Fallen Canterlot

Zeestone tossed in her bunk, her sheets long thrown off in her fearful sleep-fits. This was becoming a regular event for her, her dreams haunted by the final moments of the Great War, her ship overrun by aquatic demons, their teeth ripping into the flesh of her crew, while she desperately fought to stay alive with a sword held firmly in her mouth.

“Captain Crescent! We can’t hold them off! They’ve breached the hull! By the Princesses! Celestia help us~!”

The images played over and over in her dreams, her unable to do anything to help her crew, locked in combat with one of the demons. Then came the great rumble, the one which signaled the end of the Great War and the defeat of Equestria. In the distance, the great mountain of Canterlot caved in, the city falling far beneath the surface, before it was sealed away…

Zeestone shot up in her bunk with a shriek, gasping for breath as she held a hoof to her chest. The nightmares were becoming more frequent. At first they had only come a few times each month, but now they were tormenting her every night. She looked down at herself, trying to slow her breath, when her door flew open, a tan pegasus rushing in with a sword held tightly in his right wing.

“Cap’n, are you alright?” The pegasus asked, hurriedly moving to Zeestone’s side, keeping his sword ready.

“I’m… I’m alright, Cock Up.” Zeestone took a deep breath, nodding slowly. “Just… Nothing”

“Are the nightmares back, Cap’n?” Cock Up sheathed his sword, placing a hoof on Zeestone’s shoulder his expression one of worry, but Zeestone had little interest in talking about her nightmares.

“Do we have any jobs pending, Cock Up?” Zeestone deflected the pegasus’ question as she got out of her bunk, her hooves hitting the iron deck with a light thud. Even if they didn’t have a job, she would need to get up anyway. They had to ship out soon, before the harbormaster realized that they had yet to pay a single bit to remain in harbor for the week that they had been there. Today she and Cock Up would head to the Canterlot Bazaar for supplies and fuel, then leave by noon, job or no job.

“Actually yes. A posting came for a cargo ship to carry a shipment of ivory from Port Shining back here to Canterlot. A bit odd that the job was posted here, but it pays enough to cover the food and fuel for the round trip, so I took it.” Cock Up shrugged, not usually one to question things which appeared odd. While Zeestone personally wasn’t always accepting of his overly trusting nature, it was what led him to be captured by cannibals at Equicidal Castle, but it always served to keep the rest of the crew in decent spirits, seeing somepony be calm in the face of incredible danger.

“Well, better than nothing, I suppose. Though you couldn’t find a job that took us to anywhere but the Elder Continent? You know that’s a dangerous place for ships.” Zeestone rolled her eyes as she got dressed, pulling the black overcoat over her pale blue body.

“I figured it paid well enough that it was worth taking the risk. Maybe a trip back up the canal.” Cock Up offered, knowing that there was nothing Zeestone loved more than to feel natural sunlight on her face, but it was rare that she got the chance, since using the canal was expensive and lightboxes were illegal in Canterlot. Tempting her with a vision of the surface was an almost guaranteed way of getting her to agree to take a risk, within reason anyway.

Zeestone sighed, nodding to her friend and subordinate. She would do almost anything to see the sun again, even if it meant going near the beasts of the Elder Continent.

“Alright, if it’s paying that much, we’ll take the job. Now come on.” Zeestone walked out of her quarters, out to the deck of her cargo ship. The scent of the zee wafted over her, mixed with the noxious aroma of burning coal. Far above, the ceiling of the ‘neath stretched far and wide, the vast expanse of black stone interrupted only by the occasional twinkling of Luna’s Tears, gemstones which gave the impression of stars in an eternally dark sky. The spires of Canterlot, faintly lit by by gas streetlamps, reached into the darkness like the claws of a primordial beast, desperate to escape the suffocating blackness.

The two made their way through the streets of Canterlot towards the Moondown Markets, the sunken city holding little of the upper class crust which had dominated the city while the sun still shone upon it. In the place of fancy nobility and extravagant boutiques, the city was now mostly home to countless zailors, working out of brine-smelling shops, peddling the wares they had accumulated from their journeys across the zee. One would see a unicorn from the Canterlot Bazaar and an Earth Pony zailor arguing over the price of a crate of abyss pearls, then right across the street, find another crate of those same pearls being exchanged for a dozen crates of food.

