Chase
by Jules Reynolds and Nigel G. Mitchell

The following story, "Chase," is intended for entertainment purposes only. It can be freely distributed with the condition that no part of the text is modified, and this notice is included with all copies.

"Chase" cannot be sold or translated into any other form without written permission from the authors. Some characters and elements of this story are the property of St Clare Entertainment, used without authorization. No copyright infringement is intended. The authors receive no compensation from the distribution of this work. Any comments or criticism would be welcome.

AUTHORS' NOTE:

"Chase" was written in collaboration by Jules Reynolds and Nigel G. Mitchell, starting in July 1996 and ending on September 18, 1996. It was conceived and written prior to the airing of third season premiere episode of "Sliders," "Rules of the Game," which unfortunately shared a resemblance to this story. But we decided "Chase" was different enough from "Rules" to warrant posting, anyway. We had no foreknowledge of the episode. So please DON'T send us email that says, "Hey, this story reminds me of 'Rules'..." These things tend to happen, I guess.

Bear in mind that although this story is being posted from the zikzak23 email address, the authors have seperate accounts. Comments should be directed to *both* authors, whose addresses are listed in the main text.

Let the Chase begin...

**********

PROLOGUE

As darkness falls across the world, as the night takes hold of the day and forces the light from its rightful place in the sky. Only then do the creatures of the dark return to haunt the world which is then theirs. When the last remaining ray from a dying sun falls behind the red streaked horizon, that is when the Chase begins.

PART ONE

"What do you mean they haven't arrived?" The dark haired man glowered at the woman who stood, fidgeting nervously, in front of him.

"They're caught in the storm. A tree's blocked the road and they don't think they'll make it. I'm sorry Mr Mason."

"Sorry? You're sorry! Well it'll be my head in a noose if we don't deliver on time, won't it, not yours?"

The girl backed away, alarmed. Mason's temper was legendary. He'd eliminated an employee for less.

"Leave! Find me some more. And I mean before it's too late - for me and for you, Miss Carter!"

Felicity Carter, affectionately known as Fliss to her friends, fled the room and headed down the narrow staircase to the Control room.

She breathed a sigh and looked anxiously at her watch. Thirty minutes. Thirty short minutes and she'd be dead if she didn't do something.

She pushed the Control room door open and went inside. It closed behind her.

Richard Newton sat with his feet on the console in front of him and gazed at the blank screens with disinterest.

It looked as though the whole project was about to fall apart. Richard closed his eyes and dreamt. He'd hoped this little baby was going to be a big earner for him. He'd leave this hell hole of a city once it was finished finally and then go somewhere nice and quiet. The ethics of the project were suspect. He didn't get involved in the ethical side of things. He couldn't. If he did he'd feel too guilty to earn any money. He was lucky to be involved in a thing this big, this new, to start with the guilt trip. He had a mortgage and kids to worry about.

"What'd he say, Fliss?" he asked as he saw the flushed face of his colleague walk in.

"Get more!" she replied simply and sat down heavily beside him.

"Oh, yeah and where from? He know something we don't?"

"Nope. He just knows that if we don't, the project's dead. Simple as that. Threatening us takes the heat off him," she answered simply and stared at the screens.

"I guess we'll have to hope they arrive then," Newton murmured as he turned to the screens and stared. "Better get them fired up and check everything's in place anyway. Twenty eight minutes to start up I make it."

Fliss turned to her watch and double checked. She nodded and then started to flick the console switches. It only took two of them to run the whole show. The rest of the place was deserted. She monitored the whole event from the safety of the Control room with Richard. He was the troubleshooter in terms of mechanical failure. Simple. Trouble was it hadn't been tried before - this was first run for this project, apart from the practice. She shuddered at the memory. Not all had gone well.

But Mason had insisted they were just teething problems. She knew Mason would be watching from the safety of the tower. If anything didn't go according to plan he'd know about it.

The screens flashed to life in seconds. The grounds were empty and in darkness for now. They didn't need the lights until later - if they became necessary. But then everything was controlled by them anyway.

She walked slowly to two screens on her right. They were separate to the others. She flicked the switches on these slowly. She didn't like what she saw on the other side of the screens and stepped back.

"Always gets you like that don't it Fliss?" chuckled Richard as he walked across to stare at the screens.

"I can't help it. It's not my scene really," she answered, grimacing and turning away. Everything on that end of the project seemed in order. No sense in upsetting herself anymore than was necessary.

"Don't know why you chose this particular project to work on," he muttered as he gazed at the screens and then pulled his look towards her. "Not like there ain't a hundred and one projects in Frisco for you to do."

"This one seemed exciting when I first came," she mumbled and then busied herself with the rest of the instrumentation, not that they would need it. If something didn't happen to change what had occurred earlier, the project was doomed.

She gazed at a screen which sat above her to her right. Itß was blank and empty. The screen which she knew would link them to the outside world when the time came. Fliss felt a shudder go through her at the thought.

***

"Good grief a soft landing!" Arturo mumbled as he rose slowly to his feet and looked appreciatively at the soft flower bed which had broken his fall from the vortex.

"Well lucky you!" Rembrandt declared as he got up and proceeded to pull sharp needles from the rear of his pants. "How come I get the spiked plants and you get the delicate little flowers?" he added, somewhat disgruntled at his lot.

"Ah, the luck of the Englishman!" Arturo said pompously.

"Yeah, well you haven't always been so lucky, Professor," Wade reminded him as she stood grinning at Rembrandt.

"Yes, well I scarcely need reminding about my slide into the sewage, now do I, Miss Welles?" Arturo said, glaring at her.

Wade put a hand to her mouth to stifle her smile. The memory was extremely funny and she laughed every time it sprung to mind, much to Arturo's annoyance. Still it served as a good reminder to him when he started getting pompous.

"How long here, Quinn?" she asked as she turned to her friend and looked at the timer display in his hand.

"Looks like it's a short stay here. It reads three hours on the display," he answered and slipped the device into his pocket. He'd taken to zipping his inside pocket up with it in. They'd lost it too many times during slides. He didn't like taking chances with it.

"Looks kinda nice here," Wade commented as she swung round and looked at the grounds which spread out around them.

"Some kind of mansion, maybe?" Quinn looked at Arturo as he spoke.

"Well the landscaping and the architecture of the building in the distance do appear to be rather grand, I must say, and almost British in design," Arturo replied staring into the distance.

"I suggest that we may be accused of trespassing if we stay here much longer. Shall we retreat to the outside of this place, and find somewhere for a quiet bite to eat before we have to slide again?" he added smiling at them all.

"Suits me, Professor," Quinn replied and slipped his arm around Wade's shoulders. They walked slowly towards the perimeter of the grounds.

"You know, from here the building looks almost like an old castle," Wade commented as she walked beside him.

"Yes, it's got turrets. Don't remember anything closely resembling this in our Frisco. Sure looks spooky the closer you get though doesn't it?" Quinn replied and his eyes narrowed.

"You know for a place like this I'm surprised we haven't set off any alarms or anything!" Quinn remarked curiously.

"Yeah, I'd expect bells to be ringing everywhere by now if this were back on our world. A place like this must be worth a fortune!" Rembrandt added as he stared upwards at the place.

"I wonder if this could be our Earth, Quinn? Shouldn't we check or something before we slide out of here?" Wade turned her face towards him.

"I don't think there's any chance of that Miss Welles," Arturo interjected.

She turned towards him sharply.

"Why?"

"Look across towards the bay!"

Wade turned her eyes in the direction he was looking. The house and grounds were on a steep incline. The bay spread out in front of them."

"There's no bridge!" she declared.

"Exactly! Not much point in looking at the rest of the world, now is there?" Arturo squeezed her shoulder sympathetically.

"Can't blame a girl for wishing," she mumbled and crawled back under Quinn's arm.

He smiled and squeezed her.

The four friends made their way slowly towards what looked like a huge gate at the side of the grounds. Their exit to the outside looked clear.

***

"Fliss! I don't think we've got a problem any more," Richard declared excitedly. The cigarette he'd been enjoying fell from his open mouth, to the desk in front of him as he rose slowly to his feet and stared at the screen.

