The Wild Blue, Black and Tan Yonder (Not Necessarily in That Order)

Chapter 13

Walter gunned the engines, and said, “Hang on!”

With the wind behind them, they roared down the beach, and into the water. The waves were growing ever more choppy as Walter shifted power from the tires to the propellers. The wind was still at their backs, but was growing stronger. Rain was pouring down hard on the canopy.

They could hear the roar of the waterspout, and the visibility was fading fast. Before long, the fog horn at Squeaky Toy light started sounding.

Keeping his eye on the compass, Walter fought to keep on course. Beside him, Snoopy was keeping his eyes on the blimp. So far, it seemed to be above the bulk of the storm, but was still being blown along by the tail wind. He guessed its ground speed was nearing 100 knots.

Up above, Tasha was standing beside the open door of the control car watching the DUK make its way through the waves, while Shasta struggled to keep the blimp under control. She was also watching the air speed increase. Suddenly, Tasha said, “I see a light flashing below!”

Shasta looked out the side window, and said, “That's Morse Code!”

“What's it say?”

“Charlie.......Quebec. Charlie Quebec.”

“Who's he?”

“That's flashing light code. It means they want our attention." 

"What are they saying?"

"'If.......you.........understand........turn.......on........the...........happy............birthday.........display.'”

"Where's the Happy Birthday display?”

Shasta looked around the control panel, and saw a button marked 'External Banner'. She pressed it.

Down in the DUK, Snoopy saw the Blimp light up with the message “Happy Birthday.” As everyone else cheered, he aimed the paw blinker as best he could, and flashed, “We.....are........going......to...... Blogville.....to.........get......the.....rescue....copter.....turn.....off....banner....if.....you....understand.”

Snoopy breathed a sigh of relief as the display went dark. But then, he heard a sputtering noise, and the DUK started slowing.