The Ferhsul laboratory buzzed with sound. Several of the guards coming from the brig had just climbed down the stairs in the white laboratory, following their captain towards the pathways for the bridge. No sooner had they left the room then did the four sections of the laboratory door slid open. Uki-Dohth, scientist of the aliens known as Xabvi, popped his head past the doors. Then he was followed by Mabel Pines, and her brother Dipper. Each them scanned the area ahead, flipping their faces to face on section of catwalk or another.
"We are alone," Uki-Dohth, or Yuki as Mabel pronounced him, told them quietly as he fidgeted with his scanner in his hands, "Keep your sense to you."
"Uh, you mean 'be quiet'?" Dipper asked as Yuki started walking ahead slowly.
The alien scientist nodded in shyness. "Of course. I admit I am no longer certain of my intimacy regarding the English language," Yuki admitted with a shy smile.
"Coulda told you that one," Mabel snickered as she and Dipper followed suit. They both stopped by one of the tubes of gold and silver as a black silhouette flickered before them. "Yuki," Mabel called to the alien, who spun around, "You all said that the people in Gravity Falls no longer exist. What's with these then?" she pointed to the tubes.
"Ah," he said, eying the device, "They are reality suspensions. These tubular devices conduct high levels of what are known as tachyons and a localized spatial graviton beam, and they entwine together as a field, warping together a sub-space vibration. That vibration is the locale of the humans of Gravity Falls. We store them in hither," he nodded to the golden and silver light, "For this is the closest composite solution I could come up with to not having their sub-space particles fade out of the universe."
Mabel stared at Yuki, head empty. She whipped to her brother. "Dipper- translation: was anything he said good news?"
He did his best for his sister. "Technobabble aside, basically they're keeping the outline of Gravity Falls in these, so they can keep track of them," Dipper simplified and Mabel nodded, "That way they don't fizzle out of existence."
"Phew! Nice one," Mabel patted Yuki's shoulder.
"My thanks to you," Yuki bowed, and Mabel laughed. "Was I being funny?" the alien inquired.
"Just say 'thank you'," Dipper told him with his own grin.
"I don't know," Mabel told her brother, "I kind of like how he speaks like he's in the renaissance."
"Ah... Thank you," Yuki tried again, and turned away, clearly uncertain in his choice of words. Mabel pouted and swatted her brother's arm.
"Ow! What?" he demanded.
"Ruining my fun," she grumbled as they followed after Yuki.
The three walked past the central platform they had met by and continued towards the darkened room. Yuki stepped inside first, and rushed to the large panel of screens before him.
Only a few seconds passed as he sat down, placed aside the scanner, and the screens all were changed and visually switched. Yuki's fingers were jabbing and clicking so fast they were a blur as the twins watched. Information charts, several images of human anatomy, something that looked like a chart of a black hole- all manners of different informational panels appeared in front of them.
"Woah. You need all of that?" Dipper asked, stepping closer to look at some of the images.
"My studies take many routes," Yuki told him distractedly as he typed away, "The human brain and stem are very different than our standard, un-adapted physiology. Without proper understanding of your bodies functions, I may end up slaying your kin, as opposed to returning them to their rightful state."
"You mean they'd die?" Mabel gasped, "Can we help?"
"Your presence is help enough," Yuki told them easily, grasping the scanner, "You see, the rouge energy traits that you bare-"
"Are these energies dangerous?" Dipper cut the alien off.
Yuki shook his head. "Not to humans. My species would be irreversibly adapted to such radiation. We would die in a matter of hours."
"Adapted, are you sure you're using that word, right?" Mabel asked Yuki as he reached under the console for a wire and inserted into a small port in the scanner.
Yuki gave her question a thought. "Adapt- to adjust to certain conditions, this is correct?" Yuki turned to her.
"That sounds right, okay," Mabel nodded, "But why do you keep saying that you would be 'adapted' to everything?"
Yuki paused, and then nodded to himself. "Life on planet Earth is not like Xabvus, "he explained. "Xabvri, my species, "Yuki pointed to myself, "Evolved for the conditions that our planet provides. Upon our days within the seas of stars, we have learned that other atmospheres and climates irreversibly alter our forms."
"That... that's why we're breathing atmosphere that suits us?" Dipper asked, "And not suffocating on your ship?"
Yuki quoted something proudly, "'Directive six of biological examination: we adapt to their needs'. When we spirit away living samples, such as the specimens below," Yuki nodded to the door, "Our directive does not permit us to limit their biological requirements. We understand that captivity is a common fear among living creatures, so if one was to escape and die from exposure of our air, we would be held accountable. So, we don these," he pointed to his gear, "For our safety. Otherwise, we would have adapted to life conditions of this atmosphere for the rest of our lives."
"That's amazing," Dipper said to him. His mind reeled at the idea that there were species who could change their biology so quickly to a new setting, but his mind was still settled on the task at hand. "So, what do you need from us?"
"Remain still for a moment," Yuki told them, standing with his scanner as he faced them. A small needle was removed from the underside of the scanner. He moved towards Dipper, who stepped back.
"Ah- I'd rather not be stabbed by some alien thingy," Dipper told him.
"Come now, this is quintessential to restoring the town," Yuki told him , adjusting his gear momentarily, "Now, lend me your hand."
"Oh, here," Mabel stuck her hand forward, and mocked her brother, "You're such a big baby."
"Thank you, Mabel Pines," Yuki nodded, and jabbed the needle into her arm, just above the wrist.
"OWW," Mabel moaned loudly, her arm twitching as Yuki took a sample, and then stuck it back inside the scanner. Surprisingly no blood prickled out of the area she had been stabbed, and she shook it gently. "Huh. Like it never even happened," she admitted.
"Great, so now what?" Dipper asked as Yuki stared at the screen, but removed another needle. "Huh?" Dipper asked, his voice a little higher-pitched than normal.
"I require two separate samples," Yuki told him simply, "One way or another, my friend, I must have a few of your blood cells."
Dipper scowled. "Ugh, fine," Dipper held out his arm, covering his eyes as he looked away. Needles and him weren't exactly friends, but he was more unhappy about being jabbed with an alien device. Yuki nodded, and followed the same procedure. "Damn! Ow!" Dipper clenched his teeth as the need was removed, and he held his wrist. "Freakin' feels like you just tried stabbing my bones!"
"I did," Yuki explained, "I need the computer to analyze how the rouge energy interacts with a functioning human body. Not only that, now I can see how your skeletal membrane works! How exciting!" Yuki told himself as he laid the needle back inside and placed down the scanner, rubbing his hands together.
Dipper, still massaging his wrist, looked to his sister. "Remind me to give him our own vaccines when we get back to earth," Dipper told Mabel angrily.
"I can agree to promises of positive torture," Mabel said in agreement.
"Excellent!" Yuki clapped his hands together loudly, drawing the twins attention, "The computer is registering the translation from living cell to the records!" Yuki pointed to a screen with various Xabvrin words dotted across a long list.
"They're names," Mabel told Dipper, "Names of people in Gravity Falls."
The list beeped, and one name was highlighted. Another name was highlighted. Name after name, one after another became highlighted and the list slowly began to move upwards. Roughly ten names fit on the screen, and the words began to move faster and faster.
"What does this mean?" Mabel asked Yuki, who was beaming.
"It means that, from your samples, we will be able to return the residents to their homes," Yuki told them.
"Yes!" Mabel shot up, and quickly bear hugged Dipper as the two of them laughed. "Yes! Yuki, you're amazing!"
"No, my friends, This journey ends because of you," Yuki told them with a wide smile. "Without your presence, or curiosity, or drive to discover the truth, this opportunity would have passed us by. Our salvation of Gravity Falls would not have been possible if your own determination and curiosity had not led you here."
"Oh, stop it you," Mabel waved a hand at Yuki, who looked confused and sealed his mouth. At his sudden pursed lips, Mabel snorted. She told him, "Uh, that's just an expression. It's a bashful way of saying 'thanks'," Mabel added, and Yuki nodded and opened his mouth.