"Where'd they come from?" Fliss murmured. Her heart racing at the thought of their problems being solved. Her mind turning over the ethical dilemma she found herself in.

"Dunno. But do you care, Fliss? They're just what we need. Look, Mason will never know we didn't get them to come forward from outside. He's gonna assume they volunteered. Only us. Only we'll know they didn't." Newton turned in both excitement and relief to the young woman.

"But we don't know how it's all going to work. What if it goes wrong? What if something happens to them?" she murmured and turned her eyes to lock with his.

"The practice run wasn't that bad!" he said confidently.

"That's a lie, and you know it," she replied defensively.

"Well it won't happen again. We got safety lock outs in place this time!"

"I don't know....." Fliss sank into a chair, her mind in turmoil. She needed for this to go well. She needed for the project to work. So did Newton. They looked like tresspassers to her. She could justify using them.

She turned to Newton and nodded, then stared glumly at the screen. Newton flicked the switch to his right and the screen displayed Mason's face.

"I hope you've got good news for me Newton!" he said sarcastically.

"Oh yes, Mr Mason! Very good news!"

"Well?"

"We go on in fifteen minutes!"

"How many have you managed to get?"

"Four, sir. Three men and one girl."

"Splendid. Splendid. Let the project begin then!"

"Gate's locked Q-Ball!" Rembrandt turned to his friend as he shook the metal grid.

"Makes sense. A place this size. I guess it wouldn't have been very realistic if it'd been open," commented Quinn as he looked around for another way out.

"We can't stay here until we slide, man. Anyway I was lookin' forward to a nice meal before we go on," added Rembrandt.

"Guys, I think we've got company," Wade said as she gripped Quinn's arm tightly and turned him towards the man approaching them.

He smiled broadly and held out his hand to Quinn.

Quinn took it tentatively. No point in being rude. Not when they were obviously on someone else's property.

"You look lost," the man commented, casting his eyes across the four sliders.

"Um. We kind of wandered into the property. We're new to the area actually," Quinn remarked. He knew the whole thing sounded lame but it was the best he could come up with at such short notice.

"Yes, you must be. The Castle isn't usually frequented by lost souls, at least not of this world!" The man laughed loudly and the others all smiled.

Wade felt a shiver crawl up her spine at the words. She didn't view his comments in the same light vein as the others.

"You won't find any public transport down into the City area until the morning. I'd be glad to let you stay here, have a rest and a drink and I'll call you a cab," he offered and indicated the main house with his hand.

"Oh that's most civil of you, sir," Arturo beamed and followed Newton towards the building. Quinn followed behind.

"Rembrandt, don't you feel something's wrong here?" hissed Wade as she hung back and grabbed his arm.

"No, sweetheart. What's wrong. You looked spooked." He put an arm around her shoulders and hugged her. His face mirrored concern as he gazed at her troubled eyes.

"I dunno, just doesn't feel right," she shrugged and looked unhappily at the house.

"I mean, who invites four total strangers into their house? We were trespassing Rembrandt, and he acts like we're just visitors to some resort or something." Wade looked anxiously at the others who were some way ahead now.

"Maybe this world is hospitality world or something, Wade. We've seen stranger things," Rembrandt reminded her. "Anyway it's only for just over two hours now. We'll be gone after that, so just enjoy the ride."

"I don't know. Something just feels bad about all this," Wade mumbled as she walked alongside him, her arm firmly linked to his. She wasn't going to be alone in this place. Not if she could help it.

***

"The girl has doubts, Fliss."

"I saw."

"You've got to separate them then. If you don't she'll mess it up."

"I can't Richard. Look what happened when the group got split up by accident into single units in practice. It's not right and I'm not getting involved in it." Fliss looked unhappily at him.

"Then you'll have to leave it to me, won't you?" Richard commented and lit another cigarette.

"I've let them have a rest in the Great room. That's the best place to start. Is everything ready?"

"Yes. We go in under two minutes." Fliss swallowed hard. She looked apprehensively at the monitors to her right, and averted her eyes hurriedly. She knew what was about to happen was wrong. She looked at the monitor which displayed the Great room. They looked so innocent somehow. They didn't deserve this. She hoped they were strong. She hoped they would cope. If they didn't she'd have it on her conscience and she didn't know whether she could handle the responsibility. It wasn't supposed to be like this. It was supposed to be okay. There were supposed to be volunteers, not victims in the project.

"Okay we're go for transmission." Richard Newton stared intently at the screens in front of him and held his finger over the red button. It hovered tentatively. He looked from the corner of his eye at the four people in the main room. They wouldn't know what had hit them by The End of the night. But the project would be a success. He just knew it.

***

"Rather a magnificent place, wouldn't you say, my dear boy?" Arturo pondered as he stood staring at the exquisite antiques and paintings hanging on the walls.

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind some of these babies back home," Rembrandt commented as he fingered a Ming vase.

"Guys, I just noticed those cameras in the corner of the room, their lights came on!" Wade exclaimed as she walked up to them and stared at the lenses.

"Just security cameras Wade!" Quinn called out and took another bite from a cookie. In front of him sat a large tray with coffee and soft drinks. Their host had kindly provided refreshments before he went off to call them a cab.

"Guess they decided they could do without more unwanted guests!"

"Quite so, Mr Mallory. Quite so!" Arturo murmured, his face transfixed on a delicate ornament on the mantle.

"What's with you anyway, Wade? You don't seem very happy about all this?" Quinn turned to look at her.

She folded her arms and looked at him unhappily.

"I dunno. Just a feeling I guess. And I know, before you say anything. My feelings aren't always right. Just that this time everything feels terribly wrong somehow,and I can't tell you why." She averted her gaze and slumped down in a large armchair by the door.

Quinn decided to leave her alone. She was tetchy when she had "one of her feelings." He'd learnt that before. Best to leave her alone.

"Are we gonna sit around here all night?" Wade interjected suddenly. She was restless. She hated sitting in the large, grand room. She felt the need to be up and moving about.

"We can't go anywhere until our cab arrives, Miss Welles. I suggest you pull one of those beautiful books from the shelf over there and read," Arturo suggested kindly.

"I'm not in the mood, okay Professor!" she barked back.

"Very well. I shall read them myself. Ah, this place brings back fond memories of my home country. Such refinement!" Arturo selected a book and sat down in the corner, blissfully unaware of the furious look Wade shot him.

"I'm going for a walk!" she declared suddenly.

"You can't! You can't just walk around someone else's house without asking!" Quinn answered, alarmed.

"Oh can't I? Watch me then!" Wade leapt to her feet in defiance and opened the door to the hallway.

"See you guys!" she retorted as she moved through it.

"Wade, wait up!" Quinn leapt to his feet and threw the book he was glancing through to the chair. He grabbed a cookie as he passed the plate and throwing an apologetic glance at the two men followed her out.

"Wow, Quinn! Which way do you think we should go?" Wade asked as she stood in the huge circular hallway. There were six doors leading off from the sides. It seemed to resemble the spokes of a wheel as they stood in the centre of it. A huge red rug sat in the middle. Wade felt the softness of its thick pile as she stood on it.

"Actually, I don't think we should go through any of them!" Quinn commented and swallowed. He could see the determined look on her face. He wasn't going to stop her from exploring. He might as well go with her. She was bound to get into some sort of trouble if left to her own devices.

"Wait one second, Wade. Okay!" Quinn dashed back into the room where he'd left the Professor and Rembrandt. He wanted to tell them to meet back at the main hall by the slide time. Just in case.

He didn't have the opportunity. As he opened the door and looked around for them, his eyes widened.

The room was empty. The furniture, ornaments, everything. They were all gone.

"Wade! They're gone!"

"What do you mean, gone?" she asked as she moved quickly to be by his side at the door.

"My God, you're right!" she declared and she felt a rush of adrenalin as she realised she'd been right. Something about the whole place hadn't been right, in fact it was all wrong.

She turned to look up at Quinn. Her eyes betraying the fear she now felt. The fear she now let surface. What they were looking at wasn't simply their two friends having decided to go to another room. They were looking at a room devoid of anything, where just two minutes earlier it had been full of furniture and other things, and most of all Arturo and Rembrandt.

