"Skylanders are not really small statues. After studying these beings, I have discovered they are as real as they claim to be. But what will happen if one finds a Skylander?" - Unknown

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While exploring the woods one afternoon, Dipper saw a small object on the ground. He picked it up and examined it.

The object looked like a small toy. It was blue and circular with tiny feet on the bottom. It stood on a bronze-colored base that was bright green on the bottom.

But then, something strange happened. The toy produced purple electricity, giving Dipper a mild shock. He winced in pain. "What was that all about?" he thought.

"Hi there!"

Dipper looked around. "Hello?" he called out. "Mabel?"

"Down here, silly."

Dipper looked at the toy. "Yeah, I'm the one talking," the toy said, communicating through telepathic thoughts. "Name's Wrecking Ball, and I'm a Skylander."

"Okay..." Dipper said. "My name is Dipper, Dipper Pines. I think I read about you guys in my book."

"Great!" Wrecking Ball said. "Now you can take me back home."

"How?" Dipper asked.

"Oh, I'm sure Eon sent you a portal when we bonded," Wrecking Ball said. "Now take me to your lair, new Portal Master!

"'Bonded'?" Dipper repeated.

"Remember that electricity you saw?" Wrecking Ball asked in response. "That was me bonding with you. When a Skylander bonds with a Portal Master, they become in sync with one another. Think of it as those characters from those gold compass books. Now onward!"

"Um... Okay," Dipper said, still unsure of what was going on.

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Back at the Mystery Shack, Dipper went to his room. There was a glowing circular device with a rock-like design on the edges sitting on his nightstand. "That's a portal," Wrecking Ball said. "Now put me on it so I can go home.

Dipper placed the toy on the portal. Suddenly, a flash of green light filled the room. The young boy shielded his eyes from the light, wondering what was going on.

But then, the light died down. The room had become empty, and Wrecking Ball was gone.

"Hey Dipper," Mabel said, entering the room. "I saw light coming from here. What happen-" She stopped when she realized Dipper was gone. "Dipper?" she cried out. "Where'd you go?"

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THUD!

Dipper landed stomach-first on the ground. He got up, coughing.

"Whoa! Wrecking Ball! You've returned!"

That voice came from a gopher-like humanoid who was standing next to Dipper and Wrecking Ball, who was no longer a toy.

"Master Eon was right!" the gopher creature continued. "That means he did find another Portal Master to help us. I, of course, never doubted it for a second."

"And here he is," Wrecking Ball replied. "His name is Dipper Pines."

"Hello Dipper," the gopher creature said. "I am Hugo, and we have much to do. This village needs our help."

Dipper looked around. Somehow, he was transported to a series of floating islands, and he was standing on one of them. He walked up to the edge and looked down, only to let out a yelp and take a few steps back. "Wh-Wh-What is this place?" he asked.

"You're in Skylands, my home," Wrecking Ball explained. "You'll get used to it after a while."

"B-But how are we still floating?" Dipper asked, still scared out of his mind.

"Magic clouds," Wrecking Ball answered. "Just stay as calm as possible and follow me." He approached a wooden bridge.

"So Dipper, where are you from?" Hugo asked, approaching the twelve-year-old boy.

"Earth," Dipper said.

Hugo took out a huge book and skimmed through it. "How unusual," he commented. "It has been years since Portal Masters came from Earth."

"Look, I don't know what's going on," Dipper said. "Just take me back home before my family notices I'm gone."

"I'm afraid I can't do that," Hugo said. "Skylanders must always be with Portal Masters, so you're going to stay with Wrecking Ball until everything is cleared up."

"Come on, Dipper!" Wrecking Ball cried out, hopping up and down. "Let's go!"

"Alright Hugo," Dipper said. "I'll stay."

"Splendid!" Hugo exclaimed. "Now you better catch up to Wrecking Ball. He's already ahead of you."

