Round Robin 1 - SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin (unnamed)

[mstalanon]

Many of the suggestions for a title of our collective effort were quite good...

"Atlantic Crossing"
"Escape or Capture?"
"The Cry of the Banshee"
"Have Robbery Will Travel"

I personally really enjoyed this effort. It was wonderful... truly wonderful to work with such gifted writers, and people with extraordinary imaginations. Writing ability such as prose, punctuation, and "accuracy" is NOT considered that important, as much as the STORY that you convey. Anything else falls to an editor to pick it apart.

I really got to know some of the writer's personally as we talked about our efforts in emails, on the scifi.com/quantum bboard, and in replies on the fanfic site.

A couple of times writers bumped realities a bit as someone else had posted something right before another writer. I consider those "lost moments of prose" more than anything. No one version is better than another, despite the ability of the writers. It's more of "hey? Who got there first!?" than anything else really!!

I know it happened to Sue once, and to me. Sue mentioned that she wanted to keep the "other" post 26 that I was going to do as an alternate reality, and to branch off the story along those lines. And that's a great idea! It WOULD STILL be fun to explore that.

However, to me, that betrays the flavor of "Round Robin story-telling"... here, the technology came into odds with us, for instead of pointing at someone and saying, "take it Jonah!", someone else saw the opportunity and went for it before I could.

Just like what happened with Sue in a post around msg 14 or so. She immediately saw the situation, and said something to the effect of "ignore my post, and I'll do something with the next one"... and that's all I did with mine. I only posted it on the scifi board to show how two separate writers took the opening from Sue's previous entry, and said, "wow, what can I do here?" "Oh... ((clacketty clacketty clack)) goes the keyboards as your imagination goes absolutely WILD with how you're going to enhance the story with your own take on it.

I would love to do something like this entire effort again everyone!! tell us your thoughts. Please!

And now, on with the entries:

Matt *your narrator* and NO, I DON'T SOUND LIKE Deborah Pratt, the voice of Ziggy and the narrator that intones the classic "Theorizing that one could travel back in time..."

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 1
written by SueJBakula

As the blue-white light faded and the familiar tingle of static left his body; Sam felt a peculiar floating sensation. His eyes were closed, but he could feel the rush of wind on his face. There was silence except for the wind. What had he leapt into this time? He couldn?t be sure. He had leapt into so many unusual situations before. Sam dare not open his eyes, but his inquisitive nature got the better of him and he slowly opened his eyes to his current fate.
He could see green meadows far into the distance and as he looked down; a rocky terrain was rushing up towards him. Panicking, he looked up, blue skies and white clouds swirled as his whole body somersaulted over. He was in mid-air and now facing the clouds and sky. The wind blowing his hair into his eyes as he plummeted down towards the earth.

There was no white silk above him, no parachute, no life-line. He struggled to find the handle for the rip-cord, and in doing so he lost control of his body, as he twisted and turned in free-fall. He found it difficult to breathe and was gasping for breath, his chest hurt from the coldness and the strain of the thin atmosphere. The ground and sky became intermingled and his mind couldn?t distinguish between up and down. Everything seemed to darken as he started to black out.

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 2
written by mstalanon

"Suzie!!" Sam faintly heard. With each syllable pronounced, beacons of light pulsed thru as motes of consciousness began to pulse into his senses. His eyelids fluttered faintly as he fought to return to the physical world. He could feel his clothes rippling around him, and something kept pulling and banging into him around his waist.

Suddenly, he felt like someone tackled him. He felt the arms wrap around his torso, not too kind either, and could feel the hands trying to grab onto portions of his suit he was wearing. The self-defense training he had undergone all those years ago kicked in, and he began to struggle, not even fully aware of what was really going on around him. Twisting his arms, he actually punched thru a grasp, freeing his right arm, and he heard a growl in response.

"Dammit Suzie, I'm trying to hook us up together. Quit struggling!" The person was behind Sam, shouting to make himself heard over the roaring wind, and their own hearing protection. Sam relaxed at the voice, and realized he was now someone named Suzie, and the other person knew enough to get them out of this jam.

A resounding click and a pat on Sam's upper back assured him that whoever was helping had succeeded. "Okay darlin! Got it. You ready for the pull?"

Nodding his head, Sam braced for the worst. The other person wrapped his legs around Sam's midsection and thighs. Then came the all-too-sudden intrusion of another reality as their world jerked hard, and Sam heard the grunt of pain and determination from his helper. For Sam's own experience, all the breath whooshed out of him, and his earlier efforts to breathe doubled as he instinctively pulled his head back and snorted in precious oxygen through his nose.

"That's it sis! Breathe!!"

<!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Okay,<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> Sam thought. <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> I'm a woman named Suzie who may or may not be experienced in skydiving, and my brother has just saved my life. What's next?<!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->

"Did you drop the bag?" Suzie's brother asked worriedly in Sam's ear.

Looking down, Sam saw two duffel bags attached to his belt. So these were the things that had had been twisting and slamming into him. From this view, Sam could see the ground was coming up to meet them a lot more slowly, and that brought a small measure of relief. He shook his head negatively to the question.

Hearing an affirmative grunt, Sam felt the grasps relax a bit on his upper chest. But all too suddenly, they both heard a loud explosion to their lower right. Gasping, Sam twisted about to see a small fireball light up the hillside of a mountain in the distance.

"Good! They'll think we died in the Cessna!" Suzie's brother said in Sam's ear. "We did it, little sister! Now the authorities won't be able to find the two people that robbed the bank of that cool million plus!"

Twisting his head in shock, Sam turned to see the leering grin on <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> his<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> brother. "Robbed?" he whispered.

Suzie's brother laughed aloud. "Did you forget so sudden? Hell Suz, it was your idea!"

Sam looked down as the ground rushed up to his feet. Both the news of being an escaped robber and of the approaching impact brought out his next sentence.

"Ohhhh, boy!"

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 3
written by Ziggy_the_Ego

Suddenly Sam hits the ground. Thump - Suzie's brother, Cliff, comes crashing down on top of him. Sam groans, "Watch were you're landing!"

"Excuse me Suzie, I was trying not to damage our valuables."

As Sam searched around himself for the buckle of the parachute, he heard a cry off in the distance. It was a cry like no other he had ever heard before. It sounded like a baby, but only more animal. But he?d never heard animals cry like this before.

Suddenly Cliff's face went white. He was horrified of what he heard.

"What is it? What is it?" shouted Sam.

Suddenly a voice from behind said, "That was the Banshee Sam." It was Al and he didn't look too happy either.

Cliff said, "I'm afraid that means we're going to have to run quickly. The white lady is calling."

Sam still did not have a clue as to what was happening.

"Sam, you're in Ireland."

Cliff ran off to look for something.

"Ireland? What you mean I'm in Ireland? Am I hear to get the British out of Ireland. Or am I here to stop the Republican movement?" questioned Sam.

"Don't be stupid Sam, it's 2000. They are sorting it out for themselves now, but things aren't good." replied Al.

"Do you know what that crying was?"

"Yes Sam, it was the Banshee." Sam looked at Al wondering what he was talking about. Al continued, "The Banshee is an Irish spirit which foretells the death in an Irish family. Sam, she?s dangerous."

"Al, don?t be mad, there is no such things as spirits, the Irish are known for their stories!" Sam laughed.

"Well how do you explain then that your brother, Cliff, will be gunned down tomorrow getting onto a boat for Liverpool?"

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 4
written by Leapgirl2001

"Al, I'm--I mean, Suzie--is going to be shot tomorrow night?"

"Yes, Sam, tomorrow night. Ziggy says there is a 99.2% chance that you're here to return the money you stole, but you have to avoid the authorities."

"Oh that's great! I'm a girl in Ireland who robbed a bank and FAKED HER OWN DEATH! This is such a great leap already. Of course, I'm being sarcastic!"

"I figured that, Sam. Anyways, you have to protect yourself and Cliff from, well, whatever that sound was (referring to the crying sound). I'll be back Sam." (The Imaging chamber door opens, and Al steps inside.)

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 5
written by mstalanon

Just as Al was pressing the button, Sam called out. "AL!"

Al hesitated, and stepped forward. "What is it Sam? I've got to check these numbers with Gooshie and Tina. Besides, Ziggy is still having trouble direct connecting with the Dublin News Agency. Seems we have to brush up on our Gaelic," he said with upraised eyebrows and a familiar gesture of his head, an expression Sam knew all too well. It usually meant that the level of frustration was building with his best friend.

"Well, what?s my name, nationality, why I?m here?? I need to know more on a leap like this.

"Gotcha Sam! I rushed in here the moment I heard you were in a free fall. Poor girl back in the Waiting Room thought she died and was in heaven!" Al gave a little chuckle as he considered how many times people had thought that. He quickly accessed the data in Ziggy?s mainframe. "Um, lessee, you?re name is Suzie Blackman, age 24, and you?re from Watford City, North Dakota. You?re a broad!"

