(Bob and the 'bots enter and take their seats.)
Crow: Kind
of a weird day, huh?
Servo: I'll
say.
The Interface Limits: Dead Sprite's Switch
Bob: See, here's your problem; someone had him set on "dead".
By Joshua
Servo:
Weinstein?
Crow: Whoops! Watch out for the speed bumps in this story!
Thanks Servo for the info,
Servo: Any time, Josh.
and Clearsky for read the original
Bob: And Raincloud
for giving life to our crops.
(The story stops appearing on the theater screen.)
Bob: Huh? Story?
Where'd you go, story?
Crow: Maybe
we're supposed to read between the lines.
Rod Serling: (voice-over) Young idealists could dream in having the power to save the Net,
Servo: Uh. . .what's with the voice-over?
Rod Serling: (voice-over) but can that dream become a nightmare when to save the Net means to destroy it?
Bob: Oh, c'mon. . . that might be a fun dream.
(The story
resumes.)
"Ten... Nine... Eight... Seven..."
Crow: Wow, just look at those turkey vultures dying off.
The data analyst Colin Laser turned a switch, interrupting the countdown.
Bob: Excuse me, I was trying to count down here, before I was so rudely interrupted.
He repressed a yawn.
Crow: Like
the audience.
Bob: C'mon,
it's a little too early for that.
Crow:
Sorry.
That was an easy service.
Colin was in an underground shelter, at 20.000 metrobytes of the System Workstation 7's surface, the main system of the net, in the sector 9812/Z.
Servo: In the hole in the bottom of the sea.
He was alone in that shelter 8 minutes ago,
Bob: But now all his rowdy friends were there!
operating the Doomscycle Routine.
He rose and he went to the bathroom to wash the face.
Servo: "The
face"?
Crow: Maybe
it's his strange, alien leader, like the Big Giant
Head.
Colin Laser was a lonely since his parents were deleted in a game,
Servo: I told them professional football was dangerous. Would they listen?
when he was ten hours old. That was one of the motives for which the System's Guardian, Positron, had chosen him to operate the Doomscycle Routine.
Crow: 'Cause orphans were pretty cheap in his system.
The Doomscycle Routine consisted of a integral reformation command that, when being activated, will delete everything that was in the system and in the net to which the system was connected.
Bob: Looking back, it probably wasn't a very good investment.
The system's director council had decided to build such device since they detected a high activity in the Web.
Servo: The Dancing Baby is receiving too many visitors! We have to destroy the network!
They had built the Routine to be the System and Network 34B's last defense line against a Web invasion.
Crow: And for if Bill Gates didn't get his way.
The Routine would be executed if the countdown was not interrupted, to each milisecond, for one of the Routine's operators. They were five to the whole,
Servo: And seven to the dollar.
and they were in shelters spread through Workstation 7. And Colin was one of the operators. That it was his mission. To prevent of the Routine goes off.
Bob: Umm, how about keeping it off all of the time unless you need it?
The System Defense people calls the controls that Colin and the others operated of Dead Sprite's Switch.
Crow: And they
call the operators "The Dweebs".
Colin looked at in the mirror and he saw the face of a sprite of 35 hours old,
Servo: (Colin) Huh. How'd that get there?
silver skin, clear blue hair and purple eyes. He returned to the routine's controls, thinking that that will never be activated.
Bob: Since blowing up the Net would be pretty darn counter-productive.
One of the vidwindows emitted a message signal.
It was Daneel Blastter,
Crow: "Blaster"? So, we've got Colin Laser, Daneel Blaster, Patty Phazer, Mike Cannon, Jack Atombomb. . .
another Routine's operator, in the sector 4568/K.
"Hi Laser! Did you already turn off that thing?" That was the habitual greeting.
Servo: (Colin) No I didn't, that's why the Net was wiped out this morning, you idiot. (normal) That was the habitual answer.
"For today, yes. Any news?"
"Well..." Daneel lowered the voice.
Crow: And cranked up the bass section.
"Did you know that the activity in the Web stiller increased?"
"No." Colin said dryly.
"Well, the people says... that perhaps..."
Bob: That it's possible. . . that maybe. . . that it could be that. . .
"Does the Web attack us? I don't believe."
