"Blip! Blip! Blip! BLIP BLIP BLIP!!" the timer sounded. Bridger didn't realize that he had only 10 seconds until he had to slide again.

"SON OF A @#&$#!!! WHY NOW!!? DAMNIT!!" Bridger shouted, as he reached for the timer. He looked at it, and then back at the woman. "I'm really very sorry about this... I have to leave."

"I thought men left AFTER..." the woman said.

"Don't try to understand it. I'm sorry." said Bridger. With that, Bridger, who desperately needed a cold shower (if you get my drift), activated the timer, and jumped into the vortex.

On the other side, Bridger landed in a fountain. It was snowing out, and the water was freezing (lucky for him, eh?).

"Of all the..." the saturated Bridger mumbled. He stood up, and took his wet jacket off. He reached for the timer to see if it had been damaged. It hadn't; it showed eight days on this world. Bridger looked around the new world, and then back at his sopping wet clothes.

"Oh you poor thing!" came a voice from the other side of the park, "what happened!?"

Bridger looked up to see the same red-haired woman as before. "Well, um..." Bridger said, trying to think of an excuse. "I was chasing after my dog, and I almost caught him, but I don't guess I was watching where I was going..."

"Ooooh...let me help you. You must be freezing..." said the woman.

"Well, as a matter of fact, I am.."

"Goodness, I don't even know your name!"

"Oh, my name is Nathan Bridger, Captain of the...", he stopped. He probably wasn't captain of the seaQuest on this world. For all he knew, the seaQuest hadn't even been built here. "...well, never mind that. Just call me Nathan."

"Well hello, Nathan. I'm Monica." (Don't get any ideas...I'm not going there.)

"I know..." Bridger said out loud, and then realized what he'd done.

"How? How do you know?"

"Oh, I was just joking." Bridger said, coving up for his idiot mistake. "Say, do you know where any hotels are...I'm kinda new here."

"A hotel!?" Monica said, "I won't hear of it. Why don't you come with me to my place?"

"YEAH!!!" Bridger shouted. "Oh, I mean, I would love that, thank you."

So Monica and our soaked hero jump in a cab, and the two of them retreated back to Monica's appartment. It was a very nice place; it wasn't too big...it looked just like the one on the last world. After they got there, Monica helped Bridger into a dry robe, and treated him to a bowl of warm soup.

"I just hate to see people cold, wet, and miserable outside...especially so close to Christmas," Monica said.

"It's Christmas time!? Already?" Bridger said, as he realized he'd lost track of time during his adventures, "I guess it just sorta snuck up on me."

"It does that to some of us..." Monica said, as she looked at the ground and sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"Christmas sorta snuck up on me too. I work at the mall, and I was supposed to find someone to play Santa for the little kids, but I havn't been able to find anyone..." she said, as she looked at Bridger with her big, brown eyes.

Bridger looked back at her, puzzled at first, and then realized what she was after. "You want me to be Santa, don't you?"

"Would you!?"

"Yes, I love kids. I'd be happy to."

The following day, Bridger stayed true to his word, and went with Monica to the mall. When they arrived there, they went to the little room where the Santa guy was supposed to get ready. There, they heard loud shouting, and things being thrown. Bridger and Monica looked into the room to see a fat man in a Santa suit, and a couple of other mall employees, a white guy, a black guy, and a white girl dressed as elves fighting some of the mall executives.

"But sir, children relate to Santa..." one of the executives pleaded.

"I will do no such thing, you blistering idiot!" the fat man shouted as he turned to the white guy in the elf suit. "How much time?"

"About five minutes and change..." the man said.

"Very good! Thank you very much, SIR, and have a WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS!" the fat man shouted sarcastically.

"I guess that means we get to change back into our clothes now?" The black man said to the girl. The girl smiled and nodded, and the four people in costumes left.

"Great! Now where are we going to find a Santa!?" one of the executives shouted.

"Excuse me, sir," Monica said. "I have someone who will play Santa. Nathan, come in here!"

"Wonderful!" the executive shouted. "You start in thirty minutes, deal?"

"Well...thank you." Bridger said.

Thirty minutes later, Bridger did indeed find himself in a Santa suit, sitting in a big, red, and quite uncomfortable chair, as child after child sat on his lap and told him what they wanted for Christmas. It got boring after a while, until one special child came up with his parents, and sat on his lap. Bridger had never seen the boy before in his life, but he knew exactly who his parents were...Lt. Ben Krieg, and Lt. Cmdr. Katie Hitchcock. On this world, Bridger thought, they must have stayed together and had a child.

"Well, hello young man!"

"Hi, mister."

"Mister? Call me Santa."

"Sorry, mister, but I don't believe in Santa."

"You don't!? And why not?"

"Well, Santa is supposed to know the names of ALL the boys and girls, right?"

"Right.."

"I bet you don't even know my name."

"Hmm...well, I know your last name is Kreig." Bridger said.

"WOW!!" The boy said, as his eyes lit up. How did YOU know!?

"Because I'm Santa."

"Well Santa, if you know my last name..you should know my FIRST name!"

"Uh...well..." Bridger mumbled..

"Oh come on, Santa!!" the boy said.

"Uh...erm...." Bridger said, "Ben Jr.?"

"HOLY SMOKES!!!! MOM!! DAD!! SANTA KNOWS MY NAME!!!" Ben Jr. said, as Bridger sighed with relief, but Bridger wasn't the only one who got relief, for in all of Ben Jr.'s excitement.....he wet himself.

"AAAH!!!" Bridger shouted as he stood up, throwing Ben Jr. off. "He peed on me!!"

Everyone in the mall had a jolly laugh...except Bridger.

<Ballard is attacked by Darwin, and is eaten>

"Ballard good! Ballard add flavor!! MWAAAHAHAHAHA!! Darwin see people next time!"