Extending a clawed hand, he started to chant in the old tongues. He would open the portal and continue his revenge. But nothing happened, so he chanted again. Still, nothing occurred “What is this? Why are my spells not working? Darn you Pudgy, what did you do?!?!” What the hedgehog had done, was the worst possible thing to do. He cast Harvey into the void of oblivion. There was no escape, and Harvey Cthulhu let forth a string of vulgarities that, if anyone could hear them, would cause one to flee and hide. So, the eldritch god floated, cursing into the darkness. “Darn you Pudgy!!!!!!” And with a jolt, the hedgehog woke up screaming. Having cast Harvey into the void, he saw the last image of his whereabouts. A concerned dinosaur walked over and patted his head gently. “There, there little one. It’s all right.” Pudgy started wailing and crying. The flood of emotions was pouring out, having been hidden by excitement and resolve. The doctors were kind and patient, though they knew this reaction was not conducive to a speedy recovery. The female doctor, a micro raptor, had been assigned to Pudgy. She was only 16 inches long, so while still bigger than Pudgy by a factor of 3, she was better suited at helping him. The hedgehog had been moved to the medical clinic. Tucked away in an alcove, the dinosaurs had tried to make a bed to accommodate their new resident. As the doctor calmed Pudgy, she tucked him back in. “Please rest, you need to recover.” Yellow eyes watched him, with a concerned tilt to her eyelids.
Pudgy nodded and fell quickly asleep. Pudgy woke up the next day and could leave the medical clinic. It was at ground level; he could see the most details. For instance, the stone floors were cut in such a way to mimic what an actual forest ground would look like. Though the leaves were way too big. When he would reach a junction, Pudgy would scamper between large dinosaur feet, as they walked and stomped by. Once safely across, he noticed the hallways were hexagonal too. As he stood there, several therinozaurs scampered over to join Pudgy. They looked like raptors, but had long claws, almost like needle nose pliers. They had dark green skin, and white eyes. “Hi Pudgy! Greetings Pudgy!” They all chattered, hissing afterwards. Pudgy waved, “hello everyone. Where are you going?” They bounced happily, “we’re going to the play, you should come too!” Pudgy nodded and scampered along in the pack. They were quick, and showed Pudgy a secret path, which kept the small dinosaurs safe as they travelled. Climbing an inclined ramp, they emerged along a wide platform overlooking a gathering spot. Various dinosaurs were gathered, including the lead claws and Daedlus. Pudgy stayed with his group, and they settled in for the show. A pterodactyl was hanging from above, holding a light to shine on a raptor, painted white, wearing a black Cape. “Today, we tell the tale of our escape to the moon…” The neighboring groups of dinosaurs looked up, and saw Pudgy with the pack of little ones, and grinned. Some waved, which drew the attention of the costumed speaker. He pointed, “it is fortuitous today, our tale can be heard by our newest resident.” Pudgy settled in, listening. The play was quite good, and the sets were adequate to convey the scenes. All sorts of dinosaurs were acting out the day the asteroid fell from the skies. Pudgy couldn’t understand some parts, the language barrier was too great to overcome. But the acting was top notch.
Another day passed on the moon, and Pudgy had been assigned various jobs with the engineers. The domes had been damaged, which required both inside and outside repairs. After a brief training course, pudgy was suited up with his space suit, helmet, and recharged air tank. He had his tools, and was assigned to a Razar military raptor, who made sure both he and the domes were ok. The hedgehog was suitably sized to get into the tight places’ dinosaurs could not get to. It had been a couple of hours outside in space, when Pudgy crawled out of an exhaust port, covered in black dust, when he saw the earth in the distance. He sighed, as he was now very homesick. Pudgy missed Cobalt, the nice twitter people, hugs, cookies, his cabin. He wondered what Mister Dino was doing. The raptor gave him a quizzical look, and Pudgy bounced down, floating along the way. Outside the domes was moon gravity, inside was more earth like gravity. He bounced along with the raptor, “2 more places to go Pudgy, then we can return.” Pudgy waved, and then scooted along a leaking seam. He had a three-part process which started with squirting a tube of green stuff on the leak, which resembled caulk. Then he used a scraper to spread it, then a light tube which was hot, to cure the patch. The engineers said it would be just like metal when done. The critter continued, keeping his head down and focused on the task at hand. “You son of a….” pudgy heard Harvey’s voice again. So too did the raptor, who looked around. “I don’t see anyone, where did that voice come from?” Pudgy shook his head, moving to the next leaking section.
