Chapters The next evening the tempertures were dropping, so being on deck was a bit chilly. I was prepared, tonight was a traveling night, I had dressed for traveling, disdaining a gown, and my big gamble to get Flash Sentry back. I waited outside a private lounge that would be perfect for my potentially dangerous and deadly game. The Captain and the purser had been very helpful in insuring that all guests and suspects arrived. Instead of eating in the grand dining room, we would be having dinner in this private lounge. Claude, our waiter still acted as our server. I waited outside checking off the list of special guests I had invited. The captain had wanted to post some extra guards, but I opposed, arguing that guards might scare away those who needed to be there most.
Checking my list (Captain Capella, Fleur de Lis, Fancy Pants, Skye, Jump Start, Maud Pie, Silver Soldier, Cream Pie, Clashing Thunder, Penny Thief, Obsidian Dusk, Midnight Song, Trixie, Fotinos, Viper Tail, and the director) once every pony was there, I entered the lounge. Trixie and Viper Tail were the first to address me.
“The great and powerful Trixie has a show to do” said Trixie
“Yes we do” echoed Viper Tail “it is part of our contract”
“Your contract will be kept” I said “you’ll just be a little late tonight. Please join us for dinner.”
The lounge had been set up with a long table instead of the round type found exclusively in the grand dining hall. Dinner again started with a crisp fresh salad. I introduce our special guests to the others;
“This is Viper Tail and Trixie” I said
“The great and powerful Trixie” interrupted Trixie
“And this is Fortinos and ‘the director’, our very special guest” I said ignoring Trixie’s interruption. “I wanted you all here to tell you something”
“At last” said Captain Capella “the end of this mystery”
“Not so fast” I said “Remember you charged me with finding Flash Sentry and retrieving him, not catching his abductors”
“What?!” exclaimed Captain Capella, as did some of the other guests
“Surely he is dead” said Fortinos
“Captain Capella” I stated forcefully “I have every confidence that you are the correct choice for being Captain of the ship and safely getting it to Manehatten.”
I paused to let that information sink in.
“So there is a danger?” asked Maud Pie
“Yes, but not what was thought to be” I said “First, Flash Sentry was here to investigate Captain Capella. He was not abducted to protect the Captain, but because he was interfering with another investigation.” Did Fancy Pants’ left eyebrow just twitch?
I continued “he was investigating whether the Captain could be trusted not to sink this ship”
“What? Why would I do such a thing?” asked Captain Capella
“Because you are a siren” I said
“What? How did you know?” he responded
“You yourself told me” I said “you said that this ship was unsinkable, not even the sirens of old could sink it. Add that to your name Antonia Capella or ‘Acapella’ and it would reinforce rumors that the threat of sirens has been encountered again”
“I would never sink this ship” said Capella
“I know, I have every confidence in you” I said “but some pony else didn’t. They sent Flash Sentry here to investigate you, unfortunately Flash was not the only one here to investigate you.”
“So the other investigators abducted Flash so he wouldn’t mess up their investigation?” Jump Start jumped in with his thought.
“Correct” I said
“So who are they?” asked Cream Pie readying a cream pie from out of nowhere as if to smash some pony.
“And what about the changeling?” asked Silver Soldier
“Changeling, what changeling?” asked Penny Thief
“Wait, what!” exclaimed Trixie “not only is there a siren here, but a changeling as well. The great and powerful Trixie is not amused”
“Please calm yourselves” I said “you wouldn’t want to do anything to upset the ‘changeling? She might get nervous again and make some pony disappear. I need her to save her strength and make me disappear in exactly the same way Flash vanished.”
“What?” exclaimed Clashing Thunder “She is here now? And you want her to get rid of you the same way she got rid of Flash?”
“Yes” I said “I’ll either catch up with you all later tonight or meet you in Manehatten”
“Wait, how can you be so sure?” asked Captain Capella
“Relax Captain” I said “I am a detective. Claude – turn off the lights”
The room darkened and the shutters let in no light from the outside deck. Unlike the previous event, there were no screams, but the green light recurred. Except this green light was all about me like a ball of flame.
The green flame bubble burst and I gradually got my bearings. I was lying on a deck of some kind. The sounds were different from the ship I had been on. There were some ponies standing around me, and a griffin too. One of the ponies was asking me something.
