles searched around them, calling out Elisa's name.
	Goliath then heard something in the corner. "Shh!" he snapped. "Listen."
	Everyone was silent. They heard a little cough. Then another. Then a
sneeze.
	"Elisa!" cried Goliath, running toward the noise. Sure enough, there was
Elisa, dusting herself off. Her wings were white with dust. She flapped
them and Goliath turned away as the dust went everywhere.
	After the dust settled, Elisa looked up and smiled to see Goliath with his
hand held out to her. "Are you all right?" he asked.
	"Yeah..." she coughed, and went on, "...I'm okay...just a little dusty..."
Then Elisa fell silent with the horrible realization of something.
	Goliath raised his eyebrow. "What is it?"
	Elisa looked around her. "Where's Demona?"
	"I thought you'd never ask," laughed an evil voice from up above. The gargoyles
all looked up. There was Demona, looking down at them from the hole in the
roof.
	"Get her!" Brooklyn hopped up on a big chunk of cement. He opened his
wings and jumped up again, grabbing on to the edge of the hole in the
ceiling. He pulled himself up and stood on the roof. The others followed.
	Hudson looked around. Demona was nowhere to be seen. "Now where's the lass
disappeared to?"
	Goliath and the others began to walk around. "I don't like this," he
growled.
	Suddenly, Lexington screamed and dove out of the way as a laser beam cut
the stone at his feet. He and the others looked up into the sky.
	Sure enough, there were the new Steel Clan robots, led by Xanatos in his
steel exoframe. "This wasn't exactly the plan," said Xanatos' digitized
voice. "But I guess all experiments are subject to error, wouldn't you say,
Demona?"
	Demona? Everyone turned around to see the bitter blue gargoyle standing on
a cornice on the other side of the gaping hole in the roof. The wind picked
up and wisps of her red hair whipped in front of her eyes. She pointed her
trusty laser gun at the group of her own species.
	"Yes, Xanatos." her finger tightened on the trigger. "Now it's finally
time to correct that error."
	Showing no sign of remorse or reprieve, Demona pulled the trigger.
	Goliath and the gargoyles braced themselves for death when suddenly they
were splashed with icy cold water. Goliath shook his head as he opened his
eyes and looked at Demona.
	She was holding a water gun.
	"What sorcery is this!?" she cried in anger, glaring at the neon green
water gun.
	Brooklyn burst out laughing. "Hey, love the heavy artillery, Demona!"
	The trio and Elisa were all laughing now, and even Goliath and Hudson had
cracked a smile.
	"Is this somebody's idea of a sick joke?!" Demona threw the water gun
behind her in a fit of rage. It flew over the edge of the tower and fell to
the courtyard below.
	Even Xanatos was laughing. This was the kind of thing you saw in the
movies.
	But then, everyone stopped. Someone was standing behind Demona, which she
did not realize as she hollered, "What are you looking at!"
	Xanatos zoomed in on the figure standing behind Demona.
	No...he wasn't standing...he was levitating.
	Elisa gasped. "It's...no, it can't be..."
	Broadway's jaw fell. Brooklyn couldn't believe his eyes. Lexington raised
his spiked eyebrow in a combination of surprise and confusion.
	Hudson stepped back and drew his sword.
	Goliath narrowed his eyes. "Puck."
                                                          


	Demona's eyes widened at the sound of the little brat's name. She spun
around.
There was Puck, floating. He did a somersault in mid-air and waved at
Demona. "Well, hellooo there, Miss Drab!"
	Demona roared and as she dove for Puck, he shot through the air and hid
behind Goliath. Puck rolled over laughing as he watched Demona fly over the
edge of the tower.
	Xanatos landed next to Hudson. He took off his steel helmet. "Who is
that?"
	Hudson, seeing no threat in Xanatos, replied, "Puck."
	"From Shakespeare's play?"
	"Shakespeare...ya know, I've heard that lad's name alat lately..."
	Xanatos shook his head. "Uh...never mind. Now, about this fellow..."
	Xanatos and Hudson ducked as Puck sped by, laughing. Demona chased after
him, growling.
	"How does he do that?"
	Hudson chuckled. "It's a long story. Let's jus' say, he's not wonna us."
	"What a clever observation," laughed Elisa. She looked up at Goliath and
smiled. He did the same.
	Puck stopped in mid-air. Demona looked up at him and roared, "You little
freak! Because of you, I transform into a pathetic human every day at
sunrise!"
	"Tell me something I don't know," laughed Puck.
	"You will pay for that!" Demona called out, shaking her fist.
	"Ooo, I'm shakin' in my boots!" Puck rolled on his side, feigning dread.
He then burst out laughing.
	Demona crouched, preparing to pounce. "I am tired of you, you little
fool!"
	Puck's eyes lit up. "Tired, are you? Then perhaps you should sleep!" He
spread out his arms and legs and began to chant:
	
