It was dark, though the lake quickly rushed below them. Quickly they reached the outskirts of Hamilton, when lights began to dot the ground below. Pudgy shivered, Cobalt was right, Canada was much colder than Pennsylvania. As the hedgehog reviewed the map and compass, he guided Xylenia. They were going north east and should reach Toronto in an hour or so. “Hey Xylenia, when we get to Toronto, want to go to a concert?” The dragon giggled, “what is a Villainest?” It was very helpful knowing someone who can fly. Pudgy was trying to review the maps, but they hadn’t reached Toronto yet. They had landed onto an office building. The two locked out, as a big welcome to Mississauga sign was facing a highway. The signs were weird though, there was a bank across the street that said it was -1 degree, and the snow had just started to fall. Xylenia peered over and looked at the maps and knew how to go. The hedgehog climbed onto her again, and they took off. It turns out, they were still about 45 minutes away.
Pudgy called out, “I hope it isn’t snowing there too.” The dragon called out, “we need to find a place to settle in if that is the case.” Pudgy looked at her flapping wings, and small traces of ice were starting to build up. It was clear after a short time had passed that his dragon friend was forced to land. Heavy bands of snow squalls hit the area, making visibility difficult let alone flight. She was shivering, and flight was starting to become difficult. The landing was graceful, until she hit ice and slid softly into a wall. Pudgy jumped off and scouted ahead. The two had landed beside a bar, and the big neon Molson beer sign illuminated the window. The little hedgehog found the front door, luckily it was not locked as he pushed it open. The snow-covered shivering hedgehog entered the bar and looked up at a grim looking man with a black mustache. “And who might you be, eh?” Pudgy shook the snow off, “ppp… Pudgy. My friend and I are heading north, but the snow is too bad to fly.”
The large man noticed the little critter was shivering, and wet. The man laughed, “oh, your friend eh? And who is that, a badger?” The bar patrons all started to laugh. Pudgy looked sad, and started to turn, but the man put his boot against the door. “I’m just kidding, eh? Your friend can come in too.” Pudgy bounced, “thank you mister! She bigger than me though.” The hedgehog scampered to the side entrance, and with the man’s help opened the door. He motioned for Xylenia to come, and the snow-covered dragon approached. She walked in and squeezed through the door. The patron’s mouth dropped, as a 6-foot-long, 3-foot-tall green dragon walked in, and sat down by the door. She stammered, “th…thank …you” the bar was warm, so the snow melted quickly. Pudgy got into the pack and found the pouch with money. He scampered over to the bar waving at a pretty lady with long brown hair.” Pwetty lady, can Pudgy buy 2 hot chocolates?” The bartender giggled, “we only have coffee.” The dragon had walked over too, and sat beside the hedgehog, and when the coffee was offered, took the cup and hesitated before taking a sip. It was strong, and hot. It made her all warm inside. Pudgy sipped too, before realizing what they got, he got wiggly. The bartender had made weak Irish coffee.
As the two friends warmed up, a band started to set up on the stage. It was a small bar, but the set up was quite complex. Light boards, speakers, synthesizer, and the band name VILIANEST. Pudgy bounced, he really liked this band. The lead singer stopped at the bar, “where is everybody?” The bartender pointed, as the snow fell heavier. The singer adjusted his dark framed glasses, ” just great.” It was then he noticed a hedgehog and dragon sipping coffee beside him. Pudgy waved, “Pudgy love band!” The singer laughed and went back to setting up. As the night progressed, the show was amazing and lasted late into the night/ early morning. The bar let Pudgy and Xylenia sleep in their unheated garage till morning, as they realized both were drunk from 1 fluid ounce of whiskey. The bar had a new rule now, .5 oz max per critter. Hours later the two woke up, and realized that night flying while good for stealth, is not conducive to travel. Pudgy wrote a nice thank you not to the bartender and strapped the packs to Xylenia. Pudgy put his hat and mittens on, though if it got much colder, he was going to freeze. He knew that he needed to construct warm clothes for his dragon friend somehow. As the hedgehog climbed onto his dragon friend’s back, he started to think as they flew. Xylenia decided to go higher, since it would be less obvious if they were closer to ground level. Plus, they could see the highways and developments.
