As Clay stepped back into the passageway that would lead him back to the galley, Captain Hertzog appeared at the other end of the passageway. He was coming up from the lower decks of the ship.

"Ah, Mr. Olson, I must apologize for not being a better host. We sea captains do have duties to attend to and those duties don't wait. Come to the bridge with me. Let me show you what a wonderful ship the Horizon is."

Clay followed the captain onto the spacious bridge. As they stood in front of the captain's wheel, Clay couldn't help but notice how large and easy to read the gauges were. There were more than a dozen and it took him a couple of minutes to figure out which was which from where he stood.

The Sea Lab was far less complicated to operate.

Above the gauges were four television monitors. One view told Captain Hertzog what was directly behind him. One was a straight ahead view that included the ships bow and there was a monitor for starboard and another one for port. Captain Hertzog could redirect the cameras if there was a problem he needed to keep an eye on but he had a view of the entire surface of the deck and he could look out at the water if he redirected the aim of his cameras.

This interested Clay more than the gauges. It was all built into the front panel of the bridge above and below the windows. Both the radar and sonar indicated impressive arrays of gadgets that gave the captain any information he needed.

Clay moved to stand beside the captain to look out at the ocean ahead. The view was magnificent from three stories in the air. Clay watched as the bow lifted gently and then fell on the barely visible waves that filled the Pacific at that moment. The bridge was steady.

"You can't beat this view. It's why I spend so much time on the bridge. This is wonderful duty and I've been lucky enough to have it handed to me," Captain Hertzog said.

"Not without cause, I'm certain," Clay said.

"You're too kind. I started with Mr. Sinclair in a pinch. His captain fell ill. His yacht was one of the smallest vessels I captained. Word came that his captain was retiring and Mr. Sinclair said he wanted me to remain on as captain. I laughed and said I'm trained to handle much bigger boats. He quoted me an obscene amount of money when compared to my captain's pay. I captained his yacht until he was too sick to go out on her. He then told me he had a job for me and here I am. Not how I saw my career going but no one looks a gift horse in the mouth," Captain Hertzog said. "That's an American term is it not?"

"It is, Captain," Clay said. "Engine three?"

"Oh, you heard. Nothing they can find. My engineers believe it's electrical. One says we should have gone back to port, it's not right. The other one said to go on to Honolulu. I hate turning back and Bill will not want to turn around. He wants to get on site and we can't do that by turning around. In my opinion we will do fine on two engines. We can make Honolulu with no difficulties. We'll have people there by the time we reach Honolulu. They'll be ready to take whatever action is necessary. These are Sinclair people. They built this research ship."

"A sound decision if you ask me," Clay said.

"Bill has some very nice things to say about you. I was delighted to hear you agreed to come along and you brought your son. I brought two sons with me. I think we will have a lot in common," he said, looking at Clay eye to eye. "My sons work with me as well. They make my life at sea easier. Both are good boys."

"Bill's invitation to Dylan made coming along easier. He's adapting to the new environment at the moment. He's captivated by being on the ocean."

"Your son came out an hour ago. It's rare to see a boy his age stay still for this long. He's just watching the waves," he said. "Did the same thing yesterday. He seems totally relaxed."

"He's overwhelmed by the Pacific," Clay said. "Me too. In a day or two he'll forget there's anything new about it. He's on the Gulf two or three days a week with me, even when he is in school. I wait for school to be out before going into the Gulf some days."

"Yes, and you captain the Sea Lab, your own research vessel. I take Bill on his research adventures. I've become more aware of the condition of the seas through Bill," Captain Hertzog said. "I was rather complacent about the condition of the seas before this assignment."

"I'm quite fortunate to work in the Gulf of Mexico. I believe I'm spoiled. Its condition can be greatly benefited by heading off the type of pollutants that come from so many sources more common in other areas of the world. We rely less on industry and more on tourism to provide us with our daily bread. Farms account for some runoff of insecticides and fertilizers but it hasn't gotten out of control the way it has in other parts of the country and the world. I think we have time to correct what imbalance there is to preserve sea life we depend on."

