Part I: Interlude I

'Hey…Hudson, is this thing on?'

'Yeah, Artie just set it up for you. Um…press that button on the top. When the flashing red light turns solid, the picture should come on and it'll start recording.'

…Powering up...Log Entry: 1 – Location: Link Center – Date: 05/12/2161 – LST: 21:34:21:05 / Researcher: Puckerman, N…I.D.#: 900361020 – P.I.: Sylvester, S…I.D.#: 900360139

'Oh.' The tan guy with the Mohawk said when the blue holographic screen suddenly lit up in front of him, with an off centered image of his self. Numbers played in the bottom left-hand corner of the screen, as well a solid red dot that signified a recording in progress, and a small photo ID tag. A long, pale arm shot forward over the speaker's shoulder and blocked the screen for a minute as it adjusted the little flat camera. After some tampering, the focus shifted from the Mohawked man's ear, to his whole face. It was a slight shock, since he'd been avoiding mirrors for so long (since they reminded him of his twin…), but he masked his expression well to the tall man behind him, whose face was too high to be in the shot. ''Kay…cool. Uh…thanks.'

'No problem, dude. I'm gonna go over and set mine up with Artie.' The tall man, Hudson, clapped the Mohawked man on the shoulder. 'You good?'

'Yeah.' The Mohawk nodded. He waited for Hudson to wander over to another computer before turning back to his own. He sighed as he readjusted the small camera again. For a second it zoomed in, getting an up-close image of his exhausted eyes, before going back to normal. Those eyes locked onto their counterparts in the screen's copy of the man's face. He swallowed, before beginning.

'Um…yo…'s up, bro? It's Noah. I know you're not…that you aren't really here. But we look alike so I'm just gonna…act like it's you. If that's okay. I don't really know what to say to a camera. But, you know, it's always been easiest – talking to you. Plus I doubt anybody's gonna actually watch mine since I'm not the real scientist. So, um…yeah.

'So, this is my first video log. The thing says it's May twelfth, year's twenty-one sixty-one, time's about twenty-one thirty-six. It's still pretty early, but, honestly I'm about to drop... It's hard to even move my chair 'cause my arms feel like they turned into sandbags or something. That cryosleep, dude, it was a bitch. Almost felt like when I woke up in the hospital. Remember how much morphine they had to pump into me? And, oh man, your face back then…Don't think I'd ever seen you so mad, bro…' Noah sighed and took a few moments to run a hand over his Mohawk. '…Or so worried…

'Look. I know I told you before, but I'm fine. I don't care about the damn chair. I'm still Puckzilla, I still got my guns out. And… anyway, bro…you should know, that I'd take a thousand of those stupid bombs if it meant... you know. That you were okay. I mean, I wish that…' He paused, narrowing his eyes as he brushed away the intense look of pain that touched his face. 'I wish…things had been different. I wish a lot of things had been different, bro. And I wish that you were…here. Next to me. It's so weird without you Mar–man…I mean, it's crazy here, and I haven't even seen everything. You should've seen outside, it was like, a wasteland. Nah, worse than that, it looked like fucking Earth. There's no color except gray, gray, gray everywhere. It's just sad. Even the sky, dude, what kind of crap is that? I remember all the holograms you showed me, of the sky at night and the tall trees and like, how the ground glows and stuff. That stuff was amazing, you know? And I know you were looking forward to it – hell, I was too, even if I knew I couldn't go. But we get here and it's like, death warmed over. It's all so loud and chaotic, just like the army, and I'm sitting there like where are the waterfalls, or the damn trumpets and wedding bells? Something. But then there's this big-ass fence blocking nature out and it's like wow, these people suck. Hopefully when I go out with Hudson tomorrow it'll be more…painted in rainbows, or whatever the hell you call it. Used to call it…

'Oh, that reminds me. I met your roomie, Lurch? Yeah, he's great. Thought you were just exaggerating when you said his mouth could swallow me like a python. I see what you mean though, he's probably a nice guy, but…I guess I'm just too tired to deal with his acclaimed awesomeness right now. He's behind me with that guy…Abrahams? I think Hudson said his first name was Artie. But yeah, dude with the glasses – told us on the way here that he's a neuroscientist after his parents. Makes me wish Mom and Dad had been in the program, then maybe we would've both been automatic. I mean, you know, I was never jealous, that you got in; I'm actually glad you did, 'cause there's no telling what could've happened to you if you were in my place…But then I guess, that ended up happening anyway, didn't it? And look where that got us…really switched roles. I tell you, the universe has a shit sense of humor. I mean I'm the one who's supposed to be…'

Noah looked away from the screen and sighed heavily. He stayed silent, pushing back emotions that he couldn't let loose yet. It was harder because of the stress already straining his brain. Eventually, he continued under the mask of a lighter tone. 'So anyway, yeah. Here I am, the substitute scientist. Me and Hudson actually saw the avatars a little while ago. Yours looks just like…us, I guess. Same face…you know, if we looked like a cat. It's blue, with a tail, and get this, I didn't know the avatars had freckles. And they glow. By the way, and I find this hilarious, you probably have a sparkly dick. Oh, and it's bigger than I expected – ha, the whole avatar I mean – like, it's a lot larger than the little baby they showed us back on Earth, and way more lifelike than your holograms. It has your eyelashes…I don't know, when I think about it, I don't feel weird about the fact that I'll be spending a lot of time in your body. Gonna be all up in there. Heh…I wonder why that is.' Noah raised an eyebrow and smirked at the screen suggestively. It was an old habit of his, falling to flirtation and euphemisms whenever he wanted to change the subject – and oddly to most people, when faced with his twin, there was no exception.

'Hey Puck, you could start wrapping it up.' A voice interrupted from somewhere off screen. Noah glanced over his shoulder to see Artie at the end of the line of computers. He was fiddling with something in his ear, and Noah recognized it as a wireless headset. 'Just got a memo that Doc's coming out of the Link in five. We should head over.'

Noah nodded, then turned back to the screen, releasing a heavy breath as he scanned the face of his "twin". 'Okay, well, I guess that's it for now. Apparently we're about to go meet Sue Sylvester. And yeah, that's the Doctor Sue Sylvester. Funny…I know you'd probably freak out right now since she's like, your hero and stuff. Man, I would love to see your face if you were here right now…' Another pause. 'But…I guess I'll just have to make a good impression for the both of us. I know she's supposedly scary as hell but, don't worry, you know I'm nothing if not determined. I'll see if she can get her to sign the copy of the manual I brought with me, just for the hell of it. Maybe I could even ask her some stuff about the Singers. Or hey, maybe I won't have to ask and we'll meet some for ourselves tomorrow…Just like we always dreamed.'

Noah pressed his lips together in a firm line and, after some thought, reached up to press the camera's zoom button. The picture magnified the blazing promise in his eyes. 'But bro…little brother…I just want you to know that whatever happens, I'll believe that you're here with me. Even if I don't see you. We promised each other that, back when they first separated us, remember? We've been in it together since the beginning, and that's never going to change. I swear…And…I know I told you before, but…I love you, too, Mark. I hope you know that, wherever you are...

'…So…I guess I'll see you later. Okay?'

…Powering down...LET: 21:59:03:16