Sydney to the Multiverse Episode 20 - The Journey Ends

Written by: Fun But Shy Girl

In a flash, Sydney found herself sitting in her bedroom as she was looking at a computer screen. Sydney quickly realized she was in the middle of having a video chat with Harry. As Sydney tried to figure out what was going on, Harry looked at her through the screen while saying, "Sometimes I feel so worthless and so empty... I just wanna kill myself. So, anyway... goodbye Sydney." Sydney suddenly looked freaked out as she grabbed the computer monitor and yelled, "No, Harry. Don't!" Harry looked back at Sydney as he said, "Why? I blew all my money on buy buying pictures, videos, and chat time with girls online... just so I could feel loved... and now I have nothing... and when my parents expect me to move out in a few months and pay for college with the savings they gave me... I'll have to admit that I..."

Sydney then looked at Harry right in the eyes as she said, "Harry... it sounds like you definitely made some mistakes. And you will have to deal with a lot of disappointment and negative consequences from this. But that will be just a season of your life. You can make more money, use it on what matters, and build a better life for yourself. It may not happen tomorrow, next week, or even next year... but it will happen. Things will get better." Harry continued to look upset as he said, "How can you be so sure it'll be okay?"

Then Sydney with a determined look in her eyes said, "How can you be so sure it won't? You have assumptions on how bad things will be for you short term... and you may be right... but none of us are certain how bad things will get long term. Look. Lets just chat once a day every day until this gets better. I'll be here for you." Harry sighed, and then said, "Okay. Okay Syd. Um... I think I better get my conversation over with my parents sooner than later... but I'll try talking to you tomorrow." Harry then ended the video chat, as Sydney sat back and took a breath of relief. As Sydney looked up, she said to herself, "I guess I'm in a world where Harry never moved back to Portland... but still... the Harry I know would've never wasted so much money. Why is it that all of these doppelgangers of my friends and family take such different turns in their lives in all these alternate worlds I go to?"

Then Sydney heard Harry's voice say, "Finally, you're starting to ask the right questions." Sydney then turned her head and saw Harry (in a black sweater) standing at the doorway of her bedroom. Sydney looked confused as she said, "Harry. How did you get here from..." But then Sydney paused for a brief moment, as a look of clarity went across her face. Then Sydney made a glare as she said, "You're Dark Harry." Dark Harry made a little smile as he said, "That is what you all decided to call me. But relax. I'm not here to fight or deceive anyone. I've learned the hard way how that just isn't a proper way to achieve one's ends. So... I'm just here to talk; so I can help you and Cyber Olive understand where I'm coming from in an attempt to make peace. Making peace in all realities you go to is what you're all about, right?" Sydney sighed, and then said, "Okay. Lets talk. So... what's your deal? Why does Cyber Olive say you're into causing chaos and mayhem in the multiverse?"

Dark Harry then touched the onyx stone that was hanging on a necklace he was wearing it. From it: a small holographic image appeared that showed a newspaper headline that said: Local Portland Found Dead. As Sydney looked carefully at the newspaper image... she saw a picture of herself. A confused Sydney then said, "That's me. Why are you showing me this?" Dark Harry looked at the image with pain in his eyes as he said, "That... was the Sydney from my world. She... she fell into a deep depression during her final year of middle school... a depression that got worse... so much worse that she took her own life at age 14." Sydney looked shocked as she said, "I... I'm so sorry."

Then Harry continued to keep his eyes fixated on the holographic newspaper image as he said, "The event... was disturbing for me to say the least. However, Sydney's actions... they were incredibly difficult for me to accept to say the least. When Sydney did what she did... I couldn't accept it. It didn't feel in character for her. The true Sydney Reynolds would never do that. Then one day... through a chance breach in reality... the magical onyx stone landed near my feet... and when I first touched it, it caused me to see beyond reality and see glimpses of all realities." Sydney raised one eyebrow as she said, "You mean you saw the multiverse that we reside in?" Harry then had the hologram before Sydney start to show a cluster of worlds sitting besides one another. As Harry looked it he said, "No Sydney. When I touched the onyx stone for the first time, I learned... the multiverse as we know it is a lie!"