Hours passed, and the two friends had flown all the way north of Toronto. Xylenia started to descend, seeing a semi frozen lake coming into view. She was growing tired, and Pudgy was concerned about his friend. As she coasted with wings stretched wide, she saw an island. “Pudgy, I need to land there.” Pudgy agreed, though his little voice was dispersed by the wind. The dragon landed on the island shortly afterwards and slid in the snow. Pudgy immediately jumped off, as bad started to scout as the tired dragon panted. He found rows of pine trees, though no cave. The worried critter was able to find a raised hill, with trees that had been bent and blown over. As the hedgehog scampered over, and with a pine branch, he swept the snow, and laid down pine branches to form a bed. Soon, the dragon had found him, and he motioned to her to lay down. The dragon moved into place, and watched her friend scamper quickly, tying branches, trying to form a tent cover. Then he unwrapped the packs from her. The skies were darkening quickly, and temperatures plummeting quickly. He started a fire and kept very busy.
The dragon was munching happily on another cornmeal brick that Pudgy had prepared. The hedgehog then sat down tiredly and munched on some hard tack. The dragon looked around, “where are we Pudgy?” The hedgehog consulted the maps and nodded. “Some place called Georgina island.” Pudgy looked defeated for a moment, but bounced, ” we’ve gone about 400 miles so far, based on Cobalt’s driving maps.” The dragon peered over his shoulder, “true, though we went straight over the lake, so that cut a good distance off our trip.” The hedgehog nodded, and his chest started to hiss, and glow. “Pudgy, are you reading me?” It was Doomcock’s voice. The hedgehog bounced, “yes Lord Doomcock. Xylenia frowned a bit, “I’m here too, Doomcock.” The lord laughed, “Hello Xylenia. I see that is the reason for such quick progress. Are you two all right? I am sure it is much colder since you are so far north.” Pudgy nodded, “yes. Pudgy concerned what happens if we keep going north.” The lord sighed, “my eldritch friend sent you off towards the worst place to go. But I do have some intelligence for you. To the 800 miles to the north east is Chambord Quebec. I have an operative there who will be able to assist you there.” Pudgy looked confused, “who Lord Doomcock?” He laughed heartily, “I have it on good authority that one of the darlings are working on a business trip there. Head to 109 chemin du parc. Yes, my friends, they speak French there.”
Xylenia shook her head, “what is French?” Pudgy bounced, ” it’s a funny language, Cobalt taught me some. Which darling, Lord?” The future ruler laughed, “Eris is there, you will know her by her raven locks.” Pudgy bounced, “she’s always friendly when Pudgy talks to her.” A box materialized in front of the two. ” I don’t need my legionnaire’s getting hurt or worse, so here are supplies to make your trip safer. I want you to start checking in. This next stretch of your trip is pure wilderness.” Pudgy nodded, “yes sir, we will check in every day.” The crystal darkened, and the little camp was quiet. The fire crackled, and the two kept looking at the crate that had materialized. Pudgy scampered over and started to pop the crate clamps. The dragon looked annoyed, but when the kid opened, she saw the hedgehog get excited. He found a big set of clothes; they were thermal lined. Pudgy pulled the big set and started to help Xylenia get dressed.
It took a while, but the dragon was now covered in comfy warm clothes. The hedgehog also found boots, though toeless, since she had claws. Pudgy also helped them on her feet. The dragon was grateful, though confused. The man had abandoned her when she was younger, so why would he help her now? Pudgy bounced, and laid out a plethora of food, water, and heat supplies. The hedgehog resupplied the bags, pondered the instructions from the Lord. Cobalt had given them a different target, but that was based on a driving route. The Doomcock way was shorter, but vast stretches of Canadian forests lay between the new target location. The dragon fell quickly asleep, now warm. The hedgehog wondered what Eris looked like and reviewed the maps. Inside the crate was a new map of Canada. Electronic devices were of no use, if there were no cell towers to supply the internet. Pudgy had to plan, and keep the fire going.
