The next night while in Yegor's private office, Brooklyn awoke from his stone sleep but found he couldn't roar, feeling something tying down his muzzle, and cuffs on his hands. Scared, Brooklyn at first couldn't remember, no thanks to the chloroform they gave him two nights ago but then saw a barred cage made of steel and titanium before him, in someone's office. What was this? Where was his family?!

Brooklyn got up, thankful his feet weren't tied up, but his head hit the top of his cage, making him grunt, and he looked around, seeing animal pictures on the walls, mostly of rare ones. He swallowed. Whoever took him prisoner was obviously a poacher. He even spied a stuffed owl on the stand that made his stomach churn, looking away and began to pull on the bars with his cuffed hands while kneeling down, trying to get out.

The door opened then, and Brook could hear a sinister chuckle coming from whoever came into the room, making his ears fall down. It was a man who clearly looked foreign to Brooklyn, who wondered if he was even in the US still at all, which scared him big time, not wanting to imagine anyplace else other than the States, which was his home. He growled and tugged, kicking at his prison until a burning shock sensation came from his collar, causing Brooklyn to gasp in pain, falling back down.

The man sat down in front of him, holding the remote that controlled the shock collar. Brooklyn rubbed his neck, shaking a bit and looked at the man in some fear, ears flat.

"Bet you're wondering where you are; bound in irons, in a cage, and muzzled in someone's strange office. Well, Creature, my name is Yegor. I am the owner of this animal auction in Siberia, Russia. Yakutsk to be exact. And you're my catch to sell me hundreds, no, millions." He said in a greedy way, smirking in a manner that made Brooklyn shake all over. He was in freaking Russia?! No wonder this guy had a foreign accent. He tried to talk but that muzzle kept him from it.

"You don't talk unless I ask you questions, Freak. And I think I'm going to give you permission to respond to them as long as ya don't bite, or else..." Yegor waved the remote threateningly that made Brooklyn shrink down a little, not wanting to be shocked again. He nodded. Two other men opened the cage and Yegor took off his muzzle, just for answering the questions.

Brooklyn gasped, mouth feeling so cramped and sore from having that horrid thing on him at all, rubbing his jaw. He glared back at Yegor, who began the questions.

"So, do you have a name, by chance?" he asked curiously.

Brook didn't want to tell this creep his name but just from feeling the collar snug around his neck he knew he couldn't refuse the question. "I-I'm Brooklyn," he said in a croaky voice, his throat and mouth very thirsty.

Yegor noticed this. "If you behave during the questions, I may give you water before we leave you isolated until you're ready to be sold." He promised, having gotten a glass of water already. Brook licked his lips at the sight of it but his belly growled too, nodding again.

"I want to know; are there any others in your clan with your most exotic and handsome beak?" He asked in a crooning voice.

Brooklyn put a hand on his beak, hating it being talked about like that from this creepy human, but he answered. "N-no. The others have human faces," he responded.

Yegor nodded in approval. "What was your position in your clan?" Yegor pressed on, getting more curious. Brooklyn backed up slightly more until he hit the cage wall. "Second- in Command..." He said shakily, wondering if his clan was doing all they could to track him down and bring him home.

Yegor then stood up. "That's all I need for now, but you can have your water. All animals in my auction get water or food for being good little animals like you are right now." Brooklyn's heart burned in anger and insult. He wasn't a complete animal like these men thought! But he accepted the glass of water, drinking it without complaint. It felt refreshing down his throat.

After he was done, one of the men went in to put the muzzle on again. He jerked up from this. "Keep that away! I don't want it!" He screeched, trying to avoid the muzzle. That shock feeling hit his neck again and Brooklyn collapsed, giving enough time for the guard to put the muzzle back on once more, which upset Brooklyn big time, feeling terribly humiliated from having this awful thing on him, whimpering and pawing at it but it was too strong for his talons.

