Seeking a Path

Lexington wiggled through a drain pipe, dragging a waterproof satchel with him. Being the smallest member of the clan had its advantages. He could hide better than anyone, his delicate talons fit into the slimmest nooks in the computers, and he had more entry points to the Labyrinth than any other gargoyle, save maybe his own clone.

Today he brought some books, a letter to Talon from Elisa, and some weather proofing for the computer he'd brought down for them last time. For now, the crude library Goliath began down there help so much moisture in the air and dripping off of the walls that Lex has no intention of booting the machine up.

True to its name, the Labyrinth invariably got him lost. A while back he'd started carving little marks in the stone, just above eye level, to guide him. Today he was exploring a new path to the living areas, so he just marked which direction he traveled in. If he came to a dead end, he'd back track, putting a slash mark in the previous direction marks. If the dead end were dangerous, like a cave in or a sharp drop, then he'd triple slash them. If he came across just the directional ones later on, then he'd know that it was a safe path.

As he walked, the thought of Angela and Broadway's discovery the night before. How hopeful the others looked. A new gargoyle. Whoop. De. Doo. He'd wait to be excited until he knew all the facts. At least Goliath had his head on straight. Everyone on the look out, but usual duties and patrols still to be preformed.

Who knows? Maybe it wasn't even Avalonian magic that bought that boat. The others seemed to ignore that anything magical might be another of Demoa's schemes.

Lex pushed his sack ahead of him through another sharp turn. He sucked his breath in, then let it out in a whoosh to fit through himself.

The possibility of a new member added to the clan excited everyone. Brooklyn especially, after Broadway admitted he couldn't tell the gender of the gargoyle. Lex privately wondered if it wasn't just one of the cloned clan who'd made the boat in a fit of inspiration. Sure, they weren't as bright, but they didn't mean they had no imagination at all.

He heard voiced up ahead in the dark. The way the stone walls curled up and around, they could be twenty feet or twenty yards away. He continued on calmly ahead. The Labyrinth clan did a good job of protecting their underground castle; he doubted any unwelcome intruder had come in.

"Lexington!" One of the friendly humans who called the Labyrinth their home greeted him with a hug.

Living underground would be strange, but living openly with the humans again might be worth it.

"Just the gargoyle I wanted to see. I want you to meet Cailean."

The woman stepped back to reveal a gargoyle standing with a couple other people, chatting with them. A strange gargoyle. The new one.

Lex blinked a moment at the tall figure. Well, everyone was tall to him, but he guessed this one might have a couple inches on Brooklyn, at least if you counted the horns. Dark green skin, horns thicker at the base and tapering off in a kind of lumpy, stretched way to the tips, which curved back over black hair, wings caped over, the ceiling probably too low to let them loose. This one had the same statuesque beauty that he remembered more in the women of the old clan than the men, though some of them had had that beautiful quality as well.

Questions rose up in his throat, but he couldn't quiet get them out.

The stranger looked over at him. The woman was saying something, but it didn't quiet process. The gargoyle stepped close, bent down to his level.

"So, this is one of your... cloned gargoyles?" A slim green talon reached out and tapped Lex on one of his hornbuds. "I wouldn't be able to tell. Looks quite real to me."

"Hey!" Lex batted the gargoyle's hand away. "I am real!"

The humans snickered.

An older man came forward, placing a hand on Lex's shoulder. "Lexington, this is Cailean, Cailean, this is Lexington. He's not one of the clones."

Cailean blushed and apologized in a soft, quiet voice. "My apologies. I'm still getting used to... all of this. I'm still not quiet sure what a clone is."

"It's a copy, a duplicate." Lex held out a hand. Cailean looked at it oddly, until Lex took his. "Here, we shake hands to greet one another. So, you just arrived last night, didn't you?"

A long pause. The other's eyes shifted away from him. He pulled his hand away. "Yes, I did."

"My clan is looking for you, up above. They'd love to meet you too!"

"No!" Eyes wide. "No, I mean, I'm not staying long. Not much point meeting anyone."

"Oh?" an older man questioned. "You didn't say anything to us."

The gargoyle shrugged, awkwardly.

"Well, do you still want to meet the Labyrinth clan, at least?" He nodded. "Okay. Then we can show you the way out, I suppose. Lex, are you coming with?"

"Yeah, I got some stuff for the library."

"A library?"

Lex smiled at Cailean's interest. "I got some books for everyone. But, I want to wait until we're someplace dry."

The taller gargoyle stood, his hand touched the ceiling above, which dripped. "Understandable."

Lex let the humans lead the way, curious how they traveled through the tunnels. With several flashlights among them, the tunnels ahead seemed almost cheery. His eyes kept straying to the new gargoyle who listened avidly as George, the older man, talked about all sorts of random things as his mind wandered the way the residents of the Labyrinth often did.

Cailean's tail looked odd to him, truncated, ending in a spaded tip. It swayed in a circular pattern at calf level, slightly hypnotic.

They made short work of getting to the central area. Talon greeted the humans and Lexington warmly before looking over at the new one, who'd hung back a little.

"A new friend of yours, Lex?"

"More a new friend of mine," George said, with a bright grin. "I saved his life."

Talon lifted one fuzzy eyebrow. "Well that's an interesting change of pace. What happened?"

George related the tale, gesticulating wildly to make the story more interesting. Cailean stepped in long enough to say he had frightened off a couple of them, before George had stepped in to help. The humans, and even Talon began to chuckle. Lex stepped up next to the blushing gargoyle. He knew how it felt to be shown up by others. He offered a quiet smile, hoping it'd be comforting.

"Sounds like you had an exciting time," Talon finally said with a barely suppressed grin. "Come on, its time for lunch. You're welcome to join in."

Lex had a moment of worry, remembering his earlier thought that it could be another of Demona's tricks. He looked up at the open face. He was hiding something, but everyone had their secrets. Lex shook his head and walked up to Talon.

"Talon, do you think we can trust him?" Lex kept his voice low.

"What do you mean?"

"We don't know this gargoyle. How can you trust him enough to let him into your home?"

"Everyone, why don't you head into the kitchen? Lexington wants to take his things to the library. We'll meet you there."

Lexington watched as they all passed. Cailean paused, his tail switching back and forth behind him a moment. "Should I continue on with them?" he asked, deferring to Talon. Lex found it interesting that he seemed to sense who was in charge.

"Go on. We'll catch up."

The gargoyle nodded and turned to catch up with the humans.

"How'd you know I had stuff for the library?"

"Lucky guess." Talon grinned in his usual, feline, toothy way. "Come on. Tell me what's got your feather's ruffled."