Little bits of rock fell from the ceiling as the final echoes of its roar drowned out in the distance. It was like in a role-playing game. Two main characters facing off in an arena against the final boss. The monster slowly approached the two who swiftly split up trying to confuse the bulky beast. However little did they know that it lost just its mental sanity, not a little bit of his intelligence. He was still his old self in terms of IQ. And that's what the two didn't know at first… After running around like a bunch of headless chickens, they finally managed to catch a breath and hide outside the monster's field of vision. They could hear its heavy steps stomping holes into the ground below and hear its breath raising the dust, but nothing could've been done. They had no reason to keep on fighting apart from preservation instinct. However, it was a challenge and we can all relate that Dipper's wits at solving mysteries and Pacifica's stubbornness cannot be outgrown by fear.
The monster stopped at the center disoriented after not being able to spot any of the humans. In his conception the boy was the primary target, because, due to his age, it knew of the male superiority in strength and self-control. Now, tired of looking around, rummaging through the pile of gravel it had created, the gnarling beast flinched in realization, knowing that they have to escape, it laid down awaiting for them to expose their hiding spots. With a loud thump, it lied down in the middle, carefully, his eyes jumping to search all the places they could've been.
On one side it was Dipper, on the other Pacifica. He, behind a pile of gravel, she, laying low on a ledge, her hair barely visible. Dipper called out to Pacifica, thinking that teamwork is of the essence to escape and beat the monster. Lucky for him, it all worked out well, due to its weaknesses.
-Pacifica, he whispered in the frustrating silence of their tomb.
-What? She replied angrily and scared at the same time that it could hear them.
Dipper thought to himself how stupid he was, threatening their lives just because of a basic instinct of getting together with your kind to succeed. Seeing that the monster didn't even flinch, he continued:
-It can't hear you, he spoke in a normal voice, risking a lot just to make his point across. The beast continued its watch over the battlefield completely undisturbed.
-So what do we do? Pacifica asked yelling from the other corner.
-Come to me, we cannot hide over there. But be careful that the monster doesn't see you. I think this is the only sense he has left, being borderline deaf and apparently suffering from anosmia.
-How? If he sees me, I am done for…
-It's the only shot we have… to get out of this grave in which my psychotic sister threw us both…Try sneaking bit by bit using the rest of the hideouts and his blind spots. His eyes can't cover the whole arena so use this to your advantage…
-Ok, tell me when to start, I can't see where I have to go, continued the blonde while holding her hair on her hair and looking down into the hollow abyss she was so bravely nearing.
-Wait for my signal. And good luck…
It wasn't long until Dipper had given the green light for Pacifica to advance. She ran out of breath trying to reach a fallen stalactite who was more than enough to shelter her tiny person from the unforgiving gaze of the beast. From now on she could see for herself when to continue her quest to reach her teammate and also the one she was hoping to be stuck somewhere with. Whenever the monster turned its massive head, which moved surprisingly swiftly given its bulkiness, she switched her hiding place to come closer and closer to Dipper. Two rocks were separating them… Pacifica was beginning to get used to this, but whenever you feel safer, you'll get it worse from your life. Three feet were separating her from her next checkpoint when she tripped and fell with a loud thud. At this point it was only a matter of seconds until she could get up, but she could feel the cold eyes of the monster surveying the area before her eyes… It was at this point that she could envision herself being mauled to death by the intelligent predator staying like a lighthouse in the middle of what would become her tomb. Seconds passed like age, as she violently struggled to regain balance and endure the pain to get up and run, but to no avail. The death stare was almost upon her… Drawing in closer and closer…
With unrivaled speed a rock flew in the opposite direction, distracting the unforgiving beast who immediately pounced towards a lonely stone crushing it as soon as it landed. Pacifica was safe now, but with the drastically altered position, Dipper's hiding spot turned from several feet wide to a few inches barely leaving enough room to fit him in. Without words, exchanging only one look ,they settled for a common meeting point. A nearby pile of dirt, so big it could conceal 4 of them. It was at this moment Pacifica found out how brave and selfless Dipper could be at times, putting aside his own good to save the others. Unfortunately for her fragile mind, her doubtful personality kicked in again, drawing the line between genuinely caring for her and again using her only as a piece in an important puzzle to rescue them both. It was the same old battle, each event adding fuel to an inextinguishable fire… All these thoughts jumped into her head, while she was running towards him, being forced to leap as an unforgiving mean look was about to settle on her. Pacifica fell over Dipper, sheltered by the shadow of the hill.
