Hm...? Oh yeah! This is a crossover - Quantum Leap and F/X: The Series.
 
 

March 8th, 1997, 13:21, Manhattan, New York, United States.

Sam Beckett closed his eyes waiting for the residual effects of his latest leap to fade away. For just one instant, he remembered what had happened before he leapt again, a vague memory of a too dignified man who's carefully quaffed gray hair and dignified manner screamed televangelist. Something about an alienated son, a heart attack months later and the son being destroyed by the guilt. Happily, it had been another successful leap with the man turning to his wife for help, after his son refused to join him, instead of him continuing to try and do it all himself. Then it faded into the background of his Swiss-cheesed memory. Oh well, he should be used to it by now, he thought. Besides, this was a new leap, a new problem and whatever the last leap had been, it was a whole new ball game. Hoping he was alone and would have time to orient himself to his new body and persona, he opened his eyes slowly. He blinked at the face in the bathroom mirror, that of a short, athletic, pretty blonde with blue-grey eyes. "Oh boy," he muttered as he realized he was in yet another female body. He hated the leaps where he was a woman, mostly because he hated heels, skirts and/or dresses and the way Al Calavicci always leered at him. Al was not suppose to leer at him! He didn't like when he did it with women and he liked it even less when it was him. After all, Admiral Al Calavicci should know better! He was his best friend, his confidant and his observer. Al, of all people, should know he was Sam Beckett, not whichever woman he now looked like. Okay, to be fair, what he really hated about being a woman was that he was uncomfortable with a man getting intimate with him, er, her. He didn't like going to bed with the wife of a man, if he happened to be in a married man, or their girlfriend or whatever. He liked it even less when he was the wife/girlfriend/whatever. Maybe this woman was single and between relationships! He didn't hold much hope of that because she was very pretty and very fit, but maybe whatever power controlled his seemingly random leaping would take pity on him this time. ... Maybe.

He gave himself a shake and took a deep breath. Taking in the clothes covering his (her) lithe body, he smiled slightly. Well, at least she was dressed comfortably enough in jeans, T-shirt and sneakers. He saw a black ball cap sitting on a hamper and picked it up. Snugging it down on the crop of blonde hair that ended at his (her) jaw line, he knew it was hers as it fit perfectly. He adjusted it slightly for effect and checked his pockets, coming up empty on ID. Great and she (he) didn't have a purse with her (him). He sighed, breathed a short prayer for a rapid appearance by Al and opened the bathroom door.

"Hey Angie! Where's the extension for the parabolic?"

"Oh boy," he muttered. She wasn't alone. Maybe this wasn't a husband --glancing at his (her) hands, confirming the absence of rings-- or a boyfriend. Maybe he, whoever he was, was a friend or a co-worker or her boss or something. He wondered if he was Angie or if someone else was here too.

"Ange," a tall, lean man with wavy brown hair appeared at the top of the metal staircase. "Look, I know you don't like it when I help Leo out, but I promise I am not going to do anything dangerous. I'm just going to monitor him and Frank. That's all. Okay, sweetie?"

"Uh... Okay." Sam frowned inside. Brilliant response, he thought to himself scathingly. Even more than being a woman, he hated leaping blind. Who was this guy and who were Leo and Frank? Why would it be dangerous and why was he monitoring them? Did this have anything to do with why Sam had leapt into Angie whoever? And where was Al?!? He gave himself a mental shake. He wasn't new to leaping anymore. He knew what he was doing now, sort of. He was here for a reason, to set right what once went wrong. He could do this. After all, he possessed multiple doctorates (even if he didn't remember all of them), had invented the quantum leap process of time travel in the leaper's lifetime using string theory. Okay, the process was buggy and out of their control, but it didn't obviate his intelligence. Sam started to analyze the little information he had. His (her) name was Angie. The guy who was facing him was not American. Sam thought the accent sounded faintly British. No, that wasn't right, it was... Australian! Pleased by his recognition, Sam looked up and wondered where he had gone.

The man had moved on after Sam's agreement or whatever he thought it was. He was now pulling things out of a closet. Sam drifted over, curious about some of the oddities that were coming out of the large closet. A glance showed that this was a man's closet and there wasn't any signs that Angie lived here. He breathed a faint thank you to the Powers That Be. There wasn't any signs that they were romantically involved. A picture on the bedside table caught the corner of Sam's eye. It showed the Australian and Angie. The man's arm was wrapped companionably around the woman's shoulder. Her arms were crossed over her chest. Both of them looked as pleased as cats who had eaten the canary, then gotten into the cream. They didn't look like lovers though. It reminded him of a picture he had on his desk at Project Starbright, one of Al and himself, taken after they had successfully solved a particularly daunting obstacle in the pursuit of Sam's dream of time travel. Best friends who had just conquered the world or, at least, their corner of it.