The voice behind them startled them both.

Quinn swung round to stare at the owner. Wade felt her knees start to go beneath her but she clutched at Quinn to steady herself.

The shape hung at least ten feet from the floor. It was transparent, ethereal somehow. Lacking substance. Lacking anything tangible except the features of an old woman. She stared at the face of the woman and felt a finger of fear crawl up her back.

"Welcome to the Chase. Your task for the night is to find your friends. Not an easy task. The Castle lives at night. The Castle will send its own defences to thwart your attempts to find them. Be aware of the perils which face you. Be aware that they are real, that they can harm you. Take heed of the warnings that you are given.

If you succeed in the Chase, your reward is freedom. Freedom for yourselves and freedom for your friends. If you fail... I do not think I have to spell out the consequences. Enjoy."

The shape started to shimmer and disappear.

"Why is it called the Chase?" called out Wade as she watched it, transfixed with horror.

"Ah my dear. It is quite simple really. While you are looking for your friends, you will be pursued."

"Who by?" Quinn asked.

"Not who, what?" The old lady cackled and waved her hand. The door to the far left of the hall started to tremble. A thunderous sound followed by low groaning.

Wade felt sick. As she listened to the heart rending noise, she felt a fear fill her very being. She clutched at Quinn's hand and gripped it tightly.

The squeeze which he returned felt good but when she looked up into his face and he turned towards her she saw her own darkest fears mirrored in his eyes.

Its eyes were watchful. The desire to pursue had risen to a frenzy. It could sense their presence and knew the time was near. Soon it would be freed. Soon it could fulfill its own natural instinct, the need to chase its prey into the ground. To tire them, wear them down. The chase was its territory and its alone. Its life was for this. Its purpose was for this end.

***

"We've gotta find Remmy and the Professor and get outta here, Quinn," Wade implored, digging her fingers into his arm as they stood together in the hallway.

Quinn swallowed and nodded.

"Through the door on the far side," he pointed across the hall to one of the six doors.

"No, they'd expect that," Wade hissed, pulling him back. "Through the one over here."

She pulled on his arm and they moved swiftly towards the door adjacent to where the sound of terror emanated from.

She turned the knob and flung the door wide. It was no good hesitating, Wade realised speed was essential. They had to get out of the hall and quick. Fear would be their enemy, hesitation their executioner.

The doorway led into a passage. Its darkness lit only by torchlight, flames which licked at the stone walls and cast eerie shadows across the roof of the passageway.

"It's sure damp in here," Wade commented, wrinkling her nose at the unpleasant smell which greeted them, as they edged forward towards a staircase in the distance.

Quinn shook his head. It was like being in a nightmare. A nightmare you couldn't wake up from. He glanced at the low ceiling of the passage and noticed a small camera, set into the stone, its red light blinking on and off. He grabbed Wade's arm and indicated the camera with a slight upward flick of his eyes.

Wade glanced up too. She smiled secretly at Quinn and nodded. The upward movement of his hand was swift, and the camera lens shattered to the floor as he hit it.

Wade grinned.

"Eat that!" she declared swinging round to see another camera further along.

As they progressed through the tunnel, Quinn shattered three cameras. It felt good, just doing something constructive to thwart their host's warped plans.

As they neared the staircase, Quinn went to hit the final camera. Wade grabbed his arm and shook her head. She stood underneath it and looked up, grinning.

"Think we're easy, do you?" she declared to the lens. "Well think again. You want more of this? You want us to break every camera in the place? No? Well I guess you lose!"

She stood back and Quinn shattered the final lens into a hundred pieces. At the top of the staircase they could see a wooden door. Black iron metal hinges straddled the ancient wood. Quinn and Wade started to climb towards it. As they did so, Wade slipped her hand into Quinn's and prayed.

***

"No one's done that before!" Newton exclaimed in exasperation as he stared down at Wade's impertinent grin, greeting him from the last camera in that section.

"Damn! We can't let it through that way now. No one will see it. You know how the boss likes the build up. Damn her. They're too clever together. We've got to split them up. I told you she'd be trouble."

Newton drew another cigarette from the packet and lit up. As the blue smoke reached the ceiling and fanned out, a grin spread across his features.

"Richard, you can't split them up. It's against the rules and it's not fair!" Fliss argued. She didn't like how this was going. Not being volunteers, they weren't going to be easy participants. She was watching events with trepidition now. A feeling that everything was going wrong,

"Watch me, Fliss. Just watch me. I'll teach the little girl a thing or two." Newton stubbed the cigarette into the ashtray on his computer console and leant forward. He flicked a switch on the control panel and tapped in a code.

"I hope you're gonna like this one, little girl. Soon you'll regret you ever took me on," he threatened casually and grinned.

Fliss shuddered as she realised what he was going to do.

***

The door at the top of the staircase was heavy. Quinn swung it back with difficulty, grunting at the exertion.

"Wow, that's some door," he exclaimed as it slammed to behind them with a deafening thud.

"There's no handle this side," Wade commented, her eyes widening as she realised there was no going back.

"Look, computer consoles!" Quinn remarked as he glimpsed the gleaming white machines at The End of the small chamber in which they found themselves.

"Allow me," Wade edged towards one of them and switched it on.

The screen came to life displaying a three dimensional representation of the house. Each area was labeled with a letter. An arrow pointing to the right hand side of the house was flashing red. A second arrow pointed to the centre of the house and was flashing green.

"A map of some sort?" Quinn asked as he leaned over her shoulder and peered at the diagram.

"Dunno. It looks like one of those 'You are here' kind of maps you see in City centers." Wade replied quietly. Her face was serious, trying to make something of the symbols in each area of the house. Next to each letter was a small icon.

The voice which emanated from the computer made them both jump. Wade could feel her heart bang inside her chest as she listened to its instructions.

"Congratulations on reaching Area D. The red arrow shows your present position. The green arrow indicates where your companions are. Please select a pathway to them using the diagram. You have only one choice for each section. Follow instructions exactly."

Quinn and Wade exchanged looks. It looked easy enough. Wade swallowed. She had a nasty feeling it wasn't going to be that simple somehow.

"You choose," Quinn offered and smiled encouragingly at her.

Wade's eyes widened.

"Me? What if I choose the wrong way? We might never find them, Quinn." Wade could feel her throat getting drier by the minute.

"Go on," he urged gently and she turned to the screen. She hesitated momentarily and then proceeded to tap in the letters one by one. Each representing a different area leading to the green arrow, and hopefully their friends.

"Your route has been fed into the database. Please follow instructions carefully."

Wade sat back and stared at the screen, trying to memorize the route she'd chosen. Just in case.

The voice came from the far end of the room, just as the computer screen went blank.

Wade stared at the dark screen and then at Quinn. They exchanged a look and then she rose and stood by his side. Together they faced The End of the room and waited.

"The input operator must advance to the control on the left hand wall. Select button A or B. The choice will determine what awaits you on the first part of your chosen route. Delay of more than 30 seconds will be determined as reluctance to proceed and will be punishable."

Wade squeezed Quinn's hand hard and then moved to the control panel on the wall.

She looked apprehensively at the buttons. Which she should choose was anyone's guess. She just wished it wasn't hers to make. She glanced at Quinn and caught his eye. She wanted to tell him something, anything just to break the interminable silence. To fill the air with something other than fear. Her dry throat refused to yield a sound as she reached forward and pressed the button marked A.

A light flashed at the far end of the room and a low whispering sound started to come from the walls around her. It increased to almost a crescendo of unwanted terrifying sound. The voices teased her, touched her mind with their words. The whispering was incessant, terrifying in its intensity. She put her hands to her ears and sank to her knees.

The noise was too much. It was playing with her mind, invading all her senses. It was slowly driving her mad. She turned her head painfully to look at Quinn. The mist which enveloped her eyes started to drown her. She searched frantically around for sight of him. He was lost in the mist somewhere. As she felt a strong pull from beneath her, as though she were being pulled further away from him, she heard the cry echo from her lips.

***

Quinn stared horrified at the scene. He could hear the whispering but it seemed distant to him, and yet he could see Wade falling to her knees and covering her ears. The mist which appeared to fill that end of the room snaked slowly along the floor towards him.