"You know Colin, that I was thinking. If the Web attacked us,
Crow: (Daneel) I wouldn't have a thing to wear!
we would have to active the Routine and..." he left the incomplete sentence.
"About that, doesn't worry. We would not have to activate anything.
Servo: (Colin) They can't make us defend the system if we don't want to.
The system is already activated. Our work is impede that the Routine is executed, stopping the countdown."
Daneel said
good-bye and he closed the connection.
(Crow falls out
of his seat)
Bob: Uh. .
. Crow?
Crow: (getting
up) Hey Josh! Watch where you put those lines! I think I just tripped
over that one.
Mica Noyce, a Routine's operator, in a shelter in the section 1768/G. She was a long black haired sprite, with brilliant eyes green and gray skin.
Servo: Eww. . . she looks like a Game Boy character.
"Hi Mica! Did you turn off your switch?"
Bob: (Mica)
Oh darn, you know, I knew I forgot something. I'll be right
--
Servo:
BOOOOOM!
"Already, thanks to the User!
Crow: (Mica) And his son, Santa Claus!
That thing gives me chills!"
Colin admitted that the Doomscycle Routine also gave chills in him. He took courage to ask a thing that wanted ask to her.
Crow: Takes a lot of guts to borrow a pen.
"Mica, after all this to finish, what you think about a meeting?"
Bob: After a long second of keeping the Net from blowing up, I like to discuss zoning plans and city ordinances.
"Sure", she said smiling.
He released the breathing with relief.
Servo: The Breathing -- the most unpopular Pokémon of all.
For a guy like him, to ask a girl for a meeting was the supreme challenge.
Crow: Asking
for a date was easy. But a meeting. . . wow!
Positron appeared in a vidwindow three microseconds after.
Servo: Positron. . . wasn't he the leader of the Transformers or something?
He was a sprite with military glance and he said:
"Laser, we believed that the Web pretends attack in any nanosecond.
Bob: The Web Mimes are invading!
That, you should be prepared to leave the Routine follows its course!"
Servo: (Positron) Prepare yourself mentally and physically to do nothing!
"Yes sir." Colin answered uncomfortable.
Positron turned off.
Crow: Whoops,
his batteries are dead again. He should really switch to
Energizer.
In the System
Workstation 7's limits, a portal opened up.
Bob: But, that's not really part of our story, so let's just move on.
Colin was talking with Chris Magnetron,
Crow: And
that's the leader of the Go-Bots!
Servo: You
watch Go-Bots?
Crow: N-No.
. .
other Routine's operator, when a message was transmitted:
"Attention, system under attack! Attention, system under attack!"
Bob: Attention, system under. . . oh wait, it's just Joey's dog again. Sorry.
The Positron's image appeared.
"Attention, operators of the Doomscycle Routine! At your positions!"
Servo: (Positron) Turn that damned thing off so we can concentrate on the Web attack!
Colin sat down in front of the control, observing the Dead Sprite's Switch. He began to think if the Doomscycle Routine was a good idea.
Crow: Y'know. . . maybe having a machine that totally annihilates the entire Net just isn't a very effective defensive measure.
The countdown continued.
Bob: We'll
be back after these messages.
Bob: And we're back.
"Colin! Colin! What is having? I am losing..."
Servo: (Gavin) Coherence!
Gavin Diode lost contact with Colin. He tried re-establish contact with Gavin,
Crow: But he'd moved on and re-married and wasn't interested anymore.
but he only got static. He activated a vidwindow to the Daneel's shelter.
"Daneel, what did happen with Gavin?"
"I don't know, Colin!
Bob: (Daneel) Leave me alone! Who gave you my number, anyway?
It should just be a system's disfunction. I guess..."
"I hope too."
Colin spoke, with the throat drought. He turned off the
contact.
In the surface,
Crow: (singing) The mighty surface, the lion sleeps toni-ight!
the war between
the system's defense and the Web continued. And the score was not in favor
of the system.
"Chris! Any news from Positron?"
Crow: Are the Autobots holding off the Decepticons?
"No, Colin. There was 34 nanoseconds ago that I received the last report of progress. And... this was not good."
Servo: (Chris) I'm failing math, and I might have to go to summer school.
