The Dreadful Doctor 4-D

The Impossibles, Big D and Timetron belong to Hanna Barbera/Warner Bros.

Europa is Multi Man's girl friend in my fan universe.

It was an evening which should have been totally uninterrupted fun. The residents of the Empire City Old Folk's home had decided they wanted "something young and lively" for the entertainment at their Annual Dinner, rather than "boring old square stuff", so The singing Impossibles had been recruited for the job.

They were setting up their equipment at the home and discussing the new arrival at Multi Man's place. The Impossible had adopted a cat from the Empire City Animal Sanctuary - the puss was ginger and long-haired like Multi himself, and in addition had a white "bib" on his chest. "How's your cat settling in"? Coil Man enquired. "Oh, really well". Multi replied. "He's really taken to me and he starts purring as soon as I get home! And he just loves climbing on the furniture and everywhere else, as well as exploring all the nooks and crannies in the place – found him in the linen cupboard yesterday, and have no idea how he got there – must have sneaked in when the door was opened"! "Have you thought of a name for him yet"? Fluid Man asked. "Not yet", Multi replied, "Europa and I have been racking our brains over it, but nothing definate yet Let me know if either of you has any ideas", he finished.

The boys began their concert with "Meet me at Caesar's place", to a cheer from the home's residents and staff. They were about to start on "I knew a Girl" when Coiley's guitar screen beeped and Big D requested their immediate presence at HQ.

"We have a crook who's been stealing from locked premises and safes without actually opening them", he explained, (or at least partially explained), "he needs stopping – and fast"!

And with that, and vowing to finish their set at the home as soon as they could, the Impossibles, in their super-hero forms, sped to HQ in the Impossimobile with the cry of "Rally Ho and away we go"!

"He calls himself 'Doctor 4-D'" the chief told the Impossibles on their arrival, "as he has a device which allows him to access locked buildings, cupboards and safes without opening them by going through the fourth dimension". "What, like Timeatron"? Fluey enquired, "going back to times when they were open"? "No", Big D replied, "in his case the extra dimension is not time, but a fourth spacial dimension. Like when you have a shape drawn on a piece of paper – it's bounded by the lines used to draw it, but it's two dimensional. By putting your hand over the paper – going through the third dimension – you can touch the shape inside the lines. This device of the crook's allows him to use the same principle on three dimensional objects – accessing their insides and therefore any contents via the forth dimension – so he can reach in to steal money and valuables, or unlock a door from the inside so he can enter, or simply step inside via the 4th dimension without opening the door at all, then leave in the same way. He's already cleaned out several establishments, and is currently at The Rock Emporium" (the most exclusive – and expensive – jewellers in Empire city), "and,will no doubt at this moment be accessing their safes to relieve them of the money and valuables stored there.".

The Impossibles quickly reached the prestigious shop in their trusty vehicle. "Well, I can't see this crook opening the door to welcome us", Multi remarked. "No", Coiley replied, "so I'd better bore through it – having it repaired will be of insubstantial cost compared to the loss of everything this character is planning to steal" With that, he promptly drilled around the heavy locks on the door so that it swung open. The boys entered the public area of the shop, and noted the door marked "Staff only" - Fluey transformed into his liquid phase, flowed under the slight gap between the floor and the bottom of the door, and, returning to his solid form, saw the villain, a diagram of a hypercube on the chest of his costume, by the safes. A sack containing money, jewellery and gemstones lay at his feet. "Right – will you come quietly - or otherwise"? he enquired, opening the door to admit Multi and Coiley before rapidly gushing forward on his re-liquidized lower body and grabbing the crook by the wrist. Dr. 4-D responded by pressing a button on his device with his free hand, allowing him to move his wrist through the 4th dimension and out of Fluey's grasp.

"This little gizmo not only allows me to access closed 3-D objects – it also lets me escape into a 4-dimensional parallel world"! the villain exclaimed, quickly depressing a lever on his device which opened up a portal into the strange space thus described, and, grabbing the bag of loot,even more quickly stepping into the trans-dimensional warp.

Not quickly enough, however, to stop Multi following him by duplicating forward before he sealed the portal again.

It was a strange realm which Multi had entered when he followed Dr. 4-, D, and quite disorienting at first. But he could see the crook ahead, and, duplicating forward, reached him. Just had to make sure the villain didn't use the extra dimension to escape...

After what seemed a long time but was actually less than a half-hour, Multi re-appeared through the re-opened trans-dimensional portal, carrying the crook's device and frog-marching Doctor 4-D, who was holding the stolen goods he was soon made to hand over, in front of him. "You have him"! Coiley and Fluey exclaimed simultaneously. "I do indeed", Multi replied triumphantly, "the extra dimension meant more escape routes for him – but it also meant an extra direction for me to surround him – which I did"

With the portal closed again, and Dr. 4-D handed over to the authorities and his device confiscated, Big D. praised The Impossibles for once again defeating a tricky wrongdoer. The following evening, the boys returned to the Old Folk's home to finish their performance, much to everyone's delight. A couple of days later, Multi and Europa were once again discussing possible names for the cat. . "One thing he has in common with Dr. 4-D", Multi remarked, "is that he isn't satisfied with 3 dimensions, the way he gets into any space he can and climbs on everything" he indicated the cat who was now sitting happily on top of the bookcase. "I've no desire to call him after the crook, though – what was the name of that mathematician who did so much work in the field – the one who reckoned the universe is a hypersphere in shape"? "That was Riemann", Europa replied, "good name for the puss, eh"? "Riemann it is, then", Multi confirmed, stroking the cat who purred his approval.

With Dr. 4-D in a jail cell, his trans-dimensional device was examined by experts, who had decided it would be most useful in several applications,

The not-so-good Doctor would be helping them with this, if he knew what was good for him and wanted a reduced sentence for good behavior.

"Let's hope he does behave himself, then" Fluey remarked upon learning this, "he certainly dosen't need any new angles for his crimes"!