Daring Do at Forty Fathoms Deep

Daring was lying on her cabin bunk. A small desk was the only other furnishing in the bare steel-walled room. Outside the window she could see the waters of the Equus Sea calming down from the storm the ship had just navigated through. The overcast skies cast a dim light by which Daring examined the bracer she had recovered. Not a single scuff, she thought as she turned the piece of armor over in her hooves. Thousands of years old, dating back to the founding of Equestria.

Daring cast a sidelong glance around her room before she slid her hoof into the bracer. The armor felt cold against her fur as it hung loosely from her leg. She turned her hoof over as the adornment continued to hang loosely. Daring breathed on the bracer, brought it down to her khaki jacket, and rubbed it a little like some professor fussing over their glasses.

“Now how do I get you to fit? I don’t see any straps.” Daring spun the bracer a few times before she lazily slipped it off. “For something father was so convinced was important in the years just after Equestria’s founding, you’re certainly the mundane little thing aren’t you?” Daring set the bracer on the side of the bed and lay her head back into the pillow.

Daring kept her eyes open as she listened to the creaking of the ship’s hull. The moans of strained steel seemed to match the pegasus’ breathing when she looked back at the bracer. On the inside she noticed several runes. They were mostly lines set at forty five degree angles to one another, with dots punctuating them every so often.

The mare squinted as she let her inner linguist assess the markings. “Ancient Equestrian. Let’s see...” she muttered as waves lapped against the sides of the ship. “That’s the symbol for weather, but set above it is the rune for armor, and below it one for weapon. Ah, I see!” Daring took the bracer in her hooves and shut one eye as she scrutinized the markings further. “This bracer was given a name. Typical habit for pegasus generals back in the day.” She rolled her eyes at the eccentricity of her forebears as she continued. “Thunder. Hmm.” Daring brought the bracer away from her face as she pursed her lips. “Nothing else, no smith’s mark or other epithets, just ‘Thunder’.”

Daring was snapped out of her musing when a hoof knocked against the cabin door. She placed the treasure back into her satchel and called out, “Come in!” The door opened, and a teal unicorn stallion with a black mane and spectacles on his face stepped in. His cutie mark was a picture of a globe with a pile of scrolls lying around its base.

“Miss D—”

“Daring, yes, and don’t feel the need for formal titles,” Daring interrupted. “I get enough of those when I’m at home.” She got out of bed and adjusted her satchel so that it fit snugly below her croup.

The stallion reached up with a hoof and adjusted his spectacles. “Very well, Daring.” He reached a hoof over his chest and bowed. The sight made Daring roll her eyes. “I am Zippy Travels, but you may call me Zip if you feel so inclined.”

“You matriarch henchcolts are certainly sticklers for formality, aren’t you?” Daring asked as she moved her forelegs and stretched her wings.

“Yes well... The Matriarch eventually instills a certain eloquence that might be...” Zip trailed off as Daring gave a huge yawn and arched her back. Her wings stretched out as she smacked her lips. “Lacking in others,” Zip concluded.

“So, to what do I owe this visit Zip?” Daring asked as she popped the joints in her neck.

“I was told by the ship’s cook to inform you that lunch shall be served shortly. The captain also asked that I bring you there so as to prevent any wandering like last night.”

Daring walked by the scholar and opened the door. “It wasn’t so bad. I only managed to find out where this ship has been for the last five months. What’s in Oxlo that the Matriarch has you going there so frequently?” Daring stepped out of the cabin and began leading the way. She navigated the corridors easily, having become intimately familiar with the layout of the ship over the course of the last few days.

“That is really none of your concern Miss Do,” Zip answered with a tinge of irritation marking his voice.

“I hear that it has amazing fisheries. Does The Matriarch like herring or cod? Oh, what am I saying? Dragon, she’d probably much prefer a giant diamond from her hoard. Must be terribly irritating for them to want to have their gem and eat it too.”

“Miss Do,” Zip stated flatly.

“Please, I told you, Daring will—”

“If you would step out of the armory,” Zip interrupted. “I would like very much to lead you to the mess hall without the the crew having to bring back several hooffulls of weapons.”

Daring smiled knowingly as she turned out of the part of the ship she knew was restricted, and led the way to the mess hall. When they arrived, two dozen ponies were already seated around four rectangular white tables in the large room.

Daring and Zip took a seat with the ‘captain,’ Regal Flame, when an orange unicorn wearing a chef’s hat walked into the room. The chef floated a large bowl behind him, and began scooping out generous helpings of soup into each crew-member’s bowl. When he reached the table Daring was sitting at, he carefully poured some soup into Regal Flame’s bowl. When a few drops of soup splashed up and landed on the purple pegasus’s suit, Regal reached up and curtly wiped them off. The chef chuckled sheepishly as he quickly served Daring and Zip, and then hastily retreated back into the kitchen.

