Welcome To Quantum Holidays

CHAPTER 7 (PART I): WHO WANTS TO BE A TIME TRAVELER?

"Good evening! I'm Frank Sacramento and welcome to tonight's edition of Who Wants To Be A Time Traveler? The game show where contestants battle it out to win a pair of tickets for a Quantum Holidays trip of a lifetime. Just like Quantum Holidays, we throw our contestants into the past, where their knowledge, skill, and physical ability will all be put to the test. So without further ado, let's meet our contestants!"

Standing on a large state is a man dressed in a sharp, silver suit. He is in his late fifties, but he tries to impress that he is no older than thirty. His hair is dyed jet black and there are rumors it may not all be his own. His face is suspiciously wrinkle-free and it is tanned an impossible brown. As he speaks, he reveals a blinding set of pearly whites.

A large screen rises at the back of the studio. Fifteen contestants all wave enthusiastically. They jump down from a small raised platform and jog forward to the front of the stage to stand. Their names are printed on the front of different colored sports spandex. They stand waiting eagerly for Frank to speak.

"Hi, guys!"

"Hi, Frank!"

"Welcome to the show and thank you for coming down here tonight. Now if you would all like to step into the time machine."

Frank Sacramento gestures to what looks like a giant elevator lift in the middle of the stage. The contestants shuffle into the time machine and stand waiting.

"There we go, thank you. Now, for those of you at home who haven't seen the show before, this is our very own time machine. The contestants are all safely inside and the hatch has been sealed shut. The gorgeous Cassandra will, in a moment, pull the lever. The machine will then randomly transport our contestants to a different place and time, where they will have to go through a challenge to reach the next round. So let's get started. Contestants, are you ready!?"

"Yeah!"

"Okay Cassandra, pull the lever!"

A beautiful woman wearing a false smile stands next to a lever gesturing towards it in awe. She pulls the lever. The entire studio goes dark apart from a large television screen to the right of the machine, which flashes different images with different text at an unreadable speed. The sound of a computer is played over the studio. All of a sudden there is a loud bang and the flashing images stop on the words The Beach. The lights come up and the contestants have disappeared.

"Oh, that's a toughie. Whilst they prepare for the challenge, I'll let Larry tell you folks at home a little about The Beach."

The omnipotent voice of Larry can be heard across the studio.

"Thanks, Frank. Considered by many to be one of the toughest events on the show, The Beach places our contestants on the shores of Omaha during Operation Overlord in 1944. There, our contestants must make their way from their landing boats, up the beach, and over the hill. Standing in their way will be the army of the Third Reich, armed with high powered paintball rifles. Contestants are given smaller paintball pistols with limited ammo to defend themselves. If they are hit by any paint, or if they have not made it over the hill by the time the siren sounds, they are eliminated. It is no surprise that The Beach is renowned for thinning out the pack."

As Larry explains, a video demonstration of the event is played. It pans over the beach and the set. German soldiers are armed and hiding in their turrets and trenches. A contestant is hit by a paintball and is eliminated. The video ends with a long shot of the beach in its entirety and the words The Beach appear across it. After the video finishes, Frank is with Cassandra on the beach itself, a large and elaborate indoor set.

"Thanks, Larry. Well, as you can see Cassandra and I have made it down to Omaha Beach to watch the contest in action. Now, we are both safely over the hill, but if you look down there, you can see our contestants waiting in their landing boats. I think they are ready to go so if you wouldn't mind Cassandra, will you please ring the siren?"

Cassandra smiles at the camera and turns to the siren and presses the button to start the challenge. The landing doors of the boats fall. The contestants emerge carrying their plastic pistols. Three of them are immediately hit. Frank Sacramento gives a running commentary.

"Oh! That's three down already. How very unlucky for them!"

The survivors dart for the cover of the foam tetrahedrons. They are hesitant to advance as the Germans pelt their position with paintballs.

"The contestants are trying to wait for the right moment to move, but they are wasting too much time. That's the problem with The Beach. You can end up wasting precious time waiting for the right moment to go, when in fact, there is no right time, you just have to ride your luck. Be brave, be fearless. C'mon guys!"

Eventually, one contestant in green spandex emerges from behind his tetrahedron and makes a dash for a trench up ahead. He is punished for his cavalier approach, however, and is gunned down instantly. As he falls to the floor in despair and covered in paint, the other contestants use this as a distraction and manage to make it into the trench while shooting blindly at the German position.

"They've made it to the trench. That's good work right there, but they owe a lot to the contestant in green for leading the charge. Without that distraction, I doubt they would have all made it."

