Chapter 33

Disclaimer: Alex Hirsch owns Gravity Falls, not me. Warnings are blood towards the end of this chapter.

Stan placed the briefcase onto the desk, eyes weary from lack of sleep, having been awake for nearly 48 hours. Back when he was younger, he had constantly pulled all-nighters, being able to stay up four days in row, to simply operate the portal (not to mention the nightmares and the triangles that tortured his mind for a period of time). Now though, his elderly body could barely handle the constant lack of sleep. He needed to stay up though, for Stanley. He wouldn't forgive himself, if he completely lost his twin. His voice came out hoarse, thick with emotion, as he whispered to himself. "I'm gonna get you back, no matter what the cost is."

He sagged against the swivel chair, eyeing a locker laid up against the left side of the wall. His joints creaked, as he stood, opening the locker to reveal a pair of hazmat suits hooked up. He leaned the side of his head against the cool metal of the door, remembering that his brother had been in the last individual to wear one. The glint of his father's shotgun behind the hanging suit caught his attention, causing his face to harden. Stan vowed to only use it only in dire circumstances. He reached out, pulling the suit from the hook, hugging it to himself, eyes squeezed shut. He could smell the scent of his brother, the faded pages of books and coffee beans, coming to mind. "Stanley..."

The elder man opened his eyes, snatching the shotgun from the locker, setting the weapon onto his desk. He removed his fez, tossing it inside the locker. He sat back down on the swivel chair, laying the suit out across the desk. He untied his laces, removing his shoes, dropping them to the floor. He stood, stepping into the suit, zipping up the hood. The elder man pulled on the pair of rubber gloves, hearing the snap after he released them. He began to open the briefcase, fumbling with the latches, before it popped open. There were two rows of vials, barely four inches tall, by two inches thick, glowing with the amber chemicals dancing inside. A strip of velcro was placed across each, keeping them in place, and he removed the first one. He lifted the vial up to his mask, his gloved hand feeling the heat rolling off it. He opened the door, leading to the dully humming portal, power already significantly reduced. He headed over to the operation tanks, unscrewing the lid. There was a gurgling noise rising from inside, heat causing his mask, and even his glasses to fog up. He opened the lid to the vial, hands steady, before dumping it in. He replaced the lid immediately, scrambling away, as the heat intensified.

Stan headed back into the other room, hearing the portal humming louder, and he began to feel confident that these vials would be enough to save his brother. He shut the door and was startled as the sound of feet was heard pounding down the staircase behind him. The elder man whipped around immediately, revealing Dipper, Mabel, and Gideon sprinting into the basement. He felt furious about the stupidity of how they had waltzed straight in, without thinking about what could possibly be occurring. The thermometer on the wall above the the control panel, revealing it to be 100 degrees Fahrenheit, even though it wasn't same room as the portal! "What in the hell are you three doing in here?!"

Mabel was the first to reply, voice harshly lashing back at the elder Pines. "You're opening the portal without us!"

"Probably because it's dangerous! Get out of here, now!"

"No! You promised th-"

"I didn't promise nothing! I'm not letting any of you get hurt when I open this, so go!" He bellowed, pointing at the door behind him. Dipper tugged at the collar of his t-shirt, already drenched in sweat, observing his relatives fighting. He felt anxiousness boiling in his stomach (or was it the heat?) at the sight of his great-uncle in a hazmat suit, planning on risking his life alone, to save his twin. Stan was bent over, screaming into Mabel's voice, and she had tears of anger welling in her couldn't stand the sight he beheld or the noises he heard, breathing slowly to steel his nerves. "How did you three even know I was doing it already?! You're supposed to be sleeping at the Corduroy's!"

"BECAUSE I SAW IT AND DIPPER HEARD THE PORTAL WHEN WE WERE SLEEPING!" She exclaimed, tears rolling down here cheeks. "AND I MADE A DEAL WITH BILL TO GET GRANDPA STANLEY OUT!"