“Do you think you can ignore me?” Pudgy blinked, “be quiet Harvey, Pudgy working.” It was Harvey Cthulhu, talking telepathically somehow. The dinosaur looked around, “I don’t see him!” Harvey cackled, “just because you made me leave your dimension, does not mean you won. It is only a matter of time until my followers will set me free.” Pudgy finished the patch and stood up. “You hurt your followers too, the dinosaurs said you destroyed 2 ships.” The eldritch god laughed with an evil tone. “What do I care about their safety? They swore an oath to me. I can do with them as I please!” Pudgy stomped his foot, “No you can’t! Pudgy knows they are not bad people, they had to do what you said. Now you are gone, they are free.” The hedgehog looked at the raptor, “clear mind, no listen to Harvey. We made him go away.” The raptor nodded and hummed a tune. Pudgy bounced along besides, heading to the airlock. Harvey hissed, but soon he was shut out. Again, the eldritch one was floating in his dark void, cut off from Pudgy’s universe. The god was testing his boundaries, and psionic messages seemed to work. His followers however were not responding to his queries though. He would try once more, so Harvey closed his eyes and concentrated. He was able to reach one of his Alarian advisors. “My Lord Cthulhu, I thought we were bereft of your leadership forever.” The eldritch god laughed, “temporarily gone, but not forever. What is the status of my fleet?” The advisor did not immediately respond. After an uncomfortable silence, the alien spoke, “my lord, the fleet has disbanded. Your followers have scattered.” Harvey’s blood started to boil, “WHAT?!?!” The advisor sighed, “you destroyed 2 ships, countless lives lost. They are understandably concerned if we free you, you will do this once again. We heard what you said to the hedgehog.” Harvey roared, ” I am your God, you will do what I say!” The silence was deafening, “Alarian, respond to me!” There was no response. He roared, and thrashed, but in the void, there was no one to respond. “DARN YOU PUDGY!” Blinking, “why can’t I swear?” The eldritch God was dumbfounded and began to think upon this. Why would that be the case?” Because I dislike foul language ….” a disembodied voice echoed from far below Harvey.
As the god pondered, far away Pudgy was exiting the airlock, returning to the dome. The hedgehog turned off his air tank and opened the face shield. “Boy, pudgy wonder if anyone else heard that “the raptor shook her head, “I hope not. But….” the raptor sniffed, and hissed. Pudgy unclipped his hammer and stood behind the raptor, “pudgy got back.” Several raptors also hissed nearby, as several gray aliens appeared within the dome. Their unblinking black eyes stared at Pudgy. They all started to point three fingered hands at Pudgy. Pudgy scampered towards one alien. “What you want?” The aliens started to move towards the center of the dome, forming a circle. As a silver light formed, one of the tall Alarian advisors appeared. “We come in peace. We were … misled …by Cthulhu.” Pudgy watched, still holding his rock hammer. The raptors all watched, but stood guard, blocking the doors to the other hallways. A micro raptor took off quickly to let the command know. Pudgy moved closer, “Pudgy unsure if can trust aliens. But Pudgy know Harvey bad, and lies, so maybe you are all right?” The Alarian nodded, “yes, we Do not wish you, nor your friends harm. We wish to make amends.” The raptor walked up beside Pudgy “how would you do that?” The Alarian smiled, “we will help repair the colony, and give Pudgy a ride home. We saw you send your craft up, so you have no way home to Earth.”
