Chapter 28

28 FLOOOP, FLOOOP, FLOOOP. Grampa Al's windmill, beautifully reconstructed from a car's radiator fan, aluminum tent poles, a bicycle frame and chain, a rubber belt, pulleys, and plastic pipes, turns steadily in the brisk breeze on the roof of the old factory building. "Smoother than a baby's butt," says Grampa Al.

Klink holds his windmill attachment up in the breeze and tops off his battery charge to full. "Smoother than 'a flock of sheep that leisurely pass by one after one,'" says Klink. Grampa Al stares, then laughs. "William Wordsworth? Did you just look that up?" Klink nods his glass-domed head. "You are turning into a real poet." "And my feet show it!" says Klink. "They are Longfellows." Grampa Al laughs even louder. "You have no idea why that's funny, do you?"

"Well," says Klink, "because long feet are... funny?" "I didn't think so," says Grampa Al.

Watson loads a perfectly dimpled plastic pellet into his Perfect Peashooter. He takes aim at the empty soda can on the ledge. Puffs. Fires. Plink! "Perfect," says Watson, without much enthusiasm.

Frank carefully places the Electro-Finger in its saxophone case. Frank makes a last note in his Energy notebook and then closes it. "Entry twenty-one," says Frank. "Tesla would have liked that. Seven times his favorite number, three." Frank, Watson, and Grampa Al look out over the rooftops of downtown Midville. The sun sinks slowly below the western horizon. Streetlights and house lights wink on in the darkening dusk. "I'm glad we could at least use the Electro- Finger to replace all the power generators Edison destroyed," says Frank. "He would have controlled every bit of energy in Midville if it wasn't for Klank," says Watson. "I will remember Klank every time I see a light go on." Klink, trying to think of something nice, and true, to say, is at least half successful. "I

will remember Klank every time I think of electrons." Frank shakes his head. "I thought I could put him back together. But there were just too many pieces. Too much was broken." Frank flicks the trigger of the Electro-Finger back and forth. Flooop flooop flooop goes Grampa Al's windmill, somehow sounding as sad as everyone feels. Flooop flooop flooop. Badang, badang, badang. The windmill sound turns into half Robot Boogie. Flooop badang flooop badang flooop badang badang badang. The guys turn away from the sunset to see what is going on with the windmill. And there, shining in the last red rays of the setting sun, in all his repatched, reconstructed,