MYCOPHAGE: Part 5

Cliff “Edge” McEdifice is MYCOPHAGE the intoxicating new thriller from Timothy the Talking Cat, Straw Puppy and the ghost of Michael Crichton.

Part 5: Tanks for the Memories

“She has a profound head trauma,” explained the professor.

“She’s got profound all sorts of things.” I said wistfully. “What happened?”

“Her apartment building exploded and she barely escaped with her life.”

It all made sense. This must be the real Louise! The assassin must have blown up her building before replacing her with an android copy. Even so, I had to check. I walked over to her and gave her ears a good pull. To my relief her face didn’t fall off.

“Ouch.” she said.

“She’s the real deal.” I spoke.

“The x-rays confirm that she is not android,” agreed the professor “but without her memories there is no way to know who she is or why she was targeted.”

“There’s got to be something you can do professor!” I appealed.

“Well in cases like this, an intense experience might ‘reboot’ her mind, so to speak.”

“You mean like hitting her head with a mallet?”

“No, no, an intense emotional experience. Something that will bring her back to herself.”

“Hey Louise. Have you got any ideas,” I asked her “something that you’ll find emotionally intense.”

She looked me straight in the eye and said “Kiss me”.

I’m a fighter, not a lover but if a pretty gal asks me for a kiss, I’m not going to say no. Even so I was wary that she might still be an exploding robot so my first attempt was not my best work. She looked at me with deep disappointed eyes like dark pools of velvet ink. There was nothing for it but to give her my most powerful kiss. She almost swooned in my arms but then suddenly became bright and alert as if all the lights had gone inside the hotel of her brain.

“My god!” she cried, “You’re Cliff McEdifice! The very man I had come to this city to find!”

At last things were looking up.

“Not so fast!” said the professor but when I turned to look at him, his face fell open to reveal the robot underneath.

“This unit will self destruct in 50 seconds, please ensure you are at least 60 metres away before this unit explodes.” came the voice from inside the professor’s chest.

Louise screamed.

With not a moment to spare I picked her up and dived through the open window.

[Note from Timothy: there was supposed to be a tank in this episode but I forgot.]