The bang sounded from the door again. Melissa Clark looked away from the roof door and stared at Randy Heim.
"Put it back together already!" Melissa snapped.
"Almost got it," Randy said. He was finishing reconstructing the back of the timer.
The bang came from the door again. It was followed by another bang. Melissa gasped as she heard the door splinter.
"'Almost' isn't good enough!" Richard Hall snapped.
Melissa glared at Richard. "I don't think YOU should be saying ANYTHING."
Richard looked at Melissa. His face was a mixture of surprise and anger. She didn't care really. He was a jerk.
The door banged again. This time the door fell completely apart. Professor Darnell Brown stared at Randy.
"Mr. Heim-" Brown said.
Figures started to come onto the roof. The girls were dressed like Melissa's. They had on cargo pants and tanktops. They had various bracelets and necklaces on. A few had visors. The guys had on wife beaters and cargo pants. They were the ones holding sledgehammers.
"There he is!" one of the girls pointed at Richard.
"Oh, really," one of the guys said.
"I'm sure this is just a misunderstanding," Melissa tried to say.
"Misunderstanding my foot!" the girl exclaimed. "He said it! Look at how he's dressed. It's obvious he doesn't support our society." The girl glared at Richard. "And we know how outsiders are dealt with."
One of the guys pointed at Richard with his sledgehammer. "I follow and love P.L.U.R., but all the P.L.U.R. in the world isn't going to stop me from kicking your ass!"
"I got it!" Randy said.
"Thank God!" Brown exclaimed.
Randy aimed the timer into the sky. A circle of blue light opened in the sky. The candy kids' eyes widened at the sight. Brown took advantage of the pause and jumped into the wormhole. A whir sounded off.
Randy jumped into the wormhole next. Richard ran for the wormhole. Melissa was right behind him.
"Oh, by the way," Richard said as he stopped near the wormhole. "Peace. Love. Unity. Respect; I still think it all sucks."
Melissa gasped as one of the guys ran past her and swung his sledgehammer at Richard. Richard had already jumped into the wormhole. Melissa jumped on the guy.
"Thanks," she said. Then she jumped into the wormhole.
Melissa landed on wet ground. Rain was falling all around her. She looked around to see Brown, Randy, and Richard were okay. She stood up and glared at them.
"That's it!" Melissa yelled. "I have had it with all of you! I'm sick of the games! I'm sick of the secrets! I need out!"
Melissa turned to storm down the street. A truck bared down on her.
WHAT IF YOU DISCOVERED NEW WORLDS WITHOUT LEAVING EARTH? YOU'RE THE SAME PERSON AND IT'S THE SAME YEAR, BUT EVERYTHING ELSE IS DIFFERENT? MY FRIENDS AND I FOUND A WAY! NOW WE'RE TRYING TO FIND THE WAY HOME!
SLIDERS: ALTERNATE SPIN-SEASON 2
EPISODE 10: VIRUS
"Oh my..." Melissa started.
Hands grabbed Melissa's body. She found herself outside of the truck's ways. It just drove past.
Melissa looked at her rescuer. It was a girl who was Melissa's age. She looked Melissa over.
"Are you okay, Lis?" the girl asked.
"Uh...yeah..." Melissa managed.
"I still can't believe you did it, Lis!" Melissa's rescuer said as she opened the door to her apartment. "I think Dylan is going to be impressed when we tell him."
Melissa followed her into the apartment. She looked around the living room. It was full of posters of horror movies.
"God, Lis!" the girl continued as she wandered about the apartment. "I still can't believe you did it. What if you had actually died?"
Melissa saw some mail near a lamp the girl turned on. Her name was Julia Prescott. Melissa smiled at her.
"I wouldn't have," Melissa said.
"Dylan is going to let us in for sure," Julia shrieked.
"Who is Dylan?" Melissa asked.
"Another infestation has broken out again. this time it is in Los Angeles and spreading fast. the mayor has already ordered a quarantine. For how long is unknown at this time. This is Connie Chong reporting."
"God does she ever not report?" Richard complained.
"Way too much for my taste," the bartender commented.
"You're not Hal," Richard said.
"He's out for the moment," the bartender said. "I'm Diggs."
"Good to meet you, Diggs," Randy said as he sat down at the bar. "I'll take some water."
"Yeah, it's pass his curfew," Richard said.
Randy looked over at Richard. He just smiled. "I'm getting to you, huh?"
"You wish," Richard spit out.
"I know," Randy shot back.
Richard turned away from Randy. "For the record, Melissa isn't talking to either of us right now. How I see it, you shot yourself in the foot. No love for you."