“Are you alright?” she said “I’m Captain Shimmer and I understand you had a negative encounter with one of my associates”
“Where is Flash?” I asked
“Right here” he said. He was standing with the others.
“Alright” I said “before you start explaining yourself and your actions, let me tell you what I know and you can fill in the blanks”
“This will be interesting” said the griffin
“Quiet” said Shimmer “Gilda, you and Dusty have patrol tonight. Flash would you take the helm, I think I need to have a private talk with …
“Com Hurri” volunteered Flash “the detective”
Shimmer escorted me to her private cabin. A modest room with charts and the typical stuff any pony might find in a Captain’s cabin.
“I’d offer you tea, but I think you might want something stronger to clear you head” offered Shimmer
“Yes, detective” she said “or should I call you Com Hurri?”
“Either” I said
“I hope you didn’t compromise our operation” she said
“I don’t think so, but I thought it was an investigation of Captain Capella” I said “as in Acapellla the siren”
“Yes, but that is only a small part of this” she said “What else do you know?”
“Why don’t you tell me?” I asked
“Because you said you would go first” she responded
“Oh, right” I said and remembered that I did. “Okay, I said I would start. So we are on an airship following Captain Capella and the flagship of the White Star line, so I should run for the railing and try to jump off.”
“Yes” she said
“Your associate, teleported Flash Sentry here when he compromised her investigation of Captain Capella” I said
“Yes” she said “she has a tendency to panic and make stupid mistakes”
“She seemed pretty smart to me, impersonating me to conduct her own investigation while knowing my agenda, unless” I suggested
“Unless” she parroted
“Unless she is part of a team and her smarter half helped her” I said
“Yes” she said
“She also had me find Fortinos and discover that I had a double aboard on purpose to misled me even more” I said
“Yes and no” she said “my team used your accidental discovery of Fortinos to our favor”
“You and your team are not investigators” I said “you’re?”
“Spies” she offered
“Spies?” I asked
“More to the point, counter spies” she said “we find out stuff and protect Equestria”
“So that is why Flash is now working with you?” I asked
“Yes” she said
“So when are you going to fill me in on the rest of the blank spots?” I asked
“After you tell me the rest of what you know” she said
“Like what?” I asked
“Like there are no accidental meetings and that you know who the changeling is?” she said
“Fortinos came to me” I said “and for discovering the identity of the changeling, the photos in my local paper, of the Canterlot wedding of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza / Shining Armor and the party guests told me that. Some pony was very conspicuous by her absence.”
“We were afraid that might happen” she said “but so far only you have seen it. You should feel very special that only you saw through it, even Flash doesn’t know”
“And you would like to keep it that way?” I asked “so you are going to throw me into the sea?”
“Yes, we would like to keep her identity a secret from Flash and no we are not going to throw you into the sea.” She said “you have already shown we can keep your confidence about this”
“Okay, so what is the real danger to the ship?” I asked
“An iceberg” she said
“But the ship will see it and turn away” I said “I know Captain Capella would not try to sink even though he is a siren”
“Oh, so you also found out he is a siren?” she said “but I also do not believe he is trying to sink the ship”
“Is that why some mysterious patron is paying for Trixie to have her fireworks every night off the bow of the ship?” I asked “To make the iceberg more visible?”
“It is a little thing I can do” she said
“How do you know?” I asked “How can you be so sure about the iceberg?”
“My name is Sunset Shimmer, oh, I see you know the name” she said “you know that Sunset Shimmer was once a student of Celestia, that she left Equestria and went to another world, only to return, and steal an element of harmony from Twilight Sparkle. What you don’t know is that I am not that Sunset Shimmer, I am the Sunset Shimmer of that other world who moved to Equestria, and now calls it my home.”
“So that gives you special knowledge about the future?” I asked
“No” she said “it just gives me special knowledge about a possible future for this world that has already happened in my world”
“That must be difficult to explain” I said
“Yes” she said “that is why I know your ship is in extreme danger from an iceberg”
“So when will it happen?” I asked
“I don’t know” she admitted “only that on her maiden voyage, the unsinkable flagship of the White Star line collided with an iceberg and that less than 800 survived”
“But there are almost 3000 aboard” I stammered “is this why your airship has been following us?”