-Ouch, Dipper said raising an eyebrow.
-Ow, sorry she quickly got up blushing. So, what are we going to do?
-I have absolutely no idea… but the beast is giving us time to figure it out…
-Let's gather the facts shall we said Pacifica, with a wit coming out of the closet for the first time… We know it's deaf and cannot smell us, but he has an eyesight we cannot forget. It can move at amazing speed despite his bulky and heavy conformation, but it's also got a stone skin, making any sort of attack from us impossible…
-I see only one way out of this…
-We must push it out, the two said at the same time. Good idea, they complimented each other continuing the gimmick.
-But how are we going to do this…? Asked Pacifica turning in the bravery she had earlier for the insecurity she showed for the last few weeks.
-Well, we either lure him in and use the speed it has to its own disadvantage…
-Or use a lever?
-Yep, that's pretty much it…
How clever was the beast that had created this dungeon? Immensely… It saved its energy by waiting the humans whose biological needs would draw them out of their safe spots, or make them perish by slowly denying food and water... It didn't budge from a good vantage point, constantly surveying the area, not because it was dumb, but because it knew of the stress it caused, living in continuous fear of being caught. Occasionally he would pounce over an empty shelter only to strike terror in those who unluckily got trapped in this dungeon…Something is still unknown though, even to me, a ghost who had time to explore all the depths of this prodigal city, harboring so many mysteries. I know of its existence in a sacred circle of cities sharing similarities… I know of its original creators, I know its purpose, but this dungeon seemed as a complete waste of energy…Be that as it may, the monster had a good history in creating everlasting bonds between the teams or rather couples who reached it…
Without any announcement, the monster grabbed a huge rock and threw it over their exact hiding spot, collapsing while also briefly stunning them. The next thing they saw was the beast swiftly sprinting towards them, jaws hanging open, getting ready to maul them.
They got separated yet again, but now they weren't safe at all… Pacifica was slowed down, because of lightly spraining her ankle while jumping away and Dipper couldn't roll far enough and could only put 10 feet between him and the beast.
He couldn't outrun it, not even try to dodge him at the last second, because he knew where he lacked, this monster thrived. In a split second Dipper had to make a decision that would save his life and for the first time in his life he had no idea what to do… Was it by chance or his mind flashed with this idea, I don't know, but certainly the water bottle being dropped on the monster's face did the trick. It recoiled heavily and returned to its original position, surveying with red hot eyes and a burnt face, if I may describe a rock as burnt, the same area as before…
In a dark cave, with only artificial light sources and no access to clocks or watches, it's hard to keep track of time. It was almost midnight and Mabel was fast asleep thinking to herself that a solid round of bedtime can clear her mind and help her forgive herself and beg for her friends' clemency as well. I was of course there to lend a hand and a comforting shoulder…
Again, since I can manipulate the environment, I chose a quiet little granite cliff bordering a calm sea at dusk. I was sitting there my eyes fixed over a flock of seagulls rapidly turning into nothing but dots as they flew away sinking in the far end of the horizon. Two suns were visible, one the forever glowing star of the morning sky, the other its mere reflection which outshone it. As I was gazing over the paradisiac view I, myself created, I hear the grass rustling behind me. Little footsteps stop as Mabel sits down next to me, her feet dangling in the breeze.
-Boy, I messed up big time didn't I, she exclaimed as her look changed from neutral to bitter disappointment
-Why would you say that? I asked in the sweetest voice my inert self could still pull off.
-I risked the life of my brother and my closest friend to force them to be together, something that may and can't even happen…
-Mabel…
-No, I am a failure as a sister and as a friend, please just leave me alone, she said suddenly getting up and jumping in the water.
Of course I quickly teleported her back to the top of the cliff and invisibly restrained her to prevent any other incidents…
-What did you do? she asked visibly annoyed.
-Forced you to listen to me… Would you have done that if you'd know that it would be the only way of bringing me back to life?
-What? How is this even possible?
-Let's just say that I would benefit from them being together, because that would lead to a series of events that would lead to me being resurrected… would you do it?
-Without a doubt… she said completely defeated and lowering her gaze.
