Disclaimer: I own none of the characters featured here.
Assault on the Fearamid - Part 1
"Alright, fellers! Let's hope this turns out better than my other inventions!"
Those were McGucket's final words before Mabel yelled for Dipper to flip the activation switch. Dread welled up from the pits of Neil's stomach at those words, but he's fully aware that there was no point in having second thoughts now. The entire structure of the Shack shook violently. Gears, both visible and hidden inside the walls, began to turn, their rusted creaking and clanking filling the air. The Shack, slowly but surely, began to rise. Neil swallowed the rising dread, drew in a deep breath, put on a brave face, and gripped the flag in his hands tight.
The Shack swayed from left to right as it rose, and for a second Neil was worried it might tip too far to one side and fall over. Thankfully, that did not come to pass. The Shack rose to its full height without a hitch. The tarp that once covered it had been ripped open and tossed into the wind.
"Shackbot fully operational, captain," Wybie announced. He stood on a heavily modified dance mat, his left hand connected to the controls of the Shackbot's left hand. Or, at least, that's how Neil understood it.
Coraline glanced at him and gave him a resolute nod. She stepped into the front of the room and turned on her heel, facing the others with an expression that Neil would charitably describe as the very picture of fearless determination. Far in the back, Neil noticed how Stan crossed his arms and grumbled to himself.
"One small step forward for the Shackbot," Coraline grinned, "one giant step back for Bill if he knows what's good for him."
"Heck yeah!" Mabel cheered. "Let's go!"
The Shackbot took its first, unsteady step, then a second, then a third, and by the tenth step, it managed to find a steady march forwards. It eventually emerged from the tree line and into the ruined wasteland that was once Gravity Falls. Neil couldn't help but frown. His heart still ached whenever he saw the state that Gravity Falls had been reduced to. Even though he's only been in this town for a little less than three months, it already meant so much to him. All the friends he made, all the adventures he had; it was thanks to this small, unassuming town.
Neil glared at the pyramid that hovered in the distance. It wasn't often that he felt angry, but for this case, he's pretty sure it was completely justified.
The Shackbot soon stood tall in the shadows of the Fearamid. The cockpit had been consumed by dead silence. The tension in the air was so thick you could almost choke on it. In fact, Neil thought his asthma would've kicked in at this point, so he was silently thankful that that did not come to pass. Everyone already had enough on their minds without him having an asthma attack.
"What're we waiting for?!" Coraline's impatient words cut cleanly through the silence. It was like a jolt that brought energy back into the room. "Break down that scalene fuck's front door!"
Grenda quickly complied. She raised the Shackbot's right arm - the T-Rex one - reared back, and swung forward with all her might. The entrance was easily reduced to rubble, and just to add insult to injury, she made the T-Rex's head roar. She withdrew the hand, the Shackbot taking a few steps back. From inside the Fearamid, Neil heard Bill's voice echoing, complaining about how he just fixed the door. It was incredibly petty, but Neil felt an extra level of satisfaction about the act now.
Then, Coraline shot Neil a smirk. "You're up."
A hand clamped down on Neil's shoulder. It was Raz's, offering him a determined grin. "Go get 'em, tiger," he said.
Neil gulped, but he still smiled back at them both. His gaze drifted down to the flag he held in his hands. His palms were practically soaked with sweat by now, so he gripped the flag extra tight. Dropping it now would be one of the most embarrassing things he could do, and he'd done a lot. Turning on his heels, he made his way out of the cockpit. Everyone he passed offered him quick words of encouragement, even Stan, which he took with a gracious smile.
Exit the cockpit, down the stairs, out the front door, and Neil suddenly found himself standing side by side with Soos on what used to be the Shack's front entrance. Soos also brought a flag with him, which, in Neil's opinion was a pretty good flag, but it couldn't hold a candle to the flag in Neil's hands. Soos, however, did beat Neil to it when it came to unfurling and actually revealing said flag.
"It's the Shackbot, dudes!" Soos announced as he planted the flag into the wooden floor. The flag waved freely in the wind. It was a rather intricate combination of symbols, courtesy of Mabel, with the bold words of 'Take Back The Falls' emblazoned upon it.
Neil did the same; unfurling the flag, planting it into the floor, and letting it wave in the dry wind. His was Mabel-designed, like Soos' flag, but the design was a little simpler. It bore the words 'Mystery Kids' with each letter obviously designed after each member of the Mystery Kids.
