"And so we stood alone,
but pain is always so betrayed with our eyes.
But I know now, on hearts, the faithless can't rely.
Do dreams make no sound as they die?"

"Die Like This," by Fuel

Chapter 8 – Destiny

"Ohh…my aching head!"

Wendy Corduroy woke up to find that she was sprawled out on the floor. Unsure of how exactly she ended up there, the redhead hoisted herself up and rubbed her sleep-covered face clear with her fingers. As her vision started to return, a rush of recollections came flowing through: the fight with Dipper, fleeing from her evil clone and its personal army of video game minions, the confrontation with the wicked mastermind behind the attempt on her life, trying to make some sort of peace with her partner-in-crime as she was hurled into a portal to heaven knew where.

"The portal!"

The girl hopped to her feet as reality struck her like a ton of bricks; she realized that she was anywhere but home.

Wendy looked around to see that she was all alone in a room made entirely of blue and greenish wire framing that seemed to stretch on without any end in sight. The floors and walls were entirely see-through, and yet, still managed to retain solidity. Uneasiness overcame her psyche, filling Wendy with a sense of creepy nostalgia as if she had been here before.

"But when? And where?"

She had experienced this same sensation vaguely in her nightmares. There would be flashes of strobe lights all around as Wendy could tell that she had been whisked away somewhere far from her family and friends, to where no one could possibly help her. She would take flight into the seemingly never-ending darkness as something overwhelmingly powerful would give chase, stopping Wendy in her tracks, and trying to claim her as their own.

The fifteen year old glanced down at herself to see that she, too, had over gone a tremendous change in appearance. Her usual green and black flannel shirt and snuggly-fit blue jeans were replaced with a luxurious, sparkling emerald green dress that matched the color of her eyes. A stylish black choker was buckled around her slender neck. Golden looped earrings were found in place of her simple grey studs. Her trademark brown trapper hat had also vanished, as Wendy noticed that someone had taken the time to perfectly straighten her naturally frizzy auburn hair. Slight clicking sounds coming from underfoot served as an indication that high heels had been strapped onto her feet.

Wendy wrapped her arms around herself as a chilling breeze invaded her now-naked forearms. As she studied the peculiar room further, another memory flashed before her eyes – of the first time she had been taken by something from the gaming universes. It had been that one bulging fighter guy with the eye patch that Dipper liked – Rumble McGolucky or something like that - that attempted to hold her prisoner in a place similar to this.

"Either way," Wendy concluded, "I'd say it'd be a safe bet to get outta dodge ASAP!"

She went to race out of the mysterious area, unsure of how to reach her next destination when Wendy felt something yank her feet out from under her. The ginger fell to the semi-transparent floor, catching herself with her palms at the very last second. The strange impression sent goosebumps running down her pale, freckled flesh as she made it back to a standing position. Remembrance became certainty as Wendy searched around her being, praying that her thoughts were mistaken, "Not again! It couldn't have happened again!"

Sure enough, a thin, yet solid chain link traveled from beneath her flowing gown wrapping itself around a rusted copper circle embedded into the ground a few yards from where Wendy was standing. Just before pure panic set in, an outlook of hope rose up from within the plucky teenager.

"I know!" Wendy said with much-needed enthusiasm, "I'll just do what I did last time…" She held up with her green dress with both hands and pinned it down with her chin, "I'll slip out of the cuffs, and before those creeps know it, I'll be out of here lickety-split –"

Her words quickly dried up as the truth was made apparent. In her excitement, Wendy forgot that she was no longer wearing her oversized lumberjack boots; the same ones that aided her escape from captivity last time. Instead, she saw that her dainty peds were donning glistening black pumps that only added to her extraordinary height. Her mouth gaped open as above them, a pair of cast-iron shackles had been fastened around her now-bare ankles, instantly dashing any thoughts of a speedy escape. The same feeling of claustrophobia she suffered while trapped at the rail yard promptly returned.

"No! No! No!" Wendy fret, examining her plight from every possible angle, "You've got to be freakin' kidding me!" Bending down to get a better look at the situation, she took hold of one of her leg irons, noting that there were now two heavy-duty padlocks securing each foot restraint, making it clear that her captor had no intention of letting their prey loose so easily.

"Hhmph!" she grunted, fumbling around with the bolts that held her in place. Her idea of being able to pick the padlocks open was ruined as Wendy noticed that they lacked any sort of keyhole. Instead, their locking mechanisms were controlled by a three-digit-combination set piece. Wendy figured it would be weeks of endless toil before she could figure out the correct set of numbers that would free her from her chains. "Talk about going over-the-top with all the effort here!"

Not to be deterred, the teen tried to squeeze her fingers in between the fetter around her shin in an effort to gain some extra slack. To her surprise, a thin foamed layer had been placed alongside in the inners of each cuff to avoid having the harsh metal dig painfully into her sensitive skin. Wendy scoffed sarcastically and rolled her eyes at the fact, "I should be grateful that they tried to make me comfortable this time around…"

*STOMP!*

Her witty banter faded as Wendy could hear a loud crashing sound in the distance. Her blood ran cold as she realized exactly what the noise was.

*STOMP!*

"Oh, man! He's coming! Just like the last time! Just like in my dreams! He's coming! I have to get outta here NOW!"

