Robbie was not happy, but he had no choice. At least his parents were alive and safe from anomalous horrors...for now.
For some reason, Sarah, that Occultist doctor, was testing blood samples of everyone with the assistance of that creepy bird doctor. Said it was mandatory something about a "pathogen" that may come from another dimension thanks to the dimensional instability, though not beyond the realm of possibility considering everything he did not buy that it was because of that.
As he pessimistically thought, he passed by the supply storage, except something was wrong.
"What?" he saw the door half opened with its lock broken, one would think he would see this breaking as a sign that he should alert the authorities instead of just going inside out of mere curiosity and putting himself in danger like all slasher horror movies involving mutilation of teenagers, but it was for an even stupider reason.
"Oh neat, free food that isn't beef from that deformed cow!" He snickered mischievously, producing beef from Big Charlie was the only source of food that wasn't limited so most meals involved that, even though it was safe for consumption and tasted like normal beef with a hint of chicken that didn't mean he wasn't any less revolted at the prospect of eating meat produced by that genetically engineered abomination thus he entered.
The place was a bit dark so it made it a bit hard to see, Robbie whistled innocently as he looked around seeing a bag of chips which he gladly took.
"Sweet." He took it, and then he heard something moving behind him with the sound of something falling, he glanced back fast and dropped the chips, and he saw an empty can of pineapples still swirling a bit on the ground.
He nervously asked "W-who is it?" he slowly grabbed his phone and activated its flashlight mood.
He looked around and saw something inside an empty aquarium glass.
"YOUR DOOM!"
Robbie was startled and nearly jumped back before realizing what it was.
"Oh, it's you." He huffed in annoyance, it was the Pester Bot inside of it.
"Release me insect from this foul contraption! My reign to unleash so deserving destruction on this mudball of a planet is inevitable- "
"How about a no?"
Robbie then left the still ranting and monologuing wannabe supervillain, he was an anime fan; however, even he thought Pester Bot got its name well-served for how much a pest and annoyance with its comically villainous motifs is.
Just when he walked away from the small robot, he heard another chittering, he looked and saw another can of food falling on the ground, it was a can of beans and it was still fresh making him tense.
' Stupid, stupid, stupid!...' he repeatedly cursed himself, comprehending that he was now stuck in a horror trop and he, being the teen, was going to die horribly as he circled.
Another chittering move and he looked back again, again didn't catch what it was. Dreading, he looked around with his flashlight and finally he saw what it was, it was not what he was expecting.
"Wh- We- WENDY!?"
It was indeed Wendy herself, standing weakly with one leg a bit slack, suggesting she was hurt and holding her left shoulder with a hand and there were a few bandages on her.
"No it is the Ghost of Christmas past, OF COURSE IT'S ME!" Wendy screamed in frustration.
Sputtering, Valentino remarked.
"But- they said you disappeared!"
"Well DUH! I was transported here and was stuck here in the dark! One moment I was in the middle of a warzone then I was here in this dark place not seeing the light for days with that irritating bot!"
Frustration and exhaustion were palatable to her.
Pester Bot hearing this joined in indignation "What's the meaning of this? You disgusting larva creature should be honored to have me in your company."
Ignoring the irritating bot, the Emo asked:
"Why did you stay here?"
"Don't you think I tried!?" the Lumberjack roared. "These walls are thicker than your thick skull to get a 'no' for an answer!"
Robbie winced at the outburst. The Lumberjack blinked and cleared his throat.
"No wait…sorry, it's just been so long being stuck here with nothing but darkness and that monologuing scrapeater keeps me company." She held both of her shoulders in shiver. She then looked at him and questioned and then came to give him a surprise hug which he was caught off guard, not that he was complaining of course. Afterwards, she ended the hug.
"Do you know where the Pines are? Where's Dipper? Or Mabel"
That was odd, from what he heard Dipper and Mabel were there with Wendy.
"They disappeared with you… I thought you know?"
"Look, everything was hectic! There were soldiers, a lizard, an armored giant and plant zombies, everything was a haze back there." She swung a hand up as a gesture.
Robbie understood, from what he heard that battle was true as insane or more so than that night at the Shack where he got jelly therapy(even thinking about it makes him embarrassed) and then had a literal hole made in his chest by that sociopathic lunatic only to be saved by a patchwork bear of all things.
"How is everything?"
The pale-skinned boy frowned.
"Well…it went to hell frankly speaking." he then gave a tired and traumatized look.
"It's like Weirdmageddon 2.0 outside with bizarre monsters and cyborgs hunting us down, and oh there's another interdimensional eldritch god knocking at our door and we have to eat beef from a deformed genetic monstrosity."
"How's your parents?"
Robbie formulated a response with uncertainty.
"They're good, I guess…I haven't seen them so worried for a long time and they are like constantly cheerful that would make zombies weirded out."
"I feel you, God knows what my family is like now." the redhead said, then she pondered something "Say…do have an extra phone? I think I've lost mine."
"Uh, sure." He pulled out his phone and gave it to her, who then started searching it and checking its apps. "Though there's no internet since the whole thing started and my cellphone is only 20%, should I bring a charger?"
Instead of answering that, Wendy changed to a new question.
"How's the sun?"
" The Sun?" that was a weird question, maybe being stuck here in the dark made her starve of sunlight? "It's…still in the sky I guess? But there's fog and polluted clouds that stop much of it. Sometimes it becomes hard to even recognize when it is dawn or twilight."
She seemed disappointed at this until she asked a new question that was even odder.
"Do you have any food with you?
"But isn't there food here?"
Her expression from friendly suddenly turned sinister with a malicious smile.
"But I always wonder what primates taste like."
Her teeth sharpened, and her eyes began to go magenta and grew bigger. Her skin turned white and her mandibles opened up, terrifying Robbie, who yelped and fell backwards with a thud. The abomination attempted to speak, but its voice was a horrible mimicry of Wendy's.
