A/N: And now, for the conclusion of the arc. I bring to you, Chapter Twenty-Nine! you can consider this a Wham Chapter if you want. I'm not certain. First, I want to thank JuniorVB for his or her short but satisfying reviews that seem to work like summaries and for the favorite, as well as GreenDragon03 for yet another favorite!~
You have no idea how much I wanted reviews! and I thank you~
But enough of that, go on and read!
A Triangle in the Stars
Chapter Twenty-Nine: The Final Confrontation
8-Ball let go of Pyronica, who stepped away and looked over the edge of the roof and suddenly froze when she saw the Cluster Demons surrounding the Temple. She slowly pulled her head back. "They're everywhere around this place..." she muttered.
"Well, that's just terrific," Bill grumbled. This was a time when the demon actually hated being right. He was lucky he hadn't had another meltdown, but he still lost a good bit of his energy with that inferno attack. He couldn't take them all out in one go anyway. He was still too weak either way. The triangle sighed.
Everyone else unlinked too then, being sure to keep in the middle so they wouldn't be seen so quickly, Xanthar in particular. It was hardly any trouble for the smaller demons, and the eyebats weren't smart enough to turn around, keeping their sights ahead and around the Temple. 8-Ball saw an entrance to a stairwell appear in the corner as he did, and raised an eyebrow, whispering, "Guys, look over there."
Only a few, like the shape demons, heard him, and thus looked. Bill allowed a small smile to arch his eye. A way in. Nice. Finally, they were on one of the last few steps here. All they had to do now was make it down there, save Steven, and actually survive. Teeth soon noticed, and made a quiet gulping sound, highly nervous. Hectorgon patted the denture demon on his approximation of a back, trying to comfort him. This was appreciated, but it hardly helped.
Pacifier was still making her way up the same flight of stairs, but was barely running out of breath. The structure wasn't even budging either, for any and all of them. Pyronica shrunk herself down so she could fit, and began down the stairs. Xanthar and 8-Ball did the same, but stayed at the back as the smaller demons filed in after her. Of course, Bill was the first to follow, frowning gently. Teeth tried his best not to clatter, and Kryptos stopped any sign of it before it started. Hectorgon looked around. The stairwell itself was rather narrow, like it wasn't built for a group. Or, rather, for them. Of course. But it didn't change the fact that it was crumbling as well.
Pacifier heard footsteps coming down these same stairs, and she slowed her pace. At this rate, they'd meet up right at the middle. She didn't know what exactly would happen if they met up, but she had an idea that it would be bad. She knew Bill's rage just as well, and like this they could easily swarm her. Little did she know that there was a soon-to-be known traitor in their midst. Just like her.. but different.
Pyronica kept going. She glanced behind her once, very glad indeed with this situation. If a little annoyed. The demons and monsters kept going down too, of course, and it didn't seem to stop. They started hearing footsteps as well, and Teeth became more anxious and terrified. 8-Ball silently cracked his knuckles, wanting some action. Bill narrowed his eye. Something wasn't quite right here... but he couldn't really pick it up. However, saving Steven was top priority. Everything else came second.
Pyronica sped up a little bit. "Alright, guys," she whispered, "we run in, grab Steven, and run back out!" she glanced back again. She knew this plan wouldn't work quite the way everyone thought it would...
Bill frowned, nodding, "Mmhm... that's the plan. But I'm hearing footsteps.."
Everyone else nodded, with 8-Ball and Xanthar being a bit more eager. They soon saw red eyes in the slight darkness—not even the torchlights worked anymore—and found they looked familiar. Some widened their eyes, and the two most eager ones lost their resolve fairly quickly.
The large black creature saw them long before this. She had kept going, a plan in mind. She'd only subdue them, or force them to surrender. She wouldn't, couldn't, bring herself to kill her friends. Even if they might see her as a target now. Even if it went against her new orders. Pacifier sighed quietly. No. She'd let the Cluster Demons do that. Mindless machines. They used to be so much more...
Pyronica stared at the dark form with fear—this wasn't what she was expecting. She stammered a bit, "P...Pacifier? is this where you've been?"
The demon nodded, frowning softly, "Yes," and then mumbled, "unfortunately."