Now in the trench, the contestants shoot at the German soldiers, but they are still too far away and the angle is against them. They avoid being hit themselves, as the gunfight begins to drag out.

"The contestants have pitched in here, and the Germans are struggling to get a clear shot at them. However, the contestants cannot forget that they need to get over that hill before the siren goes and they've still got a little way to go yet. They can't afford to get locked into a paintball fight like this."

The firing ceases on the German side and the contestants also relent. After a moment, a solitary round object is tossed in the air by the Germans, landing in the contestant's trench.

"What's this!? The Germans have used a paintball grenade. It's very rare that they resort to this. How will our contestants react?"

Once the contestants recognize the grenade, a flurry of brightly colored spandex emerges from the trench and heads for cover. As they do so, they are fired upon by the German soldiers. A moment later, there is a bang and a cloudburst of colored paint is seen in the trench. A number of the contestants manage to make it to an abandoned jeep, trapped in the sand.

"Oh, my! What a turning point that could prove to be! How many have we got left now? Let's see. There are three contestants emerging from the trench with their hands up and covered head to toe in paint. They do not look happy. There is another three who were hit when they got out of the trench. That leaves us with five contestants. Oh my, they've really taken a beaten today."

The remaining five contestants congregate closely behind the jeep. They appear to be in conference, ignoring the German paintball fire that has begun to descend on the jeep.

"It appears that the contestants have decided to discuss tactics. It's not a bad idea, but they simply don't have the time right now. They've got less than one minute to make it over the hill."

The voice of Larry can be heard, who begins a countdown from thirty. The contestants finish talking and they all begin to grab a part of the defunct vehicle. On the count of three, they push the jeep, and using it as a shield, they march up the beach.

"30..."

"I can't believe what I am seeing here. The contestants are using the jeep as cover. What ingenuity!"

"25..."

The contestants manage to make up a lot of ground with the jeep as the Germans are helpless to stop their progress.

"20..."

"I think they are going to do it!"

Just as the hill is in sight, the jeep collapses in the sand as the contestants gave way under the weight of the vehicle.

"15..."

"Oh no! Just when they were so close as well. C'mon guys!"

One of the contestants, wearing blue, rallies the others to make one last charge. They push it again and continue moving forward with it.

"10..."

"It's going to be a photo finish!"

The German paintball fire intensifies as the contestants draw level with the turrets.

"5..."

The contestants reach the top of the hill and topple over. Exhausted and relieved, they lay on the ground. The siren sounds to end the game, but they are already safely over the hill. Frank Sacramento comes to meet them with Cassandra at his side. The contestants, heaving heavily, rise to their feet obediently.

"Congratulations! You made it! That was fantastic."

Frank Sacramento picks on the contestant in blue and sticks a microphone in his face. The man in blue looks startled for a moment, but he quickly regains his composure. Frank Sacramento steals a glance at the front of his blue spandex to read his name.

"So, Troy, that was pretty tense stuff out there. Was there ever a point you thought you wouldn't make it?"

"Yeah, it was crazy. I thought we were goners for sure when the grenade came over, but we dug deep and we found those final few yards we needed."

"Well played guys, but it's not over yet. Let's head back to the studio and see what the time machine has in store for you next."

The camera cuts back to the studio. Frank Sacramento is stood on the stage.

"What a start to the show! The Beach certainly lived up to its tough reputation, as it leaves us with only five contestants remaining. Before going ahead to the next challenge, let's take a moment to get to know our surviving contestants. Guys, if you would like to introduce yourselves."

The camera pans left and the five contestants are lined up like suspects. First up is a gangly looking young man.

"Hey, my name is Chad Chinaski. I'm a student and I'm from Los Angeles, California."

The camera moves to a bright-eyed, fit-looking woman in her late twenties.

"Hi, I'm Jessica Dalton, and I'm a school teacher from Denver, Colorado."

Next, it is a stern looking dark-haired man in his forties with a goatee beard.

"Evening, my name's Hank Di Baggio. I'm from Brooklyn, New York and I'm a firefighter."

Following Hank is a black woman with short hair in her mid-thirties.

"Hi Y'all, my name is Gabrielle Clarke and I am a receptionist from Baton Rouge, Louisiana."

Finally, there is Troy, who Frank Sacramento spoke to a moment earlier. He is in his mid-twenties with spiked gelled hair.

"Hello, my name is Troy Stevens. I'm from Newark, New Jersey and I'm a fitness instructor."

"Nice to meet you all, and all the best of luck in the next round. I'm sure you will need it. Could I ask you again to all take a place inside the time machine and we will discover where you are headed to next?"

The five contestants step back inside the time machine and again the door is sealed.