Back at the Mystery Shack, an air of gloom hung over everyone.
Stan looked at the phone, wondering if a ransom call would come, or who would even do this.
"Mister Pines, if it's okay with you, I'm going to call my abuelita and stay here tonight." Soos said.
"No, Soos. I don't expect you to—"
"I mean it, Mister Pines." There was a deep frown on the twenty-two year old's face. "You're like a dad to me, and I want to be here for you. "
Stan blinked slowly and looked the young man in the eye. "Thank you, Soos. "
Wendy looked at the clock. "I have to go, Stan, but I'll be back first thing tomorrow. Call me if anything happens. "
"Thank you, Wendy."
Dipper saw Wendy to the door. "We probably shouldn't say anything about Great Uncle Ford being missing. "he told her in a low tone.
"No worries, Dip. " Wendy assured him. She glanced over at Stan, who wiped a tear from his eye when he thought no one was looking. "Stan can be a hard boss, but he's a good guy. I hate to see him hurting like this. "
She returned her gaze to Dipper. "I'll be right back first thing in the morning. "
"Sure thing. "
Ford was back in the basement of his home, and Stan was about to burn the journal Ford had given Stan to hide. He tried to get it back and the two fought, but Stanley accidentally turned the portal on. He pushed Ford, causing him to get caught up in the light of the portal. Stanford started to rise into the air, being pulled back into the portal's opening.
"Stanley! Stanley, help me!"
His flustered brother stood frozen.
"Oh, no-what do I do?"
"Stanley! Stanley, do something! Stanley!"
There was a flash of light, and suddenly Ford felt something strike him in the face.
"Oh !"
Ford's head snapped to the side, and he opened his eyes. He was met with the wooden walls of his prison again.
"Hm. Seems you were dreaming. "
Ford turned his head back and looked at the shape shifter, which stood there in its human form. In one hand it held the tape that had been on Ford's mouth. In the other hand was a long device with a handle at one end and a metal bar protruding from the handle. The bar ended in prongs.
"Wh-what is that? "Ford asked.
"Oh, something I'm going to have a bit of fun with you with." The shape shifter said, grinning. "What's the matter, nerd? I thought that you knew everything. "
Ford's captor tossed the tape away, lifted Ford's sweater, then jammed the prongs of the device into his side.
"AAAAAAUUUUGH! "
Ford felt a searing electric shock rip through him. He thought he was being torn apart.
"Now," the shape shifter said, pulling the device away. "Wasn't that more fun than my tickling you? I thought so. "
Ford swallowed hard. "Please, what do you want? I'll do any-"AAAAAGH! NOOOO !"
His captor had poked the device directly into his stomach. "Well, for starters," it said, "You can tell me who Stanley is. "
"Wh-wha-?"
"You were yelling his name in your sleep after I took the tape off of your mouth." the shape shifter told him. "Who is he? "
It slipped the device under Ford's sweater and poked it into his underarm.
"AAAIIIEEEE! NOO! PLEASE ! "
"Tell me." Ford's captor said casually, sticking the implement of torture into Ford's other underarm.
"NOOOOOO! "
The shape shifter sighed. "Fine."
It got down on its knee, pulled Ford's sock off and stuck the prongs of the device on the bottom of Ford's foot.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Ford felt as though the inside of his leg were burning. He didn't know how much longer he could take this.
"Who-is-Stanley?" the shape shifter asked again, threatening to jam the device into Ford's chest.
"He—" Ford tried to think of something that would make the shape shifter believe Stanley wasn't anywhere in Oregon—though he didn't know if he and his captor were still in Oregon. "He's my—my brother. He and I grew up in New Jersey—on the other side of the country. "
"And you came to Gravity Falls."
"Yes—I had heard that it was—the one place on the continent most full of anomalies. "
Ford was still trying to catch his breath. He prayed that the shape shifter wouldn't shock him again.
"Anomalies, eh?" the shape shifter said, jamming the implement of torture into the sole of Ford's foot. "You mean, like me?"
Ford could only scream.