Brave New World
By Becky Oberg

Author's notes:  Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls, Fools Rush In by
UB40 and Iron-Lion-Zion by Bob Marley are used without
permission and for the mere reason that I like all three songs.
WOEICS characters and Chase Devineaux are property of DIC
Enterprises and Broderbund Software.

Acme Detective Agency, computer lab...

	The Chief appeared and looked over Josha's shoulder. 
The tech looked at him, slightly annoyed.  "I hate it when you
do that, Chief," he said.
	"Sorry," he said.  "I just wanted to know how the update
on the C-5 is going."
	"So far, so good," replied Josha.  He paused.  "Do you
hear thunder?"
	"There's a 30 percent chance of rain today," the Chief
replied.  "Why?"
	"I just don't want the computer to crash while I'm
working on it," said Josha.  "As long as I keep saving my
progress I'll be fine, but I don't want to crash in the middle
of a calcualation and be lost.  It could take three or four
hours to figure out where it left off."
	"Somewhere between the colon backslash ampersand percent
sign waka backslash," replied the Chief.
	"Funny," said Josha.  "But just think about it.  With
this update the computer will be able to better determine where
the agents are going to land."
	"Much to their relief, I'm sure," replied the Chief.
	"I'm going to run some tests in a few minutes," said
Josha.  "With luck, this will be able to transport agents to the
moon and beyond."
	"Hopefully there'll be a softer landing in the package,"
said the Chief.  "The agents have been nagging my ears off about
that."  With that, his ears fell to the bottom of the
screen.  "I'm falling apart!" he exclaimed.  "Better pull myself
together."
	Josha shook his head and smiled.

Sandiego Manor...

	Carmen turned on her computer.  How long since she'd
last seen the Chief--without someone chasing after her?  It was
close to his birthday.  Wouldn't he be surprised to find her
waiting, with a beautiful Mexican chessboard?

Meanwhile, in Waco, Texas...

	The rain pounded Becky heavily as she jogged to her
apartment.  "Always when I don't have my poncho," she muttered,
as she fumbled with her keys.  After a few seconds she got her
door open, and quickly ducked inside.  She locked the door
behind her, and took off her wet coat.
	She walked back to her bedroom, and knelt by the rat
cages.  She gently greeted each of her rats--Carl, Osiris,
Utana, and Kawani.  Carl curled up in the corner for a nap, and
Osiris curled up beside him.  Utana and Kawani hung on the wire
ceiling of their cage.  "It's good to see you babies," Becky
said softly.  She smiled--they had her wrapped around their
fingers--well, the finger-like parts of their paws, anyway.
	Becky winced as her shoulder throbbed.  She'd had
tendonitis in it more times than she'd forgotten about.  Not to
mention the heater wasn't working...  "Everything in this
apartment is falling apart, including the tenant," Becky
muttered.  She wrapped a blanket around her.  The cold rain had
seeped into her skin and she was starting to shiver.  She needed
some relaxation.  "Might as well visit the Forum before I start
my homework..."

Meanwhile, outside Philadelphia...

	It was gray and cloudy.  The thunder rumbled, and rain 
started to pour just as Jaci got inside.  She sat down and 
sighed.  It had been a long day at work.  The new computer 
system was already causing problems, much to the frustration of 
staff and students at the community college.  It was a test of 
patience.
	Her class situation wasn't helping, either.  The college 
offered a course in Spanish Literature at 8 a.m.  She'd wanted 
to take it, but it was too early.  Despite its time, it had 
filled up rapidly.  There was another one at 9:30 a.m., but it 
was unsure whether or not there would be enough students in it 
to justify having the class.  There was nothing she could do but 
wait and hope for the best.
	Oh, well, at least she'd beaten the rain home.  She 
walked to her computer, sat down, and turned it on.  It was time 
to check the messages at the Forum....

Dimension X...

	The thunderstorm in two separate worlds created a 
bright, throbbing pattern of sparks.  Usually this had no effect 
on anything.  Sometimes, however, it could cause a temporary 
transdimensional shift--where two or more things from two or 
more different worlds switched places.  This could be either 
good, bad, or neither one.  Sometimes a flying beast from Sirius 
was zapped into Planet Earth, resulting in a "UFO."  Usually the 
switch rectified itself quickly, but sometimes it took days or 
weeks.  What happened to the switch subjects in the meantime, 
however...
	Suddenly, the C-5 Corridor opened!  A bolt flashed 
between Planet Earth and the world portrayed in the TV show, 
Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego?  Several streaks traveled 
between the two worlds, in less than a blink of an eye.

Waco, Texas....

	"What the...?!!" exclaimed Becky, as something suddenly 
pulled her into the computer.

Near Philadelphia....

	"Oh, no!" yelled Jaci, as she felt something tugging at 
her.  Within a few split seconds she was pulled into her 
computer.

Acme Detective Agency, control room...

	Zack aimed for the hoop, but missed.  Ivy grinned, 
retrieved the ball, and shot it.  It sailed gracefully toward 
the hoop and swished through the net.  "It's 'E' time, little 
bro," she said, grinning.
	"Let me calculate this," said Zack, walking over to the 
computer.  Suddenly, a light blue halo appeared, pulling them 
toward it!
	"This sucks!" yelled Ivy.
	"Help, sis!" yelled Zack, as he was sucked in with her.

Sandiego Manor....

	Carmen screamed as something pulled her into the 
unknown.  When it stopped, she opened her eyes.  This was 
familiar, all too familiar...  "Oh, no..." she said, looking 
around in disbelief.

Acme Detective Agency, control room...

	Jaci landed on her feet.  A few split seconds later, a 
woman with blondish-brown hair, pulled back into a ponytail, 
tumbled out of the portal just as it disappeared.  The woman 
with the ponytail landed slightly off-balance, but quickly 
somersaulted and got to her feet.  "Ow...." she said, rubbing 
her shoulder.  Not good, she thought.  Man, I hate it when this 
happens.
	"Are you okay?" asked Jaci.  
	"Yeah, thanks.  The joint's unstable," said Becky, 
slowly rotating her shoulder until the pain subsided.  They 
looked at each other.  Jaci had short auburn hair and seemed to 
be in her late twenties, as compared to Becky, who was twenty-
two.  Jaci wore glasses.  She was about 5'8", significantly 
taller than Becky's 5'00".  She was built about like Becky, 
strong but light for her height.
	"I'm Jaci Harris," said Jaci, holding out her hand.
	Becky shook it.  "Becky Oberg.  DDS Ward Jaci?"
	"Yeah.  Becky of the Notoriously Strange Luck?"
	"That's me.  Where the hell are we?"
	Jaci frowned.  "Watch your language."
	"Sorry.  Oh.... my... gosh...."
	"That's impossible!" said Jaci, although she knew it was 
true.  She picked up a book and stared at it.  Acme Phone 
Directory.  There was no denying the unbelievable.
	"The end of a perfect day," said Becky, sarcastically.
	"But how did...?  I don't believe it...  We're at the 
Acme Detective Agency!"
	"Oh, no..." said Becky.

Meanwhile....

	Carmen looked around, and sadly shook her head.  "The 
Acme mainframe, of all places.  Now I know how Zack and Ivy felt 
during my Hot Ice caper."  She sighed.  "Now, how did they get 
out of here?  If I remember correctly, they jumped onto a data 
bit."
	Carmen looked around the information junction for a data 
bit, but all she saw were silver streaks.  The computer 
processed data too fast.  She'd have to get to the central 
processing unit some other way.
	"The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single 
step," said Carmen.  She started walking, being careful to duck 
under the silver streaks of information...

Jaci's home....

