Reunited
Chapter 2 – Going Home
Lister shook his head in amazement. "This is incredible," he said after hearing Ace Rimmer's story, "I didn't even know parallel universes existed until a few months ago, now we've got another visitor. And I can't believe it's you, and like this." He looked at the heroic looking figure standing in front of him. "In our universe Rimmer was the worst smeg head you could imagine, a complete coward, he lived to make my life miserable."
Rimmer smiled to himself. He had worked out where this dimension had split from his own and it seemed that the Rimmer that Lister was talking about was the same man that he, himself used to be. "You had experience with a parallel universe a few months ago, Dave?" Judging by what the computer had said, the chances were that they had somehow stumbled into his home universe, or his Lister, Cat and Kryten had found their way into this one.
"Yeah." Said Lister. He didn't seem to want to talk about it so Rimmer decided to let it go for now, though he was interested to find out what his old crew mates had been up to. He finished replacing a panel and handed the screwdriver back to Lister.
Rimmer looked at the hologram stood in front of him, a hard light duplicate of a man he almost considered to be a friend. "So…" he said, trying to think of something to say to lighten the atmosphere, "Did you die with the rest of the crew on Red Dwarf?"
"Yeah." Said Lister again
"That's interesting," tried Rimmer, "Because in my dimension Lister lived." There was no response. "Um… so weren't there any survivors on your Red Dwarf?"
"Yeah."
Rimmer hesitated; he'd obviously done something wrong. Lister had completely closed up, he wasn't even sure he was hearing him. "Look," he said in his best Ace Rimmer voice. "I know it's none of my business Dave, but is there something wrong?"
Lister looked up from the floor he'd been staring at, "Sorry man, didn't mean to be rude, it's just my mind's been on other things recently." Rimmer remained silent, hoping Lister would continue on his own. "That other dimension I mentioned. There was an accident, someone got left behind." Rimmer nodded. The surviving Red Dwarf crewmember. Whoever he was must have been stranded aboard Starbug in Rimmer's dimension.
"So he's still there?" he asked.
"She," corrected Lister with a nod, "Kristine Kochanski." He walked over to the fridge and took out two cans of beer, threw one to Rimmer and sat down at the table. Rimmer joined him, surprised by this new information. His Lister now had this Lister's Kochanski.
"So in this dimension, Kochanski survived in stasis and had you brought back as a hologram." Lister nodded. Rimmer thought about this silently for a moment. "Must have been a nightmare for you." He said quietly.
Lister's eyes rose up to meet his, "What do you mean?" he asked, "She's the woman I love."
"And you were a soft light hologram. You couldn't even hold her hand or kiss her cheek." Said Rimmer. It had been bad enough for him, denied the simple pleasure of physical contact with anything but his own body, but to be constantly taunted like that, reminded of what he couldn't have. He banished from his mind the thought of how he might have felt if Yvonne McGruder had survived the accident. He didn't even want to think about it.
"Yeah, it was tough." Agreed Lister, 'tough' didn't even begin to describe it, it was a nightmare. "It sounds like you know what you're talking about." he added.
Rimmer nodded and took a swig of beer, "I spent over five years as soft light." He explained. He found that he felt a kind of kinship with this Lister, he wanted to help him out, get Kochanski back, and if it was his dimension that she had ended up in, he knew exactly where to find her.
"You're a hologram?" Lister was saying in surprise, "Where's your 'H'?"
"I don't have it anymore," Rimmer stated the obvious, "I'm not sure why, or I'd help you get rid of yours."
Lister felt at the letter on his forehead. He used to hate it, but now he'd got used to it, "Don't worry about it man, I kinda like it." He said
Rimmer shrugged, "Look," he said, "something my computer told me makes me think your Kochanski might have ended up in my dimension, she wasn't sure which of two dimensions was mine because they'd both been linked. The link must have been when you lost her. I can't be sure until I get there, but since I was heading that way anyway, what do you say to tagging along for the ride? If she's there I can drop the two of you back here. Shouldn't be any problem."
Lister's eyes went wide with excitement. Kochanski was in Ace's dimension? It seemed too good to be true. "Yes! Please! That would be…thanks man!"
Ace smiled, it was good to help people out. "I'm going to go back to my ship then, make sure everything's ready to go. I'll be back here in about an hour and we'll go get your girl back." He slapped Lister on the shoulder as he left and strode out of the door.
Lister stared after him in amazement. An hour! He could see Kristine in an hour! Thank God he'd invited this guy aboard. "What a guy," he said. Then he finished off his beer, had what Rimmer had left over and went to tell Cat and Kryten the good news, with a spring in his step that hadn't been there for a long time.
"Ready to go Dave?" Asked Rimmer
"More ready than I've been for anything ever," Answered Lister, with a huge grin on his face. It had been there for the past hour since Ace had mentioned the possibility of getting Kristine back.
"Good luck Mr Lister sir," Said Kryten, who had taken a break from the laundry to see them off
"Yeah, bring her back safe bud," added the Cat
Lister nodded, "I will," he promised, then turned to follow Ace to his ship.
Rimmer turned back to Kryten and the Cat, "Smoke us a kipper, we'll be back for breakfast." He said
Inside Rimmer's ship was small. Plenty big enough for one man, but not much room for company.
"Sorry it's so cramped," Said Rimmer, "but it'll not be more than ten minutes."
"No problem." Said Lister. Ten minutes. In ten minutes he would see Kochanski again. The grin was still there, he couldn't lose it even though it had begun to make his jaw ache. Ten minutes, ten minutes!
As the ship broke through the dimensions, Lister felt nothing. Rimmer either knew from experience or had some instrument telling him because as soon as they arrived he said, "Well that was smoother that my last arrival"
"You mean we're here?" Squeaked Lister.
Ace punched a few buttons and an image of Starbug appeared on the viewscreen. "That's it," he said, "My Starbug. I'm home."
"My Krissie's in there?"
"I hope so."
"Then lets get over there and rescue her."
Rimmer nodded and opened communications channels. Lister's face appeared on the screen and his hologramatic double slouched down out of sight, not wanting this universe's Lister to know he was there to take Kristine back.
"Rimmer?" Said Lister from the viewscreen
"Lister." Said Rimmer in answer. "Permission to come aboard?"
"Of course," came the reply, "Any time man."
Rimmer turned around to face the other version of Lister who was lurking behind him. His head popped up from behind the seat. 'Good thinking.' Thought Rimmer. "Ready to go?" He asked.
Lister nodded excitedly and got up to follow Rimmer.
As he boarded Starbug, Rimmer squashed down the feelings of nostalgia and smiled his best Ace Rimmer smile at Lister, Cat, Kryten and Kochanski. Kochanski was stood next to Lister, watching Rimmer with curiosity. The man stood in front of her looked nothing like the Arnold Rimmer she remembered from her days on Red Dwarf. "Ms Kochanski ma'am," Said Rimmer with a nod, resisting the urge to salute her with a full Rimmer salute.
From behind him, another Lister appeared.