Sam gave Al a look of <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> 'what the hell?'<!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->

Al frowned at the hand-link and shook it a bit, eliciting a couple of squeals. Then he rechecked the readout. "Oh, <!--EZCODE BOLD START--> ABROAD!<!--EZCODE BOLD END--> You?ve been traveling abroad since you graduated top of the class at the University of Iowa. Hey! Get this Sam. You?re a medical Doctor... or at least, you?ve been accepted as an intern. Seems the kid?s got some kinda supporter, because her family is really dirt poor!"

"Suz! I can?t find anything in the dark. Get your crap together! We got miles to cross before we get to the River Shannon!" Cliff called from the top of a hill.

"That's your brother Cliff," Al added in helpfully.

"Um, c-coming!" Sam called back. "Anything about Cliff?" he asked the Observer.

"Way ahead of you Sam. You?re brother Cliff is 32... I?m not getting a lot of data. He spent a lot of time overseas, so the news is very hard to come by until Ziggy interfaces."

Turning to Al, he asked, "AL! Who gets shot? And why Liverpool, England?? That?s a long way from the mountains in central Ireland!"

Al hit several buttons on the hand-link, and even thumped it with his hand, causing ashes to fall off his lit cigar. They of course vanished after leaving the hologram?s aura. "I dunno buddy. Hmmm, this is getting weird, Sam. Ziggy says that something JUST affected the timeline, and it ain't us!"

Sam?s expression clouded over and he turned to Al. Al turned to his friend, and at the same time, they both said the same thing. "Lothos!" Al chewed on his cigar and Sam gulped audibly.

Al went on. "Awww, dammit! I thought we were through with that nozzle!"

Sam asked quietly. "Do you think it?s Alia?"

"Nooooo Sam, we checked for a very long time after that jail leap into Nun-central!" Al stated, tossing in his own opinions about the hard-core criminals from the all-woman penitentiary. "She escaped Lothos... and as for Zoey or her observer Thames, we never heard from them again."

"Okay Al... my brother here is going to get really impatient. Go back and find out from Ziggy exactly who is shot... probably both of us, but make sure!"

"Okay Sam, you got it!" Al said with conviction. "Take it easy buddy. Especially around ol? Spookville, Ireland!"

Sam shot Al a look of irritation and Al hit the button on his hand-link, thereby closing the door in the Imaging Chamber, with him on the other side. Dr. Beckett finished grabbing his two duffel bags and packed away his parachute deep in the bushes like Cliff had done. He soon scampered into the darkness after his brother.

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 6
written by SueJBakula

Sam struggled up the rocky hillside, slipping on loose rocks, Sam looked down at his feet. He wasn?t wearing the correct footwear for this kind of terrain, nor the proper kind of clothing. He noticed the thin slacks and blouse he was wearing. At least the coat was adequate.

"Suz! Get your butt up here!" Cliff squawked from above him, his voice echoing into the valley below.

"Damned you Cliff." Sam swore under his breath. "How?s a girl supposed to lag all this..." <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Gawd, I?m even thinking like a girl.<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> Sam thought.

Sam lost his footing again, his grip loosened on the duffel bags as he grabbed out to steady himself. He watched helplessly as they rolled and bounced to the bottom of the hillside. "I could use a little help here Cliff." Sam continued. "How?s a girl supposed to get up there with all this stuff? You could pull your weight and carry your fair share."

"My fair share?" Cliff resounded as he descended from above. "Most of this stuff is yours, sis, I told you we needed to travel light, but no, you had to bring the whole kit and caboodle."

Sam leaned back against the rock-face and as Cliff passed him, Sam gave him a sympathetic look. <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Well,<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> Sam thought, <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> I might as well play the helpless girl role, while I can.<!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->

Cliff returned, struggling up the hillside. When he reached his sister he shoved one of the duffel bags at Sam. "If it ends up at the bottom again, you can fetch it. I knew it would be a big mistake coming to this part of the world. I knew a girl couldn?t handle this trek. You broke any fingernails yet?"

Sam looked at his hands and turned them over, "No." He returned his glance to Cliff.

Cliff was smiling, "Just kidding." He said as he slapped Sam roughly on the back. He took hold of Sam?s hand and started pulling him up the steep hillside. "Come on, I want us to get on better ground before we loose the light."

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 7
written by OhBoyLAG

After an hour of scrambling, two bruised knees and a scraped elbow, Sam finally began to feel the ground beneath him level out. The last grayish wisps of twilight had dropped below the horizon fifteen minutes ago, just when Cliff pulled himself up and over the top, leaving Sam to clamber after him in the dark until the dim glow of a small fire above cast some light on the short distance ahead.

"Hurry up, sis! I'm makin' dinner. You don't want to eat your supper cold, do you?"

Invigorated at the thought of a warm meal and the scent of what could only be sizzling bacon on the wind, Sam increased his pace, slipping only once before he could manage to continue on his feet alone. Staggering over to the fire, he dropped onto his rear abruptly, long legs sprawled out before him in the springy grass.

"You made bacon?" Leaning forward, Sam squinted at the pan over the fire hungrily. Taking this gesture for a look of distaste, Cliff chuckled and tossed something round that thumped against Sam's chest before tumbling to the ground just before him.

"Don't worry, Suzie. I didn't forget you were a vegetarian. I brought plenty of beets."

"Beets?" Exasperated, Sam plucked the food item from the grass and examined it gingerly, as if it might bite him if he brought it too close.

"Well, I brought a few carrots too, but seeing how beets are your favorite and all..."

Groaning quietly, Sam sniffed at the beet before dropping it back into his lap. "Can't I at least try a piece of bacon? It smells great."

"Hey, no way! I only cooked up enough for myself. Besides, you were the one that insisted I drag all of this rabbit food along, so you had better eat it. Pfft. Vegetarian one second, starving wolf the next. You gotta make up your mind about things like this, sis. I'll see if I can't fix you a piece or two in the morning."

"Thanks." Sam replied, his tone dry as he fumbled around in his sack and somehow managed to find a carrot and a full bottle of water.

"Careful with that, Suzie, until we find a source of clean water. I only brought four bottles." Pausing to chew for a moment, Cliff gestured to his own sack, "I've got the sleeping bags in here, if you're ready to bed down."

"Mmmhmm." Suddenly aware of his exhaustion after the rough climb, Sam choked down the last nibbled portion of beet before hoisting himself back onto his feet and stumbling towards the pack Suzie's brother had indicated.

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 8
written by mstalanon

The phone rang briefly, and was answered by a young man, Garda O'Halley.

"Superintendent?s office, Ardagh Division," he said crisply, referring to the Western section of the Garda S?och?na, the Irish Police section. The Ardagh office was located in Longford, yet it was the section closest to the center of Ireland. He blinked and sat up a bit stiffer than he was a moment ago. "Command & Control?" he stammered. Rarely did his up-line supervisors from Dublin call at this time of the night. Here, in this sleepy section of Longford, not much occurred that would be of interest to the Chief Superintendent?s office. At least not at this hour! The tow-headed young man listened for bit, and surprise showed a moment later. He choked on his coffee.

"Explosion?" He began to jot some information down, and after a bit, ripped off the page and stood up, still talking as he did so. "I understan'. Please inform Mrs. Jennings that haer interests are our interests in thi' mattaer." He nodded his head right afterwards, and said "Yes sair! I will wake up the Superintendent right away!"

He hung up the phone, and ran to the office door, alerting the sergeant on duty. After a moment of bantering about what to do, the young officer returned to his desk, and scanned down his notes that he had tacked onto his computer monitor. Keeping his finger at one location, he picked up the phone and hurriedly dialed the number he was looking at.

"Super?" he asked after a moment. Nodding his head, he continued. "Yes sair, I understan' wha time it is... however, an explosion right before dark happened at a farm near the mountains around Newtowncashel." That city was in the lower left corner of their section they were responsible for. "The local Garda have investigated wha' appears ta be a plane that's crashed. Nothing local is missing or unaccounted for."

After a moment, he Again nodded his head. "Yes sair, I'll drive down there mysel'. It will take a few hours, though." He hung up the phone, and called out to Sergeant Crecken on duty. "Will! Ye better wake up Brian. I have ta leave th' desk an' check with th' locals down in Athlone."

"That'll take ye hours ta get there boyo!"

"Ayuh... but it's th' northern section o' Westmeath, down by Shannon's Loughrea I'm headin' too!"

"It'll STILL take ye hours!"

Sighing, the young garda didn't retort back. He just grabbed his jacket and cap, placing the latter tightly on his head, and stuck his gun in his till then empty holster. Only the garda were armed investigators. Surely it wasn't a coincidence the local constables couldn't handle this.

As the young officer was walking away, he stopped suddenly confused. The sergeant saw O'Halley look around in confusion, as if he were unaware of where he was. "Wha's the mattaer, boyo. Fergot where ye were headin' all o' a sudden?"