Bill's voice echoed from inside the Fearamid, ordering his demonic minions to face them. His minions heeded his command, leaping off of the Fearamid one after another, until seven of stood opposite of the Shackbot. Each of them was terrifying, and disgusting, and despicable, and Neil's knees might be shaking a little. He had to lean against the flag a bit to keep himself standing.
Soos didn't seem to share Neil's fear. In fact, he had a mic out. "Uh, hey dudes, is this thing on? Test?" His words carried on through the Shackbot's speakers. There was some high-pitched feedback, drawing a groan from Bill's minions, and even Neil had to wince a bit.
"Heh, uh, I just want you monster dudes to hand over Ford or we have to, like, fight and junk?" Soos continued. His words were met with unanimous disapproval, judging from how Bill's minions responded with a cacophony of growls, snarls, and hisses. The whole display came off as pretty darn hostile.
Even Soos shrunk back slightly from that response. He glanced back at Neil, offering up the mic. "You, uh, wanted to say something, right, dude?" he asked.
Neil nodded, a bit stiffly at first, but with more vigor later on. He accepted the mic, brought it closer to his face, and tried his best to stand up a little straighter.
"Uh, hey, you, Bill! A-and all of your minions, too!" That was not at all a strong start. "Y-yeah, all of you! You're all, um, going to pay! F-for what you did! To this town and everyone in it! I guarantee it!"
Bill's minions glanced at one another for a moment, before they all burst out laughing.
Neil scowled. He drew a deep breath, puffed out his chest, and began once more, with gusto.
"Listen here, you freaky demon bastards!" A grin broke out on Neil's features. "That goes for you too, Bill! Listen up!"
The minions' laughter came to an immediate halt. They eyed Neil closely, some even glaring at him. Usually, being stared down by a pack of nettled demons would scare the heck out of him, but today just seemed to be full of surprises.
"You know, you all made plenty of mistakes! Coming here, destroying the town, turning the townsfolk to stone; all terrible things. But! There's one mistake you did that's worse than all the rest. You messed with the Mystery Kids. Now, you're going to learn one very important lesson!"
His voice might've cracked a few times during his speech, which wasn't ideal, but he kept at it. Despite the minor slip-ups, it still managed to rile up Bill's minions. They didn't just look nettled anymore; they looked furious. Neil stomped a step forward, finishing his speech with a shriek.
"Don't mess with the Mystery Kids!"
A wild grin had crept its way to his lips, Neil realized, not that he minded. Neil also didn't mind the fact that he most likely just made himself the focus of the demons' wrath. Neil didn't even mind the fact that one of the demons conjured up an illusion of himself horribly melting and dissolving in a burst of otherworldly purple flame. Neil didn't mind it all. What he did; Neil didn't regret it. Not at all.
Suddenly, one of Bill's minions pointed at the Shackbot and cried out, "Attack!"
The entire Shackbot rumbled, shifting into a combat ready position. Neil quickly plucked out the Mystery Kids flag and immediately retreated inside the mech, Soos following only moments behind him. He heard gears clicking and creaking. Steam shot out from between the floorboard. It was as if the mech was coming to life a second time. All that only meant one thing.
The battle has begun.
X-X-X-X-X
Wybie had been sweating bullets during the entirety of the Shackbot's march towards the Fearamid. He damn near had an honest-to-god mental breakdown as Bill's demonic minions emerged from the Fearamid, each one more than enough to fuel a nightmare or ten. However, that all changed the moment Neil gave his speech. That speech marked the second time today Wybie found himself in awe of the sheer balls that Neil had. As Neil's speech ended, Wybie decided it's about damn time he grow a pair. As the demons charged towards the Shackbot, Wybie planted his feet, gritted his teeth, and prepared for chaos.
And chaos was exactly what he got.
One demon lunged with flaming claws bared. The Shackbot's T-Rex arm caught the demon in midair and slammed it headfirst into the dirt. Another demon, a hulking beast with four legs, rammed against the Shackbot's side at full speed. The Shackbot buckled, stumbled, but with desperate calibrations and deft footwork, it stayed on its feet. The mech turned, totem cannon at the ready, and fired off five shots at the hulking demon. Three found its mark, the demon reeling back from the pain. A third demon, a set of teeth with arms and legs, leapt off of the hulking demon's back at the Shackbot, its jaw stretched open impossibly wide. Wybie moved the Shackbot's left arm - a three-pronged claw - and swatted the demon away into the distance. Wybie barely had time to breathe before a demon latched onto the Shackbot's back and began to gnaw at the barrier.
