Free 20,000 Nerds Under the Sea by Jeff Miller Page A

commanded the captain.
    But before Jolly clamped the jaws shut, Neil guided the nose of the ship away from the cluster of swimming sharks. He felt a shock course through his body but kept the open jaws of Magda away from the sharks.
    â€œWhat happened!” Jolly yelled, gnashing the teeth of the mechanical animal. They coasted past craggy rock formations and coral, leaving behind a trail of bubbles.
    â€œI lost control! Maybe we’re just not as good as you thought,” fibbed Neil.
    â€œDon’t lie to me, Neil,” Jolly said, her voice eerily calm. “I know what you’re capable of.”
    â€œLie to you? But—”
    â€œOh, arguing is pointless,” Jolly interrupted. “Let’s just bring the sharks to us, shall we? Then I can escort you all to the brig—permanently.
    â€œFabien, I think it’s time to deploy the ketchup,” Jolly said to her henchman. “The finest Rogers Ketchup has to offer.”
    There was a moment’s silence.
    Rogers Ketchup. That’s actually a name from my nightmares.
    Neil remembered, clearly, that the brand was the sponsor of the Southwestern Robotics Invitational. He suddenly realized why Jolly’s laugh had been so familiar—she must have been the one watching from the wings. He didn’t know what to say. Was Jolly just really into homemade electronics? Had she been following him for months?
    â€œJolly, just so you know, your ketchup is horrible,” Biggs said. “And your krill stuff tastes like feet.”
    â€œWell, aren’t we feeling talkative,” said Jolly. “Lucky for us, sharks have a taste for feet.”
    â€œFor the last time, we’re not killing sharks!” Biggsscreamed. He was, for the first time ever, angry—like, angry .
    Neil knew he had to do something. His mind raced, trying to think of something from Jolly’s video game to use against her.
    â€œIf you won’t do what I command, someone else will,” Jolly explained. “Do you know how many kids lined up to play that game? And right now we’ve got shipments of ketchup going out to strategically lure sharks to me. I can force someone else to collect them for me, once I get rid of you.”
    Neil saw an outcropping of rocks ahead. A few formed a huge arch, which crawled with dozens of sharks all looking for their next meal. He winced as the jaws of Magda opened wide, ready to scoop them up.
    â€œHey, guys, you think Jolly was serious about some kind of escape pod being on this thing?” Neil said, putting a hand in front of his headset microphone.
    â€œUm, maybe?”
    â€œWell, let’s hope. We need to make a move right now.”
    For the first time in twelve hours, Neil felt something good inside his stomach—a kind of fire like when he first climbed into a Chameleon’s cockpit.
    â€œLet’s break this thing,” said Neil. “If we go down, we’re going down fighting.”
    He wiggled in the chair and readjusted his grip on the rubber joystick. Sam and Biggs did the same, but a jolt of electricity ran through them again.
    â€œOw! OK, OK, we’re going,” said Biggs.
    â€œJolly, let’s do this,” Neil said confidently into the microphone.
    â€œHead for those rocks!” shouted the evil captain.
    â€œRoger that.”
    Neil guided Magda toward a flurry of sharks, but he reached a foot over to control Sam’s fin. The mega-lodon swerved toward the naturally formed arch. It would barely be big enough for the fake shark to squeeze through.
    Jolly sent another shock through the metal chairs, and it vibrated Neil all the way down to his teeth.
    â€œStay strong, everybody!” shouted Neil, mostly for his own sake. He kept a firm grip on the control stick and steered the shark into the arch. Jolly screamed into the radio headsets.
    With a huge screech, Neil felt the dorsal fin of the submarine shark connect with the rocks above. Neiland