greedykingcheezo

[greedykingcheezo]

Eight

Superstorm, Bluebelle, Reinhold Beaver and their soft fuzzy friends flew back over the mountains and the river and the forest, and got home before dinner.

“Mama, Daddy!” said Superstorm. “We rescued the stuffed animals!”

“That's wonderful,” said Mama.

“They’re going to tell us how to defeat Greedy King Cheezo!”

“Oh, good!” said Mama. “Why don't you go play with them while Daddy and I finish making dinner.”

So Superstorm and Bluebelle took the stuffed animals back to their room and sat down with them in a circle on the floor.

Superstorm had been thinking for the whole flight home about Reinhold Beaver’s first lesson. “Reinhold Beaver,” asked Superstorm, “If the answer is power, how could we ever defeat Greedy King Cheezo? We’re just a couple of kids, and he’s the most powerful man in the world!”

“The answer,” said Reinhold Beaver, “is that we must build our power. Perhaps our stuffed animal friends have some advice about how to do that.”

They certainly did. Malcolm Rex said, “Superstorm and Bluebelle, Greedy King Cheezo is indeed very powerful.  In fact, sometimes he will defeat us. But do not despair. You must promise that every time he knocks us down we will stand back up and fight even harder!”

“That’s right,” said Fannie Lou Hammer. “You don’t run away from problems. You have to face them!”

“So, we’ll get power if we don’t give up,” said Superstorm.

“That’s right,” said Dolores Fuerte. “We need great change, Superstorm and Bluebelle. Great change will only be possible if people come together. And so you must organize. Together, we will take direct action!” said the lioness.

Bluebelle thought to herself, “Working together gives us power!”

Ida B. Whale said, “Do you know what Greedy King Cheezo’s greatest weakness is? The truth. That’s why he always lies. He’s terrified of the truth. To fight back, we must shine the light of truth upon him.”

“And you must not be silent,” added Harvey Milkbone. “Hope is never silent!”

“Truth to power!” said Superstorm.

“Superstorm and Bluebelle,” said Reinhold Beaver, “You have more power than you know. You are superheroes. But even superheroes are not powerful enough to defeat Greedy King Cheezo on your own. But together - together we have a chance.”

[greedykingcheezo]

Eighteen - Bianca Cheezo

It’s very easy to sneak up on someone on the moon, even for a large dinosaur. Malcolm Rex tiptoed from the edge of the crater toward the construction site. He didn’t make a sound. The only thing Superstorm and Bluebelle could hear was the sound of their own breathing. As long as Greedy King Cheezo didn’t turn around, Malcolm Rex would be able to sneak right up behind them.

To make sure the Cheezos didn’t turn around, Superstorm and Bluebelle created a diversion. Using her telekinetic powers, Bluebelle lifted up the letters in CHEEZO INDUSTRIES one by one and began rearranging them.

Bianca Cheezo was the first one to notice the new arrangement. “Father, why does our sign say ‘COZENED HIRSUTIES’ all of a sudden?” The Cheezo family watched as the letters rearranged themselves again and again. “HOUSE SIZED CRETIN??” said Greedy King Cheezo.

“OUTSIZED SCHNEIDER???” said Bianca Cheezo.

Finally, Bluebelle found the arrangement she liked. 

“NUDE CHEERIO ZITS????” yelled Greedy King Cheezo, enraged.

By this time, Malcolm Rex was very close to Greedy King Cheezo and his hench-family. He leaned down so that his head was inches away from them.

And then he roared the biggest roar he’d ever roared.

The Cheezos couldn’t hear it, but the roar was so powerful could feel the ground rumbling beneath their space boots. Greedy King Cheezo turned around and found himself staring directly at Malcolm Rex’s terrifying footlong fangs.

At the sight of this, Greedy King Cheezo fainted.

Jared Cashner turned around and screamed, “ALIEN DINOSAUR MONSTER!!! RUN!!!!” It was the first time anyone had ever heard him say anything. 