Things became far less lucid for Wybie from that point. Everything was a blur of swings and blows, of hits and misses, of action and reaction. At some point, the eye-bats joined the fray, zipping up and down and left and right, sometimes as a distraction, sometimes to attack. More than once, he spotted Coraline, Raz, Lili, and Wendy outside, fighting off the eye-bats by firing psi-blasts, throwing rocks, or, as in the case of Coraline, just straight up jumping onto them and then riding them into the Shackbot's weapons.
Those brief glimpses of that girl's insanity drove him to push on. A thrill has overtaken him. A daredevil's thrill.
One by one, each of Bill's minions fell before the Shackbot. The hulking beast was tossed far into the horizon. The teeth with arms and legs, set alight and crushed underneath the Shackbot's foot. Eventually, despite all odds, only one demon minion remained. It had sickly green skin, stretched over a gangly, emaciated frame. Obsidian claws, wicked fangs, pointed ears like the devil's horns, and a pair of eyes in the form of two 8-balls. Wybie recognized that demon immediately.
That was the one that almost killed Coraline.
The demon brandished its claws and moaned. The Shackbot primed its totem cannon, aimed, and unloaded.
The first cannon shell stunned the demon. It had no time to recover before the rest of the shells rained upon it. With the cannon still unloading, the Shackbot advanced, almost calmly, taking one deliberate step after another towards the demon. By the time the mech got close enough, the demon had been reduced to a blackened, crumpled heap, lying by the Shackbot's feet. But that wasn't enough.
Wybie wanted blood.
"Grab it, Grenda!" he barked. Grenda quickly did so; the T-Rex head clamping around its thin torso and lifting it up.
The demon struggled weakly in the T-Rex's grip. Wybie simply grinned. He raised his left arm and slammed the button he hid underneath his wrist. It wasn't part of McGucket's original blueprints, but in the hectic rush to build the mech, Wybie managed to slip it in, just for this special occasion. A hatch opened in the center of the Shackbot's three-pronged claw, and out came a long spike, originally only a metal flagpole, ringed with rows and rows of barbed wires.
Wybie positioned the tip of the spike to hover inches away from the demon's left eye. The demon froze. Wybie felt some heads turning to stare at him, but he didn't care. He pulled his left hand back, then pushed forward with a long, cracking roar.
The demon screamed and screamed and screamed, and neither it nor Wybie stopped until the base of the spike was jammed against the demon's eye, and the spike's tip burst out of the back of the demon's skull. Wybie panted. His throat was dry, his voice hoarse. But he wasn't finished.
"Lift!"
The Shackbot lifted the demon up into the air. First, the Shackbot turned to face the Fearamid; Wybie wanted to make sure Bill sees this. Then, with all his might, he pulled the three-pronged claw to the left. He left the T-Rex alone; it was exactly where it needed to be.
There was a sickening ripping sound. The demon's head was chucked far to the left, bouncing along the ground a few times before rolling to a stop. The demon's body remained firmly in the grip of the T-Rex head. Globs of yellow-green slime showered the Shackbot. Wybie cheered and laughed until he was out of breath.
He could feel everyone staring now. He still didn't care. He only started caring when Coraline reentered the cockpit.
She stared at him, wide eyed, not saying a word, for what felt like an eternity. Her expression was unreadable. All Wybie could do was freeze mid-cheer under her gaze. Cold sweat began to run down his neck again, this time for a completely different reason. He felt like he should say something, maybe crack a joke, but with the rush of everything that just happened in the past five minutes, his mind came up with a blank.
Finally, after too long, Coraline cracked a smile. Her eyes shined with a mix of amazement and disbelief. After a moment for his mind to register, Wybie smiled back. He could feel the tension leaving his body.
"Enough!"
Bill's voice boomed across the landscape, and all that tension immediately came right back. Everyone's attention turned forwards. Bill has finally emerged from his Fearamid, and he looked fucking pissed.
Wybie planted his feet, gritted his teeth, and prepared for chaos.
