Greetings from SeekerMeeker.
I am back. I decide that this story will indeed be a prequel to a story universe, known as the "Gravity Gates AU."
This is going to be one of two "Gravity Gates prequel" stories that I will officially declare. The other one is "Gravity Gates Alpha," which I will finish in only two chapters.
Note: if you are curious, you can check out my "Seekerlano" account on DeviantArt.
Chapter 12: Ghosts
April 3, 202X
1:00 PM
A secret room
"Where are we?"
Mabel asked what everyone had in mind. It was all dark inside the room.
"I have no idea," Dipper admitted. "We went up the ladder, and we're in the middle of..."
"Absolutely black in here!" Anna shouted. "What the heck is going on?! Now, we're in the middle of a black abyss like an empty fanfic!"
"Calm down!" Twig yelled. "Everyone, stay calm. We have to-ouch!"
"OUCH!"
A sudden flash of light burst, brightening the room. All eight humans rubbed their eyes, blinded momentarily by the light. Eventually, they got used to it.
"Ugh," all eight people groaned. After wiping their eyes, they looked around.
It was a typical, metal room. However, there were no windows or even doors. It was all metal...
...except for a single object.
"What is this?" Dipper asked, as the eight humans approached it. Curious, they stared at it, while Dipper picked it up from the floor.
It was a book.
"What's this doing here?" Twig asked what everyone else thought.
"And in the middle of a room?" Anna asked.
"Ooh!" Mabel squealed with delight. "Another journal?"
"Huh?" the five teens asked.
"We had an adventure," Pacifica explained. "Well, these two did, and it was crazy. Ask later. Anyway, that book is not a book; it's a codex."
"Huh?" everyone else, including the twins, now asked her, confused.
"Today," Pacifica explained with an annoyed look. "We modern people now equate the book with the codex. More accurately, however, a book is made up of paper, while a codex is made up of papyrus and non-paper materials. This one is a codex, as it's made of pages of parchment, or animal skin."
Dipper winced, holding the book away as if it was poisonous. Mabel jumped back with a yelp. Anna and Twig both stepped back; her left hand held HIS right hand on impulse. Molly raised an eyebrow, confused.
"Uh..." Molly asked. "Why is it made of animal skin?"
"Some old books are made like that," Pacifica answered, rolling her eyes. "It's something that most people don't know. I know about it, only because my parents dragged me into the mess."
Twig and Molly both looked down, their expressions sad. Pacifica noticed this, and covered her mouth.
"Oh," Pacifica said. "I-I am sorry."
"No worries," the two orange-haired siblings replied.
"Did something happen?" Broadie asked Anna quietly, out of earshot.
"It's a long story," she replied in a whisper.
"Anyway," Haddie interjected, changing the topic as she stared at the codex. "So, a book-codex made of animal skin? That's interesting!"
Dipper, Mabel, and Pacifica stared at Haddie's reaction, as her eyes gazed at the tome, like a tiger ready to pounce.
"She likes weird things," Anna replied.
"So do we," Mabel admitted, and all eight people laughed, the mood improving if for a moment.
"So why this book," Pacifica said. "In the middle of this chamber? It's not even on a stand or table!"
"I thought it will be on a pedestal too," Dipper remarked as he analyzed the codex. "I mean, that's in games though."
The others watched him study it.
The codex was quite clean and shiny for an ancient tome. It had a brown hardback cover, slightly gilded in gold on the four corners. Black letters that looked like an ancient alphabet lined the edges. In the middle of the codex was a single, black circle, with four shapes that surrounded it to form a diamond shape.
Dipper squinted his eyes at it, then gasped.
"It looks like a portal symbol!" he remarked.
"I beg your pardon?" Pacifica asked.
"Uh oh," Mabel groaned. "Back in our tween days, our Grunkle Stan made a gateway similar to that of this symbol, except it was a triangle with an eye in the middle."
"Grunkle Stan?" the other five teens asked.
"It's a long story," the twins replied.