Pudgy looked hopeful, “you can help Pudgy go home?” The gray aliens nodded, and Pudgy bounced. Though as he looked up, the raptor looked sad. “Pudgy, we need to discuss this with the Daedlus. We cannot fully trust them, they did side with Cthulhu” The hedgehog nodded, “Pudgy agree.” Pudgy yawned, and rubbed his sides which drew a glance from his raptor companion. “Pudgy, there is no need for you to stay here, we will handle the Alarian. You can head back to your dome. You did good work today.” Pudgy hugged the dinosaur’s leg, and then scampered off. The aliens watched, but when the hedgehog got go the hexagonal doors, they would not open. The Daedalus’ voice filled the room, “all forces, remain in bay 4. Alarian, I have been monitoring your conversation. Do you promise to return our Hedgehog back to the earth?” The tall Advisor nodded, “you have our word. We will go to high orbit and make atmospheric entry. We cannot land, however. It would be sun time for his home.” The dinosaurs chattered in their guttural language. Then the engineer lead claw spoke, “pudgy, there should be materials in bay 4, you can make a glider. With your air supply, you would be able to reach the surface.” The aliens nodded silently, and Pudgy looked around. The advisor nodded, “yes, that plan would work.” So, the group of dinosaurs and aliens started to help Pudgy construct a glider.
The dinosaurs also helped to recharge the air tanks in Pudgy’s pack. After a short time passed, the glider was ready, and resembled a pterodactyl. Pudgy looked up, “Daedalus, lead claws, Razar, thank you for letting Pudgy stay here. Pudgy glad to meet you all. Pudgy considers all friends. If come to earth, Pudgy will host party.” There were various goodbyes, and sad dinosaurs making various comments. All were positive, with the Daedlus speaking last. “We were not aware of you, nor what happened on Earth. I am glad you came here Pudgy Hedgehog. Safe travels, our friend. And Alarian, please deliver our friend home safe.” The advisor nodded, “we will Daedlus, on behalf of my people, I apologize. The wrongs of Cthulhu shall be righted, and our people will Assist yours. Pudgy, it is time.” An intense white light filled the room, and in a flash of light, all aliens, pudgy, and glider were gone. The raptors looked around, looking a bit sad. But it was clear the hedgehog needed to go home. He had used up all his supplies. There was only this funny little box he had, which didn’t work. The engineers however were working on it. As the dinosaurs looked through the various dome windows, they saw the cigar shaped craft lift off from the lunar surface and quickly speed off to the earth. The little dinosaurs whimpered, as they had fun with Pudgy exploring. Their elders consoled them, while the lead claw triceratops looked thoughtful.
In a blink of an eye, the bright white light was gone, and Pudgy found himself strapped into the glider falling at a fair rate of speed. The aliens in seconds travelled from the moon to the earth, and dropped Pudgy off in the high atmosphere, right below the part where objects burn up. Pudgy’s crystal crackled, “we’re sorry Pudgy. Please tell your friend, we did not want to hurt him.” Pudgy nodded, “Pudgy understands. Accept apology. Will tell Cobalt. Please help the dinosaurs.” The Advisor spoke, “yes we will. Now Pudgy, do not extend the wings of your glider till you see what are called clouds. We must go now.” The sound of silence was deafening, though Pudgy was not afraid. It was still dark, so he could not see what was below yet. He could feel the Earth’s gravity, which was a nice but heavy feeling. As whispers of moisture started to appear on his face shield, Pudgy saw the clouds. Pushing feet and paw levers, the Pterodactyl glider extended its wings, and Pudgy started to fly. The downward trajectory leveled off. As Pudgy looked at the horizon, he started to see the sun rise. It was a welcome sight to see, and awe inspiring. Streaks of pink and red illuminated as far as the eyes could see. It was also when Pudgy saw the blackness below him. Pudgy was over an ocean, though his radio started to pick up a radio station. “Good morning everyone, it’s Greg James. Today on the morning show on BBC one.” Pudgy blinked, “Pudgy near Great Britain!” He started to see the shape appear, as the island formed.
Adjusting the trim, he tried to slow his descent, but he was picking up speed, and saw there was a big island to the north west, and another much bigger one ahead of him. “Pudgy unsure, is that Ireland?” He quickly flew over the first Island, crossed another sea, and then was over the next island’s land mass. He could see train tracks as Pudgy continued to fly, morning came. The glider started to fall apart, with the wings starting to shred. The air gauge was also in the red mark, with 10 psi left. He had to land soon, trying to find a safe area to land. A couple of lakes were coming up, with lots of grass covered fields, so Pudgy chose to land there. He had no landing gear, so it was going to be a rough landing. Kicking the tail back, he crashed into the ground, hard. As the glider ripped and broke apart, the hedgehog was thrust forward and flung into the lake. The various metal and fabric parts started landing in and around the water. Pudgy floated face down in the water stunned, but ok. After he regained his senses, he swam ashore, and crawled out. The air gauge was zero psi, so he popped open his face shield. Coughing hard, he took a deep breath of fresh air, and dropped onto his rear end in the muddy shoreline. His radio was busted, having been damaged when he landed. As the filthy, mud covered, space suit clad hedgehog emerged from the lake, a human woman was approaching wearing a jogging outfit. Pudgy waved as the woman walked up quickly, “my word, what do we have here?” Pudgy looked up and sniffed, seeing her reddish colored hair and kind concerned eyes looking at him. “Hi, my name is Pudgy.” Her dark red lips drew into a smile. ” Hello Pudgy, do you remember visiting me before?”
