Our pony heroes had succeeded-- they thwarted Allura’s plans once again, and helped their new friends and old friends defeat Long John Silver and his band of pirates before they could take the treasure of Marcus Flint off the island.

And on the bright side, the Mane 6 now had their fourth star shard.

Only one more to find out there somewhere... and one more to reclaim from Allura's clutches.

But, what they didn't realize yet was that Long John Silver was plotting his escape... and he would stop at nothing to ensure that the treasure was his and his alone.

XXXXXXXX

Harmony and Jim Hawkins slept close together that night, not wanting to take any chances with all the pirates being held below deck.

But as they were sleeping with their friends nearby, they suddenly heard a thud... then a splash.

As if someone was getting into the water with a huge load.

Having been woken up by this noise, Harmony and Jim went onto the deck to investigate… and what they didn’t expect to find was Silver, getting into a rowboat, having escaped his prison, with the treasure in the boat with him! “Silver!”

Long John heard both of them cry out, and Harmony flew to the side of the ship with Jim immediately following afterward. “I suppose you'll be blowing the whistle on me now, won't you, Jim?” Long John asked. “I suppose I will,” Jim said firmly. “You have to return to Bristol to stand trial.”

Harmony handed him the whistle from her pocket, but that’s when Long John chose to raise his pistol and aimed it right at them. “Oh, I'm sorry, Jim. I got a terrible fear of hanging.”

“Jim… we have to do it,” Harmony whispered. “No matter how much we used to like him… we’re not going to give him a ticket to freedom.”

However, Long John tried to manipulate Jim to turn the other way. “We're shipmates, aren't we, Jim?” he asked, getting exceedingly nervous with each second. “Gentlemen of fortune, together. Give us one more chance?”

However… Jim did not back down, and neither did Harmony. And then… after a long pause, Long John lowered his pistol, having a change of heart. “Oh, hell, Jim. I could never harm you, or that pretty pegasus lass of yours,” he sighed. “You’re both honest and brave and true. You didn't learn that from me.”

“...we learned it from our friends, Mr. Silver,” Harmony said stiffly, although it sounded more like she was trying not to cry. “Now take your oars,” Jim added on, “and row away. We never want to see you again, ever.”

Long John began to do as he was told, but then, he remembered something. “Oh, Jim!”

He tossed something small back toward them, which Jim caught.

It was his father’s compass.

Honestly? Jim couldn’t believe that Long John would give it back… and Harmony was equally as stunned. “Tis a shame, really!” Long John called out as he rowed away into the night. “We'd have made a great team, Jim!”

And after a few moments… Long John Silver had disappeared into the night.

Jim struggled not to cry at what just happened, and Harmony wiped away tears of her own, trying to comfort him despite the circumstances.

Captain Smollett, the Mane 6, Gonzo, Rizzo and Persephone approached the two, having seen what had happened… but only Captain Smollett had the voice to speak to them. “Well done, Jim. And you too, Harmony.”

“Yeah,” Zipp said. “Letting Silver go was… pretty intense.”

“And we’re sure of another thing too,” said Misty with a kind smile. “Your parents would have been proud.”

Harmony and Jim smiled for a brief moment before turning and watching the sea again. Only a few seconds later, Mr. Arrow approached the captain, looking a bit worried. “Captain Smollett, I have most distressing news. One of the jolly boats is missing, and I know for a fact that it was terribly unsafe.”

The group looked at each other with worry laced in their faces, knowing for a fact the only jolly boat that was missing…

…was the one Long John just took.

XXXXXXXX

As it turns out, that same boat sank to the bottom of the ocean along with the treasure as the sun rose that next morning, causing Silver to swim back toward the island, which was not too far away.

It seemed that Long John Silver would get the punishment he actually deserved...

...and that would be a lot worse than hanging, in itself.

XXXXXXXX

Around the same time that next morning, the boar (who Captain Smollett happily let come along with Benjamina) were happily playing with the ship steering wheel, all while Squire Trelawney was still hanging onto it and trying to steer. “Whoa! Whoa-ho-ho! This is not fun!”

“Flaubert,” Benjamina said to her pet anteater, sitting beside Captain Smollett with a smile, “meet Dada.”

