A/N: Just to let you know, I'm getting really, really worried about you guys. There was only one reviewer for the previous chapter, or two, if JoJo didn't mean to put his or her comment on Chapter Nine. Once again, I understand that you all have school and that it's usually pretty heavy this time of year, but wow. In any case, I'd like to thank all of you for reviewing and favoriting and following this story. Ace and I really appreciate it. We have reached one hundred reviews, thirty-nine faves, and forty-two follows! the most I've ever received on a story. Thank you all so so much! with that said, here's Chapter Twenty-Four! :3 Another new perspective! some of you have been asking about this. Well, here ya go! XD

A Triangle in the Stars
Chapter Twenty-Four: The Displaced Anomaly

In the middle of the ocean and dreary skies, there was a rather small boat with the words "Stan O' War II" engraved upon its starboard bow. Ford was pacing, as he had been every now and then since he received the call from Wendy. He stopped and placed his hands on the edge, looking out into the depths of the horizon with an almost traumatic stare. He couldn't believe his arch-enemy was back...

"Looks like you shouldn't have thrown out that statue after all, huh?" asked Stan, shooting Ford a look.

Ford shot Stan a brief glare, before it softened. He thought for sure throwing the statue overboard would have kept the world safe from ever shaking his hand. He hadn't thought the statue could move, or that the water would be strong enough to move it along. He sighed, "I guess... that was a stupid mistake..." and then slapped his forehead gently.

Stan sighed, "No kidding. We should have just kept it in the Mystery Shack, like I suggested." He looked down into the waters, which were rather calm today.

"Doesn't the Mystery Shack usually have torrents of people visiting it, though?" he brought up that point again, like he had last time his brother suggested such an idea. And they couldn't particular count on any of the customers to resist shaking its hand, even with Soos, Abuelita and Melody running the joint now.

They had shifted gears, and were heading for their new destination, coming back up north. Such a shame that investigating the anomaly in Antarctica had to wait. But this anomaly was much bigger and much worse, especially now that he wasn't contained by the barrier.

"Yeah, but still. Your theory about shaking his hand might have been wrong, you know," and then Stan went silent, watching the waves caused by the boat. He then frowned slightly, "Say, what do you think this 'Beach City' is going to be like when we get there? how much of it do you think Bill has destroyed by now?"

Ford shuddered, "All of it."

And that was assuming Bill reformed fully powered. Or even half-powered. The demon was incredibly strong, and incredibly dangerous. The old man kept beating himself up. Gravity Falls would have been the best place to keep him. But no, he had to bring him along, outside the barrier, and try and "drown" him. Stupid, stupid, stupid!

Stan put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Poindexter, I'm sure we'll beat him. We did last time, didn't we?" he smiled, and then took a look at the case labeled "Experiment 618" again, the case that held the quantum destabilizer that would get rid of Bill for good.

Ford looked at his brother's hand, and then glanced at said case as well. He smiled and nodded, "Yeah, we did. Like our great niece and nephew said, they beat him before, and they'll beat him again." That smile grew as he finished, "And so shall we."

This only helped alleviate the insecurities. The quantum destabilizer was only one shot, and Bill had most likely wised up to that move. Also, he wasn't sure if they'd last a second time. Everyone in the Zodiac Ten, except Wendy, and of course they themselves and the younger twins, was back at Gravity Falls. So that plan was a bust. And he was sure the triangle was expecting the memory gun as well, though they couldn't take that with them. It was destroyed, of course. Stanford frowned inwardly.

"Hey, look, land!" Stanley broke through his thoughts, pointing ahead at what, he could see through his telescope, was a beach, connected to a boardwalk. It was completely intact, which he found very odd. "I don't think we're at the right place, though..." he passed said telescope to Ford, hoping he could make some sense from it.

Ford took the telescope and looked through. He frowned slightly, but was relieved that it wasn't destroyed. But, like Stan said, they could have arrived at the wrong place. He hummed, "Hmm... this is strange... I think we are; it fits Wendy's description... but unfortunately places don't have coordinates engraved into them..."

"Don't you have one of those... whatever they're called? 'PGS's'?" he asked, using air quotes to emphasize his ignorance of this topic.

"GPS?" Stanford scrunched his face up at his brother, almost laughing. He'd have let loose if the circumstances weren't so dire.

"Yeah, that. Don't you have one of those lying around here somewhere?" Stan asked, looking around, as if expecting it to fall from the sky.

The old man nodded, handing the telescope back to his brother, "Of course I do..." and slapped his forehead again for having forgotten that he had a GPS in his possession. He pulled it out of his pocket, while his brother pocketed his telescope, and cross-referenced the coordinates Wendy had given with these current coordinates. They were off by a few miles, apparently. He sighed, looking out at the land again, "Well, it's not the right location..."

Stan's stomach rumbled then. "Okay, but while we're here, we should get a bite to eat. I'm starving! plus, uh... we're kinda running out of fuel," he tapped the little meter showing they were almost empty, about a sixteenth of the tank full.

Ford nodded, smiling just a tad, "Alright then."