The older man thought he heard the younger mutter to himself. "Ireland? Surely not!"

"What was that O'Halley?" he called.

Looking back, the younger man said dismissively. "Oh, never mind sir. I just forgot myself for a moment."

Frowning in response, the sergeant stood up from his desk. WHEN did young O'Halley EVER call him sir?? Only the paid jackasses in Dublin liked being called sir. We Garda work for a living! And he said so to Thomas a moment later.

"Terribly sorry old man," the other said defensively, if not a bit formally. "Wh-where was I going again?"

Exasperated, the older man came around his desk and walked into the main area of the Garda office. "Are ye daft? Ye were just tellin' me a moment ago about the trip ye were called ta make by our superiors at Command."

William Crecken had thought he couldn't get surprised any more, and then suddenly he was. He saw O'Halley's eyes look away for a moment, and he tilted his head slightly, as if listening to someone that wasn't there. But when the sergeant looked again, Thomas looked fine... in fact, the old sergeant was beginning to doubt that he had seen what he thought he saw.

"Oh, of course... how silly of me. The Shannon Loughrea area! Well, guess I best be on my way!" he called out. The sergeant frowned again at Thomas' word usage, as if he were saying things Thomas wouldn't say.

Shaking his head, the older man dismissed it and turned back to the comfort of his desk. He waved back at the young Garda. "Be off with you, and keep your little play actin' to yerself and yer young filley Gretta!"

Thomas nodded his head and started walking to the right. He stopped a moment and turned back to the left, towards the actual exit of the building. Once he was out of sight, he muttered to himself, "Just tell me what I'm here to do so I can stop embarrassing myself like that, you moron!"

"Oh, never fear, dear Zoey!" the hologram Thames mentioned with his usual lightness. The handsome black man's fingers danced quickly over the hand-link, and he shouted with glee. He did a twisting shake of his hips, hit yet another button, and appeared upside-down in front of Zoey, who was now the Garda Thomas O'Halley.

"Yes! Do you have any idea what you're hear for, my lovely Leaper?" Zoey smiled a moment as she remembered this aspect of her observer. He could be such a card at times. And then in anger, she swatted at her hologram, even though she knew it wouldn't do any good.

"No dammit! Just tell me what I'm here to do. I hate all of these leaps I've had to do!"

"My dear," he taunted, but then changed his mind when he saw how upset she really was. "Lothos says you have redeemed yourself. You're in Ireland to kill the family of the good Senator Blackman, who is on the oversight committee for Dr. Beckett's Quantum Leap Project. Lothos figures that if the good Senator buckles under, that will make Admiral Calavicci resurface for the emergency meeting back in D.C., and that will lead us to..."

"BECKETT!" Zoey said furiously. She turned toward Thames with pure fire. "Do whatever it takes Thames. I want Dr. Beckett's head on a platter!"

Thames gestured towards a waiting Garda vehicle. "Your chariot awaits, Madame!" Then he began to dance and sing with all the relish of watching a nightmare about to unfold.

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 9
written by SueJBakula

"Hey Rob, over here!" A young constable shouted, waving his hand in the air. The light from his torch illuminating surrounding trees and rocks that loomed out of the rough ground.

Rob turned in his tracks; tripping on the uneven ground. "Ugh, What is it Pat?" The other constable answered; he saw the torch light flash in the darkness and headed towards it.

"I tink I?ve found the registration mark in the wreckage. Dere?s numbers and letters. Agh..." Pat heaved at a large piece of metal. "Dere?s two pieces here looks like daere?s some missin? but."

Rob reached Pat?s side and shone his torch on Pat?s find. "Sure looks like it."

Rob and Pat tugged at the two pieces of wreckage and tried to fit them together. "Nah, you?s right, dey don?t fit, search over dere; dere must be mouer." Rob suggested to Pat.

Pat rummaged off in another direction; while Rob wrote the lettering from the pieces into his notebook and made a note of their position. Pat picked up another piece; turned over another and heaved over others. Rob searched in another direction, looking for the elusive piece of wreckage.

The first light of dawn glinted from behind a distant mountain. The two constables had been searching all night; when Rob finally saw something high up in a tree.

"Pat!" Rob shouted. "I tink I found somethin?. I?ll be needin? some help down ?ere mind."

Pat rushed over to where Rob was pointing; sliding on loosened gravel. "Whatcha got Rob?"

"Up daere in them trees, I sees it." Rob pointed higher. "Gimme a hoist up so?s I can reach dat branch."

Pat clenched his hands together and heaved Rob?s foot upward; Rob caught a hold of the lowest branch and swung free from Pat?s grasp. As agile a trapeze artist, he swung; raising his leg and wrapping it around the branch. The next branch was easy. Waist height when he stood up. He climbed the remaining branches; finally reaching the piece of metal wreckage he threw it down for Pat.

"Dis looks like da missin? piece Rob, I?ll go check it aginst them other two." He strode off, leaving Rob high in the tree.

Rob found no difficulty in descending from the tree and was soon examining the new piece and comparing it with the others they had found.

"Drat!" Pat exclaimed. "Dere?s still unuver bit missin?!"

They both turned in amazement as a voice from below called out to them. A young Garda was clambering up the rugged terrain towards them. It was Zoey. An unseen Thames seemed to be floating uphill behind her.

"What have you got there?" Zoey shouted with authority and a strong American accent.

"We?ve recovered some of the wreckage." Pat answered.

Zoey turned to Thames. "Why can?t you walk like other people?" She said between clenched teeth.

The two constables overheard her and looked at each other. "Who?s he talkin? to?" Pat quietly asked Rob.

"Because I?m not other people, I?m a hologram and I can float up this hill. Why walk when I can..." Thames made a gliding gesture with his hands, "...just g-l-i-d-e."

"Aren?t you the lazy one." Zoey turned back to the constables higher up the hillside.

"It must be the leprechauns, I heard deese mountains are full o? leprechauns." Rob whispered to Pat, "he?s talkin? kinda funny too, don?t yer reckon?"

"Yeah, not from round ?ere." Pat elbowed Rob in the ribs, "not of da Irish."

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 10
written by OhBoyLAG

As quickly as the night had fallen, the sun seemed to take its time in rising. A thick layer of mist just above the ground obscured the limited amount of light, making the source of an odd growling noise hard to isolate. It was there never the less, however...Low, menacing...and from the sound of it, very near by.

Sam swallowed as the rising growl reached his ears, and feeling the hot mist on his exposed face, he forced himself to suppress a shudder brought on by the sudden shot of adrenaline rushing through his veins. Al had said there were strange things going on...But he had been wrong before. A memory floated just beyond his grasp, taunting him as it began to focus and then faded away completely. Vampires? Hadn't he been right about vampires once?

Clinging to logic, Sam opened one eye, and then the other just as the noise came to an abrupt halt. A few feet away, the shadowed hump of Cliff in his sleeping bag stirred before falling still once more. On his other side a faint red glow was all that was left of the cooking fire...But there was nothing else. Puzzled, he sat up, prompting another growl, along with a hollow pang of cold in his stomach.

Groaning with disgust at his own foolish fears, and the fact that he was starving, Sam wriggled hastily out of his damp sleeping bag. Clasping one hand over his insistent stomach, he tossed another heavy scrap of wood on the near dead fire, allowing himself a smile as he pulled the cooking pan from Cliff's pack.

"Hold it, Sam. You don't know if this Suzie girl can cook or not." Still functioning under his adrenaline rush, Sam jerked at Al's raspy warning and swung instinctively with the pan, the flat side of which passed harmlessly through the hologram's head. Al, who hadn't even bothered to duck, didn't try to disguise a smirk in reply to Sam's glare, "A little jumpy, Sam? Just be glad it was me and not Cliff, or you would have bashed his brains out."

Ignoring his friend's last comment, Sam focused on the contents of the pack, "Normally I would care, Al. Really, I would, but I'm very, very hungry...And I don't think I'm going to be able to take another day of climbing with a beet and a carrot to sustain me."

"Beets. Ugh." Making a face, Al gestured vaguely with his cigar, "My third wife insisted that I go on this ridiculous diet... At least... Yeah. It was the third. Anyway, she wouldn't let me eat anything from beets and potatoes for two weeks. It was terrible."

"I'm sure it was, Al."

"So you're just going to... Whip up something?" Peering over Sam's shoulder, the hologram wrinkled his nose slightly, "With a potato and...Some beef? Ooh. Bacon."

"Al." Taking a break from his rummaging to spare the man an annoyed Look, Sam dropped from a crouch into a sitting position, "Do you have anything helpful to say? Did Ziggy find out anything? Do you know if there's a source of clean water nearby? And it's not beef. It's sausage... I think."

"No, no, things are still pretty screwy, and..." Tapping quickly on the hand-link, Al nodded affirmatively, "Yes. There's a stream two hundred meters... South."