X-X-X-X-X
When Bill's barrage of attacks was completely nullified by the Shack's barrier, Mabel grinned so wide the sides of her cheeks started to hurt. When the Shackbot's T-Rex hand reached up and ripped out Bill's eye from its socket, Mabel cheered like she never cheered before in her life. The best thing about it was that she wasn't alone. The entire cockpit erupted in hoots and hollers as Bill recoiled back, clutching his empty eye socket as he roared in pain and anger. Schadenfreude, Mabel remembered, was a word that perfectly described what she's feeling right now.
Dipper, as usual, wasn't one to get swept away by the moment. "We've got him distracted!" he cried as he turned to look at Mabel. "Now's our chance!"
Mabel replied with a resolute nod. She raised both fists into the air and hollered, "Rescue team, move out!"
There was a sudden bustle of activities as those who chose to be on the rescue team made last minute preparations for the final push on the Fearamid. Mabel readied her grappling hook and tucked it under her sweater. Coraline gave her mace a few practice swings. Wendy sharpened her axe one last time. Grunkle Stan slipped on a pair of knuckle bracers. Dipper packed the size-shifting crystal flashlight into his backpack, just in case. He was the last one to get everything ready, and Mabel waited for him by the chute that led to the launching tubes. He caught up to her, and they both shared a reassuring smile, before they slid down the chute.
The rescue team, as Mabel understood it, will be split into two waves, as there were only eight launching tubes installed. The first wave consisted of the Mystery Kids, while the second wave would be made up of Grunkle Stan, Soos, Sherrif Blubs, McGucket, Wendy, and Pacifica.
Speaking of Pacifica.
"Are you really, really sure you wanna come with?" Mabel asked, hesitantly, with a faltering, lopsided smile. This was probably hundredth time she'd asked Pacifica this question.
Pacifica rolled her eyes. Asking that was probably a mistake. "Like staying here is any safer," she retorted. Mabel had to agree with that statement.
Mabel stepped back into the launching tube between Lili and her brother. The rest of the Mystery Kids quickly joined her, standing tall in their respective tubes. The second wave waited, each with visible anxiety on their features.
"Okay, everyone," Dipper locked eyes with everyone, practically bursting with determination, "we get in, rescue Ford, get out, save the world. Piece of cake."
"Piece. Of cake," Lili muttered next to Mabel, but with none of the enthusiasm.
"Everyone ready?" Coraline casted her gaze around the room. Mabel replied with a nod, and the others did the same.
"Wait!"
All eyes immediately turned towards Pacifica, who had yelled out so abruptly. She stepped up to Mabel, landed a brief kiss on her lips, before backing away with reddened cheeks and a shy smile. Mabel's eyes lit up, and she couldn't contain a grin from forming.
"See you in a bit," she said, adding in a small wave.
Mabel caught a glimpse of Coraline shooting her a quirked smirk before she slammed the launch button.
Up the tube, out the Gobblewonker's head, and she suddenly found herself sailing high through the air, in what could most likely be a one way trip to Bill's Fearamid. Despite that, despite everything, she let herself laugh. She let herself do small twirls and spins as she fell. With the wind rushing past her, with her heart hammering in her ears, it was hard not to.
"Raz, Lili, now!" Coraline barked.
Raz and Lili furrowed their brows and spread their arms, their palms quickly pulsing with energy. A duality of orange and pink-ish glow covered each member of the Mystery Kids, and Mabel could feel her descent slowing, the wind that made her hair flail wildly behind her growing weaker. Their freefall turned into something more of a glide, with Raz and Lili steering them all, and the duo steered them straight into a triangle-shaped opening on the Fearamid's exterior.
The Fearamid already looked, and was, pretty massive on the outside, but somehow it was even more massive on the inside. Mabel guessed they must have fallen for a few stories before the ground became even close enough for landing. Raz and Lili closed their palms into fists, their fall slowing more and more, until they hovered only inches along the surface. The glow around them dissipated, and they all landed on steady feet, ready and alert.
"Eyes up, everyone," Coraline commanded in a harsh whisper. "Stay sharp."
Only seconds behind the Mystery Kids was the second wave, coasting through the same opening, only their method was with makeshift parachutes. Mabel watched them land, some doing so with more grace then others; Wendy landed with a practiced roll into a three point landing, while Grunkle Stan practically face planted onto the floor. Mabel had to stop herself from visibly grimacing at that. Grunkle Stan was already in a pretty grumpy mood today.