Colin Laser, as he had been data analyst, when verifying the report that Positron had sended, he knew that the situation was very close of desperation.
Bob: They were running out of pizza rolls, the karaoke machine was late, and the guests were getting restless.
"Chris..." Colin will say something, when he saw Chris to be grabbed by some tentacles.
Crow: I thought only boys had tentacles.
They were Web creatures' tentacles!
"CHRIS!"
Servo: (Colin) Watch out! There's a Web creature behind you!
The vidwindow only showed static now.
"For User's
sake, we are losing", Colin said in a murmur.
"Colin! Did you see what happened with Chris?" Mica asked afflicted.
Bob: (Colin) Yeah. Man, I never saw so many red squiggly things in my life.
"Yes... and I think will have to leave the Routine go to the end!"
She nodded.
The countdown continued.
Colin was trying to contact Daneel, when his communications system was turned off.
Crow: (Colin) Stupid 15-hour Internet package. I knew I should have gotten the Gold plan.
He was totally alone. Colin began to try repair the communications, when the comprehension of that fact reached him like a hammer.
Servo: (Colin) I was just trying to repair the communications! What was I thinking?
He would have to decide alone if he would leave the Doomscycle Routine follow the countdown to the end! He noticed that his service had the weight of the Net... and the destiny of the entire system in the palm of his hand!
Bob: (Colin) Hey, I just noticed that I'm controlling a giant death machine!
Colin gasped.
Servo: A wolf
howled. The woman screamed!
He observed the countdown arrive in his final moments. He had the hand, trembling, landed on the Dead Sprite's Switch.
Crow: Oh, so he just turned it off? That was kinda anti-climactic.
He noticed that if he left the countdown proceed to the end, he would destroy the whole system,
Bob: It's sort of late in your career to start picking up on these things, Colin.
but if he stopped it he would leave the Web dominate the Net.
The voice of the control calmly said:
Servo: (HAL) I'm sorry Dave. I can't let you do that.
"Thirty... Twenty-nine... Twenty-eight... Twenty-seven..."
Colin breathed deep,
Servo: The gathering gloom, watched lights fade from every room. . .
trying to calm down.
"Twenty-one... Twenty... Nineteen..."
Colin had to decide.
Crow: Soup or salad.
"Twelve... Eleven... Ten..."
On that moment, the Positron's image appeared in a vidwindow.
"Laser! Stop the countdown! I repeat! Stop the countdown! We got impede the Web invasion!"
Bob: (Positron) We used a big can of "Web-Be-Gone"! It was there all the time!
"Five... Four... Three... Two..."
Colin turned the switch.
The countdown was suspended.
Servo: For
drunk driving.
Colin cleaned the sweat of the forehead with the sleeve of his shirt. Positron informed:
"The others were informed. You were the last. My User, you are very pale! We will send the medical team there."
Crow: For an emergency tanning session!
Colin was giving a weak smile, when the shelter's door began to be knocked down.
Servo: (Colin) Umm. . . It's open!
He turned the vidwindow and he saw a Web creature leave the Positron's body. The Web creatures had destroyed the system. He had been double-crossed.
All: (muted trumpets) WHAA WHAA WHAA WHAA-A-A-A-A-A!
"Sometimes we make the right choice, other we make the wrong choice", he thought before being attacked by a Web creature.
Bob: Darn.
Looks like his meeting with Mica is off.
(The story stops again.)
Rod Serling: (voice-over) Our choices define our destiny.
Servo: There's that voice again.
Rod Serling: Those choices can turn a sprite into a Command.com,
Crow: Straw into gold, silk into a sow's ear. . .
Rod Serling: or reduce him to little more than a null. When the fate of the Net is in your hands... what would you choose?
(Random shouts of "Take the null!" "Go for the Command.com!" "Door number three! Door number three!")
(Commercials)
QuantumReBoot -- Installation
Servo: From
the inspiration that brought us Treklander, Rocky Dwarf, Sailor Babylon,
and Mystery ReBoot Thea --
Bob:
No!
Crow: Shhh!
Shut up about that!
Servo: Oh,
right. Sorry. Forget that last one.
Written by Joshua
Falken
I comefrom outside of the Net.
Crow: Whoa boy. I see where this is going. . .