Bill's frown deepened. He'd be raging, but he didn't see loyalty in her eyes. He only growled at her, thoughts about her betrayal zinging through his mind that he'd never say right now, while the rest stared with surprise and fear. Most of his anger, in fact, came from how they were wasting time again, and that was exactly why he wasn't saying anything. Pacifier felt these thoughts, and cringed. But this was good. She was expecting something worse, honestly, but was glad for this. It'd make her plan go a whole lot smoother. She released a breath she didn't know she was holding, and cut to the chase, "Come quietly. And no one gets hurt."
Not that she wanted this.
"No problem. Right, guys? Bill?" Pyronica flickered her hesitant gaze to the triangular demon.
"Fine.. if it'll take us to Steven faster," Bill frowned. The others didn't hesitate either. They didn't want to fight their friend, even if she was on the other side. Unwillingly, they all noted.
Pacifier sighed of relief, and began back down the stairs, without question, with an implicit instruction for them to follow, wondering if she should contact Gabriel about this. Or if she should surprise him. Either way, she was conflicted. And follow they did, some of them scratching their heads and others still frowning. A message soared past them again—back to Gabriel. And they all continued their way down the spiraling, cracking staircase.
Until it fell beneath them.
Nobody was prepared for this. The ones who could float were lucky, but the rest, even Pacifier, were sent tumbling down, screaming and shouting, or, in Xanthar's case, loudly grumbling, all the way. Bill's eye widened. This wasn't supposed to happen. And then it narrowed.
Gabriel.
He was definitely behind this, since the building kept up their weight long before this. But how? he wasn't supposed to know they were taking the stairs. Or that they were on top of the building in the first place.
Kryptos looked down below, worried expression on his face. Hectorgon rubbed at his mustache, anxious. Pyronica stared down. She winced and floated down there.
"You guys alright?" she asked, looking at all of them with concern.
Most of them had somehow managed to get tangled up within each other, but they shot them a thumbs up as they groaned, with the large purple creature rumbling. Teeth in particular mumbled, "We're... fine..."
8-Ball grunted, getting himself from underneath Xanthar, "How did that happen...? it's a Gem Temple, isn't it, boss?"
Bill frowned, floating down there as well with his fellow shapes, "Yeah... someone did this, and I know exactly who."
Kryptos sighed and Hectorgon continued stroking his mustache. They knew full well who he was talking about. The rhombic demon looked around this area, trying to see where they were. But Kryptos hardly had a chance, for, speak of the devil, he appeared before them just then, floating in the air above them, with Steven's gem still attached to him.
"Well then. You're finally here. I was starting to think that Steven really meant nothing to you..." Gabriel grinned at the group in the air, using his newfound powers to trap those who fell in a big pink bubble, and then stretching out the bubble to ensnare Kryptos and Hectorgon, who shouted at this predicament, as well, leaving Bill and Pyronica. The felled group had managed to get themselves untangled, and a few were trying to pop the bubble, to no avail, much to their surprise and horror. Pacifier merely stared at the pink star, feeling a little betrayed for some reason, even if she didn't like being on his side.
Bill growled at him, "Gabriel..." and then eyed the gem embedded into him. His eye widened, and then he frowned. He knew Steven's powers were his other weakness, and much to his displeasure he found Gabriel knew that all too well also. This was a whole new low. As much as he was relieved that Steven was okay, he was also angry that he was being used as a puppet of sorts, ironically enough. Or, more accurately, a power booster. In fact, it made him forsake the method of reasoning with Gabriel, even though the boy would have wanted it that way.
Gabriel glared at Bill. "You know how long I've waited for this? ever since you..." he seemed at a loss of words for just a moment before he continued, changing the subject, "so, how is this gonna go?" clenching and unclenching his fists.
Bill growled. That feeling came up again, almost begging him to try and make his adopted brother see reason. And he couldn't push it away. So he adjusted his bowtie unnecessarily, and sighed, frown deepening, still glaring, "Gabe. I'm giving you one last chance. Stop this mess. You know how it's going to end. You won't be proven better than me after all this, even after you beat me. It'd just backfire on you."