*STOMP!*

Growing desperate, Wendy ran towards the ring welded into the neon floor. She thrust her foot on top of the metal loop, picked up the chain that held her hostage, and pulled back with all of her might.

*STOMP!*

"Come on! Come on!" Wendy closed her eyes and yanked backwards in hopes of breaking the tie through the corroded circle. She bit her bottom lip as the jagged link dug straight into her hands, and yet, persisted in her escape attempt, knowing that her life did depend on it.

*STOMP!*

At long last, Wendy perceived a slight whining sound coming from the tiny vice that held her bondage. A brighten smile spread across her dimpled face as she realized that she was definitely making progress.

*STOMP!*

"Almost…there…." With her hands growing sore and redden, Wendy turned around and kicked her feet forward. Every thrust of one leg simply resulted in having the other one pulled back, but she didn't care. Wendy knew that every movement was a step further towards freedom.

*STOMP!*

Wendy peered behind her shoulder to see that the loop gave a bit more. As she continued to struggle, a huge shadow was casted over her lanky form. Wendy froze in place, taking a loud gulp before finding the courage to turn back around. The jolted redhead looked up to meet the scarred, pixelated face of her captor, Rumble McSkirmish!

The video game villain seized Wendy by her right arm, hoisting her off her feet and into the sky. Despite being scared out of her mind, she fought back with her free hand, pounding away on the brute's muscular bicep, "Let me go, you freak! Put me down!"

The world warrior laughed in her face, "AHA! It is like I told you before, red-headed ginger princess: this is your new home! There is no one who can help you now! After all, who would care about a worthless worm like yourself?"

Wendy stared deep in the scoundrel's glowing eye, as the other was covered by a black eye covering, and thought of her admirer, "You're wrong! Dipper cares! He's gone to heck and back for me time and time again! The same way I would for him!" The high-schooler prided in her young companion's accomplishments, "He's kicked your sorry butt more times than I can count, so just you wait until he gets here!"

She clicked her tongue at the fighter, hoping to intimidate him in the slightest. "You know," Wendy said with a sly grin forming, "If you were smart, you'd unlock my feet right now and let me walk outta here. Maybe; just maybe, I could convince Dipper to go easy on you this time…"

To her surprise, Rumble let out a series of hearty chuckles, making Wendy raise an eyebrow in response. The smile was wiped clean from her face, "What's so funny?"

Rumble flashed a wicked smirk of his own, "You, small girl, aren't fooling anybody! Rumble knows that "little chubby-faced-boy" isn't coming for you!"

"What – What do you mean? Of course he is!"

Oddly, Rumble turned away from the airborne teenager with pity, "There are only so many times that a hero can be pushed away before he disappears forever…"

"That doesn't make any sense! You don't know what you're talking – "

Wendy immediately stopped in mid-sentence as the argument between she and her friend came to mind:

"Just remember the next time something super-crazy comes to get you, I'm not going to be there to get you out of another jam!"

"I wouldn't ask for your help in the first place!"

Haunted by her own words, Wendy tried to mount a counter-argument, only to be let stuttering in response, "But, I mean, I didn't…and he wouldn't…"

Wendy could only lower her head in disappointment as the muscle-bound kidnapper bragged further, "It is as I said: no one is coming to help you! You are all alone here…"

The arm holding her up in the air started to glow an illuminating white. Wendy's body started to tingle from head to toe, "What's happening? What are you doing to me?!"

"You are mine now!" Rumble shouted, throwing his head back, "All your energy are belong to me!"

The girl tried to break free from the kung-fu-master's grip, but discovered she lacked the strength to do so. Her headache came back ten times as bad as her nimble form suddenly went limp. "S-S-Stop it! Don't do this, please!"

The creepy aura soon spread across Rumble's body, as he expressed amusement at her suffering.

"WE ARE ONE…FOREVER!"

"Nooooo!"

Wendy's eyes shot open as her heart continued to race. Her rapid breathing started to calm as she realized what had happened.

"It…It was all just a dream…"

The exhausted youngster let out a sigh of relief. As her sight cleared, Wendy found herself blinded by an overflow of bright red. She shook her head as this had happened to her countless times before. Using both hands, the ginger pulled her long, gorgeous red locks back in order to regain her vision.

Strangely enough, Wendy found herself staring at her trademark brown trapper hat as it lay at the top of the ceiling. Still in disbelief, she rubbed her fists against her emerald eyes and reopened them, growing even more confused by the disturbing scene.

"What the - ? How could that be –"

As Wendy looked around for an answer, the truth was shortly made apparent. The flurry hat was not stuck at the top of the room; rather she had been hung upside down!

Wendy looked around to see that she was now in some sort of underground cavern. In spite of the lack of natural light, the rocky structures seemed to give off an unnatural neon glow, illuminating the area in a radiant blue and green aura.

Trying her best to do an inverted sit-up, the athletic lumberjack princess pulled herself up to see what exactly she had been caught on. To her surprise, Wendy found that her boots had become literally entrenched into the actual roof of the grotto. She wiggled around in hopes of being able to squirm free, only to find that the hardened material holding her shins in a death grip refused to budge a single itch.

