| Heart of Darkness (page 1) by IamBoris |
| Sliders is owned by, or is a trademark of, Universal Television, St. Clare Entertainment, the Sci-Fi Channel, & Studios USA. It was created by Tracy Torm� and Robert K. Weiss. I am using the title and characters without permission but am making no profit from doing so; so for the love of all things holy, don�t sue me! That having been said, this particular story was written by me, so please ask me before posting it anywhere else, and give me credit if you do. |
| We pick up where �Associations� left off. Professor Arturo has just announced that he and Geiger may have come up with a way to put an end to the KroMaggs� rein of terror. Once Arturo has paused sufficiently long for dramatic effect, Logan says something to the effect of, �So�what�s the plan?� Arturo explains. �You see, the Mallorys and Dr. Geiger, here, are the ones that banished the KroMaggs to their current homeworld after the end of the Great Struggle. That means they have the coordinates to that world, which is now apparently referred to as KroMagg Prime. Well, it occurred to me last night that our having those coordinates could be to our great tactical advantage in our quest to rid the multiverse of their predatory influence, so I asked Dr. Geiger if he would supply me with those coordinates. He was kind enough to do so, though not without an explanation. I explained it to him as I am explaining it to you now. We have the means to destroy the KroMagg race; you, Mr. Brown, carry those means in your bloodstream as a result of your visit to the Seer�s world nearly a year ago. Now, the reason that the virus you carry was never of use to us in the grand scheme of things is because we could only liberate one world at a time�and we had to be on that world to do it. But if we could go straight to the heart of the Dynasty�if we could go to KroMagg Prime�we could use the threat of the virus to compel the KroMaggs to end their war of aggression against the multiverse. Now, it will take careful planning and precise execution, but if we do this right, we could put an end to the KroMagg threat once and for all. Can I assume you are all willing to go to KroMagg Prime in spite of the great risk involved?� As expected, everyone nods in agreement. The Professor smiles. �Excellent. Then allow me to explain exactly what I have in mind�� [Show�s opening credits roll and we break for commercial.] * * * The vortex opens, illuminating an otherwise pitch black forest. The five Sliders and Dr. Geiger emerge from the vortex one by one and each turn on a flashlight as they do so. After taking a moment to regain their composure after the slide, they each take a moment to look around in wide-eyed amazement at their vortex-illuminated surroundings. �My word,� says the Professor. �It�s even more breathtaking than I imagined.� It is then that the camera finally pans back a ways and the audience is given an overhead view of a vast forest filled with trees that do indeed make the redwoods look like matchsticks. We see half a dozen manta ships flying overhead before we return to a close shot of the group, where the wormhole finally closes, leaving the flashlights as the only source of light in the dark forest. Logan says, �Good news. We�ve got about three and a half days here. Just enough time to get this thing done.� �Excellent, � Arturo says, �Dr. Geiger, if you will be so kind as to inform the Mallorys of our safe arrival.� �Already done,� Geiger replies. Arturo: �Very well, then. I suspect that the KroMaggs detected our unauthorized wormhole the moment it appeared. It should not be long before dynastic troops arrive to investigate.� As if on cue, an unfamiliar female voice suddenly says from the darkness, �Right you are, human.� The figure of a tall, muscular KroMagg woman emerges from the shadows. �Though unfortunately your ability to predict our arrival did little to help you evade capture.� The KroMagg turns to her soldiers, who were also shrouded in the dark shadows of the forest. �Arrest them.� Twelve KroMagg soldiers emerge from the darkness (some looking like S2 Maggs, others looking like S4) and each Slider is seized by two of them. The timer is confiscated from Logan, and the transdimensional transmitter is confiscated from Geiger. The group begins their trek through the forest to the capital city with the female commander leading in a small hover-tank with bright headlights while the others follow on foot. |
| TURNING POINT |