GARGOYLES: Re-Awakening

Return: 3

The Elder felt a strong connection, and an insurmountable separation. He was looking out the open door of the cargo plane onto the open fields that ran up to the now gaping hole where castle Wyvern had once stood. The plane had swung wide in order to give them a view of what they were about to get themselves into. The view was one the Elder had seen many times on nights when he had glided out from the castle to defend, to survey, or simply to be alone. The sight warmed his heart because it felt like home. At the same time, without the castle it wasn't.

"It's nothing but a patch of land," Xanatos yelled in his ear. "Your home is safe, and together, we will keep it that way!" He was shouting over the rush of the wind, which made the delivery somewhat awkward. Still, he was never one to miss a chance at psychological manipulation. The Elder gave him a quick glance, but said nothing. Xanatos placed his helmet over his suit, once again taking on the visage of a gargoyle, then jumped out the open door. Jets at his feet fired to life and he shot off toward the castle. The clan followed him, with the Elder in front followed by the three youth. The dog-like one had been left defending the castle in New York. Demona and Goliath had exited about twenty minutes prior and were making their way, via a wide arc, to the cliffs at the back of the castle site.

The gargoyles were surprised at how quickly the fighting accelerated. Within two minutes, Xanatos had stretched his right arm forward and begun shooting, the same laser blasts they'd been exposed to on their first night in Manhattan. The return fire was just as immediate, and it was frighteningly accurate. They did not yet fully comprehend the capabilities of modern targeting systems, but they certainly comprehended that they needed to scatter, and they did. As per plan, the clan fanned out in order to sweep in from the sides while Xanatos maintained his heading straight into the middle of the Cyberbiotics camp, drawing most of their fire in the process. His suit was heavily armored enough to provide adequate protection from anything short of a direct hit, so long as there wasn't too much of it; his firepower was also more than enough to keep the enemy focus on him.

As he dodged and weaved through the air, Xanatos sprayed the camp with his arm blaster. Inside his helmet, he used the retina-guided  system to set targets for his rockets. It had taken months to perfect the technology, which allowed him to set crosshairs simply by looking at the object in the real world and then utilizing a series of blinks. What he was most proud of though, was the asynchronous capabilities. He could set the targets now, but launch the rockets later. Any time he chose, from any location, they would seek the preset targets. He was blinking furiously.

— —

Demona and Goliath heard the beginning of the fight and saw the flashes of laser fire. Goliath was worried about the clan and had a strong urge to break away and join them, but he knew the best thing was to quickly recover the Phoenix Gate. Demona showed no signs of even noticing the fighting.

The sea looked beautiful. The moonlight cast a long, bright streak through the waves. Goliath and Demona instinctively reached for each others hands. They had flown this many times—for Goliath just recently, for Demona, many lifetimes ago. As they approached the cliffs, they cut their altitude in order to stay out of sight. The cliffs themselves looked like a towering, black curtain, blocking the view of the battle that, by the sounds and the flashes, was clearly still raging. Goliath felt a sense of urgency, and he made a straight line for the cave in which he had hidden the Gate. He landed at the entrance with a dusty thud, followed immediately by Demona who reached into her waste and pulled out a small stick which, with the flick of a switch, emmited a bright light. She noticed Goliath's face looking with wonder.

"A flashlight," she said.

She pointed the beam ahead and Goliath suddenly felt the full weight of how much time had passed. The cave was filled with dust, cobwebs, and various remnants of bird nests, droppings, and even a few fish skeletons. None of it had been there when Goliath left the Gate. That was, of course, a good thing, he realized. It hopefully meant that no one had been there and that it would still be safe and sound. "This way," Goliath said, and he headed into the darkness.

The cave was narrow and the two gargoyles were forced to wrap their wings around themselves to pass through. Fortunately, it had a high ceiling, so neither was forced to stoop. The sides of the cave we soft and brittle. As they made their way forward, they occasionally rubbed a bit off the wall, kicking up a small cloud of dust on the floor. It was fortunate, Goliath thought, that the cave was even still here. He had only intended for the Gate to be hidden a few days at most. After a thousand years, there could easily have been a cave in. After about a hundred paces, Demona's light shined on a wall—the cave had ended. Demona looked at Goliath.

"Is it still here?" She asked.

Goliath did not answer. Instead, he turned and stepped into a small gap in the rock that Demona had not noticed. His body disappeared, but his tail remained in sight. After a moment, he turned and came back out holding a ratty, brown sack. The threads were fraying and the string which closed the sack looked brittle. With a tug, Goliath pulled at the string. The sack broke apart and he pulled the pieces away, revealing the golden glint of the Phoenix Gate. Demona stepped forward. It was more beautiful than she had anticipated. The blue background, framed in gold was of striking brilliance. The phoenix in the center of the emblem seemed to almost jump out of the frame. She could feel the energy of the object, and its pull on her. She was ready to use it immediately—to leave all the suffering behind and to travel back in time to prevent it. She was about to implore when she heard the click and charge of a laser. She spun around just as several headlamps flicked on and blinded both her and Goliath.

"We'll take that, monsters," she heard.