Pirate Nights, Book One

Part II

Captain Egghead

Chapter 7

At the bow of the Red Reef stood Princess Twilight Sparkle. The young alicorn stared ahead, fearlessly. Although the fog and the slow winds spooked many other ponies, Twilight did not allow that to frighten her. Not in the least. It wasn’t her position as princess that made her strong in the face of danger, but rather, her pride in being well-read and educated. She wasn’t superstitious like the others that this fog was a bad omen.

It had been nearly a week since the Red Reef set sail from the Nation of the Sun. The Cascade Sea that divided the Nation of the Sun from the Nation of the Moon was a neutral ground both countries had been at war over for almost all of known history. After passing the Islands of Bravado, Twilight understood that the Red Reef was entering some of the most hostile waters in the Cascade Sea. It was here that navy forces from both sides began to thin and pirates were known to roam wild. Although it was lucky no war had happened during Twilight’s short life, that didn’t mean the waters were entirely safe.

Twilight Sparkle, however, looked upon this as an opportunity. While the captain, Razor Sharp, thought of this voyage as another routine mission, Twilight was glad to get out of the royal palace and experience life first hand. Twilight was royalty, as most alicorns were. For as long as she could remember she had been under the wing of Princess Celestia, the benevolent ruler of the Nation of the Sun, as well as a gifted teacher. Never before had Twilight been asked to leave the Nation of the Sun; by the princess herself, no less.

While Princess Celestia was considering a permanent peace treaty with Princess Luna from the Nation of the Moon, Twilight Sparkle was sent as her liaison to supervise the meeting place between the two rulers; right here in the Cascade Sea. Peace between the two nations sounded like a good idea... if Twilight believed she knew what she was doing.

It didn’t take the younger alicorn long to feel out of place when the voyage started. Though initially happy to put all her research and studies to good use, Twilight didn’t feel any different onboard the Red Reef than she did at the royal palace. Like the princess that she was, everything had to be done for Twilight; whether it was getting dressed, having a meal or just trying to lend a hoof. Although this was Twilight’s first time experiencing the thrill of sailing, it didn’t feel like a special occasion to her when everyone was so protective of her.

Maybe not without good reason, however. The most mysterious thing Twilight had not yet figured out was the pendant she kept hidden under her blouse at all times, even in the presence of Captain Razor Sharp. When no one was looking, she used her magic to retrieve the pendant and looked down at it.

“This is one of six legendary stones known as the Harmonious Gems, Twilight Sparkle,” the young princess remembered being told. “This is one of the most precious royal treasures I have, and I’m leaving it in your care during your voyage to the Cascade Sea. I know this makes little sense to you my faithful student, but I trust you will know what to do when the time comes.”

Twilight Sparkle opened her eyes and was still trying to make sense of what Princess Celestia meant when she had been told all this. It had been over a week since she had been lent the gem. Hanging around her neck, the Harmonious Gem was the shape of a bright star with six points, twinkling a light magenta color. Besides being a stunning piece of jewelry, Twilight didn’t have a clue why this gem was left in her possession. It wasn’t her place to question the princess, but Twilight was loyal and knew she would lay her life down for Celestia if she had to.

“Your highness!” came a sudden voice.

Twilight Sparkle was startled and hurried to hide the Harmonious Gem back in her blouse. When she turned, she was relieved to find it was only Captain Razor Sharp. Twilight knew she didn’t need to fear the captain because he was a loyal subject to Celestia, the same as herself. However, Twilight didn’t risk knowledge of the gem even in his hoofs.

“Sorry Captain,” Twilight said, dusting herself off.

“Don’t say that princess,” Razor Sharp answered. “I am the one who should apologize to you. I clearly startled you.”

“No apology is necessary,” Twilight answered.

Razor Sharp was a pegasus, and a rather tall one. His golden brown coat was nicely complemented by his burned orange mane. He was strictly professional and hardly a pony for simple small talk. “I was curious to know why you were keeping a watch,” he said. “Princess, you mustn’t concern yourself. Nothing could be the matter.”

“I just want to enjoy myself, that’s all,” Twilight answered. She turned back around and looked at the water again. “I was thinking about the fog. Why does it scare everypony? They act like it’s a bad omen.”

