The Mysterious Change

I woke up slowly.

I did not mean to really fall asleep but I had--now I needed to get up--there was work to be done!

But WHAT work?

---The sky was blue, the sun was warm, BUT something was different!

The rocks, the sand, the trees even the distant hills were NOT as they were when I dozed off!

Tomasito, 2008

...

Crab Dream

Constable Crab doses and sleeps in the nice warm sun.

And while he sleeps he dreams--and when Constable Crab dreams--he dreams BIG!

Read on to discover our favorite crab in King Arthur's Court--and the wonderful Box of Destiny!

Tomasito, 2008

...

Happy Thanksgiving

!Happy Thanksgiving!

May you experience today the peace and joy of the season!

Tomasito, 2008

...

NEW STORY BEGINS

Still--sunning myself on the beach is what I like best--and I am pretty GOOD at it too!

If I just let myself go--and snooze--and relax--and dream--well, what harm could THAT do?!

Besides, the sun is so warm and I am SOOOO sleepy!

Sooo sleeee.....

Tomasito, 2008

...

Case of Perloined Pearl END

And that brought to a successful conclusion the very difficult adventure I call "The Case of the Purloined Pearl".

Oh, how good it was to be back in the sunshine of my nice, quiet beach after such a rough-and-tumble struggle with the forces of badness!

But, of course, my life is not just sunning myself on the beach---and it was not long before I was involved up to my eyeballs in another case...!

...

Clam gets her Pearl

Clarence the Butler was delighted to see us--especially since I had in my claws the missing pearl. He showed us in and announced us to Madam Claire Clam who met us in her salon.

"Oh, Constable Crab. I am SO happy to see you and it is SUCH a relief to see my Plumbago Pearl! I'll NEVER let it out of my sight again!"

"It was an eel, The Electrician, who stole it from your house and took to his evil master, Boss Octopus--I managed to get it away from them--but they are both still on the loose--so please be careful.

"I will, OH, I WILL! I have several dogfish guards set all around my house now for protection! But how can I ever repay your wonderful skill and gallant kindness?"

"It is my duty and my pleasure to serve and protect the creatures of this district--I have merely done my job, and THAT is my reward!"

"Noble, noble Constable Crab!" she breathed, and Sandy and I left her with her Plumbago Pearl.

...

And scuttling just as hard and fast as I could I raced through the deep canyons and cliffs until I came into the shallower, brighter water near the shore. There I felt much safer so I slowed a bit until I finally reached the familiar beach--with the Plumbago Pearl gripped tightly in my claws.

"Constable! Constable Crab!" It was the cheerful cry of my young friend Sandy Sand Crab.

"Hello Sandy! I have returned--and WITH the pearl!"

"Where did you find it ?--How did you ever..." he began.

"I'll tell you the whole amazing adventure soon--but right now let's get the pearl back to its rightful owner: Claire Clam!"

And together we went straight back into the sea to Claire Clam's mansion.

...

Crab Grabs the Pearl

"SO I am a'common hoodlum' that is only fit to do your dirty work am I?" hissed The Electrician.

"You haven't got the imagination of a sea snail or the brains of a sea cucumber!" said Boss Octopus to his henchman--and to prove it to the world--the Plumbago Pearl is MINE--ALL MINE! Muaah! Hah! Ha!" and he laughed a maniacal laugh.

"Oh Yeah?" rejoined The Electrician, "How'd you like a taste of THAT!" and he threw a terrifying bolt of electricity at Boss Octopus.

"FOOL!" shouted Boss Octopus--"Do you think I am called Boss Octopus for NOTHING?" as he slid his strong, slimy tentacles around the eel--"I'll SQUEEZE you 'til you SQUEAK!" and he commenced to do just that.

Meanwhile, since they were so busy trying to electrocute and throttle each other--I simply grabbed the pearl and scuttled!

...

Flattering the Boss

I knew that Boss Octopus would have that most valuable pearl close by--and I soon saw it under his tentacles behind him. I ALSO knew that The Electrician and Boss Octopus--like all criminals--could not trust each other. I planned to get the pearl and get away by exploiting that lack of trust.

"I thought that it would be YOU who would have the pearl, Boss Octopus," I said, "because it is obvious that YOU are the brains of this outfit!"

"So TRUE!" Boss Octopus smiled. "I use common hoodlums like The Electrician here to perform my dirty work--but I am the one who lays out the plan and who reaps the reward!"

...

Eel Confronts Octopus

"I have the Plumbago Pearl, dear Eel?"

"Yeah! YOU GOT IT--'cause I GAVE IT TO YA'!"

"You mean the lovely pearl YOU gave to me is STOLEN? OH DEAR! Oh, Heaven's sakes and MY, MY!"