"No! Hey HEY!"
"What do you think? Good look for a picture day!?" that thing declared with a mock dramatic pose.
It morphed and changed into a deformed white, larvae-like creature with big eyes, mandibles and one hand and a crab arm the latter of which he used to grab the terrorized emo who got a little too close for comfort to look at the hideous creature in all its insectoid splendor while his other hand throw his phone away as it now used his real voice.
"Of all beings I made fools of, you were the most gullible to do so, so easy that you took the fun from it, and nearly made me laugh the whole time, all I needed was to tell you what you wanted and you threw all caution and reason giving me what I wanted." Shifty mused with his dreadful teeth "WHY would the red girl ever choose you as her potential mate before buggles me, Your bad genetics would make her offspring as dumb as you."
"LET ME GO YOU LARVA FREAK!" He gasped hoarsely and now understood why Pester Bot called fake Wendy a disgusting larva creature; it did look like a deformed larva. He hasn't felt such terror since Creepy Man hunted him and his gang down and nearly tortured him with his acidic liquid while he struggled frantically and kicked to get out like trapped prey.
Shifty tsked with his mouth.
"Tell you what? Since you've been so helpful, I will make this quick."
"What!?" He dreaded what he meant.
"Close your eyes!" Shifty's mouth got impossibly stretched big with teeth everywhere making Robbie fall into a panic frenzy of seeing such a gruesome end.
"NO-NO HEEEEEEELP!"
Before Robbie gets devoured into the overstretched maw as he cries for his life, two gunshots hit the creature causing green blood to spill and make it give an inhuman screech which is followed by an ax thrown at the arm holding Robbie spilling even more green blood and Shifty losing his grip on Robbie as its screechs of painful got louder.
The two shots came too close as Shifty knew, too close as if near his skin which should be impossible which normally would be if not for the blonde Iris using her anomalous ability to direct it at some other point, The alien shapeshifter with a screech then changed form into a one-eyed brownish-red monster on crab legs and next fight the attackers who rudely interrupted his meal.
Dan with a roar so as Shifty locked in a fight,
Fortunately, Dan was experienced in dealing with enemies bigger than him thanks to spending time with half-human and half-bull beings and once wrestling with a bear. Dan dodged the attacks and gave a few punches to the alien, Alexei jumped with his thruster and grabbed him from its back. Shifty growled seeing he was being attacked from both sides he morphed into a pterodactyl, roared and ran away from them and toward the half-opened door opening it with a thunderous thumb making the people outside who were doing their day-to-day lives exclaim and back away.
Blitrov raced toward him to the outdoor of the storage and pointed an advanced net gun "Oh no you don't letayushchaya kuritsa(flying chicken)!" he shot and the aim hit the target, Shifty screeched as he fell thanks to the newt caught his left.
Shifty fell on the ground as a group of Lilliputians and Gnomes yelped and ran away to avoid being crushed, he quickly changed back to his true form to get off the net where he met someone familiar. In front of him was Fiddleford McGucket with his son Tate McGucket and a self-improving robot who was carrying a toolbox, a box with scrap metals and a list order who were surprised, in particular, Fiddleford who looked like he just saw a ghost.
"HEH!?!?"
The Shapeshifter grinned with its disturbing teeth and overstretching smile at his luck, if he couldn't take his revenge on the Pines he would take it on those helping them.
"Hello, Fidds! Still, Sixers scared pathetic henchmen?"
He then with a roar tried to jump at him as he turned into a giant wolf to rip him apart as Fidds fell backwards in gear, Tate instinctively dropped his container and moved between him and his father and then the self-improving automaton joined in with a new upgrade he built which was a pulse gun that activated from his right hand's wrist shot a pulse of electricity sending Shifty flying away who made wolf whimpering sounds who before hitting a near shop transformed into a Manotaur who's sheer size broke the shop. Coming out of the damaged shop seeing the coming biomechanical soldier who was between him and the running Fidds with his allies he with a bull's bellow charged fast forward to squash them with horns ready, Alexei in a superhuman feat of strength grabbed both horns as the earth screeched from his feet cracking from the force and weight of holding a greek monster as the Russian grunted even with her biomechanical suit feeling strained in helding Shifty.
Then, as they were stuck in a contest of strength the changeling alien seeing that blonde human among a few armed humans and non-humans(Yerens and Manotaurs) quickly changed into a duplicate of the Russian supersoldier causing them to break off and then the fake Blitrov fight the real one as they fell on the ground circling.
Marcus and his brothers who upon hearing the commotions came.
"What's going on?" Marcus demanded.
Next, Dan with Iris uttered upon seeing two Alexeis.
"Oh, great!" the latter uttered in dismay.
Both Blitrovs got up and accused each other.
"He's the shapeshifting alien!" the first one said.
"Don't believe what this Baba Yaga says!" the second one said.
Dan demands a clue.
"Give a sign!"
Both Blitrovs looked at each thinking about what their action should be next.
Kevin did something unexpected, he saw a store with boxes filled with human junk that whoever the owner of the store was collected to sell to the supernatural inhabitants of Gravity Falls one of which was a taser gun and shot on the second Blitrov, electricity coursed and second Blitrov shapeshifted into its true form as it howled from feeling the electricity coursing in his body.
"Nice try, bug face!" Kevin grinned, but his victory was short as immediately, the Shapeshifter changed into some oversized mutated frog creature that used its tongue to snatch the surprised Gus and near himself who then changed back to its original form with its claw around Gus's neck which stopped Alexei from where he stood so as others from doing anything, Daniel visibly was growling at his youngest son being used as a bargaining chip.
"Stay back! Or this pulp will lose his head!"
While Shifty threatened to make his point he tightened his claw a bit making Gus whine in discomfort, he noticed Soos who heard something was going on and was alarmed by seeing the Shapeshifter again.
"The fat human and Fidds? Shame the redhead and the Pines aren't here, would make for one helluva reunion!"