Several of the construction workers grabbed Greedy King Cheezo and dragged him to his gold plated, gas guzzling spaceship. Bianca Cheezo was close behind. By the time they’d gotten him into the ship, Greedy King Cheezo had woken up. “Sorry Jared Cashner,” he said, “no more room,” and he shut the door behind him. The spaceship flew off, never to to return to the alien-dinosaur-monster infested moon. Jared Cashner managed to get the last seat on the construction workers’ spaceship before they too lifted off.

Superstorm and Bluebelle flew over to Malcolm Rex and they all high fived. “Time for some crushing,” said Malcolm, and he began stomping and tearing apart the sign. Between his huge dino legs, Superstorm’s magic scooter, and Bluebelle’s powerful mind, soon every last piece of the construction site had been thrown off the moon and was flying out into space.

Superstorm and Bluebelle took a few minutes to play on the moon now that their work was done. They jumped and did flips and they even took a few swings with the golf clubs Greedy King Cheezo had left behind.

Malcolm Rex looked at his watch and said, “Superstorm and Bluebelle, it’s time to go back home!”

They all hopped on the scooter, held on very tight, and cruised back to earth.

[greedykingcheezo]

Seventeen - Bianca Cheezo

“This sign is the greatest sign that has ever been built,” said Greedy King Cheezo. “It is my shiniest, best, most expensive, bigliest creation of all time!”

“Father,” said Bianca Cheezo proudly, “everyone on Earth will be able to see our sign. And when the sun shines just right, they’ll be blinded by the gold!”

Jared Cashner didn’t say anything.

Back in the crater, Superstorm and Bluebelle were getting angrier as they listened. “They’re going to ruin the moon for everyone on earth!” said Superstorm. “Just so they can have the biggest advertisement in the solar system.”

“It won’t be the biggest in the solar system once I get through with it,” said Malcolm Rex. “But destroying the sign won’t be enough. We have to scare them so badly that they never, ever come back to the moon.” And then he explained his plan.

“Do you think you can help with that?”

“Yes we can!” replied Superstorm and Bluebelle.

[greedykingcheezo]

Sixteen - Bianca Cheezo

The moon became larger and more beautiful the closer they got. Beautiful, except for the big dirty construction site for Greedy King Cheezo’s sign. There were huge gold block letters spelling “CHEEZO INDUSTRIES” on the ground, ready to put up. Superstorm brought the scooter in for a landing on a big crater. The three friends peeked over the edge of the crater to see what was happening at the construction site.

Greedy King Cheezo, in his gold-plated space suit, stood next his daughter Bianca Cheezo and her husband Jared Cashner. Bianca and Jared’s space suits were not quite as shiny as Greedy King Cheezo’s suit, but they were still remarkably flattering. 

“What are we going to do, Malcolm Rex?” whispered Superstorm into his communicator.

“You don’t have to whisper, Superstorm,” said Malcolm Rex. “The moon doesn’t have an atmosphere, so it’s perfectly silent. They can’t hear us.”

Superstorm said, “Bluebelle, can you use your psychic powers to listen in on their conversation?”

Indeed she could. In fact, her psychic powers were so strong that all three of them could listen in.

[greedykingcheezo]

Fifteen - Bianca Cheezo

First thing the next morning, Superstorm and Bluebelle went up to the attic and got three spacesuits. The one for Malcolm Rex was a little bit small, but he managed to squeeze into it. “I think we’re ready,” said the tyrannosaur. Superstorm told his parents that they were flying to the moon on his scooter with Malcolm Rex.

“Ok, but make sure it’s a quick trip,” said Mama. “Breakfast is almost ready!”

Superstorm, Bluebelle, and Malcolm Rex checked their suits to make sure there weren’t any leaks, then they scooted to the  top of the hill. They would have to go very, very fast in order to fly into outer space. Superstorm got them started rolling down the hill. They went faster and faster, and he pushed with all his might, but he wasn’t sure it would be enough to reach escape velocity.