Through the mask, Dipper witnessed the surprise that appeared on his face, before his anger reappeared. "THAT'S THE DEAL YOU MADE?! WHAT IF YOU COULDN'T DO IT, HUH? WHAT WOULD YOU DO THEN?! HOW COULD YOU BE SO STUPID?!"

"I'M NOT STUPID; YOU'RE STUPID!"

Dipper glanced to his left, suddenly realizing that his friend might not be reacting positively to the entire situation. He observed Gideon's distant eyes, hands covering his ears, mouth contorted in a twist. He reached out, tapping a finger on his shoulder, but received no response. Extended yelling seemed to be a trigger for his friend, he's noticed over time, and feared what memory he was stuck in. "DON'T TALK TO ME THAT WAY! I'LL WHOOP YOUR BEHIND INTO NEXT WEEK IF YOU DON'T SHUT IT!"

"I'M NOT AFRAID OF YOU!" Mabel exclaimed, pointing at him, unknowingly repeating the physical actions her own father did, when he lived at the Shack himself.

Dipper's anxiety melted away, replaced with anger, as he couldn't take what they were doing to Gideon anymore and finally went over the edge, stepping in-between the pair of Pines. "Stop it you guys! We shouldn't be fighting like this, especially when Gideon is like this!"

They ceased their argument at the mention of the 10-year-old and guilty studied the unresponsive behavior he presented. Stan went to rub at his forehead, but his hand ran into his mask, causing it to drop away. He cursed his own behavior, realizing how immature he had been with his grand-niece during their argument. He approached him, beginning to unzip his mask, revealing his face to the heated atmosphere, kneeling down before the freckled boy. He reached out, though his hand hovered above Gideon's shoulder, unsure on wherever he should touch him or not. "Kid? Hey, it's alright, you're safe..."

As Stan's palm tenderly rested upon Gideon's shoulder, Mabel slunk into the background, eyes glowing a bluish hue, as she approached the vials. The elder Pines was receiving no response from the freckled boy in the meantime, which was beginning to highly concern. His hand rubbed the shoulder, hoping to convey the comfort he was attempting to give. "Gideon? Come on, kid, you're kinda freaking me out here now."

Gideon's eyes sluggishly shifted, staring intently at the closed door, leading to where the portal was. His eyes seemed focused now, though his voice remained distant. "I-It...I-It's h-hot..."

"Yeah, I know. It's part of the reason why I'm wearing this suit. It has this thing inside that cools you down...you ok?"

The freckled boy nodded, hair slick with sweat, falling out of place, due to his hairspray melting in the heat. "J-Just t-thinking...a-about m-my D-Daddy...a-and..."

"Hey, he isn't here. Didn't mean to scare you with all the yelling...whoa there!" Stan grasped the 10-year-old's shoulders, as he swayed, panting from the intensity of the heat. Dipper's eyebrows furrowed together in concern, panic flaring, as he approached the pair. "Ok, that's it; you three are leaving right now. I can't have you kids passing out on me when I'm doing this."

Mabel stared intently at the briefcase, as she greedily eyed the vials. She blinked, returned to her senses, unaware how close she had edged to the chemicals, as she tuned in to the words being spoken by her great-uncle. She twirled around to Stan, hair fiercely flying behind her in her apparent fury. "NO! We have to be here when he comes back! It's part of my deal, Grunkle Stan!"

Stan squeezed his eyes shut at the words, before his shoulders deflated. "...ok, ok, you three can stay...but, you gotta do everything I tell you to do. And, the same goes to the both of you."

Dipper stared at Stan in surprise, not expecting the elder man to agree to let them stay. Mabel bobbed her head up and down, face appearing solemn, causing the brunet to be reminded of the coldness she had inside herself. He gulped, glancing away, and nodded as well. Gideon released a moan of agreement, eyes squeezed shut, leaning against Stan. "Ok, first off, I don't want any of you getting heat stroke, so take off your tops."

