Cipher [A Gravity Falls Tale] #Wattys2016

Eleven

The time had come. The portal was ready to be tested. Ford had spent most of the night eagerly conversing with Bill Cipher, planning for what was to come. He hadn't even bothered running any more preliminary tests; he had been assured of success by a being from another universe! Even if Ford had been completely wrong, even if Bill was just some schizophrenic hallucination, everything he had said so far had been proven true. Either Bill was who he said he was or Ford was twice as brilliant as he thought. Both scenarios worked out well for himself.

Things had cooled over a little with Fiddleford. He had apologized for offending Ford, and though he still expressed apprehension about running the tests, Ford could tell he still cared very much for their friendship. Perhaps he had reacted harshly, but he was determined to see his project through. Still, Fiddleford had meant no disrespect. It was the first time he had openly opposed Ford's goals, and surely a mistake. Ford was certain that McGuckett just needed to see the portal in action to be won over.

Ford glanced at his watch after taking another sip of his coffee. Seven thirty-six. So close. Ford smiled. He hadn't slept for almost three days in preparation for this moment, but with Bill keeping his mind strong, he felt as good as ever. Now it was almost time. Ford took the last sips of his coffee and munched on some licorice, one of his favorite snacks. Satisfied, he got up, grabbed his journals, and tromped down the stairs.

McGuckett was sitting at the table, working on his Cubic's Cube. The inventor could normally solve the small puzzle in seconds, but lately, he was having trouble even starting. Fiddleford sighed and set the unsolved cube down.

"It's time," beamed Ford.

"All right, then. Let's do this. Let's get famous." Though McGuckett said the words with little emotion, almost to the point of sarcasm, Ford could see his true excitement shining through. They had been working on this machine for too long to give up now. In fact, the very secrets of the town that they had been studying probably lay on the other side of the gateway.

"Let's make history," agreed Ford, extending his hand. McGuckett took it, and the two of them walked to the elevator and began their descent. Ford continued to grin to himself. The Weirdness Dimension. What would it be like? How much stranger than Gravity Falls, or just Earth for that matter, could it be?

They approached the portal and began turning on the instruments. The machine's lights came on and began humming. Energy rushed through the thick coils and filled the chamber.

They gave it a moment to heat up. "Let's go," Ford said after a moment, reaching for the levers. He began to prime the portal as McGuckett measured their readings.

"Everything stable so far," he declared.

"Excellent. Initializing hyperdrive." Ford threw a switch and activated the alien technology. Powered by the toxic waste pumping through the tubes around it, the piece of equipment thrummed and activated. By accelerating particles faster than the speed of light, the hyperdrive allowed the gateway to punch a hole through space and time. Beams of lights flicked on and off, appearing in different configurations as the symbols around it began to glow. Then, they whipped into a whirled frenzy as the hole in the center brightened to reveal the cosmos.

Ford gasped and whipped off his glasses. "Yes!" he cried. "After all this time, it's finally working!" They had done it. After all this time, successes.

Miles and miles away, Richard Northwest stared at a computer screen. The data suddenly lit up, a single blip pinging again and again. Northwest smiled and put his small cellular phone to his ear. The number it was pre-programmed to call was untraceable and, concerning most records, didn't even exist.