"Great…just great…"

Wendy lowered herself back down, her strength sapping away with every passing second. Left dangling, she let out a groan as the throbbing in her sides of her head returned. The sting made Wendy reflect on the remnants of her nightmare; she now understood where the sensations of ringing migraines and stuck feet stemmed from.

"But how did I get up here?" Wendy asked as she lightly swung back and forth, "It's almost like something tried to cocoon me aliv – HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

All of a sudden, a ticklish sensation formed along the smalls of her back, making the entrapped girl fidget and guffaw aloud uncontrollably. Wendy reached over to her backside, trying to wipe away the source of the torturous commotion. Moments later, the stir traveled sideways against her love handles and onto her sensitive tummy, making her break out into a heavier fit of giggles.

"*Hee-Hee!* STOP! STOP IT!" Wendy pleaded as tears started to form, "I CAN'T – "

Her forced glee turned to horror as Wendy made contact with what was causing her to thrash about in vain. Her eyes widened at the sight of a giant spider that had adhered itself to her plaid-colored stomach. The yellow creature had a reddish back covered in sharp spikes similar to that of a porcupine. All six of its crimson eyes focused on the teenager as she trembled in shock. It clicked its razor-sharp mandibles menacingly at its vulnerable quarry.

Wendy let out a shriek that echoed throughout the hollow complex.

In alarm, the agile adolescent shoved the oversized bug off her body, forcing it to the ground with a soft *THUD!* She watched as it flailed dozens of tiny legs in the air, before turning itself right-side-up and crawling away into the shadows.

"Ew! Ew! Ew!" Wendy cried as she tried her best to wipe all of the sticky slime off of her body. She knew that it was only a matter of time before the little monster would probably come back with a few dozen of its closest friends. All of the blood rushed from Wendy's feet to the tip of her head, making her dizzier with every passing second. "There has to be some way out of here…"

From out of the corner of her eye, Wendy noticed a series of pointed stalactites next to the wrapping that seized her ankles. A desperate idea formed in her mind. Wendy jolted herself from side to side in an effort to gain friction. Her tongue peeked out of her mouth as she counted off in rhythm.

"And-a-one…and-a-two…and here we go!"

With one last plunge upward, Wendy reached out and seized the rocky spike by the edge of her fingertips. Increasing her grasp on the point, the cashier girl pulled back as hard as she could. The uncomfortable position was starting to take its toll even on her flexible body.

"Just…a…little…more…"

*KRAK!*

Wendy fell back into gravity's hold, wavering in a pendulum-like fashion with her prize in hand. Taking advantage of the momentum, she held the stalactite with both hands, and started to chip away at her bind with every passing swing. At first, little to no impact could be made, save for the occasional spray of dust.

After the third or fourth stab, a narrow crack started to appear on the formation.

"Yes!" Wendy cheered, "It's working!"

She persisted in her attack; every moment brought her closer to freedom. More dirt and gravel started to pour out from the cocoon. Finally, the structure gave way and released Wendy's willowy legs, sending her crashing to the ground. Wendy let out a quiet yelp as her back slammed against the rigid floor.

With the breath knocked out of her lungs, the worn-out young woman took a minute to collect herself before setting off towards her next destination. Wendy reached over, reclaimed her beloved trapper hat, and placed it on the crown of auburn hair upon her head. Shakily rising to her feet, she slowly made her way into the shimmering unknown, unprepared for whatever fate had in store for her next.

Wendy only went a few steps before hearing a screeching sound coming from overhead. She glimpsed up for a split second to see a green and yellow blur zooming straight at her! The nimble lumberjack hopped back just before the thing struck the earth. With her guard up, Wendy carefully approached the weird being. It was a twisted bat creature with enlarged pinchers as wings. Fortunately, it appeared to damage itself severely in its suicidal attack. It let out a series of high-pitched whines as it floundered on the floor.

"Phew!" Wendy swiped her brow in relief, "That was too close for comfort!"

Her relief instantaneously vanished as she noticed that the carcass started to flash a bright red. As the seconds passed, the blinking became more rapid, growing with an intensity that made Wendy extremely nervous.

"I really don't like the looks of that!"

Without a second guess, the ginger dove to the side, taking refuge behind an enormous boulder. From her safe distance, Wendy watched as the beast exploded, releasing a countless amount of pixelized shrapnel into the air. She ducked back against the stone to avoid being tagged by the dangerous projectiles.

As soon as she knew it was safe, Wendy stepped out from her shelter perplexed what she had witnessed, "Those blocks…they're what the bad guys are made of…" She looked around the horizon, as if the answer was going to leap out at her, "Am I in one of those games from the arcade? If so, which one?"

The mere mention of her last adventure made Wendy think about her young friend, "I wonder how he's doing…"

Her mind drew a blank as another ominous resonance filled the subterranean air. From across the channel, Wendy could make out a group of tall armored soldiers huddled in an enclosed circle. Growing curious about the scene unfolding before her eyes, the slim girl flew from cover to cover stealthy in order to gain a closer look.

To her repulsion, Wendy discovered that the warriors were actually colossal grasshoppers locked into varying red and blue protective coverings. The style and designs of the outfits made it look like that they were from outer space. They noisily chirped amongst one another as they clustered alongside a floundering object in the middle. Narrowing her eyes to gain a better look, Wendy quickly covered her mouth to prevent an alarmed gasp from escaping past her lips.