"Bloody hell, where is it?" The man strode over to the railing. "Bluey! Where's the parabolic extension?"

Well, apparently he'd taken Sam's (Angie's) non-answer as a sign that he (she) didn't know where it was, whatever a parabolic extension was. A sharp bark answered the man who shook his head and disappeared down the stairs. Sam strolled over and froze, gaping at the sight of the ground floor. He wondered distantly if he'd misheard and his name was really Alice or if he hadn't wandered on to the set of the latest Star Trek movie. Or would that be Star Wars? There was an amazingly varied amount of... What were those things? Movies... Science fiction movies. Horror movies. Movie props! The man appeared to live in a movie studio. That or he was the ultimate movie fan with way too much money and time on his hands! Sam's mouth dropped as a small insect-like robot trundled into view. Another bark sounded as it turned its head to look at the man who was now searching a set of shelves. He felt himself start to drool with the desire to examine the little robot which seemed incredibly life-like in those few movements.

"Sam!"

Sam jumped slightly, startled by Al's arrival, even though it had been what he had been hoping for desperately. "Al," he hissed and stepped back from the stairs. "Where have you been?"

"It took us a little while to identify where you'd gone. Angie Ramirez is very beautiful, very stubborn and wasn't inclined to cooperate at first." Al gave a soft wolf whistle as he took in the lovely curves of Sam's new body. Oh yeah! She was beautiful!

"Angie? Okay, I'm Angie Ramirez," at Al's nod, Sam pointed to the man walking across the bottom level toward a black truck. A truck in his home or movie studio? Who was this guy?!? "Who's that? All I know is he's Australian."

Al punched some buttons on a rectangular object. Some colorful lights flickered, then dimmed. He whacked it on the side. "His name is Rollie Tyler. Hey cool! He does special effects."

"Well, that explains the decor," Sam answered drily. "So, why am I here?"

"Um, we're still trying to figure that out. Ziggy's been babbling about something that's suppose to happen nine months from now." He shook the control in his hand, then growled into it. "I don't care! It's March, not December so get that out of your head." His words trailed off into a mutter about a stubborn bucket of circuits and how he could disassemble her if he wanted and, oh, how he wanted!

"What happens in December?" Sam asked curiously as he peeked surreptitiously over the railing to check on Rollie's location. Finding him still distracted by his search, he returned his attention to Al.

Al growled and pulled out a cigar from the pocket of his metallic blue jacket with orange zig zags. "Something that apparently causes Tyler to leave a year later. He goes off into the outback of Queensland and never comes back."

"What happens to Angie?"

"Oh, she does real good. She marries some guy with a new dot com company. With her help, it becomes a huge success. They make a couple of billion."

Sam almost choked at that. "Did you say a couple of billion?"

"Yeah, great isn't it?" Al grinned. Ziggy started squawking loudly.

Sam wanted to cover his ears at the discordant noise. Good thing no one else could see or hear Al and Ziggy! Just then a dog's howl started and he winced. He looked down at the ground floor. The little robot was in the middle of a lounge area sitting at an angle and howling at the stairs. Surely it couldn't hear Ziggy! Could it?

"Bluey? What's wrong, boy? Blue?" Rollie came running and picked up the robot. He seemed to be petting it and trying to soothe it just like it was a real dog.

"Al! Shut Ziggy up! NOW!!!" Sam managed to put a roar in his hissed words.

"I'm trying!" Al whacked the side of the control again.

"Ziggy! Quiet! You'll give us away," Sam's sternly whispered order brought the screeches to a halt. As silence settled on the upper level, the howls below faded to whimpering, then quiet.

"Good boy. That's my good boy. What brought that on? Maybe I better leave you home, Bluey."

A bark sounded, the tone seemed to protest his master's last statement.

"Blue, it won't help us if you have a fit like that again while we're working. Leo will be undercover. We can't let those goons know we're there."

A whimper sounded, then another bark.

"Well, you would be a big help. I'll think about it. I would feel better if I knew what set you off though."

Sam blinked and added another element to the short list of who and what could see and hear the holographic projections besides him. "No more loud noises, Ziggy. Got it?"