It was far away in Xanadoom that the future ruler of the earth sat at his computer terminal and reviewed the progress of his furry legionnaire and dragon. The supplies he sent should help them reach their destination. However, the lord had ulterior motives. Diktor had his own motives for wanting the hedgehog to succeed. Years ago, Santa stopped returning his letters, and he wanted to know why. Unlike the surface dwellers above who gradually over time forget or come to believe Santa is not real, the Lord knew for a fact he existed. His father had sent queries to the frozen lands of the north and had sent envoys to the lord of the frozen lands. It was how he came to acquire his own dragon, as well as several non-Santa toys over the years. His father explained that over time, Santa must focus on younger children. He also told him; Santa told him that he needed to send the dragon forth into the caves. Now, Doomcock finds out that the dragon is still alive, and going on adventures with his hedgehog legionnaire. There were mysteries he needed answers to, and questions that need explanations
The eldritch god floated in his containment chamber behind the Lord, and watched the map, with Pudgy’s green dot stationary over Georgina island. “Diktor, did the supplies arrive?” The lord nodded, “Aye they did Harvey. Operation Santa Discovery is a go.” The god laughed, “Perhaps I can finally get off the darned naughty list.” Doomcock laughed heartily, “Maybe in 2247 you can make the nice list.” Harvey raised a tentacle at the lord, and a train horn sounded for about 30 seconds. Doomcock’s Pudgy censor system was also working, for the hedgehog’s next visit. Doomcock stretched his back and was glad to finally be over that darned cold. Rest, and a bottle or two of icky brown stuff from the bar helped worked wonders. The lord also sent a twitter message to the operative he spoke of earlier, advising of status.
Pudgy and Xylenia slept through the night, and when they awoke, the trees had bent over from snow. They had a little igloo, though with the new toasty clothes from Doomcock, they were ok. They had breakfast, and Xylenia ate the last of the cornmeal bricks Pudgy had made. As the fire was extinguished by Xylenia, her friend secured the supplies to her back once more. Once Pudgy was safely on top of her, she took off to the skies once again. About 2 hours passed uneventfully, as they travelled over a vast stretch of forest. Occasionally they would see a logging road and a big truck hauling timber, but there were virtually no people anywhere. One thing was for certain, Canada was a beautiful place. The dragon was much more insulated, so she was able to stay aloft longer now. The clothes had a reflective layer that kept the heat in. Plus, Pudgy had rigged a hand warmer to generate heat also. Xylenia had flown much higher now, and the ground sped quickly beneath them. There was only one issue, the Canadian air force now had an unidentified flying object on their radar. Pudgy watched as the silver jets sped past them occasionally. It was important to note that Doomcock had given Xylenia and Pudgy silver white warm clothes, so as the jets shot past, it looked like a strangely shaped cloud. One pilot reported a dragon and was asked to go for a physical when he got back to base. The other pilots only saw clouds. Wink and nod.
After a long period of flight time, Pudgy saw a huge lake. It was on the new maps lord Doomcock had provided. The future ruler advised per the notes on the maps, it would be a good place to camp. The hedgehog’s estimation put them in the La Verendrye wildlife preserve. The lake was a reservoir, with many French names. Pudgy called out to Xylenia, “we have an hour of sun left. Want to land?” The dragon nodded and adjusted her wings to glide down gently. As the lake came into view, there were many coves, and the land was more mountainous than either expected. Xylenia continued in her north east direction, with navigation help from her hedgehog friend. It was so good to be on the surface; she was seeing so many things. She had also been thinking about this Santa person Pudgy needed to save. Xylenia hoped he was nice, as landing on a rocky tree covered finger of land that overlooked the large lake. She looked around, “Pudgy, can you find us a good spot to bed down?” Pudgy bounced off of her back and scampered around. After a couple minutes had passed, the hedgehog peeked from behind a tree. He motioned for her to follow, and the dragon folded her wings back. She followed him through a narrow trail and started to go down a hill towards the lake. She saw a large rocky overhang, which would provide adequate cover.
