"Hey Dipper!" Mabel, unlike her twin is a morning person. She knits loud quality sweaters while he wears weathered but trusty vest and old hat. "Training was fun today wasn't it?"
"I guess." He tugged on a hungry gnome chewing on his hat and it scurried away to look for better snacks. "I can't get the hang of these spells."
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She eyed her brother worriedly. Dipper tries hard at everything and if he fails he gets really melancholy. Mabel tugged on his arm. "You need a break from studying. Let's go to the mall. Maybe you'll meet a cute girl and can ask her on a date!"
He blushed and frowned. "I don't like going into town. It's like everyone is staring at me…"
"Well there's nothing to do here! Stan and Soos are with tourists and Fiddleford is out somewhere. Please, Dipper? We can go to the arcade."
His face instantly turned from miserable to animated. "Really? Okay."
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Somebody knocked on the door. Mabel ran to answer it and she returned with a pastel blue envelope. It's from Gideon.
"He wants us to meet us at one of his factories. Should we go?"
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Dipper didn't want to. He'd rather go to the arcade. But he wondered what Gideon was going to do with the psychic stones. He hadn't told Mabel about the vision he had. So, he told her.
"Really? Then we have to go. But how do we get there?"
He waved some keys. "Golf cart."
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Parking the vehicle by some trees the two hike up a winding road towards the factory. The metal giant is ancient. Faded paint, creaking eerily, and vegetation scale up the walls to broken windows.
Gideon waits for them at the entrance. "Welcome Pines."
"Why'd you invite us out here, Gideon?" Mabel asked.
Dipper snorted. Maybe it's a trap.
"It's isolated. My merch is made and stored here in this warehouse. I'd rather not have any nosy insects –townspeople see my powers."
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"You want to what?"
"Please. It isn't all that complicated." Gideon assured with a small artificial smile. "Alone I was having a hard time finding artifacts. Look. If we do this correctly, the town won't be a problem. And we have this!" He held a scorched book. "There are infinitely powerful secrets in these woods. This book belonged to a mage. I don't know who wrote it but they left astounding and crafty details about everything in Gravity Falls."
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Dipper's shock sinks beneath the surface of his indifference. Bill said that Stan has a brother. And I've heard them mention something about Ford. Is that his book? But why wouldn't Stan and Fiddleford talk about him? Did he die in the war?
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"We'll find the other books and be unstoppable! We'll crush any enemies in our way! People will listen to us!"
No matter which magic a person studies there are always flaws. And though clever, Gideon is certain to confidently, arrogantly, mistakenly step right into a trap.
"Are these stones really that powerful?" Mabel eyed hers doubtfully. "It's pretty but charms are just small showy magic."
"Not this one." Gideon smiled sinisterly. "Whoever crafted these charms knew how to amplify magic."
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"What can they do?" Mabel jumped when she saw the charm glowing. She hovered a few inches above the ground, and focusing her mana on the enchanted object, flew up to the metal beams. "Whoa! That's cool!" Swinging her arm, a bunch of merchandise floated up. Aiming at some junk, the objects are hurled and accurately hit the scattered items.
Gideon clapped. "Absolutely amazing! I couldn't even float when I first used the charm."
He rolled his eyes.
"What about you, Pines?"
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Magic is supposed to seamlessly work with charms but Dipper's psychic stone stays dull. Then it sparks violently. Gideon raises an eyebrow. "Let's spar and see if it works."
Mabel landed and spun elegantly. "Fun! Dipper and I will fight you."
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Gleeful's entire being glows bright blue. His eyes, blindingly white. Knives surround him bobbing nonchalantly.
"Are you serious?" Pines sprints and narrowly dodges the flying knives. The metal misses by a hair's length. Dipper tries to pull the mana from the charm but the stone cracked. Guess I'll have to use my own magic!
Trees became platforms for him to reach his opponent. Muttering a spell, vines thrash like venomous snakes.
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Waving an arm Gideon flung Dipper away and sent knives flying. Mabel repelled them with scorching flames. Snapping her fingers, thunder shot at Gideon who jumped from foot to foot to dodge them. The amulet glared, and his psychic abilities tapped into the twin's mana.
Dipper's magic withered instantly. Falling, he desperately tries to remember dark magic spells. Did Gideon dispel my magic?!
Gideon had clear focus until something hit his psychic field. It felt like a needle drawing blood or glass breaking.
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Coughing, his amulet's magic vanished. He fell and hit the ground, scuffed and winded. He had only been floating a short length from the ground, but he isn't used to wielding that much mana for a long time. Staring disbelievingly at Dipper, he sees him recover and vegetation, thorns like armor, wind up his arms.
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"You blocked my magic?" Dipper asked.
"You can do that?" Mabel is just as confused.
Wheezing, Gideon stands up. He isn't angry. No. He's stunned. "Pines. You absorbed my mana, even though I stopped yours. What spell is that?"
"I don't know," he shrugged. "Maybe the amulet can amplify other magic spells." Dipper lied. He doesn't want Gideon to know that he's studying dark magic.
