The Experiment
When the alarm clocks went off at a quarter to six am the two remaining spies yawned once then shut off their clocks. Not knowing anything was wrong they just went about their normal routine. Brushing their teeth and hair and other such stuff. It wasn't till Sam came out of the shower that she started to get a bad feeling. Something was wrong. Alex had taken her shower before her, however it typically was Clover who got to their beautiful bathroom first.
Yet the bathroom showed absolutely no sign that she'd been up to use it. Her toothbrush wasn't damp and her makeup compact wasn't open. Neither her herbal body wash or two-in-one shampoo and conditioner had been used either. Something wasn't right. It wasn't like her to oversleep either. So Sam went see if Clover had merely overslept but opening the door to Clover's bedroom she saw a troubling sight. She wasn't there and it looked like her X-powder and few of her emergency gadgets were missing from her emergency kit.
"Alex? Alex! Come here at once!"
"What is it, Sammy? I'm trying to finish packing out picnic lunch. I was just packing some tofu hot dogs for Clover. So what's going on?" Alex asked as she came into the bedroom. Her hands were a bit sticky with peanut butter and jelly from her breakfast of toast. "So, what's up? You need to eat something before we go to the beach. I've got some more homemade bread for some awesome toast. If you're hungry you can have some. I know Clover won't have any."
"Alex, Clover's not here at all. Look! Her bed's already made, but she not here. I don't think she's been here for a while, either. She took her X-powder and some gadgets! Something not right."
"I think you're overreacting, Sam. Clover may've just gotten up before us and is probably just at the beach already. And remember none of us go anywhere without our X-powders or at least one gadget on hand. I don't think anything wrong. Like I said she's probably already at the beach. So c'mon help me finish packing for our day off at the beach. I'm sure everything is just fine, Sam, so stop worrying."
Sam tried to talk herself into Alex's judgment but she still felt in her bones that something wasn't right. Nevertheless she put on her best bikini and found her new sunglasses. In about half an hour they're ready to go so they quickly got to the beach.
The beach was beautiful and the amazing sunrise was sparkling so vividly in the turquois water it looked almost like there're two skies. The painted miracle of God's handiwork. That golden ball of sky fire was an everlasting symbol of hope to all of Earth. When it mixed with the radiant colors of dawn or sunset it was the most beautiful thing ever created by God. Earth was truly a rare jewel of magnificence beauty in addition to wonder. One should never forget that.
"Have you ever seen such a wonderful sunrise, Sam? It's so beautiful and look out there! I see a pod of dolphins dancing so playfully in the morning light! Let's go swim with them!"
Sam was about to agree to that when her green eyes spotted something amiss on the beach. True the tide was doing its normal pushing and pulling. Yet it didn't hide all the secrets that it should've. Just about twenty feet in front of them was something that that water hadn't erased yet.
"Alex! Come over here! Look!"
"What is it, Sam? Did you find some special shells or something? Maybe a sand dollar?"
"Not exactly, but I did find something else. Take a look at this," she said as she picked up a golden cylinder of something off the seashore. Alex dashed quickly over and her eyes went big when she saw what it was.
It was a tube of lipstick, with the letter "C" engraved into it. It was custom shade of red-violet. One-of-a-kind! Clover had ordered it from a makeup magazine called "The Blue Moon Makeover" a few weeks ago. It was her own personal tube of fancy wax and own unique dye. It was for her and her alone! She's never loses this on purpose! It was too precious to her.
"Clover's custom ordered red-violet lipstick? She rather break a nail then lose this. Especially in view of the fact it was very expensive. Even more expensive when you take into consideration that she had them make her own custom cosmetics to go with it! Why would she drop this? It's just not like her!"
"I know, Alex! She may've been here earlier but something must have happened. Come on! We've got to look for some more clues and fast! Before the water washes away all the evidences! Hurry!"
While Sam and Alex combed the beach trying to find out what the hell had happened to Clover things for their friend had gotten worse. Much worse!
Right now Clover was slumbering in a cryogenic cylinder. She was extremely drugged up with heavy-duty sedatives to keep her asleep. The cylinder was connected to a computer that was relaying all her biometrics systems information to her captor. Her heart rate, blood pressure, even her brain activity all that was being conveyed on the computer monitor, and her abductor was smiling gleefully as they disappeared farther and farther away from Mal-U.
The unusual vessel that was taking the pair away from sunny California was looking like a cross between a submarine and a snowmobile. The water temperature was getting quickly colder and the marine life outside was becoming less and less. The captor checked the monitors one more time before getting up and got himself some hot chocolate. He then gazed at the shimmering and immaculateness of the onboard laboratory. Something was going on and it seemed that whatever it was couldn't be good.