In the center of the ruckus, Wendy recognized the spiky spider that had accosted her earlier. It squealed and howled in pain as the monstrous creatures devoured it alive. Buckets-full of brightly colored pixel blocks came pouring out in lieu of blood, guts, and sinew. Wendy took deep breaths out of her nose to try to stop the devastating sense of queasiness rising from the pit of her stomach.

Out of the blue, the boulder Wendy had been hiding behind rolled over, instantly revealing her position to the deadly insects. She had accidentally put too much weight against the huge stone, sending it over the small knoll it was positioned on.

All at once, the gigantic pests looked in her direction, their antennas twitching endlessly. They let out a series of angry twitters and crackles, pointing their clawed arms straight in Wendy's direction. The freaked-out redhead backpedaled slowly, trying her best not to further agitate the outlandish monsters. They took to the sky, landing in front of the wary teenager before she knew what was happening.

The grasshoppers surrounded Wendy, circumcising any chance of escaping. They twitched rapidly and spoke to one another in their own odd, warbled language, leaving her somewhat confused and off-guard. Not wishing to trigger a violent reaction, Wendy remained silent, waiting with cautiousness for their next move.

Without warning, the left most bug soldier took a swipe towards Wendy with its razor-tipped winged arm. She leaned back and dodged out of harm's way at the last possible second, only to deliver a counter-punch to its chest in retaliation. The trooper was barely moved, its face contorted as its tone grew angrier.

Wendy waved her stinging hand as the legion closed in even tighter. She smiled sheepishly at her feeble defense, "Maybe that was a bit premature…" All at once, the band leapt at her, prompting Wendy to dive towards the middle, scarcely missing their pounce. She rolled and sprang to her feet running, leaving her attackers clueless to where their prey had gone.

The fiends let out a sequence of irate, livid tweets, prompting Wendy to look behind her as she dashed away. Once more, the gang of armored grasshoppers hurdled after her in hot pursuit. Her heart rose to her throat as the beasts came closer with every passing second.

As she rounded the corner, Wendy was forced to come to a halt as she found her path blocked off by what appeared to be a massive hedge. Stretching from the cavern's roof, the peculiar plant life traveled all the way to the floor, putting a huge dent in the ginger's escape plan. Refusing to give up, Wendy ran her hands through the bushy mess, hoping to find safe passage through the obstacle, "There's just gotta be a way through this thing! I just know there is!"

The upcoming mangled chatter of the space bugs sent chills down Wendy's spine as she persist on trying to find a way through the hedge. Finally, she noticed a small crevice at the very bottom by her booted feet. Left without any other choice, Wendy dropped to her knees and swiftly crawled through into the hole.

Wendy treaded on all fours into the darkness. The further she traveled inside, the denser the air became. Suddenly, something reached from the entrance and gripped Wendy's left ankle, making the girl crash into the ground chin-first. The grit-covered boot had been firmly seized, being pulled back in the opposite direction; Wendy instantly knew from the skin-crawling tone who her attacker was.

"NO!" she screamed as she flipped onto her stomach, the loose branches poking and prodding her every moment. "LET GO! GET OFF ME!" Without being able to see, Wendy kicked into the distance with her free foot. The sound of multiple screeches insured that she was striking her intended target. With one last lash, Wendy watched as a bright light flashed throughout the gloomy crevice, followed by a colorful, blocky downpour.

"Well, that's one down…and I'm sure his friends aren't going to be pleased as punch about it!"

Wendy pulled herself into the other side; the fluorescent lighting guided her the rest of the way. She now stood before a lake of cloudy liquid; she wasn't sure if it was water or not. A network of floating pebbles reached across the mass, providing a route to anyone bold enough to attempt the feat.

*SCREECH!*

The redhead spun around to see a ghastly green head shrieking straight at her. The aliens were on their way through!

"Gulp! Guess I really don't have a choice now…"

Taking a deep breath, Wendy took off towards the edge of the lake, pressing off against the bank with her right foot. She landed on the first platform, struggling to maintain her footing while extending her arms out and to the side to help regain her balance. Feeling a bit more confident, Wendy made her way hopping stone to stone until she reached the middle of the lake.

A group of high pitched shrieks boomed through the open area. Wendy saw a shadow fly across the ground, only to be followed by a loud crash. She looked up to see one of the insect soldiers waiting for her at the other end of the lake. It drew its spiked arms back menacingly as it growled loudly at its upcoming meal.

Gathering all of her nerve, Wendy backed until the very edge of her current platform. Her covered heels dipped in the mysterious fluid. With a burst of energy, the brave lumberjack bolted, jumping through the remainder of her trail until she reached the final step. Wendy bounded from the last pebble with both feet, kicking her legs outwards, and used her arms to propel herself off of the baffled monster's shoulder blades, landing behind him in one piece.

"LEAPFROG!"

All satisfaction of her small victory was wiped away as more of the grasshoppers arrived alongside their brethren. Without getting the chance to catch her breath, Wendy hurried towards what appeared to be the end of the corridor. A metallic display place was hung overhead, yet the determined redhead knew it was too far to reach, even with her extra height. A silver staircase lead the way to what appeared to be a huge blue bubble entrenched in the wall.