Fidds shouted with a hand.
"Stop! Your beef is with me and Fordsy, leave' em out of this."
"Then you and they should have thought of it before keeping me in a cage like an animal and then putting me in a freezer again!" Shifty snarled at Fidds who looked guilty at that and then he gave a hateful glare at Soos who winced at the freezer statement. "Now everyone back off before something regretful happens!"
The patriarch of the Corduroy family was not deterred as his teeth ground together hard.
"I've done a lot of things I regret, killing you would not be one of them, RELEASE MY SON NOW!"
"I'M THE ONE HOLDING THE CARDS HERE!" Shifty declared with his teeth visible.
Without any alarm, something screeched behind Shifty.
Alien Screech
"What the- "
He looked back and saw a dome-looking creature in an environmental suit which surprised him who then with two of its many hands swung a frying pan hard at his head with all their might. Comically, thanks to Shapeshifter's shifting ability his head in a desperate way of adaptation became flattened and stayed like that even after the pan was no more, losing his grip on Gus who then ran back to his family.
"Youuuuu… weakling one formeEeeed Dommme-Headedeed…" he tried to use his claw to eviscerate the daring creature as he felt dizzy.
Alien Chirp
This one came from another being that was not the dome creature as he understood, when he looked over he got a nasty surprise.
Thump!
The bowling ball hit so hard at his face that green blood dropped, lost three teeth and fell backwards to the ground. Shifty with his face becoming even flatter than his head with lost teeth was not unconscious, evident by his gaggles of agony feeling every bone on his face broken, his left eye nearly popping out and his brain nearly turning to pasta if he wasn't quick enough transferring it to his stomach, he would regenerate but it won't make this any less painful.
Everyone who saw this either winced or gave a collective "OOOOOH!" or both. The ball was thrown by the non-corporeal entity known as SCP-5031 Yet Another Murder Monster, or Chef as he was fondly called. A bunch of Foundation soldiers quickly swarmed at the Shapeshifter while the blonde Iris ordered them.
"Get him, I wanna have a chat with him in the containment cell." Shifty kept moaning in pain as he was held by a Foundation soldier and a Yeren, not before Gus gave him a kick which made him agonize harder, spit on his face and then said "Serves you right."
Alexei came to Kevin and asked
"How did you know it was the real me?"
He was embarrassed as he aligned two fingers of his respective hands.
"I…didn't."
"Following your instinct during a crisis and using the opportunity then, good soldier." The super soldier patted him on his right shoulder and then walked away while Kevin was feeling pride.
Marcus gratefully thanked Chef as he was relieved.
"Nice Chef, you make bowling cooler."
The non-corporeal being happily chirped.
Alien screech
Old Castaway protested in its alien language.
"And you too." Marcus thanks it too for saving his little brother.
The Shapeshifter was not pleased at his predicament.
"LET ME OUT! LET ME OUUUUT!"
When it fully regenerated and found himself in a glassy cell, he began thrashing around and at the glass while shapeshifting between many forms from Gnome to Manotaur, Hide-Behind and even one time briefly turning into a being of fire trying futility to get out like a rabid animal in a cage.
The containment cell was separated by one side mirroring the mood of the glasses to the watchers which included Alaxei, Iris Thompson, Laskaris, Plague Doctor, Cain, Tate, McGucket and Old Castaway.
Alexei pondered as Shifty lashed out, seeing the creature keep changing forms trying to get out.
"You sure this gonna hold?"
The one-arm French medic responded.
"It's a Foundation containment cell designed to contain things even tougher than him, he won't get out of it for the next thousand years."
Thump! Thump!
"Our prisoner clearly is no fan of close spaces, what do you think doc?" Thompson asked the Plague Doctor's opinion who gave an analytical look at the prisoner and said in a monotonous voice with cold interest.
"I admit, psychology is not a field I'm fully versed in, but I can tell he seems to be claustrophobic. Probably because of lifelong captivity. Psychological trauma affecting his shapeshifting, fascinating."
Fidds flinched at that, giving a regretful expression while Tate gave a small glare which the avian doctor was completely oblivious to. The Plague Doctor's impassioned fascination reminded Fidds a bit too much of how Stanford can be at times but like a distorted mirror, another visionary who lost his touch with humanity for the greater good.
"Hmm, I should study the merits of psychology further…" SCP-49 wondered to himself as he took a note in a small old notebook with a pen, looked at it and then walked away.
Cain, seeing Fidds' guilty look, then said.
"Ignore the doctor, he doesn't know how to get social cues."
McGucket disagreed with a shake of his head and shoulders slump
"But he's right ya kno, I may not be the one who caged him, but sure I ain't done anything about it."
Thompson seemed to be thinking before she voiced out.
"While I interrogate him, you need to leave or he won't comply."
"But- "
Laskaris agreed with her.
"Seeing you would only aggravate him with zero chance of compliance."
"I- fine." Fidds concurred so he and his son left. When they left she turned the containment cell's glasses from one-sided to two-sided while turning on the audio using the containment cell's terminal. Shifty upon seeing them changed himself into her form but looked like a walking corpse with horrific cuts and bruises to point out his threat.
"Get me out of this glorified aquarium woman! Or- "
The female parahuman cut him off.
"You'll do nothing, as you once said: I'm the one with the cards here, so comply or you're gonna find yourself in an even smaller tank."
That shut him up, he then reverted looking grumpily as the blonde Iris continued to speak.
"I know you're the mole who stole supplies and made some people disappear."
He protested.
"I stole yes but I didn't kill anyone, it would have attracted more attention."
She didn't buy it.
"You attempted to eat a person just a few minutes ago."
"Because I was found by that welp."
"You were gonna behead a kid."
"To not be put in a box like a carnival freak!" He punches at the glass hard then temporarily changes into a hydra with six crab legs with three heads of Ford, Fidds and Wendy hoping to get a reaction except he did not which infuriated him.
