Rembrandt quietly sat on a small hill, his fingers running through the blades of brilliant green grass as he looked up to the clear blue sky. It was a sunny day, the sounds of birds chirping in the background along with the conversation between his friends. It had been five hours since they arrived on this Earth, his friends waking up from their temporary unconsciousness within the first hour of arrival. He had hoped Henry would soon join them, but after the first two hours, he realized it wasn't going to happen. He held onto hope that his friend escaped through another vortex and was alive on a parallel Earth.
The first thing Rembrandt did was explain everything that happened to him since he was captured. After hearing his tale the four friends tried to see what world the brilliant red vortex deposited them to, searching for a way to repair the Quantum Scanners power chip before using the timer once more. Much to Arturo and Quinn's horror, however, they discovered they landed on a world where humans never came to be. Thus, the world contained no technology or fine tools to work on the timer.
"Can't we just use it to go home? What does it matter if it burns out if we won't ever need to use it again?" Wade tried to compromise, looking to each of them as she spoke.
"We can try, but the chip has been heavily altered to focus power into the vortex itself, not to scan the multiverse for unique Quantum Signatures. If we are too far from our own world the scanner won't reach it." Quinn replied with a tired sigh, running a hand through his hair.
"Is that dangerous?" Rembrandt jumped in, deciding to focus on the conversation instead of the scenery around him. It felt good to be outside again, but he really wanted to go home.
"No," Arturo replied, "If it doesn't reach we will simply land on a world with the closest matching signature. From there we will simply have to wait until the timer reaches zero and continue our journey"
"Then I say we try!" Wade replied, "If we fail then we keep looking, we might as well attempt it at least"
"I agree, Miss Welles. I do wish Mr. Browns Kromagg friend would have sent us to an Earth with the technology and tools required to fix the chip before we had to use it again, but beggars can't be choosers I suppose"
"I'm pretty sure the vortex was random professor," Rembrandt said, causing Quinn to laugh bitterly.
"So it was just bad luck. Fantastic"
Standing up Quinn input the correct signature into the timer, turning the nob as a brilliant red vortex cracked to life before them. The four of them were startled by the color change, but they each knew what the cause was, thanks to Rembrandt's story. One by one the friends lept into the vortex, silently praying this journey was the journey home.
Quinn was quick to his feet, looking around the familiar setting of the Golden Gate Park. He reached out to help Wade to her feet, Arturo dusting himself off as he offered a hand to Rembrandt. Once the four of them got their footing, Quinn looked to the timer.
"How much time we got, Q-ball?" Rembrandt asked, feeling a spike of ice shoot through his heart as a look of anxiety crawled across Quinn's face.
"Half an hour" came his defeated tone.
"Half an hour? That's not enough time to figure out if this is home or not!" Wade cried out, grabbing her hair in irritation. Quinn was silent for a moment, gesturing for his friends to follow as he quickly began walking toward the busy streets.
"Look, let's try to get to my house. If we get there I can…"
"Not the gate test again," Complained Arturo, following along directly behind Quinn, "I'd prefer something a little more concrete than that"
"No, professor, my mom. We need to talk to my mom! She can confirm if we left or not and when. Then we can check the basement. I know it's not the best information to go by, but what other choice do we have? If we can at least confirm all four of us slid on the same day then that's something!"
"Will that information be enough? We thought we were home once, on Azure world" Arturo reminded him.
"I don't know professor but we don't have a lot of time and we need to do something, now!" Quinn bit out, waving frantically for a taxi cab. He breathed a sigh of relief as an ever-familiar cab pulled up, Pavel Kurlienko sitting in the driver's seat and watching as the four friends piled into his car.
"It's right around the corner" Quinn instructed Pavel, trying to calm the violent storm of anxiety in his chest as the car rapidly approached his home. As the car turned the corner, Quinn felt every fiber of his being crumble to dust. In the back seat, his three friends spotted the same thing Quinn did only a moment before, closing their eyes in defeat as they realized their fate.
Standing in the front yard of Quinn's home was his mother, Amanda Mallory, along with his father, and one of his doubles.
They didn't make it home.
With a weak voice, Quinn asked Pavel to please keep driving, unable to gaze upon the failure of this moment for another second. The cab driver obliged, continuing ahead for a short while before the four friends exited his cab and entered a small alleyway.
Arturo placed a hand on Quinn's shoulder as he opened another gateway, trying to offer a little support before each of them leapt into the vortex, continuing the search for home.
"So you're saying you haven't seen your son in over two years?" Michael Mallory asked, his tone one of pity. Quinn likewise watched this double of his mother with a sad expression, wondering how any double of his could have used the vortex without proper testing.
"Almost three years now" Amanda replied, her voice weak as she attempted to explain the story to the last two men she ever expected to see again. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a cab driving by at a quick pace, but brushed it off as unimportant and returned her focus to the two men standing before her.
"One day he was here, the next he was gone. All he left me was a video claiming that he 'had to do this' and that he loved me. His friend, Conrad Bennish, sat down with me and explained that he must be off exploring parallel worlds. I just hope he's okay"
"I'm terribly sorry" Michael whispered, reaching over and placing a hand on her arm, attempting to offer some sort of comfort.
"Dad and I have been sliding for years," Quinn said, showing the older woman his timer, "We can always keep a lookout for them. I have your coordinates stored, so if we ever meet them we can bring them home. Don't worry, I'm sure he's alive, and no matter where he is he isn't alone. I'm positive you'll see him again"
"I appreciate that" Amanda replied, wiping at her eyes as she offered this Quinn a pained smile, "you remind me so much of my Quinn, it's hard to believe your not him. I know the two of you explained doubles and everything, but you must realize how hard it is to see the both of you so suddenly"
"We know, and we are sorry. Would you rather we leave?" Michael asked, taking a step back before Amanda quickly reached out, grabbing his arm.
"Wait! No, please. Do you have time to come in for coffee? I'd like to sit down, talk to you more"
The two Mallory men looked at each other, ten hours counting down on Quinn's timer. They nodded, giving the woman a friendly smile as they followed her into her home.