Chapter 5
"WHY AREN'T YOU LOOKING HARDER!" Screeched the captain alien. "Three weeks without a single shred of evidence of his location!"
"The Earth Potentate said he was going to an ocean." Said a crew member. "I recorded his conversation! Wasn't that helpful!"
The captain gave the crew member a blank stare, as he slipped a cassette tape into a tape recorder, and hit play.
A hiss of static came out at first, but then, faint voices.
"Ssssssss "...ocean... fishing ..rip..." ... "darn, this ...hing's running out of batter...s..." Ssssss "lost month of...ummer..." "Heh, heh"... Ssssss... "ZZZ...ZZZ!" "Oh, well, I guess ...hats goo... enough"... Sssssssss..."
"How helpful!" Spat the captain. "You ran out of batteries when the key to finding him was in reach. What were you recording, that was more important than catching the Potentate!"
The crew member muttered something under his breath.
"What?" Asked the captain.
The crew member repeated it louder.
"Pea Green Boat on the NPR radio station."
There was along moment of silence.
"YOU IDIOT!" Screeched the captain. "HOW DID YOU GET TO BE SO DUMB!"
"Well, momma used to say that she had dropped me down a flight of stairs once." The captain's eyes rolled into the back of his head.
"When we rule this planet, you'll be first on my list to be turned into a brainless slave."
"Gee, thanks." Said the crew member.
"Don't ever speak to me again!" Clashed the captain, turning to the control board. "Now GO WORK HARDER!"
"Well," said Dad. Sometime in late May. "It hasn't rained for two weeks, now. And we did catch a couple of fish."
"Are you counting that one time where that fish accidentally slammed head first into the boat and you were able to grab him?" Asked Calvin, grumpily.
"Or the time when the fish tried to jump over the boat but landed in your face, instead?" Said Mom.
Dad ignored them.
"The time is ripe for some extreme fishing!" He said. "I mean look at it! The water's so still, and so crystal clear you can see the fish below. This is perfect."
"That's what you said yesterday." Said Mom.
Calvin pulled Hobbes away.
"I can't take this any longer, Hobbes." Calvin said. "Let's leave these two dumbbells to argue, while we make our escape!"
"I don't think that's such a good idea, Calvin." Said Hobbes.
"Nobody asked you!" Said Calvin. "You want to stay here and die of boredom, be my guest, but I'm not staying!"
And with that, Calvin ran off.
Well, Hobbes couldn't argue with THAT logic, so he ran after Calvin.
He found him around on the other side of the dock.
"Where do you plan on going?" Asked Hobbes.
"The woods over there!" Said Calvin pointing at a drove of trees.
Hobbes stopped.
"Oh NO!" He screamed. "We can't go in there! Don't you remember what happened last time we went into a mass of trees like that?"
"It wasn't so bad." Said Calvin.
"We were attacked by an entire alien nation, chased by the wildlife, and nearly got killed by a camp instructor!"
"Like I said: It wasn't all that bad, now come on!" Said Calvin.
Hobbes sighed, and started for the forest, but just then, Calvin stopped.
He was staring up at something with a look of glee on his face.
Hobbes looked up.
"Oh no." He muttered.
"Oh, yes." Calvin whispered.
There above them was HUGE ship that had the words P.T. Calvin written on it.
"Now that is a fishing boat." Calvin said. "It's even named after me! The P.T. Calvin!"
"Calvin don't...!" Hobbes began, but Calvin was already climbing the ladder into the ship.
Hobbes had no choice but to follow.
"Wow ! Look at it, in here!" Said Calvin looking around the ship. "It's amazing!"
Indeed this was quite the ship.
It had a game room with an arcade and pool table, a kitchen and a dinning room, three floors with an elevator, and an entertainment center with a big screen TV, VCR and DVD player, DVDs, VHSs and a radio a.k.a communication center.
"Now this is what dad should be fishing in!" Said Calvin, impressed.
"Who's up for a game of pool?" Asked Calvin.
"Well," Said Hobbes. "We really should be getting back to your Dad..."
Calvin gave Hobbes a blank stare as he rubbed his chalk into his cue.
"Well, I guess one game won't hurt." Said Hobbes grabbing another cue, and rubbing chalk into it.
Calvin and Hobbes played Pool for a while, then heard Dad calling them.
"Well, it was fun while it lasted." Said Hobbes, shrugging.
That day was even more boring than the rest of the days, but Calvin didn't seem to notice Dad's droning on about building character.
He was to busy day dreaming about the cruise ship.
On the way home, Calvin was still doing everything in auto pilot.
And that night, Calvin wanted to go back to the ship.
He got out of bed, and tiptoed over to Hobbes.
He poked Hobbes awake, and told him where he was going.
"I didn't get to play any of those arcade games, and I wanna!" He whispered.
It took a while to make Hobbes come, but in the end, he helped Calvin escape.
Calvin and Hobbes walked out of the motel.
The looked around.
Lights that were lined across the isle of doors lit up the isle, and cast eerie shadows in the other places.
Calvin had slipped on his usual day outfit: Red shirt, with black stripes, black sweat pants, and red sneakers.
"Calvin," Hobbes whispered. "That ship is a mile away, how are we gonna get there?" Calvin pointed to a small cardboard box with the word air-plane on it.
"By plane, bozo, get in!" Calvin and Hobbes leaped into the box, and zoomed off.
A little later, they reached the dock.
"What about your parents?" Asked Hobbes.
"It served them right." Said Calvin. "I left a little note for them."
"What note?"
"Here's a copy of it." Chortled Calvin.
Hobbes took a piece of paper and read it.
Hi dad!
This is Calvin! I got so sick of your stupid fishing trips that I leaped onto a boat, and drifted away! Goodbye forever! BWA, HA, HA, HA, HA!
Sincerely Calvin
Hobbes stared at the note.
"You left this at the hotel?" He said.
"It's not for real!" Calvin laughed. "It's to put such a scare into them that they'll cancel their stupid fishing trip!"
"What about your extra month of summer?" Asked Hobbes.
"Shut up, and get onto the boat." Clashed Calvin.
The two had a great time on the boat that night.
But, neither one noticed the ropes had began to stretch and tear.
Just then, they snapped, and the ship had slowly started to drift away.
But Neither Calvin nor Hobbes noticed the snap, or the change in movement.
They were to absorbed in their pool game.
About three hours later, Hobbes punched the air in victory.
"I WIN!" He yelled. Calvin frowned. "Well, you may have battened my skills but my soul is still triumphant!" He said.
Hobbes pulled out a notepad.
"That's three hundred forty six straight games you've lost." He said, taking note.
"My soul is now whacking my cue into your soul!" Calvin muttered.
"Well, Calvin, the pool's been fun, but we really ought to go back to your Dad now."
Calvin looked at his watch.
"Yeah, we better." He said. "Or they'll come looking for us."
Calvin yawned, and walked toward the door.
He opened the door, and took a deep breath in.
"Hobbes," he said. "Does the air seem a little heavy to yoo..."
Calvin stopped.
He stared eyes wide.
Hobbes stepped outside.
"What?" He asked.
"Su... su... su... su... su... SU...su...su...su... su... su... su... su... SU...su...su" Calvin mumbled.
Hobbes looked ahead of Calvin.
His eyes bulged.
"Su... su... su... su... su... SU...su...su" he mumbled to himself.
Then, they both screamed "NOT AGAIN!" in the middle of a salt water ocean.