What If pt.2

The man grabbed Randy by the neck. He could not struggle. Randy did not believe it. He had not brought Melissa, Professor Brown, and Richard home at all. They were Lost on a parallel Earth. "Say good night, Heim," the man said. The bat came flying out of nowhere. It hit the man squarely in the face. Randy looked in shock as the man fell to the ground. He looked at Melissa who held the bat. "Need a hand?" she asked as she held out her hand. Randy had not realized that he fell to the ground. "Y-Yeah," Randy muttered. Melissa helped him up. "We're not home." "I already know," Melissa said. "The Professor found out about it." "Where is he?" Randy asked. "He was right behind me," Melissa grinned. "Guess what? I'm President of the United States!!" "How is beyond me," Professor Brown managed to say as he approached puffing. "A woman president is highly unlikely." "Professor," Melissa said, "join the '90s. You'll like it, really." "I think we better lie low for a while," Randy said, "before Boba Fett wakes up." "Good idea," Melissa said. The trio started to run. A few blocks later, they leaned against the outside of Randy's dorm. Well, it was not really Randy's dorm. Still... "Is there anyone behind us?" Melissa asked. "No," Professor Brown said. "What happened?" Melissa asked Randy. "I thought we went home." "So did I," Randy said. "I guess opening the wormhole earlier messed with our home coordinates. It should be simple to..." Randy paused as he took out the timer and looked at it. The timer's screen was blank. It was dead. "Uh oh," Randy said. Melissa and Professor Brown looked at Randy concerned. "Uh oh?" Brown said. "What do you mean, 'uh oh,' Randy?" Melissa asked. "The timer's dead," Randy said. "I think it was damaged." Melissa and Professor Brown's eyes widened. The situation becoming clearer by the second. "If we cannot fit it..." started the Professor. "...we're stuck here," finished Melissa, "and we'll never get..." Randy looked away from the two. He knew what Melissa wanted to say. They could not get home. THE NEW SLIDEEEEEERRRRRSSSSSSS EPISODE 1: WHAT IF (second part) Richard woke up with a headache. It took him a moment to feel okay. His mouth was dry. He could not see anything at the moment. He could remember though. When he got his hands on Bufford... He opened his eyes. Bufford stood right in front of him. "You son of a -" Richard said as he lunged at Bufford. "Get...off...of..." Bufford spit out. "I'm sick of your blackmail!" Richard said. "I'll just turn myself in." Richard let go of Bufford's neck and stood up. They looked like they were in some kind of storage room. Boxes and crates were all around them. A few windows were in the back room. "What is your problem?" Bufford demanded. "You never been this schizo before. Is your medication running out again?" "What the hell are you talking about?" Richard asked. "I don't take medication." "Yes, you do." "No, I don't." "I was with you when the Arabs tortured you." "What?" Richard asked. "I don't know what you're talking about." "Hello! World War 3? We fought in it side-by-side...became best friends...schemed on the side...any of this jogging your memory?" Richard rubbed his eyes. What was going on here? Was this some kind of joke? Bufford was not a friend. Then he realized something. "So who's the President of the United States?" Bufford gave Richard a look. "You're kidding me." "Humor me." "President Melissa Clark." "Oh," Richard said. He knew it. They had never made it home. He was on a parallel Earth. "Are you done yet?" Bufford's voice shot through his thoughts. "Uh...yeah," Richard said. No need to give up the ghost yet. If he thought Richard was this Earth's Richard, Richard was not going to argue. "So...when do we meet the Boss?" "He'll be here any minute," Bufford said. As if on cue, the door to the storage room opened. The large figure of a man leered in the door. It approached the duo. richard suppressed the gasp he felt in his throat. "It can't be," Richard muttered. Melissa looked out the window for the upmost time. Still no sign of the Professor. She just saw a group of students walk by the local motel. "Where is he?" Melissa asked aloud. "Well...he is the vice president...it could be hard to get around," Randy said. Melissa turned away from the window. She walked over to Randy. She looked over his shoulder. He had the timer in front of him, its parts separated. "Yeah, right," Melissa said. "A vice president who people actually noticed. Naah! How's your...timer?" "It'll be fine...once the Professor finds me a new generator chip for it." "I knew you could do it!" Melissa said as she gave Randy a big hug. "Hey!" Randy fell out of the chair. Melissa and Randy started to wrestle on the floor. "Stop it!" Randy said. "It's you!" Melissa shrieked. "Is not!" "Is too!" "Hey!" "What?" Randy grabbed Melissa's wrists and penned her to the floor. "You're such a hellcat," commented Randy. "I didn't know you were so strong," Melissa said. They giggled. Then Melissa stopped laughing. Randy noticed and stopped. An awkward silence set in. Randy leaned in closer to