Razor Sharp chuckled with amusement as he stood beside the young princess. “You see,” he began, “many of the most infamous pirates were pegasi, like myself. Because pegasi can control the weather it was an old pirate trick to lure ships into a thick fog and ambush them. Of course, many ponies forget the difference between a trap and fog that is naturally rolling in. I’m pretty sure no trap is waiting for us.”

“I wouldn’t mind meeting a pirate,” Twilight smiled. “I’ve read books on them. I mean... it’s not like anypony has been rude to me on this voyage, but I wouldn’t mind a chance to meet a pony who didn’t look up at me like I was royalty.”

Captain Razor Sharp chuckled with amusement as he walked away. Although Twilight was being serious, the captain couldn’t help but mistake it for a joke. Before Twilight could correct him, Razor Sharp told her one last thing before leaving. “The sun sets quickly on the open sea, so don’t stay up too late,” he said.

At that, Razor Sharp turned and went to his cabin, leaving Twilight to mind the look out. As the rest of the pony crew went to get some sleep as well, the deck became scarce and only a few remained to keep watch through the night.

As Twilight enjoyed a few last minutes of freedom without the responsibilities of a princess, she looked into the fog and almost believed she saw something. She lost her train of thought when she looked again but found nothing there. Curious to know what she could have seen, Twilight galloped across the ship’s deck and spoke to the helmspony.

“Did you see something there?” Twilight asked, pointing to the ship’s starboard side.

“Not a thing, your highness,” the helmspony answered. “Can’t see a thing in this fog. We will see even less when the sun sets.”

Twilight was not satisfied. If she thought she saw something she naturally believed it had to be investigated. Still, the question was how. After a moment, the helmspony spoke up with a wide grin across his face. “Hey, look at that,” he said. “We’re escapin’ the fog... no problems either. No pirates at all.”

As the Red Reef passed slowly out of the fog and back into clear view of the open ocean, Twilight realized that was her moment to confirm her suspicions. While there were still a few minutes of daylight left, she rushed to the starboard side of the ship and looked out across the water.

There was nothing for a moment. But just as Twilight Sparkle was about to turn away, she looked again and was startled to see another ship. It was a few hundred yards away and was a different class of ship from the Red Reef. It was an airship, different from water-fairing ships in that it hovered above the water using the hot air in a balloon secured above the vessel. This particular ship seemed to be taking a risk flying so close to the water when it could have been hundreds of feet in the air.

Other ponies suddenly took notice of the ship as well. “What is that?” the helmspony wondered.

Twilight was nervous, yet excited as she reached for a spyglass to take a good look at the other ship. “That doesn’t look like a navy ship,” the alicorn said, using the information she remembered reading in books.

It wasn’t long before she noticed a flag. Being hung right underneath the hot air balloon was a black piece of cloth with the symbol of a white skull with two cross bones. Twilight Sparkle lowered the spyglass slowly. There were two things she was sure of now.

One: the crew of the other ship was a band of rogue pirates.

Two: it had just become their intention to come and attack the Red Reef.

Twilight remembered thinking that an encounter with a pirate would have been fascinating. But now, it dawned on her that they might be in a lot of trouble if the pirates were waving their flag.

The other ponies gathered around Twilight to discover what was obviously troubling her. “That other ship...” the helmspony began. “Is it...?”

Twilight looked up and regained her train of thought. “They’re pirates!” she told them.

The other ponies stepped back. Though they maybe should have seen this coming they didn’t want to believe it until now. The gravity of the situation began to sink in when they looked again and saw the airship steering its way towards them.

“Pirates!” the other ponies yelled. “PIRATES!” they yelled again.

Suddenly, the ship began bustling with activity as the night watch ponies sounded the alarm and everypony jumped into action. Ponies rolled over in their hammocks, some even falling onto the floor as they hurried to their posts. There was still daylight and no pony could believe a pirate attack was happening this late in the evening. But sure enough, all the crew looked across the water and didn’t even need a spyglass to identify the enemy vessel when it came close enough. They were definitely pirates who were manning it.