The others had no choice but to watch, mouths and eyes wide open for some of them.
"So you already know who's going to win. Unfortunately for you, brother, I can't stop this now. No one can! I'm going to get justice, and no one will stop me! all of you will perish for ever being on his side!" Gabriel shouted, pointing at all of them. Pacifier's eyes widened, and the other monsters growled.
"Gabriel! this wasn't the deal!" Pyronica shouted back at him. "You said that I'd get to rule with you!"
The star demon snickered a little bit. Everyone else then gasped. Bill's eye widened, and he looked over at Pyronica. The pieces finally began to fall into place. Instead of getting angry like he did for the rest, however, he seemed a little... sad? his eye twitched and then his brow furrowed, as if he was trying to stop tears, and he shakily sighed, unable to cope with this, "What...? Pyronica..? you..?"
The flame lady was one of his closest friends. So obviously he'd be hit pretty hard. He could barely say anything. Kryptos, on the other hand, glared at her, showing the anger Bill was inexplicably yet explicably lacking. But there was no way he could act on it. Pyronica glanced at the triangle coolly, and was about to say something, but the rhombus slammed his fist on the bubble, which produced a resonating clang throughout the room.
Gabriel frowned when that happened, a little afraid of what would happen if the bubble cracked, but it stayed sealed. He then directed his gaze back to Pyronica and laughed, "Did you really think that just by bringing him here I'd reward you with ownership of the multiverse? you're nothing more than a means to an end. Or, now, a loose end. One I intend to cut."
He snapped his fingers and a bubble went around her as well, which he then tapped before she could utter a syllable in defense, sending her who knew where. Then he directed his gaze back to Bill with a smirk, "Now it's just you and me."
Bill clenched his fists. Sadness turned into anger now, or more like he pushed it aside; he'd deal with Pyronica when or if he found her again. He growled, brow furrowing more deeply, "Yes. It is just you and me. But leave Steven out of this. It just wouldn't be a fair fight of dignity this way, would it?"
The demons then watched, frowning deeply. They had no choice. Pacifier looked at them all, and then placed a hand on the bubble. She sighed. She should have been expecting this. But apparently Gabriel was better at hiding secrets than Bill himself was. With Bill, at least you had an idea of what to expect from him. And one of them was loyalty of varying degrees and definitions, but it was always there.
Why did she turn her back on him? she wondered. But she knew. 8-Ball set a hand on her shoulder, but it wasn't noticed.
"Fine by me. I don't need this anymore anyway," he clutched the gem and pulled at it, and was mildly surprised when it didn't budge. "Hmm... actually, no, never mind! if I let him go, how would I know you wouldn't just grab him and run off with him?" he hid this panicky feeling he had now. That he was about to lose. He didn't want to lose.
The triangle's eye widened, and then it narrowed. He caught onto this and voiced it with another growl, "You can't remove it, can you?"
That was actually part of the plan. Grab Steven and get out. But this wasn't going to let that plan come to fruition, and his talking method didn't work. He certainly hoped the boy had another one. But he and the star would have to fight either way, even if the first one was successful.
"W-well... no! but we're still going to fight!" without waiting for Bill's response, he fired a pink laser at him.
"Of course," he frowned, and dodged this. It hit the bubble behind him, and the other monsters reacted poorly to this, forgetting obviously that they were still protected and trapped. But something unexpected happened. The laser bounced back at Gabriel after a few short seconds of inactivity. It almost hit the gem, if not for the shield that suddenly sprung up and stopped it. The shield lowered. The star felt himself catching on fire, similar to how Bill had, just out of pure rage.
The triangle's eye widened. He saw it almost hit the gem. He began to think on this fast, wondering how else he could fight his adopted brother. He got an idea, and gathered enough willpower and energy to teleport behind Gabriel, shooting a laser near where his eye would be, hoping the rage would be a distraction. Gabriel's eye, just as expected, switched sides so it hit him right in that spot. He cried out in pain, but all this only amplified his rage. He turned completely red, a bright, bold color, glaring at his brother. If looks could kill, everyone would be dead just about now.
"Stand down, Gabriel," the triangle narrowed his eye, not fazed at all. He was still trying to talk him down. And he barely knew why. "This isn't worth it at all."
