As it turned out, the "meal" the pirates had been referring to consisted of little more than birdseed and some rather unpleasant looking slop. The pirates didn't seem to care, but to the ponies and to Spike, they had no desire to eat anything that was put on their plates. If this was to be their last meal, they would rather go hungry.
The pirates and their captives hadn't been sitting down at table for very long before Rainbow Dash opted to break the silence. Against her better judgement, she asked the pirates. "So... you guys stopped just to eat?"
Twilight gave her pegasus friend a side eyed glance. She couldn't believe Rainbow of all ponies was looking this gift horse in the mouth by asking questions.
Captain Celaeno looked up from her pile of birdseed and eyed her chatty captive. "Well... yeah. It's the only break we're allowed to have. Storm King's orders. We get one meal break, and that's that. Trust me, with a guy like him, you're better off taking what you can get and not asking for anything else."
Rainbow apparently wasn't satisfied with such a response, she opted to keep on pressing (it apparently didn't occur to her that it might be better to stay quiet). "But you guys are pirates, right?"
"Used to be." Captain Celaeno said with a sad sigh.
Another pirate spoke up. "We much prefer the term: Swashbuckling adventurers. But I'm sad to say, our adventurnin' days are over."
The brash speedster questioned. "Let me guess, because of the Storm King?" All the pirates nodded back to her in reply, even pointing a claw to the back of the cabin where a portrait of the Storm King hung on the wall. "But why are you working for him if you hate him so much?"
One of the pirates grumbled. "We didn't have a choice. At first we didn't really get involved with him. We'd mind our own business and he'd mind his. 'Course, wasn't long before we started tangling with him. Never met him face to face: We'd just launch quick little hit and runs. We'd swoop into towns he'd conquered, take whatever we could get our paws on, and retreat back into the clouds before he even knew we were there. We all thought the good times would never end, that our luck would never run out. But it did. Eventually, he caught us. And when he did, he made it quite clear what our options were: Either serve him wilingly, or he'd blast our ship out of the sky and take all the loot for himself."
Rainbow protested. "And you just let him walk all over you like that?! You guys are pirates! You're supposed to be fearless!"
"At least this way we keep our ship, and we're still in one piece," The pirate from earlier remarked. "The Storm King, however, he still gets on our case no matter what. Wasn't long ago he was giving us an earful because some of his merchandise he was asking us to carry wasn't showing up when it was supposed to."
The rainbow maned pegasus was utterly astounded by such a statement. "He has merchandise?!"
Captain Celaeno slowly nodded. "Yup. The only thing he loves more than the sound of his own voice is seeing all the things made in his likeness," She briefly glanced to a corner of the cabin where plushies of the Storm King sat in neglected condition. "I don't like it any more than the rest of my crew," Another sad sigh escaped her lips. "I don't even know why I'm telling you all this. Guess I just wanted to get off my chest. It's not like it matters, none of you will be going anywhere."
But Rainbow Dash felt like she had heard quite enough! She rose from her seat and pounded the table, looking the captain firmly in the eyes! "Don't you see?! The Storm King doesn't care about you! So why put up with him?! He's not here now, he can't tell you how to live your lives! I say it's time you cast off those shackles! Go back to being the pirates you were always meant to be!"
The captain lamented. "If only it were that simple. We've been out of the game for so long."
The brash speedster would hear nothing of such an argument! "Perhaps you just need the right motivation. And luckily for you, I'm just the sort of pony to give it." Then after taking a deep breath, she strolled across the length of the table and began to sing:
I know the world can get you down,
Things don't work out quite the way that you thought.
Feeling like all your best days are done,
Your fears and doubts are all you've got.
But there's a light shining deep inside,
Beneath those fears and doubts, so just squash 'em!
And let it shine for all the world to see,
That it is time, yeah, time to be awesome!
Rainbow's words and singing seemed to inspire her friends (all except for Twilight, anyway), as they all joined in chanting, encouraging the pirates to join them in singing over and over again:
Ah, ah, ah-ah, awesome!
