Chapter 8
Dominique disappeared into the shelter before sun went down to change into her halter-top and loincloth. She emerged just in time for her change to take place screaming in pain as simultaneously her wings erupted from her back, her feet and hands changed to talons, and her skin darkened into blue. The immortal gargoyle snarled at the sky and flared her wings before calming, the red glow disappearing from her eyes.
Kendra walked over to her, asking gently, "Are you ready?"
Demona wanted to say no, her emotions were a stirred up mixture of fear, curiosity and resoluteness. She both wanted and didn't want to face whatever it was that she was going to find out tonight. Finally she responded curtly, "I'm ready," she crouched and crawled into the sweat lodge.
Kendra handed the redheaded gargoyle two sticks, "Use these to guide the stones into the pit," she instructed. The black-haired women rolled four rocks from the fire using her own sticks and then pushed them carefully into the lodge. Once they were at the lodge opening Demona took over and rolled them into the pit inside the lodge. Kendra grabbed the drumming log and sticks, placed them inside the lodge and then handed Demona the water filled pot. Finally, she stripped down to her underwear and laid her clothes next to the fire and entered the lodge herself and pulled the blanket down, only leaving a small gap for light. She took the pot from Demona and poured some of the water over the rocks letting the hot steam fill the closed in space. Then she started drumming and chanting.
Demona stared at the black haired woman in wonder for Kendra was chanting in no language the gargoyle recognized. The novice shamaness stared intently into Demona's green eyes as she chanted. The immortal gargoyle found herself ensnared by the Kendra's blue gaze… and abruptly she was standing next to the stream where the sweat lodge was located. Demona looked around for the lodge and saw the shadowy outline of it as well as the shadow forms of Kendra and herself sitting inside. She turned around and saw Kendra standing next to her; strangely, somehow she could also see the woman's jaguar form at the same time. She stared back at the shadowy form of the lodge fascinated at the fact that she was seeing the ghostly outline of the real world here in the spirit realm.
Kendra stared at something behind the gargoyle and Demona turned to see what had attracted the black haired woman's attention. A dark eyed, dark haired woman now stood next to them. This must be the priestess that Kendra had spoken about the gargoyle realized. The dark haired woman was staring at the gargoyle, a concerned, thoughtful frown upon her face. If Demona already hadn't had a good idea what might prompt such an expression she would have snapped at the woman for it.
"I am pleased to see you here," the priestess greeted them. She then turned and addressed Demona specifically, "The Ancient One already knew of you, and has agreed to meet you," she hesitated, "there is also another spirit that is curious about you and would like to meet you as well if you permit it."
The immortal gargoyle was surprised, how had this Ancient One already known of her? And who was this other spirit that wanted to meet her? "Very well," she agreed uncertainly.
"Good," the priestess responded obviously pleased, "She is very wise and knowledgeable about all forms of magic."
Demona was about to insist that the priestess tell her exactly what type of spirit she was talking about when the dark haired woman turned around and looked expectantly toward the east.
Out of the trees, gracefully stepped a very large stag with antlers unlike any the immortal gargoyle had ever seen before. Demona stared at it in astonishment; in size, the stag dwarfed the caribou they had brought down earlier and she guessed that it stood over seven feet tall at the top of its shoulders. Its antlers had wide thick flattened areas or palms, reminding her somewhat of the antlers of moose and she guessed the stag's antlers reached twelve or so foot in total width. How it had managed to make its way through the forest with such antlers she could not even begin to guess.
"Holy," exclaimed Kendra from beside her, she feel silent for a moment and then she muttered in a much quieter voice, "Its Bambi's dad on steroids."
Demona felt a grin tugging at her lips at that comment. What breed of deer was this? She recalled that Kendra had said that the ancient spirit's children had been hunted to extinction by the Fey, and she wondered if this stag was the ancient spirit that had agreed to help her. That would explain why she had never seen any animal like this, the smile fell from her lips and she felt a sharp pang of regret at the thought. She wondered what it would have been like to see herds of these magnificent creatures roaming through the hills of Scotland. She knew what it was like to be hunted almost to extinction, but to be utterly alone, to know that no others existed of your kind.
As the animal stepped closer with dignified grace, Demona noticed Kendra subtly edging away from her, eyeing the stag with obvious wariness. She glanced at the black haired woman, concerned, and then she smirked. She leaned over and whispered, "Certainly you weren't thinking of trying to hunt him?"
