From: marshall@exg106.rh.psu.edu (Marshall Maresca)
Newsgroups: alt.ql.creative
Subject: TimeStorm, Part 5
Date: 23 Oct 1993 01:03:59 GMT
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Message-Id: <2a9vtv$r5g@genesis.ait.psu.edu>
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				TimeStorm
				Part Five

	Gooshie turned pale as Thorton started to drag another body into his
summoning chair.  He turned to Thorton's captives: Dr.	Beckett, the girl Alia
that they had rescued some months ago, Zoey, Alia's former associate, and an
unidentified Major of some Time Corps, who were from some years ahead of
Gooshie's own time.
	"You are crazy!" said the Major, "There are hundreds of operatives in
the Time Corps.	 You can't bring them all to one point in time!"
	"And why not?" asked Thorton as he strapped the unconscious form into
the chair.
	"The resultant overload of temporal energy will create a TimeStorm!
Destroy time as we know it!"
	"That didn't stop you all from meddling with the past," said Thorton.
	"Who are you--"
	"Major," said Sam, "Save your breath.  He won't listen to you."
	"And the great Doctor Beckett speaks once more!" said Thorton.
	"Now, look," said Sam, "I created Project Quantum Leap so I could help
people!	 Make their lives better."
	"What a noble sentiment, Doctor," said Zoey, "You truly are one of
last of the dreamers.  Pity."
	"Will you shut up?" said Alia, "He's trying to save our lives."
	"Ever the Boy Scout," said Zoey.
	"Who are you to decide whose life is better or worse from your messing
with time?" said Thorton.
	"I try to help people," said Sam, tears forming in his eyes.
	"Did you help this man?" said Thorton, pulling out an old photograph.
The person looked familiar, but he couldn't place him through the swiss-cheese
in his head.
	"Can't remember, Doctor Beckett?  His name was Clifford Whiteside.
And you killed him.  Pushed him off a cliff."
	"How fitting," said Zoey.
	"I-- How?" was all Sam could manage.
	"We're trying, Doctor," said Gooshie, "But we can't find out how he
knows so much."
	"I've done my research," said Thorton, "And you've left quite a trail
behind you."  He pulled out more files from his box, almost giggling, "Letters
and interveiws, newspaper clippings.  You've told your little secret to quite
a number of people.  There are so many people out there who were helped by a
friend who claimed to be Sam Beckett.  Very careless.  The information was all
out there for anyone who bothered to compile it together.  But this was the
coup de grace!	Physical evidence!"
	Thorton pulled from the box a handlink: the one that was left in 1945.
	"You have to believe me, I only wanted to help people!" said Sam.
Tears were streaming down his face.
	"Even so, good Doctor, there are also these people," he said, kicking
Zoey, "Who use time to hurt people.  They've left their evidence as well."
	"That's still no excuse to do what you are doing!" said the Major.
	"I've heard enough from you!" said Thorton, and he grabbed a wrench
and struck the Major over the head, who went down like a stone.
	"You son of a bitch!" said Sam.
	"Temper temper, good doctor." said Thorton, "It's time for a new guest
to join us."  He went and pulled the switch.  This time, Sam's insides felt
like they were being turned in knots, and Alia and Zoey looked the same way.
The light subsided, and in the chair was a young man.  Sam knew his face well,
and though the boy seemed to be half comatose, he was mumbling the same words
over and over.
	"Don't let Chip out of my sight."
	"Doctor," said Gooshie, "The temporal flux has jumped up by
astronomicalamounts.  If he pulls in one more, the time storm will break and
everyone here will be dead.  I'll get back to you as soon as I can, or the
Admiral will."
	"Hurry," said Sam as the Imaging Chamber door closed behind him.
	"Hurry, Doctor Beckett?	 And what is that supposed to mean?"
	"Well, I said 'Why don't you just hurry it up and end it all?'"
	"Nice try, Doctor, but I am not that foolish.  You are talking to one
of your observers.  This should keep them out."	 He twisted a knob all the way
up.  Then he left the cellar again.
	"How is he?" asked Alia.
	"The Major?" asked Sam, "It's hard to tell, but I think he will be all
right.	His breathing looks normal, and he isn't bleeding.  Alia, is Thorton
right?	Have I been hurting people, not helping them?"
	"No, Sam, not at all.  You've done more good than you realize.	No man
in Time is as good as you."
	"Dear God, Alia," said Zoey, "You were hard to stomach before, but
since he's corrupted you, you are positively nauseating."

			***************

	"Gooshie," said Al as he ran into the Control Room, "Did you get
through to Sam?"
	"Yes, Admiral, but the situation has gotten worse.  There are five
leapers there now."
	"Five?	Who besides Sam and Alia?"
	"Her old partner, Zoey, is there, plus a man called, "The Major", from
some Time Corps, most likely from our future."
	"If we don't fix this, Gooshie, we won't have a future.	 Who is the
fifth?"
	"You, Admiral.	The younger you, that is, that we sent back to save
yourfriend."
	"My God." was all Al could say for a moment, then he looked at
Gooshie, "I talked to Sam."
	"How did you do that, Admiral?" said Gooshie, looking very confused.
	"Well, it was his ghost or something.  I don't know.  But Thorton
apparantly was able to find out about us.  He even found--"
	"The handlink from 1945.  I saw it."
	"Anyways, Sam said the TimeStorm killed hundreds across the space-time
continuum.  Including us."
	"Then we must find a solution soon.  One more leaper brought in will
cause the storm to break.  Ziggy predicts it will be in 1.2 hours, but we
can't come up with a solution for the situation."
	Al paused for a moment, and thought hard.  Then he snapped his fingers
and ran to the control room, "Come on, Gooshie, there is no time to waste!"
	"Indeed, Admiral," said Gooshie, and ran after him.


			To be concluded...


					Marshall Ryan Maresca