Ponies wearing ‘fancy’ suits with tattered edges stood atop piles of crates, trying to sell ponies the idea of fantastic creatures that could be seen just inside their tents. Zeestone chuckled as she passed by one of them, shaking her head. Sometimes they had real thing, other times it was just some horrifying amalgamation of zeebeasts sewn together. She loved the pale look the swindlers would get when she would start naming each bit of zeebeast they used in their exhibits, right in front of their other customers.

The markets were also one of the few places in the Unterzee where the various races which lived there could be found getting along, or at least getting along long enough to trade. The Sun-Touched from High Carnelian, their eyes giving off a glow which was only partially hidden behind their dark spectacles. The Drownies of the Coral Depths, their cold, slimy coats interrupted at their necks by sets of gently flapping gills. The Tomb Colonists from Tartarus’ Gate, their shambling bodies mummified in dusty wrappings. Outside of Moondown, none of them could stand one another, and nearly all of them despised the ponies of Canterlot in one way or another, but none of them could deny the value of trading within Canterlot.

Zeestone made her way with Cock Up through the markets, the two haggling with a half dozen merchants, trying to get the best prices possible for coal and food. By the end of it, the two were lugging carts which had crates upon crates of coal and food stacked up, slowly making their way back to the docks.

“Cock Up? I thought you said we would only be bringing cargo from Port Shining?” Zeestone’s brow furrowed as the Hoofget Sound came into view, a group of ponies that weren’t members of the crew standing on the pier beside the vessel, an assortment of barrels alongside them.

“That’s what the post said…” Cock Up looked to the group, then to the one presumably in charge. “Cap’n, I think that’s the mayor, she’s far too fancy to be from the docks.” Zeestone focused on the one mare dressed fancily. She was a unicorn, clothed in a fine gown which, by the way the lapping waves seemed to avoid her, had to be enchanted, then there was the shape of her body, suggesting a corset underneath.

“I think you’re right, Cock Up, but what’s she doing here?” Zeestone scowled as they made their way down the pier, still hauling their supplies.

“Ah, Captain Sapphire Crescent, I presume?” The elegantly dressed mare walked up to the two, smirking dangerously down at them.

“Lady Mayor Deep Six, to what do I owe the privilege?” Zeestone bit her lip to keep herself from snapping at the use of her real name. “Your coming is rather sudden, we are just about to leave for Port Shining.”

“Precisely why I came. I am the one who requested the ivory from the colony, and I merely ask that you bring a… special cargo as well. In addition, I request that this be done discretely. The Governor may not even desire this shipment, so it is best if nopony knows you have it in your hold.”

The request to carry it discretely was a big red flag in Zeestone’s mind. Deep Six was known to be as corrupt as nobles come, and a swindler to boot. Whatever the real reason she wanted these shipped was, it wasn’t going to be good.

“And if the Governor refuses to take this cargo? Will I still get payment for hauling this cargo there and back?” Zeestone asked cautiously. While a ‘yes’ would not really comfort her, a ‘no’ would mean she’d just throw the barrels overboard as soon as she left Port Shining.

“Yes, you will be compensated should you have to bring my cargo back with you. I guarantee it.” Deep Six nodded, her smirk never leaving her lips. That alone made Zeestone nervous about the whole thing. She’d most likely just turn it over to the Port Authority when she returned and not have another interaction with the Mayor in the future. To make the feeling in her gut worse, just behind Deep Six, Zeestone could swear she just saw one of the barrels move on it’s own.

“Well, while I have my reservations, I’ll take on your cargo, Lady Mayor.” Zeestone reluctantly agreed, thinking that even if she had to give them over to the Port Authority, she’d make more than enough off the ivory shipment that it wouldn’t matter. Deep Six gave a genuine smile which, while brief, did put a little confidence back into Zeestone.

“Excellent. I thank you, Captain. Alright boys, you heard her, start loading this onto the ship.” Deep Six barked to the stallions behind her, who quickly began rolling the barrels up the gangplank onto the Hoofget Sound.