Mabel frowned. "Um, Grunkle St-"

"Just take off your sweater, not your shirt," Stan told her, realizing his choice of words to be inappropriate in her case. He glanced down at the freckled boy he held steady, unsure on how to approach this subject. "Uh, Gideon, I'm not doing anything really weird, but I'm gonna help you take your sweatervest off, ok?"

Gideon blinked up at him, nodding in a daze. "O-Ok..."

Stan cautiously grasped one of the 10-year-old's arms, lifting it above his head. When he didn't receive a negative reaction, he began to remove the royal blue sweatervest from his form, lifting the other limp arm to fully take it off. "You, uh, need help unbuttoning your shirt?"

Gideon tensed, shaking his head frantically. "N-No...w-want i-it t-to s-stay!"

"Woah, woah, it's ok! I ain't gonna make you, but I just don't want you to overheat. You should least roll up your sleeves though, so-"

Gideon jerked away from his, eyes wide, sweating in rivets by this point. "N-NO!"

Dipper held his forest green t-shirt and dark vest in his arms, observing the scene, gulping. Mabel was beside him in a lavender tank top, shooting star sweater folded up in her hands. She didn't seem to be paying much attention to the scene, staring at the portal, through the window. He decided to intervene, in order to save Gideon the embarrassment of attempting to explain himself. "G-Grunkle Stan?"

Stan glanced up from the trembling child, frowning at him. "What?"

"He, um...d-doesn't want you to s-see..."

"See what?"

Dipper licked his lips, moisture collected around them. "His, uh...s-scars..."

Stan blinked in confusion. "Scars?"

"Um, s-she healed his scars and w-when the contract was broke...t-they came back from, uh...f-from before..." Dipper trailed off, feeling as though he wasn't explaining well.

Stan's mouth set into a firm line, knowing exactly where the scars were from, aware that his actions seemed heartless now. "Oh. Uh, ok, you don't have to take it off, kid."

The freckled boy visibly relaxed, tugging at the collar of his button-up, as he nodded. His eyes shined guilty up at the elder man, causing Stan to feel worse about his actions. "S-Sorry..."

"No, that one was my fault..." Stan replied, releasing a sigh. He guided Gideon to the swivel chair, so he wouldn't collapse, setting him down into it, before beginning to zip up his hood. "Ok, before I open the portal, I'm gonna set down some ground rules. Number one: stay in this room at all times! Don't go into the room with the portal, you three understand me?"

The trio bobbed their heads in unison. "Good. Number two, if something goes wrong, and I mean like the portal bursting into flames, because it's old and she might do that, no matter what, you three need to shut this down. You just have to twist those three keys at the same time, to unlock the shutdown button, other there. Then, one of you needs to press that button above the keys."

They all stared at where he pointed, to the wall to their left. A glowing red button, roughly the size of their hands, with the words "SHUT DOWN" in bold letters was above, glinted suggestively with the power it held. Below the button, was three slots, with a cautioned black and yellow striped pattern surrounding them. Golden keys were inside the slots, waiting for a simple twist to unlock the button. Mabel raised her hand. "Yeah?"

"Why is the portal super hot? You didn't say it was when you told us about what happened before?"

"Like I said; she's old. I tried the best with what I had, but the machine overheating and...well, uh, crashing can happen. What I'm trying to say is, I can probably only have her opened only one more time."

The twins paled at the words, glancing at one another, realizing they only had one shot at saving their grandfather. Without speaking, they agreed that they couldn't screw up this rescue, or they would never see Stanley Pines alive in this dimension. "And, number three, if...when I come back with your grandfather, and I'm...If I'm injured, call Dr. Thompson and tell him that I need help. Ok?"

