“Virtual Slide” is episode four of season four of Sliders.
The Sliders are running away through a jungle from some people who, by the sounds of it, want to eat them. They slide out and into a street with partly-constructed buildings. Rembrandt wonders if it’s a war zone but Maggie says the buildings aren’t battle damaged. She thinks it’s a demolition zone. Then something explodes, hurling her away. She briefly comes around as what look like orderlies are strapping her to a bed and putting something over her eyes.
Maggie is asleep on a couch as the other two are waiting outside the headquarters of the Kromagg-Earth Unified Operations Command. They are finally met by a man who introduces himself as Brigadier-General Randall Simmons as Maggie wakes. The general is asked where they are; the thought they knew. Home. Earth Prime. Yes, it was overrun by Kromaggs but three months ago they managed to turn the Kromaggs’ technology against them and two weeks ago celebrated victory over the Kromaggs.
The general escorts them to his office and says that 90% of the planet is under human control; they just happened to slide into a pocket of resistance. The Kromaggs are on the run on over two dozen worlds. Maggie wonders what’s going on and is told she’s had memory lapses since the attack; it happens from certain Kromagg weapons but she’ll recover. The general offers Maggie flight duty and Rembrandt a naval commission. Maggie, however, starts picking holes in his story; he’s too light on brass to be running an operation of this magnitude and Marine officers don’t hand out naval commissions. And that was a demolition site. Simmons flickers and Quinn and Rembrandt freeze. Maggie assumes they’re Kromaggs.
Maggie is in bed with a visor on her face which is removed. Simmons, not in a uniform, welcomes her back to reality. She’s been in virtual reality recovery; he’s Randall Simmons, her caseworker. The short version is she was buried alive at a demolition site. Her friends are in VR recovery too, but Maggie seems to have an aversion; Simmons has never seen anyone outsmart VR recovery before. She and her friends are a mystery; it’s as if they just materialised here. And she had this, handing over the timer.
Maggie wants to see the other two. When they are brought out of VR, she shows them the timer. It’s counting up. They missed the sliding window. They are stuck for 29 years. Quinn isn’t ready to accept that; they missed the sliding window in “Slide Like an Egyptian” but found another timer. This world lacks the technology, but Quinn might be able to build another sliding machine. He’ll be working from memory, though, and needs Maggie’s help, given her husband’s work. Anything she remembers would be helpful. Rembrandt suggests Simmons might help; they decide to tell him who they are and where they’re from but no more.
In the street, everyone is wearing VR headsets. Simmons explains they’re used for recreation, education and entertainment. You can do one task whilst perceiving another. He has set up the lab they asked for and got them models of the latest VR headsets. There are safety tips and they can be habit forming. Once Simmons has gone, Maggie says she doesn’t trust him. Nor does Quinn, but they have no choice. Unfortunately, Quinn can’t remember what he needs to build a sliding machine.
Simmons enters an office where a woman is waiting for him. She tells him that this will be quite a coup for the company. But why not focus on Quinn? Simmons says they need Maggie to bring the others around. The woman tells him Maggie doesn’t trust Simmons. Rightfully so it seems.
Quinn wants anything Maggie can remember to help jog his memory. She mentions Tesla, then there’s a tune her husband made her memorise, but she doesn’t know why. It’s musical, so they decide to get Rembrandt’s help. Rembrandt is already using a VR headset, and Maggie jacks in to what he’s seeing, and getting him out of that world is difficult. Then Quinn does the same. The VR headsets don’t seem to be habit forming; they seem actually addictive. And Simmons is clearly up to something.