"They had their own adventures," Pacifica added.
"Alright," Dipper said. "Let me see...hmm...hmmph!"
He tried to open the codex.
"It...it won't open," he noted.
"Let me try!" Mabel replied, taking the tome away. "Hmm...hmmph!"
The others raised an eyebrow, as Pacifica looked at the binding and the pages.
"Odd," she noted. "I don't see any glue, yet it won't open? Let me try."
Mabel handed her the codex, and Pacifica moved it around.
"This is interesting," she noted. "Hmm...hmmph! Hey, what is this?"
She then probed it, trying to flip what looked like a folded edge of the parchment, which stuck out of the upper right corner of the codex.
Click!
Everyone stood still.
Click!
"Did you open it?" Mabel asked.
"Uh...?" Pacifica hesitated.
Pop!
"Oh," Pacifica said, as the others crowded around her. "It's open."
She opened it, but only the front cover did. Behind it was a parchment with bright, black words:
To those who read this:
This is a rather strange book that talks about this interesting dimension known as the Gravity Gates AU. The GG AU is a universe where different worlds collide into a single Earth. For some strange reason, the Gates, portals that open up to other worlds, allow factions and peoples to enter and live on Earth.
I have undertaken measures to compile as much as I can. However, I apologize if this book is a little all over the place. In fact, this book changes based on what I write and add in...
Yet the GG world is very interesting. I hope to study more about its individuals, its peoples, and various aspects of this nexus world.
For more information about this, feel free to ask here.
All eight raised their eyebrows.
"What is this book?" Dipper asked. "Is somebody writing about our world, as if it's one big fantasy world?"
"Like that Dungeons, Dungeons, and More Dungeons board game that you loved?" Mabel teased him.
"What's a board game?" Twig, Molly, and Haddie asked.
Of course, being born in a different time, they were more used to modern tastes, instead of the older trends.
"And why is this 'here' word underlined?" Pacifica asked.
"Maybe we can press it?" Mabel suggested.
"I can try," Anna said, and pushed it.
Click!
Suddenly, a part of one wall shook, and an indent appeared!
"Wow," Anna said, as she and others approached it. Dipper glanced at it, and understood.
"I assume that this is the key," Dipper said, pointing at the codex. "It fits into that."
"And why do we even need to do that?" Pacifica asked. "I mean, everything here seems easy, as if somebody is watching us."
Everyone fell silent.
"You are right," a mechanical voice echoed, causing everyone to jump. "Forgive us, but you all will have to put that codex in the indent."
"OK!" Anna said. "What is going on here?!"
"No time to explain," the voice replied. "But meet us on the other side. We will tell. That codex is a key, and please put in, as there is no other way."
"Oh boy," most of them groaned.
"We have no other choice," Dipper said. "Man, everything is going crazy!"
He pushed it into the wall.
Click!
A part of the wall shook, and a door opened up...very slowly.
"It's taking a while," Anna noted.
"We apologize," the same mechanical voice spoke. "Nobody else has done this before."
"OK, invisible voice," Pacifica spoke loudly. "You better tell us WHAT THE HECK is going on here!"
The voice made a mechanical but audible chuckle.
"You Mutants are funny," the voice replied.
"Uh oh," they responded.
As the door continued to open, the voice told them. From the Mutants to the Oracle Stones, the voice told them most of everything.
"And that's not all," the voice finished. "The Oracle Stones are designed to help boost the world's societies, but there is more. Unknown to everyone, even in the Archon, there is a source that is the source of all Oracle Stones. In fact, the Oracle Stones are the Chinese version of the original."
"The original?" the group asked.
"You will see it," the voice spoke. "You young man with a blue hat, you are correct. The other room has it. It's a Gate."
"Wait," Dipper interjected. "What do you-"
"EYES OF ATHENA!" another voice roared. "WHAT ARE YOU ***** DOING?! I KNEW THAT YOU'RE DOING THIS!"
"We have to go," the voice said. "Goodbye, and thank you for healing our hunger."