"You are a walking advertisement for Florida's tourism. Bill, being from Florida, keeps me well informed on your work and how it relates to the latest work Bill is doing. The seas, being interconnected, what goes into the water here may very well end up in any waterway including the Gulf of Mexico," Captain Hertzog said. "People have always been careless with the environment. Until people decide to clean up after themselves, you're fighting a losing battle."

"You're well informed, Captain. I can hear how Bill has influenced your thinking," Clay said. "He taught me what I know."

"He says you teach him," Captain Hertzog said.

"He's a kind man. He has forgotten more about the Gulf of Mexico than I know," Clay said.

"Before I began working for the university and Bill I didn't realize the fragility of the seas I sail. Bill's been quite informative on the subject. I had the illusion I knew about such things. Bill hasn't hesitated in letting me know how ill informed I am. As a ship's captain, I should have known better. I'm like everyone else, if not confronted with pollution on a daily basis, I don't think about it."

"Part of my job is to get ordinary people to think about what will happen if the seas become so polluted you don't dare eat the fish. I try to explain how easy it is to be more careful. Cleaning up after yourself isn't difficult and that way our beaches stay pristine. Unfortunately the oil drilling off of Texas is beginning to impact the beaches on Florida's western side. It's going to be a serious problem in the future. All oil wells leak and in this case, oil and water certainly do not mix well."

"People doing the responsible thing," Captain Hertzog said. "An interesting concept. Make everyone clean up after themselves?"

"Ask them. Once you go as far down that road as we can go, you make the worst offenders pay for the clean up. Hit them in the in the pocket. Companies and industries that pollute aren't so easy. They'll fight you in court for years. Spend millions to avoid paying a dime to clean up the messes they make. Their world is about profit."

"The benefit in going after the individual polluter?"

"You need to start somewhere. Fine them. If that doesn't work put them on the side of the road in orange jumpsuits. Make them clean up after people just like them."

"Spoken like a true environmentalist. I can hear a lot of what Bill says in what you're saying," Captain Hertzog said.

"He taught me everything I know. He took me on my first dive in the Gulf of Mexico. I was hooked after that," Clay said.

"And your son is a chip off the old block," Captain Hertzog said.

"Dylan began diving with me just before his 10th birthday. He's always spent time examining my specimens and reading the journals I keep with notes I make on everything I encounter. There have been times when he went through our library of books that have pictures of most of the known species of sea creatures, to identify something I haven't been able to identify. He's surprisingly well informed about the things that swim in the sea."

"You don't know how amazing you make that sound. My sons have difficulty sitting still through dinner, and they eat like horses. I suppose they are no different than me. They want to go go go. Sitting still is not in their DNA. Mine either, I suppose," Captain Hertzog said. "I was much like them when I was their age."

"Dylan photographs what I do these days. Up until the past year he took stills of my work. This past year Bill sold Ivan one of his used motion picture cameras. It took a while for me to let him take that camera underwater. What he once did with a still camera he now does with a motion picture camera. It's a much bigger distraction because it's more complicated to use. After a while, I get tired of saying no," Clay said. "What he wants to do is take motion pictures of me at work. He'll create a documentary with this footage and I'll show it to my audiences when I'm on a speaking tour. That's his plan."

"Ambitious young man," Captain Hertzog said. "Quite unusual."

"Dylan was never around many kids," Clay said. "There were a lot of serious people in his life. We all wanted to keep him busy. It gave him less time to think about what was missing in his life."

Captain Hertzog laughed.

"My sons fed each other's over active personalities. Had there only been one of them, it might have been different, I suspect."

"They even look alike. One is older and a little larger than the other," Clay said.

"A year apart. Rolf is twenty-two. Dolf is twenty-one. You'll be seeing plenty of both of them in the next six weeks. Even at the pace Bill likes to work, they manage to get involved when and where they can. I didn't know if they'd like sea life, the way their father does, but they both took to the sea like fish," Captain Hertzog said. "I suppose, when you come right down to it, my sons take after their father, and your son takes after you. In that way they are quite similar," Captain Hertzog said, moving his eyes onto the ship's instrument panel as he spoke.

