It is said on the eve of the final day, everyone in Gravity Falls had bad dreams. They all began the same, as if recalling fond memories, but soon they changed without warning and without any way to prevent it.
Jennifer dreamt of a world where she was the psychopath in league with demons and not her mother.
Old Woman McGucket dreamt of a world where she was not the author of the three journals and she was just another crazy old coot.
William dreamt of a world where he was older. Too old to even consider being with the love of his life.
Becca dreamt of a world where she was 100% human, and where she had to be saved from a video game character by the one she initially hated.
Patterson dreamt of a world where his parents acknowledged his existence, but they treated him like some kind of pet.
Salls dreamt of a world where she almost made peace with her father, and where her almost-psychotic ex .GIFfany was destroyed instead of redeemed.
Marcus dreamt of a world where his bond with his sister was all but unbreakable, and continuously tested and strained.
Dana dreamt of a world where she was a completely different person. One who longed for mystery and knowledge instead of art and normality.
And so it was that as the end approached the town of Gravity Falls, its citizens slept and shivered, their slumber plagued with night terrors.
Except one.
The Guardian arrived at the local history museum. She had received an important call from a familiar man, someone she had not spoke to in a long time.
Eventually the elderly Timelady arrived in a familiar room, and sure enough, she was greeted by familiar faces.
"Welcome, Lady President," Blind Ivan said. He took off his silver gauntlet. "We have been expecting you."
"Hello Rassilon," the Guardian replied, putting the gauntlet on her left hand. "I see you and the Timelord Council have been doing well since my absence."
"Indeed we have, but now is not the time to stroll down memory lane," Blind Ivan said. "It is about the Ciphers. They are coming."
The Guardian looked surprised. "It can't be," she said. "The end of the world isn't supposed to happen until the year 3012!"
"It seems the Ciphers have rescheduled it one-thousand years earlier than planned," Blind Ivan said. "And it will be tomorrow."
"That would explain why everyone in this town is experiencing bad dreams," the Guardian said
"Correct," Blind Ivan said. "It is the Ciphers' doing. These bad dreams are a warning to so many innocent people. They have no idea that tomorrow will change their lives forever. Our only option is to flee."
"Rassilon, you can't be serious," the Guardian said. "We have to do something!"
"I'm afraid not, Lady President," Blind Ivan said.
"What about the prophecy?" the Guardian asked. She used her Sonic Cane to recreate a circular pattern on a nearby wall. "It says that when ten people who are connected to one another join hands in a particular order, their pure hearts will beat as one and eradicate all the Ciphers forever."
"Yes, but at a great cost," Blind Ivan said. "If those ten people were to succeed, there would be a high chance that they would be permanently petrified. The prophecy is our last resort, and we do not know who those ten people are supposed to be."
"But there is another way to stop the Ciphers," the Guardian said. "The Hybrid."
"You still believe in that fairytale?" Blind Ivan asked.
"It is no fairytale," the Guardian said. "The Hybrid will come and aid in the defeat the Ciphers. After all, this Hybrid is rumored to be a crossbreed of two great warrior races."
"But you have been searching for the Hybrid ever since that unfortunate accident with your adopted son," Blind Ivan said.
"Yes I have," the Guardian said. "But sadly, I can't seem to find him or her. But I will find that Hybrid, and I will make sure he or she is ready for that final showdown."
"Very well," Blind Ivan said. "I wish you luck on your search, Lady President."
"Thank you," the Guardian said. "Hopefully I'll find the Hybrid before the Ciphers come, otherwise all hope will be lost."
The next morning, back at the Surprise Hut, Dana woke up screaming. She just experienced a terrible nightmare. It was so horrifying!
Marcus ran in. "Are you alright?!" he asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Dana said nervously. "Just an uncomfortable dream."
"Well we can't let bad dreams get in the way of today," Marcus said, forcing a smile.
"What's today?" Dana asked.
"We're exactly one week away from our 13th birthday!" Marcus happily announced.
"Our birthday's coming up already?" Dana asked, getting out of bed. She gasped. "Soon we're gonna be actual teenagers!"
