Dark Clouds Over Yonderby CornerEngyChaptersChapter 1: Celestia's RequestChapter 2: Baltimare HarborChapter 3: En route to ColtallaChapter 4: Trouble on the shipChapter 1: Celestia's Request''I hope Princess Celestia is alright. Her letter just told us to come to Canterlot quickly. Hopefully the Changelings have not returned.'' Twilight muttered while she nervously paced back and forth in the train car. ''Relax Twilight. Most likely she just wants us to find some old artifact that she left somewhere ages ago and just now remembered.'' Rainbow Dash said to the nervous princess. ''I don't think the Princess would have sent for us all if it was just some old item that she wanted to find. There has to be some greater peril looming in the horizon.'' Twilight replied. She then took Celestia's letter from her saddlepack and read it out loud: ''Dear Twilight Sparkle. I require the presence of you and your friends in Canterlot without delay. I have a task I need you to carry out. It is an emergency. Princess Celestia.'' ''A task can be interpreted in many ways darling. Maybe she needs us to make a new royal dress for her and Princess Luna. Or maybe a new look for the Royal Guards. Or new curtains for the castle.'' Rarity listed with glee. ''Ah doubt the Princess would need all of us if all she wanted was some new designs.'' Applejack reminded. ''Yes, I guess that was just wishful thinking on my part. Canterlot is on the forefront of fashion anyways with ponies such as Sapphire Shores living there.'' Rarity sighed. ''And I don't think she meant planning a party either.'' She continued just as Pinkie was about to speak. The train started slowing down, and the ponies realized that they had arrived in Canterlot. As they exited a group of Royal Guards greeted them. ''Princess Twilight and companions. We were told to escort you to the castle as soon as you arrived.'' ''What has happened? Are Celestia and Luna okay?'' Twilight inquired. ''They are well Princess. But they are worried.'' ''Worried about what?'' ''I can't say. I was only told to get you to the castle as soon as you arrived. You will have to ask the Princess' themselves for the details. Now then, shall we go?'' Twilight nodded and started following the guards with her friends right behind her. The guards escorted the ponies all the way to the throne room. ''The Princess' are inside.'' ''Thank you.'' Twilight replied and opened the door. Inside Princess Celestia was sitting on her throne with Princess Luna right by her side. ''Twilight! I'm glad that you could come with such a short notice.'' Celestia said and walked over to meet her student. ''It was no trouble at all. I'm just glad to see that you and Princess Luna are okay. For a moment I had feared that Queen Chrysalis had returned, or something else had happened to the two of you.'' ''I am sorry for not telling you the details of this emergency in the letter, but I felt that it was best to tell you face to face.'' ''So what exactly is this emergency about?'' Applejack inquired. ''Earlier today Luna and I received a message from Baltimare informing us that one of Equestria's trading partners had cut off all trade with us and set up a trade block prohibiting goods to be transported to or from their land.'' Celestia explained to the ponies. ''And who is this trading partner? Saddle-Arabia? The Griffons?'' Rainbow Dash wondered. ''Neither of them.'' Luna replied. ''It is Coltalla, a rather small island kingdom in the north past the sea.'' ''Maybe they just had a change of leadership, and the new king wants to change the terms of the trading arrangement?'' ''That would be unlikely. Equestria and Coltalla have been trading partners for many years and all the kings who have been in power during those years have been more then satisfied with the trading. Coltalla's current monarch, King Ironheart, has actually been interested in expanding the trade, so it is more then alarming for something like this to happen.'' ''Do you suspect that someone has usurped the throne from King Ironheart?'' ''That is unfortunately very likely. We have heard some news from Coltalla that have been rather worrying. There have been numerous incidents that have happened all over Coltalla under very shady circumstances. And the local peacekeepers have been unable to find the culprits behind these incidents which has been very aggravating to the locals. And since the king is the their highest-ranking commander, we would not put it past them to storm King Ironheart's castle and take the throne from him in the event that they felt like he was lacking the power to keep his land safe.'' Celestia explained. ''So if I understand the situation, you need us to travel to Coltalla and investigate what is happening over there and, after we have found out the cause, try to fix whatever has happened?'' Twilight asked. ''You are correct.'' ''But why can't you or Luna go and sort this out? Why do you need us?'' Rainbow inquired. ''Unfortunately we have business here in Equestria that keeps us from leaving. Several ambassadors are scheduled to visit us and after all of them we have meetings and public appearances all around the land. Cancelling everything would be both troublesome and worrying.'' ''Don't worry Princess Celestia. We shall go and find out what is happening.'' Twilight reassured her mentor. ''Thank you. I knew I could count on you.'' Celestia asked a guard to bring her an inkwell, a quill and parchment. When brought to her she wrote something onto the parchment before handing it to Twilight. ''Take this letter and give it to a captain in the port of Baltimare. It decrees that you are to be taken to Coltalla without delay by any means necessary.'' Celestia also gave Twilight a pouch full of bits. ''This should cover any costs that should incur from the journey. Those costs include the possibility that you may need to convince a captain that it is worth their time and effort to bring you to Coltalla, but I hope you find someone who will take you there without asking too many questions.'' Twilight took the parchment and the bits, thanked Celestia and headed out with her friends. Their first destination was Baltimare Harbor and securing a ship for the journey. As Twilight and the others headed out, Celestia and Luna looked outside towards Coltalla. Much to their displeasure, dark clouds were forming in the distance. They both knew that something malevolent was happening in the island kingdom. Chapter 2: Baltimare Harbor''We will be arriving in Baltimare within the hour.'' The conductor announced as he moved through the train car. Twilight and her friends had boarded the first train to Baltimare as soon as they reached Ponyville. She had given Spike a long list of chores to keep him busy in the library while she was away, which the little dragon was not too happy about. He had begged to go with them, but Twilight told him to stay and keep the library clean and organized in her absence. Everypony else had also taken care of whatever business they had before departing. Applejack reminded Applebloom to do her homework and help Granny Smith and Big Macintosh at the farm, Pinkie had asked the Cakes if they would be fine for a while without her, Fluttershy got somepony to look after her animals, Rarity finished some pending orders and Rainbow had given Scootaloo one more flying lesson. ''So what's next Twilight? Are we gonna have a look 'round town first or head straight for the harbor?'' Applejack asked. ''Well, getting supplies before anything else is the most logical choice. Princess Celestia did mention that Coltalla was in the north, so we should be prepared for cold weather.'' ''I already took care of that.'' Rarity said as she took out six capes from her bag. ''One for each of us.'' She continued as she handed the capes to everypony. ''I should have known that you would come prepared. Next we should get some food for the journey. It will no doubt be a long trip.'' ''Ooh, ooh! I got something for us!'' Pinkie exclaimed as she took her bag and showed all the various cupcakes and sweets that she had in it. Applejack chuckled as she took out an apple pie from her bag. ''Looks like Pinkie and me brought enough food to last us for a while.'' Twilight sighed with relief. ''Since we have food and warm clothes that saves quite a lot of bits. We have no idea how expensive securing a ship will be.'' Once the train arrived at the station the ponies headed for the harbor. The sun was setting and Twilight had hoped that they could find a ship before it did. As they made their way to the harbor, they did buy the few odds and ends that might be useful. Once the ponies reached the harbor, they had to take a moment to take in how big it was. There were ships left and right. Big ships and small. Some were docking, others were loading up cargo and some were departing. There was one huge ship departing that had a whole lot of ponies waving it goodbye. On the deck of the ship were more ponies yelling their own goodbyes. As Twilight and the rest passed the ship and the crowd, she noticed that the ship was named Ponic. Further in the harbor there was a small ship getting ready to depart. On