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On the other side of the bridge, Dipper found Wrecking Ball standing next to a wooden wall. "Heya Dipper!" Wrecking Ball said. "What took ya so long?"

"Hugo told me I'm stuck here until some big disaster is gone," Dipper explained. "So how are we going to get past that?" He gestured to the wooden wall.

"I'm glad you asked," Wrecking Ball said. "Observe." He took a few steps back, curled up into a ball, and spun towards the wooden wall, breaking it.

"Whoa," Dipper commented, following the mutated grub.

"Yeah, it's impressive," Wrecking Ball said, back to walking. "I became like this after eating a cauldron of wizard's stew."

Dipper then heard someone cheer. He looked up and saw a humanoid badger on a house's balcony. "We heard the Skylanders were all gone," the badger said. "But it's great to see you're here, Wrecking Ball. That main road has been destroyed and now the townsfolk are all trapped inside. It's very dangerous." He pointed to a wall made out of logs. "Taking down that wall might help. Maybe that old cannon might work."

Dipper and Wrecking Ball approached the same cannon the badger mentioned. "Can you figure out how to work it?" Dipper asked.

"Not a clue," Wrecking Ball said. "I don't have opposable thumbs. You're going to have to take care of this one."

Dipper inspected the cannon. The fuse was already lit, but why didn't it go off? He gave the cannon a gentle knock. Suddenly, purple electricity came from his hand and was transferred to the cannon, activating it.

KA-BOOM!

The log wall was completely destroyed, allowing more humanoid badgers to escape. "How did I do that?" Dipper asked, looking at his hand.

"You used your powers," Wrecking Ball explained. "Portal Masters can do that."

Dipper and Wrecking Ball entered the village. "But I'm not this 'Portal Master'," Dipper said, continuing the conversation. "I'm just a kid."

"Well, there has to be a reason why you found me," Wrecking Ball said.

"I was walking in the woods when I found you on the ground," Dipper recalled. "Anyone could have found you."

"Not anyone," Wrecking Ball insisted. "The only way to be a Portal Master is for someone to be born with those magical powers. It's a genetics thing. You're either lucky or not."

At that point, the two found a locked gate with more humanoid badgers on the other side. "Hey you're Wrecking Ball, aren't ya?" one of the badgers asked. "I didn't know you were here. We could really use your help. Can you grab that key and get us outta here?"

Dipper saw what the badger was talking about. There was a slightly large golden key floating nearby. "Well, that's your cue, Dipper," Wrecking Ball said. "Go get that key."

Dipper approached the key and grabbed it. Then he walked over to the locked gate and inserted it into the lock. The key turned on its own, causing the lock to break and open the gate so the badgers could leave.

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Dipper and Wrecking Ball continued to explore the town. Along the way, the had to explode more log walls, unlock more gates using more golden keys, and push elephant-size turtles out of paths. Aside from Wrecking Ball fighting tiny creatures called Chompies, everything was okay.

After rescuing a royal family, Dipper and Wrecking Ball met up with Hugo and a pilot named Flynn. "You did it!" Hugo exclaimed. "Thanks to you, all of the villagers manage to evacuate just in time. But this is only the beginning, Dipper. There are reports of terrible disasters all throughout Skylands."

"Yeah, well there's gonna be another one if we don't get moving," Flynn said. "That tornado is right on top of us."

"Oh right," Hugo said. "We should get to safety. I'll explain everything on the way."

The four quickly got on a hot air balloon. As it took off, the tornado destroyed the town in only a few seconds.

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When the hot air balloon was at a safe distance, Hugo told Dipper what was going on. "For as long as anyone could remember, Skylands was protected by the wisest and most powerful beings of all: the Portal Masters," the gopher began. "And the greatest among them was Master Eon. He and his Skylanders protected the Core of Light. For centuries, the Core of Light had enriched the world, holding at bay the Darkness: the ultimate force behind all evil. But now, Eon was the last Portal Master, growing weaker with age. He knew it was only a matter of time before the Darkness would return."