He tried to move towards her, to help her. The voice which filtered in from the wall nearest to him sounded male but he couldn't be sure.

"Move from where you are standing and the girl will die now."

Quinn swallowed hard. He had no way of knowing whether it was the truth or not. If he moved would they really kill Wade? He couldn't risk it.

As the mist evaporated slightly he heard Wade's cry and watched in muted horror as she was pulled from her position by a mist which seemed to include white ghostly shapes. His horror was complete as he watched the last of her body disappear completely through the solid floor beneath her.

Fliss watched the screen, her jaw hanging open as she watched Wade seem to fade away right before Quinn's eyes. It was an illusion, of course. In reality, Wade had simply been dropped through a trapdoor while an image of her was projected onto a screen of mist, showing her being pulled away by mysterious shapes.

Fliss wheeled to face Richard, who was typing on his computers. "You split them up. You *split* them *up.* That's against the rules! You're cheating!"

Newton glared at her through a cloud of cigarette smoke. "You want this game to work or not? They're too dangerous together."

"You mean too good."

"No. Not too good. Too dangerous. If we let them work together, the Chase'll be over in five minutes. And we lose our jobs."

Fliss closed her eyes. "This is wrong, Richard. We...we're not playing fair. What's the point of the Chase if we don't play fair?"

"Take off the rose-colored glasses," Richard murmured. "The point of the game is money, not playing fair. Now please be quiet, I'm trying to concentrate."

The door of the control room slid open. Mason walked in, mopping his forehead with a handkerchief. "How's it going in here?"

Fliss felt a surge of hope as she moved towards him. "Sir, Richard's cheating. He just split them up."

"What?" Mason glared at Richard. "That's against the rules."

Richard turned away from his screen. "I had to do it, sir. They were too good together. Separately, it'll make the Chase more interesting. And more enjoyable. And the more enjoyable it is..."

Mason let a smile spread across his face. "The more profitable it is. Excellent, excellent. Do what you have to do."

He leaned over a screen that showed a wavering graph. "The responses are going through the roof. This is going to be the best ever."

Fliss looked from one to the other, her eyes wide. "You mean...you're just going to let him do this? You're going to let him tamper with the Chase?"

Richard turned back to his console, studying the images of the screens. "Can't you see we're busy? Go...fix a lightbulb or something."

Fliss glared at the two of them, breathing heavily. This wasn't what she had planned. This wasn't what she had signed onto the project for. This wasn't the way it was supposed to be. She couldn't just stand there and watch them make a mockery of the project.

The thought came to her with a shock. She felt a sense of calm resignation flow over her. If they wouldn't do something, she would.

Fliss bolted out of the Control room, running through the corridors to one of the junctions.

***

Quinn was still staring at Wade. Her eyes and mouth were wide with horror as she disappeared into thin air. The mist that had surrounded her faded into nothingness.

"What have you done with her?" Quinn yelled.

The disembodied voice returned. "She is gone. Her punishment for failure. You will complete the Chase by yourself."

"No," Quinn yelled. "I've had enough of your games. I wanna know what's going on, right now!"

The control panel on the wall glowed as the voice continued. "It is your turn to choose a path."

"I said, no. I want my friends back."

"If you cooperate, there is a chance your friends will survive. If not, your friends *will* die. Now choose."

Quinn glared at the empty walls around himself, wishing he could see his tormentor, then turned his attention to the console. Wade had chosen button A. There didn't seem to be much choice. Quinn punched B.

A door slid open in the wall next to him with a low hum. The corridor it opened onto was pitch-black. Quinn took a few cautious steps into it.

The door slammed shut behind him.

***

Wade was falling. She could tell she was sliding down something, but there was no light. It felt like a slick metal tunnel under her, but she couldn't be sure. Somehow, the fact that she couldn't see where she was going or what was happening to her made it even more terrifying.

Then the tunnel was gone, and she was free-falling. Just as she was wondering what she was falling onto, she landed in a fluid. It engulfed her as she was propelled several inches under the surface by her momentum. She thrashed around, struggling, until she broke the surface. Wade floated in the pool, treading, gasping for air. She spat out the fluid that had gotten into her lungs. It tasted like water.

A light came on. Wade found herself in a huge tank of greenish water that sloshed with her movements. The sides curved over her to form a dome that echoed with sounds. At the very top, a videocamera gazed down at her.

Wade spat out more water, then yelled, "Now what've you got planned for me, you maniacs?"

A low gurgling noise emerged from the water beneath her. Bubbles erupted in a mound on the surface in front of her. Wade thought she could feel the water move as something swept through it. Then something slimy touched her leg.

Wade lashed out with her foot. She kicked at something. The gurgling noise turned into a roar. Tentacles broke the surface in front of her, thrashing in the air.

Past the tentacles, Wade saw a door open on the other side of the tank. A piercing white light flooded out of it.

The voice she had heard before spoke. "Swim for your life."

***

Quinn was in a room. A very small room. The walls, floor, and ceiling were covered with glowing squares that flashed different colors at random in a confusing array.

The voice returned. "You will see a sequence of colors appear on the squares in the wall. Repeat the sequence by touching the squares in the same pattern. Every time you get a sequence right, the exit will open a little larger. Get enough right, and you get out."

Quinn watched the lights flash. "No problem. I used to play Simon all the time when I was a kid. What happens if I mess up?"

The colors stopped flashing. Spikes emerged from the ceiling and locked into place with a series of clicks.

"You die," the voice said.

***

Fliss ran down the corridors of the mansion, her shoes skidding wildly on the polished metal floors. But she didn't stop until she reached the nearest junction room.

The junction rooms were scattered all over the castle. They were designed to allow easy access to key components of the Chase from anywhere in the building. Fliss had seen enough of them during tests to operate one of them. She hoped.

She threw open the door and raced over to the huge mass of wiring and electronic components on the wall. Fliss studied them, struggling to remember the schematics, trying to figure out what did what. She couldn't stop the Chase by herself. There were too many backup systems and relay stations to take control of everything. And this room was only designed as an access to distant areas of the system. But there was one thing she could take over from this room; the holographic projectors.

Fliss yanked out some of the wires, plugging them into new sockets. By making new connections, Fliss re-routed the projectors in the Maze from the Control Room. Now she was in command. Fliss turned away from the wiring and began typing on an emergency computer console.

She didn't have much time. If the newcomers got through the last two traps, they would enter the Maze. Fliss had to communicate with them. She had to get to the newcomers before the Jabberwocky did. Because if the Jabberwocky got to them, there would be nothing left for Fliss to save.

***

Wade lurched away from the tentacles writhing in her path. They were flailing in the air, lashing out at her and the water around it. She could still see past them to the exit that shone a white, cheerful light. But in order to reach it, she would have to get past...whatever was under the water with her. And that was impossible. The tentacles were right in front of her. In a matter of seconds, they would be on her.

But they weren't. Wade floated in the water, watching the tentacles sweeping around, striking the surface of the pool. One of them brushed against Wade's face, and she flinched. But the tentacles kept moving, past her to touch the water.

The tentacles stopped moving. They curled over, moving very slightly in the air in graceful circles.

Why weren't they grabbing her? They had to know where she was. The suspense was killing her, and she didn't have time to waste waiting for it.

Wade spat out some more water from her mouth, then carefully swam to the left of the tentacled mass. The tentacles bent in the same direction, blocking her. Wade moved her arms and legs in light movements to drift to the right. The tentacles moved with her again. But they weren't striking.

"Come on," Wade whispered. "What're you waiting for..."

The tentacles lunged at her. Wade rolled to one side as the tentacles pierced the water where she had floated. The tentacles churned the water, groping around in the now-vacant area for a few seconds. Then they stopped and straightened again. They curled up again like serpents, waiting to strike.

Sound. That was it. The tentacled monster had first appeared when she spoke. Then it struck again when she spoke again. And it had moved when she moved. But as long as Wade remained still and quiet, the creature apparently couldn't find her.

Think, Wade thought to herself. How to get past this thing without making any noise?

Wade couldn't swim. That made too much noise. She would have to float. If she could manage to propel herself past the monster without making any noise, Wade could escape. She hoped.