“Just leave them on the deck, if you don’t mind. My own crew will take it from there.” Zeestone interjected, not wanting the Mayor’s hired goons to go into the bowels of her ship. Knowing the stallions Deep Six hired as enforcers, they’d likely steal from the provisions already aboard. At least the stallions were willing to comply, leaving the barrels in the center of the deck. As soon as the barrels were all aboard, Deep Six and her goons made their way to leave.

“Farewell Captain, stonespeed to you.” Deep Six smiled, offering the blessing of the most caring god of the zee.

“Thank you, Lady Mayor. Celestia guide you.” Zeestone countered. She didn’t believe in the gods, thinking of them as nonsense picked up by the superstitious once Canterlot sank. She never stopped believing in the Princesses as goddesses, their divine grace never fading in the zailor’s mind.

With the sound of the ship’s foghorn and the deep rumble of its engines, the Hoofget Sound pulled away from the pier, moving through the harbor at low speed. Once they had cleared Barnet Reef, the edge of Canterlot Harbor, Zeestone ordered full speed, the engines roaring to life as they forced the old cargo ship onward, headed southeast towards Port Shining.

The zee. Wide and dark, broken by a few chains of islands. This was where Zeestone felt the most in control of her life, even though that couldn’t be farther from the truth. The zee ruled all who sailed it and it was a cruel tyrant to most. All one could do was learn to sail beneath its notice. But even with that, Zeestone was free from the politics of Canterlot while she was out at zee, free from the need of money. Out here, all she had to care about was finding food to eat and fuel to keep going. If she wasn’t forced to return to Canterlot from lack of either of those, she’d spend the rest of her days sailing the zee.

“Well, Cap’n, at the this rate, we should be at Port Shining within a week.” Cock Up interrupted Zeestone’s train of thought, the mare just staring off into the distance until her bosun broke her out of it.

“A week? A little faster than I expected. Are you sure you charted the route right?” Zeestone raised a brow quizzically. It should take longer than a week to get to Port Shining directly from Canterlot.

“Positive, Cap’n, it’ll put us at Port Shining in a week.” Cock Up repeated, nodding. “Come on Cap’n, you’ve never doubted my routes before.”

“I know, Cock Up, but something about this job just doesn’t feel right to me, I’d honestly prefer to stay at zee for as long as possible. I’m positive I saw one of those barrels move.” Zeestone looked towards the deck, the barrels being as far beneath them as she could stow them.

“Cap’n, you’re being paranoid” Cock Up chuckled, trying to diffuse Zeestone’s nerves. “Come on, let’s head down to the galley, get you something warm in your belly.”

“Alright, but water only, we’re not opening the wine until we see the surface, got it?” Zeestone allowed herself a small smile, nodding before waving to one of the deckhooves to take the helm in her absence. The two walked down to through the passageways of the ship down to galley, the smell of baking bread wafting through the cramped corridors.

“Ah, I love the smell of food fresh out of harbor, something other than hardtack and whatever we can scrounge from the zee.” Cock Up laughed, taking an exaggerated breath through his nose. “Fresh bread and vegetables, mm’mm.”

“Then we are lucky that you managed to plot a course to Port Shining in just a week then, we can replace what we eat before we leave.” Zeestone stifled a laugh at her bosun’s over-the-top excitement over the food, taking a carrot off the cook’s table as they walked by.

“Maybe we can make a stop in Tartarus’ Gate after we get back to Canterlot, have the whole crew eat at the Bandaged Connoisseur before we head to the surface.” Cock Up suggested optimistically, with a loud cheer erupting from the crew in response.

“We’ll see after we get paid, Cock Up, though that is a great idea. It’s been a while since we paid old Dust Root a visit. She might even give us a discount if we bring a newspaper with us.” Zeestone finally allowed herself to laugh, her throaty zailor’s laugh mixing nicely with the cacophony of the rest of the crew.

Dust Root, the proprietor of the ‘Bandaged Connoisseur’, was a Tomb Colonist who, before she died and was resurrected, was an old friend of Zeestone’s from the surface, who was absolutely obsessed with knowing what was going on in the zee. Which was possibly why she opened her restaurant in the first place.

“Come on, Cap’n, if you really want ‘er to give us a discount, all you’d have to do is kiss ‘er” One of the zailors jeered, eliciting another round of laughs.

“Oh please, we all know Cock Up’s the one who’d want to dab her, much more than I would anyway.” Zeestone elbowed Cock Up, her bosun turning bright red as his wings flared out.

