_________________________________________________________ | | | Q U A N T U M L E A P | | ____ ____ ___ | | | \ | | / | / / / / / | | |____/ |____| | |___/ / / / / | | | \ | | | | \ \ \ \ \ | | |____/ | | \___ | \ \ \ \ \ | | ___ __ ___ _ _ _ _ _ __ ___ __ ___ | | TO | |_ |__| | | | | |\ | |__| | | | |__| | | THE | |__ | \ | | | | | \| | | | |__| | \ | |_________________________________________________________| Los Angeles, 2029. Nearly 4 billion perished in the War of Judgement Day. The survivors faced an even more terrifying battle - the war against the Machines. But the final battle would not be fought in the future - it would be fought in the past... Hill Valley, California, 1955. Dr Emmett Brown struggles to attach a cable to the clock tower in a thunderstorm... while young Marty McFly accelerates a Flux Capacitor equipped DeLorean towards the cable, aiming to hit it at the critical speed of 88 miles per hour, exactly the moment the lightning bolt strikes... Blue Rock, New Mexico, 1999. Theorising that one can time travel within his own lifetime, Dr Sam Beckett steps into the Quantum Leap Accelerator - and vanishes! [Screen blurs into a brilliant white light. Rays condense out of the light and resolve themselves into a scene. Sam Beckett blinks, gulps, and takes a look around. He is in a high-powered sports vehicle, accelerating along a city street at night. The interior of the car is lined with electronic gadgetry, blinking furiously. A display shows the years 1955 and 1985. Peering into the rear-view mirror, Sam sees a young teenager's face. He looks back to the windscreen, to see a rapidly approaching wall of shops, and a lightning bolt arcing across an overhead cable. Reaching frantically for the brake, his hand slips and hits the circuit board. The display blinks from 1985 to 1984. The next instant the car explodes in brilliant white light.] Sam: Oh, boy! [The car leaves behind a glowing smoke cloud and a trail of burning tyre marks.] Quantum Leap: Back to the Terminator [The car emerges from the timewarp in a dark, deserted alleyway. Mist drifts menacingly along the gutters. The DeLorean is covered with ice and vapour. Beckett cracks the gullwing door open and it swivels upwards. He steps out] Sam: Hello? Anyone there? Al, where *are* you? [The door of a sporting goods shop opens and out walks a big macho guy with bulging biceps and carrying a shotgun] Sam: Excuse me, but can you tell me where I am? Man [in Austrian accent]: Do - you - know - Sarah - Connor? Sam: I'm sorry, I've never heard the name before. Man: I'll - be - back. [gives an icy stare, walks slowly away] Sam: Al, I'm getting impatient. [The Imaging Chamber door opens and Al appears, wearing a fluorescent pink suit and black bowtie, with cigar and handlink in hand] Sam: It's about time. Who am I and what am I doing here? Al: Nice DeLorean. Well, Ziggy's not quite sure. [hits handlink] Here's what we've got on you so far though. Your name is Marty McFly, you're a typical American teenager. Born in Hill Valley, California, 1970. Your lifelong dream is to be a rock star, but unfortunately that means your school grades have been dropping. In fact, if you don't get your act together soon, you'll be out of the class. Sam: Sounds fairly straightforward so far. I'm here to get Marty back into school, right? Al: Well, it's a bit more complicated than that. You see, the last few weeks you've been seeing a Dr Emmett Brown. Sam: Doctor of medicine or psychiatry? Al: Neither. He's an inventor. Bit of a legend in Hill Valley, the local "mad scientist". Nobody thinks much of him, but he's good for a laugh. Anyway, there may be more to Doc Brown than people realised. It seems he's been working on a secret project of some kind. Ziggy's a bit hazy on the details because the Doc didn't keep much documentation. Also there seems to have been some kind of Middle East connection. Terrorists, perhaps. We're trying to dig further but the CIA and NSA and DXS are getting really edgy, they're throwing up all sorts of roadblocks. If we're not careful we could have a major incident on our hands. Sam: Hmm. So Doc Brown could have been working for the PLO or something? What's Marty's connection with this? Al: That's what Ziggy's trying to pinpoint. Apparently the one common link is this car. Do you know anything about it? Sam: I thought that was YOUR job. I'm not sure, it could be a prototype of some kind. Just after I leaped there was a kind of explosion, and I ended up in this alley. I'm sure I was in a different place, a shopping centre, before. Al: Uh