"Bashful. I believe this is, ah, some shyness? I do not understand," Yuki told them, but shrugged, and turned back to the screens.
"Who's on now?" Dipper asked, "What percentage?"
"Seven percent of the town has been registered for re-integration to the universe," Yuki told them clicking on a few buttons. The names were moving at a faster rate now.
"I just saw Manly Dan's name pop up!" Mabel told Dipper.
"Then... then Wendy's name is there!" Dipper told his sister.
She nodded, and then squinted. "I thought so," Mabel said quietly, "but I could have sworn I only saw four corduroys."
"So, you saw Wendy then?" Dipper asked her with an expecting smile.
"Uh, there are five of them. Remember?" Mabel told Dipper, who blinked and his smile began to fade. "Three brothers to Wendy? And her dad?"
"Then... wait," Dipper walked to Yuki, "Are you missing data on the people down below?"
Yuki looked over his shoulder to the twins. "Huh? I am certain to the data's completion. All accounted for quantum vibrations were stored onboard. That is the list, to your right," he pointed to the ascending list before Dipper.
"You saw Wendy, right?" Dipper asked Mabel.
Before she could reply, there was a clatter outside. Yuki stalled in his movement as Dipper and Mabel hesitantly turned and stared at the door. They were supposed to be in confinement still. Yuki pushed them aside, hiding them behind the chair slightly as he approached the door. It slid open as he peered out. As he looked outside, he swore in his alien tongue and raced back.
"Time has betrayed our cause," he told the twins as he flew for his seat.
"What's going on?" Dipper worriedly asked.
Yuki explained, "Guards have been sent to you, for they have just climbed the catwalk. They will discover your disappearance within moments," Yuki told them, as he activated a few buttons. There was a solid thud on the door. "Locking it shall give us a few moments."
"What now? There isn't another way out, is there?" Mabel asked.
Yuki looked to them, and shook his head. "No. It is my intention to allow them inside when I can and surrender myself over. You will need to sneak by while I create a distraction-"
"INTRUDER ALERT. HOSTILE PRIMATIVE LIFEFORMS ONBOARD. USE CAUTION IN THE PRESENCE OF ALIENS ON BOARD."
"That was quick!" Dipper shouted over the blaring sirens.
"They will be coming in a matter of moments," Yuki looked to the completion screen. "We have but forty two percent to go!"
There was pounding on the door. Shouts in alien voices. Mabel and Yuki understood it perfectly, but Dipper gulped.
"That sounded really angry," he told them. Then there was more pounding. "Wait, can they hear us?" Dipper turned to Yuki, who had put a hand on his visor.
"Quite so. Our doors were not designed to hold back the ears," he told them. A Red and black warning sign appeared on one of the screens. Yuki yelped and leaned closer, typing furiously. "They're bypassing my lock!" he warned them.
"Leave this to us," Mabel told him and walked towards the door. "C'mon bro. Test time," she told her brother as she crackled her knuckles.
"INTRUDER ALERT. HOSTILE PRIMATIVE LIFEFORMS ONBOARD. USE CAUTION IN THE PRESENCE OF ALIENS ON BOARD."
"Wait, are we going to fight Alien guards?" he demanded of his sister.
"Uh..." she thought aloud. The door opened, and two guards, easily a foot taller than them rushed forward. "I'd say so."
Mabel took to aggression on her own guard, leaping into the air for a powerful jump-kick. Her opponent hadn't been ready for the assault, and fell backwards, scrambling to rise back up. Dipper on the other hand gasped, and ducked under an attempted sweeping grasp.
"Hey, man," Dipper tried, holding his arms out in front of him, trying to keep distance between himself and the guard, "Hold on! I don't want a fight, just let us be, okay?" The alien shouted something at him, and Dipper looked to Yuki, who snorted.
"His mind is set," Yuki told him as he rolled back to his seat, and began to continue typing.
"Suit yourself," Dipper shrugged, and took his best copied stance from Mabel he could. Time to see if the few times he worked and watched Mabel practice paid off. The alien reached out, grasping for his arms. Fighting his instincts to duck away, Dipper stepped into him, twisting his body. His arms were shields, and he knocked away one of the aggressing arms, and then twisting again to punch the other arm away.
Injured and shocked that his Dipper actually fought back, the guard stumbled backwards. He was clutching at his stricken arm. Dipper stepped away himself, holding his hands aside despite smiling.
"Wow! I did it! I mean, you're not, you know, down, but I fought back! Ha!" Dipper told him, "Now just stay-"
The guard launched himself at Dipper, shouting furiously at him in Xabvrin.
Yuki gasped loudly. "An atrocious and unnecessary comment! I'd report you later if I had the time," Yuki protested from the chair.
Dipper side-stepped the sudden lunge. He ducked and weaved away form the storm of punches coming at him. He appeared to be less interested in grabbing Dipper now; instead, his goal was pummeling him down and dragging him away. Dipper barely avoided three quick wild swings around him before he saw an opportunity. The guard thrust powerfully ahead, and Dipper grabbed his arm. Using the man's momentum against him, he turned on the spot, pushing the man off his feet and slamming him into the wall behind him.
The guard stumbled, but did slowly rise, shaking off the injury. Dipper growled and decided this was no longer the time to play it safe. He was against a figure who had a goal that opposed his own.
He stepped forward and jabbed for the face in one quick motion; not to actually strike the visor in front of the guards face, but to stun him. It worked perfectly. The man flinched, rising an arm up to defend his head. Dipper turned again and kicked down on the legs shin, kicking his leg out from underneath him.
As the guard stumbled forward and to the side, Dipper grabbed the raised arm, and tried something daring. He twisted himself around and spun in place once more. The arm, snuggly held down by Dipper, lifted the alien guard into the air. Dipper yelled and then threw him down onto the metal floor with a loud clang. This time the guard fell limp. Dipper gasped and stepped away, breathing heavily.
"Goodness!" Yuki gasped as the fight between Dipper and the guard ended.
"Dipper," Mabel added. Dipper looked up from staring at the unconscious Xabvri, sweat falling from his face.
"INTRUDER ALERT. HOSTILE PRIMATIVE LIFEFORMS ONBOARD. USE CAUTION IN THE PRESENCE OF ALIENS ON BOARD."
"No kidding!" Mabel laughed and hugged Dipper, who was still shaken with the entire endeavor. "You kicked butt!"
"I-I did?" he asked, "Yeah, I guess I did, sort of."
"No, dude, you just used his weight against him! That's some great stuff!" Mabel told him with a bounce, jumping up into the air. "You were doing something different! See?" she poked him, "You are learning!"
Containing his smile to a moderate level, he chuckled. "What about the one you were dealing with?" Dipper managed to ask as Mabel pushing into his shoulders with each leap.
"Oh, he was quick work. I don't think their species know martial arts at all," she shrugged.
"Do they?" Dipper turned to Yuki.
The scientist seemed uncomfortable at the question. "Xabvri don't appreciate unnecessary bloodshed. No, we do not practice fighting," he told them wearily.
"It's self-defense!" Mabel protested.
"It's harm to other creatures," Yuki replied.
"Yeah," Mabel said, "but only because they wanna harm you."
"Then a failure in communication has happened, and we will leave and try later."
"That's–"
Cutting off Mabel's and Yuki's back and forth, Dipper demanded from the scientist, "What percentage are we at?"
There was a loud rumble. The floors and walls shook, and the sirens ended. Yet all the white lights from the outside faded and became blue.
"Oh no," Yuki turned to one of the screens, and punched in a new set of keys. A screen of another ship, currently docking with the massive science vessel was displayed, sporting what looked like a series of high-tech cannons and forward-facing missile launchers. It was barely a tenth of the size of the ship, but the three of them felt a fear looking at the thick armor of the small vessel.
