Pirates of Equestria

10: Devastation

Shining Armor walks about the deck of the schooner known as the Guardian Dove. It is a fine ship, clean and pristine, with glowing white sails. The sides are painted purple and blue with gold color trim. It is truly a beautiful ship, one worthy of royalty from the Crystal Empire. The prince still could not believe he has a ship such as this, but the Royal Coast Guard had insisted when he requested a ship for his mission.

“This ship will serve you well, sire. It is sleek and agile, perfect for scouting the oceans,” the Coast Guard had said. “She will serve you well. But be wary, pirates lurk these waters and such ships have fallen victim. The current feared pirate has been called the Demon Captain. He strikes quickly and leaves no survivors. Ships like this have little to no chance of survival should you encounter him.”

At the time, Shining had wondered why they had not given him a larger, more powerful ship. The Coast Guard had explained that their current force is spread thin due to the increased piracy and the new captain’s brutality. Lone ships are easy targets and are told to flee at all costs should they encounter the Demon Captain.

The prince looks about the deck at the ponies at work. Several Coast Guard ponies were about performing several tasks. The guards are on loan given the lack of naval experience on Shining’s part as well as his troops. Shining’s ponies would provide battle assistance in the event of boarding or being boarded, as was the method of combat used on the seas by the pirates who preferred to capture ships rather than outright destroy them.

Over the past two days, Shining had sailed the waters in search of the mysterious brig while Soarin and the other pegasi had searched by air. So far, there was no sign of any pirates, let alone the target ship and no report from the pegasus scouts. Perhaps they are laying low or they simply have not crossed paths yet. The seas are mighty vast with plenty of space to sail without seeing a soul.

Finally, the lookout cries out from the crow’s nest. “Ship ahoy, Sire! It appears to be a brig!”

Shining quickly takes a spyglass and scanned the horizon. He spots the ship, confirming that it is indeed a brig and searches for any colors to identify it. The masts bear dark colored sails but no flag is seen. Is it lost, abandoned, or something else?

The price shouts to the helmspony, “Head for that ship! We will see who they are and ask if they have seen the ship we seek.”

“Aye, Sir!”

The guard ship heads for the unknown vessel as Shining takes the spyglass again. He looks over the ship once more and begins to recognize some of its features. It bears a striking resemblance to a Coast Guard prison ship as well as the ship he saw at the port town. Worry takes hold as the lookout cries out again.

“It appears to be a prison vessel but there are no colors flying!”

“Proceed with caution!” Shining orders. “Stand ready and prepare for the worst.”

The ship closes in with surprising speed giving Shining little time to decide the best course of action. He takes another look through the spyglass to see the ponies aboard the other ship. None are Royal Coast Guard. He looks towards the top to see a black flag being raised. With a final look at the side of the ship the prince sees cannons roll out, giving him his only course of action.

“BRACE FOR IMPACT!” he shouts, seconds before the cannons roar.

Cannonballs tear across the deck and slam against the side. One poor pony is hit dead on and vanishes in a splatter of blood. The ship passes by as two smaller cannons take pot shots across the deck and side. The guard crew scrambles to positions, shaken by the sudden attack. Shining desperately tries to rally the ponies for a counterattack.

“Load all cannons! Bring us about and line up for a volley!”

The crew struggles to cope with the recent carnage and as such are slow to react. Shining watches the other ship circle around and line up for another barrage.

“BRACE!!!” Shining shouts, but his cry is drowned out by the roar of cannon fire.

Rigging snaps and sails are torn to shreds as the volley sails high. With the sails rendered useless, the Guardian Dove is dead in the water. The other vessel continues with pot shots as it comes about for a third volley. Once again Shining is unable to rally his crew. The other ponies run about in a vain attempt to save their lives. A few ponies begin jumping overboard to escape the coming onslaught.

With the other ship in line once more, it lets loose its third volley. The deck is torn apart and masts are snapped. The main mast tips and drops to the deck crushing one pony underneath. Shining looks over and sees one guard with a massive sliver of wood impaled in his side.

“Sire…help me!” the pony cries as he gasps for air and hacks up blood.

Shining rushes over, barely dodging the pot shots from the small cannons of the attacker. He lifts the pony up and drags him over to a small boat on board shouting a final order to the crew.

“Abandon ship! All hooves, ABANDON SHIP!”

After placing the impaled pony in the boat and climbing aboard, Shining uses his magic to hurl the boat into the water. The boat hit the water sending a shock through the prince, rattling his teeth. He searches around to see ponies scattered about the water amidst debris. He looks back at the Guardian Dove to watch the assaulting ship fire one last volley. Wood flies everywhere as a powder keg explodes, tearing a massive hole in the middle of the ship. With so much destruction, the schooner is unable to hold together and snaps in half before sinking to the bottom of the ocean.

The other ship passes by, giving Shining the chance to see the captain, his attacker. The pony captain stares down at the small boat from the helm. He wears a black coat and hat, each trimmed with gold color. His face is a dull orange and each one stares the other in the eyes. The prince instantly recognizes him. Sky Runner.

Shining watches in horror and disbelief as Sky sails about and commands a final volley at the field of debris before sailing off. The shots barely miss Shining’s small boat, yet he hardly notices them at all. When the adrenaline finally wears off, the prince notices he is sitting in something wet. He looks down expecting the boat to be leaking or flooding but finds a pool of blood from the impaled pony who now lies dead from his injuries. The prince stares off in disbelief into the distance even as Braeburn reappears. The settler pony had been lost during the chaos and fortunately only sustained minor injuries.

“Mister Prince Shinin’ Armor, Sir!” the settler pony shouts with no reaction.

Braeburn stays with the prince and the three other survivors until Soarin and his group arrive on the scene and rescue them. The settler pony briefs the Wonderbolt about what happened. Shining remains silent the entire trip back to the base, unable to contemplate the event that just took place. His old friend was now his enemy, and a ruthless one at that.