Dead pony tell no tales. One of the oldest sayings known to the high seas, as a way to remind ne'er-do-well peepers that others will kill you to keep you quiet. I’ve always known that saying, but never truly knew the true weight of its meaning. That was until, that one night…
I shall never forget the night when I entered that bar and was met with a terrible fate. It was a dark winter’s night when I was sailing my ship. The winds were howling, the seas were wild, the rain was merciless, and I could barely see two kilometers ahead into the thickest fog a pony would ever see. I was heading towards Thieves’ Hold, a collection of craggy columns of rock pointing out of the water that served gathering place for some of the most dangerous pirates to trade their loot, get some rest, or stir up a fight. However, I wasn’t here for any of that, I wasn’t even a pirate. I was merely a lone bounty hunter. I never had to follow authority and still receive riches for hunting down the villains of the ocean, usually with the bounties usually set up by political bigwigs or rival pirates. Tonight was different however, I was instead searching for both a pony and a value, and Thieves’ Hold was the exact place I would be able to find such information. I’d recently received a tip from a friend that only supplied to me the name and the location I could go to find more information.
The first thing I saw upon reaching the infamous area was the massive group of stacks far ahead that seemed to create a forest with its tops stretching above the dark clouds. Upon entering the hold, I saw that small wooden buildings were built into the faces of the rock formations, yet leaned most of its weight out over the sea, with the only thing keeping them from falling were beams underneath the floors of the houses. I examined each rock with a building in it; searching for a bar where I can find the information I needed. After examining countless mountains, I finally found the bar, a slightly larger house than the others with a long, winding wooden ramp circling the stack leading into a harbour full of pirate ships large and small. I anchored my ship next to some the smaller ones that were similar to mine. I then entered my room and put on my large black coat over the fancier purple suit I was wearing that night. I didn’t know it was going to rain heavily and I didn’t have time to change. With the silky suit then chafing my skin after being soaked in the rain for an hour, I collected myself and walked off of the port and onto the wooden harbour. I looked to my left and my right as I headed towards the ramp, observing the various, shapes, sizes, builds, colours, names, flags, and probable worth of each water craft in the black market. I slowly began to head up the ramp circling around the stack with the rain beating against the tip of my nose. I then reached the balcony in front of the bar, where a single door with rusted hinges waved back and forth in harmony of the calmer winds at this altitude. Before entering however, I looked in the heavily fogged window and check to see if I was well hidden in the reflection. I pulled the cloak harder over my head to obscure my orange eyes and then opened the door.
The loud shriek of the handle didn’t seem to bother anypony inside as I made my way in. Warm light bathed me as I entered the tavern. I looked from side to side, seeing every type of hooligan of the seas imaginable. Tall unicorns, short pegasi, fat Earth Ponies, skinny and lanky ponies with either half of a horn or only one wing, bearded, mustached, scarred, peg legged, eye patched, garbed in red and black, or completely bare save for any accessories that may have been on them, I myself was shocked in seeing so many various types of criminals gathered in one spot. To my left were an assortment of tables with groups of pirates sleeping, drinking their cider, or counting their treasures foalishly out in the open. One of the round tables caught my eye, for it had nine ponies and what appeared to be a dragon the size of some smaller ponies next to it, all dressed in black robes similar to mine. Were they some type of ninja pirates or a cult? I had no idea and decided to abandon the thought. To my right, I saw billiard tables, dartboards with darks poking out of them and a couple in the wooden wall, round and square tables made for card games and gambling loot. Pirates were also gathered there with cups of cider in their hooves or magic as they played the games and tossed their money around. There was a group of three stallions having a fight at one of the card tables, which no pony seemed to bother with. I figured that this being a highly popular pirate holdout, a fight or three would not be so uncommon.
I reminded myself with what I was doing there in the first place and made my way across the damp wooden floor to the serving bar at the other end of the main room. A young, dark blue unicorn, cleaning a mug with an old cloth, looked at me with one of her eyes while still keeping her attention set on the mug.
She spoke to me in a smooth, nonchalant voice, “What can I do for you sir?”
I responded in my typical deadpan voice, “First, a drink.”