The hedgehog had already cleared a spot for her to rest in, and she turned around and backed into the small cave. Pudgy helped her take off the packs and gave her a Doomcock supply to eat. She giggled, as it was a tube of pressed beef jerky. It was heavily peppered, and good. She watched Pudgy scoot back and forth, getting firewood and a fire going. He also pulled tree limbs around and twisted to try and make a snow break. It was just as he did that, when the snow started to fall. As Pudgy firefly rested next to the fire, he munched on the last bit of hard tack he had made prior to leaving his cabin. The hedgehog hoped Cobalt was ok. It was then when he tapped his Xanadoom crystal, “Lord Doomcock, are you there? Pudgy and Xylenia made it to lake safe and sound. Snowing hard now.” The crystal hissed, and Harvey’s voice called out,” greetings Pudgy! Glad you made it safe. Diktor is busy, but I will pass along your message. How is the trip so far?”
Xylenia giggled, “I miss Cobalt, and his warm house full of goodies. But this adventure is fun too, with Pudgy.” Pudgy bounced happily and hugged her. The eldritch god laughed, “have to go, please check in again tomorrow.” The crystal stopped glowing, and the area grew quiet except for the crackling fire. The dragon sighed happily, and watched her friend busily secure the camp site, and keep the fire going. She started to drift off to sleep, as Pudgy grew quiet so he could let his dragon friend sleep. The hedgehog continued to tend the fire going and keep the little camp site relatively dry. The trees being weaved helped again, as the snow was coming down so hard, he could barely see the lake anymore. The hedgehog would sleep shallowly, because fire was of utmost importance. It was extremely cold, far colder than any winter in Pennsylvania. The warm clothes that the lord provided certainly were helping, but he was still cold. His little nose was frozen. He checked on his dragon friend, and she was ok, just asleep.
He curled beside her and drifted off to sleep for another bit of time. The hedgehog missed Cobalt, warm homes, good food, and safety. But he had a mission, he had to save Santa. He looked in the one pack and got out the lantern. The light was glowing softly, and he started to examine it, “Santa, are you there?” The lantern blinked, and the female voice called out, “Pudgy, are you there? What is happening, you are almost crystal clear now?” The hedgehog smiled, “Pudgy and Xylenia are coming to help save Santa. We are in Quebec, by a big lake.” The female voice cheered, “wow, you two have made good progress so far. Oh, I do not believe I have ever introduced myself. My name is Glitter.” Pudgy bounced, “Nice to meet you Glitter, are you an elf?” The voice giggled, “why yes I am certainly an elf. How do you plan to cross the ocean?” The hedgehog nodded, “we have a magic crystal, which can activate a gate. It is some place called Killiniq.” The elf coughed hard, “what? Where did you get a transport crystal?” The hedgehog bounced, “from Lord Doomcock, he lives…” The elf cut him off, “WHAT are you doing dealing with that person. He is known to Santa and is on the permanent naughty list.” Pudgy blinked, “Doomcock is not mean, he is actually very nice. He is helping us reach the north pole.”
The elf sighed, “we need help, the Vril attacks are getting worse each day, so ultimately we cannot refuse any help. Even if it comes from that …. man. Pudgy, he may be using you, please be careful.” Pudgy nodded, “Ok, Pudgy be careful. Are you and other elves safe?” The elf woman giggled again, “yes we are, the walls are secure. Santa is having to deal with the Vril, and security, when he should be focusing on Christmas. If I were to estimate your progress, I suspect you should be here within a week. I will let the guards know.” Pudgy explained further what he and Xylenia looked like, so the elf could inform the guards. The lantern started to fade, though as Pudgy turned it, it grew brighter as he pointed it to the north east. If the compass failed, the lantern could double as a compass. The hedgehog put the lantern back into its pack carefully. As he added a log to the fire, he curled up against Xylenia, who sighed happily as she slept. Pudgy now had trouble sleeping, as the elf’s words were weighing upon his mind. What did Doomcock do to go on the permanent naughty list?