	"Oof!" said Zack, as he landed on Jaci's bed.  "What on 
earth was that, sis?"  No answer.  "Sis?"  He looked around.  
The house was empty.  "Oh, no..." he said to himself.  "Where am 
I?  And what happened?"
	He tapped his watch.  "Come in, Chief."  No response.  Odd....
	He walked over to the computer, and quickly went to MS-
DOS mode.  This would allow him to contact Acme.  He typed in 
the code, and....

	Bad command or file name
	He retyped the code, slowly, hoping he'd made a mistake.

	Bad command or file name
	He clenched his teeth and typed in an emergency code.

	Bad command or file name

	"Damn!" he muttered, as he typed a few commands to 
access the Internet.  He found a search engine, and typed "Acme 
Detective Agency".  This would put him in touch with the local 
branch.  It would just take a few seconds...
	"This is impossible..." he said, quietly.  All the Web 
sites were related to the Carmen Sandiego games.  There were a 
few dedicated to his and Ivy's adventures, the most prominent of 
which was the Sandiego Manor.  He made a note of that.  He 
looked at a few of the games, hoping against what he knew he was 
wrong.  Carmen Sandiego games featuring Chase Devinaux.  He 
wished Chase was with him; Chase would have some idea how to 
handle this... Well, maybe not this exact situation...  Zack 
swallowed, and started pacing, trying to collect his thoughts.
	I'm alone.  I'm truly alone.
	"What do I do?" he said to himself, pacing the room.  He 
wished he had his skateboard.  "I've been sucked into the 
Player's world!"  His voice grew softer.  "Ivy."

Becky's apartment...

	Ivy landed on a pile of clothes.  Suddenly, she heard 
some animal clicking.  She looked up and saw two rat cages!  In 
a large cage was a male white rat with pink eyes, and a male 
hooded rat with black eyes.  In the other cage were two 
hyperactive female rats, one white with red eyes, one brown with 
black eyes.  "Where in the world am I?" she asked.  "And where's 
Zack?"
	Ivy walked around the room, looking for clues to her 
location.  She saw something in a strange alphabet, then 
Tsalagiyi Nvdagi.  The English translation read "Texas 
Cherokees".  Ivy found two old press passes for "Becky Oberg."  
They were from Texas and Florida.  She could be anywhere, 
although Texas seemed likely.
	"C5 me back to Acme!" said Ivy.  No response.  "Come in, 
Chief," said Ivy, tapping her watch.  Nothing.  The only sound 
was the squeaking of the two male rats as they wrestled.  That 
could only mean that the Agency was completely down or she'd 
been sent somewhere way outside Acme's usual jurisdiction... 
which was the whole world, anywhere in time, and the moon.
	"This can't be," said Ivy, to herself.  She walked 
through the apartment, looking for something conclusive on where 
she was.  Things from all over the world, especially items from 
Indianapolis and Native American culture, decorated the 
apartment.  Ivy saw a Native American-themed census poster from 
Dallas, but it was near several things from Indianapolis.  Ivy 
kept searching.
	Ivy went to Becky's fridge, and looked at the door.  
Several magnets were on it, but only three held something.  One 
of the magnets was from a business in Waco, Texas, another from 
a zoo in Waco.  Two other magnets held newspaper columns.  Ivy 
quickly scanned them, hoping to find more conclusive evidence as 
to where she was.  A picture of "Becky Oberg, staff writer", a 
cutline saying she was from Indianapolis, Ind.  Hmm...  That 
implied they weren't in Indiana.  And didn't "Indianapolis" 
stand alone in newspaper articles?  A college newspaper, no 
doubt about that.  Some references to "here at Baylor".  Baylor 
University--Waco, Texas.
	Ivy walked over to the couch, and flipped through a 
photo album.  She stopped at one.  In it, the staff writer--
Becky--stood with two boys, one teenager and one pre-
adolescent.  Both looked like her.  Her brothers, maybe?  Ivy 
felt a tear come to her eye.
	"Little bro," she said, softly.  "Where are you?"

Meanwhile, back in the Acme Detective Agency, control room...

	Becky walked toward the door, disbelief on her 
face.  "Where are you going?" asked Jaci.
	"Someplace I can panic!" Becky shot back, half-
exhausted, half-frustrated.
	"No, you're not," said Jaci, grabbing Becky's 
sleeve.  "There's no reason to panic."
	"Really?" said Becky, sarcastically.  "I can think of 
several good reasons to panic!"
	"How's that going to get us home?" said Jaci.
	Becky sighed.  "You're right, it won't.  Sorry.  Let's 
think--how did we get here?  I was at the Forum and suddenly 
something pulled me in."
	"Same with me," said Jaci.  "Maybe Acme was doing an 
experiment with the C-5?"
	"We can ask.  Now if I remember correctly, the Chief 
appeared when you said his name."
	Suddenly, they heard the theme from The Tonight Show 
with Johnny Carson.  "Heeeeere's the Chief!" said a voice, as 
the Chief appeared in front of them.  "You're not Acme agents!  
Security!"  Scenes from The Keystone Kops flashed across his 
screen.
	"Time out!  Time out!  Time out!" yelled Becky, 
motioning rapidly with her hands.
	"What are you doing here?  Who are you?  What have you 
done with Zack and Ivy?" he demanded, as four Acme security 
guards ran in.
	"We were hoping you could tell us what happened!" Jaci yelled.
	"Security!  Arrest them!" yelled the Chief.
	"Let's get the hell out of here!" yelled Becky.
	"I've got an idea!" yelled Jaci, hitting a switch.  A 
blue portal opened, and she leapt through it.  Too terrified to 
think, Becky followed her.  The portal closed behind them.

Golden Gate Park, ten seconds later...

	The C-5 opened, dropping Becky and Jaci into a flower 
bed.  They stood up and brushed themselves up.  "Now where are 
we?" asked Becky.
	"Somewhere in San Francisco," said Jaci, looking at the 
Golden Gate Bridge off in the distance.
	"Brilliant deduction, Sherlock," said Becky.  "Let's 
think here: we're trapped inside the computer, the Chief thinks 
we did something to Zack and Ivy, and we're now probably high 
priority on Acme's Wanted List."
	"Things could be worse," said Jaci.
	"Do me a favor--don't say how," Becky replied.  "We've 
got to come up with an idea.  I say we go to Zack and Ivy's 
place--we might be able to find a clue as to what happened to 
them, and maybe there's something on Zack's computer that could 
explain this.  I mean, he's a sharp kid, maybe he wrote about 
some theories on transdimensional shift."
	"On what?"
	"Transdimensional shift--going from one dimension to 
another.  It sounds like a good term for what happened to us."
	"I say we try and find someone who can help us," Jaci 
argued.  "Like Chase Devineaux!  He'll listen!  And he's an 
electronics expert with some physics experience."
	"How are you going to find him?"
	"The phone book.  That'll have his address."
	"Do I need to remind you we're probably on Acme's Most 
Wanted List?  What's to stop him for arresting you?"
	"I look honest," said Jaci.  "He's a good man, Becky--
he'll let me give my side of the story before he does anything."
	"How do you know he'll even be listed?  He's a cop!"
	"I picked up an Acme directory," said Jaci, showing it 
to her.  Jaci opened the book.  "Now, let's see....  Devineaux.  
D.... D-E...."
	Becky shook her head.  "Too dangerous."
	"It's worth a try," said Jaci, continuing to search.  "D-
E-L.... D-E-M....  D-E-V... Devineaux!  Bingo!"
	"Look, I'm not saying it's not worth a try, I'm saying 
it's dangerous.  But I can see we won't agree.  Maybe we should 
split up and meet at the bridge tomorrow."
	"Are you sure that's a good idea?" asked Jaci.
	"We'll get more done that way," Becky said.
	"By the way, seeing that you're so concerned about how 
I'm going to find Chase, let me ask you something: how are you 
going to get in to Zack and Ivy's home?"
	"Check under the doormat for a key," said Becky, 
grinning.  "And if it ain't there, make my own key."
	"Don't you dare break in," said Jaci.  "Number one, 
they're detectives--they'll have incredible security.  Number 
two, it's illegal and it's wrong."
	"Look, at a time like this..."
	"No excuses," said Jaci, firmly.  "If you can get a 
neighbor to let you in, fine, search the place.  If not, meet me 
at the bridge.  Promise?"
	Becky raised her right hand.  "You have my word I will 
not pick the lock on the door.  Don't worry."
	"Good," said Jaci.  "Good luck."
	"To you as well," said Becky.  They shook hands, and 
separated.  Becky smiled.  "Sucker.  If the door's locked, 
there's always the window..."