“Sure, it’s on the house tonight.” The mare then sets down the mug on the counter and turns to a pair of dual doors behind her, most likely leading to the kitchen. She pokers her head inside and yells, “Dad, we have another one.” An old, rustic voice mumbles from the other side of the wall separating me from whatever was inside. The mare began to have a conversation with the pony inside, so I began to tune them out and focus on my surroundings and think about what I was going to say. I’ve always heard that the drinks around here were terrible due to the absence of a decent supply and the dominance of ‘stealing’ over ‘trading’, but my throat was extremely dry and any liquid would’ve sufficed. I started to examine myself once more by looking at my grey coat dripping water onto the floorboards. The creaking of the building caught my ears, a sign that I was beginning to psych myself out. I thought that the lady better wrap up her conversation before I leave in fear of being attacked. Soon though, the dark blue mare returns with a wooden mug brimming with cider. “Sorry for the inconvenience,”
“Not a problem.” I puckered my lips as I grabbed the cup with my hooves and held it up to them. I only took a small sip at first, expecting the taste to be as horrendous as they rumored out at sea, but to my surprise, it tasted great. It was as if fresh apples were actually imported from a high class kingdom right into this bar. I then began to chug the entire thing down in a single go, realizing then why the pirates seemed so much more chipper than other bars I have visited. “By thunder, that’s a decent drink.”
“I know, until recently, the cider here was terrible, then a bunch of strangers showed up with crate loads of apples and now no pony is losing their stomachs or getting into as many brawls.” I then realized I made a mistake by creating chit-chat with the barmaid, so I took a moment to clear my throat before changing the subject before it carried on.
“Second, I need some information on a pony and his bounty.”
“Ah, one of those sea travelers. Who are you looking for?”
“I’m looking for…” I scanned my left and right to make sure that no pony was intentionally listening in before continuing in a whisper, “Korsan.” Immediately upon hearing the name, the bartender backs up to the dual doors. Everypony in the bar grows deafly silent as they turn towards me, staring at me as if I was a lunatic. Even the brawlers stopped mid-punch and gave me a frightened look. “What?” The dark blue unicorn uncovers her ice blue mane from out of the front of her cyan eyes, trying to get a better look at me as well.
“K-K-Korsan, doesn’t have a bounty, he makes them. A-An avid visitor of this place actually…”
“Well, what would be his value if I were to capture him and turn him into the authorities?”
“He’s priceless,” a patron that was in the earlier fight replies, “You’d never be able to catch him alive nor dead. If he were to have heard you, let alone seen you, you’d be dead.”
“What do you mean?” I gave a quick look at my back sections of my body, only seeing my wings fumbling inside the cloak. “What would he see that would make him do such a thing?”
“Your wings,”
“My wings?” I gave a brief chuckle at such a silly detail for a pony to kill me for.
“Tis no laughing matter,” a large, gruff pirate in the far back corner announces, “the madpony is Tartarus-bent on killing pegasi and Earth Ponies.” I was one of the strongest ponies in my training and schooling for twenty years, and I have taken down many foes that seemed impossible at the time. So at the time, I didn’t feel like this pirate was any different from the previous ones.
“But, if I were to capture him, dead or alive, how much would I most likely get then, if this Korsan is so deadly?” A moment of silence washed over the entire chamber, even the wooden structure of the building itself was stunned from my audacity of challenging the pirate.
“It’s a long story,” the mare at the other side of the counter replies, “let me get somepony to explain.” The mare then went back into the kitchen area, leaving me alone once more. But this time, everypony was silently staring at me, making the situation much more uncomfortable for me.
After a minute or so of silence, the mare returned back to me with an old, indigo, unicorn stallion giving me a stern, dreary look. He then spoke, talking as if he was about retell of a tragic incident that happened to him, “So, you want to know about Korsan, huh?”
“His value and location is what I came for, but if you have a story to tell me, I’m all ears.”
The old stallion gives a heavy grunt before responding to my attempted confidence, “You are not worthy to know of such a tragedy.”
“Try me, I’ve faced some of the most mentally insane and abused prisoners across every sea you know.” The stallion stood silent for a minute, staring into my eyes, examining my soul to see if I was worthy.
“Believe me, you haven’t even seen half the oceans I have seen, not that I blame. You are confident stallion though, fine, if you think you are ready to know, then I shall begin.”
“Go.” The old stallion fumbled with the two long white whiskers dropping from below his nose before starting, a sign that he had trouble controlling his emotions on the subject.
“It all started a decade or two ago, Korsan, a filly, just like you and me, was born. However, what was abnormal about him was that he was a pegasus, and for five generations straight, his family was nothing but unicorns. So over the course of over a hundred years, his family believed that unicorns were the dominant pony race, and that all others were inferior. Korsan was born of wings, so at first, everypony that was there for the birth was shocked and disgusted to see him. However, his parents decided to take him in anyways, to be raise alongside his older brother and sister.”