Dipper couldn't breath for a moment, aware that Stan could be heavily injured by whatever was attacking Stanley. His heart thumped rapidly in his chest, choking on the words he wanted to convey. Mabel appeared unnaturally pale, lightheaded about the notion of Stan being attacked and the blood that could spill from his bod. Her lips twitched upwards, heart thumping with excitement. Her smile dropped, disappointed that she had to wrestle with these feelings, as she did when Dipper had fallen down the staircase. Gideon couldn't properly focuses on his surroundings of the words spoken to him, the heat distracting him from the Pines. He vaguely understood the words, aware that they were attempting to save Stanley and that it was dangerous, but didn't quite understand beyond that. "Ok, well, uh, now I'm going to take these little bottles of, uh, 'fuel' and put them into the machine. I need one of you three to pull that lever, right there, to open the portal, when I give the ok."

The younger Pines nodded in unison, as he headed over to the locker, plucking up the other suit. He hooked the loop on the neck to his own suit, tying the arms and legs of it, around his body. Stan then approached the briefcase unstrapping the vials, and picking them all up, as he headed over to the door leading to the portal's room. His twisted the handle of the door, letting it swing open inwards, before pausing in the doorway. The heat swirled heavily into his body, causing him to flinch that the heat that momentarily penetrated his suit, before the cooling system inside began to function properly. He turned his head to the younger trio, face stern through the hood. "Remember, stay in here."

Without further words, the elder man stepped in, the door swinging shut behind him. He approached the operation tanks, unscrewing the lid, dumping in the contents of one vial. He cringed, as the bubbling increased, heat causing him to scrunch up his face. He open the other vials, pouring in several at a time, stepping back, as the VX popped like cooking oil, liquid jumping up at him. He cursed, grasping his gloved hand, as he felt pain from the popping chemicals. He replaced the lid, hand twitching from the pain it was enduring. The portal released a painful clatter, the humming increasing in sound. He glanced through the window, revealing the trio covering their ears, faces twisted in pain. He lifted his hand, thumb pointing to the air. Mabel's hand shot out, pulling the lever down, causing the portal to begin to open. There was a beeping barely heard over the hum over of the portal and his eyes widened. "TIME ANOMALY OCCURRING."

Gravity was lost, as the contents and individuals of both rooms began to float upwards. Gideon clenched onto the seat of the swivel chair, ramrod straight, eyes wide in fear as he began to float. Mabel clung to the lever, hair floating around her face, appearing frantic at the lost of gravity. Dipper's hat floating from his hand, birthmark revealing itself to the world, as he floated without any support to cling to, face stricken by the fact he had nothing to hold onto. Stan grasped onto a cord connected to the portal, beginning to float, upside down as he stared at the machine. The humming entered a ear splitting state, causing him to cringe, as his hearing aids rang out. The portal's hue began to mix, a rainbow of colors swirling around the opening. He was remind of what occurred 37 years ago, when the machine was last opened. He breathed deeply, as the gravity returned, plunging him back down. As his body made contact with the ground, he groaned, pushing himself up to his hands and knees. Stan glanced over to the window, observing Mabel assisting Dipper in standing, as he rubbed his tender head, hat missing from his unruly hair. Gideon was continuing to tightly cling to the swivel chair, eyes staring at the portal. "Next time..."

Stan wiped his brow, heat penetrating through the material, the hazmat suit's protective layers bubbling, melting underneath the heat of the drumming portal. He staggered to his feet, knees trembling, as he readied himself from the next time anomaly to occur. His face began confident as he approached the entrance, legs quaking with each step, the pressure increasing, the portal's power overwhelming him. The voice the electronic voice shrilly cried out once more, beeping louder than before, as gravity was lost, again. He began to float, feet brushing crossing the floor, before losing balance. He flew head over heels, and heels, and heels, and heels, through the portal. He gasped, as he squeezed his eyes shut against the intensity of the light. The heat burned his skin momentarily, before icy coldness overwhelmed his senses, a puff of warm air from his mouth, clouded his glasses and mask. Stan couldn't open his eyes, afraid of what he would see, before he would land where he needed to. If his eyes had been opened, he would of been able to prepare himself for the landing, but they weren't, so he crashed full force into the ground, on the other side of the portal. "S-Shit..."