"INTRUDER ALERT. HOSTILE PRIMATIVE LIFEFORMS ONBOARD. USE CAUTION IN THE-"
The Siren cut off, and Yuki gulped as he stared at the vessel.
"What is that?" Mabel gasped, pointing to it.
Yuki wearily explained, "A Toldori Destroyer. We behold the forward detachment of a Toldori Frigate inbound to 'rescue' our ship," Yuki told the two of them. "Unlike Xabs, they fret not over violence. One could say, in fact, that Toldori and humans similar in this regard."
"Great. The ship with guns all over it is like us," Dipper said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "That's a great compliment."
Yuki looked to him. "I – was I offending you? Or are you genuine?" Yuki asked as he looked between Mabel and Dipper.
"He was being sarcasti-lastic," Mabel told him.
Yuki, slightly crestfallen, looked back to the screen. "Well, should they board, we have only few minutes. They shan't provide as much privilege as our captain has," Yuki looked to the screen, where the last name was then highlighted. "We are done! Now I just need to adjust the forward ship teleporter to upload the... what?" Yuki was pressing the buttons, but they all squawked angrily back at him.
"What's wrong?" Dipper demanded, as Yuki's eyes grew wider, his movements more sporadic.
"I have been locked from my own accesses!" Yuki shouted fearfully, "I cannot do anything from here!"
Mabel reached past him, and slapped a few holographic buttons. Her fingers were granted the same angry squawk. She scowled. "Where can we get this done then?" Mabel asked him, "Anywhere?"
"The bridge?" Yuki suggested.
"Then we need to go-"
"No!" Yuki shot a hand out, and reconsidered, "Guards will have taken outposts by the bridge. We will need to find another place to... wait... the Loitis," Yuki gasped.
"The what?" the twins said.
"The shuttle; that which brought the Animus onboard," Yuki explained, his words rushing faster and faster, "It is within the chambers of this ship we can reprogram its teleporter to beam back the quantum vibrations to create resurgence. I cannot teleport any living beings with flesh, but–"
Mabel hastily cut in, "And then people will come back?"
"Quite! However, we will need to be out of the ship and on the surface of thy planet," he stood up, pressing some buttons on his scanner, which then began to beep and flash, "And I would find it strange to believe that either of you can pilot one of our craft."
"I might!" Mabel said.
"Mabel, you got their language down, but I don't know if that counts for flying spaceships," Dipper pointed out. She nodded sadly. Dipper considered their options. They needed a way home. They needed more help. If only Uki-Dohth knew how to – and then it clicked. Dipper turned to their new alien buddy. "Wait, Uki-Dohth, could... could you do it?"
"Pardon me?" he repeated.
"We need someone to fly us to the surface," Dipper elaborated, "And then beam the people back down, and then get us back to earth as well. That doesn't mean you'd have to stay, but-"
Yuki held up a hand, nodding grimly. "I see the light of your truth, Dipper," Yuki nodded, "I... I am the only one willing to perform this task. The crew would not aid us. It is fitting, as I was the one who proposed staying behind to help these humans. I need to complete this task given to me. Or no one will."
"Aww... you're cool," Mabel punched his shoulder gently. Yuki backed away, fearfully staring at Mabel as he rubbed his shoulder. "That... that punch- it's a familiar thing. You do it to people you trust."
"Oh! Yes, I see," Yuki nodded, and then punched Mabel hard in the face.
"Ow!"
"What the heck- Yuki?!" Dipper yelled at the horribly confused alien, who was panicking at the injured Mabel.
"You assured me it is a sign of trust!" Yuki cried out, clearly afraid of harming Mabel, who was holding her nose, "Mabel, my friend, what blood have I drawn?"
"No, you just shocked me," she lowered her hand, moving her jaw around to test the flexibility of her nostrils. "I'm okay."
"Thank goodness," the Xabvri sighed. "I deeply apologize, I hadn't meant to harm or offend."
"Tell you what," Mabel told him with a gentle pat on his visor, "When we get back to earth, I can punch you once to be fair. Cool?"
"Uh... cool?" he nodded with uncertainty, and after Dipper and Mabel nodded with him, he furthered his motion, "Yes, cool." Behind him, the scanner beeped. "Yes," he turned to it, and removed it from the wire, "Your scans, the memories of the Animus, their last active coordinates- it's all here."
"The Animus memory?" Dipper asked.
"Well, Animus have sibling memory conduits to humans," he explained as he stepped away from his consol, beckoning the other two to follow, "Alas, human psycho-biology is a stubborn patient. Even with our tools, we may do harm than heal. But, since your friends and family we will be rescuing do not retain a current cell structure, it is more than possible to add these memories to them."
"That way they won't wake up from three years and wonder why everything has changed!" Dipper snapped his fingers, "Awesome!"
"But they won't have aged?" Mabel asked.
"Incorrect," Yuki happily corrected her, "They will be synched to the natural bio-rhythms of the universe linear time-flow, and thus-"
"Please, Dipper," Mabel rolled her eyes, "explain?"
"No, they'll actually be the same. Sounds like it was because when they are re-inserted to the real universe, they will be reset to the appropriate time," Dipper tried, and looked to Yuki, who turned to face them, "Is that right?"
Yuki squinted, clearly the sort to dislike shorthand. "Plainly spoken. Though you grossly under-exaggerated things, you lie not," he nodded, and started his descent down the ladder behind him.
"Oh good. Sorry Dipper," Mabel put a hand on Dipper as she slid down to follow in the scientists wake, "No meeting your fifteen-year-old Wendy."
"Oh, ha, haah," Dipper stalled following, and instead thought of the possibilities. "Oh... wow. That... that would have been cool. My age? Nice."
"Don't lag, doofus!" Mabel called as she and Yuki made it to the bottom. On the floor, she held back the Alien, intent on moving right for the hanger. Mabel turned him towards the animals, and demanded "What about them?"
"What?" Yuki, slightly startled at being man-handled, realized her worry. "Oh! You are correct!" Yuki snapped his fingers together, and quickly ran towards their exhibits. "I must beam them into the shuttle-ship's mainframe, and once there, we can teleport them back to their homes."
"Why did you take them into the ship anyway?" Dipper asked as he leapt from the last few steps over to them, running over.
"Gentleness is our spirit," Yuki told them as he dabbled with a panel, "Upon realization that all animals remaining were depending on their human counterparts to provide sustenance, we couldn't let them starve. So, we materialized them here and provided them with expert care and nutrition."
"Even that guy?" Mabel pointed to the Gobblewonker, who swam by as he had been doing all this time.
Yuki nodded with a smile. "Ah, yes! This creature's diet consists highly of scraps and remains discarded to the waters. Without a steady supply of food, there were, ah, good chances it would either destroy its own ecosystem, or perish. Neither could be allowed by our directive of eco-system study," Yuki explained, and then scanned the water tank last. "That's it. We need to go. Toldori could be arriving very soon."
"And we don't want to meet them, if I remember correctly," Mabel stated.
"Then let's go," Dipper told them both, grabbing them by the arms and leading them away from the animals, who eagerly watched them as they passed.
"When we get into the Loitis," Yuki told them as the door opened, "Get thyself to a seat as at your greatest haste. A chance may come where we must outrun the Toldori destroyer."
They stepped into the room dedicated to the Animus. A loud outcry called to them as they stepped inside, and the three turned to the right. A being was walking over, different than the others aboard this ship. It had broad shoulders, built humanoid. It wore armor across its arms and legs. Bright lemon-yellow eyes hungrily locked onto the trio. They were slitted, like that of a cat.
Yuki yelped, and pointed, "Toldori soldier!"
"We just met a Toldori!" Mabel cried as the tall figure began to approach, it's gait wide and confident as it strode faster to them. Mabel worriedly looked to Dipper, adding, "That's not good, right?"
The alien had facial structure that mimed a large lion, with thick striped fur of green and white. It bore its teeth, two long fangs from its upper jaw longer than that of its other teeth. It looked like an evolved, armored saber-tooth tiger.
