Fire and Frost: a Tale of Vengance

“Admiral Tide!” Frostbite greeted with urgency as he burst into his office, “I request permission to load the Crown’s Judgement with a few month’s provisions and hunt down the Sacrilegious Saint to bring her Captain to justice.”

Taken off guard, if only slightly, by the sudden appearance of Frostbite. Admiral Tide adjusted his rump on the small pillow he sat on and cleared his throat.

“Denied,” Tide replied in his whispery, old voice, “But both of us know that that’s not going to stop you from doing this, Captain,” Tide sighed, “In spite of knowing that, I still urge you to put your brain before your heart, logic before emotion. That is what they still teach at the academy, isn’t it?”

“And who is to say that this is not logic?” Frostbite countered, “Powder Burn is a villainous, bullying thief who has long overstayed his welcome in life. He must be brought to justice, he must be stopped!”

“And usually his kind is,” Tide asserted, gesturing to the window, showing a view of the sea, “Pirates only ever attack when we send ships without a decent contingent of guards. They’re cowards and that’s good for us.

“But Lieutenant Overcharge deliberately went out there without a decent form of defense to bait that pirate into attacking to take him on by himself,” Tide paused for a short moment, letting the statement sink in, “I apologize for saying this, but he and Captain Prow got whatever was coming to them by ignoring logical reasoning and relying on emotion to deal with a heartless world. It was a foalish endeavor and anything around the lines of ‘pirate hunting’ is as well. When it comes to this, the best offense is a powerful defense.”

“Admiral, with all due respect we cannot simply sit around and let such a vile deed as this go unpunished!” Frostbite retorted, a flash of anger in his voice, “We can’t just—”

“Search your feelings, Captain,” Tide cut in, “And tell me: are you doing this because you really think it’s worth your valuable time? Or is it because he was your brother-in-law and you let him go through with this?”

Frostbite was suddenly quiet, deathly quiet. A slight chill began to engulf the room.

“Temper check, colt!” Tide roared with the sudden yelling quality of a drill sergeant.

Frostbite flinched, the chill quickly leaving the room as the Captain turned away, “Apologies, Admiral.”

Tide cleared his throat again, rubbing at his throat, “No fault, Captain. Happens to the best of us from time to time.”

“I am not convinced, though,” Frostbite said, the calmness the Equestrian Royal Guard was known for back in his tone, “that this is not a worthwhile endeavor. Even...even if it is vengeance, it is most certainly well earned! The Land and Sky Guards would certainly hunt down such a villain as Powder Burn if he committed such an atrocity as he has under their jurisdiction.”

“True, but in our case it’s different,” again Tide let his gaze fall to the window and seas that they showed, “The oceans are vast and deep,” Tide leaned forwards where he sat, turning back to Frostbite, “Think about this for a moment...how do you think you’ll catch this pirate? The Pride was carrying a large haul, Powder Burn has surely gone to ground and will remain there until he needs to replenish his stores.

“We’ve searched for wherever those fiends go to ground for nearly a century now with nothing to show for it but a plethora of lost vessels and souls. Unless you plan on finding wherever it is anytime soon then I suggest you drop this quest as per my request. At the very least take some time to think this over. Mourn the dead and inform their loved ones. Hear what your wife has to say, hear what his wife has to say. And if you find that then you must, then go, but not until then. Is that not too much to ask, Captain?”

Frostbite was quiet for a short moment. He opened his mouth as if to speak a few times, but promptly shut it before he said anything.

“I...suppose that is a fair proposition, Admiral,” Frostbite finally admitted.

“Thank you, Captain,” Tide thanked with a sigh, muttering as Frostbite left: “I hope those mares talk some sense into you…”

<~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~>

The Crown’s Judgement was ready to sail by the time Frostbite got back, making his way down the dock and to his magnificent ship. His crew waited at their stations, prepared to cast off at a second’s notice.

“Bearing or destination, sir?” a Guard asked as Frostbite made his way up the gangplank.

Frostbite flinched, as if roused from deep thoughts, before turning his gaze to the Guard and raising his voice for all to hear.

“Belay my previous orders, get back to your normal duties,” Frostbite called out, “I have some quick errands to attend to. In the meantime, Lieutenant Broadhead is in charge until I return!”

“Aye, Captain!” all present chorused, resuming their duties.

Another unicorn Guard, Lieutenant Broadhead, approached, a faint bit of curiosity breaking the normally stone-sharp features of an Equestrian Royal Guard. The Lieutenant was slightly larger than his Captain, his telescoping spear attached to the back of his armor.

“Captain?” he inquired in a deeper and far more cultured voice, a question in both eyes and tone.

“News from the Majestic Pride,” Frostbite replied, letting his eyes flicker to the deck, “And not the good kind. Admiral Tide tasked me with informing Star Light.”

“You didn’t take it well?” Broadhead asked, more to confirm than anything else.

“Am I wrong to seek out Powder Burn?” Frostbite asked with a sigh, turning to the open end of Horseshoe bay, “Wrong to seek compensation—vengeance—for his crimes against civilization?”

Broadhead pondered on that for a moment, stony face hardly changing, hiding whatever thoughts he had within his skull.

“The...idea, in and of itself, of bringing justice to any villain is never wrong. Laws are meant to be followed and when they are broken it serves a bad example to let those who break them run free,” Broadhead finally replied, “If you are asking if I will stand by you if you choose to pursue him, then I am.”

“However,” Frostbite stated knowingly.

“However,” Broadhead continued, “It would be unwise to squander Navy resources. We don’t know where the villain is, nor do we have a decent plant of catching him. It would be far more efficient to let him come to us rather than vice versa. His kind must leech off the riches of others and if we can better guard those riches, for which we can too benefit monetarily, it would be far more efficient. Hay, deprive him of those riches long enough and he will be forced to fight if he wishes to maintain some form of control over his underlings.”

“A good point,” Frostbite noted, watching a flock of gulls pestering a dockside merchant, “I shall return soon, keep the ship afloat while I am gone, will you, Lieutenant?” Frostbite said, turning a faint smile to Broadhead.

“I shall try my best, Captain,” Broadhead replied, returning the smile with a nod.

“There’s a good colt,” Frostbite said, making his way back down to the docks and heading back towards the mass of Baltimare.