Gargoyle Saga: In The Beginning

Chapter Forty-two

Now that Dean and I had cleared the air between us, we went back to the group feeling a little better and Dean actually gave me a smile that was in earnest and not condescending. Joining in with the girls, Perri gave me a strange momentary look between Dean and me, but I shook my head and mouthed, "Complicated." She didn't press the matter and I was grateful. It was one thing I could count on with Perri, she didn't pry.

"Listen," Rowan said as he shot another arrow, barely taking the time to glance at the target. "I know this is your last week here and if you want, I can help you with your archery."

Fraya stifled a laugh. "She'll get better."

Rowan was about to knock back an arrow when I opened my hands and magicked the bow and arrow to me. Not really paying attention to the target as Rowan did, I let loose the arrow and with a flick of my eyes, pushed it dead centre. "I think I'll be okay with archery. Just need to practice some more."

Perri burst out laughing. "Too cool power." The boys gawped at the target, seemingly just as confused as the girls. "I hope you get another power like that."

"Telekinesis," Rowan nodded in approval. "Nice and also cheating!" Perri and I laughed at his sulky face.

Someone suddenly whistled loudly. "Oy Verity!" I turned to see Hadriana lean out of a library window. "Can you come up here for a second, please?"

Fraya put her hands on her hips. "Not very ladylike, is she? Shouting oy like that."

I waved at Hadriana. "Coming. Actually Fraya, her full title is Lady Hadriana Von Reed. She's a ladette more than a lady though the way she chews her food and speaks to people. I'll meet you all at the cafeteria for lunch," I told everyone and hurried off.

As I entered the library, I saw Hadriana and Lauri at a desk surrounded by a teetering tower of books. "What is it?" I asked, sitting next to Lauri who only gave me a weak smile as he was reading a book on Chinese talismans.

Hadriana held up an open book. "Look what I've found."

Reaching for it, I saw a small sketch of figures on top of a heap of dead bodies. "Ew, what is this?" Hadriana just nodded at it, and slumping into a chair, picked up a mug and drained it. You weren't really allowed any food or drink in the library. Either Hadriana didn't know about this rule or didn't care. She pointed her polished nail. "Know who you are before you go into the fray." Below the sketch was a figure number and small note: Fig 24. Piled up bodies of the Franco-Prussian massacre in September 1870. On the second page, was a paragraph about the gargoyle involvement:

'During the Franco-Prussian war of 1870, Gargoyles of France and Germany found it difficult to fend off the demons that fed on the bodies of the fallen. In all human history, Gargoyles never got involved in human wars and instead dedicated their lives to save humans, regardless of their beliefs. However, during the month of September the year 1870, French and German Gargoyles were waylaid by over one hundred foot soldier demons in Lisaine, France and while both sides defeated the demons, they came to a gruesome find of over two hundred bodies of humans. The humans were slaughtered by a single Gargoyle who, when questioned, said that the humans were in fact possessed by demons.'

"Holy cow, a single gargoyle did this?" I flicked through the rest of the pages for anymore reference to this gargoyle, but the pages were silent on that matter. "That's insane. How can someone do that?"

Hadriana sighed. "Think, will you." She stared at me but it was Lauri who answered.

"She thinks it was a watcher who did it."

That surprised me. "A watcher? But what about the others? Aren't there supposed to be ten watchers?" Lauri and Hadriana didn't say anything. "I'm asking the wrong question aren't I?"