Wade held her breath. She dared not even breathe. She held the air in her lungs to increase her buoyancy and allowed herself to float on the surface of the pool. Wade made a very gentle push with her hands. The tentacles flinched at the sound, but remained still.

Wade began to float towards the monster.

The lights on the walls of Quinn's prison stopped flashing. He stood in the darkness and the silence, waiting for the game to begin.

One square on the wall lit up red. It faded away. Then another square on the other side of the room lit up green. It faded to darkness, then lit up again. Then another square glowed blue.

Quinn touched the first square. It lit up red on contact. He touched the green square, its glow filling the room. He touched it again. Then he touched the blue square.

The wall in front of Quinn crunched as it slid upwards by a few inches. Quinn's heart lifted as well.

"Very good," the disembodied voice said. "Let's try something a little harder."

The squares all over the room lit up again, this time faster. First a red square, then a green, a yellow, another yellow, a blue, another red, a purple, and an orange. Quinn repeated the pattern to himself under his breath so he could remember it. Then he touched the squares as quickly as he could, lunging all over the room.

The door slid up again by a few more inches. He could see a light coming from underneath it.

"Excellent," the voice said. "Now the real game begins."

And the lights came again with blinding speed. Red, blue, blue, purple, green, purple, blue, orange, yellow, yellow, orange, red, blue...Quinn felt a cold chill as he realized he had lost count by the time the last square faded away. He struggled to remember the pattern. Had it been red, red, blue or blue, red, red...

"Move now," the voice said. "You have three seconds."

Quinn swallowed, then touched a red square on the wall. Then he touched a blue one. Then he touched the red one...

The grinding of gears sang out as the ceiling dropped by several inches. Quinn had to duck to keep the spikes from punching into his skull.

A hollow sigh echoed through the room from the Voice. "Aw, you were doing so well. Let's try that again. A little faster this time."

Quinn grit his teeth. "If I ever get my hands on you, I swear..."

The walls lit up again. Quinn followed the pattern, yelling out the colors as they came. He imagined each word he called out to be a knife with which he stabbed at his torturer's arrogance. The words drilled into his memory. When the pattern ended, Quinn threw himself at the walls, slamming his hand down on each colored square that lit up for him.

With every touch, Quinn expected the ceiling to crush down on him. But as his hand touched the last green square, the exit slid upwards again. Now it was ten inches. It was good. But not enough. Just a few more...

The walls lit up again. And this time, more than one square lit up at a time. Quinn watched colors flashing all around him, the world dissolving into a rainbow of lights. On the ceiling, on the floor, to his left, to his right.

"That's not fair!" Quinn yelled. "I can't..."

"Two seconds," the Voice said.

Quinn reached out and touched a red square. The other square that had lit up with it was on the opposite wall. He strained to reach it with his other hand.

The ceiling lowered again with a thump. Quinn had to hunch over now, unable to stand without puncturing his body on the spikes.

And the room lit up again.

***

Wade tried not to move as she drifted towards the tentacled thing in her path. There was just enough room on its left to get by without touching it. She fought the urge to bolt past it with broad strokes. She had to remain calm, still, at peace, and silent.

She passed the tentacles. They were still curled towards where she had been, as if looking for her there. Wade felt a surge of excitement. She was going to make it.

Then the tentacles turned towards her. Wade stiffened as they bent forward. The very tips curled down to graze her chest. Her clothes hooked onto it, being pulled up her stomach slightly. Wade had to bite her lip to keep from screaming. She was still floating along, towards the exit, as the tentacles moved in closer.

They slid up her chest to graze her throat. They were cold and slimy against her skin, leaving a wet trail that dried and hardened in thin lines.

Wade's lungs felt like they were going to burst, but she dared not breathe. Then the tentacles began to slide around her neck. They twisted around, wrapping themselves slowly around her throat. Wade couldn't remain still any longer.

She lashed out, knocking away the tentacles with her hand. The gurgling increased into a roar. Wade exploded into a frantic swim towards the exit.

The tentacles slashed at the water in her wake. Wade made broad strokes in the water, gasping for breath every time her head broke the surface. The exit was closer and closer, water splashing into it.

Then one of the tentacles looped around her ankle, stopping her. It dragged her back. Wade looked back to see something rising out of the water. It was green and domed, a red eye peering out of the oozing mass of tentacles. The tentacles were groping for her neck.

Wade lashed out with her heel, striking the creature's eye. The monster roared. Its tentacles loosened. Wade rammed her foot into the creature's body. She used it to shove herself away from the beast. She plowed through the water, carried by momentum, into the exit.

Wade emerged from the water to slide to a halt on a tiled floor. She looked back to see a door slam shut over the exit. The roar of the underwater monster faded.

Wade looked up. She was in another corridor like the one she had dropped out of. Wade stood, facing a shadow-filled doorway.

The disembodied Voice returned, echoing off the walls. "Congratulations. Welcome to the Maze."

***

The walls lit up again with lighted squares. Quinn watched them flash, breathing heavily. There was no way he could remember the pattern. He was sure his mysterious torturer wanted it that way. It was futile trying to play this game. The ones in control kept changing the rules. He'd have to make rules of his own.

The exit's door was about ten inches off the ground. It was a tight squeeze, but Quinn didn't have any choice. He had to try to get through it.

Quinn dropped to his knees, then flattened out onto his stomach. The lighted walls stopped flashing. Quinn slid forward towards the exit.

"Three seconds," the Voice said.

Quinn pulled himself towards the exit. His head would barely make it through. He grasped the edges of the door and hauled himself towards it.

The ceiling clanked as it dropped a few more inches. Quinn flinched as the spikes grazed his back. One more time...

The lights began again.

Quinn pushed his head through the narrow crack in the door. His ear bent back as he pushed through it. But his head popped out into another corridor. He could see his freedom so close, yet so far. Now for his shoulders.

The lights stopped.

Quinn wriggled his shoulders, working them through the gap under the door. The edge scraped his back painfully. But he kept moving.

"Three seconds," the Voice said.

Quinn reached out into the corridor. He pushed and pulled, twisted and jerked his body, moving it through the opening, inch by inch. He counted silently in his mind. Two seconds. Only his feet were still in the room. One second. Quinn yanked them free.

There was a loud crunch, followed by the scrape of metal hitting metal as the spikes jammed into the floor.

Quinn gasped, closing his eyes. He opened them again, looking up at a dark hallway facing him.

"Congratulations," the Voice said. "Welcome to the Maze."

Mason glared down at Richard, who was flipping switches on his console. "They've reached the Maze. And there isn't a scratch on either of them. This is not good. They've breezed through traps it took us weeks to build."

Richard swivelled his chair to face a computer keyboard. "Don't worry, Mr. Mason. They're in the Maze. Trust me, there's no way they get through that in one piece."

Richard began to type commands into the system that caused the Voice to speak. Mason turned his gaze away to the bank of screens on one wall. They showed various parts of the Chase. Two of them showed Quinn and Wade standing at the entrances to the Maze.

Mason frowned, scanning the castle. "Where's Miss Carter?"

"Who cares?" Richard murmured. "We've got bigger things to worry about."

Mason looked down at him. "Like what?"

"The Jabberwocky," Richard said. "Its training was never really completed. The safety lockouts never worked on it. We can't control it. Remember what happened the last three trials."

Mason grinned. "You worry too much, Newton. We don't need total control over the thing. The whole point was to just let it go and do what it was supposed to do."

Richard nodded, but deep down, he was thinking about what the Jabberwocky did to the last contestants. It drove a shiver down his spine.

***

Fliss muttered figures to herself as she typed on the console. The new program she was inputting would have to be able to handle two projections at the same time to an area of the castle that was never designed fully for it.

Fliss glanced at one of the screens that displayed a map with the newcomers' positions on it. She was about to glance away when she did a double-take.

She was too late. The newcomers were already at the entrances to the maze.

Fliss shook her head and wrote up an ending subroutine. The program still wasn't finished. But it would have to do. She had run out of time.

***

Quinn stood, peering into the darkness of an open corridor facing him. The disembodied Voice that had taunted him all night spoke again.