"Finally! I can stop reading preteen magazines and start reading post-preteen magazines," Marcus said.
"PG-13 movies, here I come!" Dana said.
"And just one more year until high school," Marcus said. "High school, Stargirl! Where boys become men and they teach us stuff about...you know what."
"Trigonometry?" Dana asked.
"Oh yeah, baby!" Marcus answered.
Salls entered the room. "That's not all," she said. "In one week, my grandpa is finally letting me eat crackers on my bed! The future is coming for us all."
"The future!" Dana said.
"The future!" Marcus said.
Some time later, Dana, Marcus, and Salls were in the living room. "Alright, party planners," Marcus said. "In one week Dana and I become teenagers, and our summer vacation winds to an end. So we need to throw the greatest party of all time! I'm talking piñatas with tinier piñatas inside."
"Boom, dreams comin' true!" Salls said as she poured little piñatas into a large piñata.
"I'm talking inviting everyone in town," Marcus said. He pulled out a list. "Let's see... Where do we stand with the gnomes?"
"Hold on a minute," the Guardian said, walking into the room. "I don't want a repeat of that zombie disaster. It's too risky to have another party here."
"But Guardian, we need some roof to raise," Marcus said.
"You could rent out the Gravity Falls High School gym and have your party there," Salls suggested. "That place is empty all summer long."
"The gym's a great idea, Salls," Marcus said. "To the high school!"
Suddenly, the entire house quaked, startling everyone. Daniel ran in, holding what appeared to be some kind of snowglobe. "Guardian, we have a problem!" he exclaimed. "I was drinking some coffee in the TARDIS when I accidentally sat on the rift! I'm so sorry!"
The Guardian took the snowglobe from Daniel. "Oh dear," she said. "It's already cracking."
"YEAH, WELL WHO KEEPS IT IN A STUPID SNOWGLOBE ANYWAY?" Daniel asked.
"Wait, what's going on?" Marcus asked.
"What rift?" Dana asked.
"Oh, that's right," Daniel said. "We never told them."
"Told us what?" Marcus asked.
The Guardian held out the rift to Dana and Marcus. "Recently Daniel and I have dismantled the portal," the Timelady explained. "We agreed it was for the best because an interdimensional gateway is too dangerous for the world it feeds into. But just as I feared, the instability of the machine created an interdimensional rift. We have contained it in a containment orb, but it's incredibly dangerous. Now it's cracking. This is what Bill has been waiting for. If it breaks, it will cause reality as we know it to completely unravel. A second Time War will commence. Bill is out there, and he will use any trick to light the first spark."
"What are you going to do?" Dana asked.
"Daniel and I will patch the rift," the Guardian said, locking the rift in a protective case. "We'll also bring Franny with us, although it's sad that Silvia is dead. It would be easier to cover more ground that way." She looked at Dana. "Unless..."
"What?" Dana asked.
"Perfect, you'll come with us!" the Guardian said, sounding a bit too happy.
"Come with you?" Dana asked. "But what about Marcus?"
"It's okay, Dana," Marcus said. "You should totally go with the Guardian and Mr. Noble to fix that rift thingy."
"Are you sure?" Dana asked.
"We're going to be doing birthday junk all week," Marcus said.
"Then it's settled," the Guardian said. "Dana, you're coming with us."
Dana let out a sigh. "Fine," she said.
After getting Old Woman McGucket, the Guardian, her companions, and Dana arrived at the Floating Cliffs.
"Okay gang," the Guardian said. "In order to seal the rift for good, it's going to take an adhesive stronger than anything on Earth. Something...extraterrestrial in origin."
"Whoa whoa whoa!" Daniel said. "Extraterrestrial? Are we going back to that crashed Cyber ship?"
"Precisely," the Guardian answered.
"W-What cyber ship?" Dana asked.
"Oh, that's right," the Guardian said. "Dana, before you met me, the real me, did you believe in aliens and UFOs?"
Dana shrugged. "I guess," she said.
