“Wheeeeee!” Dinky exclaimed as Sea-you-around dived out of the water and into a roll, with the little unicorn holding on tightly to her back. Her cheerful cry was short as the Seapony splashed back under the water, only to reappear moments later pulling her body into a graceful spin as they left the water. Raindrops and Cheerilee watched her from the deck of the Autumn Delight, smiling as the Seapony played with the filly.
“Wow, she’s certainly excited to play with the Seaponies again,” the magenta mare beamed as Dinky let out another shriek of delight.
“Definitely. These Seaponies are a real friendly bunch,” the Pegasus replied, a rare smile still lighting her face.
“Well why wouldn’t we be, especially after all the help your Dry pony friends gave us the last time we saw them. Shame that Ditzy isn’t here this time, but it’s certainly lovely to meet you two,” a voice declared a little below the two mares. Cheerilee and Raindrops looked down to see the Merpony Dusky Jack leaning against the boat, a toothy grin on his face.
“Well it’s lovely to meet you as well Dusky,” Cheerilee giggled, “it’s a shame that Raindrops and I couldn’t visit you last time while Trixie and the group were on holiday, but I had a classroom of fillies and colts to teach, and Raindrops had a busy week of weather duties planned out that she couldn’t get away from.”
“No way we were missing out again this time, especially seeing as how your discovery was so urgent,” Raindrops said, remembering the scroll Trixie had been mailed detailing the discovery the Seaponies had found, as well as Luna’s instructions to get Cayo El Bayo post-haste once she had been informed of the valuable find.
“Well we’re glad our discovery was so worthwhile for you. We still don’t really know too much about this Corona situation, but if it’s enough to have all of you and the Dry pony princess worried, then giving it to you is the least we can do,” the Merpony smiled, giving a playful flick of his tail that sent up a small splash of water at Raindrops and Cheerilee.
Raindrops reacted quickly and shielded herself with a wing. Cheerilee however got a faceful of water that matted her mane down over her eyes. As the earth pony wiped the water off her face, Raindrops and Dusky started to laugh. That was until Cheerilee took her revenge by grabbing Raindrops and pushing her into the water straight on top of Dusky.
Meanwhile, Sea-you-around rose out of the water again with Dinky still clinging to her back. “You’re a fun one Dinky. I haven’t been able to splash about like this in ages,” the Seapony laughed, submerging herself until only her head remained out of the water. The little unicorn scrambled frantically up her neck and hugged Sea-you-around’s head to keep herself out of the water, giving a giggle.
“You’re fun too Miss Seayaround,” Dinky gave the Seapony a friendly nuzzle against the back of her head, bringing an even bigger smile to the aquatic pony’s face.
“Hey, how about we see if your friend wants to come in and play,” Sea-you-around suggested, floating the two of them to the front of the boat where they could see Pipsqueak jumping up and down next to Captain Sunset Beard, asking him all manner of questions about his life at sea. The orange bearded earth pony simply smiled and answered his questions, finding it refreshing to see a youth so interested in boating, particularly since Ponyville was right in the centre of Equestria and far from any oceans.
“Hey Pip, do you wanna come and play with me and Miss Seayaround? The water’s really nice and Miss Seayaround knows lotsa tricks,” Dinky called to her friend.
Once she had found out about the trip to Cayo El Bayo to visit the Seaponies, Dinky had pleaded to come. Ditzy had been a little hesitant at first, since she had shifts at the post office all week and wouldn’t be able to go, but once she learned that Trixie, Lyra, Raindrops and Cheerilee were all going, she allowed her little muffin to go along for the trip (though she made it very clear to Trixie that she was to keep an eye on her daughter while they were away or there would be dire consequences). However since Pip and Dinky had grown so close, it was inevitable that he wanted to come along as well, so he could spend time with his friend and get to go out on a boat.
“Sure thing Dinky,” he replied giving her a wave before turning back to Captain Sunset “Thanks for telling me about all your sea stories Mr Captain Sir. It was really cool.”
Sunset just gave the little colt’s mane a ruffle before stroking his thick orange beard, “No problem at all son. It’s not often I see a young colt like you so interested in sailing. With an attitude like that, I reckon it’ll be no time at all before you become the Captain of your own ship.”
“Really, you think so? I really want to be a sailor when I grow up,” Pip exclaimed gleefuly, giving his tail a playful twirl. Sunset just laughed and patted the young colt on the head.
“Absolutely me boy, absolutely. Now go and have some fun with your friends.”
With that Pip gave a wide smile before turning and taking a massive leap (or at least he thought so) from the boat and splashing water all over Dinky and Sea-you-around, starting an immediate splash war between the three of them.
Lyra gave a chuckle as she watched, flicking her gaze back and forth from the splash fight, over to the other side of the boat, where Raindrops had recovered from the surprise push and was now lifting a struggling Cheerilee up into the air over the water.
“After all the troubles we’ve been having lately with Corona and all the other endless disasters that seem to fall on Ponyville, it’s certainly nice to catch up with some old friends and have a pleasant day at sea,” Trixie smiled placing a hoof on Lyra’s back.
“I couldn’t agree more Trixie. I’m glad that Cheerilee and Raindrops could join us this time. The Aquatic ponies seem to enjoy there company as much as we do,” the mint Unicorn said as the two of them watched Raindrops drop Cheerilee into the water while Dusky laughed.