Kendra shook her head vigorously, "Not this little kitty, nope," she whispered back.
A snort from the stag indicated that they had not been quiet enough to escape being overheard, "Fear not young jaguar, I know you intend me no harm." The stag's tone was resonantly deep, and clearly amused.
Kendra eyed the giant stag's horns and sharp hooves; it didn't take much of an imagination to figure out what they would do to her even in her jaguar shape. "Good, I definitely wouldn't want you to think for even a nanosecond that I was any threat at all," she replied earnestly.
The priestess smiled and shook her head at this, before turning to face the giant stag, "Greetings Ancient One," she said respectfully. "This is the one I told you about," she indicated the gargoyle.
"Demona, yes I have seen this gargoyle in the past and upon Avalon a short time ago," the stag stated.
The immortal gargoyle stared up into the giant deer's wise brown eyes, "How?" she asked, then she looked around her, "the spirit realm it touches Avalon as well."
"Yes, the spirit realm touches Avalon" the stag confirmed, "I am sorry I could aid neither you nor the human male called Macbeth. Without an intermediary, such as your companion," he nodded toward Kendra, "to act through, we cannot affect the living world from here."
"You were there," Demona stared at the stag, agitated, "You saw those witches make me attack our clan's children, attack my own daughter," her eyes flared red.
"I have watched them for eons, I watched helpless as they hunted down and killed my children for sport even as our numbers dwindled due to starvation. I watched as they killed the last of us and then regretted only the fact that there were no more of us to hunt," the great stag spoke with great sorrow. "After that I watched them, and learned about them."
"And though he has not interacted with the world since his people died, he has shared with the rest of us everything he has learned from watching them. Through our chosen ones the knowledge he has gained has been used against them," a voice from above startled Demona. This must be the second spirit, the redheaded gargoyle realized as a large eagle owl swooped down from above, its feathers black and white barred. "Might I trouble you for a perch Ancient One? I so dislike taking off from the ground," the owl requested politely as she hovered in the air.
"You may," the stag agreed.
"Thank you," the Eagle Owl alighted near the center of the great stag's antlers and turned her luminous amber eyes upon Demona, staring at her in such an intense way that the gargoyle felt uncomfortable.
"Wise One," the priestess greeted the owl.
"Jaguar's chosen," the owl dipped her head toward the priestess as she acknowledged her. Then the owl turned her attention back to the gargoyle. "You were right," the owl announced, "She does have a rather fascinating assortment of fey magic upon her." The owl turned her head sideways as if that helped her get a better look at the gargoyle. "What a smorgasbord, there's enchantments, compulsion spells," the volume of the owl's voice dropped and it became obvious that the owl was mumbling to herself as she continued listing the types of fey magic she was seeing, "manipulation spells, binding spells, shape changing, healing spells, binding enchantments…" The owl's head twisted around in the other direction as if getting a different angle would help, "There's even some I don't recognize, and the subtlety of them is so unusual, the Fey usually don't bother with it." The Eagle Owl sounded entranced with what she was seeing.
Demona snarled, her eyes glowing red, "I'm not here for you to study me; I'm not some specimen of yours." She was angry, and she was frightened. The litany of enchantments and spells the owl had rattled off, and the things she had said afterward…why would the Weird Sisters have gone to that type of effort? What had they done to her that everyone, even Kendra, was able to see, but she wasn't?
The owl's head swiveled immediately upright, "I beg your pardon," she apologized softly, "Of course you are not. You are here because you seek help, and my help you shall definitely receive." The owl vowed.
The gargoyles eyes returned to normal as her anger faded.
"And mine;" the majestic stag assured her, "However, the question before us now is how to proceed? The enchantments upon her are intricate, and I do not understand the purpose of all of them. The ones that bind her and the human male together are all that sustain her life, if we dissolve the wrong enchantment we will kill her instead of aiding her," the stag pointed out grimly.
"True," replied the owl thoughtfully, "they do seem to all be wrapped around and tied together don't they. We will have to unsnarl each one to see what it does and how it's connected with the rest before teaching her how to dissolve them."
The great stag stared thoughtfully at Demona, "She needs to see first, she needs to see what we see," the stag paused, and continued in a compassionate tone, "She needs to understand what was done to her and why."