Zack and Ivy's House, that night...

	Becky crept to a window, hoping against instinct that 
the detectives had poor security.  "Wouldn't seem so," she said, 
spying a small white box in the living room.  "Guess Jaci was 
right--this is good security.  A motion detector.  Hmm...."  She 
slinked over to the front door, and found the keypad.  She 
flipped the cover open, and pulled some Scotch tape out of her 
backpack.  She'd visited a supply store and an army surplus 
store to prepare for this task.
	"Always knew those crime novels would come in handy," 
she said with a grin.  She put a piece over each number, then 
lifted it after a few seconds.  "Hmm, a 1, a 3, a 5 and a 6.  
No, if I remember how to calculate probability quickly, and I... 
don't...  that gives twenty-four possible combinations.  I 
think.  Still worth a try."
	On the seventh try, Becky heard a beep.  She smiled--the 
security system was off.  "Window time," she whispered.  She 
reached into her backpack, wrapped a camo T-shirt around her 
hand, and punched the window.  She winced--the shirt hadn't 
protected her hand as well as she'd hoped--but kept her mind on 
the task at hand.  She unlatched the window, and lifted it up.  
She crawled inside.
	Her eyes darted around the house.  Victorian layout--
that meant the bedrooms would be upstairs.  "I guess the adults 
were right," said Becky to herself.  "All that useless 
information does come in handy someday."  She silently climbed 
the steep stairs, and after a moment or two found Zack's room.  
She turned on his computer, and sat down.

Meanwhile, across the street...

	Mrs. Birney squinted at the figure.  "My stars," she 
whispered, as it climbed in through the window.  "A burglar at 
that place where those nice detectives live!"  Tippins, her 
Yorky, yapped.  "Get the phone, Tippins," she said.  The dog ran 
off, and slowly dragged a phone about its size into the room...

Meanwhile, at Chase's apartment...

	Chase smiled as he opened the box of takeout Chinese 
food.  Hunan beef, his favorite... He turned on the TV to watch 
the news.   Suddenly, someone knocked at the door.  He frowned.  
He wasn't expecting anyone.  He walked to the door, and looked 
through the peephole.  An attractive, auburn-haired woman, late 
twenties.  She looked upset.  Strange... she matched the 
description of one of the suspected kidnappers.  Why would she 
seek him out?
	He opened the door.  "Yes?"
	Be still, my heart, thought Jaci.  "Ch-Chase Devineaux?" 
she said, nervously.  "I-I need your help."
	"Are you aware you're wanted for questioning in 
connection with a kidnapping?" he said.
	Jaci looked at him, in shock.  How can you think I did 
that?  Don't you know me--no, you don't.  This is another 
world.  Literally.
	"I need your help, because I think this is all a 
misunderstanding."  He didn't seem impressed.  Jaci 
sighed.  "It's really a difficult story to believe.  You see, 
I'm from Pennsylvania, and suddenly I ended up at Acme with a 
girl who lives in Waco, Texas."
	"Sit down," he said, softly.  "Let's talk."

Meanwhile, back at Zack and Ivy's house...

	"It sounds like something straight out of a science-
fiction novel," Becky said, as she read over Zack's Report on 
the Possibility of Alternate Realities.  The language was highly 
technical--that had never been Becky's strong point.  And the 
mathmatical calculations... whew!  However, she copied them into 
her notebook, and translated parts of Zack's report into her 
colloquial English.  She'd understood the following:
	1)  If time is altered, the present and future change in 
correspondance to the alteration.  This causes a shift in the 
space-time continuium: what had been, and what now was.  The 
shift could occur in seconds or over a period of hours.
	2)  If the alteration is repaired, the shift repaired 
itself, often by merging.
	3)  The best way she could phrase it was "things can't 
be in one place at twice".  Zack's cited example was of Paul 
Revere's horseshoe traveling to 1770s London, then back to the 
stable on April 18, 1775--where it merged with itself.
	"Ay yi yi...." said Becky, brushing her hair 
back.  "Hopefully Jaci's better at these calculations than I 
am.  Best I can figure is we got caught in some transdimensional 
shift, and only a transdimensional portal can get us back home.  
The answer might be in these calculations or the ones from Sara 
Bellum that he cites.  God only knows."	She turned off the 
computer, put everything in her backpack, and went to the 
window.  Suddenly, she saw two police cruisers!  They'd blocked 
off the street.  She couldn't see any other police units--and 
that was exactly the problem.  She'd heard of situations like 
this as a reporter--usually a SWAT team was on call.
	"I've gotta stall for time!" Becky said out loud.  "I've
got to think of an escape!"  She glanced around the room, and 
finally spied a ventriloquist's dummy...

Chase's house....

	"So, you, this other girl--Becky, was it?"--Jaci nodded--
"and possibly Zack and Ivy were caught in a transdimensional 
portal and sent to each others' worlds?"
	"I know it's hard to believe, but..."
	"Acme's done some experiments in that realm, actually," 
said Chase.  "Some people on staff will want to talk to you in 
person; I'll take you to headquarters.  But let me call to tell 
them I'm coming down."  He went into the kitchen to make a phone 
call.
	Jaci could hear snippits of the conversation.  "Code 
52. ... Harmless. .... Alone...."  She turned to watch the 
news.  Chase came back in.
	"What can you tell me about the project?" Jaci asked.
	"Not much," Chase replied.
	"If transdimensional portals are anything like the C-5 
Corridor, now I know why Zack and Ivy don't like it," said Jaci.
	Chase was stunned.  No one outside the agency knew about 
that!  Maybe she wasn't delusional....  He looked at her, 
confused.  Then he turned back to the news, in an effort to 
think.
	Suddenly, the anchor spoke.  "A routine burglary has 
become a potentially volitile hostage situation.  We go live to 
the scene with Dan Simon."

Meanwhile, outside Zack and Ivy's house...

	"Chet, I'm outside the house now where police have a 
burglar trapped inside with a hostage.  A neighbor spotted 
someone breaking into the house and called police, but somehow 
the burglar saw them coming and took a hostage.  The hostage has 
been described as 'a short, stiff boy', you can see them in the 
window behind me...."  The camera slowly zoomed in.
	Becky stood at the window with the dummy.  "Everything's 
all right," she said, hoping her ventriloquism act could slide--
she'd never been good at it.  "You know the saying--'Of what you 
read in books, believe seventy-five percent.  Of newspapers, 
fifty percent.  And of television news, believe twenty-five 
percent--make that five percent if the anchorman wears a 
blazer."  Dan Simon frowned and looked at his blazer.
	Becky/dummy  continued.  "Did you ever wonder why news 
anchors always look perfect?  Whether it's 3 p.m. or 3 a.m., 
they have perfect hair, are perfectly made up, and their clothes 
are spotless.  Do TV stations just keep them in freeze bags 
until a story breaks?"

Meanwhile, at Chase's house....