"When everyone finds out what really happened between you and Laura-"
"Why don't you get a life?" Richard snapped.
"I had one," Randy said as he stared at Richard. "You took it from me. Now...I'm going to get it back."
"Back off."
"Or?"
Richard stared at Randy. "The next time I try to get rid of you...I won't fail."
"You're not suppose to be in here."
Randy looked at the entrance of the Dominion bar. Diggs was blocking the way of some black-clad guys. The main guy wore shades, leather pants, and a long leather trenchcoat.
"Come on, Diggs," the guy said. "We just got in from LA. We could use a drink."
"Yeah, Diggs," a blond-haired guy said on the main guy's right. "We're really thirsty."
Diggs folded his arms. "Am I going to have to get security, Dylan?"
Dylan looked to his right. Then he looked to his left. He finally looked at Diggs and smiled.
"No...we're out," Dylan said, extending his hand to Diggs. "No hard feelings?"
"Never," Diggs replied.
Randy watched as they shook hands. Dylan started to pull away. Diggs yelled out.
"Ah! You cut me!" Diggs said.
Dylan smiled. "Sorry. You know us goth kids. Sharp nails."
"I see," Diggs said.
"Doug, Andrea, Max," Dylan said to his friends. "Let's go."
Brown stared at them as they left the bar. He looked at Randy and Richard with a confused look. Randy just shrugged his shoulders.
"We don't know," Randy said. "Local gang, maybe? How's Melissa?"
"She is getting on," Brown replied. "She will stay with Julia while we're here."
"They just met," Randy said. "She does not know a thing about her."
"It's not like she wants to hang with us right now," Richard said.
"No one asked you," Randy said.
"I think," Brown cut in, "that Miss Clark is right. I think we should all take some time away from each other. We are here for a week so let's think of this as a vacation. We meet back here at the end of the week."
"Sounds good to me," Richard said.
"He's not the only one," Randy added. "Maybe I can figure out how Logan St. Clair messed with the timer."
"While you do," Brown said, "find some time to have a fun time."
"Egghead...fun?" Richard said. "Not possible."
"I definitely think you two should have fun separately," Brown said. "I will see you in a few days." Then Brown was gone.
"I'm also gone," Richard said as he got off the stool.
"Good riddance," Randy said.
"Not happening before you go," Richard spit out. Then he was gone.
Randy turned back to the bar. His water was there. Diggs just looked at him.
"Trouble?" Diggs asked.
"Oh, yeah," Randy answered. "He's lot of it."
Richard felt like punching something. That's not true. He felt like punching Egghead.
He made it outside the Dominion and headed down the street. The rain had stopped so he was safe.
He wanted to kill Egghead. This was not how it was suppose to be. Egghead should have been toasted a long time ago. Richard should have been charming Melissa. Brown should have been getting them home. His secrets were supposed to be safe.
No...Egghead was causing trouble now for him...his secrets about to come to the surface. Melissa was not talking to him. Brown...was becoming harder to control. It was falling apart.
"Dumb Egghead," Richard mumbled.
"Hey! Nice jacket!"
Richard turned around. Dylan and his group was behind him. Dylan smiled.
"You're new in town, right?" Dylan asked.
"Yeah...me and my friends are just passing through," Richard answered.
"Stick with us," Dylan said. "We can tell you the run of the land."
"Among other things," Andrea added.
Richard grinned. "I think I would like that."
Brown swung the sword. It was blocked. He tried again and it was blocked. He blocked the sword that attacked him.
Brown tried to block again, but the sword got through. He screamed as it cut his shoulder. Brown grabbed for his shoulder. His sword was forgotten.
All that he had done. All that he had seen. Now Brown was about to die. the sword was at his throat.
"You're just an animal," Jared Heim said as he held the sword. "An animal that should put out of its misery."
"Yes, he should die."
Brown turned to his left. the man standing in the shadows walked toward him. It was his Other. He smiled at Brown.
"Hello, Brown," the Other said. "Good-bye, Brown."
"He wasn't good for anything anyway."
Brown looked to his right. A figure came from the shadows. It was Debra Brown. Her eyes shot needles at him.
"Why, Darnell?" Debra asked. "Why did you let me die?"
"I..." Brown started.
"Too late," Jared said. Then he brought his sword down.
Brown jumped off of the bed. He was in bed at the Dominion. He turned on the lamp next to the bed. There was no one in the corners.
Sweat poured down Brown's head. He wiped it off of his forehead. It had all been a dream. He had hoped they had stopped after he had encountered the peaceful version of himself. he had taken to meditating like Dee suggested. He also taken to staying out of the library as much as possible. There was a world of possibilities out there and he did not want to miss it. Maybe in a way, he felt that he would not be in this situation if he turned away from science.