"This is all new. The instruments and the indicators are state of the art. As you can see, even the trim is a special wood Mr. Sinclair put in all his personal craft. The wood is peculiar to Madagascar. The flooring is a high grip substance. Even in a gale,you won't slip on the flooring. It dries as quick as you cut off the source of the moisture. Space age technology. Mr. Sinclair was on the cutting edge of advances in technology. It was his business to get the jump on his competition."

"Everything above the deck is fiberglass?" Clay asked.

"Yes, this middle section was constructed by one of Mr. Sinclair's companies. Mr. Sinclair owned many mills and companies that manufactured a wide variety of goods. He designed the center section and he gave them to his aircraft company. They made the molds in four sections. They were joined together from the keel upward at his shipyard."

"That must have been some project," Clay said.

"Moving it from the manufacture site to the shipyard was a nightmare. It took a week to get those four sections to the shipyard. Mr. Sinclair didn't care how they got it done as long as they did it. He had cranes and crane operators sitting around waiting to start moving the sections into place. He hadn't considered the logistics involved in moving the sections after they'd been cast. That was grunt work to him. He thought it up. Other men made it happen, and here we are."

"I get that it took a lot of work to create a research ship. The original ship is how old?" Clay asked. "Before it became the Horizon?"

"The ship itself was built in 1937. They tore down the original bridge. Before they started putting the research ship together, there was nothing but the hull and the anchor chain from the Caspian, which was a freighter that Mr. Sinclair already owned. The interior was also his design and the ideas came from the yachts he'd owned. The Caspian went into dry dock in late 1975 to be refitted," Captain Hertzog said.

"Amazing," Clay said. "It's a fine looking ship. It's so clean."

"Everything on the bridge is state of the art. We have the latest in sonar and radar. Mr. Sinclair also owned several high tech companies that furnish some of the technology for the space shuttle program. He built the same technology into the ship's systems. He built it for Mr. Payne. Technically it belongs to Bill's university but for as long as he lives, it's Bill's research ship. Mr. Sinclair had come to believe the planet was endangered by men like him. The destruction done in the name of progress needed to be halted and reversed. He saw Bill as the place to start reversing environmental destruction."

"What happened to him?" Clay asked. "Mr. Sinclair?"

"He died. He didn't know he would die before the project was finished. He got sick toward the end. He had a tight grip on every piece of building this ship. At the end, not so much. He weakened and the last time I saw him, he had become frail, almost fragile. It was obvious his days were numbered, but he'd seen the Horizon finish the refitting as a research ship. The interior he designed years before went into place without his strict supervision. His plans were clear and his companies did it as he designed it. It became the ship you see before you now after his death. He did see some of the interior work finished but the bridge and the galley were the last elements to go into place."

"You say he already owned it as a freighter?" Clay asked.

"He did. After World War II he was one of the far thinking men who understood that the rebuilding of Europe and Asia would require millions of tons of goods to be shipped from where they were produced in a Sinclair factory to some destination around the world. He bought small shipping companies and formed Sinclair Holding Group. He owned hundreds of ships by the 1950s. If goods needed to go from here to there they often went on a Sinclair ship. There may have been one or two shipping companies as large as his."

"He came to sound conclusions," Clay said. "What was he like?"

"Mr. Sinclair was a difficult man to know. In his kingdom, what he said was law. Break his laws and you were out on your ass. Like men of his era, everything he did was larger than life. You didn't say no, it can't be done, Mr. Sinclair. He didn't care how you did it, just get it done. Men who did the doing were as often as not turned under in Mr. Sinclair's wake. He did not value the men who built his empire. Not an unfamiliar story."

"Like with so many rich men they believe their money buys everything," Clay said.

It was an impressive ship. Captain Hertzog was an impressive man and surprisingly relaxed for a ship's captain. His main source of information on ship's captain were movies like The Caine Mutiny and Mutiny On The Bounty.