Pacifica landed with a little stumble, but she managed to keep both of her feet on the ground. She struggled to undo the parachute, so Mabel ran up to her.
"Hi again," Mabel greeted, putting on a cheeky smile. With only a few tugs, she got the parachute off of Pacifica. Just like she thought, Pacifica's response was to look away with a pout. Same old Pacifica.
With everyone gathered, they all formed a loose circle. Coraline immediately placed herself at the center, like it was the most natural thing in the world to her.
"Raz, Lili, keep an eye on Bill," Coraline ordered. "If he starts heading our way, don't hesitate to scream your lungs out."
"Will do, cap." Raz saluted, while Lili simply nodded. Without much fanfare, the couple dashed off towards the gaping entrance.
"The rest of you trolls," Coraline continued, twirling the mace in her hand, spinning on her heels to face the center of structure, "with me."
Coraline marched forward, everyone following closely behind her. Mabel paused, offering a hand out to Pacifica. She stopped too, staring at Mabel's hand, then staring at the soft smile on Mabel's face. Pacifica's hand clasped tight around Mabel's. Together, they ran to catch up with the rest.
At the center of the massive structure was an equally massive throne. Even from a distance, Mabel could tell it was made from the petrified forms of Gravity Falls' townsfolk. They closer and closer they got, the more readily apparent what a horrifying display it was. Dozens upon dozens of people, stacked on top of one another, to somehow form of a throne for a mad demon. It was breathtaking, in a bad way.
"Boy, that's even worse up close," Wybie remarked. Mabel couldn't agree more.
Nevertheless, Mabel ran up to the base of the throne and shot her grappling hook at the arm of the throne. It snagged on something, and Mabel let her grappling hook pull her upwards. Once she's up there, it wasn't hard to find great uncle Ford. He was right there, on the arm of the throne. The problem was that he's now a statue made of solid gold.
"Found great uncle Ford!" Mabel called out to the others below. "He's golden! And not in a good way!"
To Mabel's surprise, Gideon was also there, suspended inside a cage, wearing a ridiculous showman's outfit, and dancing like there's no tomorrow.
"G-Gideon?" Mabel gawked. "What happened to you?"
"Bill happened! Bill did this to me!" Gideon cried, panting heavily. "He cursed me to do cute dances in this cage for all eternity!"
"I… h-how do we fix this?"
"Mayor Tyler!" Gideon pointed desperately. "He's the load-bearing human! Pull him out, the whole thing goes down!"
Mabel nodded, eyebrows knit together in determination. She hurried her way to the petrified form of Mayor Tyler at the base of the throne. She wrapped a solid grip on Mayor Tyler's arm with both of her hands, then pulled with all her might, once, twice, and with that second pull, the mayor was displaced from his spot, immediately returning to his human form. That act quickly caused a chain reaction, as every person that made up the throne was unfrozen, falling into a massive heap of townsfolk. The rain of people even managed to knock over Gideon's cage to the ground. Just like that, Bill's terrible throne was no more.
That also returned great uncle Ford to his regular, fleshy form, as Mabel noted with happiness and relief.
What came next was a flurry of joyful, tearful reunions. Wendy reunited with her family, and Robbie, and all her friends. Pacifica expressed her relief that her parents were safe. Sheriff Blubs rushed off and pulled his Deputy Durland into a tight, intimate embrace. Obviously, once Ford was unfrozen, she and Dipper quickly pulled him into a great, big hug.
"Kids! You did it!" Ford laughed. Mabel and her brother joined his laughter. "I knew I could count on you!"
However, Mabel did notice Grunkle Stan standing nearby, his arms crossed, a frown etched on his face. "Good to see you, bro," he greeted gruffly.
"Hey, hate to cut this reunion short," Coraline stepped forward, the impatience in her eyes made apparent, "but we don't have a lot of time."
"Right." Dipper nodded. His smile disappeared, his expression turning into something almost grim. "Great uncle Ford, before you got captured, you said you know of a way to defeat Bill."
Ford's eyes lit up, burning even, his smile shifting into a smirk. A dangerously confident smirk. "That's correct. I do."