Brown shook his head. That was just wrong. He loved science. He loved quantum physics. He did not intend on giving it up. In fact, his knowledge would be useful if they were going to find Quinn Mallory...
Brown just got up. He could think about ways at the end of the week. He intended on having fun.
Randy jumped away from the sparks. They vanished back into the timer. He looked down at the timer on the table. It looked harmless.
He had decided not to return to the Dominion last night. Instead, he wandered around town, finding various places to work on the timer. He also needed good coffee.
Melissa's double told them that she had been tracking them courtesy of a woman named Logan St. Clair. He had met her on Chad Owens' homeworld. He thought she was brilliant. It turns out she was mad for revenge against Quinn Mallory. Melissa had already encountered her on a world where it was a crime to destroy mailboxes. She knew how mad she was.
Randy opened the back of the timer. He had been trying to figure out how Logan was tracking them. Maybe he could short circuit out the mechanism. That way, she would not know if they found Quinn...
Everything looked normal enough in the back. He'll have to try again.
Randy realized his hair was getting in his eyes. He pushed it out and sat back down at the table. He would figure it out before he left this world.
"Another infestation has popped up. this time it was in a town fifty miles out of San Francisco. The mayor has put the city on Infestation Watch until..."
The television went black. Melissa looked around for the remote. She turned around to see Julia holding it.
"Why were you watching that?" Julia asked. "It's not like it's ever going to come here. The mayor will see to that. God, I hate him."
"What exactly is the infestation anyway?" Melissa asked.
"Okay, Lis, I'm starting to worry about you," Julia said. "Come on. It's time to go meet the others. Dylan says he has a surprise for us."
Melissa got up and headed for the door. She paused to look at the phone. Maybe she should call...
"Is something wrong?" Lis asked.
Melissa smiled. "No. Let's go have some fun."
"That's my girl!" Julia cheered.
Melissa headed out the door. Brown had told her they had a week here. She needed a break from the others. Especially Randy.
She closed the door behind her.
"Ah!" Richard yelled. "You bit me!"
Andrea smiled. "Sorry. My last guy was into a little bit of pain."
Richard frowned. "I'm not."
"My bad," Andrea said as she leaned in and kissed his lips. "Let me lick that wound all clean."
"Looks like A. has found another one, Dougie," Max said as he laid on the bench.
"Maybe he'll last longer than Matt did," Doug said as he tossed his blond hair.
"Given A.'s tastes, I doubt it," Max replied.
"Hey!" Andrea turned to glare at the guys. "I'm right here!"
The two guys shut their mouths. Richard sat up on his bench and looked down from their platform. They had been hanging at X-citement for an hour now. It was a goth hangout that Dylan loved according to Andrea. He had vanished soon after they got there. Andrea just led him and the other guys to their seats. There was a dance floor with tables around it. However there was also booths on platforms with benches about the place. Andrea took them to their seats. The previous people had run off at the sight of them.
"I still don't see Dylan anywhere," Richard said.
"Don't worry," Andrea said as she held Richard from behind. "He'll pop back up."
"Yeah," Doug said. "He's waiting for his chick to show up. Then...it's party time!"
"Oh, yeah!" Max said. "It's so going to be worth the wait..."
Max broke out into a coughing fit. He started to fall off of his bench. Doug grabbed him in time.
"Are you good, man?" Doug asked.
"I'm straight," Max managed. "Just...hungry."
"Let's go get some food into your stomach then," Doug said. He looked over at Richard and Andrea. "Be right back."
"Take your time," Andrea said.
"So..." Richard said after the guys were gone, "when are you going to take off those shades?"
Andrea grinned. "When Dylan is ready?"
"How about when I'm ready?" Richard asked. He reached for her shades.
"No!" Andrea gripped Richard's hand. It was real strong for a girl in Richard's opinion.
"Okay. Okay. We wait," Richard decided.
Andrea smiled again. "Good."
"Oh, wow!" Melissa said as she walked into X-citement.
"Yeah, I agree," Julia said from beside her. "No matter how many times I come here, I feel the same way."
Melissa watched the various people on the dance floor. They were into the music as they jumped up and down. Their faces were full of abandonment as music pumped from the speakers.
"Come on," Julia said as she grabbed Melissa's arm. "We got to find Dylan."
"Maybe that isn't such a good idea."
Melissa turned around. A guy stood behind them. Melissa looked over at Julia. She was glaring at him.
"Not again, Billy," Julia said.