“Yes, there is no guarantee that the event will reoccur” she said “but there is no reason not to”
“Reoccur!” I shouted “this is our world, it hasn’t happened yet, we can stop it”
“You think so?” she asked with a tear hanging in her eye
“Yes, I bet my life that your changeling would send me here to Flash and not to a watery grave” I said “I’ll bet we can stop this from happening here”
Lightning Dust’s knock upon the door of Captain Shimmer’s cabin knocked it off its hinges.
“Captain Shimmer, I’ve seen it” said Dusty
“Have they?” she asked
“No captain” said Dusty “they are not turning”
“What! We have to warn them” said Shimmer
“Yes” I said “I have to warn them”
“You?” asked Shimmer
“Captain Capella trusts me” I said “send Flash with me”
“I’m not that good at teleporting” said Shimmer “Flash will have to fly there”
“Okay” I said “now hurry, they don’t call me Com Hurri for nothing”
Would you like gin with your ice?
Getting teleported twice in the same day can be most distressing. Not only do your ears pop, but your bladder feels the urge to leak
And with that last ‘mam’ I was out of the crew quarters
I had to find the Captain or the bridge quickly. I raced to an upper deck and looked for the iceberg. I could not see it but I knew it was there. The stars were very bright and the air was getting colder.
I looked aft and up. Captain shimmer had abandoned her stealth mode. The airship flying lights were on and a spotlight was directed in front of us.
The last of Trixie’s fireworks were also flashing, yet again as I ascended the stairs I could not see any sign of an iceberg. Could I be wrong about Captain Capella, could he be using his siren song on us to hide the iceberg?
Above me Flash Sentry dived down to the ship. Trusting to his eyesight I followed him to the bridge, and arrived a few moments later.
“Calm down Flash” I said “Capella is on our side”
“But nothing is happening” exclaimed the exasperated Flash
“Calm yourself Sentry” said Captain Capella “and I’ll explain” then continuing the Captain said “Helm operation what was my last order?”
“Hard to port, reverse engines” said the helm pony
“And have you complied?” asked the Captain
“Of course Captain” said the helm pony
“But nothing is happening!” exclaimed Flash
“It takes a long time for a ship this big to turn” said Captain Capella “How much distance between us and the iceberg?”
“So you believe me?” asked Flash “about a mile”
“I see” said the Captain grimly, then ringing the claxton announced “ALL HANDS TO STATIONS, THIS IS NOT A DRILL, ALL HANDS TO STATIONS”
“How long will it take to turn?” I asked
“Too long” said Captain Capella
“We should be able to see it” said Flash
“I have a theory about that” said Capella “just as in a desert the heat creates a mirage of a body of water. Perhaps the cold does the exact opposite and removes from sight what is there”
I didn’t comment; my eyes were fixed on the compass, my whole being willed that needle to turn. Still the ship surged onward. Trixie had ceased her fireworks show, but Shimmer’s airship and her spotlight were fixed ahead of us and pointing at a doom we could not even see.
Did I imagine it or did the compass needle just move?
“Forward lookout reports iceberg straight ahead”
“I still can’t see it” said Flash
I wasn’t imagining it, the compass needle was moving. We were turning.
I glanced up, just in time and just like magic, the iceberg that wasn’t there came into view. Could something so small sink the ship? But wait, I know that most of it was under water, but what I had thought to be all of it – wasn’t. Still more of it appeared, growing bigger and bigger. This huge ship felt very tiny to me.
We were turning away but not quick enough. We were going to hit it. The Captain’s eyes were looking upon our doom with a deadly gaze as if he could melt it with a look.
I shuddered as I heard the iceberg scraping the hull of the steam ship like nails upon a black board. The piercing noise grated upon my ears as the ice tore through the metal ship. Whistles sounded in the bridge signaling damage from the different sections.
Screams could be heard coming from the communication tubes. As a section would report damage, Captain Capella would call for an evacuation of the affected area and a sealing of water tight doors.
“Section 3 compromised” came the first damage report. I could have left the bridge now that my job was done, but curiosity stayed my hooves.