He suspected Xylenia was at the top, but it sounded like something bad. And how did the elf know about the transport crystals? Pudgy’s eyes started to flutter, and he drifted off to sleep. The snow continued to fall hard and piled up against the camp’s makeshift walls. The good part, as the snow piled up, it blocked the wind. The two friends woke up many hours later in another igloo, as the snow had reacted to the fire, and iced up the inside against the trees. Thankfully the snow had stopped, and the winter wonderland was a sight to behold as the white sun started to ascend over the eastern horizon. Pudgy made breakfast, which Xylenia gratefully and hungrily ate. After some time to wake up passed, the hedgehog repacked, and attached the packs to her. The two noticed the dwindling supplies, so knew they had to reach Chambord tonight. That meant flying higher, so as the hedgehog put out the fire, he got onto Xylenia’s back, and she jumped off the cliff face, stretching her wings and started to ascend. Unbeknownst to the two friends, local Inuit were watching them from their winter encampment. The elder rubbed his brows. How was he going to explain this?
The two had decided to push it and make it to their destination today no matter what. As 11 long hours passed since Xylenia had started flying this morning, she was getting extremely tired. The sun had set 2 hours ago. The trip was uneventful, over the vast Canadian wilderness. In the distance, Pudgy could see faint lights. He wondered if they had made it? The dragon was coasting, her wings stretched wide, and they were descending. Pudgy recognized the big lake just barely visible. “Xylenia, this is Chambord. We made it, yay!” The dragon giggled, and the hedgehog started scanning the roads, and houses that started to appear. They were above a road, and Pudgy read out loud, ” rue du 155.” Xylenia craned her head back, “Pudgy?” The hedgehog called out, “it means road 155, Doomcock says there is a hotel by a lake here. We will meet up with our contact. Turn left when we get to an intersection.” After some time passed, the dragon saw what Pudgy meant, and started to coast to the left. A big sign was lit,” chalet spa du saint jean.” She read out and Pudgy bounced a bit, “that’s it!” The dragon was now having to flap her wings, to stay above the trees.
But she saw a series of buildings. And a long building with wide porch and decks. They were log cabins like Pudgy’s house, though much bigger. She couldn’t fly any more, her muscles were on fire. So, she started to drop, and landed hard into a snowy area. She slid several feet, into a large pine tree. She was panting, and wings went cockeyed. Pudgy jumped off and started trying to help her. He quickly removed the packs. She dropped onto her belly panting, ” need to rest.” Pudgy hugged her gently, and tapped the crystal on his chest, ” Lord Doomcock are you in?” The crystal started to hiss and glow green, ” Hail Pudgy and Xylenia! I see you have made it to Chambord.” Pudgy looked concerned, “Xylenia overdid it, she flew for almost 12 hours.” The lord sighed, “well I am glad you are safely back on the ground. Pudgy let her rest for a time. I need you to look for a long building. The hotel rooms are numbered, and my secret Operative is in chalet du Nombre trois. The code word is Cthulhu.” Pudgy nodded and scampered in the snow away from his dragon friend. The hotel was a large place, he found a series of hot tubs, in tear drop and bean shaped styles. It appeared though; the winter had frozen the ice over. But as he scampered, he found a sign in French. He could barely read it, but he surmised the hotel was to the right.
The snow was heavy, and several times he dropped through, and tunneled to the other side and popped back out to the sidewalk. The hedgehog found shortly afterwards, a long log cabin building. The hedgehog was getting tired but found chalet du Nombre trois. He started knocking on the door, but his little paws did not make much noise, but it did have an effect. The door slowly opened, and a woman was standing there looking out into the empty courtyard. Pudgy looked up at her, ” hello…” the woman looked down, and saw a little hedgehog wrapped in thermal clothes. Pudgy waved at her, and she giggled, “what’s the code word?” Pudgy bounced, ” Cthulhu.” The woman smiled, ” my name is Eris, and you must be Pudgy the hedgehog.” The hedgehog bounced, “Pudgy glad to meet you!” The woman’s long black hair framed her face, and she motioned for him to enter the warm room. The heat felt so good, but it snapped him back to attention. “Pudgy need to get Xylenia. She is hurting, she flew too long.” Eris looked around, ” I do not see anyone else.” Pudgy pointed, “she’s a dragon, she’s over there. Can Pudgy go and bring her too?”