*Splash* “AAAgh sweet Luna that’s cold!!”
Trixie and Lyra laughed at the floundering teacher when a second splash caught their attention. From the stern of the boat, they watched two more aquatic ponies rise from the water, Sea Shanty the Seapony and Rock Beauty the Merpony. Between the two of them they held a chest filled to the brim with old gold coins.
“Phew, that’s the last one,” Sea shanty declared, wiping her forehead with one of her flippers. Trixie took this as the queue to give them both a hoof, and used her magic to levitate the chest from the water and deposit it next to 4 other chests on the Autumn Delight’s deck. The chests weren’t all filled with gold however. One held ancient weapons and armour from a time long passed, while another held gems and jewellery that had been discovered amongst old ships sunken and lost at sea. What was important was that all the items in the chests held enormous value, of which Trixie could not stop pointing out.
“Look at all this gold! If Luna trades all this with other nations like the Griffin’s it’ll be worth 10 times its weight in silver!”
“Well we’re glad it makes you so happy. To us, these are nothing but trinkets and remnants of our old war with the Seaponies. Now that we are at peace with one another, we have no reason to keep these reminders of our violent past,” Rock Beauty said, turning to Sea Shanty with a smile. A smile, Lyra noted, that seemed a little more than a smile you give to a friend.
“You have no idea how much help you’ve given us by hoofing over these treasures. With these, Luna will have huge sums of bits put into the royal treasury to help us prepare for whatever damages Corona will do next,” Trixie could barely keep her hooves from bouncing excitedly on the deck. Lyra just smiled at her joy. It was rare to see the blue Unicorn this over the moon (well, when sober anyway) and it always brought a smile to the musicians heart when her friends were happy.
“Well now we’re done with the heavy lifting, if you’ll excuse me, I think a sneak attack on Sea-you-around is in order. After all, I still need to get her back from leaving that crab in my bed,” Sea Shanty gave her posterior a quick rub before submerging and slinking her way towards the magenta Seapony currently fighting a losing battle of splashes to Dinky and Pip’s combined efforts.
As the Seapony disappeared, Lyra turned around to see her Unicorn companion had occupied herself by going through the various treasures, a jewelled crown fitting snuggly over her wizard’s hat and assorted gold and gem encrusted bracelets on her legs. Glad she wasn’t paying much attention, Lyra leaned down towards Rock Beauty.
“So, I noticed that smile you gave Sea Shanty,” she said with a grin filled with teeth and a knowing look in her eye. Rock Beauty suddenly blushed and looked away.
“I-I’m not s-sure what you mean,” the Merpony stuttered while her eyes flashed left and right trying to make sure nopony else could see her. No Seapony in particular.
“You know, if you like her you, should just ask her out,” the green Unicorn gave a cheeky wink that made Rock Beauty’s face light up even further red.
“I-I don’t know what you’re t-talking about Lyra!” the Merpony seemed to shrink down and started tapping her flippers together nervously.
“Oh really,” Lyra chuckled “Because I’ve been around for a while and I know the difference between a friendly smile, and a ‘I would totally love to be making out with you right now’ smile.”
When Rock Beauty just seemed to turn away embarrassed, Lyra’s cheeky grin faded to a warm smile and she placed a supportive hoof on Rock Beauty’s shoulder, “Hey, there’s no need to be embarrassed. Everypony gets a crush sometimes. Besides, Sea Shanty definitely seems to like your company. There’s no harm in asking her out. I think you two would make a great couple.”
Rock Beauty seemed to ponder this for a moment before turning back to Lyra, “Maybe you’re right Lyra. Thanks. Oh and sorry.”
“Sorry, for whaaaaaaagghhhhh!” Lyra started before Rock Beauty grabbed her hoof and pulled, causing the Unciorn to fall head first into the water. A few moments later she re-emerged spluttering and coughing while Rock Beauty just giggled.
“Very funny, but now it’s my turn,” Lyra said before playfully tackling the Merpony who gave a startled yelp as Lyra dragged them both under water.
A few hours later, after the sun had passed its zenith, the Dry ponies decided it was time to start heading back for shore, where a group of guards would be waiting to take the Seapony treasure back to Canterlot.
“I had lots of fun playing with you Miss Seayaround,” Dinky said giving the Seapony one last hug.
“I had lots of fun playing with you too Dinky. It was great seeing you again,” Sea-you-around gave the little Unicorn a squeeze between her flippers before a blue aura wrapped around Dinky and lifted her back to the boat next to Trixie.
Next to them, Cheerilee and Raindrops gave a hoof to flipper bump with Dusky Jack, “It was nice meeting you two. Give my regards to Ditzy for me.”
“We will Dusky. See you around,” Cheerilee smiled before climbing up the ladder and onto the deck. However before Raindrops could do so, Dusky gave her a tap on the back.
“Just to let you know, for a Dry pony, your pretty cute,” he gave a laugh and a wink then dove under the water to leave behind a giggling Cheerilee and a blushing Raindrops.
At the last group, both Sea Shanty and Rock Beauty gave Lyra a hug.
“It was so good to see you again Lyra. I hope we can catch up again soon,” Sea Shanty said as she let go, giving her a sad smile.
“Yeah, we’ll miss you,” Rock Beauty added, the same expression on her own face. Lyra couldn’t help but feel the same way.
