Date: 7/31/2000
From: Slider_Quinn21

Rembrandt Brown was standing outside the recording studio. Another failed audition. "Cry Like a Man" wouldn't take off, reminding him of old times. Despite his failures in the music business, things had been great for the past three months. Especially for Wade. He was so happy for her. She had a reunion with her parents, talked with Quinn's, and was currently writing a book. She had asked Remmy to write the opening, but he had declined in favor of Quinn. He still had full confidence in Quinn, even though it had been a while.

Remmy hummed the tune of his new song in his head. It was his song to the Professor, like he had promised. It had taken forever to write it, because it was so important to him. Remmy flagged down a cab and stepped inside. The cab took him to his apartment. Yes, Rembrandt had bought a small apartment in Los Angeles. It was better for him to be located in LA, for the music and for Quinn. He and Wade agreed that it was more logical that Quinn would land in LA, considering that's where they had landed the majority of the time, following their encounter with Logan. Wade had stayed in San Francisco, but she came down to see him a lot. They were still very good friends.

Rembrandt entered his small apartment. It was dark, with his electricity not paid for. He had to get that done, considering that Wade would be paying him a visit soon. He didn't want her to see how bad it was. But he was happy to be home. Things were changing, though. He had dreams of the worlds the group had visited. He had dreams of the Professor, of Quinn, and even of Maggie. Those were happy times, even though Remmy didn't realize it. In a way, he missed the excitement of sliding.

The phone rang. Remmy knew who it was. Wade was the only one who called him, except for the occasional call from the studio or Artie. Remmy answered the phone, and he felt instant relief from Wade's voice.

REMBRANDT
Hey, girl. How are you? When are you coming?

Wade ignored Remmy's questions. She was too happy.

WADE
He's home! He's home!

REMBRANDT
Q-Ball?

WADE
Quinn's home! He's home!

SLIDERS
"Rebirth"

STARRING
Jerry O'Connell as Quinn Mallory
Sabrina Lloyd as Wade Welles
Cleavant Derricks as Rembrandt Brown
and...
John Rhys-Davies as Arturo

Remmy put the phone on the hook, overjoyed. Quinn was finally home. Rembrandt wondered how he and Maggie had faired. Wade was too excited to say anything to him. It was like talking to an answering machine. But he was happy. He walked out the door, noting the bills on the table. He dumped the bills in the trash. He wasn't coming back. He was going home.

The vortex opened, and Arturo and Rob spilled out. Rob, carrying the timer, hit the ground hard, and the timer flew from his hands. It smashed against the ground. Worried, Arturo went to examine it. The timer hadn't broken into pieces, but it wasn't working, either.

Rob picked himself up and walked over to Arturo.

ROB
What happened?

ARTURO
Its not working. I suggest we try to find someplace to stay the night, and take apart this thing. How much money do you have?

Rob examined his wallet. He had a twenty dollar bill. Arturo had remembered to bring along some money. He had two hundred. This was enough for a hotel room. If the timer needed extended work, they could get jobs. But hopefully, a night is all they'd stay on this world.

Rob and Arturo walked over to the Dominion Hotel. The two entered and walked over to the front desk, and they asked for a room. The man at the desk was very Mediterranean looking, but he was very kind. Glimpsing at the tan money in the cash register, Arturo knew his money wouldn't work. Creating a false story about forgetting his wallet, Arturo angrily walked out of the hotel.

Rob ran after Professor Arturo, wondering what the problem was.

ROB
What's wrong, Professor?

Arturo was upset. It was getting dark, and they had no place to stay the night. Arturo found a coin on the ground. He showed it to Rob.

ARTURO
This is the problem, Mr. Williams.

Rob picked up the coin. The coin was a twenty-five cent piece, but it had the picture of an Arab man on the front.

ROB
Who is this?

ARTURO
One of this world's leaders, Mr. Williams. You are having trouble accepting that you are on a parallel Earth, aren't you?

ROB
Its a lot to handle, Professor.

ARTURO
We will discuss adapting to sliding at a later time. We must find shelter.

Arturo and Rob walked down the street. Night was approaching fast. Arturo didn't want to be outside any longer. He went to a place where he thought they'd be safe. He didn't like the idea at all. In fact, at an earlier time, he would have rather slept outside. But sliding had changed his views on the world. Arturo and Rob approached a homeless shelter.

Rob had never been in a place like this before. He had come from a rich family, and he had been protected from places like this. He had heard about places like this, but he had never witnessed it. It was all very shocking.

Arturo was led to a cot on the right corner of the room. Rob joined him, disgusted at the quality of the living conditions.

ROB
I can't believe they want us to sleep like this!

ARTURO
Mr. Williams, I don't think its the time to be discussing the sanitary conditions of a homeless shelter. We have to fix the timer.

Rob took off his jacket and placed it on the cot. He didn't want to touch the fabric of the cot. Arturo felt ashamed that he, too, had been like this. Rob picked up the timer and examined it.

ROB
I can't work like this. I need a laboratory. I need tools.

ARTURO
What are you talking about? Quinn and I fixed the timer numerous times without a lab!

ROB
I'm sorry. I guess we'll do it the hard way.

Rob began taking the timer apart. He didn't want to admit it, but this timer wasn't ready. It wasn't being sent to Washington, just for aesthetic purposes. It needed durability testing, and other forms of testing. It would need days of work to get it back to 100%. But they had to get it fixed to get off this world. From what they had heard, on this world, it was hard for a white person to get a job.

Arturo helped as much as he could, but he wasn't a lot of help. He once again was in the shadows of one of his students, a person younger than he. What would have happened had he slid alone? He no longer had confidence in his abilities to fix the timer. Would he be getting a job, accepting the fact that he was stuck?

Rob took a rest after a few minutes. Arturo took over, actually fixing the timer. It was working, but Rob was afraid of something.

ROB
Professor, we have a problem.

ARTURO
What, Mr. Williams?

ROB
This thing is completely messed up. I can promise you one more slide. This thing might be toast after this one...

Arturo looked at the sky. One more slide. The next world was home, no matter what.

To be continued...

Running out of thumbs...

Date: 7/31/2000
From: DoctorQuinn

I already gave you two! ~;O) Don't worry, the ratings didn't go any lower. If anything, they went higher! I love how you mentioned Remmy's song to Arturo. That was sweet.

Keep up the excellent work!

The good doctor

Nice writing, Slider_Quinn21

Date: 7/31/2000
From: dellyone

Thanks for sharing this awesome fanfic. I can't wait for the next part.

dellyone

Original URL http://www.scifi.com/bboard/browse.cgi/1/5/545/22419
Nominated by Slider_Quinn21