Through lives, peoples
Bob: Walruses, doorknobs. . .
and cities,
to this place,
Mainframe.
My
format?
I think...
Leaper.
To change the
history for better,
to put right
what went wrong.
ReBoot!
Servo: Well.
. . not a bad start. . .
Prologue
"Theorizing that one could timetravel within his own lifetime,
Crow: It's called "growing older."
Dr. Sam Beckett stepped into theQuantum Leap accelerator and vanished....
Bob: The end.
Wow, short story.
Servo: No,
this is just the intro to the other show.
Bob:
Oh.
He woke to find himselftrapped in the past, facing mirror images that were not his ownand driven by an unknown force to change history for the better.
Crow: Y'know, I actually like Quantum Leap. Maybe this won't be so bad.
His only guide on this journey is Al, an observer
Servo: He carried his brain in a salad bowl?
from his owntime, who appears in the form of a hologram that only Sam can seeand hear. And so Dr. Beckett finds himself leaping from life tolife, striving to put right what once went wrong and hoping eachtime that his next leap will be the leap home."
Bob: This actually sounds interesting. I wonder why Megabyte sent it to us. . .
Sam Beckett seen himself, suddenly, goingfor some city avenue, in high-speed. He tried to stop, but whatgot went fall of backs and to crush in the street.
(The guys sit a moment, too stunned to react. Suddenly, Servo screams and his head explodes.)
Crow:
(panicked) I don't wanna die, Bob! Not here! Not like
this!
Bob: Look,
it's going to be okay. . . where are Tom's spare heads? I'm going to fix
him up quick.
Crow: (still
a bit shaken) They're under Mike's seat.
(Bob gets up and starts rummaging around)
He was alittle dizzy for some moments,
Crow: (Sam) Wow, that last sentence made my head hurt!
but he noticed when someone cameto help him.
"Enzo, are you alrightl?"
Crow: (panicked) He leaped into Enzo? NOOOOO!
"Er... I'm O.K., thank you.", Samsaid, getting up.
It was when he noticed the environment.
Crow: (calming down) Unfortunately, global warming had already become too great to stop.
(Bob starts installing a new head on Servo)
Everything looked like drawn by a computer! The buildings, thetrees, everything! The cars floated by means of some type ofpower field.
Crow: Called fishing line.
Amazed, Sam looked at then for who had driven himthe question. It seemed a robot divided in three cubic sections,
Crow: (Sam) Oh no, I'm stuck in a Tetris game!
(Servo comes back on-line)
Servo: (groggy) Oh, what happened? I had a horrible dream that we were watching a Dr. Thinker story.
in the first he had an only eye, on the second a mouth, with thearms and in the third the legs
Servo: When did Mr. Potato Head enter the story?
and on the left side on top, was atype of icon: one black and white diamond on a circular field,too black and white,
Bob: (ominously) It was black and white. . . too black and white. . .
but with the colors inverted in relation tothe diamond.
"Enzo, your zipboard!", said thebinome (Just a minute!, thought Sam... as it is... how is it thathe knew that that robot type was called binome?!),
Crow: When your characters point out the flaws in your story, it's time to start over.
pointing for atype of flotation skate. The skate were two circles tied by amobile joint; the same icon was printed in the two circles. Samwent up in the zipboard
Servo: Just a minute!, thought Sam... as it is... how is it thathe knew that the skate type was called zipboard?
and as soon as he was balanced, hemurmured:
"Thank you very much."
Sam went going for the street,
Bob: But what got went fall of backs and to crush in the street.
observingMainframe.
Servo: Just
a minute!, thought Sam... as it is... how is it thathe
--
Bob: (touching
Servo's shoulder) Okay, we get it. . .
He went by a shop window and he stopped to see hisreflection (leaper's reflex act).
Crow: So
that's why Emi wanted to see a mirror right away! It was the Leaper's
Reflex Act.
Servo: Yes,
the Leaper's Reflex Act, a little-known law that compells people in strange
situations to look in a mirror.
It's when his chin dropped. Whosaw in the mirror was a boy of 10 to 12 years, of green skin(!!!), blue eyes and black hair.
Servo: (Sam) I leaped into the Jolly Green Giant's unpopular son, Sprout!