“So wait, some nutcase wants to kill me for being a pegasus despite him being a pegasus? Sounds a bit hypocritical,”
“If you were to keep quiet, I would explain.”
“Sorry…”
“Over his early years of childhood, he was bullied and teased by his brother and sister, constantly picking up his toys with their magic and even at sometimes him, as if it was a cruel joke. They, and even sometimes including his father and mother, would constantly berate him for being a pegasus and not a unicorn, and to stay out of their business or any close affiliation with them in public. The family soon saw Korsan as a weak link in their family legacy as the best metal workers in town, considering that unicorns were practically the only race that could do the job properly.”
“Famous unicorn metal workers for five generations… Wait, where did he live?”
“Baltimare, some city in Equestria if I remember right,”
”Equestria… Are they the Madens?”
“Yes, they kept Korsan very well hidden from public association. But this did not stop Korsan from trying to fit in and try to impress his family at their metal foundry. He had an amazing intellect and knack for building, inventing, and exploration. With the tools he could find in the workshop while his family was away in the different part of the foundry, the young colt would built an assortment of various mechanical devices, from toys, to tools that could be efficiently operated by non-unicorns, to even puzzles and devices for his own amusement. But when he tried showing them off to his family, they quickly criticized him for merely the fact that he was a pegasus. When he wasn’t at school, tinkering in his private time, or being oppressed by his family, he would play at the harbour with his friends. However, his friends didn’t last for long, as time progressed; his friends got their cutie marks, everypony except for him. He was the only pony in his generation at his school to not receive his cutie mark, and one of the few ponies that to this day, doesn’t have one. As of result, he was teased by his once friends, further scarring his already destroyed childhood.”
“Wait, did I hear that right? This highly dangerous pony that can scare a bar silent, doesn’t have his cutie mark to this day?” I burst out into small chuckle at such a ridiculous sounding thing, only to be startled by the old stallion slamming his hooves onto the counter.
“This is no laughing matter! That teasing and laughing is the very reason he’s so dangerous!” In fear, I recollected myself as the stallion also recollected himself from his fit of rage. He then continued in his calm voice, “As he was persistently bullied at home and at school, the rage built up boiled to the tipping point. He often engaged in brutal fights at school, with even on some occasions, using his mechanical gadgets as weapons. This resulted in him being removed, school after school, district after district, wherever he went, his rage and lacking physical attributes always dove him deeper and deeper in trouble. At the mere age of ten, Korsan was sent to jail, the earliest known arrest in Batimare’s history.”
“Yikes…”
“He was bailed out by his family the next day, only to take him home and give him a sharp piece of their minds. However, what was intended to be a mere aggressive lecture from each member of his family combined, quickly escalated into an ugly sight, resulting in him receiving an eye patch the next day. He was all alone, with only his gadgets and his own thoughts to keep him company. He no longer was accepted into any school and was banned from joining any family gathering, except if that gathering was his siblings to pick on him. In retaliation to the sibling’s constant bullying and the ideology that unicorns are better implanted into the core of his twelve-year-old corrupt mind, Korsan directed his intellect to become as close to a unicorn as mechanically possible. He started by inventing an anti-magic substance that would protect him from any magical attacks.”
“Wait, he invented an anti-magic substance at the age of twelve? How smart was this foal?”
“Very smart, very creative, very resourceful, but had very low self-esteem and a body filled with rage and hatred; he was a waste of so much potential.”
“So did it work?”
“No, although it functioned right, the substance would wash off of Korsan’s body quickly. He needed a way of keeping it on him for ages to come, a suit of sorts. However, since he didn’t have the precision of his large hooves to build a proper suit to contain the substance, he built muscle-controlled claws that would give him great precision in his work. These claws will be one of the key features we all recognize the madpony with. He then went on to build a harness that would have his material flow all around his body, creating a shield of sorts. After many weeks of sweat and tire, Korsan completed his claws and anti-magic harness. He then displayed to his family the powers and capabilities his inventions could do, only to be discredited once more by teaching him that unicorns can perform magical feats no mechanical device could possibly match.”
“He invented anti-magic and claws that would allow a non-unicorn to have the same precision of handling objects as one, how was he not given credibility?”
“He claims that they were right, that unicorns are the best and no work of mind nor machinery can match them. But if you were to ask me, I would say it’s just stubborn pride.”
