THE CWA OF DR. Z SMITH: EPISODE #108: Act II

“Next, we need a musical scene.” Otto Said.
  “I have just the place.” Dr. Smith replied.

-=fig. 670: an empty club=-

  “Where is everyone Jeeves?” Dr. Smith asked.
  “Sir,” Jeeves replied, “It's eight o’clock in the morning. We're an all-night Jazz club, not an all-day one. The band does not just exist here 24-7 for your amusement. About now they're sleeping, I imagine.”
 A thought was occurring to Capt. Brown. A thought he regretted not thinking of before. “Jeeves,” He said.   “Has Brigadier Black {Second Trumpet} been playing…every night?”
  “Yes sir.”
  “And to get enough sleep, the band, of course, sleeps all day?”
  “Yes sir.”
  “So…If I've been out having adventures, and the Brigadier has been sleeping, who is running the country?”
  “I'm sure I don't know, sir, the third in command?”
The colour drained from Capt. Brown's face. Karl Fester {Third in command} was not a…particularly bad man, but he was a mean little–Ah, er, ‘Person’. The point being he should not be in charge of a country for any amount of time. And most certainly not three whole days.
  “If you'll excuse me gentlemen,” Capt. Brown said, “I have pressing mayoral business to attend to. Good day.”
 He left in a panic.
  “Right!” Otto Chriek, Director, said. He was strangely unaware of the drama unfolding before his eyes.  “Dr. smith and Ludwig–Where are you ludwig, ah there you are, Our writer had about 10 hours to write a script for this last night, so understandably, there's a lot of holes. for example, this next scene just says ‘Witty Banter for 3 minutes’. So we're going to just improvise. CAMERA!”

-=fig. 671: surprise lost?=-

  “I know who you are.” Dr. Smith said.
  “Oh you do, do you?”
  “That's a nice touch, mucking up your accent, pretending you don't know what the real Von TipRău sounds like. ”
   “I am Sure that I do not know vhat you mean.”
  “Sure. But remember, I'm onto you. You don't have the element of surprise anymore, and that's what you've always relied on so heavily in the past.”
  “Gosh. You seem to have caught onto me. If I vere really this Von TipRău, I would be very scared. But tell me, if I really vere TipRău, Vould I be so obvious? You say he-I Have relied on surprise in the past, so Obviously he-I am good at disguises. So answer me this vhy would I disguise myself as an actor and play myself?”
  “Because it's a very good disguise. The old Double-bluff.”
  “Ah, Ze old double-bluff.”
  “Exactly.”
Applause from the wings. “Bravo!” Exclaimed Otto, “Now, once we get the sound in place and the camera running, just say all that again, that was brilliant!”
  “Mr. Chriek, you do know that his man is in actuality the notorious criminal Villiam Von TipRău?”
  “But that's ridiculous, I picked him out myself.”
  “When?”
  “Oh, about a week, no more. Probably less.”
  “Where?”
  “Greece.¹”
  “But that's impossible. He had me trapped under his pendulum of death hardly more than a week ago. No one can travel that far that fast, It's impossible.”
  “As I told you, I am not Von TipRău.”

-=fig. 672: meanwhile…=-

“I’M BACK I’M BACK!” Capt. Brown yelled as he ran up the stairs of the mayoral building.
 “KARL! KARL? THE CAPTAIN IS BACK!” Karl wasn't on this level.

-=fig. 673: stairs=-

Capt. Brown wondered vaguely why this building had so many stairs.
 “KARL? KARL! Oh there you are. Good. You are officially relieved of your temporary mayoral duties, due to the fact I'm back. Karl? What are you–Put that gun away right now KARL—!”

¹One of the few original european countries to survive the Franco-Russian wars. Neither country could establish secure hold there due to the fact that it's mostly islands. Now.