Sydney looked very confused as she said, "What do you mean?" The hologram in front of Harry continued to show many worlds clustered together... but then an image of many worlds circling the center cluster appeared, separated from the main cluster by a dark void. As Harry pointed to the hologram he said, "The cluster of worlds you see in the center here... that is meant to represent the true prime realities... the true multiverse. And while all realities do branch from prime worlds at the center of existence... every now and then, one reality is born that the multiverse rejects. You see... all people in reality are expected to follow a certain set of events in their lifetime. These are known as canon events. But when someone does something they were never meant to do, or steers their life in a direction it was never meant to take... they break the canon event; and thus they create an entirely new reality that's swept outside of the true multiverse. Both that person, and the world surrounding them essentially become an anomaly. These anomaly realities are the worlds you see outside of the main cluster of worlds in this image here. These anomaly realities are the worlds you've been traveling to all of the time Sydney. That's why these worlds have always felt wrong to you. You haven't been traveling through the multiverse... You've been traveling through the Anomaly-verse."

Sydney suddenly looked very shocked, as she said, "What? But... then that means..." Then Dark Harry looked frustrated as he said, "I know. I felt the same thing when I first realized it. It means... your world... my world... all these worlds we've traveled to... THEY DON'T MATTER! They're not real! This is why I've toyed in so many realities for so long... because the people and places in the Anomaly-verse... they're not canon to the true multiverse. They are no more real than the fantasies a child makes when playing with toys. However... I refuse to be nothing more than a pawn in a fake reality. This is why I've been trying to get the jade stone. Together with the onyx stone, both magical stones combined could finally have the power to break out of the Anomaly-verse, and finally merge our realities with the true multiverse. We can break any canon events we want, and finally have the lives we want. And then... you'll finally be back home."

Sydney then backed away a bit as she said, "Harry... I'm sorry, but I don't need your onyx stone to get back home. As you know, I'm Sydney Prime. Which means when my mission is over, I'll get to go back home." Dark Harry chuckled a bit, and then said, "Cyber Olive never told you did she. I guess she fooled you by constantly referring to you as Sydney Prime. The thing is... you're not Sydney Prime... and never have been." Sydney suddenly looked very shocked as she said, "What!?" Dark Harry stepped towards Sydney as he said, "Now up until a certain point in your life, you were. But when the other Sydney who traveled the multiverse before you: came into contact with you - it didn't send Sydney Prime on a journey through the Anomaly-verse... it created a duplicate of her to do it. You're not Sydney Prime. You're just an anomaly... a duplicate of her living the life she was never supposed to live. I mean... think about it. Do you think Sydney Reynolds, ordinary girl from Portland Oregon: was destined to be the hero of the multiverse!? The true prime reality still exists, and the true Sydney Prime is still living her ordinary life: happy with her father and grandmother and friends. But you... are just an anomaly that has no home now... no reality to go back to... no family or friends of her own that's waiting for her."

Sydney began to have a panicked and terrified look on her face as she said, "No... that can't be." Harry then stepped towards Sydney as he said, "But it is. However... it doesn't have to be. Take my hand Sydney. Lets combine the power of your jade stone and the power of my onyx stone. Together we can break the barriers that separate the Anomaly-verse and the multiverse, destroy any canon events we want, merge whatever worlds we want, and allow you to return to your true family and friends." Sydney then slowly held out her hand cautiously... but then suddenly Sydney's jade stone glowed, and then she instantly disappeared.