Then Malcolm Rex started pushing. The burst of power from his giant T-Rex legs launched the magic scooter into the air!

Superstorm held on tight to the handlebars and Bluebelle held on tight to Superstorm as they rocketed up through the atmosphere. Soon, the blue sky began to turn black and the stars came out. They had reached outer space.

Next stop: The Moon.

[greedykingcheezo]

Fourteen - Bianca Cheezo

“Reinhold Beaver,” said Superstorm, “It says CHEEZO on the moon!”

Reinhold Beaver pondered this, then said, “There can be only one explanation. The only space program in the world that has ever reached the moon is ours. Now that Greedy King Cheezo controls NASA, he must be using it to build a giant billboard on the moon.”

“You mean so that everyone on earth would have to look at his sign?” asked Superstorm. “He can’t turn the moon into an advertisement!”

“The moon belongs to everyone, and to no one,” said Reinhold Beaver. “But as long as Greedy King Cheezo is the king, he can do a lot of things he shouldn’t do. That is, until someone stops him.”

Superstorm said, “I wish WE could stop him, but we’re just a couple of kids!”

Malcolm Rex had been listening to the conversation. “I could take care of that billboard,” said Malcolm, “if only there was a way for me to get to the moon.”

A thought suddenly appeared in Superstorm’s head. It had been placed there by Bluebelle. He said, “Maybe we could fly you to the moon on my magic scooter?”

[greedykingcheezo]

Thirteen - Bianca Cheezo

Superstorm and Bluebelle lived on hill that looked out over the city. Sometimes at night they liked to take their telescope to the top of the hill and look at the moon.

One night, they saw something very surprising on the moon.

“Is that a ‘C’?” said Superstorm. “It looks like there’s a ‘C’ on the moon!”

Superstorm and Bluebelle took turns squinting through the telescope to get a closer look. Sure enough, there was a C on the moon. And beside it was an H, and an E, and another E, followed by a Z and finally an O.

“Why does it say CHEEZO on the moon?” wondered Superstorm.

“We should talk to Reinhold Beaver about this,” said Bluebelle (using her pyschic powers, since she hadn’t quite learned to talk yet.)

And so they did.

[greedykingcheezo]

Twelve - Jeff Secessions

When the party in the park had calmed down, Malcolm Rex and Fannie Lou Hammer turned to Cannonball Alinksy.

“Wait a second,” said Malcolm Rex. “We’re just going to let Jeff Secessions walk away?”

Cannonball Alinsky said, “We got him fired! That is enough for now.”

Fannie Lou Hammer disagreed. She and Malcolm Rex tracked down Jeff Secessions. They bonked him down into the ground until he was nothing more than two giant red ears.

“Those look delicious,” said Malcolm Rex. At which point, he devoured Jeff Secessions. “Good riddance, Jeff Secessions,” he said with a burp.

[greedykingcheezo]

Eleven - Jeff Secessions

Just then, they heard a helicopter overhead. The sun glinted off the gold plates, and they could smell the exhaust from all the gas it was guzzling. It was Greedy King Cheezo.

He landed in the park, just back from vacation. He saw the crowd laughing at Jeff Secessions, and he became very angry. Not at the crowd, but at Jeff Secessions.

“Jeff Secessions, you are very weak. It’s like you’re not even a henchman. You’re fired!” said Greedy King Cheezo to puppet Jeff Secessions, not even realizing that real Jeff Secessions was no longer in the park. The crowd laughed at Greedy King Cheezo. He pretended not to notice their laughter, but he hurried back to his gold plated gas guzzling helicopter and flew away.

