Port Call

“The part that confuses a lot of people not in the ‘community’ of the cape and cowl crowd is that they have very weird interpersonal relationships. There are heroes and villains who, in spite of at other times being opposed, may actually have very reasonable relationships outside of an active conflict.”

“This dates back to the very beginning, as we recognize it. It is not common knowledge, but not a secret either, that the leader of the German team, Kreigsmarine willingly arranged to meet not only with Kitsune from the Empire of Japan but also our own, dear Solaris early in the war years, in Switzerland. That’s where the so-called Elysium rules came from, and rumor has it the three were all from wealthy families, and pooled funds to buy the chalet that is the unofficial but very recognized mecca of international cape relations.”

“Note, this happened after Solaris hit Kreigsmarine with a submarine, because he blew up the Guardians landing boat.”

Commissioner Karl Larson, A Policeman’s Field Guide to Cape Culture

Elenore was waiting outside Solaris’s newest acquired building, looking a bit cold in her long coat, when Solaris pulled up. "Good afternoon, boss. Thanks for coming out. I’m eager to show you what we've done with everything."

"It's a pleasure." She said, stepping out of the car. "I do my best not to hover, because there is always something interesting going on out here or at the shop. I’m very excited!"

"We hadn’t noticed." She said with a chuckle. "Come on in."

She led Solaris into the building lobby, though it was more a wide, well-lit hall. Stairs led up in the back, with a door leading into the restaurant that was already in the building. Elenore turned towards the restaurant.

"We didn't do a major rehab since it was already pretty nice, but we did a deep clean and changed a few small things. Riley pretty much handled everything in here, that's our new handywoman. I know you've not had a lot of time with her. The major change was pulling out decor from the old theming and moving in what we're using."

Solaris took the time to look around, the décor having been changed from a vaguely western feel to a vintage late forties and early fifties. The kids had decided that if she was going to own a bar and grill, it might as well be comfortable and the warm wood that was already part of the décor fit either motif. “The broker said the place had good bones. Has Anzy decided what she wants to do with it?”

"She's settled on a Gastropub. Good burgers, solid sirloins, fish and chips. At my insistence, she isn’t allowed to try and run the whole place on her own. I mean, she could, but we'd lose out on meals at the house. She is going to let me hire a few good cooks to help her around here, and a handful of wait staff. We put up a couple of screens in one section for sports lovers but we're not aiming to cater to the sports bar crowd."

“Sounds good. She makes a wonderful burger and chips, though between here and the food truck you got her during the stake out a couple of weeks ago, she's going to make another Anzy soon!”

"Oh god, you might be right. It’s been a little over a year since Five turned up. I'll order the oversized butterfly nets. Maybe some electric bikes." Elenore said, eyes wide.

"Butterfly nets? Bikes?” Solaris asked, confused.

"You should ask Anzy. It’s a bit rude to talk about people’s issues.” Elenore sighed. “Keep in mind she does have minor physical enhancements."

Elizabeth arched her eyebrow. “All right, I'll do that when I see one of her. How are the Gym renovations going, and the little shopfront."

"The shop front is basically as ready as it will be before a tenant moves in." Elenore said. "Meaning it's a very blank as a space." They stepped back outside and around to the second building to enter the gym. “This space already had vaulted ceilings, so we only had to rip out the walls and move some plumbing. Not anywhere near as minor as next door, but again pretty straightforward. simply removed a large number of walls, and moved a bit of plumbing, which was less complex than even our contractor anticipated, to get the locker rooms where they needed to go.”

“This is good.” Solaris took off and tried a few ariel maneuvers. "Good, I was a little worried about the headspace.” She landed next to Elenore. “The main area is looking good. I like the soft grey you went with for the walls.”

"Yes, and the normal work out equipment is spaced into work out stations, with the treadmills lined up with the largest TV we could reasonably find." Elenore explained. "Along the far wall, where we could reinforce the floors, we have one station for heavy lifting, the heaviest non-super tech on the market. It's basically a multiple function resistance lifting machine so it can do a lot of different exercises. The lifting strain caps out at about ten tons with its low end being about five hundred, so basically low weight, high rep for you but anything bigger would have cost fifty times as much, minimum. It gives Nahoa and Levi something they can really work out with. The high-speed treadmills can hit 300 mph, again normal tech limit. We decided free weights were an insurance risk."