The owl bobbed her head looking very agitated, "Are you sure?" she asked. Demona thought she sounded uncertain, "From what you have told me the truth will not be kind to her." The owl let out a mournful cry, "Not very kind at all. Are you certain that is where you wish to start?" the owl asked again.
Demona wanted to break in and ask what the two spirits were talking about, certainly she deserved to know what the Weird Sisters had done to her and why they had done it. Didn't she? She glanced uncertainly at the owl who was staring at her with such obvious compassion.
"Wishing," the stag pawed at the ground sharply, "I wish my children were still running across the grasslands but they are not," he breathed in deeply. "I do not wish to start with the why of it, but that is where we must start, otherwise she will not trust us and will fight us even if it is only unconsciously. She has no reason to trust us any more than she does the Fey," the stag pointed out. "She must know the truth, she must know the why to know who she can trust and who she cannot."
The owl snapped her beak together, and Demona couldn't discern whether this indicated the owl was angry or upset.
"You have a valid point," the owl still sounded reluctant, "Very well, we shall start there."
Demona finally broke in, asking in frustration, "Start where?!"
The two spirits focused their attention back upon her. It was the great stag that answered, "By returning the memories that are currently denied you. The three fey did not take them away, they simply cast a spell on you and the human to deny you access to them."
"My memories of Avalon," Demona whispered suddenly understanding.
"And before," the great stag added.
The gargoyles eyes widened slightly, she had known that there were several days missing but hadn't known that there were days missing before she had been taken to Avalon.
"Do you wish to have your past returned to you, to regain the memories rightfully yours that the three fey sisters denied you?" the great stag asked in a formal manner.
"Yes I do," she responded immediately, She had never liked the fact that there were days missing from her memory. The memories might be unpleasant, but she deserved to know what had happened.
The stag inclined its antlered head for a moment, then raised it again. It stared at her for a long searching moment, "The Eagle Owl spirit is correct, these memories…returning them to you is a necessity, not a gift, for I am certain what you are about to remember will wound you deeply. I wish you to know that I will help you determine the truth of your past. You no longer stand alone against the ones you call the Weird Sisters."
The owl fluffed her wings, "Well said," she complemented the stag, "I will add my own assurances of aid to the Ancient One's, you no longer stand alone in this battle."
Demona stared at the two spirits, not knowing quite how to respond. Frantic questions raced through her mind asking what events were in these memories that would cause the two to feel as if they had to reassure her before returning them.
She felt Kendra's warm presence by her side just before the black haired woman spoke, "I too am here for you. Whatever you remember and I think it's become pretty damn clear to both of us that it's not going to be pleasant; I will help you deal with it as much as you will let me. I will not leave you alone in this just as I would not leave you earlier."
Kendra's blue eyes were resolute and determined as they met Demona's own startled gaze. The gargoyle felt a rush of warm affection for the woman beside her. She felt confident that Kendra would be with her. Whatever it was that she about to face, Kendra would not desert her, it was simply not who the woman was. The gargoyle turned leaned against Kendra responding automatically to the mixture of warmth, gentle concern, caring and fierce protectiveness she felt from the woman. Strong arms wrapped around her and Demona reveled in the warm embrace for a few moments before realizing one essential thing. She was feeling Kendra's emotions. Her green eyes opened startled, and met equally surprised blue ones.
"What?" they uttered together.
"This is the spirit realm," the priestess's voice drew both of their attention, "In the case of strongly held emotions you are able to feel them if you are the cause of them, such as what, I gather from your actions, you are currently feeling from each other."
Kendra reached up and stroked the flame-red, wild hair, "Well good," she said, "I'm glad that you know I'm serious about being here for you." She met Demona's gaze calmly.
The gargoyle smiled, "I do." Kendra's calm acceptance helped quell her own unease at the thought of her emotions being felt by anyone else, even if it was the person who was the cause of them in the first place.
Turning back to the great stag, she took in a deep steadying breath. Now that she knew that she was not only feeling her own emotions, she could discern Kendra's sure, steady strength beside her. It gave her courage, and her voice was admirably even given the level of anxiety she was feeling as she said, "I am ready to remember, dissolve the enchantments."
Demona felt a moment of dizziness then…
She was standing still as stone, unable to do anything but stare stiffly straight ahead. She wasn't even certain where she was, except that she was indoors within a room hung with ornate tapestries.
Selene appeared in front of her, the black haired fey's eyes were cold as they examined her. "So it begins, we will finally get our revenge upon the human sorcerer and his companions for their insult against us and their trespass upon Avalon. Mortals have no place upon our fair isle."
