37 To the Tower!

37 To the Tower! 'We need to go and find the others,' said Rockwell excitedly. 'We have to tell them that 72 is alive and well. Little-Bit is going to lose her mind!' The robot's miraculous resurrection had nudged his anxiety about 67 to the back of his mind. 'Yes, you're right,' agreed Josephine. 'The reasons to celebrate just keep on coming, it seems. Come on then, let's head over to the Rainbow Lake and find them. The refilling must be underway by now. I must admit, I can't wait to see the lake again, in all its rainbow-coloured glory. I might even go for a dip!' The three of them made their way back to the lift, took the short ride up to the ground floor, and then walked straight

out of the Spire's south-facing double- doorway. As expected, they were greeted by a cacophony of noise. 'Sounds like everyone is having a great time,' said Rockwell. He couldn't wait to find Peanut and join the celebrations with her. He found himself really missing her, even though the pain caused by what she'd said still lingered. 'Hmmm,' said Josephine, 'I'm not sure they're cheers. They sound more like screams. Hang on, where is everyone?' Rockwell looked through the opening in the crayon fence. Josephine was right. He couldn't see anyone either. Just a line of RAZERs, shoulder to shoulder, with their backs to him. 'That's strange,' he said. 'I can hear them, but I can't see them.' 'Something's wrong,' said Josephine. Quick! Follow me. The three of them sped over to the watchtower covered in speakers and darted Inside.

'We should get a good view of the lake from the lookout window,' said Josephine as they ran up the stairs. And she was right. They had a great view. But what they saw was far from great! There were RAZERs lined up along the north and south banks of the lake and along the two drawbridges to Rockwell and Josephine's east and west, forming a huge robotic square. And the lake wasn't full of the beautiful, twinkly rainbow-coloured water they had expected to see. Instead, it was full of... people! The citizens of Chroma, to be precise. And, what's more, the citizens appeared to be trapped by a mesh of parallel steel cables that spanned the whole thing. They were caged! 'What on earth is going on?' said a baffled Rockwell. I don't know,' replied Josephine, 'but whatever it is, it's not good.' At that very moment, a heavily amplified voice began to blast out of the speakers attached to the tower, almost deafening them. 'GREETINGS, CITIZENS,' said the tinny voice. ' WHAT A LOVELY DAY FOR A DIP. HOW ARE YOU ALL ENJOYING THE CELEBRATIONS SO FAR?' 'Wait. I think that's... 67,' said Rockwell. He suddenly felt queasy as he remembered the conversation between the robot and Alan that he'd heard back in the control room.

'...OH, I SHOULD PROBABLY TELL YOU THAT THERE'S BEEN A SLIGHT CHANGE OF PLAN: I AM IN CHARGE NOW NOT THOSE PATHETIC MARKMAKERS AND THEIR SO-CALLED RESISTANCE!' 'Oh no,' gasped Rockwell, starting to panic. 'I was right!' 'THIS IS, INDEED, A MARVELLOUS CELEBRATION OF CREATIVITY. BUT THE THING IS, CREATIVITY CAN TAKE MANY FORMS. ISN'T THAT RIGHT, MR WHITE, WHEREVER YOU ARE?' Rockwell scanned the crowd, looking for a white hat. He couldn't see one. '... I HAVE TO SAY THAT I UNDERSTOOD THE FACT THAT MOST HUMANS KNOW NOTHING, BUT IT HAS BEEN EASIER TO FOOL YOU THAN I EVER COULD HAVE PREDICTED!' They watched in horror as the rest of the scene played out. All of their friends, each and every member of the Resistance, apart from the three of them, was trapped in the lake. 'This is bad,' said Josephine. '67 has control of the entire RAZER army! I've got a terrible feeling that their intentions aren't quite what we thought they were when we granted them that power. Look! All of the robots' eyes are red! That explains what happened with 326 and 405 back in the surgery. ' But why wasn't 72 affected?' asked Rockwell. 'We must have got them back online after 67 triggered the

protocol,' said Josephine. 'Luckily, 72 wasn't on the system when it happened.' '...AND WHERE, I WONDER, IS PEANUT JONES?' boomed 67's voice over the speakers. 'COME OUT, MEDIUM- SIZED HUMAN, WHEREVER YOU ARE...' Rockwell squinted. He could just about make out Peanut's bright orange topknot on the far side of the lake. My bestfriend in the whole wide world is in serious danger of getting badly hurt, he thought, his heart pounding in his ears. And here I am about to watch it happen. '... AH, THERE YOU ARE. NOW THEN. BE A GOOD MEDIUM-SIZED HUMAN, AND GIVE ME THE PENCIL.' 'Little Tail!' shouted Rockwell. 'Josephine, we have to do something!'