“Don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll see each other again soon,” she said, giving them both a hoof to flipper bump. As she swam to the ladder, she turned around and gave Rock Beauty a look, “And don’t forget what we talked about,” Rock Beauty blushed, but gave a smile and a nod of her head in reply.
With that, the four Seaponies gave a wave of their flippers in a final goodbye to their Drypony friends. Everypony aboard the boat smiled and returned the wave, particularly Dinky and Pip, whose hooves waved so fast they looked as though they would fall off and any second. Then with a splash of their tails, and a brief ‘Shoo Bee Doo’ the Seaponies disappeared under the water.
“Well, I’d best pull up the anchor and start turning us about,” Captain Sunset said, departing towards the rear of the boat.
As he trotted off, Dinky and Pip made their way to the treasure and looked at it with wide eyes.
“Wow look at all the gold and gems. This must be worth like a gagillion bits!” Pip cried, standing on his rears hooves so he could examine the gold chest more closely. Next to him, Dinky gave a laugh, “I’m pretty sure there’s no such thing as a gagillion.”
While the young filly and colt looked over the chests, the four mares sat down together looking out at the open ocean. Lyra gave a content sigh as she closed her eyes and let the sea breeze wash over her. The ocean seemed to stretch on forever, and it sparkled and shimmered under the rays of the sun. It was sad that the warm glowing orb had become relatively taboo due to Corona's return, because on a day like this, it just made everything feel so peaceful.
“This was a great day. Seeing the Seaponies again was really nice. We should come and visit them more often,” the green mare declared, laying her back against the mast ready to take a peaceful nap.
“The best part is that this was kinda work related, so I didn’t even have to use any of my holiday leave,” Trixie laughed, causing Raindrops to eye roll, but nod her head with a smile. After all, she barely got any holiday leave, so getting to come to Cayo El Bayo on official Knight business was definitely a huge plus for her. After Trixie had informed Luna of the Seaponies treasure discovery, she had immediately instructed them to head to Cayo El Bayo to collect it.
Cheerilee opened her mouth to add to the conversation when suddenly a loud bang cracked the air and a huge cannonball smashed through the Autumn Delight’s mast. The four mares dove out of the way as the mast crashed to the deck before sliding off into the water. Trixie groaned as she climbed to her hooves, quickly checking to make sure everypony was ok. Dinky and Pip were safe, taking cover behind the treasure chests, looking around wildly, scared and confused by the situation. As the other three mares recovered from the attack, Captain Sunset raced back on deck to see what was happening.
Before anypony could say anything, a second bang went off, followed by another cannonball tearing through the Captain’s cabin, sending splitters everywhere. All eyes moved to where the shot had come from to find a massive vessel approaching them over the water. The boat’s wood was dark and its sails were black and torn. A frightening wooden statue of a siren was at the boats bow and at the top of its mast waved the skull and crossbones flag of the Jolly Roger.
As the ponies stared at the approaching ship, Captain Sunset gave a burning glare as one word left his lips, dripping with loathing and contempt.
“Pirates.”
My little pony, My little pony
Ahh ahh ahh ahhh...
My little pony
Friendship never meant that much to me
My little pony
But you're all here and now I can see
Stormy weather; Lots to share
A musical bond; With love and care
Teaching laughter; It's an easy feat,
And magic makes it all complete!
You have my little ponies
How'd I ever make so many true friends?
With the Autumn Delight’s mast destroyed, the ponies could only watch as the pirate vessel sailed up alongside them. The ship seemed to completely dwarf the Autumn in both height and width, casting an enormous shadow over the harmless tour boat. While Captain Sunset's pride and joy was large enough to take decent sized groups of ponies out to sea, this vessel could have easily carried all of the hamlet of Oaten aboard its decks with room to spare.
Raindrop’s wings flared up in rage and she prepared for takeoff, when a grappling line shot from the side of the vessel straight towards her. She took a dive to the left, managing to avoid the metal hook, which instead smashed through the Autumn’s deck and latched on. Several more lines were tossed from the vessel, all managing to take a hold of the smaller ship.
Suddenly a cry came from the dark vessel as several different creatures leapt off of its deck. Thudding down next to Lyra was a large brown bird like creature similar to a Griffin. However, while it had the head and talons of an eagle, this creature had the hind quarters and tail of a pony. Lyra could only gape as she realized the creature was a Hippogriff. Wrapped around the bird/pony hybrid’s head was a checkered bandana and in its right claw was a sharp curved cutlass. Turning to the startled Unicorn, the Hippogriff spread his wings wide in a threatening manner, revealing a large gash on the right appendage. The wound was clearly old and didn’t appear to be causing any pain to the Hippogriff, but he certainly wouldn’t have been able to fly with the injury. This fact clearly didn’t bother the grounded aerial predator as he raised his weapon straight at her.
Following behind him were a short and stocky pair of Tapirs, one charcoal colored, and the other a milky white. They didn’t wear any clothing like the Hippogriff; however both clutched a saber in their tiny trunks, which they each held towards Cheerilee as they flanked to either side of her. The school teacher could see wide smirks upon their faces as they analyzed her, seeming to come to the conclusion she would be no threat.
After the Tapir’s came a rather tall Antelope, who landed lightly on the deck in between Raindrops and Trixie. Unlike the other pirates, the Antelope appeared well groomed with her fur shiny and smooth underneath a long mauve coat. She looked at them both with a dark grin on her face, her horns, which appeared to have been sharpened, were ready to lash out at whoever made the first move. Trixie and Raindrops lowered their heads challengingly, but hesitated to strike first, unsure of their target’s skill level.