“Section 5 compromised” came a second damage report. I understood that the ship had 14 compartments with the odd number ones on the starboard side. Beads of sweat gathered on Flash Sentry’s brow. Captain Capella, grim faced, listen quietly to the damage reports. I would latter learn of the quiet calculations he was making. How many lives would be lost? How many could be saved? Captain Capella knew that the loss of 4 or more sections would doom the ship.
“Section compromised” came a 3rd damage report. I wanted to ask what I could do, but I could see now was not the time to ask. Flash looked to me expectantly. I cautioned him to wait a little longer with a stern look, he took the hint.
The long moments dragged on.
The Captain bellowed “ALL STARBOARD SECTIONS REPORT”
“Section 1 secure” came the answer
“Section 3 taking in water, bilge pumps will be overwhelmed”
“Section 5 taking in water, bilge pumps overwhelmed”
“Section 7 reports flooding, pumps overwhelmed water tight doors secure
“Section 9 secure”
“Section 11 secure”
“Starboard engines room secure”
I heard a sigh of relief, was that the Captain’s or mine?
A month later, I was at a tea party at the estate of Fancy Pants. Fleur de Lis was serving me tea, imagine that, knowing what I know. Our other guests were Miss Pennyworth, and Sunset Shimmer. And a Professor Sump from the magic academy.
"I can't thank you enough Miss Hurri" said the professor "your actions saved the ship"
"Indeed" said Fancy Pants "we had a jolly good game of cat and mouse"
"Would you like some more tea?" asked Fleur de Lis. I noticed she had dropped her fake accent around me. So all the cards were on the table. It was time for my opening bid.
"I like working alone" I said
"Of course you do, deary" said Miss Pennyworth "but we can count on you to do some investigating for us?"
"Yes" I said "That is the requirements of my lease, is it not? Or at least until I can get a place of my own"
"Would this be sufficient?" asked Fancy Pants giving me a bag.
"YES" I said getting excited about the weight. "I could get my own place with this. Thank you so much"
"So could we ask you to do a small little job for us?" asked Miss Pennyworth
"Yes, for you Miss Pennyworth" I said "you can always ask"
"Good" said Miss Pennyworth "the white star has lost a book"
"The white star as in the White Star Line?" I asked
"Yes" said Professor Sump "that would be me. I wrote a book, sort of a welcome home present and it has been picked up by some pony who wasn't suppose to find it"
"Go on" i suggested
"I'm a bit enbar ... said the professor
"Oh, let me tell her" interrupted Sunset Shimmer "the book was for Nightmare Moon. It was a trap, one of many, made by the four stars to bewilder Nightmare Moon and enable them to manage her. Unfortunately it seems to have been given as a gift to a Miss Rarity in Ponyville. We would like you to get it back, or at least neutralize the trap aspect of it."
"I know Miss Rarity" said Fancy Pants "you'll find her charming"
"And the name of this book?" I asked
"Imagination Manifestation" said Professor Sump
I raced toward the back of the ship ignoring Trixie’s wonderful fireworks. It was difficult to race on the top deck so I ducked down a flight of stairs to a lower level. Still there were couples taking romantic walks to maneuver around and lounge chairs I had to jump.
The light from the fireworks provided a strobe light effect fiving the journey aft a high degree of difficulty. I had only moments to get there, but the ship was huge. At meters it was the largest ship at sea, ever.
My gown screamed a protest as my sweat started to mingle with the fabric. The gown told me to slow down or it would be ruined. So I dumped the dress on one of the deck chairs. It screamed that it was being abandoned, but I pressed on.
Speed was essential, I knew something now that I hadn’t realized before. I had to get to the back of the ship and see something that I would only be able to see during Trixie’s firework show.
At last, after dodging another romantic couple, I spotted the aft rail. I smiled in my gallop knowing that my race was almost over. I slid to a halt at the rail with glee. But NO, I was not at the aft rail. Several decks beneath me the aft deck continued toward the rail and the fireworks were just stopping. There would be no time to get there, but then I didn’t really need to go there anymore.
Some pony else was already there, - my prime suspects presence there confirmed my suspicions and the pieces of my little puzzle all feel together.
I ducked back into the shadows least they notice me. Sure I could confront them, have the Captain put them in the brig, but that wouldn’t get Flash Sentry back.
My next move would be very reckless and dangerous if I was wrong about my ideas, but my instinct told me I was right.
Only one thing left now to do, have a party.