Chapter 3 - The Mystery begins:
Most of the Pre Meeting talk at the Junior Woodchuck meeting house on Pleasure Island Duckburg concerned the capture of the Scorpion monster on Pleasure Island Collodi. Peter Prokofiev Geppetto being the mastermind of that capture was the hero of the day at the meeting and the monster's capture earned him his promotion to Brigadier as well as the merit badges in hunting and trapping as field awards. Other events at the meeting included Doofus McQuack getting his merit badge in steam engineering and several un named Junior Woodchucks also getting promotions and merit badges of various types that they earned by meeting the requirements of the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook for them.
The next phase of the meeting after the various award ceremonies involved playing the Woodchuck Game. The game was played with playing cards but was of a non gambling nature. The way it worked was that the G. M. O. J. W. (Grand Master of Junior Woodchucking) shuffled the cards and the player cut them and then took the top card from the uncut remainder of the cards. If the card was one of the red ones (Hearts or diamonds) he got to do an easy task from the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook. If it was a black one (Spades or Clubs) the task from the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook would be one of the more difficult ones that could be performed at the meeting house. If the task was successfully completed the player got the number of points indicated by his card with aces counting as 14, kings as 13, queens as 12, jacks as 11 and the remainder cards their numerical value.
As the newest Brigadier Peter was given the honor of the first cut and draw for his Patrol, Huey Duck's Patrol 1. Peter's card was the Ace of Hearts for 14 points if he completed a simple assigned task.
"Ace, Simple" he announced. "Peter Prokofiev Geppetto, come to the game table."
Peter obeyed and the G. M. O. J. W. presented him with two ropes. "Now your assignment is to tie me a square knot."
Of course every Junior Woodchuck even a Major knew how to tie a square knot and the presenting the two ropes properly secured gave Huey's patrol the first 14 points of the game.
One of the Pleasure Island Collodi orphans who led the first all true human Patrol in the Junior Woodchucks numbered Patrol 2 then came up to the card cutting part of the game table. His name was Antonio Gievetti.
Even though Gievetti was Competition Pinocchio silently wished him luck. The members of Patrol 2 all have lived hard lives in other orphanages and street gangs of various sorts. Many of them were even donkeys at one time like Lampwick. It was obvious that Antonio was once a donkey boy as he had a distinct aversion to the cards and cards were a commonly used amusement on the old Coachman and Ringmaster run Pleasure Island. However he managed to overcome this aversion enough to do his cut and draw. It was the Ace of Diamonds.
"Ace, simple." the G. M. O. J. W. (Grand Master of Junior Woodchucking). You don't even have to go over to the other game table as your assigned task is to recite to me the Junior Woodchucks motto."
Antonio returned. " Preparedness and Preservation of Knowledge."
"That is correct." the G. M. O. J. W. (Grand Master of Junior Woodchucking) announced. "Patrol 2 now has 14 points.
The next player's cut and draw then came. This player was Huey's Patrol's main competitor in the Woodchucks. Patrol 3 led by the pig boy Samuel Pheters. His draw was the Ten of Spades.
"Ten, Difficult," the G. M. O. J. W. (Grand Master of Junior Woodchucking) announced. "Patrol Leader Samuel Pheters come to the game table."
Huey liked this turn of events. "Sam Pheters was one of the genuine spoiled brats of the new Troop as were most pig boys which Sam was. This meant he was going to pull an assignment that would probably lose his patrol the points indicated on the cards.
"Your assignment is to give me the subjects of the entirety of the Merit Badge group on page 10,207 of the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook.
That would be the Natural Science badges and I believe they are as follows, Entomology, Herpetology, Paleontology, Ornithology, Mammalology, Botany, Ichthyology, and Zoology.
"That's correct and you have earned your patrol ten points." the G. M. O. J. W. (Grand Master of Junior Woodchucking) announced.
"I didn't think he would ever pull that one off." Peter said to Pinocchio in a whisper.
However it was now time for Huey to play for Patrol 1's second round. The approached the card play part of the game table. The G. M. O. J. W. (Grand Master of Junior Woodchucking) shuffled the cards and placed them on the table before Huey. Huey cut the cards and drew the top one from the uncut remiander. It was the dreaded Ace of Spades.