	"Thou art a fearsome beast, I see
	Tired, you are?
	A nap you need
	You live to give an awful fright
	'Tis time for you to say good night!"
	
	With that, a bright green light sparked at Puck's fingertips and
surrounded Demona. She tried to fight it, but could not move. She closed
her eyes and collapsed.
	Brooklyn watched as Broadway and Lexington cautiously made their way over
to Demona's motionless form.
	"It's all right," laughed Puck. "She'll be out for awhile." He winked at
Lexington, who looked at Broadway and grinned mischievously.
	Xanatos and Hudson looked at each other and smiled. "Well," Xanatos
sighed, "I guess I won't be needing these tonight." He pulled the small
remote from a secret compartment on his side. "Now that we know he's on our
side," he pushed the blue button, "we don't really have much to worry
about."
	Hudson watched as the robots took off for the garage in the lower half of
the castle. "So this is tha end of alla fighting, Xanatos?"
	Xanatos smiled. "Not necessarily."
	Before Hudson could reply, Puck was hovering over their heads. "Goood
evening, Hudson."
	"Aye, same to you, lad."
	Xanatos raised his eyebrow. "Eh...hello there."
	"Oh, look, it's the multi-billionaire, greedy, conceited, power-hungry
immortality freak! I've heard soooo much about you, Mr. Xanatos." Laughing,
Puck took off toward Elisa and Goliath.
	Xanatos looked at Hudson. "A comedian, besides."
	Puck smiled at Elisa. "Hm. I've done well, I see."
	Elisa looked at her hands. "You did this, didn't you, Puck?"
	"But of course."
	"But why did you do it?" asked Goliath as he gently placed his massive
hand on Elisa's waist. She stood up straight as she felt a chill go up her
spine, but in the realization that it was a good feeling, she folded her
wings over her shoulders and leaned on Goliath.
	Puck sighed, gazing at the two lovebirds. "I owed you one."
	Elisa took her eyes away from Goliath. "What for?"
	Puck floated around, bobbing up and down. He sat cross-legged and laughed,
"For the great romp in the city that night..." He turned his head and
looked at Demona as he mumbled, "...and for saving me from her. She was
really no fun, if you ask me."
	Brooklyn had been listening to their conversation while Broadway and
Lexington were keeping an eye on Demona. The white-haired gargoyle
inquired, "Turning Elisa into a gargoyle was payback?"
	"Look at them," whispered Puck, floating over to Brooklyn, leaving Elisa
and Goliath alone. "They're so happy together. Can't you see that's what
they want?"
	"But maybe Elisa doesn't want to be a gargoyle."
	Puck motioned over to where Elisa and Goliath were gazing into each
other's eyes, not thinking about anything else but each other. Brooklyn
sighed. "It's not that I don't want them to be happy...I mean, believe me,
I wish she really was a gargoyle-"
	"She is."
	"Yeah, but permanently."
	"And what makes you think this is temporary, my scaly young friend?" Puck
smiled and floated upside-down.
	Brooklyn looked to his side. "You could change her back if you wanted to."
	"Maybe I don't want to." Puck was still upside-down. He grinned. "Look,
gargoyle, Elisa Maza is happy. Goliath is happy. What else is there?"
	Brooklyn looked Puck in the eye. "She has a life besides us."
	"But she loves Goliath."
	"And he loves her, that's obvious, but Elisa's a cop. She protects the
people. She has a family, you know...and they love her dearly."
	"But so does Goliath."
	Brooklyn rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I know, but..." The horned beast sighed
and folded his wings over his shoulders. "Uh...isn't there some way you
can, like...um...turn her into a gargoyle only when she, uh, wants to be
turned into one?"
	"Who says she doesn't want to be a gargoyle right now?" Puck was standing
on the ground, now that the conversation had taken a more serious turn.
	"Is there a way?" demanded Brooklyn, getting annoyed with all the
irrelevant questions.
	"Okay, okay! Jeez, don't get your horns in a knot. You gargoyles are such
a demanding breed." Puck put his chin into his hand. "There might be a
way...maybe."
	Brooklyn smiled. "Really?"
	Puck sighed. "Maybe."
                                                


