They all looked at each other.
“What’s your name?” Hydra asked.
“Big—Big Tur,” the big hydrant mumbled.
Big Tur glanced to his left at the other hydrant who was still unconscious.
“Silver!” Big Tur said as he fell back to the ground.
“Do you remember chasing us through the hole from Genoa with the sheriff and his cohorts? You were with those cohorts,” exclaimed the angry Hydra.
“I honestly don’t remember. I can recall being in a truck on a bridge. Hey, I remember you! You jumped over the bridge! There were three of you who jumped. What happened?” Big Tur asked.
Hydra and Pluggo looked at each other. Hydra knew that Big Tur could be telling the truth—no one else knew about the jump from the bridge except for Meet.
They turned to the other hydrant—still out, just lying still like a rock. His skin was still covered with mud and dirt.
“Let’s leave them alone for now,” Hydra said. He asked some of the seagulls and birds to watch over them. Hydra and Pluggo signaled the others that everything was okay. Big Tur may be telling the truth, Hydra thought. Maybe it’s all part of a dream. He hoped to have an answer soon to this mystery that had been hanging around in his mind.
“C’mon, the rest of you, we have one more hydrant to bring up,” Hydra ordered.
* *
Veeda and the birds led them to the site, a hundred feet from where the two hydrants were found. They dove down to see the hydrant. It was hard to tell how big it was because it was partially buried at an angle with its head sticking out. Hydra and Pluggo gave each other a knowing look—this hydrant looked familiar. They started digging around the hydrant to free it from the mud.
This one looked exactly like Meet. Hydra thought it might be the sheriff, although he didn’t have a prominent mustache and cowboy outfit like the sheriff. He wondered if this one had slid down the hole with the rest of them. “Hydra, could this be Meet?” Pluggo asked excitedly.
“Alright guys, let’s pull him out!” Hydra ordered everyone.
They dragged the hydrant out of the water and laid him beside Big Tur and Silver. Both of them, finally, were wide-awake, albeit weak.
Silver seemed more relaxed and approachable. It was still hard to see his silvery color because of all the mud and grime that still clung to his body. The last hydrant they brought up was still unconscious and not moving.
Hydra noticed the scar on his head, the only proof that this was the real Meet that had stopped the boat at the Mohegan River incident. Upon turning Meet’s body for further investigation, Hydra noticed the 'slit' at the back of his head.
Reassured that the hydrant was Meet, Hydra announced the good news to everyone. “He is one of us.”
* *
There was not much else that they could do but wait. It was still a few hours before sundown. Hydra jumped up as he remembered the backpacks that he had grabbed before escaping from Genoa. He opened the green metallic bag and found another black metallic backpack inside. Hydra threw the black bag to Pluggo for safekeeping. In the green bag, Hydra found a book and a small wrist-strap television monitor that could be worn like a watch. It was labeled—'Metro.'
“The Metro!” Hydra exclaimed. He recalled Elvira mentioning the name—(“I'll see you on the Metro!”)
He quickly strapped the monitor around his wrist and pushed one of its buttons.
“BING!”
A face appeared on the monitor.
“Elvira!” Hydra exclaimed.
“Hi, Hydra! Welcome to the Metro. I’ve been waiting for you and I’m glad you made it. How’z everyone?” Elvira asked.
Hydra felt relieved to see Elvira. He was worried that she might not have escaped from Genoa when he didn't hear from her.
“Everybody is fine. I’m glad to hear from you, Elvira,” Hydra said, trying to control the grin on his face. Elvira’s image began to blur and Hydra had to constantly adjust the monitor to get better reception.
“It’s okay, Hydra, the monitor haz not been uzed for a long time. Dr. Woolf designed those gadgets just for you guys. From now on, thiz will be our main mode of communication, although, there will be other wayz we can connect—we will get to that when necessary. Pluggo, are you there?"
"Yes, I am. Glad to meet you Elvira." Pluggo said smiling.
"I see, you’re all there,” Elvira continued as Grunt barked a hello.