A somehow sheepish beep sounded from the unit in Al's hand.

The scientist sighed in relief. He hadn't liked the noise anymore than Blue did. "So Ziggy thinks I should stop what's happening in December? I think I'm a wee bit early for that."

"Yeah, she does." Al chewed thoughtfully on his unlit cigar. He wasn't allowed to smoke in the projection chamber, but how he wanted to bend that rule sometimes. This was one of those times.

"Rollie mentioned something about monitoring Leo and Frank. He promised me that he wouldn't do anything dangerous." Sam offered the tidbit, hoping it would jog something else out.

"Leo?" Al punched the name into his handheld connection to Ziggy, the artificial intelligence Sam had built to maintain the leaps and allow his contact with Sam. The unit beeped again and chugged out something, quietly this time. "This is interesting. According to this, Leo lies today." He tilted the handheld, trying to read the display. "No, he DIES today!"

"What? How?" Sam was suddenly as eager as a hunting dog on the scent. This was it! The reason for his presence!

"An explosion in a warehouse. Hey, get this. Leo McCarthy is a cop. IA says he was dirty, apparently he was selling weapons from evidence when the explosion happened. They say something went wrong while he was making a deal set up by him and his partner, Francis Gatti. Except Rollie clears them and all charges are dropped. Leo is buried with honors."

"That's it! That has to be why I'm here."

"Sounds good. So... Hmm... Apparently Angie wasn't with them when it happened."

"She will be this time." Determined, Sam walked down the stairs. "Rollie?"

Al seemed to blink out of existence, then appeared on the ground floor. He did a double take as he finally got a good look at Rollie Tyler. "What the?!? Ziggy, what's he doing here? What is this, a two for one leap? ... What do you mean it's not him? He looks just like him. ... Ziggy, that doesn't just happen. There has to be a reason." He made a rude noise. "All right, I'll take your word for it, but it sure is weird!"

Sam forced himself to ignore Al's babbling and just accept the evidence of more holes in his memory. He focused on Rollie.

"Yeah, Ange?"  The Aussie special effects man turned to look at his assistant and best friend. Bluey, still in his hands, growled softly. "Blue? Quiet, Bluey. It's only Angie. You know Angie. What's gotten into you?" The man looked totally baffled by his pet's puzzling behavior.

"Rollie," Sam took a deep breath, "I want to come with you today."

"What?" Rollie looked up from his examination of the robot, startled. His puzzlement grew. "You hate it when I 'play Batman'. What changed your mind?"

"I don't know," Sam searched anxiously for a reason. He looked at Al who shrugged helplessly, then pointed tentatively at the robot. "Just a feeling. Besides, Blue is acting strange. Maybe I should, er, help instead."

Blue yelped in protest and growled again, this time at Al.

Not seeing anything where Blue was looking, Rollie sighed unhappily. "Maybe you're right. I think I need to give him a complete diagnostic and maintenance. He sure is acting weird." He delicately flipped a tiny switch cutting Blue off in mid-growl. "You really don't mind?"

"No," Sam answered hastily, then collected himself and continued more calmly. "No, I don't mind."

Rollie glanced at his watch. "Well, grab your coat. We need to go. I'm suppose to pick Leo and Frankie up in fifteen minutes."

Sam froze, then following Al's frantic gestures, spotted the jacket draped over the back of the couch. He grabbed it and scrambled after Rollie, climbing into the truck. His eyes widened at the equipment in the back. He moved slowly to sit in front of a computer station. "So, what's the plan?"

"Leo says someone is selling things out of evidence at the precinct, weapons, explosives and stuff like that, but he hasn't been able to find out who." Rollie answered absently as he backed the big truck out the doors he had opened with a punched button. "You know he took some vacation time, right?" His attention flicked to the blonde.

Sam nodded, a bit hesitant since he didn't know how much Rollie had already discussed with Angie.

"Well, he managed to set up a meeting with the guys he thinks has been receiving them. We are suppose to monitor and tape it."

"What about back up?"

"That's what Frank's for. I just hope Leo doesn't need it." Rollie looked pensive for a moment as he pointed the truck toward the street and turned to join the flow of traffic, a slight shiver running up his lean frame. "If it goes as planned, Leo will check the goods, verify they have weapons from evidence and set up a buy. He'll go to Van Duran with our tapes and then it will be their game. And we will go back to getting ready for our next movie. Promise!" He threw a boyish smile at the pretty blonde.

"Sounds good. So how do we set up the surveillance?"