	Elisa looked up at Goliath and bit her lip. "Goliath," she whispered.
Goliath took her hand. "Hm?"
	"I...I have to tell you something." Elisa had a gut-wrenching feeling
inside of her.
	"What is it?"
	"You know I...I love being a gargoyle...it's wonderful, but I...it
just...I...." Elisa tightened her wings around her shoulders, trying to
hide herself.
	"You...you can't stay this way forever." Goliath had to force the words
out. He knew it was true, but he hated to admit it. This time had to come,
sooner or later.
	Elisa put her arms around him and hugged him. She closed her eyes,
fighting tears. "There's a part of me that wants to stay this way..." she
took a deep breath, "...but I have a family, and my job, and...Goliath,
they need me."
	Xanatos, Puck, and the gargoyles were watching quietly from a distance.
Demona was still unconscious.
	Goliath ran his talons through Elisa's long black hair. "Shh, Elisa. It's
all right..."
	Elisa began to cry. She had never felt this way about anyone, and now, she
had to choose between the gargoyle she loved and the life she'd left
behind.
	Goliath didn't know what to do. He began to feel her pain. And it was
horrible.
	Holding her tightly in his arms, he put his face up to her ear and
whispered, "No matter what form you take, Elisa, I will always be there..."
Elisa looked up at him and he gently wiped a tear from her cheek, "...to
hold you."
	Elisa closed her eyes and kissed Goliath on the forehead. "Goliath, I..."
she barely even breathed the words, she felt so weak.
	Goliath put a finger to her lips and said softly, "I know..." Elisa buried
herself in his arms and he folded his wings around her. "I know."
	Everyone was silent. No one said a word. The only thing that could be
heard was the faint sound of sirens and car horns far below.
	Elisa lifted her head. "Puck."
	Puck looked up. "Yes, my lady?"
	Elisa reluctantly pulled away from Goliath's loving embrace. "Change me
back," she whispered, her voice quavering with sorrow.
	Puck sighed. "As you wish."
	Elisa looked at Goliath and cracked a smile. Goliath folded his wings over
his shoulders and tried his best to do the same.
	"It's been grand, everyone." Puck rose into the air and, holding both his
hands out to Elisa, spoke the words:
	
	"Elisa Maza,
	Winged and horned...
	Return you now
	To human form."

	There was a bright green flash of light and everyone covered their eyes.
The wind picked up and clouds began to circle around the tower. Lightning
cracked and the sky was green.
	And then it was gone.
	And so was Puck.             



	Goliath hurried over to Elisa and kneeled at her side. The other gargoyles
and Xanatos huddled around her.
	She was human again.
	Goliath scooped her up in his arms. She opened her eyes and looked up at
him.
	"Goliath..." she whispered, reaching for his face.
	"Everything's okay now..." Goliath pulled her close to him and stepped up
onto one of the cornices of the tower wall.
	Xanatos watched as the other gargoyles followed, trying not to step on
Demona.
	Goliath opened his wings and said softly, "Let's go home."
	With that, Goliath dove off of the tower and took to the air, the rest of
his clan not far behind.
	Xanatos looked down at Demona. She lay there unconscious, sprawled out
like an insect on a windshield. The billionaire nudged her with his
steel-tipped foot.
	She snorted and rolled over.
	Xanatos shook his head and laughed. "All's well that ends well."
                                                                          


	Owen Burnett stood in David Xanatos' office, cleaning up the mess from the
conflict earlier that evening.
	He looked at the speaker phone on the floor. It crackled with Xanatos'
voice, "Owen, get a cleanup crew out here right away."
	The quiet servant picked up the phone and placed it on the desk. He pushed
a round black button and spoke into the receiver, "Right away, sir."
	Owen turned to face the enormous window behind Xanatos' desk and watched
Goliath, Elisa, and the gargoyles disappear into the distance.
	"Someday..." he whispered, "...you two will finally be together." He
pushed his glasses up on his nose. "And that's a promise."

-THE END-