Melissa's face. Melissa did not struggle, but close her eyes halfway. Her thoughts about men fell away. Their lips were inches away from each other. CLICK! Randy's head jerked up. He let go of Melissa's wrists and pulled her up quickly. Professor Brown entered with a bag in hand. "You will be surprised how no one seem to give me a glance," Brown said. "I bet," Melissa said while giving Randy a 'I-told-you-so' look. "Did you get a generator chip, Professor?" Randy asked. Brown grinned. "It took some...persuasion...but I found...a black market for it." Brown put the bag on the table near the parts of the timer. melissa saw him pull out a small circular chip. She knew it was the part because Randy's face lit up. He grabbed the chip eagerly and sat back at the table. Melissa slipped out the door with her black jacket. Randy would be busy on the timer for hours. Judging by Professor Brown's expression, he was more interested in watching Randy configurate the...timer. Melissa pulled her long black hair out of her eyes. She could not believe what had just happened. She almost got kissed by Randy. they were just best friends. Besides, Ben was his roommate. It would be tacky. The streetlights gave a peaceful fell to the campus as Melissa walked through it. She looked up to the sky. The stars looked beautiful. There was no clouds to block the full moon above. Melissa wondered if she would see a night sky from her Earth again. The hand covered her mouth before she could scream. The other arm was tightly around her waist before she could run. Melissa struggled, but she started to faint. Everything went black. Usually it would not take Randy long to fix the timer. Granted it only messed up once before, but... Randy stopped. It was no use. He could not get his mind off the fact that he almost kissed his best friend. What was he thinking? "How is it going, Mr. Heim?" Professor Brown asked. He had stopped observing Randy hours ago. Instead he was looking over articles he had gotten while he was out. "It isn't, Professor," Randy said. He got up and joined the Professor. "I just need a break." "Looks like your friend thought the same thing. Where can she be?" "Melissa can take care of herself," Randy said quickly. He quickly changed the subject. "Any new information?" "Quite a lot," Brown answered. "It seems there was a third World War that resulted in powerful nuclear weapons being created. One weapon turned out so powerful that it took out a good chuck of Europe. The United States government could not accept the consequences so the Republicans started a backlash against 'high science.' They called what happened during the war 'Playing God' with people's lives. There were people like your double who disagreed. They are probably dead now." "That explains the bounty hunter earlier," Randy said. "It seems that San Francisco has through 'cosmic intervention' become the trading capital of the world." "And of course, the more damage I...I mean...my double could do with science here would be watched by the world." "Of course. Your double has done a lot of things. He is now worth five million dollars." "Wow," Randy said. "I might just turn myself in." "President Clark will be here tomorrow to do trading with the prime minister of England who happens to be...an acquaintance...of mine." Randy grinned. "Let me guess...Professor Franks?" Brown's eyes widened. "How?" "We students can tell when two professors hate each other." "Oh." "Anything else?" "Tomorrow also...a local manhunt will be started to catch you once and for all. Dead or alive." Randy stood up. "All the more reason to finish the timer and find that guy." "Where could he have gone?" "We can't know for sure," Randy said. "We'll find him." "Ahh!! My hand!!" Bufford screamed in pain as he held his hand. He was totally unprepared for the fist that hit him. He fell to the floor unconscious. Melissa turned to the guy. "And guess who's next?" Melissa challenged. "A little on edge for a President?" the guy commented. "I guess all the Richard Halls of the universe are jerks." "Melissa?" Richard's face brighten. "Are you the real Melissa?" "What?" Melissa asked. She was not sure how to act. "It's me...Richard," Richard said. "We came here through a wormhole." "Richard? Oh my God!" Melissa ran up to Richard and hugged him. "Well, that's more like it," Richard said. Melissa pulled away from Richard. A glare was across her face. "Jerk." "Hey!" Richard said. "What if I had been my double?" "You would be on the floor next to your 'friend,'" Melissa answered. "What are you even doing here?" "I found out we didn't make it home," Richard explained. "Bufford thought I was my double and--we gotta go." Melissa and Richard ran out the door. Melissa realized that they were in a storage room. Now they ran down a dark hall. It was a hall in one of the campus building. "Randy's going to get the timer working," Melissa said. "We might even be able to leave tomorrow." Richard grinned. Melissa could see it in the moonlight. Something about his grin was not right. "You're hiding something," Melissa said. "What is it?" "Nothing," Richard