He was quite hungry too, though his stomach was a little quieter about it. And they really needed gas too. So the man walked up to the wheel and began steering it towards the docks, accelerating a little bit. Stanley stared longingly towards the town here next to the ocean. He saw a nice big sign that said "Ocean Town". Gee, was that literal or what? well, just about as literal as Beach City. An idea then occurred to him. "We should stop and ask for directions as well," he added, a little late.

Ford nodded again, smiling a bit more, "That's part of the game plan, of course."

He soon arrived at the docks, and, once he parked the boat properly, picked up the anchor and tossed it overboard so that the ship wouldn't drift away while they were on break. That would be disastrous if it ever did, as it held their only true defense against Bill, various personal items and money, and was pretty much their temporary home at this point. Stan had a nice safe aboard the ship, carrying their cash and some guns, as well as some of Ford's junk. He opened it, took a pistol, and some of their money, about twenty dollars worth. He looked at Ford, "You want anything in here?"

He nodded, exhaling, "If Bill has moved location, we need every defense we can get."

Even if they were useless against him. That and they didn't quite know what to expect here. They could run into something unsavory. Or perhaps someone. He surely hoped not, on all these prospects. Ford walked over and grabbed a small gun, similar to the one with which he had threatened the bus driver when he refused to let Waddles on board. He chuckled a little at the memory, and also grabbed twenty dollars worth of cash. They may need more money, and they had to stock up on food as well.

Stan got off the boat, leaving Ford to lock up the safe. He looked around town with his fancy telescope. Ford indeed locked up the safe, metaphorically throwing away the key. Absolutely no one would be able to get in here. He, too, exited the boat, and smiled a little at Stanley's antics. Unbeknownst to both of them, there was an alien roaming in this particular town, near constant but quiet murmuring filled with anxiety and fear for her life.

Along the boardwalk, Stanley saw various places. The first restaurant he saw, he ran up to. It happened to be a fast food one. Ford trailed behind him, smiling even more, "Ah, we're saved."

But one thing he noted was how the town seemed.. empty. Oddly empty. Almost no one was roaming about. There was no rustle and bustle. At all. He found that strange. And unsettling, considering the circumstances. But none of the buildings were destroyed, just rundown, and that helped alleviate his paranoia. Just a little bit. Stanley knocked on the glass window that served as where the people inside would give food to the people outside. "Anyone in there?" he asked, frowning.

Someone soon stepped up to the window, looking particularly ragged in the face, with a slight frown to complete it. She was dressed in uniform, which accentuated her unnaturally pale skin well enough. Too much. She soon nodded, "Yes. How may I help you?"

Her voice sounded listless, like she lost all hope long ago. Not even new visitors sparked something in her. Ford frowned slightly, highly concerned, but this was the least of their troubles. Perhaps, once they dealt with Bill, they'd come back and try to help. But as for right now, nope. He stayed silent, hanging back, letting Stan take care of this.

"We'd like to see what's on the menu," he asked, the frown deepening slightly.

The young lady nodded, and then grabbed a sheet, the menu, and held it up against the window. She'd taken it literally, it seemed. Ford read through the list. Cheeseburgers. Fries. Milkshakes. The usual. And they were fairly cheap, like one or two dollars despite there being more than one size for each. It was just another sign of how rock bottom this town had become. They didn't even try to raise the prices anymore, since no one toured or visited.

"We'll take a couple cheeseburgers and fries," his frown deepened even more. They really didn't need even twenty dollars for this—ten would have been enough.

She nodded, not even smiling, "Your order will be ready in soon."

And then she walked away from the window, and other voices were heard after she announced the order, just as listless, though one of them seemed a tiny bit excited. She came back so she could ring it up. Ford became increasingly concerned, frowning even more. But this wasn't their problem right now. They had bigger fish. A much bigger fish. They'd come back, he reassured himself. But would it be too late by that point? just how long has Ocean Town suffered?

Stan sighed, "Ah, you don't need me here for this. I'm going to go see who can get us some fuel for the Stan O' War II," and walked off, back to the docks, looking for any other people around, hoping there was someone who could point him in the right direction. Thinking back, he probably should have asked for it at the window of the fast food place.

Ford nodded to no one in particular now, and then pulled out the sufficient cash and handed it to the lady. She expressed her gratitude, and traded the money for the receipt. He smiled in an attempt to get her to smile, but she didn't, just kept staring with those hollow eyes. It creeped him out, honestly, and then he took a step back, now concentrating on waiting for their order. Unbeknownst to him, that alien was very close now, like behind the building close and moving, still muttering to herself...

A/N: And here we are, and with another cliffhanger! I was Ford here and the clerk as well, and Ace was Stan. :3 And the mysterious figure is also me. I hope we pulled them off well. :3 There are a few references in here, one of which is particularly large and central and that Ace didn't even realize she put in before I told her about it, and now we know who tried to drown Bill. XP I hope you enjoyed it!

P.S.: Also, small note: I had trouble trying to decide whether I should use the current title of the chapter, or "Ocean Town". I decided to stick with this one so it wouldn't be as obvious. But yeah. Please leave a review, detailed if you can. If you don't, I'll see you either Saturday or next Thursday with the next one! X3 toodles!