The final boarder was a baby blue coated Pegasus with a navy blue mane and wearing a tattered brown vest. On his flank, his cutie mark showed a wave with a boat on it, indicating his talent lay at sea. His fur was dirty and unwashed and his teeth looked yellow and green. Clutched between his sneer was a sharp gleaming dagger which he pointed towards Captain Sunset who simply watched him with a burning glare on his face.
No one moved, everyone waiting to see who would strike first. The standoff was broken when a long boarding plank clattered to the Autumn’s deck next to Cheerilee, who gave a little jump. The distraction cost her as the pair of Tapirs jumped towards her with their sabers ready. The charcoal Tapir made a slice which managed to nick the magenta mare’s right leg, making her grunt as a trickle of red mixed into her fur, but the white Tapir’s strike missed as she rolled backwards out of the way. Quickly leaping out of the roll, Cheerilee delivered a swift kick towards the charcoal Tapir knocking him to the deck and sending his saber sliding. Dodging the white Tapir’s retaliation strike, she grabbed the saber in her teeth and turned to face her attackers.
“Ooh, ready to cross blades with a pirate. Not a wise move. Even without his sword, my brother and I are more than a match for you pony,” the white Tapir, now revealed to be a girl, chuckled, as her brother rose to his hooves and stood beside her, annoyance clear on his face. Cheerilee was unable to give a reply due to the sword in her mouth, so instead she simply raised her hoof in a ‘bring it’ gesture and turned her head to strike. With a laugh, the white Tapir and Charcoal Tapir both charged her.
Meanwhile Lyra gave a yelp as the Hippogriff’s cutlass slashed towards her. She ducked, and felt as the blade cut a few hairs from her mane. She dodged to the side as the pirate brought his free talon towards her, hoping to grab a hold.
As he recovered his balance from the attack, Lyra sent a wave of magic through her horn and summoned her Lyre to her hooves. With a sharp strum on its cords, Lyra channeled the sound into a painful magical wave that would knock the Hippogriff straight off the ship.
Unfortunately the Hippogriff was fast, and he leapt over the blast with a kick from his powerful hind legs. A raven’s screech roared from his beak as he swung his cutlass straight for Lyra’s throat. With a gasp of panic, the musician swung her Lyre in front of her face, which blocked the blade with a loud twang. Angered his attack had failed, the Hippogriff dived forward, his beak ready to take her eyes out. The Unicorn blocked with her horn then channeled a weak burst of magic to push the feathered attacker away.
The Hippogriff stumbled back, but before he could counter attack, a wailing Trixie collided with him and knocked him to the deck. The blue Unicorn groaned before climbing back to her hooves to help Raindrops whose powerful punches were proving useless against the nimble Antelope. Every punch the Pegasus threw, the pirate seemed to easily dodge and counter with a strike from her own hooves. As Raindrop swung her body and dove toward the Antelope with a kick, the horned aggressor rolled below the attack and countered by slicing her sharpened horns on Raindrops wings.
The weather mare let out a shout of pain and the Antelope gave a laugh. It was cut short as an invisible hoof slammed into her face and forced her back. Thanks to Trixie’s opening, Raindrops leapt forward with a powerful kick to the pirate’s barrel. The attacker wheezed as she slid across the deck, a bruise already forming on her chest. Raindrops rushed towards her to knock her out when the pirate Pegasus intercepted the attack with a vicious head butt to the yellow mare’s side.
As Raindrops sprawled to the deck, the enemy Pegasus heard the blast of Unicorn magic and sped into the air, just missing the still invisible Trixie’s magical attack. Unfortunately the Antelope, who had managed to get back to her hooves despite the flaring pain in her sternum, spotted where the blast had come from, and delivered a buck with her hind legs right into the representative’s face.
Trixie’s invisibility dropped as she flew across the deck, smacking into Captain Sunset, who was barely standing and nursing a black eye from his brief encounter with the male Pegasus. As the two both groggily started to climb to their hooves, a flailing white Tapir soared over their heads and splashed into the water below. Cheerilee grinned as she flipped backwards over the charcoal Tapir in a somersault, dodging his clumsy tackle, before slamming both her rears hooves down on his back. The marauder let out a sharp wail of pain, before Cheerilee silenced him with a blow to the head. No longer needing it, the school teacher spat out the saber from her mouth and gave a smirk, "I just love when I get to show off my skills."
Hearing the splashing of the overboard Tapir, and noticing her downed brother, the Antelope, who was still a little winded from Raindrops powerful kick, nimbly leapt towards the school teacher and rammed her with a shoulder. As Cheerilee rolled to the deck, Trixie and Sunset moved forward to help, when a large wing slashed across their legs and they tripped to the wooden planks. The Hippogriff, holding a struggling Lyra in his grip, stood above them with a scowl on his beak, clearly agitated that his targets were putting up such a struggle.
Whatever he intended to next was suddenly stopped, as the blue Pegasus crashed to the deck beside him, curtesy of Raindrops who was fighting to supress her anger and prevent it getting completely out of control, lest she accidentally hurt one of her friends.