“Personnel retrieval, contact liaison, ship captain, and residential cook frightener,” Daring said before she clucked her tongue. “You certainly do a lot for your Matriarch.”

“The Matriarch is nothing if not loyalty-inspiring,” Regal Flame responded as he bent his head to eat his meal. He downed a few mouthfuls before raising his head and turning to Zip. “Have you told her about the Santa Mare?”

“Oh!” Zip exclaimed, “Not yet.” Zip turned to Daring and cleared his throat. “Now, as you may already know: the Santa Mare was a luxury ship of the diamond dog Bearatooli, a powerful crime lord back in the day.” Zip scowled when Daring lowered her head to eat. “Now after he stole the Dragon Jewel of Kal’phet, The Matriarch sent agents to retrieve it, but the Santa Mare sunk in a massive storm.” Daring gulped down a mouthful of soup rather loudly, prompting Zip to ask, “Are you listening?”

Daring lifted her head from the bowl and smiled as she felt the warm minestrone flow down her throat. “Yes, Bearatooli owned the Santa Mare; it sunk before the Matriarch could get her jewel back.”

“Exactly, and most of the crew was rescued, along with Bearatooli, by the Sea Ponies.” Zip’s stomach growled loudly making him pause briefly in his lecture. “However, they never reveal the location of a ship’s final resting place — part of their not wanting to disturb the spirits of the dead or some such nonsense.” Zip’s stomach growled again, making the stallion sigh in exasperation. He lowered his head to his bowl of soup and ate quickly.

“So that leaves the question of how you found where the Santa Mare is located,” Daring said before lowering her head to her soup again.

Zip lifted his head to respond. “Yes. I was able to determine the ship’s final resting place from the heading it would have had, its estimated speed, ocean currents and its last radio transmission. Now the ocean floor beneath the Equus Sea is riddled with caverns, some filled with water, others not.” Zip’s voice began to flow at an exuberant pace as he began speaking of academia. Daring smiled and remained silent as he continued.

“So I believe that the Santa Mare crashed into one or more of these cave systems, partially burying it. That is why The Matriarch’s previous attempts with scanning the ocean floor turned out less than satisfactory.”

“But you’re certain the ship is at the coordinates we’re heading to?” Daring asked, growing more excited at the prospect of the part where she would come in.

“I’d stake my life on it,” Zip replied.

“Perfect. I always wondered what the bottom of the ocean would be like.” Daring leaned back on her seat as she thought on the matter. “But, wouldn’t the pressures crush us?”

“The Equus Sea is only a few hundred feet deep at it’s lowest depths,” Regal Flame answered. “We go to the coordinates, head down in this ship’s submersible, find the Santa Mare, and begin searching it. Imagine it Daring, an entire luxury cruiser, and you’re looking for one single treasure.” The purple pegasus brought a hoof down on the table with a satisfying thud.

“Quite the sales pitch,” Daring commented.

“Must you make light of my families work—”

Regal Flame was interrupted by the audible ping of the intercom. “Would the captain please return to the bridge? There is something you need to see.”

Regal stood up from his chair and nodded to Zip. “If you would excuse me, duty calls.” He then turned to Daring. “Stay put,” he grunted before turning and walking to the bridge.

A few moments after he left, Daring stood up.

“Hang on!” Zip cried out quickly. “You’re supposed to stay here!”

“Well I figured you’d want to be there for when they find whether or not you’d actually found the Santa Mare,” Daring said coyly before she sauntered off after the captain.

Zip sat at his chair for a few moments, pondering the statement. After a few moments he shrugged. “Well I did stake my life on it.” With that, he trotted after Daring.

A few minutes later they reached the bridge. Daring poked her head through the door and saw the captain and another crew member, a unicorn, looking out to sea. The unicorn was levitating a pair of binoculars over Regal Flame’s eyes. Daring turned her attention to what the captain was looking at. In the distance she could see a massive black cube floating in the distance.

As the ship drew closer Daring could make out the details of the ominous figure in the distance. Four massive pillars jutted into the sea. On the side of the cube, the group could see windows and walkways covering the exterior.

“An oil rig?” Regal muttered to himself, prompting the unicorn to lower the binoculars. Regal squinted at the rig and sighed. “Must be a construction in the last five years. How far are we from the coordinates?” Regal turned to face the unicorn. In an instant his eyes darted to see Daring and Zip peeking through the door. With an irritated grunt he awaited the unicorn’s response.

“Twenty miles sir.” The unicorn cast a quick look to the rig before continuing. “Shall I hail them? Let them know we’re not pirates?”

“Go ahead,” Regal answered irritably. “It’s probably just a waypoint for gryphons. As long as they keep away from our ship, I’m happy to leave them alone. Pull to a stop and hail them.”