Glancing at the rising sun, Sam sighed, "That's the direction we came from. And 'no'? Why do I bother to ask?" Getting back to the task at hand, he dropped several pieces of bacon and sausage into the prepared pan and moved it over the fire.

"Oh. Well, there's another one a little less than a mile to the north. Or, at least, there should be. Ziggy is using a current map. Er... current for me." Merely shrugging at the other question at hand, Al inclined his head towards Cliff, who was peeling off his own sleeping bag to stare at Sam.

"Mornin' Suzie... Hey." Blinking at Sam huddled over the fire with a pan, he seemed a little surprised, "Since when do you cook? Meat?"

"Told you, Sam." Al grunted with a sweep of his cigar hand, still smirking.

"I... uh... Read a book." Shrugging and offering an innocent grin, Sam hoped, despite all odds, that this Suzie woman he had leapt into could read.

Sniffing and licking his lips, Cliff squatted down on the opposite side of the fire, "Must've been a good book."

"I'll say." Shaking his head, Al opened the door after pressing a familiar sequence across the hand-link surface, "I'm going to head back and see what I can find out. And Sam? Don't start trying to explain quantum physics, or something, to Cliff. I don't think there are any books that good."

As the door slid shut, Cliff cocked his head, his smile falling. "Did you hear that?"

Freezing, Sam listened as well. Sure enough, the faint sound of a voice drifted up the hillside, followed by another...And they were getting closer.

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 11
written by mstalanon

Sam froze, and motioned for Suzi's brother, Cliff, to do the same. He saw Cliff reach for a handgun, and winced openly. Weapons were rare in Europe unless handled by a much higher authority... even the police weren't armed with guns.

"Not if we can avoid it!" he whispered sharply. Cliff's eyebrows rose slightly, but he nodded nonetheless.

Soon, the voices could be heard clearly now.

"Over here!"

(rustle)

"Don'tcha thin' 'bout that! Mom'll tan yer ba' side faer sairtain if'n ya get yer s'cool shoes dairtae!"

(giggles from several voices)

"No, I be thin'in' sumthin's up here!"

<!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> THAT<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> put a chill up Sam's spine. Sam wasn't worried about the small fire giving them away, for the rising sun's illumination would no doubt helping hide the escapees' campsite. With all the foliage, nothing could see them up there. Or so Sam thought. Now, he was a bit worried. The children below might be taking a shortcut to their school, but then again, they might not! However the next sentence brought with it a measure of relief.

"C'mon Timmaee! If'n we're a slackin' on th' chores, pops'll git us good! We's can always fin' what th' loud boom was latair!"

Eventually, their voices shrank to nothing as they moved on. Sam didn't realize he was holding his breath until he could feel his heart pounding in his eyes. He let it out slowly, and with great relief. Cliff sneered at his sister openly.

"You haven't changed sis. You still won't do what's necessary. Sometimes I think you planned that robbery JUST so I wouldn't hurt anyone!"

As Cliff began to chow on the makeshift breakfast, Sam kept his thoughts to himself, but suddenly wasn't beginning to feel so out of sorts. He rummaged in his bag of Suzi's possessions and realized that she had brought all kinds of dehydrated food. His stomach rumbled at the instant potatoes and vegetables he found. He even found himself salivating at the thought of the MRE's versions of crackers, spreads, and even a few desserts. He ripped into a package of applesauce and thought he had found what Heaven was really like.

"You keep eating like that, and you might lose that girlish figure, sis." Cliff teased.

"Keep looking at my figure, and I'll color your eyes like I did when I was twelve, Cliff," Sam piped back, overcome with a memory that he knew wasn't his. Sometimes the swiss-cheese effect of the Quantum Leap allowed the memories of the other person to infiltrate himself, and that always felt a bit <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> intruding<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> to Sam, and was grateful he never remembered those other memories after he had Leapt.

Cliff raised his hands in surrender, laughing a bit. "Okay, okay. I know you got your black belt when I dropped out after a few months. You don't have to keep reminding me."

"Why did you drop out of the studies, Cliff?" Sam said seriously, wanting to know more about his <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> brother.<!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->

Shrugging, Cliff picked up a stick and he laid back down on his blanket. He began to play in the coals of the fire, poking and prodding the embers there. Eventually his stick began to glow a small reddish dot, and Sam could see it moving around as Cliff finally spoke up. "Ohhh, you know, I just thought it silly. I have to admit though, that you managed to get out of it what I never could find. Real Power! And yet," here Cliff threw down the stick with disgust, "Look what you did with it! You never entered any tournaments, you didn't go into security or law enforcement, nor even the special forces. Why would you want to study something that can hurt someone else so much and not want to USE it?"

Sam crunched on a cracker and offered some to Cliff, who turned them down in favor of another piece of bacon, which Sam inwardly winced about. "Is that why you really think I kept up with the arts?" Sam asked quietly. He began to sense that perhaps Suzi and himself weren't so far apart in situations.

"I dunno kiddo," Cliff acknowledged. "Why don't you let me know?"

Now it was Sam's turn to shrug. "I love the challenge, but more than that, I loved learning how NOT to hurt people. To find the quickest way to disarm someone, or to hit them <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> JUST<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> right so the fight would be over." Sam shrugged a bit, embarrassed at revealing a bit of himself to someone he really didn't know. Cliff could be quite charming, but to Sam, he was still a stranger. Almost as an afterthought, Dr. Beckett asked back, "Do <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> YOU<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> like hurting people Cliff?"

Cliff stared at Sam for a while before answering. Then he turned to look in the fire, his eyes reflecting the glow, and to Sam, showed almost as inner fires themselves. Cliff stabbed into the coals repeatedly, almost like a child throwing a temper tantrum. His motions became a pattern all of themselves, and when he spoke next, he did so in that same rhythm.

To the perceptive doctor sitting near him, that bespoke much about what Cliff would or wouldn't say. "Suz, after the way we grew up, can you really ask that of me? After pop? <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> After the scandal? After losing <!--EZCODE BOLD START--> everything?<!--EZCODE BOLD END--><!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> I mean, <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> YOU<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> made out, got the scholarship. Tore right through school, now you're an intern, right?" At Sam's almost embarrassed shrug, Cliff nodded and continued. "But who was working the whole time to keep you in that school, kiddo? Who?"

Sam had an uncomfortable reminder of Lonnie asking his brother pertinent questions about the Watts area. About what his role would be, and his white fianc?e?s role. Misting Sam's eyes for a moment, he wondered how that couple was doing. <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> <!--EZCODE BOLD START--> Well<!--EZCODE BOLD END--><!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> he hoped.

"You did," Sam answered back, looking down at the grass on the hill between the two siblings. "But why do you insist on holding that against me?" Sam was inspired by another thought that had to have come from Suzi herself. "Wasn't that the deal, Cliff? So that we both could take care of the family?"

"Yeah, it was," Cliff admitted. "And I'm sorry I got you involved in all this trouble, Suz." Then with a laugh, he changed the subject a bit. "Although I'm still surprised your plan worked so damned good! Who would have thought those tellers would have responded the way they did?"

"Well, I guess I did," Dr. Beckett answered with puckered eyebrows. "I mean," he stammered, "wasn't that the trick?"

"Yeah, I guess it was. Now we can pay off those bookies I owe and maybe get back on track, huh? Get back to providing a future for our families?" Cliff asked hopefully.

Before Sam could mutter a response, especially one with the new knowledge of gambling debts, he noticed weaving lights several hills away. <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Flashlights most probably<!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->, he thought to himself. "C'mon Cliff, looks like the locals or someone else is interested in the plane crash. Isn't it off in that direction?" Sam pointed to the lights.

Cliff nodded his head again. "Yep. We best be off! Got a lot of miles to go before we hit the township... and Bruiser!"

Sam groaned a bit as he started packing up their meager belongings, sucking on some peanuts he found in Suzi's bag of goodies. "Bruiser?" he asked with some fear.

"Tell me about it! I'm afraid of him too." Cliff said back with not a bit too much fear. "I know I kept you in the dark on some of this, Suzi. But it was for your own good. The guy lives in the city we're headin' for... and his rep is tough. But don't worry. We have the money to pay him off now."

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 12
written by SueJBakula

Sam watched Cliff as he stood up, stretching. "How much are you in for this time Cliff?"

Cliff gave Sam a disturbed glance and turned away suddenly. He was silent as he gathered up his blanket and rolled it up, non too neatly; shoving it into the duffel bag; avoiding Sam's gaze.

"How much Cliff?" Sam repeated, his voice more slightly raised.

Cliff doused the fire by kicking the dry earth into it. "Enough." Was Cliff?s vague response.

The next words that Sam uttered, surprised himself; and, Cliff too; if the look on Cliff?s face was anything to go by.

"As much as the last time I bailed you out? How do you think I did that Cliff? Where do you think I got a hold of that kind of money?" Sam frowned and blinked hard as the words spewed from his mouth.