	Jaci stared at the screen in horror.  "Oh.... my....."
	"Is something wrong?" asked Chase.  Then he mentally 
slapped himself for asking that stupid of a question.  Her mouth 
was open wide enough to park a mini-van in--of course something 
was wrong.
	"I'm gonna kill her!" Jaci exclaimed.  "She promised she 
wouldn't break in!"
	Chase looked at the TV, and then back at Jaci.  "I take 
you know this woman?"
	"Unfortunately," said Jaci.  "She said not to worry, and 
look!"
	Chase watched as the woman's lips moved slightly while 
the "hostage" spoke.  "I see what you mean," he said.  "This is 
pathetic!  Her lips are moving more than the dummy's!"
	"She said she might break in to find some clues, I told 
her not to and suggested she either give up or find a neighbor 
to help, and she promised she wouldn't break in!  I told her 
it's illegal and it's wrong, and told her no excuses.  She 
raised her right hand and said 'I will not pick the lock on the 
door!'  And after all that, she broke in!"
	Chase looked closely at Jaci.  She wasn't lying.  Maybe 
she wasn't delusional...
	"A very sly individual," he said.  "And desperate.  And 
somewhat trustworthy."
	"What do you mean?" Jaci exclaimed.  "She just lied and 
broke into Zack and Ivy's house!"
	"Which indicates she's desperate to get home--to break 
into a house she knows has excellent security.  Either that or 
she's extremely stupid, and if that were the case she wouldn't 
have been able to break into the house without tripping the 
security system.  The reason I say trustworthy--Jaci, was it?"
	"Yes," she said, nodding.
	"The reason I say trustworthy, Jaci, is she didn't pick 
the lock on the door."
	"I don't understand," she said.
	"She got in through a window--technically she kept her 
word.  She tricked you--which brings us back to 'sly'."
	Jaci groaned.  "I can't believe I fell for that.  She 
told me once that journalists sometimes have to use deceit--and 
I guess by her code of ethics this is one of those times."
	He sighed.  "I think I can trust you now.  They'll take 
her straight to headquarters--we'll meet up with them there and 
talk to her then."

Back at Zack and Ivy's house...

	"Are you being treated well, Chip?" asked a cop.
	"Do what she says, Officer Steve," Becky/dummy said.
	"My name's not Steve," said the officer.
	"My name's not Chip," replied Becky/dummy.
	Suddenly, a window shattered.  Two more shattered a few 
seconds later, and someone kicked a door in.  Four armed SWAT 
team members surrounded Becky, pointing their weapons at her.
	"Heh heh..." said Becky, grinning sheepishly.  She 
sighed in resignation.  "Damn."  She raised her hands, the dummy 
still on her arm.
	"Drop the dummy and lie down on the floor!" yelled one 
of the members.  "You're under arrest!"
	"What made you so sure it was a dummy?" asked Becky, as 
she started to lie down.
	"What didn't?" said the member, sarcastically.  "Your 
lips were moving, for one thing."
	"Some days it just isn't your night," said Becky, 
sighing as they handcuffed her.

Acme Detective Agency, fifteen minutes later...

	The arresting officer shook his head--no file on the 
prisoner.  No name, rank, or serial number--not even a birth 
certificate.  "Why isn't there any record of you?" he asked.
	"I'm not from this world," Becky said.  "See, I was 
surfing the 'Net and suddenly I and another girl got pulled into 
the Acme Detective Agency, and evidentally Zack and Ivy got sent 
to my world.  Transdimensional shift, in other words."  Becky 
looked at the officers--they didn't believe her.
	She tried again.  "Look, I know it sounds strange, but I 
think it's what happened.  I mean, there's a lot of things we 
don't understand.  Things that can't be rationally explained."
	Silence.  Somber looks.  Becky winced.
	Another officer walked in.  "Found a message from 
Devineaux on the two suspects--one of them is delusional."
	"Psych ward, then?"
	"Yeah, Code 52."
	"I'm not crazy!" protested Becky.  "I'm telling you the 
truth!"
	"She's already exhibited irrational behavior--not enough 
in and of itself, but the delusions are enough to get an order."
	"Hey, don't talk about me like I'm not here!" Becky 
protested.  "I know it sounds strange, but that's the only 
explaination that makes sense."
	"St. Mary's?"
	"St. Mary's."
	Becky sighed.  "The end of a perfect day."

Five minutes later...

	Chase slid his card in the scanner.  "Welcome, Detective 
Chase Devineaux," said the computer, as the door opened.  He and 
Jaci trotted down the hall, hoping to get to the interrogation 
room in time.  Chase spotted a security guard and flagged him 
down.  "Where's the kid they picked up at Zack and Ivy's house?"
	"Who's that with you?" asked the guard.
	"A friend," Chase replied.
	"Can't allow her there, then.  You know the policy.  You 
can't take her up there--not with a kidnapping suspect there!"
	"That's just it," said Chase.  "She's not a kidnapper.  
Now where is she?"
	"You just missed her.  They transferred her a few 
minutes ago."
	"Where to?"
	"There was a Code 52 call, that's all I know.  I'm 
sorry."
	"Oh, no," said Chase, shocked.  He walked back outside, 
stunned.  Jaci followed him, concerned.
	"Chase?" she asked.  He turned to her, a mixture of 
shock and frustration on his face.  "What's wrong?" asked Jaci.
	"This is all my fault," he said.
	"No, don't blame yourself," said Jaci.
	"No, Jaci, it really is my fault," he said.  "When you 
first told me about the transdimensional shift, I thought you 
were delusional and called in a code that said there was a psych 
case on the way.  Evidentally they thought Becky was it and 
commited her.  I'm very sorry."
	"Why don't we just go get her out?" Jaci asked.
	"There's several different hospitals she could be in, 
and I can't get that information from the Chief until Monday.  
We're just going to have to wait for two days."
	"Do you think she'll be all right?"
	"She'll be treated well, don't worry about that.  I just 
hope she can hang tight until we get there."

Jaci's house...

	Zack sat on the bed, holding his head in his 
hands.  "There's got to be a way home," he said to 
himself.  "Come on, Zack, think: man, if only I had my notes.  
And where can I find Ivy?"
	Zack logged onto the Internet, and noticed the sites 
Jaci had bookmarked.  One of them was a Forum--the Sandiego 
Manor.  He went there, and read some of the messages.  "It's 
worth a shot," he said to himself.  "Hopefully Ivy will think to 
check the computer and we can find each other."
	Ivy,
	Where are you?  I'm okay.  Somehow I've been beamed into 
the Player's world--I'm somewhere near Philadelphia.  If we get 
together I can explain more--it was a confidential project Chase 
and I served as advisors on.  Sis, this is serious--post a 
message as soon as you can.  We've got to find each other and 
get home.  Take care of yourself.
	Your li'l bro,
	Zack
	He posted the message, and logged out.  All he could do 
was wait.

Becky's apartment....

	Ivy clenched her teeth, and tried to think.  "Damn!" she 
muttered.  "I don't have a clue what to do!  Come on, Ivy, calm 
down.  You're a detective--you can do this.  But it's like 
trying to find a needle in a haystack in a tornado.  Calm down, 
Ivy, if you lose your temper you'll just make things worse.  
Think: what would Zack do?"  She slapped her forehead at the 
obvious answer, and turned on Becky's computer.
	Cyberspace was a vast wasteland.  Zack could've left 
tracks anywhere.  She'd have to do some old-fashioned legwork--
never a problem for her, anyway.  She went to a search engine, 
and typed in "Carmen Sandiego".  A list of sites came up.
	She clicked on one called the "Sandiego Manor".

Chase's house....