Billy moved pass them and stood in front of Julia. "Yes, Jules. Dylan isn't a great guy. He's nothing but-"
"Trouble?" Julia finished the sentence. "Why don't you admit this has nothing to do with Dylan and everything to do with us?"
Billy scratched his shaggy brown hair. "What us?"
"Exactly," Julia said. She looked at Melissa. "Come on."
Billy still stood in their way. Julia's face became dark.
"Get out of the way, Billy," Julia said.
"I'm not letting you throw your life away," Billy said firmly.
Two hands fell on Billy's shoulders. He turned to the face that popped up to his left. Melissa watched the guy with the shades and dark hair grinned at Billy.
"The only person throwing their life away, Bag of Bones, is you," Dylan said.
"Dylan!" Julia shrieked. She ran to him and hugged him. Melissa watched Billy tense up.
"Hey, J," Dylan said. "Good to see that you and L made it back from LA."
"You know Lis and me," Julia said as she smiled. "Always ticking."
"Yeah," Dylan said. Then he kissed her.
Melissa felt that if Billy was a stove, he would have steam coming out of his ears. He just threw his arms up and vanished into the crowd.
Dylan hugged Julia. He flashed a smile for Melissa. "So how are my two girls?"
"Lis played dare with a truck!" Julia shouted out.
Even though his eyes were hidden, Dylan corked an eyebrow. "Oh, really?"
Melissa managed a smile. "What can I say? I live dangerously."
Dylan stared Melissa up and down. He approached her. "Well...this is different."
"That's what I said," Julia said next to Dylan. "Lis is finally living it up."
Dylan touched Melissa's arm. It felt warm to her. She looked at the shades and tried not to jump. He smiled at her.
"Do you really want to live it up?" Dylan asked. "I can help you with that."
Before she could stop him, Melissa felt Dylan's lips on her own. He was on her lips like a wolf on meat. Melissa found that she liked it.
"Ah!" Melissa screamed. "You bit me!"
Dylan looked indifferent. He turned to Julia. "Nah! Same old L." He grabbed Julia's hand. "Come on! I got a surprise for you...two."
Randy sat down at the Dominion bar. he did not know what to think. He took out the timer and stared at it. It was being stubborn. He really had no way of knowing whether he shorted out Logan's device.
Randy smiled. That was it! He thought of a way to find out!
"Interesting toy," Diggs said as he walked over. "Where did you get it?"
Randy put the timer back in his pocket. He just shook his head. "It's just a piece of junk."
"A piece of junk...by you?" Diggs said. "I doubt it."
"How do you know I invent things?" Randy asked.
"You look like an inventor. You...your type always seem to be awkward in public."
"Awkward?"
"Don't get upset. All that I'm saying is...live a little. Don't get so busy that life passes you by."
Randy just nodded. "I won't." Then he realized something. "Why are you wearing shades?"
Diggs just shook his head. "I just woke up feeling under the weather. I don't know what it is. I hope it's not the flu. It makes the face look-"
Diggs started coughing.
"Are you okay?" Randy asked.
"Yeah...just..." Diggs started to say. Then he collapsed.
"Diggs!" Randy yelled. He jumped over the bar.
Diggs was on the floor coughing. Sweat covered his face. His eyes were moving all around. Randy lifted Diggs's head up.
"Diggs, are you okay?" Randy asked. He only got coughing. "Diggs!"
"...hungry..."
Someone ran off to get to a phone.
Randy jumped. He looked down to see Diggs sucking on one of his fingers.
"What are you-" Randy started.
The teeth came down hard. Randy screamed. He pulled back, but Diggs held on fast.
"Oh my God!" someone yelled. "They're infested!"
"No!" someone else yelled.
Randy swung at Diggs. He fell to the ground unconscious.
Randy stood up. As he pushed hair back, Randy looked around the bar. There was no one left in it. They had all run. All he was left with was a question.
What did they mean by infested?
Melissa made it up the platform without incident. Dylan sat in the booth with Julia. She corked an eyebrow as she saw Richard with some girl. He shrugged his shoulders when he saw her. She just sat down with Dylan and Julia.
"Hey, guys!" Dylan yelled. "L tried to pull a Carmichael!"
Two guys laughed at that comment. Richard's girl also laughed. Melissa noticed that Richard was unusually quiet.
"Did you have to bring her up?" Julia asked.
"What's wrong, Jules?" Richard's girl asked. "Jealous?"
"Andrea...shut up," Julia hissed.
Andrea just rolled her eyes and went back to making out with Richard.
"I think it's cute," Dylan said as he leaned in to kiss Julia. She leaned in to kiss him. At the last minute, Dylan looked over at the guys. "Max, Doug...ready?"