Wendy ran towards the structure, unaware of what to expect from it. "Is it some kinda door?" she asked, curiously poking a finger at the hardened boil. The howls of the creepy-crawlies reminded her that she was not alone just yet.

She pounded on the bubble with both fists, occasionally looking over her shoulder to see the flying grasshoppers come even nearer. Wendy threw her shoulder roughly against the foamy surface, hoping to trigger any sort of reaction that would get her out of her current jam.

"OPEN UP!" Wendy carried on with pounding on the blue barrier, "C'MON, ALREADY! OPEN SESAME OR WHATEVER! THOSE THINGS ARE GOING TO BE HERE ANY – "

The noisy chattering sound in her ears alerted the teen that she may have spoken too soon. Wendy turned around to see that she had been surrounded by the bug men. Waving their antennae in her freckled face, they pressed down on the ginger, forcing her back onto the bubble.

"Uh…hey, guys…" Wendy offered a small, nervous wave. "Sorry about your buddy back there. To be fair, he was invading my personal space so…"

The creatures had the girl pinned with her back literally against the wall. Wendy closed her eyes, the noxious smell of their bad breath splashed against her front. There was no apparent escape in front of her…

*ZIP!*

Miraculously, the blue bubble finally gave way, as Wendy fell through to the other side. "WHOA!"

Landing on her rear, she watched in wonder as it resealed itself before the alien soldiers could make their way through. Surprisingly, they didn't try to follow her into the new chamber.

"Weird…" Wendy noted, rising to her feet, and dusting herself off. The newly-discovered area varied greatly from the last, giving off a dank, harsh feel. The room was devoid of all life, leaving behind a few stone steps leading up to a mysterious statue.

The silver effigy was that of a gargantuan hawk-like bird with almost-human-life features. Wendy noticed that it sported a similar styled armor to that of the grasshoppers. It lied in a sitting position, its head bowing down in respect, the pointed knees tucked up against its chest. The arms were extended outwards; a small brown sphere rested in its talons, as if the stranger was offering a gift to the confused redhead.

Wendy took her time making her ways up the steps, hoping that the slightest footfall wouldn't set off another impending danger. She made it safely to the raised dais, her curiosity getting the best of her. Wendy touched the ball with her index finger, flinching slightly as it melted away. Left in its place was a flashing object resembling a model of an atom Wendy had once seen in Science Class. The center nucleus repeatedly changed colors with every few seconds as several spinning dots circled it endless, leaving behind elegant streaks in the air as they passed.

Her emerald eyes mesmerized by the majestic sight before her, Wendy went to reach out for the newfound object, only to stop herself at the last second. She shook her head clear, "What am I doing?! I have no idea what this thing is, let alone what it could possibly do…"

She looked around, noticing the absolute emptiness of the room she was confined to, "Then again, I can't hide in here forever." Her sights returned to the article before her, "What if this thing could help me fight those things out there?"

With a sense of restlessness rising up within her, Wendy threw her left hand into the atom. A bright light poured out from it, forcing her to cover her eyes with her free hand. When it faded away, Wendy looked down at her hand to see that it was now sporting an almost-robotic reddish-orange glove. A growing green gem resided in the backside of her limb.

"Cool…" Wendy turned her wrist, analyzing every aspect of the change, "I wonder what it does…"

All of a sudden, the metal material moved past her hand, stretching itself over her entire arm, "What the - ?" Before she could react, it spread across her entire chest, leaving behind splashes of yellow. Wendy went into a full-blown panic, trying any way she could to prevent the substance from spreading itself further.

"WAIT!" Wendy screamed, clawing at the hardened matter as it moved down upon her right arm. Seconds later, the whole limb was left a shiny lime green. "STOP!" It quickly extended down her waist and over her legs and feet, showing the same sprays of red and orange that her upper body was marked with.

Wendy could feel the irregular sensation heading up her neck and towards her head. Her breathing became more and more shallow. She wanted to yell and cry out for help, but knew that there wasn't anyone around that would be willing to help her.

"AAA –!"

Her screams were silenced as the inexplicable entity swallowed her completely, leaving Wendy locked inside a perpetual world of absolute darkness. The cashier was left alone in silence for an unknown amount of time; she didn't know if it had been seconds, minutes, days, or even years!

Finally, amongst the constant black, a series of green-tinted text appeared before Wendy's eyes:

POWERING UP...CHOZO VARIA SUIT 3.0
VISOR...READY
ARM CANNON...READY
MORPH/SPIDER BALL...READY
BEAM/BOMB SYSTEMS…READY
HI-JUMP BOOTS...READY
SCREW ATTACK...READY
SYSTEM REBOOT IN 3..2..1..

"Huh? What is all of this stuff? What does it mean?!"

A moment later, it was as if the world has flashed back on; Wendy gasped as she saw a pair of bright green eyes looking back at her. It took a second to realize that she was looking a reflection of her very own.

"Okay, that's kind of creepy…" Wendy figured by the likeness that her face was now behind some sort of helmet, complete with protector visor. Using both hands, she tried to reach up under her neck and pull the covering off, only to find it locked in position.

