From: Stephen SobotkaJr <scififangargoyle>
Date: Sat Oct 2, 1999 4:29 pm
Subject: Sub-Arc for Thailog Arc - Outline #2
Here is story 2...
***
Gargoyles - Discoveries
A Plot by Stephen R. Sobotka, Jr.
[Setting: a few weeks after "Thrills In The Night"]
In a recording studio in uptown Manhattan, Fox is with
Brad Tork - the new CEO of Xanatos Records - listening
to a rehearsal session by Ian Ravyn. He's impressed
both of them with his vocal range and talent, and they
are both itching to sign him to his first big American
record contract.
With them is Ian's agent, Gil Tao. Tao is proud of his
client, but drives a hard bargain with the two eager
executives. In the end, he agrees to meet with them
over lunch to discuss the proceedings in a day. This
is agreeable, and they make the necessary
arrangements.
* * *
<B Plot Material Here>
* * *
Back at the castle, Fox breaks the news to the others
when the clan returns from their patrol. Ariana and
Graeme are excited to the nth degree.
"Ian Ravyn was with you!?!?" "Did he say anything
about coming here???"
Ever since Ravyn first met the twins, they have become
true fan-fanatics. They have nearly all of Ravyn's
press releases, newspaper clippings, and printed out
posts from the Ian Ravyn Online Fan Club. Posters
dominate a small room on the gargoyles wing, and
copies of all the singles and both European albums
hold a special place in the entertainment room's CD
shelf. They ask if they can come to meet Ian after the
negotiations, but Fox tells them that will happen in
the daytime, so they won't have a chance to see him,
much to the twins disappointment.
* * *
That night, Ian and Tao are in a limo, headed for
their hotel for the night. Tao is all smiles, thinking
that they will have netted quite a gain after the
negotiations tomorrow. Ian isn't at all thrilled, and
states that what they are planning is wrong. Tao
reminds him that he has an obligation to their
"backer" to fufill, or would he like to go back to
that lonely street in Europe, attempting to sing for
mere pennies. Tao closes the subject by stating,
"besides, we all gain from our backer . . . in one way
or another.", and from the reader's p.o.v., it seems
that his fingernails extend a good six inches and then
retract.
* * *
<B plot Material Here>
* * *
The next day, Fox gets a call from Brad Tork; seems
something delayed Ian at a promotion across town, so
they will have to meet for dinner instead of lunch.
Fox sighs, but realizes that they will have to do it
if they want to get Ian on their label. She contacts
Owen to make the necessary changes to her schedule.
Later, as Owen is working on some house-hold task, the
twins go by on their way to join the others for their
patrol. Graeme stops to say hello to Owen, and asks if
he's heard any news about the contract for Ravyn? Owen
replies that the negotiations had to be moved to later
that night, and the twins look at each other and grin.
Maybe they WILL get the chance to see Ian one more
time.
At that time, Fox and Xanatos are waiting for the
helicopter to take them to meet with Ravyn and Tao.
Fox is hoping that things will turn in their favor,
and Xanatos is offering her his every confidence.
Soon, the chopper arrives, and in a moment, Fox is on
her way to the Manhattan Hilton (?), and the
restaurant there.
* * *
<B Plot Material Here>
* * *
During the dinner, Fox and Bran have to do some very
tricky "gymnastics", but in the end, they satisfy both
Tao and Ian with their contract offer, and by the time
the waiter brings desert, Xanatos Media International,
has it's first star act on the label. To celebrate,
Fox invites Ian and Tao back to the castle to meet
David, and they agree. Just then Brad is called away
to speak to another member of the XMI staff, so he
tells them to go on without him, he'll catch up later.
During the chopper ride back, Fox and Ian are talking
about possible ideas for his first album from XMI,
but, unknown to them but seen by the reader, Tao opens
the face of his Rolex watch and activates a hidden
transmitter.
Just at the Eyrie building comes into site, three
"flitter" craft (looking like the ones the Hunters
used), rise up from a hidden spot and chase after the
helicopter. When they get close, they begin firing
laser weapons at it.
The pilot tries to get away, but Fox puts in a call to
the Eyrie for help. Just then, when one of the flyers
scores a negligible hit (it throws everyone around,
instead of causing read damage), Tao puts his hand
against the back of the pilot's seat, and the reader
sees a tensing motion, that is Tao's extendible nails
puncturing through to prick the pilot in the back.
Suddenly, the pilot collapses (from knock-out poison
in Tao's nails) and the chopper begins to spin. Fox
throws herself into the co-pilot's seat, and wrestles
the controls to keep from crashing. Another hit sends
the vehicle skittering, seemingly knocking Tao
unconscious in the process.
As the flyers line up for another attack, the
gargoyles appear to stop their attack. There is a mad
aerial battle - in which Brooklyn, Sata, Goliath, and
even the twins are shown dealing with the enemy - and
they end up escorting the helicopter back to the
castle.
However, the damage that was negligible turns out to
be more serious that it was thought to be when the
control systems begin to fail. In the face of an
inevitable crash, Ian sees no other recourse that to
do what he must, so he opens one of the side doors,
grabs both Fox and the unconscious pilot and leaps for
their lives. They're still too high to land on the
castle without major damage, and none of the gargoyles
are close enough for a rescue swoop-and-grab, but just
then a pair of flesh-colored wings burst from the back
of Ian's jacket, and he glides down to a perfect
landing on the castle, while the chopper crashes onto
one of the castle walls.
When the clan lands to investigate, what they and Fox
see looks too strange to believe. A human, with
gargoyle wings? Too many questions bombard the young
man, and he begs off any explanation before he dashes
for the walls and soars off, leaving a few of the clan
to want to chase after him, but Fox cautions them to
wait. They need to know why Ian never mentioned that
he was a hybrid/mutate/something else before, but more
to the point, why was Fox and everyone on the chopper
attacked tonight, and by whom?
* * *
Later that night, Lex comes back from where he and
Owen were examining the wreckage, and reveal what they
found: Tao's mangled head and torso, revealed to be a
robot instead of a human. The robot is almost an exact
duplicate - technology wise - for the first Coyote
robot, except that it has some minor weapons
modifications.
What it points to is that someone is using some of
Xanatos' early technology to threaten the singer. But,
that's not what worries them. Lex found something
disturbing in the wreckage of the robot: the remains
of one of Tao's business cards, with his full name on
it, Gil H. Tao.
Brooklyn: "That's an unusual name."
Lex : "I though so too, but it's not so unusual when
you look at it from another way! I ran his name
through the computer to find out where the name came
from, and while the computer was searching, I was
fiddling with that anagram program I found, and I'd
thought to run Tao's name through it . . ."
Goliath : "What did it come up with?"
Lex : "It came up with 'Goliath'."
Xanatos : "That's odd . . . but, why Goliath's name?"
Lex shudders and says, "That's what I thought too. So
I ran it through again, and it came up with another
name . . . Thailog!"
[Note: this last part is subject to whether or not we
have revealed the return of Thailog by now. If not,
then I can leave the ending at the scene before this]
* * * * *
End
***
Story 3 to follow...
Stephen R. Sobotka, Jr.
Head of TGS
Head of Breakdowns