A sharp whistle rang out over the deck from the rear of the Autumn. Standing at the end of the boarding plank was a strong and strapping Unicorn. His coat was a snowy white and his mane and beard were a bright red. He wore a long red coat and a large black Tricorn hat adorned his head. Slung around his barrel was a scabbard which held a rather large broadsword. His cutie mark showed a plain looking sword with a red magical energy surrounding it. The Unicorn was certainly an imposing figure.
“Well, it seems we have a fight on our hooves. Usually when we board a vessel, they surrender almost immediately. I rarely ever need to come aboard another ship myself. You’ve certainly given my crew a difficult time, however I believe it’s time for hostilities to cease,” with that, the Unicorn gave a clap of his hooves and a dozen more pirates seemed to rise up upon the enemy ship, overwhelmingly outnumbering the seven members of the Autumn's Delight. They were all different species, from Zebras to Camels and even Alpacas, and all dressed in different attire, some covered in tattered vests, and others, eye patches and bandannas. What they all had in common was a vast array of swords and daggers, all pointing towards the Equestrian Knights and their friends.
The Unicorn just gave a smug smile, as Trixie and co stiffened at the sight of the invaders and their weapons.
“I suggest you surrender, or things might get a little messy.”
Author's Note
Well, here's the first chapter of my first story I've written for the Lunaverse (actually it's my first story I've written on FimFiction at all)
I hope you all liked it. Next chapter you'll actually get to hear some of the pirate's names.
Trixie and the group froze at the numerous weapons aimed down on them. No matter how hard they fought back, there was no way they could take all of the pirates, and the limited size of the Autumn's deck would make a horrid stand for them anyhow.
Sensing that Trixie and co had got the message, the red maned unicorn gestured to his crew to relax, though none of them turned away, keeping their weapons ready in case they were needed.
“Good, it is much easier for us when you co-operate. Now then, let’s see what plunder we can find aboard this little… ‘ship’,” the unicorn started to wander along the deck, ignoring the sharp glare from Sunset, who seemed particularly incensed from the comment about the Autumn.
“Just who are you, and why have you attacked us. This is just a tour boat with little value. What reason could you have to attack us?” Trixie challenged, keeping her eyes on the red maned marauder as he looked over the ship, his sharp eyes scanning for anything of value. He gave her the barest glance as he continued his search.
“My name is Captain Red Blade, and these are the crew of my vessel the ‘Arabus'. As for why we attacked you, isn’t it rather obvious?” when Trixie gave no reply he continued on, “We’re pirates my dear. To us, every vessel has value, no matter how small. If we can’t find any jewels or other valuables, we simply take the ship itself and sell it off. Sometimes we even break them apart and use the pieces from them for repairs. When you can’t simply walk into town and buy some timber, you make do with what you can.”
After a few more moments searching, he finally spied something of value. 5 large chests clumped together near the hatch to the lower deck. A smile lit his face as he approached them.
“Now what do we have here?” the pirate Captain could sense immediately that the chest contained something worthwhile from the looks of irritation and desperation that Trixie and her friends tried to hide behind their facades of determination and contempt. Savouring the looks on their faces, he moved far slower then he needed to as he walked towards the chests. Slowly he reached down towards the first one, his red aura lighting up his horn to lift up its lid.
The sudden kick to his back leg that Dinky gave him certainly stopped his smug attitude.
He let out a shout of pain and fell back on his flank, nursing the injured limb as the grey filly jumped on top of the chest and glared at him as best she could.
“This is our treasure, go get your own!” a voice called out, and Red Blade watched as Pip leapt up on the chest next to Dinky, his own glare joining hers. The Captain looked at them for several seconds before barking out a laugh.
“Well, well, it seems this treasure has some guards. I guess we’ll just have to deal with you then,” Red Blade smirked at them as he got back on his hooves and started dusting himself off. Dinky and Pip were about to enquire what he had meant when two blue hooves wrapped around them and lifted them into the air. The blue Pegasus had recovered from Raindrops attack and had snuck around behind them while the Captain had been speaking.
“Let them go!” Trixie cried, moving to step forward and stop the Pegasus, only to have the Gazelle slam into her side and send her sprawling to the deck. Cheerilee attempted to rise and help, only to have a wet saber slide in front of her neck as the white Tapir she had knocked overboard earlier scowled fiercely, as if daring the teacher to try and move. Lyra struggled even harder against the Hippogriff, but he was far stronger than her, and her efforts were useless. Sunset attempted to leap forward, only to be yanked hard to the deck by the male Tapir as he clutched tightly to the stallion’s leg with his tiny trunk.
However what none of the pirates noticed was that their efforts to hold back Trixie, Cheerilee, Sunset and Lyra had left one member of the group unguarded. One very angry and very strong Pegasus.
Unleashing a war cry, Raindrops roared forwards with as much force as she could muster in her wings. The speedy Gazelle attempted to stop her, but one back handed hoof from the Pegasus sent her sprawling.
“Let them go now!” she cried, as her wings brought her into a head on course with the flying pirate. The male Pegasus blinked before manoeuvring himself out of the way from her berserker hoof strikes. Dinky and Pip were swung back and forth as the Pirate hurled himself about to avoid Raindrops aggression. But dexterity can only take you so far in a fight, and after a few more swings, Raindrops got lucky and managed to land a punch to the side of the Pirates head.
The force of the blow knocked his head back and he started to plummet towards the deck. Dinky and Pip let out a terrified scream, before Raindrops snatched them from the Pirates hooves and held them close. The pirate Pegasus slammed into the Autumn's deck sending a few splinters of wood flying. A black eye was already forming and he gave a pained groaned.
