Date: Thu, 6 Jun 1996 16:58:18 -0600 (MDT) From: "Katherine R. Freymuth" Subject: Slide Before You Leap Part 5 Message-ID: Slide Before You Leap A Quantum Leap / Sliders crossover by Kat Freymuth Part 5 When Al hadn't returned to the hotel after Tina had finished her shopping, she knew what had happened; Al had gone investigating just as she had. She had seen Quinn and Rembrandt in the outside mall and had recognized them instantly. Thinking that they would lead her to discover more about Max Arturo's double, she purposefully attached herself to them by forcing them to help her shop for Al. It was more like coaxing since neither Quinn nor Rembrandt seemed to mind too much. Rembrandt wasn't too disturbed by the notion but Quinn, though he didn't seem to mind, seemes to prefer to get their good deed done and over with so that they could get back to the others. Upon careful observation, she figured out that Quinn was a lot like someone else she knew: a Doctor Samuel Beckett. Quinn was young, smart, and impetuous but, unlike Sam, he hadn't yet graduated college whereas Sam had already had six doctorates by the time he was Quinn's age. Rembrandt, she figured, was an unusual companion for the young genius. He was flaunty and sometimes he seemed as if he were about to sweep her off her feet. She liked him. Liked them both. But they sure didn't talk a lot. She didn't find out anything about Max's double but she learned enough about Quinn and Rembrandt to know that they weren't a danger to either her or anyone at the Project. After a while, she let them go their own way, following them just long enough to know which hotel they were staying and proceeded back to her own hotel to tell Al what she had learned. That's when she noticed that Al was still gone. That was okay with her, though. Their dinner reservations were at eight o'clock and it wasn't even four yet. She had put all her purchases away in her suitcase and had left out one of her new dresses for dinner. Having done that, she looked at the clock. 5:30 and Al still hadn't returned. She was starting to get worried. What happened to him? Was he hurt? She fretted for another hour before she got a response. *************** "Well?" Al asked as he sat down on one of the two beds in the hotel room. "You saw our slide-in?" Quinn questioned for them all. "If that's what you call that big blue hole in the air last night," Al told him. "Max told me a bit about it earlier - about you four coming from a parallel world or whatever you want to call it. What I want to know is the details: where you come from, why you're ... sliding?" he queried to see if he was using the proper term. He got a nod from Quinn. "Everything." Arturo took a step towards Al. "First of all, Admiral, do not call me Max." Al smiled at that. "Second of all, you haven't told us why you wanted to know." "Let's say I have an inquisitive mind, which isn't far from the truth," he added with a mutter. "And I don't like unanswered questions and that slide-in of yours is certainly an unanswered question. If you're worried I won't understand, don't be. I've graduated from MIT and I've been around enough scientists to grasp a good deal." The four exchanged looks before Quinn began. Quinn hesitated a moment. "Okay. Have you ever heard of the Einstein-Rosen-Podolsky Bridge?" Al shook his head slightly. "Not really but it does sound familiar." "It's a bridge between alternate realities. I found the gateway to it." Al raised his eyebrows slightly. "You? Not Ma...Dr. Arturo?" Quinn straightened himself and gave Al a glare that said "what? You don't believe me?" Al could easily see the meaning in the glare. "Relax, kid. I believe you. I just thought someone with as much experience as Dr. Arturo would have discovered it." Al thought a second. "So this gateway brought you to this reality and that's why there's two Maximillian Arturos here." Arturo answered. "There are also two Quinn Mallorys, two Wade Wellses, and two Rembrandt Browns." Al smiled and laughed a bit. "Incredible. And you can return to your own world anytime you want." The whole group looked despondent. Al looked at them carefully. "Ah," he said quietly. "You're stuck, aren't you? It makes sense now." "What makes sense?" Rembrandt asked. "That you were wondering if this was home," Al told him. "Yes, I overheard your conversation on the dock too." Rembrandt sighed. "Is everybody nosy on this world?" Al laughed. "No, just overworked admirals." "And blonde women," Quinn added. Al looked at him quizzically. Realization crossed his face. "Tina." Rembrandt and Quinn looked at him in surprise. "You know her?" Rembrandt asked. Al nodded. "She overheard the conversation too. Apparently she wanted to do a little investigating herself." "Apparently, we weren't the only ones being trailed today," Wade commented. "Would you mind telling us a little more about your interest in this, Admiral?" Quinn queried, getting back on subject. "Like I said, I don't like unanswered questions." Al smiled at him. "I like you, kid. You remind me of Sam Beckett." "The playwright?" Wade questioned. Al laughed. "No, the physicist." Quinn's eyes widened. "Dr. Samuel Beckett, the Nobel Prize winner?" Al's smile widened. "He's famous! And you know him?" "Kid, he's my best friend," Al told him. Quinn's eyes practically sparkled with excitement. "He could get us home." Smiled spread over Wade's and Rembrandt's faces while Arturo looked pensive. "Mr. Mallory," he said after a moment, "it is possible that Dr. Beckett has disappeared in this world as he has in our own." "Disappeared?" Al questioned. Quinn had looked concerned for a moment but lightened at Al's question. "From the Admiral's reaction, I'd say it was a good assumption that he hasn't, Professor," Quinn postulated. "Wait a minute," Al said firmly. "Disappeared?" Quinn looked at Al firmly. "On our world, Dr. Beckett disappeared without a trace about six months ago. Didn't close his accounts. Didn't leave word to anyone except some Naval officer who wouldn't say anything about his disappearance." Quinn paused. "Come to think of it, I think that officer was you." Al closed his eyes for a moment. "Figures." "What do you mean?" Wade asked. "I mean if Sam Beckett wanted one person to let know where he disappeared to, it would be me. Though I have no idea why he'd want to disappear at all." "What's this about this Beckett guy being able to get us home?" Rembrandt queried. "The man's a genuis," Quinn told him. "He holds six doctorates and one of them is in quantum physics. With his help, if we put our heads together, we might be able to find a way to slide home." "Seven doctorates," Al corrected as he pulled out a cigar and put it in his mouth. "Mind if I smoke?" he asked while looking at the four and pulling out a lighter. He noticed Wade grimace at the question. "Well, obviously the lady would rather I didn't. How about I not light it?" Putting the lighter away he stood up. He looked at Quinn. "At least in this world, Sam has seven." Quinn smiled a bit. "Let me guess. History." Al looked at him suspiciously. Quinn shrugged. "Makes sense. In our world, he has a Masters in History." "And he'll get us home?" Wadea asked hopefully. "It's possible," Arturo told her. Al was pacing. "Before we get too far into the subject, Sam's a busy man. He hardly has time to pull himself from his research." "What research is that?" Arturo asked. Al shook his head. "I can't tell you. It's classified information." "But I can make a good guess," Quinn put in. Everyone looked at Quinn: Wade and Rembrandt with curiousity, Al with suspicion, and Arturo with realization. Quinn looked at Al firmly. "Time travel." ----------------- Don't worry. There's more to come. Love hearing all the comments I've been getting. Keep them up. A writer is only a good as his readers allow him to become through criticism (both positive and negative). Kat Freymuth