"Congratulations," it said. "You have reached The End of the Chase. All that remains is to make your way through the maze."

A map materialized in front of Quinn, hanging in midair. Paths and corridors were clearly-defined as lines. Two glowing green circles appeared in the map. Two glowing blue circles were superimposed at the other end.

"You," the Voice said, "are the green circle on the left. Your missing friends are the blue circles at the other end. You must make your way through the maze to reach them."

"Wait a minute," Quinn said. "There are two green circles. Who's the other one?"

"Your female companion."

"Wade?" Quinn asked, then yelled, "Wade? Can you hear me?"

Her faint voice drifted out of the maze. "Quinn, is that you?"

Quinn felt a lifting of his spirits at the sound of her voice. "Yeah, it's me. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Soaking wet and a little bruised, but I'm okay. How about you?"

"I'm fine. Is..."

"You're wasting time," the Voice said. "You two have five minutes to make your way through the Maze to your friends. But you are not alone. Also in the Maze is a creature we call the Jabberwocky. It will be released thirty seconds after you begin your journey into the Maze. It will also try to reach your friends. If it reaches them first, it will kill them. If it encounters you in the maze, it will kill *you.* So I suggest you move quickly and carefully. The Chase begins...now."

The corridor ahead of Quinn lit up. He could see down it, vanishing into the distance, riddled by doors running along its length. Quinn stepped into the corridor and began to walk.

"You have four minutes and fifty-three seconds," the Voice said.

"Wade?" Quinn yelled.

"Yeah," Wade said. "I'm here. Look, keep talking. I'll follow your voice. You follow mine. We'll meet up."

"Gotcha." Quinn began to walk down the corridor. He couldn't think of anything to say, so he began, "Four score and seven years ago, our fathers founded a new nation..."

Wade began to sing an Alanis Morrisette song they had heard on the radio in the last world.

Quinn stopped talking as a low growl echoed off the walls.

"Thirty seconds are up," the Voice said. "The Jabberwocky has been released. Beware the Jabberwock, my children. The jaws that bite, the claws that catch..."

***

Mason looked down at Richard. "You think this Jabberwocky thing is too high-brow? Might go over the heads of our audience."

Richard took a drag on his cigarette and exhaled. "Don't worry about it. The ones that don't get it won't care, and the ones who do will appreciate the in-joke."

Richard typed on his keyboard with the message "JABBERWOCKY RELEASE."

***

The thing waited as it had always waited since its creation. It desired the chase and the kill, but something always held it back. Bars, drugs, chains, stopping it from doing what it was created to do.

But now it felt a stirring. The chains embracing its body fell away. The bars in front of it rumbled out of its path. The creature was free.

It began to gallop down the corridor, drinking in its freedom like wine. Then it stopped. It inhaled, breathing in a symphony of odors. It could smell its prey. Four of them. For a moment, the creature hesitated. Which one to take first. Then it made its decision. It began to run.

***

Quinn heard a bellowing roar echo off the walls. He chased away the fear and kept going, continuing his recitation of the Gettysburg Address. He could hear Wade singing, getting closer with each passing moment.

Quinn turned down a corridor. The singing was getting louder. Wade sounded like she was right around the corner. Quinn began to jog faster. Wade was coming closer. She was right in front of him.

Smoke poured into the hallway from the walls and floor. It congealed into an old woman that materialized in front of him. She thrust out her hands.

"Wait!" the woman yelled. "It's a trap! Run!"

Quinn glared at her. "What are you talking about? I..."

"Run!" the woman screamed.

Quinn saw a shadow coming down the hallway. It was definitely not Wade. It was huge, rumbling with anger. Quinn heard a series of thumps, felt the ground shake beneath him, and realized they were the thing's footsteps. It was running towards him. Quinn began to smell the monster, a sharp tangy stench like ammonia. It was coming closer. And the monster was singing. It was singing Wade's song in Wade's voice as it charged at him.

Quinn began to run from it, but he could hear the creature lurching faster. It was right behind him. Quinn knew that if he looked back, he would see it, but didn't dare. He just kept running.

The old woman drifted into his path, waving franctically towards a wall. "Quickly. In here!"

"What?" Quinn yelled, then saw that a doorway was built into a hidden seam on the wall. He dove into it. He slammed it back into place.

Quinn heard a loud thud as the creature outside collided with the wall. There was a frantic scraping like claws digging into the wall, struggling to tear it apart. Then a moment of silence passed. With a growl, the creature moved away.

Quinn panted heavily as he looked at the old woman floating in front of him. "Who are you?"

NOTE: The Jabberwocky and accompanying quote were taken from "Alice in Wonderland" by Lewis Carroll. No copyright infringement was intended.

Wade stopped. She couldn't hear Quinn singing anymore. There was silence. Then a roar shook the walls. Thumping footsteps. Running. Voices.

"Quinn!" Wade screamed. She began to run in the direction of the sounds.

A shape emerged from the floor. An old woman, the one they had seen earlier pointing them into the Maze. She thrust out her hands, blocking Wade's path.

"No!" the woman yelled. "Go back! Quickly! Run the other way!"

"Get outta my way," Wade yelled. "Quinn's in trouble."

"No," the old woman said. "I'm helping him. But you've got to get away before the Jabberwocky picks up your scent. It will come after you instead."

Wade looked at her, then past her down the corridor. "Why should I trust you?"

"Because I'm your only hope of getting out of this place alive."

Wade glared at her. Then she backed away and began to run in the other direction.

A wall opened into a doorway. The old woman's voice came again, whispering, "In here." Wade ducked through the hole in the wall. It sealed behind her.

***

Mason's eyes widened as he watched Wade duck through the wall. When she was gone, he scanned the other screens frantically. "What's going on? Where is she?"

Richard bit down on his cigarette, crushing the filter. He spat it out onto the floor. "I...I dunno. They must have gone into one of the dead zones."

"Dead what?"

"Dead zones. We didn't have time to put cameras and sensors in every inch of the maze. I call the unmonitored areas dead zones. We planned to steer the contestants clear of them and lock off those corridors, but apparently they've gone into some of them."

"How?" Mason yelled. "How did this happen?"

Richard turned his chair to face him, his eyes hardening into a cool glare. "Fliss. She must be in one of the junctions, taking control of some minor functions like the projectors. That explains that old woman who showed up."

"Well, what will we do? She'll ruin everything!"

"Don't worry about it," Richard said. "She's a minor annoyance at best. She can't help them. No one can. I'm in control. If she tries to bend the rules, I'll just change them."

Richard turned back to his computers and began to punch in new commands.

Mason sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. "This is a nightmare. Our ratings are going through the floor."

"Sir," Richard said, "how badly do you want the Chase to succeed?"

Mason replied with hesitation. "I'll do anything."

"Good. Then pick up the phone and call the Commission. We're about to have some technical difficulties."

***

The old woman hovered in the corridor with Wade, the woman's waist dissolving into a fine mist.

"All right," the old woman said. "I'm speaking to your friend at the same time, answering his questions. Hang on, I'll patch you in."

Quinn formed from a cloud of mist to appear in the room with Wade. He looked at her, his eyes widening.

"Wade?" he asked.

Wade smiled. "Oh, Quinn..."

She swept him into her arms. But her arms kept going. They passed through his body, which broke apart into smoke. It seemed like the same thing had happened to Quinn. He was trying to hold her, confusion spreading across his face as he looked down at his hands.

"Your companions are not really here," the old woman said. "You're holograms to each other, projections on smoke being pumped into the room. Just like me. A lot of what you've seen today have been projections, combined with stage tricks, robots, and some other goodies tossed in."

Quinn faced the woman. "All right, what's going on? We wanna know right now."

"Okay," the woman said. "You've heard of the Chase, right?"

"The what?" Wade asked.

The old woman blinked. "You've never heard of it? The commercials have been running twenty-four hours a day. Okay, look, basically you're in a show. It's a lot like Haunted Castle, except we changed some elements to avoid getting sued."

Quinn held up a hand. "Wait a minute. Assume we're not from around here. Assume we're not even from this planet. Tell us what's going on. Everything."

