//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Pony Calibur // by Polarfish //------------------------------// On the most miserable day of Equestrian history, the Red Mare docked at Herring Port. It was a very stormy afternoon, with dark grey clouds covering the sky, almost stopping all sunlight from coming in, and heavy rain falling. Ismay, a short, dark green colt with a dark yellow mane, walked into his captain’s quarters to give him news of the arrival. As he was walking into the inside of the ship, he looked towards the land to see something very unusual. Ismay walked into Hoovantes’ chambers, to see him warming himself by the fire. “Captain” Ismay said, “We’ve managed to dock at Herring as planned. But something odd has happened…”. “Odd?” Hoovantes said with his usual sharp tongue, “This weather wasn’t forecasted today! I have no idea what those Pegasi are doing up there, but this is ridiculous!”. Ismay didn’t like to hear Hoovantes shout. Although Ismay had been his first mate for many years, Hoovantes still terrified him. Hoovantes was a particularly tall colt, dark grey in colour and with a light grey goatee. He wore a rather large, red pirate captain’s hat, which reminded his men of his superiority. The hat also had a hole for his large, mighty horn to stick through. “That’s not what I’m talking about, Captain” Ismay replied, There appears to be… um… two ponies waiting outside the ship, both covered in their own black cloaks”. Hoovantes looked at Ismay oddly for a moment. “Well, that is odd” Hoovantes said, “I don’t remember making enemies with anypony wearing a black cloak. Is there no-one else in the town?”. “There seems not to be, Captain” Ismay replied, “It’s Celestia’s funeral today. Just about everypony has gone to Canterlot to mourn. That’s probably why the Pegasi made it so wet, also, so it’d be a sign of their respect for her passing”. Hoovantes stood up impatiently and walked onto the ships’ deck to investigate with Ismay. The two ponies were still down there; one male and one female, if their sizes under their robes were to be compared. Ismay was about to suggest to Hoovantes to not call them, but he began to anyway. “Hey, you two!” Hoovantes shouted down, “What’s your business here?” “I take it you’re Hoovantes?” the male asked, looking up at him from below. “We’re here to make a… deal with you. There’ll be a lot of wealth in it for you”. Hoovantes’ eyes glowed. “Well, what are you waiting for?” he asked Ismay, “Escort them onboard! I’ll be in my chambers!”. Ismay went off the ship and motioned for the two ponies to follow him. They did, without a word, until they arrived inside Hoovantes’ chambers. Hoovantes had quietly called a lot of his men inside for an ambush, as they often do with noblemen looking to make deals. As soon as the two cloaked ponies entered, five other pirates came from behind them, pushing them into the room. “Now” Hoovantes sneered, “What makes you think you can walk onto my ship, and offer me a deal?”. “Well, if you dared attack us” the cloaked colt sneered back, “I’d have my friend here kill you”. Ismay watched, feeling worried about these mysterious people as Hoovantes laughed in the colt’s face. “I think all of us will be able to kill you two quite easily” Hoovantes replied, “No matter how good of a fighter your friend is”. The colt sighed. “Volderp, kindly show him what you can do” he said calmly, “Have your men try to stop her from getting to you, alright?”. Hoovantes nodded at Ismay, signalling to the pirates to do what the colt said. The smaller pony took off her cowl, to reveal a very odd looking pony. Ismay examined it thoroughly for the short time he had to look at it. It was a grey Pegasus, with a light yellow mane and seriously displaced eyes. The right seemed to be looking up as the left was looking down. Ismay also looked to its front knees to see an odd mechanism on each of them; with katars hanging out of them. Volderp started walking slowly towards Hoovantes, as his pirates surrounded him, with Pegasi pirates flying above him to avoid an aerial attack. Ismay sat back to watch the proceedings. She walked up to the wall of pirates, and they took out their swords. As they lunged towards her, with their swords in their mouths, Ismay saw Volderp begin to lift off of the ground and start hovering with her wings. She began to bend her limbs and spine in very odd directions, and miraculously manoeuvred through the pirates. She then bent her right knee, activating the mechanism, aiming her katars on her right leg at Hoovantes’ face. “Off me!” he shouted, and all of the pirates and Volderp went away, Volderp returning to her master’s side. “I hope you now see that we’re on equal terms here” the colt sneered, “If you try to kill us, Volderp will kill you, and you will not be able to save yourself”. Hoovantes grinned. “I admire your skills, Volderp” he said laughing, “I always like to see a good warrior, even though I’ve killed almost all of the ones I’ve seen before you. So, then, what’s your business here?”. “I am a pony of significant importance from Ponea” the hooded colt replied, “And I believe a war is about to break out. The Equestrians will, no doubt, blame us for Celestia’s assassination; which they are right to. “Anyway, we need your assistance. Odds are that they’ll try to enter Ponea through Goldrow River. I am asking you, Hoovantes, to be ready for them there when they come, attack them from surprise, and destroy as many of them as you think you can”. Ismay felt unnerved by this idea. They had never tried to halt a whole army before, and he wasn’t sure if they’d be able to pull it off. Hoovantes was a legendary warrior, but he wasn’t known for his intelligence. Ismay did most of the work with organizing the men, but he wouldn’t dare to ever say that Hoovantes was wrong about anything, as that led to a punishment of death for the majority of men. “Interesting” Hoovantes replied, “I have no love for Equestria, anyway. I’d be happy to help out…. Depending on the amount of payment, of course”. “We are offering you fifty tonnes of pure gold for every one of their ponies you kill” the hooded colt replied, “You’ll be one of the richest ponies in existence, if you pull this off. The dead ponies count as ones we kill, too, as long as they’re within a mile of the bridge and you have engaged them”. Ismay put his hoof on his face as he saw Hoovantes smile widely. Ismay knew that there was no possible way that even Ponea could offer so much gold. It’d be an insane amount of wealth to give, even if they could possibly have that amount of gold. But Hoovantes’ greed had a habit of blinding him. These ponies also seemed very untrustworthy to Ismay. The assassin looked too odd to be just a normal pony. Ismay felt that there was something else to her. “Hmm….” Hoovantes said, pretending to think deeply. Ismay knew this as his tactic to get more money out of people. “Make it 6 tonnes per pony killed, and you have a deal”. “Fine” the cloaked colt replied, with a dark happiness in his voice, “I’m sure my associates in Ponea would agree with that. “Now, if you want to do this most efficiently, I suggest you arrive at the river during-” “You done talkin’ yet?” Hoovantes snapped, interrupting the colt’s instructions, “You have my word that I’ll pull it off to the best of my ability. You have no reason to worry, at all. I’m a fantastic strategist, and I’ll be able to organize my attack by itself, thank you very much”. “So, I guess I’ll be on my way, then” the colt replied calmly, “Good day, Hoovantes. Volderp, follow”. They left the ship and returned to land, but the men started whispering to each other about what they were doing. Many of them were from Equestria, and Ismay realized that they must be quite unnerved. “Well, what are you waiting for?” Hoovantes shouted, “Start unloading the goods as planned! We have deadlines to meet!”. The man scurried down to the hold, where their ill-gotten goods were kept. “Now” Hoovantes said to Ismay, “Start drawing up the plans for the attack on the river. I don’t feel like doing it myself”.