it a grey and white pegasus was moving stuff around. Twilight approached the ship and asked: ''Excuse me, but we are trying to find a ship that could take us to Coltalla. Is there a possibility that you might be able to do that?'' The pegasus looked at Twilight and shook his head. ''I'm afraid I'm heading into the opposite direction. Besides that area is very stormy and I don't think my little ship could handle storms like those. But good luck to you and have fair winds.'' Twilight thanked the pegasus and left him to his work. His ship, named E.S.S. Cousteau, was small but it looked like one would be comfortable in it if they were doing marine research or something like that. Even further in the gang found a big, sturdy looking ship into which ponies were carrying boxes and very heavy-looking crates. Near the workers a pony was shouting orders and various curses at them. Twilight figured that he must be the captain of the ship and approached him. ''Excuse me, but are you the captain of this ship?'' The pony glanced at Twilight with a sour look and replied with: ''I might be. Who's asking?'' ''My name is Twilight Sparkle. We were wondering if you might be heading out to sea soon?'' ''No, the ship is getting loaded just so the guys could have something to do.'' ''R-really?'' ''Of course not! The only reason I said that is because you are so moronic that you can't even tell if a ship is leaving or not.'' ''Oh. Well, you didn't need to be so rude about it.'' Twilight replied with a huff. ''I didn't, no. But I've had a long day, the guys are being whinier then usual, and then you show up asking stupid questions. So you'll have to just deal with my temper little miss Sparkle.'' ''Speaking of questions, you still have not answered Twilight's properly. Are you or are you not the captain of this ship?'' Rainbow Dash said. The pony sighed. ''Yes. I'm the captain of this ship, The Wavechaser. Name's Wind Jammer. Captain Wind Jammer.'' ''Well, ignoring the rough start we had, it is a pleasure to meet you Wind Jammer.'' Twilight said as she extended a hoof towards the captain. ''That's captain Wind Jammer.'' Wind Jammer replied and shook Twilight's hoof. ''Now did you actually need something or are you bothering me because you have nothing better to do?'' ''Well yes, we did actually need something. We are looking for a ship to take us to Coltalla and were wondering if you could take us on your ship?'' Wind Jammer stared at the ponies for a while. Then he simply said: ''No.'' ''Um, is there a specific reason why you can't take us?'' Fluttershy asked meekly. ''Yes. The simple fact that it's a long way to Coltalla, it is really stormy this time of year and I don't like you.'' Wind Jammer said and turned around. ''But don't worry. You can remember this day as the day when you almost got to ride on the ship of captain Wind Jammer.'' He continued while walking away from Twilight and the rest. ''But we are under orders from Princess Celestia herself!'' Rainbow said as she landed in front of Wind Jammer. ''Remind me to send her a letter of apology.'' Wind Jammer said as he walked around Rainbow. ''We can pay you!'' Twilight shouted. This made Wind Jammer stop and turn around. ''How much?'' Twilight took out the bag of bits. ''200 bits should cover all six of us.'' Wind Jammer laughed. ''For 200 bits I'll let two of you on the ship. So you'd better choose who goes and who doesn't.'' ''But 200 bits is like, a really big amount of bits! Why can't more then two of us get on the ship?'' Pinkie Pie asked. ''Simple. I'm greedy.'' ''Is there any way we can persuade you to take us to Coltalla?'' Applejack inquired. Wind Jammer looked at Applejack for a moment. ''Well, you could join me in my cabin...'' He said with a mischievous grin. ''...but I doubt that will happen, so no. Not unless you work for the trip.'' Twilight looked at her friends. They all nodded. They needed to get to Coltalla by any means necessary. ''Fine. We will work and in exchange you will take us to Coltalla without delay.'' Wind Jammer grinned. ''Then we have an agreement. He then took off his hat, revealing his horn. Wind Jammer then used his magic to yank the bag of bits from Twilight. ''Consider this a compensation for feeding and giving you a place to sleep for the next few days.'' He then ran up to his crew. ''Listen up you lot! We are getting a few extra hooves to help on the ship.'' He yelled whilst gesturing towards Twilight and the gang. ''Be sure to show them the ropes and make them feel welcome.'' The crew murmured for a while whilst making devious grins and licking their lips. ''They are also under orders from her highness the Princess, so hooves off!'' Wind Jammer yelled to his crew, who simply groaned with displeasure as they walked onto the ship. Wind Jammer then turned to Twilight. ''Ladies, your ship awaits.'' He said while bowing. The ponies didn't like his manners or those of his crew, but at least they now had a sip to take them to Coltalla. Chapter 3: En route to ColtallaIt had been two days now since Wavechaser had departed from Baltimare. Twilight and her friends had been given a small cabin to sleep in while on the ship. It was a tight fit, but all six of them managed to fit in. Sadly there were only four beds, so two of them had share a bunk. Rarity offered to share a bunk with Applejack, who politely refused, remembering what had happened at Twilight's library during their sleepover. In the end Rarity and Fluttershy got their own beds while Twilight and Applejack share one bunk and Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie shared the other one. During the day they had been given various jobs to do to earn their keep. Rarity was given the task of repairing the sails. While glad to work with fabric, she was much less enthusiastic when she found out that she'd be working while the sails were in use. This meant that she had to climb up with all of the supplies and work in less then ideal conditions. Pinkie Pie was put work in the galley. Wind Jammer introduced her to Wavechaser's cook Mutton Chop, who was an earth pony with a brown coat, black mane, a large build and one hell of a temper. It wasn't long after Pinkie had started working that she started singing a merry little tune. She stopped soon though as a knife flew past her head into the wall. Mutton Chop growled and stated that if she insist on singing, she can jump off and go sing with the Seaponies. But in his kitchen ponies didn't sing, they worked. He also added that if he heard so much as a note, he'd aim better next time. Fluttershy was sent to the sickbay where she would be assisting the ship's doctor, a griffon by the name of Darius. Unlike other crew members, Darius was much more open and hospitable. He talked a great deal with Fluttershy and showed her some tips on how to better treat the sick and injured. Fluttershy wondered why Darius was the only griffon aboard the Wavechaser, but thought that it'd be too rude to ask about it. Rainbow Dash was sent to the crow's nest to keep a lookout. She shared this job with another pegasus, a youngster named Calm-Before-Storm. He was exited to finally have someone to talk to while up in the nest, and the fact that it was a pretty lady as well made it even better. Rainbow herself was less enthusiastic about the whole thing, but gritted her teeth and went along with it. After all, this was the only way they could get to Coltalla right now. The ponies had asked Wind Jammer if he knew anything about Coltalla's current situation. He had told them that all access to the island had been cut off, and that there were constant patrols to prevent any and all entry be it by sea or air. This was unpleasant news to Rainbow especially since she would have rather flown to Coltalla then having to take a ship. Applejack had been instructed to go below deck and into the cargo hold. There she was introduced to a unicorn who was hard at work moving, securing and inspecting the cargo. Wind Jammer told Applejack that he was known as Storage Unit. The unicorn was glad to have an additional pair of hooves to help him and it didn't take long for Applejack's strength and tenacity to impress Storage. Twilight's job was in the captains cabin with Wind Jammer. She was to assist him in plotting a course to Coltalla and anything else that he needed help with. While Wind Jammer knew the way, he wanted to know if Twilight had any ideas or suggestions. Twilight was unfamiliar with navigation, but she had read a few books about it. This proved useful and it didn't take long until the two of them had figured out a more or less optimal route to the island kingdom. Being in the captain's cabin made it possible for Twilight to ask all sorts of questions from the captain. ''So Wind Jammer, how long have you been sailing?'' Twilight asked. ''Close to five years. Two of those as the captain of the Wavechaser.'' Wind Jammer replied, not even looking up from the map laid out on the table. ''Have you always been on the Wavechaser or did you serve on some other ship before this?'' ''This lass has been home to me for as long as I have been at sea. So no, I have not been on any other ship