The next morning arrived and Hazel and Melvin waited on the ledge.
Dottie swam over to the ledge. “Are you ready?”
Hazel and Melvin nodded in agreement.
“Follow me,” Dottie said then she started to swim up to the surface of the water.
While they swam closer and closer to the surface of the water, Hazel and Melvin got more and more nervous.
“The surface looks a little scary,” Melvin whispered to Hazel when they swam a foot below the surface of the water.
“Don’t quit on me now,” Hazel replied and looked a little worried about him.
Melvin looked scared to death while they got closer to the surface.
“Don’t panic when you poke your head out of the water. We’ll stay there for a few seconds,” Dottie told them.
Dottie and Hazel poked their heads out of the water.
At the surface of the waters of the Gulf, Dottie and Hazel looked around the open air.
Melvin stayed just below the surface scared to death and the water magnified his scared eyes.
Dottie and Hazel looked down at Melvin.
Dottie motioned for Melvin to poke his head out into the open air.
“No! Air will kill me,” Melvin cried out from under the water.
“And he wants to rescue Stephanie? That will be interesting. Any hoo, off on the horizon over there is Key West,” Dottie said while she pointed her nose in the proper direction.
Hazel looked where Dottie’s nose pointed and nodded that she understood.
Then Melvin suddenly looked a little brave and he poked his head out of the water.
Hazel looked proud of Melvin with his first act of bravery and thought that just maybe he could pull off this rescue mission.
“Let’s go,” Dottie said then she went back under the water.
Hazel and Melvin went back under the water.
Melvin and Hazel swam along with Dottie down to the depths of the Gulf.
“There's hazards in outer air. The Air Aliens have these huge creatures that are square looking. They're
called vehicles and they have four black round legs. Vehicles don't eat fish, but those legs will squish you, if you get in their way. So stay off their path! Now the Air Aliens live in humongous caves called buildings. They have a big entrance that opens and closes,” Dottie told Hazel and Melvin.
Hazel already knew some of that information but she pretended it was fresh data so that she wouldn’t ruin Dottie’s moment.
“When do you think you’ll be starting your rescue mission?”
“Well, they’re going to launch Airship three later today for a quick test flight in outer air,” Hazel replied.
“How will you get in the airship?” Dottie curiously asked.
Hazel thought for a few seconds. “We’ll cross those waters when we get there.”
“I’ll hang around Aquaticville and when I see the airship being launched, I’ll go to the surface of the water. Then you can follow me to Key West,” Dottie answered.
Melvin looked a little scared but knew he couldn’t back out now. He also started to see Hazel in a different light and didn’t want to lose her friendship.
A little while later, Dottie, Hazel and Melvin swam close to Aquaticville.
“I’ll be waiting,” Dottie said then she swam away.
“Are you ready?” Hazel asked Melvin.
Melvin looked up toward the surface of the water then he looked back at Hazel. “I’m ready,” he replied but inside he was shaking with fear.
Hazel grabbed one of Melvin’s fins and swam him in the direction of the sling shot launcher pad.
Meanwhile over in Cooter’s store in her aquarium, Stephanie stared at the store from the glass and looked at all the other aquariums with the different fish. She looked so depressed and felt like a prisoner.
Carlos swam up to her.
“I shouldn't be here. It's Melvin's fault. If he weren't such a coward and liar, my life wouldn't be ruined,” she said while her eyes welled up.
“This new world isn't so bad. They feed you every day. The water's always clean,” Carlos replied.
Timmy swam over to Stephanie and Carlos. “He's right. You don't have search for food. It's an easy life,” he said.
Then Kathy swam over. “Plus you don’t have to worry about bigger fish eating you in this world,” she said.
“Plus the Air Aliens won’t eat us. I mean I heard they eat some fish, but not us. They just like to watch us swim back and forth. Back and forth,” Mitch said while he swam over.
Stephanie’s eyes welled up being homesick.
Carlos placed a fin around Stephanie for comfort.
Timmy, Mitch and Kathy swam away.
Back in the NASA Control Room in Aquaticville, Rodney moped around the room depressed while he thought about Stephanie and worried she was dead.
A nerdy engineer fish looked up from a console while Rodney moped past him. “The Air Cadets are getting into their airsuits,” he told Rodney.
He continued to mope around the room and didn’t pay attention to the engineer’s information.
In the Air Cadets Room located at the rear of the NASA building, there were 10 lockers up against a wall. Each one of those lockers contained an airsuit for the Air Cadet.
Two Air Cadets, Frank and Nick opened up their lockers and removed their airsuits. They were slated to take Airship 3 on its test flight into outer air in a little while.
Melvin and Hazel quietly snuck up behind them and whacked them on the back of their heads with a seashell. The Frank and Nick floated to the floor unconscious.
Melvin and Hazel shoved them in their lockers, closed the doors and grabbed their airsuits.
Melvin looked nervous and Hazel noticed. “Don't worry. I'll be by your side the whole time,” she said with a comforting smile.
Melvin looked at Hazel and her smile made his feel less nervous.
Over at the sling shot launcher pad, the Airship 3 was posed for launch. This was the largest of the airship fleet with a door that allowed access into outer air. It was also equipped with larger Methane fuel tanks for longer duration in outer air.
Two technician fish in coveralls swam over to a valve on the “Methane” line.
They opened the valve then swam over to the rear of the sling shot launcher and waited by the lever.