"Isn't worth it...? do you even begin to know what kind of hell you put me through?!" he looked up at Bill, glaring him down, his rage mounting even more. "NOTHING WILL FIX WHAT YOU DID TO ME! AND YOU STILL HAVEN'T EVEN SAID SORRY!" he created several shields in the air, which caught on fire and became all spiky as they soared towards Bill.
The demon gasped, and dodged some of these, but a few cut into his form, and he screamed briefly in pain, rubbing at his side where one of the wounds were. He could tell that these would leave nasty scars. He growled, and attacked with various sharp materials in turn, like swords and spears, but being careful not to hit the gem, and shouted back, "Like I said before, I shouldn't have to apologize! you were at fault! just like the rest of them!"
He kept firing sharp weapon after sharp weapon, doing his best to keep calm. He couldn't go into another meltdown now. Even if there was another, albeit buried, emotion now in the fray. He continued, "Or have you forgotten about that too?!"
"JUST SHUT UP!" Gabriel yelled, putting up a shield against the barrage of weapons. He didn't fight back. Or didn't seem to. But the entire Temple began to rumble and dust began to fall from the ceiling.
Bill gasped, looking up at the crumbling, carved ceiling. He frowned a bit. He really didn't want the Temple to collapse on them all, so he stopped his barrage of attacks, and shouted, "Let's take this outside, Gabriel!"
The other monsters exchanged glances, worried, and some put their hands on the bubble again.
"GOOD IDEA!" Gabriel floated upwards, crashing through the ceiling, leaving a star-shaped hole. After him floated the bubble of helpless demons.
"That's not what I meant!" Bill growled, but followed him, his triangular and skinny frame fitting through the hole easily. He had meant for them to use the door. But no matter. The demon snapped his fingers and fixed the hole, but it wouldn't stop the process of deterioration. The other demons looked around. They were soon outside again, with all the Cluster Demons and eyebats too. This made them even more anxious. Gabriel muttered something back angrily. He looked around at his minions. He could easily make them all attack Bill. But even he had more dignity than that.
And the triangle was counting on that, settling on the ground a few yards away from the Zodiac Temple, and tried to tend to his wounds a bit; it wasn't really working. The Cluster Demons around that area only gave him a glance, though a few stepped forward looking to destroy him. It would be what their new master wanted, wouldn't it?
The eyebats just continued focusing on the aerial surroundings, not paying any of them any mind. Kryptos banged on the bubble again, trying to get them all out. His hands were starting to hurt for his troubles. 8-Ball and Xanthar started to help too, while the smaller demons watched. Pacifier, however, simply sat there, and sighed.
Gabriel called out to them, floating a few meters away from Bill, "No. He's mine. I get to kill him."
And so they stopped, going back to their posts. Bill smirked slightly, ignoring the pain the best he could. Good. This was a battle between the two brothers, and no one else. He then glanced at the gem, frowning softly now. And Steven was caught in the crossfire. Not for long he hoped...
He made a sound like he was clearing his throat, and then spoke, "I may be somewhat depowered, but I'm not weak. It'll be hard to get what you want."
"I already have what I want, brother. You, right here, about to die before me!" he shouted, before creating more flaming spiky shields and launching them. Bill gasped, not exactly expecting this, and closed his eye, bracing himself. He didn't think he'd make it. His friends watched helplessly behind the bubble, eyes completely wide. But then...
..they stopped, right before they hit Bill, and fizzled out, vanishing in midair into nothing at all. The triangle's eye soon opened and widened after he realized he was still up and they never hit him. He hadn't expected this, not at all. He stammered a bit, "H..huh?"
C...could it be Steven...? he thought to himself, and glanced at the gem. The other monsters could barely believe this either, but they lacked the knowledge that Bill had to try and chalk it up.
Gabriel gasped, looking down at the gem, and furrowed his brow soon enough.
"Y O U 'RE SUPPOSED TO OBEY ME!" he gutturally roared. He pounded the gem, until a crack ran through it and it detached from him. He grunted, the loss of power overwhelming him for a second. The bubble around the Henchmaniacs vanished; they were set free. And somewhere else, Pyronica, too, was set free. But in a different way, she was being trapped again.