-Then you should really see this…
Dipper and Pacifica finally found the monster's weakness…Water, this meant they could repel it or maybe even defeat it using nothing but a basic element. However, with Dipper's bottle gone, only Pacifica's bag still had half a cup worth of water… They had to make the most of it…Returned to its idle state, this beast who came short to killing them only once was now letting them to plan their attack using its newfound weakness. That was strange to Dipper, but Pacifica didn't care as long as it let them evade.
-Do we use the water to repel or destroy? Asked Dipper.
-With half a cup? I think we need buckets to destroy, so we have to opt for repel…
-OK, then, it's easy. We lure him near the edge, then just annoy him with water so he falls over… Wow, that sounded stupider than I thought…
-It's our only shot, though. I'll be the bait, you'll be the attacker. Ready?
Dipper was struck by her sudden bravery. Yet again she oscillated from this to scared then to her usual neutral state, poorly witted. However, it was no time to praise or criticize, it was time to act.
-Ready, he said determination flourishing in his eyes.
Using his fingers Dipper counted down from three and when his hand turned to a fist, Pacifica jumped out of the hideout, dashing over the arena only to distract the monster. Needless to say that with blinding speed, the beast followed her closing in the gap at an alarming rate. She stopped, barely leaning over the edge. She knew her death was swiftly coming, so she closed her eyes, tears slowly flowing from her shut eyelids, while she was shaking from every joint.
The monster was now sure of its prey. Slowing down the tempo, it slowly approached its target, making sure she hears every step, every tiny bit of dirt crumbling under his heavy foot, just to add to the thrill of the hunt. Little did he know that it was close to his doomsday and it was coming surely and as slowly as he stalked the poor little girl.
Ten feet between them turned into five then into one as the monster's jaws were hanging wide open getting ready to maul her sweet flesh. Out of nowhere, seemingly Dipper came out squirting out the last bit of water they had remaining… It burned through its flesh as holiness burns through the unjust… Recoiling, the beast lost its balance now wobbling on the arena's edge desperately clinging on the last bit of its life. However a swift push from Pacifica further aided by Dipper made him fall to his demise… A loud shattering sound was heard as an uneasy and terrifying roar split open the cave's ceiling leaving the first rays of moonlight to penetrate the cave's darkness.
-It's done… Dipper sighed relieved that it was finally defeated. Unaware that they have been down here for more than twenty four hours, the two tried to find a way out of the arena, but to no avail. It was a pillar rising in the middle of an empty cave. The floor was 200 feet below them and it basically seemed as a no way out situation.
-So, we beat the monster, after we have been traumatized, spent hours guiding ourselves through a dark cave and now we are stuck here, said Dipper completely desperate, on the verge of going completely insane.
-At least… if it is to die, then we should die together… Pacifica mumbled under her breath…
-I know… Look there's been something I've been meaning to tell you, for a long time, but frankly I didn't really find the right time to say it…
-Come to think of it, if this is the end I've got something on my mind as well…
The two were completely nervous, their hearts pounding with anxiousness as multiple thoughts crossed their minds… They knew what the other could've said but weren't quite sure. Dipper started ruining the moment:
-So it has come to my attention that you have truly changed, and, at the risk of being redundant and repeating myself thus, I noticed that you have a general kindness surrounding you… not to mention the caring and generous personality you have developed and the fact that it's been a while since our last fight. Therefore I can't argue with this, but…
Whereas Dipper had words to speak for his thoughts, Pacifica had actions. Her kiss stopped Dipper from continuing his petty and pitiful story as she knew where this was heading already.
-I love you too, now shut up, she said as she carefully and gently hugged him, while cuddling…
This was how they would spent the rest of the days they had left on this earth… Sad, traumatized even, killed by their best friend's wish to do something stupid as always, but at least they had each other…Forever after…
Hello there, my fellow readers. This is the first time I wrote something like this in the end of my story. First and foremost I want to thank you all for sitting with me as I unveiled my story upon you… I sincerely hope that you have enjoyed reading my stories for more than 1000 times. I love you for that. Also, I referenced some of my favorite things inside this chapter (more than usual ) and one of them is a hint to my upcoming fan fiction. Hehe. And lastly I would like to hear your opinion more people. Don't be shy, you have a voice, let it be heard… By me ! Hope you enjoyed this. Goodbye