“I guess by now, you already know your mizsion. I am zpeaking for my great-great-great grandfather, Dr. Woolf. I cannot tell you my whereabouts right now for zecurity reasonz. There’z zo much zpying going around that I have to be careful with what I zay and how I zay it. I also zee that you’ve met a lot of your friends. Hello to all of you. Can you all hear and zee me?”
“HELLO THERE ELVIRA!” everyone yelled in unison.
The monitor’s picture began to get fuzzy and the sound was disrupted by static.
“KKSSSTTTTT! KKSSSTTTTT!”
“Gee, I guesz I’ll zign off for now. Do what you have to do. There are other thingz in the backpack that I’d like you to zee—over and out!” Elvira said, signing off.
“KKSSSTTTTTTTT-POOOOP!”
Silence.
They all looked at each other. Hydra quickly opened the backpack. The first thing he pulled out was a dust covered black leather bound book. He blew the dust away and could make out the word 'top secret' in faded red letters on the upper left corner of the cover.
The book was titled, 'FCH by Dr. Stanislaw Woolf.' Hydra explained that FCH stood for FancyCrazyHydrants, the alternative name for Super Fire Hydrants named after the early inventions of Dr. Woolf. He opened the book and leafed through the pages. He found all sorts of illustrations and diagrams depicting most of Dr. Woolf’s inventions.
He came across pages showing hydrants like Pluggo, Crooton, and Beatree, as well as many others. He saw pictures and diagrams of the likes of Veeda, Grunt, and some he had never seen before. The last page of the book contained computer disks of different sizes—names were written on all of them.
They all imparted their 'ooohs' and 'aaahs' when they saw the treasure trove book Hydra was handling.
Hydra quickly closed the book and said, “alright guys, this is supposedly 'top secret.' I hope you understand.” The others backed off, looking sheepish. Big Tur had a sullen look on his face as he walked away.
Hydra nodded and thanked the guys as he walked towards the corner for some privacy. He was busy reading each page and contemplating his next move. Sometimes he would stop reading and stare off into space, considering what he would have to do to topple his enemies. Then all of a sudden he heard a voice.
“WHOA! Where am I?”
It was Meet. He had finally awakened from his sleep. Hydra, Pluggo, and the rest of the gang quickly came to his side.
“Meet, it’s okay. You’re in good hands now,” Pluggo greeted him excitedly.
Meet slowly opened his eyes.
“Pluggo, Hydra, what happened?”
“Welcome back Meet,” Hydra said, a little hesitant since his bad experience with the sheriff.
“What happened to the kids?” asked Meet.
Hydra didn't get it at first but then remembered how Meet got lost trying to save the children.
“Err… ” Hydra seemed lost in words.
“Oh, those kids,” Pluggo cut in, “They were fine. The police arrived right after you stopped the boat. The impact created a big explosion. We quickly searched for you in the murky water but the only thing we found were the propeller fragments from the collision. After a thorough search we gave up and swam back to the bridge.”
“That was heroic of you Meet. When you’re well enough there are other things I want to tell you,” Hydra said while he looked at Pluggo.
Hydra jumped on top of a boulder so he could address everyone.
“Friends, I just want to tell you how much I appreciate you all being here and helping us with our mission. We’re all here together
, of different species and of different powers. Some have powers that we don’t even know about— since reading this book of Dr. Woolf, I’ve begun to understand our mission.
Dr. Woolf, our creator, has brought us here together. There is danger ahead of us, and some of you will not have the power to protect yourselves. Because of this, I want to give you the chance to stay here or leave. If you decide to leave, we may call on you later.”
A few of the birds and ducks tipped their wings to Hydra and took off. Hydra knew that without any power, it would be too dangerous for them to stay and fight.
Hydra counted those who were left behind. There are now eight of us including pioneers like Grunt, Veeda, and Maya. Hydra double-checked the book to see if they were all on the list. He nodded his head as soon as he saw them in the pages with pictures and illustrations.
“There will be others coming to join us—some of whom Pluggo and I met along the way. Until we can find out how to get to them, then we can settle here for now. Now I want you all to form a line.”
“Ten hut!” Hydra yelled.
The group stood looking at Hydra with puzzled expression on their faces.