oh. [hits handlink] Sam: What is it? Al: Sam, I don't like this. Ziggy's just figured out why it's so difficult to get answers. There's a temporal displacement field operating, apparently centred on the moment when you leaped. Sam: You mean someone else's got a time machine? Al: Looks that way. Sam, you'd better be real careful, we don't want to mess with two alternate timelines at once. Sam: Well, at least we've only got TWO. I've handled that before. It could be worse. Al: Don't be so sure of that. [hits handlink again furiously] Sam: Al? Al: It's worse. Sam: Al, don't do this to me. Al: [bites cigar] Ziggy says there's a 93% probability that a SECOND temporal displacement field is also active, and it's most likely centred somewhere around here too. He picked up a couple of transits from - [hits handlink] - you're not going to believe this, from the 21st century, around 2030. Sam: Okay. Let's deal with this one step at a time, like rational beings. Al: Yeah. Panic. Sam: No, I mean, does Ziggy have any estimates on what my mission is yet? Maybe those other time fields are completely unrelated. If I just stay well clear of whoever the time travellers are, maybe I can leap out of here without damaging the continuum too much. Al: Don't bet on it. There's more. Do you know what year you're in now? Sam: From the look of this place, I'd say around mid-eighties. Al: Yep. Hill Valley, 1984 to be exact. But the problem is, you didn't leap here. Sam: I didn't? Then how did I get here? Al: Ziggy tracked the time of your original leap to 1955. That's why we had a hard job locating you. Sam: 1955? You mean... that explosion was a timewarp? Al: Looks that way. Sam: So the DeLorean must be a time machine. That explains those readouts... and all the circuitry. [thinks furiously]. Oh boy. One thing at a time... [suddenly] Al, I think I touched something in those first few seconds, when I was still groggy from the leap. Do you think I might have skewed the controls somehow? Maybe I've really messed up this Doc Brown's experiment, whatever it is. Al: Well, your spatial coordinates are a little off, so I'd figure yes, you did alter something. You're still in Hill Valley, but you're way over the other side of town. But Ziggy doesn't think it's affected your chances any. Sam: Ziggy's been wrong before. Besides, chances of what? I still don't know why I'm here. Al: Wait a minute, Ziggy's just come up with something. [checks handlink] He's running a cross-check of all apparent murders and suicides recorded on this date... seems there's been a sudden crime wave tonight. About half a dozen people were killed, all of them by gunshot wounds at very close range. Los Angeles police department took charge of the case, and arrested a man called Reese. He's charged with the murders of all the people and imprisoned for life. Pleaded innocence all the way through but his demeanour at the trial went heavily against him. Came across as a hard, tough cynical chap with a liking for violence. Defence tried to get a plea of insanity instead of homicide but Reese wouldn't accept it. Tried to escape from jail three times, nearly succeeded twice but was shot dead in a stand-off with cops the third time. His jailbreak techniques were so effective though, it caused a complete review of all prison security. They called him "The Hill Valley Wildcat", it was a big media scandal at the time. Devastated the township, ultimately leading to a series of riots and mass land sales. Now it's a slum community and the site of a notorious toxic waste dump. Sam: So how does my arrival affect the figures? Al: Uh oh, now it's changing... Sam, I don't think you want to know... Sam: What is it now? Al: Now Marty McFly and Doc Brown are among the Wildcat's victims. Both shot in the chest at point-blank range with a shotgun. Died instantly. Sam: Shotgun... Al, I saw a guy just earlier with a shotgun! Before you turned up... He was talking about - Al, what does Ziggy say about the name Sarah Connor? Al: Sarah Connor? [punches it in] Uh huh, here we are... Yep, a waitress named Sarah Connor was among Reese's victims. Moved from Los Angeles to Hill Valley two weeks ago. She was the last one to be killed, just before the LAPD SWAT team finally cornered the Wildcat. Interesting... although Reese appeared callous and hostile about all the other deaths, he was deeply moved by Sarah's killing. Police found him weeping over her body, crying "Sarah, I'm so sorry, it's all my fault, I wish I could turn time back again." Took a whole squad to forcibly restrain him, even then