Another of the sisters spoke from behind her, "We use one mortal sorcerer against another, the Archmage has been useful in allowing us to bend Oberon's law."
"What of our soldiers, are they ready for their task?" the white haired Luna appeared just within her field of vision.
"As the Archmage instructed, they are filled with bitterness and hatred, and they are bound to no living thing save each other. They are strong and skilled warriors and will attack without mercy whomever we instruct them to," Selene smiled coldly.
"But first they have other tasks to perform," Luna spoke next.
Demona remembered stealing the Grimorum Arcanorum, the Phoenix Gate and the Eye of Odin, from Goliath while Coldstone kept the clan distracted, with the help of Macbeth. She remembered standing with Macbeth by a table upon which were the three magical items, staring at them confused as to why she had obtained them.
"But why did we steal these things? And how did we even know where to find them?" Demona asked Macbeth.
He moved to grab the Grimorum from her hands and after a short back and forth struggle with the book she finally let him take it. He put it back on the table and turned to her glaring, "For that matter why are we working together now?" he asked aggressively.
She growling at him, and he went for the chair by the table. Then she couldn't move, just as before. "It seems we have arrived just in time my sisters." She heard one of the Weird Sisters say.
Selene appeared within her field of vision, "The spell we placed on these two was about to wear off."
Another sister that she couldn't see replied, "You can only compel someone to act against their nature for so long."
The other two sisters stepped next to Selene who was staring at she and Macbeth coolly, "Was it wise to release Coldstone?" she asked.
Phoebe commented, "Perhaps we could have found a way to place a spell on him as well."
The white haired Luna authoritatively, "We do not need Coldstone. These will do quite nicely in the coming battle."
The three sisters raised their arms together and Demona felt a magical wind stir and then the room disappeared and they were standing upon a barge, two Archmages were waiting for them.
The sisters gave the Archmage that looked like Demona remembered from nine hundred years ago the Eye of Odin. The magical artifact bound to him upon his brow and he transformed, now he more closely resembled the second Archmage that stood beside him. The sisters gave him the book, and impossibly opening his mouth wide, the first Archmage swallowed the Grimorum making it part of himself so that he could take its magic with him onto Avalon. Finally, the sisters gave him the Phoenix Gate. Now the two Archmages looked exactly alike.
The mist rose again and now they were by a lake bordered by high cliffs. To her right were steps leading up to a stone rotunda. The Weird Sisters lead Macbeth and she up the steps to the rotunda, a small pool filled the center of it.
It was daylight, and Demona was in human form, the Archmage insisted that they wait until sunset to begin their attack upon the Magus. The Weird Sisters left upon some errand, leaving Macbeth and she alone with the two Archmages.
One of the Archmages stalked towards her still form, "This beast betrayed me," he hissed staring at her balefully. "I showed her kindness by agreeing to teach her to read, seeing that she was more cunning than the others of her kind. I even taught her rudimentary spells, and in return for that, she split the Phoenix Gate in two and gave half to that other beast she mated with instead of giving it to me! I told her were to find it, I ordered her to bring it to me and she disobeyed me," he spat. Vindictively he continued, "I should have left her wallowing in the filth of her own ignorance like the other beasts. I was mistaken when I thought that she would be useful to me." Demona felt chilled and afraid, she was completely unable to move, helpless in the face of the Archmage's hatred.
He circled around her, "And then to add insult to injury she betrayed me a second time, she was one of the beasts who followed me, who stole the Grimorum from me and almost caused my death." He paused, "Would have caused my death if it weren't for myself," he laughed.
Suddenly he stopped, "You said we were doing her no favors by choosing her as one of our cannon fodder, what did you mean? I want vengeance upon her as well as upon Goliath."
The second Archmage rose, "Don't you remember our specific instructions regarding these two?" he smiled cruelly.
"To make sure they remain powerful warriors, the Weird Sisters were to make sure their lives were filled with bitterness and hatred. Bitterness and hatred make warriors that are hard and merciless. They were to make sure they did not become contented with their immortality, or concerned with descendants or lovers that might make them soft, compassionate. They were to make sure they remained alone, that they had no ties to anyone but each other, and that the ties that bound them together were ones of enmity." The first Archmage repeated, "Why those words, how does that give us our revenge for her betrayal of me." He spoke to the second Archmage shaking a pointing finger in her face.
