A few seconds later, 99 came upon the guard who was doing sentry duty near the cell which held Max and Hymie. She immediately dropped the man with one quick, sharp karate blow, then, as he fell, hurried to the bars of the cell.
“Max! Hymie! Are you all right?” 99 called.
“We’re fine, 99.”
“What are you doing under that bunk?”
“It’s sort of a game,” Max replied, as he and Hymie crawled out. “It’s called ‘When you see a good friend creep up on a guard and drop him with a karate blow and let him fall and he’s just swallowed an explosive that could blow up a body of water the size of Lake Ontario, duck under anything, even a bunk or a small metal spoon.’ ”
“Gee. . I like the title,” 99 said. “But, how is it played?”
“Very carefully, without disturbing the body,” Max replied.
“99,” Hymie said, “get the keys from the guard and let us out.”
“But, 99-” Max warned, “-don’t disturb the body!”
99 returned to where the guard had fallen, rolled his body over-very carefully-then unhooked the ring of keys from his belt.
“I wonder which is which?” 99 said, returning to the cell and examining the keys.
“The key for the cell will fit the lock in the cell door,” Max explained. “That’s the way you tell.”
“I know, Max. I- Here it is!”
99 turned the key in the lock, then opened the cell door. Max and Hymie slipped out, then the three moved toward the doorway that led to the laboratory. But suddenly Max halted them.
“Somebody’s coming!”
“I heard it, too, Max,” 99 said.
“Anybody have a weapon?” Max asked.
There was no reply.
“Then we’ll have to hide,” Max decided. “That’s probably Means and Ways and the whole army of guards coming this way. If they catch us, they’ll toss us all into that cell. And then 99 won’t be free to rescue us again.”
“Max! Where can we hide?”
“Follow me!”
Max turned and retreated along the corridor, and 99 and Hymie followed close behind. Max suddenly made a sharp right turn-and Hymie and 99 tagged after him.
“They’ll never find us in here,” Max crowed.
“Max, we’re-”
There was a clanging sound.
“That was probably the guard shutting that cell door we left open,” Max gloated.
“It was, Max,” Hymie assured him. He pointed. “If you’ll look, you can see him.”
Max looked, then broke into a broad grin. “Talk about stupid,” he said. “Look-that guard has locked himself into his own cell.”
“Max-”
“Of all the dumb tricks!” Max went on. “I knew he couldn’t be very bright when he swallowed that explosive, thinking it was an aspirin. But this takes the prize.”
“Max,” 99 said, “it isn’t the guard who’s locked in the cell.”
“What do you mean, 99? I can see it for myself. There he is, standing there with his hands gripping the bars. Look at that happy look on his face. That’s the look of a man who- Oh. Yes, I see what you mean, 99.”
“This wasn’t the best place to hide, Max,” Hymie said. “We’re right back in the cell where we started.”
“Matters aren’t quite as bad as they were,” Max insisted. “99 is with us now. It’s always better to have feminine company. I don’t know why. But things seem to work out that way.”
“Hey, wait a minute!” the guard said. “I had two prisoners before. Now there’re three. Who doesn’t belong?” He narrowed his eyes. “I don’t remember having a girl in there before.”
“Okay-we admit it-we sneaked her in,” Max said. “And we’re willing to take our punishment. If it’s against the rules to have girls in the cells, then kick us all out. We deserve it.”
“It’s not against the rules,” the guard replied. “You can have all the girls in here you want to for all I care.”
“Now. . just-a-minute!” Max said indignantly. “If that’s the kind of jail this is, I want no part of it! I have a reputation to consider. I want out! And, furthermore, I want my money back!”
Cowed, the guard put the key in the lock. “I don’t know about getting your money back,” he said. “You’ll have to talk to the management. All I-”
At that moment, Ways and Means came stomping into the room.
“What’re you doing?” Means asked the guard.
“He wanted out,” the guard explained, indicating Max. “He’s worried about his reputation, what with us allowing girls in the cells and all.”
“Girls in the-”
Ways and Means peered into the cell.
“It’s her!” Ways said. “I’d remember that head anywhere. Once you see a head bobbing around on top of a vat of chocolate, it’s hard to forget it.”
“How did she get in there?” Means asked the guard.
“I have a sore neck, sir,” the guard replied, “so she must have fought her way in.”
Means looked hard at Hymie. “I don’t see it, but you must have something,” he said. “Number One is ga-ga over you, and now you’ve got dames fighting their way in to get to you in jail.”
“Can we assume from that statement,” Max said “that Number One is still reciting love poetry?”
“As fast as she can turn it out,” Ways said. “We feed her hate, and she gives us love. It’s a terrible thing. But we have the solution. We’re going to give her what she wants-the robot.”
“That’s very good thinking,” Max said. “I approve of that.”
“You think when that robot gets in there he’ll brainwash her in the other direction, don’t you?” Ways said.
“Well. . it just may be possible that since she’s ga-ga over him he might have some influence over her,” Max admitted
“Dumb,” Means said.
“Before we turn him over to her, we plan to brainwash him,” Ways explained to Max. “We’ll make him think he’s a KAOS agent. That way, he’ll work with us, not against us.”
“That’s very good thinking,” Max said. “I’m afraid you’ve lost my approval, however.”
“Open the cell door,” Means commanded the guard.
When the door had been opened, Hymie was taken out. Then Ways and Means returned to the laboratory, taking Hymie with them. The guard relocked the door.
“Max, do you really think they can brainwash Hymie?” 99 asked.
“Why not, 99? He’s a machine. If you tell a machine it’s a KAOS agent, it believes it.”
“But it isn’t working on Number One, Max. They haven’t been able to persuade her to give up her love and turn to hate.”
“She must need an overhaul,” Max replied. “If she were functioning correctly, she’d believe anything she was told. I’m positive about that. That’s what makes machines inferior to humans-they believe anything they’re told. I know that because that’s what I’ve been told.”
“Max, what are we going to do?”
“Escape, 99. It’s our duty to break out of here, rescue Hymie and Number One, and destroy this KAOS installation.”
“Good, Max! How?”
“Did you bring any escape devices with you?”
99 shook her head.
“Then we’ll have to rely on our brains,” Max said. 99 went to the cot and slumped down, looking defeated.
“Don’t give up so quickly, 99,” Max said. “Haven’t I thought us out of tighter spots than this?”
“Well, frankly, Max-”
“Nevermind that,” Max broke in. “There’s always a first time for everything, you know. This time, it might work. Now, listen-here’s my first idea. Get up off the cot and let me lie down, and I’ll pretend to be ill. I’ll moan and groan and attract the guard’s attention. When he comes in here to find out what’s the matter with me, you’ll drop him with a karate chop. Okay?”
“Didn’t I see that in a movie, Max?”
“Yes, 99. In an old movie-on television.”
“As I recall-”
“That’s irrelevant, 99. This time, it will work.”
99 got up, and Max stretched out on the cot and began moaning and groaning. After a few moments, the guard appeared at the ceil door.
“You sound like you got the miseries,” the guard said sympathetically.
“And I’m terribly ill, too,” Max replied.
“Shouldn’t you do something?” 99 said to the guard.