"What are you talking about?!" the group asked.
"So," the same voice that shouted answered, this time with a cold, harsh tone. "I see that you eight have found a secret, the very secret that I've been searching for..."
"Herbert Barrow," Dipper, Mabel, and Pacifica growled.
"Thanks to you," Barrow replied. "We've found the source of the Oracle Stones, the REAL stone that I've been searching for. I cannot believe that my scientist betrayed me, and the secret was here right under my nose! Well, thanks to you, we now finally can overthrow the US, and make China great for the first time in ages!"
"And aren't you an American citizen?" Mabel asked, taunting him. "Mr. Barrow, you're traitor!"
Barrow laughed.
"They paid me well," he retorted. "But so long, my young men and women. Before you reach there, here you go."
Click.
Another door opened, this time a little faster than the door opened by the codex.
"OK," Dipper said. "I think we know what's going to happen."
"Broadie!" Anna yelled. "Go in!"
Broadie nodded, and squeezed through barely.
"It's tight!" Broadie gasped.
Haddie then tried to go through.
"Augh!" she groaned. "He's right! The door is NOT opening soon enough!"
"What's going to come out there?" Mabel asked, ready to fight.
"I am ready as ever," Pacifica said. "And what..."
Everyone outside stared, eyes wide.
A skeletal hand appeared, then two. A face appeared, but its very appearance froze everyone in place.
It looked like a human skeleton, but hunched. Its legs were digitigrade, ending in what looked like talons. Its arms were clearly humanoid, but each finger had a sharp claw. However, what shocked everyone was its face.
It was triangular, with a point down.
Its two points were shaped as horns that slanted back.
It had two mandibles.
Above all, it had a single, black eye in the middle of the "face."
"What in the..." Dipper gawked.
"Hungry..." the thing croaked. "Hungry..."
Everyone stayed silent, as Haddie squeezed herself into the crack in the door. With a silent grunt, she barely managed to get through.
"Hungry..." it continued to speak, looking around with its single eye, which seemed to be a single pupil, with no iris or sclera of any kind.
Molly herself then went through, pushed in by Twig. With a very faint grunt, she managed to squeeze through the crack.
"Hungry..." the thing grunted, then its eye saw them.
"Uh oh," Twig whispered, and pushed himself into the door.
"Humans," the thing croaked, as it limped towards them. "Humans..."
Anna then went through, struggling as the door was still opening a little.
"Tasty," the thing finally spoke, as it crouched down.
"Go-go-go!" Dipper whispered, as he tried to push the girls in. However, they pushed him into the door, forcing him to go through.
"Ugh!" he gasped audibly.
"I want...meat!" the creature screeched, before it dashed towards them.
"Hungry Ghost!" a mechanical voice suddenly blared, catching the creature off guard.
"It's that voice!" Mabel gasped, as she went through the door, which was much wider now.
"Hungry!" the monster croaked.
"Pacifica," the cracked voice blared from the PA system. "I am...expiring. Go. Go!"
Pacifica squeezed through, just as the creature roared and lunged at her.
"Get off of me!" she screamed, as the Ghost's hands clawed at her, trying to take a hold her feet. She kept kicking at the creature, which grabbed her left boot!
"Hungry!" the creature croaked.
"Hungry my foot!" Pacifica screamed. "Here you go!"
She managed to pull her left foot out, and kicked the creature away. Instead of pursuing her, however, the Hungry Ghost looked at the boot, smelled it, and ate it!
"Why is it eating that?" Anna gasped, as she and others helped to pull her out of the door.
"My boots are made of leather!" Pacifica gasped, as she finally got out. "Whew! Thank you so much!"
"No...problem!" the others gasped, as they panted.
After a while, they looked around.
"Where are we?" Mabel asked. "And that must be the Gate."
The others looked. The room was another chamber, but this time less mechanical and more like a cavern. Various stalagmites and stalactites dotted both the ceiling and the floor. Plus, the floor was completely bare and brown. In the middle of the chamber was something that they had never seen before.