"Absolutely not!" Yuki told them. Before he could act, the Alien swiped his hand across at them. Dipper and Mabel made quickly to duck and roll away, but Yuki was less reactive. The large, heavy paw struck Yuki's bubble. His visor cracked instantly and he was lifted into the air, thrown against one of the pods.
"Yuki!" the twins shouted. They quickly got up, and made to check on him, some fifteen feet away. The alien soldier wasn't done. As Dipper stood, it swiped for him too. He ducked low, and tried the same tactic on the large bi-pedal cat he had with the guard from ealier; kicking away his leg. Though Dipper's attack struck true, the cat only grunted and adjusted; stepping back from the impact. It then kicked at Dipper's head with the unattended foot. The human rolled underneath it, passing Mabel, who roared and jumped for the face.
Her attempted mid-air punch was counter instantly. The cat caught her with one hand, suspending her in mid-air easily by the neck. Her face quickly started to go red, with shades of purple creeping in.
Danger be damned, Dipper roared, "Let go of her!" and he delivered a powerful drop kick to the cats side. It howled at the connecting attack. Mabel was flung far aside, landing near Yuki, who was grasping at his neck desperately, breathing erratically.
Dipper starting to stand. He was too slow, as a felid foot struck his chest. He was kicked ten feet backwards by the soldier. He slid to as top, hitting the base of one of the Animus pods. Adrenaline pumping through his body, he tucked and rolled with the impact from the huge cat, and ended in a kneel, facing the angered feline animal. He tenderly checked his ribs, which were soar and burnt to the touch, but he could still breath. Ribs weren't breaking on him yet.
The Toldori spoke, whiskers under its nose bouncing as its lips curled and moved with each gutteral sound it made. Certainly more earth-like, but Dipper had no idea what he had said. "Mabel, you got anything he said?" he wheezed as he listened.
"Not a word!" she said, "Yuki's in trouble!"
"Take care of him!" he told his sister as the cat advanced onto him, "I'll keep him busy."
"Right!" Mabel saluted. She, dashing behind a row of pods, ran over to Yuki. He was convulsing and crying out in his alien tongue. Dipper heard Mabel quietly start talking to him, trying to figure out what was wrong, and what he needed.
Regardless of the rough start, Dipper felt a twinge of fury for Yuki. He looked back at the massive, calm cat-like alien. "You better have not hurt our friend!" Dipper warned the cat soldier, who hissed at him.
Dipper was very aware that in a fair fight this was a lost battle already. This cat was easily seven feet tall and probably over two hundred and fifty pounds. Dipper was good at calculating the next move to take, how to counter, and use that to his advantage. This was an experienced, tall, far stronger soldier. It had reach, it had power, it had speed. A fair fight was going to have Dipper end up with his sister in a brig with Yuki, or worse. The cat hadn't shown any signs of letting up.
Worry flooded his mind. He wanted to retreat. Dipper tripped as he stepped back. There were the wires below him, streaming from one pod to another, to tall conduits above him in the ceiling. The cat chuckled as Dipper grasped one and lifted it, holding it in his hands as he stood back up.
"Back down and go away," Dipper warned the cat firmly, trying to force bravery through his fight or flight instincts. "Last chance before I end up tying you to the ground." The cat leered at him, showing his sharp fangs. "Okay dude!" Dipper shouted.
He jumped to the side, where a consol was situated, and leapt right for the cat high in the air. It seemed genuinely surprised with Dipper, and stumbled back just enough for him to plant his feet onto the alien's shoulder. It stumbled back further, but didn't trip. Dipper had to be quick, and made the most with his time. He quickly wrangled one leg with the wire and kicked at the stomach of the cat as he stood. This time the huge alien fell, its hard armor hitting the ground with a clang.
Dipper grasped for another wire. As the Alien reached to undo the tangle on its legs, Dipper grasped its opposite arm, and tied that down too. The alien noticed only too quickly as Dipper was faster than it had thought. The twin grinned to himself as he looked at his handywork. The cat-like alien was snarling at him, hissing in some profound language.
Then, from its paws, knife-like retractable claws shot out.
"Oh c'mon," Dipper whined.
Both wires were slashed almost instantly, and Dipper leapt away as it yowled after him, literally clawing its way back to its feet and then launching itself after him.
He could only dodge now. Dipper couldn't stand to fight something with thick, wicked, four-inch-long claws with enough power to lift him into the air. Just getting slashed by those would probably split him open, belly to chest. Dipper ran between the pods, avoiding slash and lunge and leap, all made in a mad dash to catch and possibly kill Dipper. The cat chuckled behind Dipper, and he turned just in time to see what had been funny. Something hard, fast, and a blur struck him in the face.
Dipper stumbled and fell.
The cat had used one of the torn wires as a whip, smashing into his face with enough force to stun him and split skin. slightly bleeding from his eyebrow almost to his ear, Dipper groaned and tried to stand. A large paw stomped down. Dipper wanted to yell, but his muscles convulsed. He couldn't breath. He gasped for air, pushing up against the paw as best he could. It wasn't budging, and Dipper glanced around. He needed help now.
He could feel his ribs bending in, giving in to the weight of the paw. To make matters worse, the laughing cat then slowly extended a single, huge claw which placed itself just above his collar bone, right by the neck. The Toldori stared into Dipper with a leer, letting him know of its entire control of the situation.
From far away it seemed, someone bellowed. The cat shot its head around, looking away. Dipper witnessed someone, or something, charge hard enough into the Toldori to knock it into the air. Dipper's lungs expanded again as he sucked in as much as he could manage. Coughing, he tried rolling himself up.
Between coughs, he cried out, "Mabel," as he pushed himself up, following the wake of the attack against the alien. Somehow, the attacker had not only pummeled the cat through the closest pod, utterly destroying the empty bio-mechanical compartment, but then pinned it to the next one, and lifted it into the air. Dipper, his vision spinning, called out, "Mabel! How are you-" Hands reached around him from behind, and his sister's face appeared next to him. "Mabel!?"
"I'm here," she told him worriedly, "Did he hurt you?"
"I... no," Dipper shook his head, adjusting his shirt and vest, wiping off some sludge on his clothing, "Wait... then the person over there is... Yuki?"
As Dipper stood, not only did he get a clear look at the person pinning the much larger, struggling cat against a pod, but he heard the strength. The suits glove worn by Uki-Dohth whined under a grip that could be described as rock-crushing.
Holding the Toldori by the neck, Yuki slowly lifted it up. "The directive of the Toldori Concordant, your own laws," Yuki told him heatedly in English, "Prevents you from harming species not yet capable of interplanetary travel!" In response, the Toldori replied in his tongue. Yuki frowned, and pulled the cat closer to his face. It was ridiculous, Yuki was almost bending the creature forward, as it was almost two entire feet taller than him. With a finality, Yuki scolded the cat, shouting, "And you don't hurt my friends!"
Yuki roared and threw the cat aside with a powerful shove. Passing by Mabel and Dipper, the cat slammed into a pod, and fell to the ground. Without much more struggle, the cat lay limp, his eyes unfocused and half open. Dipper and Mabel stared at it for a moment, and then looked back to their friend of similar height.
"My friends are not to be touched," Yuki told the two of them as he stepped closer, "Dipper, are you unharmed?"
"Mostly," Dipper muttered, entirely distracted by the ability the scientist just demonstrated. "Uki-Dohth, how did you do that?" Dipper asked in awe from the alien. "You just lifted something taller than you like it was nothing! And then just threw it across the room!"
"That was hot-banana sundae cool!" Mabel told him. "Were you always that strong?" Mabel asked.
As the alien approached, he shifted his gaze, keeping his face out of sight. His visor was cracked badly. Yuki looked to the hand he had used to grapple the Toldori with. "No," he told them, "We must hurry now. If he is summoned by his commander, more shall take his place here, and we may face a worse fate still," Yuki informed them.