"Ace, Difficult" the G. M. O. J. W. (Grand Master of Junior Woodchucking) announced. Huey Duck come to the game table.
"Huey then went to the second game table where the tasks were given. "Huey, since you drew the Ace of Spades we have to make your task especially difficult." the G. M. O. J. W. (Grand Master of Junior Woodchucking) said. "You will be dealing with an important event in our Junior Woodchuck Guidebook dealing with the original Woodchuck Militia from the 19th century here. Your task is to answer the question, Who was the first Woodchuck Militia leader to use a Revolver as his issue weapon."
"I believe that was Randal Jerramie McQuack and the gun was one of the first Walker Colts of the Whitneyville assembly line." Huey answered.
"That is Correct" the G. M. O. J. W. (Grand Master of Junior Woodchucking) announced Your Patrol now has 24 points.
This game continued until the end of the meeting with Huey Duck's Patrol 1 winning, Antonio Gievetti's Patrol 2 coming in a close second and Sam Pheters's Patrol 3 losing with a distant third. Results both Huey and Pinocchio liked.
After the Meeting Pinocchio approached Huey and announced. "I think we should have a special meeting.
Pleasure Island Collodi was threatened by a scorpion monster in the Roller Coaster Area again."
"What." Huea shouted. "That would indicate the Ringmaster's out of the clink."
"No," Pinocchio announced. "We're sure the Ringmaster's still in prison and that it is not him. It is a third person interested in the old boy to donkey conversion business and that person lives here in the Duckburg world, In my own home country if I were actually carved here when I was a puppet."
"You don't mean!" Huey shouted.
"Yes I do," Pinocchio returned. "I believe that our newest little scorpion and potential boy to donkey maker is MAGICA DE SPELL!"
Off the shore of Pleasure Island Collodi, Italy, 1882:
Even though her activities were now known amongst the Junior Woodchucks on Pleasure Island Duckburg they were not to her scorpion sting hatted minions and the inhabitants of Pleasure Island Collodi. Therefore Magica De Spell kept her hidden robed cat petting Earnst Stavro Blofeld look as she looked at the island far away. One thing magica knew however was that the elements of her magic had to be practiced separately in order for her scheme to be the new donkey to boy conversion master of BOTH of the Pleasure Islands. Combining several spells into a Red Star again would simply be too uncontrollable and too obvious for the Geppetto Family's guardian Blue Fairy to ever miss. However using the main wicked works of the Red Star as separate spells might work.
Her first work would be identical to the Coachman's when he had possession of the original red star but different. Her "Monstro" would be neither a whale or a scorpion she thought as she looked into the glass container next to her feet. In it was an eel like creature with a bluish black topside and a bright yellow belly with a paddle like tail blotched in the same bluish black and yellow. However the creature was not an eel which was a fish but it was a reptilian eater of fish. It was the highly venomous Yellow Bellied Sea Snake scientifically named Palamus platurus. It would soon be a totally new and even more dangerous form of the Monstro concept, a 100 foot long VENOMOUS sea serpent.
Magica cast her spell over the sea snake with a combination of hand gestures and speech both of an arcane type and then dumped the entire contents of the glass container into the sea. Once there the sea snake began to supernaturally grow until it reached the proportions of the Coachman's whales and the Ringmastewr's scorpions. The sea around Pleasure Island was now dominated by the equivalent of the legendary sea serpent but a VENOMOUS equivalent derived from a real sea snake.
Later that day off the Coast of Pleasure Island Collodi, Italy, 1882:
One of the girls coming home on the last ferry boat from Pleasure Island was the first to see the new phenomenon in the sea. At first it took the form of a set of undulating wakes headed towards the ferry. Then the head came out of the water. The head was black on its top and yellow on its bottom and was covered with heavy plates. Behind it was an equally black and yellow neck covered with scales resembling corn on the cob. The girl screamed and that led others to look in her direction and see the sea serpent head by this time its mouth was open in preparation to strike. The serpent's venomous fangs were short and fixed like all elapid type snakes and only revealed themselves as sleight tissue thickenings toward the front of the enormous mouth. The events that originally closed Pleasure Island down and robbed Lampwick of his family were playing themselves out again only with a reptilian rather than mammalian "Monstro". However this time the ferries were prepared for such an incident.