"Very soon, my sweet Clover, we'll be far enough north that I can start "Project Snow Queen". So beautiful you are. Even though you've foiled my plans before, you're still the perfect ice queen. Just slumber a bit longer. I need a little more time before we can start the Project. Let's just hope those annoying spy friends of yours won't find you just yet. Neither will that stupid Woohp find you before I'm done with my little experiment. Now sleep on my lovely snow dancer. In about an hour's time we'll be in safe waters to conduct my little experiment!"
In the silvery tube Clover didn't make any indication she'd heard any of her abductor's words. Even the readings of her biometrics remained steady. She was truly at that moment in a state of suspended animation. Just sleeping away not knowing anything was wrong. She slept soundly on as the strange craft shot faster through the water heading further north.
Back at the beach Alex and Sam managed to locate Clover's X-powder which was swirling around a tide pool. They'd to avoid being nipped by some crabs who were busy crawling all over the thing. After drying it off they got a very sinking feeling. It didn't appear to be damaged at first sight. Yet as soon as they opened it up it did appear that there was some minor damage. The hologram wasn't working and the readings on the screen were all messed up. It was a bit on the fritz. Both girls looked at each other and had a concern on their faces.
"Did the X-powder record anything before Clover last had it, Sam? I mean Jerry made sure they'd know everything about us, and that they've everything we could possibly need on it. So any clues?"
"I don't think so, Alex. It looks like we're gonna have to go to Woohp and ask Jerry to help us find Clover," Sam replied as she pulled out her own X-powder and hit the speed dial Jerry. For a few moments nothing happened then the hologram projection lit up and they saw there Jerry their boss 3d image appear.
"Good morning, spies. What can I do for you?" the British man asked as he sipped is Earl Gray Tea. "Ah, nothing better than some nice tea first thing in the morning. So what can I do for you today, ladies?"
"Jerry we need to get to Woohp ASAP! Clover's missing!"
"Say no more, I'll get you here in a splash. You ought to hold your breath."
"Huh? Doesn't he mean he'll get us in a flash? Not a splash? And what does he mean 'better hold our breath?" a confused Alex asked. But before Sam could reply a huge tidal wave came up and fully engulfed them. They're spun around super-fast in the underwater whirlpool and then came to land on their bellies on the cold hard metal floor of Jerry's office.
"You ladies alright? I did tell you to hold your breath, didn't I? Here some super absorbent Woohp towels, they'll get you dry in a jiffy."
Even after all the times they'd been Woohped the girls still didn't like how painful it was or the fact in defied the laws of reality and mainly physics! And it doesn't help they just been nearly drowned then belly flopped! Still they each took an aqua green towel and soon were dry.
"Jerry, do you get an enjoyment out of how we get Woohped? Do you not have any other source of amusement other than see us turned inside out and insane entrances?" Alex demanded crossly as she pulled some kelp out her hair.
"Ouch! Let go! Let go!" Sam moaned as she pulled tiny crab hanging on her right ear. "I wear starfish earrings, but not crab earrings!" as she finally managed to get the little critter off her ear. Rubbing it tenderly she looked at her boss.
"I'm sorry if you don't enjoy how you get here, but it is a little fun for me. So tell me ladies, what do mean Clover missing?"
"We're suppose too go hang at the beach this weekend. Just the three of us. But when we got up Clover wasn't in the penthouse. We found her lipstick on the beach but the waves already had washed away any other clues. We did find her X-powder in a nearby tide pool. But it's busted. Other than that we don't have any clue to where she is. So we hoped you could help us out." Sam explained patiently as she continued to rub her throbbing ear.
"Well, let's see what we can do to pinpoint her. Deprived of her X-powder, it will be a bit more tricky and harder to track her, or know how she's doing physically. Therefore let's see what the university's video surveillance system can tell us. Give me a moment," Jerry said as he sat at his desk and used his laptop. His screensaver which the spies saw quickly before it disappeared was himself holding the Woohp emblem up with a weird corny theme song attached to it. It vanished and he began to hack into Malibu University security system.
They went back in time to about roughly four-thirty in the morning. It showed Clover waking up early. Something flashed quickly across the screen and seem to hit Clover in the face. They tried to freeze-frame it but whatever it was, was too quick to see. They watched silently as she left the penthouse and then saw her leave campus to head to the nearby beach. After that however the security system crashed, and they couldn't see what happened when she reached the beach.
"Well, this is an unexpected development. Whatever or whoever took Clover really wants to make sure we can't find her. So she got to the beach about four-forty and then all that was found was her X-powder and a tube of custom design lipstick. This is most troubling," Jerry admitted as he closed the laptop. He turned and looked at Sam and Alex who glanced anxiously at one another.
