Author's note: I've left this story alone for over a week. I also missed "Here Comes the Sun", but I can do either "Green with N.V." or "Malled" after this one. I'll allow the readers to decide which.
Chapter 3: To Think or Not To Think -
...that is the question. Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing... oh, sorry.
02:18 PM - DR. CLAYBORNE'S HOUSE
"This is it," Alex confirmed as we stood at the door, "the home of Prof. Augustus Clayborne."
Clover checked her compowder. "Says here he has origin to work (or something like that) since he lost on the game show two weeks ago."
"That's a long time to just sit around and play with your parting gifts," Alex commented.
"Let's find out if his brain was one of them," I added.
Alex rung the doorbell, and a woman opened the door. "Can I help you?"
"Yeah," Clover responded, "we're here to see the professor. We're, um, we're his students."
"Well then, you should know that the professor isn't feeling well."
I didn't even flinch. "We know that, but we must insist. We won't be available later."
"It'll only take a sec," Alex added. "We just want to say hi."
"Well, all right, if it'll only take a second." The woman led us into the house.
The professor seemed a little crazy. He was wearing his shirt backwards, and pedaled around the room on a tricycle. Okay, maybe "a little crazy" is an understatement.
"Wow," Clover said, "looks like the prof had a little problem dressing this morning."
"It's every morning," the woman explained. "Ever since he went on that ridiculous show, he can't remember anything."
The prof showed up in front of us. "Oh, hello, ladies. I'd love to chat, but it's a bit past my bedtime. Nighty-night."
I blinked. "Bedtime? At two in the afternoon?"
Not noticing, the prof ran over to a grandfather clock, opened it up, and climbed inside.
"I think you guys should go now," the woman decided. "I appreciate you stopping by." She walked over to try to get the prof out of the clock.
Later, we were leaning against a car in front of the house.
"Okay, this is so not good," Clover said.
"For the professor, or for Sam?" Alex asked.
"For both!" Clover responded. "We better call Jer ASAP." She got out her compowder.
Jerry was analyzing Sam in the WOOHP lab. Sam was hooked up to a machine.
"Brainwave test #1," Jerry said into a microphone. "Short-term memory visuals." He put the microphone down and pressed a key.
One by one, images appeared on screen. There was an image of Alex, Clover, and myself, followed by one of Zach, and one of Sam standing beside Wink and Margie, who were holding a big check.
A ring tone interrupted the tests. Jerry got out his wallet and answered Clover's call. "Any news, spies?"
Clover spoke up. "We just checked on an ex-Brain Buster contestant. In two weeks, he's gone from brainy professor to brainless goof. He tried to go to bed inside a clock."
Jerry was surprised by this. "Oh, my."
"How's Sam doing?" Alex asked.
"Oh, well, she's-" Jerry gasped. Sam was absent. "Oh, my!"
"Jer, what's wrong?" Clover asked.
"Uh- well- nothing to worry yourself about. But you, Leo, and Alex should investigate the game show set promptly. Ta-ta." The screen went blank.
"Wow," I commented, "even Jason never hangs up on me that quickly." (Jason is a friend of mine.)
03:20 PM - RODEO DRIVE - LOS ANGELES
Sam walked through the streets as if she was a four-year-old child. She saw Planet Sushi up ahead. "Oh, pretty light." She approached, causing quite a bit of traffic trouble as she crossed the street.
Zach was sitting at the counter nearby. "It's about time, Miss Tutor."
After sitting down, Sam asked a quick question: "Do I know you?"
Well, you can imagine how Zach reacted. "Yeah, you know me. I'm Zach. Science class, remember? Oh, I get it, it's a joke."
A waiter gave the pair two hot towels. Sam picked one up and started to eat it. Zach was befuddled. "Uh, maybe we should order. You seem kind of hungry."
BRAIN BUSTER SET
A tour group walked through the set. "And this is the famous Brain Buster set, where everybody's favorite waitress Margie goes for 10,000,000 in tomorrow's Battle of Geniuses. Now, follow me to the studio's famous cowboy western set."
As the group passed, the three of us ditched it and shed our disguises.
"Okay," Clover reminded us, "ten minutes until the next tour. Let's get to work."
"We should start with Wink's podium," Alex added, and we approached.
The podium looked like some kind of computer. "Looks like this podium is more than just a place for Wink's cue cards. Ladies and gentlemen, it's time to play Brain Busters."
Clover put on her X-ray sunglasses and scanned the podium. "Okay, that's weird."
"What's weird?"
Clover pressed a key, and two pictures showed up on the podium's screen. One had a red rectangle behind it.
Alex was confused. "Pictures of brains? I don't get it." She pressed a key, and something happened with two podiums.
An animation played on the screen. "Red drains into blue," Clover deduced. "Alex, Leo, are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
Before I could speak, Alex did. "That somehow those capsules suck out intelligence?"
"Exactly. Our Sammy's been... brain-drained!"
Alex was mad. "I knew a guy with teeth that white wasn't to be trusted!"
I was unimpressed. "Please! That has to be the STUPIDEST thing I have ever-"
"Hey, you!" "Hey, what do you three think you're doing?"
Two security guards arrived on stage. Alex gasped. "Looks like the next tour came early. What are we going to do?"
As the guards rushed toward us, Clover looked at the mikes hanging from the ceiling. "Mic check!"
The three of us climbed on top of the podium and leaped over the guards, swinging from mic to mic. The guards were furious. "Get back here!"
We made it to a large steel door and managed to shut it tight just in time. The guards slammed into it and got big headaches.
Clover said it best: "Oh, so sorry!"
PLANET SUSHI
The waiter brought some sushi to Sam and Zach. Zach was busy with a textbook. "How about we start with plate tectonics?"
Sam tried to use her chopsticks to grab some sushi, but flung it onto Zach's forehead by accident. She quickly laughed it off.
Zach was confused. "Sam, are you okay?"
At that moment, Jerry pulled up and rushed in. "Sam, there you are. Marvelous."
Jerry tried to grab Sam, who pulled away. "Hey! Let go, buddy!"
Zach stood up. "Yeah, let go, buddy! The lady doesn't know you!"
Jerry struggled to explain. "Oh, uh, no no no, you misunderstand. I'm Sam's uncle. Uncle, uh, Buddy. Yes, that's it. Sam called me to pick her up. Ready to go, dear?"
At that moment, Jerry was hit by another piece of sushi from Sam. You can understand how he felt. "Oh, my. I had so hoped it wouldn't come to this," he thought to himself. He pointed. "Look! A three-headed man on a donkey!"
Zach looked away, and Jerry grabbed Sam and fled.
A little later, Sam was in the car with Jerry. She was enjoying the breeze from the window a bit too much. A ring tone sounded, and Jerry answered. "Game show report, ladies?"
"Yeah," Alex responded, "Wink's a fink!"
"A fink and a cheat," I added.
Jerry smirked. "Pardon me?"
Clover explained. "Poor Sam's been brain-drained, Jer. The contestant capsules suck out a player's intelligence and makes them forget answers."
"Any idea what happens to the drained intelligence?"
"Security guards came before we could find out. We're going to have to sneak back in."
Alex was the next to speak. "Any news on Sam's tests?"
"Sam? Oh, uh, Sam's perfect. Just perfect. She even took a little walk this afternoon."
Jerry hung up on us. I glanced at the girls. "Makes you wonder how those tests REALLY went, doesn't it?"
That's all for now. Stay tuned!