“Cap’n! That’s a real jump there betweening kissing and fucking!” Cock Up protested, though didn’t deny that he wouldn’t do exactly what Zeestone was joking about.

“We’re not hearin’ a ‘no’, Cock Up.” Another zailor laughed.

The joking went on for quite some time, until the ship’s horn sounded for the night crew. While day and night were ambiguous terms in the ‘neath, ponies still referred to the times as ‘day’ and ‘night’, mostly out of habit, but also out of respect for the memory of the Princesses, even if they weren’t worshipped as goddesses by most of Canterlot anymore.

Zeestone sighed as she walked into her quarters, closing the door behind her. Shedding her overcoat, she strode over to the nearby porthole, resting her head on the edge. Looking out over the dark zee was her form of relaxation, not because she enjoyed looking out across the most likely cause of her eventual death, but because she would think of one day leaving it behind forever to return to the surface, to feel the sun on her face again for longer than a few hours before she had to return to the ‘neath.

“One day… One day.” Zeestone whispered before she left the porthole, climbing into her bunk. Another night at zee, something awaits her in port.

The Elder Continent was an enigma to Ponykind. Unlike much of the land in the ‘neath, the Elder Continent was lush with jungles and wildlife, though most of it was hostile to ponies. At least the ponies from the surface.

That was the most surprising discovery in the ‘neath made by the ponies of Canterlot when they first began exploring the Unterzee, the Elder Continent was home to a strange, secretive group of ponies which had been shaped by the ravages of the Elder Continent into being incredibly durable. The sharpest blade or largest bullet left little more than a scratch on the hides of these ponies, and when Port Shining was founded, its walls had to be lined with lightning generators to keep them at bay. Some in the Bazaar whispered that those ponies were the masterminds behind the invasion of the surface all those years ago, though no real evidence of that has emerged in the rare dealings with the Elder Ponies as of yet.

Zeestone watched the coastline from the helm as the ship sailed past. They were about a mile out to sea, but even at that distance, the feeling of dread and unwelcomeness was clear. She could tell that whatever power truly ruled the jungles, it had no love for the lifeless hull of her ship, nor for the foreign ponies who crewed it.

“Come on, Cap’n, there’s no way anything from the shore can reach us out here.” Cock Up spoke up, taking a glance towards the shore himself.

“You know that’s not true.” Zeestone shook her head, before pulling down the horn to the engine room. “Captain to Engine Room, full power until we reach Port Shining!”

“Engine Room to Cap’n, aye Cap’n!” One of the engineers’ voices replied through the horn, the engine beginning to groan in protest as they began stoking the flames. The water behind the Hoofget Sound became choppy as the ship sped up.

“Cock Up, I want weapons loaded and ready to fire until we reach the port, searchlights on full power, and keep a lookout for any lights beneath the water. I’m not going to get caught off guard by an angler crab.” Zeestone ordered her bosun/first mate, the pegasus nodding quickly before setting off to work.

The crew of the Hoofget Sound exploded into activity as Cock Up relayed the captain’s orders, readying guns and searchlights. All of them knew how dangerous the Continent’s beasts were, having seen flocks of birds bearing razor-like claws, giant crabs the size of warships, and eels as long and girthy as a Canterlot tower. Nearly everything from the Continent was capable of turning Canterlot ships into scrap at the bottom of the ocean.

The tension aboard the ship was tangible for the time it took to come within sight of the walls of Port Shining, the crew somewhat twitchy despite the best efforts of Cock Up to ease the stress. While the pegasus wasn’t concerned about the possibility of attack by zeebeasts, he was also concerned that there would be accidental firing, one of the gunners twitching a little too much and wasting ammunition. But, as the lights and walls of Port Shining came into view, Zeestone’s commanding voice sounded across the deck.

“Stand down! We’re coming up to port!”

Port Shining was Canterlot’s sole colonial possession, forcibly carved out of the jungle surrounding a small, natural harbor. If it wasn’t for the lucrative sapphire mines, the sheer expense of keeping the colony would have resulted in its closing years ago. From attacks by native beasts and Elder Ponies to the seemingly endless plagues and fungal infestations, there was never a time when the colony wasn’t teetering on the brink of collapse, only to be saved by an influx of miners hoping to strike it rich in the sapphire trade.