"The entire valley of Gravity Falls was formed when an ancient Cybermen ship crash-landed here millions of years ago," the Guardian explained. "According to Gallifreyan legend, the event caused the town's strange properties."
"But that's crazy!" Dana exclaimed. "Where did the ship go?"
"Right over here," the Guardian answered. She pushed a rock away, revealing an underground entrance. "Now I hope each of you still have your gold magnet guns."
Old Woman McGucket and Daniel pulled guns that looked gold in color as Dana looked on in confusion. "I don't have one," the young girl said.
"It's okay, you can borrow Silvia's," the Guardian said as she pulled out her own gold magnet gun. "Now stand back."
The Guardian proceeded to detach the opening with her magnet gun. Dana was speechless. "You... I... Words...not working for mouth."
"Don't get your hopes up," Daniel said.
"Yeah," Old Woman McGucket agreed. "Being exposed to this sort of thing a lot kind of makes it bland after a while."
"Come along, companions," the Guardian said, giving Dana a gold magnet gun that had 'Property of Silvia Pines' spelled out in rhinestones. "We haven't got all day. And Dana, don't worry about the Cybermen. They're all long dead."
"I can't believe there's been a giant alien ship under the town this whole time," Dana said as she, the Guardian, Daniel, and Old Woman McGucket explored the ship.
"I remember when we used to come down here all the time to raid Cybermen tech and study their language," Old Woman McGucket told her two friends.
"Well I remember that time Silvia found this weird giant bat down here," Daniel said. He chuckled. "She thought that thing was copying her voice."
"That wasn't an ordinary bat," the Guardian reminded Daniel. "Franny, you might not remember it, but you came to the conclusion that the bat was the perfect hider."
As the three adults reminisced about the past, Dana took a selfie with some of the alien symbols on the wall.
"Okay everyone," the Guardian said after some more reminiscing. "The substance we need to seal the rift is an alien adhesive. Just one dollop of this adhesive should be enough to seal a crack in space-time."
Eventually the group came across a metal pillar. The Guardian, Daniel, and Old Woman McGucket proceeded to use their gold magnet guns to climb down the pillar.
"Alright Dana!" the Guardian said once she and her companions reached the ground. "It's your turn!"
Releasing a deep breath, Dana turned on Silvia's gold magnet gun with ease. She jumped, but she accidentally crashed on onto the ceiling. "A little help?" she called out.
Several hours passed. During that time, Dana, the Guardian, Daniel, and Old Woman McGucket searched for the adhesive. But unfortunately, they couldn't seem to find it. Eventually the Guardian walked over to Dana.
"Dana, let me ask you something," the Guardian said. "Have you thought much about your future?"
"No, not really," Dana answered. "I mean, beyond graduating high school with a high GPA so I can get accepted to an art college that could eventually help me become an illustrator for children's books."
"Children's books?" the Guardian asked. "You want to spend your whole life drawing pictures for children's books?"
"Well, yeah," Dana replied. "Drawing is the one thing that gives me true happiness."
"But Dana, I've been thinking," the Guardian said. "I'm on my last regeneration. I need someone to eventually take my place and travel through time and space. And I want to give the TARDIS key to someone I really trust."
"What are you saying?" Dana asked.
"Franny showed me the additions you and your brother made to her journals and I'm impressed with your potential," the Guardian said. "What would you say to attending the Timelord Academy after the summer ends?"
"What?!" Dana asked.
"Your parents would be thrilled about you getting such an advanced education," the Guardian continued.
"I never actually thought about leaving Earth," Dana tried to explain.
"But isn't it suffocating?" the Guardian asked. "Dana, can you honestly tell me you never felt like you were meant for something more?"
"I-I dunno," Dana stammered. "I'm not sure I have what it takes. I was mind-raped by Bill, I was wrong about the the portal in the basement... Heck, I can't even figure out what's wrong with me!"
"I found it!" Old Woman McGucket suddenly exclaimed, holding up a piece of medal that has some pink gunk on one side. "I found the adhesive!"
"Alright Franny!" Daniel cheered.