Pudgy looked at her and remembered, “Purple Lady 853, Pudgy remember. Does that mean Pudgy in Great Britain?” Purple lady nodded, “yes, you are in Sutton Park, outside of Birmingham. Pudgy, you look like you have been on another adventure?” The hedgehog nodded and immediately collapsed from exhaustion. As the woman knelt, she saw the space suit and air tanks strapped to his back. “Oh my god, you really did go to the moon. It’s gravity sickness, I think. Don’t move Pudgy!” She had read the Twitter posts, and thought Cobalt was being silly again. As the concerned woman looked around, she saw a variety of metal debris scattered around. “Well your spaceship is destroyed. I’m taking you to my house.” The hedgehog didn’t protest and was in and out of consciousness. As the woman picked him up, she hurried to get to her car. She had to get her hedgehog friend to her home quickly, it would not be safe to leave him alone in a strange area. Many hours later, Pudgy woke up. He hurt all over, and it was difficult to breathe. Looking around, he was in someone’s house. He had been placed on a folded blanket and looked like he was on a table. There was a note folded and standing up in front of him. “Pudgy, please rest. I will be back from work later with goodies and Starry-Eyed Girl 11 for a visit. She lives nearby and wants to see you too. Purple lady.” Pudgy nodded, and took off his helmet and oxygen tank pack, setting it beside him. He immediately fell back to sleep. The hedgehog was safe.
Pudgy woke up again and looked around. It appeared he was in the kitchen, as he could see the stove and cabinets. He reached into his suit and tapped the Xanadoom crystal. “Lord Doomcock, are you there?” The crystal hissed as it glowed a yellowish white color, “PUDGY?!?!” Doomcock’s voice rang out, and Pudgy smiled thirdly. “Pudgy made it safely back to earth. Alarian agree help dinosaurs and Pudgy. Flew back to high orbit, and Pudgy uses a glider to fly to ground. Pudgy in Great Britain now, at Purple Lady house.” The future ruler laughed, “You have had me worried sick. I am so glad you were able to arrange transport back to the earth. You must come to Xanadoom, I want to hear everything. The teleportation grid will be online within 8 hours. I see you on the map now. You just rest, it will take time for you to reacclimate to normal gravity and oxygen levels.” Pudgy nodded, “hurt to breathe, pudgy hurt all over, not moving unless you have to.” Diktor sighed, “I do not wish you to be hurt, but you saved the world and Xanadoom. If anyone deserves to rest, it is you. I will let you rest, we will talk later. Doomcock out.” As the transmission ended, Pudgy fell asleep again. Meanwhile, a very exciting conversation was occurring on twitter with the Darlings. Purple lady had messaged Starry Eyed Girl 11 about coming over to see Pudgy. It was turning into a delightful affair. Cobalt had been notified, and he responded quickly. Thanking the Purple lady for taking care of his hedgehog friend. Unbeknownst to Pudgy, she had a camera with an app, so she could access her kitchen. The hedgehog wasn’t moving in most shots. But the tank and helmet were off, so that meant her was still alive, just tired.