Yegor growled at him. "You will soon learn to respect your seller and whoever buys you that will treat you the same way. I hope your kind likes cold weather because out here, it is cold 24/7. So, you'd better get used to being cold after we quarantine you for a whole week!" He spat ruthlessly, kicking Brooklyn's cage. It made him whimper again and look away, not wanting to be kicked.

Eventually, the horrible man left Brooklyn alone to wallow in isolation, slamming the door and locking it, causing Brook to curl up tight, feeling tears starting to come, wiping his eyes and sniffling, hoping his week-long isolation wouldn't drag on so long. He already felt pangs of homesickness forming inside his heart which hurt him, hugging his chest, and shaking.

I gotta get a grip, supposed to be the tough one. But... his thoughts trailed off as more tears made themselves be known, somewhat feeling the cold of the outside but it was a tad warmer in here because of a heater.

Brooklyn hoped they wouldn't starve him during his isolation, hence his stomach already demanding for food. He rubbed it, cringing slightly with his ears having fallen in shame for his situation. Brook for sure didn't want his family to witness him kept in a cage and being starved. But all he could do was try to keep his spirits up and his mind sane through the week.

....

Out in the enclosure, some people had come around to see if any new animals had arrived. Yegor looked forward to selling his new prize to the one who deserved it, feeling excited for the freak's isolation to be over so he could bring him into the new cage. They had already set up the cage for the gargoyle which had a bench for him to sit on and mostly a thin mattress for bedding. Nothing luxurious for their new pet but he was labeled the number one freak on television, so it was what he deserved. Already, most of the animals here were bided off to some auctioneer friends of Yegor.

One named Yuri in particular was his closest trading partner from lower Russia. He had always won the best animals to use as either slaves or profit off of their furs and such. He approached Yegor, who was looking over some notes. "Rumor has it you came across an interesting specimen from New York," he said curiously.

Yegor turned to Yuri, a little grin as he nodded. "Yes, a gargoyle. He is kept in quarantine right now but if you're interested in buying him when the time is right, I'll put you on the list," he offered.

Yuri looked interested. "I have always wanted a gargoyle for my collection," he stated with thought, excited to see the devil. "When will I see him?"

Yegor put a hand on his shoulder. "Once I have tamed and have him under control until there's no more fighting spirit, then I'll deem him ready. Shouldn't take long..." he promised. Yuri then agreed with this, agreeing to come back on the day Brooklyn was ready to be sold.

....

The next night, Brook awoke again from stone sleep but still felt that evil muzzle on his beak, causing him to feel stressed and sad again. He had been trapped in this cage in this lonely room for nearly three days now. He couldn't keep track of the days very well, but Brook was certain that his week was getting close to being done. He was happy he still had his stone sleep to escape from this evil place into his happier dreams. Brook had dreamed of being home with his family, petting Bronx and laughing at jokes with them, or fighting bad guys.

But then, cruel reality struck him hard when Brooklyn felt the collar on his neck again, which somewhat choked him a bit but wasn't too snug to cut off his breathing. Brooklyn winced as he tugged his collar a little bit, but then felt it shock him, causing the red male to give a little yelp and let go instantly. His belly rumbled too but hardly noticed it since usually his kind could go for a certain time without having any food, but he needed some soon. And another glass of water too.

I hate this, I want out of here! Brook yelled angrily to himself, pulling his legs up again, panting a bit from not seeing the outside air for so long. He felt like the walls and ceilings threatened to close in around him, causing Brooklyn to cry again and bury his head into his legs to block it all out. That was when the door opened and suddenly Brooklyn could smell something that smelled like food. He glanced up in desperation when seeing Yegor's assistant Henri coming in with a bowl of food.

"Heh, how's your isolation? Boss is willing to feed your sorry hide for today at the most. And ya better like it!" Henri placed the food down roughly in front of Brook's cage. Brooklyn's tears fell down his face but couldn't ignore his belly's demands, glancing down at his bowl.