The anteater sniffed Captain Smollett and Persephone, the latter giggling before turning to the captain. “We’re ready to sail, sir!”

Captain Smollett nodded at this, turning to Jim with a smile. “Where to, Captain Hawkins?”

“To wherever the wind may take us!” Jim responded, leading Gonzo to nod. “Off to Zanzibar, to meet the Zanzibarbarians!”

“Oh, brother,” Rizzo sighed before he and Pipp looked at each other. “Here they go again!”

However, everyone laughed at this, excited for whatever adventure came their way next. After a few moments, the laughter died down, and Harmony stood at the front of the ship for everyone to see her. “I just wanted to say thank you to you all… especially to our friends from Equestria, who helped us go on the biggest adventure of mine and Jim’s lives. We couldn’t have done any of this without you,” she said. “And to thank you… I wanted to sing a song that reflects my new outlook on life, and I asked Lotus and Persephone to help with the dance routine. Pipp? Do you have that audio track on your listening device?”

“Sure do! Whenever you’re ready!” Pipp held her phone up. And once she had gotten the signal, Pipp turned on the music, and as the music began, so did Harmony’s singing.

Harmony: There's something wonderful
About finding my own way (Mm-mm)
It's so fantastic how I'm learning out to say

What's in my heart, what's on my mind
Helping my friends, doing what's right (Mm-mm)
I let the magic that's inside of me shine

I'm making waves
I'm swimming to the rhythm of my own beat
Playing my song and I keep on singing, "Ayy, yeah, yeah"
I show the world what makes me me

Turn up the melody like hey
I'm making waves
I'm singing, "Ayy"
I'm making waves

I'm singing, "Ayy"
I'm making waves
I'm singing, "Ayy"
I'm making waves

And as the song reached the second verse, Persephone and Lotus decided to step in and perform their parts, as well as do the dance routine they had come up with.

Persephone: A new discovery in every single day (Mm-mm)
See something ordinary in a brand new way

Lotus: What's in my heart, what's on my mind
I use my voice to do what's right (Mm-mm)

Harmony: We let the magic that's inside of us shine

Lotus, Persephone and Harmony: We're making waves

Harmony: We're swimming to the rhythim of our own beat
Playing our song and we keep on singing

Lotus, Persephone and Harmony: "Ayy, yeah, yeah"

Persephone and Lotus: I show the world what makes me me
Turn up the melody like like

Lotus, Persephone and Harmony: Hey
I'm making waves
I'm singing, "Ayy"
I'm making waves

I'm singing, "Ayy"
I'm making waves
I'm singing, "Ayy"
I'm making waves

Soon, the song reached its end, allowing the three ponies to bow before their audience, entranced with the performance. But at that moment, the portal back to Equestria opened up, causing Zipp to sigh. “That’s our cue, ponies. We better get going.”

“Thank you all again for your help,” Captain Smollett said with a smile, shaking Sunny’s hoof before handing her the treasure map. “Here… something for you to remember this adventure by.”

“Thank you, Captain Smollett,” Sunny smiled gratefully. “I hope we see you all again soon! Bye!”

“So long!”

“See ya later!”

“Asta la vesta!”

And just like that, the Mane 6 ventured off into the portal, heading for someplace they longed to be.

Home.

XXXXXXXX

Paradise smiled in relief as she and Sparky watched the Mane 6 come out of the portal. “We’re so glad you’re back,” she said as Sparky hugged Hitch happily. “Tell us-- how was your adventure in the mortal realm?”

“Pretty scary, but… pretty amazing,” Zipp said with a smile “Pirates, treasure hunts, defeating Allura again… it was pretty intense.”

“But… it was all worth it to come back to Equestria and see this again,” Sunny said with a smile, looking fondly at the tapestry they had uncovered. “This changes everything, guys. And after this adventure, I know one thing for sure. There's got to be more alicorns out there.”

“And we’re gonna find them,” Zipp promised. “Together.”

Sunny smiled gratefully at her friends as they walked out of Opaline’s old lair… grateful for the adventure of a lifetime, and excited for the adventures that were to come.

Author's Note

I thought this song reflected the journey our heroes went on pretty well, so I decided to use it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGyKz7p2yVw

Also, I decided to not have Opaline's lair destroyed-- it might be a handy shelter in the future. See you in the next story, everyone!