he kept crying her name. For a while he seemed extremely remorseful, even suicidal, it wasn't till later that he became very violent again. How did you know? Sam: The guy I met - he was asking for Sarah Connor. But from what you describe, it doesn't sound like the Wildcat at all. Al: What was he like? Sam: Creepy. A big-built man, probably 6 feet high, with powerful muscles, like a body-builder. But his eyes were strange. I couldn't sense any emotion or life at all in them. Al: Yet the Wildcat completely broke down in tears when confronted by Sarah Connor's death. Strange. Unless - Sam: - unless Reese is not the Wildcat at all? Al: Yeah, you might be onto something there. I'll get Ziggy to run a full check. Maybe that's why you're here - to clear Reese of a false murder charge? Sam: And stop the *real* Wildcat? Al, I think you'd better find out Sarah Connor's address pretty quick. I've a feeling the Wildcat will be paying her a visit very soon. Al: Sam, don't get any funny ideas. Remember, you're in the body of a teenage kid, and by the sound of it this guy's a complete psycho. What are you going to do when you meet him, point your finger in his face and say "Now now, lets play nicely?" Sam: I'll think of something. You go and check that stuff out with Ziggy, and I'll try and find Doc Brown. Al: Be careful, Sam. This is a double timewarp, so there could be Marty's alter ego walking around somewhere. Don't even think of talking to yourself, okay? Sam: Yeah, right. Go on, we haven't got much time. [Al opens the chamber door and vanishes] Now, where can I find the Doc? [Sam steps back into the DeLorean and riffles through some papers in the glove compartment. Eventually he finds something, is satisfied, and starts up the engine. He drives across town and stops outside an old house. A light shows from one window. Sam gets out and knocks on the door.] Sam: Hello, anyone home? [the door opens suddenly] Dr Emmett Brown: I do NOT want life insurance, double glazing or a life subscription to Watchtower magazine. GO AWAY! Sam: Doc, it's the middle of the night. It's me, Marty McFly. Doc: Marty! Come on in, I've had a marvellous idea. I'm going to build a time machine. Sam: [stepping inside] Er, well, that's the problem. You see, one year from now you DO build a time machine, and you've sent me back in it. Doc: Amazing! It works! But I mustn't talk to you, or I may prevent this whole experiment from happening and disrupt the entire space-time continuum, causing a complete breakdown in the fabric of the universe! Although the effects may be localised to one or two of the nearest galaxies, but it would still be very annoying. Sam: Doc, I'm not going to give away any secrets about how your machine works. I need your help. Doc: A pity. If I could glance at the finished machine it might help me draw up the schematics for the first prototype more clearly... but enough about that. What is it you need, Marty? I have a strange feeling this conversation has happened before. Sam: Well, I've just come back from 1955... I may have met you there. Doc: No, don't tell me... I don't want to know. If I'm going to remember I want to do it on my own. It's safer. Sam: Anyway, Doc, we've got a problem. There's an armed psycho out there who's about to kill a lot of people and we need to stop him. Doc: Amazing! You saw this in the future, Marty? Sam: Sort of... what can we do? Doc: [rummaging through old inventions] Lets see... Ultrasonic dog neutraliser... laser hypnosis ray - that's good for a laugh, try it at school sometime Marty... plasma cannon - too dangerous, I accidentally shot down a jet fighter once... aha, here's a gravitic impact shield, that should help. And here's a tranquiliser pistol. Uses a secret Amazonian tribal recipe. It shoots drugged darts that can stun an elephant. Sam: That's great, Doc. Umm, do you mind if I use your bathroom? Doc: Go right ahead Marty. First right up the stairs, and mind you don't step in the carnivorous cactus on the landing. [As soon as Sam leaves the room the Imaging Chamber opens and Al appears] Al: Sam, we've got to talk. Sam: Sure. I think the Doctor can help us. Al: We've got big trouble. Ziggy's found Reese. He and another guy are fighting it out with shotguns over in the square. Sam: The Wildcat? Al: Ziggy's not certain, but he gives it a 76% chance. I think you'd better get over there right away. Sam: What about Sarah? Can Ziggy locate her? Al: We're still working on that. Her flat was shot up bad, but she was out at a movie with some friends. It looks like she's safe for the