“I see,”
“Back to the story… After being rejected by his family once more, the young colt had just about enough of this abuse. He flew away from his home one day and over the busy streets of Baltimare. However, something abnormal happened during his flight. It was some sort of unknown light phenomenon in the sky that just came all of a sudden, like lightning or something. It that blinded Korsan that sent him tumbling down into the streets, to be hit head on by an armoured bank chariot. He was immediately taken to the hospital, only to find out that his back was broken and would require years to heal. He also found out that his wings were broken, but unlike his back, the damage was permanent, he could not fly for the rest of his life. His family didn’t show up at the hospital to help him after the accident, he was truly abandoned. With a broken back and wings and the only thing he had were his inventions, he started a life of crime. Korsan began with petty theft, simple purse snatches and pick pocketing just to get some resources.”
“How was he able to do it without being caught, wasn’t his back broken?”
“It was, instead of hasty snatch and runs, Korsan used his intellect and silver tongue to get ponies to not notice when he robbed them until after an hour of him leaving them. He used the money to buy food to get by the day and metal to build a support system that would help him to be able to walk properly again. This secondary suit would act as a mechanical toy that Korsan could control with fluid motion. The new ensemble worked better than he expected, as he found out he could run faster, lift more weight, and react quicker to immediate situations than other normal foals of his age, but these upgrades came at a cost. Over the years, his support suit has been slowly forming his spine to go upright, never letting the broken bones inside to properly heal. In the past couple of years, his front hooves have never touched the ground, for he could now simply walk and run with his hind hooves.”
“This pony just seems to get stranger and stranger.”
“And grew even more dangerous at that, for in a matter of days, his crimes escalated to grand theft and even caused several hostage situations. He then used his spoils to buy from the black market and created weapons, from blades, to cannons, to even explosives. This created a vicious cycle that grew too big for Korsan to keep within Baltimare. Using his experiences of his old days playing at the harbour and the use of his latest technologies, Korsan spent a couple of years building a ship, one that could fly and was large enough to be considered a self-sustaining fortress. He worked on it for three years, never allowing himself to sleep for more than three hours nor let any injury delay his work. Upon completing his revolutionary creation, he then gathered up a crew of unicorns to serve as his pirate minions and they took off, beginning Korsan’s global campaign of pillaging and plundering any city, whether it be surrounded by land, sea, or sky.”
“He built a ship… that could not only fly, but also be self-sustaining?”
“Yes, it doesn’t even run on magic, as the entire thing is built with his anti-magic substance lining every floorboard, causing some, odd, science thing to happen that allowed it to fly.” I couldn’t believe what the old stallion was saying, I’ve never heard of such a ship, or any large structure of that matter, that was able to fly without magic.
“Impossible…”
“It’s real, I’ve been on that ship long enough to know it top from bottom.”
“You were a prisoner?”
“No…” He stayed silent for a while, I could tell by the subtle motions in his eyes that he had a very close connection with the vessel.
“You were a crew member.”
“I was Korsan’s first mate and my daughter was a mechanic; it was odd having to be told around by a pony that was only fifteen at the time, but as the years progressed, I came to terms with it.”
“So that’s why you know so much about him.”
“He told me everything, as if I was the true father figure he never had. He’d show me nearly everything he had saw, created, or stolen with a face full of pride and glee.”
“How long did you serve under Korsan? Why did you leave? Was it the guilt of just doing nothing but crimes getting to you?”
“Easy there lad, ask one question at a time. I worked for Korsan for about five years until I resigned a couple of years ago. And I didn’t just do nothing but piracy, that was only my job. While me and my crewmembers were with Korsan, his adventurous spirit would take us to new locations and see unimaginable things. I remember when he would sit out on the bow, writing down his discoveries and research throughout all the night. There was some sort of an innocent side of him that became exposed whenever he encountered something new. He wrote many books, collected so many artifacts, and built so many machines. When I was with him on those adventures, sometimes, I would forget about our crimes and think that we were a family of sorts.”
“So what made you and your daughter leave?”
“…” The unicorn became quiet and avoided making eye contact with me. “You don’t need to know.”
“But I want to,”
“No you don’t, it would be too much for a young stallion like yourself.”
“I’m a bounty hunter; I’ve hunted down murderers and absolute maniacs, how bad could it be.”
“Are you sure?” He then gave me a strong glare. His eyes shrunk and his mouth turned to a snarl, as if he was holding back an inner demon. I slowly nodded my head, unaware of the true grim that he was about to tell.