"Nice…" she bemoaned while continuing to struggle, "It's stuck tight…"

The ground started to shake beneath her feet. Wendy looked around to see that the raised steps began to sink into the ground, making a wave of dust flow upwards. The eyes of the bird statue shone darken yellow, sending Wendy into high alert.

"Oh, now what?!"

The falcon memorial rose up on its own power. Fully standing on its hind legs, the creature paced towards her, towering over the gaping teenager standing in awe of the sight before her. Wendy wondered if this thing that had attached itself to her had somehow awakened the statue.

"Hey there, big fella…" she tried to explain what had happened, "I don't know what's going on, but if you really want this thing back, I'd be more than happy to give it up. I just gotta figure out how to get it off…" She shrugged her shoulders, "Maybe you could tell me how…"

The statue made a creaking sound as it reached back and swatted Wendy away like a gnat, sending her flying into the wall. With a groan, she slowly made it way to one knee, the sudden shift in her weight made it harder to get up-right easily.

"Ugh…I'll take that as a "no…""

Wendy turned around, figuring that a hasty retreat might be the best choice, rather than being crushed to death. The blue exit had been transformed to a solid grey state, trapping her inside of the room with the colossal bird. Yet again, the living sculpture advanced on her.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!"

Out of nowhere, a solid yellow laser beam shot out and struck the chest of the falcon, making its breast plate crumbles into pieces, exposing a system of networking wiring and gears. Back on her feet, Wendy looked to see that source had been a light-green blaster grafted onto where her right arm was supposed to be.

"How in the - ?" she questioned, pointing the arm cannon into the distance to gain a better view. "Where did this thing come from? And how did I make it go?" She looked ahead to see that the machine was started to recover from her surprise attack. "All I said was for it to stay away and then…"

Wendy started to understand how this thing worked, "I think I get it now…it's not physical, it's mental! It responses by what I think!" She focused all of her strength on the tip of the green cannon, and sure enough, a yellow spark started to form.

"It works!"

The ancient statue stood before her, its clawed hands extended out in preparation of another attack. "Hey, ugly!" Wendy challenged, pointing her new weapon at its damaged area, "Thanks for the gift!"

With that, another blast came forth from Wendy's right arm. Zapping the unprotected area a second time, the entire statue exploded into a million fiery pieces. With the threat eliminated, she looked back upon her firearm, "That…was…intense…!" Wendy patted the long tube affectionately, "I think I might hang on to you for a while longer…"

A blue flare came from behind her, forcing Wendy to spin around with arm cannon gripped. She found that the sealed-off balloon-door had returned to its original hue and squishy state.

"Huh…" Wendy pondered, lowering her gun, "I guess that big guy was holding it shut for some reason. I wonder why?"

Remembering that she could barely get the door to open with her bare hands, Wendy shot a light blast at the blue bubble. It opened immediately with a *ZIP!* sound.

"So, that's the deal!" She sped through the door and readied herself for another battle, only to find that all of her grasshopper pursuers had vanished without a trace. Wendy shook her helmeted head and mocked, "Of course they ran; now that it would be a fair fight!" She reflected on what had just happened in the other room, and wondered if the reason that she wasn't followed was because the bugs knew what was waiting on the other side.

Taking a moment to relax, Wendy walked back to the murky pond and glanced down at her reflection. A red and yellow rounded helmet covered her head as a bright-green visor provided her a clear view of this new foreign world surrounding her. Sturdy, shell-like yellow shoulder pads were mounted upon a ruby breast plate. A rigid golden chest piece gave Wendy's abs an overly-exaggerated muscular outlook. The same thin, yet incredibly robust red-orange armoring wrapped down her arms and legs. Her feet were thrown into a pair of yellow boots that resembled a sort of futuristic hi-top sneakers.

The fear left Wendy as she found herself in amazement at the total stranger staring back at her, "This…is…just wow! I look like some kinda insane killer robot from outer space! Only a crazy person would think that a girl would be inside this thing!"

Remembering how the green blaster reacted to her thoughts, Wendy tried to clear her mind, forcing herself to be as mellow as humanly possible, in spite of the desperate situation before her. Again, she reached up and gently lifted the helmet upwards…

*CLICK!*

A rush of cool air caressed Wendy's freckled face as she tucked the helmet under her arm. She looked back in the lake to see that she was now apple-cheeked; her long cherry hair had becoming tangled and matted in the short while it had been encased. Wendy searched around the area for another path, only to come up empty-handed. She raised her sights to the unreachable platform she had passed earlier, figuring that she had nowhere else to go besides up. She let out a dejected sigh as she put her headwear back on.

Wendy took a few paces back, and began to sprint towards her goal. She huffed and puffed until she reached the start of the staircase, and speedily propelled herself upwards. Wendy reached out for the ledge, only to realize in mid-jump that she was going to come up short.

"It's no use! I'm not going to reach it!"

Suddenly, Wendy felt a boost shoot up beneath the soles of her feet, giving her the extra height that she needed to make the jump. She spun head over heels, only to stand on the protrusion with perfect precision.

"How in the heck did I -?" Wendy bent her knee, and lifted her leg in order to exam the underside of her new boots. Small holes producing hot pockets of air traveled along with the bottom of her heel to the tips of her toes; she literally had rockets in her new shoes!

