Change of Face - part 5

Destiny's Beginning

by: Cat

CatK@buffymail.com

or

kirk_cathy@hotmail.com

Disclaimer: I don't own gargoyles, I don't make a profit from gargoyles, so please don't sue me. Any original characters are

property of me, and if you wish to use them, please ask first.

Also, this story won't make much sense unless you read parts 1 - 4 first. This story is set two nights after the events in part 4. You have been warned, now, on with the story.

**********

Change of Face - part 5: Destiny's Beginning

**********

The sun dipped below the horizon in a spectacular display of red, orange and pink. Shade stood, silently watching the sunset, waiting

for the gargoyles to awaken.

As the sky grew dark, it began, spider-web cracks formed on seven gargoyle statues. With loud roars, stone chips flew, and the

gargoyles were awake.

Brooklyn turned, and hopped down from his perch, looking around for Cat. Instead, he found only Shade, waiting.

"Hey Shade," he addressed the large cat. "Where's Cat?"

Shade looked up at Brooklyn, and projected her response in a clear

mind voice. [She's working.]

"Working? Where? On what?" Brooklyn let lose a string of questions.

[She's working,] Shade replied, [in a room, downstairs. Xanatos gave her an old research and development room when she asked for a place

to work, early this morning. She locked herself in after lunch and hasn't come out since. And she didn't feel the need to share what she

was working on.]

Brooklyn raised a brow ridge. "I'm going to see Xanatos."

**********

"I don't know what to tell you." David Xanatos told Brooklyn. "She

came to me this morning and asked for a place to work. I gave her one of the old R&D rooms and haven't seen her since."

"Come on Xanatos, you don't expect me to believe you let her have a room without leaving a way to spy on her." Brooklyn accused.

Xanatos chuckled. "True, but it doesn't seem to have worked in this case. Observe."

Xanatos picked up a remote and turned on a TV. "You can see here, before she started working, she found and disabled all my security cameras, including the small one in the ceiling vent."

Brooklyn watched as, one by one, six security cameras recorded their own demise. He turned back to Xanatos, "But surely you've got some

way to let yourself into the room."

"I do. The door is controlled by electronic key card. Theoretically, she shouldn't be able to lock me out as long as I have one of the cards. I sent Owen down with the card to see if we could still get

in." Xanatos sounded doubtful.

Owen chose that moment to return. "I regret to inform you, Mr.

Xanatos, that Ms. Kirk seems to have locked us out."

For a moment, Xanatos actually looked shocked, but only for a moment which quickly passed. "Well, it seems I'll have to have a word with

the fellow who assured me that that couldn't happen." He turned back

to Brooklyn. "It seems that until Ms. Kirk chooses to come out, we'll just have to wait."

**********

He stared in frustration at the screen. Instead of showing him Catherine Kirk, as he had asked, it was displaying a picture of a little blue cartoon gargoyle, holding a sign which read -- "We are experiencing technical difficulties - Please stand by..." Someone, or

something was blocking his signal. This did not make him happy.

**********

In the secured room, Cat worked, creating devices and weapons which were hundreds of thousands of light years ahead of anything presently available on earth. She worked with a glazed expression, as though

she were in a daze.

On the table in front of her already sat two things, what appeared to be a six inch long metal cylinder, and a radio headset. Still she worked on. The tools in the room were too primitive to be of use in

her present work. Instead, she held futuristic and alien devices.

Whenever she would reach for a tool, there would be a flash of dark green light, and the tool would appear. When she was finished with

the tool, it would disappear in the same manner.

So, she worked through the night, and through the next day, never

once stopping until her work was completed. When she finished, she

feel asleep. While she slept, the dreams returned.

**********

WHERE DREAMS RESIDE

Sunrise. Pink, orange, red. Bright light. There, on the horizon,

seven stone statues, the gargoyles.

I began walking towards them. In front of me a wall of darkness

loomed up from the earth.

"You may go no further." an evil voice, full of malice and hate,

tells me.

The darkness shimmers, begins growing smaller, shaping into a man.

"Your place is not with them." the dark man tells me.

"Who are you to tell me this?" I question the darkness in a frank

voice which says, 'I really don't care ~what~ you think'.

"I am Darius. I see your future, and they are not in it." The

darkness waves towards the forms of the sleeping gargoyles. "Their destiny is much shorter than your own, you are doomed to be alone."

"I don't believe you!" I shout at the thing, wishing it would be

gone.

"What you believe is irrelevant, what will occur is not."

The darkness began moving, flowing towards the gargoyle statues.

A soft feminine voice is heard, "The end draws near..."

The darkness reaches out, grasping the statues, crushing them into a powder.

I watch, horrified. I try to move but find my feet rooted to the ground. I cannot move. Silently, I watch. Five left, two left, then....none.

The darkness withdraws, laughing. My feet are released. I fall to the ground, screaming, wailing for the dead...

**********

Sunset found the gargoyles waking, once again, with only Shade in evidence.