Pudgy woke up with two giggling ladies sitting at the kitchen table looking at him. He rubbed his eyes with his paws and sat up. Waving, he was feeling better. Starry eyed girl smiled, adjusted her glasses, brushing an errant strand of brown hair behind her ear. “Hello Pudgy.” Purple lady smiled too, “I’m glad you’re awake. Are you feeling ok?” Pudgy nodded, and weakly bounced. “Pudgy feels a bit better. Doomcock said it was space sickness. Pudgy spent too much time in space.” Starry blinked her eyes twice, “Pudgy, you went to space?” The hedgehog nodded on the stove; a silver metal hot water kettle started to whistle. As Purple Lady got up from the table, she patted Pudgy’s head. He smiled and watched her pour the hot water into a Doomcock tea pot. “Pudgy, what type of tea do you like?” Pudgy looked confused, “there’s more than one?” The women giggled, and Starry opened a long box labelled assorted biscuits. “Pudgy could use a cookie, but biscuits sound good.” As Purple lady returned with the tea pot, she sat down. And picked out a fox biscuit, handing it to the hedgehog. He started nibbling as the women talked about work, and local politics. The hedgehog listened and munched. It turns out cookies are called biscuits in Great Britain. Pudgy would have thought this to be strange, but he just fought an eldritch god on the moon with dinosaurs.
Starry set up a tablet, and turned it on, soon other Darlings started to appear in little squares. Bionic Belly Button and Stellar Heather waved excitedly. Bionic excitedly spoke, “hi Pudgy, how did you get to Britain?” So, the hedgehog started his grand tale, though he couldn’t act out scenes as he easily got winded. The gathering was fun, and Pudgy learned all sorts of things. As he started to explain about the moon, their eyes went wide. Blood honey 78 raised her hand, in her little box on the tablet, “so Harvey is gone now?” Pudgy nodded, and the gathering got quiet. Purple lady filled a little cup of tea for the hedgehog. He started to sip it and listened to the Darlings talk amongst themselves. Pudgy settled in and smiled. Starry patted his head, and he started to fall asleep again until she shook him gently. He looked up as she smiled, “Pudgy, are you all right?” Pudgy nodded, “Pudgy ok, can’t believe it over now. Pudgy visits Doomcock. Saved Santa, flew to the moon, fought eldritch god, met moon dinosaurs. Pudgy doesn’t know what to do now?” The women laughed, and Lynn waved, “I’m sure you will find a new adventure soon.” As the hours passed, one by one people left the chat. Starry had to leave, it was an early day tomorrow at work. She got a hug from Pudgy before she left. Pudgy also hugged Purple lady several times as she cleaned up from the get together. She hummed a tune that Pudgy didn’t recognize. Pudgy’s crystal began to hiss, “Pudgy, are you reading me?” Pudgy waved at the curiously watching woman. “Hail Doomcock!” She walked over and could hear his voice coming out from Pudgy’s space suit. “Hail Purple lady!” She giggled and leaned in closer. “Hail Doomcock! Pudgy is doing much better, tea and biscuits helped.” The lord laughed heartily, “thank you my dear friend for taking good care of our hedgehog legionnaire. I need to bring him to Xanadoom. I am sure he spoke of his travels.” She nodded, “yes, starry was here earlier too, along with a conference of darlings.” Doomcock laughed, “too bad I missed that.” the hedgehog hugged her arm, looking up at her. She smiled and hugged back.
Watching him scamper back, he slung on the pack and helmet, “Pudgy ready for transport. Bye Purple lady.” He waved, vanishing in a gray shimmering mist. She smiled and giggled at the events of today. She also wondered about where Xanadoom was. As she pondered these things, the hedgehog appeared on Doomcock’s teleporter grid chamber. The lord was standing by a computer terminal and waved. “Greetings Pudgy, welcome back to Xanadoom.” The hedgehog dropped onto his rear again, and weakly waved. As Diktor walked over, he knelt to pick up the hedgehog. “Time to get you out of that suit, a hot bath, and supper.” He stood up and walked over to a nearby counter with a stainless steel sink. Setting Pudgy down on the black counters, the hedgehog started to remove his pack and helmet. Diktor took a moment to examine what Pudgy was using. “These look like air tanks for a bi-pap machine, with a scuba regulator?” The critter struggled to get the suit off, looking sad up at him. The lord laughed and helped him out of the outer layer of the suit. It was then when the smell hit his nose. The interior layers were stained, and stunk. A mixture of sweat, urine, excrement, had marinated for many weeks. It was times like these, when having oxygen and filters in his helmet were very helpful. Switching them on, he helped Pudgy to the sink, and turned on the warm water. He soaped him up good and scrubbed gently. Pudgy was so weak, he couldn’t resist. The warm water felt so good. As Diktor put the space suit into a metal box and sealed it, he washed his hands. Then retrieved Pudgy to dry him off. Placing the hedgehog into a tray, he weighed him. “10 ounces…” Pudgy had lost over half his weight, so Doomcock knew his recovery would be lengthy. He fell asleep in the tray, shivering as the lord smiled beneath his mask, picking up the furry critter carefully. “Dinner can wait, time to put you to bed.” Turning, the future ruler walked out of the laboratory to the residence floor of his fortress. “You have had a busy half year, Pudgy, time for a rest.”