	Jaci and Chase sat down at his table, drinking coffee 
and trying to come up with a plan.  "Two days isn't good enough, 
Chase," said Jaci.  "There's got to be a way to get the 
information."
	"I'll call the Chief and we'll all try to come up with 
something," he said.  He tapped his watch.  "Come in, Chief."
	The Chief appeared, a nightcap on his head.  "This 
better be good... woah!  You caught the other kidnapper!"
	"She's innocent," said Chase.  "Remember the project on 
alternate reality Zack and I served as advisors on?"
	"Oh, no..." said the Chief.
	"That's what it looks like," said Chase.  "This is Jaci, 
the other woman is Becky.  We need to know where she is."
	"I don't know," he said.  "I won't see the report until 
Monday."
	"Two days isn't good enough, Chief," said Jaci, grasping 
the corner of his screen.  "We've got to find her!"
	"Well, we can check the transportation log," he 
said.  "That'll have which hospital she's in, but we can't get 
the release paperwork in gear until Monday."
	Jaci sighed.  "I hope she'll be okay."
	"I'll check the database and see if there's anything.  
What's her name again?"
	"Becky Oberg," said Jaci.
	"I'll do an internal check," he said.  "Back after these 
messages!"

In the Acme mainframe...

	Carmen ducked under another line of information, and 
finally saw a blue halo.  She sighed in relief--the heart of the 
computer.
	"If I truly wanted to," Carmen said to herself, "I could 
sabotage the computer.  But that won't help any.  I just want to 
get out of here."
	Carmen ducked under another silver streak, but noticed 
they were getting lower.  She dropped to her stomach and army 
crawled toward the halo.  Silver streaks brushed against her 
hair, but she didn't panic.  Finally, she made it inside the 
blue halo.  She started to program the C-5 Corridor....
	Suddenly, the Chief appeared.  His eyes bulged out of 
his head, and he screamed.  "What are you doing here, Carmen?"
	"Chief, something went wrong.  I was attempting to 
contact you when I got pulled in here."
	"Are Zack and Ivy with you?" he asked, hopefully.
	"They're not with you?" she said.  They looked at each 
other in shock.
	The Chief sighed.  "I was afraid of this.  There are two 
twenty-somethings here, and I was hoping Zack and Ivy had been 
trapped here.  But it looks like they got sent into an alternate 
reality."
	"That's not good," said Carmen.
	"Well, Queen of the Understatement today, aren't we?"
	"No, Chief, listen.  I know about the research you did--
Manny hacked it for me.  We did some more experiments and 
discovered it was extremely dangerous--worse than the 
Chronoskimmer."
	Instantly, the Chief became serious.  "How so?" he said, 
softly.
	"If the blur between the realities isn't fixed rapidly, 
one of two things happens.  One, the blur is destroyed."
	"My God," he said.  "Zack and Ivy... destroyed.  And the 
two women here..."  Carmen saw a look of utter shock on his face 
and didn't say anything else.  He looked at her.  "What's the 
other one?"
	Carmen didn't look at him.  "The realities are 
destroyed."

Meanwhile, at St. Mary's Hospital, psychiatric ward....

	A balding, middle-aged man walked into the room.  "Are 
you Becky?" he asked.  Becky nodded.  "I'm Dr. Keller, one of 
the psychiatrists.  How are you?"
	"Oh, just wonderful," said Becky, her voice dripping 
with sarcasm.
	"I understand you think you're from another dimension, 
and that Acme brought you here?"
	"When can I leave?" Becky asked.
	"Well, Acme signed an order of emergency detention, 
which is valid for twenty-four hours.  That means you have no 
right to leave at this point in time.  Once the order expires, 
you can go unless you're commited or you sign yourself in.  You 
have the right to contact a lawyer if you wish, and the right to 
a competency hearing.  You're being held in the psychiatric ward 
of St. Mary's hospital in..."
	"I know where I am," said Becky, gruffly.  "Look, you 
guys have got the wrong person."
	"Are you from another dimension?"
	"I'm not going to answer that," said Becky.  "I used to 
work as a health reporter and I know what you're trying to 
pull.  You're trying to get probable cause to have me commited.  
Well, forget it, Jack."
	"Why did you break into the detectives' house?"
	"They had information I need to get home."
	"Where's home?"
	"Well, I'm from Indianapolis but I go to college in 
Waco, Texas."
	"Mm-hmm.  And what are the calculations in your 
notebook?"
	"I don't know, but I know that I need them to help me 
get home."
	"Why is it so difficult for you to get to Waco?"
	Becky didn't say anything.  She couldn't.  If she told 
the truth, he'd get a court order for psychiatric services.  But 
there was no credible lie....  Come on, kid, think!
	"Why is it so difficult for you to return to Waco?"
	Media Law and Ethics class.... police reports are public 
information... article... patient has the right to view files...
	"I refuse to answer any more questions until I see the 
order for emergency detention and the police report in 
accordance with my rights under the Freedom of Information Act," 
said Becky.
	"I'll see what I can do," said Dr. Keller, getting up.
	Becky smiled.  That should buy me some time.  I've got 
to think of an escape!
	She got up, and walked around.  No way to open the 
window in my room--and it's too thick to smash.  Whoever 
designed this place took security seriously!
	She walked out to the day area, where staff members 
watched a few other patients.  No one around here is dense 
enough to leave the doors unlocked, she thought.  Man, where's a 
little inefficiency when I need it?  Maybe I could knock out a 
staff member and take the uniform and keys.  Becky looked at the 
staff members--all of them wore badges with photo IDs, and most 
of them were well-built.  And maybe the Pope's a Baptist.  No 
laundry baskets around, so I can't sneak out that way.  Unless I 
can order a pizza and bribe the driver to trade clothes with me 
I'm stuck.  And surely they're not that stupid.  Security here's 
good.
	Becky sat down and sighed.  I'm just gonna have to wait.

Chase's house....

	The Chief appeared.  "Good news and bad news, my inter-
dimensional individuals."
	"You found Becky?" said Jaci, leaning forward.
	Carmen suddenly appeared on the screen with the Chief.  
Jaci and Chase gasped.
	"We don't have much time," said Carmen.  "You're in 
terrible danger."
	"Nothing new to me, Carmen," said Chase, a confident 
smile on his face.
	"What's wrong?" asked Jaci.
	"Your presence here and Zack and Ivy's in your world has 
created a rift in the fabric of reality.  If we don't fix it, 
you or the entire world could be destroyed."
	"Trust her on this," said the Chief.  "We've got to work 
together.  We have about thirty-six hours to get this fixed.  
Step 1: free Becky.  Step 2: find Zack and Ivy.  Step 3: get 
everyone home."
	"Anything on where Becky is?"
	"I heard something about intensive care for delusions.  
Check the transportation log when you get to Acme," said the 
Chief.  "Let's move out!"

Becky's apartment....

	Ivy read Zack's message, and quickly typed her reply.
	Zack,
	I'm in Waco, Texas.  I'm okay.  Trace this computer 
signal and call me--we've got to find a way back to Acme!
	Ivy
	Ivy sighed.  "All I can do is wait," she 
said.  "Unfortunately, patience never came easy for me."

Acme Detective Agency, Carmen's old office...

	The C-5 Corridor opened up, depositing Carmen in her old 
office.  She coughed slightly as her sudden landing stirred up 
the dust.  "So many memories..." she said.
	"Yes, and I'm much happier being here without the ol' 
bod," said the Chief.
	Carmen smiled and chuckled.  "You certainly made a first 
impression."  She sat down at her desk.  "We need a plan."
	"Glad to hear you say that, Carmen," said Chase, as he 
and Jaci walked in.  "Because I need a good old-fashioned Carmen-
esque escape from a psychiatric ward."
	"But first we need to find Zack and Ivy," said 
Carmen.  "There's a slight pulse between the two realities.  We 
need to lock onto it to communicate with Zack and Ivy."
	"Josha and I can rig something up," said Chase.  "Then 
we spring Becky out of St. Mary's."

Jaci's house....

