Tales Of The Flame & The Ax: A Shooting Star Falls Story

Part Thirty-One: Unpleasant Truths and Shadow Hunting

Dipper Pines waited outside his bedroom door as the muffled cries of his wife were heard on the other side of it. He wasn't sure what Tambry had said to upset her, but knew that it had to have cut deep. After lightly knocking on the door, he opened it to find Wendy face down in the middle of their king-sized bed. "Wen... What's the matter?" he asked while climbing onto the mattress. "She such a fucking bitch, Dip... I-I mean, why did she have to even bring that shit up?" the auburn haired woman said before sniffling. "What'd she bring up?" Dipper asked as he looked his lover in her emerald colored eyes. Wendy let out a sigh as she realized that it was finally time to reveal one of the only secrets she had ever kept from her lover. "She brough up the fact that I killed someone..." she admitted in a sullen tone. Dipper took a moment to process what he had just heard. Surely it was a misunderstanding on his part. He was fairly confident that his wife did not just confess to committing murder. "What are you talking about?" Dipper asked in a confused voice. "It's true. The night that woman tried to run us down... She wasn't killed instantly in the car crash like the police and the news said she was... I... I fucking killed her, man!" Wendy said as fresh tears streamed from her already reddened and puffy eyes.

A few moments passed as both thought of what to say next. "Are you sure? Like, one-hundred percent sure?" Dipper asked. "Yeah. In the initial police report, they said that she would have survived with severe cognitive impairment according to the coroner" Wendy answered. "So... In a roundabout way, you kinda did her a favor by putting her out of her misery..." Dipper replied. "I think you're missing the bigger point here. I. KILLED. ANOTHER. HUMAN. BEING. I'm a fucking monster, Mason..." Wendy said in a haunting voice that lacked any trace of emotion. "Wendy. Listen to me. You are not a monster. She tried to kill us, okay?" the chestnut haired man said as he tried to calm his wife. "Yeah, bu-" she began before being cut off. "But nothing! You did what you needed to. Nothing came of it and nothing has to. Maybe Tambry is right on this one. We should just let this be and stop worrying about Gideon. The Magic Killers are the ones we should be focused on right now" the thirty-three year old man interjected. Wendy thought about what he had just said. Perhaps she had taken what her best friend had said a bit too much to heart. Maybe she missed the point that the violet haired reporter was trying to make. "You're right. I think that's what Tambers was trying to say to me, but she just said it in a really shitty way. Dipper, I'm going to the shed to get my hunting gear. I don't know about you, but I'm gonna bag me two demons or die tryin'" Wendy said in a determined voice. "Perhaps we should wait until Fo-" Dipper began before being cut off. "No. We've waited long enough. Time for some action..." the redhead said as she quickly left the room. Dipper soon followed as he tried to think of how to convince his wife to calm down and think about things a bit more carefully. After all, dream demons count on mortals using their emotions to make rash decisions.

Wendy walked through the living room as her daughter continued to watch tv. "You okay, Mom?" the silver haired girl asked with genuine concern. "Yeah. Sorry about before, by the way. I shouldn't have lost my temper like that in front of you" the thirty-six year old woman apologized. "It's alright. We all get angry from time to time. So, what got you all heated in the first place?" Pacifica asked. "It was just one of those things that happened a long time ago that your Aunt can't seem to let go of. Nothing major, but it's kinda a sore spot for me..." the auburn haired woman lied. "Oh. So, where are you off to?" the fifteen year old girl inquired. "We're just full of questions right now, aren't we?" Wendy thought to herself. "I'm going to dig my hunting gear out of the shed. Wanna help?" she answered. "But hunting season doesn't start for a few more weeks I thought..." Pacifica said. "Someone's been reading her Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife handbook..." Wendy replied in a prideful voice. "Yup. I figured Grandpa Dan is gonna take us out the first day of the season, so I'd better brush up on it" the teenager said. " Good on ya! You definitely got that Corduroy blood in you, that's for sure. What I'm hunting isn't listed in that handbook though..." the ginger woman said as a sly smirk formed on her face. "You're not gonna hunt Aunt Tambry, are you?" Pacifica said in a lighthearted manner. "Nah... If I were going to do that, her head would already be hanging on our wall. I'm tired of waiting. I'm gonna bag me a pair of demons..." her mother replied. "In that case, count me in!" Pacifica said with excitement as she got up from the sofa. "Girls, I applaud your enthusiasm, but I really think that we should maybe develop some sort of pla-" Dipper said as he followed the pair into the dark kitchen.