“I said 'ten hut'—that means that you should all come to attention. What's the matter with you?" Hydra yelled.
Some of them were snickering.
“Oh man, are we in the military now?”
“Ten hut!” Hydra yelled again—his voice getting hoarse.
This time, they all stood at attention like real soldiers, albeit hesitant. Hydra took this to mean that he had the authority to lead them. Some of them, however, continued to snicker, although quietly.
“Right-face!”
They all turned to their right.
“At-ease!”
They all stood at-ease, but some of them still kept moving around. Even Pluggo finally stopped snickering and was looking serious.
Hydra walked slowly in front of them like a captain reviewing his troops.
Veeda was at the end of the line and looked jittery about this army exercise. She was pacing, her knees buckling, shaking uncontrollably and was marching in place.
“Veeda!” Hydra yelled.
“Yes, ahh… what should I call you, sir, officer, sergeant?”
“From now on, everyone can call me Captain Hydra. Everyone else will be called by his or her own name."
“What a big ego,” Big Tur mumbled to himself. “I’m not playing your little game.”
“Step forward Veeda.”
Veeda stepped forward obligingly, her knees still shaking.
Hydra walked behind Veeda, opened the black book and took out a disk labeled “Veeda.” He was about to insert a disk in a slot at the back of her head when Veeda backed off a bit, “What the…”
“Stop moving!” Hydra screamed.
“And may I ask what you are you up to… err, Captain?”
“Trust me.”
As soon as he inserted the disk, Veeda went to attention and she grew taller and bigger. The colors of her feathers brightened up. They turned into deep shiny black with a few of strip of gleaming white stripes. The rest of the 'troop' seemed to gasp in unison at Veeda’s transformation. Her 'rooster' crown was glowing in different hues of red. She was sparkling, clean, and sharp—her appearance had greatly changed.
“Thanks Captain Hydra!” Veeda said proudly as she saluted Hydra.
“You’re welcome Veeda. You’re welcome. Wait. There’s more.” Hydra dug deep in his bag again and pulled out a bright red bandana. It had a logo of a hydrant with 'FCH' written across it in bold letters. It also said 'MEMBER,' the official mark of their team. Hydra tied the bandana around Veeda’s neck.
“Remember—and I want you all to listen closely. The disk that I inserted in Veeda, and this red official bandana, makes her an official member of this team—even if she’s not a hydrant.”
Veeda stepped back to her position as Hydra finished with her. Grunt was next.
“Grunt!” growled Hydra.
“Yes, Captain Hydra,” Grunt answered as he dashed forward and slobbered all over Hydra.
“Stop it!” Hydra yelled, scrambling to compose himself.
“Oops. I’m sorry Captain Hydra. I can’t help myself. Woof, Woof.”
Everyone was snickering quietly.
“Alright! Alright! Let’s get back to business!” Hydra screamed as he wiped the wetness off his face.
Hydra picked out another disk from the book and inserted it at the back of Grunt’s head. It had the same effect as it had on Veeda. Grunt’s chocolate velvety fur became even shinier than before. He grew an inch taller as he stood there at attention, his tail wagging wildly.
Hydra took off Grunt’s color-changing bandana and replaced it with the official red one. Grunt immediately looked sharper—a handsome dog indeed. Hydra noticed that the bandana seemed to be glowing like it was about to change its color again.
“Maya!”
Maya hopped towards Hydra.
“Yes, Captain Hydra!”
Hydra was amazed to hear that full resonant voice come out of such a small creature.
“Maya, you may be small but you have really proven your worth. You have been a big help to this team and have showed your dedication to us. We all appreciate your effort and we welcome you to the FCH camp.”
Again, Hydra inserted a tiny disk—there was a phenomenal transformation of Maya. There was a chorus of 'ooohs' and 'aaahs' from the team. Not only did she grow into a bigger bird, her natural brown feathers changed to a bluish color, while her tail grew several inches longer. No longer a regular sparrow—she had changed into an Alarkin, a majestic bluish colored bird with a magnificent foot long tail. Everyone was bedazzled with their mouth agape. Hydra continued his ritual and placed an official red bandana around Maya’s neck. She hopped back proudly to her position.