In a flash, Sydney appeared in the blue void. A screen immediately appeared with Cyber Olive on it. Cyber Olive sighed as she said, "Phew. I was finally able to find a way to tap into the Jade Stone and get you out of there." Sydney then bitterly looked at Cyber Olive as she said, "Is it true Cyber Olive? Tell me right now! Am I not really Sydney Prime!?" Cyber Olive suddenly looked worried as she said, "Well... at first we thought you were... but it didn't take us long to realize that..." Sydney suddenly looked devastated as she said, "My God! I'm just a clone of the real Sydney Reynolds!? Am I just some anomaly that was never meant to be!?" Cyber Olive then looked right at Sydney as she said, "Look... yes, when my Sydney briefly visited the prime reality: her brief interaction with Sydney Prime there did create a duplicate of Sydney Prime... and that is you. However... even if you're not Sydney Prime... you're still the prime Sydney we needed to improve the worlds you traveled to. And it doesn't matter what those worlds are classified as. Whether those worlds were part of the multiverse, or what Dark Harry calls the Anomaly-verse... they were filled with people whose feelings and life stories still mattered... and you made them better. It doesn't matter how your life was made Sydney... what matters is what you do with it."

Sydney then paused to think for a moment... and then said, "Hold on. You said that your Sydney briefly interacted with the prime universe that the true Sydney Prime lived in." Cyber Olive nodded her head as she said, "Yes." Sydney began to pace a bit as she said, "But that's impossible. Dark Harry said the power of the Onyx Stone or the Jade Stone alone can't break out of the Anomaly-verse and enter the prime multiverse. That's why he's wanted to get the jade stone for so long. So... how did your Sydney get there briefly? How did she have the power of both stones, while still just having one?" Then Cyber Olive said, "Well... it's possible for the human body to absorb the power of the jade stone or onyx stone if one has worn them long enough. However my Sydney never wore the Onyx stone. Even when Dark Harry tried to deceive her on one mission when he slept with her, they never wore each other's stones." A look of clarity then went across Sydney's face as she said, "Hold on. Your Sydney never absorbed the power of the onyx stone... but her unborn child did!"

A look of shock went across Cyber Olive's face as she said, "Wait. You mean my Sydney was... Oh God. It all makes sense now. It's why she's avoided contact with me. My Sydney went into hiding on some other world, because if Dark Harry found her..." Sydney nodded her head and said, "Yeah. If Dark Harry found your Sydney, he could snatch the baby... the baby which inherited both the power of jade stone from your Sydney, and the power of the onyx stone from Dark Harry. So if Dark Harry got his hands on that baby, it would be like he had both jade stone and onyx stone... and then he'd have everything he wants!" Cyber Olive then moved to a computer nearby as she said, "This is exactly the information I need. I've been trying to track someone with Sydney's biological signature. But instead, I should've been tracking for a biological signature that has some of my Sydney and Dark Harry's DNA. And... there. I've found her!" Cyber Olive then looked at Sydney as she said, "Okay. You may not be Sydney Prime... but you're the Prime Sydney I need to save my best friend. Are you up to this?" Sydney took a deep breath, nodded her head, and then said, "Lets do this." Then in a blue flash, both Sydney and Cyber Olive disappeared.

Next to an old warehouse, a very pregnant alternate Sydney was picking some vegetables off of the ground. The alternate Sydney sighed as she said, "Phew. I know people think getting back to nature sounds good and all... but farming on a world with no people left on it is sure no picnic." Then suddenly there was a blue flash nearby. The alternate Sydney turned her head and saw Sydney and Cyber Olive standing nearby. Cyber Olive stood with tears in her eyes as she said, "Sydney!" The alternate Sydney looked confused as she said, "Olive?" Cyber Olive then ran towards Alternate Sydney and hugged her as she said, "I finally found you! I knew this day would come!" Alternate Sydney briefly hugged Cyber Olive as she said, "Olive... it's good to see you too. But I told you not to come... especially with the jade stone. With all of this extra power here, it'll cause the onyx stone to detect us, and..."

Then suddenly in a dark flash: Dark Harry appeared. Dark Harry smirked as he said, "Daddy's home. Good to know I didn't miss my kid's first birthday." Sydney then stepped towards Harry as she said, "Stay back!" Then Dark Harry held out a futuristic blaster as he said, "No, you all stay back! Using both the Jade Stone and Onyx stone to break down the barrier into the multiverse would've been nice. But being able to do it while holding my newborn child, and beginning a dynasty of ruling all reality with them... now that sounds sweet!" Alternate Sydney put her hands over her stomach as she said, "That's not the life this child is going to lead. He or she is going to live a happy peaceful life... and not be your pawn in controlling all of reality!"

