Setting Sail (before battle)
It hasn't been so long since this bus... I mean, busboat was hounded by the sirens and the flashing green lights.
The Sinners were sitting uncomfortably, trying to get some shut-eye in the ship cabins(formerly known as the bus cabins). The thought of returning to their rooms didn't even seem to occur to them.
......
After gazing out the window for a while, Faust came to her feet and approached the helm(formerly known as the wheel).
Ms. Faust.
Yes. We have received a signal.
<Faust?>
Hurk... Haah... The long-awaited signal has arrived, then...?
Oooh! Then shall our adventure in the Great Lake finally commence?!
What signal? I don't hear or see anything... Not even an alarm.
A smoke signal outside our visual range has been picked up by Mephistopheles.
A smoke signal... the beacons are lit, then. I guess that's what we've been sitting on our butts for.
Sailing is a go. Splish splash.
Soon... we will be moving away from the coastal area and draw closer to what one could call the Great Lake approach.
Activating automatic navigation system now.
How, how! Thou meanest to say that what we have experienced so far... was not the Great Lake?
By strict definition... Yes, it was. We have been inside the Great Lake's borders for a while. Yet I make the distinction based on the information available to you, as our path has so far lacked any real threats.
No real... threats, thou sayeth. After all that...
Lo! Yi Sang there has hitherto been burying his face in that very bucket, I shall have thee know...!
I... mind me not, plea - hurk...
I had thought the bucket's purpose was to remove water from the ship in case of a flooding... yet all it hath heretofore removed were contents of Yi Sang's stomach...
And! That uh, Wal-puree-gisoonaught? That incident is still quite fresh in my mind!
Walpurgis Night.
And... not many of those 'threats' could be attributed to the dangers of the Great Lake.
False Cause Fallacy.
... Quite the rush of daunting ideas thou hast thrown in mine direction. I shall henceforth continue to slumber, then...
NO! We have just entered a hostile environment. We must rouse ourselves from sleep and ready ourselves for what dangers there may be.
<Outis?>
All hands, to defensive stations!
Outis suddenly leaped to her feet and began barking orders at the Sinners.
Guh?!
... What in the bloody...
... Augh, my heart dropped for a sec there.
Outis, this ship is currently steered by an automated navigation system. As its name suggests, it will automatically avoid any threats the Great Lake may pose. Should a threat prove to be unavoidable, it will sound an alarm.
Bah... Do you really expect me to trust that incomprehensible contraption?
Besides, this 'automated navigation system' is nothing but some slapdash, last-minute installation by the Boatworks Fixers!
... Indeed, Faust was not the one who installed this system. So, no. Its reliability is not absolute.
Well said. It is well-known wisdom that the path of a sailor is fraught with dangers unknown, which is to say that a human must handle it!
Then shalt thou be the one to lead this vessel to victory?!
I must rise to the occasion, as Executive Manager unfortunately lacks any memories pertinent to sailing. Luckily, I am quite experienced with a leadership position.
Ooho... Commander!
I am no commander! I am... your Captain!
Executive Manager! Allow me to briefly assume your authority so that I may lead this vessel as its temporary Captain.
She continued before I even had the chance to reply.
Atten-tion! Sailing, that is to say, the act of traveling across bodies of water...
After an indeterminate amount of time...
... And that concludes the fundamentals of sailing! Have you been taking your notes, men?
Snore, snore.
Oho, marvelous! Quite a considerable amount of new knowledge I have acquired! 'Tis akin to an adventure, is it not?!
'Twas one of mine humble eight-hundred-and-sixty-three old dreams to sail the Great Lake as an adventurer, like a challenger of storms, a queller of rogue waves!
Such an exact number of aspirations you have.
Outis, Ma'am? I have a q-question!
Yes, you are recognized.
Uh... What's that complicated looking lever over there?
... Um.
Ah, It has been a riddle in mine head as well! What may be the function of that peculiar device?
Ooh, perchance it shall load and fire a volley of cannonballs at the press of a button? Kacha-chaw! Puh-puh-puh-pow!
A lever of transformative variety. It shall be an auspicious day in which we are availed sight of this contraption in action.
......
... Hm...
Uh, Outis...?
Hmph. I've been seeing more and more of these as of late. These so-called 'bleeding-edge' technologies are hollow inventions that have nothing to show for it aside from their pretty exteriors.
A blind pursuit of convenience breeds increased risk. There's nothing but ruin at the end of the road paved with overreliance on these bleeding-edge technologies!
Fervor fueled in the furnace of bolts and engine oil, the ship's blood and sweat...
A combined force of the commanding officer's decisive leadership and their subordinates' firm loyalty.
<Blood? What?>
That is how proper workshops of tradition and history are supposed to be run! Now THAT is how true comrades are born!
I don't know what she's talking about... but that was kind of cool...! I can feel something rising from deep within my chest...!
Commander! Ah, I mean, Captain! This 'bleeding edge' technology is bleating like a mule! Whatever shall we do?
......
I, Outis... Shall prove it to the world.
That I don't need this high-tech junk to sail!
Now, seawoman Don Quixote, set the power lever to the maximum output!
Power lever to the maximum output! Aye aye, Captain!
Seaman Sinclair! Set the helm to the neutral position and hit the switch!
Set the helm to the neutral position, s-set the helm to the neutral position, and... h-hit the switch!
LET'S GOOOOO!!!!!
The engine... has fallen silent.
The automatic navigation system has failed. It is an old model; rebooting will be complete in approximately five hours.
That's what you get for abandoning your bus driver.
<Wait, wait. So we're just stuck here?>
Of course not. While Mephistopheles' engine may be inoperable as it has melded with the automatic navigation system, the ship itself can still move.
We still have a manually activated backup power system on standby.