Chapter 14

“So, were you worried about me up there?”

“Not a bit. I had my finger over the Gravity Off button the whole time.”

“Really? That’s cheating!”

“Hey, I didn’t want you falling on your head—your jokes might get even worse. The kids loved your bravery, anyway. It’s just a shame we can’t tell them the truth about what we’re doing here.”

“I hear you, but that’s sort of the point of a top secret project. Besides, the last thing a bunch of twelve-year-olds need to worry about is their universe being destroyed by a super energy orb.”

“Well, I still feel bad about lying.”

“I wouldn’t call it lying, exactly. We really are putting living minds into robots. Just not quite for the reasons we said. And unless somebody finds a way to prevent flesh-and-blood beings from turning to goo when they get anywhere near that Zorb, our project is the only chance we’ve got.”

“What about the remote-controlled robot experiments they’re conducting over in laboratory six? Hasn’t that group made any progress?”

“Nope. The Zorb’s energy jams the signal whenever one of the robots gets close.”

“Then it looks like it’s all up to us. The sooner we recover the Zorb and secure it in that containment chamber, the better I’ll feel. I can’t even imagine what might happen if it fell into the wrong hands.”

So that’s what they’re up to! I knew there had to be more going on. A superpowerful energy source capable of destroying the entire universe? Now, that is something that Erik Failenheimer must possess! And possess it Erik Failenheimer shall!

I will transfer my own brilliant mind into the body of that enormous robot. YES! Let those clodhopping Klosmos do all the research and all the work. I, Erik Failenheimer, will reap the benefit! I, Erik Failenheimer, will receive the final glory!

And now, with a simple pull of this lever, I will finally have the spectacular body my brilliant brain so richly deserves! BWAHAHAHAHA!!!

But wait. Perhaps I shouldn’t rush into this. Perhaps I should be patient and find out more about this orb and its true capabilities. Perhaps I should take the time to thoroughly read through the mind-transfer beam’s instruction manual before I use it on myself.

Nah.