He used a red bonnet back withthe brim turning, as most of the adolescents it used
Bob: These kids today with their bonnets with the brims turning, and their big pants, and their MTV, and I don't know what else. . .
(at least itwas it that his Swiss Cheesed memory told to him),
Servo: Wow. Never drink and leap.
with thealways present black and white icon, a white shirt of shortsleeve with the inscription 10.
"Oh,boy!", exclaimed Sam, whenhis chin returned to the place.
Crow: And found
The Fat Man waiting for it!
Servo: But
fortunately, Fingle was interfaced.
Chapter 1
Project Quantum
Leap
Stallions
Gate, New México
May 16,
2002
Bob: Goodness, that is a strange title for a chapter!
"Gooshie!", Admiral Al Calaviccishouted.
Crow: Eww! Keep that to yourself!
"Where is Sam? And when is he"?
Servo: He's five minutes later than when you asked five minutes ago.
"Ziggy is verifying now, tore-establish the contact with Dr. Beckett", he answered.
Fifteen minutes later, a feminine voiceemerged of the Control Room speakers.
Servo: (Magic Voice) Fifteen seconds until commercial sign.
"We got to determine the date and theplace of the Dr. Beckett's Leap", Ziggy said.
Bob: It took fifteen minutes to figure out what they have to do?
"He issomewhere in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Net , onNovember 12, 1999."
Al was perplexed. What history was thatthat Sam was somewhere in MITNET?
Crow: Ground-breaking literary technique: write in all the dull, meaningless garbage that the actual show you are writing about would leave out.
He will ask ("shout"would be a more exact word) so that Ziggy explained that, whenGooshie announced:
Servo: What kind of sick, deranged parent would blight a child with a name like "Gooshie"?
"We re-established contact with Dr.Beckett!"
Al left running for the Imaging Chamber.
(All start singing
the Batman theme.)
Mainframe
The Pendulum of the Clockspeed Roomoscillated in a constant way, when it stopped all of a sudden.
Bob: Whoops. System's dead.
Hewas some stopped three nanoseconds, when he was traveled by avibration, and he later oscillated usually again.
Servo: Oh no! The clock stopped three nanoseconds! That means. . . umm. . . that they're. . . uh. . .
Bob was fixing (fixing?)
Crow: (Josh) Whoops, I meant "eating".
his car when hehad a strange sensation,
Bob: When I bite into a York Peppermint Patty. . .
similar to the one that he felt when theCodeMaster arrived to Mainframe.
Servo: Only. . . funky!
On that moment, a vidwindowopened up and he saw Phong, that said:
"Bob, would be better you to come tothe Principal Office."
"What was?", he asked.
Crow: (Phong) How should I know? I don't even know what I just said.
"The sensors detected a great increaseof the energy level of Mainframe. This energy seems to be of sometype of field..."
Servo: (Phong) We suspect a baseball field.
"Some type of contentionfield?!", did Bob ask, alert, would imagining Megabyte bepreparing some.
Bob: Yeah, he's always brewing one kind of technobabble or another.
" That would explain that strangesensation", he thought.
But Phong rejected that idea.
Crow: (Phong) No. You're wrong. We thought of that. No.
"No, it is too diffuse to be addressedfor a contention field or a firewall. It seems to be more withthe energy field of a tear in the interface".
"I am going for there."
Servo: Umm,
where?
Crow: Just
let him go.
Sam was observing the Principal Office (hewas more and more finding strange - and thanking - that'telepathy effect' with his host),
Bob: Yes, the powers of the deus ex machina are awe-inspiring.
when he noticed to appear theImaging Chamber blue light. Al came through the door.
Crow: Al
Bundy?
Servo: (Al
Bundy) We had the biggest, fattest woman in the world at the shoe store
today.
He wasdressed in a more normal way than of habit, Sam thought; redjacket and blue pants. Al said:
"How you do...", his voice diedwhen seeing Mainframe.
Crow: (Al) Wow! A computer-generated image! We have nothing like this in the 21st century!
"Al, this place is strange! Heredoesn't have people, only two types of robots, a looking like asoccer ball and another that more seems with that HAL 9000 panel!
Bob: Yeah, well you're nothing special yourself.
What Ziggy does say?"
