Tugs of Seaquestria

by The Blue EM2

Jinxed

One night, whilst out at sea, Skystar and Silverstream spotted a tugboat bobbing next to some rocks. The tug didn't look like any they had seen before. They had badly faded greyish pink paintwork which was complemented with very dark purple lining on the frames. They looked an absolute mess; their engine was off, possibly broken down, there was no flag or mast of any description, and as previously mentioned their paintwork was in a right state. It appeared nobody owned them.

"Stay back!" the tug called. "Leave me be! It's better for you if I just wreck on these rocks."

"We can't do that!" Skystar exclaimed. "If you're drifting about out here, you're blocking busy sea lanes, and that's not a good thing."

"We'll just take you into port and-"

"No!" the tug said again, confirming them to be female. "Just leave me out here. I bring bad luck wherever I go, so it's probably just best you leave me to drift away."

"The lanes must be kept clear," Skystar reminded her, attaching a line to the tug. "We'll have you home and away in a jiffy."

"Besides, I'm certain Captain Novo will have a place for you," Silverstream reassured her.

"As comforting as that is," the tug said, "I only seem to cause problems wherever I go."

"Has this always been the case?" asked Silverstream.

Moments later, the towline from the tug to Skystar snapped.

"Told you I bring bad luck!"

Skystar sighed. "Second time lucky?"

Silverstream, who was a fair bit more supersticious, looked concerned. "We have a term for this up river," she said. "We call them 'jinxes'. Vessels that bring bad luck for whatever reason."

"All the more reason to leave me here."

The next morning, they had dragged the tug into the dock, and I walked down to take a look. "Where did you find her?" I asked.

"She was out floating in the estuary with her engine stopped," Skystar explained. "She was a danger to shipping."

I leaned in and looked at her nameplate. "Go-"

"No! Don't say my name!" the tug cried.

"Why?" I asked.

"It brings bad luck!"

"I see," I said. "Silverstream, go and collect some coal from the coal yard. If her engine just stopped, hopefully a decent fire will do the trick."

"Yes ma'am!" Silverstream replied, and set off for the barge with a smile. About an hour or so later, she returned with the fuel, and after we stoked the tug's fire and got up a good head of steam, the moment had come.

"Alright then! Start your engine!"

The tug nodded, and at first it seemed all was well. Her engine caught in, and a healthy wake was being produced by her propellors, the engine making a fine sound.

"Hooray!" cried Skystar. "She runs!"

Then, just as suddenly, the tug's engine cut out.

"Oh. That was anticlimactic."

"See? I told you I only bring back luck," the tug replied.

Smoke began to pour from the tug's engine.

"PULL HER OUT OF THE DOCK!" I ordered.

"Aye, Captain Novo!" Skystar shouted, and began to pull. Fortuitously, she had insisted on keeping a line attached to the tug just in case. This was a good thing, as the dense smoke would have made attaching a line extremely difficult. But the moment the tug was clear of the dock, the smoke stopped.

"What in the world?" Silverstream asked. "That's never happened before!"

"I keep telling you, but none of you listen," the tug said.

In order to get a better view of the new arrival, I headed for the edge of the dock, but I slipped in a puddle and landed on my rear. "Ouch!"

"I take it that Captain Novo has never slipped before, either?" the tug said.

I growled as I got back up. "Leg's playing up again," I said. "Haven't had an issue with it for years before now. Skystar, get that tug to the salvage yard, now!"

"On it, Captain!" Skystar replied, and began to pull the tug away. But on the way, things kept going wrong. They had scarely made it five hundred yards when the tug began to inexplicably take on water.

"What's going on?" Silverstream asked, confused.

"Looks like I won't be a bother to you anymore," the tug replied. "I'll be sleeping with the fishies before too long."

"We're making it to the yard, even if I sink with you!" Skystar said.

Luckily, the tug landed on top of a barge- the very same stone barge that Sky Beak had sunk a little while ago. "Oh. That was unexpected."

"Good thing they didn't salvage that barge last week, eh?" Silverstream said.

"Right, I'm off to get a crane," Skystar said, and off she went.

The tug continued to look sad. "I really don't understand why you two want to try and help me," she said. "I only bring bad luck, after all."

"Because you deserve another chance!" Silverstream said. "Perhaps your curse is gone!"