“Several years ago, we were coming up to a small kingdom in the clouds, preparing to attack the main castle and get as much booty as possible. Within moments of hovering right next to the front gates, we attacked. The pegasi were no match as we merely held them in place with our magic. We stormed the castle and came back in moments, holding as much gold, jewels, and other valuables with our magic. At first glance, this was just another successful plunder. That was, until we started to leave with the mountain of loot on our ship. I noticed that Korsan was looking back at the kingdom, observing its buildings, its size, but most importantly, its citizens. He stopped the vessel and turned its port towards the kingdom. The crew was reasonably confused of his actions at first. However, that all changed when he turned to us and gave the command. He ordered us to fire off the cannons into the kingdom and destroy it. I couldn’t believe what he was ordering, we usually only used the cannons in defense or if a target was being too stubborn. This was an act of terrorism. Me, my daughter, and a few crewmembers could not bring ourselves to do it. Most of the other pirates, the ones that were once in prison for federal crimes, didn’t mind however and followed orders. They fired into the city, and the screams of stallions, mares, and children soon echoes back to our boat. I was scarred from the horrific scene that I saw unfold before me. Korsan approached me when he saw I was struggling and asked why I wasn’t attacking. I told him that I couldn’t bring myself to hurt masses of innocent ponies for no reason, in which he gave me a most terrifying response.”
“What was it?”
“’Pegasi and Earth Ponies are inferior, we must shape the world to what it should be, all unicorns, no more suffering…’”
“You mean to say,”
“Yes, the beliefs of his family had been released from the darkest pits of his mind and out into his true desires. He then told me that after this, we would be searching for a way for him to become a unicorn, destroying every non-unicorn that stood in his way. In a matter of moments, the entire kingdom began to fall down into the abyss below, bringing countless ponies down, trapped within their houses. I was terrified, for I saw a small smile on the captain’s face as he watched the kingdom fall before his eyes…” A slow stream of tears began to run down the stallion’s cheeks, still staring at me with his watery, yet stern eyes.
“So then you quit?”
“Korsan let me and my daughter leave with no resistance; he was surprisingly lenient on the idea of letting his crew members quit. After that, I sailed out here and built this very bar you are standing in. Korsan comes by to visit and gloat about his newest discoveries and raids every once in a while. I always kept myself in the kitchen to avoid talking to the monster.”
“He grows more and more insane each visit,” the stallion’s daughter adds with a taste of disgust in her voice, “Despite his appearance of being a suave, controlled pirate captain, underneath, he’s a monster that won’t hesitate to kill to get what he wants. He usually tries to get me to join his crew and be his ‘special somepony’, but I manage to keep him from advancing too much towards me.”
“Never again shall we work for Korsan. He is the deadliest, nastiest, most insane creature you will ever encounter. I suggest staying away from him at all costs, and never, ever, try to pick a fight with him.” The old pony then gave a large sigh of relief before turning back into the kitchen. Small murmurs and chats soon filled the ambience of the chamber, obviously talking about Korsan.
I took a moment to examine my cup as I tried to put the pieces together of how such a monster, a brilliant monster, came to be, despite being told step-by-step on the spot. I contemplated at the counter of what to do, either follow the stallion’s advice, or face Korsan. If I were to defeat him, not only would I have some of the most revolutionary technology in the world, I would also have the greatest ship at my disposal, heck, I could retire on the thing if what I thought was true. I looked up to the barmaid, cleaning another empty mug.
I asked her, “So, how often does he visit this place?”
“Once every two weeks or so,” she responded, returned to her deadpan tone, “why?”
“I just want to know how long I could stick around this place.”
“He’s expected to return this day actually, he’s set up a massive bounty three days ago and said he would return from an expedition with the bounty ready for him.”
“Has the bounty already been captured?”
“Actually, no, the ten ponies that the bounty was pinned on paid it off. All ten million bits,” I slammed my hoof onto the polished wood counter to keep myself from falling. I couldn’t believe what I just heard.
“Korsan set up a ten million bit bounty on ten ponies?! He’s actually willing to give up that much money? Where does he get this fortune?”
“I told you, he’s insane.” The gears in my head began to spin rapidly. If Korsan really did have that much money on him and I defeated him, it would be the peak of my career. I would become the richest pony on the high seas; I could buy whatever I want. My greed soon overtook me as I dropped the lie of leaving and leaned over the counter, almost touching the mare’s nose with mine.
“Where can I find Korsan now? I want what he has; I can take him down if it means becoming the richest pony in the world!”
Behind me, in the doorframe with the door wide open, a voice replied, “Right behind you.” I winced my body in shock as I looked over my shoulder to see a tall abnormal shadow looking at me. A bolt of lightning struck down from the storm outside the bar, revealing the silhouettes of a large crew of ponies through the foggy windows.