	Zack read Ivy's message, and tried to think of a plan.  
Suddenly, Chase appeared on the screen.  Zack screamed and 
recoiled in surprise.
	"Nice to see you, too," said Chase, grinning.
	"I've found Ivy!" Zack said.  "She's in Waco, Texas."
	"I know," said Chase.  "I'm on-line with her, too."
	Ivy appeared on the computer.  "Hi, little bro."
	"Great to hear your voice, sis," he said.
	"You two need to stay where you are, and stay on the 
computer.  We're working on getting you home.  We just have to 
rescue one of the other women who got transported here in your 
place."
	"What happened?" asked Ivy.
	"She got mistaken for a delusional suspect and taken to 
the psych ward at St. Mary's."
	Zack and Ivy winced.  They'd signed orders for emergency 
detention before--and felt sorry for the detainees, as crazy as 
they were.  But to be there with full control of one's mind....
	"Carmen's going to help us bust her out," said Chase.
	"Wish I could be there," said Zack.  "I'd love to see 
it."

St. Mary's Hospital, psychiatric ward, the next day...

	"Becky?" said the nurse, as she walked into the 
bedroom.  Becky looked at her.  "There's someone here to see 
you."
	Becky sat up, confused.  "That's impossible, I don't 
know anyone here.  But if they say they know me I'll talk to 
them."  The nurse nodded, and turned to the door.  She 
beckoned.  Becky quickly hid her surprise--Chase, Jaci, and 
Carmen Sandiego!  Carmen was dressed in her detective clothes 
and carrying a backpack.  Chase wore khakis and a white muscle 
shirt.  Jaci wore black slacks, a white short-sleeved shirt and 
a red vest.
	The nurse looked at Becky with compassion.  "Do you 
recognize the... how do you say it?"
	"Ah-gee-la," said Carmen.  "The Atsila family."
	"Oh, of course, of course, of course I recognize the 
Atsila family," said Becky.  "I'm so glad to see you guys."  She 
sat down, and the nurse left.
	Becky smiled.  "Atsila, huh?  The Cherokee word 
for 'fire'.  I'm impressed."
	"We're gonna bust you out of here," said Chase.
	"Carmen Sandiego style," said Carmen, with a smile.
	"Sounds good to me," said Becky.  "What's the plan?"
	"Well, if the door's locked, there's always the window," 
said Chase.
	"Careful, Chase, that's what got me in here."
	"No, bad communication got you here," said Jaci.  "See, 
Acme mistook you for a delusional suspect, and..."
	"Well, that's all well and good," said Becky, her voice 
dripping with sarcasm, "But I want to get out of here.  Is that 
clear enough communication?"
	"By the way, Becky," said Jaci, "I have something for 
you."
	"Oh, no...." Becky groaned, recognizing that all-too-
familiar tone.
	"Oh, yes," said Jaci.  "A Doughnut Demerit."
	"A Doughnut Demerit?" asked Chase, confused.
	Jaci looked straight at Becky.  "You lost six doughnuts 
for breaking into Zack and Ivy's house behind my back, and 
another six for the bad ventriloquism act!  You just lost all 
your doughnuts!"
	Becky grinned and chuckled.  "Oh, well, what else is 
new?"
	"What is 'DDS'?" asked Carmen.
	"Doughnut Deficiency Syndrom," Jaci explained.  "It's 
kind of an inside joke.  You see, when Zack said Sara Bellum 
was 'one glazed doughnut short of a dozen'..."
	"Ahem," said Becky.  "Hold that thought--let's get back 
to getting me out of here."
	"Sorry," said Jaci.
	"Stand back," said Chase.  He stuck a suction cup to the 
window, pulled out a pen, and pushed the cap.  A laser beam shot 
out, and he used it to slowly cut the glass.  After a minute, he 
had a hole large enough for Becky to climb out.
	She smiled.  "I like your style, Chase."
	"It's not over yet," he said.  "Do you think you can 
clear the fence?"
	"Yeah, right," she said.  "It's eight feet tall, I'm 
five foot even.  If I could high jump that, I'd be in the 
Olympics!"
	"That's no problem," said Carmen.  She reached into her 
backpack, and handed Becky a pair of shoes.  "Click the heels 
together."
	"And chant 'there's no place like home'?" Becky quipped.
	"No, that'll activate a rocket shoe Sara Bellum 
invented."
	Becky nodded.  "Gives new meaning to the 
term 'hotfoot'.  How will I know when you're ready?"
	"I'll give a whooperwill call," said Chase.
	"I don't know what that sounds like," said Becky.
	"How can you not know?" said Chase.
	"I grew up in Indianapolis.  There ain't too many 
whooperwills around."
	"How about an owl call?"
	"Oh, no," said Becky, holding up her hands.  "In 
Cherokee culture the owl is a sign of death and I'm not having 
an escape begin on that note."
	"Oh, for Pete's sake," said Jaci.  "Why not just a wolf 
howl?"
	"Works for me," said Becky.
	"No problem," said Chase.  "When you hear the wolf 
howl... well, you know what to do.  We'll be waiting with our 
car by the fence."

Five minutes later...

	Chase looked toward the fence, and howled.  Jaci sat on 
the passenger side of the jeep, hoping the escape would go 
well.  Carmen was at the wheel.  The escape needed to be quick 
and quiet.
	Becky heard the howl, and nodded.  She slid through the 
hole in the window.  She crept across the yard to the fence.  
She clicked her heels together, and jumped.
	"Jump" was an understatement.
	Becky somehow swallowed the urge to scream as she flew 
through the air.  It was just as well--she was traveling at such 
velocity that her voice was still on the ground.  She easily 
cleared the fence--by about ten feet.  She tore through the air 
in an awkward parabola, and winced.  This is going to hurt, she 
thought, as she headed for the ground.
	"Oof!" she grunted as she landed.  She staggered 
slightly, and fell to the ground.  Chase and Jaci helped her up.
	"Are you all right?" asked Jaci.
	"To quote Zack:  Yeah.  The ground broke my fall."
	"Let's get out of here," said Chase, as he opened the 
car door.  Becky hobbled into the shotgun seat, and Jaci sat 
next to Chase.  Carmen gunned the engine, and drove off.
	"Out of curiosity," said Becky, "Whose car is this?"
	"It's an Acme unmarked jeep," said Chase.  "Can go from 
0 to 90 in 3 seconds flat, max speed 170, tires can last thirty 
miles after they're punctured, has brakes that can stop a 
politician from lying and can take curves better than a pinch 
hitter.  They can't trace it to an owner and it automatically 
jams homing devices."
	"Yeah, but as long as they keep us in the line of 
sight..." said Becky, gesturing.
	"Damn!" yelled Carmen.  Chase and Jaci looked back, and 
saw a police cruiser's lights flash on.  "We can't outrun him," 
she said.  "We'll have to outmanuver him."
	"He won't be alone," said Becky.  "They used six cops to 
take a friend of mine to the psych ward--who knows how many 
they'll use to get someone back there!"
	"Pull over!" said the officer into a megaphone.  "Pull 
over and come out with your hands up, all of you!"
	"Don't pull over!" yelled Becky, nervous.
	"Calm down," said Carmen, "I don't intend to."
	"We've got to do something!" yelled Jaci.
	Becky opened the tape compartment, and slipped a Bob 
Marley tape into the player.  Instantly, Iron-Lion-Zion started 
playing.  Becky grinned.  "We are.  We're playing chase music."
	"I mean something to escape!" yelled Jaci.
	Becky sang, with a bad Jamaican accent,

	Runnin' like a fugitive!
	Just to save the life I live!
	I'm gonna be iron, like a lion, in Zion!
	I'm gonna be iron, like a lion, in Zion!
	Iron, lion, Zion!
	Iron, lion, Zion!
	Lion!

