Gravity Rises (S3)

MV: Part Three

Ford let out the millionth sigh of the morning and shifted once again on the bed inside his prison. He'd never been so bored in his life.

He was inside the Northwest Manor, where he'd been since Friday afternoon. He and his brother, Lee, had been at the minotaur village, and they'd been suddenly kidnapped by Cipher's servants. One moment, Ford had been trying (and failing) to fend off Cipher's servants; the next thing he knew, he was lying on a bed in a nice room within the Northwest Manor. The door was locked, there were no windows, and Ford didn't see anyone except for the servants who came in to bring him food and change the chamber pot in the corner.

They didn't even give Ford the dignity of accessing a normal bathroom. They gave him a chamber pot.

To be fair, that might be mainly because of the power outage. He wasn't entirely sure if there had been one, but all signs pointed to that being the case. Ford's prison room was lit by a single lantern that had been taken from the Order headquarters, and the food brought to him was always cold.

It wasn't bad food, though, and the servants made sure he had plenty of water. He wasn't being mistreated. But he was lonely, and bored, and angry about getting captured, and anxious about what was happening outside. No one had told him anything — the servants who came into his room never responded to his questions — but if the servants came to the minotaur village to kidnap him and Lee, then they wouldn't have stopped there. They would've made an attempt for the dagger as well. And a power outage was a sign that the township — meaning the town of Gravity Rises and the magical forest around it — had started moving through the dimensions. Which could only happen if the dagger had been stolen and used to harm one of the Symbols.

They were moving. Ford was sure of it. He didn't know who had been hurt, though. His mind swirled with possibilities: Mabel, his sweet niece that Pacifica had a vengeance against? Dipper, who wouldn't hesitate to defend his sister? Lee, who was under Bill's control?

He didn't think Lee would've been chosen. Bill still needed Lee, for the demon could possess him whenever he desired. And Ford was here, unharmed. So it must've been one of the other eight Symbols. Likely Mabel, if Pacifica had any say in the matter.

Whoever it was, Ford should be out there looking for them, trying to save them. But he was stuck here. Stuck with no sunlight, no freedom, no company.

Was this what Lee had felt like for thirty years? No wonder he'd given in to Bill's promises of relief. If Ford didn't know better, he'd probably do the same.

Ford didn't know where Lee was. He hadn't seen him since they'd been kidnapped. If he had to guess, he'd say that Lee was wherever Bill needed him, getting periodically pulled out of his body so that the demon could possess him. Ford wondered if Lee ever came as a spirit to visit. Ford wouldn't be able to see him if that were the case, but he wondered all the same.

He let out yet another sigh. What time was it? A servant had dropped off his breakfast earlier, and Ford had long since finished it. With nothing else to do, he had laid back on the bed. It was a nice bed — nicer than the air mattress he'd been sleeping on for the past week — and it was easier on his elderly body to just lay here. No matter how boring it was.

He knew he should get up soon and exercise. He was creating a daily routine for himself to keep up his energy while he was trapped here. But he didn't want to get up just yet.

Across the room, a key turned in the lock. Ford shot upright at the sound.

The door opened to reveal one of the servants, a man with dull red hair. He closed the door and locked it behind him, then went to pick up Ford's breakfast place. He acted like Ford wasn't even there.