A Tall Ship, Part One


    “Heroes and Villains tend to be highly mobile people. I don’t mean the number who can fly, or speedsters who can cross continents in bare fractions of the time it’d take any normal person. I mean vehicles.”


    “The Original Girl herself stated that flying in a plane was better than on her own, simply to keep her hair from being mussed, and ignoring a particular group of decades where enough hairspray was used by heroines to turn their own hair into head protection this is true be it male or female.”


    “Cars, planes, helicopters, all of these are popular with the cape set, and are probably why the Auto Workers of America have a small bullpen of heroes they actively support. Quid pro quo, and all that.”


    Phantastique, Truth and Tales of the Fashionable Capes


    "Okay, fishing was fun, and the only sharks were little and not attacking us, so yeah, that was a win." Penny admitted the morning after their fishing expedition, having gotten a great night’s sleep. "So, what today?"


    "We were going to look for a boat, then I think sail it back home. The Wrangler sent me instructions for the eggs so they will be okay until we get them to him. If we can’t find anything then we will fly back.”


    "Well, that sounds good. What sort of boat are we talking about here? Good sized fishing boat, with some berths, small yacht, stupid big yacht? hell, might be able to find small used cruise ships if you want. You can be pretty whimsical." Penny teased.


    "Well depending on how many Youtubers I get involved with I may need the ship for the care and feeding of influencers. I think a nice yacht, someplace we can relax and play. And give Mercades her own room.


    "Okay, so a yacht, and something with nice cabins. I''m sure we can find something around here."


    “That is the reason I picked Florida.” She said with a smile. And face it, you’re excited to drive the boat, Captain Penny.”


    "Hey, only chance to get to be a Skipper." She chuckled. "But basically, what we want is something that Mercedes can basically stake out as a permanent living situation, enough room for the others for when we travel while leaving guest space. Going to want something big."


    “Sounds right. Hmm the family yacht should be docked, somewhere near the manor. I need to tell Eleanore about that, it’s going to need restored too.


    "Yeah, you might want to let her know." she chuckled. "Okay, so... I guess get directions to where you buy yachts and get an uber."


    As it turned out, looking at yachts was more akin to looking at houses, so they had to track down a yacht broker.


    "So, what precisely is your biggest priority for your yacht? Extreme, expensive, luxury. Range. Comfort? You''ll be amazed at what the price ranges are, for what on paper seem like remarkably similar Yachts. Also, what price range are we looking at? A five-million-dollar yacht is a bit harder to track down than a twenty-five million, though there''s fine yachts in the lower ranges."


    “I want comfort, a place I can just sail out and relax, I want plush furnishings I can sink in. A spot to entertain and a kitchen to put out delicious food.”


    Hm. Kitchen and plush. I have a yacht in mind, particularly for the plush. It''s an older hull, but recently refit, and has plenty of room for guests. It''s not the most fashionable, but it''s far from ugly and someone felt the furniture in the main lounge should boarder on qualifying as stuffed toys."


    “That sounds fun. Can we go see her?” Solaris said curiously.


    "Absolutely. She currently is named Fortuitous, but the name does not come with the ship, so you will need to register her using a different name." The agent explained, driving the BMW SUV expertly through Miami traffic. "That being said, it has shockingly comfortable crew quarters as well as Six guest cabins. Well, five currently, one cabin was converted into a media room. The crew cabins include two with queen beds, the engine and captains, two private singles, and a pair of bunk bed staterooms."


    “So, 6 crew berths and 5 guest cabins. How many crew does she need to sail, and if it’s more than 2 can I hire temporary crew?”Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    "Hiring temp crew is usually not a major issue. Technically speaking, Yachts are boats, so there''s not a lot of requirements. That being said, I''d personally suggest getting at least a skeleton crew to man it for sheer safety."


    She nodded, “Penny do you want to turn the fledglings into a proper ship’s crew? We can hire a crew to take her north to get her home.”


    "We can teach them the basics. to be fair, it''s not terribly hard." She smiled at the raised eyebrow of the broker. "I''m retiring from the Coast Guard."


    "Ahh, then you would know a bit about it."


    “She was a dab hand with the fan boat when we went snake hunting. And my father taught me my way around boats, though I’ll need Penny to update my knowledge base.”


    "All midshipmen serve on a sailing ship, as well as the time we inevitably get on a cutter, though I transitioned to Shipmen suits, then went to UNLOC." She explained. "I''m not super experienced, but I can keep from crashing a boat."


