The Purchase, Part III

Hovering on my back ala Han Solo frozen in carbonite, I neared the tiny village. The clocks moved underneath me with metronomic frequency, walking by means of a teetering shuffle. Their beeps and buzzes grew synchronized, matching their flopping tempo of miniature steps. And then, all at once, they were quiet.

The cords unraveled around me, leaving me lying in a stupefied funk. I sat up to witness the crowd of electronics line up in silence, cords retracted, in seeming anticipation. Out of a small hut, a larger Alarm clock tottered out. It had AM/FM, snooze features, and an input for an auxiliary device. It was clearly the leader of the clan.

The great clock reached it's power cord solomly over to it's tuning knob, and switched on it's stereo feature. All I heard was static. The LED diodes of the other villagers hung low in embarrassment and sorrow. Their leader had no reception. I now knew why I was here. I was brought here for a reason; to help the lost village of alarm clock radios find their antennas. Maybe then, would I earn the right of passage back to that electronics isle in Target that felt like so far away.

Out of a cloudless sky I heard a crack and a bang as an electrified Delorean skidded next to me. The suicide door swung open and a frazzled Doc Brown jumped out, wearing a neon pink jumpsuit and silver opaque glasses.
"Great Scott!" He yelled. "Ollie, we've got to go right away!"
"What is it Doc?" I said.
"It's Marty, he's in trouble!"
"Damn that Biff." I turned to my new friends apologetically. "I'm sorry guys, but I need to take this one." Doc was already back in the car as I slid over the hood to open the passenger door. "I'll be back someday to find your reception!" Before I could close the door, a power cord slid in. I paused. A lone alarm clock stood there.
"Can I take him with me?" I asked Doc.
"Absolutely not!" exclaimed Doc, "the consequences could be catastrophic!" But the clock wouldn't budge. "Close the door!" He yelled, as the tires started to roll.

Without Doc noticing, I grabbed the cord and pulled in the clock, closing the door. We were off.
"Sir." Said Doc. "Sir."
"What?"
Doc looked at me with wide eyes, "Are you OK?"

I opened my eyes only to be blinded by the tungsten ceiling lights of the target store. Two store assistants and the large lady with her five kids were surrounding me on the floor. "Are you ok sir?" the assistant said.

"Yeah", I said, looking at the broken display case next to me. I raised my hand, still grasping the power cord. "I'll take this one."