"She's still locked away down there?" Brooklyn asked, "It's been two days."

[Relax,] Shade told him. [she came out a bit earlier. She's in the kitchen getting something to eat...]

Whatever Shade said next was lost to Brooklyn as he tore through the castle, down to the kitchen.

He practically flew threw the halls in his hurry to get there. He knocked Owen over in his haste, but didn't even slow down long enough to see the icy stare he received for his mad race.

There, ahead on his right, the kitchen lay. He bashed into the wall

in his attempt to turn. Ricocheting of the wall, he came to a stop in the middle of the kitchen.

Brooklyn looked around for Cat. There, he saw her, she had fallen asleep on the kitchen table, next to a half eaten tuna fish sandwich.

**********

"Cat, come on Cat. Wake up." I heard the voice as though it were echoing from far away. Slowly I made my way back from the misty voids of sleep.

"Hmm?"

"It's Brooklyn," I felt a hand shaking my shoulder. "Wake up."

"Brooklyn?" Still lost in sleep, I wondered vaguely who I knew in Brooklyn that would call me in the middle of the night.

"Come on, it's wakey time." I heard a snort, like suppressed

laughter. Slowly I opened my eyes and raised my head.

"Hmm..." I looked around and yawned, revealing some impressive teeth.

"Hey sleepy, it's about time." Brooklyn was standing in front of me, smiling and shaking his head. "All work and no play makes Cat a dull girl."

I grinned at him, he took a closer look at me.

"Whoa, like the new look." he whistled at me.

I looked down at myself, and sure enough, things had been changed, drastically. I stood up and walked towards the reflective surface of the huge walk-in freezer.

I peered at my slightly distorted reflection. Instead of the tattered remains I had been wearing, I was now dressed in some sort of black camouflage material. It was made up of a short sleeved t-shirt which fit snugly, but was not too tight, and some type of combination

tight pant-shorts and loin cloth. I had some type of belt which held the holster of a futuristic looking gun on one hip, and a holster

which held a six inch long metal rod. Also hanging on the belt was another metal rod, only this one had a switch, looking very much like

something from Star Wars.

On one foot I had a holster which went around my ankle spur, under

it, and around my leg, it contained a dagger with various buttons on the handle. Looking at my wrists I found gauntlets made of a silver material.

On my head I wore a communications set, which was a headband-like thing, which started above my left ear, went over my right ear, and

had a microphone which seemed as though it had retracted into the ear piece. I also had some kind of silver tiara which went across my

forehead, coming down to a point in the middle, where there was some sort of green jewel embedded in it. My wild black hair was held back

in a french braid, which the lock of white hair had somehow managed

to escape, it was falling in my face, just beside my left eye.

Strapped to my back, between my wings, I felt a back-pack. Twisting around for a better look, I found it was medium sized and made of the same material as my clothes.

"Whoa." was all I managed to get out.

Brooklyn looked at me like maybe I'd gone off the deep end. "What do you mean 'Whoa'? Didn't you know how you were dressed?"

"Actually," I looked at him, "I didn't. I don't remember changing,

and I have no idea where all theses gadgets came from, or even how

they work."

He gave me another funny look. "Whatever. Anyway, I've got patrol tonight, you wanna come along?" his expression turned hopeful.

"Sure, just lemme tell Shade." I grabbed the remainder of my sandwich and headed off to find Shade.

**********

Thirty minutes later we were gliding over Central Park when we heard

a scream.

Brooklyn and I glided down behind some bushes to scope out the

situation.

Four very scruffy looking ~men~, and I use the term loosely, had a woman pinned to the ground and were trying to rip the clothes off

her.

Unconsciously, my hand slipped down to my new weapons. I removed the plain metal rod from the holster, and shook it sharply, twice. It extended into a six foot long metal bo staff with only a slight hiss.

Brooklyn looked over at me. "Nice toy," he pointed to the scene in front of us, "Shall we?"

I nodded, we both leapt from the bushes, roaring a battle cry. The

four punks turned towards us. The smallest one shrieked "Gargoyles!" and fled. That left three.

The biggest one charged Brooklyn, while the other two advanced on me. ~Typical, they head for the weak looking little girl,~ as if in response to my thoughts, one pulled a knife, and proceeded to be stupid.

"Here girly, why don't you just put down the pipe, and we can have a good time." He shuffled closer, just him and his little knife.

I flashed him a fang-filled grin. "Come and get me."

He charged me with his knife held in front, I brought my staff up and smashed his hand, causing him to drop the knife. Then I knocked his feet out from under him, and heard a satisfying crunch as his head

hit the sidewalk. That one disposed of, I turned, looking for his friend.

I found him holding the woman in front of himself as a shield, while

he pointed a gun at her head.

"Y...you m...m...monsters st...stay BACK!" he stammered. I saw

Brooklyn come up beside me, eyes glowing in rage.

I held him back, he blinked at me, his eyes returning to normal. I whispered two words, "he's mine."

Brooklyn stepped back, watching. I stepped forward, towards the gun.