“A pitiful display Seawing. You haven’t had to face an aerial adversary in some time and it has made you soft. I expect better from you next time.” Red Blade chided, shaking his head with slight disappointment. Ignoring Trixie and co’s cheer for their friend, the pirate Captain turned his head skyward to Raindrops, who continued to hover in the air, keeping Dinky and Pip out of harm’s way.
“You are quite the fighter my dear. I haven’t seen such anger and rage used so skilfully before. Perhaps you might be interested in joining my crew. I would hate to pass up an opportunity to recruit such a talented individual.”
Raindrops just gave the Unicorn a glare, “Sorry ‘Captain’ but I would never join a bunch of dangerous criminals like you. The only place I use my ‘talents’ is to help my friends.”
“Yeah so just sail away and leave us alone you big meanie!” Dinky threw in her own 2 bits.
Captain Red Blade’s reaction wasn’t what they were expecting. He didn’t look, angry or disappointed. Instead, a genuine looking smile came to his muzzle.
“Well my dear, that may be your decision for now…” suddenly his horn lit up and a red aura grabbed hold of Raindrop’s tail.
“But I can be very persuasive.”
Before she could react, Red Blade tugged down and pulled her from the air. The Pegasus only had enough time to role onto her back to protect Dinky and Pip before she slammed down onto the deck, cracking her head on the planks and rendering her unconscious.
Red Blade chuckled darkly as he withdrew his magic. Trixie vainly attempted to get up and help her friend, but the Gazelle grabbed her in a choke hold and punched her horn to stop her using any magic. Cheerilee and Lyra were still detained by their captors and Sunset could barely move, as the male Tapir had jumped atop him and forced him to his belly.
“Captain, I believe we should be heading off now. The Navy may have reduced its patrols, but leaving ourselves exposed like this is not wise.” Seawing climbed back up to his legs and faced Red Blade, a scowl on his face, though his eyes showed his concern. Red Blade Blinked before giving a thoughtful nod.
“Quite right Seawing. It wouldn’t do for us to complete a successful raid only to be caught by the Equestrian Navy moments later.” With that he turned his gaze towards Raindrops, who still lay in an unconscious heap, Dinky and Pip still held tightly to her body preventing them from scrambling away.
“Seawing, I believe we have been needing a few more deckhands to keep the ship clean. Take these children aboard. I think we might find them useful.” The dark smirk on his face caused Dinky and pip to freeze with fear.
“Don’t you touch them!” Trixie cried, sending a blast of magic to force the Gazelle back, before rushing forward to grab the kids.
However she wasn’t the only one who could use magic, and a red blast slammed into her knocking her off her hooves and through the top of the deck into the lower section of the Autumn. The Captain grinned, while Trixie’s friends all cried out in shock and anger.
“Not the brightest that one, but definitely a strong heart. I can remember a time when I was that foolish. But that time has long passed. Seawing, take the children aboard, and the Pegasus as well. I suspect with the right motivation,” Red Blade glanced at the terrified foals, still clamped tightly in Raindrop’s unconscious grip, “She might become an excellent member of this crew. Certainly not a bad one to look at.” With a chuckle he turned his gaze to the Gazelle, Hippogriff and Tapir’s.
“Swift Chase, Ironclaw, come over here and start loading the treasure aboard.” The Gazelle gave a salute then bounded along the deck to grab a hold of the first chest. The Hippogriff turned to Lyra who was still struggling to break free of his muscled arms.
“Time to sleep pony.” Turning his free claw into a fist, Ironclaw smacked the back of Lyra’s head, knocking her out with a single strike. Without any care, the Hippogriff simply dumped the unicorn on the deck and proceeded towards the treasure, passing Swift Chase who was already lugging the first chest up the boarding ramp onto the Arabus.
As the hybrid criminal started his job, Red Blade turned to the Tapirs who were still Holding Sunset and Cheerilee at bay. “Grunt, Punt, knock out the rest and tie them up, we must make way.”
Following their instructions, Grunt, the male Tapir grabbed Sunset’s head and slammed it into the deck while his sister Punt sneered at Cheerilee, who did nothing but give her the stink eye.
“Night night pony. Pleasant dreams while we make off with your loot and your friends” Cheerilee said nothing, but the Tapir could see the anguish and frustration in her eyes. Then like her brother, Punt grabbed the back of Cheerilee’s head and slammed it into the deck, knocking the school teacher out cold.
Satisfied with their work, Red Blade turned to the final member of his crew. Seawing was having a difficult time with the foals, who wouldn’t stop kicking and squirming in his grip. The pirate Captain merely chuckled before lighting up his horn and grabbing them with his blood red aura. “Now now, enough of that children, otherwise your stay may become… unpleasant.”
“You let us go you big meanie or else you’re gonna be in big trouble!” Dinky looked determined, but despite her brave words, Red Blade could see that the little Unicorn was definitely afraid, and Pip was no different.
With a chuckle the Captain just brought the foals closer to him before staring them down. “My dear, I think you may be misunderstanding the situation. Your friends lay unconscious at my hooves, your treasure is now mine and you, the dashing Pegasus mare and your tiny little friend are being taken aboard my ship as prisoners, with nopony to save you. I am far from in trouble, but if you and your friends don’t cooperate, there will be big trouble, for you!” he finished with a growl that turned Dinky’s brave scowl into a whimper.
