//------------------------------// // . // Story: 80 Days: Under the Waves // by Sharp Spark //------------------------------// I immediately leapt to defend the citizens, rushing to the streets and seizing the weapon of a fallen pirate guard. The pale invaders were monsters from a nightmare, eyeless equines with gaping, slavering voids for mouths. They pursued anything that moved with a relentless fervor, including even fleeing children. I fought as best as I could, interposing myself between the vulnerable and their attackers to try and buy time for the civilians to flee. Alone, however, I found myself hopelessly outmatched, and many times I saw my life pass before my eyes. Somehow, however, I held on, fighting a rearward retreat that followed the fleeing populace. Only when I found my back to the wall of seawater did I realize my mistake; while the sharkponies dove into the ocean to flee into open waters, I had no similar capability. I was weighing my possibilities when rescue arrived in the form of Madame Fog. While I had been waging a valiant but hopeless war, she had used the time to seek help. Thus she arrived with a weary band of sharkpony guards, nursing a wide variety of wounds. “We are escaping, Porter,” she commanded, and I had no remaining strength to argue. I clung to the back of one of the sharkponies as we swam away…