Ford picked up a discarded can of spray paint, using to draw a circle on the ground, as well as an image of Bill Cipher, ringed from all sides by ten distinct symbols. He explained as he did, that years ago he discovered an ancient prophecy foretold by the natives of Gravity Falls, of a collection of ten individuals that could create a force to counteract and defeat the chaotic nature of Bill's power. Ten individuals who happened to be standing in this chamber right this second. Ford himself, the six-fingered hand, Robbie, the stitched heart, McGucket, the pair of spectacles, Soos, the question mark, Gideon, the pentagram, Pacifica, the llama, Wendy, the bag of ice, Dipper, the pine tree, and Mabel, the shooting star.
Mabel stepped onto her symbol breathlessly, awe shining in her eyes. She had no idea that she was a part of any kind of prophecy, and the thought of it sent tingly shivers down her spine.
"The rest of you get out! It's too dangerous!" Ford shouted out to the rest of the townsfolk watching them. They followed his order without hesitation, practically stampeding out of the chamber in droves. Now, the only ones remaining were the ten people spoken in legend, and the eight members of the Mystery Kids.
"Now. Hold hands, everyone."
Mabel did so, holding hands with Pacifica, which was great, and with Gideon, which wasn't so great. She gasped as they all began to glow bright blue, the wind picking up all around them, and she felt some kind of strange energy stirring within her. But she knew this wasn't the final step, not yet. She eyed the empty spot between great uncle Ford and Soos. The symbol on it was one that she had seen many times before.
"We just need one more person." Ford turned his head towards Grunkle Stan, who had kept his distance from the group, looking out an opening, his arms crossed. "Stanley! Stanley, you're the only one left!"
"You realize this is a bunch of hogwash, right?" Grunkle Stan called back, looking over his shoulder. "You really think some caveman graffiti is gonna stop that monster?"
Mabel was just about to say something to Grunkle Stan. Heck, she's pretty sure everyone had a word or two for him, but Coraline managed to beat everyone to it. She marched up to him, clearly not having it, and yanked him by the collar. "The world's ending, ya old codger. Shove it, and move it!" She shoved Stan rather roughly towards the circle, him stumbling a few steps before he caught himself.
Grunkle Stan shot back a quick glare at Coraline, brushing and composing himself. "Hey, I'm not the enemy here, people! Don't forget who literally created the end of the world."
Ford frowned, his features softening. "I'm sorry, Stanley. I know. Just help me fix it. Please."
Stan's expression remains unchanged. "Fine. Just do one thing." He raised a finger to Ford's face. "Say. Thank you."
"What?"
Stan glared, taking a step closer to Ford. "I spent thirty years trying to bring you back to this dimension, and you still haven't thanked me! You want me to hold your hand? Say. Thank you."
"Fine. Thank you," Ford conceded.
Grunkle Stan didn't look like he was happy with it, but he still took hold of Soos and Ford's hands. "See. Between me and him, I'm not always the bad twin," he remarked. The circle's glow began to intensify
The clear animosity between Mabel's two great uncles still brought a frown to her lips, but she still had faith that the two could talk and make peace with each, once things have died down. For now, just being able to end Weirdmageddon was already a huge relief for her. Mabel shared a hopeful smile with Dipper and Pacifica, and she gave Pacifica's hand a reassuring squeeze. Finally, after what felt like forever in this hell, it all could finally be over.
"Between him and me."
Great uncle Ford threw his gaze away to the side. Mabel's face fell. A dark look crossed Grunkle Stan's features.
"Grammar, Stanley."
X-X-X-X-X
The Shackbot landed a devastating right hook on Bill, and all Lili could was watch. Bill retaliated with a blast of blue flame that bounced off of the Shack's barrier, and all Lili could do was watch. The Shackbot fired off two shots from its totem cannon, one missing and one striking Bill's arm, and as Bill stumbled the Shackbot went for a kick, which Bill managed to block, and he followed it up with a backhand strike that sent the Shackbot reeling, and all that Lili could do was fucking watch.
There were so many moments, so many, when she could have fired off a psi-blast, or tossed a piece of rubble, or set something on fire, or literally anything, to do something against Bill. But she held herself back. The Shackbot was a distraction for the rescue team. Drawing Bill's attention was the mech's job, that was what the mech was for. It was Lili's job to lay low and not do anything to would alert Bill, which includes attacking him. Still, Lili hated that. What's more, Raz must hate that. She had no idea what could be going through his mind right now.
Actually, seeing as he had been restlessly pacing back and forth endlessly, she might have an idea.