"Always," Max said.
"Yeah," Doug added.
Dylan looked at Andrea. She was still necking with Richard. Melissa was starting to get annoyed. Was there a world where he wasn't making out with someone?
"Andrea?" Dylan said in a serious tone. He got no answer. "Andrea." His voice was like ice.
Andrea looked away from Richard. Melissa looked at Richard. He looked dazed.
"I have a surprise for you two," Dylan said. "You remember we went to LA to find some fun as well as a way to be true children of the night. Of course, we got ran out of town."
"Hey, we said we were sorry," Max said.
"Yeah," Doug added.
"Anyway," Dylan continued as he looked at Julia. "We were on our way back when we met this man. Jeffrey Dahmer."
Julia nearly fell out of her side of the booth. "No way! The first infectee guy?"
"Yeah," Dylan said with a smile. "He bit each of us." Dylan took off his shades. The others followed suit. "I've never felt better."
Dylan looked at Melissa. Melissa nearly jumped out of the booth. Dylan's eyes were not human. They were black with yellow pupils. He smiled at her.
"At last...we can be like true vampires," Dylan said. "Partying at night. Dressing in black. Drinking...speaking of which..." He looked over the dance floor. "I feel hungry."
The people cheered as Brown finished his solo.
"More!" someone yelled.
"No...Darnell's got to take a break," Brown announced. "I'll be back."
Brown headed for the bar. He had not cut loose in a while. It felt good.
He smiled. For the first time in a while, Brown was enjoying traveling to parallel worlds. There was no guns. There was no person after them. There was only a new world full of simple pleasure.
"There you go!" the bartender said.
Brown frowned. "I didn't order anything."
"It's on the house," the bartender said. Then he was gone.
Brown drunk the drink. He loved how he was feeling. He hoped the others were unwinding. The last thing they all needed was more tension.
A loud crash cut through Brown's thoughts. Brown turned toward the door. Several people came through the door. They were dressed in white suits and helmets like spacemen.
"Everyone, head for your homes!" the man in charge said. "San Francisco is now quarantined."
"What?" the bartender said.
Brown watched as people stared around. They stared at the person next to then as if they had something. Finally, a few people headed for the door. The space suit men just ushered people out.
Brown headed for the restroom. He could not just head back to the Dominion. He had to find the others.
The restroom was empty. Brown smiled as he saw the window. He made it out in no time.
Brown headed down the alley. He was about to make it out onto a street. the space suit men rounded the corner.
"What are you doing?" one of the men demanded.
Melissa did not feel good. She touched her forehead. It was hot as an iron.
A hand touched her shoulder. She turned to see Richard. She knocked the hand away.
"I'm surprised you can part with your honey," Melissa snapped.
"She was hungry," Richard said. "She'll be back any minute. Are you okay?"
"I feel a little...off balance," Melissa admitted.
"I think you should get out of here," Richard suggested.
Melissa frowned. "As if I'm going to listen to you!"
"Forget about what Egghead said. I-"
"Why?" Melissa hissed. "Why did you give Randy that drug? Why did you react to the name Carmichael? What are you hiding?"
"We don't have time for this!" Richard snapped. "Someone needs to get out of here and warn the others. I elect you!"
"Ain't happening, Richard."
Richard smiled. "Nice to know you care. Real nice." He stopped smiling. "Now go...I don't think we got much time."
"There you are," Andrea said as she hugged Richard from behind. "Come on. I know you're getting hungry."
Melissa watched Andrea lead Richard away. He turned around for a second. Melissa felt her words catch in her throat. Richard's eyes were already like Dylan.
Melissa turned to find the door. She stood face to face with Dylan. He glanced at her with his yellow eyes.
"Lis, you don't look well," Dylan said.
"I'm fine," Melissa managed. In fact, Dylan was becoming blurry. "Shouldn't you be hanging with Julia?"
"Concern?" Dylan said. He smiled. "I'm not worried about her. She's a big girl. I'm surprised you're worried. When we were in LA, I thought you was going to cut that loser loose?"
"She loves you," Melissa said.
Dylan touched Melissa's cheek. "My eye is on someone else. You know that." He looked into Melissa's eyes. "Why do you think you got picked to join the group? I want you...not Julia."
Melissa tried to move, but she could not. Dylan leaned in and kissed Melissa. She bit him. He just grinned and kept kissing her.
Randy studied the blood under the microscope.
"Oh," Randy muttered. "That's not good."
"What's not good?"
Randy looked away from the microscope. Brown stood in the door.
"How-" Randy started.