other then very briefly.'' ''Who was captain before you?'' Wind Jammer looked up from the map and groaned. ''I sincerely hope that you aren't going to keep asking me questions for the entire trip Miss Sparkle. Because if you are, there's room in the brig.'' ''I'm sorry if I'm bothering you. I just want to know what our captain is like.'' Twilight explained. Wind Jammer chuckled. ''You are not formally a part of my crew, so you don't need to refer to me as 'your' captain. Just captain will suffice.'' ''Understood, captain.'' Twilight said with a chuckle. ''To answer your previous question,'' Wind Jammer said as he turned around towards the windows, ''the last captain was a tough old pegasus called Thunderstorm, or as most of the crew and his enemies knew him, 'The Eye of the Storm'.'' ''Where did he get a nickname like that?'' Twilight inquired. ''Two things. First, he only had one eye. He had lost the other eye to the beasts that roam the oceans. Secondly, he would always attack his targets during a storm.'' ''Did he cause the storm or did it come from somewhere else?'' ''Most days he did it with some of the other pegasi on the ship. But sometimes, just to prove that he still could, he raised such a storm that it often sunk a ship before they could get to it.'' Wind Jammer said with a hint of a smile. ''Wait, he caused storms and attacked ships? Are you telling me that he was a pirate?'' ''That is exactly what I'm telling you Miss Sparkle. Thunderstorm was one pirate you did not want to come after you. Every time he chose a target for us he made sure it was the fattest one possible. Made me real proud to be a part of his crew.'' ''So you've been a pirate before as well.'' ''I never said I quit.'' Wind Jammer pointed out. Twilight was about to inquire further, but she was cut off by Mutton Chop yelling everypony to come and eat before he threw it overboard. Wind Jammer told Twilight to get something to eat and then she could retire for the night. Before she could respond, Wind Jammer used his magic to push the alicorn out of his cabin. Twilight resolved to find out more about Wind Jammer, and tomorrow was another chance. Early the next day Twilight entered the captain's cabin. Inside she found Wind Jammer sharpening a sword. ''You're here early.'' The unicorn muttered. ''Best to start work early so we can be done sooner.'' Wind Jammer smiled a bit. ''I guess that's true.'' He put the sword away and looked at Twilight. ''Am I right to assume that you are going to ask me more questions today?'' ''If you are willing to answer them.'' Twilight replied. ''I suppose it's the best way to get you to work.'' Wind Jammer said with a sigh. ''So, what did you want to know?'' ''Yesterday you mentioned that you were a part of the crew when Thunderstorm was captain, and that you had not quit being a pirate.'' ''That I did. And it is true.'' ''Why are you still living the life of a pirate?'' ''The thrills, the spoils and the open sea. They are all I need.'' ''You don't want more from life?'' ''I'm quite happy where I am now Miss Sparkle. I am in no hurry to retire.'' ''That's another thing that has been bugging me. Why do you keep calling me 'Miss Sparkle'? Simply calling me Twilight works just as well.'' ''I may be a pirate, but I am not without manners. Guess that's one thing that stuck with me from childhood.'' ''You had strict parents?'' ''Miss Sparkle, you have no idea.'' Twilight was about to ask another question, but Wind Jammer shut her up and pointed out that they had work to do. After working for a good while and having lunch afterwards, the two returned to Wind Jammer's cabin. Twilight saw that she now had another chance to ask Wind Jammer about his past. ''Tell me captain, what was your childhood like?'' Wind Jammer glared at Twilight. ''I may be willing to answer some of your questions Miss Sparkle, but not all of them. That's one question that I will not answer.'' Twilight was about to ask for a reason for this, but decided not to after she saw the unicorn reaching for his sword. ''I understand. How about you tell me more about the old captain. Thunderstorm was it?'' Wind Jammer calmed down and smiled a bit. ''I'll be happy to tell you more about the greatest pirate I ever met.'' ''What happened to him? Where is he currently?'' Wind Jammer's smile turned into a mournful frown as he turned his head away from Twilight. ''He is where the wind decides to take him next.'' ''He retired?'' ''He was forced to retire. But he didn't like the idea of it.'' ''What persuaded him?'' ''Cold steel through the chest is surprisingly effective at changing opinions.'' ''He was killed!?'' ''Yes.'' ''How?'' ''Mutiny on the ship. Some of the crew felt like he was too old to be captain and they were afraid that he was losing his sight as well.'' ''So they killed him.'' ''Well, yes and no. He died because of the mutiny, but he was not killed by one of the mutineers.'' ''One of the men loyal to him killed him then?'' ''Yes.'' ''Where is this pony now? Is he imprisoned? Or was he killed afterwards?'' ''He has his own ship nowadays. Last I heard of him he was taking some ponies to some secluded kingdom or something like that.'' Twilight gasped, but before she could say anything a pony ran into the cabin. ''Captain! Come quick! It's a mutiny!'' Chapter 4: Trouble on the shipTwilight followed Wind Jammer as he ran out of his cabin and onto deck. A mob had gathered there, and they were armed as well. ''What's the meaning of this!? Why are you not at work!?'' Wind Jammer yelled at the mob. ''We are done taking orders from you! It was bad enough when you took over and started going after small fries instead of the big fish, but now you take passengers as well!? You are turning this proud ship into a husk of her former self!'' A muscular pony shouted. ''Deep Blue. Once again spearheading a mutiny. You really should have become captain yourself two years ago instead of having me shoulder that burden.'' Wind Jammer said as he walked down to meet the mob. ''I'm not captain material. Or so I once thought. But after recent events, after you let a target escape since there were sick and injured on board, I have begun to think otherwise. Old Thunderstorm always sunk a ship rather then let one go, but you are too kind. You always have been.You should've been replaced after the first couple of raids we did. But we kept hoping that Old Thunderstorm's little prodigy would rise to the challenge. How wrong we were.'' ''Captain Thunderstorm may have tutored me, but he knew that he'd have to stay as captain for quite a while before I would've been ready to take the mantle. But you were too impatient. You saw that he was growing older and becoming fragile. So you took the opportune moment and staged a mutiny to end his run as captain.'' ''I did start a mutiny, yes, but I didn't kill Thunderstorm. You did.'' Wind Jammer pounded the deck. ''Shut up!'' ''Why? I'm just telling things as they are. You killed Thunderstorm during the mutiny. If you don't remember, I'd be happy to remind you.'' Deep Blue said with a devious smile. ''Shut up! Shut the hell up! I do remember! There is no need to tell that story!'' ''Why not? I'm sure our passengers would like to know what happened.'' Deep Blue said and cleared his throat. ''Two years ago, during the last mutiny, we had gathered in this very same place for the very same reason. Funny how history repeats itself, eh? During that time, you drew your sword to stand with Thunderstorm. You wanted to help. But what help were you, a whelp still wet behind the ears? All your bravado managed to accomplish about was the death of Thunderstorm. You ran him through with your sword. His blood is on your hooves.'' ''Be quiet!'' Wind Jammer cried out. ''That was the moment when we mutineers saw a glint in your eyes. We saw the fire inside of you that Thunderstorm had once held inside of him. That is why we made you into the captain. We wanted to see that small fire to grow into a raging inferno. But you doused the fire before it had a chance to grow. During these last two years we hoped that it might reignite within you, but we see now that it was foolish to hope for a miracle.'' ''I never meant to kill Thunderstorm! He jumped in front of my blade! My blade was meant to pierce your chest, not his!'' Wind Jammer yelled. ''Why would he have jumped in to protect me?'' ''I don't know! Maybe he hoped that you'd see reason and stand down.'' ''In time I may have realized what he was doing, but you didn't really give him a chance to explain his actions. You charged at me, and the price of that was Thunderstorm's life. Your recklessness does make me wonder though, did you even like him? What was he to you?'' ''He was like a father to me! More then my own father ever was!'' ''And yet he died because of you.'' Twilight could see that Wind Jammer was in agony, and she wanted to help him stop this. If the mutiny kept going and they replaced Wind Jammer with somepony else, then she and her friends would be thrown overboard without a second doubt. And there was no way they could swim to Coltalla. So Twilight leapt in and stood between Wind Jammer and Deep Blue. ''This has