Dark Harry then stepped towards Alternate Sydney with his blaster as he looked right at her while saying, "You should feel honored. Like Mary, the mother of Christ - you get to be the one that brings into the world a new savior for all of reality. Although unlike Mary... you sure aren't an innocent virgin..." Then with attention away from her, Sydney ran over to Dark Harry and punched him in the face as she said, "Just shut up!" Sydney also knocked the blaster out of Dark Harry's hand. Dark Harry then tried to lunge at Sydney. Sydney pushed back at Harry. However as the two interacted, suddenly a dark blue glow surrounded them. Then suddenly... Sydney and Dark disappeared.

In a strange glowing nexus: Sydney and Dark appeared. The two took a moment to look at their surroundings around them. All around them were glowing orbs showing images of alternate realities. As Sydney looked at the glowing orbs, she said, "I recognize the images here. These glowing orbs... they represent other realities I've traveled to." Dark Harry smiled as he said, "It worked. When our stones drew very close, we got sent to the nexus between realities. And look!" Then Harry pointed to an open void near him. However beyond the open void, at a distance that felt like a short walk away: there were other glowing orbs clustered together. Harry smiled as he said, "That's the true multiverse there! And I can see it... the Prime Reality... where the true Sydney Reynolds is... the one who shall soon be my Sydney Reynolds!" Dark Harry then ran towards the main cluster of glowing orbs. As he crossed the dark void, Sydney ran after him. Sydney then grabbed Dark Harry and held him back, as she said, "No. That isn't your home. That isn't your Sydney." Dark Harry tried to break away from Sydney as he began to look very frustrated while saying, "No! My reality is just a shadow of the real one. It was never meant to be! But I can break into the prime reality, and change the rules of all canon events. I can make Sydney Reynolds immortal, and live forever with me... as it should've always been!"

Then Sydney worked hard to keep holding Dark Harry back as she said, "Harry, listen to yourself... you're not a God... you're just someone who can't stand how screwed up his life got." Tears then began to come out of Dark Harry's eyes as he said, "No! I'm going to bring her back, and love her forever!" Suddenly Dark Harry fell to the ground and began to cry. Sydney then let go of Dark Harry and sat next to him. Dark Harry continued to cry as he said, "She... she died before I told her how much she meant to me. I... I should've told. Then maybe... maybe..." Sydney sighed, and then said, "Harry... just because something happens that doesn't feel like it was meant to be... doesn't mean you still can't build something great with the life you have. It may not happen tomorrow, next week, or even next year... but it will happen. Things will get better." Dark Harry continued to cry as he said, "I... I miss my Sydney... so much. Without her... nothing mattered... reality itself didn't matter. So I..." Sydney hugged Dark Harry as she said, "I know. In every reality out there, every version of me always had to lose a parent. But somehow... in every universe... Sydney Reynolds still made a difference in people's lives with the life she had. Great things can still come after tragedy Harry... and great things can still happen to you..." Dark Harry then took a deep breath... took off the necklace that held the onyx stone... and then handed it to Sydney.

Dark Harry sat behind bars in an futuristic looking prison cell. The image of this was being shown on a computer monitor that was being watched by Sydney and Emmy. As Sydney looked at Dark Harry, she said, "So is he going to be behind bars forever?" Emmy turned her head and then said, "No. He needs to be sent back to his world. But before that, we're going to give him lots of counseling and therapy... because it sounds like he really should've gotten it long ago." Then suddenly a beeping sound on a computer was heard. A confused Sydney then said, "What does that mean? Is it something bad?" Emmy made a big happy smile as she said, "No. It means... the baby has just been born!"