"AS IF YA DIN'T KNOW!! YOU sent me to SWIPE it for ya!"

"Eel--you fool! How would anyone KNOW I had the pearl if YOU didn't open your big, ugly MOUTH!?"

"Oh--so you want ME to take all the blame while YOU get the POIL?"

I had heard about enough of the argument. Now I knew who TOOK the pearl--and who HAD it! Now I just had to GET the pearl and get it back to it's rightful owner--Claire Clam!

...

Eel Confronts Octopus

"Why, hello there." Boss Octopus welcomed me in a suave, sophistocated voice. "To what do I owe the pleasure of YOUR company?"

"Dis here is Constable Crab." hissed The Electrician from behind me. "He come down to da urchins place lookin' fer da POIL!"

"Ahhh--the pearl, you say? The great Plumbago Pearl?"

Boss Octopus rubbed his tentacles together. "Surely not, my dear colleague Eel!"

"I'm tellin' ya da Truth and nothin but!" Hissed The Electrician.

"But WHY would Mr. Crab come to ME for the Famous pearl, dear Eel"

"'Cause YOU'RE the one what's GOT it!" The Electrician
shouted.

...

Boss Octopus

At last---in the gloomiest deep-sea cavern yet---I saw---as if waiting especially for me---BOSS OCTOPUS!

Tomasito, 2008


...

Down to Boss Octopus

And so we---myself followed closely by The Electrician ---headed down and away from the shallow vile neighborhoods of the urchins--and into the deep crevasses and caves of the sea bottom---deeper than I had ever gone before---into a dark and gloomy realm---the haunts of the baddest creatures of the sea---even the MOST BADDEST of ALL----BOSS OCTOPUS!!

...

The Electrician's Plans

"SO!" Hissed The Electrician. "Madam Claire Clam's Plumbago Poil, is it? YOU had better come wit' ME!"

"And where might we be going?" I asked--quite politely considering the circumstances.

"We--YOU and ME, pal--are going to see--BOSS OCTOPUS! HIMSELF, and NOT a MOVING PICTURE--Har! Har! Har!"

And right there The Electrician broke down with evil frenzied, wheezing laughter.

...

Eel's Question

"So, Mister Constable Crab or whatever you calls yourself--Whaddaya want wit ME??"

I had nothing to lose so I simply said: "I want to know what YOU know about the Plumbago Pearl!"

...

Crab Unmasked

I was momentarily dazed and when I came to I found that the electric eel's shock had totally destroyed my disguise--I was unmasked and completely surrounded by enemies!

"Well, well, well!" hissed The Electrician, "What have we here?!"

"It's da CONSTABLE CRAB!!" shouted several of the surprised urchins.

"I thought something fishy was goin' on!" rejoined The Electrician! "Ya said some 'friend' o' mine was a lookin' fer me--but I never laid eyes on DIS creep!!"

...

The Electrician Jolts

"I hear ya' lookin' fer me, Bub. That so?" The Electrician hissed, "Well HERE I AM!"

Then The Electrician simply touched the nose of my disguise and I was instantly stunned by a tremendous jolt of electricity!

...

The Electrician

I turned and saw, slithering up behind me, the biggest, ugliest, slimiest electric eel I had ever seen! The Electrician!

...

Meeting urchins

Deeper and deeper I went into the cave until I was completely surrounded by mean-looking spiny urchins.

No one said a word to me so I began a conversation with one of the largest, most evil looking of them.

"Hello, chum. I am looking for someone." I said--using the urchin accent I had learned in my youth.

"Oh yeah? Hey, boys, dis stranger is lookin' for somebody!" He replied. "An jist WHO might ya be lookin' fer, mate?"

"A old friend o' mine. A certain electric eel." I casually replied--they obviously had been fooled by my clever disguise.

"Only ONE eel is welcome around here, bud! Us urchins don't have no dealin's wit no electric eels!"

"That's the very eel I want." I said.

"He's the one we call 'The Electrician'. Heh! Heh!" choked the urchin with ugly laughter.

"Yeah. That's him!" I said, "How can I meet up wit' him?"

"Well, you in BIG luck, pal--'cause here he come right now! An' I hope you ready fer a real SHOCK! Heh! Heh! Heh!"

...

Urchin Cave

"Down into the sea I went--moving rapidly through the better neighborhoods and soon entering into the rougher places--those rocks and crevices inhabited by the toughest denizens of the deep.

Finally I cautiously approached the cave where I knew the baddest of the urchins hung out.

I felt sure my disguise would protect me--still I felt some trepidation. Perhaps the urchins were smarter than I thought...

...

Disguise

I had found a good disguise on the beach after a human party which I felt sure would completely fool the urchins.

I put it on--a perfect fit--and headed back into the sea-- asking Sandy to wait for me at the high tide mark.

...