gone on long enough! There is no point to this fight. Once we reach Coltalla, you won't have to look at us any longer. We can get another ship to take us back home. And you can go back to being pirates.'' Twilight said as she stood defiantly between the two. Deep Blue looked at the princess for a moment. He then let out a chuckle. ''Now Princess, things work differently out here on the open sea. We solve conflicts like this as they arise. If we didn't, we'd never reach a port since the crew would be split two ways.'' He explained. ''Also, you may be a princess, but out here your title means absolutely nothing. We follow the rules of the sea, not the orders of a little alicorn.'' Deep Blue added as he approached Twilight. Twilight started to back away from Deep Blue. He was big, probably bigger then Big Macintosh, and he clearly had no respect for her or any authority she held. That was when Wind Jammer planted a hoof into Deep Blue's face. ''I have had quite enough of you and your guilt trips! We will end this now!'' He said and drew his sword. ''It's true. It's true that my sword was the one that went through Thunderstorm's chest. It's true that I killed him. I wanted to forget that. There has not been a single day since then that I didn't regret what I did.'' Wind Jammer swung his sword around to make the mob behind Deep Blue retreat a bit. ''But no more. It's time I face my past. It's time I forgive myself and get rid of the one thing that keeps using my past against me. It's time I get rid of you.'' He said as he pointed his sword towards Deep Blue. Deep Blue shook his head to recover from Wind Jammer's punch, after which he drew his sword. ''I can see it.'' ''See what?'' ''The spark I saw the last time we were here. I can see it again, and it's growing. You are finally becoming the captain you should've been all along.'' ''Well I'm glad that you get to see your wish come true. I guess even those about to die deserve to see something nice before death takes them.'' Deep Blue started to laugh. ''Boy, I hope you have been practicing. Because I am going to be testing your mettle to see if you will once again extinguish that spark. For your sake, you'd better fight like a pony possessed.'' ''Oh I will. And I hope that you'll put up a decent fight to honor Captain Thunderstorm.'' ''Heh. For him, I most certainly will.'' ''You don't need to do this! You could-'' Twilight spoke out before she was stopped by Wind Jammer's sword pointing towards her. ''Miss Sparkle. Back off. I am only going to ask nicely this once.'' ''But-'' ''Unless you wish to have third eye on your forehead, I suggest you do as I say.'' Twilight looked at Wind Jammer and swallowed nervously before backing off from him. It was now clear to her that he had no interest in listening. But she was Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship, and Celestia's protégé. She knew she could end this conflict before things got too violent. She charged up her magic and prepared to freeze both pirates in place. But she only managed to make a few sparks before she felt a sharp pain in her neck, and then she felt her eyes clouding and her mind trailing. As Twilight fell unconscious, Darius caught her. ''I do apologize Miss Sparkle, but I'm afraid I can't have you interrupting this fight. Whatever you were planning might have ended with both of them living, but that would have been only a temporary solution. And right now we need a permanent one.'' Darius turned away from the fight and headed towards the doctor's cabin. ''Now hold on a moment!'' Applejack yelled as she and the others ran after Darius. ''What in tarnation did you do to Twilight?'' ''I used a trick that was once used to subdue unruly patients. A quick and precise poke to the right spot and they will be off talking with the Princess of the Night for a good few hours. And do not worry, she is unharmed. She may have a minor headache once she wakes up, but nothing serious.'' ''Where did ya'll even learn such a fancy trick?'' ''Miss Apple, please. I am a doctor on a ship full of pirates who are bound to cause trouble in one form or another. Knowing something like this is basically a mandatory skill.'' Wind Jammer glanced back to where Twilight had been standing not a moment ago. Darius had stepped in at just the right moment to prevent any harm from coming to her or her friends, and he was thankful to the doctor for that. ''What's wrong? Do you already miss your marefriend?'' Deep Blue asked mockingly. ''What's wrong with you? You haven't attacked me yet. Do you need more time to talk about your new residence with the Grim Reaper?'' Deep Blue grinned and charged towards Wind Jammer. The sound of steel meeting steel rang out as the two ponies crossed swords. Wind Jammer used his magic to hold onto his sword, which allowed him to move it around a lot more, while Deep Blue held his in his mouth. They blocked each others swings a few times, and the ones that connected did nothing more then flesh wounds. Both fighters were skilled with the sword, but Deep Blue held the advantage with more power and combat experience. ''We both know I'm the better fighter, but I have to admit that you put up a good fight when you need to.'' ''Shut up and fight you damn oaf.'' ''Hah! More and more like old Thunderstorm with each passing moment.'' Deep Blue laughed as he raised his sword up high and swung it down. Wind Jammer jumped back to avoid the blade, dodging it by a hair's width. He thursted his sword towards Deep Blue's leg in an attempt to throw him off balance by crippling him. Deep Blue however saw his attack coming and stepped to the side before tackling Wind Jammer and throwing him towards the mast. He followed up his charge with a slash and this one managed to tear through Wind Jammer's clothing and skin. While it was painful, Wind Jammer ignored it and lifted his sword up again, this time trying to pierce Deep Blue through the back. Deep Blue noticed what he was doing and swung around, hitting the floating sword with his own and throwing it overboard. He then turned back towards Wind Jammer only to get punched in the face again. ''That sword was Thunderstorm's old cutlass you arse.'' ''Doesn't mean a damn thing to me.'' Deep Blue said as he wiped blood off of the corner of his mouth. ''Well actually, it does mean something. It means that you now lack a weapon.'' Deep Blue swung his sword towards Wind Jammer's neck, but the captain ducked under the blade and landed an uppercut into Deep Blue's jaw. ''I am without a sword, yes, but I am not without a weapon.'' ''You're as clever as a seapony.'' ''And you are as dumb as a rock.'' Deep Blue charged in again, aiming to end the fight with a well aimed thrust. Wind Jammer jumped to the side to evade the thrust, but Deep Blue knew what he was trying to do and spun around and managed to put his blade through one of Wind Jammer's hooves. He cried out in pain and Deep Blue picked him up and threw him towards the mast. Wind Jammer hit it with a loud thunk and slumped down. At this point he was bleeding badly and had most likely several broken bones. Deep Blue walked up to him and laughed. ''You put up one hell of a fight. Had I not been on the ship for twice as long as you, you might've beaten me. But you did fight like a captain should fight, so I'll give you that. Now then, any last words before I send you to meet old Thunderstorm?'' ''A few, yes.'' Wind Jammer said weakly as he slowly stood up. ''Come closer. I think one of my ribs pierced a lung and it's hard to speak.'' ''Aye, captain.'' Deep Blue said mockingly as he leaned closer. ''Do you know how the ship works? Do you know how to use each and every part of the ship to the fullest?'' ''I know enough to pilot her.'' ''Well I know more.'' Before Deep Blue could reply, Wind Jammer used all the strength he still had to plant a hoof into his gut, causing him to cough and gasp for air as well as drop his sword. Wind Jammer then picked up the end of a rope, spun it around Deep Blue's neck and with a swift kick, he flipped a lever that caused a counterweight to drop and lift Deep Blue up towards the crow's nest. ''I know the ship inside and out! I know each weak point and how to keep them covered in a fight! I know how to use not only the ship's cannons as a weapon, but to use the ship herself as a weapon! As far as being a captain goes, I know much more then you do!'' Wind Jammer roared. Deep Blue struggled and tried his best to free himself, but the rope around his neck had become even tighter as he had been lifted up. Wind Jammer looked at the rest of the crew. ''If any on you have any problems with me being the captain, speak up! There is still room up there with Deep Blue!'' There were a few grumbles and murmurs, but nopony spoke up. ''Nopony? You are all satisfied then?'' Wind Jammer asked as he looked around. ''Good. Then keep the course towards Coltalla. We still have a long sail ahead of us.'' Wind Jammer started to slowly trot towards the doctor's cabin while Deep Blue kicked around for the last time before the last bit of air escaped from his lungs. With a final gurgle of pain, Deep Blue lost whatever resistance he might have still had and succumbed, dangling high from the mast for all to see.