moment, but I don't know for how long. Sam: Has the Wildcat killed anyone else? Al: Not as far as we know. Reese seems to be keeping him busy. I'm going to check on them myself. Sam: Okay. Doc Brown's got some inventions that might give me - I mean, Marty - an edge against the Wildcat, if it comes to a showdown. What does Ziggy predict for them now? Al: [punches handlink] Still not good. Now it's down to a 68% chance that they both get killed. Got any more ideas? Sam: I want to see Reese for myself. Try and talk to him. Al: I don't think that's such a good idea, Sam. Ziggy's prediction's going up to 95%. Uh oh, Gooshi's found Sarah. I'd better go. Try and stay out of trouble, will you? [he disappears] [Sam walks back out to the lounge. The Doc is putting the finishing touches on his inventions] Doc: Ah Marty, you're just in time. Here, wear this. [straps what looks like a giant belt buckle around Sam.] Now hold this. [hands him a weird looking gun] Now, the gravitic shield is in standby mode - the hydrogen fuel cells are fully charged and the ignition coil is at maximum flux density. If you push this red button here [gestures to the buckle] it activates an electromagnetic plasma vortex which bends the force of gravity around your body. It will drain the velocity of any incoming objects. Bullets just freeze in midair. Actually, it was the antigravity theory I invented for this thing that gave me the inspiration for my Flux Capacitor. But be careful, because the effect only lasts for a few minutes before the fuel cells get overloaded and explode! Sam: Uh, thanks for the warning. What about the dart pistol? Doc: You just aim it and pull the trigger. It only carries 8 darts though, so don't waste them. For a human, one dart causes instant paralysis and deep unconsciousness for about an hour. Don't use it on cats, dogs, or any other small mammals, because it will kill them, and then you'll be in *real* trouble. Sam: What's this? [picks up a small black box] Doc: Oh, that's my latest invention. Supposed to be an all-purpose remote control. [Takes the gadget and demonstrates]. See, you can turn on the TV... the stereo... open the curtains... run the microwave... vacuum the floor. But I haven't quite got all the bugs out yet. [The curtains open and close frantically before ripping clean off the wall, to be sucked up by the vacuum cleaner. The room is filled with a blaze of light and sound as all the appliances operate at once. A muffled explosion comes from the kitchen.] Sam: Er, I guess that does need a little more work, Doc. Doc: Well, we must be on our way. Time waits for no man, Marty. Not even a time *traveller*. Synchronise our watches and we're off. Sam: Doc? Are you coming too? Doc: Of course, Marty. Did you think I'd leave you all alone in the middle of danger? Sam: Well, no, but... I've got all these high-tech gadgets, and you're unprotected. It's hardly safe is it? Doc: Marty, I never take chances. [Pulls up shirt to reveal a flak jacket underneath.] Don't you remember sending me that message back in '55? You never know when, say, a vanload of Palestinian guerillas might start shooting at you. Sam: Okay, if you say so. You're the Doc, Doc. [They head out of the house towards the town square. Halfway there Al pops up ahead of Sam. His holographic figure hovers unnervingly through nearby trees and bushes.] Al: Sam, it's getting hot out there. Reese and that other guy have found Sarah, she just came back to her flat. They're blasting all over it like a couple of fighting tomcats. Sheesh, that place is going to be a mess when they've finished. Sam: [whispers, giving a cautious glance at the Doc who is lost in his own calculations] How's the girl? Is she okay? Al: Alive so far, but terrified. Ziggy's still trying to get a positive ID on the other gunman. He doesn't appear in any records we can track down. Ziggy's best guess at the moment is that he's a hired assassin trying to take out Sarah. He figures all the other killings in the old history were mistaken identities, or people associated with Sarah. None of those have happened yet in this timeline, so we're doing pretty good so far. Sam: But why? What possible reason could there be? She's just a waitress, isn't she? Did Ziggy find any criminal links in her past, debts, anything like that? Al: Nope, her background check turned up squeaky clean. Unless there's some link with that Palestinian stuff that we can't find. We're trying, but we still can't get access to the CIA's secure files. Sam: Hmm. Keep looking, but I've got a hunch you won't find anything