"Most of the town is in quarantine," Brown said. "There's been enough hints that the reason is medical and the only way to get to the bottom of this would be at a hospital."
"Good guess," Randy said.
"It also helped that the Dominion was shut down. The bartender collapsed."
"Yeah. That was Diggs," Randy said. He gestured to the microscope. "Take a look."
Brown looked through the microscope.
"Dear God!" Brown muttered. "How are the cells doing that? What is that...green stuff?"
"My theory?" Randy replied. "The green stuff is a biological predator that soaks up blood. It turns it into more green stuff. The victim needs more blood in his system or he collapse and dies."
"That is a very through theory," Brown said. "Is there a cure?"
"I don't know," Randy replied. "You need to find one."
"I think we can do that together."
"No."
Brown looked at Randy. Randy looked back. He could barely see Brown's shocked expression. His vision was going blurry.
"Your eyes..." Brown muttered. Then he cleared his thoughts. "Where did you get this sample?"
"It's from me," Randy managed. He started to cough.
Brown headed for Randy. Randy hissed and lunged at Randy.
Melissa just laughed. The pain that she had been felling had vanished. She looked down at the dead body and smiled.
"Thanks," she said.
She looked around the booth. Max and Doug were out. There was no sign of anyone else.
"Are you okay?"
Melissa looked behind her and out of her booth. Billy stared up at her from the bottom of the platform. He frowned.
"What happened to your eyes?" Billy asked.
"I'll explain later," Melissa said. "Do you think we can get out of here?"
"Not without Julia," Billy said.
Suddenly, the music stopped. Light shot through the room. It felt like Melissa had looked into the light of the sun. She screamed.
Richard saw the lights come up. He screamed.
"Here!" Andrea said as she gave him some shades. "That should keep the light from bothering you."
Richard put on the shades. He sighed in relief as he opened his eyes. He looked at Andrea.
"What just happened?" Richard asked.
Andrea pointed behind Richard. "That."
Richard turned around. There were a group of men entering the club. They looked like astronauts to Richard.
"Everyone, stay still!" one of the men said. "Someone called and said there was some infectees here!"
Richard saw a couple freak out next to him. They ran for the back of the room. Other people started to run for the nearest exit.
"Let's go!" Richard barked.
Andrea didn't move. "No."
Richard stared at her. "What? Why?"
"I like it here," Andrea said. "The nuts think they can just push us goths around. I'm going to prove them wrong."
One of the white-suited men ran in their direction. Andrea elbowed him in the face. his helmet shrieked. Before he could screamed, the man found Andrea's nails scratching his face.
Several people saw what she did. They kept away from her. Several more of the white-suited men headed toward Richard and Andrea. Andrea looked at Richard.
"Are you coming?" Andrea asked.
Richard did not reply. He did not want to get killed. He just sighed.
"Yes," Richard answered. He lunged at the nearest man.
Melissa saw that Julia was among the panicked crowd. She ran over to her and grabbed her.
"There you are!" Julia exclaimed. "I was-"
"We got to get out of here!" Melissa yelled.
"What's wrong with your eyes?" Julia asked. Then she frowned. "He did it, didn't he? Dylan let you in?"
"Yeah, but-" Melissa started.
"How could he?" Julia asked. Then she glared at Melissa. "How could you?"
"I didn't really have a-" Melissa tried.
The hand shot out. It hit Melissa across her cheek. It burned.
"There you are!" Billy yelled as he ran over. "Looks like Dylan's gang is causing trouble with the nuts! We got to go!"
"I'm not going anywhere with either one of you!" Julia snapped.
"Julia, please," Melissa begged. She could feel a burning in her stomach. She had to get out of here.
"You-shut up!" Julia barked.
"Come on, Jules," Billy said. "Dylan doesn't love you."
"Billy-" Julia said.
"He's more interested in Lis," Billy said. "I saw them kissing."
Julia looked at Melissa. Her face was a mixture of anger and shock. "What?"
Melissa looked at Billy. "Lead the way out." She turned to Julia. "It's a long story, and I can't tell it here. Come with us."
Billy pushed through the crowd. Julia glared at Melissa for a second. Then she followed Billy.
Melissa started to follow. Hands wrapped around her waist. The smell of leather fill her nostrils. Lips started to nipple at her ear.
"And where do you think you're going?" Dylan whispered.
Brown was not exactly a doctor. He had never wanted to be. As he looked over the files in front of him, he wished that he knew something.
Randy stirred in the corner. Brown looked over at Randy to make sure he was not awake. When he was sure that Randy wasn't, Brown went back to looking over the files.
The cases turned out the same. The person died. However, the person managed to spread it somehow. This world had to cut off whole sections of the world to keep it from spreading all over.