[greedykingcheezo]

Ten - Jeff Secessions

Superstorm and Bluebelle made sure that the stuffed animals were having as much fun and making as much noise as possible. Then they found some of their craftiest friends and got to work. They used paper mâché and paint and lots of other supplies, and they made something very large and very secret. They kept it hidden under a big sheet, just like Cannonball Alinksy had told them. They had to wait until the moment was right to unveil their creation.

It wasn’t long before word of the stuffed animal party got to Jeff Secessions. He was very angry that those stuffed animals were ignoring his decree, and he sent his own personal security detail to arrest all of them.

When the security detail got to the park, Cannonball Alinsky invited them join in the fun. But they had very serious looks on their faces and didn’t seem like they liked having fun very much at all. One of them said through a bullhorn, “You are in violation of Jeff Secessions decree! If you do not go home immediately, you will all be arrested!”

This was exactly what Cannonball Alinsky was waiting for. He give Superstorm and Bluebelle the signal, and with the help of Malcolm Rex they pulled the sheet off of their creation. It was a giant puppet that looked just like Jeff Secessions (except with even bigger ears)! They raised up the puppet so that it stood above the crowd.

Cannonball Alinsky said, “Is that right? Well Jeff Secessions is right here! Let’s ask him!”

Harvey Milkbone, in his silliest Jeff Secessions voice, said, “I do declare! I’ve been havin’ so much fun with these stuffed animals that I forgot about that ole decree.”

The bodyguards kept their very serious faces on and told the stuffed animals to immediately stop playing or else they would be arrested. All of the bodyguards, that is, except for one. He started to giggle. It was a very silly Jeff Secessions voice.

“I would like to take this occasion,” said the puppet Jeff Secessions, “to make a NEW proclamation. I declare that it is…PARTY TIME!”  

The stuffed animals and their kids were singing and playing and laughing even harder now, so loud that they couldn’t even hear Jeff Secessions’ bodyguards tell them to quiet down. The bodyguards knew they couldn’t handle this crowd on their own, so they called their boss.

A little while later, the real Jeff Secessions arrived at the park. He climbed up on the shoulders of one of his bodyguards and yelled into the bullhorn:

“Your behavior is disorderly! It is not acceptable! Stop at once!!” He was so angry, his ears were turning bright red.

In an even sillier voice, puppet Jeff Secessions said, “YOUR behavior is disoooorderly! It is NOT acceptable. Stop at ONCE!”

The stuffed animals and their kids thought that this was hilarious. Real Jeff Secessions got even angrier, and his ears turned even more red.

He yelled into the bullhorn, “You will be arrested! Bodyguards! Arrest this entire disorderly, dangerous mob of stuffed animals!”

Puppet Jeff Secessions copied him again, “You will BE arrested,” he said in his silly voice. “Bodyguards! Arrest this ENTIRE disorderly, dangerous MOB of STUFFED ANIMALS!”

By now, the stuffed animals and kids were laughing so hard, that they were rolling on the ground. Even the bodyguards were all beginning to smile.

Real Jeff Secessions said, “NOW!”

Puppet Jeff Secessions said, “NOOOOOOW!” even sillier than Superstorm and Bluebelle thought possible.

The bodyguards started laughing so hard, that they couldn’t even arrest anyone.

Jeff Secessions realized that no one was respecting his power, so he started to leave. It was quite embarrassing. Puppet Jeff Secessions began dancing, and the stuffed animals and kids in the park cheered in victory.

Cannonball Alinsky said to the crowd, “Rule #5: Ridicule is a  stuffed animal’s most potent weapon! Good riddance, Jeff Secessions!”

[greedykingcheezo]

Nine - Jeff Secessions

“Superstorm and Bluebelle, you’ve done a wonderful job of bringing everyone here,” said Cannonball Alinksy. “Jeff Secessions will surely notice.”

“But we’re violating his proclamation!” said Superstorm. “If he finds out we’ll get in trouble!”

“Exactly,” said Cannonball. “We want him to find out. But Jeff Secessions is the one who’s going to be in trouble.”