Sensing that he had suitably cowed the girl into submission, Red Blade turned back to Seawing, who gingerly rubbing his swelling eye, glaring at the Pegasus that had given it to him.
“Seawing, grab our feisty friend and bring her aboard. I believe it is time we made our exit.” With a swirl of his coat, the Pirate Captain followed Swift Chase and Ironclaw who were bringing the last chests up the boarding ramped, carrying the terrified foals with him.
Seawing didn’t look happy about his new task, but he complied and draped the unconscious mare over his back and joined the Tapirs twins, who had just finished tying Lyra, Cheerilee and Sunset back to back next to the remains of the Autumn's mask. As Seawing flapped his wings and ascended onto the Arabus, the twins cut all the boarding ropes and pulled the ramp back in, separating the two ships.
It was only as the Arabus started to drift away that a frantic clambering started from below the Autumn's deck, until a bruised and beaten Trixie, covered in splinters and not a few gashes from her unfortunate landing, scurried onto the deck, desperate to save her friends. Her eyes widened and angry tears started to slide down her cheeks as she looked over the ruined deck, filled with cracks, holes, and the bodies of her unconscious friends, with 3 noticeably absent, and the culprits sailing off into the distance, their roaring laughter carrying back over the breeze.
With a glare that could melt steel, the magician growled out the only words she could think to say.
“Bloody Pirates!"
Raindrops gave groan as she started to come to. Her back hurt and body felt uncomfortably stiff, but the Pegasus ignored it as she slowly opened her eyes. Instead of sunlight shining warmly over the calm ocean, all that met her sight was the dark and dingy wooden boards of a ship. She strained to move so she could assess the situation clearly, when she discovered the reason for her stiffness. Her legs had been hogtied and her wings and been secured to her sides, completely restricting her movement. She gave a grunt as she tried to use her unusual strength to break free, but the ropes were too thick and held firm.
“Finally you’re awake. I hope you aren’t always this lazy or you might not be worth the effort to keep around.” A deep voiced barked, somewhere outside of her field of vision. She tried to move her head to see her captor, but she could only move so far with her legs pinned as they were.
“Who are you? Let me go you pirate scum!” she growled, doubling her effort to break the ropes around her but still yielding no success.
“Shut up you freak. You don’t get to give me orders. Now do as you’re told, or a black eye will be the least of your problems!” the pirate snarled, walking around to face her, revealing himself to be Seawing. Raindrops could see that the black eye she had given him had swelled and blocked his vision to the eye, but the glare he gave her with the other wasn’t lessened at all.
While she wanted nothing more than to give him matching bruise, she wasn’t in a position to fight back, and throwing petty insults wouldn’t help her situation any. However she needed to find out what had happened since the attack on the Autumn, and find out what had happened to her friends.
As if sensing what she was thinking, the pirate Pegasus gave a smirk and leaned a little closer towards her. “Wondering what happened to your friends? They’re mostly fine, probably just coming to now and trying to untie themselves. But don’t worry, the Captain didn’t want you to be lonely, so we brought you some playmates.” He moved away for a moment only to dump a frightened Pipsqueak and Dinky in front of her. The foals weren’t bound as she was, though Dinky had a magic inhibitor secured around her horn to stop any magic.
Raindrops had always been filled with anger. It had been a problem for her all her life. Right now though, seeing the two terrified foals cowering against the deck, she was amazed that Seawing didn't suddenly explode from the sheer hatred that she glared at him.
“Let them go now you miserable pile of…!” her threat had barely left her tongue before the Pirate gave her a rough kick to the ribs to silence her.
“Now you listen to me you pathetic wench! You don’t get to make demands. Right now the only reason you are still breathing is because the Captain commands it! But if you push me, I will toss you and those wretched children overboard, consequences be damned! So shut up and do as your told!” Seawing barked, pulling out his dagger to emphasis just how willing he would be to follow through with his threats.
“Enough Seawing! The Captain gave you instructions and you will follow them or Red Blade will see that it is you who goes overboard and not the prisoners.” Another voice echoed around the room as another pony entered Raindrops field of vision. He was a rather old earth pony, his coat a dull brown and his mane and tail a shaggy grey. His fur was dirty and ruffled, almost hiding his cutie mark of two hooves holding a small bag. He walked with a slow gait and had a haunting look on his face, appearing as though he hadn’t slept in some time.
Whomever the pony was, his appearance had greatly incensed Seawing, who had turned from Raindrops to glare at the newcomer.
“Silence Rusty! How dare you tell me what to do! You have no more rights aboard this vessel then this filth does!” the Pegasus gestured towards Raindrops and the foals, earning another glare. “Why should I do anything you ask of me!?”
“You should do nothing I say Seawing. It is the Captain’s word that is law upon this vessel, and it was he that gave you an order. Will you obey, or should I report your disobedience to him?” the Earth pony, now identified as ‘Rusty’ replied calmly as he reached the Pegasus and the captives.
Seawing grit his teeth in anger as he stared at the older pony. Nothing was said for a few moments until Seawing gave a resigned sigh. “Fine I will get them there bloody food. But you mark my words merchant. One of these days the Captain won’t be around, and then your sorry hide is mine!” with that the Pegasus stormed off to other parts of the ship, his hooves stomping loudly against the old wood.
