(i didn't inend this to be a two parter but it was like 20 pages long so i sliced it in half.)
The Octopod cruised through the Atlantic ocean towards the east coast of North America.
"We're on course captain," dashi assured ,"by evening we should arrive at the horseshoe crab spawning beach, or probably... we're still not exactly sure where we will find them."
"Just get us as close as you can dashi," the captain said ,"we'll take the gups the rest of the way to the beach anyway."
"This is going to be great!" Shelington exclaimed ," we'll be able to witness first hand one of the greatest spectacles the ocean has to offer!"
"I know," Dashi agreed ,"I can't wait to take some photos."
Kwazii wandered into the room, clearly having just woken up even though it was the afternoon.
"What are we doing again?" he asked, rubbing his eyes, " weren't we going to see a Donkeyfoot crab spawning."
"Horseshoe crab," Shellington corrected, " each summer on new and full moons, thousands of Horseshoe crabs all come up onto the beach to lay their eggs. This year I got the crew together to go see this site but we have to find the right beach first."
Once the Octopod was just off the coast dashi brought it in to land. It settled in the sand and the octonauts all went down to the launch bay and into the gups. Tweak flicked open the Octo Hatch and jumped in the gup D.
The octonauts all filed out the Octopod with Kwazii zooming ahead of all of them in the gup B.
"Keep up Mateys,'' Kwazii yelled ,looping and spinning about in his gup.
"Not everyone has a gup like yours Kwazii," the captain said.
"Well then you're missing out!" he replied, once again shooting off and doing tricks in the water.
As he was off on his escapades he saw a domed shaped creature crawling along the seabed. He leapt out of the top of the Gup B letting it naturally come to a stop and landed right behind the creature.
"Who goes there," it questioned , slowly turning around.
One it had done a full circle Kwazii leaned too far forward and said in a voice that was too loud ,"hello there little matey."
"GAH!" the crab yelled and to kwazii's surprise it began to frantically swim away, flipping over so the dome of it's shell faced the seabed and waving it's crab like lims about in a rhythmic motion
"What have you done now Kwazii," the captain asked catching up to the pirate, "you scared away the horseshoe crab."
(Surprisingly there was also a horseshoe crab toy they made which was never in any episode. I used to have it but loads of mould grew on the insides so i had to throw it out. there was also a drawing of a Horseshoe crab in the Gup-X video on youtube)
"So that's what a horseshoe crab looks like,'' Kwazii realised ,"i was only saying hello. also how is that thing swimming, it doesn't have fins or anything?"
"Horseshoe crabs swim using their gills," Shellington explained," they have gills underneath their body and they flap them to move through the water. Here i'll show you!"
Shelington retreated back into the gup and came out with what looked like another horseshoe crab but it was a lighter colour.
"Is it alive?" peso asked.
"This?" Shellington said, holding up the thing that looked like horseshoe crab. "No, this is just an empty horseshoe crab shell, they shed them as they grow ."
Shelington swam over to Kwazii and showed him the gills on the underside of the crab's body
(if you've seen the underside of a Horseshoe crab, the gills are the bits that look like scales between the legs and tail)
"Hey!" dashi perked up ,"what if that horseshoe crab could lead us to the right beach."
"Great idea dashi!" the captain compliments ,"let's go ask."
Since horseshoe crabs don't exactly swim very fast the octonauts easily caught up to it.
"Umm, excuse me?" the captain said, swimming alongside it, trying to get its attention, "would you be able to help us with something."
"Can't!" the crab panted, clearly tired from the swimming, "there was a scary orange seal with legs"
"Don't worry that was just Kwazii," the captain explained ,"he was just a bit excited."
"You sure?"
"On my honour as an Octonaut, I'm sure."
"Phew!" the horseshoe crab sighed landing back on the seabed upside down, "swimming's really tiring."
The crab lay there for a few seconds, catching its breath before trying to flip itself over again. It flexed its body trying to right itself for a while. It tried to push itself over with its tail but wasn't able to.
"Here," the captain said ,"let me help you."
"No no no,"the horseshoe crab rejected, "I've got this."
The crab once again used its gills to swim a bit forward and off the sea bed. It then managed to right itself in the water and landed back on its front.
"There we go," she said ,"sorry, where are my manners, my name is Hannah, now what did you need help with."
"I'm Captain Barnacles and these are my friends, the octonauts. We were wondering if you would be able to lead us to the beach that you horseshoe crabs lay your eggs on."
"Oh of course just follow me!"
The horseshoe crab travelled slowly, which just annoyed Kwazii more.
"Uuuuuugh," he groaned, looping about restlessly, "are we nearly there yet?"
"Still no Kwazii," the captain said, "Hannah is still searching."
"I'm gonna see if I can speed up the process." Kwazii said, shooting forward in the gup B
"Kwazii..." the captain started and then realised it was futile to try and stop him.
Kwazii brought the gup up next to the horseshoe crab and slowly stepped out, trying not to startle the horseshoe crab.
"Hannah," he said ,"I'm sorry I startled you before, I was just a bit excited."