"I'll wire Leo and Frank. Originally, I was going to send Blue to monitor the back of the warehouse, but since he's out of commission and you volunteered to help, I'll do it instead. You can have my job, running the surveillance from the truck."

"Rollie, that sounds dangerous," Sam stared anxiously at Al. He didn't want the young man to get himself killed. According to Ziggy, Rollie Tyler would disappear late next year. Disappeared didn't necessarily mean dead. He didn't want to exchange one life for another.

"No worries, sweetie, I'll keep my head down."

Al was punching buttons and looked up helplessly at Sam. "Ziggy says that there is a sixty-three point seven percent chance that both Leo and Rollie will die in the explosion. Francis Gatti is shot and killed while in the hospital. No one is ever arrested and the case is closed with them marked as guilty. Angie and Gatti's wife try to protest, but it doesn't go anywhere. Angie eventually goes to work for a computer firm in Minneapolis. She lives out her life alone and dies a bitter, cynical woman. Gatti's wife moves in with her family and struggles to make ends meet, raising their daughters. One is picked up driving under the influence at age sixteen. She commits suicide while in rehab."

Sam swung toward the computer monitor and whispered urgently, hoping Rollie wouldn't hear him. "We're making things worse, not better, Al! We have to stop it!"

"Yeah, I'll see if we can't find out more details, like when the explosion happens, what they use and how they do it. Hang in there, Sam, I'll be back!" Calavicci punched a button, then disappeared through a door of blinding light.

"Hurry, Al, hurry. I have a bad feeling about this," Sam whispered softly.

"Sweetie? Are you talking to yourself?" Rollie looked back, his brown eyes bewildered. First Bluey was acting funny and now Angie was. Why? Maybe there was something in the loft. He'd have to search it thoroughly later. At least he didn't feel odd... He thought he didn't feel odd. Did you notice if you were acting weird or would it seem perfectly normal to you? He worried at it for a moment. Oh well, Leo would notice if he was odd. ... Wouldn't he? Of course, Leo always claimed he was odd, but surely he would notice if he suddenly got odder. Right? Rollie gave himself a shake. First things first. He'd tackle this new mystery after Leo's deal was over and done.

"Uh, no, just checking the equipment," Sam answered hastily and then wondered if he knew how to do that.

"Good idea," Rollie's attention returned fully to his driving, leaving Angie to do some of what she did best.

Sam looked up as the truck pulled to a stop. Two men climbed in. He looked at them curiously. One was short with dark hair and eyes. He seemed to be about the same age as Rollie. The other one was taller than the first one, but shorter than the Australian. He had light brown, curly hair laced with gray. His movements were brisk and he was acting tense, like an athlete who was about to be put into the game to make a crucial play.

"Hey, hey, pal, ready for some action?" The second man said, then paused as he caught sight of Sam. "Oops, hey Angie." He glanced at Rollie, questions in his eyes.

"Hey Leo, Frankie! We're all set. Right, Ange?"

"Right Rollie," Sam answered, all the while wishing Al would get back with some answers. Glancing back at the computer setup, he wished for someone who knew how to handle the more esoteric functions. He thought he was a mean hand with a computer, but this system wasn't set up like anything he could recall.

Leo clapped his hands together, still looking at the blonde a bit uncertainly. "Well then, lets get this show on the road."

"Yes sir!" Rollie sketched a vague salute. He hopped up and grabbed some odds and ends, fitting Leo with a small microphone and a tiny, virtually invisible ear piece. "Give it a trial run, Angie." He looked over at Sam who suddenly felt like he had run out of time.

Sam took a guess and touched the mike icon. He looked around and spotted the small ear/microphone combination headset. He put it on, praying he was doing all right. He sneaked a glance at the others and was relieved that they were focused on fitting Frank up with a similar headset and a tiny power pack. "Testing," Sam mumured quietly into the microphone.

Leo straightened up and answered softly. "I hear you, Angie. How's the pickup off the mike? We really need to get these guys on tape."

"Sounds good, Leo, but let me run a test recording. You, uh, keep talking." Sam stared at the icons on the screen, then tapped one that looked like a tape recorder. He just hoped that it was the right one. Another window opened, looking like stereo or VCR controls. With a prayer, he tapped the button with the record symbol on it.

"Gotcha. Hey Rollie, you about done with Frank? We need to get in place soon."

"Almost there, Leo. I need to replace this battery. The charge is low. Don't want it to give out while you're under the gun, mate."

