Chapter #7The beginning by: Unknown ''This is a thing of beauty,'' Doc says after he has recomposed himself, ''A gift for Igor.''
Luke's mind recalls Igor, the caretaker of the mansion. Perhaps an apt name for a hunchbacked figure with an unfriendly face and wiry build that reminds Luke more of Count Dracula's vassal than the Hunchback of Notre Dame. The gruff and hostile manner that chased away those who are undaunted by the creepy setting of the mansion actually hides a quite amiable character after Luke has gotten to know and work with him. Much to Luke's puzzlement, the caretaker is married or at least in some sort of a relationship with a rather good looking woman of possibly an Eastern European descent who works as a maid in the mansion, but Luke is too polite to find out more about their relationship.
''This gun enables one to disguise one's self as another,'' Doc speaks again, this time he holds a bottle of champagne in one hand and a corkscrew in the other. ''Let me tell you all about it, boy.'' He places the bottle on a table and walks back to the gun, ''The first setting allows you to create a skin of someone,'' Doc points at the bright red button on the topside of the gun.
''Excuse me, what?'', Luke says in disbelief. He has learned not to doubt Doc's inventions, but this one is the wildest one by far.
''Creates a disguise, a wearable skin of a person,'' Doc babbles, ''Skin that the user of this gun can wear to turn into someone else.''
As if ignoring the apparent puzzlement on Luke's face, Doc continues, ''The second setting gives you memories of the person whose skin you're wearing,'' Doc's index finger moves the the next button in bright yellow.
''How? What?'', at this point Luke has lost the plot entirely.
''It copies the zapped person's neuron connections and superimposes it with your own,'' Doc brings his palms together animatedly to illustrate two things meshing together.
''Then the final one, '' Doc wraps up his explanation, ''allows the user to project a stock hologram over himself,'' Doc points at the final button, the green one. ''That's all this gun can do, or at least, it should.'' Doc adds with a bit less certainty in his voice.
Luke studies the gun more closely and wraps his fingers around the grip when he feels an electric shock coursing through his hand and up his arm.
''No!,'' Doc shouts.
Immediately Luke releases his grip and spins around to glance at Doc's panicked face. ''Why? What was that, I felt some kind of electric shock.''
''That's the gun's safety mechanism,'' Doc trundles over to where the gun has been dropped and picks it up, ''DNA lock mechanism and you just activated it.''
''DNA lock mechanism?''
Doc aims the gun at Luke and to Luke's horror, Doc squeezes the gun's trigger, ''See? Nothing happens.'' Doc says, much to Luke's relief. Doc squeezes the trigger again and again and still nothing happens. ''I was going to let Igor touch it first, ''Doc's expression turns serious, ''Important piece of science, countries will go to war to get their hands on this. Could you imagine the possibility? That's why it's DNA locked, so that only one person and one person only can use it.''
''I'm so sorry,'' Luke shuffles, ''But can't you just remove it? The DNA lock I mean.'' Luke knows that Doc has been working on the gun for many months although it was never clear what he was working on.
''Ah, I've made it to self destruct if anyone so much as tampers with it. It'll set off the internal combustion mechanism, effectively turning the nuclear core in this gun into an atomic bomb.''
''Nuclear?'', Luke whispers, ''Jesus Doc.''
''Of course it is, '' Doc chuckles, ''You don't think something like this runs on AA batteries do you?'' Doc stops to sigh, ''Well, I probably now have to look for more Uranium and refine more of that meteorite we found the other day, it appears that the alien substance contains strong anti radiation properties. Let's see, it should take me six months, no, maybe eight months to complete.'' Doc says, now seemingly speaking to himself like he often does.
''I'm really sorry,''
''Never mind that boy, I may be able to complete it faster as now I know what works and what doesn't'' Doc dismisses Luke's apologies with a toothy grin, ''Although I haven't got a chance to properly take it for a test run.''
Doc hands the gun to Luke, ''Why don't you give it a try, then tell me about it, but maybe you should do it without letting anyone know.''
***
As Luke finishes the last sip of his pint of lager his mind goes to the gun which Doc has dubbed the 'Costume Gun' in his typical eccentric manner. He looks around the table, there are a few Wilko employees which he has been working with this evening gathered around sharing after-work drinks. There's Andrea, Charlotte, Steven, Aaron and Liz. They are also joined by Carly who is Andrea's daughter and some of her salon beauticians and friends.
The thought of using the gun has been on Luke's mind the whole time and has been a source of distraction ever since he left Doc's lab. Perhaps as the night has progressed and people are finishing their third or fourth pints and about to go, it may be the best time to finally put the Costume Gun to use.
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