Gargoyles are the property of Walt Disney Corporations and Buena Vista. No copyright infringement is intended. I strongly suggest you read my stories ‘Sightings: Angels in the Night’ and ‘Sightings: Terror in the Sky’ before you read this. Sightings: Defenders of the Night by Kelly Weingart “Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome back.” Dani Wagner smiled into the cameras, twirling the microphone cord around her finger. “As I’m sure you all know, today ‘The Dani Show’ is taking an in-depth look at the so-called ‘gargoyle menace.’” She turned away from the audience toward the three people sitting behind her. “We’ve already spoken with our first two guests, Lauren Rand and Simon McDonald, whose tales of gargoyle encounters were as different as night and day.” She gestured toward a young woman and a middle-aged man seated in two of the plush armchairs that adorned the stage. “Our next guest,” she gestured to the third guest, a woman in her thirties, “is District Attorney Margo Yale who has been a long time opponent of the gargoyles.” Dani took her seat and smiled at her newest guest. “Ms. Yale, welcome to ‘The Dani Show.’” “Thank you, Dani,” Margo replied. “I’m glad to be here.” “Now, Ms. Yale, for the last three years you have been adamantly anti-gargoyle. Yet recently, you seem to have had a change of heart. For example, your recent decision to arrest Quarrymen Leader John Castaway. Could you explain?” “Of course.” Margo brushed her blond hair back from her face. She was nervous - she *hated* being on television - but this was something she felt she had to do. “It is true that for a long time I believed the gargoyles to be nothing more than mindless animals, savage beasts. I was frightened of them because they were different. Because they *looked* different. Looking back, I’m rather ashamed of my actions. I acted out of instinct, not rational thought, and that made me more beast than they were.” Dani lifted an eyebrow, impressed at the little speech. “As I understand it, the gargoyles have saved your life, haven’t they?” “Yes, several times,” Margo nodded. “As a matter of fact, one of them, the one called Goliath, saved myself and my husband, Brendan, from muggers only a couple of days after their arrival in New York.” “And where did they arrive from?” “As far as I know, no one knows for sure.” “Of course.” Dani leaned back. “What, may I ask, caused you to change your opinion of gargoyles?” “It’s a rather long story, I’m afraid,” Margo said. “It all began about six months ago when the gargoyles were accused of causing an explosion in the downtown area. I’m sure most everyone remembers the situation. Five of the gargoyles were believed to have been killed in the explosion and the two remaining gargoyles were arrested. As we - myself and Detective Elisa Maza - were transporting the gargoyles to a more secure holding facility the train we were traveling on was attacked by the Quarrymen. That in and of itself was enough to convince me that my suspicions about the Quarrymen’s true intentions were correct. However, it was not until the five gargoyles whom had been presumed dead arrived and began to battle the Quarrymen that I began to suspect that I had been wrong in more than one area.” She met Dani’s gaze. “One of the gargoyles, the one called Broadway entered the car in which we were traveling. I admit I was scared, but I had no reason to be. He was too busy being concerned about his girlfriend to pay me any attention at all.” Dani smiled in surprise. “One of the surviving gargoyles was his girlfriend?” “Yes. Her name is Angela.” Margo smiled briefly. “I had the opportunity to talk with them at the time, and a bit afterward. They really are a charming couple.” “What happened after the gargoyles arrived?” Dani asked. “Well, as you know they fought back the Quarrymen. But one, John Castaway himself, was in the engine of the train. He was prepared to destroy the train and everyone on it to make sure that the remaining gargoyles were destroyed.” Margo shook her head slightly, an amused smile playing about her mouth. “He was very disappointed to find out that the others weren’t dead after all.” “He would be,” Dani agreed wryly. “As I understand it, one of the gargoyles fought Castaway while the others tried to stop the runaway passenger car.” “Exactly. The leader, Goliath, confronted Castaway in the engine room and rescued the engineer. The other three, including Ms. Rand’s young friend, - his name is Lexington by the way - disconnected the passenger car from the engine and used the Quarrymen’s jet packs to slow it down. It sounds implausible, but it worked. I’m living proof of that.” Margo gestured at herself slightly as she spoke. “But all this aside, I believe it was the words of Detective Maza that finally made me realize that the gargoyles meant us no harm.” She turned to the audience and the camera’s. “All she said was ‘Gargoyles protect.’ And she meant it. Looking back,” she continued, turning back to Dani, “I realize that all the instances that led us to believe the gargoyles were dangerous could be taken two ways. The claims of gargoyle attacks in alleyways and parks were usually made by muggers and criminals who were in the process of committing a crime. The bombing of the 27th precinct was blamed on the gargoyles, but in reality we have two people who confessed to it. The past three years seem to be one big misunderstanding between our respective sides.” “What about the allegations that one gargoyle, called Demona, is responsible for the deaths of several people in the United States alone and possibly more in other countries?” “I don’t know about Demona,” Margo replied. “I’ve never heard her mentioned, nor do I believe I’ve met her. If such a person does exist all I can say is, she’s a bad one. There are good and bad humans. There are good and bad gargoyles. Will we judge every human on the actions of Adolf Hitler? I should hope not. Shall we judge every gargoyle on the actions of this one disturbed woman? I hope not.” “Very well stated,” Dani said. “Ms. Yale I understand that you and our next guest are aquainted. Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome Detective Matthew Bluestone, head of the NYPD Gargoyle Task Force.” The new guest came out to join them. He was young, with red hair and a pale complexion. He gave Dani a wide smile and took the seat Margo had surrendered to him. “Hello, Dani,” Matt greeted. “It’s a pleasure to be here. Hello, District Attorney Yale,” he added to Margo, whom, along with the other two guests, had moved down a seat. “Detective Bluestone, in recent months the Gargoyle Task Force has come under fire as being an unnecessary and overly-violent way of dealing with the gargoyle population of the city. Do you have anything to say to those accusations?” “I agree.” Dani lifted an eyebrow. “Could you elucidate?” “Ms. Yale was correct when she said that, like humans, there are good and bad gargoyles. And just as we have police to deal with the bad humans, we need people to deal with the bad gargoyles. For instance, the Demona you were referring to earlier. She does exists, and she is one of the most ruthless people alive. What happens if she shows up in the city one day? We need to be prepared. However,” he continued, “the Task Force, as it is currently constructed, is much too violent and gung-ho. They have a firm belief in the ‘shoot first and find out who it is later’ policy. Because of this, we run the risk of endangering the public as much as we try to protect them. What the Force needs is to be revised and retrained. Reeducated, as it were, in the ‘politically correct’ way of dealing with the gargoyle population of the city.” “Is that economically viable?” Dani inquired. “The NYPD has been suffering severe budgetary difficulties lately.” “I believe that it is more important that we are prepared to aid anyone and everyone than that we feel secure about our budget.” “I couldn’t have said it better myself,” Dani agreed. “Ms. Yale, what is your opinion?” Margo swallowed a grimace behind a smile. “I agree with Detective Bluestone, but I’m afraid that money is an issue. It’s also something we don’t have a lot of.” “Isn’t that the truth,” Dani agreed with a smile. ‘Not personally, of course...’ But politics and budget cuts were not why America had tuned in to her show that day. She switched tactics. “Detective Bluestone, I understand that you have been aquainted with the gargoyles for some time now. Is that correct?” “I have known of their existence, yes. And over the past few months I have had the opportunity to meet with them several times, especially in the wake of the Castaway affair.” “Can you tell me a little about them? Who are they? You and District Attorney Yale have both mentioned some of them by name. What about the others?” Bluestone nodded his head once agreeably. “Well, you have to understand that the gargoyle culture is drastically different from our own. For example, before their arrival in this city and their increased exposure to human contact they didn’t even have individual names. They had no need of them. Each gargoyle was different and recognized on his or her own individual skills, abilities and appearance.” “No names?” Dani interrupted. “Fascinating. Go on.” “Also, their family units differ drastically as well. While a gargoyle does take one mate in a monogamous relationship that usually lasts for the rest of their lives - divorce is not unheard of however - they do not raise the children within that family group. Each child born to the Clan is the child of every member of the Clan. And each adult is the parent.” “Saves the trouble of looking for a baby-sitter,” Dani murmured. “Once again, you mentioned names? What are they? And if they never had names before, how did they choose the ones they have now?” “Street signs, largely,” Bluestone said ruefully. “Goliath had been named by the humans where he came from, but the others took their names upon arriving in New York. The elder of the Clan, and the former Clan leader, is named Hudson, for the river. The second-in- command is Brooklyn. Brooklyn’s brothers are Broadway and Lexington. And Goliath’s daughter is Angela. And there’s Bronx of course. He’s their watch-dog.” “That’s so cute!” Dani said. ‘God, I sound like a teenager...’ “You said Goliath’s daughter? I thought every child belonged to every adult. Do they still keep track of who is whose then?” “Not really,” Bluestone explained. “Angela was raised outside the Clan by humans who knew her parentage. By the time she was reunited with her Clan she was a young adult and it was too late for the traditional methods. Goliath’s very happy to get to know her though.” “Ms Yale, mentioned something earlier. Does this mean that one of the - the *Clan* isn’t it - is dating their leader’s daughter?” Dani smiled. “What does Goliath think about that?” Bluestone grinned right back, a mischievous expression that seemed to tell more than his words. “Goliath is very... *protective* of Angela. But he knows his clanmates. I think he just enjoys seeing Broadway sweat a little,” he added in a confiding tone. “Detective, I’m sorry to say it, but it’s time to go to commercial. Thank you so much for being here with us today.” Dani shook Bluestone’s hand and turned to the cameras. “When we return we’ll be speaking with the founders of the People for Interspecies Tolerance, Abigail Underwood and Davis Harding. I hope you’ll stay with us.” ________ To be continued in ‘Sightings: Visitors From the Sky’