said. The couple made it outside the building. Melissa grabbed Richard by the arm. "Tell me," Melissa demanded. "Okay," Richard said. "I hate having a conscience." "What?" "We can't leave...not yet anyway." "Why?" "If we do leave, the President's going to die." "And that should...do...it," Randy said as he put the last part of the timer together. He closed the back and turned it around. He smiled. The numbers lit up. It was working!!! "Professor, look!" Randy turned to find that Professor Brown was sleep. Randy headed for the door. According to the timer, there was fifteen hours to go. Originally, the timer would count up to a time. Randy now had it countdowning. There was just one problem...he was not sure if the next vortex would be the one to take all of them home. Randy started to open the door, but he heard voices outside. "I don't know what to say," One voice said. Randy recognized it was Melissa. "I guess being on a parallel Earth brings out the conscience in you." "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" asked another voice. Randy recognized it as Richard's voice. "It's good. Maybe you're not such a jerk." "Maybe..." Richard said in a whisper. There was a pause in their conversation. All Randy could hear was the wind. He opened the door wider to see. Richard and Melissa were leaning on the railing. Neither one of them noticed that a door had opened. They were too busy leaning in to kiss each other. "Hey, you two!" Randy yelled aloud. The two pulled away quickly. Randy resisted the grin he felt. "Randy...hey," Melissa muttered. Randy noticed that she would not look him in the eyes. "Did you get it working?" Melissa asked. "Fifteen hours," Randy said. "Did you hear him?" Melissa asked Richard. "We'll going home." Melissa hugged Randy. Richard just folded his arms and frowned. Randy just grinned. "All we got to do now is lie low," Randy said, "and then we'll be gone and you can see BEN when you get home." Melissa backed away. She glared at Randy. "What is that suppose to mean?" "It means-" "We can't lie low," Richard cut in. "The Boss is going to kill the President tomorrow. I gotta get back." "What?" Randy said. "They don't know I'm not the real Richard," Richard explained. "I can learn things. I know what's going to happen. It'll happen in a few hours when the PResident meets with England's Prime Minister." "Any ideas?" Randy asked. Richard looked at Melissa. "One springs to mind," he said. Professor Brown sat with the other visitors. It seem like everyone from the whole town had shown up for the press conference. He pulled the collar of his trenchcoat closer to his face. Photographers were getting pictures every few seconds. No sense in having people wonder why the vice-president was in the crowd. Brown carefully pulled out the timer. No one noticed him though. He saw there was two hours to go. All he had to do was hold on to the timer. Randy and the others would do the rest. He hoped. Randy entered the building and looked around. The trenchcoat hid his face well because the security guards did not notice him. He went to the nearest restroom and locked it behind him. After looking to see if anyone was in the restroom Randy opened his trenchcoat and pulled out the walky-talky. Melissa and he had brought them that morning. "Mistress of the Night, do you hear me? Testing," Randy said. He got static at first. Then... "Read you, Grandmaster R," Melissa replied. "Question." "Yeah?" "Whom idea was it for these names?" "Uh...yours, Mistress." "Oh, okay." "Are you in position?" "Yeah. I feel like...Jane Bond or something." "It's James Bond." "Different people on different Earths." Randy sighed in defeat. There was no point in arguing with Melissa. She saw their plan as one big adventure. "Any sign of Richard?" Randy asked. "Not yet," Melissa replied. "So any ideas on who this assassin is suppose to be?" "None. I'm getting into position." "Okay, Grandmaster. Over and out." Randy put away his walky-talky. He headed for the door. Suddenly, there was a loud banging on the door. "Open up!!! Security!!!" "Uh oh," Randy muttered. He looked around for a way out of the restroom. There wasn't a way out. "OPEN UP NOW!!!" "Not going to panic. Not going to panic," Randy kept saying to himself. Then security started to break down the door. "Okay...now I'm panicking." President Melissa Clark entered with her bodyguards. they were not her usually bodyguards, but the vice president had assured her that they were just as good. He also said that he would be late. She had disagreed over the reason for his lateness: the fact that he disliked Prime Minister Franks. He did not care. "What are your names again?" she asked. "Hall and Bufford, Madam President," Bufford answered. They headed for the platform. Bufford looked around for the Boss. He was suppose to be watching from a safe spot. Where was he? Richard was also looking for the Boss. However, he had two other concerns. The Boss had not told them what to expect the assassin to look like. Only when to expect the assassin....when Franks arrived. The other concern was that he was