"It isn't," the tug replied. "Instead of sinking, I land on top of an obstacle that prevents me from sinking."

---

About half an hour later, Skystar returned with Cherry Jubilee. The large crane was soon hooked up to the tug, and began to give instructions. "Listen up, y'all!" she said. "This here tug is heavy, and Ah don't wanna hold her for too long. The moment she's up, get that barge o' yers underneath her, got it?"

"Got it!" Skystar called. And so, Cherry started the lifting operation. Initially, it seemed all was well- until her winding gear jammed.

"Darn it! Windin' gear is stuck again! We'll have ta move her like this!"

"I thought this would happen," the tug said.

"Is she always this negative?"

Silverstream looked over to Skystar. "This doesn't bode well," she said.

"Look, you put that barge somewhere else, and then come back here to help move this lot," Skystar said. "If we're lucky, we won't be too long getting her there."

"Assuming we don't get jinxed along the way," Silverstream sighed.

---

The salvage yard was brightly lit, so nightime operations weren't a problem, and they were well prepared to handle problematic tugs. Big Mac and Mistmane were already there to remove the cranes (Diamond Tiara had been added to distribute the weight), and a special cradle had been built to take the tug.

"Listen closely!" Mistmane called. "Guide the cranes slowly so you can lower the tug onto that raft. Good luck!"

"Understood, and thanks!" Skystar called. It was an extremely delicate operation, and precise maneuvring was required at all times. "Silverstream, adjust engines! Half speed, turn to port!"

"Aye, Skystar!" Silverstream called, and the barge and two cranes began to turn. Suddenly, the lights went out.

"Get yer own lights switched on!" Big Mac called. "Ya need ta be able ta see in the dark!"

Skystar fired up her own lamp, but that just as suddenly fizzled out. "Look out!" Skystar called. "Engines, full reverse!"

It was too late. Skystar collided with much of the machinery floating in the harbour, and nearly tipped over as a consequence.

"Careful!" shouted Pipsqueak. "You nearly had me spinning again!"

"At least we got them there," Big Mac said, shining his own flashlight onto the mess. His eyes widened when he saw the tug. "Wait a moment. She looks familiar..."

---

Thankfully, no serious damage had been done, and the tug was repaired in next to no time. Before long, she had been sent to work alongside the Storm King's Storm Fleet, and that particular day was working the munitions contract. Bad idea, if you asked me.

"Good luck!" called Skystar.

No sooner had those words left her mouth than the munitions barge exploded and sank.

"Can't get rid of an unlucky tug with a refit," the tug said sadly. "Right, Skystar?"

Safe to say, the Storm King had a few words to say to the tug, and passed her back over to me. I intended to use her for work that couldn't possibly go wrong.

Elsewhere, Silverstream had just dropped of a barge for a customer, and met with Skystar at the dock. "I have a theory, which is mine and belongs to me," she said.

"Yes?" Skystar asked.

"You may have jinxed the new tug!" she said.

"How, exactly?" Skystar enquired.

"Well," Silverstream explained, "Whenever we have passed her working, you call to her or say hello. Then, moments later, something goes wrong!"

"That has to be a coincidence," Skystar scoffed. "Besides, it only happened once!"

"Once is once too many," Silverstream replied. "Besides, there was also the cranes, the dock, the time we started her up..."

"Alright, don't pile it on," Skystar interrupted. "Shall we put your hypothesis to the test?"

"Your what? Is that part of the engine?"

"Oh, never mind. Let's go!"

Sure enough, they met with the tug later on. "Hello again!" she said. "How are you?"

"We want to test something," Silverstream said. "Skystar, say hello!"

"Hi! How are you?" Skystar asked. As if on queue, a bouy in front of the tug sank. "OK then..."

"You'd better get another," the tug said. "I've already dropped off my complement."

---

The next morning, after briefing, I made those three stay behind as the others went on their way. "You three, I want you to go to the schooner yard. We have a contract to tow one out to sea, and I think that our new addition will work well, given there's no engines to break down, crane cables to jam, lights to fuse, barges to explode, and bouys to sink. If she breaks down, the schooner can tow her instead!"

"Very funny," the tug said, looking at the water.

"Let's go," Silverstream smiled. "Skystar, keep quiet on our way out."