“Meet!”
Meet stumbled as he stepped forward—the others began to laugh. He still seemed weak from his ordeal as he struggled to stand at attention.
“Meet, there are no words to describe your courageous act in saving those children. On behalf of the team, I thank you,” Hydra declared.
Hydra then selected the appropriate disk and inserted it in the slot behind Meet’s head. Meet straightened up, becoming taller and stiff. He turned and faced the group and there was an audible gasp from them.
“Wow, Meet! There are little muscles coming out of you,” one of them said.
“You’re redder than red, Meet!” another one exclaimed.
Meet seemed embarrassed by all the attention as he stepped back in formation.
“Silver!”
“Silver!”
There was no answer. Hydra looked up and saw that the group was not paying attention—they were all distracted by somebody’s arrival.
Hydra noticed that Pluggo was pacing nervously. Hydra gazed in the same direction and saw three figures approaching the camp. His face lit up with a huge smile as he realized who they were.
“Err… Hydra. I found out about a certain button in my monitor and pushed it. It was supposed to send a message to some of the hydrants and even free them up from their spot. Once they got the message, they were able to follow it here. Cool isn’t it?” Pluggo confessed.
"Great job Pluggo, great job." Hydra said proudly.
“Crooton, Beatree, and Splatter, boy, am I glad to see you guys! You sure are welcome here,” Hydra said as he gave each of them a bear hug, almost breaking off some of Beatree’s branches.
Pluggo followed suit and welcomed them aboard. Hydra felt unusually close to these hydrants even if they had not spent a lot of time together.
Everyone was introduced. Grunt seemed to be especially interested with Splatter. They circled each other—their tails wagging wildly. Hydra was really happy to have Crooton with them. He seemed to be the oldest and maybe the wisest of them all. He even carried a walking stick, like a wise man.
Everyone was getting excited as the introductions continued. The ca
maraderie among them was evident as Hydra called for their attention.
“Everyone! Everyone! May I have your attention please? You may have already met our new friends—Crooton, Beatree, and Splatter. Now, let’s officially welcome them to our team!” Hydra exclaimed. There was a round of applause for the new arrivals.
“You three came just in time,” Hydra continued. “We were officially distributing these wonderful gifts from Dr. Woolf, our sole creator.” The three hydrants looked at each other while Pluggo gave them a raised thumb.
“Please—everyone get back to your position. I want to call on Silver. Where’s Silver?”
* *
The ceremony continued until the wee hours of the morning. They lit a small bonfire to fend off the evening chill. They had all received their disks. The non-hydrants received a red bandana and the fire hydrants, a sticker with “FCH” written on it. They may have looked like ordinary items but there was really more to them.
The ceremony ended with a lot of positive vibes among the group—some of them tried their newfound powers. They were flying, chasing each other, and were having fun—until they all got tired and just lay by the fire and rested. They all fell asleep, eventually.
At last, there was peace and quiet in the camp. The only noise left was the crisp crackling burning wood of the bonfire, complemented by the cascading chirping of the crickets. The snorings also added to the symphony.
Unbeknownst to them, there was a movement in the flickering bonfire. Sparks started to fly but no one seemed to have noticed as they were all sleeping. Only Grunt perked up and stared at the fire before closing his eyes again and covering his head with his paws. The flicker continued until it formed into a small fireball. It rolled over the ground, burning its path only to stop when Grunt, startled by the noise, started barking.
“Woof! Woof! Woof! Grrrrr!”
The fireball morphed into a shape of a small person—about a foot tall. It had a fiery pointy-head and a body and arms wrapped in glowing fire. The fiery figure stood there and watched. Without hesitation, Grunt leaped at the glowing figure, which took the shape of a fireball once again and shot up into the sky, leaving a trail of sparks and smokes.
“What happened Grunt?” Pluggo asked awakened by the noise, his eyes were still half closed.
“Nothing. Go back to sleep.”
CHAPTER 18
Captain Hydra
“COCKA DOO DEL DOOO! COCKA DOO DEL DOOO!”