Dipper and Mabel looked to one another and followed Yuki as he started for the far end of the massive room. They all sprinted now, aware that just beyond the door ahead was their means of escape. They door slid open in its four sections. Ahead of them was a cluster of guards, and the captain of the science vessel, Hyul-Pruq.
As the twins and Yuki slid to a stop, the guards readied themselves. The captain waved a hand in the air. "Enough," the captain spoke to Uki-Dohth in his language, and then groaned, and activated the translator, "That is far enough Yuki. Goodness, get a new suit on and stop aiding these humans. They are dangerous!"
Yuki, perhaps emboldened by his feat of strength a minute before, stood up to his captain. "They are dangerous because we are keeping them, and their families from their homes," Uki-Dohth told him in his language, taking a step forward.
The captain, steady as a rock, shook his head. "Our first directive immediately prevents us from interfering with those of lesser technological advancements under interstellar travel. These two were not effected by our experiments, and so are not exempt like the rest of the residents from Gravity Falls."
"I am aware of that, captain," Uki-Dohth replied.
"Then why help them?" the captain demanded. "You, of all Xabvri know the consequences of meddling in species younger than our own!"
"Because I have to!" Uki-Dohth shouted in English, and then sighed, and restated in his native tongue, "Because I have to. They are not hostile. They are scared." The captain's eyes darted past Uki-Dohth and stared at the twins. A confused and flustered Dipper and Mabel intently listened into the conversation. Uki-Dohth continued, aware of his presence in the conversation, "They're just children, like myself. How would we respond to such unknown things? I cannot let them be hurt or arrested because they didn't know something and wanted to know. Are we not explorers ourselves? Would we not act similarly to an unknown presence? If we lost our crew without explanation, wouldn't it be within our rights to search for answers?"
The captain sighed and looked away. Perhaps it was Yuki's insistence, but the commanding authority of the captain seemed to be cracking. "Uki-Dohth, you have a career ahead of you. You're the fastest learning Xabvri on record. We are very privileged to have you aboard with us, but if you help them anymore, you will surely be banished from Xabvus by the council."
Yuki solemnly laughed. "Captain," Uki-Dohth started to undo the straps around his top piece of the suit. The captain gasped, as did several of the guards. There was no sudden stream of vapor or hissing decompression. Nothing happened as Yuki lifted his top half off, revealing his head. "I already am banished."
His skin was much darker looking than when the twins had met. The leaf-like growths gently placed in his hair were now green, and the twins could see that his hair was a dark shade of chocolate brown. His skin was a rich, dark tanned skin, and as he turned to smile at the twins, he retained bright pink eyes.
"The visor cracked. I'm already adapted for the earth atmosphere," Uki-Dohth told those around him as he let the vizor drop from his hands. "Let me take these humans home, along with everything else we almost stole away from them forever."
The captain looked like he had watched the scientist die before him. The guards looked to the stunned captain. Finally, the militaristic man gurgled out a weak, "Uki-"
"Captain, please," Uki-Dohth stepped forward, now within arms reach of his superior. "Before more Toldori come. Let me go. I need to fix this. It was my mistake, let me solve it."
The captain slowly shook his head, yet did nothing to stop or otherwise imply his efforts to stop Uki-Dohth. Instead, he stepped back, and lifted his gloved hands just above his face, pointing to the top of his forehead. It was some sort of salute
"May you be with forbearance and fascination," the captain painfully said to him. The other guards followed suit. The captain looked to Yuki, wounded, "Live well, my child."
"Wait, child!?" Mabel and Dipper shouted, startling the captain. He shook off his stare, and looked to Uki-Dohth.
Yuki smiled back to his father, perhaps aware of the world he was about to leave. He pointed a hand to his own top-forehead. "I leave you with knowledge and wisdom," Uki-Dohth bowed his head to his father, "Be at peace."
The captain and his guards stepped aside, letting Yuki walk past him. Dipper and Mabel looked to the other guards and captain, who was already walking away from the ship. The shuttle's strange floating stairs extended down, opening up for the former scientist of the Xabvri people.
Dipper raced up to Yuki's side. "So, all this time," Dipper said, "You failed to mention your captain was also your father," Dipper scolded Yuki as the three climbed the steps.
"And what's this about you being banished?" Mabel asked as they made it inside, and the stairs rescinded and the door behind him closed.
Yuki explained as they walked towards the cockpit. "I spoke to you, we Xabvri are adaptable. Most other alien atmospheres change our physiology. Many of Xabvri have died from exposure to other planets, and so we wear our suits to protect us. When the Toldori cracked my visor, it broke the seal. I was breathing in your air. I was very lucky it was done in something of a micro-dose, otherwise I might not have survived. It didn't change my physiology as much as I had anticipated, but it did, ah, have unforeseen side effects."
"Like super-strength?" Mabel poked his back, and he nodded.
Feeling Mabel's playful poke, he eyed her. "I take it that was also a sign of friendship?" he asked as he moved down the main corridor, heading towards the cockpit.
"Something along those lines," Mabel smirked.
Yuki nodded, still wearing a sad smile. He then spoke aloud in his native tongue. "This is Uki-Dohth of the Fershul to captain Hyul-Pruq," Yuki spoke as the doors opened, and lights flickered on, displaying three seats and a variety of controls.
"I read you, doctor," the voice of the captain replied.
"I will be plotting in the craft Loitis to return to the Fershul after arrival and the beaming has begun," Yuki informed him simply, "Inform the Toldori of the situation before they destroy it."
"We will. Good luck," the captain replied, and there was a distinct cut off of the signal.
"Nice and brief. Sounds like a healthy relationship," Mabel said to Dipper quietly.
Yuki looked to the twins. "Acquire a seat," Yuki told them as he took the front and middle seat, the pilot section. As the four safety wraps coiled around him, he reached forward and inserted the scanning device into a wire, which beeped loudly. "This is good," Yuki announced.
"What is?" Dipper asked as Yuki pressed several more buttons, and hit a large level, and then lowered it.
"The ships shields were not up. I have just uploaded the animals into the main teleporting grid. Once, upon re-entry to the lower atmosphere, the computer will auto-synch and send the animals to their respective home," Yuki said quickly.
"Aww, good," Mabel adjusted herself into her seat comfortably.
"So, we're good for take-off?" Dipper asked as he took his own seat.
"We are," Yuki flipped several switches in front of him. The dark window faded away and a bright, crystal-clear screen materialized of the front of the ship. He hit another switch, and entered in a code on the panel next to him. "The bay doors are opening. Let us hope that the Toldori are more interested in the actions within the Fershul than its shuttle."
"And, uh, if they notice us, what happens?" Mabel asked worriedly.
"They will attempt to stop us," Yuki told her with a heavy sigh, "And they are very aggressive."
"We noticed," Dipper groaned as he massaged his neck. The ship jolted and was moving, the screen shifting slowly to the left. They were now facing the sliding open bay doors, as planet Earth became visible, its shining blue, brown and green spectacle of colors darkened by the night.
"Well, shall we?" Dipper asked, and looked to Mabel.
"Helm, take us out," Mabel proudly proclaimed.
"Here we go," Yuki said quietly, and he placed his fingers onto a thruster panel, and slid them forward. The propulsion forces engaged. They were moving out.
They passed out the shimmering atmosphere shield and into space. Now in control, the two really saw the beauty that was space. They were in space! At fifteen years old, the twins had left earth and looked back at it all. Dipper and Mabel started laughing. It was amazing. They were first class passengers riding into space, now staring at the oblivion that was dotted with freckles of sparkling light. Space. That endless horizon to search for. Dipper wouldn't dare blink, even as the view of the night sky began to fade and Earth once again took center stage.
"Oh, baby, you are a big one, aren't you?" Mabel cooed as she saw her planet.
"Which baby is this?" Yuki turned to her, worry present in his eyes.
"Oh, no, no, it's-"
"Another expression, ah, I understand," Yuki nodded and sighed, "As soon as we exit the Loitis onto your baby, we will have one minute to achieve teleportation before the shuttle leaves back for the science ship."