"You're in the company of freaks, outcasts and the anomalous. Read my body language, do you see me trembling with disgust and fear because of your appearance?" She read the files on him, she knew the alien creature could mimic what he saw by reading them through a very advanced biological form of scanning which includes body language. Shifty did read her body language and knew what she was saying was true as he reverted annoyed and bewildered.
"And it's not what you are that I'm judging, it's what you have done, I don't trust pleas of innocence from someone who is willing to kill children."
Shifty scoffed in annoyance
"Tch, are all human females so assertive? You remind me of the redhead girl." he then shapeshifted into the form of Wendy but then changed to Iris herself.
"Let's say I believe you, that you aren't responsible for people disappearing, what reason can you give beyond your excuse for attracting attention? For all I know you may have already tasted human flesh."
Shifty then morphed into a gnome with a bitter smile.
"Imagine being raised by Gnomes."
That was an odd question, the parahuman woman gave an eyebrow and gestured to him to continue.
"Imagine, you hatch out to the world, and the first you see is the light of the sun, only to then be taken by beings who are nothing like you and put in a cage where the sun doesn't shine. All you're ever fed is beans, over and over until you wonder: "What other things taste like? Are the strange creatures tasty too? Is that why they imprisoned you? Are there more like you?" he reverted to his true form as he spoke and was staring at the ceiling to nowhere.
"Then one day… no one comes, no one. Not even to feed you, alone, forgotten, years of your life wasted in a cage underground never to see the light of the sun. he for a moment stared at a light bulb that was attracting moths before he returned his gaze to Iris this time with a narrowed glare.
"You have no idea what is like being seen as just another curiosity to be captured, imprisoned and studied no more than an exotic animal to be caged away and forgotten!"
The blonde Anahuman surprised him after giving a pause as her stoic face became slightly softer.
"Actually…I may do."
If Shifty had human eyebrows he would raise one as he leaned forward.
"So are some of us." she then walked away from his gaze to see what was behind her as she pointed at Alexei and Old Castaway, they were sitting near a table playing chess and Blitrov's helmet had been re-absorbed into his living armor revealing his human face among major pieces except for the chest plate, arms and legs relishing the fact that he is no longer trapped in his suit.
"See the two? The dome-looking one is an extraterrestrial like you, far away from their home and none of their kind so far has been found yet, so alien in fact that instead of their real name, we call them Martin because not even a universal translator could translate it in a proper way for us humans to understand. When the Foundation found them, they were content with just putting them in a box before the reforms." she then pointed at the Russian who was playing as the black side of the chess.
"His friend you see? Alexei is a veteran from an alternate Earth where a Nuclear War burned his world and was bonded by a symbiote since his youth to be a living weapon. He could have just been Foundation's killer super soldier but he isn't, he became more, he found friends, found faith, found peace he is still a soldier but he is more than that." she then pointed at herself.
"And I… I am human or at least I believe I am, and yet because of my anomaly I was treated at best as a ticking bomb ready to explode and at worst just another freak to be locked." She showed her anomaly by putting his hand over a photo she took as if the photo itself was a portal as the alien changeling looked in slight fascination.
"Look, I get it, I get why you're mad, that bitterness, the sense of betrayal, you lost faith in others and think only you can count on you. But I can't just let you out not because of what you are but because of what you did. Saying that you can't keep excusing your actions from your past because sooner or later you're gonna run out of excuses and become just another in the long line of small cruel people." She then pointed around the containment cell.
"Do you want to get out of here? Then try doing the reverse of every action fueled by bitterness you want to make, your motivation is understandable, your methods are not justifiable."
She disclosed and with a nod of her head told Cain to turn the glass one-sided again so as the audio leaving Shifty pondered in his cell after hearing all this.
That humanoid changeling proposition he got, the one who freed him, was enticing.
However, he had to admit, he was hesitant to take it, he only took it because it was his only way to get out of that dark hole he got stuck in for what felt like forever. Every movement of the body, the haughty tone, the toothy smirk, the glinting eyes even the humanoid changeling's smell and the way her tails moved told his alien senses that she was a being of infinite malice only hunt and kill not because of survival or necessity, but out of cruel enjoyment revelling in an over-bloated sinister pride so much that he nearly gagged.
Even still he did not regret taking the deal as he freshly recalls the sheer joy he felt seeing the world outside, so many forms, the fresh air, the endless blue sky, the grass under his feet, the trees and oh the sun, the sun was more glorious than he last time remembered.
The blonde human on the other hand radiated stronger than the canine changeling's spite, Shifty could see her wants for justice for those mistreated for being different and her defiance against darkness as a being of integrity from the intense sincerity of her words.
He wasn't naive enough to believe that just because someone was earnest and well-intended it would make them harmless, his experience being caged by Sixer and his weakling scrawny assistance proved that and that combined with years of isolation in the dark made sure he wouldn't take any chances in his quest to get out as his confrontation with the redhead girl, the fat one and the twins showed no matter the cost.
Even when he was a newform he could sense there was something Sixer hid even from his colleague and taste his insecurity, like a man haunted.
The Shapeshifter was no mind reader, he could only predict and tell what reaction with what intent a living being could make through a combination of little things his alien eyes and senses detect like the smell they produced from their hormones to their body language.
He had his reservations for this blonde female, yet there was one key difference between her and those 'well-intended', understanding. To her he wasn't a deformed monstrosity that should be locked, but a being who if given the right circumstances could be good, that said he didn't mistake her empathy with naivety, oh that woman is the type that is ready for a fight but tries to make peace, hope for the best and prepare for the worst. The question was, what should he do next?
Outside the containment cell, as the Shapeshifter thought deeply, Laskaris who saw the whole thing couldn't help but laugh with a chuckle in bewilderment.
"Okay, who are you? Are you another Shapeshifter? And what have you done to miss 'so grumpy that I'm gonna get wrinkles'?"