They managed to get to the yard without anything going wrong, and the tug was soon hooked up to the schooner. "Good luck!" Silverstream called.

"It's not luck," the tug said sadly. "I must be on my way. See you soon... hopefully."

As she steamed away, Silverstream and Skystar began to converse with each other. "Let's hope her problems are over," Silverstream said quickly. "This has all been very odd, you know, with all this jinx stuff. Though I honestly don't think anything can go wrong."

"It won't be me doing it, that's for sure!" Skystar said. "I'm remaining in the harbour, and I won't speak to her. That way, we can eliminate all the issues from me."

"So, you do believe in jinxes, eh?"

"Well, the evidence seems to point towards one."

Later that day, the pair were working on the dockside when they saw Spitfire towing the tug in. "What happened?" asked Skystar.

"Schooner caught fire," the tug said, dejectedly. "But the fire boat here won't believe me. It was lightning, not a spark from my chimney! Anyway, I'm tired of all this. They'll probably scrap me tonight."

"Lightning?" asked Mistmane. "It's possible, but unlikely on such a nice day as today, with no clouds."

"I imagine she caused it, with her bad luck," said Big Mac. "But she still seems familiar..."

When they towed her to the dock, I had a few questions to ask her. "When did you start having problems?" I asked.

The tug gulped. "When... when I was sold to a new owner by my old company. The new company changed my name without burning my life rings or logbooks first, which you're supposed to do."

I had an idea. If the issues were caused by her renaming, then changing her name back and getting her old books and life rings back may fix the problem. "What was your old name?" I asked. "Don't worry, I won't repeat it."

The tug was silent for a second. "S- Sugar Belle, ma'am."

"As in the Harmonising Heights Sugar Company tugboat?" I asked.

"The very same," Sugar Belle told me. "I was bought by the Our Town Company, who changed my name. They probably still have all the paperwork too."

"Thank you," I said, and went immediately to my office. From there, I phoned the owner of the Our Town company, and after several hours of negotiating with a woman called Snowfall Frost bought back Sugar Belle's logbooks and life rings. Whilst we were at it, I had the yard restore Sugar Belle to her original livery of pink with purple lining. The Sugar Company were more than happy to buy Sugar Belle back, as the owner, the son of the original manager, was fond of her and missed her greatly.

I am happy to report that Sugar Belle is now hard at work once more at her old home up the river, and that her problems have finally come to an end. Big Mac often picks up deliveries from there, and the two appear to have struck up a close friendship.

Author's Note:

Jinxed

Written by The Blue EM2

Based on 'Jinxed', by David Mitton

Comments

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

Wow! What a story! I even like how you made the ending better for the poor jinxed tug.

[The Blue EM2]

10707987
Yep. I know that Boomer is perfectly content with his life at the end of the original story, but being stranded in place unable to move sounds like a rotten hand to be dealt.

Not to mention he's seen in operating order a few episodes later, in Up River.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10708421
I conquer. I mean one hand it's okay but on the other, I honestly would've preferred to have him restored completely.

But, to this day, I still wonder what started his bad luck before Ten Cents and Sunshine found him?

[The Blue EM2]

10708522
According to seafaring tradition, a ship cannot be renamed until its life rings and logbooks have been destroyed. Boomer's owners failed to do this.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10708531
Oh, that explains it. Talk about unusual origins of bad luck

[The Blue EM2]

10708534
Sailors are a very supersticious bunch. For example, you must never launch a ship on a Friday.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10708545
Indeed. I've heard many superstitions of sailors, I once heard it was bad luck to have a gal on their ship. Then singing about pirates. And never bring bananas on a ship.

Then there was Lord Stinker quoting a famous rhyme; "Red Sky at night, Sailors delight; Red Sky in the morning, Sailors warning."

[The Blue EM2]

10708559
Yes indeed. This also shows Warrior's prowess with geography; he uses this to figure out that the docks is on fire because the light is coming from the wrong place.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10708561
Well a Sailor has to know all different ways of navigation besides a map, compass, and radar.
The sun and north star are my go to methods to help figure out direction

[The Blue EM2]

10708563
Same. GPS can only get you so far.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10708583
Quite right

[The Blue EM2]

10708904
And mobile phones can lose signal.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10708916
Yes.

[The Blue EM2]

10708970
Which can be annoying.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10708988
I know the feeling