Chapter 1: Celestia's Request''I hope Princess Celestia is alright. Her letter just told us to come to Canterlot quickly. Hopefully the Changelings have not returned.'' Twilight muttered while she nervously paced back and forth in the train car. ''Relax Twilight. Most likely she just wants us to find some old artifact that she left somewhere ages ago and just now remembered.'' Rainbow Dash said to the nervous princess. ''I don't think the Princess would have sent for us all if it was just some old item that she wanted to find. There has to be some greater peril looming in the horizon.'' Twilight replied. She then took Celestia's letter from her saddlepack and read it out loud: ''Dear Twilight Sparkle. I require the presence of you and your friends in Canterlot without delay. I have a task I need you to carry out. It is an emergency. Princess Celestia.'' ''A task can be interpreted in many ways darling. Maybe she needs us to make a new royal dress for her and Princess Luna. Or maybe a new look for the Royal Guards. Or new curtains for the castle.'' Rarity listed with glee. ''Ah doubt the Princess would need all of us if all she wanted was some new designs.'' Applejack reminded. ''Yes, I guess that was just wishful thinking on my part. Canterlot is on the forefront of fashion anyways with ponies such as Sapphire Shores living there.'' Rarity sighed. ''And I don't think she meant planning a party either.'' She continued just as Pinkie was about to speak. The train started slowing down, and the ponies realized that they had arrived in Canterlot. As they exited a group of Royal Guards greeted them. ''Princess Twilight and companions. We were told to escort you to the castle as soon as you arrived.'' ''What has happened? Are Celestia and Luna okay?'' Twilight inquired. ''They are well Princess. But they are worried.'' ''Worried about what?'' ''I can't say. I was only told to get you to the castle as soon as you arrived. You will have to ask the Princess' themselves for the details. Now then, shall we go?'' Twilight nodded and started following the guards with her friends right behind her. The guards escorted the ponies all the way to the throne room. ''The Princess' are inside.'' ''Thank you.'' Twilight replied and opened the door. Inside Princess Celestia was sitting on her throne with Princess Luna right by her side. ''Twilight! I'm glad that you could come with such a short notice.'' Celestia said and walked over to meet her student. ''It was no trouble at all. I'm just glad to see that you and Princess Luna are okay. For a moment I had feared that Queen Chrysalis had returned, or something else had happened to the two of you.'' ''I am sorry for not telling you the details of this emergency in the letter, but I felt that it was best to tell you face to face.'' ''So what exactly is this emergency about?'' Applejack inquired. ''Earlier today Luna and I received a message from Baltimare informing us that one of Equestria's trading partners had cut off all trade with us and set up a trade block prohibiting goods to be transported to or from their land.'' Celestia explained to the ponies. ''And who is this trading partner? Saddle-Arabia? The Griffons?'' Rainbow Dash wondered. ''Neither of them.'' Luna replied. ''It is Coltalla, a rather small island kingdom in the north past the sea.'' ''Maybe they just had a change of leadership, and the new king wants to change the terms of the trading arrangement?'' ''That would be unlikely. Equestria and Coltalla have been trading partners for many years and all the kings who have been in power during those years have been more then satisfied with the trading. Coltalla's current monarch, King Ironheart, has actually been interested in expanding the trade, so it is more then alarming for something like this to happen.'' ''Do you suspect that someone has usurped the throne from King Ironheart?'' ''That is unfortunately very likely. We have heard some news from Coltalla that have been rather worrying. There have been numerous incidents that have happened all over Coltalla under very shady circumstances. And the local peacekeepers have been unable to find the culprits behind these incidents which has been very aggravating to the locals. And since the king is the their highest-ranking commander, we would not put it past them to storm King Ironheart's castle and take the throne from him in the event that they felt like he was lacking the power to keep his land safe.'' Celestia explained. ''So if I understand the situation, you need us to travel to Coltalla and investigate what is happening over there and, after we have found out the cause, try to fix whatever has happened?'' Twilight asked. ''You are correct.'' ''But why can't you or Luna go and sort this out? Why do you need us?'' Rainbow inquired. ''Unfortunately we have business here in Equestria that keeps us from leaving. Several ambassadors are scheduled to visit us and after all of them we have meetings and public appearances all around the land. Cancelling everything would be both troublesome and worrying.'' ''Don't worry Princess Celestia. We shall go and find out what is happening.'' Twilight reassured her mentor. ''Thank you. I knew I could count on you.'' Celestia asked a guard to bring her an inkwell, a quill and parchment. When brought to her she wrote something onto the parchment before handing it to Twilight. ''Take this letter and give it to a captain in the port of Baltimare. It decrees that you are to be taken to Coltalla without delay by any means necessary.'' Celestia also gave Twilight a pouch full of bits. ''This should cover any costs that should incur from the journey. Those costs include the possibility that you may need to convince a captain that it is worth their time and effort to bring you to Coltalla, but I hope you find someone who will take you there without asking too many questions.'' Twilight took the parchment and the bits, thanked Celestia and headed out with her friends. Their first destination was Baltimare Harbor and securing a ship for the journey. As Twilight and the others headed out, Celestia and Luna looked outside towards Coltalla. Much to their displeasure, dark clouds were forming in the distance. They both knew that something malevolent was happening in the island kingdom.
Chapter 2: Baltimare Harbor''We will be arriving in Baltimare within the hour.'' The conductor announced as he moved through the train car. Twilight and her friends had boarded the first train to Baltimare as soon as they reached Ponyville. She had given Spike a long list of chores to keep him busy in the library while she was away, which the little dragon was not too happy about. He had begged to go with them, but Twilight told him to stay and keep the library clean and organized in her absence. Everypony else had also taken care of whatever business they had before departing. Applejack reminded Applebloom to do her homework and help Granny Smith and Big Macintosh at the farm, Pinkie had asked the Cakes if they would be fine for a while without her, Fluttershy got somepony to look after her animals, Rarity finished some pending orders and Rainbow had given Scootaloo one more flying lesson. ''So what's next Twilight? Are we gonna have a look 'round town first or head straight for the harbor?'' Applejack asked. ''Well, getting supplies before anything else is the most logical choice. Princess Celestia did mention that Coltalla was in the north, so we should be prepared for cold weather.'' ''I already took care of that.'' Rarity said as she took out six capes from her bag. ''One for each of us.'' She continued as she handed the capes to everypony. ''I should have known that you would come prepared. Next we should get some food for the journey. It will no doubt be a long trip.'' ''Ooh, ooh! I got something for us!'' Pinkie exclaimed as she took her bag and showed all the various cupcakes and sweets that she had in it. Applejack chuckled as she took out an apple pie from her bag. ''Looks like Pinkie and me brought enough food to last us for a while.'' Twilight sighed with relief. ''Since we have food and warm clothes that saves quite a lot of bits. We have no idea how expensive securing a ship will be.'' Once the train arrived at the station the ponies headed for the harbor. The sun was setting and Twilight had hoped that they could find a ship before it did. As they made their way to the harbor, they did buy the few odds and ends that might be useful. Once the ponies reached the harbor, they had to take a moment to take in how big it was. There were ships left and right. Big ships and small. Some were docking, others were loading up cargo and some were departing. There was one huge ship departing that had a whole lot of ponies waving it goodbye. On the deck of the ship were more ponies yelling their own goodbyes. As Twilight and the rest passed the ship and the crowd, she noticed that the ship was named Ponic. Further in the harbor there was a small ship getting ready to depart. On it a grey and white pegasus was moving stuff around. Twilight approached the