"It looks just like the portal that Grunkle Stan made!" Mabel gasped. "But not even that close or cool!"
Dipper nodded silently. The portal that he saw back in Gravity Falls was triangular, and obviously felt supernatural. This one was different.
It had a circle in the middle, but it looked more like a purple orb, with what looked like atomic particles circling around. Surrounding it were four blocks, which made a diamond shape, just like the image on the codex. It also hovered about 10 meters above the ground, and the entire portal was about two stories tall. In front of the portal was a set of stairs, designed to allow anyone to step through.
It was bigger and cooler-looking than the portal made by Uncle Ford. However, it felt...very different.
"What's with this machine?" Anna gasped. "Does this go somewhere?"
"That must be a Gate," Dipper noted.
"Yeah," the others replied.
"So," Pacifica said. "What next?"
"They found the original!"
Herbert Barrow roared, as he stomped on the remnants of the Eyes of Athena. Broken pieces lined the floor, as he had them destroyed. A team of soldiers probed the robots, ensuring that they were destroyed.
"You-you-can't do this," Red gasped, still functioning.
"You hid this from me," Barrow growled. "I knew that I should have not trusted in the first place!"
"They are-are fin-finally do-done," Blue replied with a cough. "Our-our suf-suffering e-ends."
"Ugh!" Barrow roared. "Men! Incinerate the rest of these hunks of metal!"
"Understood," the others replied, as they inspected every remnant, while Barrow left in a hurry.
"Men!" he roared at others. "Get to that chamber! Find the Gate, before the twerps get it!"
"He must have hated these machines," Henry Peterson remarked to his comrades, as he checked the remains.
"Robots are not meant to do that," one of the soldiers admitted. "They are programmed to obey, not to rebel."
"Unless they can rebel," Peterson spoke, as he crouched down. A message appeared on a screen, still attached to Blue:
I KNOW YOU. TAKE THIS MEMORY CHIP, AND RUN.
Peterson chuckled. He knew.
"Goodbye," he replied, as he took a chip out of the body.
"Goodbye what?" the others replied, before he threw smoke and flashbang grenades. Everybody gasped and screamed, as a combination of both smoke and lights filled the interior, as Peterson rushed out.
"Gotta go!" he replied. "Bye!"
"MEN!" Barrow's voice boomed. "What the *** is going on here?!"
"A ghost appeared and surprised us!" one of the soldiers gasped.
"No it was not!" another roared.
Peterson rushed through, knowing full well that nobody knew of his true intentions. He activated an elevator with his codes, and got in. Behind, numerous soldiers rushed past, apparently unaware.
"Who the *** did this?!" Barrow roared. "We have a mole inside of the Archon! Find him, and KILL HIM ON SIGHT!"
"Ah, the irony," Peterson chuckled, as he went down the elevator. "I guess they don't know one thing."
He took out an old cell phone, and clicked a few buttons.
Ring!
"Henry!" a familiar voice boomed.
"Honey," he said. "I have gotten everything I need. You ready with the transport?"
"I cannot believe that we're doing this!" his wife gasped.
"I am safe right now," he admitted. "But not before doing one more thing...May the Truth set us free."
"Honey," she groaned. "I can tell that that's not just a code, but a declaration of war."
"A war against the corrupt politicians, business executives, and the modern-day Pharisees of the world," he replied with a laugh. "In order to be free and have truth in our lives."
"Just be careful with whom you call 'Pharisee,'" his wife replied, as the elevator stopped. "But I trust your judgment. Kisses."
"I know," he said, as the elevator door opened. "And I guess I know where that Gate-thing is. Honey, let's do this."
I apologize if the chapter may seem rushed.
I want to finish this, so that I can finally start on my next stories.
Next chapter is the last chapter: "Gate."
More information on the "soft prequel":
So then, I decide to change this story, so that it goes from the "Oracle Stones" to the "Gate."
I hope this change is understandable.
Sincere Seeker.