The Shackbot managed to throw Bill off of his feet. It stomped a leg down onto Bill, pinning him against the ground, with Bill pushing back against the barrier. One of Bill's arms latched on to the leg the Shackbot used to pin Bill without him realizing it. A leg, unprotected by the barrier. The realization came to Lili almost at the same time it came to Bill.
"Hey, Achilles!" Bill grabbed the exposed leg with all four of his arms. He pushed, rising back to his feet, at the same time knocking the Shackbot to the ground.
"Nice work with the heel!" Bill grunted and pulled, and yanked the exposed leg clean off. Lili could barely hear the panicked screams of the people inside the mech.
"Fore!"
Wielding the dismembered leg like a club, Bill struck the downed Shackbot, sending the mech flying and crashing and stumbling into a crumpled heap. Lili gritted her teeth. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Raz standing still. He had tightened his palms into fists, and they were pulsing with energy.
Lili grabbed Raz by the wrist, and gripped it tight.
"Raz," she sternly said, "we can't risk it. Calm down."
His eyes flitted from the fight, to Lili, then to the fight again, before he let out a breath. The tension in his muscles loosened, and he took a step back.
"I hate this," he grumbled.
Lili crossed her arms and turned her gaze back to the fight. "Join the club."
The Shackbot did its best to rise to its feet, but Bill was already upon it before it could recover. Blue flame came to life on all four of Bill's hands, before he slammed them all down at the same against the barrier. The Shackbot was forced back down onto the dirt. The ground shook from the sheer force of the impact.
Pain suddenly shot up from the back Lili's head. The dull throbbing that had been there ever since Weirdmageddon started suddenly turned into a searing, crushing pain like she'd never experienced before, like her skull exploded, imploded, and was set on fire all at the same time. She dropped to her knees, choking out a strangled cry, her fingernails clawing against her scalp trying to stop the pain because it hurts it hurts it fucking hurts.
She barely noticed a hand shaking her shoulder. Through the haze, through the pain, she saw Raz. He had a hand clutching his forehead, his eyes squinting, his features contorted in agony. He's been saying something, Lili realized, but she couldn't hear anything. All she could hear was the awful, awful ringing and all she could feel was the awful, awful pain.
The pain suddenly subsided. The ringing ceased. Her hearing returned. The first thing she heard was Raz's voice, in pain, but still concerned for her.
"…you okay? Lili! Lili, answer me!"
Tears were starting well up in her eyes, but she forced it down, blinked it away. She had to stay strong. This was not the time to break down. Maybe later, after all of this was over, she could let herself crumble, but not right now.
"I'm fine," she answered. To Raz, and to herself. "I'll be fine. I'll be-"
Her words died in her throat. She caught sight of something from the corner of her eye, something that left her speechless. The rest of the Mystery Kids and their allies; last she paid attention to them, they had drawn symbols on the ground and formed a circle in preparation of what seemed like a ritual, led by Stanford Pines. Now, for whatever reason, Stanford and Stanley had begun trading blows with each other, Dipper and Mabel broke apart from the circle to try and break off their great uncles, and a screaming match broke out that Lili could hear even from where she was.
"Are they fighting?!"
Raz whipped his head in their direction. His jaw dropped. Lili managed to rise up to her feet just from the sheer fury that boiled up inside her. She would have stomped over there and joined the screaming match - and do her damn best to win - if not for Raz grabbing her by the shoulder.
"Uh… Lili?"
Lili turned to face him with a glare, but that glare quickly melted away, once she realized that Raz was facing in the direction of the battle outside, and that his features had contorted into one of wide-eyed terror. A chill ran down her spine. She slowly pivoted in place, dreading what she's about to see.
The Shackbot lie in scraps and pieces, completely ruined. Bill stood tall, victorious, twirling what's left of the Shackbot's totem cannon in his hand. He slowly turned around. His single eye glared up at the Fearamid, at them.
Lili spun around and screamed her lungs out.
"Bill's coming!"
X-X-X-X-X
To be continued…
Here it is! Smack dab in the middle of November, just like I promised. I didn't get the freedom to be as creative with it as I would've liked, since this part turned out to be mostly a retelling of the episode, but I did manage to fit in a quite a few fun stuff in there, which I am very happy about. I'm saving up all the really fun stuff for part two.
Not much else to say really, other than to get hyped for the conclusion of this two-parter, coming at the end of November! See you all then!
Thanks for reading!