"Just put down the gun." I told the punk, in what was meant to be a soothing voice. I stepped a little closer, one small step at a time.

"No way man! I've seen what you things do, just back off!"

I stepped a little closer. I was ten feet away. Unfortunately, I'd

just stepped over his line. He began firing at me.

I felt a sharp pain in my wing where I'm sure a bullet passed

through, but I just stood there, I couldn't move. I closed my eyes

and waited to die. BANG! BANG! BANG! Click.

He was out of bullets. I opened my eyes. All the bullets he'd shot at me were in a pile at my feet. They were squashed flat, as if they had been stopped by a brick wall.

The man looked at me, he looked at his gun, he passed out quietly in

he grass. The lady he had been holding turned around, and kicked him, hard, in the package. Then she ran.

Brooklyn came up to me. "Whoa."

"Oh yeah." was the only reply I could come up with. My staff

retracted, back to six inches, the sudden movement snapped us out of it.

"That's a cool outfit." Brooklyn pointed to my black and grey shirt. "It stopped those bullets cold." He picked up one of the squished bullets. "I gotta show this to Goliath."

I smiled at him weakly, I remembered the pain I had felt in my wing. "Too bad it only works on the cloth, not everywhere. Could you check

my wing? I think one may have hit me."

Brooklyn went around behind me. I nervously put my staff back in its holster. After what seemed like hours, but was in fact a few minutes, Brooklyn came back to where I could see him.

He looked puzzled. "You're sure you were hit?" he eyed me

skeptically. "Cause I can't find anything wrong."

"I thought I was..." I trailed off as I realized there was no pain

from my wings. Perhaps I had imagined it. "Oh well, come on, let's go back to the castle."

**********

As we drew near the castle, loud explosions ripped through the night.

"What was that!?" I shrieked as I uncovered my aching ears.

"I dunno, but I've got a very bad feeling..."

Just then Castle Wyvern came into sight. A smoking crater in the courtyard revealed the source of the explosions. Gargoyles and gargoyle-shaped robots flew through the air, attacking a ship which hovered over Wyvern. Armed troops with jet packs were randomly disgorged from the hover craft, each one armed to the teeth, and interested only in the destruction of my friends.

I looked over at Brooklyn and saw his eyes light up. He was furious.

I could feel my anger growing, and felt the heat in my own eyes. I

knew my eyes had also lit up, ready to strike fear into the hearts of my enemies. We flew on, into the midst of hell. What happened next

was all a blur.

**********

A UNIVERSAL VIEW

Hudson was on a turret, trying to fight off three soldiers, armed

only with his sword and claws. Roaring, he charged one, quickly

putting the soldier between himself and his enemies. Lifting the soldier over his head, he tossed him at the other two, knocking all three over the edge, into the courtyard below. Before he had time to blink, he was surrounded by armed troops on jet packs, each holding a laser rifle. Hudson pulled his sword, and screamed his defiance, and was cut down from eight weapons simultaneously discharging. The soldiers flew on to the next target, leaving the old brown gargoyle dying in a pool of blood....

Down in the courtyard, Broadway and Angela were fighting off foot soldiers, back to back. Duck, dodge, punch, duck, dodge, punch. They were so absorbed in fighting the foot soldiers, they didn't notice

the soldier with the jet pack coming down above them. With a hiss of

release air pressure, and a small explosion, a net expanded, settling over both the gargoyles. A small spark, then the whole net was electrified, sending Broadway and Angela into the darkness of oblivion....

At the far end of the courtyard, Goliath fought, soldier after

soldier, enemy after enemy. He saw, one by one, his clan fall, he saw the soldiers pump tranquilizer after tranquilizer into Bronx, until

the big garg dog was barely breathing. He saw Lexington as he fell to his doom. As each member of his clan fell, a piece of him died. As

time went on, the number of soldiers grew, and Goliath lost more...

Cat and Brooklyn landed in the courtyard, just in time to see Goliath fall beneath a pile of soldiers.

"Nooooooo!!!!" Brooklyn yelled, ready to leap into the fray. A black blur shot from the shadows, flattening Brooklyn to the flagstones before he could move one step. It was Shade. She had her fangs bared and her claws out.

[Keep down!] her voice screamed through the minds of everyone there. The soldiers all dropped to their knees in pain. Some tried to block out the voice in a futile gesture of putting their hands over their ears.

Owen Burnett came running out from inside the castle. He saw Cat, and ran towards her, pulling a gun with his good hand, and something else with his stone one. His stone arm whipped back, and forward, tossing something through the air.

Cat caught it, just as Owen yelled, "Now would be a good time to go!"

Cat, Brooklyn and Shade disappeared in a ball of green flame. Owen Burnett smiled, and went off to defend the castle.

**********

The End

**********

Comments? Flames? Suggestions? Aliens taking over your brain?? Email me at

CatK@bufffymail.com

That's the end of this series.  I hoped you enjoyed it!
Continue to the Sequel of this Series