The blonde Iris smiled and gave banter.
"Oh screw you, I have always been mature, I just didn't realize it yet."
The moment of friendly banter which was a contrast to how sour their relationship used to be stopped when screams and explosions were heard, causing everyone to jump up and sprint outside to see what was going on.
Pacifica while walking reminiscing fondly about the Patchwork Bear trying to find Candy and Grenda walking sees a strange sight.
It was a half-opened door to an abandoned building from the size of, it seemed to used to be some sort of anomalous equivalent of a local restaurant with a Lumber aesthetic, there was a seal that said this place had been banned with the seal written 'Tinkerbug Infestation Been Founded'.
She had no idea what a Tinkerbug was, only a vague idea that it was some anomalous pest that caused this place to shut down.
Normally she would be wiser than entering some abandoned building knowing full well that this place Gravity Falls in all likelihood was haunted by ghosts something even worse as those teens that Wendy hangs out with told her about how dangerous such places are; nevertheless, the possibility that she could find something edible there that isn't rationed food, canned food or worse those slices of beef that gained from Big Charlie(her fancy eating-taste blue blood part of her recoiled at the knowledge that she had to eat meat produced by that abomination of corporate greed), she decided to take a chance, just a quick look and grab and immediately getting out. And hey, with many mouths to feed any accessible food source is needed.
She carefully moved the door a bit, casting light on the place using her phone's flashlight mood. Her phone is only at 26% so she has to be quick. She quickly moved to the cooking room which had its door almost destroyed except for a piece of wood still attached with windowless holes which seemed to be where the food was placed for waiters to snatch. She looked inside and to her disappointment found no food but spread out kitchen tools all around. She was going to drop this futile expedition when the anomalous pet in her lady bag squeaked in alarm.
Chirp-Chirp!
' Uh oh, he's only nervous when danger is near!' She thought in a slight nervousness and hearing footsteps made her even more nervous telling her whoever or whatever caused Percival's alarm was not friendly. She tried to hide as sprinted sideways until her glance see a metallic door to the freezer that looked rusted with small holes around by something acidic, she did not have time to ponder why all this and this place was abandoned meaning there shouldn't be power for the freezer to make her cold so she opened the door to see if she could hid inside and when she opened she was greeted by foul smell and flying flies with a sight that made her nearly vomit both from horror and repulse.
Bodies, dead bodies piled together in the secret underground room, the most disturbing of it all was that their faces were burnt beyond recognition with some sort of black acidic substance that still existed a few drops of it on them and around so acidic that it made and most bodies lost their humanoid resemblance turning a putrid pile of flesh, eroded fats and black acid making it hard to determine what race or gender they were and the smelled of rot was as just disgusting.
The blonde girl swallowed hard and backed away slowly but then, someone came in as the coming person with a lantern, a 35-year-old caucasian woman with black ponytail hair looking at her in a mixture of sadistic glee and annoyance with an unhinged chilly grin that the lantern showed all too obvious staring at her from distance through one of the order holes.
"Find anything?"
Pacifica froze like a deer on headlight feeling her heart sink, but then she launched and raced away to the other side.
The crazed woman just stood there as her neck moved with snapping sounds looking in amusement at the afraid kid racing away while the serial killer then locked the door using a key to make sure the blonde girl wouldn't get away and put her lantern near a half-broken window.
While all this was happening, Gideon was passing over before he felt his legs weakening when he had a flashback to the hateful machine.
"HATE!"
He nearly dropped as he next slapped himself once to get a grip.
"Damnit, it's just a dream, it's just a dream!.." he chanted to himself. His chant was stopped by hearing Pacifica's yell.
"HELLO! SOMEONE HELP ME!"
"Spoil the child, spare the rod!"
That and the deranged and sickly sweet sound made him realize this was a life-and-death situation with Paz being chased by a maniac.
"Oh gosh, oh gosh!" he looked on both sides frantically before he rushed and tried to open the door
"Dag nammit!" The door was locked thus his struggles were futile.
Inside the building, Paz threw junk that was around at the crazed woman who didn't seem deterred, if anything disturbingly she didn't even blink like she was throwing objects at an unblinking moving mannequin. The Northwest girl getting her hands on a knife then pointed at her threat.
"S-stay back creep!" The killer kept moving toward her.
"I would do it!" not deterred even a bit.
When the mad killer got near Paz with an uncertain cry to use the knife to attack; however, Lua simply dodged unnaturally and slammed her head at a piece of furniture disorienting her. Subsequently, the madwoman then grabbed the blonde girl by her neck holding her up with an unnatural strength while the other hand took the knife and ready it to plunge it at her next victim.
'Damnit, I'm too pretty to die…' her head was dizzy from the attack and all she could clearly see was her death grinning at her with a dark delight.
Cleak
The door violently opened showing the Plague Doctor and the Sarkic Doctor coming in thanks to Gideon calling for help and them being the nearest.
"Get your hands off her!" Sarkic hissed and pointed a sidearm which she got from the armory pointed at the murderous lunatic.
The crazed murderer did not mind and was trying to plunge the kitchen knife at a struggling Pacifica so Sarah shot her twice, one at her left shoulder and one at her chest. The shots caused the murderer to drop on the ground and lose her grip on the blonde girl who then quickly raced to her rescuers.
Gideon told Pacifica what he did.
"I heard your cry and got help."
She gratefully nodded as she inhaled in relief.
"You're a lifesaver, Gideon."
Even with the second shot the fleshcrafter was sure she had hit the killer's heart, the killer's right hand then moved all of a sudden and then the other hand helped her to get up.
"What…?" Sarah was as surprised as others.
From the wounds the bullets hit blood came, yet the mad woman still walked like a controlled puppet making Pacifica and Gideo tense enough that they hid behind the two adults, the Plague Doctor was the only one who noticed the blood was a bit blackish and acidic like it was mixed with an acidic substance.