putting himself in danger like this. He should have been forcing Egghead to get him home. President Clark made it to the platform. She waved to the reporters, photographers, and visitors. Next she sat down with her bodyguards standing behind her. Prime Minister Franks started to enter the room with his bodyguards. A plain woman stood up in the crowd. She looked up to her left and nodded. Richard looked up and saw the assassin. He was aiming at the three of them. The Boss had set them up. He had not expected that. Meanwhile, Brown noticed that Richard was looking upward. Brown followed his glance and saw the assassin. He reacted without thinking. "Assassin!" he yelled out. It all happened quickly. Richard pushed President Clark out of the way. Bullets rang out. Reporters and photographers alike ducked under seats. Bufford fell off the platform. His body was a bloody mess. Brown looked up and around. A shadow had been watching the whole event near a pillar. The shadow quickly vanished. Brown ran after it. Randy was took by surprise when the shooting started. His hand slipped and he fell out of the vent he was crawling in. He fell right next to a guy with a gun. "What?" The assassin said as he jumped up. His foot slipped over Randy's foot and he fell out the window he was shooting out of. Randy looked out the broken window. "Oops," he said. The crowd seem to be recovering. Security seem to be sweeping the place. Photographers headed for the platform. Richard helped Melissa up. "Mistress, are you okay?" Randy yelled into his walky-talky. Below, Melissa pulled out her walky-talky. "Great. Someone tried to shoot me because they thought I was someone else," Melissa answered. "I'm sure the real President will be grateful," Randy said. He headed out of the room. He made sure to avoid security. "Yeah," Melissa said. "So did you catch the Boss? I'm sure he's in the building." Randy turned a corner. "No. I...had a problem with security earlier," Randy said. "Darn!" "I'm sure that we'll-" Randy turned a corner and bumped into a large man. "Sorry," Randy said. Then he saw it was Professor Brown. "Professor, what are you doing?" Randy asked. "You're suppose to be with the others." He started to grab the Professor. "Dear Lord! Unhand me!" Professor Brown snapped. "Security!" Randy was shocked. "Professor, it's me," Randy said. "I know exactly who you are, young man," Brown said. "You're a criminal and responsible for the assassination of President Clark." "I think you should be taking responsibility for that," a voice behind them said. Randy and Brown turned to see Professor Brown standing there. The Professor's eyes widened. "My God!" they both said. Footsteps headed toward the hallway. Security guards came around the corner. Vice President Brown tore off his coat and grabbed Brown. "Don't just stand there!" AlterBrown yelled. "It's the outlaw Randall Heim. Him and this impostor of me are responsible for assassinating the President." "What?" Randy said. "You liar!" The security guards grabbed Randy. One of them put handcuffs on him. Another security guard started to read him his rights. "He's lying!" Randy shouted. "Unhand me!" Brown yelled. "Stop all of you!" a new voice joined the others. The security guards paused to see two Presidents and a lot of others follow them. Randy recognized Melissa and her double. "Uncuff him," President Clark said. "I want the Vice President arrested for-" AlterBrown pulled a gun away from a security guard. He aimed it at President Clark. "You're suppose to be dead!" AlterBrown yelled. "Then I could have introduced the benefits of high science and taken over the system of trade! I could have made millions!" "Tough luck, BOSS." Richard said. "You traitor!" AlterBrown aimed his gun at Richard. Professor Brown attacked AlterBrown with his trenchcoat. The Browns fell to the floor. Arms went flying. Legs went flying. The gun flew across the floor. Melissa grabbed it and aimed at the two Browns. "Hey! Stop it!" Melissa yelled. "Now!" The Browns stopped and stared. "Oh, great!" Melissa's voice was full of sarcasm. "Different Professors, same suit." "How are we suppose to tell which is which?" Richard asked. "I'm the real Professor," one said. "He is lying," the other said. "You're lying!" "No, I am not!" "You're a liar!" Melissa aimed the gun at the last Brown to speak. "No, you are," Melissa said. "Are you sure?" Randy asked. "Yes," Melissa answered. "Security," President Clark said, "take him away." Security guards took AlterBrown away. Melissa gave the gun to President Clark. Randy hugged Professor Brown. "Now would someone explain to me what's going on?" President Clark asked. "We will, Madam President," Randy said. "Before we do, I have a question," Richard said as he looked at Melissa. "How did you know which was the real Professor Brown?" Melissa faced the three guys and the President. A sly grin crossed her face. "The Professor doesn't speak in contractions if he can help it." "We got a couple of minutes," Randy said. The sliders had managed to explained everything to President Clark. Randy wasn't going to be tried for