“What do you mean?” asked Superstorm.

“Allow me to explain,” said Cannonball Alinksy, and he told Superstorm and Bluebelle his plan. “Do you think we can do that?” asked Cannonball when he had finished explaining.

“Yes we can!” said Superstorm and Bluebelle. And they got to work.

[greedykingcheezo]

Eight - Jeff Secessions

Greedy King Cheezo liked to go on vacation. He liked it so much that sometimes when he was on vacation, he would take another vacation from his first vacation! When he was on vacation, it was hard to tell who was in charge. Then again, even when he wasn’t on vacation it was hard to tell who was in charge.

So when Greedy King Cheezo went on vacation this time, Jeff Secessions decided that HE would be in charge. He hastily called a press conference and announced a new proclamation:

“Even though stuffed animals have been allowed to come back home, they are still a danger to the good people of our kingdom. From this moment forward I do declare that teddy bears and their plush friends may not play, dance, sing, or otherwise gather in parks or public spaces.”

It just so happened that when they heard this news, Superstorm and Bluebelle were packing Dolores Fuerte, Malcolm Rex, Ida B. Whale, Harvey Milkbone, Fannie Lou Hammer, and Reinhold Beaver into their red wagon to take them to the park.

“Reinhold Beaver,” said Superstorm, “Can we still go to the park and play?”

“Yes, we can still go to the park. And in fact, we must,” said the beaver.

“But if Jeff Secessions finds out, he might banish you again!”

“Well then, we’ll have to bring plenty of our friends.” said Reinhold.

And so as they walked through their neighborhood, Superstorm and Bluebelle stopped at all of their friends’ houses and invited them to bring their stuffed animals to the park. By the time they got to the playground, there were hundreds of stuffed animals and kids. Most of the stuffed animals were just regular stuffed animals who liked to run around and play. But there was one stuffed animal who was very experienced with events like this.

“Superstorm and Bluebelle,” said Reinhold Beaver, “I’d like you to meet my friend Cannonball Alinsky.”

[greedykingcheezo]

Election Day

Superstorm and Bluebelle were very excited for school, because it was the day when they would get to vote for class president! They loved voting because you got a sticker when you did it.

After Superstorm and Bluebelle voted, they went to recess. Their friend Lion was there, and so was their friend Caballero, and a few other friends. Caballero was an older boy who used to babysit Superstorm and Bluebelle, back when people thought Caballero was a girl.

“Nice stickers,” said Lion.

“Thanks,” said Superstorm. “Where’s yours? Why don’t you go and vote!”

“Well, we tried but they wouldn’t let us!” said Lion.  

“Wait,” said Superstorm. “Everyone who goes to this school gets one vote. Why wouldn’t they let you use yours?”

Caballero said, “I tried to vote too, but they said I was registered as a girl and now that I’m a boy I can’t vote anymore.”

“That’s ridiculous!” said Superstorm, who was genuinely confused.

Several of the other friends said similar things. One friend said she forgot to capitalize her name when she signed up, so they wouldn’t let her vote. Another one said he had to give his address, but he didn’t have one because he lived at a shelter. One even said they told him it was because he got a detention two years ago.

“What??” said Superstorm. “None of those things are good reasons at all!”

Just then, Superstorm remembered that he had brought his stuffed beaver to school for show and tell. “Guys, maybe my friend Reinhold can help!”

The friends were skeptical at first, but Superstorm insisted that they sit and listen to the stuffed animal. Even after Reinhold Beaver began talking they were still a little bit suspicious. But he seemed to be making a lot of sense, so they kept listening.

“For a very long time, in fact since our kingdom was created, people with power have tried to stop people with less power from voting,” Reinhold explained.

“But voting is a right! They can’t just take it away,” said Superstorm.

