Chapter Three

"How great is this?" Velma asked as the gang sat at their table. The dining room had numerous tables set up with white tablecloth and floral centerpieces. The main course had already been served and the guests were eating while Tiny Tim performed "How Deep is the Ocean" on the small stage while he played guitar and his wife Miss Vickie pulled a tambourine out of a chest and then used the chest as a seat while she accompanied her husband:

How much do I love you?
I'll tell you no lie
How deep is the ocean?
How high is the sky?

"First class food AND entertainment - this sure is the life!" Fred said as he continued to work on his steak.

"Are you going to finish that baked potato, Fred?" Shaggy asked, leaning over to be heard. Behind him, Scooby grabbed the bone from Shaggy's plate and wolfed it down before sitting upright again, whistling like nothing happened.

"I think I've heard this song before," Daphne said as the performer swapped his guitar for a ukulele and started another tune:

Tiptoe through the window
By the window, that is where I'll be
Come tiptoe through the tulips with me

"Did you find the bowling alley let?" Velma asked, noticing how the musician was now playing left-handed when he had been playing right-handed earlier.

Shaggy shook his head. "No, man. I asked everyone and they kept sending me to different parts of the ship. I must keep walking past it."

Velma giggled. She had read that a popular joke with crews was to mention non-existent entertainment options, like a bowling alley. There were movies, concerts, swimming, casinos, jogging, exercise rooms and lots of games - but never bowling. "Maybe you'll have to look some more tomorrow," she said before she had to turn away to hide her grin. She looked across the room and thought she recognized someone at another table. "Excuse me a minute," she said as she got up and walked over to another table. "Uncle Adam?"

Doc turned from his telling of a story to a couple sitting at the table and looked at the source of the voice. It took a moment, but his face changed from the grin it had on previously to an even bigger smile. "Velma? What are you doing here?" He reached out and took her hands in his; it had been a few years since he had last seen his niece, and he didn't want to possibly embarrass her with a familial hug in public.

"My friends and I...ah…were given some tickets for the cruise. I thought you worked for another company?"

"I switched a couple of years ago - I'm not really the Norse type, the horns on the helmet kept getting snagged on my pillow. How's your family?" Doc happened to be the brother of Velma's mother.

"Oh, they're fine. Maybe we can have our picture taken together later and I can show it to them when I get back."

"I've got a few suggestions that will be hilarious. Say, are you still doing that mystery stuff your mother told me about?" he asked.

"Sure do. That's how we got the tickets! Why do you ask?"

"It's because..." Doc said before stopping, realizing that the couple at the table would hear and that it might get back to the captain. "I'll tell you a little later. There have been some...interesting..." he started to explain vaguely when a voice called out from the kitchen entrance.

A man in chef's whites came out. "Zee freezer ez ruined! All my desserts must be thrown out!" Smoke rolled out of room behind him. "And she is a new one, I don't understand how she short out Zzzt Zzzt."

Doc jumped out of his chair and rushed up to the man. "Is everyone okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine." The chef wiped his hands, then remembered he was supposed to have an accent. "Everyone, she is fine. There wass a teeny fire it burn up my freezer motor. Now the whole dessert area she ruined and they will melt. The sherbets, the ice cream, the gelato, they all no take the heat."

Shaggy and Scooby almost teleported to the chef and stood at attention, saluting. "At your service, sir!" Shaggy announced.

"You? You fix the freezer, yes?"

"Oh, no man. Scoob and I will just eat all the dessert so it won't go to waste."

The chef got wide-eyed and lost his accent again. "All of it? There's got to be fifty gallons of ice cream alone in there, not to mention frozen custard and yogurt..."

"You don't have to try to convince us, does he Scoob? We won't even mind the smoke."

"Ruh uh." The dog produced a spoon and fork out of nowhere. In the meantime, Tiny Tim was singing:

They, said some day you'll find
All who love are blind
When your heart's on fire
You must realize
Smoke gets in your eyes

Doc went back to his table, but the other couple had already left. He wandered over to the gang's table and sat down. Velma made introductions to Fred and Daphne, and also explained who Shaggy and Scooby were. "So, what's been going on?" she asked her uncle.

"Well, let's get out of this smoke onto the main deck and I'll tell you all about it. Doctor's orders," he said as he coughed to emphasize the point.

...

Outside, Doc filled in the three on what had been happening the past few cruises. Gopher joined them; if nothing else, he could keep an extra set of eyes out for the captain. Being friendly with the crew was encouraged; sharing anything that was less than complimentary to the experience was not encouraged at all. Telling ghost stories might be grounds for dismissal.

Shaggy and Scooby dragged themselves to the group, their stomachs distended from so much dessert. Shaggy was trying to scratch his back with a tool in his hand but was having trouble reaching the spot. Scooby put his huge paw up and managed to find the spot and scratch. "Thank, old pal" he said with a sigh.

"What's that in your hand?" Velma asked.

"Just something I found by the freezer," he said as he handed it over.

Velma looked at it; rubber handles with a metal body that had several holes and notches. She handed them to Fred. He looked it over. "A wire stripper. Why would a ghost need something like that?"

"I think we have our first clue."

The ship's horn blared, and then a siren went off. "Collision alert!" Gopher shouted. "Grab a rail and hold on!" Everyone did as expected but the ship only rolled a few degrees as it turned to port.

Daphne scanned the night-lit ocean and caught some movement. "There, off to the right!" she said as she pointed.

Gopher saw and said "There's a viewing telescope right over there. Let's get a better look." He sprinted to the device and soon found the object. It looked like a speedboat heading toward the ship. "What fool would try to ram a cruise ship?"

"Maybe he's late getting on board," Shaggy offered.

"I don't like the look of this," Doc said. "He's headed right for us." The sound of a motor grew louder.

"Why doesn't the captain just stop?" Shaggy asked.

"You just don't stop a ship on a dime. We're like a train on the water; that's why we take so much time to dock when we come in to port." The boat was very close now. "Hang on!"

"Jenkies!" Velma yelled.

"Jeepers!" Daphne shouted.

"Zoikes!" Shaggy exclaimed.

"Yikes!" Scooby said as he flattened himself on the deck.

"Fudge!" Fred screamed.

They grabbed the rail again, but there was no impact. After waiting longer than it should have taken, they peered over the side. No sign of the boat could be seen, either speeding away or debris in the water. Daphne turned to Fred. "Fudge? Really?"