" That…was uncalled for rrrr…." The psychopath gurgled with a hand extended with one finger as she walked like a puppet controlled by a puppeteer.
The Sarkic shields the Northwest whereas the Plague Doctor then moves with a hand extended.
"You reek of pestilence but don't worry, I'm your- " he touches her head but something is wrong.
"The cure…?" That should have worked as the woman still looked alive-ish, she was clearly something unnatural like she shouldn't even be alive.
"Confused?" The maniac after asking rhetorically then swiped the hand that touched her head away and plunged the knife at him which the avian doctor got from hitting any vital organs at the cost of the knife going through the palm of his left hand making him cry in pain.
Sarah grew her fleshy tentacles and held the lunatic up.
While Plague Doctor nursed his hand, he caught a glimpse of a small portable 3D printer machine on the other side of the room, halfway done replicating a human mask made to look like a real human face from top to middle halfway done and it had the Factory's logo on it.
The Sarkic seethered and pushed held the serial killing woman and tightened her hold on her causing her to drop her knife, thinking that it was SCP-953 the polymorph psychopath.
"I bet you find this very funny you changeling furry totally-not kitsune killing people under our nose, don't you!?"
The hidden killer chuckled.
"Hehe, I'm not the fox lady."
The Plague Doctor doubted her to be really the homicidal canine polymorph as even then he was sure his touch would have worked on her, not to mention she wouldn't need a 3D printer to print faces. Then he caught the sight of a tear of a black substance dropped from one of the serial killer's eyes which when dropped on the ground burnt through and left a burn mark as the liquid ate through.
"Acide…" he muttered, thus giving him a displeased hint of who the mad woman truly is as he then demanded firmly to the killer to reveal herself, hence he then demanded with an authoritarian voice.
"Reveal yourself!"
The serial killer laughed and from her laughs, black acids came down from her orifices Hitting the Sarkic's tentacles.
"Gaah!" her tentacles retracted away as the acid burned through her flesh thus the murderer got freed as she continuously howled in crazed laughter.
"Hehehe..hahaha…HAHAHAHAHA!" Her cackles became more and more deranged as black liquid began melting her face creating a ghastly sight that perturbed the group, all except 49 whose eyes narrowed as he recognized that damnable laughter, someone whom he had known for centuries and he wished he did not to as he then said in utter disdain "Villain."
The black liquid began melting her face, revealing that it was just synthetic skin to hide a mask and then she tore her face revealing her true nature. The torn open mask which revealed charred skin like it was burned by acid and a theater mask in a form of comedy covering the face as the group other than the Plague Doctor stared in shock.
"Miss me?!" SCP-35 the infamous sentient maks sneered this time with a full male echoing voice as he tore his own burnt mask to reveal his true comedy mask.
As humans and the paranormals moved into their lives in Crawl Space, without any warning, all TVs from a closed electronic store where the paranormal beings sold electronic stuff mostly from humans began to flick, seeing the TVs turning on by themselves behind the glass wall caused everyone to take notice.
Subsequently, there was this symbol of an orange circle with a black form of what appears to be a factory with an all too-cherry announcement.
Congratulations! You have been chosen as an employee for the Factory. All you have to do is take this step to get your prize! this program brought to you sponsored by Lord Goran and the Factory:
The announcer then announced as then a list was shown in the style of an early 90s-era News with deranged ramblings.
· Step outside.
· We will return you to FLESH DUN-N-N-GEONS TO be EXPERIMENTED ENSLAVEMENT!
· The Factory WELCO.ES YOU!
· T o- bloodied Dusk is COMING FOR Y O U
Tambry cringed
"Yo, that's creepy."
The Thompson boy agreed as he looked nervous.
"It's like those analogue movies…"
After this disturbing image and announcement, random glitches came showing a mechanical colossal with one red glowing optic with many arms around a reddish brown mist howling in a mechanical growl making everyone very nervous with the fat boy startled with a yelp.
"What the frak is that!?" Lee cried out.
"Beats me, dude!" Nate told his best friend.
The mechanical monstrosity then began to speak after letting out a mechanical unholy shriek of grinding flesh and broken metal which spooked everyone further.
"Your Flesh is an antique…give up your flesh, a new kingdom awaits you."
Then, the TV went silent and shut down except for a note.
Note: the employees have no choice in quitting and have to endure invasive procedures to be liable for work, all protests will be answered with inhumane punishments and your individuality will be stripped to increase efficiency.
There was deafening silence until the silence was replaced by a collective panic as the Multi-Bear said what everyone was thinking.
"That…can't be good."
They thought Crawl Space would be safe, it was a place safe from Bill and his Henchmaniacs during the Weirdmageddon for the supernatural inhabitants of Gravity Falls with only a few stragglers leaving to survive on their own or were lucky enough to find shelter in Mystery Shack's magically enhanced barrier; nonetheless, this time it was not to be.
War has come to their doorsteps with a bang.
The sound of an explosion was heard coming from the entrance with shouts as two Manotaurs who were guarding were thrown away to the air and then fell on the ground beaten and defeated with their weapons lying broken as a swarm of the enemy showed up like a tide.
Cultists wearing armor and gears, mechanical monstrosities like Clawhunters who this instead of being equipped with engineering tools were armed with sharper claws meant to kill and a shooting gun rifle and the worst of them all were cyborg abominations of all manner and sizes from servitorized humans and hauntingly roboticized paranormal inhabitants of Gravity Falls.
Including Cyber-nomes who had one of their arms removed in favor of sharp crab claws with 4 spider robot legs and both of their eyes replaced by red optics, unlucky Manotaurs who got processed into hulking beasts of flesh and metal having one of their arms removed by an energy cannon which the Factory reverse-engineered from Crash Site Omega's ancient alien drones' weapon, both of their digitigrade legs replaced by even faster metallic ones, part of their head replaced by a metallic helmet with two or three wires coming out connected to the one eye replaced by a red optic with computing sight far exceeding the previous organic one as these Beastmen roared mightly.