"Onto your baby?!" Mabel roared with laughter, holding onto her seat as the ship began to pick up speed. The screen showing them racing like a bullet towards the planet. Red hot flames started appearing along side the vision, blurring out details of the planet they were descending to. The ship was trembling, rocking slightly, and Dipper and Mabel hollered with excitement. Yuki even broke his concentrated stare and smiled with them. He may have done it a thousand times, but that was that infectious energy that wormed its way into him.
A beep from one of the lower screens by his panel caught Yuki's attention, and he checked it quickly. "The computer has just teleported the animals to the surface. We will be arriving in a few moments."
"Oh, thank god!" Mabel cried out, "Solid ground!"
Yuki frowned. "The settlement has many tunnels underneath it. I, for one, would not entirely consider it solid," Yuki replied as they flew threw large fluffy clouds.
"Another expression!" Mabel exasperatedly called back as the engines on the ship cried loud enough to echo through the metal, announcing their hard work.
Yuki, who had nodded at Mabel's brief explanation, explained aloud, "The instant we land, the countdown begins. I will patch through to the ship the orders from the scanner, and then meet you outside," he told them as they nodded, listening to his plan, "Once we are landed, run with haste. The ship will leave and not return."
"No problem there," Dipper gripped the edge of his seat.
The ship was now flying towards the town, descending at a parallel to the ground, showing them the horizon rather than the approaching earth. Dipper and Mabel were breathing hard, the excitement still rushing through their bodies as they grasped the safety harness on their seats. They could see the glow of the stars and the dim light of the town before them. It was probably far past midnight. Then, they arrived.
KA-THUNK.
The ship landed, and the safety harnesses were released.
"Count!" Yuki cried, and stood from his seat, feverishly typing in commands as the twins turned and ran.
They wouldn't wait, as much as the two of them wanted to. If that ship was going back, they needed to take any absolute chance to getting home. The door whipped open and they charged past it, running at their fastest, at equal pace. Far ahead of them, the doors were opening and the stairs were descending.
With Mabel ahead, the flew down the stairs in a single-file line, their feet pounding against the strange retractable metal. Around them was the Gravity Falls town square. The cold night are was surrounding them, the smell of pine and deep wood country blissfully filling their lungs like the cool breeze. The ship buzzed behind them, and they turned around expectantly. They watched, hoping to see Yuki's face as he approached.
"Only a few more seconds," Dipper quietly reminded himself, "C'mon Yuki."
"Yuki!" Mabel called up the stairs, "C'mon dude!"
There was no reply. Seconds were ticking by, and the two were growing anxious.
"Yuki!" Dipper shouted. "You're running out of time!"
"C'mon!" Mabel groaned next to Dipper, looking to the top of the stairs as best she could.
The stairs began to pull back inside. Dipper and Mabel cried out, and almost ran forward, but the ship was lifting upwards as the stairs started retracting. They stared as the final section pulled itself inside, and the doors began to close, the ship rising. Their newest friend would not be coming with them after all.
Only then, just before the doors closed, Yuki burst past the minute section between the two doors and soared through the air. He was some fifty feet up, and his legs were dangling as he fell past them.
"Yuki!" Mabel screamed as their alien friend slammed into the earth, rolling forward roughly against the concrete.
Coming to a stop nearby, Yuki gasped. Agony carved into his face as he reached for his ankle. "Ahh!" Yuki yelled, "I am injured!"
"How bad is it?" Dipper asked, ignoring the ship as it started flying away, leaving a faint trail of wispy vapor behind.
Yuki winced as he looked down to his foot. "I... I do think I have hurt my ankle. Perhaps a twist. I shan't be able to walk," Yuki told them. He then started coughing from the dust blowing in his face, "Ack! The planet is colder than I thought it would be!"
"It's night," Mabel reminded him, "It gets cold at night."
"Oh. Yes. Of course, it does," Yuki smiled gently. Dipper and Mabel, each under an arm of his, lifted their alien friend up into the air, and got him onto one foot.
"Okay, so you managed to do it, right?" Dipper turned to their friend. Yuki grinned and looked around expectantly with the twins. The town square was empty. There wasn't a soul.
"Uh... nothing is happening," Mabel stated.
Indeed, nothing was happening. Only the faint wind of the night called to them from the tops of trees and roofs, echoing through alleys and under cars. They were still alone.
"I don't understand, "Yuki groaned as he stepped forward, and almost fell, "Gah!" Dipper was quick to get him back up. "Thank you, Dipper," Yuki said as Dipper caught him, "I... don't… the teleportation should be taking its effect."
Dipper and Mabel now stared around, worriedly. Nothing was happening still, and the ship was long gone.
Then someone inside a building coughed.
The three whipped their heads around. Like ghosts appearing before them, people were fading into existence like shadows. They were walking through their daily business, and becoming suddenly aware that it was night. Many of them gasped and turned around, heading for their homes or getting their cars re-started and driving to their families. Dipper and Mabel took Yuki aside as a car passed them.
"Watch it, would you!?" Toby Determined shouted at them as he drove by.
"Have a good evening!" Mabel shouted back, waving with a beaming smile.
"Mabel, we did it!" Dipper turned to his sister, trembling and quiet. "We actually did it!"
"We did it!" Mabel screamed into the night, and ran to hug her brother, both them shouted and giggling and laughing at one another as it sunk it.
They brought the people back to their home. All of them.
Mabel turned. "You did it, also!" she gleefully declared and grabbed Yuki by the neck, and squeezed his neck in a brutal hug. The poor alien gasped and pointed to his throat. Mabel gasped and relinquished her grip, "Sorry! I kind of figured that since you were super-strong, you would be super tough."
"It would appear otherwise," Yuki chuckled to them. "You two did it. We did it. We've saved a town of a thousand souls," the alien smiled, his eyes glistening.
"Aww, Yuki," Mabel stepped closer, "You okay?"
"I'm... I'm just happy," he told her as tears fell down his face, making his dark skin shine darker, "that I was able to bring these beings back into the reality of our universe."
"Hey," Mabel hugged him fully and gently this time, "you gave it everything you had. And it paid off."
"At a cost," Yuki said, looking to Dipper as Mabel let go of him, still checking in with his needs for someone to balance. People were walking by, casually looking at the strange looking person next to the twins. "I can never return to my home." He looked up to the skies, where a small ship was barely visible. Yuki waved up to it once, and with a flash of light, the ship vanished. "Farewell, father," he said.
Dipper and Mabel exchanged a heart-ache filled look to one another. They just couldn't let that slide. "Hey, come with us," Dipper told him, offering a shoulder for him to lean on, "We don't have a way to get you home, but... well, maybe we have an alternative."
"I'm sorry, he's a what?!" Grunkle Stan shouted at the twins, pointing to the alien who sat behind them with a bag of ice on his ankle.
When the twins had arrived, they had found Grunkle Stan and Wendy arguing over untying Soos from a table. Grunkle Stan had, apparently, immediately rushed to bind Soos, head to toe, the moment he was awoken. As it turned out, their memories from their replacements, the Animus, had been correctly inserted into the actual human begins. When the twins arrived, they tackled their grumpy old grand uncle, and quickly explained what they had done. Soos was not only human again, but so was Grunkle Stan.
With that shock out of the way, they slowly untied Soos with the twins help. Only then did Wendy bump into Uki-Dohth, who fell into a chair with a cry, holding his ankle. She instantly spotted the leaves in his hair and his strange eyes. The owner and employees of the Mystery Manor quickly rounded on Mabel and Dipper, who had just gotten Yuki some ice for his leg.
Answer Stanley, Dipper explained, "An Alien called the Xabvri. They're explorers and scientists. They were the ones who replaced people in town with robots, because they had accidentally removed you all from reality."
"Whoa," Wendy looked to him, "You can do that?"
Timidly, quietly, Yuki answered, "A mistake was required for the effect, but what Dipper says is true."