    "Fair enough." The broker chuckled.


    They arrived at the marina and moved down to the long white vessel. It was an older ship, compared to some they passed, but looked in excellent shape. "The Fortitude had a refit only a year or so ago, so all her systems are in good order. As you can see the tender and toys like see doos are in a covered section at the aft of the ship, to cut down on noise when loading and offloading for those still in their quarters."


    “What is a Sea doo?” Solaris asked looking at the boat, it had a settled feeling to it that she liked.


    "Sea doo... cross a motorcycle with a boat." Penny said, pointing to a few in the nearby waters.


    “That looks like fun. We might have to try that. Have you ridden one before?”


    They were led on board, and began touring the decks, before going inside. "Oh yeah, they''re great fun. I''d considered suggesting you try one out when we were looking at the Polaris. One of the makers is the same as that tracked madness, Mercades uses for lawn care back home, but it''s a bit late in the year up north."


    "There''s a jacuzzi on the deck, along with seating for sunbathing and dining, as well as a small outdoor kitchen and bar area, set around the BBQ here." the broker said as they reached the main entertainment area of the deck.


    “What’s a Jacuzzi?” Solaris as she looked over the deck. “There is plenty of room to socialize here, maybe even dance a bit?”


    "The little pool there is heated, and the water bubbles, think the best hot bath possible, with a massage from the water around you. And yes, there''s quite a bit of room for something like that." The broker nodded, having realized some explanations would be needed. "Stepping in, the bridge is compact but well appointed, and then we go down."


    "As I said the main lounge is very plush." She chuckled. The couches indeed looked more than overstuffed, with extremely soft-looking cloth covering and no wood or metal to be seen on either the sofas or the ottomans. The floor is carpeted. In the back of the area was a bar long enough to host three stools, with plenty of space for someone to mix drinks behind it.


    “I like this, it looks like a proper retreat.” She settled into the couch and purred. “Oh yes this was made for naps.”


    "There''s a small dining room, with an eight-place table, and a large, professional kitchen right through here." The broker said, once Solaris could be coaxed from the seating. "And through here is also the stairs going down to the crew area. The guest cabins are down those stairs, with the Master being this way."


    Solaris nodded, “I think Anzy could work here. She gave the broker a rueful smile. I can’t cook.” She followed him towards the master cabin. “I like this, it’s nice but not flashy. Well not as flashy as some of the other boats out here. It’s much like the plane we got. Luxurious but understated from the exterior.”


    "Yeah, and like the plane it''s older, but been refit recently. All in all, it''s got a good feel to it. And the navigation gear was all top tier. Not fancy but good." Penny said.


    The crew quarters were less luxurious, but still consisted of several staterooms, a spacious common area and a small but full-service kitchen area. "And here we have Mercedes apartment, at the end of the day. Still more room than her old efficiency."


    “Yes, and room for all her art things.” Solaris said. “You are indeed an expert of your craft.  This girl is perfect for me.” Solaris said. “I love the wood and nouveau details, I will probably reskin the deck cushions it’s a bit stark after how warm the interior is, but that is nothing. So, did you bring the paperwork with you, so we can make my purchase offical?”


    "Well, I do like a decisive shopper. Come back to my office, and we can do that. Do you want to keep it flagged in the Caymen, we can contact them and register it, and I can have someone come in to change the name on the hull to what you like."


    “Penny this is more your area of expertise, does that sound reasonable?”


    "Honestly, yeah. It''s something like the second most common registry outside of I think the Bahamas. Speaking from Coast Guard perspective, US registration comes with requirements that are perfectly wise and sensible and yeah, do the Caymans."


    “Alright then, full steam ahead!” She said with a laugh. “What do you think of Serenity as a name?”


    "It''s a good name." Penny agreed. Several pounds of paperwork later, and all they were waiting for was processing to take command of the yacht.


    "If you want to contact a chandler about stocking anything, or getting new sheets and towels marked Serenity go ahead and have them delivered to the ship.'' The broker said he had not been expecting such an easy sale.


    “Do you have a number for one? I can get things started, Anzy will want to handle most of the stocking” Solaris asked.


    "I can give you a few numbers, certainly." She smiled. "I''ll call you once everything has cleared, and we''ll arrange the new name badging on the ship. Least we could do for such a quick purchase!"


    “I don’t believe in dithering; this boat has all I need and more.”


    "Well, I''m glad we found what you needed. Happy sailing!''