He blinked, the fog of his glasses and hood beginning to evaporate, revealing a the rainbow hued portal glowing above him. He shoot up, afraid that the portal has spit him back out, until the conman realized the basement had lost saturation. He glanced over to the window, the trio missing, and he sighed in relief, as he was able to confirm he had made it. He unzipped his hood, adjusting his glasses, before standing. He approached the door, swinging it open, glancing to his right, and flinched. The ghostly outline Dipper, Mabel, and Gideon were there, staring in shock through the window. He reached out, his hand going though Dipper, causing him to stumble forward. "What the hell...?"

The brunet cringed, glancing around, and Stan realized that Dipper perhaps distantly heard him, though probably could decipher the words. He turned to his sister, voice sounding warped to Stan's ears. "I tHoUgHt I hEaRd HiM, mAbEl..."

He shook his head, stepping away, blocking out the disturbing tone his great-nephew's voice had been warped into. The ghostly appearance of the trio disappeared from his view, and he back away to the staircase. There was a cry of pain echoed out from upstairs and his eyes widened when he realized that he recognized the voice. "STANLEY!"

Stan bolted up the staircase, swinging open the vending machine, heading into the hallway leading to the lived-in portion of the Shack. He paused in the living room, glancing around for the source of the screams. He observed the never ending forest spanned outside the window, feeling unease about the prospect that the creatures that were attacked his twin, inhabited the forest. He heard the sound of his father's shotgun going off from up the staircase and he sprinted up them, nearly tripping several times. The echoing growls of whatever was attacking Stanley approached his ears, causing his hearing aids to screech. He entered the first landing of the attic, realizing the door of Dipper's and Mabel's room had been demolished, whatever that had wanted in, succeeding. Another gunshot went off, as he entered, narrowly missing his face. Stan observed the face behind the overturned table and releasing a shaky laugh, lips trembling as he realized who it was. "W-Well, I can always count on you for a warm welcome."

~!20-8-9-19/19-20-15-18-25/9-19/1-12-13-15-19-20/4-15-14-5!~

"I thought I heard him, Mabel..." Dipper whispered to her, glancing over his shoulder for the voice of his great-uncle.

"Grandpa Stanley?" She questioned with a frown.

"No, Grunkle Stan...d-do you think that means he made it...?"

"Y-Yes...I-I...c-can f-feel h-his...h-hope..." Gideon panted out, leaning his head back on the swivel chair, eyes squeezed shut as though he was pained.

Dipper frowned at the behavior. "Are you ok, Gideon?"

"U-Uh-huh..."

Mabel leaned over his seat, hand brushing away the sweat from his forehead. He cringed at the touch, twisting his body from her touch. She frowned at his action, though didn't comment on it. She fanned at his face, in an attempt to cool down the overheated boy, realizing that he was suffocating in the heat they were enduring. Her throat was pained from how dry it was, sweat in places she hadn't felt before. She glanced over at the thermometer on the wall, revealing it to be around 121 degrees Fahrenheit now. "It got hotter..."

The portal released a grinding noise, causing all three to clap hands over their ears. The machine's light flattered for a moment, before resuming the intensity it had preserved before. Their hands dropped as the noise ceased, the humming returning. Mabel opened her mouth, about to comment, but the portal abruptly burst into flames. The trio stared in horror as the hole was surrounded by a rainbow hued set of flames, the entire basement rumbling. The voice shrilly cried about another time anomaly occurring and they began to float from the floor, caught by surprise. Dipper stared at the portal, remembering his great-uncle's second rule, pained by the decision they had to make. As much as he wanted to save them, if it risked the portal exploding, they would have to close it with them still in there. "Mabel, we have to shut it down!"

"No!" She cried out, hair whipping around as she shook her head.

"He told us though!"