In the park in Aquaticville, everybody watched the huge TV screen, which showed a view of the Airship 3 at the sling shot launcher.
“And we’re now waiting for our two Air Cadets, Frank and Nick, to finish dressing in their airsuits and enter Airship three,” Barbie Waters addressed the audience.
“I can't believe how much of a liar Melvin was. He never rescued his parents and now poor beautiful Stephanie, taken in the prime of her life,” Brett said to his girlfriend Angie.
“I know. I wonder what happened to him?” she replied.
“He’s probably hiding somewhere in the depths of the Atlantic by now,” Brett said.
“I hope some big shark munches on that lair,” Angie said.
All of the fish around them nodded in agreement while they stared at the TV screen.
Outside the Air Cadets building, that stingray with the small building on its back waited.
The door of the Air Cadet building opened and Melvin and Hazel walked out in the airsuits.
They swam over to the stingray and went to the building.
After they were in the building, the stingray slowly swam away.
The stingray swam over to the reef where the sling shot launcher was located on the ledge.
The stingray stopped by the ledged and waited.
The door of the building opened and Melvin and Hazel swam out in their airsuits.
They quickly swam over to Airship 3.
The two technician fish saw Melvin and Hazel and waved at them.
Hazel waved back while Melvin opened the door to Airship 3.
They went inside the airship and closed the door.
Inside the cockpit of Airship 3, Melvin and Hazel stood by the back wall where two additional glass bubble helmets and airsuits.
There was only a little bit of water the floor of Airship 3 while Melvin and Hazel walked over to the console.
Melvin looked at all the gauges, knobs, and switches on the console.
“Activating cockpit water fill sequence,” a voice of one of the engineer fish in the control room called out from the speakers.
“Okay,” Hazel replied back into the microphone with a fake male voice.
Water stared filling up the cockpit of Airship 3.
“Sequence to fill up the auxiliary water tanks in work,” another engineer fish from the control room called out from the speakers.
Melvin and Hazel heard the water tanks in the rear of the airship starting to fill up with water. These tanks were used to fill up the water chamber for after coming back in the airship from a venture into outer air.
“Methane tank fill sequence is completed,” another engineer fish called out from the speakers.
The water reached the top of the cockpit and there was six inches of air left at the top.
“Cockpit water fill sequence completed,” one of the engineer fish from the control room called out from the speakers.
“Methane and water fill lines have been disconnected,” another engineer fish from the firing room called out from the speakers.
“Okay Airship three, we’re a go for launch,” Rodney from the control room called out from the speakers.
Melvin and Hazel removed their helmets and got out of their airsuits.
He looked nervous and Hazel noticed and she grabbed his fin and held it. She winked at him to indicate that everything was going to be fine.
He smiled back and he stared the like the feeling of his fin being held by her fin.
Melvin quickly swam the airsuits to the back wall and hung them on the hooks.
He swam back to the console where Hazel sat down in one of the seats.
Melvin sat down in the other seat and waited.
“Fifteen seconds and counting,” another engineer fish from the firing room called out from the speakers.
“What?” Rodney called out a little confused from the speakers. “You're kidding!” Rodney added then there was a few seconds of pause. “Airship three, there appears to be a problem. We just found the Air Cadets Frank and Nick stuffed inside their lockers,” Rodney said a little upset. “Who are you and why are you in my airship?” he yelled out from the speakers.
Melvin and Hazel looked at each other and realized they were finally caught.
Hazel leaned forward to a microphone on the console. “It's me Daddy,” she said.
“Hazel, what are you doing in my airship?” Rodney yelled from the speakers.
“We're going to rescue Stephanie,” she replied into the microphone.
“Rescue? And what do you mean by we?” he yelled back from the speaker.
“Six, five, four,” one of the engineer fish from the control room called out from the speakers.
“Melvin's with me,” she replied into the microphone.
“Stop the launch!” Rodney yelled from the speaker.
There was a loud swish sound when the one technician fish moved the lever on the sling shot. Melvin and Hazel were pressed against the seats from the g-forces of the launcher.
“It's too late,” one of the engineer fish from the control room called out from the speakers.
Inside the control room, Rodney fumed and the water boiled around him while he pretended to strangle Melvin.
Engineers monitored their consoles and avoided eye contact with Rodney.
Airship 3 zoomed up to the surface of the Gulf of Mexico.
The Gulf of Mexico was calm with little waves and there was a cloudless beautiful blue sky.
Airship 3 shot out of the water like a missile. It ascended up into the air and then the rear engine ignited and a flame shot out then it raced up into the sky.
Dottie swam on the surface of the water and headed toward Key West.
Inside Airship 3, Hazel looked thrilled while Melvin looked scared to death and covered his eyes with his fins.
Hazel worked the joystick and Airship 3 leveled out the controls and loved the view out the windows.
Then she saw Dottie while she swam on the surface of the water. “There’s Dottie,” she called out and pointed.
Melvin still covered his eyes with his fins. Then he felt brave and slowly removed one of his fins a little and took a peek. It looks safe. He though to himself then he removed his other fin from his eyes.
Hazel reached underneath the console and found a secret switch. She turned the switch to the “Off” position, which disabled remote capability from the NASA control room.
Airship 3 flew 30 feet above the waters of the Gulf of Mexico and followed Dottie while she swam toward Key West.