ship and asked: ''Excuse me, but we are trying to find a ship that could take us to Coltalla. Is there a possibility that you might be able to do that?'' The pegasus looked at Twilight and shook his head. ''I'm afraid I'm heading into the opposite direction. Besides that area is very stormy and I don't think my little ship could handle storms like those. But good luck to you and have fair winds.'' Twilight thanked the pegasus and left him to his work. His ship, named E.S.S. Cousteau, was small but it looked like one would be comfortable in it if they were doing marine research or something like that. Even further in the gang found a big, sturdy looking ship into which ponies were carrying boxes and very heavy-looking crates. Near the workers a pony was shouting orders and various curses at them. Twilight figured that he must be the captain of the ship and approached him. ''Excuse me, but are you the captain of this ship?'' The pony glanced at Twilight with a sour look and replied with: ''I might be. Who's asking?'' ''My name is Twilight Sparkle. We were wondering if you might be heading out to sea soon?'' ''No, the ship is getting loaded just so the guys could have something to do.'' ''R-really?'' ''Of course not! The only reason I said that is because you are so moronic that you can't even tell if a ship is leaving or not.'' ''Oh. Well, you didn't need to be so rude about it.'' Twilight replied with a huff. ''I didn't, no. But I've had a long day, the guys are being whinier then usual, and then you show up asking stupid questions. So you'll have to just deal with my temper little miss Sparkle.'' ''Speaking of questions, you still have not answered Twilight's properly. Are you or are you not the captain of this ship?'' Rainbow Dash said. The pony sighed. ''Yes. I'm the captain of this ship, The Wavechaser. Name's Wind Jammer. Captain Wind Jammer.'' ''Well, ignoring the rough start we had, it is a pleasure to meet you Wind Jammer.'' Twilight said as she extended a hoof towards the captain. ''That's captain Wind Jammer.'' Wind Jammer replied and shook Twilight's hoof. ''Now did you actually need something or are you bothering me because you have nothing better to do?'' ''Well yes, we did actually need something. We are looking for a ship to take us to Coltalla and were wondering if you could take us on your ship?'' Wind Jammer stared at the ponies for a while. Then he simply said: ''No.'' ''Um, is there a specific reason why you can't take us?'' Fluttershy asked meekly. ''Yes. The simple fact that it's a long way to Coltalla, it is really stormy this time of year and I don't like you.'' Wind Jammer said and turned around. ''But don't worry. You can remember this day as the day when you almost got to ride on the ship of captain Wind Jammer.'' He continued while walking away from Twilight and the rest. ''But we are under orders from Princess Celestia herself!'' Rainbow said as she landed in front of Wind Jammer. ''Remind me to send her a letter of apology.'' Wind Jammer said as he walked around Rainbow. ''We can pay you!'' Twilight shouted. This made Wind Jammer stop and turn around. ''How much?'' Twilight took out the bag of bits. ''200 bits should cover all six of us.'' Wind Jammer laughed. ''For 200 bits I'll let two of you on the ship. So you'd better choose who goes and who doesn't.'' ''But 200 bits is like, a really big amount of bits! Why can't more then two of us get on the ship?'' Pinkie Pie asked. ''Simple. I'm greedy.'' ''Is there any way we can persuade you to take us to Coltalla?'' Applejack inquired. Wind Jammer looked at Applejack for a moment. ''Well, you could join me in my cabin...'' He said with a mischievous grin. ''...but I doubt that will happen, so no. Not unless you work for the trip.'' Twilight looked at her friends. They all nodded. They needed to get to Coltalla by any means necessary. ''Fine. We will work and in exchange you will take us to Coltalla without delay.'' Wind Jammer grinned. ''Then we have an agreement. He then took off his hat, revealing his horn. Wind Jammer then used his magic to yank the bag of bits from Twilight. ''Consider this a compensation for feeding and giving you a place to sleep for the next few days.'' He then ran up to his crew. ''Listen up you lot! We are getting a few extra hooves to help on the ship.'' He yelled whilst gesturing towards Twilight and the gang. ''Be sure to show them the ropes and make them feel welcome.'' The crew murmured for a while whilst making devious grins and licking their lips. ''They are also under orders from her highness the Princess, so hooves off!'' Wind Jammer yelled to his crew, who simply groaned with displeasure as they walked onto the ship. Wind Jammer then turned to Twilight. ''Ladies, your ship awaits.'' He said while bowing. The ponies didn't like his manners or those of his crew, but at least they now had a sip to take them to Coltalla.
Chapter 3: En route to ColtallaIt had been two days now since Wavechaser had departed from Baltimare. Twilight and her friends had been given a small cabin to sleep in while on the ship. It was a tight fit, but all six of them managed to fit in. Sadly there were only four beds, so two of them had share a bunk. Rarity offered to share a bunk with Applejack, who politely refused, remembering what had happened at Twilight's library during their sleepover. In the end Rarity and Fluttershy got their own beds while Twilight and Applejack share one bunk and Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie shared the other one. During the day they had been given various jobs to do to earn their keep. Rarity was given the task of repairing the sails. While glad to work with fabric, she was much less enthusiastic when she found out that she'd be working while the sails were in use. This meant that she had to climb up with all of the supplies and work in less then ideal conditions. Pinkie Pie was put work in the galley. Wind Jammer introduced her to Wavechaser's cook Mutton Chop, who was an earth pony with a brown coat, black mane, a large build and one hell of a temper. It wasn't long after Pinkie had started working that she started singing a merry little tune. She stopped soon though as a knife flew past her head into the wall. Mutton Chop growled and stated that if she insist on singing, she can jump off and go sing with the Seaponies. But in his kitchen ponies didn't sing, they worked. He also added that if he heard so much as a note, he'd aim better next time. Fluttershy was sent to the sickbay where she would be assisting the ship's doctor, a griffon by the name of Darius. Unlike other crew members, Darius was much more open and hospitable. He talked a great deal with Fluttershy and showed her some tips on how to better treat the sick and injured. Fluttershy wondered why Darius was the only griffon aboard the Wavechaser, but thought that it'd be too rude to ask about it. Rainbow Dash was sent to the crow's nest to keep a lookout. She shared this job with another pegasus, a youngster named Calm-Before-Storm. He was exited to finally have someone to talk to while up in the nest, and the fact that it was a pretty lady as well made it even better. Rainbow herself was less enthusiastic about the whole thing, but gritted her teeth and went along with it. After all, this was the only way they could get to Coltalla right now. The ponies had asked Wind Jammer if he knew anything about Coltalla's current situation. He had told them that all access to the island had been cut off, and that there were constant patrols to prevent any and all entry be it by sea or air. This was unpleasant news to Rainbow especially since she would have rather flown to Coltalla then having to take a ship. Applejack had been instructed to go below deck and into the cargo hold. There she was introduced to a unicorn who was hard at work moving, securing and inspecting the cargo. Wind Jammer told Applejack that he was known as Storage Unit. The unicorn was glad to have an additional pair of hooves to help him and it didn't take long for Applejack's strength and tenacity to impress Storage. Twilight's job was in the captains cabin with Wind Jammer. She was to assist him in plotting a course to Coltalla and anything else that he needed help with. While Wind Jammer knew the way, he wanted to know if Twilight had any ideas or suggestions. Twilight was unfamiliar with navigation, but she had read a few books about it. This proved useful and it didn't take long until the two of them had figured out a more or less optimal route to the island kingdom. Being in the captain's cabin made it possible for Twilight to ask all sorts of questions from the captain. ''So Wind Jammer, how long have you been sailing?'' Twilight asked. ''Close to five years. Two of those as the captain of the Wavechaser.'' Wind Jammer replied, not even looking up from the map laid out on the table. ''Have you always been on the Wavechaser or did you serve on some other ship before this?'' ''This lass has been home to me for as long as I have been at sea. So no, I have not been on any other ship other then very briefly.'' ''Who was captain before you?'' Wind Jammer looked up