“Korsan…” He then started to make his way up to me, revealing himself in the light of the candles on the tables. He had a dark brown coat of fur that nearly matched the color of the wet wood on the ceiling. His mane and tail was a mess of jet black hair, haven’t been cut nor styled in years, yet it somehow grew itself to work somewhat proper and neat. He stood on his hind legs like the old stallion said, with his front hooves swinging back in forth in tune with his motion. On his left side of his face was an icy blue eye staring dead straight at me, while on the right side, he wore an eye patch that covered his other eye and a scar that peeked from the top and bottom of the black patch. His hooves each had what appeared to be a silvery, metal shoe with five spikes protruding from them over the front of his limbs. Connected to these shoes were long connections of copper gears, pistons, and other pieces of mechanical parts that stretched along the sides of his limbs and into the back. He wore a metal battle harness on his upper part of his chest with a sickly blue and green light emanating from the center circular buckle piece and through small grooves engraved in the straps wrapping around his entire torso. Around his back was a large black cape that stretched down to the floor with its corners trailing rainwater from outside and obscured any pony’s view of his wings.
“So, a funny thing just recently happened. I was just walking into a bar when I heard the funniest joke ever. ‘Where can I find Korsan now? I want what he has; I can take him down if it means becoming the richest pony in the world!’” The pirate chuckled as he continued his walk towards me, only to stop three hooves in front of me. “And you know what the best bit about that was? The pony, who said it, was a pegasus. What a laugh am I right?” All around him, the patrons of the bar laughed nervously, fearing what he would do if they did not laugh.
I gulped a pocket of air before replying, trying to sound intimidating, “So, what did you do next huh? Did you and the challenger fight? Did the challenger proved pegasi were just as good as unicorns?” I twirled around to face my body in the correct position and stance for combat. I had a secret weapon underneath my cloak, and was ready to spring it at any moment.
“Oh, we did fight, more of a banter to be worded correctly, but…” Korsan gave a side glance to one of his crew members to his right. The unicorn’s horn began to glow and in an instant, my legs we’re being pulled from under me. My torso slammed into the wood floor with my legs being pulled away from me, nearly ripping them off. I saw that a faint red aura was surrounding my hooves; I immediately knew it was unicorn magic. “The results weren’t what my challenger expected.”
“What? Afraid to fight like a stallion? Needing your lackeys to take on just one pony?” Another short chuckle escapes from his mouth. He then kneeled down to my eye level on the floor, giving me a look of pity.
“Oh, you poor creature, you actually think that?” In one swift gesture, Korsan stretched out his right hoof in front of my face. I observed in awe as the five spikes that were attached to his shoe became alive, like dragon claws. “Did you ever have the feeling, of, a great pain?!” His metal fingers immediately pinched my nose on cue, causing a large shockwave of pain to rattle through my body. “A pain, so great,” his claw then started to twist my nose, making the pain more unbearable as I gave a hard roar of pain, “but, you can’t do anything about it, making it even more painful? For over twelve years of my life, I had that pain. I was powerless against my family bullying me because they had magic and I did not. Yet I learned a valuable lesson, unicorns are superior, all they have to do is perform a tiny spell, and any non-unicorn is bent to their every will and desire. That’s why my crew and I have been the most effective pirates out there.”
“Then why do they listen to you if they’re all that superior.”
“Direction, my imbecilic rival, that’s why. Sure they have the magic, but with my help with the invention of physical anti-magic and far superior intellect, we achieve the greatest of riches. And about the whole me-being-a-pegasus part, I plan to fix that.”
“But how?” I squealed with my nose being turned sideways, “The only way you can change your race is ascension, and that requires the magic of the most powerful of ponies. And so what if you get a horn, it takes years of education to master the art of magic.”
“Not true once again,” another laugh bellowed from the pony’s mouth before continuing, “I have studied magic all of my life, what types there are, how to use it, how to tamper with it, how to forge it into weaponry, and many other applications of it. I also have gathered a vast variety of books, old and new that go into the history of it, so it should come to no surprise that I would find another way to get what I desire. Alicorn Island, a legendary island somewhere in uncharted waters that is said to have an artifact what will grant a pony the wings of a pegasus, the strength of an Earth Pony, and the horn of a unicorn. I’m so close to finding it as well, I just need a little more time.” He let go of my nose and grabbed me by the suit I had hidden under my cloak. The unicorn that was holding me down let goes of his magic as I was lifted up to eye level with Korsan staring into my soul. “So what do you say?”
“I say that you’re playing cheap.”
