"Welcome to the Quohog, said Widdershins. "Aye! It's the submarine Q and its crew of two. Aye! But I can't call it that anymore can I? Let's say... the submarine Q and its crew of a few. Aye! That still rhymes," said Widdershins.
"Pardon us, Captain Widdershins," said Violet. "But we don't have time to join your crew. Our parents have been kidnapped by terrible villains. We have to get to the Hotel Derrière before they do."
"That's where I'm headed too, right after we get the sugar bowl. Aye! If we get it before Syndrome does, you'll be in the best position to bargain your parents free. If we don't, we're all finished. Aye! He or she who hesitates is lost!"
"What's the big deal about this sugar bowl?" Dash asked.
"That's a secret too terrible for young people to know," said Widdershins. "It would put you in mortal danger. Aye!"
"He hasn't even told me," said Fiona.
"I'm still not totally convinced about this time-warp story," said Violet. "I mean, we've never met you before. For all we know you could be supervillians."
"If we went by the newspaper, that's what we'd believe about you. Aye!" said Captain Widdershins in a bit of a huff.
"I know what would convince you," said Fiona. "Follow me to the main room and I'll show you."
She led the way to the largest room in the submarine, which had a table covered with charts in the center. To one side was a porthole, and under it was a desk. Fiona rummaged in the drawers of the desk and produced a photograph.
"Here, look at this," she said.
The photograph showed Bob and Helen Parr as beaming newlyweds standing in front of a church, with a kindly-looking priest standing on the steps behind them. On either side were their friends, all in super costumes: Gazerbeam, Dynaguy, Meteorman, Thunderhead...
"Look, there I am on the left," said Fiona. She pointed to herself in the picture. The costume was different, but it was clearly her.
"Ok, I'm convinced," said Violet.
"Boss!" said Fiona.
"Now I'm really convinced," said Violet. "In today's slang we'd say 'cool'."
"Now, then," said Captain Widdershins. "I'll assign you to your duties."
"Duties?" asked Dash.
"Aye, as new members of the crew. Violet, you'll help repair the telegraph machine. Aye!"
"I don't know anything about machinery," Violet said.
"Then it's time you learned. Aye! Dash, you'll help Fiona read the tidal charts and figure out where the sugar bowl has gone."
"I don't know anything about reading tidal charts," Dash said.
"Then it's time you learned. Jack-Jack, you'll help Cookie in the galley with dinner."
"Grubb grubb," said Jack-Jack.
"He says the last time he tried to cook it turned out badly. He's not sure he really knows how to cook," Violet translated.
"It's time he learned, then. Aye! Cookie, come out and meet our new crew members," Widdershins called.
A young boy trotted out from the galley. "Hey, great to see you guys again!"
"Phil?" Dash said in surprise. They had last seen Phil, the optimistic boy from across the street, when they were working at the Salubrious Stench Lumber Mill.
"Yep! After you left, the lumber mill got really boring. I ran away to sea on a raft," said Phil.
"That sounds dangerous," said Violet.
"It was totally wicked!" Phil said. "I was nearly eaten by a shark, but Captain Widdershins saved me. Now I'm the cook, which is an awesome job since I get to work with supers."
"Garnish," said Jack-Jack, which meant "I'll be helping you cook now."
Jack-Jack and Phil went back to the galley. Jack-Jack helped by morphing his hands into chopping knives to dice up fish and vegetables for chowder.
"Ginzu!" said Jack-Jack.
Dash and Fiona began working on the tidal charts. He was able to look things up in the books and tables really fast when she told him what to look for.
Fiona sighed, "I wish my brother Fernald were here. He refused to go into hiding with us and now we've lost track of him."
"How old is Fernald?" Dash asked.
"He was a year younger than me when I left, but now I suppose he's grown up," Fiona said sadly.
"I'm sure you'll find him someday," Dash said to comfort her.
Violet tried to check out the telegram machine, but she didn't know what to look for. "I can't find anything wrong with it," she told the Captain. "Maybe there's a problem on the other end."
"We were getting lots of Volunteer Factual Dispatches every day, and now we're getting none," said Widdershins. "Oh well, come over here and I'll show you how the submarine controls work. Aye! They may need some repair work, too."
Violet sighed. She didn't seem to be getting through to him that she wasn't an expert on repairs or inventions.
Soon, Phil and Jack-Jack came out of the galley with a big pot of soup.
"Chowda!" announced Jack-Jack.
"He means dinner's ready," said Violet to Captain Widdershins.
"Fiona and Dash, stop flirting over there and come to dinner," called the Captain.
"We weren't flirting," said Dash indignantly.
"You know, if we find Fernald we could have a double wedding right here in the Quohog: you and Fiona, and Violet and Fernald," said Widdershins.
"Eeew!" said Dash. "Get real, I'm only ten!"
After everyone gathered for dinner, Dash announced, "We've figured out where the sugar bowl has to be."
"Aye?" asked Captain Widdershins. "Where?"
"Where this 'GG' is on the map," said Fiona.
"Aye, that's Gargoyle Grotto," said Widdershins. "It has a very narrow approach from underwater. Tomorrow, one of you children will have to swim into it to fetch out the sugar bowl. Aye."