But what disgusted him was that it wasn't meat or a sandwich; but food slop usually given to dogs and other animals that eat it. Brooklyn felt his face turn green just from looking at it. Not even Bronx would eat this! Even though he felt sick from how the food looked, Brook felt his stomach growl suddenly, causing him to put a hand over it. He couldn't ignore his longing for food. He at first glanced at Henri as the man was leaving to ask him to take the muzzle off but wasn't even acknowledged, the door slamming shut and locking again.

Gingerly, Brooklyn reached through the bars of his cage and was able to grab the bowl as close as he could, flinching from touching the gooey stuff as he took some 'food.' How Brooklyn wanted a sandwich or a chicken leg right now! But since this was all he was getting, he had to get used to it. With the muzzle, it was hard to put any food in his mouth but through a hole in the muzzle he was able to get the food to slide in, little bits each.

Ugh! Gross! Thought Brooklyn in disgust, for the slop was awful! His belly rumbled from the lack of proper food, but he did his best to ignore the salty, dirty taste in his mouth, swallowing it and nearly puking. But at least he got something to eat. He figured it wouldn't be poisoned if Yegor wanted to sell him to the highest bidder so Brooklyn got some more so he at least wouldn't starve for a while. There was no water sadly this time.

After his meager meal, Brooklyn felt a hiccup and burp coming from his mouth from how terrible it was, hand covering his muzzled beak and hoped he wouldn't throw up. Feeling sleepy, he figured he could use a nap to forget about the bad stuff for a while, still wishing to talk to any friendly people, eyes drifting shut, and he slept the night away since there wasn't anything much to do during his isolation, hoping his relief would come quick.

"Brooklyn...." said a voice that caused Brook's ears to perk up later that night. It sounded like Goliath. He gasped a little bit, looking up. Brook tried to say his leader's name but still couldn't speak no thanks to that muzzle, which made his jaws feel so cramped from unuse.

His leftover food was still in the bowl, but Brooklyn just couldn't really eat anymore, even if there were consequences later. He looked around for his leader.

'Goliath? Where are you?' yelled Brook desperately in his head, heart thumping as he felt his isolation getting to his brain on the fifth day. He shivered violently from it once or twice, desperate to talk to anybody. Nobody had come to see him during his isolation since his feeding, which was really beginning to eat away at his sanity. His isolation had to end soon or else he'd go mad in here!

"We want you home, Brooklyn..."

"You left your family, Brooklyn..."

The first sentence was from Goliath but the second was from one of his brothers. His heart panged from it. He didn't mean to, he was kidnapped! I didn't want this to happen to me, guys! I really didn't! He wailed inwardly, feeling tears leaking down his face again and sniffling, taking a hold of his tail and keeping it close to him for comfort. I will come home, guys. I promise... Brooklyn prayed silently, gazing blankly at the wall in front of him. If he ever survived, that is.

....

After having a muzzle on him for that whole week, Brooklyn could feel his breathing becoming shallow, only breathing through his nose to get his air supply, head growing dizzy. They had to come in here soon or else he wouldn't last in here too long! He did his best to ease his breathing, which was hard since the air wasn't so fresh in this dingy but large office.

Spots swam in front of Brooklyn's eyes, wishing he could wrap his tied wings around himself that still had chains on them, trembling, until eventually, the door opened again. Brook jumped a lot from that, ears flat, scared for what was gonna come next. Nothing felt worse than this right now.

Yegor and two big henchmen stalked up to him, his face smug looking. It pleasured him to see his new profit looking afraid but still sometimes glared, hugging his arms, and hunched over. "Hello, Merchandise. Brooklyn, wasn't it?" Brook gave a soft defiant snarl, teeth bared under the muzzle. It had Yegor glare and use the remote, shocking Brooklyn again and making him shriek slightly.

"Growl all you want but nothing you do will detain my control over you. And whoever buys you will also get this remote to continue to shock your miserable body. But your isolation is over. Doctor Boris will want to check you over one more time if we have to do it more."

Brooklyn didn't want to do anymore isolation but felt chilled in his stomach at getting looked over by a strange doctor. The two big men picked him up by his arms after unlocking his cage, taking him out of the office.

