Date: Wed, 3 May 1995 10:48:27 CDT Reply-To: "Thomas D. Haynes" Sender: Highlander TV show stories From: "Thomas D. Haynes" Subject: PG-13 Story: Better to burn out pt 3 of ? It's better to burn out than to fade away by Tom Haynes This is a crossover between Sliders, the TV show, and The Highlander. For those of you who don't watch Sliders, the basic premise is that four adventurers are fated to travel to different versions of reality; searching for the one they originated from. They have no control over which dimension they are traveling to, and also they do not know how long they will stay in each dimension they visit. We don't really know if things have to come back to their home dimension, i.e. assuming that the remote control unit the party has was working properly. For this story, it is assumed that things normally have to return. There won't be any explicit sex or foul language in this series, but due to the nature of some of the characters, there will be extreme carnage. (just not the gory details) As for which rules, i.e. movie or TV, that the immortals are controlled by, I plan on taking a mixture of them both. Part III The time: Sometime in the Spring of 1995 + 4 days or Shortly before the portal opens The place: A damp and and not so dark dungeon. The past four days have past amicably enough for the group. The guards have taken them out for exercise, and they have been given plenty of reading material. Except for the facts that their hands are manacled together, that there are balls chained to their feet, and that they are confined to a 10x10 room, it could almost be called a vacation. The Quinn of this world has proven to be very knowledgable about the physics of sliding, and has helped Arturo and Quinn come to understand more about how to fix the remote and get home themselves. There is about thirty minutes left until the portal opens. Two guards enter and remove the manacles and chains. They let the chains lay where they fall, and then leave the group to recover. "What are we going to do about The Kurgan? Do we take him along?", asked Rembrandt Brown to the group as they all rub at their chaffed wrists and ankles. "Do we have a choice?", asked Wade Wells. "I mean, he does control this world." "Actually, I am surprised that we are still alive. I would have bet that we would have died in the games by now.", said QuinnII. "Yes, well, he believes that he needs us to effect the transfer to another world.", said the portly professor, Maximillian Arturo. At this point, Quinn Mallory puts his finger over his mouth, and makes a hushing noise. He slowly walks over to his double, and motions that he would like to put his hands over QuinnII's ears. QuinnII mouths "Why?" Suddenly QuinnI grins, and pops his double in the chin, knocking him out. Wade rushes up, and cradles QuinnII's head. "Why did you do that? Can't stand a little competition?", she shouts at QuinnI. "No, but we seem to have forgotten that The Kurgan can listen in through his ears. Unconscious, he can't spy on us.", replied Quinn. "Hogwash my dear boy. Mind reading is for charlatans.", the professor lectured. "Whether it is hogwash on our world, it might be very possible on this or any other world. We need to keep our minds open to new possibilities.", said Quinn. "Yeah, like the Russians winning the cold war.", said Rembrandt. "Anyway, we don't want to give our plans away to the opposition.", said Quinn. "Have you considered that The Kurgan has planned for such a situation? What if he still can not read your double's mind because of his recent vampirism? Have you considered him placing electronic devices in the cell?", asked the irate Arturo. "Well, no.", Quinn sheepishly admitted. "Oh well, I'll apologize later. We might as well face up to what is going to happen: Once we take him where he wants to go, he is going to kill us.", said Quinn. "We don't know that.", said Wade. "But we have to plan as if that is what is going to happen. We have a few options: Either he goes first or last or in the middle. If he goes first, we just turn off the remote, and take our chances on where we end up later. If he goes last, then we turn it off while we slide. Again we take our chances.", said Quinn. "And if I go in the middle?" asked The Kurgan, who has seemingly materialized out of thin air. "Then we run like hell in different directions...", said Quinn before he realized who asked the question. The Kurgan smiles, looks down at Wade and QuinnII. He reaches down, and picks up QuinnII with one hand, lifting him above his head. Then he swiftly slaps QuinnII several times, waking him up. "We are going with you. I haven't killed you yet, because I don't know what will happen to my powers while in the slide or even afterwards. Methos had postulated that the Quickening links us to this world. I guess I'll find out.", said The Kurgan. "So we live as long as we are useful?", asked QuinnI. "Exactly!", roars The Kurgan. "Come now, we have to get aboveground. We can't count on such a lovely dungeon being on the other side.", he said. He led the group up to the surface, and to the park where they had appeared. "I believe that locality makes for a better transfer?", The Kurgan asks QuinnI and Arturo. "Yes, but why bring Quinn's double along. What good will he do you?", asked the professor. "If I loose my powers, then I might forget all of the physics that I have learned from him. In that case, he knows what I am capable of doing, and will readily help me. If I don't lose my powers, then I probably won't be able to read the minds of this new world. In that case, he'll be my backup memory.", said The Overlord. "Then why aren't you taking along any of your men?", asked Rembrandt. "Simple, they have been lords on this planet. Once the people realize I am gone, then the streets will be covered in blood, the blood of my men.", cackled The Kurgan. "It's about time. Have you prepared your ``Quickening'' to guide us?", asked QuinnI. He had pulled out the remote, and was fiddling with it. "Yes, but I will have to go first.", said The Kurgan as the slider's tunnel materialized in front of them. "My men are in position around us. They will kill you if you don't follow me." The Kurgan started to levitate, and a blue nimbus formed around him. With a cry, he dove into the blue circle. The second Quinn immediately followed him. The group looks at each other. "Over there, I see some men with rifles. We better go.", said Wade. And with that the sliders start jumping into the circle. The ride is rougher than before, as if the slide is fighting them. They pop out near a swordfight. A tall man, with a ponytail, is fighting with another man, who has red hair. The red head's head snaps around, perhaps he heard something, and he cries out, "Mac, we have company." The second man turns around, and sees The Kurgan unlimber his broadsword. "You're dead.", he says. "The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated. Time to dance MacLeod.", said The Kurgan. "Leave Richie.", said Duncan MacLeod. "Mac, who is he?", asked Richie Ryan. "He's Kurgan Richie, death on two legs.", replied Duncan. "I thought Connor killed him?", Richie asks again. "He did, now leave!", said Duncan as he brings his katana up in preparation of perhaps the greatest fight of his life. The two Immortals advance on each other, studying each other's body. Meanwhile, Rembrandt tugs at the arm of the professor, and says, "Time to leave." "No, we need to see the outcome.", said the professor. "Look, if Kurgan wins, then we die. If he looses, then you might live, but I'm some sort of Immortal, and I want to keep my head.", said Rembrandt, as he looks imploringly at the rest of the group. "Duncan is a good guy. Plus, if Kurgan wins, the Quickening will drain him of energy, and we can escape.", said Wade. She turned back to the battle, which had begun. Duncan was puzzled, the Kurgan was no where near as good as his reputation. He could have taken his head, but he feared that the Kurgan was setting him up. Finally, he good stand it no longer, his katana swept out and off came the Kurgan's head. "There can be only one.", mutters Duncan MacLeod. End of Part III (to be continued) -- Tom Haynes haynes@hpserv.keh.utulsa.edu || haynes@euler.mcs.utulsa.edu http://hpserv.keh.utulsa.edu/~haynes/haynes.html All opinions are mine, and are not those of the University of Tulsa. =========================================================================