The woman nodded, and Pudgy scooted off saying, “Ok, I will be here.” The hedgehog waved as he scampered back down the shoveled sidewalks. He ran as fast as his little legs could carry him. Until he found a snow pile, with a nose sticking out. “Xylenia! I found the room; are you ok to move?” The dragon shook the snow off and nodded. She was walking on her legs, and not flying. The two moved through the hotel grounds, until they quickly came back to the room where Eris was. Pudgy tapped the door, and it opened once more. Eris was amazed to see a dragon sitting behind him, also dressed in thermal clothes. She opened the door wide and motioned for the two to come in. They scooted in, and Eris shut the door quickly. She turned, seeing the dragon dropping her packs and collapsing on the floor. She sat in a squishy green chair, looking at her visitors. 2 days ago, Lord Doomcock had sent her a direct message on twitter, letting her know to expect a visitor in a couple of days. Though, she did not think it would be a hedgehog, nor a dragon. Pudgy was laying on his back in front of a radiator, “heat …Pudgy loves heat. Never complain summer again!”
The dragon grinned, finally warming up, “you said it Pudgy. Thank you for letting us in, Eris.” The woman smiled. She had a cup of coffee on a small side table and sipped from it. She was full of questions but didn’t know where to start. Xylenia, now that she had finally warmed up, was sitting on her hind quarters, and looking at Eris. Pudgy was already out of his winter clothing and filling her in on the adventure so far. The woman sat quietly listening. It was a lot to take in. Doomcock was also chatting occasionally through the hedgehog’s crystal. The woman pulled back an errant strand of raven hair and watched the hedgehog scamper to and fro. She had thought that Cobalt was making things up, about Pudgy, but here he was with her and a Dragon. She blinked and nodded as Pudgy stopped when he finished his story, “Pudgy forgot to ask, what is a nice lady doing here?” The abruptness of the conversation change took her off guard for a moment, before she answered, “Oh, I am up here on a business trip. My company has a Canadian supplier, and they are having training in the main lodge conference center. This is a nice hotel, there is even a spa, though I do not have time for that during business. I actually need to get to bed, the training starts tomorrow at 7:30 am.”
The hedgehog nodded, and scampered over to put his winter clothes back on, and the woman made a motion with her hand and gave him a curious look, “What are you doing Pudgy?” The hedgehog, “I figured we had to leave?” Eris shook her head, “No, you do not have to leave. It is supposed to be close to zero tonight. This room has a too low, but long sofa for sleeping purposes. I am unsure if Xylenia will fit on…” She watched as Xylenia climbed onto the couch, and promptly fell asleep, she did overhang the couch, but not bad. Pudgy was already turning down the covers on her bed. She giggled, “No, you cannot sleep in the bed, my hedgehog friend. “Pudgy shook his head, “Oh no, Pudgy learned the hard way, no sleep-in bed. Cobalt rolled over on top of me once. “He bounced off the bed, and scampered over to Xylenia, and bounced onto a bed pillow that the woman had tossed off earlier when she had checked in yesterday. Pudgy immediately fell asleep. Eris could tell that the two critters were exhausted. She changed into her official Doomcock jammies and got into bed. She drifted to sleep as well. Everyone was warm, and safe while snow started to fall once more.