from the map and groaned. ''I sincerely hope that you aren't going to keep asking me questions for the entire trip Miss Sparkle. Because if you are, there's room in the brig.'' ''I'm sorry if I'm bothering you. I just want to know what our captain is like.'' Twilight explained. Wind Jammer chuckled. ''You are not formally a part of my crew, so you don't need to refer to me as 'your' captain. Just captain will suffice.'' ''Understood, captain.'' Twilight said with a chuckle. ''To answer your previous question,'' Wind Jammer said as he turned around towards the windows, ''the last captain was a tough old pegasus called Thunderstorm, or as most of the crew and his enemies knew him, 'The Eye of the Storm'.'' ''Where did he get a nickname like that?'' Twilight inquired. ''Two things. First, he only had one eye. He had lost the other eye to the beasts that roam the oceans. Secondly, he would always attack his targets during a storm.'' ''Did he cause the storm or did it come from somewhere else?'' ''Most days he did it with some of the other pegasi on the ship. But sometimes, just to prove that he still could, he raised such a storm that it often sunk a ship before they could get to it.'' Wind Jammer said with a hint of a smile. ''Wait, he caused storms and attacked ships? Are you telling me that he was a pirate?'' ''That is exactly what I'm telling you Miss Sparkle. Thunderstorm was one pirate you did not want to come after you. Every time he chose a target for us he made sure it was the fattest one possible. Made me real proud to be a part of his crew.'' ''So you've been a pirate before as well.'' ''I never said I quit.'' Wind Jammer pointed out. Twilight was about to inquire further, but she was cut off by Mutton Chop yelling everypony to come and eat before he threw it overboard. Wind Jammer told Twilight to get something to eat and then she could retire for the night. Before she could respond, Wind Jammer used his magic to push the alicorn out of his cabin. Twilight resolved to find out more about Wind Jammer, and tomorrow was another chance. Early the next day Twilight entered the captain's cabin. Inside she found Wind Jammer sharpening a sword. ''You're here early.'' The unicorn muttered. ''Best to start work early so we can be done sooner.'' Wind Jammer smiled a bit. ''I guess that's true.'' He put the sword away and looked at Twilight. ''Am I right to assume that you are going to ask me more questions today?'' ''If you are willing to answer them.'' Twilight replied. ''I suppose it's the best way to get you to work.'' Wind Jammer said with a sigh. ''So, what did you want to know?'' ''Yesterday you mentioned that you were a part of the crew when Thunderstorm was captain, and that you had not quit being a pirate.'' ''That I did. And it is true.'' ''Why are you still living the life of a pirate?'' ''The thrills, the spoils and the open sea. They are all I need.'' ''You don't want more from life?'' ''I'm quite happy where I am now Miss Sparkle. I am in no hurry to retire.'' ''That's another thing that has been bugging me. Why do you keep calling me 'Miss Sparkle'? Simply calling me Twilight works just as well.'' ''I may be a pirate, but I am not without manners. Guess that's one thing that stuck with me from childhood.'' ''You had strict parents?'' ''Miss Sparkle, you have no idea.'' Twilight was about to ask another question, but Wind Jammer shut her up and pointed out that they had work to do. After working for a good while and having lunch afterwards, the two returned to Wind Jammer's cabin. Twilight saw that she now had another chance to ask Wind Jammer about his past. ''Tell me captain, what was your childhood like?'' Wind Jammer glared at Twilight. ''I may be willing to answer some of your questions Miss Sparkle, but not all of them. That's one question that I will not answer.'' Twilight was about to ask for a reason for this, but decided not to after she saw the unicorn reaching for his sword. ''I understand. How about you tell me more about the old captain. Thunderstorm was it?'' Wind Jammer calmed down and smiled a bit. ''I'll be happy to tell you more about the greatest pirate I ever met.'' ''What happened to him? Where is he currently?'' Wind Jammer's smile turned into a mournful frown as he turned his head away from Twilight. ''He is where the wind decides to take him next.'' ''He retired?'' ''He was forced to retire. But he didn't like the idea of it.'' ''What persuaded him?'' ''Cold steel through the chest is surprisingly effective at changing opinions.'' ''He was killed!?'' ''Yes.'' ''How?'' ''Mutiny on the ship. Some of the crew felt like he was too old to be captain and they were afraid that he was losing his sight as well.'' ''So they killed him.'' ''Well, yes and no. He died because of the mutiny, but he was not killed by one of the mutineers.'' ''One of the men loyal to him killed him then?'' ''Yes.'' ''Where is this pony now? Is he imprisoned? Or was he killed afterwards?'' ''He has his own ship nowadays. Last I heard of him he was taking some ponies to some secluded kingdom or something like that.'' Twilight gasped, but before she could say anything a pony ran into the cabin. ''Captain! Come quick! It's a mutiny!''
Chapter 4: Trouble on the shipTwilight followed Wind Jammer as he ran out of his cabin and onto deck. A mob had gathered there, and they were armed as well. ''What's the meaning of this!? Why are you not at work!?'' Wind Jammer yelled at the mob. ''We are done taking orders from you! It was bad enough when you took over and started going after small fries instead of the big fish, but now you take passengers as well!? You are turning this proud ship into a husk of her former self!'' A muscular pony shouted. ''Deep Blue. Once again spearheading a mutiny. You really should have become captain yourself two years ago instead of having me shoulder that burden.'' Wind Jammer said as he walked down to meet the mob. ''I'm not captain material. Or so I once thought. But after recent events, after you let a target escape since there were sick and injured on board, I have begun to think otherwise. Old Thunderstorm always sunk a ship rather then let one go, but you are too kind. You always have been.You should've been replaced after the first couple of raids we did. But we kept hoping that Old Thunderstorm's little prodigy would rise to the challenge. How wrong we were.'' ''Captain Thunderstorm may have tutored me, but he knew that he'd have to stay as captain for quite a while before I would've been ready to take the mantle. But you were too impatient. You saw that he was growing older and becoming fragile. So you took the opportune moment and staged a mutiny to end his run as captain.'' ''I did start a mutiny, yes, but I didn't kill Thunderstorm. You did.'' Wind Jammer pounded the deck. ''Shut up!'' ''Why? I'm just telling things as they are. You killed Thunderstorm during the mutiny. If you don't remember, I'd be happy to remind you.'' Deep Blue said with a devious smile. ''Shut up! Shut the hell up! I do remember! There is no need to tell that story!'' ''Why not? I'm sure our passengers would like to know what happened.'' Deep Blue said and cleared his throat. ''Two years ago, during the last mutiny, we had gathered in this very same place for the very same reason. Funny how history repeats itself, eh? During that time, you drew your sword to stand with Thunderstorm. You wanted to help. But what help were you, a whelp still wet behind the ears? All your bravado managed to accomplish about was the death of Thunderstorm. You ran him through with your sword. His blood is on your hooves.'' ''Be quiet!'' Wind Jammer cried out. ''That was the moment when we mutineers saw a glint in your eyes. We saw the fire inside of you that Thunderstorm had once held inside of him. That is why we made you into the captain. We wanted to see that small fire to grow into a raging inferno. But you doused the fire before it had a chance to grow. During these last two years we hoped that it might reignite within you, but we see now that it was foolish to hope for a miracle.'' ''I never meant to kill Thunderstorm! He jumped in front of my blade! My blade was meant to pierce your chest, not his!'' Wind Jammer yelled. ''Why would he have jumped in to protect me?'' ''I don't know! Maybe he hoped that you'd see reason and stand down.'' ''In time I may have realized what he was doing, but you didn't really give him a chance to explain his actions. You charged at me, and the price of that was Thunderstorm's life. Your recklessness does make me wonder though, did you even like him? What was he to you?'' ''He was like a father to me! More then my own father ever was!'' ''And yet he died because of you.'' Twilight could see that Wind Jammer was in agony, and she wanted to help him stop this. If the mutiny kept going and they replaced Wind Jammer with somepony else, then she and her friends would be thrown overboard without a second doubt. And there was no way they could swim to Coltalla. So Twilight leapt in and stood between Wind Jammer and Deep Blue. ''This has gone on long enough! There is no point to this fight. Once we reach Coltalla, you