Cliff?s face became an oddish sort of gray as the shadows from the rising sun filtered across his features. "I was kinda wonderin? that too. Where did you get that money?"

Sam visibly flinched as a memory rushed into his thoughts. "You remember back in ?94?"

Cliff heaved the bulging duffel bag onto his shoulder. "What about ?94?"

"Iowa? You remember Iowa?" Sam looked up at Cliff; jerking his neck and squinting into the brightening sun.

"Nope, can?t say I do." Cliff shook his head and turned as if he were disinterested.

"The Post Office heist? Does that bring anything to mind Cliff?" Sam's nose and brow wrinkled as things kept popping into his head; Suzi?s thoughts, and they worried him, he felt as though he couldn?t stop the flood.

Now Suzi had Cliff?s full attention; shocked, he turned back to face his sister. "That was you??" His mouth opened and his chin dropped. "You... You were only a kid back then. 17, how did you... Nah, don?t tell me, and I thought I was the wayward one."

Sam stood and faced his brother. "Your not the only one who can help this family... And you wont help them with this..." Sam suddenly grabbed Cliff?s coat; reached inside and pulled out the gun. He waved it in his brother?s face. "It?ll only cause trouble Cliff, and we don?t need anymore than we already have."

Cliff reached out for the gun as Sam hurled it into the distance, clattering down the rocky hillside.

"Whatcha do that for Suz?" Cliff looked on helplessly in the direction that the gun had taken. He turned back to Sam anger growing in his face. "We needed that!" Cliff growled.

Sam took a step backward but Cliff followed.

"You don?t know Bruiser, he?s capable of anything; that gun was our only insurance. You?ve blown it now Suz!" Cliff poked a finger into Sam's chest; his voice rising with fury with each sentence. "I might as well take a running jump;" Cliff waved a hand to indicate distance "right off that crevice over there."

Sam backed off and picked up his bag; slinging an arm through one strap. "I guess you?ve just answered my previous question."

"What question would that be, Suzi?"

"About hurting people." Sam stood for a moment and stared straight into Cliff?s eyes. He looked down, disappointed when Cliff didn?t respond. He walked off, leaving his brother standing, stunned.

Sam had walked about two-hundred yards before he stopped and looked back. Cliff hadn?t moved; he stood with his hands on his hips; his head tilted back and his eyes closed.

"You?ll not find any answers up there Cliff. We may be nearer up here, but we have to try and sort this out ourselves." Sam shook his head again when no response came from the lone figure in the distance. "We?ve got to give it our best shot before we can ask <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> <!--EZCODE BOLD START--> Him<!--EZCODE BOLD END--><!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> for help."

Cliff turned then, and walked towards Sam. "I wasn?t askin? for any help. I was just wanderin? why the hell I?m here in this godforsaken place with a broad, who not only engineered one robbery, but two."

Sam waited for Cliff to catch up a little before walking on. After a few more yards a firm grip yanked him to a standstill. Sam span around to find Cliff only inches away.

"Yer know Suz; you?ll always continue to surprise me. You got me puzzled though; you seem different somehow. A few days ago you?d never have said those things to me; you seem more mature, more grownup." Cliff?s grip on Sam's arm lessened.

Sam struggled for an explanation. "Well... erm... ahh... a few days ago... I wasn?t on the run... I wasn?t in a foreign country."

"That?s not the reason Suz. You?re more decisive than you?ve ever been before. You?re not the sis I?ve known for 23 years. I could be wrong though. I-I mean, I never thought that it was you who pulled off the Iowa heist, and your plan for this last job. Well that was so smooth. I couldn?t have planned it better myself."

Sam pulled free from Cliff?s grasp. "You plan something? Cliff, you couldn?t plan a kids party. Look... last night, I did some thinking and..."

"Whatcha mean; I couldn?t plan anything." Cliff gritted his teeth and took hold of Sam's arm again, "I?ve planned loads of things. I got us here didn?t I?"

"If you?d planned things better we wouldn?t have to be here. Would we?" Sam shook off Cliff?s grasp.

Cliff moved a step backwards. "We?ll get it sorted, you?ll see, I?ll pay off Bruiser and then we?ll be made."

"What! Here in Ireland?" Sam looked a little dismayed.

"Sure, here or in England. The Brits love us Yanks." A broad grin spread across Cliff?s face. "Come on, we?ve a long road to track."

"I don?t see any roads. Are you sure they have roads in Ireland?" Sam asked slightly amused.

The two headed north up the slight incline. Far below, Sam could no longer see the flickering lights from the torches. The sun was up and the mountainside was no longer in shadows.

"We need to find some water, there?s only about a quarter of a flask left. Can you see a river nearby?" Cliff paused to look around.

"Al said north, there?s a riv...." Sam felt a flush of embarrassment heat his face; he hoped Cliff hadn?t noticed.

"You sure you?re okay Suz?" Cliff said only slightly concerned.

"Yeah sure, that parachute jump, I?m still a little erm... I?m, I-I meant ahh... Ireland is full of rivers and streams. I?m sure we?ll come across one in no time." Sam looked at Cliff; his head bent low not wanting Cliff to see the look of discomfiture on his face.

Cliff didn?t notice; he was too busy searching the valleys. "We can manage without food for a while, but without water, in the middle of summer; we?d be dehydrated in no time."

"I think we?ll see better when we get to the top of this incline." Sam tugged on Cliff?s coat sleeve.

Cliff reached the top first and before his sister could get there, he started running down the other side, shouting. "Look Suz,! A waterfall! And only about a mile away."

Sam reached the top and started to descend. Soon Sam noticed the ground underfoot was becoming waterlogged. He shouted out. "Cliff, watch your step!" But his warning came too late.

Cliff lost his footing and crashed headlong into a rock-pile. Sam slid and slipped his way down, finally reaching his brother. Cliff was unconscious, blood streaming from an open gash in the top of his head.

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 13
written by mstalanon

"Ohhh God!" Sam whispered, shocked at the sight of so much blood on the rocks. A few feet away was Cliff's pack, intact. He knew they didn't have much water, but there was precious little that they could use. He looked around real quickly, and saw what was a few downed trees, little more than saplings, but they looked sturdy enough. Thinking quickly, he decided on an idea.

He first began with a quick check over Cliff. He ran his hands over his body, checking for more injuries. Thankfully, only the massive swelling of his head was the only real issue, other than his right arm. It was bent back at a very interesting angle, and Sam could tell it was probably dislocated. Taking advantage of Cliff's unconsciousness, he took off his <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> brother's<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> jacket, raised Cliff's arm and began to feel the joint. With a grimace, he found the socket, and it was horribly out of location.

Gently, he applied pressure as he moved Cliff's arm backward, working the limb to help slide the ball-joint of his upper bicep back into Cliff's shoulder. With a sickening pop, it slid back in, and Cliff groaned in his unconsciousness. Sam darted over real quickly and began to rummage through Suzi's bag. He whooped a bit with delight at finding a ball of twine.

"And here Cliff was complaining too much about bringing all this stuff!" Sam said aloud to himself, as he got to work.

Using his jacket and Cliff's as well, along with the rope, Sam was able to make a better-than-average travois, and carefully he scampered back over to where Cliff was laying. He was worried Cliff had gotten worse, but his chest was rising and falling with a comfortable rhythm. Sam put the makeshift first-aid device down, and began the arduous task of lifting Cliff onto it.

Sweating profusely, Sam lifted one end of the travois, and began to back down the hillside, walking backwards, taking one careful step after another. As the angle of the hill steepened, in order to keep Cliff from rolling out of the stretcher, Sam actually had to lift Cliff above his head. Soon, he was sweating like a river, and the tremor of his arms felt like an earthquake.

Just when he thought he couldn?t take it any more, he heard the comfortable sound of the swooshing of the Imaging Chamber door as Al spoke up. "Woah! What did I miss?"

He looked wonderingly at the makeshift stretcher. "Boy, you ARE a Boy Scout Sam!" he said with a chuckle. At Sam?s grunt, Al looked around and began to tap his hand-link quickly. "Ummm, Sam, you?re almost at the bottom of the hill."

Dr. Beckett nodded and breathed out as he lowered Cliff down to the ground. Rushing over to the banks of the river, he soaked a rag. Quick as he could, he darted back over to Cliff?s side, and began to cleanse the wound. He looked up hopefully to Al.

"Ohhh, he?s okay Sam, or he will be! But you can?t move him until he stabilizes! A cracked skull is nothing to fool around with."

Sam was wrapping Cliff's head with another rag. "I know Al! We?re supposed to go into this town nearby, and he?s supposed to meet with a guy he calls <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> ?Bruiser?<!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->, to settle up about some gambling debts. Who?s this Bruiser?"