"I would tend to agree. I like this.” Elizabeth went over to the weight machine, pushing the digital controls and trying it out. Electric Motors provided the resistance which was just enough for her to notice it. For her, something akin to picking up a grocery bag for the average woman. "Yes, this will be nice. Was the Tailor able to get you in touch with the earth shaper to expand the basement areas?”

"Nahoa was thrilled, because the guy let him help. That's finished, if you'd like to see?"

"Yes! Seriously Roosevelt would be rolling in his grave to know what people have done to his city. She followed Elenore outside, to what looked like a service shed on the side of the street but actually turned out to be the access to the stairs going down. “This building is a bit weird, the different basements were accessed from outside, but it worked in our favor. This is the original basement, where we put some of those dangerous free weights for if you really want to try a workout yourself.”

The weights were more akin to thick manhole covers on I-beams turned into racks, with solid steel bars to clamp them to. “We put conventional free weights and a couple of treadmills down here as well. It’s kind of the work out club house.” she admitted.

She opened a cabinet with towels in it and pushed a button which caused a concealed door to swing open. “The newly expanded basement, with its Ranged Weapon workout area is through here. We also installed a secondary server for storing data from the house, the shop, and the business computer systems, with a tertiary air gap system to do monthly backups. If we’re going to have a bunker, we might as well stack on the security.” She explained as they descended a short stairwell.

"This section of the basement can only be accessed through the secret door now. It's under the gym, accessed from next door under the shop. There are four shooting lanes, all equipped for even heavy weapons or energy projection. We're also about two stories underground. That plus soundproofing means we’re not going to be heard."

“Wonderful, is there a booth for thrown weapons as well? Z and I both have thrown weapons in our arsenals.”

“Marcus added some of the stun disks Z has, as well, and both Anzy and Erica are happy to throw the occasional knife. We have targets for that as well as for shooting. The lanes are wide for that reason." Elenore explained. “We only have a handful of weapons that aren’t a spare set of our chosen load out. A few retired police guns the Tailor picked up for us on the cheap to train with if someone wants to round out their skills without investing in a personal piece.”

"Looks like you are getting a good handle on dealing with contractors and renovations, and you have definitely proven to know how to organize a project.” Solaris said proudly. “I’m almost hesitant to let you go across the pond! I am eager to see what else you've done with the building, certainly!”

“Yeah, I might be too busy here to handle the manor project, but don’t worry I’m working on stuff for it. Down here, we have a couple of bedrooms and a small kitchen as emergency safe houses. We looked at the offices on the second level of the restaurant building, and determined they made no darn sense. We decided to rip out most of the offices and are adding three two-bedroom apartments to the five single bedroom efficiencies on the top floor. The last office is attached by stairs to the small apartment above it, so I've kept that space for business guests, and am having the appliances and interior upgraded for that purpose. Furnishing will be added once that's done. Everything is getting upgraded for efficiency if not luxury."

The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

“Makes sense. So, we have a total of 7 units? Did Riley take one of those?”

“Eight, and she did, with Bailey taking the other. She's the secretary I hired, and in spite of their names they aren’t twins." Elenore replied.

"Ahh I was going to ask if you found someone you like, did they also come from the academy?”

"Yes, on both fronts. Bailey’s a flier, technically, and sort of an energy projector, technically." She chuckled. “Again, ask her if you’re curious.”

"I do rather enjoy flying." Solaris chuckled. "Is she another business major like you?"

“Yes, though she focused on business logistics, particularly geared towards the entertainment industry. It seemed to fit; she’s got the eye for fine details and accounting that even I lack."

"That was lucky, did she come out of the New York School? And have you been working her hard?" Solaris teased

"Yeah, she's from up north, and only as ragged as I have been running, with everything going on. Did you know that most groups of Supers who identify themselves to the cops don't have an easy to reach phone number? She has spent a good portion of her time talking to the different local police agencies, who call her The Secretary for the record, and organizing the team for any request we decide to fill."