"Perfect," the Guardian said, taking out the rift. "Now let's get the rift sealed up."
But suddenly, a loud thump was heard. "Uh, Guardian, you said everything in here is dead, right?" Dana asked.
"Yes," the Guardian. "Unless somehow we indirectly reactivated the security system!"
As if on cue, two security drones emerged. "What do we do?!" Dana asked.
"Okay companions," the Guardian said. "You know the drill. Do not express fear."
"What?!" Dana asked.
"It's okay," the Guardian told Dana. "Just take a deep breath, focus on your intellect, and control your fear."
The droid measured the Guardian's heartbeats and found them to be calm. It moved on to Daniel and Old Woman McGucket, and then Dana, who was stammering. Detecting fear, it produced a gun.
"Get down!" the Guardian exclaimed. She tackled Dana, dodging the flash from the gun. The Timelady then stood up and shot the droid, destroying it, but she, Daniel, and Old Woman McGucket were hit with a flash. This allowed the other droid to produce arms and drag the three adults towards it.
"Stay back!" the Guardian told Dana. "It's too dangerous! Sealing the rift is what's important now!" She slid the rift to Dana, who put it in her backpack.
The droid trapped the three adults in itself. "You're going to have to do it without us!" the Guardian said. "Use the adhesive! Fix the rift! Save the universe, Dana!" Then the droid flew away into the tunnels.
Dana chased the droid through the tunnels. The droid then disappeared behind a saucer-shaped door. "Where is that thing taking you?!" she asked as the room glowed purple and some kind of map appeared.
"Probably somewhere to upgrade me and Franny!" Daniel replied. "And maybe kill the Guardian."
"What?!" Dana asked. She gasped as the ceiling opened to the outside.
Without thinking clearly, Dana put duct tape around her hand and Silvia's gold magnet gun. The gun attached itself to the droid right before it blasted away.
Outside, the droid broke through a grate and flew high into the air. Dana pounded the droid, leaving a dent. "Let go of the Guardian and her friends!" she exclaimed.
The droid swerved around, flew through the crack in the cliff, through the waterfall and through the water tower. The droid bumped, knocking the Guardian unconscious.
Dana turned a knob on the gun, resulting in a magnet pulse. The droid crashed into the woods, resulting in Dana getting all bruised up.
Dana ran over to the crashed droid and pounded on the glass. With a strong punch, she broke the glass.
"Come on, Dana," Daniel said as he and Old Woman McGucket lifted up Dana. "We have to get out of here before-"
Suddenly, another droid appeared. It began to scan Dana, then it produced a large gun.
"Oh yeah?!" Dana asked, tears forming in her eyes. "You think you can scare me?! Do your worst! It's not like anything in life matters anymore! So go ahead!" She fell to the ground, sobbing hard. "Give me what you've got..." She closed her eyes and waited for the droid to finally end her once and for all.
But then, something strange happened. Yellow glowing energy swirled around Dana as she continued sobbing. "What the...?" Daniel muttered.
"It can't be..." Old Woman McGucket said.
The glowing energy was then released like a massive explosion, causing the droid to dissolve. Dana calmed down and slowly looked up. Then she looked at her hands, which were slightly glowing. She gasped as the glow faded.
The Guardian finally woke up. "What happened?" she asked.
Daniel and Old Woman McGucket allowed the Guardian stand back up properly. "Guardian, you won't believe what happened!" Daniel said. "This weird glowing energy came out of Dana and it completely destroyed a droid!"
"She did what?" the Guardian asked. She and her companions walked over to Dana.
"What just happened?" Dana asked.
"You're half-Gallifreyan," the Guardian recalled.
Dana blinked, confused. "Yeah, I know," she said. "We already discussed that."
"Of course!" the Guardian happily exclaimed. "You're half-human and half-Gallifreyan! A crossbreed of two warrior races! Don't you see, Dana? You're the legendary Hybrid!"
"Hybrid?" Dana asked.
"It all makes sense!" the Guardian continued. "You're the one who's destined to help us defeat the Ciphers!"