Brown coughed. He was starting to feel hungry. Then it occurred to him that Randy had muttered those words before a moment ago.
Do I have it now? Brown wondered. He shook his head. He had to find something.
The file stared up at him. There was a doctor in town who...
A squeak caught Brown's attention. He turned around to find the door was wide open.
"Oh no," Brown muttered.
Randy was gone.
"San Francisco's infestation continues to spread through the city. The mayor has had to bring in special forces to deal with what he calls 'The Virus Gang.' Whether the special forces h ad an effect on this recently-realized reminds to be seen. This is Connie Chong..."
"You hear that?" Max said from the couch. "We're a gang!"
"Duh!" Andrea said.
Richard smiled at her. "Always beating me to the punch."
Andrea smiled back at him. "Somebody has to."
Richard kissed her. He was really enjoying this world. Brown was right. They had all needed a break from each other.
He looked over at Melissa. She was sleep next to Dylan. He remembered seeing her cut loose last night. Dylan may had to persuade her, but once she did...
Doug started to cough. Max got off the sofa and picked him up.
"Okay, we're out!" Max said. "Can't have Dougie here dying on us."
"Dying...what's that?" Andrea asked sarcastically.
Max laughed at that comment. Then he was gone.
"So what now?" Andrea asked Dylan. "They have special forces after us."
Dylan grinned. "Let them come. It should be fun."
"We can find out who can infect the most people," Andrea suggested.
Richard stood up and headed for the bathroom. Before Andrea said anything, Richard had already shut the door. He glanced into the mirror and saw inhuman eyes staring back at him.
He wondered if there was a cure. Just in case...
Brown had been sitting for thirty minutes at the doctor's home. the doctor had not really paid him any attention. He was getting annoyed.
Finally, Brown stood up. "Doctor Bennish-"
"Shhh!" Doctor Conrad Bennish, Jr. hissed.
Brown frowned. Doctor Bennish put a drop of water on the slide under the microscope. it seem to boil for a second. Then it stopped.
Bennish smiled at Brown. "Okay, I"m done. What was your question?"
"Am I infected?" Brown asked.
"For sure," Bennish replied. "In a couple of days, you're be as dead as Elvis." He held up a syringe. "I just found a cure though."
"Are you serious?" Brown asked.
"What do you think that slide boiled for?" Bennish asked. "Why did you come to me? Why do you think I've been working on for six months? Do you have a brain, man?"
"It's a weird slide. To find a cure. To save your wife who you've been keeping alive with a vaccine. Yes. Any other questions?"
Bennish glared at Brown. "No one likes a smart aleck, Brownie."
"It's just my associates rubbing off on me," Brown said blushing. "Is there enough to cure my friend?"
"Yes," Bennish said. "First I'm going to help my wife..."
"You can keep her on the vaccine a little longer," Brown said. "I need to get this to my friend now."
"No can do, amigo."
Brown pulled out a gun and aimed. "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to disagree...amigo."
Melissa's eyes flickered open. The light was on, but she had shades on. She laid on a couch of a well-off hotel.
She remembered last night. She e jumped up from the shock of images. Dylan was right there waiting for her.
"Welcome to the land of the living," Dylan said. "You just missed the news. The special forces got sent after us." He leaned in on her. "I guess we're that good at spreading."
Melissa jumped off the couch. "I didn't mean to do that. All I wanted was a break. How could you give me that disease?"
"Disease?" Andrea said from her couch. "I thought you and Jules wanted in with us."
"Yes," Dylan said as he stood up. "I thought you wanted to cut loose. Now you can! We can do what we want because no one will touch us."
"What about the special forces?" Melissa challenged.
Dylan laughed. "What about them?"
"They're as good as dead," Andrea said.
"Whatever," Melissa said as she headed for the door. "I'm out."
Melissa started to open the door. A hand to the side of it closed it again. Melissa was roughly turned around. Dylan glared at her.
"What's wrong with you?" Dylan asked.
"I don't know what you think," Melissa said, "but I don't like you. Besides, you're with Julia."
"That's what Jules thinks," Dylan said. "You know...you're acting...off. We been together for a while. Since LA in fact."
Melissa did not know what to say. Dylan grabbed her.
"You're staying," Dylan announced.
"No, I'm not," Melissa protested.
Dylan threw her on the couch. Melissa did not have any time before Dylan stood over her.
"Maybe you think you're better than us," Dylan said. "I'll take care of that."
The door swung open. Dylan turned to see who it was. Melissa managed to look over his shoulder. She smiled.
"Get your hands off her," Randy said.