	Chase grabbed some posterboard and started 
writing.  "Emergency!  Let us go!" he wrote.  "Maybe they'll 
understand this," he said, as he rolled down the window.  He 
stuck the sign out.  Instantly, the cop fired several shots.  
Chase pulled what was left of the sign back into the car.
	"Well, that certainly worked great," said Becky, 
sarcastically.  "We should've brought a V.I.L.E. car."
	"Zack and Ivy taught me something once," said 
Carmen.  "It's not always what you know, but what you can think 
up on the spot."
	"Does this mean you have a plan?" said Jaci.
	Carmen smiled.  "Chase, you said the tires that can run 
for thirty miles after being punctured?"
	"Yeah, why?" he said.  Then he smiled.  "I like it, 
Carmen, I like it," he said.
	"Like what?" asked Jaci.
	Chase pointed slightly ahead.  "See that cactus patch 
behind the cyclone fence?" he asked.
	"What about it?" she said.
	"Use your imagination, Jaci," said Becky.  Carmen rammed 
the fence, and drove through the cactus patch.  They bumped, 
jolted, and bounced through it.
	"Rough ride," said Jaci, after one particularly violent 
bump.
	"I've always wanted to do this!" said Becky, grinning.
	Jaci shook her head.  "You're crazy."
	"Oh, you knew that just from my posts at the Forum," 
Becky replied.
	Carmen rammed another fence and turned onto a road.  
Suddenly, several grinding noises sounded, and the car jerked to 
a halt.  "Uh-oh," said everyone.  They all climbed out to look.
	Carmen had run over a parking meter.  Change was 
scattered everywhere.  Part of the meter had penetrated the heat 
shields, causing the car to overheat and stop.  Chase shook his 
head.
	"You're still too aggressive of a driver, Carmen," he 
said.  "I'll fix it."  He slid under the car.
	Carmen looked at Becky and Jaci.  "I'm sorry," she 
said.  "I took the turn slightly faster than I thought."
	"Everyone makes mistakes," said Jaci.
	"Fifteen minutes?" said Becky, who was kneeling and 
looking at what was left of the meter.  "What in the world can 
you do in San Francisco in  fifteen minutes?"
	"We've got trouble!" said Jaci, pointing at the rapidly 
approaching lights.  "One of them made it!"
	"You can't even get through the express lane at a 
supermarket in fifteen minutes," Becky said.  "Don't worry, we 
can use this as a weapon."
	"No violence," said Jaci, sternly.
	"You really do make things hard," said Becky, barely 
containing her frustration.  "Anyone have any ideas?"
	"Ooh, South Carolina," said Jaci, picking up a 
quarter.  "With a Denver mint.  I've been wondering what these 
looked like!"
	"Jaci!" exclaimed Becky.
	"I've almost got the car fixed!" Chase exclaimed.  "I 
just need thirty more seconds!"
	"I don't think we've got thirty seconds!" Jaci exclaimed.
	"Hell with this!" Becky exclaimed.  She hurled the 
parking meter like a javelin.  It sailed awkwardly through the 
air, and clanged to the street.  The cop car hit it, slashing 
the right front tire.  It spun out of control and into a fire 
hydrant.  The hydrant erupted, spewing water everywhere.  Becky 
smiled.  "Mm-hmm," she said, triumphantly dusting off her hands.
	"How's it look, Chase?" asked Jaci.
	He screamed in response, and slid out from under the 
car.  His face was covered with oil.	Becky winced.  "Woah, 
that ain't good," she said.
	"I can't see!" Chase exclaimed.  "The car's fixed, but I 
can't see!"
	"It'll take two people to treat him," said Carmen.  "I 
have a lot of medical knowledge, so I'll be one.  But I need 
help."
	Becky turned to Jaci.  "Can you drive?"
	"No," said Jaci.  "I'll treat his eyes!  You drive!"
	They leapt in the car, and Jaci started to gently wash 
Chase's face.  Becky's eyes narrowed, and she adjusted the rear 
view mirror.  "Buckle up," she said, determined.  "I'm about to 
make Mario Andretti eat my dust."  With that, she gunned the 
accelerator.  Jaci, Carmen and Chase were flung against the back 
of the back seat by the sudden force.
	"Don't gun it like that!" yelled Jaci.
	"Don't even start," said Becky, taking a turn quickly.  
Jaci blinked--where did this lunatic learn to drive?
	Carmen guided Jaci through the steps of treating his 
eyes and watched for any severe reaction.  Jaci started to dab 
Chase's eyes with a small washcloth from Carmen's first aid 
kit.  Jaci gently cleaned the oil off of his face, and then 
found a water bottle.  She sprayed it into his eyes.  Now all 
they could do was wait.  The water ran down to the seat.
	Chase unclenched his teeth.  The water felt good.  The 
burning slowly left his eyes.  He relaxed as he felt Jaci's 
gentle hand examine his face.  She sprayed more water into his 
eyes.
	"You'll be okay in a few minutes," she said, softly.
	"Thank you," he replied, softly.  He reached up and 
touched her hand.  Her face was slowly coming into focus.
	Carmen smiled and didn't say a word.  Becky 
sarcastically wondered if she should slip a love song into the 
radio.  But then she smiled.  She remembered what it was 
like...  She remembered when she was sick and he came to visit 
her in the hospital and they slow-danced to Iris by the Goo Goo 
Dolls, then the nurses came in to check her vital signs and gave 
her a hard time for breaking the "no public display of 
affection" rule, but she didn't care because she was with him....
	"What the heck," she said to herself.  In a sweet alto 
voice, she began to sing one of her favorite love songs, Fools 
Rush In.

	Wise men say
	Only fools rush in
	But I can't help
	Falling in love with you.

	Chase gently reached up and touched Jaci's 
face.  "You're so beautiful," he said.  They stared into each 
other's eyes, and slowly leaned toward each other.
	Becky fought back a smile.  If I were Ann, she said to 
herself, I'd find some way to ruin the moment and give them a 
hard time in the process--for example, say something 
like "Look!  Mistletoe!"  She smiled.
	But I'm not Ann.

	Chase and Jaci could feel each other's breath on their 
cheeks.  They leaned closer.  As their lips touched, they felt a 
surge of electricity charge through their bodies.  Time seemed 
to freeze.  When they broke away, they just looked into each 
other's eyes.  Then they smiled.
	Suddenly Becky took a sharp right, the force throwing 
them against the back of the seat.  Becky quickly took another 
turn into an alley, and killed the engine.  They waited in 
silence for a minute.  Finally, Becky spoke.
	"We've lost 'em."
	Jaci blinked, and stared at Becky.  "I'd hope so," she 
said, in shock.  "Good grief... Michael Andretti doesn't drive 
that fast!"
	"Everyone's a critic," Becky complained.
	"We need the calculations so we can get you home," said 
Carmen.  "And trust me, we don't have much time.  It's vital we 
get you two home and Zack and Ivy back here."
	"In case you haven't noticed, I've been locked up for 
the past several hours," said Becky, tossing him her notebook.
	"Both Acme and V.I.L.E. have done experiments with the 
possiblity of alternate realities," said Carmen.  "We've found 
it to be more dangerous than time travel."
	"That's bad," said Becky.  "How so?"
	"When a disruption in two realities occurs, it needs to 
be remedied quickly.  The disruption in realities is highly 
volatile.  If it is not remedied, one of two things happens: 
either the disruption is destroyed, or the realities are 
destroyed."
	Becky looked confused.  "Let me make sure I got this 
right--we have to get home, Zack and Ivy have to get here, or 
either we all die or it's the end of the world as we know it?"
	"Exactly," said Carmen.  "Unfortunately, we need to get 
the portal open in both worlds.  We've got one here, but we need 
one there.  It'll take a computer expert."
	Becky smiled.  "I know just the person."

Sara Keating's apartment...