It's time to be so awesome!
Captain Celaeno seemed to be moved ever so slightly by the singing, because she started to sing in reply:
You've no idea how hard it's been,
This dull routine we've been forced to do.
Rainbow Dash only argued back as she sang louder:
Don't let them rob you of who you are,
Be awesome, it's all up to you!
Rising from her seat at the end of the table, Captain Celaneo stood up! Her eyes flashed with renewed vigor as she sang:
I feel the light stirring deep inside,
It's like a tale still yet to be told.
Rainbow Dash joined the cheerful captain as she went over to an old, wooden chest. Opening it up, the captain brought out all sorts of pirate memorabilia: Eyepatches, pirate hats, even a few swords. She started tossing it all towards her crew, then joined Rainbow as the two sang in unison:
And now it's time to break the shackles free,
And start living like the brave and the bold!
Bursting out from the cabin, the pirates and the ponies all began singing together:
It's time to be awesome!
Let loose, be true, so awesome!
Yeah, it's time to be awesome!
Go big, be you, so awesome!
Newly inspired, the other pirates started singing too:
We used to soar through the clouds in the skies.
Elaborate schemes we would love to devise.
We rescued our treasure and stored it away.
Saving these gemstones for a rainy day.
Everyone all joined in singing:
We see that light filling up our skies,
Rainbow Dash then sang in encouragement as she watched Captain Celaeno take a large, worn looking book and carry it to the edge of the wooden plank:
So take the Storm King's orders and just toss 'em!
Then Rainbow joined with the others and happily sang as loud as she could:
'Cause it's the time to let our colors fly.
And Captain Celaeno, brandishing a sword, rushed to the wheel of the ship as she sang to her crewmates:
Hey, scallywags, it's time to be awesome!
The singing slowly faded away after that as the pirates forgot all about their earlier plans for their "stowaways". They were now happy to let these unexpected passengers travel with them.
"So, where ya heading, maties?" Captain Celaeno asked the ponies once the singing had stopped. "Name the place, we'll take you there."
Pinkie Pie was happy to pull out the map Twilight had obtained from Capper back in Klugetown, pointing to a location she had circled with a red crayon. "Mount Aris, home of the hippogriffs."
Captain Celaeno nodded, firmly taking hold of the ship's wheel. "Aye aye, ponies. Mount Aris it is!" Then she happened to look up, noticing something that gave her cause for concern. "Though, it might be a while, maties. With all those clouds in the way, we might be in for a rough ride."
Rainbow Dash was all too eager to rectify such a problem. "I can take care of that. Just watch!" Without any further incentive, she unfolded her wings and took to the skies! She soared through the clouds at lightning speed, breaking them up with the greatest of ease!
The pirates, not used to such impressive aerial manuevers, were awestruck by what they saw!
Then, suddenly, a deafening roar split the air as a rainbow colored shockwave spread across the sky!
Pinkie Pie's eyes went wide with delight as she exclaimed in awe and wonder! "Ooh! A sonic rainboom! It's been quite a while since Dashie's done that."
Twilight, however, frowned at such a vivid display. Normally, she would've admired Rainbow Dash's tactics, as flashy as they were. But right now, she was worried that something like a sonic rainboom would draw unwanted attention. And that was something she wanted to avoid at all costs, especially since it had only been a stroke of luck that Rainbow had won over the pirates.
Rainbow Dash landed back on the ship's desk a moment later, wings folding to either side of her body. "Wow! I'm so good, I even amaze myself!" She proclaimed with prideful confidence. "I wasn't even planning to do a sonic rainboom, that was purely on instinct."
Captain Celaeno, meanwhile, steadily turned the ship's wheel as she declared. "Well then, it'll be smooth sailing from here to Mount Aris. And if anyone tries to stop us, they'll have another thing coming. We're back in business, me hearties!"