Far away in Xanadoom, Lord Doomcock was reviewing the progress of his new legionnaires. They had travelled a far distance in just under a week. Though the travel was going to become more arduous. It was then he turned to the eldritch God in his containment tube. “Harvey, if I may have a word with you. Why are you sending Pudgy and Xylenia to Killiniq Island? If my readings are correct, that is close to another thousand miles. It also is in the arctic circle, which means that no amount of clothing can shield them for long.” The eldritch God looked at the map, and pointed, is that not the way gate location to the artic transport network?” Doomcock looked at the norther hemisphere maps on his computer. The transportation crystals were of varying sorts throughout the world. The ones he used for his purposes in Xanadoom had a density and crystalline structure that differed from crystals in the artic and southern hemispheres. The key factor was amperage. With the proper attunement frequency, the crystals could be used theoretically anywhere. It was the reason why when Cobalt hooked up the deep cycle battery on Pudgy’s house, the lord could attune the new crystal that Pudgy wore, with the home cabin crystal. It was as Doomcock reviewed the chart; he made a discovery. “Harvey, you are off. I think the curvature of the containment field has caused a distortion in your field of view.”
Harvey laughed, “you mean you do not have a fat a…” The future ruler snapped playfully at him, “stop that!” Doomcock used his equipment to scan and grinned beneath his mask. “Found it, the artic way gate. It is located just north of Chambord. There is an island called Lie Boulaine, just across the lake from where the hotel is. I must begin my computations.” Harvey rubbed his tentacles together, “Then our plan can come to fruition?” The lord turned and gave him a thumbs up sign with his left hand, “I will finally get my way, and access the northern transport network of the planet. Our little hedgehog has been more useful than either of us expected.” The way gate that Doomcock mentioned if you were to see it in person, would look like a stone structure. Rocks that were too flat, with no moss if you hit them with a hammer, they would not break, and some actually ring. By attuning the crystal’s frequency, and adding a power source, the lord would be able to access the crystals all throughout the arctic circle. In honor of his hedgehog friend, he poured a Canadian club into his ginger ale, and continued to work on his calculations on the computer. Harvey floated, and looked thoughtful. He didn’t say anything and turned his attention to a movie playing in the background of the laboratory. It was about giant bunny rabbits invading town.
Pudgy stirred awake, he was warm and cuddled under a bath towel on top of a pillow. The bright sun streamed through the windows of Eris’s chalet room. He looked over as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and found Xylenia still asleep, also covered in a couple of towels. The room was quiet and empty, save for the furniture: bed, chair, couch with dragon, bathroom, and a mini bar. He found a note laying beside him, written in cursive lettering. “Dear Pudgy and Xylenia. I have work today at the main lodge, please stay in the room. I will be back around 5 pm today. I let Cobalt know on twitter that you are here safe and sound. Cobalt is glad and says the legionnaire packet arrived yesterday. We will chat with him tonight.” Pudgy smiled and bounced happily and sighed as he relaxed. Eris did not have extra blankets, so she had used a bath towel as a blanket for him. She was nice, like the other women he had met that were all followers of Doomcock. The hedgehog was sore and was thankful that he and his dragon friend could rest.
“Pudgy, are you awake?” Xylenia asked, as she opened her eyes. Pudgy rolled over, and peeked at her from under the towel, “Yes, Pudgy just woke up. Are you hungry?” The dragon nodded yes, and the hedgehog scooted with a towel over to the packs that were laying beside the couch. He located and then opened a dragon supply which was another large block of beef jerky, and he held it up. Xylenia took it and started munching. This one had teriyaki flavor, so it had a unique salty taste. Pudgy got out another chunk of hard tack and started nibbling. The dragon sighed happily; she too was warm. Pudgy found a small TV, and the remote was on the floor. He turned it on, and the Star Wars logo appeared on the screen. Episode 8, the Last Jedi. Pudgy noticed it was all in French. Xylenia looked, “Pudgy I don’t understand this.” Pudgy chuckled mischievously, “Doomcock says the movie is not good, maybe French will make it better. “ The two friends watched the movie, and when Rey du Marie Sue appeared and was parle francais, with an obvious French dubbing, the two started laughing. Pudgy nodded, the movie really was better in French.