	Sara massaged her forehead in a desperate attempt to 
cure the writer's block that seemed to haunt her lately.  "Come 
on, think," she said to herself.  Suddenly a woman's head 
appeared on her computer screen.  Sara screamed and recoiled.
	"Kallah?" said Becky.  "You know that's similar to the 
Cherokee word for 'winter', which is kala."
	Sara blinked.  "I'm losing it."
	"No, you're not.  It's me, Becky, from the Forum."
	"Where are you?"
	"It's kinda weird," said Becky.  "Jaci and I got beamed 
into the WOEICS world, and Zack and Ivy were transported to our 
world.  We've got to get that fixed or both worlds will be 
destroyed.  Josha's going to open the portal here, but we need a 
computer expert there to open the portal.   Zack can't do it 
because he has to come through the portal.  So that's where you 
come in.  You've got to help us!"
	Sara stared at the computer.  Becky tilted her 
head.  "Did I lose you?"
	"No, it's... just a lot to absorb in thirty seconds," 
said Sara.
	"Chase will read the equations to you.  You've got to 
help us!"
	"Well, I can do it, but I'm going to need some backup," 
said Sara.  "Let me get the other Forumers for this..."
	"Great," said Becky.  "Let me know when you guys are 
ready."
	"No problem," said Sara.  She quickly e-mailed several 
of the other Forumers....

Acme Detective Agency, control room....

	Becky sighed.  "Well," she said, "Now we wait and pray."

Becky's apartment....

	Ivy clenched and relaxed her fists.  Surely it couldn't 
take long.  Surely it would be soon.  She could swear she heard 
thunder off in the distance....

Jaci's house....

	Zack brushed his hair back.  "Come on, guys, hurry..." 
he said to himself.  Lightning flashed, and thunder 
growled.  "Oh, man," he said.  "That's gonna be one bad storm."

Acme Detective Agency, control room....

	Sara looked at Becky.  "I've got Lio, Globie, Seldavia, 
Anie, Laurie, Ann, Kara, Lenore and a bunch of others logged in 
at the coordinates you gave me.  You ready?"
	"We were ready yesterday, Sara," said Becky.  "Hit it."
	"Here goes, well... everything," said Sara.  She hit a 
key.
	"We've got a connection!" said Josha.
 	"Yes!" yelled Becky.  She leapt into the air, jerking 
her fist in triumph as she landed.  She and Jaci high-fived.
	"We're not out of the woods yet," said Jaci.  "We still 
have to get out of here.  The portal's open, but where is it?"
	Chase's watch beeped, and Ivy appeared.  "We're at the 
Golden Gate Bridge!"
	"That means that's where the portal is," said 
Chase.  "We're on our way!  Josha, can you C-5 us there?"
	"Not while the portal is open," he replied.
	"Take an Acme jeep!" said the Chief.
	"Whatever gets us home!" said Becky, leaping into the 
shotgun seat.  Chase leapt into the driver's seat, and Carmen 
and Jaci got in the back seat.  Chase started the engine, and 
drove off into the night.  A fierce storm was brewing.


Ten minutes later....

	Chase stopped the car at the foot of the bridge, and 
everyone leapt out.  Zack and Ivy ran up to the group.  The air 
was violent--thunder roared in rage and lightning flashed ever 
few seconds.  "Glad you made it," said Ivy.
	"Where's the portal?" said Chase.
	Without a word, Zack pointed at one of the bridge's 
towers.  Everyone looked up.  A blue portal hovered just a few 
feet above the tower's peak.  Lightning flashed around it.
	Becky stared at the portal.  "They have got to be 
kidding."
	"It's our only way home," said Jaci.
	"Then there's only one thing to do," said Becky, 
determination in her face.  "Start climbing!"  She attempted to 
shimmy up the post, but slid down three inches for every six she 
climbed.
	"At that rate it'll take all night," said Carmen.  "And 
trust me, we don't have that much time."  She handed Jaci her 
watch.  "Push the knob."
	Jaci did, and a grappling hook shot out.  It latched to 
the tower.  "Cool," she said.  "After you, Becky."
	"See you at the top," said Becky.  She started 
climbing.  Jaci followed, struggling to keep up with Becky's 
quick, monkey-like climbing speed.  "Shame we can't stay," Becky 
yelled over the thunder.  "I'd love matching wits against Ivy 
and Carmen."
	"I'd love staying with Chase," replied 
Jaci.  "Unfortunately some things aren't meant to be."
	"As my father always said," said Becky, "'That's life.'  
But yeah, it's hard, and it hurts sometimes."
	"You climb fast!" yelled Jaci.
	"Guess it compensates for my lack of swimming talent," 
Becky yelled back.  "I swim like a drunken rat.  Don't worry, 
I'll pull you up when I reach the top."
	"I appreciate it," said Jaci.
	Becky pulled heself to the platform at the tower's top, 
and called down to Jaci.  "Are you ready?"
	"Go ahead!" yelled Jaci.  Becky rotated her shoulders, 
preparing to pull Jaci up.
	Suddenly, a small flicker of lightning struck the tower, 
sending a strong current coursing through Becky's body.  She 
screamed in pain, and went limp.
	"No!!!" screamed Jaci.  Time shifted into slow-motion as 
Becky wavered, and then fell forward.
	Please,God, Jaci prayed, Please let me make this catch.  
Jaci bounced off the tower, sailed through the air, and wrapped 
her free arm around the unconscious woman.  She clenched her 
teeth as the force of Becky's sudden stop pulled her down a few 
inches.  Her hand felt like it were on fire.  
	Suddenly she felt a pair of powerful hands on her 
shoulders.  "Let go of the rope and hang on to Becky!" yelled 
Chase.  He'd flown up with his jetpack coat.  Jaci closed her 
eyes, let go, and got a tighter grip on Becky.  Chase flew up, 
and landed on the platform.  They lay Becky down, and Chase 
quickly felt for a pulse.
	"Is she... gone?" asked Jaci.
	"She's alive," said Chase.  "She'll come to in a few 
minutes."
	"We don't have a few minutes!" said Jaci, watching the 
lightning.  "There's got to be a way to wake her up!"
	Chase waved a vial of smelling salt under Becky's nose.  
No response.  He tried again.  Becky stirred, then lay 
still.  "Come on, come on!" said Chase, waving the vial under 
her nose again.  "Wake up!"
	Becky stirred, and sighed.  "Let me sleep in, rats," she 
mumbled.  "I'm tired."
	"Come on, Becky, wake up!" said Jaci.  To her relief, 
Becky opened her eyes and blinked.
	"Auntie Em... Aunite Em... There's no place like 
home...."
	"You were hit by lightning, but Chase and I saved you.  
We've got to hurry!  The storm's getting more and more dangerous 
by the second!"
	Becky slowly got up.  "The signpost is up ahead.  You 
have entered.... The Twilight Zone."
	"Snap out of it!" said Jaci.
	Becky blinked, shook her head, and stretched.  She 
blinked a few times, and started at Jaci and Chase.  "I'm okay 
now.  I've been through worse.  Ready to go, Jaci?"
	Jaci turned "I'll never forget you," she said, taking 
his hands into hers.
	"I'll always remember you," he said.  They gave each 
other a long, passionate kiss.  Becky smiled as they broke away.
	"Come on , Lovergirl," she said.  "We've got to get 
home."  Becky leapt into the portal.  Jaci looked at Chase one 
last time, then followed.


Waco, Texas....

	Becky landed in a pile of dirty clothes.  "Man, I've 
gotta clean this place up," she muttered to herself.  The rats 
leapt onto the sides of their cages and looked at her.  "You 
poor babies haven't eaten yet, have you?"  She opened the food, 
and put some in the cages.  She sighed contendedly and watched 
them eat.  "It's good to be home--and especially out of another 
dimension's psych ward!"

Near Philadelphia....

	Jaci landed on her bed, waited for the shock to fade, 
and looked at her computer.  The portal had closed behind 
her.  "Good night, good night, Parting is such sweet sorrow, so 
I'll say good night until the morrow," she said softly.  So 
close, and yet so far...  Maybe someday things would be 
different.

					The End