Hugo went on to explain what happened a few weeks ago. Kaos, an evil Portal Master, returned and sent an army to take on the Skylanders. The gopher even talked about who the other Skylanders were aside from Wrecking Ball. (The only name Dipper recognized was Spyro.) But during the battle, Kaos destroyed the Core of Light with an unknown weapon, accidentally forcing the Skylanders to leave Skylands in the process.

"And that was the day the Core of Light was scattered to the far corners of the universe," Hugo said. "And Skylands lost its greatest protectors. But there is more to their story. As the Skylanders were drawn farther and farther away from the magic of Skylands, they began to shrink until they reached your world, waiting for Portal Masters to find them. And Master Eon? He survived the blast, but was changed. He became a spirit. Though without his body, he couldn't fight Kaos and the Darkness. But now we have you, Dipper. You're a new Portal Master, and there might be many more coming from your world."

At that point, Flynn landed his hot air balloon at some ruins. He, Hugo, Dipper, and Wrecking Ball got out. "So as you can see, with our Core of Light destroyed, Skylands is in great danger," Hugo said. "I'm sure that tornado was no accident. This is clearly the work of Kaos."

"Oh, that guy really grinds my gears," Flynn said. "If you're taking down Kaos, you can count me in."

"Glad to hear it, Flynn" Hugo said. "Cali agreed to help, too. Dipper, when you and Wrecking Ball are ready, go with Flynn to Perilous Pastures."

Dipper had no idea what that place looked like. "Go with him to where?" he asked.

"Oh, right," Hugo said. "You're from Earth." He gave Dipper a purple sack. "This is your Portal Master gear," the gopher explained. "The sack is for carrying objects you might need on missions. You'll also get a map, some emergency supplies, and a magical weapon."

Dipper took out a purple spear. "What's with the color?" he asked. "Does it all have to be purple?"

"The colors vary on the Skylander's element," Hugo explained. "Your sack and weapon are purple because they represent Magic, Wrecking Ball's element. Every Portal Master gets the same supplies, although the magical weapon varies depending on the Portal Master's personality."

Dipper looked at the spear. Upon close inspection, the spear's handle was shaped like two bones tied together. The object itself resembled the exact same spear he used to battle the Multi-Bear! "But why me?" Dipper asked. "Why was I chosen?"

"I can answer that, Dipper Pines."

That voice came from a floating head that appeared out of nowhere. "Who are you?" Dipper asked.

"That's Eon, Dipper," Wrecking Ball answered. "Or...what's left of him, at least."

"Precisely," Eon said. "As for your question Dipper Pines, I have witnessed your bravery for the past few weeks from your encounter with vicious gnomes to helping your friends take down a creature made out of unused candy. But the bravest thing you have done was sparing the life of a magical beast who meant no harm. Perhaps that is why your magical weapon resembles the spear you carried that day."

Dipper looked at the spear once more. "But why me?" he asked again. "I'm already busy with uncovering the secrets of Gravity Falls."

"I am sure your family and friends won't even know you are gone," Eon reassured.

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"GRUNKLE STAN, I CAN'T FIND DIPPER!" Mabel shrieked, running downstairs.

"Whaddya mean you can't find him?" Stan asked. "He's probably still in the forest."

"I don't think so," Mabel said. "I saw a flash of light coming from the attic and I heard him talking. All I found was this." She showed Stan the portal.

"Hey, I've seen this before," Stan said. "It's a portal. Where did you find it?"

"The nightstand," Mabel answered. "Do you know what it is?"

"It's a long story," Stan answered. "A VERY long story."

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"Come on, Dipper!" Wrecking Ball cried out, already approaching Flynn. "Let's go!"

"This isn't over," Dipper told Eon, then the twelve-year-old boy followed Wrecking Ball over to the hot air balloon.