"Just a little bit longer! Please, we have to get them out!" Her eyes were filled with tears, the liquid floating into the air, as she stared at the multi-colored flames and listened to the roaring reached her ears. "We can't trap them, they'll die, Dipper!"

The operation tank released an echoing gurgle, then exploded. Everything shuddered, flames roaring inside, derby flying across the portal's room, metal shattering the window separating the trio from room. Mabel was assaulted by a chuck of metal, causing her to crash into the wall of a humming machine behind her. Other pieces of metal narrowly missed Gideon and Dipper, as they screamed out to the brunette. Gravity returned and she lied unconscious across the floor, spread-eagle, blood oozing out from an unseen wound she had endured. Gideon plunged face first into the control panel below them, crying out from the impact. Dipper's hands splayed out, protecting his face from impact, though his arms buckled underneath him, a pain erupting in his chest. He lifted his head, glancing around at his unconsciousness twin and friend, realizing he was alone. He stared up in horror at the portal, the flames brighter than before, realizing he only had a matter of time, before the portal released a larger explosion than the last one endured. He glanced down at the button, releasing that it had been activated. He glanced down at the keys, a piece of metal lying across two of the now twisted keys. He lifted the remainder of his body, revealing the pain he felt in his chest to be a key he had caused to twist. "I-I can't!"

He stared at the hole inside the flaming inferno, desperately hoping for his grandfather and grand-uncle to appear right now, so that destiny would chose for him to to press the button or not. Tears leaked from his eyes, aware after seconds had passed, that he needed to make the decision at that moment, or the portal could possibly destroy the entirety of Gravity Falls from the explosion it could produce. His anxiety thrummed through his veins, begin to hyperventilate, attempting to decided his actions. He choked on his breath, chest heaving, as he reached forward to press the button. His eyes absorbed the rainbow flames, before shutting them tightly, hand resting upon the button. He pressed it. "...I-I'm s-sorry..."

There was an screeching, as the swirling reducing, though the flames continued to roar. He screamed as the machine did, knowing he had doomed his probably already dead relatives. He pounded his fists onto the control panel, feeling anger consume, the darker side of himself emerging. He stumbled back though, when two figures were catapulted through the portal, onto the strewn metal of the room. The flames went out as though someone had flipped a switch, before it released a creak and completely fell apart. The remainder of the portal collapsed onto the pair and Dipper thrust open the broken door leading into the portal's room.

He paused before hill of metal and wires sparking before him, unable to decipher where his great-uncle could be. He released a series of gasps, falling to his knees, tugging at his hair, eyes swiveling around, searching for a body. His breathing completely ceased, observing the arm of the hazmat suit sticking out from the pile, blood oozing out from around the area. He fell back onto his bottom, staring at the arm lying out across the rumble. Dipper curled his arms around his legs, beginning to rock back and forth. His anxiety had seemingly vanished, leaving behind a blank state of his emotions. He was dead. He killed Stan. He shut down the portal, as he was heading through it, and killed him. HE WAS DEAD. ! The hand twitched and his eyes widened at the sight. The hand pushed at the metal on top of it, causing it to shift, and fall from the hill, sliding down to the ground. The top half of the body was revealed and he released a groan. Dipper's emotions returned and he sprinted up the hill, beginning to crawl. "GRUNKLE STAN, GRUNKLE STAN, GRUNKLE STAN!"

The brunet collapsed onto the upper half of his body, causing the older Pines to groan in pain from the weight. Dipper clung to the neck of the suit, gasping out his name repeatedly, tears dripping onto his mask. "Oh my god, Grunkle Stan, Grunkle Stan!"

As Dipper continued to sob into the chest of the older man, another figure further down in the heap, pushed off part of a beam that had been used to hold up the portal. He gingerly sat up, cringing as his stomach tensed, though he ignored the pain. He shook his head to clear it, before observing the others, and unzipping his mask. Stan's face was revealed, scowling, glasses cracked and askew upon his face. "He's injured, Dipper! Get off him!"