The alternate Sydney lay in a hospital bed holding a newborn girl in her arms, while Cyber Olive sat beside them. Alternate Sydney had so much happiness in her eyes as she said, "Just look at you. You're so beautiful." Cyber Olive smiled as she said, "She's perfect... just like her mother." Alternate Sydney took a deep breath, and then said, "I'm just feeling so... wow, though. I mean... this is a lot to take in. I mean I knew this baby was on it's way for months. But now... she's here... and I'm not exactly sure how I'm gonna pull off raising her." Cyber Olive then put a hand on Alternate Sydney's shoulder as she said, "You won't have to do it alone. I'll be there every step of the way to help you raise this child... because... I love you Sydney." Alternate Sydney looked at Cyber Olive with confused eyes as she said, "What?" Cyber Olive suddenly bean to look nervous as she said, "Look. What I'm saying is... maybe what I'm feeling would've never been felt from the Olive Rozalski of the prime reality. Maybe what I'm feeling isn't supposed to be a canon event... but I know there are realities out there where the two of us do work out together. I even found one reality recently where we go by different names; where your name is Megan and my name is Harmony - and those two made it work. So I was thinking that if you maybe give it a chance, we could..." Then suddenly alternate Sydney moved her face forward and kissed Cyber Olive on the lips. Once the kiss ended: Cyber Olive looked surprised, while Alternate Sydney smiled and said, "I love you too Olive."

Some time later, Sydney was leaning back in an easy chair in a small bedroom while relaxing. Cyber Olive then stepped into the room as she said, "Hey." A curious Sydney then stood up and said, "Hey. How's the baby?" Cyber Olive smiled as she said, "Happy and healthy... just like her mother... and me." Sydney smiled as she said, "Good to hear. So... now that everything is all good... I guess my mission is over. Of course... I'm not exactly sure what comes next, considering I have no reality to return to." Cyber Olive made a little smile as she said, "Dark Harry actually left a few details out when he was explaining who you really are. Yes, when your universe hopping adventures began: you essentially became a copy of Sydney Prime. However... as soon as your adventures began, it also created an exact duplicate of the Prime universe... where time has barely moved due to the lack of your presence. So you see, there is a reality out there where your father and grandmother are waiting for Sydney Reynolds to come home... and her friends are looking forward to hanging out with her so much."

Sydney suddenly looked much more happy now as she said, "You mean... I can finally go home!?" Cyber Olive nodded her head as she said, "Yeah. It's finally time for your journey to end." Sydney then began to take her necklace off as she said, "Here." Cyber Olive then held a hand out as she said, "No. Keep it. My Sydney wants to put her universe hopping days behind her. The multiverse, or Anomaly-verse, or whatever you want to call it is better now... but if there's ever trouble again... you're the Prime Sydney that I want to call on for help." Sydney then put the jade stone necklace back on as she said, "You know what... I'm okay with that. Goodbye Olive." Cyber Olive smiled as she said, "Goodbye Sydney." Then Sydney put a hand against the jade stone and said, "Okay Jade Stone... the journey is done... so take me home." Then in a blue flash, Sydney disappeared.

In a flash, Sydney appeared outside the back door of her home. Sydney then walked into her home through the back door, and saw her father Max making dinner in the kitchen. Max smiled as he said, "Hey Sydney. How was school today? Are Olive, Emmy, and Sophia coming over for dinner?" Sydney then ran over to Max and immediately hugged him. A surprised Max then said, "Whoa! What's this for?" Sydney made a big smile as she said, "It's just... I'm glad I'm finally home."

THE END!

*Author's Note - This is indeed the final episode of "Sydney to the Multiverse". Thank you to everyone that have read and supported this series through it's run. This series truly was a fun and engaging creative challenge, filled with stories I am forever proud of. However, I still love these characters - and thanks to the concept of the multiverse: you will indeed see many alternate versions of these characters again guest starring in another series of mine at some point. However for now... it's time to put "Sydney to the Max" as a whole behind me. So... on the same day I am concluding my parallel Sydney to the Max fan-fiction series: I just want to say... thank you to you: the readers for reading these stories... and thank you Sydney... for saving my life in ways you'll never realize. Sydney... I now let you go...