"Whoa whoa whoa!" Daniel said. "You honestly think Dana's this 'hybrid' thingy?"
"But that's not it," the Guardian said. "Being able to understand Circular Gallifreyan before knowing about the language's existence, the slight exposure to the Untempered Schism, looking and sounding exactly like Silvia..."
"Now I remember!" Old Woman McGucket said. "Silvia always had an unusually high-pitched voice! Poor girl often said it was because Mrs. Pines constantly smoked, even during pregnancy."
The Guardian picked up Dana and hugged her tightly. "Oh Silvia!" she happily exclaimed. "Welcome back!"
"Excuse me?!" Dana asked.
The Guardian put Dana back on the ground. "You're a reincarnation of your great-aunt," the Timelady explained. "She graduated from the Timelord Academy as an honorary Timelady, thus making her an unofficial Gallifreyan. Somehow her soul was mixed with yours, and as a result, you became half-human and half-Gallifreyan." She smiled wide. "We must get back to the TARDIS to begin your training."
"Are you kidding?!" Dana asked. She looked both angry and sad at the same time. "My whole life was just a lie?!"
"No, Dana, you don't understand," the Guardian said. "You're the Hybrid who's destined to-"
"No, you don't understand!" Dana exclaimed. "I've had an awful life! When I turn thirteen, the summer ends, and I have to go back to my miserable life back home! You don't know what's it's like to be completely outcasted from all of society!"
"But you have to understand, Dana," the Guardian tried to reassure. "Things aren't going to stay frozen this way. It's part of growing up. All you have to do is accept your destiny."
But instead of responding, Dana dropped Silvia's gold magnet gun and ran off. "Dana, come back!" the Guardian exclaimed. "You have to accept that you're the Hybrid!"
Dana ran into the woods, crying hard. She didn't care where she was going. She just wanted to escape this awful town.
Meanwhile, back at the Surprise Hut, Marcus wasn't having a good day either. The high school gym was occupied and all of his friends weren't going to attend his birthday party next week, but the strangest thing was that everyone in town was bitter and angry for some reason.
Then again, maybe he just had to accept that it was time to grow up. He took off his glittery Green Jewel Pony medallion and placed it on the shelf next to his other medallions. He was losing interest in the franchise after all. Maybe it was time to finally grow out of it.
Suddenly, the Guardian ran into the room. "Marcus, you have to help me!" she exclaimed. "Franny and Daniel are in the TARDIS, and we don't have much time!"
"I know," Marcus said. "Things change and summer ends. It's all a part of growing up."
"Stop talking nonsense!" the Guardian said. "Your sister is out there with the rift! We have to find her before it's too late!"
"What?" Marcus asked.
"Long story short, she's destined to help defeat the Ciphers!" the Guardian said. "Now come! We have to find Dana!"
Eventually Dana arrived at a tall cliff. She remembered coming here early in the summer to sketch the scenery. It was her special private area.
But now wasn't the time to reminiscence. Dana stood on the edge of the cliff, feeling both anger towards the Guardian and sorrow for realizing her life was a lie. And none of this wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for-
The rift.
Dana pulled the rift out of her backpack and looked at it. What if this whole thing was nothing but a trick created by the Guardian? What if this whole thing was psychological test? If so, nothing would happen if she was to break it.
So Dana readied her arm. She was going to do it. She was going to hurl this stupid rift over the cliff, finally freeing her from this-
CRACK!
Dana dropped the now-broken containment orb in shock. What happened? What's going on? How did that rift spontaneously break? She didn't have time to think because without warning, she fell unconscious, falling off the cliff in the process. Then a voice echoed in the sky.
"At last! At long, long last! The gateway between worlds has opened! The event one billion years prophesized has finally come to pass! The day has come! The world is finally mine!"
Back at the Surprise Hut, Marcus and the Guardian ran out, only to see the sky turn red and an X-shaped rift appearing in the sky. "What's going on?!" Marcus asked. "What the X is that?!"
"We're too late," the Guardian answered. "The second Time War has begun."