"No, we don't, Rol. Where's Blue? I thought you were going to use him to patrol the other side of the warehouse?"

"Bluey's under the weather so Angie volunteered to help."

"Angie? Are you feeling okay?" Leo looked over at Sam, confused, but glad. The last time he had checked Angie had been mad at Rollie about the whole thing. Rollie, not him. Leo never understood that. He thought she would be maddest at him for talking Rollie into it, not at Rollie for being, well, Rollie. Then she had indicated, very firmly, she didn't want to know. Apparently, she'd had a change of heart or maybe she couldn't bear the thought of Rollie getting into one of his schemes alone.

For a second, the time traveler almost panicked. Then he noticed the twinkle in the older man's eye.

"Ha ha, Leo. Better be nice to me." Sam answered teasingly, hoping it was in character for Angie.

The cop gave a very slight bow in her (his) direction. "I stand corrected." He smiled wryly. "Seriously, Ange, thanks for stepping in. This is important."

"No worries," Sam responded, using the expression Rollie had used on him earlier. They seemed close enough that Angie would have picked up some of the Australian's speech patterns.

"How's the recording, Ange?" The Aussie bounced to his feet and joined her, punching the stop and playback buttons.

Sam sent out a silent word of thanks as the sounds of their recent conversation played back perfectly.

"Sounding good, Leo. I'll just dig out another head set for me."

"What about the video recording?"

"This," Rollie plucked something small from a box on the shelf beside him, "will handle that nicely." The special effects expert attached it to his friend's coat. He fidgeted with it for a second, then reached over and tapped another icon on the computer monitor.

This, Sam noted with interest looked like a lapel button. They watched as a clear picture filled a small window on the left of the screen. The resolution was as good as anything he'd ever seen and that technology was several years ahead of this. Rollie certainly had first class equipment. He wondered where he got it. Remembering the little robot, he wondered if Rollie didn't design a lot of it himself. He itched to ask Al about it.

Rollie grabbed another headset and put it on. Giving a thumbs up, he got back in the driver's seat. Too soon for Sam's peace of mind, they were parked again and he was watching the men head out. They moved cautiously, not wanting their targets to know that anyone was there except Leo. Sam sighed softly and listened to the soft words from Frank and Rollie as they reached their positions.

As soon as Leo knew they were in place, he walked boldly up to a door beside a pair of double doors. He knocked and was soon inside. His words were brisk and business like with a tough edge that seemed to impress the sellers.

"Come on, Al! Where are you? It's going down and I don't know what to do," Sam muttered almost soundlessly as he listened and watched anxiously.

"Angie," Rollie's whisper directed at him (her), startled Sam so much he jumped.

"Yeah Rollie?" Sam sat poised on the edge of his seat.

"Someone's on the roof. Can you pick up what they're saying?" Rollie pointed his PDA toward the man and waited. He hoped they hadn't spotted him or Frank or noticed the truck that Leo had come from.

Sam fidgeted with the controls on the computer screen, trying to bring the conversation to an understandable level. Who were these guys? "There are two of them Rollie. I'm not sure what they're saying."

"I'll try to boost the gain." He touched a couple of icons and directed the PDA back at the men.

Sam gasped as the words came into focus.

Al appeared out of thin air and bright light. "Sam! They detonate the bomb with a ..."

"There's a bomb, Rollie! They have a remote control and are going to detonate it."

"... remote control! That's right! How did you know that?" Al looked puzzled.

"Leo! Frank! Get out of there! There's a bomb!" His eyes wide, Rollie passed the urgent message along to his friends.

"A bomb?" Leo spoke the words aloud and watched the sellers panic. They scattered even as he began running for the nearest exit. He didn't know how Rollie knew, but he had no doubts that his friend was right. He yanked the door open and ran for a pile of crates, two of his suspects following on his heels.

"A bomb?" Francis asked, bewildered. "Leo! Is Leo out?" He ran for the nearest doors, worried about his partner.

"Frank! Get out of there!" Rollie ran around the corner and leapt for the detective. His body slammed into Frank's just as a loud explosion ripped through the air. Debris flew everywhere. Doors and windows shattered.

"ROLLIE! LEO! FRANK!" Sam screamed, terrified that their interference had killed all three men. His eyes full of anguish met Al's, seeking answers.

Al shrugged helplessly. "Ziggy! Gooshie! What's happened?"