"As I was saying, the floor you are standing on is a space age polymer. It's non-slip, non-skid. It dries as quick as you eliminate the source of water. We are looking out of another space age plastic. The windows can withstand any blow we'll encounter, but just in case, we have a weather station on board. The latest in radar and sonar arrays. We can see a storm coming, depending on how fast it is moving, a half a day to a day away. Plenty of time to move out of the way of the worst part of a serious storm. Because of these features the Horizon is virtually unsinkable."

"Wasn't the Titanic unsinkable?" Clay asked.

"So much for unsinkable ships," Captain Hertzog said.

"The submersible," Clay said. "I think I found its compartment. It's what I was looking at when you invited me onto the bridge"

The captain beamed. This was the most high tech gadget of all.

"You wish to see Bill's baby," the captain said. "It was not ready on our maiden voyage, as a research ship. While we were docked in San Francisco Bay, two years ago, she was delivered. Her place on board waited for her arrival. She was stowed safe and sound. You've no doubt seen the crane we use to set her in the water. All part of Mr. Sinclair's design. The pod is also space age technology. Bill can take her far deeper than anyone can go with SCUBA gear."

"I love to see it. I've seen a couple, but they were early generations of the technology. I'm sure this is the latest thing."

"I control the hatch here," the captain said, moving to the side of the bridge where Clay climbed up.

There was a lever under the window. Captain Hertzog pushed the lever down.

"The hatch where the submersible is housed is open for when you go down. Let me call for some coffee first. No need to rush."

"Coffee would be great," Clay said.

"I'd have had the passengers up for coffee yesterday after dinner, but engine three complicated an already busy day. I needed to hear from my engineers before I decided what we'd do. Before I knew it, it was midnight but we'll have time today to visit."

"Hey, captain, your fly is open. Did you know the cover for that underwater doohickey is open?" Logan Warren asked as he appeared on the bridge.

"Clay wants to take a look when he returns to the deck."

"Count me in. I saw you talking. I wanted to join you. You can see forever up here," Logan said, looking out at the sea ahead.

"I showed Clay the bridge. You've had your tour, Mr. Warren."

"Yeah, but what if I've got to take over, and guide the ship to safety in an emergency?" Logan asked. "I'd need to know more than what I know at present. Don't you think? When you gave me the tour, we were tied to a dock. Being at sea makes it far more exciting."

"We are indeed in trouble, should we experience such a chain of events as you describe," Captain Hertzog said.

"Well, it could happen," Logan said contritely. "Anything is possible."

"Anything is possible but that, Mr. Warren. We are more likely to be hit by a meteor. In which case, your services as a replacement captain would not be needed."

This exchange caught Clay by surprise. While the captain seemed more than happy to play along with Logan's foolishness, Clay found it childish. He wasn't sure Logan Warren wasn't a serious man.

"And how come you call him, Clay, and you call me Mr. Warren?"

"Clay isn't a photographer. If I call you Mr. Warren perhaps you'll only photograph my good side," Captain Hertzog said.

"Have I ever taken a picture of you that hasn't portrayed you as a dignified captain, stoically captaining his boat, as all captains do?"

"I haven't seen any pictures you've taken. This is a ship. A boat is a toy you float in your bathtub, Mr. Warren," Captain Hertzog said.

"I can see I'll make no headway up here," Logan said, turning to look out of the windows at the beautiful sea ahead.

"I saw the hatch. With the crane right above it, I figured the submersible was inside. The question I have, how does the crane get a rather bulky item out of the storage compartment, without damaging a delicate piece of apparatus like that?" Clay asked.

"Did I tell you that Mr. Sinclair designed this section of the ship? Go over to the side with the open hatch. I'll give you a good look."

Clay did what Captain Hertzog said to do. Looking down, and hearing a mechanical sound as he did, the pod slowly slid out of the storage area. It stopped once the pod was in plain sight.

"The crane is positioned to lift it over the railing, and set it into the sea," Clay said, once he saw the pod carriage extended.