Twilight felt lost in the crowd; the first time she ever recalled feeling lost in all her years of service to Celestia. It was at that point Twilight realized it was time to put her knowledge to the test. All those books she read on pirates and high seas battles were going to prove their worth. Without a moment to lose, Twilight hurried to find the one pony she knew might save them from this predicament.

Chapter 8

“Captain!”

Twilight burst into Razor Sharp’s personal quarters but was startled to find the captain resting. After the ruckus heard throughout the ship she thought Razor Sharp would have woken up by now. Hurrying to his bedside she tried to get him up.

“Razor Sharp, we’re under attack by pirates!” Twilight exclaimed. “The crew needs your help!”

Twilight tried shaking him awake but Razor Sharp was as limp as a rag doll. He was sleeping so deeply that saliva was drooling from the side of his mouth. Twilight realized this couldn’t be a natural sleep. “Somepony must have drugged him with something!” she exclaimed.

Twilight looked to the side and noticed a platter of muffins. Razor Sharp had muffins every night for a snack but it was curious that the captain took a bite out of one but didn’t bother finishing it. Curious, Twilight picked up one of the muffins and smelled something peculiar.

“Starlight petals!” she exclaimed. “An herbal sleep remedy!”

It didn’t take the alicorn long to make the connection. “We have a traitor among us,” she said aloud. Still, who was the traitor she wondered to herself. It could have been the cook, or maybe his assistant. It could also have been the butler who had time to sprinkle the flower petals on top of the muffins while they were being delivered.

Whatever the case, Twilight knew they didn’t have time to weed out the traitor. The pirate ship was nearly upon them. They needed everypony to trust each other in this time of crisis without pointing the hoof at potential suspects.

Hurrying outside the captain’s cabin, Twilight looked at the crew as they scurried about. Scattered and leaderless, they tried preparing themselves for battle but did it without anyone to command or motivate them. Twilight Sparkle became nervous that maybe this battle was already lost. Without a captain, she didn’t know how this ship would last in a fight.

“We need orders!” one of the ponies yelled. “Where’s the captain? We need his help!”

Twilight wasn’t sure what to tell the other ponies. While they were still trying to prepare themselves for the inevitable, the young princess felt out of place. It wasn’t like she had a part to play. She knew for a fact that she didn’t have anything to contribute to the battle-ready ponies, which made her feel even more useless to them.

But at that moment, an idea suddenly entered Twilight Sparkle’s mind. Her heart was pounding under the stress of the situation, but something about her crazy idea made her seriously consider it. Hurrying to the rail, she looked behind the Red Reef and saw the pirate ship that was gaining on them.

The pirates were still a considerable distance away. Although Twilight had never seen the range of cannon fire before she estimated that they had a few seconds of time before gunshots would be fired. Twilight recalled the information she remembered reading about in books and started formulating a plan. All her research and studies on the art of naval combat; maybe it wasn’t such a waste of time after all. But still, knowledge versus practical experience... Twilight could only assume she was just as prepared as she was ever going to be.

Twilight removed the outer layer of her dress, tossing aside her title of princess with it and prepared herself to assume the role of ‘captain’. “Everypony!” she called.

The crew stopped when they heard her voice and gave her their full attention. “My name is Twilight Sparkle!” the young alicorn told them. “Captain Razor Sharp has been drugged and it seems impossible at this moment to wake him from his sleep! Seeing as we have pirates tailing us, I will assume the role of acting captain! Do I have your support!?”

There was an awkward moment of silence. Twilight felt nervous volunteering herself for such a position, especially when the crew gave her no response. Instead, the colts and mares looked at each other to exchange opinions and it became apparent they didn’t think highly of Twilight as a leader. Even without her complete dress they still thought of her as nothing but a princess.

But suddenly, gunfire sounded in the distance. The very next second, cannonballs struck the Red Reef and the whole ship was shaken by the impact of enemy fire. After the Red Reef was damaged the pirates set to work reloading their cannons so they could fire another round. As the second wave of cannonballs collided with the Red Reef, Twilight Sparkle came forwards and began giving orders like she was the captain. Whether they accepted her or not, it was apparent they needed somepony to lead them

“Alright mares and colts!” she called. “Be at your stations and have every gun loaded and ready to fire!”