It’s harbor wasn’t exactly teeming with ships, like Canterlot’s were, but it had a relatively respectable number of merchant vessels lying at anchor, making Zeestone wonder why Deep Six hadn’t just commissioned a ship from here to carry her oh so secretive cargo.

“Cock Up, you stay with the ship, I’ll go see to getting the cargo.” Zeestone ordered, neither her voice nor her actions giving any room for argument as she leapt over the side onto the pier upon bringing the ship to a halt.

“Um, aye aye, Cap’n.” Cock Up nodded unsurely, never really wanting to leave Zeestone’s side if he could get away with it. But, she had ordered him to stay, so that was what he was going to do. In his head, this was likely just so Zeestone could be in and out of the port as quickly as possible. “Ah well, looks like we won’t be taking on any fresh food while we’re here, lads.”

The crew on the deck gave an audible groan, the hope since that first night being that they’d take on some more fresh fruit and vegetables before the voyage home.

“Alright, so that’s twenty crates of ivory?” Zeestone raised a brow at the merchant she had the order for, the sandy colored unicorn nodding dismissively.

“Yeah, twenty crates of stygian ivory, perfectly for those high-society types in Canterlot, ready to ship. Your ship that one that just came into the harbor?” The unicorn asked, wanting to be done with Zeestone about as much as she wanted to be done with him.

“Yes, it is. Just get it down there, my crew will load it on when it’s delivered.” Zeestone passed over the order.

“Alright, good luck to you then.” The unicorn nodded as he took the order, leaving Zeestone to start moving the crates down to the harbor. Zeestone moved to leave herself, her destination being the Governor’s Palace, to try and get rid of Deep Six’s unnerving barrels. If she didn’t get rid of them now, she’d have to haul them back to Canterlot, and if she could avoid that, she would.

For as ramshackle as the rest of the colony appeared, the Governor’s Palace was surprisingly well built, either that or it was enchanted to resist the Elder Continent’s corrosive effect on the artificial structures of Canterloters. In all honesty, it was likely the latter, since even the expense of the enchantment would be far less than constant upkeep on the structure.

Guarding the entrance to the palace were two Royal Guardsponies, their pitted and scratched armor a grim reminder that there was no real royalty to protect anymore.

“Morning, gentlecolts, I’m here to see Lord Brightwork on a matter concerning a shipment from Lady Mayor Deep Six of Canterlot.” Zeestone recited in a practiced voice. There was always a level of presumed sophistication when conversing with Royal Guards, so for one to be taken seriously by the soldiers, one had to meet that level.

“Lord Brightwork isn’t expecting any deliveries from Canterlot. Lady Mayor Deep Six would had sent a message ahead of your arrival. Now move along.” One of the guards gruffly ordered, the saddle-mounted rifle at his side swinging down, the sharpened bayonet less than an inch away from Zeestone.

Not willing to risk irritating the Guardsponies, if only to keep from getting speared or shot, Zeestone nodded, turning, and walking away.

“Must have been a mistake then, thank you, sirs.”

“So, we’re keeping the barrels?” Cock Up raised a brow as Zeestone returned, ordering the lower levels of the cargo hold be locked.

“Yeah, the Governor’s goons wouldn’t let me talk to him about getting rid of them, so we’re bringing them back for Deep Six to make somepony else’s problem.” Zeestone snorted, shaking her head as she took the helm. “The ivory is all in place, right?”

“Aye, Cap’n. We made sure it’s all loaded up in the hold.” Cock Up nodded, looking back to the Governor’s Palace. “Wonder why Deep Six would send us out with those barrels if we can’t get past the guards.”

“That’s what I really don’t want to find out, Cock Up.” Zeestone took in a deep breath, before grabbing hold of the horn to the engine room. “Captain to Engine Room! Full reverse!”

“Engine Room to Cap’n! Aye, Cap’n, full reverse!” An engineer called back, once again, the engines roaring to life. The Hoofget Sound slowly pulled away from the pier, pitching starboard as Zeestone guided it to be able to leave the harbor.

“Excuse me, Harbormaster?” A courier ran up to the burly earth pony who was in charge of the docks in Canterlot. The courier was dressed in the uniform of a mayoral servant, carrying an envelope bearing the seal of the Mayor of Canterlot.