in her past. She must be important somehow though... Hey, wait a minute! Al! I've got it! Al: Let's hear it. Doc: [turning] You've got what, Marty? Sam: [furtively] There's nothing we can find in Sarah Connor's past, right? So there must be something in her FUTURE! Doc: Yes, Marty, the future is the great dream that inspires all mankind. One day I'm going to explore it first-hand! Great Scott, think of the possibilities! Al: Good point, Sam. We haven't done any future checks. I'll put Ziggy onto it right away. Doc: But of course there will be perils and pitfalls, too, Marty... a time-traveller must always be on guard against hidden quirks and convolutions of the space-time continuum that could threaten the survival and stability of life on this entire planet! Like the possibility for instance of running into your own doppleganger while exploring another timeline - [Just then the real Marty McFly appears.] Marty: Hello, Doc. Doc: Great Scott! [He faints] Al: Uh oh. Sam... Sam, don't say *anything* to this guy. He's you. I mean, he's Marty, who you are... Heck, you know what I mean. Sam [in broad Texas drawl]: Well, howdy there, pardner. Ah guess Ah'm yer cousin, Maikey MacFlay, or would thaht be second cousin? Ah don't rightly recall, but anyways Ah'm a distant relative of yourn, Marty, from outta town laike. Mighty fine tah meet ya'll, but Ah can't stop to say more than giddahy ahn goodbyee cause'n the Doc ahn I've got a mighty pressin' appointment tah get tah pretty soon-laike. Marty: In the middle of the night?? Doc, are you all right? Doc [recovering]: Yes, Marty, I'm fine. Don't worry about me, just go on home, your - uh - second cousin and I've got an urgent experiment we're conducting. Marty: You haven't been messing around with that robot twin you built for me have you? Don't you remember what happened last time, with the state troopers out hunting for me and all? Doc: Yes, yes, of course. Marty, that was a completely unforeseeable malfunction, how was I to know it would run amok and go on a random crime spree? Anyway, I've got all the bugs worked out now. Just go on home and forget you ever met me tonight. Marty: I dunno, Doc, you sure you know what you're doing? Doc: Just go, Marty! Shoo! Marty: Okay. But I'm not taking any blame for whatever happens here tonight. See you in the morning, Doc. [he leaves] Al: Good save, Sam. Sam: Yeah, that was close. Doc: Indeed it was, Marty. Too close for comfort. I only hope we can repair whatever damage has been done to the continuum before - [He stops. They're arrived at Sarah Connor's house, there are screams, groans and intermittent shotgun blasts from inside. Shadowy figures are visible through the mostly shattered windows.] Al: Hang on, Sam, I'm going for a closer look. [vanishes] Doc: Great Scott, look at the devastation! This is clearly a psychopathic maniac! Marty, we must stop him at once! Power up your gravitic shield! Sam: Right, Doc. [He presses the button.] I feel really weird... kind of light and heavy at the same time. Doc: Exactly, that shows the plasma vortex is indeed operating as designed! Now, raise your tranquiliser pistol and enter the battlefield! Al: [reappearing] Uh, Sam, I think you'd better hurry it up. This guy's giving me the heebie-jeebies, and Reese's not much better. They're right next to Sarah, she's in the back room. Man, the damage that big guy can take's incredible. He just keeps coming back, like a human tank. Sam: Wait a minute, Al... Any ID on him from Ziggy yet? Al: Not a thing. It's like he never existed. No name, no birthdate, nothing. Heck, Ziggy says even his genetic makeup is unknown! It's really creepy, Sam, it's like he's a ghost or something. Sam: No, he's not a ghost... he's a robot! Doc: A robot? What are you talking about, Marty? Sam: The assassin. He's a robot. Or android, cyborg, whatever. Designed to kill. That's why he seemed so strange. He's been sent here to kill Sarah Connor, and Reese... Al: Yeah, Reese looks like he's been sent here to stop him. That figures. Where from, do you reckon? Sam: The two transits... from the future, of course! They're both time travellers, like us! Doc: Great Scott! If that's the case... Hurry, Marty, there's no time to waste! If the machine succeeds in terminating Sarah Connor then our timeline will be hopelessly disturbed! Our very existence is at stake! [He charges into the house. Police cars scream to a halt outside.] Sam: Oh, boy. [He follows the Doc inside.] Al [to policemen]: Hey guys, can't you hold it for just a second? Oh, what's the use, nobody listens to