After understanding her orders, everypony obeyed and did just that. Twilight Sparkle, meanwhile, paused and considered the words she just spoke. “I hope I said that correctly,” she thought aloud. “I wish I had my book with me to tell me what I’m supposed to do next.”

Chapter 9

The distance between the two ships shrank as the pirates began to close in on their prey. The Red Reef couldn’t hope to outrun the airship. Although she had more sails, the pirates didn’t have to fight against the water while they were in the air. It was only a matter of time before the ships would engage each other in real battle.

It wasn’t long before the pirates were close enough to be identified. Nopony was quite sure which band of pirates they were dealing with until a hoof full of crew members recognized the ship. “It’s the Dark Fortune!” one of them called.

Twilight Sparkle rushed to the edge to see for herself if that was true. It was strange, but she had the feeling she had heard that name before, maybe from a royal report. Though the name was familiar she couldn’t remember anything more than that.

“What are your orders?” one of the colts asked her.

Twilight tried weighing the options in her head but an ideal plan was not coming to mind. Looking ahead of the ship, she noticed a storm in the distance. Without fog blocking their line of sight they could see as far as fifteen miles in every direction. The storm looked dangerous but was thankfully a safe distance away.

It was at that point Twilight developed a rather peculiar idea. “Turn this ship port side!” she told the helmspony. “Take us into the storm!”

“Into the storm!” he yelled. “Do you have any idea how intense a storm on the open ocean can be!?”

“But I read in a book there’s a fifty percent chance pirates won’t follow their prey into a storm!” Twilight responded, grinning sheepishly.

The helmspony was reluctant to obey Twilight’s plan, but turned the wheel and steered the Red Reef into the storm. When the storm lay dead ahead of them a feeling of dread came over the whole crew. The storm clouds were as black as night and the wind blew hundreds of miles an hour. Twilight realized the brilliance of her plan when she realized an airship couldn’t hope to survive such harsh weather. Being suspended above the water, the wind would blow the pirate’s airship away like it was a feather.

But as the Red Reef inched closer to the storm, the Dark Fortune did not break away and the pirates continued to follow. The skies were already becoming darker under the clouds when Twilight checked to see what had become of their pursuers. Much to her surprise, the Dark Fortune was actually following them into the storm.

“Their captain must be crazy!” she exclaimed.

The battle lines were drawn. Rain started pouring from the sky and waves began rocking the Red Reef up and down. Lighting struck with greater intensity than any cannon blast. The Dark Fortune came right alongside the Red Reef and both ships realized there was no escaping a fight. As the storm threatened to sink both vessels under its strength the two crews got a look at each other and began yelling their battle cries.

The navy officers stood proud and dignified on the deck of the Red Reef. The pirates on the Dark Fortune were crude and ragged, but no less brave when they yelled at their opponents.

Twilight Sparkle became nervous. “Wow... I certainly hope studies have prepared me for this.”

“Orders! Princess, we need orders!”

Twilight looked down at the crew and saw them all staring up at her. Without her instruction they were hopeless against the pirates. That was when the magnitude of the situation began to sink in and Twilight realized the huge responsibility of captaining these ponies.

She looked again at the Dark Fortune and saw cannons revealing themselves through the portholes on the side of the pirate ship. Twilight realized she had to hurry and make a decision. “Ready the cannons!” she yelled.

The portholes on the Red Reef opened as well. As the Dark Fortune came alongside the Red Reef the two ships had a face off, wondering who would shoot first. While the wind and the waves were rocking both ships around it became a question of when their aim would be good enough to give the order and start firing.

Twilight Sparkle remembered reading that it was a bad idea waiting for your opponent to fire first, so decided she would make the first shot when the ship was ready. The Red Reef went into a dive for a minute, but as soon as the ship leveled off and came back to the same height as the Dark Fortune, Twilight saw her chance.

“FIRE!”

The captain of the Dark Fortune got the same idea and gave the order to fire the very same instant Twilight Sparkle did. Smoke clouded the air. Cannons exploded like the sound of thunder. The two ships battled in the heart of the typhoon to prove their supremacy over the other.