As the movie progressed, Pudgy was checking and cataloging the supplies that were remaining. The dragon blinked, and noticed the bag with the lantern was buzzing, “Pudgy?” Pudgy noticed the buzzing too, so he turned down the sound on the tv, and pulled out the lantern. It was glowing and vibrating, “Hello Santa?” The female elf voice called out, “No, it’s me again. Where are you now Pudgy?” Pudgy bounced, “We made it to Chambord, Quebec. We’re by a big lake, in a hotel. Doomcock had an operative here that we can stay with.” The elf grumbled, “I told you that Doomcock should not be trusted, but I am glad you are safe.” The dragon spoke, “Who is this?” The elf giggled, “Oh, you were asleep when I spoke with Pudgy. My name is Glitter, I am one of Santa’s executive elf’s” Pudgy bounced, “Executive elf, what do you do?” The elf woman laughed, “I no longer have to make toys, I work logistics. I arrange the acquisition of raw materials for the workshop. For example, I have sourced a supply of raw molding plastic. We should have delivery soon.”
Pudgy rubbed his chin, “How do you get delivery at the north pole?” The elf got excited, “everyone thinks we’re at the north pole, why is that?” Pudgy blinked, “you’re not, what about songs and stories?” The elf grumbled, “as usual, the message was distorted. We supply information to the general public and the message gets distorted.” The dragon blinked, and Pudgy looked at her, “Umm, Pudgy confused.” The elf giggled, “We use various means to get information out. But what happens is the toy companies, etc. take our message and change it to suit their means and methods. It is a vast conspiracy, I tell you!” Pudgy realized Glitter the elf was a bit silly. He would ask Santa about this when he would ask. The elf composed herself, “Sorry, I got preachy there didn’t I?” The dragon laughed, “I didn’t understand any of it, so you are safe. Where are you actually?” The elf grew serious, “Well for security reasons, I cannot advise the exact location. But I can advise that the way gate is close to your current location. Across the lake, is an island to the north.” Pudgy looked at the maps the future ruler provided, and the hedgehog bounced, “yes there is a small island off a peninsula, it is called Lie Bouliane.”
The elf nodded, “yes, that reach is all French names. There is a cluster of pine trees that are too close to one another. You will find 3 stones of large size and writing. To activate the gate, you need to align the lantern with your transport crystal. Make sure Xylenia is holding onto you, otherwise only you will transport.” The dragon nodded, “Eris, the woman we are staying with says that we need to stay here today. Is it alright if we were to travel tomorrow? I still need time to recover.” The elf woman giggled, “yes, an extra day will not hurt things. Santa has been advised of your progress and looks forward to your visit. Oh, I need to go, this workshop will not run itself. Please contact me tomorrow when you attempt transport tomorrow. I need to align the gate.” The lantern stopped buzzing and started to fade with its glow. Pudgy looked at Xylenia, “I wonder where Santa is actually, if not at the north pole?” Xylenia nodded, “I do not remember Santa, nor his home, as I was an egg.”
Many hours passed, and the hedgehog and dragon drifted in and out of sleep. The television softly played many things, all in French, so neither could fully understand. The bright sunlight turned soft as it changed position in the sky. Then faded as the sun set. It was not until late, when the hotel door opened and Eris came back to find the two still in their same locations, watching monsieur docteur who. Xylenia flapped her wings. The woman flipped back her long raven hair and giggled.” I do not understand French at all.” Eris explained about her day of training, and some minor disagreements with coworkers. Pudgy nodded and bounced up into her lap to hug her when she got angry. The little fuzzy hedgehog was happy and warm, so she couldn’t stay angry for long. She hugged him back as she watched Xylenia grin. Eris set the hedgehog back onto his pillow and covered him up. Telling everyone she needed to get ready for bed. Check out was Sunday at 11 am, and she would need to return home. Pudgy drifted off to sleep, and Xylenia relaxed occasionally watching the woman get into her official Doomcock jammies. And climb into bed. She set the alarm for an earlier wake up, and settled in. Soon everyone was now asleep, in the hotel chalet. The snow was gently falling. It was an exceptionally quiet night.
Pudgy's Adventures 