Dipper ceased his cries and slowly lifted his head, staring in confusion at Stan, suddenly realizing the individual he was laid upon, was not his great-uncle. He glanced back down at the figure he had been sobbing on, before reaching out to unzip his hood for him. A younger face of Stan stared up at him, eyes squeezed shut in what appeared to be agony, one of the lenses of his glasses missing. He realized it was his grandfather. Dipper lifted himself off of his body, mind numb for the entire situation that was presenting itself to him. "T-Thank you for r-removing yourself..."

"Did you get hurt anywhere else, Sixer? How's your shoulder doing?" Stan called upwards to his twin. Stanley groaned aloud, pushing himself up with his uninjured side. He panted, unzipping the front of his suit, blood spilling out across the heap of sparking wires surrounding him, choking on a gasp. His head flopped back down, trembling from the claw marks across his shoulder. "Sixer? Lee?"

"I-I n-need..." He began, trembling from the shock his body was entering. "D-Damn i-it...S-Stanford...I-I think I'm going into s-shock..."

Stan's eyes widened and he attempted to lift himself further up, but froze, as he felt a deep shift in his stomach, leaving him unable to breath. He immediately laid himself back down, observing the injury around his stomach. He gulped, staring down at the beam piercing into his skin, the other end underneath him, out of view. He stared at his grand-nephew, the 13-year-old appearing distressed and confused, as he stared at his gasping grandfather. "D-Dipper, where's your sister? Or Gideon?"

Dipper's attention was shifted over to Stan and the elder man prayed that Dipper didn't notice the portion of beam protruding from his stomach, though he quickly realized the angle he was laid at hid the metal. Stan remained tensed, as he he witnessed the brunet bit his lips, glancing over at the other room, tears pooling once more in his eyes. "T-They got hit..."

"Hit? Shoot...are they ok?"

"I...d-don't know..." Dipper trailed off, tears rolling down his cheeks.

"H-hey, don't do that...are you hurt?" He questioned, scanning his body for injuries. His grand-nephew shook his head, lip quivering, as he fought against his sobs. Stan knew that informing Dipper that he was injured, would set off a possible panic attack and oped against the option. He noticed his brother's entire body shook, aware he needed help for him immediately, and possibly himself. He didn't want to resort to calling Dick, considering the fact he didn't want to involve the younger doctor with this fiasco, but knew that he had to resort to that now. "Ok, kid, I need you to do something for me, cause, uh, my legs are sorta stuck underneath this metal here and I can't move it. Can you stay calm enough to do it?"

Dipper wiped at his tears, sniffling, taking as deep breath. "Y-Yeah..."

"Ok, first of all, check on Mabel and Gideon? Just make sure they're, uh...you know, alive, ok? Can you do that?"

His lip wobbled dangerously, before it ceased movement. "Y-Yeah."

"And then, I need you to call Dr. Thompson and tell him we had an accident. If he says he's going to bring someone to help him, tell him I said no, ok? We can't let people see the remains of the portal, that would be too hard to explain. Are you able to to that?"

The brunet bobbed his head up and down, staring in concern at his grandfather. "Is G-Grandpa Stanley going to b-be ok?"

"Yeah, he'll be fine. Just need Dr. Thompson to fix him up, and he'll be ok. Now, go check on them."

"O-Ok," He replied, crawling down from the pile and sprinting into the control room. Stan released a sigh, that caught on the end, causing him to release a series of rattling coughs. He lifted his head, observing the entryway of the room, as Dipper re-entered, calling out to him. "I-I think they're ok! I'm gonna go get Dr. Thompson now!"

Stan lifted a trembling hand, producing a thumb up in reply, as his grand-nephew scampered off, heading up the staircase to the gift shop. He dropped the thumb, stomach muscles twitching from the pain. "F-Fuck...Ugh, Lee, how you doing?"