The old woman raised an eyebrow. "Not from this planet? Okay...well, welcome to Earth. A planet where game shows rule television. They're everywhere, and the competition is fierce to do something original. So the Death Channel was created. A channel that showed game shows where the prize was the lives of the contestants. The Chase is the newest entry in the fall lineup. Is that simple enough for you, E.T.?"

"A game show?" Wade asked. "We're in a game show? All this is on TV?"

"Exactly," the old woman said. "Today was our premiere, but the contestants got stuck in the storm. When you showed up, Newton...the engineer who created this place...decided to use you instead. Although I can't throw off all blame, I agreed to do it. Should've stopped him. This is all partly my fault."

The old woman swept an arm to take in their surroundings. "This entire building is a huge set. Cameras film the action for a live audience. Newton uses his gimmickry to make traps and things to keep you busy."

"So who are you?" Wade asked.

"Felicity Carter," the old woman said. "But everyone calls me Fliss. I'm a programmer. I designed the operating system that the Chase runs on. This isn't me or what I look like. I'm actually in one of the junction rooms, controlling this hologram and telling it what to say. The Maze is sealed off from the outside. This was the only way I had to communicate with you."

"So none of this is real?" Quinn asked.

The old woman's brow furrowed. "I wish I could say that, but I can't. One thing is real. The Jabberwocky. It was genetically-engineered specifically for this show. It only has one mission in life, and that's to kill anything it can get its hands on. Once it finds prey, it will continue to pursue and attack it until it's dead. And right now the Jabberwocky wants to get its claws on you and your friends. You've got to get through this Maze, but Richard is changing the configuration at random. There's no way to get through this Maze fairly, not without my help. So follow my instructions and I'll talk you through it."

The old woman began to dissolve.

"Wait," Wade called out. "Why are you doing this?"

The woman grinned as her face broke apart. "I'm getting out of the TV business."

***

As Wade and the old woman dissolved into mist, the door next to Quinn swung open. He looked out at the light pouring in from the corridor.

The old woman's voice drifted out at him. "It's all right. The Jabberwocky's gone into another section of the maze. I managed to lock it out. You've got only a few seconds before Newton manages to bring it back. Go out the door to your left, then take a right, and another right."

Quinn stepped into the corridor. He could still smell the creature's stench lingering in the air, but there was no sign of the monster itself. Quinn began to run to his left. He came to a three-way intersection. He went right.

Wade charged down the corridor, her heart pounding hard enough to hurt. She could hear something moving just beyond the walls, growling and shaking the ground with its footsteps.

"Now," the old woman's voice said, "go left. Then right."

Wade nodded and ran down to the left. She came to an intersection. She turned to go right. A panel came roaring out of the ceiling. It slammed down in front of her, forming a wall that blocked her path. A deep voice came from everywhere.

"Time for a detour," the Voice said.

The old woman's voice came back hot. "Richard, what are you doing?"

"Playing the game," the Voice said. "The way it's supposed to be played. Fair. That means no coaching."

"Fair?" the old woman yelled. "Don't talk to me about fair! You've broken every single rule of the Chase. Now you're changing the Maze. When the gaming commission sees this..."

"They never will," the Voice said. "Mr. Mason pleaded technical difficulties and pulled us off the air. They've got a rerun of 'Hatchet Heaven' running now."

"We're not on the air?" the old woman asked. "Then why is the Chase still running? Why won't you let these people go?"

"Because we can't let them leave. If they tell the commission about tonight, they'll shut us down. That's billions of dollars down the drain. So the contestants can't be allowed to survive. Besides, it's not about the show anymore. It's about the Chase. I designed it. I control it. *I* am the master here. And when I say no cheating, I mean...no... cheating."

A piercing squeal filled the air, followed by a woman's scream. Then silence.

"Fliss?" Wade asked. "Fliss, where are you?"

Wade turned around. The wall behind her was humming. It suddenly clicked. Then began to slide upwards. It was exposing another corridor. Wade smelled something like ammonia and saw shadows moving where the panel was retreating from the floor. Something was on the other side. And it was coming in.

***

Fliss screamed, clutching her ears as the siren filled her earphones. She ripped them off, throwing them to the floor. She still could hear a ringing in her ears, but it was beginning to fade.

"Newton," Fliss whispered, "what are you doing, you psycho?"

She turned to her monitor. It displayed a map of the castle. On it, she could see the contestants as blue circles. Quinn was moving through the maze on his own. That was good. But Wade was trapped in a section of the maze. Richard had sealed her in. And he was opening another wall next to her.

Fliss felt icy fingers running down her back as she saw the glowing red circle on the other side of the wall. The Jabberwocky. He was letting the Jabberwocky into Wade's area.

Fliss tightened her jaw so hard that the tendons bulged on her neck. No. She wouldn't let this happen.

She hunched over her console and began typing furiously. She patched in the cameras, feeding a portion of the tape from Quinn's area into the Maze's projectors. When the recording was ready, Fliss activated it by punching the ENTER key.

"Try this on for size," she whispered.

Then she began to write a whole new program.

***

Wade shrank back as the panel slid away. The shadow drew closer and closer, then a grey claw forced its way through. It was followed by an arm covered with spines.

The monster pushed its way into the corridor, looking at Wade with bloodshot eyes. Its lip curled, exposing a mass of teeth. The Jabberwocky's body followed, long and serpentine, with legs running along its length like a centipede. Each leg had its own set of claws which it could use to tear apart its prey. And it would.

Wade pressed against the wall, then turned to run. A panel slammed into place in front of her. She was trapped.

The Jabberwocky opened its mouth as it gave off a rattling hiss. It curled up like a cobra, ready to strike.

Smoke poured into the corridor. Something took shape within it. Another Jabberwocky materialized in front of the first. It bellowed, snapping its jaws at the first. The original Jabberwocky lurched back. Its mouth snapped shut. It blinked, staring at its twin with dull eyes. Then the eyes narrowed.

The Jabberwocky lunged at the smoky phantom. It passed through its double's body. The Jabberwocky landed on the floor, shaking the ground with its weight. It shook itself, then looked back at the second creature which had reformed, still roaring. The Jabberwocky snarled.

It began snapping and clawing at the hologram, trying to grasp the duplicate with its rows of claws. The second Jackerwocky broke apart in wispy threads, but always reformed to form a target for the Jabberwocky once again.

Wade discovered she could breathe again and whispered, "Thank you, Fliss."

She made her way past the thrashing monster to the open panel leading out of the corridor. The Jabberwocky was so busy attacking its doppelganger that it never noticed. When Wade was free, she began to run.

She almost collided with Quinn, who turned a corner into her path.

"You okay?" Quinn asked.

"I am now," Wade said. "Come on. I've got a feeling we've used up the last of our nine lives."

***

As Richard watched the Jabberwocky wrestling with vapors, he slammed a fist into his keyboard.

Mason peered over his shoulder, a deep frown etching his features. "Newton...what's going on? Why didn't it attack the girl?"

"Fliss used its singlemindedness against it. The Jabberwocky instinctively attacks prey and won't break off the attack until it's dead. But it can't kill a hologram. So it'll keep attacking that thing forever."

"Well, can't you turn it off?"

Richard punched some keys. "Not directly. Fliss has broken the connection between Control and the Maze's projectors."

Mason sighed. "So the Jabberwocky is out of the Chase."

"Not quite," Richard said. "All I have to do is overload the fuses in that sector..."

He punched a key.

***

The Maze's lights crackled, then went out. In the darkness of the corridor, the hologram faded away. The Jabberwocky watched its opponent disintegrate, then shook itself. It was confused. It was used to its prey being reduced to pulp, not smoke.

Then it inhaled and smelled humans. It was on a new scent. Two victims. In a moment, the phantom enemy was forgotten. The Jabberwocky began to gallop down the corridor once again.

The Chase was back on.

Authors' Note: The final question that appears in this segment was taken from the card game "Mindtrap."

PART NINE

Fliss' console went dead. The map faded into darkness on her screen. She stood, knocking her chair to the floor, and kicked the junction box.

"Newton," she screamed.

Then she forced herself to calm down. She had suspected he would do this, but Fliss had hoped he wouldn't. It showed that he was now out of control, determined to stop her at all costs.