The second Archmage laughed, it was a cold, cruel sound. "This beast has lived a thousand years. A thousand years of hating, a thousand years of bitterness, a thousand years of being completely alone. A thousand years of our revenge, a thousand years of repayment for her betrayal."
The first Archmage stared at her, and then he smiled, "I see." A few seconds later, his face fell, "But she does not know why, until she knows this was her punishment I have not had my revenge," he snarled at the second Archmage.
"Patience," counseled the second Archmage, "When the Magus and his companions are destroyed, when Goliath is dead, then we will have the Weird Sisters lift their compulsion. Then she will know the full cost of her betrayal. She will know how foolish she was to have disobeyed and betrayed me." The two of them turned and stared at her, and if she could have, she would have recoiled from the gloating satisfaction in each of their eyes.
The second Archmage, finally stopped glaring at her, turning to the first to say, "The only thing better would have been if I could have broken the enchantment upon Goliath and set them at each other. I'm certain that the Weird Sisters could have used what happened at Wyvern Castle to do it, unfortunately though I couldn't figure out how, so I had to make do with Macbeth."
The first Archmage observed, "That is unfortunate. I guess we shall just have to be content with killing him now." The two looked at each other and then laughed manically. Even as their laughter chilled her, she wondered how they planned to kill Goliath when as far as she knew he was still in Manhattan.
The Weird Sisters lead the attack upon the castle the Magus had claimed for his own, breaching the outer wall with their magic immediately after the sunset. There were gargoyles inside, she had not known there were any on Avalon, but there was nothing she could do, rage as she might against the enchantments that bound her. They attacked firing at those in the castle even as they asked who they were.
Silently, trapped in her own mind, Demona screamed out in protest as one of her shots when through a teal colored female's wing, wounding her badly. A pale green colored male swooped in and struggled to pull her weapon away from her, she slashed at his wings feeling the skin tear as she drove him away. She raged at attacking them at all, but at least she had not yet landed any killing blow. To her relief, magic surrounded her summoning her away from the attack.
Selene began protesting immediately, "Why did you call us off?
The Archmage replied arrogantly as if lecturing a student, "If we wait until dawn the gargoyles will be stone. Three puny humans will be all that stand between us and victory." He smiled, "Besides I need to give them time to bring Goliath to the island, my vengeance would not be complete without him," he ended spitefully.
Demona didn't know whether to wish Goliath away or hope that he was indeed coming here. As stupid as she thought her ex-mate was, he was still a magnificent warrior and he might be able to protect the other gargoyles from Macbeth and her.
Time passed as the Weird Sisters and the two Archmages stared into the pool in the middle of the rotunda. Finally, the Archmage reached down and stirred the water and announced, "Finally all the pieces are now in place, Goliath and his clan are doomed."
One of the Archmages left on an errand. Time passed while the Sisters and the remaining Archmage stared into the pool. The Archmage rose, apparently having seen in the pool whatever he had been waiting upon, "Finally, now the real fun begins," he said smiling, and then he broke out into the maniacal laughter she was beginning to expect from him.
Macbeth and she were sent out to intercept Goliath. Demona stepped into the bushes beside the path and waited for her former mate to arrive. She breathed out a sigh of relief and felt a wave of fierce satisfaction when she felt the stick she had spotted moments ago now underneath her left foot. It was not long before she spotted Goliath and two younger gargoyles moving quickly down the path toward the rotunda. Purposefully not thinking about what she was doing, she shifted her weight and the stick cracked with a loud snap underneath her foot.
The younger blonde male stopped, Goliath and the lavender female pulled up looking towards him curiously. "I heard something over there," the young male said, pointing toward where Demona was hidden. "Did you hear it?" he asked them.
Goliath and the lavender female both shook their heads. Demona groaned silently, stupid stubborn male. As she knew would happen, Goliath proceeded to ignore the possibility of danger and didn't check to see if the younger male had actually heard anything.
"The grotto is just ahead," the young lavender female announced.
"I'll act as a diversion," Goliath laid out the attack plan, "Retrieve the Eye of Odin and the Phoenix Gate and get out." The younger gargoyles moved off, Goliath called softly after them, "and no heroics."