"This just keeps getting cooler and cooler!" Wendy gleamed. "Man, if Dipper was here, he'd totally geek out and –"

The measly reference to her comrade, as if nothing had happened between the two of them, weighted heavy on her mind. Wendy knew that Dipper was in as much trouble as she was. She chalked up the odds of her little friend actually hearing her apology was slim to none. In that case, if the worse possible scenario had occurred, the redhead realized that the last thing she would had told him was how much she hated him, and how she blamed him for this mess. The taunting warning given by Rumble McSkirmish in her nightmare came flowing back into her sub consciousness…

Wendy shook away the negativity. She wouldn't let that happen! No matter what had been said and done between the two, she would find a way to save her Dipping Sauce!

"With this baby on my side…" she flicked a bit of space dust off her armored suit, "I'm sure I can take on anything that caped weirdo can toss at me. Once I find Dipper, we can figure out how to stop all of this, and then, we can try to sort out all that other stuff…" After all, Wendy believed that what she had told the video game fighter – she knew that if everything was the opposite, Dipper would stop at nothing to find her.

The ginger looked up to see that another blue bubble door awaited her in the ceiling, "That is…if I figure out a way out of this place first…"

*ZIP!*

Wendy climbed out of the doorway to find herself in grassland surrounded by cauliflower-blue structure. She found it to be a vast improvement over the cold feeling of isolation and loneliness she felt while being imprisoned in the glowing cavern.

*EEEEEEKKKKKK!*

A shrill cry rang throughout the new passageway. Wendy followed the ear-piercing sound to the edge of the passage; the sight at the end brought her to a stand-still.

The vicious grasshopper-soldiers that had plagued her earlier had returned. Only this time, they had found a new victim to intimidate. Trapped in the corner of the verdant space, three tiny elven creatures shivered bunched together as the immense invaders advanced towards them. The blue creatures reminded Wendy of miniature monkeys, except for the adorable little antennae onto their foreheads.

The scene struck a nerve with the young woman. Perhaps it was that she felt empathy over being terrorized by the same monsters moments before. Maybe it was that she was reminded once more of her missing friend, and how the world always seemed to love picking on him. Wendy charged a shot in her blaster; luckily for Dipper and the baby apes in peril, she was such a person that had no problem defending the little guys when they needed it the most.

*BBBBLLLAAAAMMMMM!*

Two of the giant bugs exploded into a rainbow of dust-like pixels. The rest of the group turned around and screeched at the merciless orange combatant charging in their direction with guns blaring at full blast.

"BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!*

When all of the dust had cleared, only one insect fiend remained. The red shielded beast crossed its arms and shoved them off, releasing a glowing laser beam at the unaware teenager. It struck her in the chest, jolting her back a few yards.

"Lasers?! These things had lasers?!" Wendy wondered as she made it back to her feet, if it was this single one that had the advanced weaponry, or were the brutes were having too much fun frightening her when she was left defenseless. She returned another charged shot, only to have the grasshopper deflect it with its claws.

"Darn it!" she cursed, "I'm going to need something stronger, but where can I…"

Before Wendy could finish her sentence, the suit seemingly started to react to her thoughts again. Her green-tipped arm parted at the top, widening the blaster hole even further. A silver tip peeked out from the end.

"What's this? A new thingie?"

The bug roared at Wendy, lowering its head as it sprang into the air. She raised her arm and let the suit take over for her. In lieu of a charge beam, a thin, flaming missile came rocketing out of her cannon, striking the villain with such velocity, its entrails splattered over the landscape in a colorful, pixel-covered mess.

"Good riddance…" Wendy lowered her weapon and stared at the still-shaking oddities before her. Beneath her visor, she offered a friendly smile and a simple wave of her metal hand, "Hiya!" An awkward silence spanned the nearly-empty arena as the azure monkey-like life forms stared up at her with soft, black eyes.

Wendy bent down as far as the restrictive suit would allow her to, "It's okay, really...those jerks are toast, so you guys don't have to be afraid…"

Without a moment's notice, they ran away from the kind-hearted fifteen year old and leapt against the prickly wall. Wendy watched in awe as they skipped from hedge to hedge until they disappeared from sight.

"…anymore…"

She sighed to herself, and prepared to double-back in the opposite direction in hopes of finding another way out of the labyrinth. As Wendy went to go back, she felt a small hand brush against her right thigh. The ginger glimpsed down to see the third simian looking up at her with admiration.

"Hey…" Wendy calmly greeted through her helmet. "What's the matter? Why didn't go you with your friends?"

The monkey pulled its hand back repeatedly, as if it wanted Wendy to follow him. As was the case with its counterparts, the blue furball hurled itself against the side of the room, and boosted itself upwards with each leap and bound. Wendy remained on the ground, wondering what was it that it was trying to tell her.

Seeing that its rescuer was confused by its actions, the chimp dropped back to the earth, and welcomed her again to tag along. It jumped up two paces, clawing into the shaggy surface, and waited for Wendy to get the picture.

"Wait! You want me to…" She shook her head, "I can't, small fry! There's no way I can…"

The monkey interrupted her doubts with a rant made up of unintelligible grunts and murmurs. It reached downwards with its tiny paw and welcomed Wendy to its level.