Tinking on the hand-link brought up the information and Al rattled off. "Ummm, Daniel <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> ?Bruiser?<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> Atleigh, convicted in 2003 of money laundering and bribery. Killed three people that they know about, and ten in prison after he gets there." He stopped with the recital and glanced worriedly at Sam. "Suzi's brother was killed by Bruiser in Liverpool. That?s a matter of record."

"Which means that Bruiser took him to England after they met here," Sam sighed. "Now what?"

"Well, I think YOU should meet ol? Bruiser, Sam!" Al said with a grin. "And I?ll help you do it!"

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 14
written by OhBoyLAG

"I don't think that's such a good idea, Al." Merely standing with his hands on his hips, head lowered with perspiration dripping from his brow and sliding vexingly down his back, Sam spoke somewhat haltingly... Still trying to catch his breath.

"Well, why not? After all, Head-Injury Henry here is the one that's supposed to get killed, not you." Tapping out a calculation on the hand-link, Al shrugged, looking back up with one brow quirked sharply, "Ziggy even agrees with me."

<!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> "Head Injury Henry?"<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> Finally gathering enough energy to stagger towards the water, Sam fell to his knees with a grunt and plunged his head beneath the surface. Al waited patiently nearby, glancing at his watch and tapping off the end of his cigar before Sam finally came back up for air. "And <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Why not?<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> Al, I don't know what the guy <!--EZCODE BOLD START--> looks<!--EZCODE BOLD END--> like. I don't know what <!--EZCODE BOLD START--> I<!--EZCODE BOLD END--> look like, for God's sake." Suddenly feeling odd at this proclamation, Sam leaned back out over the water, squinting at the face reflected there.

Sharp hazel eyes stared back, expressive brows pressed low beneath dirty blonde bangs. Framed by a mane of shoulder-length hair badly in need of a good brush through, her features were otherwise mild. She looked athletic... But not strong enough to have dragged her not-exactly-petite brother down a hill on a hand-crafted stretcher... A fact that might cause some doubt on Cliff's part later on. That was, Sam told himself, if Cliff was even <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> around<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> later on.

"Well, I'll admit... She certainly doesn't look the type." Al commented dryly, having followed Sam's example to peer over his friend's shoulder with an incredulous look on his face, "Not too bad, though... Maybe you can play that to your advantage, if you know what I mean."

"Al..." Sam's humorless voice sounded more like a reprimand than anything as he dipped his hand into the center of the face and splashed water over his shoulders.

"All right, jeez, Sam. Don't get your panties in a twist."

"Very funny, Al, but try to remember that I'm in a bit of a situation here." Gesturing to Cliff, and then into the direction he assumed his destination to be, Sam brought the unavoidable gravity of what was going back into light...Despite Al's usually bad attempts at humor.

"Mmm. So, you're right. I guess that means your stuck here for a while... Or at least until your brother wakes up and can stumble off to where he needs to be." Punching a sequence into the hand-link, Al smiled as the door slid open behind him.

"What? You're leaving? You aren't going to stay here and help me figure this out?"

"Figure what out? You can't do it as Suzie. You said so yourself. It's not like I can help Cliff wake up any faster than you can... Besides. I promised Tina dinner." Winking, Al turned to go, trying not to smile as Sam glanced anxiously to his brother sprawled out on the makeshift stretcher like a badly made mannequin.

"Wait." Sam muttered, rolling his eyes at the hologram, who merely looked back over his shoulder, brows raised in question.

"Yeees?"

"Fine, Al, fine. So you think I have to do this? Okay. You've been right before. Let's do it." More than a little exasperated, Sam rose from his crouched position with a sigh, slinging Suzie's pack up into his arms, "What do I do?"

Smothering a chuckle, Al closed the door and turned back to face his friend completely, "Not just me, Ziggy too. Er hem. Well, from what I saw in that reflection, you <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> really<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> need to do your hair. Some make up, if she's got any, would be helpful. Deodorant, maybe? I can't smell you, but just by the look of things, you're probably a little rank."

"Thanks."

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 15
written by SueJBakula

"Al, have look around; see if there?s anywhere for us to shelter." Sam submerged his head once more into the icy coldness of the river; he welcomed its freshness.

Sam thought about stripping down and remembered just in time; it wouldn?t be appropriate for Suzie, even though there was no-one around; no-one that is except Al. He smiled to himself, remembering that once Al saw him as the leapee. She too was blonde; and beautiful. <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Thank you,<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> he thought, <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> I couldn?t go through that again.<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> He rubbed vigorously at his hair visualising the reflection he?d seen in the water. He shook his head to remove the excess water and watched as an upside-down Al hovered up to a mass of rocks about ten feet above Sam and Cliff. He shouted down to the two below.

"Sam there?s a sort of small cavern down here." Al pointed down behind where Sam was kneeling. "If you go round this way you can get in it quite easily; mind your footing though cos it?s quite slippery by the looks of it."

Sam's gaze followed Al's directions; he stood and took the route around the large overhang. "It looks good Al, we can rest here ?til Cliff comes around. The entrance is pretty small though, I?ll never get the stretcher through there." Sam headed back to where Cliff lay on the stretcher.

"You did a good job there Sam, the colour?s starting to come back to his face." Al checked the hand-link as it emitted a loud squawk. "If I were you I?d get yourselves hidden in the cavern and quickly too. Ziggy?s now saying that there?s a 95.7% chance that you wont make it to the town."

"Yer know Al, you got it pretty darned easy," he managed to lift Cliff a little and slide his arms under Cliff?s armpits. "I wish you could give me a hand. I?ve already, ahh," Cliff groaned as Sam hoisted and started tugging him towards the cave. "Huh, dragged him about a mile, he?s no big guy, but" he heaved and slid on the muddy surface, "Ahh, Lordy he weighs a ton."

"Wish I could help you Sam." Al hovered down to the entrance of the cave. "You can bed down here for the time being."

Al disappeared into the rock face not bothering to use the opening. His voice echoed from within the cavern. "Well at least you?ve gotten a roof over your head tonight."

"I think I?d sooner be tucked up in my own bed," Sam gave Cliff one more heave and they were inside the cave. He stood up, breathing hard, his arms hanging limp by his sides. "If only I could remember where that is. I can?t even imagine it Al."

"You okay Sam; you look a little haggard there?" Al sucked on his cigar and looked at it annoyed, it had gone out; he lit it again. The flame from his lighter flickering shadows on his face, but emitting no light into the interior of the cavern.

Sam slumped back against the cold, rocky surface of the cave. "Yeah, I?ll be fine in a minute, didn?t think I was going to make it though."

"While you?re resting Sam, I?ll go and check out <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Bruiser<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> and your destination." Al puffed on his cigar. "Get you the nearest and quickest way in." Al clicked a few buttons on the hand-link and the Imaging Chamber door opened.

"Before you go Al!" Sam called out, "can you stay and watch Cliff while I fetch water and bring in the bags?"

"Sure pal." The cigar muffling Al's voice to almost a whisper.

Sam?s faltering steps echoed out through the hollow cavern and soon Sam returned carrying the bags.

"I think he?s coming to Sam, his eyes flickered just as you were coming back. I?ll check your surroundings Sam, see you later." Al looked at the hand-link and pressed a key. The brightness of the Imaging Chamber door surrounding him like a falling halo, Al dissolved with the light as the Imaging Chamber closed.

Sam looked to where Al once stood and turned back to Cliff as he moaned on the ground. Cliff?s head moved rapidly from side to side; Sam kneeled at his side. He tried to look into Cliff?s eyes to check his pupil reaction, but it was too dark. He rummaged about in both bags but couldn?t find the torch.

<!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Cliff must have dropped it when he fell,<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> Sam thought to himself. He stood and headed outside, but he froze at the entrance to the cave. He could hear voices outside and they were close.

"These are recent tracks." One voice said.

Sam was as frozen as a marble statue, not daring to move.

"What?s dis ere? Looks loyke a put-up stretcher." Voiced another.

"Tis blood over ere Rob!" Announced a third.

Sam slowly retreated back into the cavern, trying to avoid the squelchy regions on the muddy ground, in a fear of slipping and alerting the hunting party outside. Cliff groaned aloud; Sam tried to muffle his cries and clamped a hand over his mouth.

"Looks loyke them?s naer too Pat. Them tracks guz right rund them rocks." The voice became closer.

Sam held his breath, waiting for the inevitable.

Suddenly a voice called out from within the rocky face of the cavern, Al's voice. "Freeze Sam!" He materialised into full view. "Three men are outside searching; they?ve found the stretcher." Al waved his arms around with fury. "A couple of hundred yards downhill there?s a team with dogs. I?ll go and see if I can get the dogs off of your scent. You wait here Sam, and don?t make a sound."

Sam nodded to his friend and Al merged back through the rocky surface. Sam looked down at Cliff and removed his hand, at least Cliff was quiet again. In the distance Sam could hear the approaching dogs, their barking getting closer.