me anyway. [punches his handlink and disappears inside] [The house has been torn to shreds by the struggle. Reese and the Terminator, with parts of his body shot away revealing black metal underneath, are trading shots and rapidly running out of ammo. Seizing a chance, the Terminator jumps out from behind a wardrobe and hurls an armchair at Reese, who ducks. The armchair smashes through an inexplicably-still-unbroken window, noisily. Sarah Connor sits shivering in terror in a room opposite, her face partly visible through a jagged blast hole in the wall.] Doc: Cease and desist, you mechanical monstosity! [He advances on the Terminator, waving his arms wildly. Termie looks at him and gives a swift swipe with one metallic arm. The Doc staggers back, breathless.] Sam: I don't think this is going to work, but... [Raises tranq gun and fires. Five darts stick in the Terminator's outer skin layer, but the cyborg shrugs them off like insect bites. He aims his final shotgun cartridge squarely at Sam's chest. The blast reaches about one metre away from Sam's body, then seems to congeal in midair and fall in a limp pile of soot to the floor.] Al: Sam, we're running out of time! The cops are coming right behind me! Sam: Well, I can't think of anything! [In desperation he hits out at Termie. But the shield works both ways, and his punch seems to bounce off the air around the metal skeleton like stiff gelatine.] Sarah: Arrgh, help me! [The Terminator gives a couple of punches at the wall. It crumbles completely. He raises his metal hand to crush Sarah's skull...] Doc: Aha! There it is! [He clicks a black box. The Terminator writhes as if in inner agony, then falls helplessly to the floor, limbs lashing about in all directions. Finally, with a burst of electrical smoke, it falls silent. Sam quickly disarms his shield as smoke begins seeping from it too.] Sam: Doc! How'd you do that??? Doc: The remote control, Marty. I always carry it with me, just in case. I programmed a robot-control wavelength onto it after the fiasco with your twin. Police captain [bursting in]: What in blue blazes has been going on... Oh, it's just _you_ again. Another bug in your prototype, Doctor? [He and the Doc start talking] Reese: Don't worry, Sarah, it's all right. We've won. The Terminator's dead. Sarah: Oh, Reese. Reese: Oh, Sarah. Sam: Could somebody explain just *what* the Terminator was here for anyway? Reese: Sure, kid. There was this intelligent military computer, around the start of next century, which started a nuclear war and tried to kill off the entire human race. Sarah's son, John Connor, was the brilliant leader of Human Resistance who saved us. So the machine sent back this Terminator unit to kill her, so her son would never grow up and it could win the war. I was sent by the Resistance to protect her. Sarah. But it's different now, isn't it? We can change the future. "There's no fate but what we make", right? Reese: Right. [They embrace] Al: Sam, Ziggy says it's all coming together now. Doc Brown gets a mild reprimand from the mayor, but any charges are dropped in recognition of his services to the Save The Clock Tower Fund. He helps Marty get back to 1985, and then goes on to sucessfully build the time machine. Due to its influence he becomes a leading citizen of Hill Valley, and guides it into becoming a thriving and prosperous city. Marty McFly becomes a famous musician, and tours the world promoting charitable causes. Reese and Sarah get married, and work together to convince CyberDyne Systems to abandon the SkyNet project. The initiative is so successful that it leads to total nuclear disarmament and a new era of world peace. Their son, John, is unusually gifted and receives a doctorate at MIT and a Nobel Prize in physics at the age of 15. He dedicates his life to the study of.... uh, oh... [hits handlink] - time travel! Sam: Oh, boy... [The screen flares with brilliant white light as the leap takes him.] And so Dr Beckett finds himself leaping from life to life, striving to put right what once went wrong, and hoping that each leap... will be the leap home! ... Finis ... Copyright (C) 1994 by Nate Cull, culln@xtra.co.nz Standard disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction and no breach of copyright is intended. All characters, plot events and trademarks normally associated with Quantum Leap, The Terminator, and Back to the Future are the property of their respective owners, respectively. All others are my own creation and no connection to any real person, entity or law of physics is to be implied.