Pudgy woke up in a big bed, swaddled in several blankets. As he rubbed his eyes with his paws, he saw he was in a bedroom. The furnishings were sparse, but he was warm and breathing much easier now. As the hedgehog started to roll over, he found a tablet computer with the Xanadoom crest on it. Pudgy touched it, and Doomcock’s picture appeared, then a word document loaded. “Dear Pudgy. Please stay here, you need to recover. I will stop by later. Doomcock.” As the little critter read aloud, he noticed twitter load. Pudgy could message people, with the first message he contacted Cobalt. His friend immediately responded and was relieved that his friend was ok and safe in Xanadoom. Pudgy also contacted several others, though his dinosaur friend was not responding for some reason. Pudgy also found the video app, and noticed that the lord was subscribed to CBS, so he queued up Picard and started watching. He watched all the episodes, and was on 4, when Diktor opened the dark wooden door. He was carrying a metal tray and smiled. Diktor had his cloth mask on, so his lower jaw was exposed. As he walked over to set the tray on a small night st as and beside the twin bed he laughed, “I see you are up my hedgehog friend. What do you think of Picard?” Pudgy looked up and waved, “Pudgy thinks the show is ok. Don’t wanna watch again.” The Lord laughed and started to examine Pudgy. Taking notes, he checked his vitals, then nodded. “You are much better now. I was worried, my friend.” Pudgy nodded and looked up at Lord Doomcock. “Where Pudgy?” Diktor nodded, “this is in my fortress, a guest room. I know it is not decorated, but … I don’t get many visitors.” He laughed and Pudgy smiled, “Pudgy thinks wonderful.”
The bed had red blankets, and there was a soft red plush chair beside the golden oak nightstand. Across the room was a small golden oak table and chair as well. Diktor handed him a pouch of water, like the space food pouches that he used prior, and after undoing the cap, took a long sip of water. Pudgy bounced slightly, as he looked up at him. “Pudgy, what happened…. please start from when Harvey first attacked.” The hedgehog nodded and started to tell his story. Hours passed, and Doomcock took many notes, asking questions along the way. After the story was over, the two sat quietly in the softly lit doom. There were no lamps, the room had upward directed light sources recessed into the walls. The light illuminated the ceiling as and dispersed through the room. “It will not be the same without Harvey Cthulhu. I got used to his banter.” Pudgy frowned, “Pudgy liked Harvey, but he was going to hurt everyone…. Pudgy….” he started to whimper. Diktor patted his head softly, “there, my friend. It’s over. We’re all safe, thanks to you. Just rest, you earned it.” The hedgehog snuggled back into his blankets and sipped from the water pouch. Changing the subject to calm him down, Diktor filled him in on what had happened since Pudgy left. The hedgehog smiled and listened. The two talked for hours, until Pudgy fell asleep. Diktor arranged a couple small plates around Pudgy, with food. Then quietly excused himself from the room. As the door shut, the lord sighed. “It would seem….” Harvey’s voice filled the stone hall. “Do you think you have won Diktor?” The lord laughed, “no my friend, I know it is only a matter of time till you free yourself from the void my hedgehog legionnaire sent you to. Though this time, I will not be so foolish to welcome you.” The eldritch god hissed, “don’t forget it was your arrogance that summoned me to your world, Diktor.” The lord sighed, “Yes, I am aware of that. I am in full knowledge of my mistakes.” Harvey’s voice laughed with demonic tones and faded away. Doomcock nodded, “but next time we meet, I will handle things myself.” Making a fist, he slammed it against the wall scowling.