"There's gotta be a way come hell or high water for us to find her! Are you sure you can't fix the interference with the tape? They're gotta be something we can go on! Just think for a second, Jer!" Alex exclaimed franticly as she chewed her nails in anxiety.
"I want to find Clover as much as you two do, but unless we get some kind of break, I'm not sure I can help."
"Wait! Wait a minute! I think I see something that might help us!" exclaimed Sam urgently which stunned the other two.
"What is it, Sam? What do you see? What clue did you find?" Jerry inquired as he spun around. Sam had opened up the laptop and was analyzing the footage for a second time. She seemed to be taking in every detail and smiled when she noticed something key.
"Look! Here! We can unscramble the rest of the footage for a better look later. That will just take some time, but look at this. That shadowy reflection right there! Look it's only for a few seconds, but look!" pointing to a shadowy reflection, which was visible for about ten seconds. The overhanging lamppost was just enough to give them an indistinctive reflection on the metal sign with the beach's rules. They'd need to enhance the image some, however it was clear it was a man whose image was being reflected.
"Can you enhance this image and see if you can defrag the rest of the tape, Jerry?"
"I can most certainly attempt to do that, Sam. Give me a second," he answered as he quickly clicked the keyboard. It took approximately five minutes, nevertheless the image was little by little enhanced and enlarged enough to see whom was stalking Clover.
When they saw who it was they're in a state of shock. It was an older man about in his early fifties by the look of it. His hair was snow white and he'd sharp features and though they couldn't see it quite as clearly there was an emblem on his collar. It was a large "G" And they knew of only one past foe who'd been both interested in Clover and named started with a "G". It was Dr. Gelee! They're shocked to the core. Given they'd thought he'd perished on their high school ski trip years ago. Yet there was no mistaken him! It was him!
"GELEE?! I thought he died!" Alex exclaimed in a stunned voice.
"Apparently not, Alex. I guess some of our past villains don't know when to stay down! Now we know who abducted Clover, we now need to find her and fast! Who knows what he's doing to her!"
"Probably boring her with chess again."
"I'd think, Alex it be a bit more serious than that. Given all he went through tracking her down, getting her alone and taking her. Something tells me he's doing more than wanting a rematch at chess."
"Sam's quite right, Alex. At least now that we know who took her, we must find her. My guess is he's going somewhere he feels safe and familiar. And since we know he loves the cold I'm guessing its somewhere up north. Let me see if any of our other branches have seen anything suspicious"
"Right, Jerry! Hurry! We don't have much time!"
"Hurrying, Sam."
All this time Clover was still in a medical coma. She was so drugged up that it would take a very long time for her to wake up. All this time Dr. Gelee was busy readying himself for Project Snow Queen. He was preparing what seemed to be a type of OR room. There're monitors plus several bottles of medications, and there was also a few syringes. Something was up. He was smiling gleefully as he went to a large ice blue barrel with a keypad on top. Pressing it the vacuum seal hissed and he watched as one of his lackeys wheeled in Clover. She was completely comatose and dressed in a hospital gown. One of the lackeys put some latex gloves on Dr. Gelee hands and other members were dressed as if doing a serious surgery.
"Is everything ready? You have the medications, correct?" The ice men nodded and the evil doctor smiled insanely. "Well let's begin. First we need to administrate the first drug. You sure it's the most potent fertility drug you could find?" again the ice men just nodded. Handing one of the syringes full of some type of medication to the evil doctor Project Snow Queen began.
The first thing that they did was administrate the fertility drug. Almost immediately the drug forced Clover's brain to send the message to her ovaries to ovulate. Before long dozens of eggs were being produced. A few seconds later a chirping was heard from one of the monitors.
"Doctor? She's at the most fertile she'll be for six months. If you wish to make this Project work we must do it now. Her vitals are all good and everything is going alright.
"Good, now give me a second. He went back to the blue barrel and pulled out a glass vile with something inside it. It wasn't clear what it was. He smiled and then put the syringe to it and sucked whatever it was and then took a bigger needle and then smiled. He then put the needle into Clover's lower abdomen. She didn't move at all as the rest of the procedure went on undisturbed. After about three hours the procedure was over. And she was put back into her cryogenic tube.
"Now we wait, that about all we can do. But at least the next part of the plan won't take as long as it normally would. Now let's just hope her two spy cohorts don't show up till the next stage of the operation is complete. Come let's get ready. I need some hot chocolate. Keep me up-to-date on her vital. I want to know the instant things change." The ice cronies all nodded and watched as Clover slept on.
Unknown to the mad doctor Clover's friends were now on their way to rescue her. They just didn't know how soon not only their lives change forever, but they would've more than one life to save.