“Yes? What is it?” The harbormaster barked, turning to face the courier, who presented him the envelope.

“The Lady Mayor has learned of a zee-captain who is attempting to smuggle zee-beasts into Canterlot. Inside the envelope is a report sent ahead by Port Shining authorities, containing a manifest on the ship, its crew, and its cargo.” The courier relayed the message given to him by Deep Six herself. The harbormaster opened the envelope, looking over the report on a merchant ship known as the Hoofget Sound, registered under a ‘Captain Sapphire Cresent’, who herself went under the alias ‘Zeestone’. According to the report, the ship was to arrive in Canterlot within the next week or two.

“Hmmph. I’ll make sure the smuggler is dealt with, you can assure the Mayor.” The harbormaster nodded curtly, pocketing the report.

“Your dedication to the safety of Canterlot is admirable, Harbormaster.” The courier allowed himself a small, genuine smile before he ran off to report back to the Mayor.

Zeestone felt a wave of uneasiness come over her as she pulled her ship into harbor in Canterlot. Something didn’t feel right to her, as if the city itself had become unwelcoming in their absence. The large group of harbor guards waiting at her rented dock certainly didn’t help ease her nerves. The guards didn’t wait for permission to board, walking onto the deck as soon as the gangplank was lowered.

“Captain Sapphire Crescent, you stand accused of smuggling living cargo into Canterlot. Your hold and all of its contents are now subject to search.” The head guard, a stone colored pegasus, stated bluntly as he walked up to Zeestone, his squad pushing past the ship’s crew to get down into the cargo hold.

“Smuggling live cargo? You can’t be serious, I’m only carrying ivory, that’s seems pretty dead to me.” Zeestone protested, not wanting to believe what was going on. She had been gone for two weeks and now her spotless record was ruined with suspicion. She was sure that there was nothing living in her cargo hold, unless… Deep Six’s cargo wasn’t something allowed within Canterlot. That explained why she was supposed to be discrete about it. The arrival of another one of the guards snapped Zeestone out of her thought.

“Sir, we found a number of brine filled barrels in a locked portion of the hold. We’re bringing them up now.” The newcomer reported, to which the head guard looked back to Zeestone, his expression full of contempt.

“Only carrying ivory?” The head guard drew his sword with a wing, leveling the blade at Zeestone. “Captain Sapphire Cresent, you are under arrest for smuggling.”

“I didn’t know what was in those barrels! Deep Six stowed them on my ship without telling me what was in them!” Zeestone exclaimed, shaking her head quickly as she protested. It was at that point the first barrel was brought onto the top deck, followed by the sound of a gunshot, though nopony could tell where from.

The barrel exploded in a shower of salty brine, revealing a faceless, tentacled beast which immediately began lashing out at anypony nearby. That was when the deck itself exploded into chaos. Both Zeestone’s crew and the harbor guards drew weapons to combat the zeebeast, only to end up shooting and stabbing at one another as confusion reigned.

Seeing an opportunity, Zeestone headbutted the head guard, bolting towards the secondary entrance to the cargo hold, hoping she could seal off the rest of the beasts before any more of them could break free. Unfortunately, her move was seen very differently by the head guard, who quickly recovered from the headbutt and followed her down into the hold.

“Alright smuggler, after all of this, an arrest is too good. That little stunt you pulled with the barrel is enough for me to shoot you” the guard snarled, drawing his pistol as he ran after Zeestone. A shot rang out as Zeestone tried to make for a large stack of crates, one of them collapsing, spilling the ivory out right on top of her, a large chunk slamming into her head. She collapsed as her vision became blurry, the last thing she saw before blacking out being the cold face of the guard.

“Hey, this one’s got something stuck to her hoof. Think we should try to take it?” One of the guards poked Zeestone’s unconscious body, thinking her to be a corpse. On her hoof was a strange blue gauntlet, which seemed relatively out of place among the pile of ivory and the zailor’s body.

“Nah, zailors pick up weird shit all the time, no point in saving it. Throw her over with the rest of ‘em.” A second guard rolled his eyes, helping picking up Zeestone’s limp form, pulling it up to the top deck, before throwing it overboard.