“You are correct. But Greedy King Cheezo and Jeff Secessions and people like them are very sneaky. They will use fear to manipulate you. They might even try to make you afraid of your own friends. It is the only thing that works for them.”

“But if our friends can’t vote and people are afraid of them, it’s like they don’t belong here. It’s almost like they don’t even exist!”

“Precisely,” said Reinhold Beaver. “And not only that, they can’t vote for people who will respect them.”

Superstorm, Lion, Bluebelle, and Caballero were very sad to learn all of this. Now they understood how important voting was.

“I wish there was something we could do,” said Superstorm. “But we’re just a bunch of kids.”

As he usually did, Reinhold Beaver said, “I have some friends who might be able to help with this.”

Back at Superstorm and Bluebelle’s house, Reinhold Beaver introduced the kids to two of his best friends, Harvey Milkbone and Fannie Lou Hammer.

The kids explained the situation to Harvey and Fannie Lou, who discussed and made a plan. “Now everyone lean in close,” said Fannie Lou, and she whispered the plan to them. When she was done she asked, “Do you think that you can do that?”

All together the kids said, “Yes we can!”

Harvey Milkbone walked into the school’s front office and began barking. It started a commotion, and all the adults were distracted.

Superstorm and Bluebelle snuck into the copy room, made 1000 flyers, and snuck back out without anyone noticing. They were very stealthy.

The kids put the flyers up all around the school and the neighborhood so that everyone would see them.

The flyer said, “Come One! Come All! A Special Assembly on Democracy! In the auditorium, after school.”

When it came time for the assembly, there were hundreds of people lined up to get in. Once they had heard about their friends not getting to vote, they were very angry.

But someone wouldn’t let them into the auditorium.

Superstorm rushed to the front of the line. There stood Principal DeGross, a stern and somewhat bewildered look on her face. “This is an unauthorized assembly!” said DeGross. “You do not have permission, and under no circumstances will this assembly proceed!”

Fannie Lou Hammer had expected this, and she was ready. She ran up and started bonking Principal DeGross on the head. Not hard enough to actually hurt her, but enough to squish her down until she was two and a half feet tall. Once that happened, no one was afraid of her anymore and they all rushed into the auditorium.

Fannie Lou Hammer welcomed the crowd to the special assembly. “Your vote is power! When someone takes that away, they’re taking away your power. And not only that, they’re saying you don’t count.” The crowd booed. “The only option,” said Fannie Lou, “is to take your vote back! Make your power count!” The crowd cheered. “Now Principal DeGross, will fix the voting lists and redo the election?”

Principal DeGross said, in a very squished voice, “I am pleased to announce that my vice principal Mike Pants has thoroughly examined the situation, and will now share his findings.”

Vice Principal Pants said, “After extensive meetings, we have determined that we will no longer remove people from the voting list for meaningless technical details.” The crowd clapped, but knowing Mike Pants they were still pretty suspicious.

“That is simply not a legitimate reason to take away someone’s vote,” continued Mike Pants. “But,” he added, “there IS one very legitimate reason to take away someone’s vote. Kids have been sneaking into our school from other schools to vote. These kids look different. They talk different. You may even be friends with them. But they do not understand what OUR school is all about. Therefore,” said Mike Pants, “we must protect the integrity of our school from these outsiders. They are dangerous.”

He handed the microphone to Principal DeGross. “And so,” she said, “I am announcing a new policy. Myself and Vice Principal Pants will simply decide all of your votes for you. You are now dismissed! Please exit the auditorium in an orderly fashion.”

The assembly was stunned into silence, but the quiet didn’t last long.  “Lion and Caballero and the other kids are NOT outsiders,” barked Harvey Milkbone. “They’re not dangerous, they’re just different from you! But maybe you don’t know what dangerous means. So I’m gonna show you. THIS is dangerous!”

Harvey ran snarling toward Mike Pants and Principal DeGross and backed them into a corner, his ears back and his teeth bared. They were too terrified to move. All they could do was stand there and listen, for once.