"What do you mean? I would think with all the modern technology it would be relatively easy to have a non-traceable contact number?"

"Yeah, but it spoils the mystique, or some bullshit." She shrugged. "I've made it clear we're not going to respond to every little thing, but Erica didn't mind watching over a political rally the other day, since they were willing to pay for lunch and her time, and Weld found walking through a burning building to be a hoot. Rescued a golden retriever. Long story."

"Mostly the police were curious if we'd do 'show of force' patrols. Considering the cars, it's easy for us to do, and with the tinted windows no one can tell if it's Thud or Iteration who is driving. We've made sure to only go in pairs or a trio with AR, which seems to be pleasing the local departments, even if they grumble about using their discretionary budget."

"Well, it makes it less likely we get tickets. I certainly don't mind you helping out." She shook her head. “Do the police in general have a good or bad relationship with heroes? Outside of mob cities after the war a lot of places had small town heroes that helped the coppers.”

"Depends on the department and the heroes. Luna has a similar patrol agreement as us with NYPD, she's showy enough and it's a small bit of pocket money for something she'd do anyhow. Other heroes are 'above' such 'mercenary' actions."

"It's only mercenary if they make it that way. A lot of times people are happier to pay in coin than to offer gratitude.” Solaris said, shaking her head. "And super toys are not cheap."

"Thus, why we negotiated a contract for our show of force drives. We don't officially do them in towns not willing to cover gas, wear and tear, and food. We might have charged Manhattan higher, but there was more work than any other area we would consider visiting."

"To be fair, wear and tear in the city would be worse. Any other new hires I should know about? And what do you want to show me next?

“Follow me.” She led Solaris back out of the basements, and into the gym building. "I'm considering getting a few of the restaurant’s and gym staff from the New York school. They have a shocking number of very low powered kids from what were really unhappy origins, east coast population density working against them I suppose. I’m not so much looking to add to G.F. inc, but they need an out. Figured we could offer a low rent apartment on top of the job. Let them get their start."

"I am fine with that. You might also add a cleaner and dogsbody for the shop, that way you can keep Kar1n focused on the car parts, Penny was telling me her reconditioned parts are almost like new.”

"Why would we need a dog? Are you thinking about security?"

"I think Kar1n has that covered." Solaris said dryly "No, a dogsbody is someone who does the non-skilled or tedious labor. Unpacking orders, cleaning, fetching. It’s a bit like what Z was doing, although she is trying to figure out what she wants to do. She should be back from Hawaii soon, unless her father managed to irritate Granny or Penny into extending the Bo-Hee ladies’ vacation."

"Right, a goffer. We could definitely justify hiring one of those easily enough. And honestly, Z will get bored if we don't give her interesting things to do. She's a bit too active. I’m thinking of pushing her and Marcus to follow Levi in the pilot’s license track, since he’s your driver anyway. Z would be a good back up, or lady’s bodyguard for you, dumb as that sounds to anyone who doesn’t realize how stupid the world is."

"She is very energetic.” Solaris said fondly. "And you’re not wrong, she would fill a niche similar to Marcus’s very well.

“Oh, another thing you might look at is a childcare person.” The older woman suggested. “Apparently people bring children to gyms now. That might be a good use for that little storefront. Secure it and use it as a nursery for the gym. What do you think?"

"And that’s where modern laws and stupidity kicks in. That would require licensing I don't want to get. However, setting a space aside for kids, and someone to keep an eye on them we can do in the gym. If the parents are in the building, we don’t have the same requirements. The government gets touchy about minors being in different buildings than their parents without caretakers. At least, if they claim to be caretakers. And this is why movie theaters and amusement parks have signs saying they aren’t childcare."

"I'll take your word for it," Solaris said easily as they headed up the back stairs. "Now that the building is almost done, I can really start interviewing trainers. I've been messaging with a couple of them trying to get a feel for their skills and approach. We’re marketing towards the more serious exercise crowd, not the mall pop-up gym dwellers."

They reached the top, the scent of new paint and woodwork filling the air. "And this space is set up for classes, including martial arts training. There's a couple of 'classrooms' and a couple of offices, with two rooms and a bathroom for each office, though they are small. One would be the manager’s office, the other would go to the trainer. We also put a small breakroom, with a simple kitchen set up, for staff up here, with an employee locker room, well, more locker stalls but comfortable enough and separate from the customers."

