Yes, because if she comes back on her own, Opal will find a way to make us suffer, he said, shaking his brothers hand. So yes, were in.
Merv took a remote control from his pocket. The device was tuned to a sonix receiver planted in the clinics gable wall. This in turn was connected to a balloon of acid which lay gently on the clinics main power cube in the parking-lot junction box. A second balloon sat atop the back-up cube in the maintenance basement. As the clinics janitors, it had been a simple matter for Merv and Scant to plant the acid balloons the previous evening. Of course the Argon Clinic was also connected to the main grid, but if the cubes did go down, there would be a two-minute interval before the main power kicked in.
There was no need for more elaborate arrangements after all, this was a medical facility, not a prison.
Merv took a deep breath, flicked open the safety cover and pressed the red button. The remote control emitted an infrared command activating two sonix charges. The charges sent out sound waves bursting the balloons, and the balloons dumped their acidic contents on the clinics power cubes. Twenty seconds later, the cubes were completely eaten away and the whole building was plunged into darkness. Merv and Scant quickly put on night-vision goggles.
As soon as the power failed, green strip lights began pulsing gently on the floor, guiding the way to the exits. Merv and Scant moved quickly and purposefully. Scant steered the trolley and Merv made straight for Corporal Kelp.
Grub was pulling the video glasses from over his eyes.
Hey, he said, disorientated by the sudden darkness. Whats going on here?
Power failure, said Merv, bumping into him with calculated clumsiness. Those lines are a nightmare. Ive been telling Doctor Argon, but nobody wants to spend money on maintenance when there are fancy company cars to be bought.
Merv was not waffling for the fun of it; he was waiting for the soluble pad of sedative he had pressed on to Grubs wrist to take effect.
Tell me about it, said Grub, suddenly blinking a lot more than he generally did. Ive been lobbying for new lockers at Police PlazaIm really thirsty. Is anyone else thirsty? Grub stiffened, frozen by the serum that was spreading through his system. The LEP officer would snap out of it in under two minutes, and be instantly alert. He would have no memory of his unconsciousness, and hopefully he would not notice the time-lapse.
Go, said Scant tersely.
Merv was already gone. With practised ease, he punched Doctor Argons code into Opals door. He completed this action faster than Argon ever could, due to hours spent practising on a stolen pad in his apartment. Argons code changed every week, but the Brill brothers made certain that they were cleaning outside the room when Argon was on his rounds. The pixies generally had the complete code by midweek.
The battery-powered pad light winked green, and the door slid back. Opal Koboi swung gently before him, suspended in her harness like a bug in an exotic cocoon.
Merv winched her down on to the trolley. Moving briskly and with practised precision, he rolled up Opals sleeve and located the scar in her upper arm where the seeker-sleeper had been inserted. He gripped the hard lump between his thumb and forefinger.
Scalpel, he said, holding out his free hand. Scant passed him the instrument. Merv took a breath, held it, and made a two-centimetre incision in Opals flesh. He wiggled his index finger into the hole and rolled out the electronic capsule. It was encased in silicone and was roughly the size of a painkiller.
Seal it up, he ordered.
Scant bent close to the wound, placing a thumb at each end.
Heal, he whispered, and blue sparks of fairy magic ran rings round his fingers, sinking into the wound. In seconds, the folds of skin had zipped themselves together, with only a pale pink scar to show that a cut had been made. A scar almost identical to that which had already existed. Opals own magic had dried up months ago, as she was in no position to complete a power-restoring ritual.
Miss Koboi, said Merv briskly. Time to get up. Wakey wakey.
He unstrapped Opal completely from the harness. The unconscious pixie collapsed on to the lid of the cleaning trolley. Merv slapped her across the cheek, bringing a blush to her face. Opals breathing rate increased slightly, but her eyes remained closed.
Jolt her, said Scant.
Merv pulled an LEP-issue buzz baton from inside his jacket. He powered it up and touched Opal on the elbow. The pixies body jerked spasmodically, and Opal Koboi shot into consciousness, a sleeper waking from a nightmare.
Cudgeon, she screamed, you betrayed me!
Merv grabbed her shoulders. Miss Koboi. Its us, Mervall and Descant. Its time.
Opal glared at him, wild-eyed.
Brill? she said, after several deep breaths.
Thats right. Merv and Scant. We need to go.
Go? What do you mean?
Leave, said Merv urgently. We have about a minute.
Opal shook her head, dislodging the after-trance daze. Merv and Scant. We need to go.