"And he loves motorcycles!" Mabel declared.
Yuki nodded. "I admit the feeling of air flowing past my cranial extensions are pleasing," he said with a small grin.
"Great," Grunkle Stan said, sounding about as pleased as someone could after realizing all the windows in your house exploded. "So we got one of them," Grunkle Stan turned to the twins, "What do we do now, ransom them?"
"I don't know if that's such a good idea, mister Pines," Soos told him, "If they are technologically powerful enough to create versions of us that would fool you into thinking I was really here, what makes you think they can't do worse?"
"Hm. Good point. On the other hand, I don't like being tricked," Grunkle Stan squinted at the alien. Yuki looked away quickly, aware of the anger behind the old man's eyes. Stan snorted, and grunted, "Soos, go get my gun."
"Grunkle Stan!" Mabel shouted at him, and Soos stayed put, awkwardly fidgeting with his shirt. Mabel reprimanded her grand-uncle, "This man helped us get you back! He can never go home because he thought saving your lives was worth more than returning home!"
"Really?" Wendy and Soos asked. Yuki nodded again, but said nothing.
"Dude," Wendy stepped over and around him, as she had been lingering behind his shoulder, "He's got my vote. That's killer."
"I wouldn't hurt a human! I swear," Yuki told her fearfully.
Mabel looked to Yuki. "A positive expression," Mabel mentioned quickly, and Yuki nodded.
"Yeah dude," Soos turned to the Alien, "Even if you did kind of ruin it all, you were totally willing to fix it? And save my friends?" Soos grabbed Mabel and Dipper in a hug, "You're totally cool in my book."
"Oh! Ah, thank you... Soos?" Yuki tried saying his name.
Stan, cross at being out-numbered in opinions towards the alien, tightly crossed his arms. "Guh, okay, fine, so he's alright, great," Grunkle Stan rubbed the back of his head. "So what is his plan then?"
"Simple," Dipper said first, but Mabel leapt up into the air, breaking Soos's hug.
"He's going to stay here, with us!" she bellowed.
Stan shouted, "What?!"
Yuki yelped, "I am?!"
"Wait, wait, wait," Grunkle Stan stepped forward, "Okay, I'm all for letting him walk away, even though he totally threw us under the bus while trying to spy on us for... you never said," Grunkle Stan growled at the alien, who again shrunk away, "But staying here? Are you kidding me? This place is already going to be crowded enough with all those bums' renting rooms from me!"
"But he needs a home," Dipper stated, "And he doesn't have a clue how to live with human custom. We need to give him some time to adjust!"
"Fine!" Grunkle Stan declared with a dismissive wave of his hand, "Send him to a homeless shelter!"
Mabel scowled. "In an ideal world we would, except we don't and people who run such establishments are often mean and crazy," Mabel told Grunkle Stan angrily, "Which you would qualify for!"
Stan rolled his eyes. "I would resent that if it wasn't such a good retort," Grunkle Stan lowered himself slightly, glaring at his grand-niece.
"But he's good looking," Mabel whined, rushing over to Yuki's side, displaying his qualities like a saleswoman would a used car, "Well-mannered, smart, and he's really, really strong!" Mabel told him, "He just hurt himself when he jumped out of the shuttle ship thingy from like a hundred feet up!"
"It was more like, fifty feet," Dipper admitted, "Hut he rocked it."
"Ah, rocked?" Yuki asked.
"Positive expression," Mabel sang to him and the alien nodded again.
"Why would I want an alien in my home?" Grunkle Stan proposed. Everyone else but Yuki raised their eyebrows at the owner of the Mystery Manor, home to the exotic and strange. Stan glanced around, and sheepishly added, "Okay, fine, so he could fit in. But I don't have the money to feed him. I'm not a charity!"
"What about us?" Dipper declared, "We live here over the summer!"
"Huh, right. You two are heading out tomorrow anyway, and-"
"No, we're not."
"Huh?" Everyone but Yuki looked at Dipper, who had spoken. Yuki who was too busy picking at a T-shirt rack next to him to notice.
Dipper looked around at the attention he had gathered. Mabel was beaming at him, and the other three stared with confusion. "Yeah," he re-affirmed, more to himself than the others, "We're not going home tomorrow. I know Mabel and I said we were – and you know what, we planned on it. This is all coming off the top of my head. Despite all the fear, stress, and maybe a pinch of trauma here and there," he added with a apologetic look to Mabel, who winked at him, "These fourteen days were the best I've had for almost three years. But I'm not going back. Not until the end of the summer, when I have absolutely no choice but to go home to school. Because what Mabel and I did while were up here, just for two weeks-"
"Was so freaking cool you just don't even know," Mabel finished, "Yeah. We're sticking around."
Wendy beamed, and Soos wiped a tear from his eye. Stan eyed them carefully, seemingly scanning their intentions. "Your parents won't like hearing that," Grunkle Stan reminded them, scratching his chin as he studied them.
Dipper gave that concept a thought. His mother displeased. With a surrendering shrug, Dipper replied meagerly with, "Oh well."
Grunkle Stan burst into laughter. "Now, that's what I'm talking about!" he growled excitedly as he grabbed the twins for a laughing hug. "C'mere, you two!" he cackled as he squeezed the twins.
"Aw, sweet!" Soos cheered, "This summer is going to be a billion times better than it was going to be!"
"Sure is, man," Wendy said, leaning on her co-worker as she looked to Dipper, who returned the look, smiling back.
"So, he can stay?" Mabel asked her grand Uncle, looking over to Yuki, who was busying staring at the merchandise around them.
The smile on their Grunkle faded and he sighed.
Yuki eyed an unfinished 'help wanted' sign. He turned to the lot, and inquired, "What is a 'night-watch'?"
Grunkle Stan opened his mouth to quickly answer, but no sound followed. Clearly, a money-saving light bulb flashed inside his mind, and he stared at the alien. "So, Yuki-whatever," Grunkle Stan leant down and almost into the face of the unsuspecting alien, who leaned away, "You, uh, sleep much?"
Uncomfortable, Yuki stumbled at first. "Y-your earth cycle is much too fast for my own biological clock," Yuki hastily answered, wanting the old, smelly man out of his face, "I only require sleep for fifteen hours once upon a cycle of one hundred and twenty."
"You only sleep for half a day, and then stay up for five!?" Grunkle Stan gasped and shot up, "Congratulations- you're hired."
Yuki blinked. "I am hired?"
"And your pay will go all towards your rent," Grunkle Stan told him. Mabel jammed her elbow into his gut, and he groaned. "Okay," Grunkle Stan corrected himself, "Half your pay goes into your rent."
"I... I have a place to reside?" Yuki asked around, and they nodded. His eyes shimmered. "Thank you all. I will work hard and diligently to deserve my keep!"
"Pfft, dude," Wendy commented, "You just need to slack just enough to get by and sort of work."
Stan glared at her. "Keep talking like that and I'll have you replaced with him," he warned her. The old man yawned and looked around. He was still in suit he wore two and half years ago, and gave it a sniff. "Eugh! Smells like egg-nog. Well, give him the room downstairs," he told the twins as he turned away, "And Soos, get him a name tag later."
"You got it, mister Pines!" Soos saluted and patted the shoulder of Yuki who fearfully watched the taller man walk by him.
The twins re-approached Yuki, who seemed to much more mobile with his foot. Yuki still looked around, scanning for incoming danger. Mabel asked, "Yuki, are you okay? You're looking a tad spookin'."
Yuki, though he eyed Mabel for a moment, relented. "I've always studied animals of all intelligences from a distance. From far away, everything is safe and objective. I could always see when something was clear, simple. I've never once thought that I'd be living among them, as one of them. Now I can understand how things are more complicated when one cannot see the grand picture. I'm... nervous about it," he admitted with a quivering sigh.
Dipper felt that. "Well, you're, what fourteen? Fifteen? Our age?" Dipper pointed out, "If we can make it, you'll be fine."