"Who are you?" Dylan asked.
"I don't know who he is," Andrea said as she got off the sofa, "but he's gone." She lunged at Randy.
Melissa saw Andrea fly back into a wall. Dylan looked down at her. His eyes betrayed his anger.
"He's with you?" Dylan hissed. "Where did you meet him?"
"I...don't feel so good," Richard managed as he walked in coughing.
Dylan looked up at Richard. Melissa brought her knee up. Dylan screamed as it hit his crotch. Melissa pushed him off her.
Richard continued to cough. He fell to the floor. Melissa ran over to him.
"We got to get him some help," Melissa said to Randy.
"There's no...cure," Dylan growled.
Randy approached Melissa. As he headed for her, Randy swung at Dylan and knocked him out. He held out his hand to her.
"Come on," Randy said. "It's a good thing that this...disease heightens the senses and you wear strong perfume. Otherwise, I wouldn't have found you."
"But Richard-" Melissa started.
"Leave him," Randy replied.
"What?"
"He's just dead weight. Besides, he would do the same thing to me. In fact, he has."
"I can't believe you would leave a guy to die," Melissa said. "That's not the Randy I know."
Randy frowned.
"Turn the other cheek," Melissa said. "It's time for you two to bury the hatchet."
Randy stared at Melissa for a second. Finally, he put Richard over his shoulder and headed for the door. At the last moment, he turned to look at Melissa.
"It's not going to be over," Randy said. "There's one thing left to be resolved. That's the only reason I'm taking him to get help. That and...I love you."
Randy headed out the door without another word. Melissa picked up the phone. She had a call to make.
Melissa stood outside the door. The others were going to slide in an hour. She had been avoiding this for two days now. She was normal again so she knew she had to.
She knocked on the door. A sound came from it. Finally, the door opened. Julia looked at her.
"What do you want?" Julia asked flatly.
"I...I just wanted to see if you're okay," Melissa said.
"Have you seen the news?"
"No."
"Someone called the police on Dylan. They found him and Andrea and gave them to the special forces."
"That's good, right?" Melissa asked. "Now they can get the cure and-"
Julia glared at Melissa. "You think that's what they want? Lis, you're an idiot. Dylan gave you everything and you threw it away!"
"He gave me a disease!" Melissa shot back. "He got a good friend to hate me!"
"Did you make the call to the police?"
Melissa stared into Julia's eyes. "Yes."
"Then it's your fault I hate you," Julia said. "Leave me alone."
Melissa started to protest. It was no use. Julia had shut the door.
Julia turned to face Max and Doug. They had sat on the couch through the whole conversation. They stood up now.
"So," Julia said, "when do I become one of you?"
"How about now?" Doug replied.
"This is going to be so much fun," Doug said.
Julia smiled as the two guys approached her. Lis might have thrown away the chance to be someone. She wasn't going to avoid it. She was going to embrace it.
Randy flew out of the vortex. He landed in a bunch of papers. The vortex closed behind him.
He looked around. Melissa was already up on her feet. She was helping Brown up.
"That could have been better," Richard commented from behind him.
Randy just ignored him. He walked over to Melissa. "So are you two okay?"
"Of course," Brown said.
"Right as rain," Melissa added.
Brown headed out of the alley. Melissa started to follow.
"Melissa-" Randy started.
Melissa turned to face him. "If you're about to drop a bombshell...forget it. I can't take it right now." She started to head away and stopped. "I'm sorry that I've been avoiding you two for the last few days."
"I understand," Randy said.
"Ditto," Richard added.
"I really wish you two would just get along," Melissa said. She headed out of the alley.
"Not happening," Randy said.
"No way in hell," Richard added.
They emerged from the alley. The San Franciscan streets were deserted. A paper flew by them.
"What happened?" Randy asked aloud.
"Miss Clark and I were debating the same thing," Brown said.
"Well, I'm sure it couldn't be any worse than the last world," Richard said.
Melissa started to walk down the street.
"Miss Clark?" Brown said. He got no reply.
"Looks like we're walking," Richard said as he followed her.
"I was hoping the last world would have cooled her off," Brown said.
"No such luck," Randy said. "It only made it worse."
"We will think of something," Brown said.
"Oh my God!"
Randy looked away from Brown. Melissa and Richard were no longer on the street. Randy ran down the street. Flashes ran through his mind of the various dangers Melissa might be in.
Then he turned the corner. Melissa and Richard had stopped walking. They were shocked by the river of lava heading down the street toward them.
"Oh," Randy said.
"Looks worst than the last world to me," Melissa said.
"Run!" Randy yelled.
THE-END
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