"That's the idea. It works flawlessly. Everyone comes out on deck to watch the pod go into the water," the captain said.

"How ingenious. What happens if that contraption breaks? You can't use the submersible?" Logan asked.

"I pick up the intercom, and I ask Sidney Peacock to come fix the thingamajig that's supposed to roll the craft out. Thingamajig being a technical term captains are allowed to employ in cases like that."

"You have a live-in mechanic on board?" Logan asked.

"Sidney Peacock," the captain said. "Sidney is a night owl. Something about the daylight hurting his eyes. You'll catch sight of him along about dinner time in the galley. He's the guy with very tattooed arms, and bald head. He's usually wearing a protective coating of grease. We ask him not to sit on the furniture, and lucky for the people who do our laundry, he complies. He is a skilled mechanic. He can keep things working on a temporary basis, in most cases, until we return to port, and in an emergency, if we absolutely, positively, couldn't do without something, and Sidney couldn't fix it, we'd sail to Guam on this trip, but there's always a port close enough to reach for emergency repairs. I don't think I recall a time Sidney couldn't rig up something."

"That's comforting," Clay said.

"We are in port for most of each year, and there are companies that come on board to check all the ship's systems, and make needed repairs. We aren't likely to have any major difficulties while on one of Bill's expeditions."

"Sounds like we're in good hands," Logan said, still looking toward the bow.

"I don't get that far away," Clay said. "If I have an equipment failure I call Captain Popov. His mechanic is skilled at quick fixes. It holds me until I can do something more permanent."

"Captain Popov? Sounds very Russian," Captain Hertzog said.

"Yes, he's Russian. He defected back in the 50s with Captain Tito. They work out of the cove where I have a slip for Sea Lab."

"Sounds quite international," Captain Hertzog said.

"We've recently acquired Vietnamese and Cambodian fishermen," Clay said. "Captain Popov has Serbs and Lithuanians fishing with him these days."

"Sounds like an interesting place," Captain Hertzog said. "I suspect we'll find our way into the Gulf if only to get Bill closer to the university after a research trip one summer."

"I'd love showing you the cove and introducing you to Captain Popov. It's recently undergone a renovation and my partner is turning it into a vacation spot for ordinary folks to enjoy a pleasant getaway at a reasonable price."

"Sounds delightful. A trip into the Gulf would take us through the Panama Canal. An experience I don't mind having again," the captain said.

"Sounds like you've been through the canal, Captain," Clay said.

"I have. It's an engineering marvel," Captain Hertzog said.

"Maybe I could drive that underwater job," Logan said, looking at it from the window on that side.

Once again, Clay was startled by Logan's comment coming in the middle of a serious conversation..

"No, Logan, you couldn't. You'd need to deal with Bill if you did more than look at its sleek design," the captain said, playing along.

Clay didn't know that Logan was a serious person. He blurted things out that seemed childish to him. He wasn't sure he wanted Dylan exposed to Logan. Clay liked him at first but seeing this side of him put him off. What kind of teacher would he be for his son? Maybe he was misreading him. Maybe he wasn't.

Bill Payne appeared through the inside passage way. As he stepped up on the bridge, he sounded alarmed.

"Captain Hertzog, the submersible is out. Is there a reason for that? I'm not aware of it being on the schedule, before we arrive at our destination," Bill said.

"Oh, I was going to take it for a test drive," Logan said. "I was only going to borrow it."

"Yes, I'm sure you were," Bill said. "Are you old enough to have a driver's license, Logan? I don't think you shave yet."

Everyone laughed. Bill was already accustomed to Logan's antics. He brought a little humor to days of tedious travel. Clay wasn't quite sure about Logan yet. He was young and a bit immature.

Clay thought he needed to guard against overreacting to things Logan said. Dylan took movie making seriously. Logan might have trouble connecting with him. The idea he'd teach him was now in doubt as far as Clay was concerned.

"I was asking about it, Bill," Clay said. "He rolled it out so I could get a closer look. That's about the time Logan showed up."


Send Rick an email at quillswritersrealm@yahoo.com

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