“You still want an actual fight with me? I was going to kill you one way or another. At least it’s going to be fun for the both of u-… wait a minute.” Korsan’s eye darted down and saw the purple silk of my suit poking out of the black jacket I was wearing. “This silk…” He raised me a little higher as he began to pull his face closer to the suit that was beginning to tear from being stretched so much. I tried to flap my wings and escape his grip, but my cape and suit was still too soggy and Korsan holding the tight silk up so high wasn’t making my situation better. The pirate captain then began to sniff my suit and brush the tip of his soft nose over it, creating a very awkward situation in my mind. “This mulberry silk has been dyed with Tyrian Purple, a rare and expensive dye made from sea snails only native to the local waters around Saddle Arabia. The stitching of the cloth has been done with the finest precision of magic. The only ponies that would be able to wear such a luxurious piece of equipment would be royalty, bestowed by royalty, or be insanely rich. I know where you got this, this clothing given to you by the king of Saddle Arabia as a reward for catching a very high level criminal, considering your profession is that of a bounty hunter, you would be chasing after highly dangerous ponies.” I was in absolute shock upon hearing his conclusion. I was mystified at how he was able to know not only how and where I got my suit, but also what my occupation was right on the spot.
“How did you know that I was a bounty hunter?”
“It was very simple to put the pieces together. Your shadowy appearance, the way you engaged me and my ponies, the fact that you are most likely not from these local waters, the fact that you are willing to actually fight me, it was so blatantly obvious. Hey, make you a deal, I’ll put you out of your misery and I’ll take your lovely clothing from your body. Promise not to bleed on the suit, and I’ll kill you quickly.” Korsan laughed once more, with this one turning maniacal and his crew of about fifty joining him in the cheer. At this point, I had grown sick of this stallion’s endless taunting and insults. I saw my opportunity and I gave a good kick to Korsan’s exposed eye with a hind hoof. He screamed in pain as I was dropped from his metal grip. I sprang into action and used my secret weapon to tear from the cloak and regain my hoofing. I looked to my back left and right to see my weapons unveiled. Two, heavily armoured, extendable wing blades attached tightly at the front edges of my wings. I opened my wings wide and flapped them down, causing the sharp metal blade to extend to a meter in length. I pointed my right wing at the tip of Korsan’s nose while he was rubbing his eye, which I then noticed how truly soft it was even against the tip of my sharp blade. He and I could feel my sharp metal tap his abnormally soft nose. He eventually stopped rubbing his eye and gave a good look at the blade about to strike him, then up at my face. My eyes were boiling with determination as I stared at him back, not letting myself show any fear.
“Korsan, give up these felonious acts and come with me peacefully or I will use aggressive force.”
“Like you haven’t already?” He responded in a cynical, harsh tone, “that’s some mighty impressive equipment you got there. Almost makes me wish I didn’t give those wing blades away.” I shook my head in disbelief, before thinking that what he said might be right.
“You made these?”
“Yeah I made them, but due to… unforeseen changes to my body; I had to sell the weapons to the black market, which is where you most likely got them from. Luckily, I always upgrade.” Korsan then reached both of his front claws behind his back to when I could not see and pulls out two, long, serrated cutlasses with light similar to that of his harness creating glowing designs in the blades. “You still want to fight?” My rival then begun to spin the two swords with his claws to try to intimidate me pre-battle and demonstrate his capabilities with the blades.
“Bring it.” We lunged towards each other and began to fight. Our metal blades struck each other in a harmonious rhythm, every strike, lunge, parry, jab, and grind, perfectly timed. As Korsan and I dueled, Korsan’s crew began to flood into the bar and form a circle around us, making sure I wasn’t going to escape. I was amazed at the sheer presentation of our battle to the other patrons, as if it was a performance. Shouts rang out among the customers behind the crew’s backs, calling bets on when I was going to die. It didn’t deter me however, instead I used it as motivation to surprise everypony. Eventually, I gained the upper hoof and struck Korsan’s left cutlass at the hilt with a powerful swing, launching it across the bar and hitting the bull’s-eye on a dartboard. “Ha!” My other blade and Korsan’s right sword collided together and began to grind. I saw it as the perfect opportunity to finish him off. I swung my free wing once more to attack and just as I was about to slice into Korsan’s side, it stops. A loud metal clang ringed from the blade and echoed through the building, bringing a wave a silence to the area. I looked down to seeing Korsan’s unarmed metal fist grabbing hold of my wing. I shook side to side, but he did not let go.