his double's crimes. The vice president was going to be in jail for life for treason. So now there was one thing left... "Then it's home," Melissa said. "FINALLY," Richard added. "Well, I'm not really sure if I have the right coordinates," Randy explained. "When the timer messed up, it might have erase our home coordinates. If that's true...we might be randomly sliding." "What?" Richard said annoyed. "We had to go through psychos and bullets and-" "Richard, shut up," Melissa said. "Chances are Randy did the right thing." She smiled at Randy. "He's brilliant." "Perhaps," Professor Brown mumbled. "What was that, Prof?" Melissa asked. "I think," Brown said, "We should get ready for the slide home." Randy looked at his timer as it started to count down. What would happen if they went home? After the last few days, Randy did not like Richard, but he wasn't going to turn him in now. Professor Brown would want to destroy the sliding technology. Then Melissa...he almost kissed her. His roommate liked her. What would he do? "It's time," Randy said. They stood in his dorm room. Randy aimed the timer at a wall and hit the switch. A familiar whirring sound filled the air. The wall dissolved into a blue whirlpool of light. "Go, Melissa!" Randy yelled. Melissa smiled at Randy. She ran for the wormhole and jumped in. Professor Brown was next. He did not hesitate to jump into the wormhole. "You really like her, huh?" Richard said next to Randy. "WHat?" Randy asked. "She's hot," Richard said. "I mean Melissa." "Just go!" Randy said. "She's mine, guy. Don't you forget it." Richard ran for the wormhole and jumped into it. "We'll see," Randy said. Finally, he jumped into the wormhole. It closed behind him. His last thought was of home. At first, there was silence. The whirring sound started and a wall dissolved. The wormhole opened out of the wall. Melissa came flying out of it and landed on a bed. Professor Brown flew out and fell on the floor. "Do these slides ever get better?" Brown demanded. "Who knows, but it's still fun," Melissa said. "The ignorance of youth," Brown muttered. A whirl sounded from the wormhole. Richard fell down next to Professor Brown. "That's going to take a lot to get used to," Richard said. The whirl came from the wormhole again. Randy landed next to the two guys. The wormhole closed behind them. "Is everybody okay?" Randy asked. "I am fine," Brown said. "Great," Richard said. "Are we home?" Melissa asked. Randy looked around the room. His equipment seem to be in the right place. Ben's stuff was all in place. "Well?" Richard said. Randy gave no answer. He sat at his computer and turned it on. the screen brighten up as the modem came on. Randy grinned as his online journal came up. He typed in the password. "Guys," Randy said, "We're home." Melissa's eyes widened in excitement. She turned to Professor Brown to see his expression. He tried to contain his growing happiness, but it was not working. "Oh, come here," Melissa said and gave Professor Brown a hug. "Yes!" Richard cheered. Randy leaped back in his chair. A big grin spreaded on his face. He did it. He had gotten his friends home. Professor Brown allowed his happiness to show. He hugged Richard. Melissa giggled at the sight as Richard struggled with the Professor. Melissa hugged Randy as well. "What's going on?" The group stopped and looked toward the door. Ben Loveland stood in surprise at the door. "Ben!" Randy and Melissa said in unison. "God, Ben!" Melissa shrieked. She ran and hugged him. She found it hard to put her hands around him. His backpack was in the way. "Where have you been?" Ben asked Melissa. "You guys have been gone for days." "Days?" Melissa said with a grin. She looked at Randy. His eyes said the same thing: they were home for sure. "I got to go out, but I hope you're here when I get back," Ben said. "We will be," Randy said. Then Ben ran for the window and jumped out of it. "Ben!" Melissa yelled. Randy ran for the window and looked out of it. "Oh my God!" Randy whispered. "What?" Professor Brown asked. Melissa and Brown ran over to the window. Richard joined the others to see what the others saw. Ben was falling to the ground. At the last minute, his backpack seem to open. Actually, the backpack seem to fold out in giant leathery wings. Ben glided away from the building. The group also noticed several things. Ben was not the only person flying in the air. There were other people. Also the buildings did not look completely like buildings. Trees seem to linked to trees. Rather buildings were built into trees. People flew into and out of windows. "This isn't happening," Richard said. "How is this possible?" Melissa asked. "Different Earths could have had different genetic or even evolutionary leaps," Randy said. "However, that would mean that we never..." Professor Brown could not bear to finish the words. They did not make it home. "What are we going to do?" Melissa asked. "Better question," Richard said. "If everyone gets around by flying, how are we going to get down?" Randy could not answer. No one could answer the question. THE-END

Back To Season 1