Science Laboratories was the workaholic scientist's dream job. While the lab technically closed for the night, there was little to stop a scientist engrossed in a project from working late.

Intern Zel Driscoll personally couldn't identify with a work ethic like that. He worked to live, not lived to work. There were many ladies who would miss him if he didn’t make time to get out there and enjoy his free time. But he also knew that his boss, Dr Nemesis, was one such overachiever.

The chipmunk mad scientist was often in the previous day's clothes, heavy bags below her eyes, powered solely by coffee from that... uh... caffeine cult store or whatever and spite.

So when Zel arrived to his intern shift, ready for a rousing couple of hours of either being ignored by a chipmunk in the throes of creation or being yelled through odd lab tasks, he wasn't entirely surprised to find Dr Nemesis standing in front of her latest project, holding a large wrench on her shoulder, and looking dead on her feet.

"Hi, boss," the bat said to the chipmunk.

“Show them… show them all…” She didn’t even look his direction. Just stared at nothing and drooled a little. “Burn it all down…”

Okay. In terms of sleep deprivation, this was as bad as he'd seen her. Did an intern have a duty of responsibility to the boss that signed off on them getting course credit?

"Okay! Let's get you lying down!" Zel knew for a fact that a workaholic like Dr Nemesis had a small bed in the back of her lab so she could nap at work and not go home. He knew that for a fact because he'd found it and used it to nap during his internship and not do work.

Zel took Nemesis' arm and led her to the bed. He gave her a little shove and she fell face down into the pillows and immediately began snoring. Her grease-stained overalls would get the sheets dirty but that was not his problem.

The bat wandered back over to the project Nemesis had been working on.

A twenty foot tall robot chipmunk bristling with weaponry, laser sights pointed every which way and the big, giant robot eyes glowing red.

Huh. Better that she sleep on it rather than drive this thing around while in a mentally impaired state. But was it safe to just leave the keys in the ignition, so to speak?

Zel found one of the computers in the lab with the CAROL AI on it and posed the question to her. She suggested he plug her into the giant Nemesiszord so she could make sure it was safely shut down.

Well, that was the gist of what she said. Her version had a lot more innuendo, the thirsty girl.

Zel plugged the computer into the giant death machine, brushed his hands of the situation, and went to go see whether Jessica was walking around the lab naked again today.

--

Dr Nemesis stretched luxuriously and smiled. She’d had the most wonderful dream of crushing her enemies, driving them before her, and hearing the lamentations of their women. Dr Science was in the dream. Her lamentations were particularly sweet. “Oh no, I am defeated! You were the smarter scientist all along and deserve to be Dr Science more than I do! Also I devote the rest of my life to helping you achieve your goals!”

Nemesis felt so well-rested. Her superior self-care brain must have decided to lay down on her napping bed. She didn’t remember it but that was the only sensible explanation.

“CAROL, give me my morning updates!” Nemesis called.

There was no response. Stupid, lazy, useless cyber-mink.

Nemesis pulled out her phone and manually accessed the morning news updates.

The first headline was GIANT METAL CHIPMUNK RAMPAGES THROUGH ALMASI CITY; INAPPROPRIATELY TWERKS AT CITY’S TALLEST BUILDING!

And a smaller headline: Science Laboratories Denies Involvement. “We’re not responsible for every giant thing that rampages!” head scientist testily declares.

Dr Nemesis turned her head and noticed her missing Super Giga Mecha-Nemesis and the giant hole leading out of her lab.

“CAROLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!” Nemesis screamed at the absent AI. “I TOLD YOU TO STOP JOYRIDING IN MY DEATH MACHINES!”

---

Dr Nemesis owned by me
Art by  scottytheman