As the days passed Pudgy became stronger, and soon was able to scamper around. He stayed primarily in his guest room. He bounced and laughed with Doomcock. On Friday night he sat quietly, and watched the lord do his frolics stream, but fell asleep when he hit the 3-hour mark. So, as Saturday morning quickly arrived, Doomcock entered Pudgy’s room. “Pudgy, while I would love for you to stay here, I think it is time you should head home to Cobalt.” Pudgy looked up and nodded. “Can Pudgy still come back to Xanadoom?” The lord nodded, “yes, certainly. But, one thing is for certain, I want you to rest. There will be no more adventures for a long time, my hedgehog friend.” Diktor smiled and walked over to pick up Pudgy. The hedgehog bounced and snuggled up against him as he carried him through the fortress. “Harvey has been talking to me, occasionally.” Pudgy looked up, “do not listen to him. If we all forget, Harvey will go away forever.” The lord laughed, “it doesn’t work that way my friend. Cthulhu will return one day, our victory is fleeting, and in time he will return. When that day happens, I will be ready and waiting.” Pudgy wiggled, “and Pudgy and Cobalt will help too.” The lord laughed heartily. As they reached the elevator, Diktor looked down. “Pudgy, I will be sending you back to Cobalt. He let me know, your cabin was destroyed during the rocket lift off.” Pudgy started to look sad, and the ruler hugged gently, “it will be alright. I suspect you two will have a plan ready shortly.” Pudgy looked thoughtful, “well, Pudgy does like hobbit.” As the elevator door opened, Diktor laughed. “In a hole in the ground there lived a hedgehog. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.”
Pudgy bounced happily, “but Pudgy needed room for Cobalt and Doomcock to sit in.” Diktor laughed, “yes, and a patio so we can host your mister Dino friend. Oh, we should let the moon know you are safe.” Pudgy bounced, and watched as Doomcock exited the elevator, heading down the hallway towards the laboratory. As the frosted glass door swung open, the lights turned on, one by one. Doomcock sat down at his computer and placed Pudgy beside him on a metal table. Quickly, he started typing, using the mouse to launch the communication systems. A telephone sound started, “pudgy hope you have unlimited minutes.” The two laughed, until the computer screen clicked, then a window screen appeared, and the Daedlus appeared. “Greetings Lord Doomcock, do you have news?” Diktor nodded, “yes Daedlus.” The lord reached over and picked up Pudgy to hold him in view of the camera. Pudgy waved, “hello Daedlus. Pudgy makes it safely back to earth. Pudgy got sick, but all better now.” Soon many dinosaurs crowded the window, all talking excitedly. An hour passed quickly, which would have gone on for long, had the Daedlus not stepped in. All the dinosaurs wished Pudgy well, and soon the transmission ended. Doomcock sat Pudgy on his station teleporter pad beside the terminal. As Pudgy put on his little vest, he checked that the crystal was tucked safely away in its tight pocket, he also found his legionnaire card. “Pudgy, the transporter is warming up.” The hedgehog bounced off the pad, and into Doomcock’s lap and started hugging him. The lord hugged back gently, and after a long quiet moment, placed the hedgehog back upon the teleportation pad. “Goodbye for now, Pudgy. I know we will see each other again soon. I will check upon you occasionally.”
Pudgy waved, “Goodbye Lord Doomcock. Pudgy can’t wait to see you again too.” As Diktor worked the controls, pudgy started to shimmer, and then poof he disappeared. Xanadoom grew quiet once more, and the future ruler of the earth sat alone in the lab. When Pudgy appeared, he was in Cobalt’s basement. The little hedgehog rubbed his eyes with his paws and saw all of his cabin belongings tucked away in the corner. The home crystal which had been under the cabin was glowing brightly, as Cobalt had it connected to a power strip plugged into an electrical outlet. Pudgy scampered quickly to the basement steps and started to climb them as quick as he could muster. “COBALTTTT…PUDGY HOME!” The excited hedgehog shouted, as he made it to the top of the stairs. Cobalt ran over and knelt picking up his friend and hugged. They didn’t speak for a long time, and Cobalt carried him over to the couch, still hugging gently. Cobalt smiled as the hedgehog curled up in his lap looking up at him. “You’re home Pudgy. Your adventure is over, “the man said quietly as his hedgehog friend fell asleep.”
Pudgy's Adventures 