"It's ok."
"Anyway, how would you like to move faster than you've ever imagined?"
"Sure ok."
Kwazii picked up the horseshoe crab and placed her on the hood of the gup. He then got in the gup and accelerated forwards at top speed. The gup blasted forward leaving a trail of bubbles behind it.
"Wooo!"the horseshoe crab yelled ," this is fun!"
The Gup B broke the surface of the water, skimming along the sea.
"Keep an eye out for good beaches matey," Kwazii said
It was evening and the sun was beginning to set meaning the nocturnal spawning of the horseshoe crabs was due to happen soon.
"What about that beach." Kwazii suggested pointing to a gravelly beach with small gentle waves."
"Hmm, no, too stoney," the crab said.
Kwazii continued along to a muddy beach with big crashing waves.
"What about this one matey?" he asked
"Hmm, no the waves are too big."
Kwazii continued along the coast until something caught Hannah's eye.
"There!" she yelled ,"that beach over there."
Kwazii looked where she was looking and saw the perfect beach. It was made of soft brown sand with the odd jet black grain and the waves were soft and calm.
"In an hour or so that place will be filled with crabs," the crab said
Kwazii dipped the gup back below the waves and landed on the seabed. He hopped out of the gup and placed Hannah onto the seabed.
"Thanks for the ride," she said ,"it would have taken me ages to get here on foot. Oh and look, the others are arriving!"
Kwazii looked out into the ocean and saw thousands of horseshoe crabs all approaching the beach.
"Well shiver me whiskers!" Kwazii exclaimed ,"look at the sight of them,"
"Amazing isn't it," Shellington remarked, finally catching up along with the rest of the crew.
"Sure is a sight to behold, right matey?"
"It sure is Kwazii," the captain agreed ,"right everyone lets dock at the island.
The octonauts all docked at the island and got out their gups before setting up a little base of operations consisting of a table and some lights.
"What now?" peso asked looking at the empty beach.
"Now we wait for the sun to set and for the spectacle to start," Shelington explained.
The octonauts unpacked some chairs and set them up and began to watch the crabs arrive. Once the full moon rose the crabs really started to arrive en masse. They swarmed the coast so no sand could be seen.
"Well i'll be a sea monkey's uncle ,there must be... 1,2,3,4,5... a bajillion crabs! Uhg, probably"
"There's probably not that many Kwazii," the captain said ,"but ther certainly is a lot."
"It's wonderful to see this many horseshoe crabs," Shelington remarked ,"all these crabs have come here to mate and lay their eggs. Horseshoe crabs used to be endangered but now thanks to conservation efforts, their numbers are beginning to increase again."
(only this species which is the Atlantic Horseshoe crab)
Shelington came very prepared. He had a box of Popcorn, a clipboard for notes and a water bottle full of undiluted cordial which he only drank on special occasions.
The octonauts watched the spectacle continue through the night, one by one drifting off in their chairs. First went Kwazii, then peso, tweak had the foresight to pack a sleeping bag and was able to comfortably sleep in that, after tweak went the captain and then finally shellington's eagerness to watch the horseshoe crabs was overridden and he fell back snoring in his chair.
That left dashi who was still wide awake, sipping hot chocolate from a thermos.
In the early morning dashi was still awake and still perfectly content. Many of the crabs had once again returned to the ocean leaving their eggs on the beach by the million.
She shook the drowsiness out her head and got up for a walk along the beach. The ocean waves had washed most of the horseshoe crab eggs into a thin line spanning the beach as that was the highest point the waves had reached.
Dashi bent down and looked closely at the eggs. They were tiny teal orbs about half the size of a pinhead
"Well hello there little ones," she said, mostly to herself smiling at the thousands of eggs in front of her.
She looked up from the eggs and saw a full grown horseshoe crab lying upside down on the sand.
"Um excuse me," dashi said walking over, "do you need any help?"
"Nope I'm perfectly fine," replied the crab, flexing its tail and trying to flip itself over. ,"just having some technical difficulties."
"Aren't you the crab that helped lead us here?" dashi asked, "Hannah right?"
"yes, " the crab answered "and i am perfectly *umph*able to flip myself over."
Suddenly, dashi hear squawking in the distance. She looked up towards the ocean and saw a huge flock of birds heading right for the beach.
"Uh oh." she said ,"this doesn't look good. Sorry Hannah gotta go"
Dashi quickly flipped Hannah over and then jogged back over to the rest of the crew and gently shook Shellington awake.
"Shellington." she said, shaking him awake.
"Hugdabuhudumbawha?" he murmured,"I mean, what?"
"Those birds," Dashi said pointing to the horizon ,"are they bad."
"No, I don't think so," Shellington replied ,"those are just some migratory birds ,they come to these beaches to eat horseshoe crab eggs... Wait! They eat Horseshoe crab eggs! Dashi! Sound the Octo-alert!
Dashi plucked the Octo-compass of the captains belt and sounded the alert
"Octonauts, to the.. Umm... to the.. Uhg.. WAKE UP!"