Al - as soon as he recovered of the shockof seeing Mainframe -
Servo: Time required to recover from the shock of suddenly finding oneself in an entirely computer-generated cosmos -- .3 seconds.
consulted the handlink.
"Well... how is it?!?", heshouted, when it received the answer.
"What was?", Sam asked ,concerned.
Crow: You know, I'm starting to think we are stuck in a Dr. Thinker story.
"Ziggy says...", he recovered thebreath, "Ziggy says that is a chance of 97,8% of you to be acomputer sprite!"
Bob: And a 2.2% chance that you're Jaleel White.
"A WHAT?!",
Sam asked inthe limit of the perplexity.
Servo: Well, no logical way to wrap that scene up. Let's just bi-locate over to this one.
Project Quantum
Leap
Waiting
Room
"Hey, what am I doing here?",
Crow: Probably waiting. That would be my guess.
wasthe first thing that Enzo Matrix said after changing places withSam, when noticing the austere atmosphere of the Waiting Room.
Servo: (Enzo) HelpI'minanotherdimensionand. . . say, nice room.
Dr. Verbena Beeks entered in the room.
Bob: Really? So she didn't exit in the room?
"Are you alright?"
Enzo looked at for Verbena as if she wascrazy. He was walking for Mainframe, and when he gave forhimself,
All: Ewwww!
he was in this room! How could he be well?! And saidthat to Dr. Beeks.
Crow: (Enzo) That.
"Well, you are in the Waiting Room ofthe Project Quantum Leap, a Government top-secret project ".- she explained, after calming him.
Servo: (Verbena) Now that you know that, I'll have to kill you, of course.
"Here stay the peoplewith who Dr. Beckett changed places."
"How "changedplaces"?", did Enzo ask distrustful. "And who isthat Dr. Beckett?"
Servo: That
Dr. Beckett is one mad mother--
Others: Shut
your mouth!
Servo: But
I'm talkin' about Dr. Beckett.
Others: And
we can dig it.
"Well, Dr. Beckett is the creator ofthis project, that it consists, basically, in traveling in thetime changing of place with other person in the time - thatprocess is called
Crow: Soul stealing.
Quantum Leap - and the person"chosen" in this case was... you "!
Bob: Enzo Matrix, This Is Your Abduction!
"Do you think I am low density?! Inthe nanosecond in that he changed with me of place, my friendswould see that I am not there!"
Servo: Look! A rational thought! Quick, take a picture!
Verbena Beeks thought strange that choiceof words.
Crow: (Verbena)
"Changed with me of place"? That's an odd way to talk. .
.
Bob: You know,
I'm glad she feels the same way too; I was starting to think I was the only
one.
Low density? Nanosecond? But she continued.
"Would be like this if it didn'thappen a fact... " Verbena made a gesture as if she tried toremind his name,
Servo: Oh, the international "remind someone of their name" gesture.
a trick that most of the time worked so that thehost said your name.
Bob: But Enzo
doesn't even know her name.
Crow: That
would be a neat trick!
Ziggy usually said who occupied the Sam's"aura", but in this case, she didn't do it.
"Enzo", answered the sprite,falling in the trick.
Servo: Whoops. Never leave your tricks uncovered; people'll just fall right in.
"Well, Enzo, would be like this if itdidn't happen a small detail: Dr. Beckett when he Leaps into ahost of another time, he is with the host 'aura',
Bob: (Enzo) Huh?
and for theothers of the same time he is the host.
Bob: (Enzo) No, I don't get it. . .
And the host, when hecomes for here, he stays with the Dr. Beckett "aura".
Bob: (Enzo) Look, I don't understand a word you're saying.
If you doubt, give a glance in the mirror.", she made agesture, with the hand, indicating a mirror.
Crow: The Leaper's Reflex Act dictates that you look in the mirror!
Enzo got up of the table where was seatedand at he was looked in the mirror. He saw a man with about 40hours (years), of brown hair and brown eyes.
Servo: <gasp> He's Russ T. Hinge!
"That is bad, very bad!",murmured Enzo, when he recovered of the shock.
Bob: (Enzo)
The guy I leaped into is so ugly!
Greg
Carter'sApartament
Near of the
McGill University (connected with MITNET)
November
12, 1999
Greg Carter was with a flea behind the ear.