won't have to look at us any longer. We can get another ship to take us back home. And you can go back to being pirates.'' Twilight said as she stood defiantly between the two. Deep Blue looked at the princess for a moment. He then let out a chuckle. ''Now Princess, things work differently out here on the open sea. We solve conflicts like this as they arise. If we didn't, we'd never reach a port since the crew would be split two ways.'' He explained. ''Also, you may be a princess, but out here your title means absolutely nothing. We follow the rules of the sea, not the orders of a little alicorn.'' Deep Blue added as he approached Twilight. Twilight started to back away from Deep Blue. He was big, probably bigger then Big Macintosh, and he clearly had no respect for her or any authority she held. That was when Wind Jammer planted a hoof into Deep Blue's face. ''I have had quite enough of you and your guilt trips! We will end this now!'' He said and drew his sword. ''It's true. It's true that my sword was the one that went through Thunderstorm's chest. It's true that I killed him. I wanted to forget that. There has not been a single day since then that I didn't regret what I did.'' Wind Jammer swung his sword around to make the mob behind Deep Blue retreat a bit. ''But no more. It's time I face my past. It's time I forgive myself and get rid of the one thing that keeps using my past against me. It's time I get rid of you.'' He said as he pointed his sword towards Deep Blue. Deep Blue shook his head to recover from Wind Jammer's punch, after which he drew his sword. ''I can see it.'' ''See what?'' ''The spark I saw the last time we were here. I can see it again, and it's growing. You are finally becoming the captain you should've been all along.'' ''Well I'm glad that you get to see your wish come true. I guess even those about to die deserve to see something nice before death takes them.'' Deep Blue started to laugh. ''Boy, I hope you have been practicing. Because I am going to be testing your mettle to see if you will once again extinguish that spark. For your sake, you'd better fight like a pony possessed.'' ''Oh I will. And I hope that you'll put up a decent fight to honor Captain Thunderstorm.'' ''Heh. For him, I most certainly will.'' ''You don't need to do this! You could-'' Twilight spoke out before she was stopped by Wind Jammer's sword pointing towards her. ''Miss Sparkle. Back off. I am only going to ask nicely this once.'' ''But-'' ''Unless you wish to have third eye on your forehead, I suggest you do as I say.'' Twilight looked at Wind Jammer and swallowed nervously before backing off from him. It was now clear to her that he had no interest in listening. But she was Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship, and Celestia's protégé. She knew she could end this conflict before things got too violent. She charged up her magic and prepared to freeze both pirates in place. But she only managed to make a few sparks before she felt a sharp pain in her neck, and then she felt her eyes clouding and her mind trailing. As Twilight fell unconscious, Darius caught her. ''I do apologize Miss Sparkle, but I'm afraid I can't have you interrupting this fight. Whatever you were planning might have ended with both of them living, but that would have been only a temporary solution. And right now we need a permanent one.'' Darius turned away from the fight and headed towards the doctor's cabin. ''Now hold on a moment!'' Applejack yelled as she and the others ran after Darius. ''What in tarnation did you do to Twilight?'' ''I used a trick that was once used to subdue unruly patients. A quick and precise poke to the right spot and they will be off talking with the Princess of the Night for a good few hours. And do not worry, she is unharmed. She may have a minor headache once she wakes up, but nothing serious.'' ''Where did ya'll even learn such a fancy trick?'' ''Miss Apple, please. I am a doctor on a ship full of pirates who are bound to cause trouble in one form or another. Knowing something like this is basically a mandatory skill.'' Wind Jammer glanced back to where Twilight had been standing not a moment ago. Darius had stepped in at just the right moment to prevent any harm from coming to her or her friends, and he was thankful to the doctor for that. ''What's wrong? Do you already miss your marefriend?'' Deep Blue asked mockingly. ''What's wrong with you? You haven't attacked me yet. Do you need more time to talk about your new residence with the Grim Reaper?'' Deep Blue grinned and charged towards Wind Jammer. The sound of steel meeting steel rang out as the two ponies crossed swords. Wind Jammer used his magic to hold onto his sword, which allowed him to move it around a lot more, while Deep Blue held his in his mouth. They blocked each others swings a few times, and the ones that connected did nothing more then flesh wounds. Both fighters were skilled with the sword, but Deep Blue held the advantage with more power and combat experience. ''We both know I'm the better fighter, but I have to admit that you put up a good fight when you need to.'' ''Shut up and fight you damn oaf.'' ''Hah! More and more like old Thunderstorm with each passing moment.'' Deep Blue laughed as he raised his sword up high and swung it down. Wind Jammer jumped back to avoid the blade, dodging it by a hair's width. He thursted his sword towards Deep Blue's leg in an attempt to throw him off balance by crippling him. Deep Blue however saw his attack coming and stepped to the side before tackling Wind Jammer and throwing him towards the mast. He followed up his charge with a slash and this one managed to tear through Wind Jammer's clothing and skin. While it was painful, Wind Jammer ignored it and lifted his sword up again, this time trying to pierce Deep Blue through the back. Deep Blue noticed what he was doing and swung around, hitting the floating sword with his own and throwing it overboard. He then turned back towards Wind Jammer only to get punched in the face again. ''That sword was Thunderstorm's old cutlass you arse.'' ''Doesn't mean a damn thing to me.'' Deep Blue said as he wiped blood off of the corner of his mouth. ''Well actually, it does mean something. It means that you now lack a weapon.'' Deep Blue swung his sword towards Wind Jammer's neck, but the captain ducked under the blade and landed an uppercut into Deep Blue's jaw. ''I am without a sword, yes, but I am not without a weapon.'' ''You're as clever as a seapony.'' ''And you are as dumb as a rock.'' Deep Blue charged in again, aiming to end the fight with a well aimed thrust. Wind Jammer jumped to the side to evade the thrust, but Deep Blue knew what he was trying to do and spun around and managed to put his blade through one of Wind Jammer's hooves. He cried out in pain and Deep Blue picked him up and threw him towards the mast. Wind Jammer hit it with a loud thunk and slumped down. At this point he was bleeding badly and had most likely several broken bones. Deep Blue walked up to him and laughed. ''You put up one hell of a fight. Had I not been on the ship for twice as long as you, you might've beaten me. But you did fight like a captain should fight, so I'll give you that. Now then, any last words before I send you to meet old Thunderstorm?'' ''A few, yes.'' Wind Jammer said weakly as he slowly stood up. ''Come closer. I think one of my ribs pierced a lung and it's hard to speak.'' ''Aye, captain.'' Deep Blue said mockingly as he leaned closer. ''Do you know how the ship works? Do you know how to use each and every part of the ship to the fullest?'' ''I know enough to pilot her.'' ''Well I know more.'' Before Deep Blue could reply, Wind Jammer used all the strength he still had to plant a hoof into his gut, causing him to cough and gasp for air as well as drop his sword. Wind Jammer then picked up the end of a rope, spun it around Deep Blue's neck and with a swift kick, he flipped a lever that caused a counterweight to drop and lift Deep Blue up towards the crow's nest. ''I know the ship inside and out! I know each weak point and how to keep them covered in a fight! I know how to use not only the ship's cannons as a weapon, but to use the ship herself as a weapon! As far as being a captain goes, I know much more then you do!'' Wind Jammer roared. Deep Blue struggled and tried his best to free himself, but the rope around his neck had become even tighter as he had been lifted up. Wind Jammer looked at the rest of the crew. ''If any on you have any problems with me being the captain, speak up! There is still room up there with Deep Blue!'' There were a few grumbles and murmurs, but nopony spoke up. ''Nopony? You are all satisfied then?'' Wind Jammer asked as he looked around. ''Good. Then keep the course towards Coltalla. We still have a long sail ahead of us.'' Wind Jammer started to slowly trot towards the doctor's cabin while Deep Blue kicked around for the last time before the last bit of air escaped from his lungs. With a final gurgle of pain, Deep Blue lost whatever resistance he might have still had and succumbed, dangling high from the mast for all to see.
