Vivi

XIV

Shit shit shit what am I doing, what would my mother say, am I frikkin' nuts? Yes, I'm nuts.

Vivi grinned and hugged herself and let out a scream, half of fear, half of elation. The sound of her voice seemed oddly quiet, like it was getting sucked into space. Vivi gripped the sail-rope tightly.

Slowly, slowly, the yacht picked up speed. She was leaving the palace behind, at a respectable pace now.

Vivi unstoppered her cola, took a sip, and lay back in the boat, gazing up at the – now seemingly very dim – stars. It was odd to feel the warmth of the sun and see something like the night sky at the same time.

I wish Peter was here. Vivi remembered all the times she had stargazed with Peter... and those happy times gazing up out of the jacuzzi with Celine... even once with them both, in a sexy haze after a threesome on the beach.

Vivi glanced back happily at the palace. Suddenly she received a shock. How can it be so far away? Even as she looked, the palace appeared to dwindle.

I didn't account for continuous acceleration! "Autopilot, autopilot!" yelled Vivi. "Brake the yacht!"

A rocket flame shot out forward from both sides of the boat. The boat lurched and stopped.

Vivi caught her breath, feeling a little foolish. It was shocking how fast she'd been moving, but she'd hardly lost sight of the palace. She leaned over the edge of the yacht. The side rockets were shaped like old-timey cannons. Of course they were.

Vivi resisted the urge to take up the steering wheel and levers at the front of the vessel and went back to the ropes. I'm just going to turn the boat around and go back. Easy.

Vivi opened the sail to just a fraction of its full expanse and tugged it so that it would take the sun at an angle. Gradually, gradually, the boat turned. Then Vivi swung the sail around the other way and opened it wider to brake the turning motion. That's it!

Now Vivi just had to centre the sail and open it fully to pick up a bit of speed. She felt a subtle tug of acceleration; a caress, really, much gentler and smoother than the way any car had ever started moving.

Vivi waited, glancing nervously at the relative-velocity readout on the boat's computer screen to be sure. When she was satisfied with her speed, she closed the sail. Gradually the boat floated back to the palace.

"Autopilot, park the yacht please," said Vivi. The rockets fired with precision accuracy. The boat glided back to its mooring.

As Vivi tied it up and tethered her suit to the pier, she breathed a sigh of relief. Well, that's enough excitement for now.

As she skipped along the comforting gravity of the pier, though, Vivi was giggling with joy.