Chapter 10

The strike of lightening on top of the sound of cannon fire was deafening to the ears as everypony opened fire. Twilight Sparkle had never imagined such destruction and mayhem. The wood along the ship’s hull splintered to pieces as the cannonballs smashed their way through. The pirates didn’t have it any easier, but it seemed they were already prepared for this kind of chaos.

After every cannon was exhausted, Twilight Sparkle almost forgot it was her duty as acting captain to lead these ponies. “Get the cannons reloaded!” she called.

The ponies scurried about the deck to obey her orders. They had no choice but to obey or be crushed by the pirates. But while the crew of the Red Reef needed time to load their guns, so did the pirates onboard the Dark Fortune. But curiously, that was when they began steering their ship away and Twilight realized they were changing their battle tactics.

“They’re going to make an overpass,” she thought to herself.

“What?” one of the ponies asked.

“I read about it in a book,” Twilight explained. “It’s when an airship tries flying in between the masts of a water-fairing ship.” Sure enough, the Dark Fortune continued flying away from the Red Reef until it turned back around and came heading straight for them.

“Are they crazy!?” the same pony exclaimed. “Can they seriously expect to maneuver that carefully in the middle of a storm!?”

Twilight couldn’t afford to wonder whether or not it was possible. The Dark Fortune was heading straight their way, about to fly overhead. If they did not make the maneuver with enough precision it was possible both ships would collide and be tangled in each other’s ropes.

“Ready the anti-aircraft cannons!” Twilight yelled.

Immediately, the crew obeyed and opened up trap doors along the deck of the ship. Then, elevators slowly rose out of the floor, revealing six highly advanced cannons, specially designed for shooting at airships.

But unfortunately, the Dark Fortune had a trick of its own as it came closer. On the underside of its hull the pirates opened trap doors that revealed guns that were pointing straight down.

There was no going back. When the Dark Fortune picked up enough speed the pirates flew their ship over the Red Reef. Luckily, their aim was precise enough that no real harm came to either ship as they passed each other. But that was when the pirates saw their chance and began firing their cannons downward, raining gunfire on top of the navy ponies below them.

The deck of the Red Reef began to collapse as its timbers buckled under the enemy’s fire. But while the pirate ship was still making its pass the cannons from the Red Reef opened fire as well and punctured through the Dark Fortune’s hull. Both ships endured heavy damage, everyone realized, after the Dark Fortune finished its pass and retreated back to the open waters.

“This isn’t over yet,” Twilight mumbled.

Sure enough, the Dark Fortune came alongside the Red Reef again and the pirates onboard did not look pleased with the damage done to their ship. After screaming yet another fierce battle cry some of the pegasus ponies jumped from their ship and flew towards the Red Reef.

Twilight Sparkle, at first, thought it was the rain but was surprised to find actual beads of sweat dripping from her face when she saw the pirates coming. “Oh my gosh... Why did I skip the chapter on boarding parties?” she wondered to herself.

Chapter 11

The pegasi came out of the sky like the rain as they landed on the deck of the Red Reef. Rising to confront them, the navy ponies drew their swords with their mouths to battle the pirates. The struggle escalated quickly. The deck of the Red Reef was a virtual war zone as ponies on both sides were clashing their blades together, trying to best their opponents in combat.

Twilight Sparkle was used to feeling in control of her surroundings but felt her composure slipping away as the fighting took on a life of its own.

Quite suddenly, Twilight Sparkle was startled when she heard a pony sneaking up behind her and turned just in time to discover he was a pirate. “Ah, a lovely mare in distress,” the pirate chuckled, with his deep voice.

Twilight was not one to criticize another pony for poor hygiene, but her opponent’s appearance was quite shocking to her. The pegasus had a filthy coat of fur with a matted mane and dusty feathers. His teeth were yellow and one of his eyes seemed stuck in a permanent squint for some reason. Twilight would have recommended a book on tooth decay but was terrified by the way he came and stood over her.

“Ah, not just any mare!” the pirate smiled. “She’s a princess too! What a lucky day! Your country might pay a handsome price for your safe return!”

