The Valiant

Book I: The Crucible

Chapter 1: Meeting an old friend

  "Damn the Lunar guns! All ahead full!" -Admiral Blueblood, of the SES battleship Blue Mountain, during the battle of North Point strait.

In the area of the grand sea, once known as the Poncific ocean, there were four very, very important islands. Four islands, and they were all within three hundred nautical miles of each other. Such a grouping was incredibly rare on Gaia. For the average exploration fleet, they were often times lucky to find one island every few thousand nautical miles. Let alone four all together.

  Obviously, whomever controlled the four islands had a veritable fortress on their hands. Currently, two factions, possibly the two largest, though it was debatable, controlled the islands, using them as farms, and trading ports. A year ago, these two factions were at war, but had finally declared a cease-fire. Thus had ended a rather bloody fifteen year war. Massive amounts of ships had been sunk or scuttled on both sides, until the battle came to a head at a spot on the sea named the northern strait. There, a New Lunar Republic armada, led by the newly promoted admiral Stormy Wynters, held it's own against a Solar Empire armada three times it's size, headed by admiral Blueblood, Princess Celestia of the Solar Empire's nephew. His flagship was sunk in the battle, and he went the way of his ship- to the bottom of the ocean. Thus, both Celestia and Luna negotiated an uneasy truce, which stands to this day.

   Upon this tense situation came the SS Poseidon, a Germane mark 717 U-boat. The Poseidon was armed with twenty torpedo tubes, ten on either side, a single 30mm anti-aircraft gun, which was placed above the crow's nest, and two deck guns. The deck guns had been specially ordered by the captain- Krupp Naval Arms 17.5 centimeter rifled cannons, with an operational range of just over three nautical miles.

    From the bridge, the Poseidon's Captain, an alicorn mare, viewed the islands through the periscope. "Seems to be several Lunar and Solar ships, of military and civilian make... Helmsmare?"

   "Aye, Captain?" The helmsmare, a Pegasus, saluted.

   "Surface the sub. We don't want to scare the solars or the lunars."

   "Aye-aye captain!"

Once surfaced, the U-boat continued on it's course, towards the islands. The captain, and her first mate stood in the crow's nest, on the ledge just below the AA gun, that wrapped around the entire crow's best tower.

   The captain's first mate put forth a question. "Uhm, Twilight, why are we headed into the Crucible? Our supplies and diesel levels are fine, and we don't have any jobs that send us here."

   Captain Twilight Sparkle lowered her binoculars, and turned to her first mate. " Well Spike, we're entering the Crucible to meet with a good friend of mine. He sent me correspondence through my radio telegraph, and...He thinks he's onto something big."

   "Oh? How big?"

   "Take on a fleet big." The drake paused, and blinked twice.

  "Are you implying-?"

   She cut him off. "No. I'm not implying anything. This could just be a wild albatross chase, after all."

    Spike shrugged. "Whatever you say, Twi."

  As the U-boat entered the massive central bay created by the four islands, a plain, light blue flag was run up the flagpole. The light blue flag signified neutrality amongst all factions, so as that no pony save pirates would bother the U-boat. Thus, once the U-boat came into contact with another ship- A lunar battleship- the U-boat was left alone.

   In the middle of the Crucible, as the islands were nicknamed, was a floating dry-dock platform, where ponies could dock for repairs, re-armament, resupply, or relaxation at the dock's bar. Twilight had the Poseidon docked here, and she, along with Spike and her head gunner, also a Pegasus, went to the bar for information.

   The bar was packed with Gaians of all nationalities. There were Minotaurs, Diamond Dogs, New and Old crystal imperials, Lunars, Solars, hay, there were even a couple changelings. However, one pony in particular was who Twilight was looking for. Her two crew mates followed her, as the three sat down in a corner booth, across from a Lunar Pegasus stallion.

   "Captain Twilight Sparkle, formerly Rear admiral Sparkle of the Solar Empire's fourth Armada. Dishonorably discharged due to a retreat against orders during to battle of North Point. Good to see you." The stallion introduced, off-handedly.

   Captain Thunderlane, formerly the dread pirate Storm Cloud, King of all pirates. Disowned by pirates and factions alike due to the Southern Sea." Twilight returned, evenly.

   There was a small pause, and then grins broke out amongst all four ponies' faces. "Ahh how are you doing you old horse you?" Thunderlane joked, sipping at a glass.

     "Fairly well. You know Spike, but this is my new Gunnery Master, Lighting Dust." The opal mare shook the ex-pirate's hand.

    "A pleasure." Thunderlane smiled, genuinely.

   Twilight cracked her knuckles. "Alright, let's get down to business. You said..." She looked around, and lowered her voice. "You said you found something big?"

  He whispered as well. "Aye. Ever heard of the SES Valiant ship?"

    "Can't say I have."

   He leaned in even closer. "She's a Homeship."

   Twilight froze, and stared at the now grinning stallion.

    She shook her head clear, then stared hard at the stallion. "My ship. Now."

   Once in Twilight's private office, Thunderlane sat down across from the mare. "Ok, 'Lane, what's up?"

    "Aside from the obvious? She's better than Celestia's Radiant. Two point nine kilometers long, five thousand, six hundred milimeters of armor on the deck, and it's got four fifty-five inchers; two on each end. Not to mention two forward torpedo tubes, several depth charge stations, no less than forty AA batteries, and twelve thirty-one inch guns."

   "And you know this how?" Thunderlane opened his satchel, and placed on Twilight's desk a large, rolled up graph paper, with the ship's design specifications on it.

    The stallion leaned over the desk. "I took my crew to where it's being built, up north. I estimate we have three months, and that we'll need a skeleton crew of five thousand to sail her and man the guns." He paused. "And she's guarded well, but..."

   "But what?"

   No guards on the ship itself, just unarmed engineers. And the defenses are all ocean-based. So, if we attack by land,"

   "We could take the ship, turn it's guns on the defenses, and sail out with a Homeship." Twilight finished."

   The pirate said nothing, but grinned widely. Twilight followed suit, her grin larger than his.

   As the Thunderlane returned to his ship, Twilight established radio contact with the stallion, on a secure frequency. "Testing, testing, this is the Poseidon."

   Thunderlane's radio operator replied back. "This is the Breaker, we receive you, over."

   Thunderlane's ship, the Wave Breaker, was an Artedeux "Tiger" class battleship, with a full complement of AA guns, and 25 inch rifled guns. They left the dry dock, and were nearly out of the Crucible, when a shell flew across the battleship's stern.

   Immediately, Twilighf's U-boat dived, and the two maneuvered to attack the enemy. It was a Griffonic battleship- Dreadnought class, armed with dangerous 33 inch smoothbore guns. The two battleships aimed their guns, and began to duke it out with each other, as Twilight's U-boat moved unseen through the water.

    The Breaker's guns roared, one shell busting through the ship's side, above the waterline. Then, inexplicably, the griffon ship detonated spectacularly, and Twilight's U-boat surfaced, having hit the Griffon's ammunition room.

  A Dreadnought was dangerous, but a U-boat, even more so. What really worried the two captains was why the Griffons had fired upon the battleship. According to Thunderlane, there was no reason for them to do so. It was...strange...

  And their troubles were only just beginning.