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"It is a new charm. Even I haven't discovered all of its powers. But I knew you guys are extraordinary! C'mon, we're going to the woods." He extended out his hand to Mabel who accepted it.
"Why?" Dipper followed behind them, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
"I found something that could be from the war hundreds of years ago."
Did he also find the scar?
"Sounds like it, Pine Tree."
"Really?! Let's go! Besides running rom that giant gnome we haven't been on any adventures!" Mabel briefly exchanged glances with her twin. Trust me, her eyes conveyed. I won't let Gideon trick us.
I hope so.
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Reluctantly, Dipper follows Gideon and Mabel into the forest. He recognizes the area immediately. Corrupted magic is warping the beautiful landscape. Healthy trees droop ominously around a dirt path, their leaves purple and coated with rust. Clusters of insects frenzy around the trunks. Animal bones lay scattered around. The air feels dense here. We should leave. But Gideon and Mabel won't listen to me.
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The gaping scar hasn't changed. Gideon took a deep breath, as if smelling the most aromatic flowers. "Can you sense the fizzing mana?" For years he wished to wield this much magic.
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"I don't know," Mabel eyed the woods doubtfully. "Looks dangerous."
Gideon reached for a glob of corrupted magic. It jumped animatedly. Gideon screamed and fell backwards. Dipper laughed. For a guy who boasts about his psychic powers and fearlessness, he's sure cowardly. Blue psychic energy captured the glob but it broke free and landed on the earth, crawling towards Gideon.
"Wait," Dipper waved his arm. "Do you hear that?"
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A muffled scream. One could've mistaken it for deafening wind. A bone-chilling ghastly figure crawled out from the scar like a zombie!
Mabel shot lightning at one, sending it back into the darkness. More enemies arrived, chanting some unknown language.
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Dipper uppercut one with the knuckles and shouted, "Mabel! Can you summon a creature to get us out of here?!"
"Sure!" A spinning magic circle appears at her feet. From the smoke a tall and noble deer materialized.
"C'mon!" Dipper tossed Gideon and climbed up on the deer, ducking corrupted magic hurled overhead. Mabel steers the deer away from the horde.
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Gideon cried and hugged Dipper. "You guys are the best friends I've ever had –the only friends I've ever had!"
"Yeah yeah," he looked worriedly over his shoulder at the undead chasing them. "We're not out of the woods yet."
Mabel laughed. As the deer slides down a hill, Dipper casts trees to slay the few that were a few feet away from attacking. Mabel hurled fireballs that melted the rest. They safely made it back towards town and the deer disappeared.
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It's getting worse. "We gotta tell Wendy, Stan, someone." Dipper knows that Stan and Fiddleford are hiding something about the war but they could probably fix the scar in the woods.
"What? We can't." Gideon's showman personality deteriorated into resentment. "If they seal it up we won't figure out how to control that magic."
Mabel frowned. "You want to go back there? I'm sorry Gideon but I'm with Dipper on this one. Getting the ancient books? Yeah, that I'll do. But those things," she shook her head. "They're like zombies."
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He looked at the Pines twins, about to protest. Gideon sighed. "Okay. We'll focus on collecting the books."
"We'll see you later Gideon." Mabel and Dipper left to tell Stan or Wendy about the corrupted magic.
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Shaking angrily, Gideon's powers burned. His eyes turned white and he clutched the stone, trying to keep the psychic powers cool. "They don't understand. If we can control that magic then everyone in Gravity Falls will have to listen to us. We'd be the rulers of this dilapidated town!"
"Child…" an eerie whisper sliced through the soundlessness of the woods.
Gideon turned, his eyes flashing left to right.
Out from the murky shadows appears a corrupted being. A fairy? It's hard to tell.
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Its head snapped at a bizarre angle but it spoke painlessly. Eyes are a sinister glowing purple. "Are you friends with the Pines?"
"Why?"
"You wish for total power. I can give-"
"What's the cost?" Gideon tapped his foot.
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The corrupted fairy extended a decaying arm. "Accept being loyal to my leader and his army. You'll be given powers to rule over Gravity Falls. In exchange you must get closer to the Pines twins."
Gideon hesitated. The shimmering light has an ominous quality.
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His entire life he lacked extraordinary magic –the one thing he wanted. This being and their leader aligned with his goals.
The Pines twins are his friends and he has a crush on Mabel. Gideon wants to get payback for those who made fun of him and to have his friends with him as they destroy the world.
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"You'll have independence to do what you want but you must tell us about the Pines twins."
"Okay. Deal."
The fairy grinned. They shook hands. Gideon collapsed, feeling agonizing pain. He tastes bitter metal in his mouth and his skin feels icy cold. Coughing violently drops of dark purple substance burn his mouth. The amulet changes into a corrupted rusty copper and purplish-blue, before returning to its original color. The corrupted being's voice rang in his ears, louder than blaring alarms. "Now…our leader will tell you exactly what is required for you to keep your new powers."