Bill gasped, and immediately grabbed the gem before it hit the ground with his telekinesis and pulled it closer to him. He stared at it for a while, grasping it gingerly, and then at the crack, and frowned softly. The demon sighed. He didn't think he had enough power to heal Gems quite yet, much less a half Gem. Heck, he couldn't even heal himself. He choked on a small sob, but swallowed it back down. Again, he couldn't break down now.
Meanwhile, 8-Ball cracked his knuckles, resizing himself, and was the first to rush Gabriel while he was distracted. Xanthar followed, having also restored his size. Of course, the two had been wanting action the most. Kryptos glanced over at Bill, and Hectorgon hummed. Pacifier still sat there, and Teeth stayed behind to offer useless comfort. Gabriel suddenly started laughing. He looked insane. Which he probably was anyway. A pink wall then formed, preventing 8-Ball from coming any closer.
"IT'S A GOOD THING I ABSORBED THE POWERS!" he yelled, grinning with glee.
8-Ball was thus knocked back by the small shockwave into Xanthar, who then crashed into the other demons who failed to get out of the way. Teeth and Pacifier were knocked unconscious. Bill Cipher didn't seem to register this, still staring at the rose quartz gem. He rubbed at it softly, "K..kid..?"
Kryptos shouted, and then fired a healing beam at the gem. The triangle certainly registered this, and it was the thing that snapped him out of it. He returned his attention to Gabriel, and snarled. The pain was still bugging him though, but this was more important. He muttered, "You monster..."
It was a bit of a delayed reaction, but the gem soon healed up and started glowing then. But it suddenly stopped as Gabriel threw some more of Steven's shields at Bill, rapidly.
It seemed... somehow...
..irreversible.
The two were connected.
The demon dodged these, still holding onto Steven's gem, still ignoring how much pain he was suffering. He seemed to realize what was going on here. And he'd have to kill his adopted brother to end it. He clenched his free hand, and various swords of many sizes appeared. He telekinetically tossed them all at Gabriel. Kryptos and Hectorgon and 8-Ball and Xanthar watched carefully, silently rooting for Bill as the latter two tended to Teeth and Pacifier.
Gabriel dodged all but one of them. That one landed right in the center of his eye. He screamed in absolute agony, clawing at it, trying to remove the rather skinny blade lodged in him. He only succeeded in breaking it and causing it to hurt more, to go deeper. The golden triangle didn't smirk at all with this, even as he realized he was winning. And this time, Gabriel would pay with his life. Bill wouldn't give him a future chance to come back. The projectiles were thrown once again, and this time were wreathed in burning red fire. This time, because Gabriel was blind and distracted, they all hit their target. He yelled even louder, burning bright red. He yanked them out with magic, but they all left behind serious wounds and cracks.
Fatal wounds and cracks.
Bill would ask if his brother had enough, but he had to die. He shot off lasers this time, eye narrowing. The lasers hit the wounds, and the star shrieked with pain, screaming uncontrollably. This was it for him. So he, in a flash of light, vanished from existence in pieces, and the agonizing screams soon died away, and the only thing he left behind was a small piece of paper that floated down unnoticed to the very spot he had once stood...
A/N: And that's that. Say farewell to Gabriel, everyone. He had a nice run. Ace played him excellently, and Pyronica too; I had the rest of them. And, forget what I said, you can definitely call this a Wham Chapter, in all its 3,691 words. Also, Ace and I like to imagine Wheatley reading over Gabriel's lines. So that should help you add a voice to him. XD
So, there it is. I hope you enjoyed. And don't be scared by the title. There's lots more to come.
What Could Have Been: Bill would have sung his own version of Stronger Than You. But nah. I decided not to do that.
Heheheh, see ya next Thursday! oh, and since Christmas is only in three days and this probably won't be updated then, consider this your Christmas present, and I wish you a Merry Christmas! and a HAPPY NEW YEAR!
((EDIT: Gabriel's "You're supposed to obey me" was supposed to be spaced out, but fanfiction won't allow it. So I had to do it the boring way.))