Fortunately, she had anticipated this, and he had fallen right into her trap. If the power was down, then that meant the Maze was down. Richard couldn't control it any more than she could. So the contestants still had a chance.

Fliss unhooked an emergency flashlight from the wall and dashed out of the room. She ran as fast as she could. There was only one trap left. The Gameroom.

***

Wade led the way down the shadow-filled corridor to a door. Lights were flashing on the door that spelled out EXIT in green neon. A large red doorknob waited beneath it.

"This is it," she said.

Quinn grabbed her arm. "Hold it. Remember what we've gone through in this place."

Wade nodded. "Oh, yeah."

Quinn took off his jacket. He threw it at the door. When the jacket touched the doorknob, it crackled with static, then burst into flames.

"Electrified," Quinn sighed.

"Great," Wade said. "If this isn't the exit, then what is?"

A panel on the ceiling swung down into the corridor. It banged into the opposite wall. A pair of legs dropped through the open hatch, followed by the body of a young woman who slid down onto her feet.

She steadied herself, then glared at Quinn and Wade. "It's the exit, all right. You just gotta say 'open sesame.'"

"Who're you?" Quinn asked.

The woman charged towards the door. "Felicity Carter. My friends call me Fliss."

"You helped us through the Maze," Wade said.

The woman used her flashlight to nudge Quinn's jacket off the doorknob. "Yeah. And I'm gonna get you outta here."

Fliss turned to the others and held up her flashlight. "Remember that this place is never what it seems."

She reached her flashlight towards the door. Towards the side opposite the doorknob. Fliss pushed on the door between the hinges. It swung open neatly, the way it looked like it wasn't supposed to.

"Cute," Wade snarled.

She jogged through the door. Quinn followed, along with Fliss who hurried after him.

The room was brilliantly-lit with spotlights on the ceiling that waved back and forth, creating a jubilant pattern of light on the walls and floor. They occasionally fell on two people chained to a wall with their arms and legs spread. It was Arturo and Rembrandt.

"Well, it's about time you got here," Arturo yelled. "Mr. Brown and I have been waiting for almost an hour."

"Sorry, professor," Wade said. "We got caught in traffic."

She ran towards them. Fliss tackled her, knocking her onto the floor.

"No," Fliss yelled. "It's a trap!"

The deep Voice returned. "She's right. It won't be that easy. Come near them and they die. It's time to play the final round of our game. All you have to do is answer one simple question. Get it right, and you all go free. Get it wrong, and I'll pump ten thousand volts of electricity into your friends."

Rembrandt flinched as a loud crackling noise hit him. Despite his obvious pain, he was still able to crack a joke. "Hey, watch it. I ain't...in the mood for...deep-fried Cryin' Man."

"Just a taste," the Voice said. "To let everyone know I'm serious."

"All right," Quinn said. "What's your question?"

"No," Fliss whispered. "It's a trick. He won't play fair."

"It's a real easy question, Fliss," the Voice said. "What animal can see in total darkness?"

"Total darkness," Quinn murmured.

Wade blinked. "That's it? That's the question?"

"Yup," the Voice said.

Wade laughed. "That's...that's easy! It's a..."

"No!" Quinn yelled.

Wade turned to him. "What?"

"I'm waiting," the Voice said.

Quinn pointed at Fliss. "She's right. He never plays fair. It is a trick."

Wade leaned towards him and lowered her voice to a whisper. "Quinn, I know the answer. It's a cat. They can see in the dark."

"You're right," Quinn whispered. "Cats can see in the dark."

He raised his voice. "But the real answer is nothing. Because he said *total* darkness. And nothing can see in total darkness. Am I right?"

A moment passed. The room was silent. Quinn breathed slowly, trying not to hear the electrical hum coming from Arturo and Rembrandt.

"Yeah," the Voice said. "You're right. The answer is nothing."

Arturo closed his eyes and exhaled with a deep sigh.

"But I'm gonna fry 'em, anyway," the Voice said.

Arturo and Rembrandt stiffened as the hum began to grow louder.

"And I'm gonna kill all of you," the Voice said. "You're not getting out of here alive."

Rembrandt grunted in pain. Arturo began to twist in his bonds, his eyes squeezed tight.

Wade charged towards him. Tongues of electricity lashed at her from the wall until she had to stagger back.

Fliss looked up at the ceiling. "You're already beaten, Richard."

"What are you talking about?" the Voice asked.

"While you were busy with the Jabberwocky," Fliss said, "I rewrote the programming for the configuration of the maze. I knew you'd shut down the power to stop the hologram so you wouldn't be able to change it. I opened a path that led that thing straight out of the maze."

***

Richard blinked, watching Fliss on his monitor. "Out...you let the Jabberwocky out of the Maze? Are you crazy? That thing could be anywhere. It could get out into the general population!"

Fliss was grinned as she looked into the camera lens, shaking her head. "No. I was very careful about where I let it out. I made a path that would carry it right to you."

Richard's hands began to shudder out of his control. Mason grabbed his shoulder with a hand.

"Did she say to 'us'?" Mason whispered.

"That's right, Rich," Fliss said. "Right now, the Jabberwocky is making its way through the service corridors. I'd say you've got about three minutes before it gets to you."

Growling emerged from the hallway outside the door of the Control Room.

Mason patted Richard's shoulder, a little too hard. "We're...we're okay, right? I mean, it can't get in here..."

"Of course it can," Richard growled. "This place isn't a fortress. We never expected to have to protect the Control Room. The Jabberwocky will tear through the door like paper."

He typed on his console as fast as he could, activating commands to lock down the service corridors. The system refused to respond. Fliss had locked him out. "Felicity, how could you do this to us..."

"There's only one way you'll survive this," Fliss said. "I put in a backdoor, a phrase you can type in that'll let you escape. I'll tell it to you if you let us go. Open the door to outside."

Richard glared at the screen. His fist clenched. The roar came again outside the door, louder this time.

"Do it!" Mason screamed. "Do it!"

Richard stretched out his hands. He typed in OPEN OUTSIDE EXIT.

***

Arturo and Rembrandt were screaming. Then they stopped. Their chains unlocked with loud clicks. They dropped to the floor. As Wade ran up to her friends, a door broke open on one wall, swinging open to expose the cold, rainy grounds outside.

"Let's go," Quinn yelled.

He grabbed Arturo. Wade took Rembrandt's arm. They both helped their friends up and out the door. Fliss ran after them, then paused in the doorway. She looked up at the camera.

"You lose," Fliss said. "That's the phrase. Type it in. Oh, and Mr. Mason? I quit."

She ran out the door, shielding her face against the rain with her arm.

***

Richard grit his teeth, then typed YOU LOSE into the computer.

There was a loud hiss. Then the door to the Control Room swung open. Mason turned towards it. He swallowed and took steps towards the door, barely able to stand from his trembling legs.

"What's she done?" Mason whispered.

As Richard stood, Fliss' voice filled the Control Room.

"If you're hearing this," she said, "then you've let me go to save your worthless hides. But you're not getting away that easy. I've changed the configuration of the corridors. The Jabberwocky can't get to the Control Room. But you can't use the emergency exit."

Mason was already running out into the corridor. He collided with the exit's door and began to wrestle with the handle. "It's locked!"

"Of course it's locked," Richard snarled.

"You can still leave the building," Fliss said, "through the third floor exit. But you have to get to it first. I'd say you've got a fifteen minute headstart before the Jabberwocky manages to get out of the maze. Then it'll be after you again. I don't think it'll catch you. You're both in good shape and the exit isn't that far away. But it won't be easy."

Richard began to run down the hallway. Reaching the stairs, Richard jumped down them three at a time. He ignored the sounds of his boss puffing along after him. He didn't care about him anymore. He knew he was finished in this industry. All he cared about was survival.

Richard could still hear Fliss' voice echoing down the hallway as she said, "Let's see how *you* like the Chase."

***

Wade glanced back as she ran. The dark and shadowy monolith of the Castle rose behind the fleeing Sliders, its deadly occupant roaming wild and free now.

The thought of escaping to the next world...any world...made her feel better as she felt a shiver run down her spine, realizing the gruesome fate they'd escaped.

Then the wormhole opened and she was gone.

The End