He was about to reach for his sword, when another sword came flying their direction and stuck itself into the railing. Twilight tried pulling it out with her horn, but was surprised how deep the sword had cut in.

“Let me show you how to really play with swords,” the pirate laughed. Drawing his own blade, he was about to scare Twilight away from the sword, when Twilight managed to pull it out the last second and strike his weapon away.

When the pirate realized he had some challenge he tried striking Twilight for real this time, but Twilight managed to block him. Holding the sword with the magic of her horn, she fought back with everything she had. The pirate began to retreat, even though he looked bigger and stronger.

Twilight was too afraid to even look with both her eyes. Simply studying the other pony’s move and tactics, she recognized his lunge, thrust, parry and knew exactly how to overcome his style. “Geez, forget the book on dental health,” Twilight groaned. “I should recommend a book on decent sword fighting to you instead.”

Suddenly, a huge pony with a much larger sword came down on top of Twilight and the young alicorn had only an instant to block his attack. Staring up at her new opponent, Twilight retreated in fear when she saw his menacing, bloodthirsty eyes. This new pirate was bigger, meaner, and most definitely a greater challenge than the pirate Twilight had been fighting a moment ago.

Chapter 12

The Dark Fortune came around again as it prepared to make its next attack. As the two ships went deeper into the heart of the storm, the wind and the waves became increasingly harder to steer through. Giant waves rocked the Red Reef back and forth while gusts of wind threatened to blow the Dark Fortune off course.

In a last ditch effort to take the Red Reef, the helmspony of the Dark Fortune steered the ship hard to starboard and collided the two ships together. The force of the impact could be felt across both ships and knocked everypony off balance. But after the two ships were together, the earth ponies began crossing over next. A second wave of pirates began boarding the Red Reef and the navy crew found themselves overwhelmed.

It only lasted for a moment. After most of the pirate crew boarded the Red Reef, the Dark Fortune backed away and disappeared into the storm. Just as suddenly as it appeared, the ship disappeared from view and no one paid mind to it.

Twilight Sparkle got up and tried to recover her balance. She looked around and was thankful the pirates attacking her were now gone. The crash of the ships maybe sent them overboard, but in any case, she knew she wouldn’t have stood a chance against them.

Picking up the sword she had used before, Twilight hurried to the ship’s stern where she hoped to avoid anymore fighting. The deck was in complete chaos as pony battled pony for supremacy. The ponies from the gun deck came upstairs with weapons of their own and it was yet to be decided who had the upper hoof.

Twilight hurried to figure out what she could do next. “What do I do, what do I do?” she worried. “This isn’t like I imaged it would be.”

“I should think not,” came a voice.

Twilight spun around. Just when she though the battle had no more surprises in store for her, nothing could have prepared her for what she saw next. Landing onto the ship’s deck a few hoofsteps away was not just another pirate. It was the captain herself. An infamous pony of legend know far and wide across the Cascade Sea for her ruthlessness, as well as her fury in battle.

The clash of the thunder and the violence of the battle became like a quiet noise in the distance as Twilight Sparkle backed away from her opponent. The pirate captain looked down at her with pink eyes that seemed to glow as fire reflected in them.

“I almost don’t believe it,” the pirate captain laughed in her harsh, raspy voice. “I’ve found not just anypony! I’ve found the princess herself! I almost didn’t believe it when they told me Twilight Sparkle was attending this voyage!”

The pirate captain slowly reached for her sword and drew it from her scabbard with dramatic effect. In her mouth, she held a rapier; a sword longer and more dangerous in combat than the preferred cutlass.

Twilight Sparkle was trembling as she was backed into a rail and found she had nowhere to go. Against any other pirate maybe Twilight would have had the confidence to defeat them in a sword duel, but not against the captain of the Dark Fortune herself. The captain was a pony she should have remembered from before when she studied current events in the Cascade Sea. Twilight tried not to be afraid as she stood under the shadow of her opponent.

“Prepare yourself princess!” the pirate told her. “Mark this the hour of your doom, because the fearless and totally awesome Captain Rainbow Dash takes no prisoners!”