Humanoid robots called Eliminators who had two red optics with long limbs giving them the advantage of being fast and agile, sharped plates on their back like keratin spines of a hedgehog, their heads shaped like the skull of a predatory Felines, two hands equipped with claws instead of fingers carrying standard firearms but are able to use other types of weapons as well and they also have an attached rectable blade hidden from their right arm that is powered by electricity.
The biggest of the regiment were two 12 meter plant monsters known by Foundation as SCP-3140 instances conjured by Daevite magic carved with thaumaturgical signs with digitigrade legs and various bone spikes emerged to carve their targets and barrels that fired.
All of them were led by a giant with black armor, multiple horns coming out of his head with fiery red pupiless eyes who were none other than Lord Goran himself. Each heavy foot as he walked shocked the earth with his dark-bladed weapon ready to taste blood.
Thompson gave the gun as she unlocked her pistol and pointed.
"Open fire!"
From there, Hell broke loose as both sides began shooting from conventional projectile weapons to unconventional ones.
Cain while running kept shouting, punching his metallic right arm right at a Clawhunter's head and spilling its wires as lay motionless.
"Turrets! Turrets!" an Eliminator tried to cut him in half with its electrifying blade but instead it got cut in half instead of its intended target thanks to Cain's anomalous ability.
Thanks to the cooperation between the McGuckets and the Self-Improving Automatron with the Yerens automated sentries activated, out of their shells started shooting. Even with that, the enemy was overwhelming as for everyone the turrets killed two replaced them.
One of the plant behemoths starts rushing fast with spikes grown toward a group of Fallers using random furniture as fortification with only some like Blubs and Durland keep shooting while others like Soos and Melody hide.
"OH MIGHTY DUNG!" Durland squawked at the plant monster and rushed toward them nearly crushing and impaling them if it weren't for Chef throwing SCP-66 Eric's Toy the red amorphous mass of intricately braided thread with eyes at it which held on the plant creature's head. Eric's Toy began to screech a loud upon stitching it's on the giant with a loud sonic wave making the giant stop and howl in pain.
Howl
It howled and futilely tried to get rid of the source of the sound as it lashed out and used its limb, yet Eric's Toy was in his blind spot and it even tried to impale it by growing spikes but the anomalous Toy was quickly using its only string anatomy to move and dodge the spikes as it continued to produce deadly sonic. It was so loud that even the Fallers had to keep their ears close; fortunately, the frequency was such that it was only deadly at close range.
The Chef used this opportunity to cut that plant behemoth's left leg by repeatedly chopping using its ax-like tail making it howl in pain as water mixed with minerals shot out from it like a fountain whereas Chutzpar saw the opportunity charged with a bull's sound and broke the plant monstrosity's right front limb with an audible creak of something breaking
The behemoth with a loud howl finally gave in and fell, squashing a few Clawhunters and Servitors when it dropped on them and squashed like bugs.
Eric's Toy squirmed from the behemoth near the bewildered Fallers, Soos and Melody got up with the former thanking it by giving a thumbs up.
"Nice going dawgs."
Eric's Toy made a chirping sound like it was satisfied.
Lord Goran was relentless, nothing, no bullets, not even Yerens' heat blasts could do a dent in his armor as he swung his sword killing his enemies Foundation Soldiers, daring paranormal creatures and civilians who took arms in a gory fashion with bodies slashed and ripped apart. A few Mantotaurs tried to act brave by holding axes and melee weapons enchanted and advanced by big feet glowing hot molten fire at the bladed tips coming in to take their chance on the armored foe who effortlessly blocked their attacks with his and then behead two of them at the same time and immediately plunge his weapon back at the third Manotaur's stomach and then got it out as the half breed fell with gaggle sound to his death.
A few plasma shots jolted the exiled general as Blitrov descended with thrusters and fly-like wings with the shots coming from both of whom now changed hands into plasma cannons
"Remember me kapitalisticheskiy demon!?" Alexei growled, he then grabbed a Yeren heat fire which he carried on his back and kept shooting at it while flying and dodging the sword attacks in the hope of distracting Goran.
"Who's chuckles?" Gleeful couldn't help but ask after seeing that graphic moment of revelation.
Sarah answered her in a tone of disdain.
"Remember me kapitalisticheskiy demon!?" Alexei growled, he then grabbed a Yeren heat fire which he carried on his back and kept shooting at it while flying and dodging the sword attacks in the hope of distracting Goran.
The Mask replied with a haughty flattery.
"Why you flatter me flesh monger, had I known one of your kind would end up in this cesspit of peasants, I would have graced you with my present sooner." it did not take a high IQ that he meant trying to possess her.
The Plague Doctor quickly snapped to everyone.
"Don't listen to him! If he says the sky is blue he's lying!"
"What kind of stupid token of wisdom is that buddy?" The mask inquired with a humorous tone.
" Buddy?" Paz repeated that word, and the avian doctor answered in utter detest.
"We crossed paths, unfortunately."
There was one thing that did not make sense to Sarah.
"How did that elitist bastard even get past the guards?"
The Mask mocked surrender.
"What can I say? I'm a charmer." He then glanced back to where he piled the dead bodies "The remaining bits of those charmed by my irresistible charisma you can find there."
It took no genius to tell that some of those dead eroded bodies belonged to the missing guards that had to be replaced by new ones as the doctors looked in disgust while the kids looked uneasy.
Suddenly, Gideon trembled in fear seeing the Factory logo on the 3D printer making him shake.
"I-it's s it! the one who attacked me in my dreams!" The doctors with concern look at Gideon.
"Yes yes, the Factory was generous when I borrowed that from them, oh I could swear I saw the big metal cyclops was steaming in anger.'' By burrow, he was insinuating that he had stolen it.
Plague Doctor put an end to his attempts of flattery and evasion.
"Enough of this! State your purpose now, what are you doing here villain?"
