6.3  ·  Cleanup Crew

The Waiting Room door slid open, and Quinn sheepishly poked his head in, locking eyes with his double, wearing the aura of Sam. He was sitting on a sofa that he’d managed to make ascend from the floor.

“Hey man, you comfy in here? Sorry to keep you waiting, we just had a crisis to sort out.”

Nexus Quinn was leaning forward, elbows resting on his thighs and hands clasped. He stared daggers at Quinn.

“Why have you brought me here?”

Quinn passed through the doorway, and it slammed shut behind him. “Sorry about all this,” he said. “On the bright side, you’re not in the Kromagg prison now, right?”

“Yeah. I appear to be in some other prison, instead.” Nexus Quinn stood from his seat, crossing his arms. “What’s your game? You somehow switched me out with some kind of secret agent, like what happened with Stephanie?”

Quinn gave him a nod. “Yeah, something like that. But it’s only because you… really screwed up. Hall of Fame kind of screwed up. I mean, I’ve met some screw-up Quinns in my time, but you really take the screw-up cake.”

“Okay, I get the picture!”

Quinn chuckled.

“Just trying to describe the gravity of the situation you’ve caused here. We’re your cleanup crew, so to speak.” He paused, before adding: “Nice to see you again, by the way.”

He held a hand out, and the double didn’t make a move to accept the handshake. Instead, he took a step back.

“We’ve met?”

“Yeah. I’ve run into you more than once, but you’d only remember the first time, I suppose. You chewed out my physics professor, got me fired, and, uh… oh yeah. Kissed my best friend. That made things awkward for a while, so thanks a lot.”

A look of surprise and realisation dawned over Nexus Quinn.

“Wait, that was you?” He squinted, studying Quinn’s face. “Why do you look so…?”

“Old?” Quinn snorted. “Because I’m twenty-nine.”

As he waited for his double to process this information, Quinn took a seat on the sofa, casually crossing a leg over his knee.

“It’s kind of exciting to talk to you when you’re the one who doesn’t know what’s going on. I like it.” He patted the seat beside him. “Come on, have a seat. Let’s talk.”

The Quinn double gingerly took a seat, regarding Quinn with great suspicion.

“So, let’s start with why your reflection looks like that, and go from there.”

*          *          *

Quinn explained as much as he could think to explain. He was certain that if Nexus Quinn would just have the full picture, he’d understand why all of this was happening, and why it was necessary.

After what he guessed to have been several hours, he finally concluded.

“You’ve had whole teams of people dedicating the best years of their lives to undoing your mistake. So the least you could do is accept the help.”

The two sat, wordlessly staring, after this final comment. Nexus Quinn was looking intensely down at his hands, their laced fingers fidgeting as his mind raced. After a minute, he broke the silence.

“Why did this guy replace me after I was already locked up in a cell? What makes you think he’ll be any better at escaping than I might have been?”

Quinn stood, stretching. “He’s been doing this a long time. He’ll find a way.”

“And until then, what, I just gotta hang out in this place and wait?” Nexus Quinn screwed up his face. “Surely you’re enough like me to know I get restless if I’m not doing something.”

Quinn nodded. “I know, I know. That’s why I actually do have a task you can help us with.”

He called up to the ceiling. “Ziggy, could you page Colin for me? Need him in here.”

Ziggy’s voice responded: “Very well, but I’d rather not be treated as a glorified switchboard operator.”

“Aw, I’m sorry, Zigs. At least it’s a change from playing butler to our guest here.”

Nexus Quinn stared at the ceiling. “Who is that you’re talking to?”

“Ziggy is the MVP of this place.” Quinn leaned down toward his double, whispering: “Make nice with her, or she’ll find ways to make your stay here difficult.”

He straightened, noting Nexus Quinn’s worried look.

“That isn’t a threat, mind you. Just a heads up.” He winked. “She might be a computer, but she has feelings. So keep her happy.”

As the seated Quinn puzzled out the idea of a computer with an emotional temperament, the door of the Waiting Room opened to Colin, carrying the Reality Lens. He waved to the two Quinns as the door shut behind him.

“Hey, how’s it going?” he said, regarding Nexus Quinn nervously. “I’m Quinn’s brother, Colin.”

“Huh…” the double looked at Quinn, his eyebrows meeting. “I didn’t know you had a brother.”

He rubbed his chin. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a double of us with a brother. I remember one with a sister, though.”

Colin and Quinn exchanged a glance.

“Well, our family history is a little complex,” said Colin, before holding up the Reality Lens. “Anyway, we need your assistance in fixing this. Needs re-calibration so we can see the real you. Though I’m not sure if it would be weirder to see my brother or my professor when I look at you, honestly.”

Nexus Quinn’s eyes lit up. “Oh, cool! Let me see that thing.”

He stood, reaching for it. Colin pulled it away, and held out his free hand defensively.

“Hey now, hold up! This thing is my baby. Be gentle, okay?”

Nexus Quinn gave him a look. “You think I won’t be delicate with a piece of tech I’ve never seen?”

Colin narrowed his eyes. “You’ve been a dick to just about everyone, including your own wife. I’d be stupid to trust you.”

Nexus Quinn scowled. “All I did was cheat on her. You guys… or who was it? John? Kidnapped her.”

“Oh, is that all you did?” Colin stepped closer, menacing. “I think you’re forgetting you also got her killed. Then again, that’s easy to forget when you also got billions of others killed, right?”

Quinn’s double scowled. “All I did was make a miscalculation. You can’t hang all those deaths on me! They haven’t even happened yet!”

“It’s 2003. They’ve been happening for years.” Colin’s eyes were narrow lines. “You know, the older version of you my brother met actually owned up to his responsibilities.”

Quinn stepped between the two, pushing them apart. “Whoa now, let’s all take a chill pill.”

He turned his head to Colin. “Not helping, bro.”

His gaze shifted to Nexus Quinn. “Look, I’m not here to start shovelling blame onto you for what’s happened. I’ve made some mistakes too, and I know how much it eats me up inside. The older you I met was proof that it’ll do the same to you, if you let it. So let’s just put that aside and work together for now.”

He looked back to his brother. “Let him look at it. I’m sure he wants to see how it works.”

Colin sighed, and handed the Lens to Nexus Quinn. “It’s called a Reality Lens, and its main function is to penetrate a spacetime distortion that alters how something or someone is perceived. Don’t drop it.”

As the leapee began to inspect the device, Quinn gave his brother a pat on the back. “What was that? You don’t usually lose your temper. Thought you were about to smack him one.”

Colin’s mouth straightened to a line. “Sorry. I just couldn’t help thinking about… everything… that was a direct result of his actions. Guess I got carried away.”

He glanced at Nexus Quinn, who was sitting on the couch, still absorbed in studying the Lens. “I think maybe if he didn’t look like Sam, I might’ve actually hit him.”

“Wait. You mean if he looked like me you would have hit him?”

“Exactly.”

Quinn stared a moment at his brother, whose expressionless facade eventually collapsed into a laugh.

“Oh my god, you looked so worried,” he said, grinning.

Quinn shook his head in exasperation. “Who needs to be beaten up when you can hurt me in other ways?”

Colin shot Quinn a triumphant look, and threw an arm around his shoulders. “Come on, let’s get this over with.”