The Nit Picker. Jonny Moon

to school – his unusual appearance would lead to too many questions. So Jack had to wait until all his lessons were over to investigate further. As usual, Snivel arranged to meet Jack at the local park. Oscar had shown no interest in the whole situation and had decided to go home straight after school, and Ruby’s mother had insisted on picking her up in the car to go and buy some new ballet shoes, so Jack was all alone. It felt weird to be on the verge of another adventure and not have his two companions by his side. At least Snivel was still there.

      Except he wasn’t!

      When Jack reached the bench which was their usual meeting point, Snivel was nowhere to be seen. Jack sat down heavily and sighed.

      A moment or two later Snivel came tearing out of some bushes and bounded up to Jack.

      “Sorry,” he said quickly, seeing Jack’s expression. “I thought I saw that robot squirrel of Bob’s …”

      Jack sat up. Both Bobs – the original GUNGE contact now known as Bad Bob, and New Bob – had used a robot squirrel as a surveillance device.

      “And did you?” he asked.

      Snivel shook his head. “Sorry,” he reported. “It was just a squirrel. So I chased it for appearance’s sake.”

      Jack started to tell Snivel about the Nit Nurse and his suspicions about her alien nature. Snivel nodded. “I’ll look it up.” Before Bad Bob had made his base disappear, Snivel had managed to download the complete GUNGE alien intelligence database. He accessed the database now and within a few moments he had an answer for Jack.

      “There’s one alien who totally fits the bill,” he announced. “It’s called the Sonomarshillian.”

      Jack jumped up. “That sounds likely. Sonomarshillian – Nurse Marsh. So what can you tell me about it?”

      Snivel started to rattle off the full data entry. “Sonomarshillian, inhabitant of a number of worlds in the Gamma Quadrant. Alien life-form that eats anything, but is particularly fond of small insects, such as fleas and head lice. The saliva of the Sonomarshillian contains an enzyme which has a marked soporific effect on most mammals. Creatures that are licked by the Sonomarshillian will become lethargic and lifeless. Repeated exposure to the enzyme in Sonomarshillian saliva can be fatal.”

      Jack paced up and down in front of Snivel. “That’s got to be it. That completely fits what’s happening here. She must be licking up the nits from kids’ heads and leaving them … dozy.”