“Makes sense, that way when they are off work people are not bothering them.”

"The third floor is a bit unfinished. There is plumbing up there, so that's not a concern, and all the power junctions we'd need for several things. However, due to the entrance and exit, it's not really suitable for apartments since you'd have to enter through the gym. We’re leaving it a blank slate for now, to see what we need to do regarding expanding."

“How are things going at the Garage? I know Erica and Levi are keeping busy.”

"Heck yeah, and Badger. We've sold a few high-end cars they rebuilt for pretty good flip amounts, and good video views. We started a channel, kind of a second channel for Badger since he's the 'talent' but we're planning on splitting any revenue as it starts coming in."

"I watched some of Badger’s videos with Penny. He's very personable, and Penny has vanished into her vault a few times after watching him. I don't ask questions. Oh, speaking of Badger, any idea where he is staying? You all have basically adopted him so you might offer him one of the apartments too.”

"Yeah, though I'm not totally sure where he currently sleeps myself. We kind of lose track of him late in the day and he vanishes. I'd think he was teleporting except he locked himself in the tool room by mistake once."

“Well, ask if he’d like one.” Solaris said. “Hmm. How many visual art students do you think are in the academy?”

"It's not an uncommon choice for a major, to be honest. Particularly for the more socially reserved of us. Mercedes is actually fairly well socialized compared to some of the kids I've met."

“A thought. What about turning the storefront into a gallery, Mercedes and other young artists, enhanced and non-enhanced can display there. We could even do small Galas in partnership with Anzy’s restaurant. It will probably lose money, but that is tax write off and I suspect the gym will make more than enough profit to offset it.”

"I like the gallery idea. It would be great for that space. I'll contact the nearby schools and see if anyone has the right skills to run it. Art History or something."

"And with a restaurant, parties for showing would be easy. Yes, excellent." Solaris nodded, “Email the lawyer and they’ll help you get the licenses you need. And maybe talk to Mercedes, she may have input on a gallery, I know we will need to upgrade the lights.”

"I will do that. She'll at least know what she'd like to see." the younger woman tapped notes into her phone. "Once Z gets back, I think everyone who wasn't already some sort of pilot is signed up to start flight training.”

“So, what other projects have we got going?”

"Right now? The manor project is in its organizational stages, considering winter off the North Sea that’s all we can do." Elenore mused as they walked out of the gym, Elenore locking the door. "The LS Swap on your little tank is done and they’re halfway through converting the weapons to so called ‘less than lethal’ options, and they started on that Hummer you fell... Jesus Christ, what's going on?" She yelled as two F-35's roared overhead, a boom sounding as they broke the sound barrier. "They don't do that this close to a city."

“I don’t know. How do I turn the radio on if I’m not in the car?” Solaris asked looking down at her phone.

"Here..." the younger woman took the phone and brought up a current news channel.

"The Navy has stated they have not yet identified the large contact moving towards New York but are taking actions to intercept. It is suspected that it may be an Ask-Embla naval squadron. There is no clear explanation of why the Atlantean Island state would have ships in the region, however."

“Isn’t that Von Volkard’s country? Ohhhhh.” She dialed the phone “Anzy, I need you to go buy a large quantity of the best German beers you can find, Jägermeister, and plan for at least two high dinners, one for two and one for the crew plus, oh, call it five. Yes dear, all within the next week, I’ll trust you on the menu.” She hung up and called Granny. “Sorry to bother dear, but we are going to have some rather prestigious guests sometime in the next few days. Can you make sure the house and garden are as ready as they can be.” She turned back to Elenore. “It seems an old friend is coming to visit, and he still hasn’t lost his love of making an entrance. I need to call Penny…she probably has already figured it out.” Solaris began walking quickly back towards the car.

"Um... Who? That was a lot of German stuff... wait... who?" She frowned, tapping the name Von Volkard into her own smartphone. “Wait, Kreigsmarine. The Living Dreadnaught? Why would a Nazi officer be coming to visit you?”