Fannie Lou Hammer invited Caballero to the front of the crowd. “Caballero, would you be willing to tell your story?”

Caballero was very shy about speaking to such a big group, but he told his story anyway. About how it felt to be made fun of when he was little, to have other kids bully him, and about how hard he had worked to become who he was. His story left the crowd silent. Bluebelle thought to herself, “Caballero IS very different. He’s much braver than most people I know. I wonder if that’s his superpower?”

“Principal DeGross,” said Fannie Lou Hammer. “This brave young man has shown that Mike Pants is lying. There’s nothing dangerous about these kids. If you have even a shred of the courage Caballero just showed, you will let everyone have their vote!”

The crowd cheered so loud that no one even noticed tiny Principal DeGross scuttling out the back door. She ran straight to her favorite yacht, and sailed away. Being a principal was way too hard. Mike Pants tried to get the crowds attention, but Fannie Lou Hammer promptly bonked him down to size, too.

One of kindest and smartest teachers stepped up and promised to redo the election and make sure everyone had their vote. As the crowd cheered for Caballero, Harvey and Fannie Lou trotted back home.

[greedykingcheezo]

Six

Without their stuffed animals to play with, Superstorm and Bluebelle were bored. They decided to go out for a scoot around the block. Bluebelle held on tight to her big brother as they scooted up the hill next to their house. From the top of the hill they could see for miles around.

“I wonder if we can see where the stuffed animals were banished to,” said Superstorm. Even though Bluebelle didn’t know how to talk yet, she answered.

“Brother, I can hear them,” she said.

“What do you mean, Bluebelle?” asked Superstorm.

“I can hear them in my head, just like you’re hearing me in your head. They’re asking for our help. And I know where they are.”

“Let’s go rescue them!” said Superstorm. “Can we take my scooter?”

“Yes,” said Bluebelle. “But we’ll have to go faster than we ever have before.”

They started scooting down the hill, faster and faster. They went so fast the scooter began to shake. Superstorm wanted to put his foot on the brake to slow down, but something stopped him. “Faster,” Bluebelle.

And all of a sudden, they were flying through the air.

They flew up above the treetops and circled around over their house. Down below, Superstorm and Bluebelle’s parents looked up and waved to get their attention. “Make sure you’re home before dinner!” yelled Mama.

They flew over the town center, over the highway, over the forest and the river until they reached the mountains, which they flew right over. Superstorm steered the scooter while Bluebelle navigated.  After a while, Bluebelle said, “We’re getting close. It’s time to land.”

When they touched down, Superstorm and Bluebelle found themselves in an unfamiliar land. “It’s a good thing we brought snacks,” said Superstorm. They scooted onward until they reached a very large cave, with an even larger boulder blocking the entrance.

“I can hear them! They’re inside the cave!” said Superstorm. He pushed the boulder with all his might, but he couldn’t move it, even a millimeter. “But we can’t get them because this boulder is too big,” he said, discouraged. Just when he was sure they’d have to turn back, he heard Bluebelle’s voice.

“Don’t worry, brother. I’ve got this.”

Bluebelle stared at the boulder and concentrated. Superstorm had never seen his sister as focused as she was at this moment. The dust around the bottom of the boulder began to vibrate. Bluebelle concentrated even harder. And the giant boulder lifted off the ground! It hovered an inch off the ground, then began to move slowly to the side until there was enough room for the stuffed animals to squeeze out. Bluebelle let the boulder drop.

Out came the stuffed animals. Ida B. Whale, Malcolm Rex, Fannie Lou Hammer, Harvey Milkbone, Dolores Fuerte, and all their stuffed animal friends. Last of all came Reinhold Beaver.

“I knew that you would find us, Superstorm and Bluebelle. Thank you for rescuing us,” said the wise old Beaver. “Now we must return to the kingdom.”

“But you’re banished, will you be safe if we go back?”