"Man the life boats!" the Ferry captain announced. "Let the monster have this ship without us aboard."
Well before the sea snake reached the striking range for the ferry the life boats were launched and rowed in the direction of Pleasure Island. They were safely at the docks to the great Oak doors again before the snake made its strike. It seemed to chew and make sure that the fangs penetrated the fairy several times before swallowing it again following its elapid instincts as regarded the use of its venom. Unlike the first time Monstro the Whale attacked a ship this attack of the great sea snake ended no lives.
On the Island itself Geppetto was the first to see the monster sea snake and knew full well what it meant. Pleasure Island would have to be closed down again if the monster was not immediately dealt with. It also meant that there was someone after the Island in order to turn it back into a boy to donkey factory, but who.
Both the Coachman and the Ringmaster were in prison in Duckburg and Collodi respectively. Besides the coachman always dealt in making whale based monsters and the Ringmaster always dealt in making scorpion based ones. This sea snake business was something new that was sort of in between combining the venomousness of the scorpion with the aquatic lifestyle of the whale. It meant a third person was involved, one that was previously allied with the other two. It was through this "in between" monster that Geppetto determined the same answer for the person behind the scorpion monster in the roller coaster area and now the new monster sea snake off Pleasure Island that his sons and Huey Dick did. It was Magica De Spell, the sorceress from the Duckburg world that was behind these latest attempts to close down and take over the Pleasure Islands.
Later that day when Pinocchio, Lampwick and Peter returned to Pleasure Island Collodi with Huey Dewey and Louie this confirmed Geppetto's own beliefs about the newest attacks on his family's operation of the Pleasure Islands.
"Father," Peter said to Geppetto. "We have every reason to believe that a Duckburg world resident named Magica De Spell was behind the scorpion in the roller coaster area this morning."
"I'm quite familiar with De Spell." Geppetto returned. "I assume that is why the duck brothers are here also?"
"Yes" Pinocchio returned. "They are the Junior Woodchucks most familiar with De Spell as she is always after their Uncle Scrooge McDuck's number 1 dime."
"Well, it seems that she is after quite bit more than a dime." Geppetto returned. "Like Pleasure Island in order to continue the same despicable business that the Coachman and the Ringmaster engaged in. She just let loose another monster off our coast, a giant sea serpent derived from a venomous Pacific yellow bellied sea snake. It appears that we will have to shut down the Island again until the new monster is dealt with.
"Another Monstro, and as a snake this time." Lampwick said. "Can't these creeps come up with anything new."
"More than just a snake," Geppetto returned to Lampwick. "A VENOMOUS snake of gigantic proportions.
It probably does not even need to bite anymore to be dangerous. Just breathing in its venom in a mist form might kill you as anything that goes through your lungs goes directly into the blood stream just as a bite would. That snake is the first thing we have to deal with or this Island will have to be closed down indefinitely again. Then we must find and deal with De Spell since she is obviously in this world right now."
"Maybe this will help." Pinocchio said producing something from his vest pocket. It was one of the magic glass cartridges the blue fairy provided him with for his peacemaker during the scorpion fight in Tombstone.
"But we have nothing to fire that off with here." Geppetto said.
"Well we can make something." Pinocchio said. "Perhaps we can turn that old blunderbuss pistol of yours if you still have it into a breach loader that can use this magic cartridge.
"Yes, that cartridge responds to the mere snap of a firearm hammer and not direct contact of a fireing pin as I remember its use from the Tombstone assignment." Geppetto returned. "Perhaps the blunderbuss pistol could be modified to use this magic cartridge."
"Well then let's get to work." Pinocchio said. "Its time to get that venomous pseudo sea serpent out of our waters."
The modification of Geppetto's blunderbuss pistol did not take as much time as expected. Rather than modifying the entire barrel as Pinocchio originally intended all that was required was a breech loading barrel insert for the glass cartridge that could be muzzle loaded into the gun and supported in place with natural rubber O rings. Several test shots proved the size reducing blue beam would come from this modification of the blunderbuss pistol. Geppetto now had an effective weapon against creatures enlarged by magic like the sea snake off Pleasure Island.
"Get one of the ferries ready." Geppetto returned. "We get rid of that snake TODAY!"
Next. After the Great Sea Snake.