"Ow," Leo said as he sat up, rubbing the back of his head. "Well so much for that deal," he finished, ruefully. Seeing two of his suspects sitting there stunned, he decided he might as well make sure they didn't go anywhere. "Sorry fellas, but you're under arrest." He pulled his hancuffs from under his suit coat and cuffed the suspects together, making certain the chain was around a fence pole so they couldn't run off. "Angie? Rollie? Francis?" He turned to look for his friends and gaped at the damaged warehouse, taking in the dark smoke pouring out of every window and doorway. "Whoa. Angie? Where are Rollie and Frank?"

"I don't know! They haven't answered!" Sam responded. Unable to just sit there, he jumped out of the truck and ran toward the smoking ruins. Distantly the sound of sirens could be heard.

Sam and Leo turned corners and both spotted Rollie and Frank sprawled on the ground.

"Damn! Rollie?!? Frank?!?" Leo called anxiously, running to them.

Rollie groaned and shifted off of Frank, holding his right arm gingerly. "Bloody hell," he muttered softly. "Frank, you okay, mate?"

Francis gasped and sat up a bit. He stared at the destruction in amazement. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay! Thanks, Rollie."

"No worries, mate."

"No worries? What's wrong with your arm, Rollie?" Sam asked anxiously as he looked the Australian over.

"Um, well, I think I broke it. Sorry, luv." The Aussie looked sheepishly up at the concerned blonde. Bloody hell.

"Broke?" Francis turned to look at his friend. "Damn! I'm sorry, Rollie!"

"Not your fault," Rollie sighed. "Somebody help me up." He looked at Angie and Leo, waiting.

"Maybe you better wait for the medics," Leo offered.

"Nah, Angie can take me to the doctor's. It'll be all right, Leo," Rollie pronounced confidently as Sam gingerly helped him climb to his feet.

The leaper was more than a little uncertain about the wisdom of the move, but had recognized something of the stubborn glint in the special effects expert's eye. He looked anxiously at Al. Was that it? Had they succeeded? Was he about to leap again?

Al punched a few buttons and smiled. "Well, well. That did it, Sam! Leo's suspects don't want to go under alone so they squeal big time. They arrest the mole at the precinct moving the goods from evidence as well as a couple of major players in the mob."

"If you're sure, Rollie," Leo looked over his battered friend.

"I'm sure. Go on, I know you have work to do."

"Yeah, I got us a couple of pigeons around the corner, Francis." He led his partner in that direction. "You okay?"

Sam helped Rollie across the street and to sit down on the back step of the black van.

"Get the gear from Leo and Frank, Ange," Rollie prompted her (him).

"Okay," Sam took advantage of the trip back to ask a couple of questions of Al. "Does Rollie still disappear? Does Angie marry and make a couple of billion?" He didn't know why he hadn't leapt yet, but while he was here, he was going to satisfy his curiosity, even if he probably wouldn't remember.

"Nope," Al smiled, "Rollie sticks around."

Sam paused, "What happens in December?"

"Some scumbag named Vic-Vic-tor Poubar," Al whacked the unit in the side, "no, Loubar tries to kidnap Rollie. According to the news reports, Angie was meeting him to do some Christmas shopping. Get this! They were suppose to be looking for a present for Leo! She sure fooled me. I didn't think she liked him that much. Anyway, she saw Loubar attacking Rollie and hit him over the head with a trash can lid. Apparently he injected something into Rollie and they couldn't wake him up. Leo, Frank and Angie trace Loubar's movements, manage to find the antidote for Rollie, a small arsenal and a computer.  Somehow they disarm the bomb he had attached to the alarm system. Angie hacks the computer later and finds a lot of answers for the police, FBI and Interpol. Evidence of hits and thefts, backers, employers, buyers, the works. They shut down a lot of operations with it. Oh hey! Remember those mysterious deaths where your buddy, Jackson, worked?"

Sam rolled his eyes. "Vaguely."

"They don't happen. Neither does the explosion at the Millennium Celebration in Sydney. Apparently Loubar was behind them. And the assassination of ..."

"What about Angie? You know, married, billions?" Sam asked as he walked toward Leo and Frank.

"Doesn't happen," Al cackled gleefully. "She marries Rollie and they have a bunch of kids. Tyler FX continues on, making B and lower level movies, until one of them becomes a sleeper hit of the summer. After that, they have more offers than they can accept and graduate to the big time. They even win eight..." Al sighed in mild disappointment as Sam disappeared in a crackling halo of blue and white light, "Oscars." He shook his head, grinned, took one last, appreciative glance at the beautiful blonde, then vanished through his own doorway of white light.