“When a king says it’s ok to hit people, when he’s so greedy that he never shares, when he doesn’t tell the truth - then no one is truly safe,” said Reinhold Beaver. “You have much to learn, Superstorm and Bluebelle. Put us on your scooter and take us home, and we will teach you. We will start today with your very first lesson, as soon as we’re back in the kingdom.”

Superstorm and Bluebelle piled all of the stuffed animals onto the scooter. In order to make them all fit, Superstorm had to sit on Malcolm Rex’s shoulders, while Dolores Fuerte and Harvey Milkbone rode Ida B. Whale. Bluebelle held on tight to Superstorm with one hand, and with the other she held Reinhold Beaver, who dangled precariously from the scooter.

Superstorm got the scooter rolling, faster and faster, but just before they took off he remembered that he had a question for Reinhold Beaver.

“What is the first lesson, Reinhold Beaver?” yelled Superstorm as they took to the air.

Over the sound of the rushing wind, the Beaver bellowed his answer. “Power!” he said. “Power must be met with MORE power!!”

[greedykingcheezo]

Five

Superstorm and Bluebelle were surprised when Reinhold Beaver spoke, but not too surprised. He had always seemed like he had a lot to say.

“But Reinhold Beaver,” said Superstorm, “We’re just a couple of kids! What can we do?”

Reinhold Beaver was about to answer, but they were interrupted by a loud knock at the front door. It was Steven Badman, there to pick up the box of stuffed animals.

“Trust me, children,” said Reinhold Beaver. “We will see you soon.”

And with that, Superstorm closed the moving box. “Goodbye,” he said. “For now.”

[greedykingcheezo]

Four

One day, Greedy King Cheezo was on TV. That was his favorite place to be, other than golfing. On his right stood Steven Badman, one of his favorite henchmen. On his left stood Jeff Secessions, another of his favorite henchmen. Greedy King Cheezo was about to make an announcement.

“We have a very dangerous problem in our kingdom, and I am the only one who can fix it,” said Greedy King Cheezo. “The problem,” he said, “is teddy bears.” Jeff Secessions and Steven Badman nodded their heads enthusiastically. “Teddy bears are small, fuzzy, and brown. They are different than you and me, and therefore they are dangerous. In fact, they’re animals. And so, I hereby decree that teddy bears and all of their little stuffed animal friends are BANISHED from the kingdom!”

Superstorm and Bluebelle gasped. Their stuffed animals were all very loving and not dangerous at all. In fact, they were part of the family! How could anyone want to banish them?

But Greedy King Cheezo had made his decree, and so Superstorm and Bluebelle went to their room and began gently putting all their stuffed animals into a moving box.

They packed Malcolm, their fuzzy bespectacled Tyrannosaurus Rex, Ida B. Whale, their intrepid cetacean, Dolores Fuerte, their fierce lioness, and Harvey Milkbone, their pioneering puppy. Last of all, they packed Reinhold, their wise old Beaver.

Just as Superstorm was about to close the box, Reinhold Beaver did something he had never done before.

He spoke.

“Superstorm and Bluebelle,” said Reinhold Beaver, “You are more powerful than you know.”

[greedykingcheezo]

Three

Superstorm and Bluebelle woke up that morning in November and noticed that their parents were very upset.

“What’s wrong, mama and daddy?” asked Superstorm.

“Something very bad has happened,” explained Daddy. “Somehow, Greedy Mr. Cheezo won the election. Now he’s Greedy KING Cheezo.”

“But mama,” said Superstorm, “I thought that kings were supposed to set a good example! He can’t be a king. He always lies. And he’s so greedy  that he never shares. And worst of all, he says it’s ok to hit other people!”

Mama agreed. Greedy King Cheezo was not setting a very good example. And they were pretty sure he would not be a very good king.

Superstorm and Bluebelle wanted to help, but what could they do? They were just a couple of kids.