"Oh you know me too well buddy." he then took a dramatic pose in mock surrender "I hid between the outcasts and the weirdos hoping to possess the Demon of War, oooh to have a body that won't erode over time and the sheer power I would gain would be so intoxicating." The Mask dramatically posed on a table. He tsked despite having no lips or true mouth. "But alas, that was not to be with how tightly the security those furballs put is and hey, with Big Red coming knocking, why not try to get in his good of his?"
The sound of shout and explosion was heard making the group temporarily glance back and then revert their gaze to the Possessive Mask, if he could grin he would.
"After all, all kings need a Jester."
Plague Doctor growled at the Mask and then walked fast and held him by his collar who chuckled in dark delight."What did you do, charlatan? Speak clearly!"
"It's too late, old pal! Already told them where Crawlspace is and sent secret radio signals about how to enter it, everyone is meat for the grinder now!" the Plague Doctor with an icy growl then threw him away as he hit the ground, Sarah went to check on the 3D printer and as she guessed there was a beeping sound from a piece which she tore from it signifying that the device had a tracker which she destroyed in the palm of her hands into bits.
The Mask shrugged with a disingenuous friendly look.
"Like they always say dearie, always have a backup."
The Avian SCP spat in a cold tone condemning him.
"I never thought I would see you change allegiance from the Hanged King to the Scarlet King, but I suppose I shouldn't be surprised by a lying cheating snake like you."
"Technically buddy, the Hanged King serves him so that makes Big Red the boss of my boss."
Boom!
The sound of an explosion was heard nearby, meaning the enemies were closing in.
"Now ladies and maniacs, the party has started!" the Possessive Mask announced before he snatched a soot bomb from his pocket and threw it on the ground obscuring their vision as they coughed from the smoke while he ran and broke through the half-broken window with such force that it was clear he did not care how much blood his possessed body just use or the shards inflicted by the broken glasses.
The Sarkic coughed.
"Where did he go!?"
"Where's- !" Gideon coughed confused.
"Don't let him get away!" the avian doctor cried out, but it was too late as when the smoke finally dissipated there was no sign of the Possessive Maks.
It got even worse when cultists armed with Factory's gear and armor no longer wearing hoods and with guns came in pointing at them, their suits looked advanced and yet archaic with masks and helmets with red vizors serving both as an intimidation tactic and for the pollution in the air of Gravity Falls thanks to the Factory's activities, their color was red and black with silvery ornates and with the mark of both the Factory and Children of the Scarlet King cult one half to the other half in one circle symbol as a way to show the Factory and the Cult shared and unified allegiance to the Scarlet King.
"Don't move!" One of them shouted and threatened the barrel of his gun.
The leader of the group told his group mates what to do.
"The Factory only wants the SCPs, kill the children." All the guns then began to point at Gideon and Pacifica ready to kill them; nevertheless, the Plague Doctor thought fast and broke the lantern that illuminated the place by taking a half-broken cup filled with water that dripped from the half broken sealing on a table and throwing it at it.
The light disappeared and was replaced by the blackness of the absence of light. A few shots were made but none hit the intended targets as they and the SCPs disappeared.
"Where did he go?" one of the enemies demanded, despite wearing masks it wasn't technologically advanced in a way to detect in the dark unlike Chaos Insurgency masks but mostly there to protect the face and to intimidate the targets so instead they activated the flashlight attached to their guns even then their view was limited. Subsequently, after a small period of silence, a haunting melody was heard.
"Ring-a-ring o' roses…"
Two immediately drop dead by just grabbing both of their heads with his death touch. The others quickly gazed back but the doctor disappeared into darkness as the bodies fell lifeless.
"A pocket full of posies…"
A syringe injects on another cultist's neck causing him to foam in his mouth and then contort on the ground like a dying cockroach in a frenzy until he is finally choked by his foam and dies.
The other two shot their guns and roared but their roar was silenced by an animalistic snarl of Sarah changing to her savage mood silencing them with a slash and a bit respectively at the guts and the neck after which quickly disappeared in the dark, she was so fast that they only managed to catch a blur of a savage creature could be seen with her sharp fangs and teeth and eyes that glowed in the dark like the eyes of a lion.
The last one was now shaking in fear, shooting a couple of rounds randomly in the hope of getting one of them which didn't.
"A-tishoo. A-tishoo…" The Plague Doctor was behind her as she froze hearing that dreadful song behind her feeling her breathing go dangerously slow while feeling fleshy tendrils take her gun away as she futilely tried to pull an existing trigger in utter despair as her light shined the cold and emotionless face of the Plague Doctor "We all fall down."
And with a touch on her neck, she fell slack before she could do anything.
Afterwards, the lights returned thanks to Pacifica and Gideon's phones showing them dead cultists on the ground with SCP-49 in the middle holding an empty syringe before dropping it.
The Gleeful boy exclaimed at the efficient killing.
"Jeez Louise! good thing they are on our side."
The Plague Doctor nonchalantly uttered. "Hmm, when you've been through multiple French revolutions, you learn some."
"Can I hire you as my bodyguard if we survive all this?" Paz couldn't help but ask the bird-headed doctor.
"I'm a doctor child, not a bodyguard." he didn't catch that it was a joke making her shake her head in exasperation.
"Come on," Sarah told everyone with a shake of her head to follow her as she and the group began to race to the outside of the restaurant.
Notes:Those who didn't catch the reference Tinkerbugs are SCP-831 termites that use and eat inorganic materials.
Before anyone asks, yes I got inspired by the design of the Armored Cultists from Enforcers from Arcane(Great show, highly recommend it, I even took some inspiration from it in my story.)
Originally it was one chapter but seeing how long it was my beta reader convinced me to split it into two because even I have to admit I went overboard so good news everyone: expect the next chapter coming very soon after the editing is finished.
By The way, it seems obvious but I'm just gonna say it out loud: I'm BAAAAAAACK!