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 16
written by mstalanon

Sam breathed silently, yet his muscles trembled with the effort. Many of the chores he had forced himself to do were now coming back on him in the form of nerves. They began to jump and twitch a bit, and Sam was shocked to look down and see his hands trembling. His thighs too were shaking a bit, and he settled back and concentrated on calming himself. He began to breathe slowly, with a deep rhythm, and he began feel his nerves ease off.

Some kind of sudden commotion in the distance apparently happened, for the Leaper could hear the dogs barking excitedly, and the men on the leashes of those dogs were swearing and trying to keep up with the excited hounds.

"Wha?" one man close by uttered.

"Dunno," the other replied. "Dawgs ha' gotten' a scent! If'n I know Bry'n, he'll fin' tha buggers!"

"Ayuh! C'mon! I see his signal!"

The relieving sounds of the men scampering, rocks rolling, dirt sliding, and water splashing was music to Sam's ears. He sat back, relieved, and sighed.

"Are they gone, sis?"

Sam nodded with weariness. "How long, I don't know, though."

"I don't get it. They had dogs... surely they could smell us... could track us."

Sam smiled a bit at the thought of Al running ahead of the dogs, waving wildly, wearing his gaudy clothes and their incensed attitudes. Growing up on a farm, he knew all about how a hound can be when they get a scent. "Maybe they found a rabbit or something," Sam said, and glanced over at Suzi's brother. Cliff's complexion had a ghastly look to it, and he was leaning on his good shoulder. "How do you feel?"

Cliff laughed and sat back. "Depends on which one of you two said that."

Sam chuckled a bit at Cliff's remark about the symptom of double vision. "You just be lucky you hit the rocks when you fell. If you hit something soft like the grass or moss, why, we'd never be able to get you conscious."

Cliff looked up at Suzi's mocking face. "Har de Har Har! Oh, Ye'r killin' me!" He plopped back down, and tried to move his injured arm. "Damn, how bad did I mess myself up, kiddo?"

"Pretty bad," Cliff's sister admitted with a sigh. "You dislocated your shoulder, but I popped it back in. Looks like you have the beginnings of a concussion, which means you're not moving for another couple of days."

Cliff uttered a protest.

"And," Sam continued, not letting Cliff interrupt - the doctor in him taking over, "I don't want to hear anything else about it. You need rest, and plenty of it."

"But I can still walk!" Cliff sounded like a ten-year old retorting back.

Sam whispered back, "Sure... down the street! But even a regular doctor wouldn't let you! You know that, Cliff!"

Cliff tossed his hands up in despair. "Suzi, I love ya, but you can't handle Bruiser. He doesn't even know you're coming."

Sam piped up and slid over next to Cliff, taking care not to bump his shoulder. He would have to wrap it and very soon. Usually when such an injury happens, they wrap it up immediately. However, the only thing that Sam could use would be the clothes he used for the make-shift travois. "Look," he began. "What exactly was your deal with Bruiser? And DON'T LIE!" He added forcefully.

Cliff seemed to sink further in despair. "I was supposed to bring the five-hundred grand to him, in the duffel you have with you. We've never met, but I was supposed to buy the house a round, and two for whoever could out arm-wrestle me."

Sam thought about that a minute. "Doubt you're gonna do THAT today," he added, with a nod towards Cliff's injured shoulder.

"No kidding, Sherlock Holmes. What was your first clue?"

Dr. Beckett chuckled a bit. "And then what?"

Cliff closed his eyes. "You'll find out soon enough."

Sam was quiet for a moment. "Cliff..., there's over two million dollars here. What were you going to do with the rest?"

Cliff muttered something about needing some sleep.

"I mean it! What?"

The other man opened his eyes and sat up a bit. You could see him fight the equilibrium. "Make a home for us all, so we can stop running, Suzi! I've been running too damned long, and I'm tired of it."

Sam nodded, and patted Cliff on the leg. "Ok, lay back down. I gotta go out and get that travois, and see if I can find our flashlight."

"<!--EZCODE BOLD START--> Torch<!--EZCODE BOLD END-->, Suzi," Cliff mumbled as he fell back to a fitful sleep. "Here in Europe, they're called <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> torches<!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->!"

Sam grinned, and got up, wincing as he did. He hoped Suzi had some aspirin in her bag of goodies, for he felt he'd need it tonight. He also knew that they couldn't stay the night in this small cavern, but he was worried about leaving Cliff. Well, according to the information he had at hand, and Al could verify it, the town they were heading to was only a day away.

Ironically, Al blinked in as Sam was tearing apart the travois. "Sam, ya gotta get going thataway, to sorta throw off the dogs. I have them going in another direction, but it's close enough by where they should pick up your trail."

"I can't leave Cliff, Al!"

"Oh, he'll be okay. Just leave some of the gruel-type concentrates. He can munch on those. Fill up a couple of the water bottles you brought with ya there at the river and leave them with him. But you gotta get going pretty soon.

"Okay Al, just let me set his arm tight so it will heal better."

Admiral Calavicci kinda paled at that news. "That kinda stuff always makes me queasy. Hurry up and work on him, and I'll check with the dogs. He played his fingers across the hand-link and disappeared.

Fortunately for Sam, Cliff was zoned out again. He only muttered in his sleep as Sam used strips tied together to wrap up Cliff's arm and shoulder as best he could. It was a pretty good field wrapping, but definitely they were going to need some better first-aid dressings and gauze.


* * * * *
"Sooooo, what do you think happened here?" the other Observer asked as he thumbed in the data. "Llothos has nothing on this."

"I don't know, but see if you can find him," she whispered harshly back at the man with the thin goatee. Despite being a hologram, he blanched at the ferocity of his "Leaper".

"Um, Sarge, who wa're ya talkin' too?"

Zoey smiled as she turned around and made her way back toward the officers. She had been checking around in the fuselage hoping to find bodies, but precious little of it was there. Pieces of it were being hand-carried back on her orders by the gathered police-force, but as the Garda on duty, she was in charge of the investigation. "Nothing my good man," she said kindly. "Just thinking aloud."

"Any new facts?" she prompted back, trying to change the subject.

The two police officers looked at each other. The other one that hadn't spoken handed her a baggie, with a partially burned piece of paper. "It looks lik' a rental bill fr'm somewheres... tha' p'tts nay clear. Muybee Englan', 'nd we'se only ha' a partial tele-numbair."

"Good God man, there are only so many places that rent planes! FIND OUT WHICH ONE IT IS!"

The men took a step back, saluted properly and said at the same time, "YES SAIR!"

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 17
written by SueJBakula

Sam stood hunched over in the cavern he looked down at Suzie?s brother. "Arm wrestle eh, ha, ha big brother, little do you know what your little sister is capable of at the moment." He whispered directly but quietly to Cliff.

Sam sat on his haunches and rifled though Suzie?s bag and pulled out wads of one-hundred dollar bills, each wad being ten-thousand dollars. Sam counted out the fifty wads needed for Bruiser and pulled out five notes for himself. He stuffed the rest into Cliff?s duffel bag, shoving it into a crevice and covered it over with the torn shreds of the clothing. On top he piled earth and a few rocks he?d found scattered around the cave. He looked once more at Suzie?s brother, as he pulled the duffel bag onto one shoulder, he looked peaceful enough. Sam still felt anxious at leaving him behind, but he had no other choice.

Once outside Sam felt a little confused, he could hear the dogs all around him. He didn?t know if it was his imagination, but he couldn?t tell the echoes from the real thing. He knew which way he was heading though, he just hoped that Al could keep the dogs at bay long enough.

The sun had started sinking. <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Late afternoon,<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> Sam thought as he followed the river down the not too steep slope. As he walked Sam listened and watched for the dogs, they still sounded too close for comfort. The ground started to level out and the river branched into two smaller streams, one smaller than the other.

<!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Now which way?<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> He thought, he?d lost all sense of direction. He looked up at the sun, <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> the sun sets in the west, or was it the east,<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> he thought, frustrated, he couldn?t remember.

"This way Sam." Al's voice came from behind.

Sam span around and saw Al tapping something into the hand-link. "The dogs are over that way, but they?re getting closer. O-oh... You?ve changed history again Sam."

"What! Again?" Sam raised both hands in question. "Al, I?ve not done anything. What?s changed this time?"

"Cliff doesn?t get shot anymore..." Al paused and looked mournfully at Sam. "...You do."

"Me!" Sam said quietly alarmed.

"Yes Sam." Al tapped a stubby finger into the hand-link again. "Last time Cliff didn?t get injured and he made the rendezvous."

"Where do I get shot Al?" Sam looked across the river as the barking dogs sounded nearer.

"In the tavern Sam. Bruiser doesn?t keep the deal, he doesn?t want the five-hundred grand anymore."

"He doesn?t want the money? What do you mean Al?"

"He upped the anti, he wants a million now..." Al looked down at the hand-link, "and Sam..." He turned away, his back facing Sam.