"Well, technically, I'm am of eighty-eight earth years," Yuki said quietly, making the twins and Wendy gasp for air loudly, "But I'm still a youth in my culture."
"You're eighty-eight," Dipper repeated, "Uh, so your species ages... very slowly."
Yuki nodded. "You could say that, yes."
"Wow. What a day," Mabel sighed, and she sat down next to the counter as Dipper joined her. Soos walked back into the room and handed Yuki a small red name-tag.
"What do I do with this?" he asked the taller man.
"Ah, you just pin it on your clothes there. It's got a pin, see?" Soos showed him how to do it with his own t-shirt. "Not that hard, right, dude?"
"I have heavy doubts a needle can piece my suit," Yuki added as Soos handed it to him again, "Perhaps I need new clothing."
"Oh, perhaps indeed, dawg," Soos nodded wisely.
Mabel and Dipper leaned their heads together. Their eyes were sleepy, and they had just saved the town, and only the people here would ever really know about it. Wendy leaned over the counter, and smiled at Dipper and Mabel.
"You guys look dead," she winked at them.
Dipper managed to grin, and then he looked away. He hadn't seen if she had responded to his text from earlier, apologizing. "Hey, Wendy," Dipper started, and looked back to her, "I'm sorry about-"
"Don't worry, man," Wendy grinned, "Turns out there was something weird with me, remember? So don't worry."
"Wendy," Dipper said firmly, "I do trust you."
Her steady grin faltered. Perhaps it was the deep, often masked strain of life that braught her low, but Wendy looked exhausted for a moment. A second later, she wore a sad, trying smile as she pulled herself up. Dipper was certain she too felt bad about how she had acted, but he was too tired and happy to hold anything against her. How could he?
"Dude," Mabel said to her brother.
"Yeah?" Dipper turned his head slightly, getting an eye on his sleepy sister.
"We rock."
"Yeah we do," he said, and turned to his sister, "I'm glad we stayed. I'm happy we're staying."
"Me too bro," Mabel said, and they felt their focus fail. Rickety gift-shop floor or not, they were exhausted enough to sleep right there and then. It didn't matter. No matter where they were, if they were together, they could find a way to sleep comfortably.
"What they – hey!" Grunkle Stan's voice cried out, loud enough to stir the twins, "Who the heck painted a big wolf on my front wall!?"
Soos roared. "Yush!" he cheered, and punched the air, "Boom! Thirteen days! You owe me a soda, dawgs," he said, pointing at the twins.
We're here, my good friends. We've finally made it to the end.
The end of season one. The end of the blue battery mystery. The end of my little test.
I'll be honest guys, when I had this idea, and I looked through the Gravity Falls fanfiction area, there wasn't much like this story- a few here or there with half-developed thoughts and ideas that could be good, but nothing solid. Nothing I thought was 'canon' cased stories.
But now I know- now we know this can be awesome.
And you guys made it possible. All of you. Not just me- you.
So, since this is essentially the end of the first installment, I want to take a second and thank a few of you guys. The initial thanks go, in no particular order, to my constant reviewers- to Montydragon, Paramillo, UltimatePhangirlZoe, Storm101, ApocryphaFreeze, Bigmike33321, and Technofushion for their consistent reviews and support. You guys really have helped me force myself to know what it means to write for people as much as you write for yourselves.
And finally, a huge thank you to my newest friend TheEquestrianIdiot2.0. This man has shared with me a passion for story creation and a love for characters that I know is hard to match. He was the unaccredited Beta Reader for this story, and I would suggest if you enjoyed the story as a whole, you thank him for his quiet contribution. He's a kick-ass dude.
Thank you all. You've made this worth every hour and every cramp I got. XD
Now, for the future.
We'll be experiencing a two week long hiatus. Sorry guys! I need the weeks to conjure up the final bits for Season two. HOWEVER, you could be part of the process! Season two is mostly written out, but I'm looking for a few minor story ideas. If you have a monster, or myth/strange event/legend that you want to see happen in season two, let me know. I'll keep track of them! And there will be a season three to top this all off; so even if you don't see your suggestion in season two (which will be twice as big as season one, btw) then you may yet see it in season three.
So fret not. We'll come back to this story again my friends.
I am so thankful for having met all of you. And you GUESTS out there! You damn fools who won't get an account!? WHAT THE HECK! GET ONE! I don't just write these author chapters so I can hear myself! I want to talk to you guys! You dudes and girls who write to me as guests!? I want to answer you personally! Get a free account so we can chat! :D
Anyway, I've spoken enough.
Thank you all again. This was my pleasure to bring to you all the most fun I've ever had writing, but you made it worth every second since I knew I could entertain. You make me so happy knowing you are happy.
I'd say I love you all, but that's Mabel's lines, and she's getting her make-up off and is in her trailer.
Thank you.
-EZB
Down by the banks of the lake in Gravity Falls, something was tumbling out of the sewage pipes. Roaring with anger and splashing violently, a figure in a cloak emerged, covered head to toe in mud, dirt, cold water, and other unmentionable material.
He fell out of the pipe, just large enough for someone to climb through, and into the water below. It was just waist length, and the man splashed into the cold water angrily, thrashing about.
"Gah!" he roared into the night as he stood up, "Finally!" he gasped, and spat out a severed rat tail from his mouth, and pulled back his hood. Blonde hair, sticking to clumps of dirt and filth, fell past his face. He growled, his sickly white skin and blue eyes peering up at the night sky. It was the Warlock.
"Damn kids," the Warlock growled, reaching inside his jacket, and withdrawing a large waterproof phone. "You think that because you throw me down a well, I'll go running away, huh?" he sneered, and dialed a number, wading through the water with short bursts, stomping on the muddy earth below him.
He lifted the phone to his ear, and shook off some of the filth. "At least none of this should stain. Hm. Maybe it will. Ugh. At least, it shouldn't smell forever-"
A person on the other side of the line answered, and the Warlock stood up fully, his anger dissipating.
"Hey," he told the recipient of the call, clearing his throat. "It's me, Graupner," he said after an inquiry on the phone, "I got a new phone."
There was some sort of lecture, or scolding on the other side.
"No... I didn't kill anyone to get this. I just stole it," The Warlock, Graupner, said. "I completed the spell. There was too much interference to get a clear reading-" he was cut off.
A long winded and detailed bit came from the man on the other side of the conversation. After a moment, the Warlock nodded. "Massive. It was all over the town. Even in bigger cities, I never saw that much concentrated levels of energy before. Not just in the town, but in the forests, under ground, in the water- everywhere," the Warlock told him.
The person he called replied excitedly. His voice was loud, and deep sounding, and would probably have been soothing it if hadn't been so rushed and enticed by this information. The Warlock, though clearly intent on listening, seemed detached and bored with the conversation. There was a pause in the voice, and the Warlock didn't reply. There was a loud, "Are you listening?" and the Warlock jumped a little.
"Yes! God," he groaned, "I called you, didn't I? What's the point if I'm not listening!" he complained. The voice sighed, and continued to explain something. The Warlock was too busy nodding though to realize something behind him. A slowly emerging bulge in the water him rose. A massive creature with a long neck emerged, its dark eyes staring at him with curiosity. It had a green scales, massive tusks, and dark eyes.
"I will. I think this is the area you were looking for," he added, and his master gave him an order. "If he appears, I'll take care of it. I thought he was dead thou-" As this man the Warlock called added something, the monstrous beast slowly crept up behind him, until it was directly behind him.
The warlock audibly rolled his eyes. "Ugh. Fine, whatever, I'll-"
The monster growled.
The warlock lost what little color was in his face. He slowly turned to face the huge Gobblewonker that was staring at him from above. The warlock grip almost faltered as he gulped, and raised the phone back to his ear. "I have to be going." Click.
If you were awake and outdoors that clear night by Gravity Falls, you could barely make out the terrified cries of a 'scary and mean' Warlock running for his life from a supposedly mythological lake monster.
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