The other pony obliged and pulled a few levers before he lifted up a radio set and adjusted a few dials. “Attention unidentified oil rig located at thirty five degrees north by twenty eight degrees east, this is the Crest Knocker calling to inform you of our presence, please respond. Over.” The unicorn waited for a response for a full minute before he called over the radio again.

After another minute Regal Flame grabbed the radio and began to speak. “Listen here, this is the captain of the Crest Knocker and I expect an immediate...” The pegasus trailed off when he noticed several dots on the sea come towards the ship. As they came closer Daring and the others could see they were motor boats. Aboard each were several diamond dogs. Most concerning to them all were the weapons each of them held aloft.

Acting quickly, the captain reached over with a hoof and flipped a switch. The intercoms thrummed to life and Zip brought his hooves to his ears as the captain yelled through the intercom. “Attention all crew, report to the armory and ready yourselves, we are about to be boarded!”

Daring spun around and ran past Zip. “Where are you going?” the unicorn asked as Daring skidded to a halt in order to make a corner.

“Getting prepared to welcome guests!” she answered before bolting down the corridor.

Zip stood there briefly before stamping all of his hooves. “Hynngh!” he whined, before running after Daring. They ran out to the exterior of the boat. As Daring reached the door at the other end, three grappling hooks launched over the safety railing. Daring continued through the door as three diamond dogs climbed up and halted Zip’s progress.

The boarders leered at the unicorn and surrounded him. “Little pony come with us now!” a grey diamond dog bellowed.

“Yes! Yes! Little pony never tell about bosses’ plan!” another piped up.

While Zip was captured, Daring continued to run through the ship. At one intersection a unicorn was launching spells before he was hit in the chest with a crossbow bolt. Daring took a left to avoid the scene and pressed onward. When she passed the mess hall a pegasus was fighting off an axe wielding diamond dog. His wings were encased in armor that came to a sharp edge and wing blades. Daring galloped across the room while the diamond dog parried a blow from the crew member and hoisted him by the neck. The adventurous mare ran through a door as the other pegasus was thrown head first into the door frame next to her.

Taking a right, Daring Do finally reached the armory. She bolted in, grabbed a quartet of hoof-gauntlets, and fastened them quickly. The specially weighted weapons would turn a regular buck into a bone crushing blow. Daring was prepared to fight back.

As she started back to the door, a diamond dog stepped into the doorway. Before he could register Daring’s presence, she launched herself at the dog, bruising his chest. Bending her back legs, she landed two blows to his gut and kicked off into a backflip. She struck him in the jaw, knocking him out, and then darted out the door as he slumped to the ground.

Daring ran out of the ship and lifted off into the air with outstretched wings. After flying a short distance, she turned back and flew into a diamond dog that was standing on the deck of the S.S. Swagger. She carried him over the ledge and left him to fall into the waters below. Turning back, Daring landed on the deck as two more diamond dogs approached. One was wielding a sword while the other brandished a crossbow. The dog with the crossbow leveled his weapon at Daring. She ducked to the ground and rolled to the right, dodging the bolt as it flew by, and kicked off the ground. She planted her forehooves into his muzzle, the extra weight of the gauntlets breaking his nose.

The diamond dog reached up to his face and screamed in agony, dropping the crossbow. Thinking fast, Daring grabbed the weapon in her mouth and spun around. She let go of the weapon and sent it flying towards the other diamond dog. He tripped on the impromptu missile and bashed his chin against the hard floor of the deck. Daring leaped into the air and landed on his back, prompting a rather undignified yelp. She curved her hooves under his arms and lifted him up into the air. She hovered over the side of the deck, and she dropped him into the water.

She landed on the deck again and faced off against another diamond dog. Before she could move though, a voice called out, “Don’t move or we kill the hostage!”

Daring turned to see that a diamond dog was holding a sword across Zip’s neck. Daring glared for a moment. Zip’s eyes were filled with fear as he whimpered softly. With a defeated sigh, Daring eased the tension in her muscles. The diamond dog with the smushed schnauz grabbed his crossbow. With a swift motion, he struck Daring in the head with the stock. Daring hit the ground cold as a large welt formed where she had been hit.

The dog holding Zip gave a satisfied grunt and pushed the unicorn towards the unconscious pegasus. He reached into the pocket of his vest and pulled out a scrying crystal. In the small device, a massive diamond dog with a slightly purple coat was scowling.

“We've captured the ship sir. We also caught one the pony that knocked out some of our dogs. Your orders?” the diamond dog asked.

The purple dog in the scrying crystal replied, “Bring all the prisoners aboard and begin interrogations.”

The crystal faded to an opaque white, and the diamond dog on the deck set about to his task.