"...I-I can't feel i-it anymore..."

"Shit, uh, don't worry, my nephew is getting a friend of mine that's a doctor." He replied, twisting his head to view his twin, clinging onto his bleeding shoulder, blood steadily dripping from his injury.

"O-Ok...uh, S-Stanford...?"

"Yeah?"

"H-How s-serious is your injury?"

"Injury? I ain't hurt, they, uh never hit me, remember? I just haven't moved, because my legs are trapped unde-"

"Y-Yes, that's what y-you told Dipper...but, h-how serious i-is the injury you received when the p-portal collapsed?"

"Like I said, I ain't hur-"

"S-Stanford."

Stan squeezed his eyes shut, releasing a cough, blood dripping from his mouth and down his chin. "...even after all these years, you still know me..."

"W-What?"

"Uh, I said that...my injury isn't that bad, ok? Don't worry about it, Lee."

"Mhmm..."

The elder man frowned at the moan his brother released. "Sixer? You doing alright?"

"Y-Yes...keep t-talking..."

"Uh, ok. Uhhhh...your son hates me...?"

Stanley groaned. "W-Why in the w-world would you start w-with that?"

"Sorry, sorry. Just, uh, can't really think of anything off the top of my hea-Ugh!" He choked off on his words, as his stomach muscles spasmed once more and he panted through, until the spasms ceased.

"S-Stanford?"

"Ah...I...I-I'm fine...just...some...s-spasms...s-shit...I'm fine."

"Stanford..."

"Really, I'm fi-"

"I-It's cold..."

"Shit, Stanley...just hold on, ok?"

"Mhmm-hmm..."

"Stanley?" Stan didn't receive a reply though, causing him to begin to panic. "Stanley?! Lee?! Shit, Stanley, answer me!"

"Stanley?" The voice echoed into the room, casing him to flinch in surprise, his stomach paining him as he tensed. He lifted his head to catch a view of Dick Thompson, crawling up the mound of metal, panting from his journey, nearly tripping several times. He frowned at him, as Dick observed his face and the hazmat suit he wore. "What in the hell is going on here?!"

"I'll explain everything later, but you need to he-"

"Oh, shit, Stan, are you coughing up blood?" Dick questioned, noticing the blood dripping from his mouth.

"Yeah, but my broth-"

Dick reached out, moving the metal chuck plastered across his lower half in an effort to assist him, causing it to scrap across the beam protruding from his stomach, a screeching heard from the metals touching one another. His body attempted to curl inwards, choking violently at the action the doctor had committed. Bright lights, bright as the portal had been, danced before his eyes, a fierce ringing in his ears. As the lights and noise cleared, his entire body began to spasm. "S-STOP!"

The movement immediately ceased, metal now heavily pressed into the beam, causing the the top half to submerge into his flesh. He felt coldness engulf him, as he began to cough up a mouthful of blood. The thick liquid slid on his neck, oozing into his clothes underneath the suit, his flesh sticky with red. Stan distantly heard the doctor calling out to him, before the weight of the metal chuck on his lower half was removed completely. The beam, no longer blocked, slid upwards, peeping out of his stomach, once more. The final spasm of pain his stomach endured, caused his eyes to roll upwards, eye lids sliding shut, as darkness consumed his consciousness and agony.

End Chapter 33

I literally had to set aside hours of my time to create this chapter, since I had a difficult time to describe everything involving the portal and the injuries the elder Pines sustained. Finally wrote this all out though, which I'm quite proud of! If you didn't quite enjoy the angst of this chapter, next chapter will be a light one, dealing with the recovery everyone with go through with. And, Gideon's birthday (for real this time, like I actually wrote some of the birthday scene)! Anyways, notes for this chapter included only one; I made the shutdown button and the keys inside the control room, instead of the portal room like in "Not What He Seems", simply because it was more of a convenience for how I wrote out this scene. And, as always with every chapter, favorites, followers, and reviews are highly appreciated!