As the younger two continued following the path toward the Grotto and the rotunda there, Goliath turned off the path and into the woods apparently planning on coming upon the rotunda from the back. Demona's body moved to follow the two gargoyles, the compulsion upon her apparently deciding they were the greater threat. As she followed the most obvious and least concealed route to the path, the immortal gargoyle felt a surge of hope; it seemed to be easier and easier to have some effect on her own body. She deliberately pushed nosily through some bushes, hopefully even her apparently deaf ex-mate couldn't miss this much noise.
She met up with Macbeth and the two of them followed the younger gargoyles who finally stepped off the path to hide behind some bushes approximately fifty feet from the rotunda. Demona had been starting to wonder if the two would just walk directly up to the Archmage. The blue-skinned gargoyle stepped directly behind the two, appalled at how oblivious the two youngsters were to their surroundings.
She pushed the muzzle of weapon lightly into the lavender females back, only to roll her eyes in exasperation as the female turned to the male beside her, complaining softly, "Stop it."
What was Goliath thinking to send such untrained youngsters against the Archmage? Demona thought angrily.
"Hands up and don't move," ordered Macbeth.
Demona was relieved they weren't just firing upon the two, she wasn't certain she could make herself miss at this close range. The youngsters turned around and the immortal gargoyle saw the female's eyes flare red.
No, she thought despairingly, as her weapon swung toward the attacking female. Then Goliath was there pushing it aside. She felt a wave of relief, apparently she had finally been loud enough for him to hear.
"These are our clan's children," he said glaring at her. She looked past him at the two youngsters.
How had she not realized this before, she wondered, she had seen the Magus and Catherine at the castle, these then were the hatchlings from the eggs she had seen them loading onto carts over nine hundred years ago. Time must flow much slower here.
"Demona, I know you hate humans, but these are innocent gargoyles," Goliath continued.
But she wasn't really listening to him now, she was looking at the young lavender female behind him, the young lavender female whose coloring was an exact match of her ex-mates. She was taking in the young females face, seeing the shape of it, and wondering. Her weapon swung up towards the youngster, her body controlled by the compulsion spell of the Weird Sisters. Everything inside Demona rose up in outraged protest, this female could be Goliath and she's daughter.
"No," she managed to utter her protest aloud; the compulsion snapped allowing her control of her own body after days of enslavement. "Can it be?" she questioned wonderingly, her gaze taking in everything about the young female.
Seeing that she was free Goliath turned to address Macbeth, "And you, Macbeth. Does your much-vaunted sense of honor include the slaughter of innocents?"
Out of the corner of her eye, Demona saw Macbeth's weapon drop and her one time friend's hand raise to his forehead as he doubtless suffered from the same pounding head as she.
"The Archmage is using you," Goliath informed them, as if this were news to them.
Demona was trying to think of a suitable scathing comment, after all how stupid did Goliath think she was, when the Archmages maniacal laughter preceded his appearance.
"Oh your very good Goliath," the Archmage said condescendingly, "But appealing to their better natures won't help you, their my creatures now."
That was all the warning Demona had before her brief moment of freedom was abruptly over.
"I have great plans for you Goliath," the Archmage continued after regaining control over Macbeth and Demona, "But these young ones are expendable."
With a sickening sense of realization, the immortal gargoyle realized that this too was part of the Archmage's revenge upon her; he would force her body to slay her clan's children, to slay her own daughter. It was also his revenge upon Goliath, he would doubtless hold off killing her former mate until all their clan's children were dead, making it clear that Goliath had failed to protect them before finally killing him.
"Destroy them," the Archmage commanded.
Helpless, Demona watched herself raise her weapon; Bronx's attack was never so welcome even as she struggled to keep his jaws away from her. Just before Bronx left off his attack, she heard the younger male gargoyle's voice, "Angela, come on." The small group retreated quickly.
As the Archmage ranted, she savored the knowledge she had just gained,
Angela. She wondered who had named her daughter, and if the name gave her some hint of the young females personality. They returned to the rotunda. As the Archmage stared into the pool broodingly, the three Sisters pulled Macbeth and Demona off to the side.
"They broke the compulsion placed upon them," Selene eyed them narrowly.
Luna observed calmly, "They were forced to go directly against their natures. The gargoyles are young and untrained; Macbeth refused attack those unable to defend themselves." She stared at Demona, "And this one has always resisted any compulsion to directly harm another gargoyle."