Harsh, cold air hit Brooklyn in his face when he was dragged outside in the Siberian air. He breathed in that fresh air through his nose, feeling a small smile on his beak after taken away from that office. He didn't want to go back there ever again!

Eventually, they went into a different office of Boris, where all sorts of exam tools were inside, making Brook swallow in fear at the sight of them. Boris was near an exam table. He rubbed his gloved hands. "Ah, our new prize. Place him here," he ordered.

Yegor snapped his fingers, and the men wrestled a weak Brooklyn onto the table, who struggled weakly, groaning but wound up getting shocked again, just enough for the men to strap him down with leather straps.

Brook trembled further, tugging on his bonds that wouldn't come loose, Boris looming over him and doing all kinds of the usual checkups he gave to animals, as well as looking at his wings, which were untied.

"Such handsome wings for a devil. I'm sure no one will deny you at this auction." sneered Boris. But Yegor looked threatening at Brooklyn, who hated his sensitive wings being pulled at this way, squirming again. "If you don't find a buyer the first day, you'll get an extreme punishment, get me?"

Brooklyn stared up in fear, ears flat still as he nodded, still trembling. Yegor felt Brooklyn's shrunken stomach, the belly muscles clenching from his cold hands, making Brook grit his teeth in disgust. "I wonder; because of his ability to speak, is he part human?" The doctor asked. Brook shook his head instantly, eyes wild. He was a pure born gargoyle, not a human! Yegor gave a chuckle, moving his hand along the male's muzzled beak, Brooklyn shuddering, closing his eyes.

"It would seem too that the stone sleep you have really rejuvenates you from the stories I read. But I'm sure we can find ways to weaken you to the point where it can't even heal you properly..." he taunted. Brooklyn swallowed fearfully from the thought, ears flattened from the evil human's stare gazing into his very soul. Eventually, Boris was done examining Brooklyn and they went to take him to his new cage.

Unable to fight or bite any of the men, Brooklyn was held upright, chaining his wings again, and they began to drag him, Brook growling and writhing, flinching sometimes from those horrible collar shocks.

A few minutes later, the group arrived at Brooklyn's new enclosure. Brook stared at his cage in fear, shaking from both cold and dread, trying not to be put in there. But the men just laughed. "Quit the struggling! No escape for you!" mocked one of them, slapping Brooklyn on his face, as Yegor opened the enclosure. They eventually tossed Brooklyn in like a rag doll like they did when first transporting him.

The bottom cage was a stone floor sometimes rough in a couple places, and the bars here too were made of titanium and steel, hard for a gargoyle to break. Yegor sneered. "Enjoy your new enclosure, Devil!" He leered, banging the remote on the bars and laughed evilly when leaving.

Groaning, Brooklyn struggled to get up, head spinning mostly from lack of proper food, hearing the humans laughing mockingly at him. He lowered his ears to block it out, seeing the sunrise coming and knowing it was another few minutes before he turned to stone again. He suddenly eyed a water trough nearby. Grunting slightly, he struggled over and thrust his head to the water, but winced as he hit ice, rubbing his sore beak.

The water wound up being frozen solid from Siberia's frigid temps. He growled in anger from being fooled like that, scratching hard but weakly at the ice, hoping to break some to find water under it. He managed a small hand sized hole, taking up some water in his hand and then trying to drink with his muzzle, shivering from the cold feeling.

His teeth chattered but Brooklyn knew he could at least survive a few days in this cold. But this was nothing like the winters in New York. He learned about how deadly Siberia was and hoped he wouldn't catch hypothermia while stuck in this awful place. Spotting the mattress, he crawled over to sit and prepare for his stone sleep, wondering what his fate lay in store for him trapped in an awful animal auction. He jumped once or twice while hearing the animals around him, mostly rare toucan birds and the occasional growl of a tiger.

I hope I can somehow get away... Brook thought wearily, the sun showing finally as he turned to stone, a sad frown on his face but his collar and other bondages hadn't turned, though they would never break when he woke up.