Crow: That's what you get for rubbing your head on a wild dog's back.
The monitor had blinked as a not well syntonized TV. He will passa diagnosis program in her computer
Servo: If you know what I mean. . .
when knocked on the door ofthe apartment. Was your friend Colin.
Bob: Hey, Colin!
You survived the Web attack after all! Way to go,
buddy!
Crow: Colin!
We missed you, man!
"Hey, Greg! There here that graphicprogram that you wanted ", said the other, showing a CD-ROM.
Servo: (Colin) After all this to finish, what do you think about a meeting?
He gave to Greg the CD-ROM and he kiddied:
"Finally you will install somethingbesides games in your computer!"
Bob: Yeah, you selfish jerk! Stop using our system for your evil games!
"O.K.; it's true that I have variousinstalled games, but are not too many like you say that Ihave!"
Colin gave a quizzical glance.
Crow: (Colin) You're drunk right now, aren't you?
Gregshrugged. He inserted the disk in the drive and he clicked in theicon of the CD-ROM; at the side it was the icon of HD. The HD'sname was Mainframe.
(Everyone gets up to leave.)
Crow: Oh yeah. There's a twist.
(Everyone leaves.)
(We're back on the SOL bridge. Bob and Servo are deep in discussion. Crow is off to the side.)
Servo: See, you can't go back in time intending to change anything, because once you undo the event you tried to change, it never would have happened, so your future self would never think to go back and change it, so you'd never change it, so it would happen anyway. It's a paradox.
(The red light starts flashing.)
Crow: Hey! We're receiving a transmission, and it's not from the Mads!
Bob: (not paying attention) Shhh.
Servo: It's like the Grandfather paradox. If you were to go back in time and kill your own grandfather, you'd never be born, and therefore you wouldn't be around to kill him.
Bob: So, what happens with something like that?
Servo: Well, your basic layman thinks that. . .
Crow: You guys! Someone's trying to --
Bob: (to Crow) Listen, you can tell us your little theory later; it's Tom's turn right now.
Crow: It's not a theory!
Bob: Or your hypothesis, or whatever; I'm trying to listen to Tom right now.
Servo: Thank you. Anyway, most people think that such an event would tear a hole in time and space and generally force the universe to collapse in on itself, but I think that it just forces us to diverge into a parallel universe, one in which the. . . (notices the red light) Hey! We're receiving a transmission!
Bob: (also noticing) Hey, yeah! I don't think it's from the Mads, either!
(Crow sighs in disgust.)
Bob: Cambot, put that up on the Hexfield Viewscreen!
(The Hexfield irises open. It's Colin, from the short! He's sitting in the Dead Sprite Switch operating room.)
Servo: Look! It's our friend Colin!
Crow: Colin! Buddy! You survived the Web attack!
Colin: Yes. Turned out it did itwas a joke of the practical by the Positron.
Bob: Huh. So, what've you been doing since the story?
Colin: I to prevent of the Doomcycle Routine goes off. That it is my mission. Besides, I havewent to meeting of Mica this second go pretty well.
Servo: Well, sounds like things are looking up for you.
Colin: They are that. Happier I have never been ever. I call you totell that I am well, so doesn't worry.
(In the background, the Dead Sprite Switch's countdown has reached 20 seconds. Or should that be nanos?)
Bob: Whoa, Colin! Looks like you're running out of time.
Colin: Why is it that?
Crow: The, uh, countdown. You might wanna reset it.
Colin: What did you saying? More speak clearly.
(The countdown reaches 10 seconds. . . I mean, nanos.)
Servo: Colin! Please! Turn around and read that countdown!
Colin: Sorry. To go I must. Later I'll see you.
(The Hexfield starts to iris closed as the guys shout warnings to Colin. Just as the screen is about to close, there's the sound of a huge explosion.)
Bob: (Very, very horrified) Is it just me. . . or did the entire Net just blow up?
Crow: Oh, good one Mike.
Bob: (confused) Mike?
Servo: I can't believe it. The guy's dead and he still insists on blowing up everyone we come across!
Bob: I don't think he could've --
(Lights and sirens.)
Bob: We'll discuss this later. WE'VE GOT MOVIE SIGN!
(The guys scatter.)