Flipping on the light, the trio saw Ford sitting at the table with a glass in his hand. By Dipper's best guess, it was probably an Irish whiskey, as it was Ford's go to liquor of choice. "Evening..." the grey haired man greeted them. "Evening, Ford. You always sit in dark rooms while sipping on whiskey?" Wendy asked in a playful manner. "Only when the mood strikes. I couldn't help but overhear about how you were going demon hunting..." the older man remarked before taking a sip from his glass. "Well, we can't just sit around and wait for them to do something. It's like that one general dude from World War Two said... The best defense is a good offense" Wendy replied. "Actually, the first documented use of that quote goes back to Sun Tzu, the author of 'The Art of War' and dates to 500 B.C. according to most scholars. General George Washington was the first person to have used it in a written document in English, however in 1799..." Ford said in a matter-of-fact way. "Well, thanks for the history lesson and all, but I've gotta go dig out my gear. Say, what do you think is better for taking out a demon? A twelve gauge or a three-fifty? I know! Maybe I can borrow Dad's AR!" the redhead excitedly said. "None. If we could have stopped Bill Cipher with a shotgun, don't you think we would have?!" Ford said in an annoyed tone before pounding the remaining whiskey and slamming the glass onto the wooden table; conveying his frustration to his family members. "Then what do we do?" Wendy asked. "I happen to have just the thing. I was going to wait until tomorrow to tell you about them, but what the heck. Let's go downstairs..." Ford said while getting up from the table.

Ford, Dipper, Wendy and Pacifica headed down to the basement, where the snores of Stan echoed off the walls. "I've been working on these since pretty much since the minute we arrived back in town. BEHOLD!" Ford exclaimed as he lifted a sheet off of a work bench. Underneath it was what looked to be a pair of shotguns, a sniper rifle and almost a dozen handguns that all looked to be from the future. By Wendy's best guess the firearms appeared to be made out of some sort of plastic and had a blue glow to them in certain parts. "Awesome... My Great Uncle in-law has taken up arms building in my basement. Nothing illegal about that or anything..." Wendy said in an annoyed tone. "Wendy, please don't be daft. These aren't regular guns... They're Quantum Destabilizers. They contain Promethium, which is extremely harmful to demons" the grey haired man explained. "So, we just find them and light 'em up? Count me in!" Wendy said in an enthusiastic tone. "NO. The fact that they are currently possessing the bodies of other people complicate this thing a great deal. If we 'lit them up' as you suggested, you'd be killing the bodies they possess as well. If it comes to it, we could do that, but it would only be a last resort" Ford explained to the former police officer. "So what do we do then? Wait for them to jump ship on the Gleeful's?" Wendy asked. "Exactly. We have to get them to use their powers so that the Moonstones Stanley and I have placed around the town can drain them of their magical capabilities. Once they're weak enough, they won't be able to stay inside their vessels and that's when we strike" Stanford said. Dipper stood silently as he took in the conversation. He knew that if anyone could curb his lover's enthusiasm it would be the elder member of the family.

The next day, the Pines family had once again returned to Gravity Falls Regional Medical Center, but this time it was to bring Mabel home. To say that she was eager to leave would have been an understatement. While the digital music player had been a welcome source of entertainment for the auburn haired fifteen year old, nothing compared with the freedom that the outside world had to offer. After getting settled in Wendy's onyx colored sport utility vehicle, the family set off for home. "Glad to have you back, sis..." Pacifica said in a sincere voice as she looked over at her twin. "Same here. It felt weird not having you nearby" Mabel agreed. In the front passenger seat, Dipper had overheard the exchange and thought of how he had often harbored the same feelings whenever he and Mabel would be separated for an extended period of time. It was a feeling he knew all too well these days and silently prayed that his daughters would never know it. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm starving!" Wendy said. "OH MY GOD, YES! CAN I PLEASE GET SOME REAL FOOD IN ME?!" Mabel commented, which drew laughter from her family. "Greasey's?" Dipper asked. "Sounds good to me!" his daughter agreed. The rest of the trip was spent discussing what they would order when they arrived at the iconic restaurant that lay on the outskirts of the town.

Authors Note: So, I know this is a shorter chapter. Sorry, but I have had very little time to write as of late. I've also been going through a lot of personal things in my life that have distracted me from writing, which ironically enough would probably help me cope with it better. My chapters might tend to be on the shorter side going forward, but I promise they'll still be plenty full of shocking twists and turns as we approach the end of this story. Thanks for the fan art, reviews and follows! Until next time... - iKLOT

WENDY's DEMON HUNTING MIX:

Children Of Bodom - "If You Want Peace, Prepare For War"

Eminem - "Till I Collapse"

Bring Me The Horizon - "Can You Feel My Heart"

Kendrick Lamar ft. MC eiht – "M.A.A.D. City"

Pantera - "Walk"

Slipknot - "Psychosocial"

Queens Of The Stone Age - "Go With The Flow"

The Amity Affliction - "Fight My Regret"

Asking Alexandria - "Morte et Dabo"

Limp Bizkit - "Break Stuff"

Suicide Silence - "You Only Live Once"

scarlxrd - "6feet"

KILLSTATION - "VENGEANCE"

Bring Me The Horizon ft. Yungblud - "Obey"

HYRO/ David Dralman - "We Believe"