The sun was high
in the sky on a Wednesday in June. The Cibolians went about their normal
everyday lives. High above the chasm that surrounded Cibola City a dirigible
drifted in from the western horizon. As with other fantastical elements in
Cibola City, no one noticed the dirigible as it gently floated closer and over
the city center.
The dirigible
slowed and became stationary above Cibola City. Bombay doors opened underneath
the gondola and bright red egg shapes fell toward the city. A few Cibolians
looked skyward and saw these red eggs falling. The Cibolians had looks of
confusion on their faces as they had no idea what was going on. Crowds started
to gather on sidewalks and watched the red eggs fall from the dirigible.
Midway through
their descent, the red eggs opened and revealed giant drinking birds wearing
bright red cone hats. The eggs turned into parachutes and the giant drinking
birds drifted slowly toward the city. On the dirigible, the nose cone hummed
and clicked opening and formed into a dish with a transmitter in the middle.
The dish extended out and aimed itself down toward the falling birds over
Cibola City.
As the birds fell
closer to the city, the Cibolians began to smile. Was this some sort of new
circus coming to town?
On the dirigible,
the transmitter beeped to life. The cone hats on the drinking birds responded,
and the birds began to float into different directions over the city.
The Cibolians saw
that the birds were separating and the sidewalk crowds moved to follow the
birds and watch where they would land. A crowd on the sidewalk of Scoville
Street watched as one of the drinking birds landed in front of The First Bank
of Cibola City with ground rumbling thud. The parachute reeled itself into the
bright red cone hat. The Front Street Cibolians had a front row seat to a
drinking bird. Standing 40 feet high, 45 with the cone hat, its head and neck
had a titanium look that met a clear round glass body. A strange bubbling red liquid
filled half the drinking bird’s bulbous body.
The drinking birds
continued their descent over the city from Grand Concourse, to Heppy Peppy Way
to Front Street. Twenty birds in all landed in front of 20 different bank
buildings. The 45 foot tall birds stood and faced their buildings the landed in
front of. The crowds of Cibolians clapped, oohed and awed at the giant
spectacles all over their city.
On the dirigible,
transmitter transmitted again down toward the city. In unison the drinking
birds began to sway front to back. The red liquid in their bulbous bodies moved
as well as the birds movement gained momentum. The drinking bird’s momentum
increased dramatically and the ground under the birds began to shake with
tremors. Twenty drinking birds fell into the city and each contributed to the
cities minor shaking. The crowds began to step away from the drinking birds as
they started feeling something was wrong.
That something
came when each of the drinking bird’s beaks hit the wall of the building they
were standing in front of. In a single moment, each bird hit a wall with their
beak and a
shock-wave followed
by a noise piercing scream rocked the city. Anyone standing fell to the ground
and covered their ears. The birds retracted from their walls and went forward
to hit them again and again. The ground rumbled and buildings shook as the
drinking birds attacked the bank buildings. On Front Street, the front wall of
the First Bank of Cibola City fell into the street. Glass and rubble fell into
a pile at the feet of the drinking bird. Across the city some front walls fell
others stood but took massive structural damage as gaping holes tore open the
banks.
Cibola City became
a panic and its citizens ran for help and to protect themselves from the
destruction. The Cibola City police descended onto the areas where the drinking
birds landed. A group of officers raced to Fell Street where The Great Bank of
The West building took heavy damage but was still standing. The officers drew
their batons and raced toward the drinking bird. In mid sway as its beak hit
the wall the officers ambushed the glass body. Two officers were on top of the
bulbous body in a scene that looked straight out of a rodeo. The other two
officers stood next to the legs of the bird. All four began hitting the glass
body with their batons. Strangely enough the body was not as tough as the head
and neck and started to crack where the batons hit. One of the officers on top
of the drinking bird broke through the glass and was met with extraordinary heat.
The hole in the
glass that the officer had made began to crack. He yelled to the other three
officers to run. The drinking bird continued its sway motion forward but
started slowing. The officers on the back of the drinking bird jumped and ran
just as the glass body cracked and exploded throwing the hot liquid onto Fell
Street. A blast of heat hit the officers back as they ran from the remains of
the drinking bird. The drinking birds head and neck fell into the liquid and
melted immediately.