“Impressive.” My gaze returned back to my rival, who now had the most evil smile imprinted on his face. “Another design flaw I’ve noticed is that, pegasi weapons…” Before he finished his statement, he flung the blade and my entire body into the air. All I saw for three seconds was the floor and the ceiling chasing each other, not knowing where I was or what was happening to my body. However, the torture ended in a flash, as I found myself slammed into a smashed table on the ground, with apple cider pouring on my face. Pain was dancing throughout my veins, and I couldn’t do anything about it at this point but to pant and wheeze, frozen in shock of whatever maneuver he had pulled. I looked to my right to see Korsan kneeling next to my paralyzed body, still held onto my wing. “They tend to be a bit clingy, don’t you agree?”
I tried to form words in my mouth, but all that came out was stuttering, “K-K-K-K-ma-ka-ko-”
“Don’t strain yourself, it’ll all be over in a minute.” The pirate then let go of my wing, only to grab the collar of the vest I wore once again. He raised me up into the air with one claw and his sword in another before announcing to the attendants present, “Behold! This is what happens when you try to mess with me! Any Earth Pony or pegasi that gets in my way will not live to see the next day, so you all better watch yourselves. Am I clear?” The room remains quiet, as all of the patrons are still shocked silent of the battle. “I said; Am I clear?!”
“Y-Yes.” They all nervously responded.
“Good.” Korsan’s glare turned to the barmaid, in which he slowly walked to her with me in tow. “Hey November Gale, open for the weekend? My ice phoenix Juliana has learned a new trick I would like to show you.”
“Go away Korsan,” she sternly replied, “you’ve already caused enough damage to this place. I don’t want your parrot to freeze this place.”
“Come on November, you know you can’t resist a pony like me.”
“Yes I can, and if you’re going to be causing any bloodshed, do it outside.”
“Fine. If you’ll excuse me, I have some business to attend to.” With that said, Korsan carried me outside of the bar, through the open door and into the rainstorm. It had grown even more violent than before, with rain and lightning obscuring my view of any of the rock stacks that surrounded the bar. What I did see however, was the most incredible thing imaginable. A galleon, hundreds of meters long, hovering above the water. The rain and lightning floodlit the groves along the hull’s woodwork illuminated a green glow of thousands of roots, interconnected and simply majestic. I was then pinned against the wooden wall just outside the door, my hooves not able to touch the ground, and the pain growing more intense with the unnatural position I was at. Korsan leaned into my face, with his eyes looking up at me from below my nose. “Any last words?”
I croaked, “P-Please, K-Korsan, you don’t have to do this. I think you’re a fantastic pony!”
“Tsk, don’t try any of that rump-kissing with me, you’re going to die, any second now.”
“Wait, why the Earth Ponies and pegasi? Why can’t you just leave them be instead of this whole genocide plot? Think of all the ponies that died in that sky kingdom!”
“To end the suffering. I don’t want some foal to be wrongfully born to a family that’ll not love him like me. I shall put an end to the loose genetics that plague generations of potential wonders into inferior beings. You may not be able to see things my way, but don’t worry, this action tonight will be one of many deeds done to create a better future.”
“What you’re doing is wrong, all ponies are equal.”
“Wrong, I have shown you, you are wrong.” Immediately, Korsan pressed my chest against the even hard and pulls his sword back, prepare to swing it. I closed my eyes, awaiting for the inevitable to come, only for a minute to pass without him swinging. I opened my right eye to see Korsan looking at the now closed door, contemplating something.
“K-Korsan?”
“Where did you hear of that? Where did you hear of the time I destroyed that kingdom? Where did you hear of my beliefs? Who told you?” At this point, I was only looking out for myself, so I decided to tell him to keep myself alive.
“It was that indigo pony in the bar! Your first mate,”
“Nitin Gale… That old pony’s been telling tales I see.”
“Yeah, can you please let me go?”
“So what? So you can tell others of the pathetic history I’ve had as a pegasus?”
“No, you’re a genius! You’ve been able to do so many things before you were even an adult. Just that airship is enough to impress anypony, no matter what you are!”
“My feats shall be seen as the work of a unicorn. And until I am seen as one, no pony, shall speak of them.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“You know the old saying…”
“…”
“A dead pony tells no tales…” In that moment, everything became dark, and that’s how it’s always been to this day. I shall forget that event, not one night I shall not feel Korsan’s blade come In contact with the flesh of my neck.
They say that a dead pony tell no tales. That is only partly true. A dead body tells no tales, but the voices of the sea speak as they please. The soul is eternal, and doesn’t exist in the physical world of existence most can hear. And sometimes, they relive their stories night after night, never to forget it…