The yellow haired Phoebe spoke, "Her nature is to protect her own kind. The Archmage thinks to compel her to kill the gargoyles in the castle, but she will continue rebelling against that compulsion. He will be forced to make her a mindless servant before she will obey such an order."
Selene frowned, "The Archmage controls them currently, not us."
Demona could sense them glancing at one another, the three sisters gestured and she could feel the compulsion on her lessen briefly before being replaced.
"We should repair the compulsions on the gargoyle, they have been weakened," observed Luna.
"Will they be needed?" asked Selene coolly. Demona knew full well that the black haired sister was asking if she would live long enough to warrant them bothering. She knew if the Archmage succeeded in his plans that she wouldn't want to live with the knowledge of what he had forced her to do.
"We may have a further use for her," Luna stated.
Phoebe stepped in front of the gargoyle staring into her eyes, "Remember Castle Wyvern, remember what your actions lead to, the slaughter of your clan by the Vikings." Demona remembered, she remembered the brief moment of hope that the Captains plan had succeeded before that hope turned to horror as she turned over the stone fragment of Coldstone's face. "You were the cause of their death, you were the one who helped the Captain of the Guard weaken the castles defenses so that the Vikings could come and kill your clan during the day." Regret and grief welled up inside the gargoyle, but the Sisters did not stop there.
Selene replaced Phoebe, "Remember your clan at Castle Moray, you betrayed Macbeth to Canmore and in return Canmore betrayed you. Canmore found them all and killed them, from the eldest to the youngest. If you had not led him to them they would have lived."
Demona remembered, she remembered Gruoch's words, "Go and search for your kind, then. Search until you and your kind are but a nightmare memory." She remembered the frantic flight back to the cave where the clan had taken shelter, the fragments of their stone forms that she found proof of the woman's words.
Tears welled in the gargoyles eyes and ran down her face, yet there was no mercy no compassion in the gazes of the three sisters that surrounded her. Luna stepped in front of her, "You bring death and destruction to your kind, to associate with you means their certain demise."
Selene added, "Any gargoyle that is near you is in danger, danger from the Hunters that seek your death, and in danger from the choices that you made."
Phoebe spoke next, "The only way you can protect them is to protect them from you."
"The only way to protect them is to drive them away from you." Demona was no longer certain which sister was speaking as their words drove into her mind.
"To protect them you must make them hate you, make them want to have nothing to do with you, then they will be safe."
"To protect them you must remain alone." Luna alone was in front of her now, examining her tear tracked face with a chill dispassionate stare.
"I must remain alone," Demona repeated obediently, accepting her fate. The three Weird Sisters nodded in satisfaction.
The remainder of the battle on Avalon was blurred in her memory, mixed in with the sadness and grief the sisters had stirred within her. There were moments of clarity, her horror when she entered the castle and saw all the wounded gargoyles. The strangeness of seeing Princess Catherine looking so old, of seeing the woman who had called her a beast and looked upon her with hatred, standing so staunchly in front of the young gargoyles determined to protect them even if it cost her whatever short years remained of her life.
Elisa Maza providing a much needed distraction when Demona was almost certain she could no longer delay her body from firing upon one of the wounded gargoyles. Her victory when she persuaded herself that she didn't need a weapon to take on the human woman, and threw the laser rifle away before rushing Maza.
She was so used to not fighting with her full abilities against the Detective, that it was easy to persuade her body to do so now. Originally, she had stayed her hand in order to give the human time to betray the clan, so that they would understand what she already knew, there was no human they could trust. Recently she had grudgingly begun to consider that Maza actually might be the exception that Brooklyn claimed she was, that the detective would never betray the clan.
Finally, with Maza and the male in armor holding her down to the floor, Demona decided it was time to remind her compelled body that it had thrown away a perfectly good weapon. Even as she snarled, "I'll destroy you all," and clawed for the weapon she knew she was too far away from the rifle to reach it. The Weird Sisters compulsion must be weakening if she had this much control over her actions, she realized feeling a stirring of hope.
Of everyone that could have picked up the laser rifle, Demona was surprised to see that the Princess was the one to finally reach for it after a yellow colored gargbeast knocked it further away.
"Enough of this," said the Princess in a clear, angry voice, "Get clear!"
Demona felt the two humans scramble away from her, she managed to slow her body as she rose, waiting for the impact of the blast that would stop her from attacking. To her surprise the old woman didn't fire at her but the wall behind her, she barely had time to realize that before something heavy struck her head.
Continued...