Sam moved up behind Al and stepped through his image; turning to face him. "And what?"

"He wants you too."

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 18
written by Angeletta

More men and police officers arrived at the scene of the crash site. They reported to the Garda on duty.

"Whats yer wantin? us ta da?" One man asked.

"Just follow the lead of the others. I want all the wreckage gathered up and numbered, I want markers placed where each bit is found." Zoey ordered.

She then shouted to Pat. "Pat you go back into town, with that receipt, do you still have a note of the partial registration number of the plane?"

"yes?m." Pat said.

"Then what are you waiting for?" Zoey snapped.

Pat backed off and stumbled back down the hillside towards the town. The other men backed off too when they saw the glare on the Gardia?s face. They all rushed about like rats in a scullery, looking for bits of wreckage.

Zoey turned to the hologram Thames standing besides her. "Just look at them, they are like swarms of ants. I detest ants."

"You love em really, they?re your army." Thames said with his usual charm.

"I wish I hadn?t been put in charge of this investigation it?s delaying our own mission. I just wish I could get away, this is taking longer than I anticipated. Have you found the location of Senator Blackman?s family yet?"

Thames pushed a couple of buttons on his handlink. "Yep sure have, Ahascragh, it?s about halfway between here and Longford."

Zoey walked ahead and she noticed a sergeant. "Are you the senior police officer here?"

"Yes sair. I is." The sergeant said.

"Then you will be in charge until I get back, I?ve got some official business to take care of." Zoey smirked.

"Right-o sair." The sergeant saluted Zoey.

Zoey walked away leaving the sergeant looking puzzled.

"Now down to business Thames. Once we get to Ahascragh we?ve got some eliminating to do." Zoey snarled through clenched teeth.

Thames pressed a button on the handlink and disappeared, leaving Zoey to make her own way back to the awaiting vehicle.

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 19
written by OhBoyLAG

"He wants... Suzie?" A distinctive queasy feeling twisted its way through Sam's gut as he restated what Al had already made clear. A little too clear, in fact, for the time traveler's liking.

"Ah... Yeah." Shrugging apologetically, Al scratched at a spot just below the brim of his fedora, "In the original history, she said no, and things went <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> ca ca<!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->."

"<!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Ca ca?<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> Al! I could be shot!" Exasperated, Sam glanced over his shoulder to make sure he was out of Cliff's earshot. Lowering his voice, he continued, "What does Ziggy think I need to do?"

"Ziggy doesn't have a theory yet. Apparently there was something fishy going on with the local police and they didn't take good records." Scowling, Al gave the hand-link an extra thump, but to no avail.

"Okay then... What do you think I need to do, Al?"

Sighing, the hologram gestured towards the bag in Sam's arms, "How much have you got, there?"

"With this and the money I left with Cliff, over two million dollars."

"All right, then. Buy yourself a house, a gun, and a good security system." Brows knit, Al forced a half-grin as the light-filled door slid open behind him.

"Ha ha." Sam rolled his eyes, hugging the bag a little closer. "So you aren't worried?"

"Nah." The lie slid easily off Al's tongue, "You'll be fine. Just be careful if you get there 'fore I get back, okay? I'm gonna have Ziggy run over a few files again." Stepping through the door, Al saved his guilty sigh until he heard it sweep closed behind him.

<!--EZCODE BOLD START--> "Admiral?"<!--EZCODE BOLD END-->

"What is it, Ziggy?" Not bothering to keep the frustration out of his tone, Al strode into the control room to glare at the glowing orb that was the computer's brain.

<!--EZCODE BOLD START--> "I ran the theory you requested. If Doctor Beckett carries out his meeting, there is a 97.6 percent chance that he will be killed."<!--EZCODE BOLD END--> Ziggy's somber voice did nothing to soothe Al... In fact, it only irritated him further.

"And if he doesn't go at all?" Al growled, already turning to stalk back to his quarters.

<!--EZCODE BOLD START--> "There is a 74 percent chance that he will be killed anyway. There is insufficient data as to exactly how..."<!--EZCODE BOLD END-->

"Find out." Pausing just long enough to snap the order, Al continued on, shouldering past Tina... ho was smart enough not to go after him just yet.

"So he heard the good news, huh?" She inquired of Ziggy, sighing.

<!--EZCODE BOLD START--> "Yes."<!--EZCODE BOLD END-->

 

[mstalanon]

Re: SciFi.com/Quantum's Round Robin story (unnamed)

PART 20
written by SueJBakula

Sam stood for a moment looking at the place where the Imaging Chamber door had once been. Slowly he looked back up the hill; hesitant at whether to return to get the rest of the money. The lowering of the sun and the nearness of the dogs, his choices now limited to one; he took the fork to the north-east. He felt uneasy, knowing that he didn?t have enough of the money for Bruiser.

The trees and bushes thickened into a dense forest, the ground beneath his feet soft and plush with decaying vegetation. The air smelled stiflingly dank and sweet from the pines with undertones of rot from fallen, great oaks. Sam found his journey hindered by overhanging branches that clawed and scratched at his skin. His feet sinking into the boggy earth; he stumbled to find more firmer ground, tripping over hidden logs in the undergrowth and sprawling on his belly in the quagmire.

Sam looked up from his sodden mattress, the bright reddening of the sun squinting his eyes. Dark and looming on the near horizon was the outline if the village. Sam scrambled to his feet and dusted himself down; he felt a mess and knew he looked it too.

As he scampered towards the village a thought rushed through his mind. <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> Can I pull this off? I have to pull this off.<!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->

Sam stood in the doorway to the noisy tavern; the stale air entering his nostrils. Stale tobacco and the stench of dark beer filtered into his senses making him almost sneeze, his nose wrinkling; he looked around.

Silence fell as several men looked over at Sam as he remained in the doorway, their stares making Sam feel ever more uneasy. Two younger men paused at the side of the pool table, three balls still rolling along the covering of the worn green baize.

Sam walked slowly but deliberately towards the bar, consciously aware of the eyes following him. He stopped short, in front of the barman. "The house special." Sam ordered as he dug into his pocket and pulled out one of the one-hundred dollar notes; slapping it onto the bar. "Drinks for everyone."

The rush to the bar and the sound of everyone shouting and reaching out to the barman made Sam smile inside. But as he turned from the bar in satisfaction, he saw a lone figure leaning on the oak beam overhanging the great stone of the fireplace. A gulp froze in Sam's throat as the man stood erect (all six-foot-ten of him!), a flagon dwarfed in the man?s huge fist. He banged the flagon down onto the beam, the contents slopped and dripped to the floor. In one stride he was at Sam's side.

"Bruiser?" Sam stuttered, straining his neck at the man?s height.

"Yeah, the name?s Bruiser. I wasn?t expectin? no dame." Bruiser growled, his voice matching his stature.

Sam glanced quickly towards the door, there was no escape. The bulk of the man blocked the only exit. "Well, er, erm, my brother, he-he? wasn?t able to make it." Sam swallowed hard, trying to dislodge the lump in his throat. "So, er, I-I came instead."

A broad, toothy grin spread across Bruiser? face, but he remained silent.

Sam blinked and swallowed again at Bruiser?s icy stare. "I-I, er, I have the money." He stammered patting the bag on his shoulder.

Bruiser?s grin subsided as he grabbed at the bag and yanked it from Sam's shoulder. "How much?"

Sam pulled back at his coat as it fell from his shoulder with the bag. "500 thousand dollars, like y-you asked."

"Dollars?" Bruiser?s eyes flashed fire. "The deal wasn?t dollars." He reached out.

"Agh!" Sam yelped, a pain shot though Sam's arm as Bruiser?s grasp took hold.

"Come ?ere." Bruiser wrenched Sam like a rag doll back towards the fireplace. "You?re a shambles, girlie." He took hold of Sam's chin roughly; eyeing him up and down. "Suppose you?ll clean up, but." The grin widened again across the man?s earthy face.

Sam noticed a look in Bruiser?s eyes, a look he didn?t want to see. "I-I could get the r-rest to you tomorrow... m-maybe."

"Yeah, sure, I had a deal with your brother... but for you, the price just went up."

"How-how much more d-do you want?" Sam stammered, remembering Al's words.

"Double." He gnarled; picking up the flagon of black beer and downing it in one gulp. He breathed out a heavy sigh, the bitter breath reeling Sam's senses. He held up the flagon to the barman, laughing. "Fill her up Dylan, the b i t c h is thirsty tonight." His voice boomed above the throng gathered at the bar. "And another for the countess of Tiaquin, she brings me good fortune this night."

Bruiser pulled Sam closer, his great structure bent low, close to Sam's ear. Sam tried to pull away, but Bruiser?s grasp was too firm. <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> <!--EZCODE BOLD START--> Where are you Al? I need some help here.<!--EZCODE BOLD END--><!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> Sam called out from within; his face taught with anguish.