The red liquid flowed
toward The Great Bank of The West and began melting the front wall! The police
officers watched in horror as the front of the bank building collapsed, fell
and melted into the red liquid. The police officer who cracked the drinking
bird ran to the closest Police Call Box and phoned headquarters. He told the
dispatch officer they needed the fire department to Fell Street immediately. He
had an idea of how to stop the drinking birds.
The Cibola City Fire
Department hook and ladder Unit 515 raced to Fell Street. The fire fighters
wasted no time and connected a fire hose to a fire hydrant. The unit raced and
ran toward the bank building as more of the building fell into the red liquid.
The fire fighters turned the hydrant on and aimed at the red liquid. The water
met the red liquid and hissed and steamed. The heat coming off the red liquid
began melting the road and sidewalk from its intensity. The fire fighters
increased the water pressure and this caused the red liquid to scream and hiss
louder then fell silent.
The steam cloud
dissipated and the red liquid was no more, it had solidified into a grey black
rock. The fire fighters turned the pressure down but kept watering the grey
black rock. The fire chief came to the conclusion they were dealing with magma.
The fire chief went to the cab of Unit 515’s and talked into dispatch on the
cb. He told dispatch to send all units to the drinking bird’s vicinity and hose
them down with the highest pressure. We’re dealing with a lava situation.
Back in the
dirigible, a warning light lit on a panel. The mystery man behind the chaos
down below went to the panel. His eyes grew big when he saw that one of his
birds had been defeated. His brow furrowed and he grew angry. For months he had
planned this disaster, to cause chaos so he could focus on his deep laid plan.
As he stared at the panel, another light lit up. Another bird defeated. He
closed his eyes and yelled a very angry scream. Another light lit up on the
panel. The 4 foot man left the panel and raced for the telemotor at the front
of the dirigible.
Down in Cibola
City the drinking birds fell one by one. There was only one left, the drinking
bird on Front Street. Three fire units appeared and began dousing the drinking
bird in water. This drinking bird seemed tougher than the others.
At the Northern
part of Cibola City, the police department had a fleet of 3 helicopters. The 3
Air Captains fired up their choppers and raced toward into the sky. Their goal,
bring down the dirigible.
The drinking bird
on Front Street kept its momentum going. The drinking bird, after breaking down
the wall, was now destroying the ground on which the First Bank of Cibola City
sat; as though it were its mission. The ground shook as the Front Street
drinking bird pecked into the ground under the bank. Two more fire units
appeared on sight to help destroy the Front Street bird. The 5 fire units had
the max pressure flowing through their hoses and onto the bird to try and stop
it. Nothing was working.
The 3 air captains reached the dirigible; one
at the front and one flanking each side. The 4 foot man saw the choppers and
furrowed his brow. The chopper in front of the dirigible made and announcement
though a bull horn telling the person in the dirigible to surrender. The 4 foot
mans eyes rolled from side to side in an annoyance from the 3 choppers outside.
Standing behind the telemotor, he reached to a control panel to his right and
pushed a yellow button. The back of the dirigible hummed, engaged and a series
of panels opened. The 4 foot man then pushed a blue button which caused the
transmitter on the front to re-position itself straight ahead toward one of the
choppers. The transmitter ignited in a spectacular web of blue light. In
between dirigible and the front chopper a magnificent vortex appeared. The 4
foot man pushed a green button and the dirigible launched forward at a blinding
speed. There was a crack of thunder a brilliant flash of light as the dirigible
entered the vortex. There was a follow up thunder crash as the vortex
disappeared as the dirigible disappeared. The 3 air captains watched in
amazement as the ship just, disappeared.
Back in Cibola
City, a piece of concrete fell cracking open the drinking bird’s body. The
water from the 5 fire units met the lava and the bird exploded where it stood. The
explosion destroyed what was left of the First Bank of Cibola City bank
building, reducing it to a pile of rubble. The steam cloud dissipated and a
grey black rock could be seen peaking from under the rubble.
What were theses drinking birds and who
created them and why? The investigation would fall into the hands of the Cibola
City Police Department to find the person responsible. Meanwhile, the city
would recover and rebuild from the destruction. The Cibolians would continue
their everyday lives and this day would fall into a distant memory. Cibola City
has a way of clouding its past to events
that have happened. The drinking bird’s invasion isn’t and wouldn’t be the last
unique story this city must tell.