"I can't believe I'm even considering this…" Wendy started to back up a bit. She knew she hadn't seen another path on the way in, plus, those little apes had to be going somewhere up there…

Putting her faith in her newfound allies and the mystifying suit that had adhered itself to her, Wendy took off towards the wall and at the last possible moment, threw herself against the edge. She somersaulted in mid-air, finding herself able to gain a small grasp on the downy rim. Following the example of her collaborator, Wendy pushed off against the partition and towards the opposite end; the boosters in the bottoms of her boots allowed her to glide effortlessly.

Seeing that she was making progress, the blue chimpanzee continued on its journey, as Wendy followed along in a reddish blur.

"Amazing…" Wendy said to herself; her mind and body in perfect harmony despite the constant dizzying spinning, "I'm flying up this thing like I'm some kind of ninja girl or something like that…"

At the top of the chamber, dozens of feet in the air, Wendy watched from the distance as the primate landed on a narrow ledge on the right side of the wall. It tucked itself into a small opening at the very bottom of the platform. Taking a deep breath, Wendy launched herself toward, pressing off with her booted feet, and reached out for the ledge with her free hand. Her heart rose into her throat as she started to descend.

At the last moment, Wendy was able to snag the cliff by the tips of her fingers. She struggled fiercely; sweat pouring down her covered brow as she was able to pull herself up. Resting on one knee, the redhead lowered her head into her chest as she caught her breath.

Once rested, Wendy tried her best to peer into the cubby-hole that her blue helpers had vanished into her. The overall bulkiness of her armor prevented her from exploring the chamber further.

"I can't believe this!" Wendy lamented, "I'm too big to follow them inside! Who would design this thing where you can't crawl while wearing it?! If only I can make myself a bit smaller…"

As if the suit had heard her wish, Wendy noticed that it seemed like her body began to shrink "Hey! Wait a sec-" Within seconds, she found herself at eye level with the darkened hole. Wendy went to move forward, only to notice that she was now rolling!

"Talk about being careful what you wish for!" The cynical ginger could feel her body spin and rotate in a similar fashion to a ball, and yet, her vision and structure remained the same, thankfully removing any instance of motion sickness. She revolved down the path, bumping along a set of twists and turns as she followed a dimming speck of light at the tunnel.

Wendy popped through the tunnel with an audible *POOF!* As soon as she reached stable ground, she could feel her body transform back into her original tall and thin figure.

"Well, that was trippy…" Wendy reflected on her transformation, "…but definitely nifty." She spied ahead to see that the three animals stood in front of an enormous structure etched into the stone wall. The girl walked towards the mini-aliens, wondering what had captured their attention, "Whatcha guys looking at…"

Wendy found herself standing before a set of hieroglyphics that stretched from the top of the cavern to the very bottom. While unable to decipher the strange foreign language that surrounded the piece, she took note of several drawings that appeared to tell some form of tale. Taking a few steps forward, Wendy narrowed her emerald eyes as she tried to make sense of the imagery.

"Let's see…"

The first illustration was that of a village being burnt to the ground. Several red shades highlighted the fires that consumed the simple-looking buildings. Wendy gasped upon seeing the depiction of the invaders.

"It's those bug things!"

The next illustration had a crying female child being comforted by a group of towering, bird-like extraterrestrials; they, too, also triggered a memory within Wendy's psyche, "They look like that statue thing that had the suit – so they're really the good guys?! Then, why did it attack me?!"

The portraits that followed seemingly told the story of how the eagles raised the girl from infancy to adolescence. They taught her how to play; how to fight hand-to-hand, and with weaponry; they showed her how to survive.

"They – they raised this girl…" Wendy wondered. "It looks like that they were a big, happy, foster family…" A wave of sadness overcame the teen, as she wasn't just reminded of her own family, but that of her makeshift one back at the Mystery Shack.

The last set of paneling chronicled the return of the nasty grasshoppers. This time, they were engaged in battle with the bird creatures. The drawing gave indication that the efforts were neck-in-neck, resulting in losses on both sides.

"Those pests…" Wendy theorized, "It's like, they're locusts or something. They go from place to place plundering and destroying whatever they can get their grimy mitts on…"

The final portrayal was that of the little girl – now grown up and matured, receiving an armored suit similar to the one that Wendy wore. Just as she had, the girl used all of the skills she had been taught, along with the new artillery, to fight back against the raiders that attacked her home.

Wendy stepped back from the hieroglyphics, her mind blown by the recent disclosure. To her, the whole scenario felt way too convenient, and yet, here she was. The girl in the drawing used the suit given to her by the bird people in order to fight against monsters and protect the people she cared about, and Wendy was just in the process of doing the exact same thing!

"That's…crazy!" Wendy took one last look at the construction as all of the pieces started to come together in her head. "What if this whole nightmare was something more? What if it was like, destined to happen no matter what? What if I had to find this thing in order to stop those guys and have a shot to get out of here?"

With a renewed sense of strength and optimism, Wendy thanked her new pals and quickly parted ways; they waved good-bye with their stubby blue-furred arms. Out of the corner of her eye, she could make out another blue bubble door leading to a new destination. She stood in front of it, reflecting on everything that she had been shown, and zapped the door open with a short beam.

*ZIP!*

"Hang on, Dipper! I'm on my way!"