Once he was gone, Rusty turned back to Raindrops and the foals, a soft smile stretching across his gaunt features. “I’m terribly sorry about Seawing. He’s always been an unpleasant pony, but the injury you gave him has really wounded his pride and has left him with an even worse disposition. Now then, enough about that fool, how are you all feeling. Are you hurt?”
Raindrops stared at him for a moment before her glare returned. “Why would you care? You’re just apart of Red Blade’s crew.”
The Earth pony just gave a resigned expression and didn’t reply. Instead he moved to the foals. At first Dinky and Pip tried to scuttle back, but when the only action he performed was to remove Dinky’s inhibitor, they stared at him curiously.
“Why did you remove the metal thingy? It was stopping me from using my magic and it hurt” the little unicorn asked, rubbing her horn to sooth it a little from the clamp that had been attached to it. Once again Rusty said nothing, this time turning towards Raindrops and leaning towards her back.
“Let’s get these ropes off so you can move about a little.” With that he worked to untie some of the ropes, letting a feeling of relief flood over Raindrops as the restriction on her movement was reduced. After a few minutes, the Pegasus could move her legs about, though some rope was still looped around her waist to restrict her wings. As she got to her hooves, she gave the Earth pony a cautious look, moving to stand next to the foals.
“Why did you untie me? Who are you?” her questions didn’t seem at all surprising to the older pony as he ceased standing and sank to his haunches.
“My name is Rusty, and like you, I am a prisoner aboard this vessel. Unlike you however, my capture is not recent. I have been here for 3 years.” This caused the foals to gasp and Raindrops hard expression to soften slightly. “As to why I untied you. Well, beyond the Captains orders to make sure you aren’t mistreated by the crew, well I simply didn’t want you to be hurt. I have seen many cruel deeds in my time aboard the Arabus, but if I can do anything good to make up for it, then I will. Nopony deserves to be mistreated.”
Raindrops gave him another sharp look before relaxing. Being the element of Honesty didn’t give her some supernatural ability to tell whether or not someone was lying, but it did give a good judge of character, and from what she could see of Rusty, the poor stallion had evidently been here a long time and he was far from happy about it. If his words were lies, he was certainly an experienced actor.
“I believe you Rusty, and thank you. Those ropes were really starting to get on my nerves.” The Pegasus said relaxing herself and stretching out her sore muscles. Sensing no further hostility, the old stallion let a smile grace his muzzle.
“Yes they were wrapped rather tight, but as I said, Seawing can be rather unpleasant. Unfortunately, loose restraints is the most comfort I can provide you while you’re stuck here. I’ll make sure that there are pillows and blankets for you to sleep, and that you are well fed, but that’s all I can do. Being a prisoner myself, the only real authority I have is that Red Blade seems to like me a little, so the rest of the crew tend to at least listen to when I say things, but that’s it.” The smile stayed on his face, but it didn’t reach his eyes.
Dinky and Pip were slightly more at ease now that they knew there was at least one other pony aboard the Arabus that was nice, but they were far from alright.
“Mr. Rusty, um, can… can I ask why the Captain Red Blade attacked Captain Sunset’s ship, and why did he capture us?” Pip asked, moving forward a little, but never leaving Raindrop’s side. Rusty had to think a moment before answering.
“Well why he attacked your vessel isn’t hard to answer. You were a small unguarded vessel, sitting out in the middle of the ocean and far from land. Ships in that position are nothing but prey to the Arabus. Pirates are nothing but greedy thieves, taking anything of value they can find, but they are also cowardly, always looking to pick on the smaller vessels so that they can always win. Disgusting.”
Rusty paused here, a dark expression washing over his face as he stared off into nothing. The Ponyville ponies waited a moment before Pip gave a cough to recapture Rusty’s attention.
“Huh, oh sorry. Just thinking back about some of Red Blades other… targets. Anyway, as to why he captured you. He said that he was going to put you and your little unicorn friend here to work, swabbing the decks and carrying around equipment. But for Miss…uh”
“Oh sorry, my name is Raindrops, and this is Dinky and Pip. Sorry we didn’t introduce ourselves before. Being captured and tied up by pirates doesn’t make for good introductions” the Pegasus answered a little sheepishly.
“Well Miss Raindrops, I believe he captured you because he wants you to become part of his crew. From what some of the crew told me, your strength and skill are very impressive and Red Blade wants that skill for his crew.”
“Well he can forget it. There is no way I will ever join a gang of crooks like Red Blade’s crew!” Raindrops growled, thoughts of breaking the smug Unicorn’s teeth flashing through her mind.
“Well you can tell him that yourself you overpowered freak, because he wants to have a little chat with you.” Seawing sneered as the Pegasus returned, carrying a tray of bread and water.
Raindrops, Rusty and the foals watched as the Pirate brought the food and place on the ground in front of them. As he rose again, the mare just glared at him.
“And why should I speak to that arrogant bastard?” Seawing just gave her a menacing smirk.
“Because if you don't, I'm gonna have a real fun time daggling those kids off the plank and feeding them to the Sharks.”
Author's Note
Wow, sorry this update took so long. I kinda lost my motivation for a while, but recently I have been getting back into the swing of things so expect faster updates in the future.
Just a quick note, the name Arabus comes from an old G1 villain. He was a cloud demon who devoured shadows, but was defeated by the flutter ponies. This detail will make some sense later on
